February 21, 2019
Hi everyone!
I hope you are well. In some ways it’s hard to believe, but we are now more than halfway through the school year! Thanks for all of your efforts to support your students so that they can be as successful as possible here at Brunswick Middle--we very much value partnering with you! Speaking of partnering, I want to also thank all of you who have already completed our annual perceptual survey. So far, we are slightly ahead of last year’s total parent/guardian survey takers--82 this year compared to 79 last year. We are striving to have at least 100 survey takers to give us as much feedback as possible before the survey closes on Thursday, February 28th.
Our school uses this feedback to let us know what you think we are doing well--and for areas in which we need to improve. The survey provides vital information that FCPS and BMS use to evaluate instructional programs, student and family engagement, school climate, and opportunities at Brunswick Middle School. While we strive to give you the best service and product possible, we know that there are always areas in which we can grow further--and your feedback helps this improvement.
To ensure that your answers accurately reflect your perceptions, we feel the need to clarify how the answers to the survey are measured and reported. Many of the answers involve a five-point scale. One example would include the following choices:
Not good at all - Slightly good - Somewhat good - Quite good - Extremely good
Of the above choices, the first three from the left are tabulated in the survey results as negative; only the quite good and extremely good are counted as positive. In this survey, the middle choice on the five point scale will often be qualified with the words somewhat or sometimes. This middle choice, though appearing to be a neutral or slightly positive answer, actually counts as a negative response.
Certainly, if you see any survey item as an area which needs improvement, feel free to choose one of the first three responses on the five-point scale. We merely want to make sure your responses accurately represent your view of Brunswick Middle on each topic. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete; the link that follows is unique to Brunswick Middle School: http://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FAM2525
I thank you in advance for investing the time to complete our perceptual survey. Please contact our front office if you have questions about the survey or if you think we can assist you or your student in any way!
Sincerely,
Jay Schill
Principal, Brunswick Middle School
Fri, Feb. 22
Sports Day and Hat Day
Show your spirit by with sportswear or a hat!
Fri. Mar. 1
Registration Cards Due
Sat. Mar. 2
Rubik's Cube Competition
11 AM-3 PM
Fri. Mar. 29
BMS PTO Talent Show
7pm
*Dates and times are subject to change.
Good attendance leads to success and boosts graduation. Our school goal is 96%.
Dec.
Jan.
Feb.
94.15%
94.50%
95.08%
Yearbook pricing has increased by $5. Soft covers are now $26 and hard covers are now $31. 8th grade baby picture deadline is March 1st. Please send those digitally to either carrie.clark@fcps.org or nicole.innocenti@fcps.org. Hard copies of photos are also accepted. Please do not send original copies.
Mathcounts: BMS students participated in the regional Mathcounts Competition on Saturday February 9th at TJ Middle School. Our team gave great effort this year. Thank you to a great group of students who trained every Thursday after school for 90 minutes since September: Regan Ryder, Ben Crowell, Jayrady Sok, Karan Trasi, Kaya Trasi, Emma Mourlas, Aubrey Humphries, Keira McDonald, Jennifer Porter, Elon Corgan, Elijah Shullenbarger, and Mya Dressler. Thank you to the supportive parents also! ~Coach Schmidt
Stock Market Game: Ms Edwards, Mrs. McFadden and Ms. Schmidt have started the Stock Market Game. We currently have 31 teams participating through 8th grade life skills classes and during ELT. The stock Market Game runs from February 4th through April 12th. There is still time to join the ELT teams. Contact one of the teachers.
BMS is sponsoring a Rubik's Cube Regional Competition on Saturday March 2nd from 11am - 3 pm. We are looking for help with judging, registration, photography, etc. Please contact Mr. Miller at troy.miller@fcps.org or Ms. Schmidt at kim.schmidt@fcps.org
English Language Arts (ELA)
Mrs. Rembsburg: My classes are wrapping up our poetry unit, with the benchmark being given Feb. 14-15. Afterwards, we will be completing a unit on WWII and the Holocaust with a focus on Research and Expository Writing.
Math Intervention classes: About 35 students are enrolled in Reflex Math, a computer program to help with math fact fluency. The students are enjoying the program and are demonstrating great growth. The students have solved over 39,000 math facts and have shown a growth from 16.4% fluency to 31.2%. Way to go!
6th grade students in math intervention participated in the Arcademic Cup where they solved math problems in games against other students in their class in 48 hours. They solved almost 5,000 problems and answered with 82% accuracy. Most missed problem? 3 x 8. Congrats to all of these hard workers and Mrs. Botker!
Science Fair registration is open! Please follow the link for more information. https://education.fcps.org/sciencesec/sciencefair
Our Theatre Arts classes are excited to present their class shows this April at BMS! Sixth grade will perform April 24th at 6:30pm and Eighth grade will perform April 25th at 6:30pm. We hope to see you there!
8th grade Art students Liz Lashley, Zosia Milauskas and Rileigh Tissue are working hard to complete their amazing dragon "Regal" to enter in the Youth Art Month Show at the Delaplaine Art Center in Frederick. The show will run through March. Check it out!
