Family Update: November 21, 2025

On November 15th OSS assisted the United Way of Greater New Bedford’s annual effort to collect non-perishables and canned goods. The donations will benefit the Hunger Heroes Project, which makes baskets of food for families in need for Thanksgiving. This was the 7th year we have helped at this event. Students had a great time, and their positive energy added to the general enthusiasm at the event.

Tuesday night Student Council hosted a bonding event for our board members:

“I really appreciated all the work the OSS student Council did to put together their program.  I loved playing Uno and enjoyed the new deck additions- could have played more!

Rusty and I sat with Addi and Abby. Their warmth and enthusiasm for the activities were contagious. We had such fun building towers and doing puzzles. Student council did a great job organizing the activities and the power point slides were terrific.”

8th graders returned to BSU this past Wednesday for GIS Day. GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems, a computer software used globally to capture, analyze and monitor data. Our students created a survey to collect data on the types of trees located on campus at Bridgewater State, and organized their findings within the ArcGIS online platform.

Thank you to teachers and families who have already contributed to our Annual Appeal. Please feel warmth in your heart knowing that it truly means a lot to OSS!  We appreciate every effort and every dollar as we strive to reach our goal of 100% participation - and we are getting very close!

Last Friday our Portfolio Conference Presentations demonstrated the growth of each OSS learner. We are so proud of each student, their progress, and their personal goal setting for the rest of this academic year.

Follow our regularly updated CALENDAR to see all events.

5th grade will be hosting a bunny as class pet! It is easy to see why his name is Fluffy! Any supplies you may be looking to donate forward (ex: cage, food, hay, cedar shavings) - will be put to good use!

Did you see the flier in your Friday Folder? You can purchase a cake and support OSS at the same time! Wow! Yum!

Calendar Highlights:

• 11/25 - Graduate Attitude of Gratitude Event from 6-8pm for OSS graduates.

  NOTE: We will host Evening Study on Tuesday the 25th.

• 11/26 - 11/28 Thanksgiving Break, No School

• 12/1 - Return for three super-focused weeks of teaching and learning, before winter break.

We look forward to seeing everyone in the morning!

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Family Update: November 16, 2025

First quarter report cards are in Friday Folders. We are proud of all our students for their hard work, growth and progress, and we hope the feedback provided in the comments will inspire reflection and goal setting for the second quarter. You’ll also notice that we sent home drafts of the portfolio presentation slides students will present on Friday.  These are drafts; continued editing is certainly encouraged.

We were thrilled by the strong turnout at our Required Family Meeting. We reviewed GradeLink, Google Classroom, and encouraged families to join us on Monday Nov. 17th at 5:15pm for a sleep-away program exploration event.  We sure do hope to see you there!

The overwhelmingly positive feedback we received in the family survey is encouraging. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. Your energy and support mean so much, and remind us how important it is to continue improving the OSS experience for our students and families. If you didn’t attend and still want to weigh in, here is the link. We want to hear from everyone!

Our students always clean up beautifully for Picture Day, and this year was no exception. This long-standing tradition is wonderful for your family albums and for our OSS archives. Isn’t it wild to look back and see how students grow each year?! Speaking of growth - our graduates will be returning to the building next week to reconnect, network, and reminisce. We’re sure their class photos will bring back memories too—and further illustrate just how far they’ve come!

In the spirit of growth, we hosted teachers from the Epiphany School in Boston this past Monday. They joined us to observe our practices—just as we visited them last year. Exchanges like these help all of us get better at what we do.

Looking for inspiration and connection? Join this Leadership Conference. We do hope to see you there. Program and lunch are free for OSS students. Email Ms. McSweeny to register: mmcsweeny@oursistersschool.org

Follow our regularly updated CALENDAR to see all events.

Calendar Highlights:

• 11/17 - Sleep-Away Summer Program follow up 5:15-6:15pm, OSS

• 11/20 - Showing up for our Community: Understanding the impact of federal immigration policy on NB, 5:30-7pm, OSS Community Room, with guest speaker from the Immigrant Assistance Center, Helena DaSilva-Huges

• 11/21- Portfolio Conferences, No School

• 11/22 - Young Women’s Leadership Conference, 9:30am-1:30pm, OSS

• 11/25 - Graduate Attitude of Gratitude Event from 6-8pm for OSS graduates.

• 11/26 - 11/28 Thanksgiving Break, No School

6th grade Humanities class presentations.

We look forward to seeing everyone in the morning!

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Family Update: November 9, 2025

At Community Meeting, our African Drum class bravely performed and inspired us all!

In 6th grade Humanities class students debated the challenging question of whether it is ever acceptable to steal. 5th graders began winter programming at the Buttonwood Zoo, and saw various animals during their feeding times. The highlight was witnessing Jacob, the red panda, create a painting during his enrichment activity.

