Mandarino Minutes for 10-24-16

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Counselors and Social Worker in 7th grade classrooms-

Mrs. Farichild, Mrs. Lowds, and Mrs. Peterson met with 7th graders recently and discussed, positive aspects of online talking & messaging; how to identify situations in which online chatting become inappropriate & risky; and understanding rules for safe online messaging & how to deal with uncomfortable situations.  Here is a handout to go along with what they talked about:

https://d2e111jq13me73.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/6-8-familytip-safeonlinetalk_0.pdf

Spirit Week Continues-

We had some great book & movie characters today. :)  Spirit week continues this week with...

Tuesday-  Pajama Day

Wednesday-  Workout Wear Day

Thursday-  Decades Day

Friday- Favorite Sports Team Day (I can't wait to see all the Cubs wear!)

Next Monday for Halloween students may dress-up, however no clowns, bloody gore, and students must remove masks in class.

Spoktacular Orchestra Concert-

Thursday evening beginning at 7:00 P.M. in the high school auditorium is the Orchestra "Spooktacular" Fall Concert for 7th-12th grade orchestras.  This concert is always a lot of fun and very entertaining. 

"GO" time-

"GO" (Growth Opportunity) time will begin this week at UMS and SJHS.  This Thursday teachers, staff, and students at Upton will be trying something for the very first time!  Students can

...get help from a teacher without having to come into school early or stay late.

...have another chance to understand difficult homework.

...learn how to organize better.

... have the opportunity to retake a quiz or test

...have fun playing educational games and activities with teachers

...enjoy more time with art, computers, woods or metals, cooking, or playing activities in PE

...just have some extra time to read that novel you’ve been trying to finish?

GO Time stands for Growth Opportunity Time which means that students will have the opportunity to grow in a subject that may be difficult OR be able to learn something completely new.  Classes will meet for 54 minutes, instead of the normal 60 minutes on those dates. Stay tuned to hear more about this exciting opportunity!

Competitive Cheer-

All female athletes interested in competitive cheer, there's an informational meeting on THURSDAY, October 27th at 6:30pm in the Upton auditorium. 

*Please note, competitive cheer does NOT interfere with girls basketball*

If you have any questions, please let Jhaylee Busby know at:  jhayleebusby1@gmail.com

7th & 8th grade Dance-

We will have a 7th and 8th grade dance next Friday, November 4th from 6:00-8:00 P.M. in the Upton Blue Gym. Only 7th & 8th graders from Upton Middle School can attend this dance. Information is posted in the hallways for the students.

1st Marking Period coming to an end-

Next Thursday, November 3rd is the end of the first marking period.


Quote of the week-
"I think the first duty of society is justice."- Alexander Hamilton

Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for October 17, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,

8th graders and their EDPs-

8th graders updated their Educational Development Plans in Social Studies classes on Friday, 10/14 with the guidance of their counselors. EDPs are completed via CareerCruising.com, and include a Career Interest Inventory as well as postsecondary education plans. The counseling department is encouraging students to access Career Cruising and share their EDP with their parents. 

Workout with a Cop-

It was great to hear that many Upton students attended the workout day with the local officers of Berrien County on Saturday.  Several of our students were on the front page of Section B of the Herald Palladium on Sunday, October 16th.

Planetarium Community Night-

Tomorrow night at 6:30 P.M. will be a community planetarium night at UMS.  The focus will be for younger students as the show has a Sesame Street theme and the title is One World, One Sky.

8th grade Field Trip-

Our 8th grade field trip to the Water Treatment Plan and the Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery is this week. 

-On the 19th (Wednesday) will be all of Mrs. Mackellar’s 8th grade science students  and Mrs. Foster’s 1st hour 8th grade science students. 

-On the 20th (Thursday) will be all of my Mrs. Francis's 8th grade science students and Mrs. Foster’s 2nd hour 8th grade science students. 

