SAUK PRAIRIE MIDDLE SCHOOL
MIDDLE LEVEL NEWS - MAY 2017
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Office: 643-5500
Attendance: 643-5580
Check out our website for daily announcement updates. http://www.saukprairieschools.org/schools/mid/
FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK
Welcome to the final stretch! May is here, and our students and staff are working hard to make the most of the last few weeks of the school year. All too soon we will be wishing our 8th grade leaders luck as they move on to the next level. But that also means we will be preparing a new group of young people to SPMS—our incoming 6th graders.
Fifth grade parents, for many of you this is your first SPMS newsletter! We hope you enjoy it. I have met some of your children during our meetings in their classrooms over the last three weeks, and I want you to help me remind them of one of the most important thing they are asked to remember from that meeting—that they are coming to a great place!
Sixth Grade Orientation Night for 5th grade students and their parents/guardians will be on Monday May 22nd at the Middle School. Parents and students are welcome to come at 5:15 to find your homeroom placement—the program starts at 5:30. Come meet your child’s homeroom teacher, Core team teachers, Ecore (specials) teachers, and other staff.
Eighth grade families, this is your last issue of our newsletter. Your children have been fantastic leaders in our school! We wish you and your child luck and look forward to watching them lead the high school community. The Promotion Ceremony for 8th graders will be held at 9:30 on Tuesday, June 6th, the last morning of school, at the River Arts Center. This is an important milestone in your child’s education, and we encourage you to attend. Your child will be able to leave with you after the program. One note—if you would like to hang around after for pictures and such, you may want to park somewhere on the street as the RAC parking lot will need to cleared immediately after our program so the buses can be there for pick-up.
I want to thank all of you for making this year a great school year. The entire staff at SPMS hopes you will have a great summer!
Yours in education,
Ted Harter
A note from Mr. Erlandson
School Field Trip to Wisconsin Dells – Monday, June 5, 2017
Middle School students will be going to Wisconsin Dells on Monday, June 5. Eighth grade students will be going to Mt. Olympus and 6th and 7th grade students will visit Noah’s Ark. This trip is a reward for students for all of their hard work and good behavior during the fourth quarter of the school year.
During the fourth quarter any student who receives three (3) office behavioral referrals will not be able to go on this trip unless a parent/guardian accompanies them. If a student has four (4) or more behavioral referrals during this specified time, they will not be allowed to go on this trip at all. Also, any in-school or out-of-school suspensions, truancy, and/or outstanding fines automatically disqualify a student from going. A student not meeting criteria may make an appeal, in writing, to Mr. Erlandson or Mr. Harter. An acceptable restorative project may be required to regain eligibility or an appeal could be denied. The trip is a privilege and students must earn the right to participate. Below are some important details about the trip.
- COST AND PAYMENT -
Money will be collected on Tuesday, May 16 for Grade 6 -- COST $18.00
Money will be collected on Wednesday, May 17 for Grade 7 -- COST $18.00
Money will be collected on Thursday, May 18 for Grade 8 -- COST $16.00
Monday, May 22 is the absolute deadline for payment!
Please make checks payable to SAUK PRAIRIE SCHOOLS
- To expedite the payment process, receipts will only be given to those paying in cash. Therefore, we encourage PAYMENT BY CHECKS!
- If your student is absent on the date money is collected, he/she may bring it to Mrs. Sauer before the collection deadline. *If there is a problem with payment, please contact Mrs. Sauer (643-5502).
- If your student needs a portion of the fees covered by a financial scholarship, please indicate in writing your request for the amount needed, and enclose it along with the portion you are paying.
- If you would like to make an additional donation to the scholarship fund for the Wisconsin Dells Trip, please indicate that on the memo line of your check.
* NO refunds will be given to students who pay but do not attend!
