April 6, 2023
“It’s a spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you’ve got it, you want to—oh, you don’t quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!”
—Mark Twain, author
Dear Parents and Guardians,
The evening of April 5 was the beginning of Passover 2023. For those who observe, Happy Passover to you and your family. For those who observe Easter, Happy Easter to you and your family. I hope that all families enjoy a week of family celebrations and some relaxing time together.
I had the pleasure of watching our debate teams perform at their last competition of the season this past Saturday. What a group of talented students!! Below is a listing of their impressive results.
April 5 was National Paraprofessional Day. We have an amazing group of paraprofessionals at Middlebrook who engage, motivate and support our students every day! Thank you to them for their never-ending patience and caring!
This Week’s Topics:
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Debate Club Results
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WEF Memorial Day 5K
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Class of 2027 - Save the Date
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7th Annual Color Dash
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Mental Health Resource Newsletter
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Best Things I Saw/Heard This Week
Debate Club Results from Club Advisors Dr. Durkin and Mr. Panoli
We are pleased to share the results from last weekend's final debate club tournament. On Saturday, the Connecticut Middle School Debate League (CTMSDL) held its third annual Championship Tournament debating the motion: This House believes that artificial intelligence (AI) will do more harm than good. All of the debaters in this tournament represented the best of the best debaters, and they had to qualify to compete in this tournament. 66 debaters from 11 schools qualified for the championship by either placing 1-10 as a speaker or being on an undefeated team (winning all three rounds of debate) at a CTMSDL Tournament this season. Middlebrook had nine teams represented at this tournament - the largest representation from one school! Here are the results:
Speaker Scores:
Out of 66 debaters, we had ten students in the Top 25:
5th place - Margaret R
7th place - Gopika K
10th place - Nadia K
11th place - Sanjana G
15th place - Varsha A
20th place - Shruti K
22nd place - Henry L
23rd place - Ishaan B
24th place - Vedha K
25th place - Ishanvi J
Team Places:
For each tournament, the teams who are 1st and 2nd at the end of three rounds get to debate one final time in front of everyone who attended the debate. For the final round, Middlebrook was represented by two teams in the finals: Margaret R, Olivia D, and Ishanvi J went against Nadia K, Arav G, and Gopika K. In a split decision (2-1) by three judges, Nadia, Arav, and Gopika placed first in the whole tournament!
Congratulations to our amazing debaters this year, and we look forward to another great season next year. Thanks to all of you for your continued support!
WEF Memorial Day 5K
The Wilton Education Foundation Is planning the annual 5K over Memorial Day Weekend. The race draws everyone from children to adults, strollers to serious runners and makes for a fun community-wide event. Here is the link to our website, with all the information:
https://wiltoneducationfoundation.org/events-programs/get-smart-for-wilton-5k/
Class of 2027 - Save the Date
There will be a Moving Up to the High School presentation for the class of 2027 on Thursday, May 4, 2023 at 7 PM in the WHS Little Theater. Details for the evening will be shared soon.
7th Annual Color Dash
This May, Youth to Youth is hosting our 7th Annual Color Dash fun run to benefit Wilton Youth Council. The Color Dash aims to go beyond traditional fundraising. Rather than sell goods, this program seeks to engage the entire middle school student body, no matter what level of fitness or capability, in an initiative that promotes a lifelong healthy way of living. During the event participants are doused with color at various color stations, and the event ends with one final color celebration at the finish line. Our Youth to Youth student members are excited about the success of the Color Dash in past years and are looking forward to making this the best one yet!
The fun run will be held on May 15, 2023 at Middlebrook School. When you register you will also have the opportunity to make an additional donation to support Wilton Youth Council’s programs. The rain date for the Color Dash is May 16th.
Register by April 21st to receive a discounted registration entry fee of $35. Runners who register by April 21st are guaranteed a t-shirt, and individual color packet.
We believe in empowering students to make a change, and we are proud to support our students as they bring this wonderful opportunity to life for our community. Thank you for your help in making this fundraiser a success! Register using this link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wilton-youth-council-youth-to-youth-color-dash-tickets-605087552157
Mental Health Resource Newsletter
Please look for this newsletter in a separate mailing.
Best Things I Saw/Heard This Week
Four of our students represented Middlebrook School at the Hartford Convention Center last Friday as selected members of the Connecticut Music Educators Association (CMEA) 6th grade Honors Choir. Congratulations to Kurt J, Elyse P, Spencer S, and Rachele V!
