Starr-Iva Middle School

🐛🌱 There’s always something interesting happening in Ag class! Mrs. Caldwell brought in a little “show and tell” straight from her garden at home: tobacco hornworms! Students used hand lenses to get an up-close look while learning the differences between tobacco and tomato hornworms. They explored the hornworm life cycle, discussed why these caterpillars are considered garden pests and which plants they prefer, and students learned about their defenses against predators. No lesson is complete without a new vocabulary word! Today’s word: “frass”-the scientific term for insect poop! 💩🐛😂

📖💃 POETRY IN MOTION AT SIMS! 💃📖 Ms. Smith’s English I students read “My Papa’s Waltz” as part of their poetry unit and then took their learning beyond the page by asking, “How do you waltz?” Of course, they had to find out! We love seeing our teachers create opportunities that make learning engaging, meaningful, and memorable for our students. These are the lessons they’ll remember long after the unit is over!

🌿🔨 GROWING TOGETHER at SIMS! 🔨🌿 Mrs. Caldwell’s class was thrilled to receive new raised beds built and delivered by the Crescent Ag classes! We love partnering with other schools in our amazing district. 🤝 Our 6th graders also worked hard to dismantle and assemble coop panels. They had to be handy with a ratchet, and several students were very good at it! 🛠️

🌿🔬 SCIENCE IN NATURE at SIMS! 🔬🌿 Mrs. Meredith’s science students worked on making qualitative and quantitative observations during a nature walk last week! Students explored their surroundings, recorded details, and practiced using scientific observations in a hands-on learning experience. If you look closely, you may find an "insect-friend" like they did!

📚🏆 LUNCH TIME TRIVIA at SIMS! 🏆📚 Lunch time trivia is one of our favorite parts of our One Book, One School initiative! Our students are loving Restart, and we are having so much fun rewarding them for their participation and enthusiasm.

🕵️‍♀️🔬 TOP SECRET FILES at SIMS! 🔬🕵️‍♂️ Mrs. Peterson’s science students put their detective skills to work as they searched for crime clues while practicing the Scientific Method! Students observed, investigated, gathered evidence, and used critical-thinking skills to crack the case. What a fun way to bring science to life with hands-on learning!

This past month, at a hydroponic gardening workshop at Clemson, Dr. McMillan realized that Dr. Layfield presented our SIMS hydroponic gardening club activities at a national conference. Our staff and students are doing big things and getting recognized for their efforts!

August was all about CREATIVITY, and September's core value is: FRIENDSHIP. We will be focusing on it all month. Be sure to engage with your kiddos on how to choose good friends and how to be a good friend this month and always!

In August, our Core Value was CREATIVITY. These students were given positive referrals because of their creativity and/or because they just went above and beyond this month at SIMS. Check your email to see why your student received a positive referral!

Congratulations to Mrs. Russell for being our August Staff Spotlight!

Here's week THREE of Restart! Get engaged in the reading with us!

Band parents of SIMS students- please note the time change from 4pm-6pm tonight for rentals!

This month, our Guidance lessons are centered around one of our core values: CREATIVITY! 💡✨ Creativity is more than being artistic- it’s thinking differently, solving problems, sharing new ideas, and finding your own unique way to make a difference. We are so thankful for the creative minds of our SIMS students and staff who bring fresh ideas, talents, and energy to our school each day. 🐯

🌟 SGA Spotlight: Scarlett Ruhland! 🌟 We are so proud of Scarlett Ruhland for representing SIMS SGA at the SCASC Leadership Camp in Cherry Grove, SC this past summer! 🖤💛 Scarlett spent an incredible week growing as a student leader, making new connections, and showing everyone what SIMS is all about. She even competed in the talent show and earned the amazing honor of being named a Camper of the Week! 🏆👏 Way to go, Scarlett! We are so proud of the way you represented SIMS, and we hope even more of our SGA students will follow your lead and take advantage of opportunities like this in the future!🌟 Thanks to our SGA Advisor, Dr. Nora McMillan, for making this possible as well!

Here's week two of Restart! Get engaged in the reading with us!

🎯 PERFECT SCORES! 🎯

SC READY is no easy task, but these students made perfection look easy! We are incredibly proud to celebrate our students who earned a PERFECT SCORE on SC READY last year! 🏆🌟

Help us give these outstanding students the recognition they deserve! Congratulations! 🎉👏

Good afternoon SIMS Families!
We are kicking off our One Book/One School Initiative, and students have been flying through the pages. Each week, we will have an expected reading timeline and some activities for students to do at home and in ACE Time (homerooms) to keep everyone engaged. We encourage you to get involved in your students' reading experience from the start by connecting with them through our novel: Restart by Gordon Korman. Please email or call us with any questions.

Building relationships is a priority for us at SIMS! Mrs. Parker's students have had a lot of fun working together to learn more about her and each other!

Mark your calendars for this event!