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In This Issue of the Ballard Brady Middle School eNewsletter  |
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February Parent/Teacher Conferences  |
The first semester of the 2011-12 school year came to a close on Thursday, January 19. Report cards are scheduled to be mailed on Friday, January 27.
At this time of the year, any parent who has specific concerns about his/her child’s progress is encouraged to schedule a conference. During the week of February 6, parents will have the chance to meet with a teacher, one-on-one, to discuss areas of concern. Conference appointments will be 10 minutes in length and will be offered during regular school hours. Please be prompt as teachers have limited time available. Conferences will be held in the old gym and are by appointment only.
Once at the site, you will be asked to enter the email address and password you used when you scheduled your November conference. If you did not attend November conferences, you will need to create an account by providing an email address as well as a password of your choice. On the next screen, you will be asked to enter a Student ID. You may enter your child’s school ID or your child’s name (in the format FirstnameLastname; i.e. JohnSmith). Finally, you will enter your child’s birth date (in the format MM/DD/YYYY). Click on the “Add” button, which will then take you to the scheduling screen.
Please contact Mrs. Regina Carter via phone (216-831-8600 ext. 3614) or email (rcarter@orangecsd.org) if you need assistance, if you are unable to access the Internet, or if there are no conference appointments available for a particular teacher. Given the nature of this round of conferences, parents may find it more convenient to have their concern addressed via a phone call or through email. Contact information for members of the Brady Middle School staff can be found by clicking on the following link: http://www.orangeschools.org/schools/directory |

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Good News Briefs  |
 Essay Winners Attend Naturalization Ceremony Brady Middle School eighth graders from Mrs. Sam Schaedler’s class were asked to write an essay on “what does it mean to be a good citizen?” The seven students with the best essays were chosen to observe a Naturalization Ceremony at the Carl Stokes Court House in Cleveland recently.
The winning essays were written by Nathan Pflaum, Blake Zaffiro, Elizabeth Jordan, Briana Padilla, Kyle Kolb, Daniel Tonelli and Danielle Biggers. Students attended the ceremony, partook in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and sang the National Anthem. Afterwards, they had an opportunity to interview new United States Citizens and hand out American Flags and copies of the American Creed. PTA's Reflections Program The PTA held its annual Reflections Display and Awards Ceremony on January 19 at Moreland Hills Elementary School. All students are to be commended for their respective submissions. The first place entries have been sent to Columbus for competition at the state level. Special thanks to Laura Kochis who did a fantastic job chairing the PTA Reflections Committee. Congratulations to the following Brady students for their participation in the program:
Literature, Grades 6-8: 1st place: Ryan Kochis 2nd place: Cherissa Lindsay Music, Grades 6-8:
1st place: Charles Stewart-Bates (2nd year in a row winning this category!)
Photography, Grades 6-8: 1st place: Jeremy Stark 2nd place: Santiago Bustamante
Visual Arts, Grades 6-8: 1st place: Cherissa Lindsay Click on the following link for pictures from the program: http://www.orangeschools.org/slideshows/view/209 8th Grade Dancing Classrooms Program
Eighth grade students enrolled in 2nd quarter Physical Education class had the opportunity to showcase what they have learned through the Dancing Classrooms program at a culminating event on January 19. All students who participated in the program this year are invited to perform prior to a Cav's game on Wednesday, February 22. See Mr. Apple for a permission slip and additional details. For some great pictures of the culminating event, click on the following link: http://www.orangeschools.org/news/view/578 |

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Stargirls  |
 Stargirl is an afterschool program designed to help creative seventh and eighth grade girls realize the value of their individuality and learn to respect diversity in others. High school girls who have already gone through the challenges of peer pressure in middle school created this program after reading the novel Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli.
Stargirl meets once a month at the high school. OHS Stargirl mentors plan the meetings and address issues such as peer relationships, bullying, female stereotypes, leadership, and service learning. The high school mentors feel that many of their friendships today are based on relationships they established through the Stargirl program when they were in middle school five years ago.
The December holiday party included a blanket making community service project. The high school and middle school students worked together and created five colorful blankets that they donated to the Orange Senior Center. The Senior Center will sell the blankets to earn money for their spring garden. Stargirls plan to help with this gardening project. Jerry Spinelli was excited to see the pictures of the blankets and sent the girls a letter congratulating them on their creativity and thoughtfulness. |

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Teacher Feature - Mrs. Ann Tatman  |
 Each month we will be doing an article on a staff member at Brady. This month we are featuring Ann Tatman, 6th grade social studies teacher.
Q: What was your childhood ambition?
A: I wanted to work with special needs kids
Q: What is your fondest memory?
A: Becoming a mother
Q: What is your favorite song?
A: Born to Run – Bruce Springsteen
Q: What time is your alarm set for?
A: 4:45 am
Q: What is your favorite place?
A: Catawba, Ohio and Key Biscayne, Florida – I love to travel to Ireland and Africa!
Q: What is your favorite food?
A: Ice Cream
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Pronouncing foreign words
Q: What is a perfect day?
A: Warm and sunny and spent outside with family and friends
Q: What is your favorite book?
A: Catch 22
Q: What is your favorite color?
A: Cobalt Blue and Red
Q: What is your favorite movie?
A: Sound of Music
Q: What is your proudest moment?
A: Getting my first teaching job and teaching for over 33 years
Q: Who is you inspiration?
A: My wonderful parents |

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Upcoming Events  |
 January 25
| Grade 5 Parents Scheduling Meeting, 7:00 pm, LGI
| January 27
| Report Cards Issued
| January 27
| Principal’s Recognition Award Luncheon – Media Center
| February 6-10
| Conferences
| February 7
| 8th Grade Parent Orientation Program, 6:30 pm – OHS Media Center
| February 7
| 6th Grade Spelling Bee, 8:00 am, LGI
| February 8
| 7th Grade Spelling Bee, 8:00 am, LGI
| February 9
| 8th Grade Spelling Bee, 8:00 am, LGI
| February 15
| PTA Advisory Council, 8:30am, OCR
| February 20
| Presidents’ Day – No School
| February 21
| Waiver Day – No School for Students
| February 22
| 8th Grade Dancing Classrooms to perform at Cav’s Game
| February 24
| Midpoint of Quarter, Check Progress Book for Interim Report
| February 25
| Power of the Pen Tournament, 7:30 am-3:30 pm, BMS Cafeteria
| February 27-March 2
| Elementary PTA Book Fair
| February 27-March 2
| Right to Read Week
| February 29
| Book Fair Family Night, 7:00 pm, BMS Media Center
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