Congratulations to Connor Husa, an eighth gradestudent at Beatrice Middle School, who won the 2011-2012 National Geographic Bee contest at the middleschool. Runner-up in this years competition was AaronShumaker, a sixth grade student. The competition includ-ed all 525 students at the middle school taking an initial40 question geography “quiz” in their social studies classroom. The topstudents in each of the six core teams advanced to the second round ofquestions. After the second round, seven students remained in thecompetition. The seven students who advanced to the final were DaltonLayman, Austin Ragland, Micheal Baumfalk, Tyler Milke, Brendon Simpson,Aaron Shumaker, and Connor Husa.

The final round consisted of each student answering an individualquestion from the National Geographic Bee question booklet. When a studenthad missed two questions, they were eliminated from the competition. Connorfinished as our overall champion for Beatrice Middle School. Connor took afinal test which will determine if he qualifies for the state competition later inthe school year.

Good job Connor and to all of the finalist s who participated. BeatriceMiddle School is proud of the accomplishments made by students.

Beatrice Middle School

RRRRRandy Scandy Scandy Scandy Scandy Schlueterhlueterhlueterhlueterhlueter, Principal, Principal, Principal, Principal, PrincipalDaDaDaDaDavid Krvid Krvid Krvid Krvid Krausausausausaus, Assistant Principal, Assistant Principal, Assistant Principal, Assistant Principal, Assistant PrincipalTTTTTrrrrracacacacacy Py Py Py Py Post, Counselorost, Counselorost, Counselorost, Counselorost, CounselorAmy RAmy RAmy RAmy RAmy Randel, Counselorandel, Counselorandel, Counselorandel, Counselorandel, Counselor

February 2012 Beatrice Middle School Newsletter Vol. 20 No. 5

PRINCIPAL POINTS - RANDY SCHLUETER

CONGRATULATIONS!CONGRATULATIONS!CONGRATULATIONS!CONGRATULATIONS!CONGRATULATIONS!

I have been in the 6th and 7th grade classrooms with the main topic of bullying being discussed during the month of January. Overall the response from students has been very positive. Students have the power to create a caring

community at Beatrice Middle School. Middle school students know the difference between right and wrong and are verycapable of being part of the solution to a bully situation or part of the problem in a bully situation. Bullying occurs when there is notan adult present. There are three parts to every bullying situation; the bully, the target and the bystander. More than 85% of ourstudents are in the bystander role and are not the bully or the target. Students have been taught that as bystanders they have aresponsibility to keep each other safe, by standing up for the target, getting help from an adult, or simply by not encouraging thebully by laughing and approving of the bully's behavior. As a bystander there are things that can be done to help. Bystanders aretaught to remember the acronym WALK. W-stands for Walk away from the bully with the target. A-stands for Assertively tell the bullyto stop and then walk away. L-stands for Listen to the bully, use empathy skills and try to understand what they are going through. K-stands for Know where to go to report bullying, who to report bullying to and how to get help. The bystander has more power thanthey realize by their response to bullying. I realize it can be very difficult for a bystander to step in and make a choice to help atarget. It takes a great deal of courage as a student to stand up to bullying. We will continue to support and teach students ways tohandle conflicts. 7th graders have also discussed the very serious topic of sexual harassment and how to handle that form ofbullying. Ask your 7th grader to see the handout given to them in class. I would also strongly encourage you to closely monitortext messages and face book postings. Both texting and face book are a great resource for kids to use, but it is also a great dealof responsibility for them. It is so important for everyone to be using those resources responsibly and not using them to hurt others.

8th graders had guest speaker, Stephanie Wells a prevention specialist from Hope Crisis Center, talk to them about theserious affects of bullying. So often, students choose to not come to school because of bullying. Stephanie told each student thatthey do not have the right to make fun of someone else just because they feel like it. Students only have control over what they doand say and she asked each student to think about their reactions to bullying and what they see and to be part of the solution increating a safe and caring environment at Beatrice Middle School. Please monitor your child’s cell phone messages and the thingsthat are being posted on face-book.

As always there is a lot going on in the lives of your child. Bullying is a serious complicated issue that can make lifemiserable. Our goal as always is to keep kids learning and becoming positive, healthy members of our school and community.Please talk with your child about all of these issues and feel free to call me if you have any questions or if I can help in anyway.

