F.C. Reed Middle School Newsletter

WHAT'S TO BEE???

Calendar of Events  

MARCH

Principal Notes…. 

From the Principal…..

Welcome to spring!  It’s hard to believe that June is just around the corner!  With the onset of spring, students may have the temptation to put aside homework, forget to study for tests and quizzes, or procrastinate on long term assignments.  To ensure a successful end of the school year, we are asking parents to assist us by encouraging their child(ren) to take responsibility for their school assignments, check their grades online for homework completion, encouraging good nutrition habits, and making certain that their child gets a sufficient amount of sleep.  In addition, please stress the importance of appropriate school behavior including walking through the building in a quiet and orderly manner, treating faculty, staff, and other students in a respectful, considerate manner, and arriving to school and classes on time.

One of the best times to communicate with teachers is during our March parent/teacher conferences.  Please join us on March 30-April 1 to speak to your child’s teachers about his or her progress.  Just as we have done in the past, fifth and sixth grade are by appointment only, and seventh and eighth grade are an open-door format.  The exact times are listed above in the calendar.  We will also be having our book fair in the library and that will be a good time to stock up on reading materials for spring and summer break.

On a different note, I would like to know how many people read our newsletter online.  As a way to track this, and let the students have a little prize too, please email me at lgraves@bridgmanschools.com within the next thirty days.  Tell me you saw this in the March newsletter and give me the name of your child(ren).  I will make sure he/she receives a little prize.

See you at Conferences!

Mrs. Graves

"SCOOPIE NIGHT" at Culver's Restaurant on Wed., March 17, 2010 from 5:00-8:00 p.m. Come support the Bridgman Band Program by eating at Culver's that night.  Bridgman Band students will be servers and table helpers that night.  10% of all sales during that time will benefit our band program. Enjoy a treat on St. Patrick's Day and help our bands at the same time.

SPRING PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES

 One of the best times to communicate with teachers is during our March parent/teacher conferences.  Please join us on March 30-April 1 to speak to your child’s teachers about his or her progress.  Just as we have done in the past, fifth and sixth grade are by appointment only, and seventh and eighth grade are an open-door format. 

RMS MAKES A DIFFERENCE

The final total money sent to the American Red Cross for the Haiti relief project is $750.00.  We have a wonderful group of caring students at F.C. Reed Middle School.

Mrs. Spencer's class has adopted the Canine Companions Program for their Make a Difference. They recently held a bake sale for this cause. The Canine Companions is a nonprofit organization that enhances the lives of people with disabilities by providing highly trained assistance dogs and ongoing support to ensure quality partnerships.  The canines can be used in many ways: as service dogs to help individuals who use wheelchairs or other mobility limitations; hearing dogs help people who are deaf or hard of hearing to important sounds such as fire alarms or doorbells; skilled companion dogs are placed with children with disabilities or others who have developmental disabilities; facility dogs work in hospitals, hospices, and other health and well being facilities. To find out more about this organization or to learn how you can become involved visit their website at ww.caninecompanions.org The students and staff loved the personal visit from Titus and Dee Appleman, his instructor and local Canine Companions puppy raiser. Lots of puppy love was shared by all!

5th Gr. Bake Sale        By:  M. Jones and A. Fleisher

On January 28 and 29, 2010 Mrs. Spencer's 5th grade class had a bake sale for Canine Companions.  There were tons of sweets for the school.  We had puppy chow, brownies, cookies, rice crispy treats, chocolate fudge, and bread.  We raised $111.12 thanks to all of you.  There was also a cute puppy, Titus.  The money is being used for food and cages to be shipped to the dog college in Ohio.  We just would like to thank you all for your help that you did for all the dogs in training. 

MATH COUNTS TEAM

The F.C. Reed Middle Math Counts team took 2nd place in the Blossomland Chapter on Thursday, February 18th, winning our first team trophy since 1999.

The team consisted of Ryan High, Evan Hauck, Steven Walker, and Adam Merrick.

Other individuals competing consisted of Michael Preston, Karisa Steffens, Kyle Zielke, Karly Warriner, and Nicholas Hodge.

Evan Hauck also qualified for the State Competition on March 20th for his individual score.
Karisa Steffens also took 3rd place in the Countdown round winning a trophy.

CLOVERLEAF SPELLING TEAM

Congratulations to the RMS Spellers; Vlad Bower, Ryan High, and Mike Roth, on their great work at the Cloverleaf Spelling Bee on Tuesday, February 9th! Mike Roth spelled his way to 3rd place out 57 spellers at the bee.

