AMS Principal's Weekly Update

Dear AMS Students and Families,

This week both our 7th and 8th Grade Orchestra and Band students traveled to Waterford Kettering High School to participate in Orchestra and Band Festival. For those unfamiliar with how the MSBOA Festival works, middle school and high school groups from around the area perform for a group of professional adjudicators where groups earn a rating based on things such as intonation, rhythm, dynamics, and sight reading. Groups prepare 3 pieces of music to play for the three performance adjudicators then move to a different room where they are given a piece they have never seen before and given 5 minutes to look it over before sight reading the piece. They are then given a sight reading rating as well by the site reading adjudicator which factors into the overall rating.

I am pleased to share that both our 7/8 Orchestra and 7/8 Band received straight 1's and an overall rating of 1 which is the highest rating that can be earned. While the most value in participating in festival is to receive constructive feedback from professional musicians, it certainly adds a boost of confidence to receive such high ratings. Congratulations to our Orchestra and Band students, along with shout outs to Mrs. MacDonald (who has only been on the job for about a month) and Mrs. Pruse who have both put in a ton of work in preparing our students for their outstanding festival performances!

Before I get to the rest of the school happenings, I need to give a big shout out of appreciation to Pita Way in Berkley. They recently contacted me to offer the AMS staff a free, fully catered, lunch as a community partner and as a simple gesture of appreciation for our local educators. On Tuesday, our staff was treated to a delicious catered lunch, and we are so appreciative of Pita Way's kind gesture. If you have not yet been to Pita Way, I highly encourage you to give them a try!

Monday - March 10

Dungeons and Dragons Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 111

Eco Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 210

Homework Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 115

First Robotics 4:00 pm in Room 114

Wrestling Away v. Ferndale at 4:30 pm

Tuesday - March 11

Choir Festival for 7th and 8th Grade Choir Students

Drama Club 3:20-4:15 in the Media Center

Girls Volleyball Home v. Ferndale 7th Grade 4:15 pm / 8th Grade 5:15 pm

Wednesday - March 12

Jewish Student Union Club During 6th/7th Grade Lunch in Room 114

Chess Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 100

Homework Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 115

Rainbow Room Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 109

Wrestling Home v. Farmington STEAM at 4:15 pm

Thursday - March 13

NJHS Meeting 12:55 in the Media Center

Art Club 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 110

Girls Volleyball Away v. Royal Oak 7th Grade 4:30 pm / 8th Grade 5:30 pm

Boys Swimming League Meet at Seaholm at 4:30 pm

Berkley African American Parent Network meeting 7:00 pm at Norup

Friday - March 14

Last day to complete the online course request form for next year's classes

March Miracle Preliminary Rounds (Girls in the AM, Boys in the PM)

Girl's Volleyball Home v. Derby 7th Grade 4:15 pm / 8th Grade 5:15 pm

Between now and March 14, students will need to complete the process of selecting classes for the 2025-26 school year. On Monday, I did a presentation in Advisory to share the elective course offerings and scheduling process and students were given time to select their classes if they were ready. To review the information shared, please click on Scheduling 2025-26. For those that have not completed the form yet, the course selection forms for each grade can be accessed below:

Current 6th Graders - 7th Grade Course Selection Form.

Current 7th Graders - 8th Grade Course Selection Form

Once students submit their form, an email will be generated to their school email with a copy of their selections. Parents who wish to see their child's selection should ask their child to show them the email confirmation.

As a reminder, all students have 2 elective periods and will either select two year long elective classes or one year long elective class and two half year semester long elective classes. If you have questions, please see me, Mr. Smith, your counselor, or the teacher that currently teaches the class you have questions about before completing this form.

Spring Virtual Parent-Teacher Conferences will take place during the following times:

Thursday, March 20: 5:00-8:00 pm
Friday, March 21: 8:00-11:15 am & 12:30-4:00 pm

To sign up for a virtual conference with each of your child's teachers, please click on AMS Parent-Teacher Conferences Sign-Up. The deadline to sign-up for a conference is March 19 at 5:00 pm to allow adequate time for teachers to prepare for conferences.

For those whose child has Ms. Smith for Choir, please use the Berkley High School Conference Sign-up Link. With Ms. Smith teaching at both AMS and BHS, it is necessary for her conference sign-ups to be in once place.

