South MS Friday Blast

May Day, May Day!

Welcome May!

Fun Fact: May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on May 1st, about halfway between the Northern Hemisphere's Spring Equinox and the Midsummer Solstice. Early European settlers of the Americas brought their May Day traditions with them, and is still celebrated in many parts of the United States, with customs varying from region to region. In some parts of the United States, May baskets, small baskets usually filled with flowers or treats are left at someone's doorstep. The giver rings the bell and runs away (Wikipedia)

May is here and time is flying by. Week two of PSSA testing is complete! This week's Math and Science PSSA's continued to see our students giving it their best effort. Baseball, softball and lacrosse all had a busy week practicing and competing and track looks forward to their next meet happening next Wednesday. Finally, orchestra students enjoyed a visit from a special guest conductor.

Check out all of the upcoming, fun events in May. It will be a very busy month!

• May 5-9 - Teacher Appreciation Week
• May 6 - National Nurse's Day
• May 7 - SCN Mtg. in the South MS library, 7:00pm
  May 9 - 8th Grade (Luau) Dance (gym 6-8pm)
• May 11 - Mother's Day
• May 13-14 - Algebra I Keystone Exams
• May 13 - South Arts Festival (5-7pm)
• May 15 - Band & Orchestra Spring Concerts at South MS gym & aud, 7:00pm
• May 16 - Student Council elections
• May 20 - Grades 6/7 Lunch on the Lawn (details below - raindate 5/22)
• May 21 - 6th grade tours UBCTS, 9:00-11:00am
• May 21 - NJHS induction ceremony in the aud., CP11
• May 26 - Holiday/Offices Closed
• May 27 - Music Dept. Dorney Park field trip
• May 28 - Color Run (raindate 5/29)
• May 29 - 8th grade ice cream/honor roll celebration ceremony, 6:30pm (invitation only)
• May 30 - 8th grade picnic, 12:00-2:45pm
• June 6 - End of Year Awards Ceremony (invitation only)

5/7 - Tie-dye/Bright Colors

5/14 - Print Days (stripes, polka dots, animal print, etc.)

5/21 - Red, White & Blue

5/28 - Color run Shirts/White

6/4 - Tropical/Beach Vibes (must be school appropriate)

The South orchestra students had the privilege of working with professional violinist Emilie Park Wednesday afternoon. Mrs. Park enjoyed listening to our orchestras, and offered great feedback including some new ideas and tips to think about and implement in our playing. With two weeks to go before concert time, it is so helpful to think about our pieces in fresh ways. Thank you, Mrs. Park, for sharing your expertise and love of music with us!

For teacher appreciation week, May 5-9, the SCN asked for some assistance from all of you for donations to assist with a few activities that week and we're happy to report that the sign-up genius is complete! Thank you to everyone who signed up to provide a donation.

Everyone is invited to the Arts Festival on Tuesday, May 13th, from 5:00 - 7:00 PM at South MS. Artistic projects from various 6th, 7th, and 8th grade subjects will be displayed for all to enjoy. The evening will be complete with food and sewing demonstrations. Please come out with your families to this free event to see some of the work of our talented students.

South’s Student Council is hosting a COLOR FUNdraising event! Our Event is a unique color Run/Jog/Dash/Walk around the back of the school, while staff gently toss colored powder (non-toxic, colored cornstarch) as participants pass by the designated color stations. This event will be a mile in length. Students will have the option to run or walk. This event will help raise funds for student activities at South Middle School. SOUTH STUDENTS in all grades are all invited to join the COLOR FUN RUN!

Wednesday, May 28th @ 1:30-2:45pm(during the school day)

(rain date: Thursday, May 29th)

The 2025 Middle Level Summer Fun Camp website is now live! You can preview the Summer Fun Camp website using this link. To register, simply click on the session title.

Session registration links will go live at 6:00 PM on Monday, May 5th. (Note: You may need to refresh the webpage at 6:00 PM for the links to appear.)

Online registration will be open from May 5th to May 25th.

