Bulldog Bulletin

• Message From the Principal
• Important Dates
• Fall Performance: The Internet Is A Distract-Oh Look A Kitten!
• Limited Time Springer Apparel for Sale
• SMS Wears Purple in Support of Rett Syndrome Day
• Hop for Hope
• Big Dog School Store
• Coffee With the Superintendent
• Veterans Day Performance & Essay Contest
• Math FIAB Test #1
• SFA Dine Out Night
• Open Coaching Positions
• String O Ween
• SFA Joe Corbis Pizza Fundraiser
• Schoology Access for Parents
• SFA 8th Grade Dance Theme Feedback
• Fall Sports Updates
• 4 or Less = Success
• SAFE-DE
• Transportation: WheresTheBus App
• Volunteering at Springer Middle School

Springer Families,

We are less than 2 weeks out from the end of the marking period. This is a perfect time to check your child’s grades, discuss what they may be able to improve on, and ask what big summative assignments are ahead. The end of the marking period is November 7th and the last few weeks and days are critical to redoing available assignments, turning in missing work, and planning with your child what the end of the marking period will look like. The research is clear that students who meet with success in the first marking period tend to show success throughout the rest of the year.

If you need help getting parent access, please see the section below to assist you with parent access to Schoology. If all else fails, ask your child to pull up their Schoology account. Each class will have its own Schoology section/page that will list assignments, materials, updates, grades, etc. Your child should be able to show you their grades, what assignments have been turned in, and what is still due. If you have questions specific to the course, please contact that teacher directly via email.

If you have any questions, concerns, or need additional information please do not hesitate to contact me or one of my administrators. We are eager to help.

All The Best,

Dr. Sterling H. Seemans

Principal

2024-2025 Middle School Daily Rotation Schedule

BSD School Calendar

• 10/24/24: Schools Closed Pre-K through Grade 8-Parent/Teacher Conferences
• 10/25/24: Schools Closed Pre-K through Grade 12-Parent/Teacher Conferences
• 11/1/24: Middle School District Championships at CHS
• 11/5/24: No School (Election Day)
• 11/7/24: End of Marking Period 1.
• 11/8/24: No School Professional Day
• 11/11/24: No School (Veterans Day)
• 11/12/24: Veterans Day Performance at Springer
• 11/15/24: Picture Day Make Ups
• 11/25-11/29/24: No School Thanksgiving Break

Come out next weekend to support the Springer Performing Arts students put on our inaugural Fall Play titled "The Internet is a Distract - OH LOOK A KITTEN" on Friday, November 1st and Saturday, November 2nd ONLY. Tickets are $10 each and can be bought at all 3 lunches next week Tuesday and Thursday, online, or at the door. Students must bring a chaperone to attend the show.

Buy your tickets and check out the cast list on our website: https://our.show/springerfall2024

About the show (from Playscripts.com): Micah only has twenty minutes to finish her paper on The Great Gatsby. She just needs to check a few facts on the internet first. Unfortunately, the web is a nefariously wacky place where boxing cats, Facebook lurkers, and pig-throwing games threaten to take over Micah's schoolwork, or worse. Will she finish her paper and escape with her life before the school bell rings? A high-octane comedy that explores the rabbit hole of distraction we all go down every time we go online.

Students auditioned on September 4th and 5th and have had UNDER two months to put this show together. This means learning and memorizing dialogue, stage directions, and mastering the art of comedic timing, in addition to learning how to work together with the technical elements in theatre: microphones, lights, props, scene changes, and more, ON TOP OF their regular responsibilities as Springer Middle School students. The Co-Directors, Mrs. Ashley Ferrara and Ms. Jasmine Lee are beyond proud of the students for their hard work and dedication to put on the first production of its kind here at Springer Middle School. We look forward to seeing you at our production next weekend.

Please consider purchasing some awesome Springer Middle School gear! A portion of all sales will go towards Springer Middle School. These are limited items and make great gifts for a birthday or upcoming holiday! Items will ship for free to Springer Middle School and will be individually packed and labeled. This gear store will be open for the next 3 weeks, with items arriving in early December. Please use the link below and purchase some awesome Springer apparel.

https://springerms.itemorder.com/shop/home/

On Wednesday, October 23our students and staff to wore purple for Rett Syndrome Awareness Day. Mrs. Thomas, one of our 6th grade math teachers, has a daughter with Rett Syndrome, which is an extremely rare genetic disorder that affects brain development and causes a progressive loss of motor skills and language. On Wednesday we showed Mrs. Thomas our support by wearing purple in recognition of Rett Syndrome Day.

On Wednesday, October 16 we held our Hops for Hope event. Through the hard efforts of our students and the generosity of our community, we were able to raise hundreds of dollars for breast cancer research. The donation will be made to Metavivor which is the only breast cancer organization where 100% of every donation goes toward research to find a cure for metastatic, stage 4, breast cancer, which is the only form of breast cancer without a cure. We love to extend a huge thanks to the following students for their participation in this event! Our students jumped a combined 4 hours total!

