Welcome to the Middle School
Guidance Webpage!
I am very excited to be a part of our Georgia school website! It is my hope that this webpage will allow for information to be more accessible to students and parents regarding services provided through the guidance office. I have included links regarding classroom guidance services, individual and group counseling, making the transition to high school, as well as a guidance newsletter and a community resource page.
Middle School Guidance News
A time for change...
This is a very exciting time of the school year! This Friday, June 13th is step up day for students...a day for kids to learn who their new teacher will be. It is also the day of our 8th grade graduation. Big changes are coming for all our students, but especially for our 4th graders (coming up to the Middle School) and our 8th graders who are heading off to high school. And although they are excited, their is also a nervous energy in the air. I recently read a quote that reminds us though of the beauty and good that can come from change..."If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies." (author unknown)
Knowing this change can create some anxiety, I recently visited all the 4th grade classrooms with Mrs. Getty (Middle School Planning Room) and Mr. Calano (Middle School Principal) to talk about the differences from Elementary to Middle School. They were a wonderful audience and they had some great questions. Hopefully most of the parents saw the flyer that I sent home with the students regarding a typical day in 5th grade, but if you didn't, I've included the information from that flyer at the end of this article. We will send information out this summer to 5th grade students and their parents to invite them to our 5th grade Open House on Monday, August 25th at 6pm. This is an opportunity to meet middle school staff and to visit their new classroom before the start of the new year on Wednesday, August 27th! On that first day we have organized orientation activities for 5th and 6th graders to help them slowly ease into the transition. This traditionally has been a fun start to the new year!
And although Friday the 13th is notorious for being a day of bad luck, here at GEMS it will be a day of celebration as our 8th graders graduate. We have students heading off to BFA St. Albans, Essex, BFA Fairfax, South Burlington, Vermont Commons School and Lamoille Union High School. They are very excited to meet new people and yet hope they don't get lost in the hallways. We find they are nervous, but they are more than ready to begin their next adventure.
Best wishes to all our 8th grade students. And a Happy Summer to all of you!
Respectfully,
Melissa Fisher