Repeated for Your Convenience:
Yearbooks
Do you still want to order a yearbook, but missed the fall deadline? Here's your final chance (really, this is the last chance) to purchase a 2022-2023 Middlebrook Yearbook for your child! Yearbooks are a great way to preserve memories from a year when activities returned to our lives! Each hardcover yearbook displays memories for 6th, 7th and 8th graders and is only $30!
All orders need to be placed online by April 15, 2023 at:
https://ybpay.lifetouch.com
Enter CODE: 14048623 and follow the prompts to enter student information
Not sure if you ordered a yearbook in the fall? Have any additional questions? Feel free to reach out to Jessica Garcia by email at garciaj@wiltonps.org.
Wilton Library and Wilton Pride present a Community Forum: How to be an Ally
April 25, 2023 7-9 PM Registration is required: Here
From breaking down gender and sexual diversity to rethinking historical and traditional assumptions around identity, this conversation is a must for all who wish to be allies to the LGBTQ+ community. Led by Triangle Community Center, Cadence Pentheny, this event will engage participants in a thorough overview of what it means to be LGBTQ+ and an ally!
In Partnership with Triangle Community Center, Wilton Youth Council, Middlebrook PTA, High School PTSA, Middlebrook GSA , High School GSA, The Rowan Center, you will walk away with:
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The importance of allyship in real life situations: Understanding how LGBTQ+ individuals are impacted by bias, and an overview of best practices that protect safety and inclusion
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An understanding of what is meant by sexual orientation, sexual identity, gender identity, gender expression, and sex assigned at birth - the differences between them and how they impact one another.
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Language and definition of terms associated with the LGBTQ+ community, including lesser known terms.
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Defining and understanding notions of hetero-normativity, the gender/sex binary, and cis-normativity.
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Rethinking social norms and expectations surrounding sexuality and gender in our society.
WHS PTSA 2023 - 2024
Incoming 9th Grade Families: the Wilton HS PTSA has the following position open for the 23/24 school year. We are excited to welcome our incoming freshman families to the High School. We would love for you to join our fun loving, relaxed group of volunteers, for the 2023-2024 school year. Most of our meetings/events take place in the evening - great for those parents who have daytime commitments. Positions on the board allow you to be part of your child’s High School experience. We have the following positions open: Executive Board Secretary, Co-Treasurer, Reflections Chair, Co-Chair for Senior Picnic (1), Senior Graduation Committee (2), Raising Funds (twice a year), Nominations Chair, Communications Chair (2)
If you are interested in any of these positions, please contact Sue Robins at ptsa.sue@gmail.com
Go Strengths!
Go Strengths! is the partner program to Go Zen! It reinforces and expands upon the social emotional skills learned and practiced in Go Zen. This class can be taken without Go Zen as a prerequisite. Go Strengths! is an interactive and comprehensive resilience skills building program focused on developing 8 vital skills including goal setting, optimistic thinking, problem solving, resilience, character strengths, emotional regulation, social skills, and self-confidence! Students will discover and cultivate their strengths and work together through interactive activities that will help them put into practice and transfer the skills that are taught in this course into everyday life. The class is pragmatic, fun and science research and evidenced based on its approach. We are excited to offer this to our 6th - 8th graders to help them discover their many Strengths! The course will be taught by Kara Berghaus, MS. Ed Certified Mental Health/School Counselor, the program leader for Go Zen Social Emotional Learning Curriculum for the past several years.
Program Title: Go Strengths! Resilience & Well-Being
Dates/Times: 8 weeks: Wednesdays, 4/19- 6/7 from 3:15 - 4:15 pm (no class 4/12)
Location: Middlebrook - Rm 8G 135
Grades: 6 - 8
Min # of Students: 8
Max # of Students: 10
Program Fee: $280/student
Registration Link: https://students.wiltoncontinuinged.org/CourseCatalog/ScheduleView.asp?ScheduleId=10973
Youth to Youth Summer Experience Opportunity
Please read Y2Y Summer Opportunity for more information.
Please Join the PTA
Link and information to join: www.middlebrookpta.org/jointhepta.
More about SEPTA - you can join there too! www.wiltonsepta.org
As always, we at The Brook continue to be thankful for the continued support of our families.
Stay safe and have a fantastic week!
All the best, always and all ways,
Jory
Jory Higgins,
Principal
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