Students in Woodworking Technology class today tested their work as Pizza Chefs! Students completed the Pizza Peel unit where they work to broaden their skills of analyzing blue prints, using the laser cutter, effectively assembling wood pieces , sanding and prepping wood with non-toxic materials and much more. As a perfect way to prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday, students prepared personal pizzas and used their finished Pizza Peels to transport their pizza creations to and from the grill.

​CORRECTION: National Honor Society AND and Mr. Jon Goss' Cub Scout Troop made a successful food drive possible. Since the beginning of November, members of the National Honor Society have been encouraging homerooms to bring in non-perishable items . On Friday morning before school, this is what had been already been collected. This was probably one of the best food drives that we have every delivered. Thank you for your support.
                A special thanks to the Cub Scouts for their support and collection efforts!

Do you remember when I posted about alumna, Sophia Griswold, being invited to perform at the World's Fair in Dubai? Well, take a minute to view some footage of her performances there...

Chinese I classes are studying the Chinese written system, which has a recorded history of 5000 years.  They are practicing this ancient art form with the old fashioned ink and brushes after learning about its practical use and cultural implications. They also have learned how breathing and patience are necessary to write well while doing Chinese calligraphy.

By Will Larson & Sr. Vazquez

Students and teachers at LOL High School worked on a collaborative project to create cards for Letter of Love, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting refugee children around the world.

First, Ms. Traver’s students (studying how to use software) designed beautiful cards with pictures of characters from Star Wars to Disney.  The cards were then passed to Sra. Brown’s,  Amnesty International club, and Sr. Vazquez’s Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica. These students wrote letters to the children on the cards. The non-profit organization from California recommended writing the cards in Spanish. This gave students the opportunity to use Spanish in a real context.

​Through Letters of Love, students send handwritten notes and letters to immigrant children currently housed in detention centers at the United States-Mexican border. We hope that we can brighten the day of these children and provide them support.

Thursday, November 11, proved to be, yet again, a wonderful demonstration of LOLHS' gratitude and honor for our local Veterans. While grades 9-11 participated via live stream to their homerooms, the seniors and our honored guests enjoyed an in-person assembly  - something that has been missed for the past two years!
​Our Wildcat Band and Chorus performed with heart and soul but our guest speaker, Mr. Herb Arico, a 99.6 year old WWII Veteran and grandfather to Jed and Quinn Arico, stole the show! He shared his experiences of his time during the war all over Europe. He simply captivated the audience. Mary Surprenant received the Voice of Democracy Award and was recognized by the local VFW.  She gave her thoughtful, award-winning (abridged) speech to the audience addressing the question "America: Where do we go from here?" And, Elise Debernardo started the assembly with her opening remarks explaining what Veterans Day means to her.  It was a beautiful ceremony for our Veterans - the heroes who have unselfishly dedicated their lives fighting to provide us with the freedoms we hold near and dear as American Citizens.

French AP/ ECE students finish up a chocolate mousse recipe on Thursday!

by: Monique Lavoie
Amnesty International's monthly bulletin focused on detention centers around the world. Amnesty’s main goal was to inform people about how detention centers are a harmful and unsafe form of punishment. People in detention centers are often wrongfully put into the centers and are left without any access to their family’s or a lawyer. People imprisoned are often taken to the center for following their beliefs (religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or economic status). Detention centers have horrible conditions including over crowding, torture, and unfair legal processes. People that get thrown into detention centers are often the cause of immigration into another country. The people fleeing their country are usually leaving worse conditions including natural disasters, improper health/medical care, and overall poor quality of life. A way to improve the situation in these detention centers is to start providing the people with proper and humane treatments. This would include access to health professionals, effective legal practices, and no torture. Detention centers are inhumane and do not help the people within the centers. In addition to the bulletin board we also sent letters to children in detention centers in the south by the borders. These letters were made to inspire the children to keep holding onto hope. Each letter of hope has a message to the children to keep fighting.

Please join us for our second community forum to discuss renovation options and possible grade reconfigurations at our PK-8 schools.  This forum will take place on Wednesday, November 17 at 6:00 p.m. in the LOLMS auditorium or can be viewed remotely on our YouTube channel.  More details regarding this forum can be found in the included attachment (below)

In our newest episode co-hosts Alli Behnke, Gavin Lodge, and LOLHS student Phoebe Lampos welcome Dr. Alicia Farrell, local clinical psychologist. Dr. Farrell is a brilliant provider with an abundance of great advice for parents on the pressure to be perfect, parenting focused on character versus performance, and resilience.

by Gretchen Burgess

​Seven students from the LOLHS Model United Nations Club attended a three-day conference November 5th-7th, hosted at the University of Connecticut. Students represented various countries and debated and proposed solutions to a variety of international problems. The students who attended the conference were: Macklin Cushman, Ella Halsey, Mohamad Hamou, Dylan Sheehan, Adeline Riccio, Kathryn Brandenburg, and Billy Barry. Macklin Cushman said, “This was the perfect learning opportunity as well as a great chance to grow closer as a club.” Macklin also won the outstanding delegate award for the UNESCO Committee. If you are interested in joining the Model UN Club, please email Ms. Mercaldi (mercaldia@region18.org) or stop by room 225. We meet every other Tuesday at 7:10am. 

AP/ ECE students recently took a trip to Tequila’s Authentic Mexican Restaurant in Old Saybrook where they were able to enjoy a lovely dinner together. Owned by the Cruz family-- members of our very own community-- Tequila’s is truly a local treasure. Thanks to the gracious Mr. Cruz and his exceptionally accommodating management and staff, the 15 students were able to practice their Spanish with the wait staff and each other, and they got a better taste of Mexican culture through Tequila’s authentic (and delicious) Mexican cuisine. In addition to having a spectacular time, students were so appreciative of the whole Tequila’s staff and the lengths they have gone to in order to create such a warm, welcoming environment for the students every year.
 
By: Juanjo Vazquez