In the Middle

Oct. 11th - No School - Professional Development Day

Oct. 14th - No School - Columbus Day / Indigenous People’s Day

Oct. 18th - Lifetouch Picture Day

Oct. 22nd - Flu Clinic for Students and Staff

Oct. 23rd - PTO Meeting - 7:00 PM Library/Media Center

Oct. 25th - PTO's Spooky Costume Dance - SHS Gymnasium

Our current system will no longer be used and you MUST register as instructed below to continue receiving SMS Text messages.

You can participate in this free service* just by sending a text message of “Y” or “Yes” to our school’s short code number, 67587.

You can also opt out of these messages at any time by simply replying to one of our messages with “Stop”.

*Terms and Conditions: Message frequency varies. Standard message and data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help. Text STOP to cancel. Mobile carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. See schoolmessenger.com/tm for more info.

Soon to be Spartans!

We would love your help! If you have an 8th grader who will be part of the athletics program at Scituate High School next year, volunteer at the Art Festival Booster Booth and get to know us!

Sign up here:

https://signup.com/go/gdFkhEp

There are plenty of spots and options - take a look and help us out if you can!

We would like to introduce ourselves, we are this year's 8th grade Vice Presidents, Jennifer Vangel and Tara Piecyk. We are so excited to provide our children with some really fun opportunities over the course of the year to acknowledge all they have accomplished. Our biggest event is our farewell to Middle School Dance in May of 2025. As of right now it is only the VPs working on this project. We know you all have special talents and connections that would help to make this event even better than last year. Let's work together to make this an event our children will never forget!

Any questions email at: scituatepto.piecyk2gmail.com or scituatepto.vangel@gmail.com

Our first meeting will be 11/4/2024 at 7 pm via google meets

https://meet.google.com/ogu-zvbi-opx

Ways to stay in touch and involved:

***Follow the PTO on social media***

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552203942500&mibextid=kFxxJD

https://www.instagram.com/scituatemiddlepto?igsh=aHJjYnRwYWN5azYw

***Download our app***

https://groupme.com/join_group/97812743/5u2MC2qt

Looking forward to a great year and making something special for our kids and our community.

See you soon.

Tara Piecyk and Jenn Vangel

Ms. Norton will be creating the middle school yearbook this year. If you have photos that you would like to see included in the yearbook, please email them to sms_yearbook@scituateschoolsri.net This includes photos from all of our SMS Athletic Teams.

Check out pictures from last week's meet at Rocky Point.

My name is Matt Brannon and I am the High School Coach for both Cranston and Scituate Hockey. We have put an independent hockey team in the RI Junior Developmental Hockey League for grades 6th-8th the past 3 winters.

This middle school team has helped save our high school program by being ahead of the curve knowing how many players we are getting in each year. Hockey has changed so much over the last 10 years, with teams having to combine high schools.

The parents do pay to play for this league, and it is not associated with CPS or SPS. The kids are responsible for their own rides to and from school. The season begins October 18th and the games are at 5pm at RT 146 ice rink.

Please complete the Google Form if your child is interested.

https://forms.gle/9cgwPsbwAKgTs4Hk9

Monday, October 14: We still need volunteers to donate baked (or store bought) items to sell at our first ever SMS PTO table. Email scituatepto.braga@gmail.com with any questions.

• To volunteer at art festival: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0948ACAB28A7FEC70-51624293-artfestival
• To donate a baked good: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0948ACAB28A7FEC70-51624012-artfestival

Friday, October 25: We are forming a dance committee to help plan the event. We will also need a limited number of chaperones the night of. You will need a current BCI on file with Ms. Morel before being allowed to chaperone. Please email scituatepto.matthews@gmail.com if you would like to help plan, set up or chaperone. There will be a meeting this Monday, October 6 at 6:30 PM virtually through the following link: https://meet.google.com/ior-ettv-qgj

While the sale may be over, you can still shop the Spirit Wear Store. Check out the newly added merch for SMS soccer and cross country. Items are delivered directly to your house. Great way to show your school spirit at events and games.

On October 29, 2024, the Scituate Lions Club will be using the Spot Vision Screener to perform vision screenings for our students. The Spot Screener, quickly screens both eyes at once from a 3-foot distance. If your child has been prescribed glasses for distance or reading please ensure that they are brought to school for testing.

If you would like to exempt your child from this screening, please complete this opt out form below prior to October 24th.

The Scituate School Department has partnered with Unite Us to streamline the process of applying for free and/or reduced lunches.

Please click the link which will take you to the meal benefit application on the State of Rhode Island Department of Education website.

https://ride.ri.gov/child-nutrition/unite-us-electronic-school-meal-benefit-application

Please fill in all fields. Be sure to select Scituate Public Schools in the field “Select the school district that your child will receive school meals from”.

If you have any questions, please call: Jennifer Carnevale, Executive Finance Assistant at 401-647-4100 option 2, then option 3

The meeting schedule for the 24/25SY are listed below. The meetings will take place at Ponaganset Middle School, Room 150 at 6:00 pm.

Dec 10, 2024

Feb 11, 2025

May 13, 2025

New England's favorite fall tradition unveils a brand-new twist this year at Roger Williams Park Zoo's Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular—Trivia Edition, presented by Citizens, from September 27th to November 2nd. The Roger Williams Park Zoo once again offers two sensory-friendly nights at our annual Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular.

Sensory-Friendly Nights are October 22 and 23, from 5-6 PM. Designed for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and sensory processing differences, this special night features 5,000 illuminated pumpkins without music or special effects. Discounted tickets for sensory-friendly nights are available in person only at the Zoo’s admissions booth.

Important Dates and Deadlines

• Spring 2025 semester: January 13 – May 16 with varied dates
• Pre-lottery registration runs through December 6, 2024.
• School approval deadline is December 9 at 12pm. Students with pending approvals after this deadline has passed will not be included in the course lotteries.
• Spring 2025 course lotteries run on December 10. Students are notified by email same day with a seat offer or waitlist number for each course they preregistered for.
• Seat offer deadline: Students have until January 2 at 11:59pm to accept or decline their seat offers before they expire. A course with an expired seat offer will not be available to them in their EnrollRI dashboards if they try to re-register post-lottery.
• Open enrollment runs from January 3 through the last day of the add drop period for each course. Courses with seat availability will be filled on a first come first serve basis as students register and move up the waitlist. Prompt approvals will help ensure a student secures a seat in a preregistered course during open enrollment.

Contact Us!

As always, please reach out to the ACN team with questions or requests for support. Emailing the following addresses will ensure a prompt response as all team members read and respond to these inboxes:

• Email acn@ride.ri.gov with general ACN questions
• Email helpenrollri@ride.ri.gov with account and login issues.

The Scituate School Department does not discriminate on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, race, religion, national origin, color, creed, political affiliation or disability in any of its educational programs and activities, and in employment and application for employment, as required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1965, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and other federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Equal Employment Officer, P.O. Box 188, North Scituate, Rhode Island 02857, Telephone: (401) 647-4100; Email: EEO@ScituateSchoolsRI.net. You may also direct inquiries directly to: Office for Civil Rights (Boston Office), U.S. Department of Education, 8th Floor, 5 Post Office Square, Boston, MA 02109-3921, Telephone: (617) 289-0111; Facsimile: (617) 289-0150; Email: OCR.Boston@ed.gov. If you require an accommodation to attend a meeting or program at a school, call the Equal Employment Officer at least two business days in advance of the meeting or program.