2022.1.28 – Saxe Weekly – The Saxe weekly

January 28, 2022

Dear Saxe Family,

Not surprisingly, the weather was a frequent topic of discussion today at Saxe. According to the unofficial polling of our middle school students, we should be looking forward to 4”-24” of snow. I’m not sure if they realize how close they are to the actual forecasts that were shared over the course of the week! As is always the case, we will be prepared, see what we get, and go from there…

This week was one that actually did not include any weather-related disruptions, so it was packed with exciting exploration, creativity, collaboration, and learning. In our latest Saxe Weekly, we take a look at our upcoming Virtual Daytime Open House, an in-person event update, Art, a warm welcome to a couple of new staff members, a birthday drop-in, recess, lots of kindness, Art in Social Studies, “College Day”, Dogs of Saxe, and much more. Be safe, be well, and good luck with the snow tomorrow. Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!

Best,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

1/31 – Virtual Daytime Open House for: 6 Purple (10:50), 7 Blue (11:40) & 8 Purple (12:30)

2/1 – Virtual Daytime Open House for: 6 Blue (10:50), 7 Purple (11:40), 8 Red (12:30)

Please note: links for the Virtual Daytime Open House session will be sent out the morning of the scheduled session. We look forward to “seeing you” soon!

*Quotes that resonated with us this week:

“You must do the things you think you can’t do.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“You can’t do it alone. Be open to collaboration. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you. Spend a lot of time with them and it will change your life.” – Amy Poehler

“A little progress each day adds up to big results.” – Satya Nani

“All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination.” – Earl Nightingale

“Do what is true to your soul.” – Malini Saba

Virtual Daytime Open House Information

Grade 6 – 8 Parents/Guardians are invited to attend a Virtual Daytime Open House during the weeks of January 31st – February 8th, 2022. The schedule below depicts the specific day, date, and time for each respective grade/team. Grade 6-8 teams will host their entire program in one single zoom session, respectively. To access the team “classroom”, please keep an eye out for a zoom link that will be sent out on the morning of your scheduled session(s).

Teachers will review team progress made thus far in regards to meeting local and state curriculum standards, address initiatives that have promoted an emotionally and physically safe learning environment, provide updates as they relate to how our operations have continued to be responsive and evolve, and offer an academic introduction to the 3rd marking period. We look forward to “seeing you”, soon!

Monday, 1/31	Tuesday, 2/1	Monday, 2/7	Tuesday, 2/8
10:50 amG7: Blue Team	10:50 amG7: Purple Team	10:50 amG7: GreenTeam	10:50 amG7: Red Team
11:40 amG8: Purple Team	11:40 amG8: Red Team	11:40 amG8: Green Team	11:40 amG8: Blue Team
12:30 pmG6: Purple Team	12:30 pmG6: Blue Team	12:30 pmG6: Green Team	12:30 pmG6: RedTeam

A Look Ahead…

We are excited to share that we are in the process of updating our parent visitation and in-person event plans! Upon our return from the upcoming February break, we are hopeful that our events listed on our Saxe Calendar of Events from March – June will be conducted in-person. Please keep an eye out for details in future communications from Saxe, and our Saxe PTC…

Art

Ms. Beatman’s 7th & 8th grade art classes have been studying Pop Art. Pop Art was an art movement that challenged traditional arts by including imagery pulled from popular culture and utilizing everyday objects. For their ceramics unit they created food items ranging from sushi to apple pie. Using various handbuilding and glazing techniques, students achieved incredible likeness to their food object. YUM!

Welcome to Saxe!

We are pleased to introduce Mr. Andrew Folsom, who will be stepping for Ms. Freeman during her brief absence. Mr. Folsom is a certified 7-12 Social Studies/History teacher, with a MA in Curriculum and Instruction, and high school teaching experience. Andrew is eager to reenter teaching after a brief hiatus during the pandemic, and we are excited that he chose Saxe to do so!

Bill Shannon joins the special education department as a long-term substitute teaching assistant after an extensive career in the marketing & advertising world. His desire to build relationships to help students achieve their full potential is a great fit for our Saxe community. Please join us in welcoming Bill to Saxe!

Tweet Street

Below are photos and phrases that were included on our Saxe middle school Twitter page (@SaxeMS) this week. Enjoy!

From Senator Chris Murphy: “Huge congratulations to Saxe Middle School on being selected one of the winners of Nasa’s TechRise contest. Such a cool opportunity. NASA will actually test their experiment in-flight, either on a suborbital rocket or high-altitude balloon.”

What do you do when you hear, “Are you 9? Are you 10? Are you 11?” coming from a classroom? Stop in to take a quick birthday pic! Happy 12th birthday, Charlotte – hope it was a great day!

You know it’s been cold when mid 30’s “feels good”! 6th-graders enjoyed some fresh air, free time, & fun during recess today!

Lots of students stopped by Ms. Beatman’s classes “Pop Art Ceramic Food” setup in the main lobby to admire these amazing creations! Congrats and thanks to all involved for sharing these pieces, for all to enjoy!

There is kindness all around us. Noticed these “take a quote” sheets in the 8th-grade hallway this week. Such kind gestures and a great reminder to Be Kind. Huge credit goes out to our Saxe Rising Stars working with the NCHS Leadership students in collaboration with NCCARES. Positive, kind messages were quickly spreading…

Amazing Art Alert! This “magazine worthy” image was created by a Saxe student for a Social Studies project… WOW! I am continually impressed by the many talents of our students… Nice job, Isabelle!

A little more detail on the above project: Isabelle’s project was part of the 8th grade study of American Expansion. Her project focused on the impact that expansion had on various groups throughout what would become the United States. She dedicated a significant amount of time and talent to bring the experiences of different people to life in an incredibly vivid illustration that showed not only her knowledge of history, but empathy for the people involved.

A couple of students “repping” their teams for the championship weekend! Good luck to all the fans still rooting on their teams!

Overheard a bunch of Saxe students talking about colleges that their parents went to during today’s Saxe Spirit Day! Lots of spirit around the building today.

Thank you to our awesome Saxe PTC for helping us continue to spruce up our building! The new “Cafeteria” letters are a huge upgrade and match the recently renovated “auditorium” letters nicely!

Some amazing colors and artwork going on in Ms. Farley’s Art class! Love seeing the creative side of our students!

I am grateful to see so many great classes, happenings, & students around Saxe each day. But, it’s moments like this that make this job truly exceptional! Such a kind gesture from a couple of amazing students… Thank you, Lila & Lihan – I am beyond grateful!