Thanks to those parents who signed up to chaperone. Note:  Only parents that have submitted their volunteer background check forms and have been approved will be permitted to go on the trip with the classes.

Keep the Coats and Shoes coming-

Thanks so much for the donations of the coats, hats, mittens, gloves, etc. for the less fortunate in Berrien County that we have received so far!  The Builders Club would also like to thank you for the shoes that we have received so far.  These are both great causes!  We continue to ask for these gently used items.

Dowagiac Rock-N-Run 2.1 Mile Run-

Congratulations to the following students who all medaled for finishing in the top 15 at the big Dowagiac meet last week:  Andrew Moyer, Jake Haunhorst, Ryan Kinney, Will Fiesbeck, Lizzy Nelson, Eleah Hedstrom, Jillian Tunnicliff, Hannah Pallo, Ellie Pavlopoulos, Maya Hunter, and Morgan Tschetter.  With over 200 runners this is truly amazing!!!!!  Upton Middle School also was the overall middle school winners for both boys and girls!  Congratulations to the whole team and Coaches VanderMeulen & Coach Fralick!

Spirit Week next week-

October 24th – October 28th

Monday                Favorite Book or Movie Character Day

Tuesday                Pajama Day

Wednesday           Workout Wear Day

Thursday              Decades Day

Friday                   Favorite Sports Team Day

Halloween on October 31st will be a dress-up day for those wishing to participate, however the school dress code still applies for appropriateness.  Fake blood is not permitted, spray cans for coloring hair should be done at home, and please no clown outfits.  Masks can't be worn during the actual class time.

Late Start Wednesday-

We have a late start this Wednesday, October 19th.  Breakfast will be served at 8:15 A.M. for those that are interested.  Buses will report one hour later.

Quote of the week-

"If you want to make a difference and leave your world a better place, let others know how important they are as you put their needs above yours.”  - Jaren L. Davis

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for October 10th, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Ski & Snowboarding Club-
It is that time of year again to register your daughter/son for ski club.  Ski club is SJPS largest club. No prior experience is needed.  Mr. Brown is the club advisor and really does a nice job!  Here is the link for the sign up:   Ski and Snowboard Sign Up
If you have any questions, please email Mr. Brown at:  ibrown@sjschools.org


NHS Tutoring this Wednesday, October 12th-
For the first time this school year we will have National Honor Society students here from 3:00-4:00 P.M. this Wednesday, October 12th in the Upton Media Center.  If your daughter/son would like to meet with a tutor then they should come prepared with the class and skills that they could use help with.  Teachers may also recommend a student for assistance as well.  This is totally free and often our middle school students really make a positive connection with a high school student.  The high school also offers this same tutoring on Tuesday and Thursdays in their media center from 3:00-4:00P.M.


Choir Concert this Thursday, October 13th-
Our first choir concert of the year is this Thursday October 13th at 7:00 P.M. at the SJHS Auditorium. The students are really excited and the singing is always very wonderful!



Shoe Drive for Builders Club-
Our Builders Club at Upton Middle School is sponsoring a shoe drive through the Kiwanis Club.  If you have a pair of shoes with no holes in the soles we would appreciate your donation to our collection boxes at Upton.  We would like the shoes rubber banded together, and if you do not have a rubber band we can provide that in the office.  Any type of shoe is appreciated. These will be used to help those that do not have the resources. Thanks from the Builders Club.


Coat, Mittens, Gloves, Scarves, Etc.-
The Women's Service League in coordination with Upton Middle School is once again a drop off area for gently worn coats, hats, mittens, gloves, and scarves.  All of these donations are used to help those in Berrien County.  Our drop off box is located in the office.  Please consider donating items that you no longer use for a great cause.


Morning Announcements and DEAR Time-
Upton runs morning announcements on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings.  Our students are the producers, technicians, camera people, and anchors.  On Tuesday and Thursday mornings we ask each student to bring a free read item for our DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) time.  Mrs. Burnette is the advisor to the morning announcement team.