As you know, this month, AMS students will have the opportunity to participate in the March Miracle charity basketball tournament to raise money for Camp Casey. Camp Casey provides a one day horse camp experience to children who have cancer or other life threatening illnesses. On Monday, students got a surprise appearance from Pennie, one of the horses that Camp Casey brings for their at home horse camp experience. Students got to pet, feed, and take pictures with Pennie during her visit at lunch. Our students absolutely loved the surprise visit. Thank you to Camp Casey for providing this experience for our students. We hope to be able to return the favor by raising a considerable amount of money to support their worthy cause.

This week was National School Social Worker Week. Shout out to AMS School Social Worker, Bonnie Girson, who has done a fantastic job in her first year as our school social worker. Mrs. Girson works with students, often in groups with Mrs. Govan Govan, to help students develop the necessary social skills to navigate school and other environments outside of school. Thank you, Mrs. Girson, for all you do to make a positive impact at AMS. You are appreciated!

On Tuesday, February 25th, the 7th grade RDJ students went to Temple Shir Shalom to learn about Judaism. There, they learned about significant holidays and celebrations in the Jewish faith and saw a torah that was rescued from the Nazis. The day ended with a mock Jewish wedding!

Additionally, on Monday, March 3, RDJ visited the Zekelman Holocaust Center. This was the cultural aspect of the RDJ experience, where RDJ participants learned how Jewish people kept their culture alive even as they lived under the oppressive Nazi regime. Participants heard from a member of the Next Generation, those who are children of Holocaust survivors, as she told her mother and fathers' story of survival. A docent led the group on a tour of the exhibit, talking about the vibrant Jewish culture of Europe before the Holocaust, acts of Jewish resistance, and how to prevent another genocide from ever occurring again.

The AMS Media Center will be sponsoring an upcoming book swap. For more information, please see the informational flyer below.

Our AMS PTSA Vertical Raise Fundraiser runs from February 28 - March 21. These funds are crucial to the PTSA's goal of helping to support several initiatives in our school. The main donation page can be found by clicking on AMS PTSA Vertical Raise Fundraiser.

Here are couple of things to keep in mind to help navigate the donation process:

• If your child sent you a link last week, that link will take you directly to their personal fundraiser page which will allow for your child to get credit for your donation.
• If you did not get sent a direct link to your child's personal fundraiser page, you can access their page by going to the main page through the link listed above and clicking on the DONATE NOW button towards the top of the screen..

• On the next screen, under the donation amount shown, there is a drop down menu to leave a tip. It is recommended to choose "other" on that drop down menu and put the amount at $0. Unlike other fundraising platforms, the tip DOES NOT offset the percentage of the donations that go to Vertical Raise.

• On that same screen, you can enter your child's name and it will populate if they have set up a personal page. If their name does not populate, that means that they have not yet set up a personal page, but they can still create one anytime.
• To ensure that extended family and friends have an opportunity to donate, we ask that you consider sharing this donation campaign on social media using the social media links on the main page.

While Vertical Raise will be offering prizes for the top fundraisers, the AMS PTSA will also be providing the following prizes:

• 1st Place - $100 Visa Gift Card
• 2nd Place - $50 Visa Gift Card
• 3rd Place - $25 Visa Gift Card
• Small prizes drawn daily for those who reach at least one donation.

On behalf of the AMS PTSA, your generosity is greatly appreciated to help fund the support the PTSA provides to our school!

Sign-ups will continue through Tuesday, March 11, for teams to participate in the 4th annual March Miracle basketball tournament at Anderson Middle School taking place March 14-19. All students can participate, while raising money for our charity, Camp Casey. In our first three years alone, AMS students and local sponsors have donated $36,500 to our charity!

In order to participate, students will secure donations in order to play or be a worker at the tournament. Suggested sponsors include family, friends, neighbors, parents’ colleagues, etc. Participants are eligible to win great prizes and championship team members will be commemorated on a banner in our school. If your child doesn’t want to participate, but would like to contribute and show school spirit at our finals assembly, please consider purchasing a March Miracle tee shirt for the event. You can also click here for a copy of the order form. We will also be collecting donations for concession sales at our prelims tournament. To donate concession items, please click on the March Miracle Concession Item Signup Genius. All proceeds go to Camp Casey.

Each participant is required to secure and submit a minimum of $30 donation, in addition to a signed parent waiver, on or before Tuesday, March 11. Please send cash or make checks payable to Berkley School District. Participation paperwork & t-shirt order forms have are available in the office and outside Mrs. Saltsman and Mrs. Burke’s classrooms. For questions about March Miracle, please contact Mrs Saltsman.

Winter NWEA results are now available to view in MISTAR by clicking on the "documents" tab from the menu of options.

