Smith News

February 2nd, 2023

Achieving Excellence One Student at a Time 

Ms. Christine Davis

Interim Principal

Have a middle schooler, or will you have one soon?

Middle School is a truly unique and wonderful time in an adolescent’s life.  However, middle-level students can also be walking contradictions. One minute, they are talking passionately about fairness, and the next, they are not allowing someone to sit at their lunch table.  We can see that they are physically maturing, but we can’t see how their brains are developing.  Impulsive behavior, lack of focus, emotional drama, the need for peer approval, and poor decision-making are some of the hallmark characteristics of adolescents.  Understanding how your adolescent is developing and learning about strategies that can be used to navigate this transitional time in your child’s life can help to make things go much smoother.


We are pleased to invite you to Smith School on Wednesday, February 8, at 7:30 pm to hear Jack Berckemeyer, a nationally renowned expert on Middle School education, share his expertise about the unique characteristics of middle school students and strategies and ideas that you can try in order to help them successfully navigate this transitional time in their lives.  We have had the good fortune to work with Jack Berckemeyer during the last year and a half to help our teacher teams to develop strategies and routines to help support our middle school students.  We hope that you will join us!

Dr. Ryan Esdale

Interim Supervisor of K-8 Education and Student Welfare

Profile of a Ramsey Graduate Competencies: Responsibility


Over the last 5 years our District Goals have remained largely unchanged.  Specifically, our dedication to the Profile of a Ramsey Graduate competencies continues to be a primary focus for teaching and learning at Smith Middle School.  This school year, we will highlight what the critical components of each competency look like in our classrooms.   



In this edition of the catalog, we will focus on Responsibility.  The actions taken to sharpen the habit of being responsible through the lens of the  Profile of a Ramsey Graduate includes:


On January 23, 2023, students in 6th grade participated in the culminating final race car contest for Mr. Truppi’s Forces in Motion exploratory course.  Most impressively, Mr. Truppi led by example.  As the class developed, students were given clear expectations of what to do, how to fulfill their responsibility in contributing to the overall success of the class and the meaning behind their respective jobs.  Specifically, each of the students in the class was responsible for a portion of the drag race competition.  

From the starters, to the mechanics, to the safety bumpers, the fishing line collector, and the CO2 nozzle removers, to the “security” guards at each end of the hallway, every student in the class played a critical role in the success of the racing session.  To say the operation was a well-oiled machine would be a significant understatement.  The students enthusiastically, merrily, and genuinely engaged in the learning experience while illustrating their knowledge of engineering and aerodynamics.  

Team Highlights: 7th Grade

From December 20th-22nd, the three 7th grade teams had the opportunity to go up to Ramsey High School for a "Pickleball Challenge". The 7th graders faced off against teams of 10th graders. 

This challenge built excitement for the 7th graders by building friendships with current high school students and making them more comfortable as future Rams in the halls of RHS!

Later this year, the 7th grade will be taking their annual field trip to the Fairview Lake YMCA. Students will have the opportuntity to participate in a series of outdoor activities and challenges that will develop critical thinking and colloboration skills with their classmmates. Permission slips were distributed in homerooms and are due back by March 17th! 

Staff Spotlight- Jessie Saravia

Hey there Smith Community, my name is Jessie Saravia, and I am beyond thrilled to be part of our Smith Team!


I teach 6th grade English Language Arts and it is my first year at Smith Middle School! I cannot begin to express how welcomed I have felt over the past months.


A little background on myself, I absolutely cannot go anywhere without my books! I usually carry between 2-3 books in my bag. My motto as a Reading and Writing Educator is, "It's not that you don't like reading, you just haven't found your book yet!" I love helping students find their books! 


Although this is my first year with Eric S. Smith Middle School, it is my fourth year teaching. Over the years, I have seen students filled with joy in discovering that one book they cannot put down or finding their passion for writing. Being an ELA Educator allows me to help our students deepen their understanding of themselves and the human experience through critical thinking, collaboration with peers, and investigating literature.


I have been enjoying my time here with Eric S. Smith Middle School and am excited to continue the school year growing and learning together! 

Falling in Love With Smith School!

