Let the Countdown Begin

With only a week until school starts, I wanted to update everyone on some of the new initiatives we are working on for this year. 

1. School Garden - We have a plan to build a huge garden, adjacent to the tennis court, with an outdoor classroom.   The garden will have 10 raised beds, each 6' by 6', where we hope to grow vegetables throughout the year.  We are waiting for approvals to move forward with the next step which will be raising the funds needed to begin construction.  Our hope is that every student will be able to work in the garden once it is constructed.

2. After School Clubs - We have been working with our HSA parents to plan after school clubs similar to what some of our elementary schools provide.  Our vision is for teachers to design and lead a fun activity that will meet after school, once a week for 5 or 6 weeks.  Teachers will be asked to submit proposals for theses activities and we will have sign ups before the end of September.  This will be one more way for students to become involved and have fun outside of the school day.

Finally, a few reminders for parents:

1. The first full day of school is Thursday, September 6th - can't wait to see everyone.

2. Parents of 6th graders - if you haven't already done so, please make sure you that your children have received the necessary vaccinations and that you have submitted the documentation.  If you have have questions, please call our school nurse.

3. Please make sure you sign up for our Daily Bulletin.

4. Please visit our new school website - it looks fantastic - especially the Principal's message!  It is full of great information for students and parents.

5. Consider following me on Facebook.  I plan on posting a lot of information that will be helpful for parents.

Enjoy the closing days of summer and the long weekend.

1:1 iPad Pilot coming to FMS

This fall, all 7th grade students will receive an iPad to support their learning at Frelinghuysen Middle School.  This pilot is an ambitious project that we hope will go a long way to help our students deepen their learning while developing vital 21st century skills.  We are inviting parents of 7th graders to partner with us in this program and we have prepared parent information meetings to help parents understand the goals, process, and student/parent expectations of the pilot.  The information meetings will be as follows:

September 10th at 11:00 at FMS
September 11th at 6:30 at FMS
September 18th at 6:30 at Morristown High School Media Center
September 19th at 11:00 at FMS
September 24th at 6:30 at FMS
September 25th at 11:00 at FMS

Parents of 7th grade students are strongly encouraged to attend one of these meetings.  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

August Reminders

Important dates in August:

1. Tuesday, August 14th - "Nuts and Bolts" for 1st Time Parents at FMS 6-8pm.  Come and meet with me to learn more about FMS to ease your transition as a middle school parent.

2. Wednesday August 22nd and Thursday August 23rd - Open House 8am-12pm parents and students welcome to come and try out their lockers and walk their schedules.

  Looking forward to seeing everyone on the first day of school on September 6th!

Highlights from September

It's hard to believe that we are already a month into the new school year. I am delighted to have the opportunity during our Back to School Nights to meet many of our parents and to share our goals for the 2011-2012 school year. I would also like to share some of the wonderful things that are happening in our school in more detail.

Highlights from classroom visits

Ms. Gillespie (6th grade social studies) - Students are completing a detailed "Report Card" evaluating the effectiveness of the Articles of Confederation.

Ms. Middleton (6th grade science) - students constructed a scale model of the solar system to help them understand the concept of "relative distance"

Mr. Sheridan (multi-grade Information Literacy) - students are learning how to remix music to accompany historic civil rights speeches.

Ms. Anderson (7th grade social studies) - students are writing essays debunking myths about "cave men" (prehistoric humans) in preparation for composing emails to Geico Insurance.

Ms. Donnelly (8th grade French) - students are taking on the role of a French teacher to prepare powerpoint presentations to teach their classmates.

Ms. Loscalzo/Heferon (6th grade math) - students are learning how to find the area of irregular shapes, culminating in an activity where they find the area of an irregular shaped bedroom in order to install new carpet.

These are just of few of the engaging and meaningful lessons that I was happy to experience.

I GOT YOUR BACK ROLLOUT

As part of the new Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying legislation, every school is required to observe a Week of Respect next week. At FMS, we decided to take this opportunity to rollout our year-long I GOT YOUR BACK initiative that will help us create a positive and supportive school environment. Throughout the week, we have a variety of activities planned to educate and sensitize our students about their role and responsibilities toward this goal. We are planning homeroom activities, lunch activities, contests, and assemblies to drive home the message. On Friday 10/7 (our first Spirit Day) we will recognize "White Out Bullying" by asking all students and staff to wear plain white T-shirts. Please talk to your children about what they learned each day during the week.

