Mandarino Minutes for 4-30-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,


6th/7th M-Step Begins/8th grade is done & NWEA next week -
Monday-Wednesday in their math classes 6th and 7th grade students will be doing their Math M-Step.  8th grade is done with M-Step, except for make-ups.  Next week all 6th-8th graders will be doing their reading and math NWEA to see the growth from Fall to Spring.

The Upton Book Fair Is Here-

The Upton book fair is open!  Make sure you stop by the media center sometime this week to see the new titles everyone's talking about and pick up a few for summer reading opportunities.

Hours of Operation

Monday, April 30th through Friday, May 4th -- 7:25am-3:15pm  (8:25am on Late Start day)

Can't make it to Upton this week?  Shop ONLINE!  Check out the link below to our online fair.

• Shop until Tuesday, May 8th -- 24 hours a day
• Expanded selection, crossing all grades and subject areas
• All purchases ship FREE to Upton

http://www.scholastic.com/bf/uptonmiddleschool

Science Olympiad at State-

We medaled in two events out of 60 teams at state.  Microbe Mission  – 6^th place and Optics – 8^th place.  George Weber (9^th grader) and Riya Jain (7^th grader) were the winning combination for both of those events.  Joe Paine and Kat Paloyan were one spot out of the medals (9^th place) for Road Scholars. 

We also placed in the top 20 in the following events: Battery Buggy (Nick Strickler and Caleb Boersen), Experimental Design (Andrew Barazotto, Harshdeep Kaur, and Hiranmayi M.), and Mystery Architecture (EZ Brown and Daela Coleman).

The following people helped mentor our students:  Jenna Francis, George Tikohonova, Denise Clark, Kam Truhn, Kelsey Wright, Jeff St. Amand, Ann St. Amand, Richard Barazotto, Rinkle Jain, Rachel Kietzerow, Chris Paine, Kristen Robinson, and Johannah Brown. Science Olympiad could not run without their help and support. 

No D & D  Club this week-
The Dungeons and Dragons club will not meet this Wednesday, May 2nd.

Ren Baldwin Technology Festival Friday, May 11th-

The Ren Baldwin Technology Festival will be on Friday, May 11th from 6:00-7:30 at St. Joseph High School.  It will be a wonderful display of our students' talents. 

Little Mermaid Jr.-
Saturday, May 12th is around the corner for our Little Mermaid Jr. performances.  The shows will be at 2:00 PM & 7:00 PM at the John & Dede Howard Auditorium at St. Joseph High School.

Quote of the week-
"We are one, our cause is one, and we must help each other; if we are to succeed." - Fredrick Douglass

Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 4-23-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Congratulations to Mrs. Gressley's Battle Of The Books Team-
Our Upton Middle School team consisting of  Noah Kelley, Aaliyah Louis, Ella Rimes, Mei Mei Saggau-Drotos, beat the battle team from Lakeshore.  They won 90-82.  A close match and the trophy comes back home to the Upton Media Center. Congratulations on their hard work!

Salmon in the Classroom-
Mrs. Francis classes and Ms. Spriegel/Mrs. Fosters's 4th hour class will on their field trip tomorrow Tuesday, April 24th. Mrs. MacKellar's classes and Ms. Spriegel/Mrs. Fosters's 5th hour class will be gone this Thursday, April 26th.

M-Step Continues-

Today and Wednesday (April 25th) will be 8th grade Social Studies, and Tuesday (MacKellar/Foster/Spriegel's 5th hour) will take 8th science, while (Francis/Foster/Spriegel's 4th hour) will take their science test Thursday.  6th & 7th math M-Step will begin next Monday,  April 30th.

Book Fair at Upton Middle School-

The Upton spring book fair is coming! A great one-stop shop for new and exciting titles, additions to summer reading lists, and more. The fair will run next Monday through Friday, April 30th - May 4th.   See you at the fair!

An incident at UMS-

Last week at Upton Middle School we had an incident where a 6^th grader brought in a toy gun. A couple of students reported it, the situation was dealt with immediately, staff were communicated with, and the proper consequences took place.  We take all matters of student discipline very seriously. We also do want to protect the privacy of our investigations. Rumors and gossip can be vicious and can hurt people, so we appreciate your support in this.

6th-8th grade dance-

We will have a dance this Friday, April 27th for all grades. The dance will be from 6:00-8:00 PM.  Please have rides ready when the dance is over.  We typically do one dance a year that 6th graders can attend.  Mrs. Hubble and the student council are the hosts.  Our UPTO helps with the chaperones, and we would love even a few more.  If you can chaperone please email Mrs. Hubble at jhubble@sjschools.org

Ren Baldwin Technology Festival-

The 2018 Ren Baldwin Technology Festival will be on Friday, May 11th at St. Joseph High School from 6:00-7:30 PM.

