GMS Weekly News and Notes

It was a wonderful and very busy week at GMS. From great work in the classrooms, to making our community better during club time, to celebrating the conclusion of Hispanic-American Heritage Month, to school picture day, to our annual Fit 4 Fund$ day of wellness, our students really took the opportunity to shine! This week's newsletter is a showcase of our awesome students and staff, and all that makes GMS a special place.

If you have note yet had a chance to donate to our annual fundraiser, donations can still be brought in and given to your child’s X-Block teacher, or made on-line via MySchoolBucks.

Here is a direct link to donate to FIT4FUND$: FIT4FUND$ DONATIONS

As a friendly reminder, there is no school tomorrow (Monday), October 14th. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Specialist Stars

Starting this month, select students will be getting recognized as Specialist Stars. This is a new form of student recognition created by teachers of Specials classes. Each month, each academic specialist teacher will recognize one of their students who stands out amongst their classes. Specialist Star awards recognize students for their work ethic, excellence, performance, passion, support, ambition, positive attitude, and/or kindness. Congratulations to our September honorees!

This week, team Grizzlies started the book Seedfolks, a story told in parts about the development of a thriving community garden that brings a neighborhood together. On Friday, Ms. Carr's class took time to plant lima beans and create their own class garden, just like Kim in the book!

Ms. Winchell's and Ms. Stuarts' 7th grade science classes upcycled some old clothing during their Fast Fashion Environmental Impact unit! Our loyal dog friends were some of the recipients of our hard work!

Miss. Johnsen’s 6th graders are designing their personal “Monsters” that reflect who they are.

The students will then be transforming their 2D drawings into 3D clay sculptures!

Grade 7 Mountain Lions are venturing into the role of playwrights! Ms. Gillander's English classes are working to write the Next Morning on Maple Street. This is a sequel to The Monsters are Due on Maple Street by Rod Serling, which the students read as part of their Science Fiction Unit. They are so excited to explore the genre and continue the story!

6th grader Izzy O. stepped into the role of instructor as her classmates worked on their clay pinch pots. Great job Izzy!

Members of the GMS garden clubs spent some time making the grounds festive for fall!

From Ms. McAteer:

Here are some photos from Reading Buddies Club, which is in full swing on Wednesday afternoons! This week's theme was an author study of Eric Carle, a popular children's book writer and illustrator!

On Thursday, we wrapped up our month-long celebration of Hispanic American culture and history with "Rep Your Flag" day. Our students showed off pieces of their cultural heritage through fashion and music.

On Friday, students from each grade level spent part of their day participating in a wellness activity of their choice. We could not have had better weather, and students, staff, and volunteers had a great time! Fit 4 Fund$ day is the culmination of our one and only fundraiser of the year, and we are so grateful to our CAPT membership for their partnership in planning and running this event. All funds raised will go directly to supporting special programming for all GMS students throughout the year.

We thank you for your support!!

The Galvin Middle School Project is heading toward two key town votes. Save the Dates: November 18 Special Town Meeting and an Anticipated Ballot Vote on December 10.

Want to learn more about the GMS Building Project, see design renderings, or review timelines, please click on this LINK. If you have any questions, please email info@galvinmsproject.com.

The Galvin Middle School Project Team will be at the Sunday, October 20 Fall Fest at the Canton Farmers Market, and there will be a Community Forum at GMS on Wednesday, October 23 at 6:30 p.m.

This week's fact comes to us from the Social Studies department:

Election Day is coming up. "About two-thirds (66%) of the voting-eligible population turned out for the 2020 presidential election – the highest rate for any national election since 1900" (Pew Research Center, 2023).

Congrats to Natalie and Evelyn for being named the GMS Bulldogs of the week. They are student leaders, honor roll recipients and serve as great role models for our younger Bulldogs. Congrats Evie and Natalie

In October, the school nurses will start chipping away at annual health screenings. We will start with vision and hearing during X block. Screening for scoliosis, height, and weight will be completed the cycle after holiday break during gym classes. Our 7th graders do all of these screenings, while 6th and 8th graders only do scoliosis.

According to Massachusetts general laws, all students are required to complete these screenings unless otherwise noted (opt-out) by their parent or guardian. If you would like to opt-out your student from any or all of their health screenings, please email Nurse Tara or Nurse Lindsey.

coppolal@cantonma.org
medeirost@cantonma.org

The purpose of this program is to identify any previously unidentified health concerns. The school nurses, along with other nursing support staff, will screen your child and keep the results confidential. If screening results indicate the need for follow-up care by a physician, parents/guardians will be notified in writing.

Please reach out with any questions!

Lindsey Coppola, RN
(508) 584-1070 x3110

Tara Medeiros, RN

(508) 584-1070 x316

We wish peace and goodness to all members of our community who observed Yom Kippur from Friday evening through Saturday. G'mar chatima tovah.

"Any student who is interested in planning for Diwali Recognition Day should see 8th Grade Student Leader, Avika Shukla or Mr. Gibson. There will be an official interest meeting in the cafeteria on Thursday, October 17th during X Block. All students are welcome to attend the meeting."

The Canton Association of Parents and Teachers, CAPT, is a non-profit parent/teacher organization at the Galvin Middle School. Galvin CAPT strives to provide an enriched educational experience for Galvin students by supplementing their daily curriculum with related equipment, supplies, and programs/field trips not funded by the school district.

The first CAPT meeting of the school year will take place on Monday, November 4th at 6:10PM in the GMS Library. We invite all interested parents and guardians to attend!

The Bits & Bytes program is a great opportunity for students to learn how to code, or improve upon their coding skills. Our program runs on Zoom on Saturdays for 1 hour starting October 19th and ending on November 23rd. Each lesson will be taught by Boston University students, many of whom are Computer Science or Data Science majors themselves (and all have completed background checks through the official Girls Who Code organization).

You can find our application here: [Girls Who Code Bits & Bytes Program] [https://forms.gle/s4R27d8P8ibLiazV7]

If you have any questions or require further information about the fall program, please don't hesitate to reach out. We're here to assist and support students in every way we can.

We're eagerly looking forward to another successful season of coding and learning with the students this fall. Thank you for your time!

Monday, October 14th: No school: Columbus Day/Indigenous People's Day

Wednesday, October 23rd: Early dismissal day for students

Wednesday, October 23rd: GMS Building Project Community Forum, 6:30PM at GMS

Saturday, November 2nd: Cantonstock Music Festival at CHS

Monday, November 4th: School Council Meeting, 5PM, GMS Library

Monday, November 4th: GMS CAPT Meeting, 6:10PM, GMS Library

Monday, November 18th: Special Town Meeting

Check out the latest events from around town!

At a Glance - New Event(s)

• Sustainability & Climate Action Plan Committee - Survey and Information Sessions

Courtney Gaboury, Administrative Assistant

Jim Spillane, Assistant Principal

Karim Gibson, Dean of Students

Ginny Martin, Student Services Team Chair

Email: mulhernj@cantonma.org
Website: https://www.cantonma.org/gms/index
Location: 55 Pecunit Street, Canton, MA, USA
Phone: 781-821-5070