Mr. B’s Blogspot

In cooperation with the Fountain Hills PTO, Fountain Hills Middle School hosted its second annual Arts in the Courtyard celebration, April 24 in the school courtyard, gym, and multipurpose room. Students from the FHMS art, band, dance, and drama club all performed during the evening show. Principal Tom Brennan served as emcee for the festive show, and even kicked things off by playing and original song on his 12-string guitar.

Guests were invited to take in the silent auction, raffle, grilled dinner, and hundreds of works of art in the gymnasium. Student performers provided continuous entertainment on four venues throughout the evening.

Each of the middle school bands (beginning, intermediate, advanced, and jazz) under the direction of Mrs. Stefani Bullard, performed a set during the event.

The eighth grade dance program, directed by Mrs. Leslie Breen, performed a wide variety of individual, group, and ensemble pieces throughout the night.

New to this year’s show was the FHMS Drama Club, under the direction of Mrs. Marty Olson. The thespians performed a number of humorous skits in the multipurpose room.

Central to the ambiance and environment for the night were the hundreds of art pieces composed by FHMS students under the direction of Ms. Bonnie Perkins. Some students also submitted items to be sold through the silent auction. All proceeds for the event go directly back to the students in the FHMS arts programs.

This year’s event was coordinated by Mrs. Gina Waldo, who has a sixth grader at FHMS. Mrs. Waldo provided tireless energy, direction, and leadership as the key organizer of Arts in the Courtyard. She was assisted by Ms. Kimberly Lipps. In addition to the coordinators, an army of parent volunteers provided key support to make the event a success.

Click the link below for a photo show!

arts-in-courtyard-slide-show.ppt

To create a more meaningful transition to middle school, FHMS Principal Tom Brennan, added a few twists to the traditional “moving up day” for new students this year. Dubbed the “Middle School Experience,” students were invited to the middle school in small groups over three days, April 16-18.

“Having students visit FHMS in smaller groups allowed us to give them a more meaningful visit to our school,” Brennan said. “Our visitors were able to visit our band program, a second elective, a core academic class, and take lunch in the cafeteria. So, instead of simply walking around the school, the neophytes actually got to participate in our school.”

On the evening of April 17, Mr. Brennan and the sixth grade teachers hosted an open house for parents who will be new to FHMS in 2008. Parents were able to hear about the FHMS programs, ask questions to the principal, and visit a classroom for a teacher-led introduction to sixth grade.

Fountain Hills Middle School had the high honor of hosting the National History Day in Arizona State Competition on April 12. Winners from six regional contests came to FHMS to compete in areas such as: research paper; performance, documentary, exhibit, and website. Four Peaks teacher and NHD guru, Mrs. Jean Boatman, was central to securing the event for FHMS once she discovered the Arizona State Capital building would not be available. Mrs. Boatman approached Principal Tom Brennan to request use of FHMS for the significant event. Mr. Brennan, recognizing the tremendous opportunity to show off the school, readily agreed to host the State Competition.

After months of research, revision, blood, sweat, and tears, four FHMS students emerged victorious at the awards ceremony:

Alex Day, Sixth Grade, First Place, Individual Documentary

Molly Kirkpatrick, Sixth Grade, First Place, Individual Performance

Natalie Stilwell, Sixth Grade, Second Place, Individual Performance

In addition to the honor of being among the top History Day students in the state of Arizona, these three students also won the right to compete in the NHD National Contest at the University of Maryland, June 15-19.

Two FHMS students also won special recognition awards for their projects:

Alex Day, Sixth Grade, “Best Project on a Colonial or Revolutionary War Topic,” presented by the Daughters of the American Revolution

Michael Pizzicaroli, Sixth Grade, “McFarland Scholar Award,” presented by the Arizona History Convention.

4.23.08 – Early release – school dismisses at 11:45 a.m.

4.24.08 – Arts in the Courtyard – 5:30 p.m. through 8:30 p.m.

4.25.08 – 4th quarter progress reports will be handed to your students in their xcel classes.

4.29.08 – Band instrument night – 5th grade students will be trying out instruments and signing up for Band. “Music and Arts Center” will also be hosting the event along with Mrs. Bullard.

5.4.08 through 5-6-08 – Art Club field trip to Disney Land.

5.6.08 – This date is a correction from the original post. National Junior Honor Society Induction ceremony – 7:15 a.m.

5.8.08 – 7:00 p.m.  – Dance concert at the High School gymnasium.

5.15.08 – Spring Band Concert- 6:00 p.m. – Performing students should arrive at 5:30 p.m.

5.21.08 – Summer School registration in the multi-purpose room – 3:45 p.m. through 5:00 p.m.

5.22.08 – 8th grade promotion ceremony in the gym – 7:00 p.m.

5.22.08 – 8th grade dance – parent sponsored dance for our 8th grade students only, immediately following promotion ceremony.

The Fountain Hills PTO is hosting its first ever Spring Gala, May 3 at the Radisson Fort McDowell Resort & Casino. The event, “Hollywood Nights” is a key PTO fundraiser, and promises to be a fun-filled, memorable evening affair. Please click on the link below to view the registration form. Contact Tamy Otto for more info: tamyo@cox.net

gala-registration-4808.pdf