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Dear Ballenger Creek Middle Families,

I hope that you and your loved ones are well. Since we’re in the month of Thanksgiving, it’s a pretty appropriate time to again reflect on gratitude. Of course, none of us feel grateful all of the time--our lives all certainly have rough seasons. However, if we are purposeful in trying to practice gratitude, we are more likely to feel grateful about different aspects of our lives.

As I’ve shared with anyone who will listen, among the most powerful and perspective-changing acts I have done so far in my life have been thanking people. Not just anyone, but those individuals who have helped shape me or put me on a better path. In my childhood and young adulthood, these people were certain coaches, teachers, close neighbors, and relatives who took the time to invest in me. I have written and sent many letters and emails to these people specifically thanking them for helping me and explaining what they did and what their efforts meant to me. In every instance, I received benefits that I hadn’t expected: a sense of well-being, gratitude, and in some situations, closure.

Here is one such experience I’ve had:

After my father passed away suddenly in 2017, my brother, Ben, and I reconnected over email with our high school basketball coach, Dan Fry. He only coached me for my senior year, but coached my brother (who is five years younger than me) for all four years of high school. A lot had happened in the 20 years since we’d last communicated with Coach, and it was the perfect opportunity to thank Dan for all that he had done for our family.

Coach Fry was a steady presence for me in my senior year when I needed it and assisted me in finding a college where I could play basketball. Knowing my family didn’t have a lot of money, he also gifted me funds to buy books my freshman year of college. The next year, to his shock, I paid him back after I’d gotten a job, and he exclaimed, “You’re still in school, aren’t you?” and I said, “Yes, but I wanted to pay you back so that you could help someone else.”

Help others he did--beyond anything my family could have imagined. After I graduated from college and had my first teaching job, he brought me onto his coaching staff, which was a valuable leadership experience. Coach Fry was also a great mentor for my brother, ultimately planting the seed that he might be a good candidate for the United States Air Force Academy, a school that Coach’s son (and my former teammate, Tom) attended. Having a child attend an academy hadn’t previously seemed even remotely possible for our family. As a side note, my brother did indeed attend the Air Force Academy and eventually became a decorated F-16 pilot. He recently retired as Colonel Schill after 25 years of serving our country.

In reply to my email thanking him for all he had done for my family, Coach Fry sent a great message that included the following line:

I really appreciate your kind words about my input in your life. I am certain of only a couple of things… You would have done well regardless of my input and I got much more than I gave.

I urge you to consider communicating your thanks to someone who has helped you--write that letter, email, or make that phone call. Involve your children in the process when appropriate. Teach them the value of practicing gratitude--you won’t regret it.

Please have a good month--and if you need assistance with any element of your child’s middle school experience, please reach out--we’re here to partner with you to benefit your children!

Take care,

Jay Schill

Principal, BCMS

It’s hard to believe we are already in the month of November. We recently finished term 1 and teachers have finalized grades. Report cards will be sent home with the students on November 10th.

At the end of each term, we like to recognize the students who made the Honor Roll. During the week of November 10th, students who made the Honor Roll will be given a treat and will enjoy some additional recess during homebase.

As the weather changes, we know more and more students are getting sick. If your student is too sick to attend school, please make sure to send in a note to cover the absence. We also encourage your student to reach out to their classroom teachers to they don’t fall behind on their work. If you have any questions and concerns, please reach out to your student’s grade level counselor.

Rebecca Reese 8th Grade Rebecca.reese@fcps.org

Johnny Webber 7th Grade johnny.webber@fcps.org
David Ledyard 6th Grade David.ledyard@fcps.org

The BCMS Special Education Department thanks the parents who attended parent-teacher conferences. We are heading into term 2 and encourage parents to continue to communicate with their child's teachers and case manager regarding their progress. The members of the SPED Team are listed below:

6th grade- Ms. Grimm and Ms. Holt
7th grade- Mr. Britt and Mrs. Pemrick
8th grade- Mrs. Nuckols and Mrs. Summers
Speech Therapist Mrs. Byun

Together we can make a difference!