We've kicked off the 2019 BMS 25 Book Challenge. Do you have the reading stamina to read 25 books between now and the end of the school year? Each time you finish a book, log your reading on the Google Form.
Parents and community members: We're looking for some great prizes to offer our 25 Book Challenge completers. Do you have connections to local businesses? Contact Ms. McFadden for more information!
Media Specialist: Heather McFadden
BMS Online Resources
The following are some guidelines to help you decide what to do if your child tells you they are not feeling well:
When to keep your child home from school:
If your child has a fever the evening before or through the night, keep them home. They should have a normal temperature under 99 degrees for 24 hours prior to returning. If the symptoms are severe or persist for more than 24 hours, you should contact your private source of medical care. Therefore, it is important that updated information and phone numbers be provided. As you read this, please remember these are general guidelines. You know your child the best! This is also a perfect time to reinforce hand washing to help minimize the spread of germs.
Health Room Technician: Linda Trabold School Nurse: Debbie Winpigler-Beck, RN
Grade 6: Kelly Mahn Grade 7: Christine Akagi Grade 8: A-K Kelly Mahn; L-Z Christine Akagi Behavioral Specialist: Amy Nelson Registrar: Christina Faron
BMS School Counseling Information
Counseling News
Last month, representatives from FCPS’s Career and Technology Program visited with our 8th graders to provide information about the variety of programs available at the high school level. Many of their programs provide industry certifications and dual enrollment credits. Check out their programs at https://education.fcps.org/ctc/.
Upcoming Events:
NJROTC Open House is scheduled for Wednesday, February 27th from 6:30 – 8:30 pm at TJ High School. Additional details are available at http://patriotnjrotc.com/
Several of our students met recently with Mr. Kurtz, the faculty representative from the FCPS Academy of Fine Arts. He shared valuable information about the program, with details accessible at https://www.fcpsartsacademy.org/. For students who may be interested in attending the Academy for Fine Arts (AFA) during high school, the AFA has two important dates coming up:
- Middle School Visit to the Academy for the Fine Arts Dress Rehearsal for the AFA Cabaret on Wednesday March 13, 2019. This trip is a voluntary field trip for BMS students, which will require time away from BMS for periods 1-3. FCPS transportation will be provided. Email Christine.akagi@fcps.org by Friday, February 22, 2019 if you are interested in your child attending this trip.
- AFA will also host a Middle School Shadow Day on April 17, 2019. Students must provide their own transportation for this trip, but an FCPS bus can bring them back to BMS after the event. Registration information for Middle School Shadow Day is available at https://www.fcpsartsacademy.org/visit-the-afa.html.
Urbana High School is hosting the IB Student Showcase & Auction on Thursday, February 28, 2019 from 6pm -8pm. See IB Flyer for details.
safeTALK Training for members of the general public and helping professionals on Saturday, February 23 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm at the Catoctin High School Media Center. safeTALK training is a valuable resource for helping to identify individuals who are at risk of suicide and connecting them with professional assistance. See attached safeTALK poster for details.
Girl Scout Leadership Conference on Saturday, March 30 from 10am -3pm. See Girl Scout Leadership Conference flyer for additional details.
Upward Bound: A summer program is available at Frostburg State University for students who will be the first in their family to complete an undergraduate program (meaning that neither parent has a bachelor’s degree) or demonstrates financial need (typically defined as receiving Free or Reduced meals at school). General information about the program is available at https://www.frostburg.edu/student-life/rmsc/. A copy of their recent newsletter is available at https://www.frostburg.edu/student-life/rmsc/_files/pdf/fall-2018.pdf. And finally, a promotional video is available at https://vimeo.com/257504779/3c27ca990c. If you are interested in your child attending this program, please send an email to Christine.akagi@fcps.org by Friday, February 22, 2019.
PTO TEAM MESSAGE
Wow, the school year is half over, only 4 months remaining. We truly thank our school's administrators, teachers, staff, former PTO leadership and parents for being so helpful, patient and kind. We hit the ground running and the majority of our PTO team are new 6th grade parents. While being middle school newbies, we are meeting teachers and staff, matching names to faces, striving to build relationships, identify needs and learn how our school operates.
Community/Staff Thank you
We are blessed and want to thank you all who donated time and supplies to dances, volunteered time for our students, worked to improve our school's appearance, tied ribbons on 1000 candy grams, participated in fundraisers, sent in Box Tops and the list goes on. It takes a true community effort to achieve the results we do for our students and our school.
Valentine Grams
We had fun playing Cupid spreading Valentine joy when distributing over 1000 Valentine gram items to students, teachers, staff and bus drivers. The PTO and school staff provided traditional conversation valentine hearts to every student. They had several valentine choices: candy, teddybears, and squishy hearts. Valentine grams were sent thanking their besties, friends, tablemates, special someones, and teachers. Some asked us to deliver valentines to their parents and their little siblings. Parents also sweetened their children's day with surprise Valentine grams.
BMS Wing'n Pizza Shack restaurant fundraiser– March 11th
We braved the weather for our Wing'n Pizza Shack restaurant fundraiser. The next time you visit, please thank the owner Bradley. He graciously donated a generous portion of all of his day's proceeds to our school. Thank you to all who supported this fundraiser.
