November/December 2008
Dear KMS Families,
The entire KMS faculty wants to thank you for your participation in our Open Houses. We hope you got a snapshot of what your child’s day is like at Keene Middle School.
You folks also deserve another thank-you for using the Parent Portal. Many of you are regularly checking your child’s progress and are helping us help your child at home by giving reminders and giving kudos for good work. If you are having trouble with accessing the parent portal, please call the grade level office for help. Because you have the ability to regularly check your child’s progress, we will no longer be sending home progress reports. If you would like a progress report please call the grade level office (Beth Smith, grade 6A and grade 7) and Deb Gallagher (grade 6B and grade 8). We will send a copy home to you.
Just a gentle reminder…. When your child is absent, you need to call the grade level office to let us know. Please do not email teachers. Because teachers are teaching they may not be able to check their email in a timely fashion. For safety reasons we try to be sure all students are accounted for as early in the day as possible. Thanks.
I am hoping that all of you are staying informed regarding the work that is being done to make the best decision for KMS, whether to renovate or build new. Information is available at www.LetsTalkKMS.org . Have a safe holiday season.
Sincerely,
Dotty Frazier
Student Assistance Program
I am pleased to introduce myself as the new Student Assistance Program (SAP) Counselor here at KMS. My role as the SAP counselor is to educate and support student development through a variety of prevention activities throughout the year.
During the month of October all KMS students are required to receive training that refamiliarizes them with the school’s Sexual Harassment Policy. A presentation was offered to all clusters defining sexual harassing behaviors and the steps students and staff can take to promote a safe/respectful school environment.
The last week in October was also Red Ribbon Week. Red Ribbon Week is a Nationally Recognized campaign in schools and communities showing their support and commitment to remain drug-free. The KMS campaign culminated with daily spots on the morning KMS news show, WCAN. Student representatives from various school clubs and sports teams declared their support for Red Ribbon week and provided facts relevant to today’s teens. In advisories each student was encouraged to contribute a link to the schools “chain of commitment”. On each link students expressed why they have committed to remain drug-free. We are planning to have this “chain of commitment” linked with those created in schools throughout Southern New Hampshire and presented at a larger venue. Finally, teachers, staff, and members of the community came together for one afternoon after school to provide students with an opportunity to explore some fun, creative, and exciting activities to take up as potential hobbies.
Throughout the year the SAP will provide alcohol, tobacco, and drug prevention, education and counseling services to students. I will be working with students individually, in small groups, and in the classroom to provide these services. I look forward to the year to come and strongly encourage all parents to contact me with any questions, concerns, or programming ideas you may have. I can be reached 357-9023 x324 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
George Piers, LICSW
SAP
Who's received a Cardinal Award?
Cardinal Awards are given to students who are "caught" doing an act of kindness or any deed that makes KMS the good place it is. Some of the wonderful acts include: Helping a classmate to succeed and feel good, cleaning the crayfish pool, sharing school supplies, helping a student find his/her bus and showing kindness to a fellow student. The following are the recipients. KUDOS to you all!
Mrs. Frazier, Principal
Sydney Aldrich (2)
Carmella Antonellis
Elias August
Jacob Bedard (2)
Carly Bouchie
Aliesha Butterfield
Adam Cruz
Kyle Dunshee
Autumn DuVerger
Cindi Edwards
Connor Gaughan
Edwin Guyette
Dylan Hakala
Chelsea Hale
Rebekka Hope (2)
Austin Huntley
Jasper Jenkins
Claire Koutras
Megan Long
Haleigh Lord
Peter Murphy
Katie Peatfield (2)
Alyssa Perley
Caitlin Phelps
Dante Harwood-Ponzini
Kelly Perrault
Dan Scanlan
Brandy Scully
Isaac Tousley
Dan Townsend (3)
Sonya Warner
Sam Webb
Caleb Weeks
Chorus News
The KMS 6th, 7th and 8th grade choruses and the Showchoir will perform their annual Holiday Concert on Thursday, December 11th in the Keene High School auditorium. Grade 6 and 7 students need to meet in the Keene High School cafeteria at 5:30 p.m. The concert will begin at 6:00 p.m. The Showchoir and 8th grade chorus need to be in the Keene High School cafeteria at 6:45 p.m. Their concert will begin at 7:15 p.m. Donations of one dollar will be welcomed at the door.
