Banks Trail Middle School

What an exciting week at the Trail! We have so much to celebrate as our Timberwolves continue to shine both on and off the court, field, and competition floor. As we move through the second quarter, we are reminded how special it is to be part of a school community that works hard, supports one another, and represents Banks Trail with pride!

A HUGE congratulations to our Cheer Team for becoming FMAC District Cheer Champions! We are incredibly proud of these girls for their hard work, dedication, and countless hours of preparation. Even more importantly, they represented Banks Trail with integrity, grace, and outstanding sportsmanship. A special shout-out to Coaches Donovan and Francisco for their leadership, encouragement, and commitment to helping these athletes succeed!

We also want to celebrate our 8th Grade Girls Volleyball Team for their incredible season and being runner-up in the FMAC District Championship! These girls worked hard and showed great determination, teamwork, and sportsmanship throughout their season! Thank you to Coach Thomas and our Athletic Director, Coach Jowers for the time, energy, and dedication they pour into our student-athletes. Your impact goes far beyond wins and championships. Thank you to ALL OF THESE COACHES for helping our girls grow not only as athletes, but also as confident, hardworking, and resilient young women. We are so grateful for all you do!

Monday is make-up picture day! This is an opportunity for any student who was absent during picture day last month to have their picture taken. Students who previously purchased a picture package and would like to have their picture retaken may also participate. Please help us spread the word so everyone has the opportunity to get their picture taken!

There is still plenty of Timberwolf action happening at the Trail! Our football team has one more week of regular-season play before heading into the playoffs. Our girls' flag football team is also gearing up for their playoff run next week. We are excited to cheer on our athletes as they finish their seasons strong!

We are off and running in the second quarter and now is a great time to check-in on those study habits and academic goals! Please remember to check the Trail Guide, linked below, each week. It includes a weekly outline of classroom learning and assignments and is a helpful resource for keeping students organized and families informed. Regularly checking PowerSchool and the Trail Guide can make a big difference in helping students stay on track and make this a successful quarter.

Just a reminder, next Friday, October 30th, is an Early Release Day. Students will be dismissed at 1:10 PM. We appreciate your help with planning accordingly!

Thank you so much,

Marc Pyrc

Principal, Banks Trail Middle

Please click here for the weekly Parent Trail Guide to see the updates from your student's teachers. Teachers will update each week by Monday afternoon, so please make sure to check each week to stay up-to-date on classwork and assignments for each class.

October 23-Last day for "Early Bird" Registration for the 8th grade Trip

October 24-Touch-A-Truck or Treat Event @ BTMS 4-7 pm

October 24-Cheer Competition @ Chapin High School

October 26-Fall Make-up Picture Day / BTMS Spelling Bee / Girls Basketball Pre-season workouts (5:30-7 pm for 7th and 8th graders)

October 27-Flag Football Tournament

October 27-29-Boys 7th and 8th grade Basketball Pre-season Work-outs 5:30-7 pm

October 28-BTMS @ FCMS Football 5:30 pm

October 30-Early Release Day-1:10 pm dismissal / Trail Ticket Exchange Day / SCMEA Choral Clinic@ Winthrop

November 3-No School for Election Day

November 4-Middle School Football Playoffs / Girls basketball try-outs 5:30-7 pm

November 5-Middle School Unified Games @FMMS / 7th Grade Art Field to Columbia Art Museum / Girls basketball try-outs 5:30-7 pm

November 7-Cheer Competition @ Colonial Life Arena

November 9-7th grade Field Trip to Greenway / Beta Club Induction 6pm / Brixx PTO Fundraiser Day (Fort Mill location-Dine-in and Take-Out)

November 9-10-Boys Basketball Try-outs 3:30-5 pm

November 11-Veteran's Day Assemblies (Wear Patriotic Clothing/Red, White, Blue) / Beta Club Meeting 3:15 pm / Boys Basketball Try-outs (if needed)

November 12-Club Day / Unified Field Trip to GHMS / 8th grade Theater and Chorus Field Trip

November 13-8th Grade Job Shadow forms due (Google form-see packet sent home 10/22)

November 20-Trail Ticket Exchange

November 24-8th grade Job Shadow Day

November 25-29-Thanksgiving Holidays

7th & 8th Grade Girls

Preseason Work-out: October 26th 5:30-7 pm

Try-outs: November 4th and 5th 5:30-7 pm

First Day of Practice: November 9th 5:30-7 pm

7th &8th Grade Boys

Preseason Work-outs: October 27-29th 5:30-7 pm

Try-outs: November 9th and 10th 3:30-5:00 pm (November 11th if needed)

The Athletic Department at Banks Trail Middle School now hosts their Pre-Participation Athletic Forms online with Arbiter.

