2021.11.24 – Saxe Weekly – The Saxe weekly

November 24, 2021

Dear Saxe Family,

For one reason or another, we have received more positive messages of thanks or gratitude from students, parents, or staff members than I can remember in years past. It may be a coincidence or one of the positive unanticipated outcomes of the covid-era where people are truly recognizing how much we have around us to be thankful for. Each message put a smile on my face and felt good to pass along to those who were recognized in the message with a little note of “thanks”.

This is a great example of a positive feedback loop where we recognize moments of gratitude and then take it one step further by sharing these moments with someone who has made a difference in your, or a loved ones, life. I am thankful for our students, staff, parents, and all who make up this special community that we call Saxe Middle School, and am honored to serve the community of New Canaan. We all have different experiences and life inevitably throws curveballs at various times, but we all have much to be grateful for. It is my hope that you are able to enjoy these moments with family and/or friends during this long holiday weekend

During this short week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at Thanksgiving, the latest episode of Saxe News, Social Studies, Art, Music, Theatre, some Saxe Spirit, a lighting project, some awesome slippers, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful long holiday weekend. Happy Thanksgiving!

Be Well,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

11/30 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences – ½ Day for Grade 5

12/1 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences – ½ Day for Grade 5

12/2 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences – ½ Day for Grade 5

12/3 – Grade 5 Parent Conferences – ½ Day for Grade 5

*Quotes that resonated with us this week:

“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle

“Success is personal, so stop comparing your apples to their oranges.” -Yohance Salimu

“Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other.” – Randy Pausch

Saxe News

The Saxe News crew is back with the Thanksgiving episode. Enjoy!

Grade 5-8 Social Studies:

Sourcing is an important skill developed in social studies. To read like a historian (or a citizen), one needs to be able to identify the context of a document or source as well as understand the audience and purpose. These 5th and 8th grade students are hard at work reviewing their sources to answer compelling questions in a DBQ (document-based question) as a part of their current units of study.

Above: How successful was the Missouri Compromise at balancing the conflict between national unity and regional issues? (Grade 8)

Below: “Should Voting be Mandatory?” and “CSI Roanoke: What happened to the colonists?” (Grade 5)

Ms. Nelson’s (grade 6) Pie Award Day! Students presented awards to classmates sharing traits and attributes that make them special.

Art
Saxe Art Students were asked what they were thankful for this year. Many contributed a small drawing or word art to fill the cornucopia displayed in our hallway. Happy Thanksgiving from Saxe Art Department. This is a wonderful display that celebrates the Thanksgiving holiday & all that we have to be grateful for. The fact that our students recognize Saxe as their focus of being thankful fills my heart! Thank you to our Saxe Art teachers for providing these opportunities for our students!

Saxe Music

Here are some fantastic videos of the 6th Grade Band!

A Day

Zombie Stomp 6th Gr Band “A” Day

Popcorn Prelude 6th Gr Band “A” Day

6th Gr Band “A ” Day. Bugler’s Dream

D Day

6th Grade Band D Day

Saxe Theatre

We are very excited to announce the 7th and 8th Grade Musical:

Show Dates: Friday, April 1st at 7:00pm and Saturday, April 2nd at 11:00am and 3:00pm

Check out the WEBSITE for more information! All information & Forms will be available on Monday, November 29th. Informational Zoom Tuesday, November 30th at 5:00pm.

Saxe Spirit

The 6th grade Blue Team came together to recognize some very important people. These members of the Saxe community (teachers, bus drivers, librarians, counselors, cafeteria workers, custodians, and peers) all helped to make each of the students’ day a little brighter….so thank you!

Thanks to Ms. Russell for sharing the “Thanksgiving figurative language” work that was done with her students!

Tweet Street

Excited about the new light project that is in progress at Saxe. Natural looking light that adapts with variable brightness to conserve energy = a winning combo!