MLK Day of Service

Patton Middle School is providing an opportunity for our students to make part of their day off, a day on Monday 21 January 2013. This year there are two options from which our students can choose; working outside in assisting clean up at Anson B. Nixon Park in Kennett in partnership with Kennett Middle school students, or serving inside by spending time with some of our older members of the community who live at the Pocopson Home. We will meet at the Patton Middle School at 8:30am, district transportation to the service location, on site from approximately 9:00-11:15am, arrive back at Patton 11:30am. If you desire to serve, please complete this brief electronic registration by Wednesday 16 January 2013.

Technology Night for Parents!

Parents! Want to learn more about the technology tools that students are using at the middle school?Then come to our second "Technology Night for Parents" of the year on Thursday, January 17 from 6:30-8:00 pm at the middle school, Room 135. This second session will be "Get to Know The iPad". This is a great way to find out about the tools our students and staff are using -- and something you can use, too! Parents are encouraged to pre-register for this session by clicking here.

The Giving Tree!

Our Giving Tree gifts were delivered on December 13 to the New Garden Township Building. Our Patton families came through in the end with toys and gifts in numbers that were comparable to past years. Thank you to all the children and adults who worked so hard to load the delivery truck with toys, sort food items and pack boxes. On December 15, 650 needy families will benefit from their efforts. A big thank you to Mrs. Ann Ferron for her efforts in making this annual event so successful again this year. View photos from the day right here.

Food Drive!

The annual canned food drive at Patton Middle School was another success this year. As a school, we collected approximately 3900 food items for the Kennett Food Bank! To break it down, 6th grade contributed 1482 items, 7th grade contributed 1379 items and 8th grade contributed 1028 items. Thank you to Boy Scout Troop 22 for collecting and delivering all the items. A special thanks to our Student Council and advisors Mrs. Jennings and Mrs. Bodenstab for all their work in organizing and a big "thank you" to everyone for their support! The Top Prime Time winners were - Mrs. Severino (6th grade), Mrs. Landry (7th grade), Mr. Cipollni (8th grade) Check out the awesome photos right here!

Winter Concert 2012

Congratulations to all the music students in orchestra, handbells and chorus in the Winter Concert on December 5!  You all did an amazing job and we are so very proud of you!! And a big thank you to our wonderful music teachers, Mrs. Leahy, Mrs Meade and Miss Hershey!! Check out the photos from the event right here.

Door Decorating 2012

The Door Decorating Contest was another huge hit this year! Thanks to all the students and staff for their hard work and creativity and especially to Mrs. Ferron and Miss Mela for organizing the event. Check out these photos from this year's event.

Heritage Day Festival!

Calling all 7th and 8th grade students! You have the opportunity to create an exhibit to showcase your culture in Patton's 1st Annual Heritage Day Festival in April 2013!  The showcase can include:  pictures, flags, food, cultural symbols, music, clothing and much more. The day will also include a fashion show, stories, games, and other events to highlight the cultural wonders of our school. The 6th grade students will have the opportunity to experience these cultures as we take you through a day of cultural awakening. Now, is a great time of year to start asking family about your heritage! Any 7th, or 8th grader interested in participating in Heritage Day please see Mrs. McMahon in the Guidance Office.

Civil War Day

Students in 8th grade took part in Civil War presentations on November 13. Check out some photos from the morning's events as well the live tweets during the day from Mr. Kelley. The tweets, which also include more photos, can be found in the CFPMS Twitter feed (@CFPMSInfo)

Mr. Kelley's Class on Twitter

Students in Mr. Kelley's 8th Grade Creative Writing classes are tweeting with YA authors Laini Taylor and Rebecca Stead...a sort of an extended literature circle after reading their novels. The students and the authors are engaging in great conversation, check it out right here. Thanks to these authors for their time and the respect they are showing these students' questions.

Geography Bee

Tryouts for 6th and 7th graders interested in participating in the school Geography Bee will be held during basic instruction on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in room 218. See your social studies teachers or Mrs. Schuster if you have questions.

