2020.11.25 – Saxe Weekly – The Saxe weekly

November 25, 2020

Dear Saxe Family,

Thanksgiving is a time to take stock in all that we have to be grateful for. While this year is certainly going to look and feel different than any other Thanksgiving, I feel incredibly blessed to be part of this learning community that we call Saxe Middle School, within the New Canaan Public School system, and in this great community of New Canaan. As I walk throughout the building each day, I am reminded that we are so fortunate to be here. Students are engaged, interacting, and learning in an environment that is providing them the best, most well-rounded educational experience possible, under the conditions that we are all living in.

I continue to be inspired by our dedicated faculty and staff. I would like to thank them all (special shout-out to our nurses) as they have continued to be flexible, adaptable, thorough, and tireless in all areas to help keep us safe and allow us to continuously operate in either the physical, hybrid, or virtual environment. Equally as important, I want to thank our students and parents for the resilience, patience, understanding, and support that has been ever-present since we began the school year. This is truly a team effort.

This week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at Thanksgiving, gratitude and thanks, Latin, positive quotes, Saxe Cares, November “Causes”, some masterful piano playing, Saxe outdoors, Dogs of Saxe, and more. Enjoy and have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and weekend!

Be well,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

12/1 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences (12 – 3 pm)

12/2 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences (12 – 3 pm) – ½ Day for Professional Development

12/3 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences (12 – 3 pm)

12/4 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences (12 – 3 pm)

*Quotes that resonated with us this week:

“Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.” – Marie Curie

“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.” – Noam Chomsky

“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.” – Oprah Winfrey

Holiday Travel

While most have planned to change up traditional holiday plans, please review the recent Thanksgiving guidance on the CDC website, the ct.gov site, or through recent messaging on our Charting our Course website. Again, happy (safe) holidays to you and your family!

A Reminder Note about Thanksgiving Travel from our Nurses:

We hope all members of the NCPS community will have a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving. Just a friendly reminder, if you travel to another state or to a country identified as a “Level 3 Health Notice” by the CDC, along with following the Governor’s Executive Order 9I, you also need a negative PCR test performed in CT upon your return in order to return to in-person classes. If you travel, you may either (1) quarantine for 14 days upon your return or (2) take a PCR test after returning to Connecticut and present the results to your school nurse prior to returning to school. Please note that this testing requirement is different from the State of CT travel guidelines. The only states not requiring these restrictions are NY, NJ, Rhode Island, Hawaii and the US Virgin islands. Additionally, travelers who return to Connecticut within 24 hours are not required to follow these restrictions.

This is for the safety of all our students and staff.

Steps to take when you receive a POSITIVE Covid result

Call the New Canaan Health Department at 203-594-3018 to report your positive result
Notify your school nurse or principal
Call your doctor
Isolate at home

Happy Thanksgiving,

The NCPS Nurses

Gratitude

Thank you to Ms. Beltran and 7th-grade student, Sazid Rob for sharing these moments of gratitude as we enter the Thanksgiving weekend. “I’m grateful to the staff at Saxe for all that they do to teach us.”

Positive Quotes

Do you have a favorite quote that you feel would make our school better by being on display somewhere around our building? If so, please feel free to share it with us by filling out this quick google form. Thanks in advance for helping make our learning environment even more positive.

World Language

In Ms. MacQuarrie’s Latin classes, students used Roman Numerals as clues to “color the Turkey”!

Students thought about what they are grateful for and decorated a Google Slides!

Willy Wonka Tickets

The 5th & 6th-grade cast members have been working very hard to create a fantastic theater production of Willy Wonka Jr. You can purchase tickets here and the link to the show will be sent out on Friday, November 27th about an hour before the show to all those who purchased tickets. The show is available starting at 7pm.

The Cast Members received a goody bag before going home for the holiday weekend. Congratulations to all who made this production happen during such challenging times!

Saxe Cares

Thank you to our Faculty Senate for caring about our Saxe community and anyone associated with it. Please check out the causes that are important to our Saxe staff.

(Click here or on the image above for Slideshow Link)

Happy Holiday Video

Ryan Shih shared a song (linked below) that he recently learned to thank all the Saxe Middle School teachers and staff! He wished everyone a Happy Holiday and a wonderful 2021!

Thankful & Grateful

Some room moms in Ms. Dobransky’s class zoomed in this week to run a craft. The students made “We are Thankful for Soldiers” cards. These cards will be mailed to the Navy SEALS (so amazing…). Happy Thanksgiving!

And, here are the Thanksgiving Kahoot Winners from Ms. Dobransky’s class. Congrats!

Students in Ms. Berry’s class participated in a fun activity today leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday. Thanks to Ms. O’Shea for capturing some great shots.

Ms. Nelson’s students created awards for their peers last week and handed them out to their peers today. What a great example of caring within our community.

Couldn’t pass up a picture of a cool Khalil Mack jersey this morning. As my wife is a Bears fan, my son has the same one… (just to clarify from my perspective, Go Steelers!) 🙂