Steps to addressing something in a class-
If you ever want to talk about your son/daughter struggling with a class the first step is to contact the teacher before the counselor or administrator.  Over 90% of the time a teacher and parent contact can work out a plan to help.


3 1/2 Weeks left in the First Marking Period-
Wow, where did this 1st marking period go?  We have 3 1/2 weeks left in this marking period.  In the middle school we have two different honor rolls depending on the marking period.  We have a 1st and 3rd marking period honor roll and a semester honor roll (for the halfway point and the end of the year based on GPA). This information is also in the student handbook. Here are the criteria for each one:

Marking Period Honor Roll Criteria for 1st and 3rd Marking Periods

Principals' Honor Roll:

Straight A's (or A-'s)

Honor Roll:

At least 2 A's (or A-'s) and no grade lower than a B.  This means B- or lower disqualifies.

Semester Honor Roll Criteria:

4.00 - 3.50 Maize Honor Roll
3.49 - 3.00 Blue Honor Roll

Quote of the week:

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."- Mahatma Gandhi

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for October 3rd, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Builders Club-
The first meeting of Builders Club will be this Wednesday, October 5th from 3:00-3:45 P.M. in the Foods room at Upton Middle School.  Mrs. Hunnell will give an overview of the club and some of the plans for the year.  If your son/daughter is at all interested, please have them check it out.


Athletic events-
Students who are attending our sporting events as fans should go home and come back when the game begins.  Many of our games begin at 4:00/4:30 P.M. and this is a long time for students to hang out before an event starts.  Please help us out on this.


Jacob Maynard-
You may or may not have seen a recent article in the Herald Palladium featuring 8th grader, Jacob Maynard and his efforts to help out at a local cemetery.  Jacob led a group of Boy Scouts to help cleanup some headstones and make them readable again.  Congratulations to Jacob for his efforts!

Interact Club- 

Interact Club had a great turnout for the first Meeting! Future meetings will be posted in the hall and announced the day prior. If you are interested in being an Interact Club Officer or Director, a sign up form is in the office. If you are still interested in joining Interact Club, fill out an application in the office. If you have questions, please see Interact Club President, Rhett Huie.

Choir Concert next week-

Next Thursday, October 13th at 7:00 P.M. in the high school auditorium will be the first Upton Choir Concert of the year.  Mrs. Gray-Roll always prepares the students well for a great concert.  Please join us if your schedule allows.

No Science Olympiad this Week-

Due to the science teachcrs attending some professional development opportunities we will not have Science Olympiad this week.


Lory's Place Grief Counseling-
Starting this Wednesday, October 5th Lory's Place along with counselor Mrs. Amy Peterson will host some grief counseling for any student interested in attending.  These sessions will last approximately one hour in a group setting.  Permission slips will go home tomorrow, October 4th.  If you have any questions please email Mrs. Peterson at:  apeterson@sjschools.org

Late Start Wednesday-

Every Wednesday in October is a late start Wednesday.  We still have supervision at our regular time and breakfast will be served at 8:15 A.M.  Buses will pickup one hour later.

Community Corkboard-

Have you visited the Community Corkboard lately?  If not, here is a link: https://www.sjschools.org/sjps-parents/community-cork-board-district

Count Day this Wednesday, October 5th-  

This Wednesday in the State of Michigan is Count Day.  We encourage all students to arrive to school on time, so that we can take an accurate attendance.  Thanks for your help with this!

Quote of the Week-

"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style." -Maya Angelou

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for September 26, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Welcome to the start of the 4th week of school!  It is flying already!

itsLearning Parent Help Night-
Mrs. Dirlam will be offering her second parent help night this Wednesday, September 28th in the Upton Auditorium.  Please bring your child’s laptop and login information.  The session will run from 7:00- 7:30 P.M.


Free Tutoring-
Beginning tomorrow, Tuesday, September 27th, St. Joseph High School will offer free tutoring every Tuesday and Thursday from 3:00-4:00 P.M. in the high school media center.  The National Honor Society students led by Ms. Nita Nicholie will provide the tutoring.


