February 2026 MRMHS Newsletter

February 2
NAEP Testing for Select Middle School Students

February 5
No Late Bus
Parent–Teacher Conferences (2:30–7:00 PM)

February 6
Parent–Teacher Conferences (No School for Students)

February 9
ASVAB Testing

February 10
MCVP 8th Grade Caregiver Zoom Meeting (5:30 PM)

February 11
Department Meetings (Course Recommendations)

February 13
Quarter 3 Progress Report Closes

February 20
Quarter 3 Progress Reports Mailed (approximately)

February 23 – February 27
February Break (No School)

March 2
VEX 6 Begins
MCVP Middle School Sessions Begin (During WIN)

Come cheer on our student-athletes and show your school spirit. Be sure to check out the MRMHS Athletics Calendar for the most updated dates throughout the year!

🐾 Winter Sports Are Underway at MRMHS!

Be sure to check out our Monadnock Huskies Athletics Facebook page— and give it a follow to stay connected:

👉 Monadnock Huskies Athletics (Facebook): New Facebook Page!
👉 Game schedules: https://monadnockathletics.com

🏆 Come Cheer On the Huskies!

We encourage families and community members to come out and support our athletes. Let’s fill the stands and show our Husky pride this winter!

Go Huskies! 🐺💙

Shannon Topa

MRMHS Athletic Director

February can be a tough stretch of the school year. The days are short, winter feels like it has been here forever, and both students and adults can start to feel a little worn down. This is often when focus and motivation dip, which makes it a good time to be intentional about reinforcing executive functioning skills, the "thinking" and "doing" skills students (and adults!) use every day.

A Focus on Task Initiation

One critical executive functioning skill to pay particular attention to is task initiation. Task initiation is the ability to start a task without procrastinating. While that may sound straightforward, it is something many students struggle with. Getting started is often the hardest part! Once students begin a task, the work usually feels more manageable. That first step matters, even if everything is not perfect yet.

What This Looks Like at School

At school, we create opportunities for students to start their work during the day, rather than leaving everything for later. Teachers take steps to provide clear directions, breaking assignments into manageable pieces, and building in structured work time during class.

Students are encouraged to take advantage of supports like WIN time with teacher guidance, Learning Lab support, and dedicated class work time to begin assignments in a calm, supported setting. Starting work at school often reduces stress and helps students stay on track.

How Families Can Help at Home

At home, having a consistent and calm space to work can make a big difference. Predictable routines for when homework or studying begins are often more helpful than focusing only on when work is due. Encouraging students to start with a short amount of focused time and helping them break tasks into smaller steps can make getting started feel less overwhelming. A focus on progress over perfection (Trying to get something done without worrying about getting everything done!) is a helpful strategy as well. Even principals need to remember this sometime with big tasks lists!

A helpful way to practice this outside of school, and one that is just as important for life, is to focus on small starting points. That might mean putting clothes in the hamper instead of trying to clean the entire room, organizing one drawer or one table, or even just washing the first dish in the sink. Getting started with one small step often leads to great progress.

Looking Ahead

Be sure to reach out to the many adults at school who support your child including teachers, counselors, and administrators if you have questions or would like to talk more about how we support these skills. Family-Teacher Conferences this week are a great opportunity to continue those conversations and explore ways to build executive functioning skills together!

Brett Gottheimer

Principal

Monadnock Regional Middle High School

Struggling to begin big tasks or assignments? Start strong with evidence-based tips from Stanford University’s Center for Teaching and Learning! Their “Getting Started on Tasks” resource breaks down what task initiation is and offers practical strategies to overcome common barriers like hesitation, distractions, and lack of motivation. Check out the full guide here:
👉 https://ctl.stanford.edu/students/getting-started-tasks

As part of our ongoing NEASC reaccreditation process, we’re collecting feedback from families to help us understand what we’re doing well and where we can continue to grow. NEASC (the New England Association of Schools and Colleges) is the organization that reviews schools to ensure we meet rigorous standards and continue improving for all students.

Your perspective matters. Please take a few minutes to complete the Family Survey linked below—your input directly supports our accreditation work and helps guide future decisions at MRMHS.

👉 Family Survey Link: https://surveys.neasc.org/s3/CPS-2028-Family-Survey?id=42

Thank you for partnering with us!

Winter is here and while we love the snow, the germs are a little less welcome. The cold weather brings dry air and germs that love to make the rounds. A few simple habits can help students stay healthy: washing hands often, covering coughs, getting enough sleep, staying hydrated, eating well, and dressing for the cold. Please remember that if your child has symptoms such as fever, vomiting, body aches, or is feeling unwell, the best place for them to recover is at home. Keeping sick students home helps to prevent the spread of illness and keeps our school community healthier. Thank you for your continued support and partnership in keeping our students healthy this winter.

