Pony Express
Connecting GMS In One Place
February 16th
GMS Families,
I hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day. Did you know our students purchased over 600 Candy Grams from the PTA?! Man, that's a lot of candy and a lot of love. It was exciting to see kids enjoying the fun holiday and sharing with friends.
Our boys and girls basketball teams are wrapping up their season this week. They represented GMS well with a strong display of sportsmanship and dedication. We are so proud of our players and coaches. Our girls 8th grade C team adds another banner to our gym and our 8th grade girls A team has competing in a tight race (see Athletics below). We could not be prouder of all our athletes!
Did you know that our 8th grade AVID students got to be GHS Mustangs for a day? This week, GHS opened their doors to allow our 8th graders to shadow a 9th grade student. The experience was one-of-a-kind. We are so grateful to Principal Dave Denning and his faculty for allowing GMS students this incredible opportunity. A special thanks to Mrs. Trelawny Shepherd, our own AVID coordinator for coming up with this fabulous idea and working with Mrs. Izzy Fowler, the GHS AVID coordinator, to make this dream come true!
Today, I had the chance to visit with Silver Lake Elementary 5th graders. Dr. Shannon Cole invited me to their campus to allow the 5th graders to visit with their new principal and ask questions about their new journey to GMS next year. I loved meeting our future 6th graders and getting them excited about becoming Ponies! See pictures below.
Our Color Run fundraiser ends this week and was going to end with a blast of color tomorrow however, with unpredictable weather, we are going to postpone the Color Blast until March 2nd! It'll be a fun time with hopefully better weather.
As you know, there's always something great happening at GMS and it is THE middle school to attend! Please read through this newsletter so you don't miss out on anything. Here’s what you need to know for this week:
At 6:30, current 6th and 7th grade students that are interested in joining one of our fine arts, extracurricular, or athletics programs are encouraged to come and listen to presentations or visit with content representatives from our core classes if they are interested in learning more about leveling up to pre-AP or accelerated classes! Two teacher representatives from every core content, as well as counselors, will be on hand to guide parents and students that would like to pursue this. 6th and 7th grade students that are happy where they are are not required to attend.
Here is the schedule of the evening for everyone: https://tinyurl.com/yad74sz7
2. Grapevine-Colleyville ISD has adopted an electronic flyer distribution program called Peachjar. Beginning February 15, with the new system, flyers from community organizations will be distributed through a weekly email and accessible through the school websites. This is part of our ongoing effort to focus resources on education while reducing the environmental impact of our activities.
GCISD parents will receive a welcome email from Peachjar that includes a username and password. This is provided to give parents the opportunity to manage their account and flyer delivery preferences. To view a list of Frequently Asked Questions, click here and select the appropriate tab for PARENTS.
"Eye-opening event" Danielle D parent of sixth-grade student
"The evening was filled with actionable information for parents raising kids in a digital technology-driven era." Lisa D parent of ninth-grade student
Join us for our next FREE event February 20 at Bear Creek Elementary starting at 6 p.m.
Learn about the must know apps that parents need to be aware of on student phones and more! Learn best practices to balance usage at home as well as ways to help monitor usage. If you have ever wanted to know what that app is your child is using or If its safe to use a particular app, then this is the session for you. Join the over 200 parents already pre-registered to attend by signing up now!
Session topics will be repeated later in the year so stay and be informed! Parent Technology Academy
6. Mark Your Calendar for Special Olympics:
March 5, 2018 6 p.m. Triple Threat Shootout Grapevine High School
March 28, 2018 9 a.m. Mustang Panther Relays Cross Timbers Middle School
We are FAMILY! This is OUR HOUSE! Great students come from GREAT FAMILIES!
#OurHouseGMS
Monday, Feb. 19th - Student Holiday/Staff Development for Teachers
Tuesday, Feb. 20th - 5th Grade Showcase and Open House, 5:45-8:00
Friday, Feb. 23rd - 6th grade Cotillion - Week 4, 6:30-8:30, GMS UIL Choir Concert 7-8 @CHHS
GMS Cheer Rocks
Western Dance
A little two-step
Project Based Learning
Using 3D models
Collaboration
Silver Lake Visit
Teamwork
PBL
Course request for Current 6th and 7th graders
7th grader week of Feb 12th
6th graders week of Feb 19th
Skyward is open for students to request classes until Feb 25th. Course sheets are due Feb 26th.