Henry Zimmerman

Donovan Demosthene

Vamsi Krishna Gumma

Abigail carney

Damien Grawl

Ava Harrison

Jamisyn Cook

Daniel McLarthy

Makayla Deloatch

Edwin Lucus

Isabella Diaz

Leah DiMauro

Ryan Caswell

Patrick Coffey

Adam Solomon

Colin Mummert

📢🐾 Exciting News, Bulldogs! The Big Dog Springer School Store is NOW OPEN! 🐾📢

Available ONLY on the PBIS Rewards app, students can “purchase” a variety of items using their BARK Points!

What can you get?

👕Springer gear 🧢

🍿Snack line “cash” 🍫

📒School supplies ✏️

And much more!

Remember, no cash purchases are accepted – it's all about using those hard earned BARK Points for demonstrating the BARK expectations!

🕒 Items will be delivered within one week of your purchase date, so plan accordingly!

🔄 New items will be added to the store regularly throughout the year – make sure to check back often!

Start spending those points, Bulldogs! 🎉🐾

Come meet and chat with Dr. Lisa Lawson, the Superintendent of Schools! You will be allotted 15 minutes with Superintendent to address your concerns, discuss the future of BSD, and provide feedback on what needs improvement.

Performance

Springer Middle School is excited to invite any veteran family members to our annual Veterans Day program which has been scheduled for Tuesday, November 12th at 10 a.m. in our auditorium.

The program will include speeches/presentations by selected Social Studies students. Past topics have included the history of Veterans Day, our Armed Forces, and tributes to a family member.

Our music department will present the Star Spangled Banner (chorale), a selection by our orchestra, and The Battle Hymn of the Republic by Springer JAZZ. We hope that you join us for this wonderful celebration.

Essay Contest

We will be recognizing Veterans Day in November and we would like YOU to be a part of it! Enter an essay to compete for a Grand Prize of 20 PBIS points. Just entering will earn you 10 PBIS points!

You may choose to write/create about any of the following prompts:

• Why do we recognize Veterans Day?

• Why is Veterans Day important?

• Write about a Veteran who has impacted you or your family.

• What are some ways we or you can recognize Veterans for their service?

• If you could design a memorial or monument to Veterans, what would it look like and why?

• What does it mean to serve your country and community? What can you do as a student?

• If you had to thank a Veteran, what would you say and why.

• Write about the history of any one of the branches of our military.

If you have any questions, ask your Social Studies teacher

Your entry into the contest is due no later than November 1

Presentations of essays will be held on November 9th.

On Tuesday night we held our annual coffee house music performance. Students, families, and staff performed for a packed house! Congratulations to all of the brave artists and performers who put on an amazing show.

On Tuesday, October 29, all math classes will be conducting the first FIAB of the school year. This is a non-standardized state assessment that give teachers feedback on student performance to this point in the school on a specific math topic. The goal of the FIAB is for teachers to provide students with test taking strategies to help prepare students for the DE State Smarter Balance test in the spring. In addition, it gives students a chance to see different questions types, and how what they are learning in class correlates to what they are tested on in the spring. Please reach out to your child’s math teacher if you have any questions.

Please join us at MOD Pizza on Thursday, November 14 for a dine out night to support the SFA!

Springer Middle School is currently looking for a Boys' Basketball coach for our Winter season, which begins in November. Any interested applicants are encouraged to reach out to Dr. Seemans at sterling.seemans@bsd.k12.de.us.

The Springer Family Association is running their annual Joe Corbis pizza fundraiser! Packets went home with students earlier this week and there will be gift card prizes for the top sellers! We hope you consider helping out the SFA by participating in this annual fundraiser. The fundraiser goes on now through November 6. Orders will need to be picked up at Springer on 12/4/24. Please email president@springerfamily.org

If you need help access Schoology as a parent to help support your child, please click the following link to access a document that will provide you step-by-step directions:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZjlNYAoqfGxHO3dciOvXU5JOb11Zj7-E69a7-lPn4w4/edit?usp=sharing

Our SFA is planning our annual 8th grade formal, which takes place on Saturday May 17, 2025. This is a huge event which brings a lot of excitement to Springer as we wrap up the school year for our 8th graders. The SFA is seeking opinions for themes for the dance. If you would like to vote and/or provide feedback, please complete the brief survey below. The theme that is selected will be a secret and will be revealed to the students the night of the dance.

Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf-emJxOsQdHcdSPAGkUP1HNv5MSiYD6tJDpz-tSSuoyZGQcg/viewform?usp=sf_link

Please check out the schedule for the BSD Fall Sports Championships taking place next Friday, November 1 at Mt. Pleasant High School.