Seventh-grade students engaged at New Bedford Research and Robotics. Their introduction to 3D printing involved building the tallest, most stable structure out of clay. This activity sets the stage for upcoming work with the robots they'll encounter during their time on site at NBRR.

There is so much need, and so many ways to contribute.…OSS students help out too!

Our students are practicing gratitude and collecting change to give back to school. Can you help? Could you bring change to the required family meeting on Wednesday? Do your colleagues at work have change to contribute to our efforts?

Looking for inspiration and connection? Join the Girl’s Leadership Conference, hosted at OSS by the YWCA on November 22, 9:30am - 1:30pm. Lunch will be served. Look for a flier in your Friday Folder.

Follow our regularly updated CALENDAR to see all events.

After seven years as the Volunteer Coordinator at OSS, Ms. McSweeny is taking on more responsibility in the Advancement Office. Her new title is Associate Director of Advancement, and in this role she will focus fully on the fundraising and advancement work that is essential to the sustainability of our small but powerful school. 

We are excited to share that Ms. Cinnamond is expanding the scope of her role, and adding Volunteer Coordinator to her title and responsibilities! She is hardworking, organized, collaborative, and ready to support you in your work.  We are so excited about all of this personal and organizational progress!

Calendar Highlights:

• 11/11 - Veterans Day ~ No school

• 11/12 – Required family meeting 5:30-6:30pm ~ Collaborative Strategies for Student Success. Please do bring devices: phones, computer - whatever you use to access Gradelink or GoogleClassroom

• 11/12 -  Picture day ~ collared uniform shirts, please

• 11/17 - Sleep-Away Summer Program follow up 5:15-6:15pm

• 11/20 - Showing up for our Community: Understanding the impact of federal immigration policy on NB, 5:30-7pm, OSS Community Room, with guest speaker from the Immigrant Assistance Center, Helena DaSilva-Huges

• 11/21- Portfolio Conferences, No School

• 11/25 - Graduate Attitude of Gratitude Event from 6-8pm for OSS graduates.

• 11/26 - 11/28 Thanksgiving Break, No School

We look forward to seeing everyone on Monday!

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Family Update: October 31, 2025

Today we wrapped up our 1st quarter, and report cards will go home in Friday Folders on Nov. 14th.

It is amazing how time flies, and how much we have accomplished so quickly. We’ve already witnessed tremendous personal and academic growth this school year - and we believe families have too! When we gather for our upcoming Required Family Meeting on Nov. 12th, we’ll review Google Classroom, Gradelink and even Summer Programming Opportunities as ways families can further support their blossoming students.

An exciting classroom moment this week included a visit from City Council president Shane Burgo who joined our 7th graders and their study of Society: Rights and Power. His personal story and insight on systems of government were fascinating.

Shane shared about growing up in New Bedford and answered questions about local, state, and federal government. Our students were engaged and attentive, connecting our Community Core Tools to Shane’s story. One student remarked that Shane was able to Overcome Obstacles he experienced as a child, to Persevere, and get to where he is now because he “didn’t listen to the no’s.” Another said he practiced Saying and Doing the Unpopular when he chose to run for city council despite many telling him he would not win. They found his desire to “change the narrative” inspiring. Shane’s words and overall message about Active Civic Engagement were impactful and sincere. We thank him for this visit, and hope he comes to OSS again soon.

The fragility of SNAP benefits is a great concern. We are sharing links to recommended resources: Feeding America, Project Bread, Damien’s Food Pantry, United Way Food Pantry List.

Families can always contact us directly for additional support. Please email gcinnamond@oursistersschool.org for assistance.

Are you interested in building your math muscles? New Bedford Math All Stars is a free, weekly, after school club hosted at the Co-Creative Center, where students can dig into exciting math puzzles. Check it out, and boost your skills. Also, if you want to invest your time in the arts, consider joining the amazing Teen Ambassador program at the Zeiterion.

Follow our regularly updated CALENDAR to see all events.

Calendar Highlights:

1st Quarter ends today, Oct 31 ~ Grades close today

Daylight Savings, Nov 2 ~ Clocks “fall back” one hour

Election Day, Nov 4 ~ We encourage voting!

Veterans Day, Nov 11 ~ No School

Picture Day, Nov 12 ~ Students should be in OSS uniform and for a tidy photo, choose a polo over a t-shirt, please.

Required Family Meeting, Nov 12 ~ 5:30–6:30 PM | OSS ~ Collaborative Strategies for Student Success

Please help our students collect for our annual Change Challenge. If you have change lingering, they want it!

