Monday, April 18th

Good Evening Bruins,

I hope everyone enjoyed the extra long weekend and Holiday! Tomorrow marks the beginning of state testing. All tests will be administered in the mornings. Please make sure your child(ren) is/are well rested and on time. We begin testing each day at 8:30. Tests will be administered 4/19-21 and 4/26-28. I encourage all students to give their best effort on these exams as counselors, principals, teachers and parents will use the scores to help guide educational decisions in the future.

A HUGE Thank you to Foothills Church, Bearden which meets in our Auditorium on Sunday Mornings. Earlier this month they gave our art classrooms a much needed paint job and they did a campus clean up along with sprucing up the flower beds and pots with new mulch and plants where needed as well as weeding and mulching the court yard at the front of the building!

From Bearden High School: Hi my name is Baylan with Bearden High School’s SGA (student government association). Our organization is putting on a spring carnival at our school on Tuesday, April 26. The carnival will be from 5-8 pm with admissions being $5 per person or $20 cap for families. We will have a pie eating contest, music, dunk tanks, bouncy houses, and other fun games that clubs at our school are contributing.

Friday, May 6: West High School has invited us to their Red/Blue Game. Click here for more information. 

Bearden Boys Youth Basketball Camp at Bearden High School in late May. This camp is for boys in rising 4^th, 5^th, 6^th, 7^th, 8^th, and 9^th grades specifically. Click here for more information. 

Summer Learning Camp: If you are interested in your child attending Summer Learning Camp, Please indicate that interest by clicking on the link sent to eligible students by the district or call our main office at 865-539-7839. Press '0' to speak to Mrs. Corbin or Mrs. Dolvin who can assist you in filling out a paper form. You must indicate interest by April 22. 

Our Schedule is Changing: As you may know through the request process the students just went through, there will be changes to our master schedule next year. I'll share more information on that within the next week in a stand alone communication. As always our desire is to provide the best education possible for our students. The coming changes serve to simplify the schedule (no more red/blue days), and give students more time in Language Arts, Social Studies, Science and Math while allowing them to experience their Related Arts (PE, STEM, World Language, Fine Arts, and Reading/Math Intervention) every day instead of every other day. 

Please let me know if you have questions or comments at michael.toth@knoxschools.org. 

Thank you,

Mike

There have been a lot of cool evenings and weekends for athletic events. We had a great time celebrating the Foundation's Successful 'Fund the Field' Campaign on Friday evening at the Standard! Thank you again to all who are making the dream of an athletic field where we can host sporting contests along with a safe space for our PE classes as a reality! For more information or to learn how to donate, visit beardenmiddleschoolfoundation.org.

The School Musical Godspell Jr. is fast approaching. We will have school performances on Thursday 4/28 and Friday 4/29. 

• No Behavior Resulting in In/Off Team, RLC (Including Tardies), OSS. 
• Positive Behavior during TCAP Testing will be monitored by testing Proctors.

For Bruinaroo 5/20 and the 8th Grade Dance 5/24:

• No Behavior Resulting in In/Off Team, RLC (Including Tardies), OSS
• Positive Behavior during TCAP Testing will be monitored by testing Proctors
• Passing Grades in 6/8 classes. (If a student does not have 8 classes, teachers will make appropriate adjustments)
• All library books turned in
• Chromebook & charger returned (Collection dates are TBD but they will be before the 18th)

DANCE TEAM TRYOUTS

Some people were having issues with completing the Google Form sign-up sheet for try-outs. Here is the correct link: https://forms.gle/A7Pd4pzqnzhwgTLQ7 There will be two days of clinics, in which those trying out will have the opportunity to learn a tryout dance, practice dance skills, and meet other potential dance team members. On the second day, potential dancers will try out after school from 3:30 until all trying out have finished (this most likely will only take an hour). Those who make the team will find out via the BMSDT website page. https://www.knoxschools.org/Domain/2995 

• April 13: Information Meeting for new parents (Hammond’s room (237)) 3:45 pm– 4:15pm 
• April 22: All forms/requirements for try-outs due to Mr. Hammond 
• April 27: Video will be posted with all they need to know for try-outs (routine) 
• May 9: Clinic in BMS Gym from 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm 
• May 10: Tryouts in Gym from 3:30 pm – 6:00pm 

