BAMS NEWSLETTER

A Message from Principal Lyman

Dear BAMS Families,

May and June tend to be two of the busiest months in the school year. People always ask me if things are winding down and it's usually the opposite until we hit the month of July. We are transitioning 6th-grade students into the 7th grade and developing all the plans for next year while also trying to wrap up this school year and transition our 8th graders up to the high school. At the same time, staff are leaving, relocating, and some are retiring! We are working to fill the open positions. Congratulations and best wishes to all of you! 

We're very excited for tomorrow night's Middle School spring concert, held in the BUHS auditorium beginning at 7:00 p.m. I hope you can come to support our students. 

Our 8th-grade move-up ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday, June 17th at 6:00 PM. We will hold the ceremony outside. I will include details and links to the livestream below.

The last school day for the 8th grade will be on move-up day, June 17th. It is a full school day with a normal dismissal at 3:30 pm. After the move-up celebration that evening, the 8th-grade students are on their way to summer break. The last day for 7th grade is Wednesday, June 18th, with an early dismissal at 12:30 pm. 

News and Updates from BAMS

A big thank you to the families that completed our Family Survey.   We look forward to receiving the results of this important survey each year.  This information assists in our strategic plan for areas needing improvement and adjustment. 

One of the areas identified this year was communication. Acknowledging that this is certainly an area that we can improve, we have made plans to address it immediately. 

Part of this plan is our BAMS Newsletter, which will be published on a regular schedule moving forward. Our Newsletter highlights events at BAMS and communicates upcoming important dates for your planning. 

The BAMS Daily Announcements are updated each day.  This communication tool is in real time and has the most up-to-date information. The daily announcements are located on our website and are reviewed each day in advisory with students.  Included in the announcements are important information and dates, team and class announcements, field trip updates, important reminders, BEAMS information, and the weekly athletic schedules for practices and games.  We encourage you to use the daily announcements as an informational resource that can be relied on for the most up-to-date information.

 Cancellations of after-school activities are posted on the announcements by 2 pm each day.  

As always, please feel free to contact the school for any questions or concerns that you may have. Our door is open, and we are happy to assist you, 802-451-3500. 

MADLYN MOORE OUTSTANDING EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR AWARD- MS. MAXFIELD 

Ms. Maxfield (left), Math Teacher on Team Draco at BAMS, received the prestigious District Outstanding Employee of the Year Award at the District's 33rd Annual Retirement & Recognition Celebration on May 9th. Congratulations to Ms. Maxfield! You can read more about the Madlyn Moore award and the criteria here.

BAMS Spirit Wear Store is Open Now

Hello Families! Welcome to our last 2025 BAMS Spirit Wear store of the school year, brought to you by the BAMS Leadership Council. 

The store is now live and will close next week, Sunday, May 25th.  You can access the BAMS Storehere or at https://bams-spring25.itemorder.com/

Wearing school spirit gear is a fun way for students to show their pride and feel connected to their school community. Plus, it fosters a sense of belonging and can help create lasting memories.

By purchasing spirit wear, you're not just getting cool clothes; you're supporting the school and helping to build a happy, united environment for our kids!

Go BAMS!!   

NEWS from TEAM CANIS MAJOR

Canis Major is currently working on a unit on functions and volume in math. We are exploring the concept of a function as a relationship between “inputs” and “outputs” in which each allowable input determines exactly one output. We are also learning formulas for volumes of cylinders, cones, and spheres.

In Social Studies we are studying the interaction between the United States and Indigenous groups from the start of our country until today and then moving toward how enslaved African Americans resist oppression and show resilience.

In Science class, we’ve been diving into the amazing systems of the human body! So far, students have explored the digestive, nervous, immune, circulatory, and respiratory systems. We’ve been learning how these systems work individually and together to keep the body functioning. Ask your student which system they found most interesting!

In English class, 8th graders have been studying our Voices of the Holocaust module through the new EL Education Curriculum. They read the graphic novel Maus I: A Survivor's Story: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman, which provided a survivor's perspective on the Holocaust. In addition, students selected independent reading articles to build their knowledge of the historical context. As part of exploring themes of resilience and giving voice to those who have been silenced, they created blackout poetry. This activity involved selecting a text and "blacking out" words to highlight themes of strength and survival.

