Students left for Spain on Tuesday morning with bright smiles, excited for thier adventures that will happen over the next two weeks. 

You can follow their adventures by accessing the Spain 2022 blog linked to this blog - the tab is found at the top of page next to the News & Info link. You can also click on the image below which will take you there as well...Enjoy!

Congratulations to Avery Wyman who was selected as the Rotary  Student of the Month for Fine Arts!  Avery was selected by the Music Department because he embodies the spirit and passion that is needed to become a great musician. Mr. Wilson has worked closely with during his high school career, mentioning that Avery first reached out to him in Fifth Grade. He states that  "in his four years at Lyme-Old Lyme High it has been my pleasure and privilege to watch him become the dedicated outstanding musician that he has become. I know he will do great things."  Avery is weighing his options as to what school he will attend in the fall but knows for certain that he will be continuing his students in music with a focus in Jazz.

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year and Employee of the Year. The nomination forms can be found on our website at: https://www.region18.org/staff
 
Deadline for submissions is May 16, 2022. 
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And the countdown begins…4 days until departure!
As students and chaperones continue to prepare for our upcoming trip to Salamanca, Spain, spirits remain high!  We will have a daily blog to keep everyone in our LOL community informed about our experience and this can be found here:

by Izzy Reynolds, Member of the Spanish Honors Society

The Spanish Honors Society was fortunate enough to have guest speakers, Polo and Juan Martinez from Grandma’s Market, speak with us about their lives in Mexico and in the United States. Both men are from Mexico who immigrated to the United States and now own a small business. They described their native country as “rich in culture”; they noted that the 32 states of Mexico all contain distinct characteristics. The diversity among art and architecture is breathtaking, making every state worth a visit. On the other hand, they pointed out that Cancun is not an ideal vacation spot for people who want to immerse themselves in the culture because Cancun is filled with “American food”. When asked if it was hard starting a restaurant in the United States, they admitted that it was difficult as immigrants to find work with the language barrier. Although they are able to speak English now, they believe it is important to fight for more cultural representation for the many native Spanish speaking people living in the United States. When asked what the weirdest thing they encountered after coming to the United States was, they discussed the difference in diet. They were not acclimated to the fast food culture, or the other cuisines eaten besides Mexican. For instance, in Mexico they ate bread and coffee daily, which is not the case in the United States. The members of SHS were engrossed in the knowledge both men had of Mexico and their experiences immigrating to the United States. In addition to the knowledge they shared, they brought bracelets, drinks, and churros from their market for all of the members to have. The Spanish Honors Society is eternally grateful for their appearance and encourages everyone who wants to try authentic Mexican cuisine to travel to Grandma’s market for a meal. 
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To celebrate April being Financial Literacy month, the students in Personal Finance had a variety of guest speakers who shared their expertise about important financial concepts a young adult should know. Jennifer Coffey and David Verzillo from Webster Bank discussed savings and checking accounts, fees, fraud, and the importance of credit scores. Ed Kerrigan from All State Insurance explained auto insurance coverage, driving infractions affect on premiums, premium discounts, and what to do if you are in an accident. Nora Walters and Keith Nye from Reynold's Subaru explained the car buying process, how to research a car, the importance of credit scores, and the difference between buying and leasing. Many thanks to the guest speakers!

On April 3rd Members of the LOLHS Environmental and Community Service Club helped to build 3 large bridges over a section of trail on the Ames Property that is persistently muddy in the winter and spring. They learned to use drills, move HEAVY lumber, level small bridges, and love their open spaces. Best of all they pushed their boundaries and learned they have GRIT.  The dirt on their hands and shoes is just a bonus. At this point, this crew could build trail bridges on their own. Outstanding work everyone! 

On Tuesday evening, Alli Behnke presented the findings of the recent survey that was taken by students in December. She was joined by a panel of students, also members of the Youth Advisory Council. They were able to give the survey a bit of perspective. 
If you missed the article in The Day this past week, you can access it in full via the link below or ... just keep reading.

Published March 30. 2022 8:03PM | Updated March 30. 2022 9:03PM
​By Elizabeth Regan   Day staff writer
 [email protected] 

Old Lyme — A group of Lyme-Old Lyme High School students had some tough love for parents as they talked about kids growing up too fast under the influence of the coronavirus pandemic, perfectionism and social media platforms.
The eight students, who were from the Youth Advisory Council and high school youth coalition, were at the middle school auditorium Tuesday night to put the results of the 2021 Lyme-Old Lyme youth survey into perspective. The results have been compiled every two years since 2006 to assess attitudes in sixth through 12th grades on alcohol, marijuana, vaping and mental health.
While the survey showed trends in drinking and drug use have gone down since 2019, so too has the number of students who recognize those behaviors as dangerous.
The project was spearheaded by Lyme-Old Lyme Prevention Coalition coordinator and social worker Alli Behnke. She described it as alarming that the number of students who think drinking every day is harmful went from 50.9% in 2019 to 27.7% two years later.
The students agreed the shadow of the pandemic — and its new normal — looms large over the results of the survey.

by Monique Lavoie
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This week the Amnesty International club focused on the crisis in Ukraine. The main topics that we chose for this were as follows:

• Refugee Crisis
• Human Rights Violations 
• Why it's Happening
• Civilian Action 
• What's Happening 

Our groups researched how the crisis in Ukraine has forced many of the Ukrainian civilians to flee from their homes. While Ukrainians flood into other countries, there are other people all over the world taking action. There are protests and fundraisers for the people of Ukraine. All around the world people show their support as refugees seek aid. Many human rights violations are being violated as well. There is destruction of critical infrastructure including main resources (water, oil, gas, and electricity).