TIPPECANOE MIDDLE SCHOOL

APRIL 2012 NEWSLETTER

The mission of Tippecanoe Middle School is to provide educational experiences that are a continuation of the intermediate school and a transition to the high school focusing on academic, social,

emotional, and physical growth in a nurturing environment that will contribute to success as responsible students and citizens.

FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK… What a beautiful spring. It seems like we have gone straight from a very mild

winter to summer. We are entering the busiest time of year with scheduling and state testing right around the

corner. I always like to remind parents that as we enter the final quarter there are many items that might still

need to be addressed. First, athletic eligibility is based on quarter grades. Our student-athletes must be passing

five classes with a GPA of 1.5 to be eligible to run track this spring and they must meet the same criteria the final

quarter to be eligible to participate in activities in the fall of 2012-2013. Second, we still have over $5,000 in

unpaid school fees. Students must have their fees paid or have a payment plan in place in order to participate in

the end of the year activities such as Field Day. We do not want to hold students out of activities so if you are

unsure of your student’s status, please contact the main office. Also please continue to encourage and praise your

child’s efforts during this time. It is very hard to stay motivated as the weather warms up. If there are any issues

you would like addressed or questions answered, please contact myself at 667-8454 or

gsouthers@tippcity.k12.oh.us.

Congratulations to our February Students of the Month: 6th graders – Josh Riebe, Tasha Bruner, Taylor Buchanan, Madeline Loges; 7th Graders – Aaron Hughes, Olivia Shirley, Brooke Cyphers, Kelly Rhoades, and 8th graders – Holly Bernhold, Laura Rosselit, Mitchel Poynter, and Amanda Rawlins! The students received a certificate to Buffalo Wild Wings for six free wings. “Responsibility” was the theme for the month of February. Great job students!

If you have UNPAID School Fees please contact the Office @ 667-8454 to set up a payment plan. Unpaid fees may result in being denied certain privileges such as attending and/or receiving an award, athletic participation, ordering a yearbook, dances, field day, etc. PLEASE note balances do carry forward from year to year and building to building. Tippecanoe Middle Schools current balance of outstanding school fees is: $5,700.00. Thank you for your help in getting these paid and thank you to those who have already paid or have a payment plan in place.

Seventh Grade Social Studies teacher, Chris Prokes was named as a reviewer for the journal The Review--which is the journal of the Ohio Council for the Social Studies. He published an article in The Review a few years ago and now he has been asked to review its contents! Congratulations Mr. Prokes!

The Outdoor Club went ice-skating on March 1st at River Scape in Dayton. A great time was had by all 45 students that attended. The temperatures were in the mid to upper 40’s, which made a wonderful outdoor skating experience. They also got to enjoy some delicious hot cocoa.

On Monday, March 5th the Tippecanoe Educational Endowment (TEE) hosted an assembly featuring Brett Eastburn: "No Arms, No Legs, No Handicaps". The assembly was held at Tippecanoe Middle School for 4th through 8th graders. Brett visited us in 2006 and our students and parents still rave about his energetic, motivational, and enthusiastic presentation. Brett feels that there are no handicaps, or obstacles in life which can't be overcome if you truly believe in yourself. Brett’s website - http://bretteastburn.com Although this assembly was not open to the public, we encourage you to talk about the experience with your child. TEE’s mission is to provide funds to students, faculty, and employees of Tipp City Schools for the creation of, or participation in, enrichment programs. TEE was excited about Brett’s visit and knows it was a message that can help inspire all those who were present.

Congratulations to the Tippecanoe 6th grade Girls' Select Basketball Team who won the Division I Championship! The girls' team was the only team to go undefeated and win in the Division I tournament. They finished their select career winning the Championship 3 out of the last 4 years. Players are: Hailee Varvel, Claire Hinkle, Allie Wasson, Hunter McKinney, Cali Stewart, Courtney Ryan, Mackenzie Weaver, and Allison Mader. The Coaches are Traci Mader, Frank Stewart, Frank Goldsberry and Lauren Weimer. Great Job Girls!