Each choir will also perform an assembly for their classmates and teachers: Grade 6 will perform at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday, December 17th. Grade 7 will perform at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 17th. Grade 8 will perform at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, December 18th. The Showchoir will perform for all 3 assemblies.
For both the assemblies and the evening concert, students are asked to wear their red chorus t-shirts and black (or as dark as possible) pants or skirts. Students should wear shoes that are acceptable under the KMS dress code. Please all or e-mail Mrs. Butterfield with any questions. (357-9020) ext. 181; kbutterfield@sau29.org.
Athletics
The fall sports season concluded on Saturday, October 18th, with our annual boys’ and girls’ “A” soccer tournament. Congratulations to our Girls A Soccer Team who won the tournament in overtime win against Rundlett and our Boys Team who were the runners up. Our boy’s and girls’ cross-country competed in the state championship meet on October 18th, to sum up their season.
The winter intramurals kicked off on Wednesday, October 22nd, starting with Cluster Volleyball. This has been a very popular activity for each cluster. 8th Grade competition started first on October 22nd. The seventh grade clusters will begin play on Thursday, October 30th and the sixth grade clusters will start on November 6th. The cluster which earns the most points in their grade level will hold our volleyball trophy until next season.
Tryouts for interscholastic travel basketball teams (one boys’ and one girls’) will be held starting November 13th. Students interested in trying out will be able to sign up after school on November 6th. Their games will begin before Christmas break and extend into early February. Sign-ups for Cardinal League Basketball (our intramural basketball program) will be taken during the week of November 17th. This program offers every student an opportunity to play basketball after school during the months of December, January, and February.
Wrestling practice will begin November 13th. The matches will start before Christmas and extend into early February. Students interested will be able to sign up after school on November 7th.
Schedules for teams will be issued as soon as rosters or signups are completed. If you have any questions contact Mr. Margaitis at 357-9020 ext. 108.
Mr. Margaitis
This newsletter is an approved publication. Any editorial comments,
stated or implied, can be assumed to represent the KMS administration.
Drama Club Presents:
"Paper or Plastic"
Thursday, Nov. 20 6:00 pm & 7:30 pm
Friday, Nov. 21 8:15 am
9:45 am
1:00 pm
Quebec Trip 
A huge thank you to the thirty-five students who are registered for the Quebec trip and to their parents. The next student meeting will be held on Wednesday, November 5th from 2:30-3:10 in computer room 198. The permission slip/health questionnaire is due at that meeting. We will also be starting a fundraiser. The money and forms for the fundraiser are due on or before November 20th. The monies raised through the fundraiser will be applied to the March payment. The December meeting will be held on December 2nd and an installment of $140 is due on that date.
Mrs. Hill & Mrs. Hawkins
Student Council News
The following list includes the Student Council Representatives elected for the 2008 -2009 school year.
CLUSTER A |
|
CLUSTER B |
CLUSTER E |
CLUSTER C |
CLUSTER F |
CLUSTER D |
CLUSTER G |
Jocelyn Van Saun, who was VP last year, is the Council’s President this year. Our new Vice President is Helen Peterson from Cluster D. Helen will serve as President next year. Our new Secretary/Treasurer from Cluster G is Leo Hastings. Congratulations to all the 7th and 8th grade representatives who ran for these positions.
Eighth Grade Trip
Our first fundraising activity, a sale of magazines, was a huge success with sales of over $24,412. Our top two sales people were Ethan Bettinger and Eric Bower.
