Marking Period 1 Newsletter - Delaware Valley School District

November 8, 2012 D D M S “ W h e r e t h e B e s t G e t B e t t e r ”Dingman-Delaware Middle School“You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow byevading it today”—Abraham LincolnDates to Remember: 11-9-12 Senior CitizenDinner 11-9 & 11-10-12 LittleMermaid, Jr. Play 7:30 11-16-12 Dance 3-5pm 11-20-12 Parent-TeacherConferences—Dismissal11:15am 11-21-12 Grandparents’Day—Dismissal 11:15am 11-22 to 11-26 Fall RecessDear Parents, Faculty, and Students:We started off this year in full swing with our aim on providingstudents with the best academic atmosphere, while also instilling in thema sense of independence and pride. As I reflect on the first semester Iam first amazed at how fast the time has gone by. While walking throughclasses I have observed teachers and students striving to give 100% ona daily basis in order to encourage and promote success. One of ourmain goals here at DDMS is academics, although I am pleased to saythat our teachers and staff also instill our students with a sense of prideand independence through encouraging students to undertake andcomplete challenging tasks. It is vitally important that studentsunderstand the importance of completing tasks to the best of their abilityin a timely fashion; by accomplishing such goals students are able to feelconfident in their abilities. We must remember that by lowering the barthat we set for today’s youth we put them at a disadvantage, rather bysetting our expectations higher we can promote independence and asense of accomplishment. As parents, faculty, and administrators it is ourjob to encourage and challenge students to always strive for excellencein all tasks they undertake while guiding them along the way. We havethe privilege of shaping tomorrow’s future – will you accept thischallenge and work to the best of your ability in providing today’s youthfor tomorrow’s challenges?Please Be Aware!!Report Cards—Your Report Card may beheld if you have any fines oroverdue materials. You maynot check out materials orhave use of the library untilyour obligations are met. Ifthis is you—Please see thelibrarian as soon as possible!Brian McCarthyAssistant PrincipalDingman-Delaware Middle SchoolDelaware Valley School DistrictMISSION STATEMENTDelaware Valley School District, the educational leader of our community, strives forexcellence with dedication to diverse educational opportunities. Students of all ages arechallenged to maximize intellectual, emotional, social, and physical potential. Values,knowledge, and skills are nurtured in partnership with family and community. Learningtakes place in a safe and positive environment that respects individual differences.Delaware Valley offers a dynamic core curriculum enhanced by the creative use oftechnology. Our commitment to life-long learning promotes success in anever-changing global society.SLOGANDelaware Valley School District – Educating for Life’s JourneyAdopted August, 1998

PAGE 2D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLFrom the Principal’s Desk:As we are about to begin thesecond marking period,students must continue tostrive to improve academically. We want our studentsto take full advantage of all the offerings our school hasfor them to succeed! We offer tutoring during theschool day (Periods 4, 5, 6, and 7) for math and reading wherestudents can be pulled out of a study hall to take advantage of thisprogram. After school tutoring has started on Tuesday (LanguageArts and Social Studies) and Thursday (Math and Science) until 4:30PM. Lunch tutoring is also available to our students during certaindays of the week. I would also encourage our parents if they havenot already, to sign up for “PowerSchool”, which is an online programallowing you to have access to your child’s academic progress,attendance, and discipline from the comfort of your home at anytime.Parents must first sign up in our guidance office to receive anidentification number, along with a password to gain access. Finally, Iwant to encourage all of our students to consider joining a club,activity, or sports team this year. We want our students to take fulladvantage of all the offerings our school has for them to succeed!The winter sports (Boys basketball, Girls basketball, Cheerleadingand Wrestling) will begin in November. Some of our clubs to sign upfor include Junior Students Against Substance Abuse (Jr. SASA),Anime Club, after school library, ski and snow board club, and pepband. It is our goal at DDMS for our students to receive awell-rounded education both in and out of theclassroom!Thank You,James Mitchell

