Higashi Highlights
Spring 2018-19
Every minute of every day is spent celebrating autism when you are at Higashi. During the month of April, we join the world in celebrating a little bit more. Challenge | Believe | Together www.bostonhigashi.org ǀ
Helping children with autism exceed expectations since 1987
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THE PRINCIPAL’S PERSPECTIVE
“Every day is meant to be lived not just gotten through.”
Spring has indeed arrived in Boston complete with rain showers, blossoms and annual rites of passage at Boston Higashi School. Our Ladies Day of Beauty, Formal Dance, Graduation and Emergence Brunch were all moments to remember for students, families and staff. We celebrated fifteen graduates from the Class of 2019 with enrollments ranging from three to eighteen years at Higashi They have truly espoused our 2019 school theme of ‘Courage’ showing us bravery when life is not fair and the way forward is not easy. It takes calm and sustaining courage to deepen attitudes of acceptance, improve practices with patience and expand educational opportunities both on and off campus. The morning after Graduation and Formal Dance, the Emergence Program and families of the graduates came together to continue the celebration. It has become tradition that parents offer their thoughts about their personal journey of raising an autistic child and how Boston Higashi School has impacted them and their respective families. It was both humbling and affirming to listen to these remarks spoken from the heart as they freely shared anecdotes and insights from their personal experiences. Their evidential stories serve as testimony to the efficacy of our practice-based approach. The month of May had us walking and running at top speed during our Road Race and Evan’s Run providing us opportunities to move with tenacity and timed speed around the race routes both on and off campus. Mother Nature got the memo to keep rain away. Our students trained every day to build endurance and stamina under the guidance of our watchful and encouraging staff. Every student was a champion. Higashi pride reigned supreme and the feelings of accomplishment will stay with our students well beyond the finish line. Several staff completed the first of four courses of the Adelphi University Autism Endorsement Program. Adelphi Professor and Higashi Advisory Board Member Dr. Stephen Shore lead the sessions. It was a great opportunity to compare and contrast Daily Life Therapy® with other methodologies. Our group dynamic educating the whole child with heart to heart teaching in a natural environment is indeed unique. The bond we create with our students and families is centered in presence and grace, framed by openhearted attention and comprehensive skills educating the whole child. We extend our sincerest thanks to the Parent Association for honoring and appreciating staff during National Teacher Appreciation month. The Officers of the Parent Association helped to coordinate the efforts on behalf of all parents and guardians. Staff felt highly regarded and recognized for the loving care and thoughtful teaching they provide to all our children. The strong partnerships we have with parents are another facet of what makes the Higashi experience so special. Annual Celebration will take place on June 23rd at King Phillip Regional High School. Our students always make us so proud when they perform on the stage showing their courage and great efforts in front of this large audience. Again, tears flow freely as we all appreciate their triumphs. We are always delighted to welcome Mr. Terada and Mr. Suzuki, our faithful and loyal Board and Corporation Members who make the journey from Tokyo to be with us. They remind us of our roots and encourage us to continue to reach for new heights. May the sun shine upon us as we continue to be blessed by the beauty of the human spirit that surrounds us.
Deborah Donovan Principal
HIGHLIGHTS Higashi School Store Handmade items by our students Open weekdays during school hours A great place to shop for those holiday gifts! Don’t forget to follow and like us on
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RESIDENTIAL NEWS
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HIGASHI IN THE NEWS AUTISM AWARENESS MONTH
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PARENT ASSOCIATION
Elementary has been busy
Older High School wrapped
learning to rollerblade for our Annual Celebration PE performance. Though practicing something new can be a challenge, this month’s literature focus, Sebastian’s Roller Skates by Joan De Deu Prats, reminds us to get back up when we fall down. In the story, a shy boy named Sebastian wants to learn to rollerskate, but becomes frustrated when learning doesn’t come easy. However, he perseveres, and the self confidence that he gains by mastering a new skill brings him the bravery he needs to try new things in other areas of his life as well. Like Sebastian, we are gaining confidence as our skills improve every day. Annual Celebration, here we come!
Spring offers myriad opportunities to study the plants, seeds, and flowers all around us, but Younger High School has taken this tried-and-true science topic to a whole new level with the addition of microscopes! Students collected samples of flowers, soil, leaves and more from our campus grounds, then examined them up close under a digital microscope. We even photographed the results! Can you match a real world photo with its abstract, close-up view? Younger High School can!
up our science unit on the solar system with a trip to the Museum of Science in Boston! Since April, we’ve been learning about planets, stars, and our galaxy, the Milky Way. Our students were very excited for all the hands-on activities the Museum of Science had to offer, including the planetarium show that journeyed from Earth to the outer edge of our Solar System! After a quick student poll, Saturn was voted the most captivating planet, as our students were awed by the rings and its overall size in comparison to the Earth. Next up in science: gardening and the farm-to-table process. Stay tuned this summer!