There is currently a flower fundraiser to raise funds for the BHS senior all night party. If you would like to help support the senior all night party, please click here to see the flower options for purchase.

Please consider joining the AMS PTSA to help support initiatives like Teacher Classroom Stipends, BHWYA, March Miracles, Assemblies, Social Emotional Initiatives, Staff Appreciation and much more! To join, simply click on the AMS PTSA Membership Page.

2024-25 Officers:

President - Dawn Banks
Vice President - Kary Pasanen
Treasurer - Melissa Foreman-Lovell

Secretary - Nicole Hollman

2024-25 Remaining Meeting Dates: All Meetings will be held in the Media Center and via Zoom

April 8 @ 7:00 pm and Via Zoom

May 13 @ 8:30 am and via Zoom

To access meetings via Zoom, please use the following Zoom Link

Follow the AMS PTSA on Social Media

For all athletic related questions, please contact
AMS Assistant Principal / Athletic Coordinator, Carman Smith

Berkley District Middle School Athletic Coordinator, Lori Stone

Berkley High School Athletic Director, Matt Rawlik

SPORTS OFFERED AT AMS

Fall Season (September - October)

Football (Grades 7-8 Only)

Girls Basketball (Grades 7-8 Only) *

Co-Ed Cross Country (Grades 6-8)

Girls Tennis (Grades 6-8)

Winter 1 Season (November - Mid January)

Girls Swimming (Grades 6-8)

Boys Basketball (Grades 7-8 Only) *

Winter 2 Season (Mid January - March)

Wrestling (Grades 6-8)

Girls Volleyball (Grades 7-8 Only) *

Boys Swimming (Grades 6-8)

Spring Season (April - May)

Co-Ed Track (Grades 6-8)

Boys Tennis (Grades 6-8)

Baseball (Grades 7-8 Only) *

Softball (Grades 7-8 Only) *

* These sports are intended for 7th and 8th grade only, however if there are not enough 7th and 8th grade students to field a team, spots will be opened up for 6th Graders to tryout.

AMS has athletic eligibility guidelines and expectations. To view the guidelines and expectations for student-athletes, please click on Middle School Athletic Eligibility

The first step in participating in any sport is registering on Final Forms! Final Forms is the registration platform used for athletics where families must submit student physicals, as well as sign all the necessary forms required to be eligible to play a school sport. For directions on how to navigate Final Forms, please click on Final Forms Registration Information. All documents must be signed and submitted before the first day of tryouts. Failure to do so results in your child not being able to try out for any sport.

TEAM INFORMATION

There will be a Middle School Track pre-season meeting for 6-8th Grade students and parents on Tuesday, April 1, at 3:45 pm at Hurley Field. For questions about Track, please contact Coach Beth Hanna.

WHO CAN PLAY?: All 6th, 7th and 8th grade girls from Anderson and Norup

WHEN?: April 29th through May 23rd (a 4 week program)

WHAT’S THE DETAILS???: No Prior experience required. This will be a four week program run by retired Berkley High School Girls Golf Coach Sue Ciaravino. Week one starts off with a 3 day golf camp at Royal Oak Golf Center (13 Mile and Coolidge) on April 29th, 30th and May 1st where you will learn how to play golf. Weeks two through four you will meet twice a week with Coach Ciaravino on either a Tuesday/Thursdays or Wednesday/Fridays (whatever fits your schedule best!) where the first day will be a practice day and the second will be playing 9 holes of golf at Red Oaks Golf Course in Madison Heights.

Cost: $265 which includes golf instruction, range balls, team shirts, rounds of golf and coaching fee.

There will be an informational meeting for players and parents in the cafeteria at Norup on Thursday, April 3rd at 7:00 p.m. For Questions about the Middle School Girls Golf Club, please contact Coach Sue Ciaravino.

For questions about 7th Grade Volleyball, please contact Coach Steve Hanna and for 8th Grade contact Coach Theresa Cabalum. Below is the remaining schedule for the season with home games starting at 4:15 pm for 7th Grade and 5:15 pm for 8th Grade and away games starting at 4:30 pm and 5:30 pm respectively unless otherwise noted. Home games are denoted in bold below:

3/11 Home v. Ferndale (4:30 start)

3/13 at Royal Oak (4:15 start)

3/14 Home v. Birmingham Derby

3/17 Away v. Royal Oak Middle School (Rescheduled from February 6)

3/20 Away v. Norup (4:15 start)

For questions about boys swimming, please contact Coach Teri Falcon. Below is the remaining schedule for the season with home meets starting at 5:00 pm and away meets starting at 4:30 pm. Home meets are denoted in bold below:

3/14 League Meet at Seaholm

For questions about Wrestling, please contact Coach Vinnie Tenaglia. Below is the remaining schedule for the season with home meets starting at 4:15 pm and away meets starting at 4:30 pm. Home meets are denoted in bold below:

3/10 Away v. Ferndale

3/12 Home v. Farmington Steam

3/17 Home v. Farmington Warner

3/18 Home v. Farmington East

Below are club and extra-curricular opportunities offered to students throughout the year. Check back each week for additional club information and updates.