6th grade Book Club-
Any 6th grader interested in joining the monthly book discussion can get an application from our media center.  This is done at their lunchtime the first Thursday of each month  The first book is Schooled by Godan Korman and this will be discussed on October 6th.  If you have a daughter/son that loves to read, please encourage them to join.

Builders Club 2016-2017-

Builders Club is back!  Builders Club is a community service group that encourages leadership, responsibility, and quality character traits.  See our bulletin board in the hallway by the conference room for pictures of our past projects and a list of our tentative ones for this year.  Our kick-off meeting is Wednesday, October 5th, 2:50 – 3:45 in the foods room.  We hope to see you there!

itsLearning App for Smartphones-

The itsLearning app for smartphones is currently designed for students.  If parents want to access itsLearning on a mobile device, they need to go through the internet browser and log in that way.  We have been told that itsLearning is working on developing a parent app.  When we hear that the parent app has been developed we will let you know.

Behavior at the Football games-

Please help us out by encouraging your daughter/son to not play the water bottle flipping game at our home football games.  Although it may seem like innocent fun it also can flip and hit someone accidentally.  If you are not sure what the water bottle flip challenge is you can go to youtube and see hundreds of clips on it or just ask you daughter/son. Thanks for your help! :)  

Late-Start Wednesday-
We will have a one hour delay this Wednesday, September 28th.  Buses will come one hour later and breakfast will be available starting at 8:15 A.M. at Upton.


Pictures this Thursday, September 29th-
Upton will have pictures this Thursday, September 29th for those students who were not able to make our start-up day.  Forms are available in the office.  We have announced this to our students as well. 100% of our students should get their pictures taken for their student ID's and the yearbook.


News team applications-
We have been advertising at Upton that we are looking for students interested in joining our news team as either a producer/technicician, camera person, or anchor.  Applications are in the media center and are due by this Wednesday, September 28th.  Mrs. Burnette will be leading this and can be contacted for more information.


Quote of the week:
"Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it is better to be alone than in bad company." - Booker T. Washington

Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for September 20, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,


itsLearning-

Directions on setting up your parent itsLearning portal can be found at:
https://www.sjschools.org/images/District/Using_the_itsLearning_Parent_Portal.pdf

Students needing passes to leave school-

When a student is leaving school a parent/guardian must come in to the school to sign them out. When the student returns back to school the student may sign themselves in.  We ask that a note be brought to the office in the morning and we will give your child a passport to leave at the time that you designate on the note.  We would prefer the note over a phone call message.

Help in the morning/printing-

If your son/daughter needs help from a teacher before school, please send them in with a note with the teachers name on it.  Our supervisors will then let them through to see their teacher.  Students should still enter the building through the usual student entrance.

Setting up a printer at home from your child's laptop-

Your daughter/son can get directions on setting up your home printer on the Upton Middle School itsLearning main page.  The directions are towards the bottom of the page.  If your child is not successful in setting it up, please have them come in before school and see one of our IT guys in the media center.


Bus Passes-

Bus passes must be submitted to the office by noon each day.  Two of our busses, Bus 1 & 20, can't have bus passes as these two buses are very full.  Bus drivers are not allowed to allow students on the bus that do not regularly ride with them.  Most transportation questions can be answered at 926-3900.


The "Joe Bots"

The 2016 Upton FIRST Robotics FTC team "The Joe Bots" is up and running. The Club has had a great turnout this year!  The club has 25 students and several parents helping this year.  Here is a link that can take you to their Facebook page:

Joe Bots Face Book Page

Interact Club Meeting-

The first meeting of the Interact Club is tomorrow (Wednesday, September 21st) after school in the Upton Auditorium from 3:00-3:45 P.M.  This club is open to all interested 6-8th graders.  Any interested student should show up tomorrow and see what it is all about.  If you have any questions, please text Jackie Huie at (269) 930-1325.