Grandparent’s DayWednesday, November 21, 2012The Dingman-Delaware Middle School would like to honor our student’s grandparent(s). In order to do so, we would likeour students to invite their grandparent(s) to be our guests on the morning of November 21, 2012. The day will begin with a briefsocial in our school cafeteria at 8:00AM. Our PTA will provide coffee, tea, juice, and a breakfast treat. At roughly 9:00 AM, studentswhose grandparents are in attendance will meet their grandparent(s) in the cafeteria and escort them to their class. At thattime, we would like our students to introduce their grandparents to their class and invite their grandparent(s) to share a hobby theyhave or stories about what school was like when they attended school. This will last until 10:08 AM, the end of the class period.At this time, with your permission and the signed permission slip at the bottom of this page, your son/daughter will be permittedto leave school early with their grandparent(s). Dismissal time for all other students on this day will be at 11:15 AM.We hope you will participate in an event that we are all very excited about and have made anannual tradition at DDMS.(PLEASE RETURN THE BOTTOM PORTION OF THIS FORMBY FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2012)Student’s Name __________________________________Grade_________Attending Grandparent(s) Name(s) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ I give my child, ________________________, permission to leave school with(Child’s Name)their grandparent, ____________________________,at 10:08 on Wednesday, November 21, 2012.(Grandparent Name)____________________________________ , _______________(Parent Signature)(Date)

PAGE 4D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLWhat’s Going on at DDMS??The Dingman-Delaware Middle School will proudly present its 20th annual complimentarydinner theatre for the senior citizens of the Delaware Valley School District on FridayNovember 9, 2012 at 5pm in the DDMS Cafeteria. This complimentary Dinner will befollowed by a 7:30pm performance of “The Little Mermaid, Jr.” presented by the DDMSDrama Club.This is a Must-See forall of theDVSD Community!!!For Dinner Reservations orFurther InformationPlease Call 570-296-3143The Dingman-Delaware MiddleSchool is located at1365 Route 739 inDingmans Ferry, PA.Performance of The Little Mermaid, Jr.November 9th and 10th 2012Doors will Open at 7:15pmPerformance will begin at 7:30pmAdmission: $5.00 for Adults$3.00 for studentsSenior Citizen Dinner MenuItalian Baked Meatballs over Pasta Salad Italian Garlic Bread Black & White Forest Cake Coffee: Regular & Decaf Tea: Regular & Decaf Soda & WaterMany hours of preparation have gone into making this evening a special one for eachand every one of you. We hope you can join us and that you enjoy your visit!!- On Behalf of the Dingman-Delaware Middle School Family

D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOL PAGE 5What’s going on at DDMS?ART CLUB NEWSAs troops from 55 th Heavy Brigade Combat Team prepare for deployment to Kuwait many local schools andbusiness show their support in helping these soldiers and their family members brace for the upcomingseparation. One school in particular is Dingman-Delaware Middle School in Dingmans Ferry, PA. The art club,under the direction of Ms. Lisa Sakoutis, has been working after school on a special treat for the soldiers. Thestudents have been using their creative talents to decorate paper lunch bags. These bags will be filled with snackfoods for the soldiers to enjoy as they depart from their duty stations in upcoming weeks.Other Recent Art Projects Include: The art club students are also busy making centerpieces for the upcomingSENIOR CITIZEN DINNER THEATER.For the production of the Little Mermaid, Jr we are working hard at making clay sculpturesof the coral reef.We are also involved in making an anti—bullying mural

PAGE 6D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLDDMS Water Lab AdventureWyland Clean Water Mobile Lab arrived from California and visitedDingman-Delaware Middle School (DDMS).On Wednesday, September 19, 2012, the seventh-grade scienceclasses at DDMS took part in an exciting hands-on/minds-on mobilelaboratory with a variety of simulations dealing with waterconservation and aquatic life.

