Ashland Middle School

Happy School Counselor Appreciation Week!

6th grade Siskiyou students from Wendy Werthaiser's Language Arts classes created found poems using words and writings from Black Americans including Shirley Chisholm, Malcolm X, Amanda Gorman, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Maya Angelou.

Happy School Counselor Appreciation Week!

Wednesday was National Signing Day for high school students signing their letters of acceptance to continue participating in sports at the next level. Our football coaches wanted to do something similar in order to work on increasing our numbers for next year. Twenty-two of the 23 eighth graders that played football at AMS were in attendance! Now the task will be to keep the fire burning until they can officially join the program in the summer.

Shauna Murphy, leadership and 6th grade homeroom teacher at Ashland Middle School, was recognized this week as the Rogue Credit Union KOOL Teacher Of The Week! Scuba Steve, from KOOL 103.5 FM, and a representative of the Rogue Credit Union brought Shauna a Harry & David basket filled with tons of goodies from Kelly's Automotive Service, Gypsy Soul, Applebees, Sonic, Wash-N-Go Depot, Judy's Central Point Florists, Texas Roadhouse, Red Robin, and of course, Rogue Credit Union!

Join us tonight in the AMS library from 6pm-7:30! We have hosted Karen in the past and parents have responded “this should be mandatory for all parents!”. Raising kids in today’s technology world can be challenging to say the least! Come hear how you can build your own families teach values.

At Ashland Middle School, we believe when students improve their attendance rates, they improve their academic prospects and chances for graduating.

The Ribbon Cutting has been placed on hold until warmer weather and healthier conditions. We appreciate your support of AMS and look forward to gathering together in the New Year.

Don't miss out on the Ashland Middle School Theater production of: The Addams Family Musical, young@part. When: December 8th and 9th at 7:00 PM December 10th matinee at 3:00 pm and 7:00pm closing performance Place: Ashland Middle School Cost: $10 for adults, $5.00 for students and seniors. Pay at the door. Come join us for some spooky entertainment with the Addams Family. We can't wait to see you there!

The AMS Student Leadership Council has met multiple times this year bringing ideas to life that help make our campus a safe welcoming environment. This group was nominated by teachers for their leadership qualities. One of their ideas was to design a sweatshirt that helps identify them as an ally on campus. If a student is feeling upset and are in need of a friend or have a question or need help solving a problem, they can reach seek out a student in a GOLD sweatshirt! Our student leaders pictured from left to right: Bottom row: Max Lupton, Luke Campagna, Logan Wileman, Ike Brown, Mason Lupton, Jack Maybin, Quinton Houston Top Row: Miriam Preskenis, Aziza Preskenis, Saya Barrey, Lucy Bell, Zarah Hadji Not Pictured: Logan Lavorse, Hadley Peterson, Peter Billett We took our design to AHS Grizzwear and got to print the sweatshirts ourselves! Thanks to Kris Prusko and AHS for letting us visit and including us in the process.

November 14th Mental Health Matters Please join Julie Bleicker and Lance Matthewson to learn more about the uptick in anxiety in the middle school population and how you can help. The prevalence of anxiety has become the primary mental health issue for teens at AMS. Parents are asking for ways to best support the social/emotional needs of their kids. We will talk about healthy habits, proactive strategies and ways to effectively communicate with your kids as well as create a forum for dialogue and questions parents have about preteen mental health.

CONGRATULATIONS to AMS band members Abbi, Thane, Jackson, Logan, Soren and Pepper on making it into the Youth Symphony of Southern Oregon! The first YSSO concert of the year is happening at SOU this Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.

At Ashland Middle School, we believe building strong, trusting relationships that promote a feeling of belonging is fundamental to improving student attendance & engagement.

November 14th Mental Health Matters Please join Julie Bleicker and Lance Matthewson to learn more about the uptick in anxiety in the middle school population and how you can help. The prevalence of anxiety has become the primary mental health issue for teens at AMS. Parents are asking for ways to best support the social/emotional needs of their kids. We will talk about healthy habits, proactive strategies and ways to effectively communicate with your kids as well as create a forum for dialogue and questions parents have about preteen mental health.

October is National Principal’s Month! Help us celebrate our amazing leaders in Ashland.

Math Club is a club for Ashland Middle School students who are interested in math and love doing math problems. We meet every Thursday from 11:35 AM to 12:15 PM (during 7th and 8th grade lunch) in room 305 in the Aspen hall. Snacks are provided each meeting. Come and join the fun!

The Scholastic Book Fair at Ashland Middle School will take place Monday, October 31st - Wednesday, November 2nd during conferences. The book fair has become, in this era of limited library funding, a major source of funding for new book and material purchases for the library. We hope to see you next week! Because of a construction project, the book fair will take place in the leadership room next to the AMS Library.

The Amazing Teen Brain AMS Parents and Guardians: Please join Diane Berry to learn more about your teen’s once-in-a-lifetime brain development! Monday, October 17, 6:00-7:30 in the AMS Library Adolescence is a time of great opportunity and learning, and sobering risk and vulnerability. Parents are the most critical teachers in their teen’s life. Understanding more about this unique period in your child’s life will help you guide and support your child’s development toward strong, positive habits that will last a lifetime. Diane Berry is a school social worker and school counselor. She has worked at the elementary, middle and high school levels over the past 25 years. She currently works to coordinate and support our district’s K-12 CDSs, Behavior Health Specialists and School Counselors. She is passionate about understanding, appreciating and protecting our teens’ amazing brains.

Wow! Almost 50% of Ashland Middle School's student body (251 of our 536 students) are participating in some fall term after school activity--cross country, football, theater, and volleyball). That's phenomenal! Go Cubs!

Rollercoaster Fun! 6th grade students in Beth Oehler's class explored physics ideas around acceleration, gravity, and inertia by making rollercoasters with marbles, insulation foam, and tape. Note: no students were harmed in the making of the rollercoasters.