Letter from the MC Principal
Hello MC families,
When I wrote my last Courier letter we were in the midst of 8th grade Exhibitions. I was able to see several Exhibitions that week and it was great to see students taking on the challenge of being reflective about 8th grade, while backing up a claim about their year with evidence. I heard many great stories of growth and perseverance. I’m proud of the way the students stepped up. We ended that week with our Pep Rally and as always that was a lot of fun. Students received fans in the beginning of the Pep Rally and they were challenged with doing “the wave” with the fans for this year’s “hype contest.” The 6th graders pulled an upset and won this year. Afterwards we were treated to a performance by our cheerleaders and a flash mob that did the “Boots on the Ground” line dance. Next we recognized clubs and affinity groups, and our sports coaches (our athletes are recognized regularly during Morning Meeting). Finally, we broke into Power 30 groups and three students in each group received awards for following the guiding principles, grit/severance, and achievement (earning ribbons during Study Island during the Milestones Bootcamp). It was a very enjoyable event and we celebrated a large portion of our student body.
We had a successful week of Milestones testing last week. Sixth graders finished on Friday 5/2, 8th graders finish today (those taking the Algebra I test will do so on Thursday), and seventh graders test until Friday.
Seventh grade families please encourage your students to get proper rest, eat well, and get to school on time during Milestones so that they can put their best foot forward. We’ve had some trouble with students arriving late for Milestones so please help your students get to school on time.
There are a few action items for students in their Advisory Google Classrooms as we close out the year. There are summer reading selections for 6th and 7th; 7th grade Arts Selections (There is a Google Form where they actually pick their course for next year.), and 8th graders have information about the 8th Celebration (this isn’t new information, but if they have questions there is information in GC).
Sixth and seventh grade Exhibitions will take place next week. Your students’ Advisors have been reaching out regarding setting up Exhibitions so please take a look for those emails. Sixth and seventh grade students have been given lots of time in school (multiple hours over the last few weeks), guidance from their Advisors, and various tools (e.g. graphic organizers, opportunities to do practice runs, opportunities to go to Office Hours, etc.) to help them prepare for their Exhibitions. We look forward to seeing what our students put together for next week. However, it’s also important to note that sometimes students don’t put forth their best effort, and that is another opportunity to learn. Part of building the capacity for students to rise to the occasion is sometimes allowing them to fall flat if they didn’t bring their best effort – otherwise they will never know how to bounce back. Resiliency is a big skill that children must learn and struggles are great learning opportunities.
Our 8th graders will be heading to Savannah for their year-end trip on Tuesday, May 13th and coming back on the afternoon of Friday the 16th. I attended the Savannah trip the first year that we went – I learned a lot visiting various historical sites and museums, and we also had a great time with the various social elements in between. I am eager for this group of students to have this experience. In order to go on the trip students MUST be in attendance at school on Monday.
In the next few weeks we have several events on tap that will help us close out the school year.
- The Winter/Spring Athletics Awards Ceremony (light snacks will be served) is on Thursday, May 8th at 6:00pm.
- The 8th grade Celebration is on Wednesday, May 21st (8th grade parents have already received emails covering the details of this event.)
- Extended Advisory will be on Thursday the 24th. On that day we will have shortened classes in the first half of the day, and then Advisories will spend the rest of the day hanging out and bonding for one last time to close out the year. Your students’ Advisors will be reaching out soon regarding their plans if they have not already.
Finally, on Friday, May 23rd we will have Field Day and a noon dismissal. Sometimes people forget that school gets out at 12:00pm on the last day of school. Please make arrangements to have your child picked up at 12pm as there is no after care on Friday.
As for Field Day itself, students should:
- ALL be wearing their Field Day t-shirts (those will be distributed on Thursday)
- Students should be in dress code (no bathing suits, and shorts should cover undergarments),
- Bring a water bottle (we will not have individual water bottles in order to minimize waste)
- Wear sunscreen as we will be outside most of the day.
Summer reading books and yearbooks will also be distributed on the last day of school. Similar to last summer, there will be two or three opportunities for students to check in with adults about their reading progress throughout the summer in a book club format. Stay tuned for more details about this.
As always, if you have any questions feel free to reach out.
Kind regards,
Mark
Mark Sanders
Mark Sanders began teaching at ANCS in 2011. Before coming to the school, Mr. Sanders worked in New York City. He spent three years teaching 7th and 8th grade mathematics at Middle School 50 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and two years at Harlem Village Academies teaching Geometry and Algebra 2/Trigonometry. He taught 8th grade Math/Science/Technology at ANCS for five years.
