When folks talk about the “lazy days of summer,” a lot of us think wistfully about our childhood, whether that conjures memories of family vacations, summer camps, or just having more time for relaxing around your regular spots: tanning on the beach or by the pool, escaping the heat by going to a movie theater for the latest blockbuster, or just laying in the grass outside your own home. Although movie theaters may not be an option, and some camps and travel plans may have been taken off the table, I hope you have all found opportunities for relaxing & enjoying good, safe social opportunities so far this summer!
For teachers, this is a rich time because summer affords us
an opportunity to focus on our own improvement. Many teachers come back from
summer break talking about the books they’ve read, podcasts they’ve listened
to, or courses they took. They are eager to adapt new ideas and strategies to
their own classrooms, and to talk it through with their colleagues. This
summer, more than others, a lot of that research has been focused on boosting
our knowledge of technology and skills for effective online teaching, and ways
that we can adapt in-class instruction for reaching kids whether they’re in
school or out. We’re all desperate to be in front of your kids again, but I can
safely say that none of us wants to be in a position again of feeling so
helpless and at the mercy of circumstances beyond our control, as we were with the abrupt closure of school last spring. Be prepared, as the Scouting motto goes,
so you’ll be able to act in any circumstance.
At South, the custodians have been hard at work, cleaning every surface and waxing the floors to a gleaming finish. These halls & classrooms will be ready! We have also been measuring classrooms, repairing vents and windows, and charting out new traffic patterns through the building. For anyone who has business at the school in the next month, the main office is open daily from 8-12. We ask visitors to wear a mask as a precaution, and I advise you to call ahead (781-380-0164) to make sure we are at hand to listen for the doorbell!
WELCOME TO OUR NEWEST
BULLDOGS!
First of all, I would like to welcome the incoming 6th graders’ parents & guardians to South! The district “rolled over” accounts to the new grades earlier this month, and we’re glad to have you here! Typically, rising 5th graders are given the option to enroll in an orientation program to explore the building and find out about middle school, but that was not an option this year. Please rest assured, we are keeping your children very much in the front of our minds as we talk about the school’s plans for this fall, and we will design a program that will get them acclimated to South. As the month of August moves forward, we’ll have a better sense of what September is going to look like and we will also receive clear guidelines from the Mayor and the Braintree Board of Health to let us know what options are available. I will email out information as it becomes available, but in the meantime, please don’t worry that we’re not thinking about this issue!
Please don't forget to sign up for the South PTO email list: email southmiddle.pto@gmail.com and ask to be added to the maillist!
SUMMER ASSIGNMENTS
Teachers posted summer work information to students’ Google
Classroom pages, but I realized that parents & guardians may not have
received this information. You can view
the assigned books and written work here: Braintree Schools Summer
Assignments.
Books may be available from Thayer Public Library for curbside checkout, or they can be purchased from Barnes & Noble in town or other booksellers. The school has affiliate accounts with Amazon.com and, for those who want to support independent booksellers, with Bookshop.org. (Affiliate accounts return a referral fee for purchases, so you’re supporting South while shopping, and we’re very grateful!) Summer assignments are due at the beginning of the school year, so it’s advisable to complete them early. Then you can get back to relaxing and reading whatever you want!
B.Y.O.D.
In June, the superintendent announced
that all secondary grades, from grades 5-12, will be operating on a “Bring Your
Own Device” (BYOD) policy starting in September. This means every student will
be expected to have a dedicated device (like a chromebook or laptop) that they
can bring to school to use for in-person instruction and that they can use
throughout the day at home for schoolwork. If you are looking to purchase a
device, please make sure it satisfies these specifications—BYOD
specs—to ensure it is compatible with the school wifi system. If you are not able to supply a device, the school
system can provide one. Please fill out this form to request a loaner device
for your child: South BYOD Application—and we will contact you later this
summer about picking it up, using it, and the optional insurance program to
protect against damage to the loaner device. Additional information about
the Middle School
BYOD Initiative is available on the District BYOD website.
SOUTH NEWSPAPER
As the school year wound down in June, we had a number of
students who pushed hard to finish a final edition of the South Newspaper for
the school year. Many of these articles had been started way back in February,
when there was no expectation of the school closure, but the Newspaper Staff
stuck with them and made sure to follow
the story! Access their ace
reporting here: South
News – COVID Edition!
Kudos to the editorial team who pulled this together from quarantine, and special thanks to one of the Newspaper Club advisors, Ms. Vose. She has been the librarian & media specialist at South and East Middle Schools for many years and, this spring, she retired. We wish her a happy and healthy retirement; it is very much deserved!
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Normally we post supply lists in the summer for students to prepare for the coming year. This year, the district has decided not to release updated lists, as so much remains unknown about what the school year will look like. It is safe to assume that every student should have at least one notebook—I would recommend a multi-subject notebook—to take notes in, but it is possible you won’t need a different notebook for each class, as we’ve recommended in the past. Middle schoolers will also want some blue & black pens, pencils, a few highlighters, and something to color with (markers, crayons). The only school supply we definitely want to make sure everyone’s thinking about is: All students should have a dedicated set of headphones or earbuds with a microphone that can work with your BYOD computer! Other than that, we will release supply lists if necessary when the School Committee has voted on how schools will operate for the 2020-2021 school year.
RISING 7TH GRADERS
7th grade students must provide the school with an up-to-date physical! You can ask your doctor's office to fax their most-recent physical with immunizations to us at 781-380-0164 or email it to our school nurses, Nurse Driscoll or Nurse McDonough. You can also mail a hard copy to 232 Peach St. or bring it by and we'll make a copy for you.
If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate
to email me or call (781-380-0160, ext. 4020) and leave a voicemail.
With all best wishes,
Damon Rainie
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