J. M. S. News. . . by Donald F. Gately
November 2014
Spelling Bee Contest – Ms. Rose Scalera,
8th Grade English Teacher Coordinator
Can you spell the word “Candelabra?”
Well, one of our middle school 8th grade
students did! Our annual Spelling Bee took
place on Monday, October 27th to an
enthusiastic audience! The winner this year is
Ethan Reiser and our runner-up is Hannah
Philipose, both 8th graders. Special thanks
go to Ms. Rose Scalera for organizing this
exciting and very competitive event.
Quote of the Week for November 3: “Step by step, one can ascent the stairs.”
Evelyn Cisneros, Prima Ballerina
THANKSGIVING
Prosperity and health are relative. Regardless of how we are situated, we can always find others who
are worse off than we are. Later in the year, our 8th grade students will read “Anne Frank: A Diary of a
Young Girl.” Consider this quote from her memoir:
“Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy.”
What has always struck me about this amazing book is how little of it is devoted to the historical
conditions of its time. Despite the fact that Anne is forced into hiding by horrific conditions and that
she and her family share 3 rooms with two other families, she is thankful and hopeful for the future.
It’s an amazing lesson in gratitude for our students and for us this Thanksgiving. These are some of the
ways that we teach Social Emotional Literacy to students at the middle school. I know you encourage
this at home as well.
OLWEUS News
Our congratulations to Joanne Verdino and everyone involved in making the “3rd Annual Bully Presentation
Kick-Off” such a special event! Please click on to the following link to view the pictures of October 27th:
http://web.jerichoschools.org/ms/library/bullykickoff2014.htm
Canned Food Drive
This year the Middle School is sponsoring a collection of cans and non-perishable food supplies during
November 10-21st. The food will be donated to the Jericho Fire Department for distribution. Please
know we appreciate our middle school families for always supporting our efforts to help others less
fortunate than ourselves; it does not go unnoticed! There will be a box located by the Receptionist’s
desk outside the Attendance Office for your donations. Thank you.
“The John Theissen Children’s Foundation” Recipient of our Toy Drive
The Middle School will be collecting toys for “The John Theissen Children’s Foundation” starting
November 5th through December 12th. The John Theissen Children’s Foundation offers sick and needy
children toys throughout the holiday season and fulfills patient’s (age birth to 18 years old) wish lists
throughout the year. Please drop off toys at the Attendance office or Mr. Wiener’s office. Your
thoughtfulness will help make someone else’s holiday a happier one.
CLASSROOM NEWS
Team 6A: Ms. Gilbert/Mr. Kuehn
Students from Team 6A prepare to make a sun-clock
while in their Math/Science/Technology
Interdisciplinary class!
Team 6B: Ms. Riccuiti/Ms. Varga
Team 6B certainly did not stand by this month. We stood up
against bullying by participating in the Olweus Anti-Bullying
Kickoff. Leading up to the big day, we created footprints to
show our commitment to our school. We are currently
designing shoes that represent ourselves. We have come up
with everything from flip-flops to snow boots... and everything
in between!
Team 6C: Ms. Clemente/Ms. O’Brien/Ms. Diehl/ Ms.
Fernandes
Team 6C recently held a Metric Olympics to practice
estimating and measuring precisely in the metric system.
Students completed a circuit of 6 events
related to mass, volume, length, and area.
!
Team 6D: Ms. Aubrey/Ms. Lambe/Ms. Schisgall
Ms. Schisgall’s homeroom class has been very busy
these days from creating beautiful cave paintings
to designing inspirational slogans for the Anti-Bullying
Walk-a-Thon.
Things just couldn’t get any better for our team!!!
Team 7A: B. Brill, M.Vevante, S. Theotokis, D. Kahn, L.
Trojanowski, A. McDonough
Should we celebrate Columbus Day? Students on
team 7A have been discussing this and other
essential questions, such as, did the Age of
Discovery add to or detract from human
happiness? In social studies class students
discussed the legacy of Christopher Columbus
by comparing multiple perspectives on his legacy.
It certainly sparked quite the discussion!
Team 7B: C. Dell’Erba, M. Panayiotou, S. Sharma, Kim
Haggerty
Students on Team 7B completed an experiment using marshmallow
catapults. The students identified independent and dependent
variables, control and experimental groups, and constants in the
experiment. While following the steps of the Scientific Method,
they launched the marshmallows outside and measured the distance
traveled to determine which type of spoon would be most effective
as a catapult. The record launch approached close to 20 meters!
Team 8A: C. Snyder, T. Cantwell, D. Schwirzbin, T. Lucher, D. Stile,
J. Lawlor
Team 8A took a trip to the Sunken Forest on Fire Island
to culminate their study of ecosystems. The Sunken Forest
is one of the select areas that have multiple ecosystems
all in one place.
Team 8B: R. Scalera, J. Adler, T. Catalano, J. Smith
“Matching Activities in their Math Classes”
Students work in partnership to make connections between
linear functions by way of graphs, tables, equations, and
situations. The discussions that are facilitated through
activities, such as these, foster a deeper understanding
Team 8C: J. Han, K. Kovoros, G. Berry, J. Stieger
Team 8C reaches for the stars!
Team 8C students braved a chilly October evening to catch a glimpse
of the North Star, Polaris! Most students were able to locate the
star using one of two methods. The first, "fist", method requires
using your fist as a 10 degree marker and looking 4 fists upward into
the Northern sky. The second method required students to locate
the Big Dipper Constellation and then follow the last two bowl stars in
a straight line to see Polaris. Students had family members
photograph them finding the stars!!