Our second fundraiser will be the sale of holiday gifts. This began on October 20th and will end on November 3rd. All monies must be turned in on this day. Items ordered will be delivered in early December. First installment bills were due on October 17th. Your child will bring home your second installment bill on November 14th. The second installment is due on December 4th.
Mr. Kress, Ms. Menck, Ms. Paquette and Mrs. Manwaring
Grade 8 Advisors
THE EXTENSIONS CORNER…. By Mrs. Sylvia
The Stock Market is all About the Numbers!
Once again the 7th graders in their Math classes will be taking a chance on the Wall Street challenge as they join hundreds of other students throughout New Hampshire in the Union Leader’s Stock Market Made Easy Extensions Program. Both Mrs. Fairbanks’ and Mrs. Harrington’s clusters, as well as Mr. Harrington and Mr. Kress, will lead their teams through the program, investing an imaginary $100,000 in stocks of their favorite companies. After tracking their investments over seven weeks, the teams will calculate their gains/losses to see who made the most “money” on their investments. With the way the stock market is acting these days, this should be a very exciting competition. Will they beat the Wall Street bankers at their game??? Stay tuned to WCAN to see who’s in first, what’s going on, and why it’s happening! The Stock Market made Easy!
WordMasters Competition
Seventh and eighth grade students are already chewing their way through the first Master Vocabulary list of 25 challenging words for the December Meet. These Vocabulary “Tycoons” are tweaking their “precocious” skills and “flaunting” their “cunning” abilities as they stare down the competition. With “unremitting” persistence they will “lambaste” the opposition and wear the “mantle” of victory… as soon as they figure out what it means! But until then, they have 20 deliciously devious analogies to complete for the national vocabulary and word analogy challenge. WordMasters Rule!
MathFax for Math FANatics!
Mad About Math students in the 6th and 7th grades will be participating for the 9th year in MathFax, a national Mathematics challenge. Our students will pit themselves against the best of the best in schools across the nation. Standings for the participants can be tracked on the website www.educontest.com, after the first meet ends in November. What a way to show you are proud of your “Math-mazing” talent!
Accelerated Reader at KMS 
This year students from the grade 6 – 8 clusters will participate in our “new” Accelerated Reader on-line program designed to help readers of all abilities to practice and improve their reading skills. If your child is participating this year, it’s a great opportunity to see how a warm supportive environment, a good book, and the magic of the Internet can help your student become a more confident, enthusiastic reader.
Soon, we will also be starting up our Luminary Readers Competition on Accelerated Reader. A primed and focused group of students will be competing for points while they square off to read as many challenging books as they can during a quarter. Look for the Luminary Reader Signups in November as we “get that motor running” and roar off right into a good book!
The KMS Parent Group would like to invite you to the following
events regarding the Keene Middle School Building Project:
November 1, 2008 8:30 a.m. KHS LGIA 10/20 Forum Summary & Follow-Up Workshop |
November 12, 2008 6:30 p.m. KHS LGIA Architect Frank Marinace's interim report to Keene Board of Education |
December 2, 2008 7:00 p.m. KHS LGIA Final Feasibility Study |
December 9, 2008 6:30 p.m. KHS LGIA Architect Frank Marinace to answer questions from the public and the board about his final feasibility study |
December 15, 2008 7:00 p.m. KHS TBA Public Hearing/Keene Board of Ed Meeting |
For more information regarding Middle School Building status and previous meetings, |
KMS Students to Participate in National Mock Election
On October 29th, students at Keene Middle School will join hundreds of thousands of students all over the nation in participating in the National Student Mock Election program. This national voter-education program for students gives young Americans the chance to make their voices heard in the electoral process. In school on October 29th, KMS students will have the opportunity to vote for their candidates of choice in both the Presidential and congressional elections, and in the gubernatorial race as well.
