Friday, November 20, 2020

A Message from the Superintendent

Friday's message from Superintendent Sue Charochak is replicated below for your reference.

I am writing to share a reminder for all families regarding our travel guidance as well as a reminder of the Governor’s Order of Nov. 6, 2020 with new regulations on both public and private gatherings. This year it is hard to balance our desire to celebrate the holidays with loved ones and the growing risk of COVID-19 infection. Travel or gathering does increase your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19, so we are asking families to think about how they can make their holiday plans safer. As the virus continues to spread throughout the country, we encourage families to make safe choices about travel and gathering this holiday season.

Effective August 1, 2020, Governor Baker issued an Order outlining restrictions on travel for people coming into Massachusetts, including Massachusetts residents returning to Massachusetts. In accordance with these guidelines, the City of Beverly and the Beverly Public Schools have issued the following out of state travel notification.

The travel policy requires those who travel out of state to follow the necessary quarantine procedures. You will need to remain quarantined for 
  • at least 14 days from the date of your return to Massachusetts; or
  • or if the individual has received a negative result from a DPH approved (PCR) COVID-19 test result that has been administered after 72-hours following their arrival in Massachusetts. (Please note that the time of 72 hours following return to Massachusetts is a local municipal order for city employees and differs slightly from the State DPH guidance.
Individuals can avoid the 14 day quarantine requirement if they are coming from a designated lower risk state as outlined by the Order. The list of lower risk states is regularly updated and can be found here. Students who travel out of state must comply with these regulations before returning to school.

Further, effective on November 6, 2020, Governor Baker has implemented new restrictions on gatherings both in public places and in private homes. The revised Order can be found here. Of note, this Order limits private gatherings indoors to no more than 10 people and gatherings outdoors to no more than 25 people. The Order also requires social distancing and face coverings at all gatherings that include individuals outside the household.

While I understand how challenging this COVID-19 pandemic has been and the desire to spend time with family and friends, we all must work together to limit the spread of COVID-19. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation and for your continued partnership as we work together to navigate the challenges of COVID-19.

Sue Charochak, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools

A Message from the Principal

Dear BMS Families,

As we approach the end of the trimester, we are asking those of you who are looking to make a change from RLA to Hybrid or from Hybrid to RLA, please contact your assistant principal

Please understand that if you choose to make a change, your student will need to change the present team they are attached to.

Thank you,
Lisa Oliver
BMS Principal

Gr 8 - Essex Tech Info

Essex North Shore Agricultural & Technical School will premiere a Virtual Open House tomorrow, Saturday, November 21, 2020. There will be a series of videos about Essex North Shore and an interactive virtual tour of the school building. 

In the meantime, you can, read more about their programs and offerings at the Essex Tech website.

Book Donation Event at BPL Tomorrow

 The Friends of the Beverly Public Library wants your books! 

Weather permitting, the Friends will be outside at the main library, Winter Street entrance, to collect book donations on Saturday, November 21, from 10 AM – 3 PM.
  • Up to 2 clean boxes/bags of books per household.
  • Books must be in new or very good condition. For the safety of our staff and library collections, damaged books, including visible warping or mold, will not be accepted.
  • Will accept: Paperbacks & hardcovers, fiction & nonfiction, for readers of all ages, plus DVDs, CDs, audiobooks, and vinyl records.
  • Cannot accept magazines, textbooks, condensed books, or VHS tapes.
  • Please wear a mask and observe social distancing during your drop off.
This is a one-time book donation collection event. After the event, the library will temporarily re-suspend collection of book donations. All donated books and media will be sold by the Friends of the Beverly Public Library to support library programs.

If you have any additional questions, please contact the library at 978-921-6062.

Band is Virtual on Friday

Band meetings are being held virtually today, Friday, November 20. Band students should leave the building at 1:00.

Reminders & Resources from BMS Nurses

The Beverly Middle School nurses want to help you keep your family healthy and safe this holiday season! They have some reminders and resources for you about:

  • Flu Vaccinations
  • Safe(r) Thanksgiving
  • Travel Quarantine Regulations
  • COVID-19 Testing

Online Book Fair Kicks Off

The Book Shop of Beverly Farms is hosting an online Book Fair in conjunction with the Beverly High School National Honor Society, so kids and and their families can get some hand-selected books for the holiday season, with an eye toward encouraging reading and the best new works out this fall. 

Even better, 20% of all sales from the Book Fair will go straight to buy books for the Beverly School libraries at deep discounts -- just put "Beverly Book Fair" in the Notes field at checkout. 

The fair runs from Thursday, November 19 through Wednesday, December 9. There are different delivery options, including pickup at the store and delivery here at BMS, along with shipping.