Boys Soccer

The boys JV Soccer team defeated PS Dupont 2-1 in a game that Springer dominated. Goals were scored by Zack Wheeler and Nathan Hunt. Declan Lehane, Emilio Mammi, Matthew Stoklosa, and Landon Williams created countless scoring opportunities in a game where goals were hard to come by. Cullen Northey and Evan Wang played outstanding defense and helped keep the ball out of Springer's defensive side of the field for most of the game. The team looks forward to another tough game against district rival Talley, on Wednesday.

Field Hockey

Varsity field hockey had another hard fought win against PS DuPont yesterday 3-0 with goals by Scarlett Walther, Hailey Mullinex and Lexie Burris who notched her first varsity goal. The JV fought hard throughout their game with Corrine Hall holding down the back and ended in a 0-0 draw. Delaney Williams came up big and had big saves in both the varsity and JV game.

Field hockey had another decisive victory against HB DuPont yesterday winning 5-1! Goals were scored by Scarlett Walther, Jenna Grimes, Emma Young, Emma Burkhart and Katie Sheidel with assists by Jenna Grimes, Scarlett Walther and Emma Burkhart. It was a truly a team effort all over the field as our 8th graders, Scarlett Walther, Jenna Grimes, Marley Richardson, Morgan O’Hanlon, Brynn Costenbader, Corinne Hall and Lucy Whitfield played their last game on Springer home turf!

Cross Country

The XC results from the White Clay Creek XC Invitational indicate that out of 10 teams, the Springer XC Boys Team placed 3rd out of the 10 teams that participated. All of the races were arranged according to grade level. Following are a few highlights from the Meet.

• 8th Graders Ethan Isabella and Ben Merlo placed 9th and 11th respectively out of a field of 67 runners on the 2-mile course.

• 7th Graders Ryan Caswell, Aidyn Golson, Jackson Kohr, Owen Muse, and Chase Salvatore all placed in the top 10 positions (3rd, 4th, 8th, 9th, 10th) out of 50 runners.

Go Bulldogs!!!

Volleyball

The varsity volleyball team lost a close game to unbeaten PS yesterday 2-0, but not without a fight. Down 24-13 in the second game the girls rallied behind the serving of Emma Berger but just fell short, losing 25-23.

The JV volleyball team destroyed PS yesterday winning 2-0 behind the fantastic serving of Sophia Bundy, Caitlyn Smith, Jackie Schatz, and Jaime Cook. The defense was anchored by the aggressive play of Quinn Reed, Ashtin Aslton-Barnes, and Allyson Cleghorn. Great job ladies.

The varsity volleyball team played a HB DuPont team that hasn’t lost in over 5 years yesterday. Despite playing their best game of the season, they lost 25-20 and 25-22. Maggie Bosma led the offense with 4 aces, 4 kills, and 2 blocks. The defense was anchored by the outstanding play of Maya Goldstein, Emma Berger, and Mae Heggan. Great effort ladies.

Welcome to the new school year--it's an exciting time for everyone! We're excited for a great year of learning and growth for all of our students!

This school year, the Brandywine School District is adopting the 4 Or Less = Success school attendance campaign to promote good student attendance. Good attendance means coming to school on time and staying all day, every day, which is key to every child’s success. After all, students must be present to learn!

All absences, whether excused or not, add up. Chronically absent students are more likely to read below grade level, have lower math and reading test scores, repeat a grade, and drop out of high school.

What you can do:

• Talk to your child about how going to school every day will help them do well in school and achieve their hopes and dreams.
• Keep an attendance chart at home to track absences.
• Recognize your child for attending school every day.
• Find a relative, friend, or neighbor who can take your child to and from school if you can’t.
• Set up medical appointments for weekdays after school.
• Make attending school every day a priority unless your child is truly sick

For more information and resources, visit www.brandywineschools.org/4orLess

The Brandywine School District wants all children to attend school each day so they can be successful in the future! We will be sending more information, materials, and tips about attendance throughout this school year. Please join us in making school attendance a priority so that we can help all of our children learn, achieve, and succeed.

Families, you are encouraged to visit the following link on the BSD website to find out more information about Transportation. For your convenience, we have Where is the Bus app and a brand new bus scanner to help you see when your child(ren) are boarding the bus. Students will either enter their school IDs or lunch numbers. You will receive information in the upcoming weeks on when students will receive their school IDs. Happy Riding!! https://www.brandywineschools.org/families/transportation/bus-scanners

Springer Middle School relies on the generosity of time from our great families within the community. We welcome those who want to help be apart of our village and have a plethora of opportunities for volunteers to engage with our students and staff to better the middle school experience of our youth.

Parents who are interested in volunteering at Springer Middle School will need to follow the Brandywine School District's policy for background checks. Please follow this link: Volunteering at BSD to be properly cleared to work with our students. If you have questions, do not hesitate to contact the main office.

Background checks are good for 1 calendar year