Congratulations to 8th graders: Cameron Cahill, Samantha Williams, and Jay Bell as well as 7th grader Tristan Empson and 6th grader Ryan Wall who all participated in the “YMCA AA Qualifying Championship” meet at Miami University! Cameron, Jay, Tristan & Ryan advanced on to the “YMCA Zone Championship” in Canton, Ohio the following weekend! At the YMCA Zone Championship Swim Meet those swimming in individual events will be Ryan - 50 back & 100 back, Cami - 100 and 200 fly & 100 breast. Jay - 50, 100 & 200 Free, 100 Fly, 100 Back and 200 IM. Tristan, Ryan, Cami and Jay will also be swimming in team relays. Congratulations to Ryan Wall & Tristan Empson who finished 15th out of 40 teams in the medley relay and Jay Bell who had top 20 finishes in 5 of his events and great job by Cameron Cahill at the YMCA Zone Championship Swim Meet in Canton!

Congratulations to 7th grader Arielle Arnett for making the Junior Olympic Swim Team! She competed at the State Junior Olympics in 8 different events that are: 50 fly, 50/100/200 & 500 free, 200 & 400 free relay and the 200 medley relay. She swam in the top 10 & top 20 in all her events!

Congratulations to Dale Bonifas, TMS 8th Grade Math teacher for being accepted as a 2012 NSF –RET Engineering Innovation and Design for STEM Teachers participant! Selection was done by a committee of five people who carefully reviewed the resumes, applications and letters of recommendations of over 50 qualified applicants. Mr. Bonifas will be required to, among other things: Develop one pilot ready lesson with his team upon conclusions of the six week session using phasing and template established by STEM Center, attend and present at one Design Clinic Symposium at UD and serve as either a STEM Fellow or STEM Ambassador for the academic year

2012-2013. Way to Go Mr. Bonifas!!!

Our TMS Choir Members visited L.T. Ball Intermediate School where they performed for the 5th grade students. A few of the Middle School choir members spoke to tell the younger students about choir and the wonderful opportunities that choir offers.

We would like to thank our parents that have been patient and are following the drop-off/pick-up instructions to ensure safety for our students as well as attempting to get parents out of the lot in a timely manner. As the weather improves we will have more students walking and riding bikes to and from school. With this in mind… please be aware of their presence and be courteous to the pedestrians at all crosswalks, since they do have the right-of-way. Again; thank you for your assistance and patience.

The 7th and 8th grade Power of the Pen did an outstanding job at the regional tournament in Sidney! The 7th grade team placed 3rd, while the 8th grade team placed 2nd, out of 28 schools. Overall, as a school, Tippecanoe Middle School took 1st place and received the Sweepstakes Trophy! Congrats to the following writers who placed: Faith Walker= 4th place, Emily Gootzeit = 9th place, Jesse Hemmelgarn = 6th place, and Alisha Bhaqwat = 2nd place. Also, Emily Doll received an Honorable Mention for Best of Round for one of her pieces of writing. Good Luck to Faithe Walker, Alisha Bhagwat, Emily Gootzeit, Jesse Hemmelgarn who will be competing at state on May 24-25 at the College of Wooster by virtue of their top 15 finishes at regionals!

Pi Day was Wednesday, March 14, 2012… Pi Day at TMS proved to be educational, fun and even delicious! The students brought in different objects and eatable treats to measure, calculate and enjoy.

The TMS STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) Club recently had a field trip to the Air Force Research laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The students had the opportunity to work with Scanning Electron Microscope. These microscopes use electrons to magnify an object up to 30,000 times! The students were able to see the body parts of a bee, a butterfly wing, and a feather.

The District Science Fair Finalists Brandon Bischoff, Adam Buynak, Thomas Chaney, Allison Chitwood, Emily Gootzeit, Emily Hodge, Jessica Miller, Samantha Rowland, Abby Walker and Faithe Walker competed at Central State University (near Xenia in Greene County). The results are in! Congratulations to our Science Fair Participants: Brandon Bischoff, Adam Buynak, Thomas Chaney, Allison Chitwood, Emily Gootzeit, Emily Hodge, Jessica Miller, Samantha Rowland, Abby Walker, and Faithe Walker who competed over the weekend at 2012 District Science Day at Central State University. The following students have moved onto State: Brandon Bischoff, Adam Buynak, Thomas Chaney, Allison Chitwood, and Samantha Rowland! Listed are the following awards given out: Adam Buynak/National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration Award, Thomas Chaney and Emily Hodge/Broadcom MASTERS STEM Competition, Allison Chitwood/Society of American Military Engineers-Best Environmental Sciences Award, Abby Walker/Central State University Greenhouse Award. The following students received a Superior rating on their projects: Brandon Bischoff, Adam Buynak, Thomas Chaney, Allison Chitwood, Samantha Rowland, Emily Hodge, Abby Walker, and Jessica Miller. An Excellent rating was awarded to Emily Gootzeit and Faithe Walker.

