Middle School Matters

The Mission of Portsmouth Middle School is to create a strong and safe learning environment: promote social, emotional and physical well-being and to provide opportunities for each student, to the best of their ability, to meet high academic standards, develop responsibility, and achieve the positive social values and behaviors to become productive citizens.

During advisory, students will participate in MySAEBERS, a Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener. This screener measures student functioning in three domains: Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior. The screener will take students 5-10 minutes to complete and will be administered during advisory this week.

During the month of January, our advisories will continue the conversation based on our theme of "How to Be a Successful Patriot". Each advisory selected one of the ten habits and created a visual representation of it, while also including our core values: Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Ready to Learn.

A gallery walk entitled "The Path to Success" is on display for our students and staff to visit during our January advisories.

We encourage you to continue the conversation at home with your children about daily habits to be successful. Throughout the month of January we will be highlighting the top ten qualities/habits of a successful Patriot using the posters our students made. Ask your child which habit their advisory focused on and look for it to be highlighted in this newsletter!

5: Identify a trusted adult at school and advocate for yourself.

6: Be resilient: Learn from successes and challenges.

Additionally, during our January advisories, in preparation for "Halfway Day" on January 29th, we will begin setting goals for the remainder of the year.

Grades 6 and 7 walking the Path to Success this week during advisory!

Data as of 1/16/2025

Portsmouth Middle School

607 students enrolled

74 Students Chronically Absent (Missed 10%+ this school year)

533 Non-chronically absent students (Missed less than 10% this school year)

We care if your children are here!

It is time for Halfway Day!

On January 23, 2025, our Grade 5 community came together to celebrate our accomplishments and reflect on the progress we've made so far this year. This gathering also served as a follow-up to our January advisories. We took time to acknowledge the ongoing journey toward the Path to Success and reminded students that there is still plenty of opportunity for growth.

During the event, we recognized students for demonstrating Patriot Pride, maintaining strong attendance, and showing significant improvement on the RICAS, with growth of 10 or more points in both ELA and Math.

All grade levels will participate in Winter Recognition assemblies in the upcoming weeks.

Portsmouth High School will be hosting an incoming 9th grade parent night on Wednesday, January 29th from 6-7:30 P.M. in the PHS auditorium. All current 8th grade parents are encouraged to attend. The 9th grade scheduling process will begin in February. Here is a letter from the high school administration.

The following students were recognized by their teachers as December students of the month: Ocean O'Neill, London Meister, Jackson Long, Blaise Aubuchon, Mia Maramba, Mitchell Silvia, Colton Sylvia, Ava Bessette, Janelle Adams. Their pictures are already up in the main office. Congratulations to these students.

Please see the link here for unified basketball sign ups. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Ms. McCarthy.

Please see the link here for an opportunity to sign up for the Mary Poppins Musical Tech Crew. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mr. Couto.

Clean Out Your Closets Fundraiser

Please see the link here to a PTO fundraiser.

February Meeting

Our next meeting is Wednesday February 5th at 6pm in the library. All are welcome!

Clements Receipts

We are collecting Clements receipts - any amount, from any time! Please send them in with your student or drop them off in the front office. Write “PMS PTO” on the envelope or bag. Thanks for your support!

The Pennfield School is thrilled to welcome bestselling author and renowned expert Ellen Galinsky to our Community Speaker Series. We hope you can join us.

Ms. Galinsky will present "Inspiring Families to a Breakthrough Future," an engaging and thought-provoking talk designed to inspire and empower families to thrive.

Ellen Galinsky is the President of Families and Work Institute and a senior research advisor to AASA, the School Superintendent Organization. She has served as a parent expert on Mister Rogers Talks with Parents and was elected President of the Work and Family Researchers Network. Her latest book, The Breakthrough Years, was selected as one of the best parenting books of 2024 by the Greater Good Science Center.

Ms. Galinsky’s work has earned her invitations to present at five White House Conferences and appearances on Good Morning America, the Today Show, and The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Date: Thursday, January 30
Time: 6:00–8:00 p.m.
Location: The Pennfield School Library
Register: https://www.pennfield.org/ellen-galinsky/

Please see the linked flier for the 3rd Annual Someone Special Sweetheart Dance for Valentine’s Day for children and their families.

