December 20th, 2024
Dear Saxe MS Family,
Well, we’re officially “out the door” for 2024! It is amazing how quickly time passes when there is so much to experience and to be grateful for. As we head into this holiday break, I hope that you are able to spend some time with those you care the most about, enjoying a change of pace, and doing whatever it is that brings you joy. Whether you are traveling afar, remaining fairly local, or simply staying right at home, be as present as possible with those closest to you and enjoy each moment!
This week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at tons of holiday spirit, the 8th-grade “Leviathan Challenge”, Sustainability Club, Hawks on Holiday, a healthy tech reminder, our Food Service staff, a holiday movie poll, ugly sweaters, innovation, some fake, and real, snow, moderate temp activities, a Hawk’s Court update, a “greens” harvest, the annual cookie exchange, the 7/8 Chorus Concert, Scenes around Saxe, Dogs of Saxe, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful remainder of your 2024. See you when we return to “take the dive” into 2025!
Be Well,
Dave Gusitsch
Principal, Saxe Middle School
Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:
12/21 – 1/1: Enjoy your holiday break – see you on January 2, 2025!
*Quotes that resonated with us this week:
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” — Mark Twain
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” – Nelson Mandela
“You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” – A.A. Milne (Winnie the Pooh)
“Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.” – Dalai Lama
“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.” – B.B. King
Saxe Jokes:
Where do snowmen keep their money? In a snowbank!
What did Santa say to Mrs. Claus when he looked out the window? Looks like rain, dear!
What kind of bird can write? A pen-guin!
What do elves do after school? Their gnomework!
What is a computer’s favorite snack? Computer chips!
Saxe Spirit
Mr. Zeiser and his band students brought some holiday cheer to the Main Office!
You can watch the video here!
Today, our 8th-grade teams came together for the annual “Leviathan Challenge”. It was great to see them engage in some friendly, spirited, unifying competition. Best of all, our students were so well-behaved & I am so proud of them & their teachers – nice work all around!
And, here are a few fun videos!
Video 1 – Red and Purple in the finals of the balloon challenge!
Video 2 – Red wins the cup challenge!
Video 3 – bottle flip relay…
Video 4 – Purple gets hyped!
Video 5 – More balloon challenge fun…
Sustainability Club
The Middle School Sustainability Club is planning and preparing for a plant sale in early March. Plants make great gifts and are the perfect way to brighten up any space, so don’t miss out on this chance to buy a gift for someone you love and support our club. More information to come!
Tech Reminder
Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you consider how to maintain the healthiest relationship with technology, over break, & beyond! Thanks to Ms. Kleis for sharing these healthy reminders…
Hawk Tales: Travels and Traditions
(Note: AI generated image)
As we head into the holiday break, let’s keep our Hawk pride soaring! Whether you stay home, or travel near or far, let’s have some fun by bringing our school mascot along for the adventure. If you didn’t have a chance to stop by the main office, don’t worry, you can print your own:
Join in the fun & snap a pic over break with your favorite Hawk “card” to capture special moments home, away, or anywhere in between (bonus if you include your family pet(s))! We’ll collect our photos (please email Ms. Jarosik & Mr. Gusitsch) to create a virtual and physical bulletin board celebrating our vibrant school community. Share your Hawk holiday spirit, and let’s see where our Hawks fly this season – Go Hawks!
Snowman Fun
We handed out a limited number of snowmen secretly to staff members and the other staff had to ask around quietly as to who had them so that they could take them for themselves! They exchanged hands many times (some staff members even turned off their lights and locked their doors so no one would ask for theirs) and it was a frantic and fabulous few days. The people with the snowmen at the end of Thursday could turn them into the office for a prize. The winners of the game were:
Mrs. Walsh, Ms. Angelletta, Dr. Ferreira, Mrs. McHugh, Mrs. Connolly, Mrs. Baltz and Mrs. Freeman. We see a lot of warm coffee beverages in their future!
Saxe Food Services
Want to see the best “Cafe Staff” around?! We are so lucky to have these dedicated individuals working with our students & staff… Here is the Saxe Cafe crew wishing everyone a wonderful holiday & happy new year!
Thank you, Gisella, Nancy, Monika, Jackie, Saravel, Rina, Cecilia,Yuni, Ana, & William!
Holiday Movie Poll
This week, in collaboration with one of our 8th-grade students, we cast an unofficial poll to see what movie some of our Saxe MS community enjoys the most. After receiving scores of responses, Home Alone, Elf, & The Grinch were the top choices! Stay tuned for more fun polls in the coming months…
If you would like to cast your vote, please feel free to do so through this Holiday Movie Survey link. Thanks to all who have participated!
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Below are photos and phrases that were included on our Saxe Middle School page (@SaxeMS) this week. Enjoy!
Alright, this may be one of my favorite Saxe MS collaborations – Hawks on Holiday! If you didn’t stop by the main office to grab yours, don’t worry! You can print the Travel Holiday Hawks or Soar and Thrive – Holiday Hawks cards by clicking on your preferred link! Either way, join in the fun & snap a pic over break with your favorite Hawk “card” (remember to include your pets, where possible)!