-Elissa Grimm, Special Education Chairperson

Mathematics Department:

6th Grade: Students will be finishing Module 2 (Fractions, Decimals, and Percents) and starting Module 3 (Compute with Multi-digit numbers and fractions). Module 3 focuses on adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing decimals and connecting their skills operating with whole numbers to decimals. It will also connect what they know about multiplying fractions to determine how to divide fractions.

The deadline for assignments is the day of the Module assessment. After the Module assessment, assignments given before can no longer be completed for credit. Please check schoology regularly to ensure students are completing assignments by the due dates so they don’t pile up.

7th Grade: Students will be finishing up Module 3 (Operations with Integers), which includes building skills with adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing integers with a focus on negative integers. They will then begin Module 4 (Operations with Rational Numbers), which focuses on adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing decimals, fractions, and whole numbers.

7ACC: Students will be finishing up Module 3 (Operations with Integers and Rational Numbers), which includes building skills with adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing integers, decimals, and fractions. They will then begin Module 4 (Exponents and Scientific Notation), which focuses on exponent laws and how to convert between standard and scientific notation.

8th Grade: Students will be working through Module 3 (Solve Equations with Variables on Each Side) and beginning Module 4 (Linear Relationships and Slope). In Module 4, students will be reviewing proportional relationships, then using Rate of Change to find the slope of a line and graphing linear equations.

Algebra: Students will be finishing up Module 3 (Relations and Functions) and moving into Module 4 (Linear and Nonlinear Functions) and Module 5 (Creating Linear Equations). In Module 4, students will learn how to determine the difference between linear and nonlinear functions, as well as reviewing rate of change. In Module 5, students will write linear equations in various forms and determine correlation vs. causation.

Students should be completing weekly ALEKS topic goals in Math. Students should be checking their Math Schoology pages to see their specific weekly goal. Students can monitor their own progress by checking their topic reports in ALEKS. For questions about ALEKS topic goals, please reach out to your student’s grade level math teacher or our school Math Department Chair, Ms. Dickson (ashley.dickson@fcps.org).

Students should be checking their grade reports on Schoology weekly to see updates regarding missing/re-do work. If there are any questions regarding student grades, please reach out to your student’s grade level math teacher

Advanced Academics

Attention 8th grade families interested in the IB program at UHS:

the application for the upcoming school year is open to all interested 8th grade students
The deadline for all application materials (including teacher recommendation forms) is Friday, December 5 at 2:30pm
See website for more information: https://sites.google.com/fcps.org/international-baccalaureate-pr/home/application-information

Middle School Young Author’s Contest Information:

Attention students in 6th through 8th grades! Write a poem or short story to enter in the Young Author’s Contest at the school level. Winning entries move on to the county level!

Contest Parameters:

Entries must be original work.
All entries must use a 12 point font in Times New Roman.
A short story entry must range between 600-1,600 words.
A poem entry will consist of a single poem, any style, and it must range between 25-200 words.
Entries must not include graphics.
Each entry must include a completed cover sheet signed by the student author’s parent.
There will be winners for poems and short stories at each grade level.

Entries are due December 3! If you have any questions, talk with ELA teachers.

Frederick County Public Library-teen calendar link: https://frederick.librarycalendar.com/events/month?age_groups%5B60%5D=60&branches%5B86%5D=86

Christine Brown | Middle School Advanced Academics Teacher Specialist

Serving Ballenger Creek MS & Brunswick MS

Office Location: Ballenger Creek MS

Christine.Brown@fcps.org

FCPS Advanced Academics website

The Science Scene:

6th grade students will be attending Outdoor School for two days between November 6 - November 13. The two scheduled days depend on which teacher and period your student has science class. The trip is completely free. Students will arrive at BCMS in the morning as they normally do and they will be back to school in time to be dismissed as usual.

