Good evening GDRMS Families, I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving Holiday weekend. Do any of you do Black Friday shopping or Small Business Saturday? My mom and I went out this weekend looking for some deals. We haven’t done that in a few years. It was nice to shop. Happy Hanukkah to those of you who celebrate.
Covid Update, We had no testing this week due to the short week.
New Topics to be aware of:
The picture is from the 6th grade Turkey Trot. The activity raised almost $1,000 for Project Mitten.
Our annual Book fair will be December 13-16th. The PTO has created a sign up genius for the book fair https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/4090e48afab22a6fe3-2021
Best Buddies will be meeting Tuesday, 11/30, in the North Cafeteria until 3:30. Please bring a photo of your pets or a picture of your favorite animal to share. If you have any questions, reach out to Ms. Franceschi or Ms. Blydenburgh. We look forward to seeing you there!
The next Vaccination set up will be 12/10.
Sarah Rudner is the SEPAC liaison for the middle school. If you have any questions or need any assistance with Special Education or related services I can connect you.
We need 6 more students to register for the ski club to fill another bus. Ski club seems to be a big hit here.
Picture retake is Monday 11/29
Our Project Lead The Way teacher, Ms. Dwyer entered all completed Pull Toy Challenge projects, which is a PLTW Gateway project, to Student-Industry Connect at the end of STEM week in October. The challenge was to build a child's pull toy out of VEX robotics parts that moved along the floor and had a gear attached to the wheel axle to move something on the top of the toy. The students had to create design drawings, a design brief, build a working model, and describe the design process that they went through. Ms. Dwyer’s requirement was to have a Winnie the Pooh theme along with an inspiring quote. The STEM week student-industry connect is sponsored by MASS STEMHUB, a program of the One8 Foundation. Our three winners were; Chase Kane, Luke Ambrose and Jackson Connolly. The boys won "Top Gateway Engineering Project - 2021" , for the State as reviewed by industry professionals. Here is one comment from an industry professional:
"I really enjoyed the level of effort that you put into this project. I like how you included a video of your very creative prototype, and a good description of your design process including some of the issues you overcame. "- Civil Engineer at MassDOT. Great Job 8th graders.
Reminders:
Please ask your children to check in the lost and found in their school buildings. We have a lot of lunch boxes, water bottles, and sweatshirts.
There is a Cub Scout 23rd holiday tree and wreath fundraiser. They will also have Hanukkah wreaths. The flyer is attached. Cub Scout fund raiser
Cell phones, The current rule is Off and Away. Parents and Guardians please help us with this. If you call the school we will get your student the message. If your student calls or texts you ask them where they are. They should only be calling you from an office phone. This is very important. We may need to change our cell phone policy in the very near future. Data is showing that students are using their phones in the bathrooms, they are getting texts and texting home when they are sick rather than going to the nurses office and they seem to be becoming a distraction in school.
If your child is applying to another school for next year, please read this information about our process for requesting teacher recommendations and school transcripts.
Information about 8th grade transitions can be found on the GDRMS counseling website.
The Middle School’s Diversity club will be starting up on Friday 11/12. The permission slip is here. GDRMS Diversity Club - Permission Slip
For all 8th grade parents - On November 5, a representative from Nashoba Valley Technical High School was at our school to speak with all 8th grade students. For families who are interested in learning more about Nashoba Tech, you are invited to attend their open house. Registration is required to attend. For more information about 8th grade transitions, please refer to the GDRMS counseling department website.
GDEF, Groton Dunstable Educational Foundation, would like you to sign up for their mailing list? The link is https://form.123formbuilder.com/5995194/form They are about to launch their Annual Giving Campaign, and want to ensure we reach as many families as possible.
HOLIDAYS ARE FAST APPROACHING! The Commissioners of Trust Funds would like to remind families with school aged children who are experiencing financial difficulties, the Community Children’s Fund can help with food, gifts, winter clothing, etc. If you would like to experience the joy of giving during the holiday season, the Community Children’s Fund offers several different gift giving options. To participate in either of these holiday traditions, either giving or receiving, please contact Karen Tuomi at 978-877-6787 or email trustfunds@grotonma.gov. Confidentiality is strictly maintained.