CMS Family Connection

We are doing so many things at CMS now. Here are three examples of the great things happening at CMS this first quarter.

Book Bistro Cafe

To end the first quarter, Mrs. Rosno’s sixth grade students experienced “fine dining” when their English Language Arts (ELA) classroom was transformed into a Book Bistro café for a book tasting. A book tasting is a high-impact, fun event designed to introduce students to various types of books. The goal is to create enthusiasm about reading.

An Updated Approach to Yearbook

In a remarkable display of teamwork and creativity, students at Columbus Middle School have taken on yearbook responsibilities and social media posts, helping to shape our school’s digital presence and telling our story of what is happening at Columbus Middle School. The twenty-one yearbook staff members have worked incredibly hard during the first quarter learning how to take quality photographs and report what is happening in our school. They’ve attended various school events, snapping candid shots and conducting interviews with their fellow students and teachers. They have also taken on the responsibility of posting to our school’s social media account. Hand-picking photos that showcase a variety of students and creating captions that tell the story of Columbus Middle School with the public. One of our 8th graders, Abby Jensen summed it up perfectly, “Yearbook is a way to get involved. It is a good experience and has amazing opportunities. Yearbook is the best thing that has happened to me this school year.” Please like our Columbus Middle School Facebook page to see all the updates by Yearbook.

Activity Nights Sponsored by CMS Student Council

CMS Student Council has been hosting Grade Level Activity Nights for longer than anyone can remember! Activity Nights give students the opportunity to spend an exciting evening at school with their friends. They can play dodgeball, basketball, volleyball, and Ping Pong. There is also Wii Just Dance and a Snack Walk. We ended the night with Pizza! In October, the 8th grade activity night hosted around 175 students, which is over half of the current 8th grade class! 7th grade activity night is in November, and 5th and 6th Grade activity nights are held in the spring semester. Last year STUCO added an additional activity night for students in our special programs (Curriculum Life Skills and Autism+). Their parents and siblings joined them for carnival games and pizza.

You can check your child's grades on ParentVUE. If you are unable to access your child's grades, please call the school counseling office. If you would like a hard copy of your child's grades, please stop by the counseling office to request this. Report cards are mailed home at the end of semester one. Thanks for encouraging your child to work hard to earn good grades.

During the months of November and December, CPS students in grades 5-12 will be receiving information regarding suicide prevention. This information will be age appropriate and tailored for each grade. It will be presented to students by the Northeast Suicide Coalition and delivered to students on the following dates:

5th grade - November 29-30

6th grade - November 28-29

7th grade - December 14-15

8th grade - November 16-17

9th-12th grade - November 20-21

Parents are encouraged to attend an informational presentation “Courageous Conversations” presented by the Northeast Suicide Coalition on Thursday, November 2, 7-8pm in the Columbus High School Concert Hall located at 3434 Discoverer Dr. This presentation will provide information to parents about the suicide prevention curriculum and clarify any specific questions you may have regarding the grade level presentations that will be occurring.

Please reach out to your child’s school counselor if you have questions or would like your student to opt out of the grade level presentation.

Sincerely,

CPS Social Emotional Team

Thank you to the many parents who were able to attend to support your child and their education by attending our fall Parent Teacher Conferences

Last February we tried a different type of Parent Teacher Conferences. We did this to not only increase the number of parents attending the spring conferences but to provide opportunities for our students to take ownership of their learning.

The following are the benefits we found in research on student-led conferences and through our implementation.

• Engage students in understanding their learning

• Engage students in taking ownership of their learning

• Build better communication

• Build stronger relationships between students, parents, and school

• Students are given opportunities to practice public speaking

• Students are given opportunities to goal set and communicate this with parents

It was great to see the academic conversations our students were leading with their parents. It was also great to see how proud students were to share their work with their parents.

We look forward to implementing student-led conferences again in February. You will start in your child's advisory class. Your child will lead the conference and after this, you are more than welcome to visit all of your child's teachers or just meet with their advisory teacher. We look forward to seeing you for conferences again in February. You will be receiving more information as we get closer.

At the end of each quarter we enjoy coming together to celebrate our successes from the entire quarter. We recognize a student of the quarter from each subject area. We also recognize our athletics and activities from that quarter. We have a little fun as well with some Minute-To-Win-It challenges. We end every pep rally with the school fight song along with a cheer challenge. Parents are always welcome to come and celebrate with us. The schedule is as follows:

8th Grade: 8:00-8:55

7th Grade 9:00-9:55

6th Grade 10:00-10:55

5th Grade 11:00-11:55

The quarter two pep rally will be on December 21..

Please visit our website to view pictures from the pep rally.

"The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe," featuring 30 of our 5th & 6th grade students is set to take the stage on December 1st. There are 26 members of the crew from 5th & 6th grades and we have 9 leader helpers with both groups from 7th & 8th grades.

Narnia: The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe

This dramatization of C.S. Lewis' classic work faithfully recreates the magic and mystery of Aslan, the great lion, his struggle with the White Witch, & the adventures of 4 children who inadvertently wander from an old wardrobe into the exciting, never-to-be-forgotten Narnia.

The intense action features chases, duels and escapes as the witch is determined to keep Narnia in her possession and to end the reign of Aslan. All the memorable episodes from the story are represented in this exciting dramatization: the temptation of Edmund by the witch, the slaying of the evil wolf by Peter, the witnessing of Aslan's resurrection by Susan and Lucy, the crowning of the four new rulers of Narnia, etc. The supporting characters are also here: the Unicorn, the Centaur and other forest animals, along with Father Christmas, Mr. and Mrs. Beaver and Tumnus the Faun.

This story of love, faith, courage and giving, with its triumph of good over evil, is a true celebration of life!

Please join us Dec. 1st at 7:00 PM or Dec. 2nd at 2:00 PM for the show!

7th and 8th Grade Girls basketball practice will begin October 24.

7th and 8th Grade Wrestling practice will begin October 26.

Courageous Conversations/Suicide Prevention Parent Meeting Nov. 2 at 6:30 at CHS

7th Grade Activity Night November 3 5:30-7:30 pm.

No School November 22-24.

The 5th and 6th grade play, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is December 1st at 7:00 pm. and on December 2nd at 2:00pm.

Band Concert is December 7 at 6:30pm.

No School December 8th.

Choir Concert December 14 at 6:30pm.

Second Quarter ends December 21-- noon dismissal. Pep Rallies in the morning.

No School December 22- January 3.

Middle School Musical Tryouts January 8 and 9.

The weather is changing. Please remind your child to dress for the weather. Waiting for rides after school can be chilly in t-shirts and shorts! Thank you for your help!

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