Bus Notes Reminder

A reminder to parents and students! All students must have a bus note in order to ride home on a different bus after school. And this note MUST be turned in to the main office during morning prime time. The main office staff must compile the bus notes and send the information to district transportation during the morning so ALL NOTES must be turned in by morning prime time to guarantee your child will be able to ride home on a different bus.

Student Drop-Off and Pick-Up

In the primary interest of safety and to avoid interrupting the designed traffic flow, please ensure that drop off/pick up at the main entrance of the school occurs in the lane closest to the school. With multiple lanes in that parking area, vehicle congestion does occur. Drop off and pick up on the cafeteria side should occur in a counter-clockwise flow of traffic . Please pull up as far as possible and drop students off on the building side. Drop-off or pick-up is not to occur on the route 82 side of the building as this is the traffic flow pattern for buses. Thank you for your continued cooperation and support. Much appreciated.

Ms.Lear's Animoto Projects

Students in Ms. Lear's classes have been writing "This I Believe" statements and incorporating them into Animoto slideshows which were featured on HawkTV. In case you missed them, you can check them out right here! (Requires a ucfsd.net login)

Students Water Research

Mr. Cipollini's science students recently visited Stroud Water Research Center.  The students were involved in lab investigations centered around the White Clay Creek. Using Bio-Indicators, (macroinvertebrates) and physical characteristics of the stream, (nitrates, pH, turbidity, temperature) the students were able to determine the health of the stream. The good news is, this portion of the White Clay Creek is a very healthy stream. The students also learned how farms, businesses and residential areas impact Chester County streams. Water Runoff is one of our largest contributing factors. Check out these photos from the day.

Open House - November 13

Join us for a special "Open House" on November 13 from 9-10 AM to celebrate American Education Week. We will have presentations about the new plans for our Patton Project, our upcoming Heritage Day, and our Olweus anti-bullying program. In addition, we will be sharing the CFPMS Olweus survey data from last year with all in attendance.

From Mr. Hoffman

Starting August 30th, each middle school teacher began sharing a course syllabus with their students.  The syllabus provides information regarding materials used, units taught, approximate instructional time needed for each unit, and a description of how grades will be computed.  Click here to a read a letter from Mr. Hoffman to learn more.

Child Abuse Awareness

Join us for an evening of awareness and discussion as FOCUS presents "Child Sexual Abuse:  The Lasting Effects, Awareness, and Prevention" at the UHS Auditorium on October 18 from 7-9 PM. You must register to attend this important and timely event at www.csa-awareness.eventbrite.com.  Adults only, please. Click here for more information or contact Sherry Tierney at sndtierney@verizon.net.

Student Published!

Congratulations to 8th grader Thea Toocheck on having a book published on Amazon! Her new book, entitled, "The Thirst Inside" is the story of 13-year old Ide Noapte. Ide's a normal girl, really smart and very fast, with tons of friends and a super cute crush named Austin. Until she and her brother learn a terrible secret! To find out more, check out Thea's book on Amazon.com!

Club Descriptions

Make sure to have a look at the list of club descriptions and talk to your friends before you make your selection.  Club registration opens October 1 at 8 PM.

LEGO Robotics

Interested in Robotics? Enjoy problem solving, teamwork and creativity? Like to do research projects? Have lots of team spirit? Then the FIRST Lego League Robotics program may be for you! We are looking for girls and boys to form new teams for this Fall and, very importantly, for parents to coach the teams. You can learn what it is all about by coming to the Information Session on Wednesday, September 12 at 7pm in the Hillendale Elementary School LGI Room. Check out the FIRST Lego League website for more information. Contact Karl Krause at ucfrobots@gmail.com with questions.

Girls on Track!

The Brandywine YMCA presents Girls on Track! Get ready to register for these popular programs, held here at Patton MS. Participants meet twice a week after school with trained coaches, and follow a curriculum that teaches life lessons, builds character and enhances self esteem all while increasing their endurance to run a 5K. Participants will participate in the Girls on the Run Challenge in Downingtown on Sunday December 2. The program starts during the week of September 24 so click here for registration information.

Transition Camp 2012!

Patton extended a huge WELCOME to all of our new, incoming students at our annual Transition Camp. Everyone had a great day meeting new and old friends while getting ready for the new school year! Check out photos from the day right here.