Amy Randel-Middle School Counselor223-1545

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL'S CORNERDavid Kraus ATTENDANCE

There is a powerful link between successful learning and regular school attendance as shown in numerous research studies.However, there are times when a student is not able to attend school and state law does allow for that. It is important for parentsto know that Nebraska State Law only allows a student to miss 20 days in a school year. All absences, regardless of excused orunexcused, are counted as explained in the BMS student handbook. If you are unsure where your child is on the number ofabsences, please contact the school and we would be happy to assist you.

BMS ATTENDANCE REGULATIONS1) The Beatrice Public Schools attendance policy allows each student a maximum of ten (10) absences per semester of twenty (20)absences per year.2) All absences, regardless of the purpose for which they occur, will count toward the maximum number of absences, exceptabsences resulting from participation in school-sponsored activities, school exclusions and documented medical absences. Amedical appointment will be counted as an excused absence for the time of the appointment and travel time to and from theappointment. The parent or guardian must present documented evidence (doctor or dentist appointment notes, court appearancedocument, etc.) as to the reason for the absence.

Students Discuss The Serious Topic of Bullying

Beatrice High School will host an 8th grade parent orientation meeting on Thursday, February 16th at 6:30 pm in the Hevelone Center at the high school. Parents will be given informa-tion about Beatrice High School and will be able to ask questions about class schedules for the 2011/2012 school year. All 8th grade parents should plan to attend this meeting. If you cannot attend andhave questions, feel free to call the student services office at the high school, 223-1517.

Welcome to a New Year! The beginning of each year is very busy in the music department. Many of thehonor choirs, clinics, and competitions begin. We work at a frantic pace during these months. Our firstevent was held on January 6th – UNO Middle School Honor Choir. Natalie Meyer, Keeli Boesiger,Will Crandall, and Connor Husa were selected to participate through taped auditions. This is a difficultchoir to get in to, so I am very proud of these young people. The day went very well and the concert atthe conclusion of the day was awesome!

Our next event was held on January 27th. The Delegation and Harmony seventh graders attended theHeartland Middle School Vocal Clinic. This is always a fun day with about 500 students attending frommany schools in Nebraska. In February, Sing Around Nebraska will be held on the 18th at Beatrice HighSchool. Delegation will begin its’ competition season at the UNO Show Choir Festival on February 15th, followed by The Battle of the Show Choirs at Omaha Westside on the 25th. They will have one morecompetition on March 16th. You can see that we are VERY busy.

If your child is not involved in music in some way, please encourage them to be involved. Studies by Brenda Hanna-Epley, a clinicalneuropsychologist at Emory University looked at transfer effects to non-music cognition, the ways that learning music changes your brain.Participating in making music and learning to read music engages both hemispheres of the brain and involves multisensory processing. This hasan effect on the neuroplasticity of the brain. People (including adults), with increased plasticity tend to do better on cognitive tests . The testsincluded: visual reproduction and recall, visuomoter speed, sequencing and flexibility, and verbal functions. The tests also showed an advantagefor adults in their older years by increasing the flexibility and function of their brains as they age. Music is a win-win for everyone. Get involved!

BEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOLBEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOLBEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOLBEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOLBEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOLFEBRUARY SPORTS SCHEDULEFEBRUARY SPORTS SCHEDULEFEBRUARY SPORTS SCHEDULEFEBRUARY SPORTS SCHEDULEFEBRUARY SPORTS SCHEDULE

8th Grade Boys BasketballFeb.7 Seward Tourn. TBA (T)Feb. 9 Seward Tourn. TBA (T)Feb. 13 Seward 4:00 (H)

Music Notes….Music Notes….Music Notes….Music Notes….Music Notes….

Just a reminder that we have scheduled the Middle School dental screenings for February 9th from 8:30-9:30 AM. If your childreceived a screening letter attached to their progress report at parent teacher conferences, please fill out and return to the mainoffice or nursing office by February 8th.

* I have also mailed out Asthma Action Plans and Medication consent forms to the parents of students that I have not receivedthem from yet, so please fill out and return ASAP*. Also, if your child uses a rescue inhaler please send one to school as soon

as possible so we have one on hand. Thank you for your cooperation.

7th Grade Coaches: Mr. Brand/Mr. Menke

7th Grade Boys BasketballFeb.7 Seward Tourn. TBA (T)Feb. 9 Seward Tourn. TBA (T)Feb. 13 Seward 4:00 (H)

8th Grade Coaches: Mr. Essam/Mr. Bruhn

The Beatrice Middle School Media Center now has a website. Take a minute to check it out. There is a link to the NeSA standardsfor math and language arts as well as help sites if your student gets stuck on their homework. There is also a link to the onlinecataloging system being used throughout the entire district. Students can access this from any computer to look up books we have,look up information using our on-line encyclopedias or credible websites. This can be very helpful when working on projects, etcwhile at home.

