TBMS Weekly Newsletter - Issue 25-26.18

Posted Date: 01/07/26 (08:25 PM)

Weekly Newsletter | January 7, 2026

Dear Bromfield Middle School Families,

Happy New Year!

Snowflake Dance ❄️

I’m looking forward to the Snowflake Dance this Friday, January 7, from 7:00–9:00 PM, in the Bromfield cafeteria. This event is open to Grade 7 and 8 students only. (Grade 6 students will have the opportunity to attend the Glow Dance later this year.)

The theme for this year’s dance is Enchanted Forest, and semi-formal attire is encouraged.

As this is our first dance of the school year, I want to be clear about expectations so that the evening is fun, safe, and enjoyable for everyone:

Students are expected to be respectful of all students and adults in attendance.
Students may be in the cafeteria and the hallway immediately outside the cafeteria (where refreshments are located). No other areas of the building are permitted.
Phones are allowed, but students may not take photos or videos without permission, nor may they share images or videos without permission, including on social media or messaging apps.
Students may not leave the building without permission or supervision and may not leave campus and return (including trips to The General or elsewhere).
Students are expected to remain at the dance until 8:55 PM unless a parent/caregiver comes to the main entrance to pick them up. Once a student leaves, they may not return.

If you have any questions about these expectations, please feel free to reach out to me directly.

Grade 7 & 8 Unified Arts Requests

As we approach the midpoint of the school year, we are preparing for semester changes in Unified Arts classes for Grade 7 and 8 students. Students currently enrolled in Health will switch to Digital Literacy, and vice versa, and most students will transition to a new Fine and Performing Arts (FPA) course.

While the master schedule was built in July based on student requests from last spring, we recognize that interests can change over time. For that reason, we are asking Grade 7 and 8 students to rank their preferences for the four FPA options: Art, Band, Chorus, and Theatre.

Students will receive a Google Form to submit their ranked preferences for second-semester FPA classes. Please note the following:

There is no guarantee that a student will receive their first-choice FPA course.
There is no guarantee that a student’s FPA course will change from what is currently scheduled.
We can assure students that if they wish to remain in their currently scheduled second-semester FPA course, that placement will not be changed unless they request it.

Thank you for your support as we work to balance student interests with scheduling realities.

Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mr. Daniel Hudder
Bromfield Middle School Principal

Upcoming Events:

Fri, Jan 9 Grade 7-8 Winter Dance
Wed, Jan 14 Half Day
Mon, Jan 19 No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Upcoming Celebrations & Observances:

Wed, Jan 14 Orthodox New Year (Orthodox Christian)

WEEKLY UPDATES

SIXTH GRADE

Happy New Year! In 6th grade we are starting my personal favorite unit of the year - Well Being: The Power of Play. During this unit students will learn how to write a persuasive argumentative email while exploring multimedia sources relating to the importance of recess and time outside. Students will be asked to decide what they think recess should look like in the middle school and use these sources to argue their point in an email format. Outside of the final draft of their email, this unit is almost entirely iPad-free.

This unit also connects well to last year's community read, The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. One of the main ideas of that text is the importance of free play for students in kindergarten through eighth grade. There are many videos on YouTube and articles online about Haidt's ideas for you to explore if you'd like to discuss the importance of play with your student!

Finally, as we approach the end of the semester (and quarter) in two weeks, this is a friendly reminder for students to submit any missing or incomplete work as soon as possible. Please take a moment to check PowerSchool with your student(s) to review current grades and outstanding assignments. Completing missing work now will help ensure grades accurately reflect your child’s effort and learning this semester (and quarter). Thank you for your continued support. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

EIGHTH GRADE

Just before winter break, students in Civics completed their unit on the development of the United States government. Students learned about the major historical events and ideas that occurred between the writing of the Declaration of Independence to the ratification of the Constitution. Along with readings and taking notes, students demonstrated their understanding of the topics through a wide range of activities from rewriting the Declaration of Independence as a “break-up” letter from the colonists to King George, to creating a rap battle between the Federalist and Anti-Federalist factions debating the legitimacy of the Constitution, to “digitizing” the Bill of Rights as a series of Google slides. With that topic completed (and the US government in place with the ratification of the Constitution), the students now turn their attention to how the institutions of the US political system work. In this next unit, students will examine the roles of Congress, the President and the Supreme Court and how the Constitution lays out how no one branch can abuse its power.

The week in Flex leading up to break consisted of students receiving academic time to complete work and STAR testing in Math and ELA. On the Monday before break, students had a chance to reflect on their personal well-being and academic effort and growth in a short survey. Flex for the upcoming week will involve tiered intervention in ELA and Math along with academic days and an 8th grade assembly with Principal Hudder and Vice Principal Horton.

UNIFIED ARTS

Hey everyone it's Kae Pierron the art teacher here again with your UA update for this week's newsletter! Hope you all had a great break!

Students are finishing up their projects as we wrap up this semester for 7th and 8th. As for 6th grade they are just starting their clay project!!

6th grade just finished the Neon Tint and Shade assignments. Which was a painting assignment to create the illusion of a neon sign. They came out wonderfully and now they are going to start a project with Clay all about Unity!

7th grade just finished their clay project and are now working on pointillism postcards!

And finally 8th grade is working on a choice project to wrap up their semester and they are almost finished with many creative assignments from altering clothing to building a surfboard out of paper mache.

Hope you enjoyed a peek into the art room. Until next time, have a great rest of your Winter everyone!!

PTO NEWS AND EVENTS

Discounted Ticket Link:

https://www.gofevo.com/event/harvardps

COMMUNITY NEWS AND EVENTS

The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts will be hosting a Webex Webinar Keeping Kids Safe and Secure Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation . The webinar will take place on the evening of Tuesday, February 3, at 6:30 pm in a partnership between the United States Attorney’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations Digital Forensics/Child Exploitation/Cyber Crime Unit. Advanced registration is required, and the capacity of the Webex webinar platform is 1000. In the event we reach capacity, those who are unable to register can email USAMA.PSCOutreach@usa.doj.gov to be put on the list for the next webinar.

Webinar topic:

Keeping Kids Safe and Secure Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents

Date and time:

Tuesday, February 3, 2026 6:30 PM | (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)

https://usao.webex.com/weblink/register/r83f7d49f6565b65bce8bb420f1cfef7c

Fanfare is holding its annual Winter Concert Fundraising Drive. We hope to support our music teachers with several requests this year. Our current drive will raise funds to purchase student ensemble folders to organize their music. Last year’s drive to fund school instrument repairs was a huge success. Thank you, and please continue to support music in our schools!

https://www.fanfareformusic.org/

THE BROMFIELD MIDDLE SCHOOL

Daniel Hudder, Principal

	dhudder@psharvard.org
	https://bromfield.psharvard.org/
	@harvardpublicschools

14 Massachusetts Avenue, Harvard MA, 01451 | (978) 456 - 4145

Month.Day.Year