Team 6-2 created over 60 valentines to send to our troops in support of Congressman Gottheimer’s Annual Valentines for Veterans!  (Above, Right)

Smith School shows their support for Ramsey athletics! Students & staff came together to cheer on our RHS Boys Basketball team in the Relay For Life Tipoff Event, filling the bleachers with Blue & Gold! (Right)

Physical Education students celebrate their victories as they conclude their Volleyball and Basketball units (Above)

Ms. Garcia's students took a field trip to explore some gems of the Ramsey Community! Led by Ms. Garcia & Ms. Kelly, students visited the Ramsey Public Library and were given a personalized tour of the library resources by Ms. Maggie and Mr. Jeff- the head librarians of Children's and Youth Services. Students got to participate in a Scavenger Hunt to identify where to find all of the features of the public library, then they had a chance to utilize the resources taking time to read, use the computers for research, check out books, and even play board games. The students then got to visit a staple of the community, The Ramsey Corner Café for lunch! A huge thank you to the Ramsey Public Library and the Corner Cafe for their collaboration on this great day. (Above, Below, Right)

Smith students & staff participate in "Big Blue Friday" in honor of the New York Giants making the playoffs for the first time in 11 years (Above).

Former Smith student comes to Mr. Baeira's 8th grade Business class to share his Profile Project and share the importance of savings & financial literacy. (Above)

6th graders kicked off their Nonfiction Reading Unit by discovering how informative texts can be helpful in answering questions readers have about a topic they’re interested in. (Top Left)

Smith School staff participating in an escape room designed by the eighth grade Enrichment students. (Left)

The Smith musical production of Disney's High School Musical: On Stage has been having a successful first weeks of rehearsal! Students of the cast are hard at work learning music, choreography, and their lines in preparation. 

Meanwhile, stage crew has begun its preparation with an interest meeting for backstage, lobby, light, props, and sound crews. The show will premiere March 3rd and March 4th, ticket information will be coming soon! (Above, Left)

Eighth grade Enrichment students successfully solved the escape room designed by their peers.  Think you could escape the jungle in 30 minutes or less? (Above)


After studying a recent Supreme Court decision related to the 1st Amendment, 7th grade students in Ms. Ung's class sat in restorative circles and engaged in meaningful discussions. (Right)

Students in Mr. Urbanovich's 7th Grade math class explored solving equations by using cups and chips to model algebraic equations. Students worked in the concrete and pictorial stages before entering the abstract of writing algebraic equations with numbers and symbols. (Below, Right)

The 7th grade French students at Smith each received a handwritten letter from their penpals in France.  They were so excited to learn about their new friends and experience this real world opportunity.  We are eager to write them back and make new connections! (Left, Above, Below)

Health Information from Our 

Smith School Nurse 

Laura Spiegelman BSN, RN 

Certified School Nurse

201-785-2314 

Fax 201-785-2320

lspiegelman@ramsey.k12.nj.us

Reminders Parents/Guardians

If your child tests positive for COVID-19, report it to the school nurse to receive updated procedures and protocols. 

Please be diligent in screening your child daily for illness symptoms. 

Keep your child home from school, and have them seen by a physician when not feeling well.

Parent Book Club 2022-2023

Parent Book Club is a group where interested parents and guardians of Smith students are invited to join the library media specialist once a month to read and discuss popular, young adult literature in the Smith School Media Center.

Each month, our library media specialist will be choosing three Young Adult books all sharing one common theme; you may choose to read all three or pick from this list the ones that interest you most. 

The theme for our February meeting will be Mystery/Suspense. All 3 selections will be mystery/suspense stories for middle school students. 


Our next meeting will be Thursday, February 9th in the Smith library at 9:15 AM and will last about one hour. The books and descriptions can be found by clicking here for the Smith Library Media site.


If you are interested and have not already signed up, please complete the form, print, & have your student submit it to the library media center, OR you can complete the form and email it directly to our library media specialist, Ms. Kelly.

Smith School Supply List 2022-2023

Supply Lists for the 2022-23 school year are now posted. Please remember that all personal belongings should be labeled, such as pencil cases, binders, and backpacks.


6th Grade

7th Grade

8th Grade

Chromebook Insurance

Chromebook Insurance is Due Now....Register

We will no longer be using Family ID for Chromebook Insurance. Instead, we will be using  PaySchools Central to collect the Chromebook insurance fee. Most parents should be familiar 

with PaySchools as it is the same platform that the district leverages for parents to fund their student lunch accounts.

Information on Payschools Central, including how-to guides, can be found by visiting https://www.ramsey.k12.nj.us/PaySchools

Smith Staff Directory

Upcoming Dates

Club Photos- February 2

Ski Club Trip- February 3

Parent Academy, Smith School, 7:30 pm- February 8

Parent Book Club- February 9

Ski Club Trip- February 10

Choral Collage Concert- February 15

President's Day- District CLOSED- February 20

Staff Development Day- No School for STUDENTS- February 21

Ski Club Alternate Date- February 24

Board of Education Meeting- February 28 

Click Here for Smith School Calendar of Events