Applications for gifted and talented identification are being accepted until 2/26. Testing will take place on our campus in March. Qualified students will be eligible to enroll in GT courses beginning in 2018-19. Applications are available in the GMS Front Office.
Math Telescoping Information
See the link to telescoping information in Principal Koehler's section above.
Play It Safe:
Play It Safe is a multi-session curriculum about healthy relationships. It is presented by The Women’s Center.
Students at GMS will see the Play It Safe presentation on these dates:
6th grade-- March 22
7th grade-- Feb 28
Questions may be addressed to Mrs. Lemke at 817-251-5673. The opt out is here:
English--Play It Safe English
Spanish--Play It Safe Spanish
The GCISD Technology Department is offering a series of parent meetings about social media apps and internet safety. For information about topics and dates, please look here.
- Country & Western Night was so fun last week! A huge thank you to the Lil’ Wranglers who performed & helped teach the dances. This week, 6th graders celebrate the 3rd week of Cotillion with Ballroom Dancing Night! Thank you to all the parents who have signed up to volunteer each week. Slots are still open to volunteer. Please sign up here: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0c4ea5ad2ba75-cotillion
Click link for Cotillion pictures added each week!
https://gmscotillion2018.shutterfly.com
- PTA General Meeting: There will be a short general meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 20th at 5:30pm in the GMS Lecture Hall to approve the Nominating Committee.
Graduating 2018 Seniors are invited to apply for PTA Scholarships
The PTA sold over 600 Candy Grams for Valentine’s Day! Candy Grams were delivered on Feb. 14th. Thank you to all the parent volunteers that helped hand out the Candy Grams!
To stay connected with all the latest PTA news be sure to like our Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/grapevinemiddleschoolpta/
Cotillion Fun!
Group Fun!
Shared Experience
8th Grade Field Trip Success!
ALL AVID 8th graders had the opportunity to shadow a GHS student for part of their school day! Students were paired up with 9th graders and followed them to two academic classes and their AVID class. They ate lunch in the GHS cafeteria! This was an exciting way to pair with them to help our 8th graders transition into high school smoothly! Thank you to Principal Denning, Izzy Fowler, and the many GHS teachers that supported our students!
Join AVID Next year!
Know someone who would be perfect for the AVID class? AVID Applications are live! GMS is looking for incoming 6th, 7th and 8th graders to join the AVID elective class. CHHS and GHS are also taking applications for incoming freshman. You can apply by following this link
AVID Tutors
GMS is in need of AVID tutors. What does this mean? An AVID tutor supports students during their AVID class period to help them succeed in coursework in which they have struggles. There is a method to the type of tutoring they receive so becoming an AVID tutor comes with a 6 hour training. AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination. The program helps students develop study and organizational skills that will help them as they challenge themselves through rigorous coursework.
If you are interested, here are the criteria:
-Commit to 11 weeks of AVID tutoring during 3rd period on Tuesdays and Thursdays (9:50-10:36)
-Agree to be go to training (we'd tailor the training to the time all participants agree to)
-There is flexibility if you could only do one of the days instead of both.
-We are looking for 2 tutors.
If you think you'd might be interested, please contact Trelawny Shepherd at trelawny.shepherd@gcisd.net
6th Grade Field Trip- SAVE THE DATE!
AVID 6th graders will be visiting the UTA campus on Tuesday, March 26th. We will need at least 5 parent chaperones, so please save the date! Forms and more information will be sent out in the upcoming weeks.
What’s happening in AVID?
Check out our Facebook page for class updates, pictures and more!
Community Service
We are looking forward to Engineering Week starting on the 20th. Be sure to ask your student about the special events when the time comes. Students will get the opportunity to learn from community engineers all week and will incorporate a design challenge with the entire campus next Friday, Feb. 23rd! It's going to be an exciting week for GMS!
Reminders:
Please be sure that students have earbuds for school. These need to be accessible in backpacks for students to use with their devices.
We are in need of Biodegradable (compostable) materials for engineering week
Please help students remember to charge their devices each evening- bringing their cords helps solve this problem as well.
Important dates:
7th grade Movement in the City Showcase- any parent of a 7th grade STEM student
If you have an 5th grader that will be coming to GMS next year, our 5th grade Parent night is on February 20th from 6:00-7:30. There will be an opportunity to learn about course selections and special programs.