High Expectations (Goal Setting)
Our monthly theme for November is: “HIGH EXPECTATIONS (GOAL-SETTING).” High expectations
involve believing that others can be successful, telling them so, and praising their accomplishments.
Letting others know that you expect them to do well and congratulating them on a job well done.
SEL Challenge for the month of November
Praise 3 people who are not in your immediate circle of friends for some
accomplishment or for something they did well.
This powerful skill is the ability to affirm others by looking for and finding good in people. It means
building others up and encouraging them. It means finding reasons for praise and applause. It means
nurturing and being supportive, and reinforcing what others do well. Most of all, it means giving people
reasons to celebrate. In order to create these expectations, you need to create a sense of cooperation
in all your undertakings. Before criticizing a teammate, walk a mile in his or her shoes. Be BRAVE
enough to be KIND and Have the COURAGE to CARE!
Middle School Book Fair
Our PTSA held its annual Book Fair on October 21 and 22nd Scholastic Book Fairs brought a large
selection of paperback books to the Middle School for our youngsters to buy. We also invited parents to
visit the Book Fair, which was held in the Middle School Library from 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. We are
happy to announce that we sold over $7,057. worth of books. All the profits earned from the Book Fair,
which was $3,881.64 are used to provide additional books for the students to borrow from their
English and Reading classrooms as well as from our Middle School Library! We would like to thank
our PTSA, ELA Department, and sixth grade teachers for once again making our book fair a big success.
You can view the pictures from our website:
http://web.jerichoschools.org/ms/library/bookfair2014.htm
Last, but not least, we would like to express our appreciation to Tammy Fine and Joanne Silverman for
co-chairing the Book Fair, Jennifer Stoler, our PTSA President and all the parent volunteers for which
this event could not have taken place. You are our unsung heroes! Thank you.
Congratulations to our Literacy Leader’s for the Summer 2014 Reading Program
Samantha Balko (8)
Titanic: Book One: Unsinkable, Buddy, Water Street
Kasra Chehrazi (8)
Spy High: Blood Relations, Ender’s Game, Spyigh: The Serpent Scenerio
Rahul Das (8)
Found, Sun and Shadow, Countdown
Tiffany Heilig (6)
If I Stay, F for Effort, The Julian Chapter: A Wonder Story
Saipranati Kethireddy (7)
The Cupcake Club-Mia in the Mix, Flora and Ulysses, Just Another Day in my Insanely Real Life
Saipranavi Kethireddy (7)
Flora and Ulysses, Another Day In My Insanely Real Life,
The Thing About Luck
Zelig Kulangara (8)
Thieves Like Us, The Report Card, Duke, Buddy
Rachelle Lee (7)
Maximum Ride – Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports,
Maximum Ride – School’s Out Forever, Maximum Ride – The Angel Experiment
Stella Lee (8)
Wild Born, Jinx, Ever After High: Storybook of Legend, Eragon
Angie Li (8)
City of Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls, The House of Hades
Juliann Lo (7)
Behind the Bit, Take the Reins, Chasing Blue
Dara Moghadam (8)
The Titans Curse, Eleven Rings The Soul of Success, The House of Hades
Michael Mesbah (8)
Courage Has No Color, Fallout, Super Slugger
Miranda Pietraski (7)
Duke, Waluk, Buddy
Dhruba Podder (8)
Jinx, Fallout, Divergent, Exposure, Code
Adrienne Popescu (8)
Paperboy, The Extra, Navigating Early, One Came Home, War Horse, Allegiant, The Giver,
Messenger
Catherine Sang (8)
Rules of Summer, Hush Hush, Catherine
Meghna Satheesh (8)
The Thing About Luck, Fallout, Doll bones, The One
Shrey Shah (8)
The Scorch Trials, The Death Cure, The Maze Runner
Preethi Sridhar (7)
Navagating Early, The Thing About Luck, Almost Home
Christy Wei (7)
Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse
Nolani Kennedy-White (8)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Spirit Animals: Wild Born,
Absolutely Normal Chaos
Corey Wong (8)
Deep Zone, Game Changers, Stronger Than Steel
Jasmine Wong (8)
The Selection, The Extra, Navigating Early
Brennen Yu (7)
The 39 Clues: One False Note, How They Croaked The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous, The 39
Clues: The Maze of Bones
Weekly Quotations for November:
November 10:
“Little by little, one walks far.” Peruvian proverb
November 17:
“My philosophy is that doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for
the next moments.”
Oprah Winfrey, TV Personality, actress, producer, philanthropist, b. 1954
November 24:
“It is seldom the fault of one, when two argue.” Swedish proverb
DATES TO REMEMBER
November 4
November 6
November 11
Schools Closed
MS PTSA Meeting & Principal’s Coffee Hour, MS Library, 9:00 a.m.
Schools Closed
November
November
November
November
November
November
November
November
Middle School Winter Concert I, Chorus/Orchestra - 7:30 p.m., Auditorium
Middle School Report Cards Posted Online
Middle School Yearbook Portrait Retakes
Guidance Evening Hours: 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
SEPTA Meeting – M.S. Library – 7:00 p.m.
Board of Education Meeting – Cantiague – 7:45 p.m.
MS Learning Center Parent-Teacher Conferences 7:00-9:00 p.m.
MS Parent-Teacher Initiated Conferences: 3:00-5:00 p.m. and
7:00-9:00 p.m. No clubs
NO SCHOOL FOR MS STUDENTS
PARENT-TEACHER INITIATED CONFERENCES: 8:00 a.m.-12:00 noon
Schools Closed
12
14
17
18
18
20
25
25
November 26
November 27-28