From Ms. Ayers
The 6th Grade Band/Orchestra/Jazz Band concert has been moved from December 13 to December 11 at 7:00pm. The concert takes place here in the auditorium. Students should speak with their individual conductors for dress requirements.
From Mr. Scurggs- Band
12/11/18 - 6th grade band, 6th grade orchestra and jazz band concert 7:00 p.m.
12/18/18 - 7th and 8th grade band, show choir, 7th and 8th grade orchestral - 7:00 p.m.
Also a big thank you to everyone who sold apples for the music department and for the parents and students who helped bagged the apples!
The sale was a big success!
Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO)
There will be no PTO meeting this Month, see you in 2019!
Everyone is automatically a member of our Parent Teacher Organization and there are no dues to be paid. We hope you will spend some time getting to know your school and that you will consider assisting the PTO in our efforts with your time and participation. We had a very successful year last year supporting many new initiatives at the school and hope to continue the same this year. Please be on the lookout for all the ways YOU can get involved!
PTO Future Meeting Schedule: We will meet the 2nd Monday of each month at 6 p.m. in the library; we try to keep meetings to about one hour; students and siblings are welcome to attend.
We still have some positions open, and will be looking for volunteers for several initiatives, including a color run this spring. PTO is always looking for people who want to be involved, and has a number of openings on the board. There are a number of ways to become involved as much (or little) as you'd like. Contact PTO President Jessie Thompson for more info at jmthompson5@gmail.com.
WDMS NEWS
Parents: WDMS News is BACK! The $1,500 part we needed to get the show up and running is here, All the directors have finished training, and the anchors and crew are rolling. We plan to make our show public for parents once we figure out all the legal issues with copyrights for the music and graphics we use. I'll send a link for you to view our WDMS news everyday in my January Principal's Pen. A link will also be found on our website in January. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Loos or Mr. Moore.
Clubs Corner
German Club
German 1 students went to the Main Street Eatery in Lynchburg for an Oktoberfest Dinner. Students were able to order an authentic German dinner with appetizer, entree, dessert, and drink. Forty-one students participated.
Our ladies of Rubies (Respectful, Unique, Beautiful, Intelligent, Excellent, and Sophisticated) had the great honor and opportunity of hearing from our very own, LCS Superintendent, Dr. Edwards. Dr. Edwards spoke to the ladies about the value of education through sharing her story involving struggles, trials and failures. Although she has faced several obstacles, she painted a beautiful picture of how determination, perseverance, and a positive attitude have helped her to overcome negativity and enjoy being a "trailblazer" for several communities. Our ladies thoroughly enjoyed listening and asking questions to an inspirational woman. If one of our DMS ladies is interested in being a part of Rubies, they are invited to join us at meetings or community service events. For more information, please contact Mrs. Bragg (braggce@lcsedu.net) and / or Mrs. Fowler (fowlercg@lcsedu.net).
FOOD and FASHION!
Our Poets have been loving our next Food and Fashion class in our brand new Culinary Art classroom! Our kids have been learning how to make practical and tasty dishes. They learn about nutrition as well as how to sew! Mrs. Meeks is doing an amazing job with your kids!
- Community Conversation @ HHS Postponed until 1/10 5:30 PM
- Golden Poet Awards Ceremony 12/11 6:00 PM
- 6th grade Band, Orchestra, Jazz Band Concert 12/11 7:00-8:00 PM Auditorium
- Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis Sound Check experience Trip 11/13 3:00 PM (Music teachers sent home permission forms for 7& 8th graders)
- 7th and 8th grade band, show choir, 7th and 8th grade orchestra - 12/18 7:00 PM
- Winter Break- 12/20-1/2 No School
- Always check the DMS website calendar for a complete list of DMS events
INNOVATION SPACE
We have set up our maker-space/Innovation Space in the lower library of Paul Laurence Dunbar Middle School! We just finished two awesome weeks of CODING!!!! How cool is that! This space will provide an environment where students can conduct experiments, design, and create under teacher supervision. We need your help to make this a success for all our students. We are asking parents to contribute some of the consumable resources we will be using in our Innovation Space. As you clean out your closet/pantry, please think about donating any of the items listed in the link below.
The Golden Poet Award
As you know, our mission at DunBAR is to "Raise the BAR." An initiative we started last year that will hopefully help our kids doing just that is called the "Golden Poet Award". Students can earn the Golden Poet status once per nine weeks by achieving three out of the four following standards: two hours of community service (must complete a community service form in the main office. See Ms. Bell for a form.), no discipline referrals or behavior issues, no unexcused absences, or be a recipient of a positive referral. Students who achieve the Golden Poet status will be recognized on the morning announcements and placed in a quarterly drawing for prizes. This is just another way for us to show our kids that doing the right thing and going the extra mile does pay off.
We will host a special awards ceremony to recognize Golden Poets and present each with a Golden Poet T-shirt on 12/11 at 6:00 p.m. in the DMS auditorium. Our superintendent Dr. Edwards will be our keynote speaker! Invitations for students who have earned this honor will go home the first week in December.
Click here for a list of students who qualified for the first semester! If you think your child qualified, but is omitted from the list please contact Ms. Galeone and tell her how your child meets the criteria outlined above. We want to celebrate as many Golden Poets as possible. We will sent home official invitation Thursday 12/6 and Friday 12/7.
GIVE OUR TEACHERS SOME LOVE! IT MEANS A LOT TO THEM!
Encourage our teachers- We know our teachers and staff members work very hard and need a pat on the back every now and then. If you would like to recognize a staff member for going above and beyond, you can. Click here to submit a positive referral using our Google Form, or email me with your nominations browndr@lcsedu.net (Our teachers appreciate this more than you know!)
The Principal's Challenge
I will begin issuing a weekly challenge for all our students to complete each week. These challenges are simple and quick acts of kindness and respect toward peers and staff. Students will NOT receive any reward or special acknowledgement for completing these challenges. It's just our way of giving them the opportunity to "Raise the BAR!" Please help us out with this by asking your child what the challenge for the week is and how they are completing it. This week's challenge is about friendliness . Dr Brown has declared this national fist bump week! Give as many people as possible a fist bump, dap, high five, or pound cake! Be as friendly as possible. Tis’ the season!
Before students came back to school this year, my entire staff and I sat down and had a serious conversation about the values that we wanted to commit to exhibiting consistently for our parents, students, and each other. I am sharing the values that we all agreed upon, along with our mission, vision, and goals so that you can hold us accountable. We want to be about action here at Dunbar, not lip-service! We are determined to raise the BAR!
- Professional
- Respectful
- Responsible
- Collaborative
- Positive
- Helpful
- Inspiring
Vision- To be a National School Model for Innovation and Student Success for ALL.
Mission- To raise the BAR: Through innovation and inspiration, high expectations for ALL, and strong relationships.
Goals- National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence, and a Model PLC School
Theme for the Year: Family
Credits:
Created with images by Konstiantyn - "christmas tree light" • furtseff - " The hands of violinists in a Symphony orchestra" • Zsolt Biczó - "Blowing brass wind instrument on table" • pyansetia2008 - "Teacher Day. Hydrangea flowers and copybooks on the teacher d" • Mark Carrel - "News And Key Questions" • luzitanija - "waving colorful flag of germany."