Good afternoon,

We wanted to take the opportunity to give a big thank you to our EHMS PTO and our Athletic Director, Mr. Mercaldi and all our coaches for their work in planning this year's Pantherfest event. A thank you to our high school students, both the runners and Interact members, who contributed to the success of the afternoon. Pictures of the afternoon are included in this post!

Have a great weekend!

Christina & Emily

Wed. Oct 2nd - 8th Grade Informational Parent Night (more information shared within this post)

Fri. Oct 11th - No School for Students -Professional Development

Mon. Oct 14th - No School Columbus Day

Wed. Oct 16th - EHMS PTO Meeting 5:30 in Library

Fri. Oct 25th - Picture Retake Day!

This year's Pantherfest was a great success! Congratulations to all our student athletes for their participation in the afternoon.

In ELA classes, students have begun engaging with grammar lessons as part of the Patterns of Power curriculum. This program encourages them to explore various writing styles and techniques, highlighting how effective use of grammar can enhance meaning in their writing. Student study a mentor sentence from a published text and then practice imitating the styles and techniques.

Sixth graders are concluding Unit 1, where they’ve been exploring how to find the areas of polygons by decomposing, rearranging, and composing shapes. They now understand the terms "base" and "height," which are essential for calculating the area of parallelograms and triangles.

Chess Club during lunch waves started today in the library with Mrs. LaFaille.

Congratulations to our Friend of Education, Kolbe the therapy dog and owner Bob. We want to extend our heartfelt appreciation to Kolbe and Bob for visiting our school throughout last year. Their presence brought so much joy, comfort, and calm to our students. It was wonderful to see their faces light up as they interacted with Kolbe, taking a break from their day to enjoy the companionship of such a gentle and loving dog.

For many students, this visit provided a much-needed moment of relaxation and peace. Whether they were simply petting Kolbe or sitting quietly by their side, his visit created a space where students could feel safe, cared for, and understood. It was especially touching to see the positive impact on those who might have been facing challenges, as Kolbe quietly helped them to pause, breathe, and feel a little bit better.

Thank you, Kolbe and Bob, for being such an incredible support for our students. Kolbe has unfortunately passed away last spring, but his visits have made a long lasting impression, and we are grateful for the happiness and warmth he has brought into our school community. We honored Kolbe along with his owner Bob at Monday's Board of Education meeting.

We hope you will join us in the below district fundraiser. Bags were sold at lunch waves this week and more information is below.

We are working to finalize our club advisors and the days that clubs will meet. Communication will be shared either in Parentsquare or our Panther Posts to provide families with details on clubs and the process for students to sign up. We encourage all our students to try an activity out and would love for everyone to be part of something here at East Hampton Middle School.

More to come!

Week of Sept 30 - Oct 4

MONDAY, SEPT 30

East Hampton b/g soccer at McGee MS (Berlin) 2:20 dismissal, 2:30 bus, 3:30 pm game.

Site: Girls soccer at Percival Field

Site: Boys soccer at McGee MS

Cross Country practice 2:35 until 4 pm

TUESDAY, OCT 1

East Hampton b/g cross country at Griswold MS (Rocky Hill), 2:20 dismissal, 2:30 bus.

Site: Sunnycrest Park

Note: Boys run first

Boys Soccer practice 2:35 until 4:30 pm

No Girls Soccer practice

WEDNESDAY, OCT 2

William J MS boys soccer at East Hampton. (2:25 dismissal and ride bus 8 to high school) 3:30 pm game.

Note: game at East Hampton HS. No Girls Game!

Girls Soccer practice 2:35 until 4:30 pm-Girls go to commons for 5 minutes!

Cross Country practice 2:35 until 4 pm

THURSDAY, OCT 3

Cromwell girls soccer at East Hampton 3:30 pm game

Note: Team picture before

Note: Wear white uniforms!

No Boys Soccer practice

Cromwell b/g cross country at EHMS, 2:25 pm dismissal.

Note: Boys run first

Note: Team picture before meet

FRIDAY, OCT 4

RHAM soccer at East Hampton, 3:30 game

Site: Girls soccer at East Hampton HS, (2:25 pm dismissal. Shuttle bus 8)

Site: Boys soccer at East Hampton MS

Note: Wear white uniforms!

No Cross Country practice

Friendly reminders from your school nurse:

*School field trips are starting to pop up! Please make sure I have your child's medication/s in the health office so that they may participate.

*There are lots of germs going around right now so please remember to keep your child home if they are not feeling well. Even if it's just for the morning so you can reevaluate and send them to school if they have improved. Reminder that you should be fever-free for 24 hours to return to school WITHOUT fever reducing medication. Students must be able to keep food and fluids down (without vomiting or diarrhea) in order to return.

Thank you for your continued support!

