Stemmers Run Middle School

Stemmers Run Middle School
Stemmers Run
Middle School
Issue 1
November 1, 2014
A note from Mr. Thanner
This autumn has
brought us some fantastic fall weekends, with
sunny weather, blue
skies, and all the brilliant transitional fall colors. Metaphorically,
middle school is the autumn of our students’
educational career. Like
autumn, it can be colorful and beautiful, full of
transitions; and, while
we can have blue skies
and sunny weather,
sometimes the cloud cover and wind can seem
overshadowing. At
Stemmers Run, our faculty and staff has put a
lot of work into carefully
managing these transitions, as we continuously try to find ways to
support our students in
finding success. Many
parents, me included,
tend to use the wait and
see approach at the start
of the school year. If
your child is like mine,
then your growing, maturing middle school
child has spent the last
few months telling you “I
got it” and “everything is
fine.” As parents, we all
want to accept those responses, but the first
quarter report card will
tell you for sure if you
should continue moving
back and giving your
child space to grow, or
get more involved to
make sure they are getting all the help that
they need. If your child
is not meeting expectations after the first quarter, then it is now more
important than ever to
get involved and actively
track their progress
more closely. Using
BCPS One, you can
closely monitor your
child’s assignments,
and, if need be, monitor
them daily, assignment
by assignment. This
gives you the resource to
hold your child accountable for their grades. If
things do not improve in
a timely manner, despite
your best efforts, please
feel free to reach out to
your child’s teachers. If
you need help accessing
BCPS One, please call
our school office and we
will be happy to help. As
of the printing of this
newsletter, 64% of our
parents still have not
logged on to the system.
Please use this time to
get better connected with
what your child is doing
in school, whether they
currently need the extra
support or not, to help
ensure that the remainder of autumn is filled
with sunshine, blue
skies, and brilliant colors.
Inside this issue:
Physical Education & Health
2
Digital Resource
3
After school activ- 4
ities
Spanish & French 5
Important dates
to remember
6
Language Arts
7
Tips for parents of 8
Middle School
students
Magnet Program Information from Mrs. Cosgrove
ncosgrove@bcps.org
In order to be
considered for a seat in
a magnet program, students must: complete
the Magnet Application
completely; attach all
supporting documents,
such as 7th grade report
cards, and follow the
proper instructions in
Beautiful and full of
transitions
the paper/online application. You can apply
online or submit a paper application. ALL
applicants must apply
by November 25,
2014. ). Enrollment
in a magnet program is
the result of years of
hard work. It is also
the beginning of the
next part of your journey. Please review
your Magnet Application Packet carefully,
visit the Office of Magnet Programs website,
http://www.bcps.org/
offices/omp/
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Special points of
interest:
 Stemmers Run offers
after school activities
and coach classes
 Check out our winter
concerts
 National Junior Honor
Society had a ceremony. See our members
on page 6
What’s new in Physical Education
Congratulations to the following
Physical Education flag football
quarter finals champions:
6th grade:
A3 Shutdown
B3 Warriors
7th grade:
8th grade:
A4/5 Colts
A2 Cold Hiney
B4/5 Ninja Turtles
B2 Wolverines
A10 SWS
A6/7 Team Shutdown
B10 B’More Shutdown
B6/7 Team Team
A9 Terminators
Semi finals will take place October 28 at 7:30 a.m. on the football field. Any questions, see
your PE teacher. Your PE teacher.
B9 Colts
CONGRATULATIONS to our GOLDEN SHOE WINNERS – the team of Mr. Thanner and Brady Bryant
We would like to THANK everyone who participated and supported our SRMS Badminton Doubles tournament
yesterday! The tournament was a GREAT way to spend some time being active and a memorable practice for team
members in preparation for Saturday’s tournament.
Health Education News:
Congratulations to all first quarter Health Education students that have
successfully completed their credit. All first quarter Health Education students will start
Physical Education
with Mrs. Molofsky November 3rd. All Mrs. Molofsky’s PE students will start Health Education November
3rd, the start of 2nd quarter.
Ms. Ratych has been long-term subbing in Health Education class for Mrs. Boyd (on maternity leave) since
August. She has done an outstanding job and will be greatly missed once Mrs. Boyd returns, November 10th.
Thank you Ms. Ratych!
