TVMS Teacher Mr. Mike Culbert Wins the Citadel Heart of Learning

TWIN VALLEY
MIDDLE SCHOOL
SPECIAL
POINTS OF
INTEREST:
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V O L U M E
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S P R I N G
2 0 1 4
CITADEL
TVMS Teacher Mr. Mike Culbert Wins
the Citadel Heart of Learning Award for TVSD!!
HEART OF
LEARNING
AWARD
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Middle School News
KINETIC
ART SHOW

FIDDLERS

JUNIOR
READING
OLYMPICS

AUTHOR’S
VISIT
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Citadel Award
1
Kinetic Art Show
1
Ad Campaigns
2
7/8 Art Club News
2
Nolde Forest Visit
3
Fiddlers
3
JRO
4
Author’s Visit
4
Music Festival
5
Artists on View
5
Reading Olympics
6
Dance Competition
6
Nurse’s Notes
7
Fifth Grade teacher,
Mr. Michael Culbert was
presented with the Citadel
Heart of Learning Award
on Monday, April 7th in a
surprise ceremony attended
by his colleagues, principals
and Dr. Pleis. Mr. Culbert
was awarded a $500.00 grant
to be used for his classroom.
Mr. Tom Gugerty from
Citadel Bank was on hand at
the Twin Valley Middle School
to make the presentation.
Mr. Gugerty read aloud
excerpts from applications
nominating Mr. Culbert. In
one of those nomination letters, Mr. Culbert was praised
for taking the extra time to
acknowledge students as
individuals. One parent
wrote that Mr. Culbert
continues to greet her
child years after having
her in his class. She
shared in her letter how
vital that acknowledgement has been to her
child’s middle school
experience. Mr. Culbert
attended the 2014
Citadel Heart of Learning
Banquet with nominees
from all of the Chester
County school districts
on Tuesday, May 13th at
the Desmond Great
Valley Hotel and Conference Center. At that
banquet one overall winner in
each level of education was
named. Congratulations to
Mr. Culbert!
The 1st Annual Kinetic Art Show
You hopefully didn’t
miss the Art Show this year,
Wednesday, May 7th 6-8pm.
The evening began with free
art activities and light snacks
from 6-7pm in the lower
entrance by the art rooms.
During this time there was a
special art exhibit in the
library and a showing of the
5th and 6th grade puppet videos that the students created
with our “Artist in Residence”. At 7pm the show
moved to the gym where our
ventriloquist “Marian and
Friends” presented a short
performance that was
followed by the 1st annual
Kinetic Art Show. This show
featured animals that
“moved” by scooters, wagons, skateboards or bicycles.
The show surpassed all expectations and was an evening of
art and entertainment that
will be remembered!
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Mr. Walsh’s 7th Grade Classes
Present Advertisement Campaigns
vertisement campaigns to
their peers and their parents in the library.
On Tuesday, June 3rd,
Mr. Walsh’s Language Arts
blocks presented their advertisement campaigns in the
library. Students worked in
class to create a new product
and develop an advertisement
campaign to persuade consumers to purchase the product. As a culminating project,
students presented their ad-
We are active
learners.
We are
responsible.
We are caring
citizens.
We are
respectful.
The goal of the project was to become more
aware of propaganda and
its effect on our views.
Also, students learned to
analyze the propaganda
behind images that they
are exposed to on a daily
basis. Students gained
insight into their own beliefs by learning
how to critically
think about why
we believe what
we believe, as well
as solidifying their
understanding of
where their beliefs
came from. Next, students improved their
critical thinking by analyzing various sources of
information and evaluating the messages behind
all the glitter and emotion. Finally, students
practiced and improved
their argument writing
skills by thoroughly expressing their ideas in a
business plan.
7th and 8th Grade Art Club News
In March, the 7th and
8th grade Art Club took a
trip to Baltimore to visit
the American Visionary
Art Museum. Students
enjoyed viewing the
original work of
“untrained artists” in
this unique museum.
They saw first-hand
MIDDLE
the large kinetic art
pieces that were the
inspiration behind our
1st Annual Kinetic Art
Show which was on
Wednesday, May 7th.
Baltimore is famous for
its Kinetic Art Race,
which features large
scale art pieces that
SCHOOL NEWS
“move” across water
and land. The Art Club
also visited the Ripley’s
Believe It or Not Museum on the same day and
all were especially impressed by the recycled
art they found there.
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7th Grade Visits Nolde
All 7th graders traveled to
Nolde Forest during the
week of April 23rd for an
Earth Day celebration. At
Nolde, students participated in an Ecology study led
by a Nolde Forest ranger.
Students were greeted by
their Nolde Forest ranger
when they arrived at the
park. Then, Nolde rangers
took each small group of
students to a different section of the park to study the ecosystem of Angelica Creek. Students identified crayfish, salamanders, and small insects that
they found in the creek. Rangers
led small group discussions that
focused on the different facets of
the Angelica Creek
ecosystem. In the
afternoon, Twin
Valley teachers led
the students
through the park
for a Nolde Forest
scavenger
hunt.
Fiddlers
The largest group of fiddlers to date have been
busy this spring, with 16 members playing Fiddle,
Penny Whistle, Viola, Cello and Bass. There are
also members in all 4 grades at the Middle School.
Members experienced 8th graders to enthusiastic
beginners in 5th grade who just started playing
strings this year!
The Ensemble has been quite busy and in great