The Destination Imagination Team did an outstanding job in the Regional Competition at Edison! Team members Zach Carner, Gretchen Riggle, and Angelo Mihalyo now move on to the State Competition on Saturday, April 21st in Mount Vernon! Good Luck at State!

Congratulations to Zach Carner who competed at District Level Invention Convention at Wright State University. He invented a prototype for “The Pot Pad” it was created to help handle hot pots safely. He was awarded one of the 2012 Superior Innovator Award and received a $50 Savings Bond for his invention!

On Wednesday, March 21st our TMS 7th graders went on a field trip to Wright State University for a chemical demonstration by their Department of Chemistry. The chemical demonstration touched on numerous fields of science including combustion, sound frequencies, freezing points, and pressure just to name a few! A BIG Thanks to the Tipp City STEAM for sponsoring this event for our students!

Logan Ferrell & Jack Peura both competed in the 2012 Jr. High State Championship sponsored by OAC that was held in Youngstown, OH. Both Logan and Jack advanced to Sunday’s competition where they finished in the top 15!!! Congratulations Logan and Jack!

Congratulations to Caleb Blake who finished in the top 15 and Lucas Moore who finished in the top 30 at the Elementary State Wrestling Competition! Both boys have wrestled since an early age. They both wrestle for the Tipp City Team as well as Lucas wrestling for the Catalyst Club and Caleb for Team DeHart.

Tippecanoe Middle School STARSS Presented: Fairy Tales Go to Court by Steve and Lora Dingledine. It was held at L.T. Ball Intermediate School on March 9th. The cast consisted of: Graham Spangler, Kayla Cloud, Holly Green, Jessica Miller, Taylor Haggerty, Lydia Guevera, Sarah Sheranko, Rachel Jenkins, Ashleigh Hood, Nikita Parks, Claire Heatherly, Terrah Bruner, Tori Taylor, Laurel Spangler, Jasmine Fletcher, Meghan Kolakowski, Jenny Peele, and Faithe Walker. The performance was directed by Mrs. Lake & Mrs. Shirk. A BIG thank you goes to: Peg Hadden, Cody Flayer, Mr. Vagedes, Mrs. Dillon, Mrs. Patterson & LT Ball Staff, and Rick & Connor Lake. It was a stellar performance with a good time had by all!

On Tuesday, March 20th our TMS 8th graders attended a Field Trip to Victoria Theatre where they enjoyed the performance Lily’s Crossing. Lily's Crossing is a story of friendship and is set during World War II in the United States. Students can grasp a full understanding of how the war affected people on the home front. It asks them to think about the meaning of family, dealing with guilt, separation and loss, the consequences of dishonesty, and the rewards of honesty. A BIG thank you to the Tipp Foundation for making this field trip possible!

The TMS Band & Choir Solo/Ensemble Contest filled our classrooms and hallways with beautiful music! Our talented students performed for judges to critique their performances to help them improve. They are rated with a scoring system of I-V (I-being the best and V-being the lowest). Participants were awarded with certificates for their outstanding performances.

Please remember to continue to send in Box Tops & Campbell Soup Labels for TMS

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THESE UPCOMING EVENTS

Monday April 2 Students Return Friday April 6 No School (Good Friday) Friday April 6 3rd Quarter Grades available via PIV Wednesday April 11 2hr Early Release @ 12:30 (Staff Development)

TMS Communication Avenues

www.tippcityschools.com (you can access: Daily Announcements, Monthly Newsletters, Calendar, Quick News, pay fees and much more)

Daily Announcements & Newsletters emailed to you by emailing a request to: khagen@tippcity.k12.oh.us

Quick News emailed to you by emailing a request to: sbrownlee@tippcity.k12.oh.us

Email a staff member http://www.tippcityschools.com/site/Default.aspx?PageType=1&SiteID=201&ChannelID=217&DirectoryType=6

Telephone (667-8454)

Voicemail (24 hour/7 days a week)

PIV (Parent Internet Viewer PIV for grade information)

One Call Now

Email Alerts

Athletics (informational page & updates) http://www.tippcityschools.com/domain/208

Athletics (schedules, scores, directions) http://www.tippcityschools.com/169220814102224800/site/default.asp