They have preselected some great titles for you, but you can also shop in person, and tell them at checkout that you'd like to be part of the Beverly Book Fair to send 20% to purchasing books for the school libraries.

See this page for suggested titles and book fair details or call the Book Shop from 10 - 4 on weekdays at 978-927-2122.

Thursday, November 19, 2020

Book Shop Fundraiser for BPS Libraries

The Book Shop of Beverly Farms is hosting an online Book Fair in conjunction with the Beverly High School National Honor Society, so kids and and their families can get some hand-selected books for the holiday season, with an eye toward encouraging reading and the best new works out this fall. 

Even better, 20% of all sales from the Book Fair will go straight to buy books for the Beverly School libraries at deep discounts -- just put "Beverly Book Fair" in the Notes field at checkout.

The fair will run from November 19 through December 9. There are different delivery options, including pickup at the store and delivery here at BMS, along with shipping.

They have preselected some great titles for you, but you can also shop in person, and tell them at checkout that you'd like to be part of the Beverly Book Fair to send 20% to purchasing books for the school libraries.

See this page for suggested titles and book fair details or call the Book Shop from 10 - 4 on weekdays at 978-927-2122.

Boys Travel Basketball Tryouts Monday Evening

Boys travel basketball tryouts for 4th, 5th, & 6th grade teams will be held at the Beverly YMCA Teen Center on Monday Nov 23rd. Registration is at 5:45PM registration and tryouts from 6 to 7PM

  • 8 game season plus playoffs 
  • each team will consist of 10 players 
  • most games played on Sundays at Teen Center
  • tryouts run by Beverly High Varsity Basketball Coach Matt Karakoudas

RESERVE YOUR SPOT ON SIGN UP GENIUS
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0549a9ab2aa3f49-tryout

BPL Bookmobile Stops at BMS on Monday

The Beverly Public Library Bookmobile stops at BMS on Monday, November 23. If your child has any public library books to return they can bring them in on this day and put them in the library return box in the school lobby and Ms. Woznick will get them to the bookmobile. You can also contact the bookmobile librarian Katie Marsh at kmarsh@noblenet.org or 978-921-6062 x2115 to ask for a delivery at school; Ms. Woznick can pick it up and deliver it to your student's classroom.

You can also check the bookmobile schedule to see when it's in your neighborhood! Click the schedule link on this page.

Band Meetings Virtual Thursday/Friday

Band meetings will be held virtually on Thursday, November 19, and Friday, November 20. Band students should leave the building at 1:00.

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Updated Wed 11/25 Schedule

On Wednesday, November 25, BMS students will have their regular Wednesday online meetings and activities up until 12:15 pm. All meetings and scheduled instruction will conclude at 12:15 for the Thanksgiving holiday. (Note that this is a change from the previously announced 1:00 time.)

There are no classes - online or in person - on Thursday, November 26 or Friday, November 27 for the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Curriculum Night - Global Apps Presentation

We had a fantastic turnout for our Global Apps presentation during Curriculum Night! Unfortunately, it did mean we hit our meeting limit and some were not able to get in. We know other interested families could not attend due to conflicts. That's OK though because we are providing both the video of the meeting and the presentation for you to view at your own pace! Please contact the GA teachers directly by email if you have questions about any of the information. 



Pajama Day on Thursday

This Tuesday 11/17 (B cohort) and Thursday 11/19 (A cohort) are Pajama Days! Wear your PJs to school and pay $1 or more to raise money for Riley Rocks Memorial Foundation!

Please remember that school rules about appropriate dress still apply. Slippers are allowed but must have rubber soles for safety!


Prairie Lotus Book Discussion at 11:45 Wednesday

 Ms. Woznick finished reading aloud the book Prairie Lotus last week, by Newbery Award-winning author Linda Sue Park. 

Anyone who has been reading or listening along with the group or on their own is invited to come to a book discussion session on Wed., Nov. 18 at 11:45 am. The link is posted in the Google Classroom.

You can still access the read-aloud in the Google Classroom until the end of November. To get the code or for more information, contact the BMS librarian, Ms. Woznick at awoznick@beverlyschools.org.

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Reminders & Resources from BMS Nurses

The Beverly Middle School nurses want to help you keep your family healthy and safe this holiday season! They have some reminders and resources for you about:

  • Flu Vaccinations
  • Safe(r) Thanksgiving
  • Travel Quarantine Regulations
  • COVID-19 Testing

Chorus Cancelled Tuesday

 Chorus is cancelled today (Tuesday 11/17).

Curriculum Night Tonight

 Curriculum night is Tuesday, November 17th. Our global app teachers will be presenting together from 5:15- 6:00. To participate in this presentation you may use this link: https://meet.google.com/ibz-fsre-zue

(please note the link posted yesterday contained an error - this one is correct!)