School Store
It has been difficult for some students to get an opportunity to shop at the school on Wednesday mornings before school starts. A couple of volunteers have stepped up to help open the school store during the three lunch periods every Wednesday. We could always use a few more volunteers. If you have 2 hours available on a Wednesday, (10:30-12:46) to help, we would greatly appreciate it. It’s an easy and fun way to help students purchase school supplies and learn to count change back. If you are interested, please contact Ellen Fowler by email at Brunswickmspto@gmail.com. Your support and time are greatly appreciated!
Box Tops 4 Education
The Box Top collection is still in full swing for BMS students and we encourage all students to continue to send in box tops as often as possible! The 6th Graders have won the Box Tops Drag Race for December and January. The 7th graders made a valiant effort in January to try to catch the 6th graders. Box Tops for education have launched a Box Tops App that facilitates families to earn Box Tops for their school by just uploading an image of their store receipts. How the BoxTops https://www.boxtops4education.com/bonusapp/how-it-works-appYour families continued participation in our box top collection program yields tremendous benefits for our students. Thank you for your support!
HOLLYWOOD Themed School Dance
We just finished our 3rd dance of the yea,r all decked out with Oscars, red carpet, paparazzi, and movie theme. We had a psychic to the stars reading palms for fun. Our dances also offer an opportunity for gym fun, outdoor play, and quiet games like chess in the media center. Our next dance is "Sailing into Summer", scheduled for Friday April 12th. Get your tropical wear, sun dresses, favorite flip flops ready, and Kona Ice will be there to cool off too!
BMS Talent Show
So exciting! Calling all BMS talent! We know we have awesome, talented students at our school! Is your child a performer? Dancer? Magician? Musician? Comedian? We are starting the 1st annual talent show to showcase our talented artists and benefit multiple causes at BMS.
Performers will need to turn in their signed permission slips to Amy Mossburg by Monday, February 25th. Auditions will be Wednesday, February 27th at 3 o'clock in the cafeteria.
Next PTO Meetings – Wednesday, February 27th and March 27th
Our next meetings will be held on February 27th and March 27th in the BMS Media Center at 7:00 pm. We have revised the bylaws and will have an open discussion of revisions at the February meeting and will take a vote on Bylaws at the March meeting. Watch for more information about this. We hope to see you there. We have PTO chairperson positions open for the 2019-2020 school year. Interested in getting more involved in the PTO? Want to make a difference for the school and students? Email your interest and questions to brunswickmspto@gmail.com
PTO Website, Facebook page, and Email
As a reminder, there are multiple ways to get information about the PTO. Our website serves as a “one stop shop”. The website address is http://brunswickms.my-pto.org/ We continue to share information on our Facebook page – Brunswick Middle PTO. Please visit our website or Facebook page for current information. W e have a PTO email account – brunswickmspto@gmail.com. If you have questions or need additional information on something that you do not see posted on our Facebook page or website, please email us and we’ll get back to you.
We will be “Rockin’ the Moroccan to a Whole New World” during this year’s 8th Grade Formal! This dance, held Friday, May 31st from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m., serves as a finale celebration for our 8th Graders as they prepare to make the big leap to High School! Formal is held in the Bruns-wick Middle School Cafeteria!
As part of the event, the committee has organized multiple fundraisers to help pay for the dance. March 8th marks the first fundraiser, which will be Zumba in the BMS Cafeteria! All proceeds from that event go directly to the formal committee!
In addition, there will be a Middle School Talent Show held at the Brunswick Firehall on Friday, March 29th! Details will be out soon so that your kiddo can prepare and audition! Proceeds for this event will be shared by the 8th Grade Formal Committee and the BMS PTO!
A pancake breakfast will be held at Glory Days restaurant on the morning of Saturday, March 23. Our very own students will be serving the pancakes! An awesome way to support formal!
On Sunday, April 7th from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m., Chipotle, located in Westview, will support our efforts! Treat yourself to dinner and raise money for formal!
And, just in time for Spring, The Little Red Barn will host a fundraiser for formal on Thursday, April 25th!! Come in and visit the surprise scoopers and support our dance!
A flyer will be developed that will advertise all these worthwhile events! Supporting these events is imperative to help create the very best decorations to transform the cafeteria for this awesome celebration! So mark your calendars!
The 8th grade formal planning committee has already started meeting to make this event the best one ever! And, you can help! The next meeting will be held on Monday, February 25th at 7:00 p.m. in the BMS Media Center! Also, direct donations, supply donations, and volunteering are ALL ways to get involved If you are interested in being part of the event and want to keep informed of the details, please feel free to send your email address to dbbacker@comcast.net Your name will be added to our group list and you will stay updated on all things that are “Rockin the Moroccan to a Whole New World!!”
PRINCIPAL Jay Schill 301 Cummings Dr. Brunswick, MD 21716
240-236-5400 Phone 240-236-5401 Fax
Follow Us on Twitter https://twitter.com/Brunswick_MS_ Visit BMS Online: https://education.fcps.org/bms/
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL Drew Kibler School Cash Online Menus & Meals
http://www.fcps.org