This video is a PSA for parents to enlist their support in these efforts:


Important Dates in October

David Lubar (resident author) visits FMS to hold workshops with grade 7 language arts classes - 10/3 - 10/4
Back to School Night House of the Tiger - 10/4 @ 6:30
Back to School Night House of the Phoenix - 10/5 @ 6:30
Grade 6 Canteen - 10/7
MHS Science Academy presentations to grade 8 - 10/11
Music Department Trip to see Wicked on Broadway - 10/12
Marking Period 1 Progress Reports mailed - 10/13
Home and School Association Monthly meeting - 10/18 @ 9:30
School Picture Re-takes - 10/20
Lantern Coffee House - 10/21
Colonial Challenge Run - 10/23
Dinner and Sports Night - 10/28

Please try to join us for the evening events.

The Kids Are Alright (and so is the new principal)

Well, the first week of the new school year is in the history books and from all accounts we had a very smooth opening. It is always a joy to have the building filled with students and teachers after a long and busy summer.

Our new group of sixth grade students have adjusted nicely - despite the typical challenges of getting used to opening their lockers and finding their way around the building. I randomly surveyed many of them during their extended homerooms about their favorite aspects of middle school so far and the number one response (ironically) was "having lockers". It is truly amazing to consider that these boys and girls will become young men and young women over the next three years.

The seventh graders (in the middle of middle school) seem incredibly relieved that they are no longer the new kids on the block. Several of them indicated how much they were looking forward to their new enrichment classes (Humanities Enrichment and S.T.E.M Enrichment) and that they were glad to be back with many of their friends that they hadn't seen over the summer.

And finally, our "seniors" in middle school - the eighth grade group has truly impressed me with the level of maturity they have exhibited so far. As I stop in on their classes it is evident that they are engaged and excited with the learning experiences their teachers have prepared. Walking through the cafeteria, I am already hearing talk about the DC trip in May.

I encourage you to help us help your children experience the highest levels of success this year with the following suggestions:

1. Reach out to your child's teachers and share your child's strengths, interests, challenges and goals. Research shows that strong ties between home and school are one of the most important factors in student success.

2. Observe a "Unplug and Unwind at Nine" policy in your homes. This means collecting all of your child's electronic devices (cell phones, computers, I-pods, I-pads, etc.) at 9:00 pm to ensure that they are getting the proper amount of rest each night.

3. Ask your child what they learned (both content and skills) in school today. Then ask them why they think this learning is important and useful.

4. Join our Home and School Association (HSA) and attend our meetings. This is a great way to know what is happening in our school and it provides you a way to offer suggestions.

5. Share this blog with other families in our school - I hope to make regular postings about what is happening at FMS.

Finally, I want to share some important dates:

1. School picture day is scheduled for Thursday 9/22.
2. Our annual HSA Magazine Sale begins Friday 9/23 - please support this effort!!!
3. Back to School Nights - House of the Dragon 9/27, House of the Tiger 10/4, House of the Phoenix 10/5.

Thank you to everyone for your support and words of encouragement.

Reminders for Parents

I hope all of our families had a wonderful summer. Below are some reminders that may be helpful over the next two weeks:

1. Student schedules and other important information were mailed home last week. If you did not receive a packet - please contact the school.

2. Open House Dates - Wednesday 8/24 and Thursday 8/25 from 9:00 - 12:00.

3. If there are problems/questions about student schedule - please contact our guidance department at 973-292-2200 ext. 8070.

4. The first day of school for students is September 6th.

Looking forward to seeing all our students.

Big Happenings at FMS

During the week of July 5th our Visionary Planning Board met for our 3 days of summer planning. It was a very productive set of meetings where we finalized our next 5 year plan and developed the action plans for the coming school year. Some of the goals for this year include:

1. the implementation of new curricula in language arts and mathematics that include a higher degree of Problem Based Learning

2. the implementation of a revised Advisory program

3. the increased infusion of technology into lesson planning and implementation to improve teaching and learning.

I want to thank everyone, (students, parents, and teachers) for their time and effort in helping us prepare for next year.