Bms Bulldog Bytes Sept 08

September 18, 2008 PTSA Board Members: President: Terri Errington Vice Pres.: Frieda Wrenn School Incentives Treasurer: Tracy Estes Secretary: Ann Marie Conti Ways & Means: Leigh Owens Volunteer Coordinator: Cathy McClintock Membership: Suella Day Reflections: Lori Looper Hospitality: Paula Durham Tammy Stephens Newsletter: Kim Van Beek Publicity: Leigh Bostic Red Ribbon: Becky Friddle Landscaping: Sandy Sierputowski Box Tops/Campbells: Starr Hammond Teacher Representative:

Calendar Parent Night………….…..…..9/22 Parent/Principal Breakfast….10/02 SPIRIT WEEK……….10/06-10/10 Parent Night………………...10/13 School Closed………………10/17 School Closed………………10/19 Parent/Principal Lunch……..10/23 Red Ribbon Week…...10/23-10/31 Report Cards………………..10/30

A Message from Mr. Davie Hello everyone. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each of you for your hard work and support. We have had a wonderful opening to the 2008-2009 school year, and look forward to the many things our students will accomplish in the coming weeks. We have implemented some new things this year that we hope will have a positive impact on the overall academic and social life of our students. In the past, we have had four core classes and two exploratory classes. The four core classes consisted of Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies. We have adjusted our master schedule to include five core classes this year. We still have Math, Science, and Social Studies, but have split our Language Arts Class into two classes, which now are listed as English and Reading. We still have two exploratory classes as before. With this new schedule, our students have seven class periods each day of about fifty minutes each. A second change we are implementing deals with our lunch periods. In years before, students in any given grade level all ate lunch together during the same lunch shift. This caused our cafeteria to be very crowded, and made it difficult to move through the lines in the cafeteria. We have split the lunch period at each grade level into two sections. Half the students in each grade level are in the cafeteria at any given lunch shift. The other half of the students are given courtyard time where they can interact with their peers through various activities. We also have a room set up for homework recovery during this time. Students who fail to turn in their homework are required to do their homework in the homework recovery room during courtyard time. Students lose the social time, but are given credit for the homework when it is completed. As the year moves forward, we plan to utilize this time to offer additional support for students who need extra assistance in their academic classes as well. Please take time to review your student’s progress report and feel free to contact your student’s teacher(s) if you would like a conference. The guidance counselor at each grade level can schedule the conference if you would like to meet with several teachers at one time. We have also set aside some time on September 25th to have our first Parent-Teacher Connect Day. Please see our website for details regarding this time.

Chillin’ on the Green……….10/31 Please visit Bryson’s website for more detailed information on calendared events or additional information of newsletter items.

Again, thank you for your support. I am honored to serve as your principal. Phillip Davie

Guidance News Spring 2008 PACT scores will be included with your child’s progress report. If you would like to schedule a conference, please contact your grade level counselor. 6th Grade- Denise Lambert- 355-2116 7th Grade- Tia Blair- 355-2117 8th Grade- Shani Brister- 355-2104

6th Grade News The South Carolina Children's Theatre will present the Know Way Bully Prevention program to our sixth grade students on Monday, October 6th. 7th Grade News Congratulations to the 7th grade students who qualified for the Duke University Talent Identification Program (TIP). The Duke TIP program is a non-profit educational organization established to identify and recognize gifted and talented students at an early age. The objectives of this program are to follow and nurture these students’ talents through the critical middle and high school years and to develop an effective effort to help understand the nature of academically talented adolescents. If you would like for your child to take the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT) in December, the application must be postmarked by Oct. 1, 2008. Final postmark deadline for all other test dates is November 3, 2008. For questions or concerns, please contact Tia Blair at (864) 355-2117. 8th Grade News On Monday, October 13th there will be a Select Schools assembly for our 8th Grade students at 9:30am. Also on the same day representatives will be here to meet parents of students who may be interested in attending one of our Magnet High Schools and/or career centers when they enter High School. The parent night will start at 6:30pm. Schools that will be represented are as follows: Carolina Academy, JL Mann Academy, Greenville Sr. High Academy, Southside (IB) High, Golden Strip Career Center, Donaldson Career Center, Fine Arts Center

If you are unable to attend the parent night, you are invited to the student assembly. On Wednesday, October 15th, 8th grade students who scored Proficient or Advanced on the Spring 2008 PACT in Language Arts and Math will have the opportunity to take the PSAT. This program is part of the South Carolina Junior Scholars Program, which was developed to identify eighth-grade students with exceptional academic talent. Students identified as Junior Scholars will have opportunities to attend summer programs at participating SC Colleges and Universities. Mrs. Brister will contact students who qualify.

Parent – Teacher Connect Looking for a way to help your child improve his or her grades in the classroom? Need to get ideas on how to help your child study more efficiently? Parent-Teacher Connect will offer parents a time each quarter to meet as a parent group and to learn strategies for supporting their children in academics. Our first meeting is Thursday, September 25th. As always, individual appointments can be scheduled through our guidance department to discuss specific grades and policies.