Student Council Elections

Now is the time to gather our student leaders and elect out 2012-2013 CFPMS Student Council. 8th graders can run for the following positions: President, Vice-President, Parliamentarian and Treasurer. 7th and 8th graders can run for the positions of Recording Secretary and Corresponding Secretary. We need great leaders for our great school, so if you are interested, please pick up a Petition in the main office this week. You need to have 30 of your peers sign this petition, and then you will bring your signed petitions to Mrs. Bodenstab and Mrs. Jennings on Monday, September 10 during Basic in Room 125.

Summer Team Letters

Attention all students and parents! Your summer team letters are available for download right here: A-Team, B-Team, C-Team, D-Team, E-Team, F-Team, H-Team and J-Team.

Student Art Projects

Art projects from Mrs. Little's art classes have been placed on tables outside her room, #103. They must be picked up by June 28, or will be discarded. Please e-mail her if you have specific concerns.

Summer Reading 2012

Have you started your summer reading? The 2012 Summer Reading Lists are now posted on the Downloads page. Check it out today!

Field Day 2012

This year's Field Day was another amazing success!! It was a picture-perfect day and students and staff had a fun day of competition. A HUGE thanks to Mrs. Hadly, Mrs. Quinn and Mr. Garber for their efforts in coordinating the day. Check out the photo slide show right here!

Teacher For A Day

This year's "Teacher For A Day" event was another huge success! Students purchased raffle tickets to be entered in a drawing to get a chance to be their favorite teacher on May 25. The students taught classes and performed the duties of their teacher for the entire day. All proceeds from the ticket sales went to the Relay for Life. A big thanks to Mrs. DiGregorio and the Patton Gives Back Club for making this annual event possible.

Scholastic Challenge 2012

Congratulations go out to the team of Eric Jankowski, Hank Ward, John Stookey and Alice Liu who participated in the American Scholastic Challenge 2012 that took place online during the month of  February. Over 17,000 students participated from schools throughout the country. The competition allows participants to demonstrate a variety of problem solving skills and knowledge in many academic areas.  This year, these top four students earned high scores to place them in 2nd place, earning a Silver Award.  Special congratulations go out to Alice Liu, who earned an outstanding score of 96 out of 100 and took first place overall out of all 17,000 participants.  Way to go Alice!

Knowledge Bowl Results

Congratulations to Patton's Knowledge Bowl teams who competed at the County level yesterday in Downingtown. Individual award winners for high scores in the written round were: 6th grader, Matt Caputo, 7th grader, Nicholas Yang, and 8th grader, Ellie Covert. Also, with an overwhelming score, the 6th grade team of Eric Folmar, Ryan Hastings, Kyle Lacey, David Linskens, Matt Caputo, Allsion Herr, Sachi Patel, and Shuhan Yin placed 1st among 17 other teams, and were awarded medals. Patton's 7th and 8th grade teams did a wonderful job competing against over 20 other Chester County Teams. Great job to all!

5th Grade Orientation

If you missed the Fifth Grade Orientation meeting with Mr. Vosburgh on April 25, you may download a copy of the presentation as well as the handouts from the evening.

Our Hero, Mrs. Steinen!

Congratulations to A-Team teacher Mrs. Steinen for being recognized as a 2012 Education Hero at the Literacy Heroes Awards ceremony at Longwood Gardens on April 13, sponsored by the West Chester Public Library. Mrs. Steinen was recognized for her volunteer efforts in tutoring dependent children recommended by the Chester County Court system. Read the full story right here, including a video interview with Mrs. Steinen.

Students Published!

Some more 8th grade student writers in Mr. Kelley's creative writing class are published in this week's Unionville Times. 8th grader Sydney DeCaro started off the week with her essay on self-image.  Check the Unionville Times each day this week to read another article from an 8th grade student in the creative writing classes.