D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOL PAGE 7DDMS Spirit Week!!Students enjoyed a week of school spirit during the third week ofSeptember to kick off an eventful fun-filled school year.School Spirit!!

PAGE 8D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLWhat’s Happening around the school?DDTV 2012-13DDTV is a live student-run broadcast. Every morning, the students announceimportant messages throughout the school. Tryouts were held in the Spring of 2012to obtain a successful team for the current school year.Along with the DDTV moderator, Mrs. Cafarella, it is comprised of seven techies(running the live broadcast) and fifteen anchors (rotating monthly to deliver theannouncements). The techies are also responsible for snapping photos/taping eventsof importance throughout the school year. The techies have already taped severalevents to date including: The Pep Rally, Mr. Smith’s rocket launch, HomeroomPledges, & a Band/Orchestra concert.The members of DDTV get to school early and report directly to the DDTV room,where they prepare for that day’s broadcast. DDTV airs at 8:06 daily and runs for approximately3-4 minutes.Returning Members:Balinda ArnoulTess BaltonTyler BoulangerAngelique DzirkoCollin Kawan-HemlerHassan KeysKristopher KremsnerMegan MaloneyHeather MirandaBrittany MrossChristina NagrowskiVanessa PaolellaGarrett SackenChristian SantiagoNew Members:Lauren AlbrechtDestiny DezenzoMitchell MaloneyMadison MicklesJohn NatielloBronwen YoncakD.D.T.V.2012-2013STAFF

D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOL PAGE 9D.A.R.ESince its inception in fall of 2010 the drug abuse resistant education program under the title KEEPING ITREAL has been successfully implemented here at DDMS. Under the instruction of the D.A.R.E program andmy twenty one years experience in the New York City Police Department as a transit police officer involved inthe school outreach program in New York City, here I cover a few topics that are very important to the seventhgrade age group. In Keeping it Real, the acronym R.E.A.L which stands for Refuse, Explain, Avoid, and Leaveis strategic behaviors that instructs the students how to deal with any situation in a assertive and respectfulway with other people their age and adults, including the different ways to say no to drugs. There are 10lessons which also include internet safety and prescription drug safety. At the end of the lessons studentreceive a certificate and T shirt with the Keeping it Real logo. So far I coveredfour seventh grade classes in the first semester with two more to go and two onthe second semester. I look forward to completing the program this school yearand continue serving the students, staff and parents as your D.A.R.E Officer, andalso as your School Police Officer to protect and serve.S.P.O Ivan SantiagoPTA Sponsored Guest speaker…Who? Cary TrivanovichWhen? November 6, 2012Why? To help students understand why and how to “Choose CharacterOver Bullying”Cary’s performance and presentation are presented in a positive mannerwith an informal big‐brother attitude, designed to affect hearts about thesensitivity and well‐being of others. Cary relates the painful consequences ofphysical, social, and online "cyber" bullying. Cary effectively exposes theself‐centered attitude of bullying, and the desire for some bullies to besomebody, defining for the audience why kids bully while subliminallyexposing the immaturity of it. He encourages the bullied, giving them helpfuland practical advice. He encourages protecting the bullied and reportingbullying when being a witness to it.

