May 13, 2022
Dear DMS Families,
First off, I would like to thank the DMS PTA for Teacher Appreciation Week! In all my years at DMS (27😊), I have never seen such a celebration of appreciation. Treats were provided every day! Teachers enjoyed new highlighters, candy bars, popcorn, chips and pizza. We are so thankful. It was wonderful!
The NH SAS state testing is complete. In four days, we tested the entire school. Testing sessions were 2 hours each morning followed by an abbreviated class schedule for the remainder of the day. Today, we did not do any testing. Beginning on Monday, we will start make-up sessions. There is a requirement for schools to have 95% participation. We will work over the next few weeks to have our students finish and/or make-up testing sessions.
What beautiful weather we have been having! With the weather comes allergies, and we are seeing cases of COVID and the flu at school. Please be sure to screen your student each morning. They must pass the screener to attend school. All students brought to our attention of feeling ill will be screened again at school. If they do not pass, you will be called to pick up your student. I realize we are all very tired of the protocols, but as the numbers rise again, we are reminded that the protocols are in place for a reason, and we would like to keep our teachers and all students as healthy as possible. There are no requirements for masks at this time, it is student choice.
With the beautiful weather, comes summer clothing. Simply put, undergarments are required to be covered. Bellies are to be covered. All parts that should be covered, should be covered. This is not a discipline issue. If there is a problem, we ask the student to fix it. For example, they may have a different shirt in their backpack or have a sweatshirt. I find it interesting how many students have additional clothing items when asked. If they do not have anything extra, we will offer something or have them call home. The only way this becomes a discipline issue is if students refuse to change. This is a very rare occurrence. Our goal is to support the student in solving the problem and getting them back to class as soon as possible. If you would like to check out the full appropriate attire section of the handbook, it can be found on our website.
The remainder of this email includes information on different topics. Please read through and note that some information is for certain grade levels and some is for all grades. Eighth grade families will receive a separate email today outlining the 8th grade end of year activities.
Thank you,
Kim Lyndes
DMS Principal
DMS Book Fair
DMS Spring Scholastic Book Fair 2022
The Book Fair is finally back! This is going to be so exciting for the students, but we can't hold it without volunteers. The book fair will be held Monday, June 6th - Thursday, June 9th. Please consider signing up for one or more time slots by clicking on the link above! Mrs. Powers really needs everyone's help to make the sale a success. The money raised goes directly to programming and resources for the library. Thank you in advance!
DMS Yearbooks
Last chance to order a yearbook! There are less than 50 copies of the yearbook left to pre-order. Orders are filled on a first come, first served basis, until they are gone.
For Families of Students taking VLACS for math:
The end of the year is coming, and it is time to start planning the end of year exams for students who have taken VLACS math courses. The tests will be proctored the morning of June 7 at Dover Middle School. In order to take the test, students must provide transcripts from their VLACS course prior to the test. These can be brought directly to Mrs. Krans.
For Students taking the Algebra 1 Final:
- You will be given the same review that the Dover High School students taking the exam will be given. This will be distributed to you on May 26.
- The test does not require a graphing calculator, but if you have one, you may use it. You should bring a scientific calculator. No phones or online graphing calculators will be permitted. If you think your student needs a graphing calculator, but you are not able to get one, please contact me and I will see what I can do to help. [email protected] Students taking any other exam can use a scientific calculator on portions of the test that allows for calculators.
Youth to Youth Opportunity
This email is to let you know that on July 11-15 Dover Youth to Youth will be holding its annual advocacy training camp for 5th graders who will be in 6th grade next year. It is a great opportunity to check out what Youth to Youth does to try to prevent the harm caused by nicotine, marijuana, underage drinking and other drug misuse. Many attendees go on to join Youth to Youth in September, although there is no obligation to. The attached documents describe the week and explain how to register.
Dover Youth to Youth is an after-school drug prevention program where students in grades 6-12 work together to send a positive message to younger kids using media, classroom presentations, and other projects. More info on the Youth to Youth program can be found on our web site at www.DoverY2Y.org
If you have any questions about this opportunity, please contact me – my contact info is below.
Dana Mitchell, Prevention Coordinator
Dover Youth to Youth / Dover Police
46 Chestnut St. Dover, NH 03820
O: 603-516-3274 C: 603-817-9773
Repeated Information
COVID:
For all students, we respectfully ask that families complete the screener every morning and keep students home if they are ill or symptomatic.
Weather:
We go outside every day for mask breaks and recess. The only exception is very low temps or heavy rain. Please remind your student to come with appropriate clothes.
Vaccine cards:
If your child received both vaccines at DMS, parents and guardians may stop by school, during school hours, to pick up your child’s card. Our sincerest thanks go out to the Dover Fire Department for running the clinics.
Health Office Information:
When leaving a message to inform the school that your child will be absent, please remember the following: We need your child’s full name and the reason for their absence. If the reason for the absence is that they have not passed the COVID screener, please clearly state the reason for the absence, the symptoms, and your intentions to have a COVID test administered. Rapid tests are acceptable for students who have symptoms. Rapid testing is not reliable if no symptoms are present. Rapid tests are not as reliable as PCR tests even when symptoms are present. Home rapid tests may be sent as a photo to the nurse’s office at [email protected]. Home rapid tests need to be labeled with your child's name and the date that the test was administered. Tests that are from a facility also need to have the student’s name and the date of administration. Often the test result consists of more than one page. Please be sure the name and date are always included.
​Attendance:
​If your student is going to be absent, please contact the attendance office at [email protected] or 603-516-7019. Please leave a message with the reason for your student’s absence.