Dr. Kelly Cooke
Principal
Mr. Robert Hayzler
Asst. Principal
Mrs. Kathy Tobia
Asst. Principal
Ms. Joanne Martino
SAC/Anti-Bullying Specialist
Mrs. Liz Conley
Nurse, X5720
School Hours: 7:35 am - 2:15 pm
1000 Weldon Rd.
Oak Ridge, NJ 07438
(973) 697-1980
Fax (973) 697-1348
Welcome to Jefferson Township Middle School’s Home Page!
Happy New Year! We hope your holidays were bright and you celebrated the New Year with family and friends.
Middle School students and staff closed 2019 with a busy December that concluded many academic units of study and resulted in special grade level and school-wide events. For example, eighth grade social studies students participated in Socratic Seminars and analyzed if Socrates deserved to be executed for his teachings. Seventh grade language arts students concluded their first Dystopian novel, Legend by Marie Lu, and explored point of view, character, and setting development. Sixth grade students were provided a presentation by Chief Conrad from the JTPD. The presentation focused on the Bill of Rights and protecting citizens. In addition, the JTMS Bands and Choruses also held their first performances of the season at the Winter Concert event. Students performed in front of a packed house of family and friends. In addition, the JTMS Select Band performed during Christmas in the Village which helped to get the Jefferson community into the holiday spirit. And finally, our Red Cross and Student Council club members held a bake sale and volunteered their time at the “Visit with Santa” event held at Camp Jefferson.
We are proud to announce that our school counselors along with the support and assistance from teachers successfully implemented the SOS - Signs of Suicide program. The SOS program was taught to students in multiple stages to each grade level. The program educated our students about mental health and the signs of suicide as well as trained them how to respond when someone needs help and how to identify peers who may need extra support. The acronym “ACT”, Acknowledge, Care, and Tell was taught to the students as a means to intervene when necessary. Congratulations to all participants and their efforts to continue to make our school a comfortable and safe place for all.
Thank you for visiting and please be sure to check out our webpage, on the left, for upcoming events, announcements, and activities for JTMS students.
Happy New Year 2020 to all!
Sincerely,
Dr. Cooke
Principal
The district would once again like to thank the Jefferson Township Community for their support of our Bond Referendum vote back in October 2018. The district was able to receive 40% reimbursement from the State in grant money. Fortunately, when our credit history was reviewed by the financial institutions providing the bonds, we were able to secure loans at the rate of 3.62% which is lower than expected.
Although it is a smaller-scale project, we are excited that the work has started! The door locks are being replaced at Cozy Lake by Oak Security. The new locks will have a thumb lock for enhanced security and will be ADA compliant.
The other projects slated to occur this summer are:
Update: 7.23.19
High School:
Makerspace Flooring Progress
Update: 7.22.19
JTHS:
Science Flooring
Outside
Science Classroom Drop Ceiling
Wood Shop Flooring
Roofing Machinery & Crew
Music Rooms
Future Makerspace Classroom
Band & High Tech Music Room Flooring
Update: 7.19.19
Cozy Lake:
Outside Facade
All-Purpose Room
White Rock:
All-Purpose Room Abatement
Makerspace Flooring
Makerspace Flooring
Update: 7.18.19
Cozy Lake:
Outside Facade Progress
Ellen T. Briggs:
Exterior Modular Wing Facade Progress
Makerspace Room 111
Makerspace Room 111
JTMS:
Gymnasium Lobby
Locker Room
Floor Abatement
Panoramic View of Media Center
Stanlick:
All-Purpose Room Flooring
Makerspace Flooring
UPDATE: (6/26-7/10):
JTMS:
Media Center Moving Out, Ceilings Removed & Painting Begun
Cozy Lake:
Removal of Outside Facade:
Makerspace Classroom Before
JTMS Science Rooms:
Classrooms B3 & 4 Emptied
B4 Flooring Removed
B21 Final Demolition
White Rock:
Makerspace Classroom Before
All-Purpose Room Before
Middle School:
Locker Room Before
Locker Room Before
Media Center Before
Media Center Before
Robotics Classroom Before
Robotics Classroom Before
Science Classroom Before
Science Classroom Before
Ellen T. Briggs:
Facade Before
Makerspace Classroom Before
Door Hardware Before
Stanlick:
All-Purpose Flooring Before
Classroom Before
Kitchen Flooring Before
Closet Before
Makerspace Classroom Before
High School:
Roof Areas A,B,C, & D
Roof Areas C & D Before
Auxiliary Gym Roof Before
Fascia Before
Fascia Before
Science Lab Before
Makerspace Classroom Before
Wood Shop Classroom Before
Wood Shop Classroom Before
C7 Cleared Out
Prep Room Floor Hatch
C9 Early Demo
Room C8 Before
C8 Cleared Out
C7 Outside Fascia
May 16, 2019
Cozy Lake:
Before: Old Hardware
After: Updated Hardware
Throughout the month of December, the counseling office, in collaboration with the CST, organized and facilitated our Annual Giving Garland which provided over 40 JTMS students with extra cheer over the holidays. In addition, the Signs of Suicide program was delivered to 6th graders which completed the training program for all students. Staff members were extremely happy with the delivery of the program and the support that was provided to our at-risk students. Lastly, each grade level counselor started their first round of groups with their students.
