News from the Nest

Dacula Middle School

137 Dacula Road, Dacula, GA 30019 / 770.963.1110

Dacula Middle School Website

November 14, 2025

Veterans Day 25.mp4

Veterans Day 2025.pptx

November 17th - November 21st

Check out all of the AMAZING things going on at Dacula Middle School...Follow us on our socials!

DMS Counseling Newsletter for Q2

To find Gwinnett County Food Security Resources:

https://www.gwinnettcounty.com/departments/communityservices/foodsecurityresources

Safety is a Priority in GCPS

GCPS Parent Alert Information

GCPS News

School Redistricting Information

For information, timeline, maps, and access to the GCPS feedback survey, please visit the 2026 GCPS Redistricting webpage.

2025-2026 DMS Basketball

Dacula Middle School Falcons and Lady Falcons 2025–2026 basketball schedule. Weekday games start at 5:30 PM, Saturday games at 9:00 AM. Home games at Dacula High School. Opponents include Pickneyville, Lanier, Twin Rivers, North Gwinnett, Summerour, Coleman, Hull, Lilburn, Northbrook, Radloff, Creekland, Osborne, Jones, and Duluth with dates from November 6 to January 22.

Starting October 1st, students that receive/have received any discipline referrals will not be included in attending the first home game on November 6th.

There will be a 30-day exclusion from attending home games that will go into effect for discipline referrals. Any referal received from October 1st - November 6th will be included in the 30-day exclusion.

Please encourage your students to meet behavior expectations and being a REAL Falcon so they can participate in these school events.

Also, ticket sales to attend home game with DMS are final on the Wednesday before the scheduled home game at noon. Students attending with DMS must also have a signed permission slip in order to attend.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation regarding these policies.

What's Going on at DMS?

2025-2026 Important S1 Dates

Monday, November 24th - Friday, November 28th: Thanksgiving Break
Thursday, December 11th: A-Day Final Exams
Friday, December 12: B-Day Final Exams
Wednesday, December 17th - Thursday, December 18th: S1 Academic Final Exams
Monday, December 22nd - Friday, January 2nd: Winter Break

Green flyer with a soccer ball and stars announcing Dacula Middle School Soccer Informational Meeting on Monday, Nov. 17 at 4:45 PM in the Upper Gym. Includes contact emails for questions.

Flyer for “Dacula Dads Crockpot Challenge” event. Large yellow starburst says “The whole family is invited.” Event details: Thursday, November 20 in the PLUS Room. Setup from 5:45–6:30 PM, judging and eating from 6:30–7:15 PM. RSVP by Monday, November 17. Crockpot Challenge includes chili, soup, stew, dips, casseroles; all entries welcome. Winner gets the Dacula Dads Trophy. Drinks and dessert provided. Includes images of crockpots and a QR code for RSVP.

RSVP LINK: https://forms.gle/dnL97kcyGTZGNDtr6

Morning Tutoring Schedule from 8:15 AM to 8:55 AM. Mondays: Language Arts, Tuesdays: Math, Wednesdays: Social Studies, Thursdays: Science, Fridays: Connections. Starts Monday, September 8. Students must be dropped off in the bus zone by 8:15 AM. For safety, no drop-offs after 8:15 AM.

Ads must be submitted by 11/16th.

Dacula Middle School 8th Grade Yearbook Tribute Ad flyer. Submit by November 16. Steps: order online, create ad with photos and text, pay. Sizes: 1/8 page $30, 1/4 page $60. Contact tracy.powers@gcpsk12.org for questions.

Dacula Middle School Yearbook Order Form for 2026. Prices: $40 until August 10, $45 from August 11 to November 30, $55 starting December 1 through distribution day. Online orders at YearbookOrderCenter.com, reference number 13868. Cash orders accepted at school; no checks. Name plates cost $5, last day to order is November 30, 2025. Includes fields for student name, grade, homeroom teacher, and total cost. Note: $3.99 fee for credit card orders.

Club Updates and Meeting Dates:

2025-2026 Clubs Information

Weekly Progress Reports are sent home every Friday.

They will be sent by one teacher on your student's team and include current grades for all of their classes.

Progress Reports will be sent through Synergy.

iReady Tips and Information

Fridge Tips for i-Ready Lessons at Home: Prepare students with quiet space, device, and plan; support motivation and track progress; celebrate milestones and hard work.

iReady Fridge Tips - Printable Version

i-Ready progress tips: Check My Progress for lesson stats, time-on-task, lessons passed, and streak. Use To Do for upcoming lessons and Completed Work for finished ones.