We hope everyone eats just the right amount of sugar this weekend,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Family Update: October 26, 2025

Last Monday the whole school visited Bridgewater State University, where each grade engaged in a different STEAM-focused lab experience. 5th graders learned about the power of wind and the importance of renewable energy, and were able to test the stability of their own LEGO structures in a wind tunnel. 6th graders continued learning about sustainability as they discovered how water runoff in a parking lot can carry harmful pollutants, and ways to design a more sustainable parking lot. 7th graders took on the role of medical lab scientists to solve the "Mystery of the Crooked Cell" by recording patient symptoms, studying their family history, and testing "blood" samples for genetic markers to lead to a diagnosis. Finally, 8th graders participated in a cybersecurity lab and learned about internet safety and ways to protect their online data from scams, viruses, and phishing. A helpful takeaway from this lab is the difference between a passcode (usually 4 or 6 digits) and a passphrase (like a password), where a well-constructed passphrase is much more secure to keep hackers out.

If you want more of this fantastic programming, consider joining Open Lab Night on Nov. 5th at BSU 5-8pm! It is a free community event open to all ages, featuring hands-on STEM activities led by BSU faculty, staff and students. All children must be accompanied by an adult at all times and advance registration is required. Walk-ins will not be permitted. Visit their website to learn more and to register, and see the flier below in this Family Update.

This week 6th graders visited Round the Bend - a working farm in action. They explored a Wampanoag wigwam, learned about the farm’s produce and animal husbandry practices, had a chance to do service by helping plant garlic, and in their study of sustainable practices they explored tiny homes and learned how compostable toilets work.

Grades 6–8 collaborated with the Women’s Foundation of Massachusetts to design the inaugural Economic Empowerment Award honoring Ami Kuan Danoff, a leader in philanthropy, finance, and advocacy for women and girls. Each student created an original design that represented empowerment, confidence, and leadership. The Women’s Foundation team reviewed all submissions and selected a collaboration between two students as the final design. Working closely with Ms. Pupillo, the students brought their vision to life through 3D printing, creating a modern, meaningful award. The project culminated at the Make Her Mark event—a celebration of education and the power of all-girls learning environments—where the students proudly presented the award to Ami in front of more than 400 guests.

Thank you to the 25+ parents, guardians, and staff who joined us for an evening of connection, collaboration, and learning at last Tuesday’s Family Workshop — Boosting Your Child’s Awesomeness! Together, we explored strategies to strengthen students’ executive functioning skills and support their growth both at school and at home. We’re excited to continue building our partnership through upcoming family learning opportunities:

 Required Family Meeting: Collaborative Strategies for Student Success
Wednesday, November 12 | 5:30–6:30 PM | OSS

 Helping Your Student Soar Academically
Tuesday, December 2 | 6:00–7:30 PM | OSS

Also, here is a link to a positive NYT article about Instagram planning to increase content restrictions to help keep teens safer in this digital age.

Follow our regularly updated CALENDAR to see all events.

Calendar Highlights:

Spirit Day on Wednesday. Theme: 1 solid color

Friday Oct 31, End of 1st Quarter

Summer Program Planning Event Nov 3, 5:15-6:15pm

We hope your weekend was beautiful,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Family Update: October 19, 2025

Our Fall Festival felt like a true Family Festival! It was a joyful celebration at the height of autumn’s color—filled with games, apple snacks, cotton candy, crafts, and time spent with friends, parents, grandparents, and younger siblings.

On Wednesday, OSS staff traveled to Gillette Stadium and joined 2,000 educators at MassCUE, the Massachusetts Computer-Using-Educators Conference. Our day was packed full of learning. We continued our exploration of instructional technology and further explored AI tools and considerations. It was valuable professional development and memorable staff bonding!

7th & 8th Graders in Community Partnerships

Our 7th and 8th graders have been hard at work in their community partnerships—providing valuable service, building workforce skills, and exploring a variety of career paths alongside their community mentors. These experiences help students connect classroom learning to the real world while making a positive impact in New Bedford. We’re proud of their dedication and growth.

Follow our regularly updated CALENDAR to see all events.

Calendar Highlights:

Monday Oct 20: all day - all school field trip to Bridgewater State. Pizza lunch provided for all students, but everyone should bring a water bottle and a warm layer!

Tuesday Oct 21: Family Workshop: Boosting Your Child’s Awesomeness, 6-7:30pm. Explore simple, effective tips for helping your student grow in both academics and personal independence.  

Wednesday Oct 22: 6th grade field trip to Round the Bend. Pack a lunch!

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Did you say summer?!!! Oh YES WE DID! Monday November 3rd, 5:15-6:15pm we are offering a Summer Program ‘26 Event. Mark your calendars now and stay tuned for details.

See you Monday morning,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team