Important Note:
Summer Fun Camp is no longer grant-funded. This year, the camp must rely entirely on paid enrollments. If minimum enrollment numbers are not met, sessions will be cancelled.

Cost:
Each session/day costs $25, plus any applicable materials fees. The cost is noted after each session description. Since the camp is entirely funded by registration fees, we are unable to offer refunds after payment is made. However, SFC staff will do their best to reassign campers to other available sessions if needed.

Confirmation:

On May 26th, an email will be sent to all registered families with a confirmation of which sessions will be held. This email will also include your camper’s SFC invoice, showing the total amount due for sessions that are able to run. The payment window is May 27 – June 1. Payment instructions will be provided in the confirmation email.

Please register early and help us spread the word—early registrations will help us determine which sessions can run based on interest!

If you have any questions, please reach out to Melissa Albright at malbright@pennridge.org

Looking forward to a summer of fun!

Parents/guardians of seventh and eighth grade baseball, track, softball, and lacrosse team members are reminded where home games are played:

• Baseball - James Memorial Park (1027 Ridge Rd., Sellersville)
• Lacrosse - Poppy Yoder Field at South MS
• Track/Field - Pennridge High School track
• Softball - Pennridge South MS softball field (on the east end of Poppy Yoder field)

Additionally, keep in mind that spring weather is quite changeable and games are sometimes cancelled at the last minute due to weather conditions. Thank you!

Calling all 8th grade girls who are interested in playing basketball for Pennridge High School! You are invited to attend open gym from 4:00-5:15PM on the following dates:

• Wednesday - 5/7/25 - green gym
• Monday - 5/19/25 - white gym
• Wednesday - 5/21/25 - green gym

Please plan to have a ride home promptly at 5:15pm. Coach Rapp hopes to see you there!

Thanks to the ongoing support of Rachel's Closet at South MS, we are happy to provide a bag of summer hygiene necessities to your child free of charge. If you feel your child can benefit from this, please complete this form. All submissions will be kept confidential. The bag will be sent home with your child during the last week of school.

We have raised just under 50% of the needed funds to purchase a new Gaga Pit for South MS. Thank you to those families and businesses who have already contributed! It's not too late to make a contribution. Please see the flyer below!

Parents/guardians are invited to check out our new homework snapshot quick links. Click on your student's grade level to see a summary of weekly homework assignments:

• 6th Grade
• 7th Grade
• 8th Grade

Parents/guardians who are interested in volunteering for school events must have current clearances on file with our district office. If you are new to volunteering in our schools, click here and scroll down to Volunteer Clearances for all the information you need to obtain the required clearances. For your convenience, the district office is offering extended hours for volunteers to drop off their paperwork from 3:30-5:30PM at the district office on the following dates:

• May 12th
• June 16th

If you want to make a donation to Rachel's Closet, you can drop off donations at South's main office lobby or purchase items from our Amazon Wish List. To learn more about ways you can help our students, please see our flyer here. Thanks for your ongoing support of this much-needed service to our South community.

1. Please remind students to charge their laptops every night.
2. Please remind students of the importance of listening carefully to AM and PM announcements for up-to-the-minute information that might affect their school day schedule.
3. If your child is going to be absent from school, please call the school office at 215-257-0467 to inform us of the absence, or e-mail us at SMSattendance@pennridge.org with your child's name, grade, and reason for absence (illness, family trip, etc.).
4. If your child is being dismissed early for any reason (dentist appt, doctor appt, family trip, etc.) please call the school office at 215-257-0467 or e-mail us at SMSattendance@pennridge.org with your child's name, grade, and reason for early dismissal.
5. If your child is going to be arriving late to school, please call the school office at 215-257-0467 or e-mail us at SMSattendance@pennridge.org with your child's name, grade, and reason for tardiness (overslept, not feeling well, etc.) to inform us of the late arrival.
6. Notification of absence, early dismissal, or late arrival will help us notify your child's teachers why the student is not in class. Thank you!

Website: https://southms.pennridge.org/
Location: 610 South 5th Street, Perkasie, PA, USA
Phone: 215-257-0467