We are 8 days into our school year and it feels like our 6th graders have hit their stride. Whether it's transitioning between classes or understanding norms of behavior thus far they have impressed.
This week Mr. Warford (Assistant Principal), Mr. Rizzo (Hall Principal) and I met with students to do an annual "Code of Conduct" assembly. The assembly revisits how we define positive and negative behaviors and how each bring about consequences. Students often forget (perhaps adults too often only address negative consequences) that positive behaviors bring about positive consequences and we are intentional in providing time to both (positive and negative consequences).
Of specific importance we addressed bullying, harassment and the "Dignity for All Students Act" (DASA), which defines protected classes of citizens and prohibits harassment against them by empowering schools and law enforcement.
In addition to these areas, Mr. Warford also addressed 'personal responsibility' and that so much of what we are focused on in the middle years is teaching students how to pick themselves up when they make mistakes. We believe in creating an acceptable space for mistakes and our assembly was another opportunity for us to demonstrate that one of ways we define responsibility is by owning our mistakes by admitting and learning from them. We further explained that when students do this, they will be met with an adult response that allows the student to continue on in our culture without shame or stigma.
Active ... REALLY Active... Listening!
At our assembly, I reinforced a message that I gave students about listening on our first day of school. We make it a practice to demonstrate listening by looking the speaker in the eye and this is a great behavior to reinforce at home.
I furthered this message by defining "active listening" as what we do by becoming more intensely focused on a speaker to make sure that we internalize what is being said. To demonstrate the knack that many teens demonstrate when they 'passively listen' I shared to following true story;
I had the opportunity to work with the LSU (Louisiana State University) baseball coaches in the mid 90s and they tell a story of a pitcher out of Florida who was the best High School baseball pitcher in the country his senior year. The pitcher turned down all other offers to go to college on scholarship because he was going to be drafted into Major League Baseball. The LSU coaches convinced him to come to LSU with the promise that they would make him better and increase his earning potential in major league baseball.
Throughout his freshman year at LSU the coach would give the pitcher small pointers but the pitcher, having never lost a game in High School, never applied what his collegiate coach told him. He wound up losing as many games as he won that year so when he came back for his sophomore year, the player was in a somewhat different (more humble) mindset.
While warming up for his first game in the fall, the coach showed him a small mechanical change and this time the pitcher put it into practice. When he went out to the mound to start the game after warming up with the coach, his fastball, previously clocked at 90 mph, was clocked at 95 and 96 mph. The player was shocked.
After the 1st, 2nd and 3rd innings the pitcher came off the field and asked his coach why it was that the coach didn't show him that one little mechanical change during his Freshman year. The coach simply smiled and walked away. After the 4th inning, his last, the pitcher asked yet again but this time with an edge of resentment because he felt like his coach had neglected him.
But this time, because the player was done pitching for the day, the coach replied "I did tell you, you just didn't listen."
The moral of the story, as told and quoted from the LSU coaches, is that ...
"Sometime today, somebody will say something that could change your life and the only question is not whether it will happen, but whether or not you'll be paying attention."
I closed my comments to students by stating that we sometimes don't listen to a lot of the people around us and that there is a cost of doing this that we never get to add up.
When we are intensely driven to achieve our highest possible potential however, we ACTIVELY LISTEN to all of the messages around us all the time!
Have a great weekend!
Mr. Klugman
End of Week Notes
Awake for a Cure
Parents - please read carefully...
Imagine being 12 years old, a great student, and a great athlete and then finding out that you have a disease that slowly calcifies every muscle, tendon, ligament, cartilage and joint in your body. Calcification, or ossification, means that all of these flexible, stretchable tissues become bone. One of our Middle School peers found out last year that she has FOP (Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva) and this condition is one of the rarest in the world.
Research toward a cure is woefully underfunded and in an effort to work toward a cure BCMS is holding its first ever "Awake for a Cure." I will be redirecting parents to a website with more information about our event later this week but here are details;
On October 9 (and into the 10th) we will be inviting each of our grade levels to attend a special social with a few exceptions.
- 6th grade students may stay from 7:00 PM to 8:45 PM (like a normal social)
- 7th grade students may stay from 7:00 PM to 10:45 PM !!!
- 8th grade students ... may stay ALL NIGHT! That's right we're calling "Awake for a Cure" because our 8th graders will be participating in fun-filled activities all through the night!
- We'll have DJ's, a 3 on 3 basketball tourney, a Gong Show, Games, Movies, special snacks... and all of the proceeds will go toward our cause!
Students can sign up to raise funds for this event at this link:
High School Students who want to volunteer please email:
frizzyisy2000@gmail.com or tklugman@rocketmail.com
Parent Volunteers and Business Sponsors please email: fopashleyscurebc@gmail.com
We will be sending much more detailed information later this week!
Patroon Open House Thank You
Many parents offer our staff gratitude after our Open House presentations but I know I speak for our staff universally when I say how grateful we are to have such an engaged audience. It is this partnership that continues to propel our Bethlehem success and we are aware of this all the time and remain grateful to our parents for all you do. We genuinely appreciate all the support you provide to your children / our students!
Reminder - Mohawk Open House is Thursday, September 24th
Reminder - Is your address up-to-date in Aspen?
I direct message parents many times per week through this email address. If you aren't receiving my messages please update this and send me an email and if you are not sure how to update your email send me a direct message (mklugman@bcsd.neric.org)
Grace in Winning
I addressed one of our modified teams to tell them how proud I was of the gracious way they conducted themselves after and throughout a match against a weaker team. This group was courteous, never boastful, and never rude nor inappropriate. When we say "BC Proud" I told this group that this was true of them NOT because they won, but because of HOW they won!
BCHS Homecoming
On Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week we will be selling Homecoming 2015 T-shirts to BCMS students for $10.00. Homecoming is Saturday, Sept 26 and there is slate of various games scheduled throughout the day at the High School... field hockey, soccer, and our Homecoming Football Game... it promises to be a great Fall day full of fun activity and school spirit.
The Week Ahead
Monday, September 21
- No Late Buses
- Reminder - BCHS open house
Tuesday, September 22
- Student PAC meets 7:30 Cafeteria
- 1st Day of SWAT - Students should arrive at 6:45 AM
- Late buses
Wed, Sept 23
- Yom Kippur - No school - Bldg open
Thurs, Sept 24
- SWAT
- Late Buses
- Mohawk Open House
- FASS (Friday After School Support) Begins 3:00 - 5:00 PM
Have a great weekend!
