News from the Nest
Dacula Middle School
137 Dacula Road, Dacula, GA 30019 / 770.963.1110
January 27, 2023
Way to Go FALCONS!
Mark Your Calendars!
Academic Assistance Program (AAP)
Students are required to pass 5 out of 6 courses each semester to meet the promotion criteria. Language Arts and Mathematics must be two of the five subjects passed.
Dacula Middle School’s Academic Assistance Program (AAP) is an opportunity for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students to make up a failing grade (50 – 69) from first semester in Language Arts, Math, Science, or Social Studies to meet promotion criteria.
Students will be retaught and assessed on the AKS that they did not master during first semester. The classes will be offered Monday - Thursday after school in a designated classroom with their assigned AAP teacher.
Students that qualify to attend AAP received a blue form from their homeroom teacher on 1/19th. Parents can register for the course(s) needed to meet promotion criteria for $75 per course via My Payments Plus. Registration will open on Wednesday, January 18, 2023, and close on Wednesday, February 1, 2023.
The cost for each course is $75 and students can take up to 3 courses (see schedule below).
For questions, please contact your child’s counselor or Tasha Baumgardner, Assistant Principal responsible for AAP.
Rising 9th Grade Elective Registration Now Open!
Registration is now open for 9th grade elective classes at Dacula High School. The elective registration window is open from January 24 - January 30.
Your child will register online in StudentVue. We encourage you to discuss the options with your child!
Resources:
Frequently Asked Questions: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VlhycXWpZnChz5BmakD-GO2jDoAjMAdiXWZCXPSlosY/edit?usp=sharing
9th Grade Info Site: https://sites.google.com/g.gcpsk12.org/dacula-high-registration/rising-9th-graders
Elective course descriptions: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rVHqmJO0rYlUYSsMRkkmLY4sZ_X4_GM5ezji31Mpm5I/edit
Registration How-to Video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1q_eUTFxGWtVAPWUJCc2TdlEYlEMXIGLp/view
Request to Remove Health & PE (only use if you plan to take 3 years of JROTC or the $500 Health & PE over the summer): https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=-VzmfS4_Z06kaZZbDQhfuxsBL3Zl7HJFmN7JyO-CiZ5UOUg3UEg2R0pJNUtPNTZCVUU1SUkyQTBZTS4u
Report a Registration Issue: https://forms.gle/vDn1QPwYFKL9GaHZ8
A few notes for your information:
Your child will register for 2 elective classes and 4 alternate elective classes.
They need to register for both the first and second semester of each elective.
If you see "SC Placeholder" on your child's schedule, please do not remove it. This is your child's science class.
If you are concerned about the difficulty level (Hon, GF, AP) of the classes your child is registered for, you will have the option to change this later.
A few things to discuss with your child:
Should they take a language elective? (2-3 years are required for university admission)
Should they take health & PE this summer? (A good option for students who need to get into weight training for a sport)
Which level of class difficulty should they take? (CP = challenging, Honors = more challenging & fast-paced, AP = extremely challenging & fast-paced)
Should they start a career pathway?
Should they take AP Human Geography? (For very motivated students)
Please feel free to reach out to your current 8th grader's teachers or our 8th grade counselor, Ms. High, with any questions.
Reminders
Tardy Guidelines
As we begin the second semester we wanted to send a reminder of the process and procedures that are in place if a student arrives to class late without permission:
Tardy 1: Warning
Tardy 2: Teacher Detention
Tardy 3: Teacher Detention
Tardy 4: After School Detention
Tardy 5: Saturday School
Teachers may use their discretion when assigning consequences.
Teachers enter tardies into Synergy and parents should receive an automated call notifying them of the tardy.
Weekly Progress Reports will continue being sent every Friday.
This semester, one detailed progress report will be sent by the first academic period teacher. The report will include each academic and connections class along with their assignments up to that date.
If you have any questions regarding a specific class, please feel free to reach out to that specific teacher.
Connections Course Changes
Please be aware that we are not able to accommodate requests for Connections schedule changes at this time.
Thank you for your understanding!
First Semester Report Cards were mailed home by GCPS to the student's address currently on file.
Please be on the lookout for these items. They should have begun arriving home this week.
Are You Ready to Rumble?
DMS Basketball is Back!
Come join the fun and cheer our Teams to victory!
Home games are held at Dacula HS and you MUST have a ticket to attend!