- FIELD TRIP PERMISSION FORM -
By school district policy a Field Trip Permission Form is required for all students who go on the field trip. The field trip form for the Wisconsin Dells trip will be opened Wednesday, May 3 via Skyward Family Access for parents to fill out. This access will be available until May 19.
- TRANSPORTATION -
Students are required to ride the bus for the Wisconsin Dells field trip. Buses will leave the school on June 5 at 8:30 a.m. and return at approximately 2:45 p.m. All students who go must ride the bus back to the Middle School.
Students who remain at school on June 5 must bring a sack lunch from home as the cafeteria will not be providing hot lunch.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. We are looking forward to sun and fun in Wisconsin Dells on June 5!
Sincerely,
Scott Erlandson
Assistant Principal
608-643-5507
News from the Counseling Department:
Throughout the month of April Mrs. Busler and Mrs. Breunig have been meeting with 8th grade families to review their student's' current Academic and Career Plan. It has been a great opportunity to open dialogue about personal career interests, share interest inventory results and review course selection rationale. An introduction and online tour of Career Cruising was provided. Career Cruising is a self-exploration and planning program that helps students learn more about themselves and the world of work. Every student grades 6-8 can access this program whenever they would like by going to www.careercruising.com.
Each students login credentials are as follows:
username: student's school gmail address (including @saukprairieschools.org)
Password: Student's lunch account number
We have one ACP Parent/student meeting left on May 4th from 3:30 - 4:15. Please contact Jane Busler or Mindy Breunig if you would like to attend.
Jane Busler
Sauk Prairie Middle School
School Counselor for students in Grade 7 and Team L, Grade 8
608-643-5511
jane.busler@saukprairieschools.org
Mindy Breunig
Sauk Prairie Middle School
School Counselor for students in Grade 6 and Team M, Grade 8
608-643-5512
UPCOMING VISITS FOR 5TH GRADE PARENTS & STUDENTS
Monday, May 22nd
Parent/Student visit - See yellow flyer below for details.
Tuesday, May 23rd
5th grade students will visit the 6th grade classrooms beginning @8:30 a.m. to meet their team of teachers and learn more about the Middle School.
August 30th
School Supply drop off and practice their Lockers!
7th GRADE SCIENCE
Team P-
In Ms. Klappa’s science class, students will be surveying topics related to Environmental Biology. They will be learning about food webs and energy flow through ecosystem. Students will also explore cycles of matter and how changes can alter the dynamic between living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem. As students move through these topics, emphasis will be place on the interdependence of organisms with the ecosystem and the effects humans can have on natural systems.Team S-
As the end of the school approaches, we will continue to explore our final unit of Environmental Science. We are currently wrapping up chapter two on Ecosystems and Biomes, where we have been looking at energy flow in ecosystems, biogeography, and the Earth’s biomes. To finish out the school year we will be looking at environmental issues, fossil fuels, renewable sources of energy, and also air pollution.
7th GRADE MATH
7th grade math students are wrapping up our Expressions and Equations unit. We have discovered ways to solve and interpret one and two-step equations. We also applied our knowledge of equations to situations in the real world and made connections to the ways we use Algebra in our daily lives. We then turned our focus to solving Inequalities. We interpreted the solution and put into context the meaning of the solution. Our next unit of study will be Geometry. We will focus on area, volume and surface area in this unit. We will also apply our proportional reasoning and algebra skills as we learn about scale drawings and finding the missing measures of angles.
7th GRADE ENGLISH
7th GRADE SOCIAL STUDIES
Students in 7th grade social studies are studying the various regions of Asia: East Asia; South and Southeast Asia; and Southwest Asia. Some of our topics will include physical geography, history, cultures, and current events. We will finish the school year by exploring the countries, geography, and cultures of Latin America.
8th GRADE SCIENCE
8th GRADE MATH
8th GRADE ENGLISH
Students spent a week taking the Forward Exam. In May, they will be working on our last writing unit which focuses on writing an informative/argument paper. Emphasis will be on being able to see more than one side of an issue, organizing their ideas, and using effective transitions. Part of the unit includes giving a speech on their chosen topic.