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Join Ms. Cannon’s Environmental Club
The Environmental Club will
be meeting every other
Tuesday in room 104
from 3:05-4:30pm.
Parent Volunteers are
greatly needed.
tivities while increasing there
knowledge of the Environment. Students will make
bird feeders, above ground
herb and vegetable garden, rain garden, school
ground beautification, interaction with infrared and
GPS technology, field
trips, recycling, and a host
of other activities.
The Environmental Club was established to increase
awareness of environmental changes,
preservation, beautification and agriculture. Encourage your child to
Students participating
join the environmental
in the Club will particclub!
ipate in hands on ac-
Our focus this year
will be recycling, conserving energy and our gardening project. Students
will develop ideas for recy-
cling, conserving energy to help
Stemmers become a Green School.
We will also be building a Green
House to grow our own vegetables.
Parent volunteers specializing in agriculture, gardening, carpentry, environmental protection
and preservation, and other areas
related to the environment please
contact Mrs. Cannon at wcannon@bcps.org.
Thank you Mrs. Cannon
Strange Phenomena
S.A.D.D. CLUB NEWS:
Attention all STUDENTS! SADD
(Students Against Destructive Decisions) Club will be starting November 18th. Anyone interested or want
more information please see Mrs.
Boyd in room 112. SADD club supports the school in many different
ways and helps promote positive
decisions by all students.
6th and 8th grade
reading
We have just finished research and essays on Legends or Strange Phenomena and we will now be
working on an argumentative poster or PowerPoint
on a controversial topic or
With fall here and the weather getting colder, it’s very important to remember the following:

Report any unusual illness to the school nurse

If your child has a fever, nausea, or vomiting, please keep them home until they are symptom-free for 24
hours

Be sure to keep your child up-to-date with immunizations including an annual flu shot

Reinforce/model good health habits like hand washing and cough/sneeze etiquette

Also please remember that if your child has asthma, cold weather can be a trigger. Please send in inhalers/nebulizers to the health suite with a doctor’s order, so that I can properly care for your child while at
school.
Jessica Quinn
School
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News from the Band Room
We have had a wonderful musical
The band already has wait listed
beginning to our 2014-2015 school students as does the orchestra.
year. The instrumental music
The Claire’s Gourmet fundensembles are all off and runraiser was a huge sucning. Festival Strings percess. Students sold
formed at the NJHS Inover $6000 worth of
duction on October
product. The delivery
23rd. 50 “A “ instrudate will be November
mental music students
12th from 3-7pm in the
were treated to hear the US
auditorium. Our NoMarine Band perform at Dunvember fundraisers will
dalk High School also on Octobe
SaveAround 2015 couber 23rd. Our Jazz
pon books, Jamberry
Band performed at
We have a wonderful Nails and Celebrating
Harvest Fest 2014 on
musical beginning at Home in order to preOctober 30th. It has
Stemmers Run Middle pare for the holidays
definitely been a busy
School!!!
and raise money for trip
October.
accounts.
Our
Carowinds trip to Charlotte, NC
on May 1-3, 2015 reservation
forms were due on October 31st.
Lastly, be looking for SRMS music polo shirt order forms coming home in early
November. All music students need a
short sleeve forest/hunter green polo
and black pants/ skirts for all music
performance. Students are not required to order a music polo but
many have asked for the opportunity.
Our winter concert dates are listed
below.
** All Concerts begin at 7PM
**Wednesday, December 10, - Band 6,
Strings 6 and Chorus 6
Monday, December, 15, – Band 7, Chorus 7 and Festival Strings
Wednesday, December 17, – Jazz Band,
Festival Band (including all members of
Band 8 ), Chorus 8 and Enrichment Choir
After School Activities
Chorus
Tuesday and Thursday
3:00-4:00 pm
Jazz Band
Tuesday and Thursday
3:00-4:00 pm
Environmental Club
Every other Tues. starting 10/21
3:00-4:00 pm
NJHS
Every other Tues. starting 10/28
3:05-4:30 pm
NJHS executives
Every other Tues. starting 10/21
3:05-4:30 pm
SADD
Every other Tues. starting 11/18
3:00-4:00 pm
Instrumental Music Assistance
Wednesday
3:00-4:00 pm
Chess Club
Wednesday
Newspaper
Wednesday
TBA
Jazz Band
Tuesday and Thursday
3:00-4:00 pm
Glee
Every other Thurs. starting 10/23
3:00-4:00 pm
Young Men with Purpose
Thursday
3:00-4:00 pm
Homework Club (IEP Students)
Thursday
3:00-4:00 pm
3:00-4:00 pm
Young Women with Integrity
Yearbook
TBA
Thurs. starting in January
3:00-4:30 pm
MESA
TBA
Literary Magazine
TBA
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Spanish
Hello, parents and guardians!