As part of the ongoing evolution of our Employment Education program, we are excited to announce the launch of our newest job site, Quirk Auto Parts in Quincy, MA. Since the end of April, Emergence Program have visited Quirk Auto Parts 3 days per week. The warehouse setting allows our students realworld practice in number and word-recognition & matching, as they locate the requested parts to fulfill orders. Working in a busy warehouse environment also hones awareness of traffic safety, especially with so many carts and moving lifts in the aisles. This marks our 23rd community-based job site, and we are proud to continue to offer diverse and meaningful vocational opportunities to all our students.
Whoo-whoo. What’s that sound? Whoo-whoo. Who? It’s the Middle School Division, that’s who! This semester in science we have been learning about birds - their calls, their homes, and where best to spot them. Now that spring has sprung, we have also been looking for the birds we are studying on guided Nature Trail walks during Free Play time. Recently, we have also started building and decorating birdhouses in hopes of housing our fine feathered friends on campus! So fly on over and take a look!
COMMUNITY TRIPS
Higashi has been very busy for the past several months getting out into the community with any chance that we can take. Some of our trips included visits to Harvard and the Museum of Science. At Harvard our students were invited to see the art show “Eye Eye Nose Mouth”. This art show was created by a group of people with varying disabilities. Our students were given a private tour of the artworks, which gave them a first hand look at how the pieces were created. This enriched their own creativity. Soon after we were invited to the Museum of Science to participate in a study by their Research and Evaluation Department. Higashi students were asked to visit and use the exhibits on display while the research team observed in hopes of enhancing experiences for visitors of all backgrounds.
When our students aren’t helping with research or being treated to special visits, we’re out in the community taking in all the sights. We’ve been having a lot of fun getting off campus as the ground thawed and the sun warmed up the air. Our younger crowd enjoyed a special day out, all dressed up for a dinner date with their staff on the weekend to take a break from the busy times at school. We had divisions taking turns going to see the magnificant ship, the USS Salem. We kept our field trips going to places like Waldo Lake where we could watch the animals and plants waking up to the new spring weather.
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OUR FAMILY
Higashi is an ever expanding family and we sure did expand recently! A penpal relationship between our Higashi students and with college students from Tohoku University of Art & Design in Japan, flourished when they were able to visit us at our campus. The Japanese students traveled across the world to come meet their penpals and work with them in person. The students from Japan are artists of varying backgrounds all interested in learning more about ASD and our students’ connections with the art world. This was an incredible learning experience for students of both schools as we built on this budding relationship.
Students weren’t the only ones invited onto campus this season to see our art work. Parents came for our annual parent handson training and art show “A Colorful Mind”. Students had the chance to display their skills and capabilities while our staff showcased learning opportunities. Parents took a tour of our art show, participated in craft making, attended a simulated movie going experience and more! The fun didn’t stop there either. We had students attend the Japan Festival in Boston where they sold over 300 pieces of Higashi ceramics. Our Jazz Band members played at the Teamsters Gala in Boston. We even had a visit from John F. Pappone of the notable percussion company, Zildjian. We were thrilled to receive their donation of high quality drumsticks.
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While out to dinner in the community one of our Emergence students met some friendly police officers. A week later, those same officers (of the Randolph PD) came to visit that student in his classroom. Knowing that he’d soon be graduating they surprised him with gifts! The best gift of the day was being sworn in as a Certified, Honorary Police Officer of the Randolph PD! Not only that but a month later, Senator Timilty came to present another citation from the MA Senate! The Senator and the officers truly honored our student and school showing us we live in such a supportive community.
AUTISM In the month of April we received a special visit from Duron Harmon, Defensive Back for the World Champion New England Patriots. Duron has a special place in his heart for kids with autism and boy, did it show. He has a 10 year old nephew with autism and has actively supported Autism Speaks, most notably through the NFL’s Cleat’s for a Cause Initiative. Duron actively participated in a rollerblading activity with the elementary division and then took center stage for our all school Opening Activity. Not one to be shy, he stretched, exercised and sang along with our entire student body. The special activity ended with Duron personally, high-fiving, shaking hands and hugging everyone of our 160 students and teachers. Thank you Duron!
