What Is the Buzz?

On Saturday February 8th the Lexington-Richland Five School District held their annual Science Fair. Scarlett and Sai, two of our 7th grade Escolares students, won first place in the Earth and Environmental/Life Science category. Their science fair project, Milkweed Madness, studied which milkweed seeds had the best germination when they were cold stratified. The ultimate goal of the project is to better help the decreasing monarch butterfly population.

April 11, 2025 will be Irmo Middle School day at the Columbia Fireflies game. All you have to do to join and show Irmo pride is read! From Feb. 1 -Feb. 14 read a total of 100 pages and you will receive a ticket to the game. Did I mention you will also get a free hot dog and fountain drink? Get all the details from your ELA teacher or see Dr. Williams in the Library.

Congratulations to these 4 IMS students who qualified to Audition this Saturday for the SC Junior allstate band! Alex Roa Corzo, 1st place flute in the Region, Aidon Middleton, 1st place clarinet in the region, Janiyah Brown, 14th place clarinet in the region and Xan Wilson, 2nd place battery percussion and mallets in the region. Final placements for Region and Allstate will be announced after the final round of auditions this weekend! Good Job Guys! Thanks for representing Irmo Middle!

Dear families,

We are going on an educational international tour to Dublin, London, & Paris in summer 2027 and you're invited! I am excited that our 2027 travel opportunity includes 3 awesome cities in Europe. We are planning early to get the lowest cost possible!

Please RSVP to our virtual meeting Tuesday, February 18th to hear all information: https://bit.ly/4hllfrC

We will have a $200 off discount at the meeting for those who RSVP!

✓In this info session, we will also talk about:

✓How this opportunity will benefit your student

✓What we’ll see and do on our trip

✓Everything that’s included in this experience

✓How your child can earn academic credit

✓How we’re keeping this safe and affordable

✓How to enroll on this trip (before it fills up!)

This will be my fifth tour I will be leading for our community. There will be limited spots on the trip, so we would love to have you attend this meeting to learn more about this exciting opportunity! We will answer all questions at the meeting.

Thanks and hope to see you there!

Mrs. April Herring

Irmo Middle School

Dear parents,

The University of South Carolina is inviting more families to join the over 700 families already participating in the Healthy School and Summer Study for 2025.

This project is open to all 6th-8th grade students.

If you signed up last year you DO NOT need to sign up again.

Participants will wear a Fitbit-like activity watch for two weeks and parents will complete online surveys during the following two time periods:

• March/April 2024 for 2 weeks

• June/July 2024 for 2 weeks

Participants can earn up to $310 in gift cards for completing the measures ($155 each 2-week period).

Click this link to learn more and sign-up!

https://bit.ly/healthyschoolstudy_25

Thanks,

Jemia Jefferson
Program Coordinator
jjeff2@mailbox.sc.edu
Arnold Healthy Kids Initiative
Arnold School of Public Health
University of South Carolina
921 Assembly Street, Suite 130
Columbia, SC 29208

• Scan the attached image QR code or go to yearbookforever.com to purchase your yearbook today!
• Be sure to search for Irmo Middle School if you go to yearbookforever.com.
• Please note: Personal Ads are for 8th graders only.

Honor your student’s final middle school year with a custom yearbook ad! Parents, grandparents, and loved ones can add messages of encouragement, cherished moments, and best wishes as they prepare for high school.

- Include a favorite photo
- Add a personal message
- Create a keepsake they’ll treasure forever

Space is limited—reserve your ad today! Don’t miss the chance to celebrate your 8th grader in this special way.

Deadline to purchase an 8th grade ad: 3/10

• Scan the attached image QR code or go to yearbookforever.com to purchase your yearbook today!
• Be sure to search for Irmo Middle School if you go to yearbookforever.com.
• Please note: Personal Ads are for 8th graders only.

The Tuesday 1/21 Home Game Vs. Pine Ridge has been rescheduled for Thursday 2/6 @ Home.

The girls game will begin at 5:30 followed by the boys game at 6:45.

The Irmo Cheer Interest meeting for students in grades 6th thru 8th, will be Wednesday, February 19th in the IHS Library. Join the Irmo Cheer Try Outs to stay updated on upcoming try out information.

Please visit the IMS Model UN Google Sites Page for more information.

Interested in Irmo Cheer? Open practices will begin Tuesday, March 3rd in the Irmo High Practice Gym. Practices are open to all 7th and 8th graders. You must have an updated forms in Big Teams and a current physical.