I first want to say thank you to all who welcomed me to Stemmers. So far my first year here is a
great one! I am so happy to be here and working with such great kids and staff!
Spanish I students are now able to hold simple conversations exchanging basic information such as
name, birthday, age, and a few favorite things (class, color, and animal). We just started the second unit in
the curriculum where we will learn to talk and write about our school life. The kids should be able to express their favorite and least favorite class and teacher as well as tell what mod they have each in. We just
started telling time so soon enough students will be able to talk about when their classes end and begin.
Spanish II students spend a majority of the first quarter reviewing material from last year since level
two will delve deeper into the basics. We just started unit two where the students will learn to describe the
community around them as well as describe what they see. By now level two students should be able to
express different types of stores, a few careers, and where certain things are. We are reviewing a few time
expressions in order to be able to talk about when certain places open and close.
As always, feel free to contact us via email, ihorlacher@bcps.org, drivera2@bcps.org or call the
school. We look forward to an even better second quarter!
Ines Horlacher
Deborah Rivera
Spanish I & II
French
The French program at Stemmers run is really starting to build up after only being offered for the second time at Stemmers Run Middle School. Students that have performed well so far this school year will be
representing Stemmers Run Middle School in the AATF « French Concours » a national French competition.
Students will be competing against other French learning students from all over the country. The students
will be tested in oral comprehension, reading comprehension, vocabulary, and culture. The students will be
working hard putting in extra hours of French to perform well in the contest!
The little Frenchies (6 and 7th grade) have been working very hard and are already able to write
mini-paragraphs about their families, the weather, and their daily school routine. The 8th grade French II
students have been striving to increase their fluency and are working extremely hard at expanding their vocabulary with a nature unit. A bientôt!
Mr. Woodward
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Important Dates to Remember
November
December
3rd- 3 hour dismissal
4th- No School
13th– Report Card Day
18,- 6th grade Am Ed week
19, - 7th grade Am Ed week
20th -8th Am Ed week
27th & 28th No School
5th- Interims go home
10th– 6th grade concert
12th– 3 hour early dismissal
15th—7th grade concert
17th—8th grade concert
24th—Jan 4: Winter Break
National Junior Honor Society
Master of Ceremony: Cole Hiner, President
Pledge of Allegiance: Makenzie Hausner, Historian
History of the NJHS: Krystyn Waskiewicz, Vice President
Musical Selection: Mrs. Bennett and SRMS Orchestra
Festive Dance by Edmund Siennicki
Introduction of Speaker: Kaylin Vain, Service Chairperson
Speaker: Mr. Bryan Thanner, SRMS Principal
Lighting of the Candles of NJHS Qualification Scholarship: Megan Alvez, Secretary
Service: Juliana Lynch, Service Chairperson
Character: Isabel Tharp, Treasurer
Leadership: Allen Ruddlesden, Service Chairperson
Citizenship: Patrick Bennett, Parliamentarian
The Induction and Pinning of the 2014
SRMS National Junior Honor Society Inductees
Megan Alvez, Brian Bailey, Patrick Bennett, Grace Blondell, Haylie Bond, Ariana Brown, Raven Brown, Brady Bryant, Leah Cooper, Katherine DeGuzman, Mia Dill, Trinity Gilpin, Aleah Greene, Makenzie Hausner, Cole Hiner, Angel Howard, David Icenroad, Tyhree Jones, Sarah Klingelhofer, Darien London, Juliana Lynch, Jake Marshall, Juliane Marte, Ashley Mayfield, Jennafer Michaels, Breanna Palasik, Madison Pawlak, Rashell Peralta, Jaylene Regalado, Kayli Riser, Alaine Robertson, Cheyenne Robicheaux, Allen Ruddlesden, Isabella Schwing, Madison Sheppard, Aishwarya Shrestha, Destiny Spear, Isabel Tharp, Kaylin Vain, Krystyn Waskiewicz, Cassidey Wittig and Megan Zeller.
