2025.1.31 – Saxe Weekly – The Saxe weekly

January 31, 2025

Dear Saxe MS Family,

It may seem strange to say this is the last week of January, already, but we have a lot to celebrate from this week at Saxe! This week in the Saxe Weekly, we take a look at a Winter Daytime Open House reminder, our latest Saxe MS Staff Spotlight: Ms. Faust, Social Studies, Science, Band, Special Education, community news, our “Believe Wall”, Music Tech, Math, goals, Art, some fresh paint, Dogs of Saxe, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!

Be Well,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

2/3 – Daytime Open House: 8:55 7 Red, 11:20 8 Red

2/4 – Daytime Open House: 8:55 7 Green, 11:20 8 Green

2/6 – Daytime Open House: 8:55 7 Blue, 11:20 8 Purple

2/7 – Daytime Open House: 8:55 7 Purple, 11:20 8 Blue

*Quotes that resonated with us this week:

“Excellence is not a skill; it is an attitude.” – Ralph Marston

“Encourage yourself, believe in yourself, and love yourself. Never doubt who you are”-Stephanie Lahart

“A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.” —Albert Einstein

“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” —John Wooden

“The future depends on what you do today.”-Unknown

Saxe Jokes:

What has a head and tail but no body? A coin.

What’s the leading cause of dry skin? Towels.

What does a lemon say when it answers the phone? Yellow.

What do you call a sad cranberry? A blueberry.

What can an Elephant make that no other animal can make? Baby elephants.

Daytime Open House Reminder

You are invited to attend our 2025 Winter Daytime Open House during the week of February 3rd – 7th, 2025. The schedule below depicts the specific day, date, and time for each respective grade/team. Grade 7 & 8 teams will host their program within their respective team classroom area. For parents who are unable to attend during the scheduled time, slides will be made available to show the content that was covered.

Teachers will review team progress made thus far regarding meeting local and state curriculum standards, address initiatives that have promoted an academically, emotionally, and physically safe learning environment, and offer an academic introduction to the second semester.
Due to limited parking on campus, the circle at the back of the school will be available for parking but please note it may be very busy due to the arrival of Intermediate School students. There may also be a few spots open in the Lower Parking Lot by the playground or a few spots at the front of the school.

Monday, 2/3	Tuesday, 2/4	Thursday, 2/6	Friday, 2/7
8:55 a.m.G7:Red TeamRoom #: 102	8:55 a.m.G7: Green TeamRoom #: 144	8:55 a.m.G7: Blue TeamRoom #:111	8:55 a.m.G7:Purple TeamRoom #: 105
11:20 a.m.G8:Red TeamRoom #: 200	11:20 a.m.G8: Green TeamRoom #: 163	11:20 a.m.G8: Purple TeamRoom #: 221	11:20 a.m.G8: Blue TeamRoom #: 209

Saxe MS Staff Spotlight: Nurse, Lori Faust

Our school nurse plays a crucial role in keeping our students healthy, safe, and ready to learn each day. Beyond treating minor injuries and illnesses, Ms. Faust helps manage chronic conditions, offers guidance on wellness, and is a calming presence within our school community at times when those who need it, most. Her presence ensures that students receive the care they need, while minimizing disruptions to their education. Ms. Faust is also an invaluable resource for families, offering support and information on a myriad of health-related concerns. We are grateful for her dedication, expertise, and contributions to fostering a healthy school community!

Below, please read a little more about Ms. Faust and her background:

I am very excited to be part of the Saxe Middle School community. I have been a nurse for 23 years, and prior to coming to Saxe, I worked for both Norwalk and Stamford Hospital systems, along with spending the last few years at Waveny Lifecare Network. Becoming a school nurse has always been a dream of mine, and it’s an honor to care for our 7th and 8th graders every day. I truly enjoy being part of their school experience and supporting their health and well-being. When outside of Saxe, you may find me baking, cooking, playing the harmonica, attending a play, or spending time with my family and friends. Wishing our entire Saxe Middle School community a happy and healthy remainder of the school year!

Social Studies

Students in Mr. Banas and Ms. Baltz’s classes practiced their reasoning skills in preparation for their Reconstruction DBQ using Legos! Student groups were tasked with creating a structure out of random Lego pieces. Groups switched creations and each new group had to come up with a claim for what the structure was, provide evidence based on what bricks were used, and reasoning to explain how their evidence supported their claim. As a bonus, the activity happened to be on International Lego Day!