6th GRADE

Spider Man

Guest speaker, Bill Craft takes time out of his busy schedule to teach Mrs. Hawn's science classes about tarantulas.  A great time was had by all

Electromagnets

Hawn's 6th grade science class learned how to make an electromagnet with a switch.  They built an electromagnetic fishing pole and competed catching paperclips.

8th GRADE - America & Me Essay Winners

The Barnes Agency Farm Bureau Insurance has sponsored the 41st annual America & Me Essay Contest for Michigan Eighth Grade Students. Eighth graders are asked to write about their American heroes, especially the people who have made a big difference in the students' personal lives. The F.C. Reed Middle School essay winners are: Stevi Simon, first place; Nikki Beckman, 2nd place, and Jessilyn Albanelli. Stevi's hero is her mom, who "All that she asks for is that we give life our all." Nikki wrote about her fire chief Grandpa who "was one of the oldest fire chiefs in St. Joseph and he never retired.....He saved a lot of lives and put out a lot of fires." Jessilyn wrote about Aunt Laura who "made her realize that you don't have to be perfect, to be yourself and to be happy." Each student wrote a touching essay on the hero in their life. Congratulations to each of them. 

BAND FESTIVAL

The middle school band festival will be held on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at Lake Michigan College.  The band practiced their selections at a pre-festival concert on February 24.  Our F.C. Reed Middle School band will be performing at 9:00 a.m. and the festival is open to the public, and our students would love for you to stop and hear their performance. 

ENCORE STUDENT OF THE MONTH

P.E. BOYS= Ian Logue, 8th grade

Ian always participates in every activity and gives his all. Ian is also very competitive. Ian recently tied Mrs. Rantz in a roller skating limbo challenge at Lakeshore Roller World. I have a feeling next time Mrs. Rantz won't be so lucky. Congratulations Ian Logue!

ART=Aidan Diefenbach, Trevor Rosenthal, Celeste Hildebrandt and Maddie Gelesko, 5th grade
These fifth grade students are off to a great start in Middle School Art! They are so creative, work outside of class, help around the art room, and are generally fun people to be around. Way to go!

FOREIGN LANGUAGE= Ellie Beilman, Shelby Pruett, Elizabeth Graves, Ryan Mccoy, Kyle Zielke and Daniel Harazin, and Tim Hart 7th grade

These students participate well on a daily basis, come prepared to class, and demonstrate their commitment to their studies by their success on assignments and quizzes. Tim Hart is also to be commended. He is the most improved student in the class and has been coming prepared to class and been participating in the activities during instruction.

INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY=Breanna Riggenbach,  6th grade

She has done a great job crafting her foot stool in the shop. More importantly, she always does her best in class and has a great attitude. Keep up the good work, Breanna!

MUSIC APPRECIATION= Sarah Stygar, 8th grade

Sarah is a student who is very interested in music. Her curiosity and thought helps bring a level of creative thought to class discussion.

P.E. GIRLS= Amber Fleisher, 5th grade.

Amber gives her all in everything she does. She has a great attitude and a willingness to try and do her best. Good Job Amber!

STAR OR RMS AWARD

The following students were nominated by Mrs. Bredice, Mrs. Cole and Mrs. Milano for positive behaviors during their lunch/recess times:

5th gr.:    McKenna Smith

6th gr.:    Tianna Zindler

7th gr.:    Christopher Mensinger

8th gr.:    Tori Fleck

ART NEWS

The Krasl Art Center will be hosting it's 10th Annual Krasl Middle School Art Show on March 18-April 11.  A reception will be held on Thursday, March 18, from 5:30-7:30 p.m.  Please stop in and support our students. 

Art in the Community event will be out and around Bridgman area businesses in March.  Participating businesses are:  Fifth Third Bank, Edgewater Bank, Woodland Terrace, Bridgman Dental, Barnes Agency Farm Bureau Insurance, Bridgman Garden & Feed/Paws to Wash, A&W Restaurant, Beachside Bakery and Zielke Homes & Improvement, LLC.  businesses in March. Some Bridgman Elementary and F.C. Reed Middle School student's work will be hanging in participating businesses.  Stop in at these local businesses and see art work from our student artist.

LIBRARY NEWS!