Focus on Fiction:
Students are studying the patterns found in the Hero’s Journey. They are writing a short story and reading a book that follows those patterns.
8th GRADE SOCIAL STUDIES
Our final topic will be Reconstruction and the Wild West. We'll take a look at the building of the transcontinental railroad and westward expansion.
APRIL MIDDLE LEVEL LEADER
Cole Douglas was the Optimist Middle Level Leader for April. He is an 8th grader and is the son of Brent and Theresa Douglas. Cole was nominated by the World Language Department.
Señora Miller: “Cole has been a student in the World Language Department for two years at Sauk Prairie Middle School. He comes to class every day motivated to learn the Spanish language. Cole actively particpates in class and doesn't hesistate to work with different groups. He also exemplifies the role of a leader in a world language class by taking the initiative to ask questions and always finding a way to challenge himself to do better. Cole is a student who gives 110% on his daily work, exams and on class presentations. Over the past two years, he has creatively used his dog Scout in almost all of his video presentations including the Style Show. Cole Douglas is an exemplary world language student with a great future at Sauk Prairie High School. ¡Felicitaciónes Carlos Douglas!”
Cole is involved in both baseball and hockey. He also enjoys working out in his spare time. His future plans include attending UW Madison to major in business.
LEADERS, ROLE MODELS & GOOD CITIZENS
Each month SPMS recognizes Leaders (grade 8), Role Models (grade 7) and Good Citizens (grade 6). These students are nominated by their teachers. In addition, our Sauk Prairie Area Optimist Club honors one of our leaders with the Optimist Middle Level Leader Award. Recent winners are:
6th Grade Good Citizens:
Jack Boerger
Lexie Ganser
Leo Garduno-Martinez
Kiana Travis
7th Grade Role Models:
Marissa Howard
Isaac Homar
Aneliz Salazar
Aaron Ripp
8th Grade Leaders:
Hannah Helt
Kiersten Kobussen
BUILDERS CLUB WILL NO LONGER BE RECYCLING PRINTER CARTRIDGES. We appreciate all the assistance that people have given us over the years.
On Saturday, March 4th, the Sauk Prairie Middle School Chess team, coached by SPMS math teacher, Scott Bakken, traveled to Baraboo High School to participate in the Baraboo Classic Chess Tournament. Six teams, with 36 total participants, competed in the tournament, with Sauk Prairie coming out on top, winning the first place team trophy. The team was led by Ian Briscoe, who placed third overall as an individual in the K8 division.
Spring Band Concert
This is a free concert and everyone is welcome!
Summer Band Lessons
FALL SPORTS FOR HIGH SCHOOL
School Store ~ SALE
Builders Club is having a big sale in the school store from May 15-19. Everything, except gum will be half price. Students could start stocking up for the next year. Rulers for 25 cents, composition books for 50 cents, pencil grips for 10 cents, plus many more deals. There may be further reductions later in the month of May.
Volunteer Opportunity!
Builders Club is helping out at Fire on the River and is in need of volunteers to help with the games that are being sponsored by the Kiwanis. If you and your child would like more information about this opportunity please contact: cindy.quam@saukprairieschools.org to get more information.
ART NEWS
SPMS 8th grade art students are also pleased to announce the new 2016-17 Mandala Coloring Book! 70+ pages of fantastic art by our talented students ready for coloring by YOU! Copies are available for $3.00 and can be purchased in the main office at the middle school. Proceeds go to help fund the youth arts and scholarship programs. Questions, orders or comments can also be directed to kurt.rossbach@saukprairieschools.org. We thank you for your support!!
Mark your calendars for our last art show of the year for our middle and high school students! Opening Reception will be on Thursday, May 4th 3:30-6:00 pm and will be on display through the month of May."