Bullying Survey

Dear Parents and Guardians: In our continuing efforts to promote and maintain an environment and climate conducive to student success, Patton Middle School will be surveying all our students regarding the topic of Bullying. The survey instrument is the same tool used when we initiated our anti-bullying efforts four years ago. The survey is provided by the Hazelden Company who provided our Olweus materials. In 2008 we initiated our Olweus (pronounced Olvaus) anti-bullying program with staff training and implementation with our students. We would like to survey our students again to gather information on the state of student culture as it presently exists concerning this issue. The anonymous, on-line forty minute survey will be accomplished during the A – F cycle beginning 14 May. Students will be proctored by their Health teacher in a computer lab. Survey results will help guide decision-making regarding future student culture goals. If you do not wish your child to accomplish this survey, please contact Jim Fulginiti, Assistant Principal, 610-347-2000 x3810. Thank you for your support and cooperation in this important matter.

Attention 6th Graders!

As part of the process for your 7th grade year, 6th graders will have the opportunity to select one course from each of the following areas: English and Social Studies. Students met with Mr. Vosburgh and they all received this packet. Please read the course descriptions attached for each of these courses before making your choices and be aware that some courses may require prerequisite skills. The attached selection form must be returned to the middle school office on or  before Friday, April 27, 2012.

Fight For Air Climb

On March 24th, "Patton for Pam" team climbed the Bell Atlantic Tower's 50 flights of stairs to raise money for the American Lung Association in the "Fight for Air Climb".  Mrs. Ilgenfritz, Mrs. Nanis, and Mrs. Steinen did the Century Climb where they climbed the steps twice!  Mrs. Ilgenfritz was the 1st place female in the Century Climb and was awarded a medal! The best part is that the team raised over $1400 to help the American Lung Association fund research and education.  The team climbed in honor of Mrs. Jordan, the former nurse here at Patton Middle School.

PMEA Chorus Festival

On March 30th, nine of our students represented our school district in the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association District 12 Middle School Chorus Festival.  The top singers from twenty school districts participated in this special event.  The students are: John Stookey, Joseph Siehl, Angela Kodokian, Zachary Ward, Jillian Duffy, Jessie Bolger, Lainey Duncan, Trevor Seidel, and Allen Zhu. Two of our students were chosen for solos in the concert:  Jessie and Angela. Congratulations to you all for a wonderful concert!

Reading Olympics

Congratulations to Patton's Reading Olympics teams, who competed at W.C. East High School against 47 other middle school teams and came away with two blue ribbons, one red, and one white.  Great job, Olympians!

Patton Project News

On March 26, 2012, the first official donation of handmade quilts and pillowcases was delivered tothe AI Dupont Hospital for Children. Family and Consumer Science teachers Betsy Ballard and Kimberly Hisler were joined by students Cara Freedman and Philip Chidekel as Dr. Aaron Chidekel and Alaina Norvell, Director of Child Life, accepted the handmade items created by the Charles F. Patton Middle School’s 8th grade Patton Project class. Click here for the rest of the story.

Chester County Science Fair

Patton Middle School had a pair of first place winners while Unionville High School students took home seven first-place awards, including three “best of show” awards at the recent Chester County Science Research Competition. Both schools had numerous other award winners. Check out the rest of the story in the Unionville Times.

Knowledge Bowl

Any 6th, 7th, or 8th grade student who would like to tryout for the Knowledge Bowl Team should see Mrs. Schuster in room 218.

Course Selection for Grade 7

Course selection for 8th grade Special Area and English courses is now taking place for Grade 7. All seventh graders attended an assembly on March 13 and received this packet which contains course descriptions and registration information. All forms are due back to Guidance by March 28.

Patton MathCounts

Congratulations to the following students who participated in the 6th grade MathCounts competition on March 10: Divian Jain, Will Prysock, Sachi Patel, Michael Iacocca, Ethan Pan, Sweta Prasad, Crystal Yao, Ben Ke and Ryan Hastings.  The team of Ryan Hastings, Ben Ke, Crystal Yao and Sweta Prasad took 4th place over all. Individually, Ethan pan took 7th place and Ryan Hastings finished in 5th place. Great job to all!

Race to Nowhere

“Race to Nowhere” is Back by Popular Demand: Two Additional Film Screenings! Daytime Screening: Friday, March 16th 10:00-11:30am at Willowdale Chapel (Rte 82, just S of Rte 926) Evening Screening: Friday, March 23rd 7:30-9:00pm at UHS Auditorium (students are welcome!) Please register for evening screening at: rtnunionvillehs32312.eventbrite.com. No registration needed for daytime screening. Click here for more information and details on this event.