NNNNNOTOTOTOTOTES FRES FRES FRES FRES FROM THE LIABRAROM THE LIABRAROM THE LIABRAROM THE LIABRAROM THE LIABRARYYYYY

MEET YOUR BEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOL'SMEET YOUR BEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOL'SMEET YOUR BEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOL'SMEET YOUR BEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOL'SMEET YOUR BEATRICE MIDDLE SCHOOL'S

STUDENTS OF CHARACTER!!STUDENTS OF CHARACTER!!STUDENTS OF CHARACTER!!STUDENTS OF CHARACTER!!STUDENTS OF CHARACTER!!

CITIZENSHIPCITIZENSHIPCITIZENSHIPCITIZENSHIPCITIZENSHIPLeft to Right: Steven Jordan, Marissa Sandman, MikaylaBletscher, Dillon Buss, Morgan Folkerts, Trent Poley, andTaylor Easley.

Left to Right: Alexa Neukirch, Brittany Thomas, KaylinHagemeier, Eli Hoefer, Caylen Henning, Tobi Hinkle, andTilden Bardsley.

TRUSTWORTHINESSTRUSTWORTHINESSTRUSTWORTHINESSTRUSTWORTHINESSTRUSTWORTHINESS

Left to Right: Grace Schuster, Bridget Lovell, AlexisCollins, Jada Prokop, Jenna Junker, Lindsay Keane, andElizabeth Kruse

RESPONSIBILITYRESPONSIBILITYRESPONSIBILITYRESPONSIBILITYRESPONSIBILITYLeft to Right: Kaitlyn Copas, Elizabeth Kruse, Beth Aden,Cooper Blum, Brianna Drees, Madison Ewald, andChristine Frerichs.

RESPECTRESPECTRESPECTRESPECTRESPECT

FAIRNESSFAIRNESSFAIRNESSFAIRNESSFAIRNESS

Left to Right: Audrea Ulrick, Michaela Jones, WillCrandall, Camden Adams, Landon Zarybnicky, andTrevor Schmale Not Pictured: Isabelle Zito

CARINGCARINGCARINGCARINGCARINGLeft to Right: Emma Elliott, Cody Sohl, Kelsie Blythe,Alexis Oden, Dawson Zimmerman, Shawn Vraspir, andSami Oakes.

6th Grade

7th Grade

8th Grade

Emily BartholomewDylan BassingerJorden BinnickMikayla BletscherChristian BorzekofskiDillon BussBridget ChristensenDillon DammeChase DeBoerHannah DrentArial EggertMadison EwaldKaleigh FielderBrayden FrerichsJessic FujanMonica FujanBenjamin GarlandColton GronewoldElijah HavekostKacie HeidbrinkTessa HoffmanJadyn HueninkLogan HuttAustin HuwaldtJenna JunkerKole JurgensWhitley KlevelandElizabeth KruseNathan LancasterSamantha MaguireAaron MayCayden McConnellJohn MenclAlexa NeukirchHayden OwensMaria PinkertonJada ProkopCorlyn RegierTiffany RegierMya RileyMakalah ScheeleTrevor SchmaleHaley SextonAaron ShumakerTrevor Smith

Allison SnurrGraham SouthwickSamuel SteffenEvan SueperJamison TheyeZachary ThiesBrittany ThomasAngela ThornburgAdam TjeerdsmaShawn VraspirAbigail WitulskiJoseph WrightGwendolyn Zumwalt

Brady AchtemeierCamden AdamsDeAngelo AdenKirsten BaeteTilden BardsleyHannah BaumanMichelle BaumfalkJackson BillesbachKrystina BillesbachGarrett BloomquistCooper BlumKeeli BoesigerTia BuhrTiffany CampionMadison CarlsonAlexis CollinsWilliam CrandallDylan CullisonJenna DaubendiekNatalie DoeringBrienna DreesEmma DuBoisMorgan EnglerDakoda FreitagCourtney FujanKameron HarlanDalton HartigChristian HeilCaylen HenningElijah HoeferAlyssa Huwaldt

Steven JordanDakota KernerAlexis KessAugust KnobelKyle LenersChandler MaguireNoah MarshallMark MartinezTyler MilkeTaylor NelsonBryce PardeMadison PieperJacob PinkertonJoseph PinkertonTrenton PoleyKendall PostColby RileyHannah SandsSkylar ShottenkirkNoah SnurrNathan SpilkerTabetha SteelKatie SteffenRiley StevensSkylar ThomasBreanna TrauernichtKaylee VanWinkleKennedy VaterAli WaltersNathaniel WeitzmanRandal Westlake-MelroyJenilee WrightJoscelyn ZimmermanIsabelle ZitoAndrea Zulauf