Team teachers will send you a direct link to participate in their team presentations. The presentations are 45 minutes long and will run from 6:00 - 6:45.

Monday, November 16, 2020

Six Word Memoirs of 2020

Tell your pandemic story in six words. The Beverly Public Library want to preserve Beverly’s collective experience of 2020, a most unusual year. Add to Beverly’s pandemic stories by submitting yours. The BPL will submit entries to the Six-Word Memoirs website (with permission) and add them to their local history collection. This is open to any and all!

Submit entries by Monday, November 30.

See what the 8 Hale Students came up with! 
Watch the slide show below or click here to see it in Google Slides

Thansgiving Holiday Schedule

On Wednesday, November 25, BMS students will have their regular Wednesday online meetings and activities up until 1:00 pm. All meetings and scheduled instruction will conclude at 1:00 for the Thanksgiving holiday. 

There is no school on Thursday, November 26 or Friday, November 27. All buildings will be closed.

Gr 8 - Essex Tech

Essex North Shore Agricultural & Technical School will premiere a Virtual Open House on Saturday, November 21, 2020. There will be a series of videos about Essex North Shore and an interactive virtual tour of the school building. 

In the meantime, you can read more about the open house and find out about their programs and offerings.

Curriculum Night Tomorrow

Curriculum night is Tuesday, November 17th. Our global app teachers will be presenting together from 5:15- 6:00. To participate in this presentation you may use this link: http://https://meet.google.com/ibz-fsre-zue

Classroom teachers will send you a direct link to participate in their team presentations. The presentations are 45 minutes long and will run from 6:00 - 6:45.

Pajama Days Tu/Th

This Tuesday (B cohort) and Thursday (A cohort) will be Pajama Days! Wear your PJs to school and pay $1 or more to raise money for Riley Rocks Memorial Foundation!

Please remember that school rules about appropriate dress still apply. Slippers are allowed but must have rubber soles for safety!


Boys Travel Basketball Tryouts 11/23

Boys travel basketball tryouts for 4th, 5th, & 6th grade teams will be held at the Beverly YMCA Teen Center on Monday Nov 23rd. Registration is at 5:45PM registration and tryouts from 6 to 7PM
  • 8 game season plus playoffs 
  • each team will consist of 10 players 
  • most games played on Sundays at Teen Center
  • tryouts run by Beverly High Varsity Basketball Coach Matt Karakoudas

RESERVE YOUR SPOT ON SIGN UP GENIUS
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0549a9ab2aa3f49-tryout

Sending and Receiving Postcards Worldwide


BMS Librarian Ms. Woznick set up a Postcrossing school account. You can see cards we have sent and received so far on our Postcrossing blog. Students who would like to be involved in this can email Ms. Woznick at awoznick@beverlyschools.org to be invited to a Google Classroom where you get first look at incoming cards and an opportunity to write outgoing cards. Thanks to the BMS PTO for support of this cross-cultural exchange program!

BPL Bookmobile Stops at BMS Tomorrow

The Beverly Public Library Bookmobile stops at BMS on Tuesday, November 17 and Monday, November 23. If your child has any public library books to return they can bring them in on this day and put them in the library return box in the school lobby and Ms. Woznick will get them to the bookmobile. You can also contact the bookmobile librarian Katie Marsh at kmarsh@noblenet.org or 978-921-6062 x2115 to ask for a delivery at school; Ms. Woznick can pick it up and deliver it to your student's classroom.

You can also check the bookmobile schedule to see when it's in your neighborhood! Click the schedule link on this page.

Got Books? The BPL Wants Some!

The Friends of the Beverly Public Library wants your books! 

Weather permitting, the Friends will be outside at the main library, Winter Street entrance, to collect book donations on Saturday, November 21, from 10 AM – 3 PM.
  • Up to 2 clean boxes/bags of books per household.
  • Books must be in new or very good condition. For the safety of our staff and library collections, damaged books, including visible warping or mold, will not be accepted.
  • Will accept: Paperbacks & hardcovers, fiction & nonfiction, for readers of all ages, plus DVDs, CDs, audiobooks, and vinyl records.
  • Cannot accept magazines, textbooks, condensed books, or VHS tapes.
  • Please wear a mask and observe social distancing during your drop off.
This is a one-time book donation collection event. After the event, the library will temporarily re-suspend collection of book donations. All donated books and media will be sold by the Friends of the Beverly Public Library to support library programs.

If you have any additional questions, please contact the library at 978-921-6062.

Sunday, November 15, 2020

Book Suggestions from Ms. Woznick

BMS Librarian Ms. Woznick is starting a series of recommended books that can be accessed through a variety of means. Today's books are all avaialable using the Hoopla app (which students can download from Self Service on their school iPads) and set up with a Beverly Public Library card. Go here for a tutorial about how to use Hoopla.