Bay Creek Beat
January 29, 2016
Greetings Parents!
I hope you were able to attend the PTSA Math/Science Night on Tuesday, January 26th. It was a great family event! I was so impressed with the creativity and fascinating science fair projects. I was also impressed with the engaging, hands-on math games provided by our math department. Thank you for coming out to support our math and science teachers as well as our students who put in so much hard work into their projects. Also a huge “Thank You” to PTSA for arranging the Professor DoDad show! It was great!
Next week is School Counselor’s Week. Our school counselors work tirelessly to support our students. Most people think school counselors meet with students and help them through emotional issues or family troubles. While that is part of what they do each day, it is just a small percentage of their daily activities. From the moment our counselors walk in the building, they are laser focused on how they can help students do their best in class and reach the highest levels of achievement. A sampling of a counselor’s day may include meeting with small groups to work on organizational skills and study skills, meeting with individuals to help students make smarter decision, or even leading whole class discussions on college and career preparation. The counseling team at Bay Creek is engaged with students 100% of the day! I encourage you to take time to reach out to your child’s counselor and let them know how much you appreciate them. Thank you to Ms. Sheard our 8th grade counselor, Ms. Lisska our 7th grade counselor, and Ms. Paurowski, our 6th grade counselor.
The other day Ms. Bernstein, one of our health/PE teachers, stopped me in the hall and shared a pie chart with me. In her health class, Ms. Bernstein asked students to write down the lyrics of their favorite songs. After students wrote down the lyrics, they categorized the lyrics into different themes. The chart below represents the themes from students’ favorite songs. I found this information very enlightening as to what is streaming into our students’ ears when they walk around and listen to their earbuds or headphones. It made me take pause, and I thought parents would find this interesting as well. The chart is pictured below.
Dates for your Calendar
1. Talent Show: The next big event for Bay Creek is the annual Talent Show on February 13, 2016 at 6:00pm. The event will be held at Grayson High School in the auditorium. Students are currently trying out for the Talent Show , and this year the Bay Creek teachers and administration will also be on stage to show our talent too!
2. Annual Career Day – February 25, 2016 – We are currently looking for volunteers to present information about their careers to our students. A link to sign up is located on our school webpage.
3. School Dance Updated Dates:
a. 6th Grade: March 18, 2016
b. 7th Grade: February 19, 2016
c. 8th Grade: May 13, 2016
4. Fine Arts Night: Last year we held our first Fine Arts Night, and we have the date for this year’s Fine Arts Night set for April 14, 2016 at 6:30pm. Student art work will be on display in a gallery set up and we will have several performances from our band, chorus, orchestra, and guitar programs. This event is sure to be another great community event! Mark your calendars and plan to come and enjoy our world-class arts programs.
Bay Creek Communication Tools
If you are looking for ways to locate updates and upcoming events at Bay Creek, there are several different ways we communicate with parents. Please refer to the list below. As the district has moved to the eCLASS platform, teachers no longer have individual webpages. Parental access to eClass is not yet available; therefore we encourage parents to log into their child’s eCLASS page and review homework and upcoming classroom assignments.
a. The Bay Creek Beat – a weekly newsletter sent out via email, you can sign up to receive the Bay Creek Beat on our school webpage.
b. The Bay Creek Webpage: www.baycreekrams.com/home.html
c. Like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/bcmsrams
d. Download the Connect 2 Grayson App for your iPhone or Android device.
8th Grade
February 29 - Save the date! This is the Grayson High School Rising 9th grade parent night. All students and parents of current 8th graders are invited and encouraged to attend this evening. The meetings are tentatively planned as follows:
5:30 PM Parent Meetings
- Gifted (Lecture Hall)
- Special Ed. (Room 1.280)
6:00 PM: General Session
6:15-7:30 PM: Course Rotations
All Savannah field trip funds should be paid in full by January 22. If you have questions, please email your child's homeroom teacher.
Counselor’s Corner
Have you read any good books lately? If you’re interested in parenting resources, consider one of the following titles.
Parenting with Love and Logic by Jim Fay
How to Parent So Children Will Learn by Sylvia Rimm
Ending the Homework Hassle by John Rosemond
Winning Teenagers Over in Home and School by Francis X. Walton
A Parent's Guide to Understanding and Motivating Children by Amy Lew and Lou Bettner
Yes! Your Teen is Crazy! by Michael J. Bradley
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families by Stephen Covey
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey
Peaceful Parenting by Dr. Nancy Buck
1*2*3 Magic by Dr. Thomas Phelan (Book and Video)
Media
Our Reading Celebration was a blast for the kids. Was your child one of the participants? If so, ask them what was their favorite part?Was it the music? The strobe light? Tthe grab bag for prizes? The games? The cupcake decorating bar? The pizza and cookie cakes? Or was it just time to enjoy and have fun with friends?
Whatever the favorite part, the kids had a great time.
We would love to see your child at our celebration in May. All they need to do is read fifteen books, across the various genres, and write down the title and author. Many are already reading books for their classes, so those count too. Ask your child about the Read the Colors Reading Program we have at Bay Creek. Happy Reading !
Last week on Thursday January 21, FBLA members participated in the Region Leadership
Conference at South Gwinnett HS and won 5 medals in 5 different Business Events. In addition,
Bay Creek was recognized 2nd Place for Largest Chapter in the Region.
Please congratulate to the following FBLA REGION WINNERS:
Faith Ebikeme 3rd Place Invention Conventions
Llorel Grove 1st Place Career Exploration
3rd Place Public Speaking
Joseph Osburn 5th Place Computer Concepts
2nd Place Internet Concepts
Chorus:
Congratulations to the following students who passed the second audition and made All-State Chorus:
Tori Luongo (8th - 2nd year all-state student)
Zion Brannon (7th)
Makenna Etheridge (7th)
From Coach Rast:
Spring Intramural will resume on the following dates:
Monday, February 22 with 6th grade;
Thursday, February 25 with 7th grade,
Friday, February 26 with 8th grade
The running club, which is open to all students, will resume Tuesday, February 23.A signed permission form is required to participate.
Regards,
Dr. Maggie Fehrman
Principal
Bay Creek Middle School