No school- Monday, February 19th
STEM Parent Survey: https://goo.gl/forms/suif0ZSt5KPHpdqv1
Schedule:
Feb. 12th-ABABC
Feb. 19- No school Monday- ABAB (Engineering Week)
The Pony Pride Dance Team is preparing for a Regional Competition this Saturday. We are proud of our young dancers and can't wait to see their great work!
Thank for you for a great first meeting, StuCo! Our next meeting will be Wednesday, March 7th, during corral in Mrs. Shepherd’s room, C106
GMS girls basketball finished the regular season strong against Colleyville Middle School, getting all but one win at home on Monday and Tuesday night. 7th grade A team felt their first taste of sweet victory, creating a tie between them and CMS. The girls played a playoff game on Wednesday evening to determine who would be attending the district tournament Thursday and Friday night. After a four quarter battle, the Ponies finished in a loss against the Lady Colts. Unfortunately, that ends the season for 7th grade. The girls are looking forward to a successful track season.
8th grade swept CMS on Tuesday night. C team finished as district champions and will receive a banner to hang in the gym. A team will continue their season at the district tournament in a tight race to zone champions. They play Thursday and Friday night. Come support these ladies!
7th grade A:
POG- Serenia Granados
POW- DeNae Vasquez-Dickson
7th grade B:
POG- Estefania Alvarado
POW- Lily Rodriguez
7th grade C:
POG- Marina Barrera
POW- Savannah Burgin
8th grade A:
POG- Kaylee Lewis
POW- Megan Theilen
8th grade B:
POG- Laci Jackson
POW- Riley Cossette
8th grade C:
POG- Maria Becerra & Kennedy Fray
POW- Jade Olvera
Great job ladies!!! Go Ponies!!!
Boys Basketball
7th Grade
The A team lost their last game of the season to CMS. Charlie Hutto was the offensive player of the game. Tate Scarborough was the defensive player of the game. Victor Dela Cruz was the hustle player of the game.
The Pony B Team dropped a close one to the Colts, 22-20. Christian Maeder-Baldwin was the offensive player of the game. Jonathan Sanchez was the defensive player of the game. Chris Price was the hustle player of the game.
8th Grade
Red:
The A-team boys lost a tough game against the Colts. The offensive player of the game was Roman Holguin. The defensive player of the game was Leo Covington. The hustle player of the game was Isaic Finnestad.
Grey:
The Ponies had a great start against the Colts of Colleyville, but fell by a final score of 7-26. Offensive player of the game is Roosevelt Wells who had 3 points. Defensive player of the game goes to Wyatt Gidney. Hustle player of the game goes to Dyllan Moreno.
White:
The Ponies came out hot and played a tough game into overtime against the Colts, but the final was 34-26 CMS. Offensive player of the game goes to Caleb Miles who had 7 points. Defensive player of the game goes to Michael Allen. Hustle Player of the game goes to Josh Logan.
Go Ponies!!
Dual Language is sponsoring our Campus-wide fundraiser and inviting students to participate in a fun-filled Color Battle. This second week has been a great success! We are postponing our actual Color Battle for March 2nd, when the weather is better! Be looking for information.
We have been so excited to invite the whole campus to participate as well as to support of efforts in raising money to go to San Antonio Capstone Trip. Our 8th grade AP students will be taking a trip to further our knowledge, understanding, and experience of Hispanic culture. Thank you for being a part of making our Dual Language program here at GMS so rewarding and fun!
Here are fun facts about our Color Battle: https://tinyurl.com/ydg3ju42
GCISD Nutrition Services supports regional agriculture through our Farm Fresh Friday initiative. One Friday each month, we feature a regionally grown item from Texas or it's surrounding states. This February, we will feature Farm Fresh Broccoli on 2/23/2018 at all of our Elementary and Middle Schools. Through Farm Fresh Friday we provide students with Nutrition Education and exposure to new and healthy food items. Keep an eye out for our Farm Fresh Friday promotions this spring!
*Any time at VISTA
*2 or more times in ISS
*UIL academically eligible
*No more than 2 "N"s or "U"s on their citizenship grade for the 3rd 9 weeks
Remember, it they're not taking care of business in their classes, they are NOT attending this field trip privilege.
Grapevine Middle School
Email: laura.koehler@gcisd.net
Website: http://www.gcisd-k12.org/gms
Location: 301 Pony Parkway, Grapevine, TX, United States
Phone: 817-251-5660
Facebook: facebook.com/GrapevineMiddleSchool
Twitter: @GrapevineMiddle