8th Graders - School of the Arts Application Information

Explore your creativity and your passion at the School of the Arts @ Central Gwinnett High School (SOTA)!

Current 8th grade students from across the district may apply for the SOTA Conservatory Program (audition/portfolio required) and for the SOTA Fellows Program (no audition; must be eligible for permissive transfer). The deadline to apply is November 30, and auditions will be held January 2, 2026.

Learn more here: https://sota.gcpsk12.org/

SOTA Important Dates & Events:

APPLICATION is open now on the SOTA website.
Students should check the AUDITION REQUIREMENTS posted on the website.
Attend SOTA Spotlight Night Nov. 10, 6:30-8PM, beginning in our Main Stage Theatre. This event includes student performances, school tours, teacher meet and greet, audition info and tips!
Application deadline is Nov. 30, 2025.
Auditions are Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. Acceptances will be sent in mid-January.
Accepted student enrollment begins early Feb. 2026.

Your Creativity. Your Passion. Your School!

Car Rider Information and Reminders

Morning Car Rider Drop Off:

For your child's safety, car riders drop-off starts 8:55 am morning bell in the car rider lane. The car rider lane will close at 9:20 am, and students must be in class by 9:25 to avoid being marked tardy.

Early drop-off (8:00am=8:35am) must be done in the bus zone at the back of our building. Early students should not be dropped off at the front office or in the car rider lane. Students may be dropped off in the bus lane as early as 8:00 am for study hall in the cafeteria.

As a reminder, there is NO LEFT TURN allowed onto or from Dacula Road during drop off and pick up!

Bus Dismissal:

For your convenience, we post our bus calls on our website to keep you informed of when your student leaves the building by bus. You can access this information each afternoon by logging on to our website.

Click on the Parents/Students tab across the top and then click on Transportation Information. The Bus Call Information button will take you to the real-time slideshow.

Afternoon buses are posted to our website as they arrive at Dacula Middle with the bus call they are part of.

The time that students are called to load that set of buses is listed in the last column.

Buses leave our school approximately 5 - 7 minutes after the time listed in the green column.

** Please refresh your browser page every few minutes for real-time updates. **

Special Education Parental Rights Update

Parents,

Schools will no longer receive hard copies of Parental Rights Booklets. You can also find a copy of your Parental Rights on the district’s website under Special Education and Psychological Services Parent Handbook.

If you would prefer a printed copy of your Parental Rights, please contact me, Charisse Deramus at charisse.deramus@gcpsk12.org, or your child's case manager.

We look forward to a great year of making an impact one student at a time!

Charisse Deramus

Special Education Assistant Principal

2025-2026 Free & Reduced Meal Applications

Children need healthy meals to learn. Gwinnett County Public Schools offers healthy meals every school day. At DMS, breakfast is FREE and lunch is $2.75. Your children may qualify for free meals or for reduced-price meals. The reduced price is $.30 for breakfast and $.40 for lunch. Below are some common questions and answers to help you with the application process.

WHO CAN GET FREE OR REDUCED-PRICE MEALS?

All children in households receiving benefits from SNAP or TANF are eligible for free.
Foster children that are under the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court are eligible for free.
Children participating in their school’s Head Start program are eligible for free.
Children who meet the definition of homeless, runaway, or migrant are eligible for free.
Children may receive free or reduced-price meals if your household’s income is within the limits on the Federal Income Eligibility Chart.

SY25-26 Free and Reduced Price Meal Application

GCPS Technology Information

ParentSquare

ParentSquare is GCPS's communication tool for families, schools, and teachers.

Be sure you have updated your settings to make sure you are receiving all GCPS and Dacula MS updates and messages:

ParentSquare Tips and How To Information

MyPaymentsPlus

For Gwinnett County Public Schools families, MyPaymentsPlus is the resource for student meal accounts, and accessing options to review and pay for school activities.

MyPaymentsPlus Information and Instructions

Stay Connected

We communicate through our website, social media, ParentSquare, and News from the Nest newsletter.

Please be sure your email is correct on the Parent Portal to ensure you are staying connected.

** If you do not have a Parent Portal account, please contact our registrar's office. **

Home of the R.E.A.L. Falcons

Dacula Middle School will become a world-class school that provides a safe and nurturing environment where students acquire the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and beliefs to be successful in college and careers in a diverse society.

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