Students are eligible to be inducted into NJHS in the spring of 7th Grade by earning a cumulative GPA of 3.7 through 6 terms (Terms 1-4 from 6th Grade and terms 1 and 2 of 7th Grade) and earning citizenship marks no less than a 2. For questions about NJHS, please contact NJHS sponsor, Ms. Ng. Meeting dates for current 8th Grade NJHS members take place once a month during 8th grade lunch and will take place on the following dates:

REMAINING MEETING DATES

3/13/25

4/17/25

5/22/25

The AMS Peer to Peer Program is a school-wide program designed to increase academic, independence, and social engagement opportunities for students with autism and other disabilities. This is achieved by inviting multiple peers without disabilities to pair up with students with disabilities during a variety of school activities. Peers model typical academic and social behavior while students with disabilities can practice and use skills in natural settings by learning from peers in a positive and dignified manner. Authentic relationships form as students actively participate in activities together.

To learn more about Peer2Peer, please watch this Peer2Peer Informational Video. Students interested in becoming a peer for the 2024-2025 school year should reach out to any of the following staff members: Mrs. Gershonowicz (Room 112), Mrs. Roesner (Room 103), or Mrs. Black (Room 223).

The Jewish Student Union Club will meet every Wednesday during the 6th and 7th Grade Lunch lunch in Room 114. 8th Graders will have the option to attend with teacher approval. JSU has been thriving in hundreds of middle and high schools across the country, including within our own district at both Norup and BHS. JSU's mission is to create a welcoming and vibrant community for students to learn and connect with each other, explore Jewish culture and history, and discover opportunities for deeper engagement. Pizza will be served alongside exciting and interactive activities. For questions about the SJU Club, please contact SJU Sponsor, Rabbi Polter.

First Robotics Club has completed the FIRST Tech Challenge for this year. Meetings will continue on Mondays at 4:00 pm in Room 114 through 2nd semester. If you have any questions about the First Robotics Club, please contact AMS parents and team sponsors, Martin Wekerle and Rob Calvano.

Drama Club is open to any students interested in learning more about acting and drama productions. Meetings will take place every Tuesday from 3:20-4:15 pm in the Media Center. For questions about Drama Club, please contact Zach Guerra

Chess Club is open to students with previous experience and those wishing to learn the game of Chess. Meetings will take place on Wednesdays from 3:20-4:15 in Room 100. For questions about Chess Club, please contact Mr. Mustonen.

The Dungeons and Dragons Club is for students who have previous experience playing Dungeons and Dragons and those who wish to learn. Meetings will take place every Monday from 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 111. For questions about the D&D Club, please contact Mr. Stoia.

The Eco Club is offered to students who have an interest preserving the environment and being part of environmentally friendly activities. Meetings will take place every Monday from 3:20-4:15 pm in Room 210. For questions about Eco Club, please contact Ms. Maimes.

Art Club will have a focus on drawing. All skill levels are welcome. Students should bring a sketchbook and their own drawing materials. Special papers and advanced drawing mediums will be available for those that want to explore. Meetings will take place every Thursday from 3:20-4:15 pm in the Art room (Room 110). For questions about Art Club, please contact Ms. Reid.

The Rainbow Room is Club is an inclusive after school club offering for LGBTQ+ students and LGTBQ+ allies. Meetings will take place every Wednesday from 3:20-4:15 pm in room 109. For questions about Rainbow Room, please contact Ms. Reid.

Homework Club provides students the opportunity to work independently or receive extra help with homework. Students who choose to attend homework club must be working on school work or school related work. Homework Club will take place every Monday and Wednesday from 3:20-4:15 in Room 115. For questions about Homework Club, please contact Mrs. McChesney or Mr. Stoia.

For the 2024-25 school year, school breakfast and lunch will be free for ALL students. The cafeteria will be open from 7:30-8:05 a.m. for breakfast and early drop-off (entry cut off at 7:55) and students must enter through the cafeteria door off the parking lot.