Science

Student scientists in 8th grade are learning how to analyze and interpret position-time and velocity-time graphs in order to describe the motion of an object. Students were using motion sensors and Vernier Graphical Analysis software in order to track their motion in real time and match randomly generated curves.

Band

Congrats to everyone involved in the Saxe MS Winter Concert. It was a huge success and so much fun to watch! Check out some of the action with the following pictures and links. Enjoy!

Nice “jazzy”(Click the links to watch!) way to kick off the Saxe MS Winter Band concert!

Congrats to our Saxe MS 7th-graders as they beautifully performed “Brace for Impact”, “El Pato Loco”, & “Armory”. Congrats to all – you sound great!

Nice “interlude jam” (Click to listen/watch!) as Saxe MS 7th graders found their seats in the audience & 8th-graders prepared to take the stage!

Congrats to our Saxe MS 8th-graders as they performed amazing renditions of “Shadows Unleashed”, “Sleigh Ride”, & “Darklands March”. Nice work by all! (Click the link to watch/listen!)

Shoutout to our Saxe MS “behind the scenes” crew who masterfully manage all of the lights & sound to create the best experience possible for performers & audience alike – thank you!

Western Regional Recognition

Congratulations to Our CMEA Regional Honor Band Students! We are proud to recognize our outstanding band students who have been selected for the CMEA Western Region Honor Band and Jazz Band! These talented musicians dedicated a full day in December to a rigorous audition process, demonstrating their skill, musicianship, and dedication. Their hard work has earned them the opportunity to perform with the best middle school musicians in the region at a two-day honors festival this March. Please join us in congratulating the following students:

Joe Diamantis	Jazz Trumpet
Arlo Cohen	Timpani
Alisa Angeles	Flute
Payce deMarco	Clarinet
Emma Biegel	Flute
Abigail Greenhut	Oboe
Charlotte Dluzyn	Flute
Henry Rowlands-Rees	Clarinet
Isabella Seo	Flute
Zaph Denu	Tuba

We are incredibly proud of their achievements and look forward to seeing them represent our school at this prestigious event!

Special Education

Students in Ms. Ryan’s room participate in a Blue Team vs. Green Team game of Jeopardy, reviewing core class material and some Saxe trivia.

Community News

For any ice skating fans – save the date! Tomorrow, 2/1, the rink at Waveny has been designated as “Middle School Skate Night”. Have fun!

Some of our Saxe MS students “defended our home turf” as they battled Norwalk in the Saxe Gymnasium last weekend!

Congrats to members of the NE Volleyball Winterfest 2025 U13 Open Champions – 1st place Gold medal!

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

Congrats to current & former ⁦Saxe MS students on their recent Art awards! Amazing talent & their work is a gift to our Saxe & ⁦NCHS communities! New Canaan Students Shine At 2025 Regional Scholastic Art Exhibition (Click the link to read the article!) | New Canaan, CT Patch

Thank you to the New Canaan DPW for always making sure our Saxe campus is safe for all!

Students in Ms. Freeman’s Social Studies classes were using Legos to create objects, themes, or scenes that would be confirmed through claim, evidence, & reasoning which will be tied to upcoming lessons. Great example of purposeful, creative, & fun ways to reinforce important concepts!

The “Believe Wall” continues to expand! This week had themes around trust, honesty, influence, bravery, & more… Great reminders, for all!

Mr. Demella’s students were hard at work in their Music Tech class… The different manners in which they played was quite impressive!

Ms. Campbell was using claim, evidence, & reasoning to discuss their latest topic in #SaxeSS. These are great skills that are not only beneficial in Social Studies, but also ELA, Science, & many other applications in their lives!

Mr. Santoro’s Math class was up and moving as they worked through their problems in class today. Great balance of movement, teamwork, & learning!

8Red had some motivating goals on display at Saxe MS as they finished the first month of 2025. Whether it was finding ways to have better habits or minimizing distractions in their lives, these are good reminders for all of us!

Some “in process” #SaxeArt ceramic projects. Look forward to seeing the finished products!

Lots of great trivia on display in Mr. Banas’s Saxe SS classroom. Can’t wait to see the February update!

Nice “challenge problem” in Mr. Chard’s Saxe Science class this week! There was a lot of energy in the room as students collaborated, brainstormed, & problem-solved to come up with their answers!

A little touch up paint has the upper/lower stairwell at Saxe MS looking fresh again! Thanks to all involved…

Dogs of Saxe

Nothing better than seeing our newest #DogsOfSaxe come through & brighten our morning at Saxe MS arrival… Welcome, Cali!

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)