Good Evening Panther Families, We hope everyone enjoyed the weekend and is excited for a great week at school!
Upcoming events:
Monday 1/28 is an A day for exploratory and MTSS classes.
We are officially in the 3rd Marking Period. Staff are working to complete marking period 2 grades this week.
STEAM Showcase is March 14, 2024 at 6pm, William Penn –Flier Here
District Calendar: The school district calendar for the 23-24 school year is linked here:
Winter Sports Games: Away Games this week on Monday (Springer MS) & Wednesday (PS duPont MS). Our Winter sports schedules are linked below: Boys Basketball Girls Basketball
New Updates:
Upcoming Referendum Information: Learn more here about our district upcoming referendum:
1/25/24 Message: 1/25/24 Message to GB Families: Thank you to our students for diligently following the directions of their teachers. Thank you to our staff for demonstrating grace, flexibility, and support for students during the emergency situation. Thank you to your families for being flexible and responsive in such an unexpected situation. We had over 230 families pickup belongings on Friday. Any other left belongings are still in classrooms/lockers for students to retrieve on Monday. Thank you again to our local first responders like the Delaware City Fire Department for their support on 1/25.
Nutrition Update for Monday 1/29/24: Grab & Go breakfast for students will occur as normal on Monday morning. Students will have lunch in the cafeteria as normal on Monday. The menu for lunch on Monday will be Pat’s Pizza.
Student Kudos: Team 7C’s DESMOS Winter Snowman Contest 2024 – Ms. Kalb
8th Grade Presentation from William Penn High School: The Principal of William Penn High School, Ms. Brewington will be at Gunning Bedford on Friday 2/2 in the afternoon to meet with 8th grade students. We look forward to Ms. Brewington sharing information about the learning pathways and career opportunities at William Penn High School.
Updates from Grade Level: Please see updates from our grade level administrators and staff here from before break: 6th Grade: 7th Grade: 8th Grade:
Rolling Updates
One School, One Book: Exciting news! Gunning Bedford is thrilled to participate in a One Book-One School event again this February. Our novel for this year is titled House Arrest, by K.A. Holt. You can find more information on book details and signing up to read a section for our GB YouTube channel by clicking HERE. Any questions, contact our literacy coach, Kelli Hewes at Kelli.hewes@colonial.k12.de.us
Second Semester YMCA Program: The second semester YMCA program is starting at the end of the month for GB students. See link here for sign-up information and details: Any questions, contact jessica.hitchens@colonial.k12.de.us
After School Math Club: Information linked here, The club is flexible with time and students can engage in-person after school and/or virtually after school. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Hayden and/or Ms. Braxton, emails here: lozetta.hayden@colonial.k12.de.us & crystal.braxton@colonial.k12.de.us
After-School Activities Pick-Up Details: As we move into our next season of after school sports and activities, we want to clarify procedures for parents who pick up their students from after school activities. Student safety is our biggest concern. Please do not park in the first 5 bus slots or along the sidewalk outside of the auditorium. Both areas are noted in the map below by a blue ‘X.’ This ensures that our students can safely cross the bus court to get on their assigned buses.
2023-2024 Yearbook Order Form: Linked here if interested in pre-ordering. 2024 Yearbook QR Code Order Link.pdf
Back to Basics Tutoring: Please see flier here: 23-24 SY Back to Basics Learning Dynamics Colonial Revise Flyer.png
Morning Car Rider drop-off & Afternoon pick-up: Parents dropping off students in the morning need to create a single line on the right side of the cones. Students should exit their cars to the sidewalk. Cars are not to travel on the left side of the cones. Student safety is our top priority. As a reminder, please review the images linked before on where drop-off and pick-up is located. am and pm. AM is in the front of the building, PM is on the side of the building. Staff will be present to support in building the routine with students and families. Our doors open at 7:55AM each day. Please be mindful of dropping off students before then as staff are not outside. In the afternoon, car rider dismissal begins at 2:37PM on the side of the building. Families will pull into the parking lot on the side of the building and form a line that goes up and around the lot. Please follow the directions of staff supporting the dismissal to ensure a safe dismissal for all.
Library Information from Ms. Hewes: Please visit HERE to get more details.
Student Lockers, Coats, Cellphones, & Expectations for Dress: All students have access to a locker. Students are to use their lockers to store their coats and bags each day. Students have access to their lockers multiple times during the school day to pick-up/dropoff items. Students are to not wear backpacks or coats during the school day. Link for Code of Conduct & Colonial Expectations for Dress: Please see link for a reminder for our district expectations for dress and this year’s code of conduct. Students are to not wear hats, hoods, or sunglasses inside the building. Please remind students about our cellphone expectations of devices being away while at school. Students are able to use YONDR pouches and/or have phones remain in their bags. A brief presentation about our cellphone expectations is linked here: Also, student horseplay is not appropriate at school. Students are to keep hands/feet to themselves.
GB Gear: Please see link here to order GB clothing & apparel.
Health Office Information: Our school nurse is Ms. Taylor & her email is: olivia.taylor@colonial.k12.de.us Please view the Welcome Letter from Nurse Taylor here with important health office information.
Breakfast & Lunch for students: All students at Gunning Bedford get free breakfast & lunch each day. Students can pack their breakfast or lunch as well. Students are not able to have any outside delivery food for lunch time; For example no Door-Dash or UberEats delivery. The lunch times for students is:
| 11:05-11:35 | 8 lunch |
| 11:47-12:17 | 6 lunch |
| 12:27-12:57 | 7 lunch |
Support Links for Families: –Please use this link for more information & FAQ about Home Access Center –To update the contact information you have on file please fill out the form linked here:
Community Events:
Girls Tech Together: Girls Tech Together (GTT). GTT is an international 501(c)(3) non-profit organization aimed at introducing girls to fundamental concepts in the Computer Science field through introductory activities, coding lessons, and interaction with professionals in the CS area. We are currently partnered with and sponsored by the Bank of America, TD Bank, the DE Foundation for Science and Math Education, and more. For more info, see link here:
YLI Leadership Recruitment Flyer (12).pdf Youth Leadership Institute, a program for middle school students in New Castle County, Delaware. Please see attached flier and application link. Registration link is here:
Grade level Administrators & Counselors:
Administration School Counselors
| 6th Grade AP: Dr. Thomas-Brown | 6th Grade: Ms. Sheppard |
| 7th Grade Administrator: Mr. Sopkanich | 7th Grade: Mr. Arent |
| 8th Grade AP: Mrs. Nowell | 8th Grade: Ms. Pine |
| ILC Administrator: Mrs. Eger | |
| Principal: Mr. Johnston |
Have a great rest of the day and remember, you can’t hide that Panther Pride!
Sincerely,
Mr. Johnston
Principal
Gunning Bedford Middle School