FCMS EXPRESS

FCMS Family,

Wow, what a week. Our students and staff continue to amaze me in relation to stepping up when times get difficult. A big shout out goes to Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Middendorf for stepping up to help our 7th grade science students when their science teacher unexpectedly resigned her position. They not only continued with making lesson plans and keeping up on grading, but also revamped the classroom learning environment as well as refiguring students' grades. Retired FCCSC teachers, Mr. Barricklow and Mrs. Chaddon, have volunteered to teach science while we continue to look for a replacement. I had some students come up to me during lunch and asked if they could have Mr. Barricklow and Mrs. Chaddon as their science teachers for the rest of the year because, "We have never learned so much "science" in our lives".

On another note, we had an emergency evacuation alert go off as students were entering the building last week. Our SRO, Mr. Voelker, was in the building at that time and quickly accessed the situation and assisted FCMS administration in securing the building. All students and staff evacuated in a few minutes and the alert ended after finding out that it was not a critical emergency alert. Even though this is not something we want to happen, we are using this as a learning opportunity and have since evaluated our safety protocol.

Upcoming Events & Important Dates

• ILEARN Pilot Checkpoint 1 Assessments ILEARN Parent Information

• October 2nd – All Practice Tests

• October 8th – Math Checkpoint

• October 9th – Language Arts Checkpoint

• Parent-Teacher Conferences
  Our fall conferences are scheduled for Oct. 10th from 4:00-8:00 pm and on Oct. 11th from 8:00-11:00 am. This is a great opportunity to check in on your student’s progress and collaborate with teachers on academic goals. Please contact our secretary, Mrs. Gillman, to sign up for conferences.

• Author Visit
  Author, Michael P. Spradlin, will be visiting with all 4th-8th grade students on October 15th in the Lew Wallace Auditorium. Author Information

• Student Incentive Day
  Our student incentive day is scheduled for October 16th. Students with no failing grades and no more than 3 unexcused absences will be eligible to go bowling and a park visit that day.

• Red Ribbon Week - https://www.redribbon.org/

RRW will be held October 23 through October 31st. Help us celebrate being drug-free.

• Halloween Dance - Our next dance will be on November 1st from 5:30-7:30pm.

Student Reminders

• Classroom Expectations:
  As we settle into our routines, we want to remind students of our classroom expectations: respectful behavior, active participation, and a commitment to learning. Our teachers are here to support every student’s success, and we expect each student to contribute positively to our school community.

• Cell Phones:
  Please remember that cell phones should be turned off and stored in student lockers during school hours. We’ve noticed some students needing gentle reminders, and we appreciate your support in reinforcing this policy.

Parent Reminders

• School Communication:
  Please make sure you’re receiving all communication from the school by updating your contact information if necessary. Follow us on social media and check our website regularly for updates on events, schedules, and important announcements.

• ILEARN Assessment Encouragement:

Maintain a Positive Attitude- Try to encourage your child as an opportunity for them to show what they've learned. A positive attitude helps reduce test anxiety and boosts confidence.

Create a Balanced Routine- Encourage your child to maintain a regular schedule, including enough sleep, healthy meals, and breaks for physical activity. A well-rested and nourished brain performs better on tests.

A Special Thanks

Shout out to our amazing 8th grade students for showing such respect and responsibility on their recent field trip to Miami University! You truly represented FCMS with pride, and we're all so proud of the way you carried yourselves. Keep up the great work!

--Trent Liggett, Principal

The FCMS Exploring Agriculture and Preparing For College and Careers teacher, Mrs. Riffle has been nominated for the staff spotlight this week.

Mrs. Riffle attended Purdue University and has a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science with an emphasis in Science and a Master of Science in Agriculture and Extension Education - Curriculum and Instruction. She has been teaching for three years, all of them at FCCSC. Mrs. Riffle decided to become a teacher because she was looking for a new career, and there was an open position for an Agricultural teacher. She says she is passionate about agriculture and loves spending time with her students. In fact, the students are her favorite part about FCMS! Before teaching, Mrs. Riffle was a 4-H Youth Development Extension Educator at Purdue for 22 years. She was the manager of a 1,200 sow swine farm in North Carolina as well. Mrs. Riffle has four children, Joe, Maggie, Izzy, and Ben. Joe and Maggie are attending Ball State University, and Ben and Izzy attend FCHS. She has also been married to her husband Don for 23 years. Some of the sports she played in school include volleyball, softball, and throwing in track. One fun fact about Mrs. Riffle is that she was a part of a Latin club during school. Mrs. Riffle is our amazing Ag teacher and we couldn’t imagine our school without her!

