Garfield Gazette
December 2023 Newsletter
Winter Safety
Winter weather is now upon us which brings about situations where safety is a concern. During bad weather, there is an increase in students being driven to school. Please pay careful attention to students crossing the street and drive slowly in and around the school. When the weather is bad students tend to hurry and don’t always exercise the same caution as they do in better weather.
Also, please remember to drop off students in the lane closest to the school. The lane closest to Detroit is a drive-through-only lane. Students should never be dropped off in this lane. When students are dropped off in this lane they have to cross over a lane of traffic and is very dangerous. Traffic moves very smoothly and quickly especially when we all are courteous and patient with each other.
I would also like to remind students that throwing snowballs is strictly prohibited. Although throwing snowballs may seem like a harmless childhood activity, in larger crowds it can become extremely dangerous. Bystanders can get hit with a snowball causing injury or a student could run
into traffic to avoid a snowball. Please remind your children to refrain from snowball throwing to and from school.
Thank you for helping keep everyone safe here at Garfield.
April Patton
Principal
Words from Mr. Smith
Greetings:
I am always amazed how fast the school year moves. We are at the halfway point of the school year. I would like to take this time to encourage you to spend time connecting with family and friends. Engage in meaningful activities like reading, getting outside in nature, playing games, or having in-depth conversations. Please put the electronic devices aside and make sure you actively listen to the people in your company. Please make every effort to recharge your own batteries. Send our students back following break ready to work harder than they ever have and ready to achieve heights they never dreamed possible.
As always, Win The Day!
Ouimet Smith
Assistant Principal
Important Dates
Winter Sports
🏀 7th/8th Grade Girls Basketball
12/4 vs. Shiloh Middle School (Garfield)
12/6 vs. Bay Middle School (Harding)
12/11 @ Buckeye Middle School
12/13 vs. Rocky River (Garfield)
12/18 @ Shiloh Middle School
🤼 7th/8th Wrestling
12/13 @ Shiloh Middle School
12/14 vs. Innes Middle School
12/19 vs. Greenbrier Middle School
🏀7th/8th Grade Boys Basketball
Tryouts will be the week of 12/11- more information to come
Other Important Dates
12/2 Light Up Lakewood 4:00 pm- 8:00 pm
12/8 BRIDGES Field Trip: Beck Center
12/12 7th Grade Field Trip: A Christmas Carol at Great Lakes Theater
12/13 Holiday Open House 6:00 pm- 7:30 pm
12/19 Maco's Pizza Night
12/20 PTSA Meeting
12/21 8th Grade Nursing Home Visits
12/21 End of the 2nd Quarter
12/22 No School for students
12/25-1/7 Winter Break
1/8/24 School Resumes
1/8 Burritos for a Cause Night
Winter Concerts
Concert Season is upon us. All performances begin at 7:00 p.m. in the Lakewood High School Civic Auditorium. Ticket prices are $2 adults, $1 for students and seniors. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door on the evening of the concert.
12/11 7th Grade Winter Concert
12/14 LHS & 8th Grade Choir Winter Concert
12/18 8th Grade Instrumental Concert
12/20 6th Grade Winter Concert
Middle School Choir Performs at Cavs Game!
Our middle school combined choir performed the National Anthem at the Cavs game on 11/30! What an amazing experience and opportunity for our students and Garfield and Harding Choir Directors, Lisa Blasko and Aaron Waryk.
Holiday Open House
Still Accepting Donations
The event date is Wednesday, December 13th from 6-7:30 pm in the GMS cafeteria. Donations will be accepted through December 12th.
Club Updates
Game Club
Gaming Club meets after school on Thursdays from 3:00 - 4:00 pm.
12/7 - 8th grade game club
12/14 - 7th grade game club
12/21 - 6th grade game club
Strings+
Strings + is off and running with nearly 50 musicians meeting most Tuesdays after school. This group highlights students from 6th, 7th, and 8th grade playing challenging repertoire. We are preparing for an elementary school tour in May.
In orchestra and Interested in joining? Come play or stop by and listen!
Homework Club
Homework Club kicks off on December 4th. Any student needing extra support or time to work on assignments should plan to come to Room 116 from 3:00-4:00 everyday after school.
Ski Club
We are hoping to bring Ski Club back to GMS. This year ski club is at Brandywine and begins in January. Ski Club runs for 5 consecutive weeks and is open to all levels of skiers and snowboarders, even beginners.
The cost of registration to Boston Mills will depend on each individual skier. The full package which includes lift tickets, lessons, and ski rentals for 5 weeks is $319.There are also A la carte options available should your student already have a season pass and/or their own equipment. In addition to the registration cost, there is also a transportation fee.
To keep the cost of transportation to a reasonable fee we will need to have a minimum of 25 students signed up. The more students who register the less this cost will be.
The registration deadline for Brandywine is December 15th. Please complete the survey link below if your student wants to join Ski Club this year, no later than December 8th. Additional information will be sent out as soon as possible.
PBIS Store
The Gold Ticket Store is open after school on select dates for each grade level and happens throughout the school year. The following are upcoming dates the stores will be open:
6th Grade: December 15th
7th Grade: December 15th
8th Grade: December 7th and December 21st
PTSA Update
At the November meeting, Kristen Moran was voted in as President of the PTSA for the remainder of the 2023-24 school year. The PTSA is still in need of a VP of Fundraising. If you are interested in this position, please reach out to garfieldmsptsa@gmail.com ASAP.
Membership is always open! Your $7 membership will help us provide opportunities for students and staff at GMS. To join, please visit: MemberHub