Trevor EichenbergerTrinity FaklerDeva FreemanNickolas FunkDylan GeorgeBrandon GrantKaylin HagemeierGage HoeferAshley HothanSkylar HulsConnor HusaJordan JurgensAustin KarlinBridget LovellHannah MeintsKaitlyn MessnerKaela MeyerNatalie MeyerMicaela NavarreteJordan NoackSamantha OakesAnissa PadgettOlivia PittmanHayley PlesselMegan PlesselAustin RaglandSarah RiekenbergEmily SandalMarissa SandmanJonathon SchleuferChesney SchmidtHannah SextonKyleigh SwobodaDevan TriplettMitchell TroutMallory TvrdyJacob WrightCassidy WrightsmanBailey ZarybnickyLandon Zarybnicky

Bethany AdenAngelina AljanabiCheyanne BaumannGiselle BergmeierHunter BoldenJacob BrodDylan BurenheideLindsey Durman

EXPLORATORY TEAMPARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES

Please check with your child on which exploratory teacher to visit.(Conference time - 5 minutes)

FEBRUARY 6TH AND 9TH.........................4:30 - 8:30 P.M.

P. E./Health-Hovendick & Bruhn Locker RoomReading/Sped - Murray - Room 112Reading/Sped - Fink - Room 206

Music-Burgess - Room 109Art - Thies - Room 101Computers - Menke - Room 209Family Consumer Science - Smaus - Room 106Industrial Tech - Fentress - Room 18 (Monday only)

Upward Bound is recruiting new members. If college is your goal then UB is the pro-gram for you! Upward Bound is a federally-funded grant program through SoutheastCommunity College that is a college preparatory program intended to assist and en-courage talented high school students to achieve their educational goals. This programworks with 50 students in three area high schools and helps participants succeed inhigh school and prepare for and enroll in college. Participants receive academic ser-vices (tutoring, study skill workshops, test taking skills, ACT prep workshops, etc.),personal services (one on one meetings with advisors, self-improvement workshops,etc.), and college and career services (assistance in completing college applications,financial aid workshops, college campus visits, cultural outings, career inventories,etc.). If you are or have a student whose goal is to obtain a college degree, we may bethe program for you! To qualify for Upward Bound the student must meet the follow-ing criteria:

*Student would be a first-generation student, meaning neither parent has a four year,Bachelor’s degree – AND/OR – the family meets an income requirement set forth bythe Department of Education*Student is at least 13 years of age*Student is (or will be) a 9th grader, or has not completed the first semester of 11thgrade*Student is motivated to pursue a college degree

If you are interested, please contact the Upward Bound office at (402)228-3468 ext.1406 or your school counselor. To learn more about the program please attend ourupcoming Open House! February 20, 2012 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. located atSoutheast Community College-Beatrice Campus, Hoover Hall Rm 405. (Please note thatthe Upward Bound program and its events are at no cost to the student or his/herfamily.)

The Student Council would like to thank the Beatrice Middle School studentsand staff for contributing to the chain link fundraiser for the Gage CountyChristmas Wish List and the Gage County United Way. We raised $362.37and 14 gifts were bought for children in Gage County through the Wish Listprogram. Special thanks to the 6th grade Northern Stars for winning thecontest by bringing in the largest amount of donations!

BHS 2012-2013 Dance Team Tryout Information*******************************************************Parent/Informational meeting: Febr 14th 5:30-6:00PM BHS Commons

8th Graders Meeting: Febr 14th 3:30PM at Mrs. Murrays room BMSDance Instruction time @ BHS Ozone:

Monday March 12th 4:00-6:00PM & 7:00-9:00PMTuesday March 13th 4:00-6:00PM & 7:00-9:00PM

Wednesday March 14th 2:00-3:30PMDance Tryout time: Friday March 16th 7:00PM @ BHS OZONE

Tryout forms available at BHS main office and BMS main officeContact info: Beth Lineweber 402-223-1516 BHS or Melinda Chleboun 402-228-3344 BCH Foundation

At the time of this article we are only 130 days from our trip to the east coast on May 29th-June 2nd. We areeagerly getting details taken care of and accounts are being paid off. We are holding a "LAST CHANCE" signup where current 8th graders and parents can still sign up for this trip. This will last until February 17th. This isa great opportunity to help encourage your child to take a greater sense of responsibility and knowledge in his orher own country. All accounts must be paid in full by March 15th in order to go on this trip. All people alreadyregistered should be getting information from me via email and from your child here at school.