For more information, please visit https://sites.google.com/fcps.org/outdoorschool/home

Media Center And Technology

Jenn Lungociu - Media Specialist: Please use the following link for updates and information regarding the Media Center and Technology: https://secure.smore.com/n/7pd81

Eighth Grade Team

With the new terms come new beginnings.

I want to thank the 8th graders for hitting the ground running. Now, that we are facing a brand new term, lets focus on the following goals to help us be successful:

*Arrive to school and to each class on time everyday.

*Complete all assignments by due dates and deadlines.

*Be sure to ask your teachers if you need tutoring or extra clarification on assignments.

*Keep phones silent and away, even in Homebase.

(Phones will be confiscated and parents will have to pick them up.)

Keep striving for excellence and forge ahead!

~Windy Schmidt/ Music and 8th Grade Team Leader:

Fellowship Of Christian Athletes

Our school is only as good as its volunteers, so if you want to be a part of something bigger than yourself and helpful to the school, think about joining the PTSA, Membership is $10 for the year. If you are interested please contact ballengercreekms.ptsa@gmail.com.

BCMS VOLUNTEERS are needed!

Interested family and community members should be directed to the FCPS Volunteer Webpage to follow the new onboarding process found below:

· Complete a registration form.

· Complete one training module on Unified Talent.

· Await school approval on application.

· Once approved, sign-up for volunteer opportunities facilitated by individual schools.

**Please note, this is an annual process and must be completed every school year. To avoid delays, volunteer applicants should only apply once and can be added to multiple schools AFTER initial building approval. Additionally, we are advising all prospective volunteers that they must complete the registration form and training using the exact same full name and email address each time. Using nicknames, abbreviations, hyphen variations, or alternate spellings or email addresses will create delays in import.

Feeding Our Families

Are you or someone you know in need of food? Feeding Frederick is here to help! Visit www.FeedingFrederick.com to locate the closest food distribution site. Click “Find Free Food” and search the map site by address.

Please don’t forget to sign up for free and reduced lunches. Free school meals expires at the beginning of October. To receive free and reduced meals after October all students must sign up. You must sign up every year. Go to www.LINQConnect.com to complete your application.

More Opportunities For Assistance

Need to get their teeth cleaned up? SMILE will be returning on November 18th. Please reach out to me, Ms. Rogers, to get a form and register. I need to have forms completed and returned to me no later than October 31. This is a mobile dentist, and they come to us twice a year. Don’t let the chance for a free cleaning pass you by.

BCMS Clothing Giveaway

It’s that time again. The BCMS annual clothing giveaway is coming on December 8th, 5-7:30pm. I will be accepting gently used clothing beginning October 1st through November 17th. I am looking for volunteers to help set up and tear down. To help with set-up please be here by 3:30pm. Those assisting with tearing down should be done by 8:30pm. To help, you must complete the online volunteer registration process.

Thank You, ~Kathleen Rogers, Community Liaison for BCMS

Troubling Social Media Trends

Parents and guardians, please be aware that social media users are participating in the “Picked my Date” trend on Tik Tok to post their suicide date.

The state’s attorney shared that there is a 200% increase in online sadistic exploitation, where people are telling kids to harm themselves, others, younger siblings, etc.

Youth are being targeted through SnapChat, Instagram, Discord, TikTok, Reddit, WhatsApp, YouTube, and video games with messaging options, like Roblox.

Please take some time to monitor your child's social media accounts and to talk with them about their mental health and wellbeing.

On November 8, 2025 the Tuscarora HS Titan Tempo Show Choir and Frederick HS High Fidelity Show Choir will be hosting the FCPS Show Choir Spotlight once again this year.This festival was a smashing success with about a hundred students from many high schools and middle schools participating. Show choirs performed their own shows to a packed house and all students performed together in a massive finale song. Click the link to see the flyer and to purchase tickets.