Quote of the Week-

"And then one day I decided that hurry and stress were no longer going to be a part of my life.  Stress is self-created; I decided to stop manufacturing it.  We can choose an internal calm and joy even amid the chaos." - Brendon Burchard

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 4-16-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,

The next two weeks at UMS-

Monday, April 16th- Wednesday, April 18th- 8th grade Math M-Step

Tuesday, April 17th- End of Rotation 4 for 6th & 7th grades

Tuesday, April 17th- Board of Education Meeting 6:00 PM at Central Office

Wednesday, April 18th-  Start of Rotation 5 for 6th & 7th grades

Wednesday, April 18th-  Late Start

Thursday, April 19th- GO Time

Thursday, April 19th- Planetarium Community Night 6:30 PM

Monday, April 23rd and Wednesday, April 25th-  

8th grade Social Studies M-Step

Tuesday, April 24th and Thursday, April 26th- 

8th grade Science M-Step

Tuesday, April 24th and Thursday, April 26th- 

8th grade Salmon Field trip

Wednesday, April 25th-  Late Start

Thursday, April 26th- GO Time

8th grade Parent Meeting for Dual Credit-

DUAL CREDIT IMPORTANT INFORMATIONAL MEETING

New Guidelines & Deadlines for 2018-19 School Year!

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WEDNESDAY APRIL 18, 2018

12:00pm OR 6:30pm

SJHS Auditorium

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This is a very important informational meeting and encourage all parents of students currently in 8–11^th grades to attend if your student has requested a Dual Credit course for 2018-19 school year!  Students welcome to attend the 6:30pm session.

If there is any possibility your student will be taking a Dual Credit Course for 2018-19 or during their high school you will want to attend to hear about new Accuplacer testing deadlines, sign up requirements, Frequently Asked Questions and much more.

Incoming Freshman Dual Credit Course Options:

Foods & Nutrition

Graphic Arts

Athletic Training

DUAL CREDIT COURSE at SJHS = LMC College Credit (when testing pre-reqs are met)

NEW THIS YEAR:

ALL ACCUPLACER TESTING MUST BE COMPLETED BY AUGUST 31, 2018

to qualify for 2018-19 Dual Credit – NO exceptions! 

Please NOTE: our timeline is much earlier than previous years.

Dual Credit Registration Forms Deadline: Due September 7, 2018

Registration forms will be distributed in class on Wednesday, September 5.

LMC SPRING & SUMMER TESTING DATES will be available at the Parent Meeting, 

April 18.

UPTO this Thursday, April19th-

The April UPTO meeting will be this Thursday, April 19th beginning at noon in the Upton Conference room.

8th grade Farewell Meeting-

Tonight (Monday, April 16th) beginning at 6:30 PM will be a meeting at Panera for any 8th grade parent wanting to help volunteer for 8th grade farewell.

Quote of the week-

"No legacy is so rich as honesty." - William Shakespeare

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minute Post for 4-12-18 (addition)

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Ren Baldwin Technology Festival Deadline-

Entries for the 2018 Ren Baldwin Student Technology Festival are due MONDAY, APRIL 16th!  Upton students have created numerous digital projects this year that would make wonderful submissions.  More information and the registration link can be found on the TECH FEST WEB SITE

All students who enter a project will be entered to win an iPad.  The festival event will take place on Friday, May 11th, at St. Joseph High School.  Students do not have to be present at the actual festival to enter a project or to win the iPad.  More information on the actual festival event will be coming soon.  In the meantime, please encourage your child to submit a project.  We look forward to showcasing the creative work completed this school year!  

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Dirlam (adirlam@sjschools.org) or Mrs. Burnette (kburnette@sjschools.org)

Mandarino Minutes for 4-9-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Welcome Back-
I hope your family had a wonderful Spring break!  It was a great time to get recharged.  This last marking period is the quickest of the school year.  Please help us out by stressing the importance of working hard until the end of the school year.  

Self Care Series-
Over Spring break the resource signs were posted in the bathrooms at Upton Middle School and St. Joseph High School.  These were the signs that were highlighted in the SJPS Self-Care Series in February in an email that Mrs. Cardon sent out to the parents in the district.  Here is the link to that pdf:   https://www.sjschools.org/images/District/SelfCareSeries1.pdf

M-Step starts this week-
8th grade M-Step starts on Wednesday with three days of ELA.  Next week will be 8th grade Math M-Step, and the week of the 23rd will be 8th grade social studies and science M-Step.  6th and 7th grade M-Step starts April 30th with Math.  I will give an heads up again in a future blog of upcoming testing.  Please make sure that you encourage your daughter/son to do their best!

Chaperones for 8th grade Salmon in the Classroom Trip-
On April 24th all of Mrs. Francis classes and Mrs. Foster/Spriegel's 4th hour and on April 26th all of Mrs. MacKellar's and Mrs. Foster/Spriegel's 5th hour will be attending the Salmon Release Day field trip in Watervliet.  It is a fun day of science experiments, and releasing the salmon.  We are looking for a few more chaperones.  If you are able please email the following teachers:
jfrancis@sjschools.org  (If you son/daughter is going on Tuesday) ; amackellar@sjschools.org  (If you son/daughter is going on Thursday)

Dungeons and Dragons Club this Wednesday-
The Upton Dungeons and Dragons club will end at 4:30 PM this Wednesday, April 11th.

Please be careful in the morning!!!-
I have put this in the blog before, but we really need your help in driving safely during drop-off in the morning.  Please use caution, please do not cut out of line, and please keep your speed down.  We also ask that you please do not drop your kids off in the middle of Lincoln Avenue or Maiden Lane.  When it is dark it is hard to see students darting across the road.  Please take a few extra minutes and leave a little earlier if your schedule is tight.

No Late Start this week-
The district does not have a late start this Wednesday, April 11th.  

Quote of the week-
"Memories of our lives, of our works, and our deeds will continue in others."  - Rosa Parks

Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino