2023.9.1 – Saxe Weekly – The Saxe weekly

September 1, 2023

Dear Saxe Family,

Happy September! This week at Saxe was filled with “welcomes”, “welcome backs”, meeting new people, relationship building, reviewing rules & expectations, exploring, lots of learning, and of course some fun! I could not be more impressed with our students and how genuinely happy they seem to be back. There were countless comments on how kind and polite they have been and if there is any way to quantify the positive vibes that emanated throughout the building, this is it. All of this lays the foundation for us to continue building on what has been a terrific opening to the 2023-24 school year.

This week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at our return to school, Saxe in the News, getting to know our new staff at Saxe, Social Studies, Art, new student orientation, grade-level meetings, behavior expectation matrix, scenes around Saxe, Dogs of Saxe, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful holiday weekend!

Be Well,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

9/4 Labor Day – No School, No Homework – Building Closed

9/5 9:20 am – Gr. 5 Parent Coffee – Hawks Valley (Rain Space – Saxe Cafeteria)

9/7 9:20 am – New to NC/Saxe Parent Coffee: Hawks Valley Outdoor Learning Space

*Quotes that resonated with us this week:

“Take pride in how far you’ve come. Have faith in how far you can go. But don’t forget to enjoy the journey.” – Michael Josephson

“If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.” –Napoleon Hill

Happy Labor Day

Have a wonderful long weekend!

Day 1 Video

If you didn’t get a chance to catch the “Day 1” recap, feel free to check out the quick video below for a snapshot of what makes Saxe Middle School the special place that it is!

Opening Day

Posted on Tuesday: “Day 1 of the 2023-24 school year is underway – welcome back, Saxe! Have a great first day & have fun!”

Saxe in the News

The NC Advertiser covered our 2023-24 kickoff – check out the story and some neat pictures, here! New Canaan students and faculty head back to school

Here are a few more pictures from our NCPS Webmaster & Social Media Specialist, Michelle Schneider, too!

CT Kid Governor also welcomed us back to school!

New Staff at Saxe

For the 2023-24 school year, we welcome the following staff members to our Saxe Family! Enjoy getting to know a little bit more about each of them…

Stay tuned for more staff profiles in the coming weeks!

Social Studies

Sixth graders spent the week actively building their classroom learning communities. The week included collaborative activities to build cooperation and create norms. Students also honed their historical thinking skills as they previewed some of the exciting year ahead.

Art Department – UCBC Art Display

Ms. Iwanksky recently hung 115 photos from the photography club that she ran at Saxe (grades 5 and 6) and from three different summer enrichment groups she taught Digital Photography (grades 4-6) at the Upper Crust Bagel Company.

Students were taught how to use a digital camera, what to look out for when shooting, how to take an aesthetically pleasing photograph, and lastly how to edit them appropriately in Photoshop.

Most of the photographs were taken at Saxe, both indoor and outdoor, and at Waveny Park. Some of the students chose to take photos on vacation and at home throughout the last school year so there are some unique photos.The subject matter mostly contains nature, foliage, and outdoor spaces.

In addition, Ms. Iwansky said “I am beyond impressed with the amount of talent that was poured into this exhibit. There is such a variety of skill levels, from students who held a camera for the first time, to students who have been using their parents professional cameras since they were old enough to hold it, and also students who have only taken photos on their cell phones. These students have shown not only growth but also dedication to the craft. There were some very early mornings before the sun came up where the photography club met up at Waveny Park to go on nature walks. Rain, overcast, fog, humidity or heat waves never stopped us. The most rewarding part of this entire experience were the relationships I saw formed between students, and getting to know the students that I didn’t have in my classroom.”

Photo by Charlotte Edwards

New Student Orientation

Our team did a great job supporting our new students as they begin their time at Saxe. Thanks to all involved!

Grade Level Meetings

Ms. Granite did an excellent job with the first official Saxe Class of 2027 grade-level meeting! Great opportunity to review rules, expectations, celebrations, & ways to have fun as we head into the 2023-24 school year!

The Saxe Class of 2026 did an excellent job during their grade-level meeting today. They could not have been more respectful & engaged. I am proud of them and this is another example of the great start to the 2023-24 school year! #Saxe2026

Mr. Bedard did a nice job connecting with his 7th-graders, the Saxe Class of 2025, during their grade-level meeting today!

Dr. Ferreira celebrates what makes Saxe so special with her 8th-graders during their grade-level meeting! This is a terrific group of students! #Saxe2024

Scenes Around Saxe

Want to see what it looks like getting almost 300 5th-graders into the building during opening week at Saxe? Check out the quick time-lapse video! It’s been a terrific week! #Saxe2027

Day 2 arrival was a washout, but it was still a great day!

Saxe staff were fired up to welcome back our students for the start of the 2023-24 school year!

A couple of candidates for the best #SaxeTshirts from this week!

6th-graders applied their understanding of the newly revised rules & expectations in a fun, interactive way – they did a great job!

5th-graders are set up for success as their teachers help them navigate the building throughout the opening weeks!

Check out one of our sensory break spaces in the halls Saxe. Thanks to Mrs.Hund, our OT, for installing movement and sensory breaks throughout the building!

Great weather this week allowed for some quality outdoor time at Saxe!

Dogs of Saxe

Nice weather brings out the #DogsOf Saxe as they drop off their humans during morning drop off at Saxe. No better way to start the day! (Ms. Orlando not only keeps the traffic moving, but she gets great pics of our favorite 4-legged friends!).

Perfect shirts this morning at Saxeas we head into this Labor Day weekend! Have a great weekend, All!

We are grateful for the care that is given to make Saxe the beautiful place that it is!

Thanks to Mrs. Jordan for keeping our pots looking great, year round!

Have a great week, see you next Friday!

Thank you to all of our Saxe Weekly contributors! Each weekly edition is an example of collaboration in action. A special thanks to Melissa DiMeglio for the continuous stream of positive, optimistic quotes!

Saxe Resources (live links)