OUR PHYSICAL EDUCATION CLASSES NEED YOUR HELP 

Spring cleaning? Do you have any old exercise equipment or yard games that are just taking up space and collecting dust? Our PE department can use them! We are interested in items such as exercise mats, dumbbells or kettlebells, exercise balls, resistance bands, and games such as cornhole, bocce ball, and spikeball. Questions? Contact Coach Smith at hannah.smith@knoxschools.org 

8TH GRADE DANCE INFO

• The party will be held on May 24th, 6-9 pm at the Lighthouse.  
• Tickets will be $15 in advance, $20 at the door. The presale will end on Friday, May 13th. Students can buy tickets using cash during lunch or through Venmo. Tickets on sale during lunch: May 3rd, 5th, 10th, and 12th or you can Venmo money to https://www.venmo.com/u/BMS8th 
• Requirements for being able to attend the dance will be shared with students and parents this week. 

FREE SUMMER LEARNING CAMP

• Eligible families of 5th grade students zoned for BMS as well as our current 6th and 7th grade students can enroll in this through April 22. More information in English and Spanish – including an FAQ – is available at knoxschools.org/summerlearning.
• Eligible families should have received an email with enrollment information.
• We also have paper enrollment forms in the main office.
• If you have questions about this opportunity, please contact your grade level counselor.
  • 6th Grade: jimmy.cannington@knoxschools.org
  • 7th Grade: ruth.neubertdyer@knoxschools.org

TUTORING

KCS is hiring paid tutors to assist with reading in grades K-5 and math (including Algebra 1) in grades 6-8. These tutors will work with small groups of students (4 or fewer).

Available positions include:

• Full-time tutors, earning $125 / day, plus benefits;
• Part-time tutors, earning $16 per hour for half-day or hourly positions.

Tutors have the opportunity to make a tremendous difference in the lives of our students, and if you know of anyone who is interested in serving, please encourage them to visit knoxschools.org/tutors.

MASKING INFORMATION

from Superintendent Thomas: We wanted to make you aware that U.S. District Judge Ronnie Greer has granted the joint motion to lift the mask mandate while the Board of Education and the plaintiffs are undergoing the mediation process.

This means that when students and staff return to school on Monday, March 21, masks will not be required, until further notice. Please note that students and staff may still wear a mask if they choose.

Parents: Please discuss with your children that staff and students may choose to continue to wear masks and that we all must respect each others decisions concerning this.

FREE TUTORING

Free After-School Tutoring is available Wednesdays and Thursdays in the library from 3:30 - 4:45.  It will continue through the second week of May.  If your child is attending, please pick them up on the car rider side of the building at 4:45 pm. Contact joe.morelock@knoxschools.org

NATIONAL HISTORY DAY REGIONAL WINNERS 

• Junior Group Documentary
  • J. Armsworth and L. Schwed, First Place, TVA V. Hill: How a Controversial Dam and a Tiny Fish Challenged the ESA
• Junior Individual Exhibit
  • N. Burke, First Place, Creation of the State of Israel
• Junior Individual Website
  • O. Wimmer Third Place The Importance of Debate and Diplomacy In History: The Cuban Missile Crisis

Bearden Middle School Foundation Board Members

Kristy Altman • Katy Bibee • Alison Buchan • Yegi Cole • Jonathan Fortner

Miller Foutch • Shane Jackson • Gary LeCleir • Ben McMurry

Katie Neely • Scott Schimmel • David Stanley • James Sutton

Chris Vinson • Kathryn Vinson • Meredith Weaver • Jonathan Wimmer

Why Become a Member of PTA? $6 of your $10 membership helps fund items the school's budget doesn't cover. Joining the PTA does not obligate you to volunteer or attend meetings, although we hope you will join us as your schedule allows! Simply include your membership dues of $10 with the PTA Membership form (download below, or get a copy in the Main Office). $6 of that stays here at BMS to help support our many activities and initiatives; the remaining $4 goes to local, state, and national dues to support child-advocacy initiatives. 

Why suppport the Enrichment Fund? Any additional funds over $10 go to our Enrichment Fund, which supports funding gaps for technology, devices, books, programs, etc. Membership levels are as follows:  FRIEND LEVEL $1-$99, RED LEVEL $100-$179, WHITE LEVEL $180-$364, BLUE LEVEL $365-$499, BRUIN LEVEL $500-$999 and CORPORATE LEVEL $1000+.

Thank you for supporting the BMS PTA and our Enrichment Fund!