Hello, Middle School Students and Families! Here’s a look at what’s happening in the Middle School this week.
Romy Seidman ’28 and Maggie Whitney ’28 ran today’s meeting. You can check out the slides from this week’s meeting here.
THE BVR STUDENT
At Middle School meetings throughout the year, students present elements of The BVR Student.
Tylee Gould ’28 and Natalie Lippman ’28 and presented Is Disciplined with Technology.
“I think it’s important to not text and gchat in class so you can pay attention in class and stay focused on your work. You aren’t supposed to be playing games, checking your snaps, and looking at TikTok because they distract you from what you are doing in class. And in R-TIME the only thing you should be doing on your laptop is checking your email, Canvas, and doing your work. I keep my computer in my backpack unless my teacher tells me that we are going to use it. If a teacher tells me to close my laptop, I try to do it right away. Being disciplined with technology is important because we are at school to learn.”
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Middle School students who participated in the Hiatt Summer Fellowship program (see the overview of the program here) spoke about their experiences including what they did every day, their favorite part of their fellowship, and their biggest take-away. Check out today’s presentation slides here.
Presenters included: Naima Russell ’28, Reid Bugbee ’28, Nate Howard ’28, Sam Kosberg ’29, and Rishaan Chowdhury ’29.
Students were reminded that Parent/Caregiver & Teacher Conferences are on the next three Fridays: October 20, 27, and November 3. Students are encouraged to attend their conferences.
Thursday, October 19 is our Feed Your Brain Day on campus. Students will receive their schedule for the day on Wednesday. This day allows Middle School teachers to prepare for conferences while students have enriching learning experiences led by BVR administrators and staff.
Winter Afternoon Activities are now in PowerSchool. Students are encouraged to look to see what they were assigned. Winter Afternoon Activities start in 3 weeks on November 6.
Ava Thorpe ’29 and Kaz Jurkiewicz ’28 announced the performances of the Middle School Fall Play, The Alibis happening on Thursday, October 26 and Friday, October 27, at 6 p.m. in Bradley Hall.
Tickets go on sale Monday and students can sign up to be ushers for the show.
Student Council announced they are running special events on Halloween including a fair during Afternoon Activities.
On Tuesday, October 31, Middle School students are encouraged to dress in costume. Student Council explained that all costumes must be school-appropriate: they can be worn all day and students can still fully participate in class, as well as being appropriate in terms of not being offensive. They described ‘cultural appropriation’ and showed a video clip. You can see the slide show and video here. They also shared possible costume ideas, including superheroes, toys, food, and animals.
All students must fill out a Google form by next Wednesday, October 25 to share their costume plan in advance.
Continuing the Conversation
Our “Continuing the Conversation” section is an occasional callout in our MS Meeting Meeting Minutes to help foster an inclusive community. This feature will include a prompt for you and your student to reflect on, discuss, and share.
Halloween costumes
- Why is it important to avoid a costume that stereotypes a group or makes a joke out of a painful situation?
- If a costume represents an identity such as race, ethnicity, or gender, why is it important to consider the reactions of others?
- We shared in our presentation that a recent survey conducted by OnePoll said that many parents regret wearing Halloween costumes in the past that are considered offensive. Thinking back, have you seen a costume that you would not wear now?
PROGRAMMING & EVENTS
LUNCH & RECESS PROGRAMMING, CLUBS & AFFINITY GROUPS
RISE
Today’s RISE activity was making nature paper lanterns. Through fun activities, students learn how to deal with stress and worry.
ADVISORY AGENDA
Students are creating visual representations of their identities. This is a fun community-building activity and an opportunity to experience the design process. Sam Kosberg ’29 and Taylor Andrews ’29 explained that everyone will get a hexagon template to begin sketching their design ideas tomorrow. Students should consider the materials they want to use from the D-Level or something they may want to bring from home.
ATHLETICS
This week’s home games:
WEDNESDAY
Field Hockey vs. Newton Country Day – 3:30 p.m. Upper Field
Flag Football vs. Rivers – 3:30 p.m. Lower Field
Check out the athletic schedules on the BVR website.
WELLNESS
Wellness classes this week:
8th grade with Mr. Slotnick
Thursday during Feed Your Brain day