Hello DMS Families,

We wanted to thank all of our students and their families who came to our Title I Family Night on Tuesday, March 11th. Students were engaged by visiting each of our teacher's classrooms to solve our mystery crime. All students were winners taking home a number of prizes at the conclusion of the event (e.g. computers, books, board games, technology accessories, etc.). It was a SUPER evening that was FUN for everyone!

We want to give a BIG CHIEFTAINS SHOUT OUT to our DMS Band for their performance at the Michigan Schools Band Orchestra (MSBO) Festival on Wednesday, March 5th at Paw Paw High School. Their performance was rated by a panel of judges who assigned area bands a score from 1-4 (1=Excellent, 2=Good, 3=Fair, 4=Poor). We are PROUD to announce our DMS Band earned a 2 rating. Nice work CHIEFTAINS!

Come and join us for the Spring Musical "MATILDA" coming to DMS this weekend under the direction of Mr. Ryan Murray. Performances begin tonight Friday, March 14 (7:00PM), Saturday, March 15 (7:00PM) and Sunday, March 16 (3:00PM). Tickets are $10. We are looking forward to a GREAT show!

Mark your calendars! DMS will be hosting a SPRING CRAFT FAIR on Saturday, April 12th (9:00-3:00 pm). There will be over 50 vendors for the event with more to come! Please spread the word with your family and friends. Also, the EASTER BUNNY will be here too for pictures! We hope to see you!

Attention all 6th-8th grade girls. Sign ups for "Girls on the Run" are going on right now. If you are interested, please see Miss Sellers (DMS Social Worker) for details. For those who don't know, "Girls on the Run" is a physical activity-based program for girls in 3rd-8th grade. It's focus is to use running as a vehicle to build confidence, social, and emotional skills, and encourage healthy habits. 

Attention all Spring Track & Soccer student-athletes. Practices will begin after school on Monday, March 17th.

Finally, we want to let everyone know Spring Break will begin on Friday, March 28th through Friday, April 4th. School will resume on Monday, April 7th

GREAT things are ALWAYS happening at DMS!!

Dr. Wightman

On Wednesday, March 12th, the 8th grade students went on a field trip to Van Buren Tech in Lawrence, MI. Van Buren Tech is a Career and Technical Educational institution affiliated with the Van Buren Intermediate School District.  The students toured the building and were able to visit 25 CTE Programs. Some of the programs included Culinary Arts, Cyber Security & Computer Network Technology, Fire Science Academy, Polymer Technologies and many more. 

Mr. Tidey - Special Education

Mr. Tidey's Resource Classes is running through organizational skill exercise to help with binder and folder management. Students are learning how determine what assignments need immediate attention and what assignments still have available time to be worked on to help them understand time management.

Mrs. Wightman's 6th Grade STEM

Students have been working very hard on the construction of their Paper Roller Coasters and are making great progress. It has been quite a bit more challenging than they first imagined, but they have enjoyed watching their drawings come to life!

March Math Madness: Ms. Gil’s Classes on Fire!

Ms. Gil’s 6th and 7th grade math classes are bringing the heat this March as they sharpen their math skills! The 6th graders have made incredible progress, boosting their multiplication fact accuracy from the 50% range last week to an impressive 85% this week. Meanwhile, the 7th graders are mastering the rules of multiplying and dividing positive and negative numbers, with 75% now solving problems with confidence. Keep up the great work, mathematicians!

Mrs. Wilson - ELA

Mrs. Wilson's 8th grade ELA classes are currently reading S.E. Hinton's classic novel, The Outsiders. They are exploring the use of stereotyping, characterization, figurative language, and inferences. Through discussion and analysis, students are focusing on the impact that stereotypes have on individuals and communities,by examining how characters are portrayed and developed. They are identifying instances of figurative language to deepen their understanding of the text, and making inferences about characters' motivations and actions. By engaging with these literary elements, students are not only enhancing their reading comprehension skills but also gaining valuable insights into the complexities of human nature and society.

March 14-16:"MATILDA" Spring Musical (3/14; 7PM, 3/15; 7PM, 3/16; 2PM)

March 17: Staff and students wear Green and White for St. Patrick's Day

March 17: Board Meeting; 6PM PAC

March 28: No School

March 31 - April 4: Spring Break

April 7: School Resumes

April 12: DMS Craft Show; 9-3PM

National Teacher Appreciation Week is May 5-9, 2025. The Michigan Department of Education’s (MDE) Office of Educator Excellence wishes to celebrate teachers across Michigan for the entire month of May.  

MDE invites parents to submit 15-30 second videos of their students recognizing and thanking a specific teacher for their impact. Cell phones easily capture the videos. Please follow the directions on the flyer. Videos and parental consent must be submitted via the Teacher Appreciation Video Project Google Form.  Videos are currently being accepted until Friday, April 16, 2025. 

Submitted videos may be posted on the Teacher Appreciation Month webpage and MDE’s YouTube channel. The Office of Educator Excellence’s Facebook  (@MIeducator) and X (formerly Twitter) social media pages will be promoting the videos throughout the month of May.  

If your child has great things to say about a teacher, use the instructions found on MDE’s website to submit a video today! 

ATTENTION BUS RIDERS: rider families to make sure they are at bus stop pickups and ready to hop on the bus 5-10 early each day so that they drivers and routes can stay on schedule!!!

If you would like to recognize a DMS staff member for a special "Chieftains Shout Out", please use the following link to do so: Staff Shout Out Link

Drop Off Time: 7:25 a.m.

Breakfast: 7:25 a.m.-7:35 a.m.

Building Times: 7:37 a.m.-2:23 p.m.

Half Day Dismissal: 10:47 a.m.

Building Office Phone:269-782-4440

Dowagiac Middle School Website:

https://www.dowagiacschools.org/o/dms

Dowagiac Middle School Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/DowagiacMiddle/

Lunch Menu:

https://dowagiacschools.nutrislice.com/menu

District Website:

https://www.dowagiacschools.org/

District Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/dowagiacschools/