At KMS voting will be conducted on computers via an online ballot. The 2008 online ballots consist of three sections:
1. The candidate’s ballot: candidates for president, congress, senate and governor
2. The issues ballot: These are the issues of most concern according to national polls
3. A past presidents ballot: This will consist of one opinion question about past presidents
For more information on this program please visit the following link: www.nationalmockelection.org. To preview the online ballot please visit the following link: http://www.nationalmockelection.org/tools_howvote.html just scroll down and click “New Hampshire”.
The KMS Mock Election is being coordinated by the KMS Social Studies department. State level coordinator for this program is New Hampshire public television. The state and national level results will be announced on New Hampshire Public Television on October 30th. If you have any questions regarding this program please contact Sean O’Mara, KMS Department Coordinator @ somara@sau29.org
Wetmore Scholarship for the Arts
Every year we honor Janis Wetmore's work and commitment to art education by offering three scholarships in her memory. Mrs. Wetmore taught art at Keene Junior High/Middle School for a number of years. She was a very dedicated and popular teacher. Her life tragically ended in an accident while returning from a professional development activity in Manchester.
The scholarships are given to three deserving students who wish to extend their art-related experiences. Interested students are invited to develop an essay (no more than 200 words) that explains what they would like to do in this activity and why he or she should be a recipient. Each scholarship is for approximately $100 and made directly to the business. Examples of recent awards have been for private music lessons and dance lessons.
Deadlines for essays are Thursday, December 4th. A committee will evaluate the essays and all participating students will be recognized at an assembly in January. The recipients of the award will also be announced at this assembly.
This is a wonderful way to continue Mrs. Wetmore's memory and it is also a way for her to continue to touch the lives of students at KMS. In addition, it helps deserving middle school students in their pursuit and interests in the fine arts.
Mrs. Frazier, Principal
If you remember Janis and would like to donate to the fund, please send checks only and make them payable to the Janis Wetmore Memorial Fund. Please put the check in an envelope labeled Wetmore Fund and have your child bring it to the main office.
Geographic Bee
1. Which state has a climate suitable for growing citrus fruits California or Maine?
2. Which country has the world’s largest Muslim population, Indonesia or Mexico?
3. The North Atlantic current brings warm waters from the tropics to the west coast of which continent?
Answers: 1. California 2. Indonesia 3. Europe
These were three questions from the GeoBee Quiz featured on the National Geographic Bee study site. There are 10 questions daily and a chance to go to some past quizzes. The correct answers are given immediately and the computer keeps score. This is a fun way to study for the Bee. Preliminary rounds will happen in classrooms in December. The School Bee will be in January. The study site is: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/geobee
Sarah McMurphy, Bee Coordinator
Early-Bird Yearbook Special Ends
Although the Early-Bird special purchase price has passed, advanced orders for yearbooks are still being collected. Beginning November 1st, students and staff may pre-order a yearbook for $30 with guaranteed delivery to homerooms immediately following the yearbook assembly. Students who do not pre-order will have to purchase them on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Yearbook Photo Submissions!
The yearbook wants your photo submissions of events, athletics, and activities that students participate in throughout the school year. Use the following procedure to submit high-quality photos (300 d.p.i) from home (high-speed internet access required):
1. Log on to http://images.jostens.com
2. Type the Login as: 1181120
3. Enter the Password as: Cardinal
4. Browse to select the photo(s) you wish to upload, click "Image Share"
5. Enter information about the photo and provide contact information in case the staff needs additional information
6. Click "Save Details"
Pictures can also be submitted on CD to Mr. Marcou in room #308 or Ms. Miller in room #195. Please label your CD submissions with your name and address and they will be returned.
Keene Middle School Parent Group
The KMS Parent Group would like to thank Mr. Tiani and Mr. Kelly and the many students who helped unload the 820+ pumpkins for this year’s middle school contribution to Pumpkin Fest. Thanks to the parents who volunteered their time and energy with helping with the pumpkin carving. We appreciate all that you do for KMS. Happy Fall!
Carmelina Tonkinson and Janet O'Brien