To purchase home game tickets using GoFan. scan the QR Code below.
We once again will be pre-selling tickets (cash only) to our students on the morning of each home game. In order for a student to be eligible for a presale ticket:
Students must have money to purchase the ticket with them as we will not accept money for tickets at the front desk.
Students must have a signed permission slip on the form provided the week of the game
Students must have their lanyard with their student ID.
Students will walk to DHS with a staff member after last bus call
Students who pre-purchase a ticket will be given a wrist band prior to leaving campus
Any students who are dropped off and are unaccompanied by an adult, will need to have their lanyard and student ID in order to purchase a ticket at the door.
Parents should be in the car rider lane (as depicted in the diagrams below) and ready for pickup no later than 8 pm.
Thank you for supporting DMS Athletics and GO FALCONS!
Early Morning Drop Off for Tutoring
If you are bringing your child for tutoring before school on one of the assigned days, please be sure to have your child here before 8:15.
Students may be dropped off as early as 8 am in the bus lanes. Teachers will pick up kids from the cafeteria promptly at 8:15 and escort them to the classroom. Students may not be dropped off at the front of the building.
As a means of safety, students are not allowed up to tutoring past this time.
Monday- Language Arts
Tuesday- Math
Wednesday- Social Studies
Thursday- Science
Friday- Connections
Offered on Mondays Only:
The bus zone off of Auburn Road is only used for student drop off between 7:55am - 8:30a only!
Students cannot be dropped off in the bus zone after 8:30am due to bus traffic and should not be dropped of in the staff parking lot at any time.
These create safety hazards for staff, students, and bus drivers.
Moby Max
MobyMax is an online resource provided by Dacula MS that offers K-8 curriculum that is individualized per student to highlight skills that need attention.
MobyMax offers practice and support in language arts, math, science, and social studies.
Please check with your child for his or her username and password to gain access to this awesome, easy-to-use tool that can be used at home to help practice and strengthen skills.
What's Going on at DMS?
Progress Report Glitch
Please be aware that there is currently a systems’ glitch that is causing some teachers’ progress reports to be sent multiple times even though the teacher has only sent it once.
If this happens, please delete the additional reports you may have received. You can also clear your browser's cache and cookies to try to alleviate this issue.
We appreciate your understanding while this issue is being resolved.
1:1 Student Device Distribution
All GCPS students in grades 3-12 will be issued a Chromebook to be used at school and taken home to extend learning beyond the school day for the 2022-23 school year.
New students will receive their device/charger the first day they report to school.
While content filtering is applied to devices, parents are responsible for monitoring the appropriate use of technology at home.
Students in households with limited or no access to the internet can request a hotspot from DMS.
Students are expected to use devices following the GCPS Acceptable Use Policy and the Student Conduct Behavior Code.
Students need to arrive at school each day ready for learning with a fully charged device.
Additional information and resources can be found on the 1:1 Parent Support Site.
Stay Connected
ParentVUE & StudentVUE App Updates
A recent application update requires you to delete and reinstall the ParentVUE and StudentVUE mobile app from your device(s).
This update ensures that you have the newest version of the app and will continue to receive updates. If you do not delete and reinstall the applications, your device may not connect properly and continue to receive updates.
You will use the same username and password to log in after downloading the app.
Android Users will also need to delete the ParentVUE and/or StudentVUE web urls from your devices for the app updates to work correctly.
If you have any questions or need assistance please contact Jessica Curtis at 770-338-4630 or our ITI Coaches at 770-338-4627.
If you are not using the app and want to learn more, visit the GCPS website for information.
Do you have a MyPaymentsPlus account?
GCPS Students Need You!
News from the Clinic
Get Your 2022-2023 DMS Yearbook!
Late Buses
We appreciate your patience and understanding with bus dismissal!
As bus drivers get accustomed of their routes and students become accustomed to their routines/expectations, buses may be running a bit late in the mornings and the afternoons. For afternoon dismissal, you can remain abreast of the departure times of your child's bus, by following these easy steps:
Log on to our DMS website.
Click on Parents/Students across the top of the screen.
Click on Afternoon Bus Dismissal you will see the buses that have already left and what time they departed our building.
You will need to refresh the screen periodically for updates.
Please call the GCPS Transportation Customer Service Center for information about bus pickup and drop-off at 770-338-4800.
Car Rider Reminders
Have you joined our PTA?
Community Events
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.