PAGE 10D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLCary TrivanovichOur PTA was gracious enough to sponsor Cary Trivanovich and his “Choose Character Over Bullying”performance/message to the Middle School on Tuesday, November 6 th . Mr. Trivanovich is billed as“America’s Leader in Anti-Bullying Assemblies”. He is a performer, conference speaker, theatre director andhumorist, noted for his pantomime. When I asked Mr. Trivanovich if he had to take lessons to learn hispantomime or if he was self taught, he explained that he not only developed his own unique style of comicalpantomime but it was actually a contradiction to customary pantomime. He began performing a one man showaround the age of 17 and actually sold out high schools, middle schools, and banquets all before graduatinghigh school. Mr. Trivanovich actually travels all around the United States wowing students and has performedat the American Theatre Association's National Convention in Los Angeles and at the prestigious TheatreVanguard in Hollywood, where he was hailed as a "remarkably prodigious talent" and "perfect cartoons" by LAtheatre critics.Mr. Trivanovich explained to Mr. Mitchell and me that he did not want to be introduced by anyone tostart his performance and asked that we trust him with that. We certainly found out why—he was able tocaptivate the entire auditorium within seconds of introducing himself with his voice and more importantly withhis unique talent. The students were watching in amazement as he pretended to pull himself across the stageon an imaginary rope and pretended he was getting pulled back by someone else. They roared with laughterwhen he pretended he let go of the rope and sent the imaginary person flying backwards off-stage. Within lessthan two minutes he had gained their undivided attention with his comic pantomime routine and he wouldcontinue to use his talent as his ticket to deliver an outstanding message about character, bullying and eventheir own existence.Mr. Trivanovich performed many different pantomime routines which had students falling out of theirseats laughing and these included the old time sheriff in a slow motion gun fight, moon walking across the frontof the stage, the pantomime walk, changing faces by slapping his hand across his face and finally balancing adollar bill on the tip of his nose while rotating in a circle! He definitely proved that he was a different andunique person. He shocked the students to silence by telling them that because he was different growing up hewas “bullied” by other students and even ate lunch by himself at times. It was amazing to watch the faces of thestudents in the audience and see them intently listening to his message and at the same time understanding hismessage. He then went full circle and informed them that time is the great equalizer and he is proof of that—henow uses the same talent that made him “different” in middle school to become successful today. I’m sure thestudents were wondering how this cool guy was bullied or not cool in middle school.Mr. Trivanovich left the students talking all day long not only about his comic pantomime but about his“Choose Character Over Bullying” message which he conveyed through the use of his unique talent!The DDMS Family would like to offer a special Thank You to the PTA!!

PAGE 11D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLSay NO to Bullying!!Hello all!I wanted to remind you all to please make sure you have become familiarwith our new and revised bullying policy. The policy needs to be accessiblein your classroom as it states on page 2 section 5.Since October isBullying Prevention Month, I think we need to acknowledge it bypromoting the positives in our school.JRSASA will be providing a sign up poster to pledge to be Drug andBully Free, the PTA will be sponsoring an assembly which will includebullying in November. Teachers are always encouraged to refer studentsfor good behavior. These students meet with the principals who will givethe student(s) School T-shirts, bumper stickers and more importantly,positive attention. We also have Good Deed Citations that we areencouraged to give all year round to promote positive behavior and goodcitizenship.By doing these things we are promoting the DV5 and also continue tobuild a caring school environment.If any other club is promoting anything( re:bullying) for the month, pleaselet me know and I will include it for all to see. We, at DDMS, alwayspromote the best in our students and this month is an opportunity for usto showcase it!This has been a public service announcement from your school socialworker. Have a great day!Vivian

PAGE 12D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLCareer Day at DDMS—October 19, 2012Our Annual Career Day consisted of several voluntary guest speakers taking timeout of their busy schedules to inform our DDMS students about their profession, whileallowing students the opportunity to ask questions and informing them of the importanceof academics for their future. We are very grateful for to all of the parents andcommunity members who volunteered to participate in this day.We hope you will join us again next year!