Parent - Principal Breakfasts and Lunches Bryson Middle School offers new options for involvement to interested parents this year. Morning, noon, and night—opportunities will be available for parents to visit the school and to spend time in the school environment with their children and school staff. Added this year, Parent-Principal Breakfast and Lunch dates will be designated for parents to encourage their children while visiting with faculty and staff. Once a month, a light breakfast will be served in the media center. Beginning at 7:30 A.M., breakfast will continue until 8:00 A.M. when students will make their way to morning classes. Similarly once a month, lunch days will also be designated and will coordinate with each child’s lunch shift. Lunches in the courtyard also will host activities for students and parents to enjoy time together.

2008-09 BMS Volleyball Team Congratulations to the following students who made the BMS Volleyball Team:

Spirit Week at BMS is Coming Soon! October 6-10, 2008

If you saw some loose change on the ground, you would not ignore it. So, why ignore Box Tops and Campbell’s soup labels? When you throw out your labels and Box Tops, you are throwing away money that could be used for Bryson Middle School. Please take the time to save your Box Tops and labels. Simply cut them out and have your student drop them off at the office. Make sure that you put them in a Ziploc bag or envelope with the student’s name and homeroom. Those classes that collect the most labels/Box Tops are awarded with special treats. Simply put…every Box Top is worth ten cents. If 100 students bring in 100 Box Tops each, the school gets a check for $1,000. Let’s work together to make this a banner year in collections. If you have any questions or would like to help with this program, you may contact me at [email protected]. Thanks in advance for your help!

Please check the BMS website or the school calendar for game schedule.

Tired of the normal school fundraiser? Students and Parents . . . Spirit Week will be PTSA's MAIN FUNDRAISER for the year. Spirit Week will be a fun way for students to participate in daily activities to help us raise money for our school. Chick-fil-A biscuit sales DAILY, Concessions during Courtyard Time DAILY, Hat Day DAILY, Buy Your Way Out of Class and much, much more. Students & Parents, help us raise money that week by showing your school pride. Make plans now to be a part of it all. Tickets for all events and activities go on sale Monday, September 29, outside the Lunch Room. Spirit Week begins Monday, October 6. Please see the BMS website for more information. Mark your calendars!

Holiday Fair Mark your calendar for Monday November 17th, 2008. The Bryson Middle School Holiday Fair/Parent Night is in the planning stages. If you are interested in having a table at the fair, watch the school news in the Tribune Times or the Bryson Middle website to sign up. Looking forward to a great evening.

Red Ribbon Week

Starr Hammond Box Tops and Campbell’s Soup Labels Coordinator

Red Ribbon Week is October 23 thru October 31st. A meeting will be scheduled soon. If you are interested in helping that week, please contact Becky Friddle at 967-3193. Also, please check the BMS website for the date of the meeting and for any other information.

Cookie Dough Sale (Back by Popular Demand) The PTA will once again be selling Cookie Dough this Fall, in a variety of kinds. Order forms will go home on October 27. And all orders will be due on November 10. Parents, please help support our school by purchasing some cookie dough for the holiday season. All orders should be ready for pick up the week of December 8. Thanks for your help and cooperation.

School Incentives

Olivia Trone, Morgan Ginn, Madison Stephens, Dalaney Taylor, Morgan Bross, Ashlyn Durham, Sarah Heller, Haley Breazeale, Logan Moody, Rachel Glanton, Walker Broad, Caitlyn Lashley, Stephanie Newton and Courtney Trocke.

Copying by The UPS Store

Saving Box Tops and Campbell’s Soup Labels Makes “Cents”

Parents watch for scan bars to come home with your child so that you may reactivate your BiLo Bonus card. This is the easiest way to donate to our school. Recyling Ink Cartridges - If you work in an office that has copying machines, fax machines or printers, you can help our school by sending in your used ink cartridges. Just have your student bring them to the front office. Shopping Scancards - If you still need a Publix or BiLo scan card, please go to the front office and pick one up.

Parent Night Please join us Monday, September 22nd for BMS Parent Night. Evening Parent Nights will continue launched by First Night and including fall and international festivals, a talent show, a game show, a holiday fair, career/education updates, and a student-faculty basketball game. Also on the schedule is a Spirit Week (Oct. 6-10) and quarterly Family Fun events (dates to be determined).

Welcome! BMS PTSA would like to welcome our new PTSA Board Members and Chairpersons: Frieda Wrenn –VP, Ann Marie Conti – Secretary, Leigh Owens – Ways and Means, Cathy McClintock – Volunteer Coordinator, Suella Day – Membership, Lori Looper – Reflections, Paula Durham and Tammy Stephens – Hospitality, Leigh Bostic – Publicity, Becky Friddle – Red Ribbon, Starr Hammond - Box Tops/Campbell’s Soup Labels.

NOW TWO LOCATIONS: 655 Fairview Road, Simpsonville, SC 29680 (864) 228-9405

926 N.E. Main Street, Suite F, Simpsonville, SC 29681 (864) 757-9509