Ashland Middle School
You will find some helpful information and updates for the coming weeks below. We look forward to the first day of classes and a great school year!
First Day of Classes
August 28, 2024
School Hours:
8:20 a.m.-2:45 p.m.
Health and Safety
Students entering 8th grade need to have an up-to-date physical on file with the Health Office, otherwise they will not be allowed to start school in September. Physicals must be dated after August 30, 2022.
Students entering 7th Grade must be up-to-date with their immunizations, including a dose of the TDap vaccine and a dose of the Meningitis Vaccine. Any 7th grader who doesn’t have those two immunizations will not be able to start 7th grade.
If your student has a physical exam over the summer, please fax it to (508) 881-0168 or send it via email to ams_nurses@ashland.k12.ma.us. You can also mail the form to:
Ashland Middle School
℅ Health Office
87 West Union Street
Ashland, MA 01721
6th Grade Supply and Reading List
6th Grade Supply List
Welcome to Ashland Middle School!
Please plan to bring the below items during the first week of school:
- Small pencil case for everyday use. (NOTE: A zippered, soft-sided case is best.)
- Lots (and lots!) of pencils. (Enough to last the entire school year.)
- 6-pack of correcting pens (red, green, or purple) and 4 dry-erase markers
- One 1½ inch three-ring binder (Math)
- 1 package of binder dividers
- Two two-pocket folders, one for daily homework and one for Social Studies
- Two one-subject spiral notebooks (Science, Social Studies) Headphones(not wireless)
- Highlighters
Optional:
- Small, hand-held pencil sharpener with cover
- Eraser caps
- Colored pencils and fine-point markers
- Boxes of tissues and sanitizing wipes for classroom use
6th Grade Reading List
This year, the Ashland Middle School English Language Arts teachers would like incoming 6th grade students to read at least one of the eight books on this reading list. I Am Malala and The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind are especially recommended, as they are both great books with powerful messages. Copies of books are also available at Ashland Public Library.
To accompany your reading, choose one of the following two options:
- Write a letter to one of the main characters. Be sure to ask questions and share your reactions to the main character’s experiences and share some information about yourself. Remember to be polite, and feel free to add pictures to your letter.
- Keep a journal while reading one of the books below, especially looking for ways that young people can make a difference in the world or grow and change as a person. Please do at least three entries...and more if you want! Feel free to draw some pictures, too.
7th Grade Supply and Reading List
The 7th grade teachers have put together the following materials that you will need for your classes this year. Supplies should be purchased and ready for the first day of school.
- Pencils (enough for the entire school year)
- Pens (Blue or Black Ink for assignments; colored pens for correcting or editing ONLY)
- Erasers
- Calculator (4 function)
- A personal pencil sharpener (optional)
- Colored pencils and/or markers (optional)
- Highlighters
- Dividers (4 for each core subject)
- Four 1 ½" binders
- Filler Paper with 3-hole punches that can be inserted in your binders (optional)
- 2 Marbled composition notebooks
- Dry-Erase Markers (optional)
- Chromebook & Chromebook charger
WORLD LANGUAGE SUPPLIES
- 1.5 inch binder
- 5 Dividers
- Filler paper
- Dry erase marker
- Dry erase board eraser (or sock to use as an eraser)
Each student needs to have these supplies all year. You may want to buy extra items now when things are on sale and put them away for later. Students, please remember that you must have a pen and pencil every day of school.
7th grade students must read at least one of the books from the list below. Go to Amazon.com, enter the book title, and then “take a look inside” to see if this is a book you’d like to read. If you have a Kindle, you can read the first 10 pages for free to see if this is the book for you. All of them can be found - not only in bookstores and electronically - but in the public library as well.
Non-Fiction
- Warriors Don’t Cry, Melba Patillo Beales
- The Boys Who Challenged Hitler: Knud Pederson and the Churchill Club, Phillip Hoose
- A Long Walk to Water, Linda Sue Park
- Citizen 13660, Mine Okubo (a graphic novel)
Fiction & Science Fiction
- Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card
- The Uglies, Scott Westerfield
- Out of My Mind, Sharon M. Draper
- Fever 1793, Laurie Halse Anderson
- The War That Saved My Life, Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
- The Parker Inheritance, Varian Johnson
As you read, or after you read, use a Character Traits graphic organizer. Complete at least one of these for the main characters in the book you have chosen. And, if you wish, you can reproduce the graphic organizer and think about another character — it could be the protagonist, the antagonist, or anyone who plays a significant part in the story. The completed character map should be brought with you for our first day of school so we can get right to work on writing!
Questions? Please contact the teachers below:
- Mr. Allen, jallen@ashland.k12.ma.us
- Ms. Phipps, lphipps@ashland.k12.ma.us
- Ms. Moore, emoore@ashland.k12.ma.us
8th Grade Supply List
The 8th grade teachers have compiled the following materials list students will need for courses this year.