Frederick County Show Choir Spotlight

BCMS Music Department invites you to the 11th Annual Veterans Day Concert

A Tribute to Our Community Veterans and Freedom

Ballenger Creek Middle School Cafetorium

November 6, 2025, 6pm

This is a FREE CONCERT!!!

We are also looking for community veteran photos to be included in our preshow tribute. All photo submissions should be emailed to windy.schmidt@fcps.org in either PNG or JPEG formatting.

Windy Schmidt

BCMS Music

Mark Your Calendars And Save The Date!

This year BCMS will present a production of The Mysterious Murder at Manchester Manor. Play dates are as follows:

Friday, January 30th, 7pm

Saturday January 31st, 1pm

Saturday January 31st, 6pm

School Year 2025-2026

As we begin the school year, we wanted to provide a reminder about school meals.

In 2025-26, the price for meals is $1.75 for breakfast and $2.80 for lunch for elementary school students and $2.00 for breakfast and $3.05 for lunch for middle and high school students.

To apply for free and reduced-price meals, Visit the FCPS Food Service online parent portal at www.linqconnect.com and click on School Services and then select Free & Reduced Meal Application.

A Message From The PTSA President

Have you joined the PTSA for the 2025-2026 school year? Your annual dues help fund beginning-of-the-year activities, and membership is a great way to be involved and connected with the BCMS community.

PLEASE join at the following link: https://bcms.givebacks.com/shop

Regular Membership is only $10, or become a Super PTSA Member for $20 to support our staff and students even more!

There is no commitment for you to attend meetings or volunteer for events as a PTSA member. Your membership shows your support for our BCMS students, staff, and community!

If you have questions about our PTSA, please visit our

Facebook Page, our PTSA Website, or send an email to ballengercreekms.ptsa@gmail.com

Thank you for your support! Let's help make Ballenger Creek Middle School the best it can be!

Volunteer Registration And Training Now Available

Frederick County Public Schools (FCPS) is thrilled to partner with family and community members who are interested in joining efforts to support our students and schools with their time and talents by way of volunteering.

Last year, we welcomed over 12,700 volunteers into our school system contributing over 76,550 volunteer hours.

THANK YOU!

This year, FCPS collected the feedback from our volunteers and staff to modify the volunteer process, while prioritizing the safety and security of our students, staff and community. As a result, we have streamlined the process of registration and training to be completed by all volunteers across the county. All volunteers will be equipped with the necessary information they need to partner with our schools.

Family and community members interested in volunteering should begin the volunteer process by visiting our FCPS Volunteer Webpage. Applicants will be directed to:

Complete a registration form.
Complete a training module on Unified Talent.
Await school approval on application.
Sign-up for volunteer opportunities facilitated by individual schools.

*Complete only ONE registration form per person. Additional school selections may be added after original approval.

Please note: To avoid delays, you must complete the registration form and training using the exact same full name and email address each time. Do not use nicknames, abbreviations, hyphen variations, or alternate spellings or email addresses.

The volunteer registration and training process is completed annually for each school year. Volunteers must complete the process before being signed up for volunteer opportunities. FCPS encourages family and community members interested in volunteering to complete the process early as processing times can vary.

For technical support in Unified Talent, volunteer applicants may contact unifiedtalent@fcps.org. For all other volunteer related questions, volunteer applicants may contact: FCPSVolunteers@fcps.org. FCPS is grateful for the generous support from our family and community volunteers.

Click here for the FCPS Volunteer Webpage.

Click Here for the latest edition of the Frederick County Public Schools Community Bulletin.

Be sure to consult the Frederick County Public Schools parent handbook and calendar for important dates and observances.

For a copy of the FCPS 2025-2026 SY Calendar, click here.

https://cdnsm5-ss5.sharpschool.com/UserFiles/Servers/Server_74633369/File/About/Calendar/CalendarHandbook_25-26-ENG.pdf

Bulldog Blast