NO Athletic Forms will be sent into the school or to the coaches! Students WILL NOT BE ABLE TO TRY-OUT if they do not have their physical and documents uploaded.

https://students.arbitersports.com/programs/banks-trail-middle-school-athletic-form-requirements-26-27

We are going to reschedule Cultural Literacy Night for February 25, 2027! Please mark your calendars now!

We kicked off One School, One Book...American as Paneer Pie this week and we are enjoying our teacher and guest readers. Please ask your child about it. There are still a few copies left to purchase if you would like your own copy. Please check your child's Pay Fees Account.

Please visit our Media Center Website for information about events and happenings in our space!

https://sites.google.com/fmsdmail.org/btms-media/home

Happy Reading,

Mrs. McCloskey

Make-up Picture Day is Monday, October 26th. Students that were absent for Picture Day in September will have their picture taken. If you purchased a picture package and would like to take a re-take, please make sure that you send your picture order with your student on Picture Day so they may have their re-take done! If you have any questions, please reach out to Carolina Photography at answers@carolinasp.com or call their office at 704-483-5862.

Thanks to Mrs. Blocker and Mrs. McCloskey for once again setting up Club Unified's entry in the Fort Mill Scarecrow competition. Timberleigh shows how inclusive we are as Timberwolves. Please vote for her as she is entry #80!

Attention 8th grade parents...8th grade Job Shadow Day is Tuesday, November 24th! 8th graders had an assembly on October 22nd to learn about this opportunity and a packet went home. Please ask your student about this and remember that the form is due by November 13th!

If you have a child at Banks Trail Middle School then you are automatically a member of the PTO. Our mission is to encourage communication between parents, teachers, administration and the community. We also want to enrich our children's educational, social and developmental experiences.

Stay in the know on all things happening with the PTO and get involved! Visit our website at https://btmspto.wixsite.com/btmspto

Email: ptobtms@gmail.com

Social Media: "BTMSPTO" on Facebook & "ptobtmsfortmill" on Instagram

Spirit Rock 2026-2027

Please consider signing up for the Spirit Rock to celebrate your child's special day.

Spirit Wear Store is Open! Perfect to get started on some holiday shopping!

https://bsnteamsports.com/shop/ZmVtGV1Y7C

Names

Please make sure to write your students name on all items brought into the school (lunch boxes, water bottles, sweaters, jackets etc.).

Start and Finish Times

School starts at 8:10 am and dismisses at 3:10 pm daily. A half-day will start at 8:10 am and release at 11:35 am. Two hour early release days will start at 8:10 am and release at 1:10pm. Students may enter the building at 7:45 am each morning.

TARDY / TIME AND ATTENDANCE

If your student arrives late to school - 8:10 or after, or is Returning from an Appointment - a parent or adult must come into the office to sign them in. Students are not allowed to sign themselves in. Please remember to put both first and last name on all doctors, tardy and absent notes. If you have any questions, please email Ms. Brown at brownds@fortmillschools.org.

EARLY DISMISSAL

If you are picking up your student for early dismissal, please be cognizant of class times (each grade level's schedule is below.) The fewer times we have to interrupt our classrooms, the more instructional time our students receive. The cut-off for students being picked up by a guardian is 2:40 pm. The FMSD policy for dismissal states that there are to be no dismissals within 30 minutes of that school's dismissal time, so for middle school that is between 2:40 and 3:10 pm.

Guidance Counseling Staff

If you or a family, you know, are in need of school supplies, food, or additional resources, please reach out to your grade level counselor.