--Evelyn Grimmeissen, Journalism

Monday September 23:

Volleyball @ St. Louis at 6:00pm

Tuesday September 24:

Volleyball @ HOME vs.Greendale at 5:30pm

Football @ HOME vs. Greendale at 6:00pm**

**8th Grade Recognition Night for Football, Cheerleading, and Dance Energy

Thursday September 25:

Volleyball @ HOME vs. South Dearborn at 5:30pm**

**8th Grade Recognition Night for Volleyball

Friday night was Franklin County's Youth Night at Franklin County High School. Football players, cheerleaders, and Dance Energy members were all recognized.

Starting Monday, September 23rd, the high school and middle school will offer FREE breakfast and lunch for all students.

To make a reimbursable meal students need three out of five components on a tray. One component must be a fruit or vegetable and then they can get a pizza, sandwich, etc. to count for the other two components.

If a student does not get the three components to make a reimbursable meal, then they will have to be charged. It's only free if they make it a complete three component meal. Students are still allowed to buy a la carte and they can buy a second meal as well.

Examples of a Reimbursable Meal:

• Personal pan pizza with ½ cup of fruit or veggies

• Cheeseburger with ½ cup fruit of veggies

• Salad has all components in it

• Chicken wrap or sandwich with fruit or veggies

Please contact Jessica DeFosset, Food Service Director, with any questions.

jdefossett@fccsc.k12.in.us or 765-647-4128 ext. 1561

This past Wednesday was a beautiful day for the 8th grader's to enjoy a "Taste of College" at Miami University in Oxford Ohio. The Franklin County Community Foundation made this wonderful opportunity possible for our students to explore the campus, eat lunch in a dining hall, and see what opportunities college has to offer. Miami University student volunteers led the students around campus and answered questions. Some of our FCMS students even witnessed a "Broom Ball" game going on in the Goggin Ice Arena.

Who doesn't love fresh baked chocolate chip cookies?

Mixing and baking blueberry muffins and banana muffins is unforgettable. It is such a joy to do this with these students.

Construction teams are continuing the construction of their building’s foundation. This week they started by laying out their foundation wall lines in preparation to construct the concrete block foundation walls. (Thanks to Mr. Pythagoras and his theorem)

Six FCMS FFA Members traveled with Mrs. Riffle, Mrs. Hornberger and 6 high school FFA members to South Ripley High School on Tuesday, September 17 for the District 12 FFA Kickoff event. They participated in many different leadership games and activities and met other FFA members from around the area. Representing FCMS were Emma Amburgey, Preston Boone, Rylee Byrd, Kenzie Hollon, Ellie Miller and Lille Riggle.

The Intro to Ag Class is busy growing container gardens as part of the AgXplore CASE Curriculum. Mrs. Riffle was selected to attend this training over the summer at Middle Tennessee State University, and is excited to utilize these lessons with the 8th grade ag students for the first time. The training costs and many supplies were paid for by a USDA grant. This week they prepared the soil for their planters in the greenhouse and transplanted their radish, cucumber and lettuce seedlings.

Mrs. Ariens recognizes a weekly “ELA Student of the week” in her 6th grade classrooms. The first 2 6th graders to receive this are Meredythe Frahm and Easton Vail. Meredythe always gives her best effort in her work and is always respectful and kind. Easton is an example of positivity every day.

Mrs. Ariens’s 6th grade ELA classes are learning about the 6 Traits of Writing. For “organization”, students completed storyboards on “How to Eat an Oreo”. They practiced putting steps in order, topic sentences, conclusions, and complete sentence writing with transitions.

We had 22 in attendance at FCA this week. Bryor Sams, an 8th grader at here at FCMS, led the group with a lesson on how to fight being tempted by things you shouldn't do.

See You at the Pole is this coming Wednesday at the football field's flagpole, and it starts at 7:00. Parents and community members are welcome to join the students of FCMS and the high school.

October:

• 2nd - Early Dismissal, PLC

• 2nd- ILEARN Practice

• 3rd - Fall Choir Concert 7pm @HS auditorium

• 8th - End of First Grading Period Q1

• 8th- ILEARN Math

• 9th- ILEARN ELA

• 10th - Conferences 4-8pm

• 11th - Conferences 8-11am, no school

• 15th - Picture Retake Day

• 15th - Author Visit: Michael Spradlin

• 16th - Rewards activity 7th & 8th graders

• 18th - FFA Friday - SRT

• 21st-25th - Fall Break, no school