Please see the link here for a babysitter class in the community.

Please see the link here for a flier concerning Girls Golf through the Newport YMCA.

Please see the link here to open coaching positions for our spring athletics programs. If you know anyone interested in applying, feel free to forward this link.

We just wanted to send a reminder that we should practice careful driving when entering and leaving the school parking lot during morning drop off and afternoon pick up. The current procedure is working, but we have noticed that families may be rushing to get out of the parking. When pulling out of line, please pull completely to the other side of the double yellow line and proceed slowly paying attention to your surroundings.

The district calendar is allowing for one day of school cancelation for inclement weather (snow) this school year. In the event that we have a second school day cancelation, we will move to a virtual learning day. The middle school virtual learning plan is linked here for students and families.

Please see below, Influenza is on the rise and we have a few cases here at PMS.

Flu (Influenza)

Flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by viruses. Seasonal flu viruses make people sick every year. Flu can range from mild to severe and can lead to hospitalization or even death. Common symptoms include:

• Fever

• Cough or sore throat

• Runny or stuffy nose

• Body aches

• Headache

• Chills

• Fatigue

• Vomiting or diarrhea

Is it the Flu or a Cold?

It can be hard to tell the difference between the flu and a cold. If you have flu-like symptoms, it’s important to take care of yourself.

Please see the link here for the January after school club calendar.

PMS will be hosting an in-school career day for 8th grade students on Thursday, January 30th. More information to follow.

For parents who need additional support with using the Securly Home app at home to monitor and control their child’s chromebook usage outside of school hours, please see this PDF for guidance and visit https://www.securly.com/parent-login to access the parent portal.

Portsmouth Middle School uses IXL, an online learning platform designed to help students master essential skills in Math and ELA, to provide individualized learning opportunities that are adapted to each child's learning level. This program provides immediate feedback and detailed explanations to support student learning both inside and outside the classroom setting. IXL can be used as an optional support at home to help parents stay informed about their child's academic growth and areas that may need attention. Please see this helpful guide to supporting your child’s learning with IXL at home.

Anchored 4 Life is hosting a hygiene product drive between now and winter break. Students are encouraged to donate new and unused toiletries and hygiene products including: shampoo, conditioner, soap, oral hygiene products, feminine products, deodorant, etc. Products will be donated to Rachel’s closet at PMS and the Martin Luther King Center.

Please see the link here to a program being supported by the Portsmouth Prevention Coalition.

Portsmouth Middle School only allows bus changes for individual students who have a note from a parent that requires child care (limited to 5th and 6th grade students) only. Students should not be requesting to ride a different bus to go to a friend's house. Bus routes are designed based on the ridership of that in catchment area.

Fire drills occur on a regular basis. State law requires each school to conduct eleven fire drills, two lockdown drills and two evacuation drills each year. Shelter in Place drills are conducted throughout the school year. Children are given instruction on all procedures. Students are expected to behave in a calm, orderly manner during these exercises. Please review the importance of such exercises with your child and emphasize the need for appropriate behavior.

A lockdown is an alert to a school community that students and staff should not leave the classroom and should stand and spread around the room until provided with further direction.

An evacuation requires all students and staff to exit the building and meet at a designated safe place.

A shelter in place is an alert to a school community that movement outside of classrooms is being restricted for a brief period of time. It is typically used when a student or staff member is requiring some sort of attention (sometimes medical) and the school is trying to keep that area clear and/or protect that person’s privacy. If there were a serious safety concern the school would not issue a shelter in place.

We will send notification of lockdowns, evacuations, and shelter in place drills and events via email.

Here is the presentation that was shared at a Parent Safety Forum that was hosted in conjunction with the Police and Fire Departments. The Run, Hide, Fight FBI philosophy guides our safety training.

The P3 Sandy Hook Promise Anonymous tip line is a resource that we encourage anyone to use if there is ever an immediate safety concern.

We made it past another full moon last week! What a gorgeous view from the back of PMS on Monday morning!

What Day is It? PMS Letter Day Calendar

District Calendar

Portsmouth Middle School Handbook

Absence Notification Form