Sincerely,

Lisa Brooks, RN
MRMHS School Nurse
603-903-6701

Granite Edvance is a NH based education non-profit group that helps students navigate financial aid packages and FAFSA filing questions for free. Here is the link to their site. You can go here to book an appointment with a specialist. These can be online or in person!

Decisions are arriving for high school seniors, as well as financial aid packages. Loans? Pell? Grant money? Fees? Scholarships? These can be difficult to decipher and navigate. Granite Edvance can help! Their specialists can meet with you and look over all of the package information for each school so you and your student can make the best decision.

RVCC Early College program is currently registering students for both the Spring and Summer 2026 semesters. We hope this provides flexibility for students planning college pathways.

The NH Early College scholarship will continue to cover tuition for two courses per year in any subject area for all NH high school students.

Check out the links to the Course Schedules and the High School Programs pages, where you will find an online registration form.

Additionally, the RVCC Academic Programs page for students interested in earning an associate degree upon high school graduation. An RVCC associate degree provides students with an immediate certification for employment as well as transferable credits that will contribute to a four-year degree program.

Reminder: The Community College System of NH extends the high school tuition rate to seniors for the semester following high school graduation. This includes courses covered under Early College scholarship that can be taken during the Summer 2026 semester.

Monday, February 9th, we will have the US Armed Forces at Monadnock to administer the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery Test to students interested in military enlistment. This test will measure aptitudes in the following domains: verbal, math, science and technical, and spatial.

The ASVAB serves two main purposes: military enlistment and career exploration, helping students assess their strengths for military jobs and civilian careers. It also helps the Department of Defense place recruits in suitable military roles and provides insights into potential jobs, education, and training pathways for both military and civilian life.

If your student is interested in signing up for this test please have them see their school counselor.

Find out more about the test at ASVAB.com or take a practice test on the Army National Guard Practice Test site.

It is February, which means scholarships will be live starting Feb 10th. There will be applications in the School Counseling Office. There are scholarships for all types of post-secondary education, including college, trade school, and 2 or 4-year programs. All scholarship applications are due on March 26th.

Looking ahead to March, we will have a day to support scholarship applications for seniors in the library on March 12th. All seniors applying for scholarships can attend for some extra support!

Middle school is a time of incredible change where friendships and new romantic interests take center stage. For 2026, one focus is on empowering students to build relationships rooted in mutual respect and safety.

What Makes a Relationship Healthy?

A healthy relationship should make you feel safe, respected, and valued. Key foundations include:

• Mutual Respect: Valuing each other’s opinions and respecting personal boundaries, such as the right to say "no" to any activity that feels uncomfortable.

• Trust & Honesty: Being reliable builds a safe space where you can be your authentic self.

• Independence: It is healthy to maintain separate interests and spend time with other friends. You should never feel pressured to spend all your time with just one person.

Digital Boundaries

In a world of constant connection, setting digital boundaries is essential for your mental health. Consider these rules for yourself and your friends:

• Respect Response Times: It is okay to not reply to a text immediately. You have the right to put your phone away for homework, sleep, or "me time".

• No Pressure for Passwords: Healthy relationships do not require sharing passwords or checking each other’s private messages.

• Ask Before Posting: Always check with the person before posting a photo of them on social media.

Using "I-Statements" to Handle Conflict

When disagreements happen, using "I-statements" helps you express your feelings without blaming the other person. Instead of saying "You always ignore me," try:

• "I feel lonely when you don't reply to my texts for two days because I value our friendship".

• "I feel uncomfortable when you talk about that topic and I would like us to change the subject".

Resources for Parents & Caregivers

Parents play a vital role in modeling healthy interactions. Here are some expert-led resources for 2026 to help you navigate these years with your student:

• CDC: Essentials for Parenting Teens: Comprehensive guides and videos on building positive connections with youth ages 11–17.

• Navigating Teen Dating: A Pediatrician's Perspective Guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics on when to let teens start dating and recognizing signs of unhealthy relationships.

• Dating and Digital Abuse: Keeping Your Teen Safe Online: From the Nationwide Children’s pediatric experts.

• Love is Respect: Resources specifically designed for young people and parents to identify healthy behaviors and access 24/7 support.

🔥 Fire Team

🌎 Earth Team

🌟 START OF QUARTER 3 🌟

We are just starting Quarter 3. Some things to remember as we forge ahead.

• All assignments are important assignments no matter what they are weighted. Formative Assignments help students to get ready for Summative Assignments, so although they count as less, they are just as important to complete.

• When your child is absent from school, they miss class instruction and assignments. It is your child’s responsibility to make sure they catch up with whatever they miss at an appropriate time (WIN, after school, activity or lunch if the teacher is available).

🥶 OUTDOOR ACTIVITY 🥶

The temperatures are beginning to drop but we are still going outside for activity time. There is no inside option for students so be sure they have appropriate dress for being outside.