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Day: October 9, 2013

In This Week’s Print Edition… October 9, 2013

Where to Buy a Copy Subscribe for Home Delivery Selectmen Look for Traffic Answers The Selectmen held a short meeting last night to discuss a possible regional transportation option, the right to purchase a piece of land being offered through Ch 61, and the continuing traffic problems occurring during apple picking season… Chiefs Weigh In…

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New Report Cards, Tests for Nashoba

By Ann Needle

How to measure success was at the top of last night’s agenda for the Nashoba School Committee. Along with discussion of a new middle school report card came an announcement that the district will participate in a pilot program aimed at replacing the MCAS with national standards.

Scheduled to be in place by next year, the new middle school report card will continue to list traditional letter grades in each subject, according to Patrick Perkins, principal of Lancaster’s Luther Burbank Middle School and one of the new report card’s chief developers. The rest of the report card is devoted to assessing how a student is progressing in the standards set for each subject by the state. For instance, in Math, one of the tasks a sixth grader is expected to grasp by the end of the school year is the ability to demonstrate and apply concepts of statistics. Each trimester, the student can be rated on the standard anywhere from a 1 (not yet progressing) to a 4 (exceeds).

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New England Foliage Not Always So

By Ann Needle

Environmentalist Peter Alden recently spoke at the Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center on the “Ups and Downs of Our Birds and Mammals.” The Independent caught up with the renown author of several National Audubon and Peterson field guides at his home in Concord. Alden spoke about how and why the plants and wildlife in the area are distinctly different from recent centuries, and what this means for the local environment.

Fall foliage is now covering MetroWest’s abundant collection of trees. But, Peter Alden pointed out, there was a time in the 1800s when Massachusetts looked more like a scene from “Little House on the Prairie.”

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Winning Streak Broken, Team Moves On

By Jordana Bieze Foster

On Friday night, the Nashoba Regional football players learned for the first time what it’s like to lose a varsity football game.

St. John’s of Shrewsbury, the same team that dealt the Chieftains their last loss in December 2010, won Friday night’s rematch in Bolton 49-21 as Nashoba’s 29-game winning streak skidded to a stop.

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V-Ball Clinches 1st Ever Post Season Berth

By Ellen Oliver

In the three years since she took over the volleyball team, Coach Johnna Doyle has focused on small improvements.

“The first year we added the freshman team and our goal was to assess,” she explained. “The second year our goal was to be competitive in every game.” And although the records were the same the first two years, seven wins each season, Doyle said she knew they were on target as the team won more sets and had closer games.

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The Independent Clause

We are happy to announce a new member of the Stow Independent team- Rob Kean will be primarily covering sports. Rob, a Stow resident, is a published novelist and has been active in sports throughout his life. His first assignment, featuring the Nashoba Youth Football and Cheer teams, can be found on page 1. He’s…

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Public Safety Log

Excerpts from the Public Safety Logs. Please note, arrests are made based on probable cause but do not determine  guilt or innocence until proven in court. Monday September 30, 2013 3:11pm COMPLAINT A caller on Gleasondale Road reported an erratic driver.  The Police responded to check the area. 4:30pm ANIMAL A caller on South Acton…

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Calendar

Upcoming Library Events Ed Morgan, “The Music Man”, Thursday, October 10th, at 10:30am-Come enjoy an interactive sing-along for children ages 1 to 99 with Ed Morgan, “The Music Man”. Learn new ways to connect with your family through songs. This family friendly performance will have everyone up moving, dancing and singing. We hope to see…

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