Week 37 - Monday, June 8 - June 12

Dear Memorial Parents and Guardians,

Welcome back to our last full week of school after a very busy weekend. In addition to the South Portland High School graduation on Sunday, our 8th graders enjoyed a wonderful 8th grade Social on Saturday night. We enjoyed wonderful weather for both watershed events. It is hard to imagine that we are coming into the last week and a half of school. The end of the year is always a lot of fun as we work hard to make sure that we are wrapping up well, while also getting ready to greet our new students.

Mr. Conant and I extend our warmest and most sincere "thank you" to all of the parents who played such a crucial role in the success of the 8th Grade Social. Every other year, Memorial Middle School parents work closely with us to plan and carry out this big event (next year, it is Mahoney's turn). The parents coordinate the entire event and really show all of us "how it's done!" This year, the theme was Hollywood and our students arrived on the red carpet at 7:00 p.m. and danced non-stop until 9:30 p.m. Thank you to all of the parents who brought very yummy food, helped decorate, and then stay late to help remove the decorations. Mr. Morneault was our local paparazzi, snapping pictures of students mugging next to Zach Efron, Robert Pattinson (of "Twilight" fame), Johnny Depp, and President Obama. These life-size cut outs were raffled and a few of our students were fortunate enough to bring one home. Students reported that they had a great time and that the food (even the healthy stuff) was really good. Thank you, once again, to all of the parents for making this event such a success!

We have a very busy week, filled with final projects, tests and activities. Tuesday, June 9th is a very important day for the citizens of South Portland, as they will vote on the School District budget as well as on a school and city bond. All voting will take place at the Community Center. The polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. Please remember to get out and vote! For additional information about the School Department budget and school bond, please check the following link:
http://www.spsd.org/archives/2009/06/board_of_educat_2.html

Tuesday evening (after everyone votes), our drama club will be performing in the spring production in the cafetorium at 6:30 p.m. The performers have been working very hard to get ready for the production and will hold a dress rehearsal on Monday from 2:30 - 4:00 p.m. We hope to see you all at the show on Tuesday!

Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m., our REACH students and their families and friends are invited to join us for the REACH Closing Ceremony. This is a very special night for the students in REACH as it is not only an opportunity to eat a delicious dinner, but it is also a time to reflect on the many, many accomplishments of the students in the REACH program this year.

This Wednesday and Thursday, the 5th grade students from Skillin, Dyer, Brown, and Kaler will join us. They will shadow a 6th grade student for one related art class and the first half of a core class (math, ELA, science or social studies). This is a great experience for our current 6th grade students, as they get to be the guides or mentors for kids that are often a little worried about coming to middle school. The students will head back to their schools at 11:30 a.m., after receiving a gift of a book from us, which we were able to purchase thanks to a generous grant from the South Portland/Cape Elizabeth Rotary Club.

Friday is our Field Day, which will take place from 12:30 - 2:15. Parents are invited to help us operate one of the stations.

Looking ahead to this summer, I am happy to announce that Memorial will be hosting two different summer programs for students. In addition to our summer Read 180 program, we will be offering Middle School Summer Academy for incoming 6th, 7th and 8th grade students. This program will provide literacy and math support in a project-based format. Students will also receive some support in establishing good academic and organizational skills. The program will run the first 3 weeks of August, Monday through Thursday from 12:00 - 3:00 p.m. The cost of the program is $40, with $20 refunded if the students attend all 12 days of the program. A sliding scale may be available depending on the need of the family. If you are interested, please contact our guidance department (merryra@spsd.org) to get more information.

As always, you are encouraged to contact the school should you have questions or concerns. Have a wonderful week!

Sincerely,
Megan Welter

Events this week:
Monday, June 8 - Day # 5
2:30 - 4:00 p.m. - Drama dress rehearsal - cafeteria
2:30 p.m. - Homework Club in room 108
7:00 p.m. - Regular School Board Meeting - City Council Chambers

Tuesday, June 9 - Day # 6
Vote on Budget and Bond referendums - 7 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. - Community Center
Connections day
2:30 p.m. - Homework Club - Room 108
6:30 p.m. - Drama production in the café

Wednesday, June 10 - Day # 1
Last workday for student laptops
9:30 - 11:30 a.m. - Step Up day for Kaler, Brown & Dyer 5th grade students
2:30 p.m. - Homework Club - room 108

Thursday, June 11- Day # 2
Students' laptops will be collected today
9:30 - 11:30 a.m. - Step Up day for Skillin 5th grade students
6:00 p.m. - Closing Ceremonies for REACH in café

Friday, June 12 - Day # 3
Hat Day - Students may pay $2 to wear a hat!
8:00 a.m. - 8th grade team meeting with Vicki and admin - room 310
12:30 - 2:15 p.m. - Field Day activities

Next Week + a few dates of note:
Monday, June 15 - Whale Watch - Grade 6 / Point Sebago - Grade 8
Tuesday, June 16 - Grade 8 Step Up to SPHS & Final assembly at 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, June 17 - Release at 11:15 a.m. & final assemblies
Grade 7 - 8:15 a.m.
Grade 6 - 9:15 a.m.