Please click to access the

March Lunch Menu

To view nutritional and food ingredient information for school breakfast and lunches served at AMS, please click on the Nutrislice Informational Page for AMS

PLEASE NOTE: AMS does not allow food delivery services such as GrubHub or DoorDash. Any order that is attempted to be delivered to AMS will be refused.

Additionally, AMS also offers A La Carte snack items which include soft pretzels, cookies, chips, and drink options. Purchases can be made by either adding money to a student's MISTAR account or with cash. Cash purchases receiving change will have change applied to their MISTAR account for future purchases. Other payment options such as debit cards, Venmo, Apple Pay, or Google Pay Will NOT be accepted.

Please take the time to review the designated pick up and drop-off zones below. Some things to highlight include:

• CATALPA: No stopping, standing, parking, drop-off or pickup
• ROBINA: Drop-off and pickup zone; no parking on the street
• BUS PARKING ONLY: Buses may drop students in the designated bus parking
• AMS PARKING LOT: Drop-off and pickup zone; parking in parking lot spaces only
• Berkley Public Safety will be enforcing the traffic rules

When there are inclement weather conditions such as temperatures below 20 degrees, rain, or falling snow, students may enter the building upon their arrival through their designated grade level door and wait in the hallway until 8:05. As a reminder, our cafeteria is open everyday from 7:30-8:05 (entry cutoff at 7:55) for any students who wish to get breakfast or need to be dropped off early.

The Berkley African American Parent Network (BAAPN) is a parent run organization that works in partnership with the Berkley School District and Oakland County Schools. The BAAPN network is a way for parents with African American children in Berkley Schools to connect with each other. BAAPN is committed to supporting student engagement, high academic achievement, and increased parental involvement. For more information, please visit the BAAPN Facebook Page. Click to access the BAAPN membership form. Below are the remaining meeting dates for the 2024-25 school year with meetings taking place in the Norup Media Center at 7:00 pm:

March 13

May 15

Did you know that students from the BHS National Honor Society offer free peer tutoring? If you child is in need of tutoring, please click on NHS Middle School Tutors for the list of available tutors. It is as simple as looking through the list, identifying a tutor that meets your child's needs, and contacting them to arrange tutoring.

Berkley Schools has partnered with Varsity Tutors for Schools, an online platform with access to free learning tools. The Varsity Tutors Platform gives students more opportunities to learn at their own pace, to get support on subjects they might be struggling with, to explore subjects they are learning in class and to support their curiosities.

The platform includes the following:

• 24/7 on-demand chat tutoring and on-demand essay review to help students with any questions about homework, classwork or test prep.
• Live group classes, recorded classes and celebrity-led StarCourses allow students to learn more about the subjects they’re interested in and add a touch of fun.
• Assessments and self study practice problems provide opportunities to drill skills towards mastery.
• College prep & admissions resources ensure that students have the best resources available.

How to Access Varsity Tutors

Sign into the Varsity Tutors platform through the student Clever portal. To learn how to log into Clever with your child’s Berkley Schools Google account, follow these directions.

Learn More & Get Started!

• Varsity Tutors Berkley Schools Launchpad
• Frequently Asked Questions

All parents, guardians, or family members interested in volunteering, chaperoning, and/or driving other students for school-sponsored functions or field trips must complete the following forms prior to the event or activity:

Parent Volunteer Form (Includes Chaperone form)

*The Volunteer Form must be accompanied with a copy of your valid driver's license or state-issued ID.

Parent Driver Form (To be turned into the AMS Office)

For both MISTAR and Schoology, there is a specific site for the Berkley School District. To ensure that you are logging into the correct sites, please use the following links below:

Schoology

MISTAR Parent Portal

For any tech related issues, parents and students should put in a tech ticket and it will be routed to the appropriate department to get resolved ASAP.

Order your AMS Yearbook (prices starting at $40.00). To order your yearbook, click on the AMS 2024-25 Online Ordering Link

To view the AMS event calendar for 2024-25, please click on AMS Event Calendar 2024-25. Please keep in mind that due to various circumstances, event times and dates are subject to change and events may be added or removed.

Anytime is a great time to purchase AMS spirit wear. Ordering is simple through our online store with many options to choose from. To shop for AMS spirit wear, please visit the AMS Online Spirit Wear Store.

Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

Michael Ross

AMS Principal

Email: michael.ross@berkleyschools.org
Website: https://www.berkleyschools.org/schools/anderson/
Location: 3205 Catalpa Drive, Berkley, MI, USA
Phone: 248-837-8200