Students finished their Percent Unit of study. In doing so, they used tax, tip, and discounts to problem-solve. Students completed a Shopping Spree Activity using discounts to calculate the sales price and sales tax on items they wanted to purchase. They used menus from restaurants to calculate the bill and find the tip. Also, as the football season winds down, the students are making their final picks with the NFL playoff games and using them to practice changing fractions to decimals to percents.
Students on the 6 Blue team have begun to study the rock cycle. Students have investigated igneous rock and their volcanic origin. Students will continue to investigate sedimentary and metamorphic rock before composing a rock story showing how a rock could progress through the rock cycle. Students on the 6 Gold team have been entrenched in their studies of volcanoes by conducting many hands-on explorations related to viscosity, the role of silica in magma, and types of eruptions including the traditional method of baking soda and vinegar explosion.
Students in Social Studies learned about the Constitution with special focus on the Bill of Rights. Students heard a presentation from JTPD, Chief Conrad, and learned about how the Bill of Rights applies to citizens and how it affects police officers as they do their job.
Students engaged in reading, analyzing, and annotating fiction texts and periodically met in Socratic Circles for their Winter Book Club. Soon, students will begin creating video book talks in which they share their analysis about their assigned novel. In addition, students will utilize the individualized online platforms of No Red Ink, to improve writing and grammar skills, as well as Membean, which focuses on vocabulary acquisition.
Seventh grade Language Arts students completed the novel, Legend by Marie Lu. Throughout the dystopian novel, students explored protagonists and antagonists as well as how the setting and character development affects the plot of the story. Students also focused on PCR writing. All of these topics lend to obtaining a deeper meaning of literature and building writing skills.
Seventh grade math students began their investigation with integers. Students have been practicing to add, subtract, multiply, and divide integers. Students have also worked to associate positive and negative word meanings from real-world situations (i.e., deposit & withdrawal). In addition, students have re-discovered absolute value and its relation to distance.
In science, students have been exploring cell organelles and DNA. In order to understand how cells function as a system with multiple components that must participate, students used the Cell-as-city analogy to analyze each organelle’s function. To show their knowledge, students made a model of several cell processes, showing inputs, outputs, and flow of matter and/or energy. Students also completed questions in order to determine which organelle has stopped functioning in a patient’s body.
Seventh grade Social Studies classes are in the process of analyzing how each amendment in the Bill of Rights protects the liberties citizens currently enjoy. Student are evaluating Supreme Court decisions in cases centered on Bill of Rights protections. This learning experience helps students appreciate the importance of the Bill of Rights in safeguarding individual liberty.
Eighth Grade Language Arts students completed working in Socratic Book Clubs where they participated in a “Book Tasting” activity. Students were placed in Book Club groups based on similar interests and then participated in “Academic Talk” discussions while reading and annotating their chosen novels. As a culminating activity, students participated in Socratic Seminars where they applied their knowledge and posed essential questions in an open group discussion.
The Math students are currently exploring concepts of algebra 1, including direct variation and different forms of linear equations (slope intercept form, point slope form, and standard form). Students are learning to solve systems of linear equations through graphing, substitution and elimination, as well as determine the best method to use based on the set of given equations. Geometry students are exploring properties of similar and congruent triangles, including theorems and proofs to determine if two triangles are similar/congruent. Students will soon begin their study of bisectors, medians, and altitudes of triangles. Algebra 1 students have been learning about systems of equations and the various methods used to solve problems. The next area of study for algebra students is exponents. All eighth grade math classes will be administered the LinkIt B assessment in order to determine overall progress and areas needing further instruction.
It’s exciting times in Ancient Rome; or as students call it “8th Grade World History”. Students are discussing the legitimacy of Julius Caesar’s incursions into Rome at the head of his armies in our Socratic Seminars. This area of study will transfer to learning about the successes and failures of the Roman Empire. Students were entertained by participating in a Roman Senate Simulation, where they acted as Roman senators. Unfortunately, students learned that the Senate often turned more into a place of deceit and murder than a place of legislation. Students end the marking period with a better understanding of the great opportunities learned from Ancient World History/Rome.
Students finished the Chemistry section of the curriculum and are now studying physics. Students began the unit studying speed and motion and are learning how to correctly use and analyze graphs as a tool to further understanding of the concepts.