Equestrian Club-

Those students interested in the St. Joe Equestrian team may contact advisor, Cindy Philip.  You may contact Cindy at cphilip@vbisd.org.

Spanish Club-

We will once again have an introductory and intermediate Spanish club.  The beginners will meet on Tuesdays beginning Tuesday, October 4th and the Intermediate class will begin on Wednesday, October 5th.  The classes will run from 3:00-4:00 P.M.  The classes will run for 10 weeks.  A handout is in the office for more information or you may contact Cynthia Ellspermann at:  cellspermann@sjschools.org

One-hour delay-

Tomorrow (Wednesday, September 21st) is our first one-hour delay of the school year.  Buses will arrive exactly one hour later, and breakfast will still be served.  We can still allow students to arrive at 7:15 A.M. for parents whose work schedule does not allow the students to stay at home one hour later.  One hour delay dates for September are:  9-21 and 9-28 & October dates are :  10-5, 10-12, 10-19, and 10-26.

UPTO-

We have our first UPTO meeting of the year this Thursday, September 22nd at noon.  Our UPTO does many wonderful things for the students of Upton Middle School.  The UPTO is still accepting your donations to them.  Remember, the Upton PTO does not do a selling fundraiser and depends solely on your donations. 

Car riders in the A.M.- 

Dropping off of students in the morning is a busy and crowded time.  Please have patience and allow extra time.  Please do not drop your students off in the road on Maiden Lane as this is very dangerous.  Observe the entrance and exit driveway signs, and let your student out as soon as you pull up - please do not wait to get to the end of the line for your student to disembark.  The driving line should be single line.  Students are also not to be picked up in the faculty lot on the north end of the building.

Picture Day for those that could not make Start-Up Day-

Next Thursday, September 29th will be picture day for those students who were not able to make it to Start-Up day.  We need every student to get their picture taken as we use this picture for our yearbook and their student ID.

Official Count Day-

The official count day for the State of Michigan this school year is Wednesday, October 5th.  Please try and have your child present all day on the 5th and please try to avoid out-of-school appointments on this day.  At the secondary level, students are counted each and every hour.  Thanks in advance for your help on this!

Deliveries During Class Time-

In order to eliminate interruptions to the educational time in the classroom, students should pick up forgotten items in the office between classes.  Please label the item with your son/daughter's name.

Community Corkboard-

Please visit the SJPS community corkboard at https://www.sjschools.org/sjps-parents/community-cork-board-district  This site has many various activities that are going on in Southwest Michigan.

Quote of the week:

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." - William Butler Yeats

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 6-13-16

Dear Parents/Guardians,


A Great Year-
The staff and I would like to thank you for a great year at Upton Middle School! We had many accomplishments and highlights to celebrate! We are proud of the our students and the hard work they put forth.  Our staff also worked very hard to get your student/s ready for the next level! 

8th grade Laptop pickup-
If your daughter/son purchased their laptop they are available to pickup this week from 8:00 A.M.-12:00 P.M. and 1:00 P.M.-3:00 P.M. daily.  Please come in the main office and Mrs. Bolt, Mrs. Dongvillo, and Ms. Dongvillo are happy to assist you.

Will Henry's School Record-
Will Henry broke a record in track that was an Upton record for over 23 years!  Will broke the 200 Meter run record.  This accomplishment was accidentaly left off the list at 8th grade farewell.  This was a very huge feat!  Congratulations to Will and it will be great to see what he will do at SJHS!

Missing library books, textbooks, etc.-
If your son/daughter has a textbook or library book, please return that to the office by Tuesday, June 21st.  We would really appreciate it!

Report Cards & NWEA scores-
Report cards and NWEA results from this school year will be mailed out late this week or early next week.

Last Quote of the Year-
"Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the most beautiful words in the English language."- Henry James

Have a great summer,
Mr. Mandarino

Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.
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Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.
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Summer afternoon, summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/summer.html