2023.11.10 – Saxe Weekly – The Saxe weekly

November 10, 2023

Dear Saxe Family,

As we head into the weekend, which begins with Veterans Day, we have much to be grateful for. Thank you to any member of our amazing community who has served our great country and afforded us the freedoms that we are able to enjoy each day. I am proud of the way our school celebrates our Veterans in an honorable manner and owe a debt of gratitude to our committed staff members who help coordinate this in such a meaningful way.

We had an action-packed week celebrating our nation’s Veterans, a day full of professional learning (and, a day off for students!), and even some mild November weather to keep getting outside, comfortably. This week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at Veterans Day 2023, Math, Empower Your Lunch Hour, Innovation, Team celebrations, Art, a Saxe/South Collaboration, staff professional learning, Science, eSports, pizza parties, Saxe cafeteria, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!

Be Well,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

PS – To all students, staff, and volunteers involved in the Finding Nemo production, good luck on opening night – we wish you the best!

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

11/10 Portal Opens Grades 6 – 8

11/10 Grade 5/6 Musical

11/11 Veteran’s Day – Thank you to all who served!

11/11 Grade 5/6 Musical

11/15 Education Support Professionals Day

11/15 Portrait of a Graduate – Session 4

*Quotes that resonated with us this week:

“Kindness is one thing you can’t give away. It always comes back.” —George Skolsky

“If you want to make your dreams come true, the first thing you have to do is wake up.” -J.M. Power

“You’ll miss the best things if you keep your eyes shut.” — Dr. Seuss

“There are three ways to ultimate success: The first way is to be kind. The second way is to be kind. The third way is to be kind.”—Mister Rogers

Veterans Day

On Thursday, November 9th, Saxe held its 16th Annual Veterans Appreciation Day Celebration. Throughout the day our students had the opportunity to hear from Veterans from multiple generations. Thank you to Ms. Baltz, and Mr. Bedard, and all staff who helped make this Veterans Day a tremendous learning experience for all of our students. And, thank you to all those who have served, and those who continue to serve, our great country!

Note: there is a bunch more coverage on Veterans Day in the Twitter/X section, below…

Math

Mrs. Andrews’ Pre-Algebra and Compacted 7/8 Math classes took a field trip to Ms. Smith’s science lab! The students determined how many cones of water would fit in their irregular cylinder cup, and then tested their predictions.

Ms. Campbell’s 5th Grade math class is having fun with manipulatives and card games like In Between and Fraction Tracks to help them compare fractional amounts. Students learn to decompose fractions into smaller parts and apply their understanding of benchmark fractions to make estimates, compare values, and determine the reasonableness of answers. Students use this knowledge to create equivalent fractions when adding and subtracting fractional amounts with unlike denominators.

Empower Your Lunch Hour

Students have been working on various STEM projects during 8th grade Empower Your Lunch Hour. Some students have taken an interest in soldering and have learned how to not only solder but also repair broken soldering tips. Other students have been collaborating on creating a spooky Halloween decoration that surprises a passerby with music and lights. Finally, some students have been working on solving teacher and student issues here at Saxe using 3D Design. Check back to see how our innovations progress!

Automation and Robotics Workshop

As quarter 1 draws to a close, the Automation and Robotics Workshop finished up their robots just in time to have our hallway robot race. Students used the Engineering and Design Process to brainstorm dragsters, plan out and build their products, and to innovate their ideas. After the race, students reflected on how they could improve their robots, whether by adding more speed, increasing the motor power, or editing their design to make the dragster drive straight. Through perseverance, collaboration, and impressive problem solving, students created some amazing and innovative robots.

7 Purple – Family Meeting

At the end of Q1, the whole 7 Purple Family gathered in the auditorium, and students got to watch a slideshow of pictures that showcased all of the great times we have had thus far. Following this, students were praised and given some reminders, staff identified students that are “Charter Champions” because they are “Living the Charter”, and then a 7 Purple Family: Staff Kahoot trivia game was played!

Saxe Art

The Annual New Canaan Student Art Show is on display in town at UCBC & looks incredible! This exhibit is very special since it includes work from Elementary through High School and encompasses a wide range of mediums & subjects. Come view the amazing talents of the art students of NCPS!

Saxe & South Collaborative

Each quarter, students in Mr. Young’s workshop class walk to South School and meet with a group of elementary students so they can share a children’s book they (each) wrote. The visit was a huge success and will be memorable for everyone!

Class Photos Now Available!

Twitter/X

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

Another huge thanks to the New Canaan Men’s Club & these wonderful Veterans for visiting Saxe this week!

Our Saxe students did an amazing job welcoming our Veterans by reading their bios. Thanks to all who were involved in planning & delivering this operation to celebrate our country’s heroes!

Saxe salutes our Veterans, all around the building… Thank you for your service!

Each star was created by a Saxe student or staff member to recognize our Veterans. It turned out to be an amazing display & tribute. Thank you to each who created a star & most importantly, to all who served!

More “stars” to welcome our Veterans as they visited Saxe this week. Thanks to each person who contributed in helping them feel welcome & honored!

Proud of these two guys on the Saxe Veterans Wall of Stars – Dad (USAF/SACS) & brother Doug (US Army/160th). Thank you to all Veterans for your service to our great country!

Thank you to our visiting Veterans who shared their personal experiences with some of our 6th-grade students (&, thanks to our students for asking such great questions)!

What an extra special way to celebrate one of our very own Saxe Veterans! Thank you to Ms. Orlando for helping coordinate a nice “baby surprise”(CLICK THE LINK TO WATCH!) for our #SaxeSRO, Officer Blank! 🍼 #SaxeFamily

Staff PL at Saxe this week – it was a great opportunity to collaborate with colleagues & continue to evolve in our approach/work for our students! PS – &, thanks to our Saxe PTC for the terrific lunch!

Teachers Saxe worked hard this morning on our professional learning on moving our matrix work forward! Great work, great conversation, and great company! #fifthgradeteachersrock #saxeteachersrock

Saxe students were using probes to record temps in #SaxeScience classes this week!

Saxe Esports have been honing their craft in the Saxe Design Lab & are ready to compete against other schools – Go Hawks!

Great group of Saxe 5th-graders joined for “Pizza with the Principal” as award winners from the recent Celebrate Saxe campaign. It was great to hear from our students as they shared their perspective on their experience at Saxe, so far!

This terrific group of Saxe 6th-graders rounded out our “Pizza with the Principal” award winners from the recent #CeleSaxe campaign. Good food & better company – it was a great conversation where we learned about each other & their experience(s) at school!

Saxe Spanish classes are prepared to discuss, learn, & celebrate “Dia De Los Muertos”!

More areas of the building are getting a “fresh coat” to add to the warm, inviting, spirited learning environment that we call, Saxe!

Our yearbook photographer was out and about on campus today – keep an eye out for some of these pics to be part of Saxe history in the 2023-24 yearbook!

I’m not sure there is another Food Service Team that is more caring & professional than our team at Saxe… Thank you to Monika & her team for providing nothing but the best for our students & staff!

The Saxe main lobby has begun its descent to an “under the sea” theme for the upcoming #FindingNemo play. Opening night is on Friday & we can’t wait to see our students shine on stage! 🐠 🦀 🌊

Caught a bit of the Saxe dress rehearsal for Finding Nemo – they look GREAT & I can’t wait to see the whole show this evening. Good luck to all – break a leg!

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)