The 8th Grade GATEways students have begun their mini unit on transcendentalism and civil disobedience. They are learning about the transcendental movement in New England which was founded by some of America's most famous writers such as Henry David Thoreau. Students are discovering the links of past-to-present from this era as the concept of civil disobedience found its way from 19th century New England, to India and Mohandas Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. in the civil rights era. The 7th Grade GATEways students have begun their unit on the United Nations. They are discovering and learning about the main organs of the UN, the primary roles in which the UN plays in our global society, and current events associated with the UN. The 6th Grade GATEways students are finishing their unit on using spreadsheets to calculate results and produce graphs/charts to display their group’s findings.
Sixth grade French and Spanish students applied their community vocabulary to create a final project with places of their favorite activities. Students were able to describe locations, activities to do, and who works at the sites. Seventh grade French and Spanish students applied their family and adjectives vocabulary to the creation of a family tree slideshow where they described their family (some fictitious). Both grades were excited to present their projects and share them with the class. Eighth grade French and Spanish students described their favorite leisure activities and learned how to converse about the leisure activities in various situations.
Students learned how to evaluate websites and online sources as well as how to paraphrase and directly quote from sources. Students used NoodleTools to organize their research in preparation for a class debate.
Computer Science Discoveries students used their skills to change character properties such as location, rotation, and scale as well as learned about user interactions such as pressing keys and moving mice in order to create an interactive greeting card. The students continued learning JavaScript by exploring different ways that characters move and interact with other characters or obstacles. These movements and interactions will lead the students to better understand the science involved in video games.
Sixth Grade CSP students completed their first compare and contrast essay with a focus on the “Marley’s Ghost” scene of the story A Christmas Carol during their “Social Responsibility” unit. The students focused on two adaptations of the story and analyzed how the tone and mood differed depending on the intended audience. In addition, students developed reading literature skills such as citing evidence to support inferences from a text. Seventh grade CSP students continued their “And Justice for All” dystopian unit by delving into their new book club novels and continued to analyze how characters and settings impacted the overall story. In addition, students wrapped up the standard of citing evidence to support inferences in a text. Eighth grade CSP students completed writing their first argumentative essay of the year on a topic of their choosing. During this unit, students focused on crafting claims, identifying appropriate textual evidence, citing evidence in writing, and countering arguments. Students have since moved back into book club groups where they are reading novels such as Carmer and Grit by Sarah Jean Horwitz and Rumble Fish by S.E. Hinton.
Sixth grade CSP students started their algebra unit in mathematics by working hard to find the value of x. Seventh grade CSP students crushed it while learning about integer operations. Eighth grade CSP students have been learning about systems of equations. They are learning how to represent the same information either on a graph, table or an equation. All three grade levels increased their MobyMax time resulting in math skill improvements. In addition, all three grade levels are looking forwards to the end of the marking period to see if they qualify and get invited to a full-period luncheon.
Students in the 7th and 8th grade F&CS classes prepared assorted Holiday cookies. As part of the “Gifts from the Kitchen” unit, the students brought home brightly decorated cookie boxes to share with their families. It was a wonderful way to showcase their work. A good time was had by all!
The forensics students are approaching the end of their semester case study, the Case of Adnan Syed and Hae Min Lee. Students finished listening to a podcast where they collected evidence that was discovered during a trial. Students are forming their own conclusions as to whether or not Adnan was guilty or innocent of murdering his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee.
Chorus - Students performed at their annual Winter Concert in December. They enjoyed their biggest audience to date and sounded fantastic! In early January, the 7th and 8th grade chorus students performed rock songs at the NJ Devils hockey game and had an opportunity to walk on the ice for a memorable photo. Band - The JTMS Bands finished their very busy concert season. The Select Band performed at the Jefferson Township community event, Christmas in the Village, all bands performed at their annual Winter Concert, and the 7th and 8th grade band members performed at a New Jersey Devils trip. Two students from the 8th grade band, Alex Foth and Nick Roberts, represented JTMS at the North Jersey Junior Area Band concert held at Mt. Olive High School in mid-January.
All three grade levels worked with Tinkercad software. In doing so, students created a multitude of shapes in different colors and sizes. Next, the students will learn to create a personal project of something unique to them. And finally, the 7th and 8th grade classes used their new skills to develop and recreate a building including surroundings using Tinkercad.
Sixth grade students learned about the different types of joints used in structure construction as well as the different types of stress that a structure can experience. Students designed, constructed, and tested straw towers designed to hold as many tennis balls as possible. Seventh and eighth grade students learned about structure design as well as Newton’s three laws of motion. They have spent the past few weeks designing and building cardstock roller coasters that can transport a marble from the beginning to the end without getting stuck.
Students have been participating in a variety of net-type games. Students finished playing Nitro-ball and are now playing traditional volleyball. Students will conclude the marking period with an introduction to the forever favorite, Pickleball.
