GMS Weekly News and Notes
Weekly Updates
We kicked off our Teacher Appreciation Week festivities a few days early at GMS. This year, our chief planner, Ms. Gabriel, settled on a Hogwarts theme. Each staff member was assigned a house by the sorting hat (spreadhsheet), and the houses are engaging in some friendly competition throughout the coming week. I have personally ensured that no horcruxes have been hidden in the House Cup.
On Thursday, GMS CAPT sponsored a fabulous luncheon for our teachers. As always, we are grateful for the generosity and kindness of our families!
Teacher Appreciation Week officially starts on Monday, May 6th. I cannot praise the work of our teaching staff highly enough. Each day, our teachers work hard to give our students great learning opportunities, and they do so with grace and good humor. Life in a middle school is many things, but it is never boring or predictable, and I'm grateful to work with a group of educators who are able to roll with it so well. I ask our students and families to please take a moment this week to thank a teacher or teachers who had a positive impact this year.
The GMS MCAS schedule resumes this week with 8th grade science and 6th grade math. Please see the complete schedule below.
We've reached May, and there are a number of important celebrations and community events that will take place at GMS and around the district in the coming weeks. Please read below for information on all of them!
For any current GMS families who also have a 5th grader, we are hosting a New Family Welcome event on Monday, May 13th. All families of current grade 5 students are welcome. The event will run from 6:30 to 7:30PM in the GMS Cafetorium. All current 5th graders will visit GMS on Friday, May 24th as part of our annual Unity Day celebration which is coordinated by the CPS Wellness Department.
Finally, a note on safety. It's important for students to note that water battles are not permitted on school grounds or on the bus. Water spills can create hazardous footing. In addition, bringing a water gun of any kind is a major violation of the code of conduct. We appreciate everyone's understanding and cooperation.
Campus Highlight: Sharks in the Blue Hills
From Ms. Winchell:
The 7th grade Shark Team attended a half day field trip to The Blue Hills temperate deciduous forest to wrap up their months long "Oh Deer" Website Project Based Learning in science. The students hiked along the Wolcott path to a vernal pool, learned about the many animals at the Trailside Museum outdoor exhibits and explored the various plants found in the pollinator garden.
Music Spotlight: Junior District Participants
Jacob Sallette, Alexis Priselac and Eleanor Rooney played at the Junior Districts Festival orchestra this weekend! Congratulations to our terrific young musicians!
Lunchtime spotlight: Friday Karaoke
Ms. Seaver and Ms. Chamberlain have been hosting lunchtime Karaoke for the last several Fridays. It's lunch that Hits Different!
Remaining 2024 MCAS Schedule
MATHEMATICS
6th Grade: May 8th and 9th
7th Grade: May 14th and 15th
8th Grade: May 16th and 17th
SCIENCE
8th Grade Only: May 6th and May 7th
SOCIAL STUDIES/CIVICS FIELD TEST
8th Grade Only: May 29th and May 30th
Bulldog Nurses' Blip
Happy May!
Ways to Alleviate Seasonal Allergy Symptoms (without medications)
Springtime environmental allergies are among us in full force. Common symptoms are itchy eyes, itchy throat, sneezing, coughing, or swelling of the sinuses. They can appear mild or confused with cold symptoms and the dreaded conjunctivitis.
Even with daily antihistamines there are gaps in symptom relief! Here are some things we can do to help alleviate these symptoms.
1 . Take a shower before bed to rinse off and pollen that may be in your clothes and hair. Bringing allergens into the bed can make symptoms worse and can cause sleep disturbance
2 . Cold compress and irrigation to eyes help alleviate swelling and rinse pollen out of the mucosa. Non-medicated nasal spray and blowing your nose will help clear swelling and irritation
3. Bring a water bottle to school! Some antihistamines can be dehydrating. Ensuring adequate water intake will help prevent “drying out*.
4. Applying a moisturizing agent like Aquaphor to the inside of the nares to prevent nose bleeds.
We understand allergy symptoms can feel miserable and can impact your child’s mood and academic performance. These symptoms are very treatable! We practice these interventions in the health office and encourage it at home.
Have a great spring!
Best,
Lindsey Coppola RN BSN
Tara Medeiros RN BSN MSN
Better Speech and Hearing Month
From Ms. Fogel:
May is "Better Speech and Hearing Month"! We invite you to learn a little about the role of a School Based Speech Pathologist, as well as the importance of Vocal Hygiene (some tips being: Rest your Voice and Drink Plenty of water! This year we have plenty more information ready to share!