Required for ALL Classes
- Highlighters
- Pens/Pencils/Erasers
- Colored Pencils
- Headphones
- Chromebook Charger
Required for Core Classes
Math
- Low Odor Dry Erase Markers & Eraser
- Two 2-Pocket Folders (no brass tabs)
Science
- 1’’ Three Ring Binder
- Dividers
- Headphones
Civics
- Two 2-pocket folders
- Filler paper
ELA
- One 2 Pocket Folder
- One 2-subject notebook to leave at school
- Correcting pens in any color other than black or blue
World Language
- 1.5 inch binder
- Filler paper
- 5 Dividers
- Dry-erase marker and eraser (or sock to use as an eraser)
Highly Recommended Additional Supplies
- Personal 3 Hole Punch
Donations
Donations of tissues, Clorox wipes, and hand sanitizer are always appreciated! If you would like to donate these supplies, your student can bring them to their homeroom teacher.
8th Grade Required Summer Reading
The theme of the 8th grade ELA texts all surround choices and how the choices you make affect your future. Select 2 of the books below to read and enjoy:
- The Inheritance Games, Jennifer Lynn Barnes
- Divergent, Veronica Roth
- Fish in a Tree, Lynda Mullaly Hunt
- A Good Kind of Trouble, Lisa Moore Ramee
- Starfish, Lisa Fipps
- Arcady’s Goal, Eugene Yelchin
- White Bird, R.J. Palacio
- They Called Us Enemy, George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, and Harmony Becker
Once you are finished reading, fill out the attached worksheet for ONE book. Click HERE to make a copy of your assignment. Please bring the completed worksheet to class on the first day of school.
Ashland Middle School uses software called iParent to communicate student performance over the year, including progress reports and report cards. Hard copies of these reports are not sent home.
If you are a 6th-grade parent new to Ashland Middle school or just moved into the district, click here to make an iParent account. Families are encouraged to register before August 28.
If you already have an iParent account, you do not need to re-register for another child. Please email Ms. Lester at llester@ashland.k12.ma.us to add your incoming 6th grader to your existing account.
AMS administrators and counselors are currently working on the schedule for the 2024–2025 school year. Information will be constantly updated and altered so any viewable placement or course information is not yet finalized for the fall. Families will receive information in August about finalized team placement and schedules.
Parents must drop students off at school by 8:15 a.m. Dismissal at the close of the day is at 2:45 p.m.
Our school day begins in homeroom at 8:20 a.m. Students will enter the small gym entrance in the morning. 6th-grade students gather in the small gym, 7th-grade students gather in the cafe, and 8th-grade students gather in the large gym.
6th-grade students will remain in the small gym after arriving in the morning, and 6th-grade teachers will escort students to homeroom from there. 7th and 8th-grade students will pass to homeroom at 8:13 a.m.
The complete bell schedule is below:
Homeroom 8:20 a.m. – 8:24 a.m.
Period 1 8:26 a.m. - 9:11 a.m.
Period 2 9:13 a.m. – 9:58 a.m.
Advisory 10 a.m. – 10:12 a.m.
Period 3 10:14 a.m. – 10:56 a.m.
Period 4 10:58 a.m. – 11:43 a.m.
Period 5 11:43 a.m. – 1:13 p.m.
Lunch #1 1 – 11:43 a.m. - 12:13 p.m.
Lunch #2 12:13 p.m. - 12:43 p.m.
Lunch #3 12:43 p.m. - 1:13 p.m.
Period 6 1:13 p.m. – 1:58 p.m.
Period 7 2 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Students may be dropped off at Ashland Middle School between 8-8:15 a.m. Stay in the left lane upon entering the school. You will take a U-turn before you reach the rotary in front of the school (the rotary in front of the school is reserved for buses in the morning for safety purposes). Drivers should pull up as far as they can along the right side of the exit road, regardless of whether anyone is in front of them, to decrease waiting time for everyone. Students should exit the passenger side of the vehicle. All cars should be careful to yield for buses exiting the rotary.
Students should enter the school at the small gym entrance where buses drop off students. 6th-grade students will enter the small gym, 7th-grade students will enter the cafe and 8th-grade students will enter the large gym to wait to be released to lockers. Homeroom lists will be posted in these areas, and students should check these lists when entering school.
For student pick-up in the afternoon, parents or caregivers follow the same procedure. In addition, the parking spaces adjacent to the exit road will be reserved for student pick-up. Once spaces along the exit road are filled, parents or caregivers may park in those reserved spaces to allow students to cross the sidewalk safely and get into the car without entering the parking lot. For safety, all drivers should park in a marked space not in non-designated parking spaces.