D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLPAGE 13Student AchievementsCriteria for Nominating Students of the MonthWorks to his/her level of abilityMaintains constant attention throughout your lessonsProjects, homework, and notebooks should be organized and handed in on a timely basisBe in regular attendanceObeys rules of your classroom and of the schoolBecomes involved in areas outside of regular classShows evidence of a positive attitude towards teachers, fellow students, and the schoolVolunteers to help out or join student activities or projects (Student Council, PTA, teams, organizations, etc.)September Nominees for Student of the MonthSixth Grade Seventh Grade Eighth GradeDerek Gonzalo Jordan Glenn Mia JosephGia Cicileo Matthew Schaeffer Cody RoushinkoKenneth Goenaga-Hussey Chloe Tenney Christopher ConnellisTrevor Oamil Katie Brophy Valentina StiglerMelissa Kelleher Dylan Kelly Sydney BooneChristian Secular Harlan Muttee Kristen KelleherNico Forlenza Julia Steele Gozde CelikOlivia Zinn Shannon Perrin Nicole EarlyXavier Pick Tyler Boulinger Randi LaCagninaBrittany BrockmanHannah GallagherJulia Thompson

D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLPAGE 14October Nominees for Student of the MonthSixth Grade Seventh Grade Eighth GradeJulia Thompson Jordan Glenn Madison DorrAlex Garcia Jared Odynsky Balinda ArnoulMatt Brynes Jaylin Pochis Elizabeth ChristianKyle Prundl Matthew Schaefer Randi LaCagninaChristian Secular Harlan Muttee Emma BoboMelissa Kelleher Andrew Pinedo Lizabeth MuysAlexandra SzpakowiczZoe EllsonNico ForlenzaXavier PickGabriella JarayAnd the Winners for October Student of the Month are…Christian Secular 6th GradeJordan Glenn 7th GradeLizabeth Muys 8th GradePictures to follow—Stay Tuned!

PAGE 15D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLExtracurricular Activities Offered to DDMS Students …Join the 4-H community! 4-H is the largest youth-serving organization in the world! It is all aboutpeople sharing, doing and learning. Members can choose projects that fit their interest with handsonlearning.Horsemanship club: for those with or without a horse of their ownHistory & Citizenship: for those who would like to know more about local history and shaketheir family treeTeen Scene: for those who want to make a difference in community service, self-discoveryand leadership.4-H encourages independence and friendships, a sense of belonging and opportunities to masterlife’s challenges. Visit us on facebook at pikecountypa4-H, or visit Penn State Extension in PikeCounty, 514 Broad St, Milford PA, 570-296-3400, pikeext@psu.edu, http://extension.psu.edu/pike.Ski and Snowboard ClubFall is here and the snow is on the way! The Dingman Delaware Middle School is happy toannounce the Ski and Snowboard Club is back this year. The club will travel to ShawneeMountain 6 times throughout the winter season.The tentative dates are January 10, 17, 24, 31 and February 7 & 12. The bus will leave DDMSat 3:00 pm and return to the school approximately 9:00 pm.Reminders:1. All personal skis or snowboards must be brought to the school by parents as theyWILL NOT be allowed on the school bus in the morning—equipment will be kept in Mr. Comunale’s room, E6.2. There will also be a $10.00 bus transportation fee for each student pertrip collected the day of the trip.New this Year!—we will be using EZ Club Management System. Thiswill allow you to enroll and pay for your child directly with Shawnee—the website is http://www.shawneemt.com.Please contact Mr. Robert Skibber with any questions—voicemail ext. 7230

D IN GMAN -DELAWAR E MID D L E SCHOOLPAGE 16Fitness Education and Athletics at DDMSNotes from thePhysical Education DepartmentThe Dingman-Delaware Middle School is continuing to focus on increasing the number of fitnessactivities for all students in Physical Education classes. Activities will focus on improving ourstudent’s cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance and range of motion.Students at DDMS have and will continue to engage in activities that promote physical fitness.Among other activities, our students will perform a weekly fitness run and engage in dailypushups and range of motion activities.Our school district is actively seeking improved fitness for our students. We ask our parents toencourage their children to give their best effort everyday and to come to class prepared foractivity. As always, we appreciate your support and involvement.As our Fall Sports Seasons are coming to a close and our Winter Seasons are gearing upfor competition we would like to take a second to say Thank You to our Student Athletesand Parents for your time and dedication.“Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do.Attitude determines how well you do it.” - Lou Holtz