Per the East Hampton Board of Education’s Attendance Policy and Connecticut statute, parents and guardians may only approve the first 9 absences of the school year with a parent note. Absences 10 and above can only be excused with further documentation and under specific circumstances.

In addition, if a student has four unexcused absences in one month or 10 unexcused absences in a year they are classified as truant. If a child misses 18 or more days in a school year – excused or unexcused absences – the student is classified as chronically absent.

A phone call is appreciated, but only an email to our attendance inbox or written note can officially excuse absence 1 through 9. Below is our attendance email:

Note: Between the school name and the word Attendance is a underscore ( _ )

EHMS_Attendance@easthamptonct.org

If a student has four unexcused absences in one month or 10 unexcused absences in a year they are classified as truant. If a child misses 18 or more days in a school year – excused or unexcused absences – the student is classified as chronically absent.

The East Hampton Board of Education and the school community as a whole promote a secure and productive school climate, conducive to teaching and learning that is free from threat, harassment, any type of bullying behavior, and teen dating violence. Therefore it shall be the policy of the Board that bullying and/or teen dating violence committed against a student by another student is prohibited. The Board believes that a school environment in which students feel safe, supported, engaged and helpfully challenged is optimal for learning and healthy development. The Board seeks an environment in which students and adults feel socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically safe; an environment that is free of harassment, intimidation, teen dating violence and bullying. Our website provides links to various policies and reporting forms including our Safe School Climate Plan. Hard copies are also available in our main office. If at any point you have any concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to building administration for further assistance.

School Meals are a great value to our students! Prepayment is expected for all cafeteria purchases. Families eligible for free and reduced meals may qualify by completing an application online on Easthampton.familyportal.cloud or by paper application here: Application for Free and Reduced School Meals(also available in the school’s Main Office). Families with children enrolled in HUSKY or Temporary Family Assistance programs will have their status transmitted directly by the State of Connecticut to the District.

To deposit funds on your child’s account, please visit Easthampton.familyportal.cloud . Our Cafeterias also accept checks made payable to “East Hampton Cafeteria Fund”.

In September, students can enjoy fresh apples from Beckett Farms of South Glastonbury and carrots from Cold Spring Farm of Colchester. Keep an eye out for upcoming celebrations! If you have questions, please contact Director of Nutrition Services, Kate Caselli at kcaselli@easthamptonct.org or 860.316.7324.

Happy New Year! Did you resolve to be more on top of your and your child’s health this year? Here’s an easy solution: Sign your child up for School-Based Health Care. Your child’s school works with Community Health Center, Inc.’s School-Based Health Care program to provide health services to your child during the school day. This means they won’t miss as much class and you don’t need to miss work to support their health care needs. Learn more about the services offered at your child’s school and enroll today at SBHC1.com!

The attached bulletins below were developed through a collaborative effort among the Department of Children and Families, the Department Mental Health and Addiction Services, the Office of Child Advocate, the Department of Public Health, the State Department of Education, and the Governor's Office. The content includes information on suicide, helpful tips to support people of all ages, and where to go for additional support and resources.

Board of Education Statement on School Safety: The East Hampton Board of Education is committed to a safe and secure learning environment that honors and celebrates the diversity of our students, our community, and our nation. The Board of Education in partnership with the school community will not tolerate any threat of violence in the schools or any hate speech that targets any race, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. Each student is held to the highest standards of responsible decision making within a culture that is expected to foster compassion, caring, and empathy.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement of the East Hampton Public Schools: The school community of East Hampton is committed to the mission of honoring and celebrating the diversity of our students, our community, and our nation. We strive to guide our students to conscious, deliberate, individual and collective actions that cultivate the respect of all races, religions, and social backgrounds. Our school community endeavors to produce graduates who are equipped with a greater understanding of the concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Nondiscrimination Statement of the East Hampton Public Schools: The East Hampton Board of Education, in compliance with federal and state law, affirms its policy of equal educational opportunity for all students and equal employment opportunity for all persons. It is the policy of the District to promote nondiscrimination and an environment free of harassment regardless of an individual’s race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, ancestry, disability (including but not limited to, intellectual disability, past or present history of mental disorder, physical disability, or learning disability), genetic information, marital status, or age or because of the race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, genetic information, marital status, or age of any persons with whom the individual associates. The District shall provide to all students without discrimination, course offerings, counseling, assistance, employment, athletics, and extracurricular activities. The District shall provide equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The District shall make reasonable accommodations for identified physical and mental impairments that constitute disabilities, consistent with federal and state statutes and regulations.

Email: camaral@easthamptonct.org
Website: https://www.easthamptonps.org/o/ehms
Location: 19 Childs Road, East Hampton, CT, USA
Phone: (860) 365 4060