Cultural Awareness Theme Week!
MONDAY, May 13th International Hair and Headwear Day
Ex. Locks, Twists, Braids, Buns, Sombrero, Beret, Kufi, Fez
TUESDAY, May 14th Wear a Shirt with wording that Represents A Culture Day
Ex. "Phenomenally Asian", "Melanin", "Ireland", "Portugal", "Salut", "Ciao"
WEDNESDAY, May 15th World Cup Soccer Jersey Day
Ex. Vieiera, Messi, Pele, Sinclair, Brazil, Japan, Germany
THURSDAY, May 16th International Garments/Traditional Garb Day
Ex. Kimono, Kilt, Dashiki, Sherwani
FRIDAY, May 17th Rep Your Country Flag Day
PROUDLY embrace your flag heading into Cultural Heritage Night (Group Photo to be taken during X Block)
Cultural Heritage Night
Will take place on Friday, May 17th: 6-8 PM right here at GMS. If you would like to prepare a dish for the evening, please fill out this Google Form. So far we have tasty dishes from Haiti, Ukraine, Dominican Republic, Ireland, Romania, Puerto Rico and popular United States dishes on the menu! Always room for more!
Haitian Heritage Month
Asian-American and Pacific Islander Month
Happy Orthodox Easter
Warm wishes to all those celebrating Orthodox Easter today. Wishing you joy and peace on this feast day.
GMS Math Intervention during X Block
My name is Phoenix Harris and I am the math interventionist here at the Galvin. Every week I am hosting a grade specific math extra help session during X-Block. The sessions will be held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Tuesday's will be dedicated to 8th grade, Wednesday's to 7th grade, and Thursdays to 6th grade. Students or their parents are able to fill out the google form to sign-up weekly on an as-needed basis. For example, students may sign up every week or if a student was absent for a few days, although they typically would not need extra assistance, it may be beneficial for them to attend a session to help them get caught up. The Google Form for sign-ups will close the morning of the session and open back up the day after. Students will receive a reminder email to attend the morning of the session. Please be sure to sign up in advance as space is very limited.
6th Grade X-Block Math Intervention
Pay and Ride Applications
Please check your emails for the 2024-25 Pay and Ride Forms. An electronic form was emailed for each student, to one household member. Please check with other household members and your spam inbox if you do not see this email.
The Pay and Ride form must be completed every year whether your student will require transportation or not. The cut-off date for the 2024-25 Pay and Ride form is June 7th. Please complete the electronic form as soon as possible.
Incoming Kindergarten Pay and Ride forms were completed at the time of registration. You will not receive an email for your incoming 2024-25 Kindergarten student.
More information regarding the Pay and Ride Program, including fees and payments can be found HERE. Payment is not due at this time. Applicable invoices will be sent by MySchoolBucks by the end of June.
If you have questions or did not receive the 2024-25 Pay and Ride email, please email transportation@cantonma.org with your student’s name and school of attendance.
GMS CAPT Corner
Please join us for our next CAPT meeting on Monday, May 6th at 6PM in the GMS library.
Please check out the GMS CAPT website for all updates!
Important dates to note
Monday, May 6th: GMS School Council meeting, 5PM in the GMS Library
Monday, May 6th: GMS CAPT meeting, 6PM in the GMS Library
Friday, May 10th: Early release day for students. Students will be dismissed at 11:05 AM
Monday, May 13th: GMS 5th Grade Family Welcome Night, 6:30PM in the GMS Cafetorium
May 13th through May 17th: Cultural Awareness Theme Week
Friday, May 17th: Cultural Heritage Night, 6:00-8:00PM at GMS. All families are welcome!
May 20th through May 23rd: CPS Art Show, 6-8PM in the CHS Gym
Friday, May 24th: Unity Day at GMS
Monday, May 27th: All CPS schools closed in observance of Memorial Day
Events Around Town
William H. Galvin Middle School
Courtney Gaboury, Administrative Assistant
Jim Spillane, Assistant Principal
Karim Gibson, Dean of Students
William Kickham, Assistant Director of Student Services (6-12)
Ginny Martin, Special EducationTeam Chair
Email: mulhernj@cantonma.org
Website: https://www.cantonma.org/gms/index
Location: 55 Pecunit Street, Canton, MA, USA
Phone: 781-821-5070