We all got to celebrate our “ugliest sweaters” today! (&, our best attempts at the “People’s Eyebrow” to match the best matching sweaters, ever – The Rock!)…
It may have been only a couple of hours before the holiday break, but the work continued in the Fab Lab! It is so inspiring seeing students (&, staff) working on projects they are passionate about – nothing better! #SaxeInnovation
Ms. Smith’s Science students were making some fake snow before the real snow started to fly at
Saxe today! ❄️ ⛄️
What does 50+ degree weather in December equal at Saxe MS? A great day to get outside! There was tons of energy (& lots of smiling faces) during Saxe Recess today!
It’s official! The finishing touch on Hawk’s Court as the “donor plaque” was mounted to the rock today… Thanks to all of our donors, all who worked on the project, & of course our fabulous Saxe PTC… This project will serve our Saxe MS students & NC community for many years!
The Saxe MS Grow Tower is almost ready for harvest!
(glad I took this pic, because about an hour later, it was harvest time!)
The Saxe MS Grow Tower got a “trimming” today & you could smell the fresh greens all the way down the hall! And, many of our staff members got to enjoy a nice bag of fresh veggies, courtesy of the Sustainability Club!
Sometimes, the best gifts are the ones that are handmade… It’s what truly makes them special! #SaxeHawks
Here is a sneak peek of the staging area for this year’s Saxe PTC-sponsored staff cookie exchange. We are so grateful for all that our parents do for our Saxe MS school community & the love they show our staff – thank you!
Thanks to our amazing Saxe PTC, our Saxe MS staff lounge was converted to a winter wonderland of “cookie goodness” for the annual cookie exchange! The sights, sounds, & smells were delightful & made for a great start to the day. Thanks to all involved – so many happy people!
Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the Toys for Tots drive this week at Saxe MS – we are so fortunate to be in such a thoughtful & caring community!
Speaking of holiday (Click to listen and watch!)spirit, this caroling crew visited the main office, to the delight of all within earshot! It brought smiles, & even some tears of joy, to all… Not sure which is a happier place on Earth, Disney or Saxe MS! (&, they even handed out some awesome ornaments)!
Not a Pats fan (Go Steelers) :), but this sweater was pretty awesome (it lit up)! Lots of holiday spirit around Saxe MS this week!
The program for the Saxe MS Winter Choral Concert turned out great, too! Excellent concert, all-around – congrats to all involved!
Our Saxe MS students do such a nice job introducing (Click the link to listen!) each song (congrats to all who kicked them off!). And, our students who step up for solos always impress & amaze – congrats to All!
8th-graders kick off their portion of the Saxe MS Winter Choral Concert with a terrific (Click to listen!) rendition of Carol of the Bells – nice job!
Even the transitions are entertaining (Watch the video!) during the Saxe MS Winter Choral Concert – nice work!
The Saxe MS Winter Choral Concert is underway as our 7th-graders kick it off with a stunning (Click the link!) rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner 🇺🇸 & several other seasonal songs, including one of the all time greats, Jingle-Bell Rock!
Check out these awesome Gingerbread houses! Great job by our Saxe students!
Ms. Tolmich caught this quick “back to back height check” this week… It won’t be long until I’m on the shorter end of this comparison!
Our Saxe Library & Design Lab were decked out with festive vibes this week… Thanks to all who make our school community the best it can be, every day!
Thank you to our Saxe MS team who put together this terrific spread to celebrate the close of 2024 & bring in the holiday break in festive style!
The holiday spirit was “turned up to 10” around Saxe MS today! What a terrific vibe, all day – wishing everyone a wonderful break!
Always fun to see some of our Saxe MS students (Click to listen and watch!) in action outside of the regular school day… This weekend happened to be in my hometown, against my son’s team, which made it even better! It was a good game & I congratulate the NC 8 Black team on a well-earned 60-53 victory!
Possibly the best “sign” spot in New Canaan… This bench is updated just about monthly with terrific, inspiring messages. The most recent, “Believe in the magic of the season” is extra special! Wishing everyone the best this holiday season!
Scenes Around Saxe
Good morning from Saxe MS- welcome to the final school day of 2024! Just a reminder, we will be operating on our early release schedule (dismissal at noon). Have a great last school day of the calendar year – Go Hawks!
And, like it was queued up as a “holiday miracle”, the snow began to fall to set the stage for a festive-looking campus on the last day before our holiday break! Happy Holidays & Happy New Year, to all!
Dogs of Saxe
A couple of dogs of Saxe to start the day & round out the week – nothing better!
Thanks to Rocky for visiting Saxe MS this week!
Have a great break, see you in 2025!
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)
Website: https://www.ncps-k12.org/saxe
Saxe Middle School
Celebrating Our Learning Community Through Caring, Communication, & Commitment