M Boston Higashi School has partnered with Corebox Training this trimester so that our Older High School division has a new place to go for their Physical Education lessons. Corebox has an amazing training facility full of equipment that allows our students to try new exercises and to explore the local Randolph community. After several weeks of students training hard, it was time for the friends and family to try their hand doing the exercises. Matt Harkins, Higashi P.E teacher, helped organize a fundraiser event for Autism Awareness Month. With all the excitement going around, the Higashi & Corebox partnership was featured on NECN and Fox25 News channels!
AWARENESS Principal Deb Donovan was invited to the United Nations Forum on National Autism Awareness Day. To make the trip even more special, she was greeted by an alumni parent and writer, Amy Goehner.
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Sean O’Brien, President of Local25 Teamsters presented Higashi with a check of $75,000 that they raised from their Annual Gala where our amazing Jazz Band performed.
GRADUATING Congratulations and best wishes to our fifteen graduates. We celebrated their biggest day in true Higashi fashion. Hosting a Formal Dance with a Graduation Ceremony at Lombardos, we laughed, cried and danced the night away with over 300 family and friends. We remember all
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LADIES DAY OF BEAUTY Every year before the Formal Dance we host this amazing event for our female students and their mothers, aunts and relatives. We turn our EP music room into a full on beauty salon. The ladies are pampered and treated to manicures, pedicures, makeup and hair styling and a special luncheon. It’s a wonderful time and the ladies are treated like queens!
CLASS OF the ages and stages that we have shared with them through their Higashi years. Warm and wonderful memories will always remain and our doors will always be open. We are proud to welcome them all to the ranks of our Alumni!
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EP BRUNCH When families come together for big events like graduations or weddings, there is typically another family gathering the day after the big event. At Higashi we recognize this and host brunch for the Emergence Division, Graduates, and their families the day after our Graduation Ceremony. Parents and family members of our graduates offer commentary about their child and the difference Higashi has made. Congratulations class of 2019!
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ROAD RACE
Our students run and exercise everyday at Higashi so when it comes to events like our Annual Road Race, you know our students are ready to show off their hard work! Each and every student showed an incredible amount of heart and determination to push themselves through our race. This is something that has inspired us all to do and try better in our own lives. With help from RaceWire we were able to track participants times as they crossed the finish line. Our students are always trying to improve and go faster! Special prizes were given to our fastest runners and to celebrate more we ended the event with a secret performance from our newest staff.
VACATION FUN!
Spring vacation program sure was a fun one! It was hard to keep track of all of the amazing activities we had going on around campus and in the community. We had students rollerblading at Carousel Family Fun Center, playing arcade games at Kidz Planet, going for walks and encountering farm animals at Turners Pond and so much more! When it comes to vacation time, we don’t slow down our educational opportunites. When the students aren’t out in the community having fun they are enjoying themselves with music, leisure, cooking, art in a playful but always learning environment.
PARENT ASSOCIATION Spring is here and at Higashi that means lots of running - 2 kilometers of running to be exact! This year's Road Race was another great success for students and staff, as well as for the Parent Association. A big thank you to everyone who purchased an event t-shirt or button - all funds raised go right back into supporting the school community! Spring at Higashi also means sewing! Thanks to all the parents who helped out with crafting Annual Celebration costumes and mending yukatas for Bon Dance! It's a good reminder that both of these events are right around the corner! Donations to the Parent Association have allowed us to purchase some new yukatas for this year's Bon Dance, to replace a few that have seen better days. If you're a “big and tall” - we'll have you covered!
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Your donations also helped us say a big “thank you” to the Day and Residence instructors for all their hard work! When asked what special treat they would like to celebrate with, the staff said - - - - FRUIT? We love them anyway! Thank you for your continuing support - both in terms of time and money. We couldn't do it with out you!
BOSTON HIGASHI SCHOOL 800 North Main Street Randolph, MA 02368 (781) 961-0800 www.bostonhigashi.org
UPCOMING EVENTS JUN 23
ALUMNI BRUNCH 11am - 1pm Lombardo’s
JUN 23
ANNUAL CELEBRATION
JUN 25 TO JUL 5
SUMMER BREAK
2:30pm - 5:30pm King Philip Regional High School
Vacation Program June 25 - 28 July 1 - 3 & 5
JUN 19 Residential Fun Day JUL 8 217/304 Program Reopens & Parent Collaboration Meeting Breakfast 8:30am - 9:45am Opening Ceremony 10am Meeting 10:30am - 12pm JUL 20 Family Day 11:30am - 3:30pm JUL 19 Open House / Guided Tour 10am - 12pm JUL 26 Sibling Day 9:30am - 1pm
For latest news and events visit our website at www.bostonhigashi.org