SPRING BOOK FAIR NEWS - This year we are having a very different book fair. Lowery Books from Three Rivers is our new vendor this spring. So plan on stopping in the library during Parent/ Teacher conferences. We will have many new books, old favorites and bargain books. The book fair is how we purchase new and exciting books for your student to read! Hope to see you at the SPRING BOOK FAIR! Your Friendly Middle School Library Staff!

STUDENT COUNCIL WINTER SPIRIT WEEK ACTIVITIES

Hat Day-Pay $1.00 to wear a hat and the money goes toward Cystic Fibrosis

CRAZY DAY

Washington D.C. Trip

Please check your account after the first week of March.  Your fundraiser amounts should be credited at that time. 

STUDENT'S 1ST CREDIT UNION

Start Small

Save big!

Student tellers wanted!

The Start Small Save Big program is looking for students who are outing, energetic, and enjoy handling money. Not only will you be able to see what it’s like to work as a real teller, but you can socialize with your friends as well.

Student tellers work Thursday mornings before class.  Don’t worry, you won’t have to wake up early.

If you are interested in a fun-filled environment or you just like to socialize before class you should pick up and return and application in the office. Everyone who fills out an application will receive a thank you gift.

The Start Small Save Big program is a partnership between RMS and Berrien Teachers Credit Union (BTCU). All balances pay interest and fees are waived until age 22. For more information about the Start Small Save Big program or to have a new account packet mailed to your home, please contact me at 269-983-6357 ext. 2744.

Rebecca Boyd

RMS Branch Coordinator

DO YOU SHOP AT.....?

HARDINGS FRIENDLY MARKET

if so, thank you because Hardings Market donated $178.54 to RMS during the month of July. The total contributions for this year has been $1,201.05. If you have not signed up for a Hardings escript card, and you shop at Hardings, please go to www.escrip.com/hardings.jsp, our school ID# is 167302516.

MARTIN'S SUPERMARKET

Sign up at www.aftsmartins.com or their service counter, and F.C. Reed Middle School will receive FREE educational awards.  Our ID# is 4223.

TARGET

Target and the Take Charge of Education program sends F.C. Reed Middle School 1% of your purchases by entering us as your school of choice.  Our ID# is 60833.

OFFICE DEPOT

If you shop at Office Depot please give the cashier our ID #70048947 and our school will receive 5% back in school supplies.

Other ways you can help...

*SCRIP Program is simply a word that means "substitute money" in other words scrip is a form of gift certificates.  Keep this in mind for all your gift cards in the future.  Call the school office for details. 

SCRIP
A dollar for dollar fundraising program.  If you want a $25 Speedway gas card, you pay $25 and you get a $25 card.  The school receives a different percentage off each retailers card. That's how we earn money.

BENEFITS
When you order SCRIP through the school we keep track of how much your purchases have earned and we split the profits with you 60/40. We use our percent to help fund assemblies, buy classroom supplies, help pay for video conferences, offset the cost of field trips, etc.  You can use your profit anyway you like. At the end of each quarter issue you a check and you can apply this towards lunch money, field trip costs, class trips, sports, etc.  We have a small inventory of cards in stock and we place an order every Tuesday or as needed

If you have any questions please contact Mrs. Rantz at 269-466-0334 or lrantz@bridgmanschools.com

*USED INK CARTRIDGES are collected by the media center.  Mr. Noll, can then used these points toward future media purchases. 

*BOX TOPS for EDUCATION are collected on all General Mills products.  Each box top is worth a face value that is in turn used for future school supplies.

*CARTRIDGES FOR KIDS PROGRAM is a way to recycle your electronic items.  Such as old, unwanted, broken electronic devices.  They accept:  cell phones, GPS devices, iPods, DVD's, PDA's, video games, video game consoles, digital cameras and laptops.  The FRIENDS OF RMS is sponsoring this program and all proceeds will go toward a "Fun Day" at the end of the year!  Please bring all items to the RMS Office.  

BRIDGES TO DIGITAL EXCELLENCE COMPUTER PROGRAM

The Bridges to Digital Excellence mission is to reach youth and families that do not have access to a computer at their home.  If you K-12 child attends a school in the Berrien or Van Buren County School District, you ARE eligible for a FREE computer, regardless of income, ethnicity or anything else!  Also, if you provide Home School curriculum for your child, you too are eligible! 

Applications are available in the F.C. Reed Middle School office.  For further information contact Bridges to Digital Excellence (BDE) at 269.757.0218.