Counseling Staff:

Mrs. Middleton– 6th Grade middletonr@fortmillschools.org

Mr. Smith– 7th Grade smithd@fortmillschools.org

Mrs. Knight-8th Grade knighta@fortmillschools.org

Transportation

Bus transportation is provided and set up through the FMSD transportation. Please visit the FMSD website and click on transportation website. You can sign your student up for bus transportation through this website. As a reminder it takes approximately 36 hours for processing.

Students must ride their assigned bus and cannot change buses unless it is a change of address. All changes must be made through the transportation department.

Lunches

Student lunches are no longer free, so please make sure that your student has funds on their lunch account. Food delivery services, like Doordash, Grubhub, and UberEats are not permitted for students. Parents, please be aware of your student's lunch account balance and discuss it with them. There are many times students are unable to purchase the snacks/drinks they have selected due to a balance that is too low. This can sometimes be embarrassing for students as they have to return the items. Please note that students can ALWAYS get a complete breakfast and lunch. This is in reference only for snacks, special drinks and extra food. Thank you

STUDENT REMINDERS

When bringing items into the school for your students, please have the name of the student on the item and leave it with Mrs. Giametta in the office. Please note that instructional time will not be interrupted for the delivery of forgotten items.

Section 504 Plans

Please Click Here for More Information on Section 504 and the Fort Mill School District including the District 504 handbook.

CHANGE OF CLOTHES

Guidance Counselors recommend that you send a change of clothes for students to keep in their possession for any accidents or dress code issues. We cannot guarantee that we have clothes to offer your child and a change of clothes is needed more than one may think so it's best to be prepared.

Breakfast

Breakfast is now free for all FMSD students. No payment is required and no sign-up is needed. Breakfast menus can be found on the school district website.

Thanks to Mrs. Blocker for all of her hardwork in helping to get us this national recognition! Thank you to Coach Donovan, Mrs. Barringer, and everyone else that made this possible! We are so thankful for our unified buddies and all that we do to demonstrate inclusion and love in our school!

'Tis the season! We are seeing a lot of confirmed cases of the flu and students out with flu-like symptons in our building...please make sure you are taking the proper precautions and washing hands. Students who have had a fever or have experienced vomiting or diarrhea should be symptom-free for at least 24 hours before returning to school WITHOUT USE OF ANY MEDICATION. We appreciate your help in keeping our students and staff healthy!

If your child needs an over-the-counter (OTC) medication available at school, parents/guardians must provide the medication in a new, unopened bottle and complete the appropriate medication authorization form before the medication can be kept at school and given as needed.

Please join us on November 9th for Brixx Fundraiser Night for BTMS! The flyer above will be sent home with your child, but please mark your calendars for this night! We look forward to seeing everyone at Brixx in Fort Mill!

Every week, we want to celebrate the amazing and staff members who make a difference in the lives and learning adventures of our Timberwolves! Do you know of a teacher or staff member that has gone above and beyond for your child? Maybe they made your child feel seen, helped them overcome a challenge, sparked a love of learning, or simply made their week a little brighter. We want to hear about it! Use our Teacher and Staff Shout-Out Form to give our teachers and staff a little extra love and recognition. Take a moment to say “thank you” to someone who is making a difference. We can't wait to celebrate our incredible Banks Trail family! We thank you for being part of what makes the TRAIL so special!

Please complete this form to give a shout-out: https://forms.gle/qb4vSRP689ZJ2UTk6

You don't want to miss your chance for the BTMS 2026-2027 Yearbook! Click Here to order.

8th grade Parents ONLY! Please see below if you are interested in purchasing a Yearbook Ad for your Timberwolf!

We want to give a big thank you to The Houser Group. They are so generous in their kindness and sponsorship shown to our teachers and staff throughout the year. They provide gifts for our Teachers of the Month, coffee/tea/all needed accoutrements for our staff breakroom, and other needs/wants that arise. We can't thank them enough for their support of The Trail!

www.thehousergroup.com

Email: giamettab@fortmillschools.org
Website: http://btms.fortmillschools.org/
Location: 861 Fort Mill Parkway, Fort Mill, SC 29715 USA
Phone: 803-578-2990