5/17/2024: Shepherdstown Middle School is experiencing issues with the main phone line. Please dial 304-671-7436 if you need to reach the front office. Thank you.
Students celebrated the arrival of Spring, Earth Day and the coming end of the school year in Mentorship recently. Each Mentorship section was tasked with creating a flower to represent their class and spirit. This mural hangs in the cafeteria were all can enjoy it each day. What a great team building activity. Way to go, Cardinals!
Mrs. French's 6th grade ELA classes are published authors! During a unit on Poetry, students journeyed outside to take in the sights and sounds of nature. Using those thoughts for inspiration, they wrote and illustrated a nature Haiku, a customary subject for this form of poem. This week, the students received a bound book of their poems and those of their classmates - what a treasure! Great work, Cardinals!
Congratulations to Katie Madrid and Cynthia Carper on being named the district's 2024 Teacher and Service Person of the Year! We were thrilled to honor these outstanding members of our educational community at our annual recognition dinner on April 25. Read more here 👉 https://www.jcswv.org/article/1569068
Mrs. Schriever's Science classes were "rocketing" into learning about Newton's 3rd Law this week by launching water and air propelled rockets and measuring the results. The activity combined several science and math skills in addition to Newton's Law - the Scientific Method as they made predictions, performed trials, recorded data and synthesized results; math skills as they used triangles to measure the altitude of the rocket launch; and data skills as they identified the independent and dependent variables and outliers. These "blast-offs" were a blast! Way to go, Cardinals!
Shepherdstown Middle School cheered on Shepherdstown Elementary students during their annual Story Book Parade. Our Cardinals were proud to see their siblings, friends and former teachers marching through the street in the costumes of their favorite book characters! Clapping and shouting of names of characters abounded. It was a real treat; thanks Road Runners!
JCS Reminder: Tomorrow, Friday, April 12th is a 2-Hour Early Dismissal for students and a Faculty Senate day for staff.
JCS Reminder: Tomorrow, Monday, April 8th is a 2-Hour Early Dismissal.
A reminder that Spring Break begins on Friday, March 29, with all Jefferson County schools and offices closed. Schools will remain closed April 1-5, while JCS offices will be open. Students will return to school on Monday, April 8. Enjoy your Spring Break!
Please review the JCS calendar reminders and changes for April: https://www.smore.com/n/qr4xnh
💵 Thanks to the Office of West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore for helping JCS middle school students "Get a Life!" Eighth-graders across the district participated in this interactive, award-winning program to learn about financial literacy. Students developed a family budget, managed an expense ledger, and participated in real-life simulations with the help of community volunteers serving as salespeople, insurance agents, and doctors. Thank you to these local business leaders for supporting our students in this crucial hands-on learning experience!
The 8th graders participated in the "Get a Life" program this week -- an activity put on by the Treasury Department of WV to teach managing finances and the importance of education through two simulations - one as a person who received higher education and one that didn't. After receiving the jobs, students were challenged to get all the necessities while staying within the budget given. It was fun, thought-provoking and relevant. Nice work, Cardinals! 💲🏡🏫
🤖 The Shepherdstown Middle School robotics club finished the season strong at states! Congratulations to the SMS robotics team "The Shepherds!" on their fifth-place finish at the 2024 VEX State Championship. The team also took home the Builder Award at the March 14 tournament at Fairmont State University. Fellow SMS teams "The Mech Makers" and "The Live Wires" placed in the top 50% of teams statewide at the event. It was a successful end to an exciting season that saw the first-ever regional VEX Robotics competition held in Jefferson County. Way to go, Cardinals!
Students from all four middle schools recently represented JCS at the first-ever West Virginia Middle School All-State Band in Charleston. The event marked the first time middle school band musicians had the opportunity to earn this state-wide recognition. Visit https://www.jcswv.org/article/1386997 for a complete list of attendees!
3/20/2024: Shepherdstown Middle School is experiencing issues with the main phone line. Please dial 304-671-7436 if you need to reach the front office. Thank you.
What an active and engaging day of professional learning! Elementary art teachers participated in hands-on activities today as they continue to grow as professional educators. It was just one of several district-wide training opportunities JCS was proud to offer staff on this professional learning day as they continue to perfect their skills in our schools and classrooms. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to student success!
Students in Mr. Cleaver's 7th grade Ag class worked on their cellphone stand project this week. The students used their knowledge of safety, measurement, tools and skills to create a stand that will allow them to watch video on their phone or tablet hands-free. A great culmination of the course. Well done, Cardinals!
As a reminder, there is no school for students tomorrow, Friday, March 8, 2024. This is a professional development day for staff.
The Shepherdstown Middle School Jazz Band performed at the Eastern Regional Jazz Festival on Saturday, February 24th and received a superior rating. Outstanding soloist award winners were Nick Randell, Myla Turner, Eadyn Kruger, Logan Meredith, and the saxophone section. A recording of their performance was anonymously submitted to the state jazz judges. On Sunday, the Shepherdstown Middle School Jazz Band was named the #1 middle school jazz band in the State of West Virginia. As the WV Honor Jazz Band, the SMS Jazz band was invited to perform at the West Virginia Music Educators Association conference in Charleston, WV on Thursday, February 29th - quite an honor. Congratulations, Cardinals!
Each year 6th grade science students in Ms Kessler's classes make maple syrup. SMS is home to one silver maple tree with three large trunks. The students tapped the two trunks on January 25th - an important date as the weather must be below freezing at night and above freezing during the day to have sap flow. They collected 25 gallons of sap and slowly cooked the water off until it reached syrup stage (219 F). The total syrup was 11.5 cups. Next a taste test was done in the Teacher's Lounges comparing SMS syrup to Dollar General and Walmart brand. A tasty investigation into practical science. Nice work, Cardinals!
