Weekly Newsletter | December 17, 2024 |
Dear Bromfield Middle School Families,
Welcome to the last TBMS newsletter of 2024! It has been a fast and eventful first four months of the school year, and I am sure we have all earned next week’s school vacation!
First of all, thank you to the Harvard PTO and all who contributed for the delicious treats for the TBS faculty and staff on Monday. I was partial to the gingerbread cookies…
This week, I want to share my reflections around our Winter Concert this past Wednesday. Overall, it was a great night - despite some truly awful weather outside. Foremost, our students and their music teachers had clearly worked very hard in preparation for this performance. I was impressed by what I heard - particularly given that our chorus and band classes meet only twice per seven-day cycle of school days. The performance speaks to the commitment of the students and the skill of their teachers. In addition, the event was tremendously well-attended, which speaks to the level of support on the part of families and communities.
Unfortunately, there was a blemish on the evening. Some of our middle school students in the audience comported themselves very poorly when they were not on stage performing. Students were loudly talking and at times calling out to their classmates on stage. This behavior is an important reminder for me about the myriad ways that our students are still learning. Many students need explicit instruction on proper behavior at events such as these. As a result, the music teachers and I are collaborating to support student learning in this area going forward. Also, I spoke with all grade 6 students about this behavior at the end of an already-scheduled assembly around bullying and appropriate behavior on Thursday, and the 6th grade team incorporated this situation into a Flex lesson Friday around the unwritten rules of behavior in general. Finally, I will address this matter with each class at my midyear grade-level assemblies in January. Our students' behavior as audience members will be markedly improved in the future.
I want to congratulate our Project 351 Club - and really the entire school community - for their work on the annual food drive with Loaves and Fishes. Because of their efforts and the generosity of the entire school, TBMS was able to donate a total of 1598.9 pounds of food and personal care items (and that number will go up a bit based on donations past the deadline)! Thanks to everyone who contributed.
Please note that we have a half day on Friday, December 20. We have an exciting program of community building planned for that day, as the Grade 6 students have a virtual concert and workshop with Mr, Nicky, while Grade 7 and 8 students will engage in a variety of activities, including volleyball and yard games, winter arts and crafts, and a trivia game run by a certain middle school principal. Students will be dismissed at 11:20 AM.
I wish everyone a restful and enjoyable holiday break. Please note the following dates for the school vacation:
December 20: Half day (11:20 dismissal) December 23 - January 1: No school January 2: School reopens Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mr. Daniel Hudder
Bromfield Middle School Principal |
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WEEKLY UPDATES
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SIXTH GRADE
Spanish: Both Spanish 1A and 1B classes are wrapping up their current units on bullfighting by delivering presentations on whether the topic should be considered, "cultura o tortura?" After this, Spanish 1A will dive into a new unit about the Panama Canal. Spanish 1B will embark on a new unit that will review parts of the body with activities focused on motion and movement. After the start of the new year, we will determine the winners of the "Copa mundial," an active game where all Spanish class "countries" compete against each other to win an esteemed prize.
French: Our Exploratory French students continue to engage with high-frequency vocabulary and grammatical structures. Students are also learning how to count to one hundred and tell the time, identify how and when to use articles as well as the concept of gender as it relates to nouns, determiners and adjectives. As a daily practice, students are able to communicate the time, the date, the day of the week and the weather as well as to express how they are feeling and why. Students are doing an amazing job talking about how they are doing and their recent creative and grammatical work around a French cartoon series has exceeded my expectations. The sixth graders continue to bring a lot of joy and energy into the classroom and we are all very excited about the upcoming, well-deserved winter break.
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SEVENTH GRADE
In the weeks leading up to December break, seventh grade English students have been hard at work writing an expository essay that explains how author Deborah Ellis developed the theme of The Breadwinner. Students brainstormed a theme of the text and how Ellis employed setting, symbols, character dialogue, and character actions to portray the theme. Then, students’ utilized graphic organizers to develop their essay paragraphs. Students also analyzed sample body paragraphs for both structure and content, and used individualized teacher comments to revise their writing. Final copies are due this week. When we return to ELA after the New Year, students will begin the next novel study: The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer.
In Flex, band and chorus students had time to prepare for their winter concert. Otherwise, students had several academic support days to check in with their teachers surrounding progress report grades and assignments.
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EIGHTH GRADE
This week in grade 8 Physical Science students are finishing up the Pulling Carts lab where, in teams, they pulled different masses with different forces, calculated the acceleration over 10 meters, then using Newton’s 2nd law of motion, they calculated the mass they pulled remarkably accurately. Next, they are proving their understanding of Newton’s three laws of motion by making a collision video with an explanation. Test next week, then freedom for winter break!
In Flex we have worked on project 351 food drive help including making signs for boxes for food collection. We have also have done an activity called “Tangled ball of emotions” which allowed students to look inward to acknowledge emotions they have, consider what they can do to deal with these emotions, and identify what they need others to do to help them.
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UNIFIED ARTS
Our middle school health classes are diving into the world of nutrition! Sixth graders are reviewing the food groups and essential nutrients, gearing up for a food scavenger hunt. Seventh graders are exploring macronutrients and micronutrients, with a special focus on the nutritional needs of athletes. Eighth graders are delving deeper into macronutrients, learning about complex and simple carbohydrates, complete and incomplete proteins, and practicing building nutritious meals for themselves and those with varying dietary restrictions. These hands-on lessons are equipping students with the knowledge and skills they need to make informed food choices and lead healthy lives!
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COMMUNITY NEWS AND EVENTS
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Parents/caregivers need a break? Let your kids enjoy a fun evening with Snowy Night Sitters
January 3, 5-8 PM
Bromfield School Cafeteria
$25 for one child; $40 for two; $55 for three
Pizza and drinks included
Minimum age 5 and toilet trained
Please see the attached flyer. |
The Bromfield gym lost and found will be donated at the end of this week (Dec 20). Please come to collect any missing items by Friday. Thank you! |
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THE BROMFIELD MIDDLE SCHOOL
Daniel Hudder, Principal
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| 14 Massachusetts Avenue, Harvard MA, 01451 | (978) 456 - 4145 |
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