Geography Bee Champ!

Congratulations to Kate Evanko who has qualified to represent Patton Middle School and participate at the state level of the National Geographic Bee at Penn State University on March 30th. Good luck, Kate!

Bread Baking Program

On Friday, February 10th, 2012, the King Arthur Flour Company's Life Skills Bread Baking Program presented an assembly for the 7th graders of Patton Middle School. Students learned about bread baking with a little science and math thrown in. Our hope was that each child would go home with thier newfound skills and "goodie bag" filled with flour, a recipe book, yeast, a scraper and bag, and make two loaves of bread with their families. Click here for the rest of the story...

LEGO Robotics

Congratulations to our Patton LEGO Robotics teams! Team WATTS advanced to the champion's tournament held at the Bob Carpenter center on January 28 and were awarded the "Inspiration trophy" for demonstrating enthusiasm and encompassing the core values of the First Lego league. Team Robotic Chargers placed the highest overall of all the UCFSD teams for the robot game portion of the competition coming in the top 10. Team Chef Bot-Ardee was awarded the Judge's Award for Consistency. This team also travelled to Washington DC to present their food safety research during a public meeting at the Food Safety Inspection Service of the USDA. They also met with congressman Joseph Pitts to share their research with him.

Doodle 4 Google

So did you ever notice the cool LOGOS you occasionally see on the Google homepage? Do you think you could create one? Well if you do then you should enter the Doodle 4 Google competition. It’s now open to all K-12 students. Completed entry forms must be received by March 23. To get an entry form, visit the Doodle 4 Google web page.

Questions About the PSSA

With PSSA testing just around the corner, take time to review this list of Frequently Asked Questions about the PSSA.

Course Selection for 8th Graders

On January 31, Mrs. Thacher met with the 8th grade class to review the course selection process.  Packets of course selection information were distributed to students to take home and share with their parents. Click here for more information and a complete list of important dates. You may see the UHS Course Selection Guide by clicking here.

Authors Skype With Students

Young Adult authors have been visiting with students via Skype in Mr. Kelley's Creative Writing classes again this year. So far, the students have chatted with Mitali Perkins, Kathi Appelt and Irene Latham with more to come in 2012. Visit the Author Visits page to check out the conversations between these authors and our students.

We Want YOUR Photos!

The Yearbook staff invites students and parents to submit photos for the yearbook. If you have great photos of your friends having fun at school, we'd like to see them. Help us get as many photos as possible to create a terrific yearbook for everyone. Click here to find out how to submit your photos.

U-Factor Results

Saturday's U-Factor Talent Show was a HUGE success!! Congratulations to Hannah Keglovits and Dina Syropoulus on their first place finish and to Eva Sheppard for finishing second! We had many other Patton Middle School students who took part including: Erin Michel, Brianna Bialko, Cameron Cofrancesco, David Taylor, Amber Liu, Zack Horowitz, Ashley Lennick, Matt Dabertin, Chaewon Sohn, Caroline Salisbury & Emily Shiring, Julianna LoMonoco, and Joey Siehl. And if you would like to purchase a DVD of these two outstanding shows, visit the UCFEF web site for more details.

Science Fair Winners

Congratulations to all students who participated in the CFPMS Science Fair yesterday. All students did an outstanding job.  The following students will be moving on to the County Level Fair in March:

6th grade:  Ryan Hastings - Physics , Sarah Covert - Physics, Bradley Heacock - Physics, Suchi Jain and Arianna Belohoubek - Team project, Sweta Prasad and Roma Pathak  Team project

7th grade:  Matt Beiderman and Catherine Mohr - team project, Matt Daniels and Harris Avgousti - team project, Beth McCormick and Rhea Mundy - team project, Sagar Maheshwari - Environmental Science, Paige Young - Bio Chemistry.

8th grade:  Jace Bridges - Behavior and Social Sciences, Devon Godek - Chemistry, Alice Liu - Consumer Science, Victoria Latham - Environmental Science, Sarah Scheivert - Micro Biology.