Our Spirit Rock was generously relocated to its new home in the Spring of 2022 by some very kind members of our SC Forestry Commission. It is available to rent for painted messages and advertising. All proceeds will benefit Irmo Middle School PTSO and will be used to support students and to assist in their learning.

Please CLICK HERE for more information and how to sign up to rent the IMS Spirit Rock.

Lexington Richland Five and Irmo Middle School are committed to creating an environment where every single student feels valued. Establishing a culture where students know they are loved but are being challenged to grow is our goal each and every day.

Each month we will provide you with ideas, challenges, and activities that will help us all build a community beetwen home and school where our students can feel valued and thrive.

As a recipient of the Stronger Connection grant, District Five is able to partner with an organization called The Cook Center. The Cook Center is a non-profit organization that focuses on supporting children, families, and school by offering resources, training, and support. The support is offered through online coaching sessions with family, professional development with staff, monthly mental health parent workshops, and online resources for all. This site was developed by licensed therapists that provides trusted and specialized courses, professional support, and a safe community for parents to learn how to support their child. Parents can also get answers to mental health questions, especially anxiety, depression, self-worth, grief and loss, suicide ideation, self-harm, bullying, family strife and other mental health concerns.

Car Line: Our goal is for the car line to move as quickly as possible. You can help make that happen by making sure you pull all the way to the end of the line so that as many cars can get loaded at one time as possible. When arriving to school, students need to be ready to exit the car with all of their belongings, and when getting in the car in the afternoons, students need to get in as quickly as possible as well.

Morning Drop Off: When your student exits the car, please safely pull over to the left side of the blue line, so that other cars can come down to fill up the car line. This will maximize the number of students who can get out at one time. If you cannot merge over completely, just drive down to the end of the line, and use the zipper merge system to exit the gates. This means everyone will take turns merging.

Afternoon Pick Up: Once your student is safely in your car, and you can merge completely, without blocking anyone, move to the left side of the blue line so that the car line can fill back up and we can maximize the number of students loading. If you do not see your student right away, do not worry, we will call for them to come to you. If there is room to pull up, please pull up, your student will walk to you and load the car once the entire car line is full. Again, we will use the zipper merge system, so everyone is taking turns exiting the gates safely.

Morning & Afternoon: When leaving the Car Rider Line and turning onto Wescott Road, please ONLY TURN RIGHT for safety and to keep the flow of traffic moving as smoothly as possible.

Please review the Student Handbook at anytime if you have any questions or concerns about expectations and/or procedures.

made to the IMS bookkeeper or on your student's quickpay account.

campus or through their 1st Block Teacher.

calls and monthly statements to their email accounts.

Was your student absent? Please use the Attendance Excuse Form to submit an excuse for your child's absence from school. Please complete each section below to ensure the excuse is accepted. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at 803-476-3600. Thank you for all that you do to support learning and growing at Irmo Middle School.

Please remember that on Late Start Days students will not be allowed in the building until 8:35am. 1st Period will begin at 9:15am.

Are you looking to show off your IMS spirit?

Do you want to become more involved in our school community?

Check out these links to our:

School Spirit Store

PTSO Webpage

Order your school gear now at https://imsptso.square.site/. We are now selling short sleeve, long sleeve and hoodies in both adult and youth sizes. Visit https://linktr.ee/imsptso for all the up-to-date information about the PTSO.

The LexRich5 Athletics Webpage includes useful information whether you are participating in or attending athletic events across the district. Included are:

-Procedures for attending events

-Purchasing Tickets

-Athletic Staff Directories

-Detailed School Athletic Calendars

-Athletic Forms

-and more!

We would love for you to see all of the awesome things our students and teachers are doing. Be sure to follow us on:

Facebook - @irmomiddle

Instagram - irmomiddle

Are you looking for more ways to support Irmo Middle School? We are always looking for business partners and would love to hear from you. Please contact Leisa McNeil at 803-476-3611.

The District's preferred method of payment is online using your Student Quick Pay account found @ https://www.studentquickpay.com/lexrich5/

The mission of Irmo Middle School is to shape a diverse community where students create high quality work, care for the well-being of themselves and others, and engage in meaningful service which impacts local and global communities.

International Academic Magnet

iAm Escolares

Website: https://ims.lexrich5.org/

Location: 6051 Wescott Road, Columbia SC, 29212, USA

Phone: 803-476-3600

Facebook - @irmomiddle

Instagram - irmomiddle