NJHS Pledge: Mia Dill, Secretary
NJHS PLEDGE: I pledge myself to uphold the high purpose of the society to which I have been elected. I will be
true to the principles for which it stands. I will be loyal to my school and will maintain and encourage high standards of SCHOLARSHIP, CITIZENSHIP, SERVICE, LEADERSHIP and CHARACTER.
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Language Arts classes are ready for the second quarter and the second unit of
teaching. Look below to see what your child will be studying.
6th Grade Language Arts
Unit 2 - Individual Changes: Determining Our Own Pathways to Adulthood
Literature – My Life in Dog Years and Hatchet
Unit Essential Questions:
 What changes occur as we grow that determine our individual pathways into adulthood?
 What does it mean to “grow up too soon?”
6th Grade GT Language Arts
Unit 2 - Change: Agents of Change: Understanding the Power of the Pen
Literature – The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Unit Essential Questions:
 In what ways are texts influenced by the life experiences of authors?
 How does considering the viewpoints of others influence a reader’s perspective?
 How can writers serve as agents of change in society?
7th Grade Language Arts
Unit 2 - Choosing to Persevere
Literature – The Miracle Worker or A Raisin in the Sun
Unit Essential Questions:
 How do characters, real and fictional, use words and actions to demonstrate perseverance?
 How does the structure of drama contribute to its meaning?
 How do film versions of a play compare and contrast to the print version?
 How do elements of a drama interact in order to create a theme?
7th Grade GT Language Arts
Unit 2 - Choosing our Perspective
Literature – Parallel Journeys
Unit Essential Questions:
 How do life experiences shape our perspective?
 How does an author distinguish his/her position from that of others by stating a claim and supporting it
with reasoning that is sound and evidence that is relevant and sufficient?
 How does the delivery of a speech affect the impact of the words?
 How does an author effectively structure a text so that the major sections contribute to the whole and to
the development of the ideas?
8th Grade Language Arts
Unit 2 - Challenge of Understanding Emotions
Literature – Walk Two Moons
Unit Essential Questions:
 How do authors use point of view to create emotions in the reader?
 How do readers navigate a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same
topic?
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Continued:
8th Grade Language Arts
Unit 2 - Challenge of Understanding Emotions
Literature – Walk Two Moons
Unit Essential Questions:
 How do readers navigate a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same
topic?
 How do modern works of fiction draw on themes, patterns of events, or character types from myths,
traditional stories, or religious works?
8th Grade GT Language Arts
Unit 2 - Challenge of Understanding Emotions
Literature – A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Dracula or Princess Bride
Unit Essential Questions:
 How does the author use point of view to create emotions in the reader?
 Should actors/directors stay faithful to the original text when creating a live or filmed production?
 How do modern works of fiction draw on themes, patterns of events, or character types from myths,
traditional stories, or religious works?
THE MIDDLE SCHOOL YEARS
Being in school all day, every day, helps your child get the most
out of middle school. Encourage good attendance with these ideas: Point out that there is no
substitute for being in class.
Your youngster needs to be present to hear teachers explain
concepts, to participate in
group projects and class discussions, and to ask questions. Schedule doctor, dentist, and orthodontist appointments for before or after school hours whenever possible. If you can’t, try to arrange them for lunchtime.
It will be easier for your child to get up on time for school if he has had at least nine hours of sleep. Set a reasonable bedtime, and make sure your child puts away electronic devices so he/she isn’t tempted to stay awake
to read messages or play games.
Family Meals
Eating together gives parents and children a chance to chat about the day’s events. It also strengthens
family relationships. Whether you have time to cook or are picking up carryout on the way home from work,
try to sit around the table and enjoy each other’s company while you eat.
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From the Library
From the Library: Did you ever think that you could have an entire library of reference
books in your own home? Well, you do have one! Many of you already know about the
free BCPS Digital Resources at http://www.bcps.org/offices/lis/feebased/ . (Students log
in with their username and internal password from BCPS when not at school.)
Located there under Grades 6-12 is the Gale Virtual Reference Library.
This is a collection of actual reference books chapter by chapter and page for page in an
electronic format. You can browse books by subject or put in specific topics in the search
window. Check it out!
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