demand, playing all around the school district and
beyond. The recent schedule included:
May 2nd – HBEC Athletic Course Dedication – 2:30p
May 3rd – Robeson Lutheran Church – Fair – 12:00p
May 6th – 7/8 Band and Orchestra Concert – 7:00p
May 7th – MS Kinetic Art Show – 6:00p
May 12th – HBEC Evening of the Arts – 6:00p
May 15th – 5/6 Band and Orchestra Concert – 6:15p
May 27th – Reading Fightin’ Phils Pregame –
First Energy Stadium – 5:30p
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TVMS Junior Reading Olympians Compete Once Again
Once again, the 5th grade hallway at TVMS was filled with
excitement and anticipation,
as the 5th grade Reading
Olympians prepared for
competition on May 1st, 2014.
Ten teams competed in the
event which required cooperative team work and self
discipline. Since October’s
kick off assembly, the students
have been busy reading
15 novels covering a variety of genres. In the three
rounds of competition,
each team was asked 20
questions about those
books. Two teams tied for
first place this year and
will have their names
printed on our banner.
They were the Lovely Llamas,
coached by Mrs. Zeitz and the
Page Poppers, coached by Mrs.
Schneider. All the teams did a
wonderful job and enjoyed an
awards assembly during which a
musical slide presentation highlighting their evening was viewed
and ribbons were presented.
Author Visits TVMS 5 th Graders
In March, the fifth grade students at Twin Valley Middle School
were treated to a visit from a local author, Jane Kirkland. She
spoke to the young authors about the importance of taking the
time to notice and observe all the beauty around you. “Recorded
observations and thoughts can be tucked away for a future writing
piece,” she explained. The writing process and developing
reading skills were also discussed.
Her books are nonfiction and focus on
nature. Jane was kind enough to donate a
set of her books to our library. In addition,
students could order her books and have
them personally autographed! This
interactive event was enjoyed by the
teachers and students.
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Berks Junior County Music Festival
On Saturday, February 22, Kutztown High School hosted the Berks
County Junior Music Festival’s annual concert. The festival showcased
music students throughout Berks County in grades seven through nine. The
students who represented Twin Valley are pictured below. Olivia Ritchey
was selected as the best oboist in the county, so she played with both the
orchestra and band. Congratulations to all of our very talented students!
Band
Maeve Bartra – Trumpet
Jaylynn Ritter – Trumpet
Olivia Ritchey – Oboe
(not pictured)
Chorus
Lorna Graham – Alto 2
Bridget Dunleavy – Alto 2
Megan Reiff – Alto 2
Maddie Herman – Alto 2
James Mauchline - Bass
Not Pictured
Connor Miles – Bass
Ben Rader - Tenor 2
Emma Kertis – Alto 2
Orchestra
Mackenzie Rice – Violin
Caralyn Higginbottom – Violin
Olivia Ritchey – Oboe
TVMS Artists On View at the
Art Plus Gallery in West Reading
Thirty five artists from 5th to 8th grade were chosen by our art teachers to have
their work displayed in a special exhibit at the Art Plus Gallery in West Reading.
The show entitled “Jazzed Up” was on exhibit during March and April in this gallery
which features artists from the area. The opening evening was well attended by our
students and parents. Kudos and congratulations to all student artists!
Lilly Leonowitz – Viola
Candice Taylor – Violin
Joseph Mauchline – Cello
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Reading
Olympics!
2nd Annual TVMS Dance Competition/Spring Pep Rally
The 2nd Annual TVMS Dance
Competition/Spring Pep Rally was held
on Friday, May 9th in the TVMS Turf 2
stadium. Students from each grade level were invited to the field to strut their
stuff to a mix of dance music. The most
spirited dancers from each grade were
chosen to participate in the
Ultimate Dance Competition, featuring
last year’s champion Jahlil Little as a
guest judge. The competition was fierce,
but in the end two champions were
crowned, 7th grader EJ Nale and 6th
grader Lexi Cox . In addition, our
spring sports teams, musical groups,
and clubs were recognized and given
a chance to dance to such timeless
classics as the “Chicken Dance” and
the “Harlem Shake.” Mr. Stine was
the winner of our first ever Teacher
Mascot Race! We owe a special
thank you to the dancers from ReMix
Dance Studio
(including several
TVMS students!)
who put on three
fabulous dance
performances. We
were also lucky to
have DJ Rob
Mitchell volunteer
his time and
talents in handling
all of the music for
our afternoon.
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We’re on the web!
www.tvsd.org
TVMS is a safe, respectful, and supportive community of students, staff, and involved parents
where students are empowered to achieve academic, social, and emotional success and to
TVMS
feel a strong sense of pride in both our school
Dr. Lorraine Sakoian
Principal 5/6
and community.
Dr. Gerald Catagnus
Principal 7/8
Phone: 610-286-8660
Email: lsakoian@tvsd.org
gcatagnus@tvsd.org
“A learning community”
Nurse’s Notes
“Be Sun Wise ”
DO NOT BURN – Sunburns increase
one’s lifetime risk of skin cancer,
especially for children
AVIOD SUN TANNING & TANNING
BEDS – UV light causes skin cancer
and wrinkling
GENEROUSLY APPLY SUNSCREEN 20 minutes before going outside &
at least SPF of 15
WEAR PROTECTIVE CLOTHING –
long-sleeved shirt, pants, widebrimmed hat & sunglasses
For more information visit Web site
www.epa.gov/sunwise
REMINDER:
State mandated health services:
• Physical Exams due for 6th Graders
• Dental Exams due for 7th Graders
• Written proof of Tdap and
Meningoccal (MCV) required for
7th graders