In the coming weeks, students will examine how poetry and text structures influence the way we interpret information. They will also study the role of upstanders during the Holocaust—those who stood against injustice. These lessons will help students further understand history while considering how literature can bring attention to important issues.

Physical Education is all about lifelong fitness.  We are always working on introducing activities that students will be able to play throughout the course of their lifetimes.  Movement is our top priority.  This year we have completed units in running, base sports, volleyball, badminton, team building, capture the frisbee, domination, indoor soccer, matt ball, floor hockey,  just to name a few.  A couple times a quarter we also like to offer choice days for positive participation in class.  Over the next few weeks we will be covering pickle ball, four square, softball and self starting activities where the students work together to play a game / activity with equipment that we provide.  Keep moving and keep playing!!!! 

This year we piloted a math program called Trans Math. In Mr. Kohler's skills classes we focused on level one of this curriculum, which covered the four basic operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) as well as taking a deep dive into problem solving, paying close attention to the process of solving word problems and asking big questions like "What is the question asking?" and "Does my answer make sense?". 

Although some students may have viewed the addition and subtraction instruction as more of a review, the strategies that were taught to solve these equations (ie. expanded form, extended facts, traditional algorithm) were later used to solve multi-digit multiplication and long division problems. I could not be more proud of the hard work that my students exhibited this year. We had many "ah ha!" moments that fueled our momentum and motivated us all to keep moving, even when it seemed impossible.

Each day the BAMS Daily Announcements are updated with current and up-to-date daily information. The Daily Announcements can be found here and through the link on the BAMS website homepage. 

The Daily Announcements is where information regarding BAMS Athletic practices and games can be found.  Please note that BAMS Athletics will not make decisions about daily schedule changes and cancellations until 2 PM.  If same-day changes occur they will be posted on the Daily Announcements page.  You can request to be added to our email “blast” advising you of late changes for athletics by Emailing the Athletic Director, Kevin Myette at kmyette@wsesdvt.org. 

THE BAMS WEBSITE

The BAMS Websiteis a resource that has a lot of information. You will find the daily schedule, student handbook, weekly breakfast and lunch menus, staff directory, links to the team pages, updated bus routes, and so much more. 

PURPLE AND WHITE DAYS

BAMS has alternating purple and white days that determine daily academic schedules each day.  The schedule for exploratory classes, enrichment classes, and the order of core classes are dictated by the color day it is. For example, a student may have PE on a white day at 10 am and on purple days they may have art at 10 am. 

Fun fact: A BAMS flag is located on the side of the building by the BAMS main entrance. This flag is either purple or white and indicates what color day it is. The schedule for purple and white days is determined in the summer and does not change, even with school cancellations. 

BAMS STAFF SPOTLIGHT

Staff Spotlight: Cory Stark

Role at BAMS: Academic Support Teacher

Teams: Draco, Canis Major and Boston Celtics

Background: I graduated from Boise State University in 1995 where I majored in Elementary Education and earned a minor as a Reading Specialist. I moved to Vermont after college and my first job was as a paraeducator at Dover Elementary School. I did that for a year and then taught 6th grade for two years at St. Michael’s School. From there I went to Putney Central School and taught 5th and 6th grade for seven years. Due to declining enrollment, I was laid off from that job and fortunately was hired at BAMS where I’ve worked for the past 20 years. I paid for my undergraduate degree primarily by working at Flying Pie Pizzeria and I still enjoy making pizza.

What They Love About Their Job: As much as I enjoy math, what I love the most is getting to know the students and their unique personalities, and trying to understand how to best help them learn.

Fun Fact: One of my favorite things to do is fly fishing, and I get a lot of joy from being in remote and beautiful places catching wild fish on flies that I’ve tied. Some of my favorite flies are Prince Nymphs, Wooly Buggers, Elk Hair Caddis, and Double-Barrel Poppers.

Favorite Quote or Motto: To boldly go where no one has gone before.

Looking Ahead: This year I am on the newly created Academic Achievement/MLSS subcommittee for the Leadership team. I am hopeful that our work will help improve our students’ literacy and math education by creating lasting systems rooted in data.