Biddeford Middle School Newsletter

May 26, 2021

Good Afternoon Parents,

As we near Memorial Day, our beautiful Maine weather has led many minds towards our upcoming summer. We still have a few weeks to go!

Please remember some very important upcoming dates as it relates to our school calendar:

Monday, May 31st: Memorial Day - No School

Wednesday, June 2nd: Half-day IN-PERSON instruction for all students K-12.
Tuesday, June 8th:

Biddeford School Budget Election, 7am-8pm

Wednesday, June 9th:

Full-day IN-PERSON instruction for all students K-12.
COVID Vaccine Clinic for second doses (more information below)

Thursday, June 10th:

BMS 8th Grade Awards Ceremony (Students arrive at Waterhouse - 9:30am)
BMS Promotion Night (Waterhouse Field - 6pm)

Friday, June 11th: Last Day of School for all PreK-12 Students & Remote Learners
Click here for a complete list of End of Year events by School.

Sincerely,

Mr. Scott Descoteaux

Principal - Biddeford Middle School

Rotary Essay Contest

The BMS version of the 26th annual Rotary Essay Contest for local 8th grade students has concluded. Students on teams STEM, Sugarloaf, and Katahdin composed short pieces on the topic: "What Family Means to Me". The competition was fierce, as the submissions were excellent!

3rd place is awarded to Mark Patterson
2nd place is awarded to Eva Aranovitch
1st place is awarded to Keyarrah McCurry

LAPTOP RETURN

Our teachers have made a plan at Biddeford Middle School with each individual team to collect ALL electronic devices issued by the school in the coming weeks. Each team has communicated with the students when they will be collecting these devices. Please check in with your Tiger Time Teacher if you have any questions.

COVID VACCINE - SECOND DOSE

Due to Biddeford School Budget Election on Tuesday, June 8th in BHS Tiger Gym, all vaccine second doses will now occur on Wednesday, June 9th (see chart in this Parent Letter). As this day is now an in-person school day for grade 5-12 students, we have coordinated BMS and BHS students to have their second dose while in school, if desired. If parents prefer to accompany their child, they may attend the BHS clinic with them.

If your child missed the original clinic, you may schedule an appointment or attend a walk-in at various other clinics in our area through one of these links: MaineHealth Clinics, Northern Light Health Clinics, CVS, or Walgreens. If you would like more information, have concerns, or are still evaluating if your child (12+) will receive the COVID vaccine, please review this Fact Sheet for Youth Under 18.

CDC's New Guidance

On May 24th, the Governor’s Moving Maine Forward Plan and recent announcement regarding CDC’s new guidance go into effect lifting restrictions on capacity limits, physical distancing, and masking for those fully vaccinated. Although all of the new guidance does not apply to schools, the Maine DOE has released updated Public Health Guidance and Standard Operating Procedures. Below are the items that impact our programming the most:

Indoor masking protocols for students and staff will remain in place.
Eating and drinking still requires 6' distancing for all
Outdoor masking and physical distancing protocols will no longer be in effect (students may take their mask off during recess and outdoor classes).
Adult distancing requirements have been removed.
Distancing related to music went from 14’ to 6’.
Those who are vaccinated and asymptomatic do not need to quarantine if deemed close contacts and those participating in pooled testing* and are asymptomatic do not need to quarantine for any school-related events if they are deemed close contacts (school sports, extracurricular activities, and school functions). The quarantine exemption does not apply to community-based activities (i.e. club sports).

* We will evaluate the requirements of Pooled PCR Testing (see page 4) and determine its feasibility for the return to school this fall.

5th & 6th Grade Parent Nights

On Thursday, May 20th, Biddeford Middle School hosted an incoming parent night for our incoming 5th and 6th-grade students and parents. Please see the videos below if you were unable to attend.

8th Grade Promotion Night

Because of the new guidance set forth by the CDC, we are able to lift a few restrictions as they relate to our Promotion Night on Thursday, June 10th. Many families requested additional tickets for the promotion ceremony. With this new guidance, we are able to support up to eight (8) guests per student at our event.

We very much look forward to honoring our grade 8 students and sending them off in a positive way to Biddeford High School!