2025.12.23 – SAXE WEEKLY (#308)

December 23, 2025

Dear Saxe MS Family,

Here’s one last “high five” for 2025, as we get ready to bring 2026 “into the mix”! Each year, the time seems to move more and more quickly… When we reflect on how much we experience together, and have to be grateful for, it is an absolute honor to serve this extraordinary community of Saxe Middle School, and the town of New Canaan.

As we head into this holiday break, I hope that you are able to spend some time with those you care about the most, 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, please make an effort to 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”, the latest Saxe Weekly podcast, Music, recess, snowy scenes around Saxe, some great sweaters, Dogs of Saxe, and much more. Enjoy and have a wonderful remainder of your 2025. See you when the calendar clicks to 2026!

Be Well,

Dave Gusitsch

Principal, Saxe Middle School

Upcoming Noteworthy Dates:

12/23 Holiday Break – Happy Holiday, Happy New Year, & ENJOY!

1/5/26 Welcome Back!

*Quotes that resonated with us this week

“Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” ~ Winston Churchill

“Don’t try hard to fit in, and certainly don’t try so hard to be different…just try hard to be you.” ~ Zendaya

Keeping it Light with Saxe Joke of the Day

“What’s Santa’s favorite candy? ~ Jolly Ranchers.”

“What do you call a snowman with a six-pack? ~ An abdominal snowman!”

Saxe Weekly: The Podcast

Interested in getting an overview of the latest Saxe Weekly in podcast form? Using Google’s Notebook LM, we are able to offer an option to listen to all of the great “goings on” in our school community while you are “on the go”, with the Saxe MS Podcast! We invite you to give it a listen… Enjoy!

Note: We have been using Notebook LM to create our podcast for the past couple of months, and recently, noticed the “create an image – infographic” option. It’s a pretty neat representation of the latest Saxe Weekly and may become part of our weekly update – enjoy!

Saxe Spirit

The snow was flying all around Saxe today, & so was the holiday SPIRIT! Love to see the enthusiasm & fun, all around!

The “Leviathan Battle” is one of the experiences our 8th-grade students will remember for years to come (&, maybe a lifetime)! This is such a positive experience, & one that teaches some great life skills – competition, teamwork, sportsmanship, & FUN! Thanks to all involved!

And, there are many moments of pure exhilaration and joy!

Music

There was holiday spirit on display all around Saxe, & beyond! The Music department was quite busy with caroling, concerts, & spreading joy across the district (I believe they performed in EVERY building in New Canaan Public Schools this past week)!

Resource Numbers

Changes in routines can sometimes be difficult to navigate, and this includes the holiday season. If you or someone you know is in need of assistance (at any time), it is more than ok to ask for help. Below are some resources that our district has prepared that may be helpful:

Call or Text “988”- 24 hour Crisis Lifeline
Kids in Crisis 24-hour confidential hotline (203) 327-5437 (KIDS). Kids in Crisis
CT Infoline-211-for confidential hotline/and mobile (will travel to your home) crisis intervention services 24/7. Dial 211 or 988 (or text 988) from any phone. www.211ct.org
Silver Hill Assessment Program Free Mental Health Assessment and Support for New Canaan residents (children, adolescents, and adults) requires an appointment. Usually seen within 48 hours. Call 203–801-2390, and ask for the Assessment Program.
Sandy Hook Promise Anonymous Reporting System Call 1-844-5-SayNow (1-844-572-9669), use the website, or download the app, to anonymously report concerns about students who may be at risk of harming themselves or others. Available to students & families throughout the year.

Remember, “we never worry alone”!

Recess

I’m not sure it could have been any nicer of a day as we celebrated the last full school day of 2025 at Saxe! Our students certainly took advantage of getting some fresh air, activity, & social time during recess…

Whether it’s on the Hawk’s Court, the playground, or out on the fields, our students have many options to take advantage of during recess… We certainly love seeing so many of them take advantage of getting outside, all year!

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

Good morning from snowy Saxe! Just a reminder, we will be operating on our “Early Release” schedule on this final school day of 2025… Have a great day, All!

Thank you to our dedicated Saxe Custodians for always keeping our campus safe & ready for our entire school community!

Monday marked the point where days get just a little bit longer each day – that’s something to celebrate! And, Saxe students who “bring it” with the holiday spirit – that’s also something definitely worth celebrating!

We kicked the shortened week off right at Saxe this morning – with a little holiday cheer! Thanks to everyone who helped pull this together, it was a great way to celebrate our school community!

Leftovers? Perfect! Not only did we enjoy a nice breakfast with our Saxe staff yesterday, the party rolled on into today… Nothing will go to waste & snacks make people happy!

Our students are so generous, & creative! This holiday gift is a “melting snowman”, complete with melted marshmallow in the middle of the cookie – delicious!

Scenes Around Saxe

Thanks to our Dean of Students, Ms. Kleis, for capturing this great pic outside of Saxe at the end of last week!

Dogs of Saxe

We saw a few of our favs at morning arrival this morning at Saxe! We always enjoy when Dogs of Saxe see their humans off to their day at school!

Have a great week, see you next YEAR! Here’s to a great start to 2026!

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)