For 7th grade parents who are interested in this type of opportunity for your child, we will be having severalthings happen in the next couple months. First off the dates for the trip your child will have the opportunity topartake in are Tuesday, May 28-Saturday, June 1st, 2013. You will receive a flyer from a 7th grade teacher atparent teacher conferences on February, 6th or 9th. I will be speaking to your child in their history class in laterFebruary or early March at which time I will also pass out information for registration for this once in a life etime trip. I will then be having an informational meeting in mid to late March for parents and students who areinterested in making this a reality for their child and themselves. I know of some who have been saving fornearly a year already to help make it more affordable. I hope to get to meet many of you at this meeting.

I continue to encourage all 7th and 6th grade students to set up savings accounts to begin saving for this trip aswe have had great success with it the first four years and look forward to making this an opportunity for as manyBeatrice students as possible. As always, if anyone has questions, please feel free to call Mr. Policky at228-4642.

Save Boxtops for Education, cut them out on the dotted line, place box tops in

zip lock bag and deposit them in the containerat the middle school office. Thank you for yourhelp in earning FREE DOLLARS for our school.

Participate the LAND O LAKES® Milk Cap program

1. Buy gallons of LAND O LAKES® Milk, Orange Juice or Chocolate Milk.2. Save the caps with the Save Five For Schools™ stickers.3. Send the cap to school with your child (the collection box is in the office).For more information see http://www.savefiveforschools.com/index.html

Remember, every nickel counts!

Beatrice Middle School Memory Books will be sold IN AD-VANCE again this school year. The books will be on sale at acost of $15.00 each at the middle school from January 23rdthrough February 9th. The school is preselling the books togive the company an accurate number of books for theschool order. Students have been informed of the sale dur-ing the month of January. If memory books are not orderedduring the designated time period, students will not be ableto buy one at the end of the school year. Be sure and checkwith your child to determine if they want to purchase aBeatrice Middle School Memory Book and make sure to pur-chase a book from January 23rd through February 9th.

BHS Cheerleading Tryoutsfor 2012-2013 Squad

Parent’s MeetingFeb. 14

5:30- 6:00HS Commons

8th Grade MeetingFeb 14

After schoolMrs. Murray's Room 112

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Non-ProfitU.S. PostageP A I DBeatrice, NE 68310Permit #64

The Mission of the Beatrice Public Schools is toprepare all students for lifelong learning andresponsible citizenship.

BMS Messenger Editors Erin GreenwoodLaurie Bloomquist

PARENT COUNCILPARENT COUNCILPARENT COUNCILPARENT COUNCILPARENT COUNCILMEETINGMEETINGMEETINGMEETINGMEETING

March 136:15 p.m.

Check the middle school sectionof the Beatrice Public School'swebsite for agenda.

Feb. 6 & Feb. 9Feb. 6 & Feb. 9Feb. 6 & Feb. 9Feb. 6 & Feb. 9Feb. 6 & Feb. 94:30 pm - 8:30 pm4:30 pm - 8:30 pm4:30 pm - 8:30 pm4:30 pm - 8:30 pm4:30 pm - 8:30 pm

PARENT-TEACHERPARENT-TEACHERPARENT-TEACHERPARENT-TEACHERPARENT-TEACHERCONFERENCESCONFERENCESCONFERENCESCONFERENCESCONFERENCES

TryoutsMarch 5th at 5:00, HS Aux

Practices: (Attend as many aspossible!)

Feb 29, 6:45- 7:45 am--HS aux. gymFeb 29, 4-5:00 pm...HS commonsMarch 1, 6:45- 7:45 am--HS aux. gymMarch 1, 4-5:00 pm....HS commonsMarch 2, 6:45- 7:45 am...HS aux. gymMarch 2 4-5:00 pm...HS commonsMarch 3, 9-11:00 am...HS aux.gym

Packets for tryouts will be available in thehigh school and middle school officeFeb.13th.

Cheer 101 Classes: Feb 15, 20, & 27th4-5:00pm. All classes are held in the HSCommons. This class is designed foranyone trying out for cheer for the firsttime or any veteran cheerleaders whowould like to improve their skills.

POSTINGS: 5:00 pm on March 11th, viaschool website

If questions please contact Kari Murray at223-1545