Picture Day!
A huge shout-out to Ms. Hottinger and Mrs. Owens for guiding our students and helping bring their vision to life!
Special thanks to Mrs. McGuffey for her amazing artistic contributions, and to Mr. Gray and Jeff for all the hard labor that helped make it happen! ❤️🖤
We are so proud of our students and the teamwork they put into this project! Go AMS!
Our students took their learning outdoors and worked their way through a math maze—solving problems, enjoying the sunshine, and putting their problem-solving skills to the test!
Mrs. Eagles’ Science class had a blast growing their own crystals! What a fun hands-on experiment that let our students explore science in a creative way. 🧪🔬✨
We love seeing our students learn, experiment, and discover! 💡
📸 SCHOOL PICTURES ARE READY! 📸
School pictures are now ready to view and order!
🖥️ View & Order: JostensPix
School Name: Anderson Middle School
Event Code: FE350726
Student Identifier: Student Lunch ID
🔐 Important Information About Student IDs
For the safety and security of our students, we will not provide student ID numbers by phone or email. Please do not contact Jostens to request a student ID.
Your student’s ID number is:
The same number they use to purchase lunch
Also listed on the beginning-of-the-year schedule handed out during Open House
If you cannot find your student’s ID number, please see Ms. Flood in the office for assistance.
📷 Happy picture viewing and ordering! ❤️🖤
Students stepped back in time and experienced what it might have been like to write the Constitution using ink, feather quills, and candlelight—just like they did in the “olden days”! 🕯️✒️
It was a fun, hands-on way to connect art and history while experiencing a little bit of the past firsthand!
Great job, Ms. Murphy, for creating such a memorable learning experience! ❤️🖤
Our robotics team is getting hands-on experience as they prepare to attend competitions throughout the year! Students will have the opportunity to design, build, program, problem-solve, and work together as a team while putting their skills to the test.
We’re excited to watch our AMS students learn, compete, and grow through this awesome STEM experience! ❤️🖤
Go Robotics! 🤖🐦
Celebrating the Arts Across McDonald County Schools
This week, we’ve been celebrating something that happens every day in classrooms across McDonald County Schools: the arts are an important part of how our students learn, create, think, and express themselves.
As part of Arts in Education Week, we’ve been taking you along with us as we visit classrooms and see firsthand how music, visual art, theater, creativity, and the arts are woven into learning across our district.
And what we’ve found is pretty amazing: the arts can look a lot of different ways.
🎨 At Anderson Middle School, students explored the work of renowned artist Georgia O’Keeffe as inspiration for their own creations, while others stepped back in time to learn the careful art of drawing with quill and ink.
🎶 At White Rock Elementary, third graders were learning about syncopation in music class through the Jamaican children’s song “Shake the Papaya Down,” using xylophones to play along with the music and experience rhythm in action.
➗🎨 At Noel Elementary, students discovered that math and art can work hand in hand. During a math game, teams had to solve problems correctly before earning the opportunity to draw a piece of a character. The first team to complete its character won. It was a fun reminder that learning doesn’t always fit neatly into one subject area.
🎺 At McDonald County High School, our Marching Band took to the football field to rehearse its halftime performance, working over and over to perfect the ending of its music. Their director reminded them that the first note and the last note are among the most important ones they play. That kind of focus, repetition, teamwork, and attention to detail is an education in itself.
🎭 And throughout the district, students have been finding opportunities to perform, create, listen, move, imagine, and express themselves through the arts.
These experiences do more than teach students how to draw a picture, play an instrument, or perform on a stage. They help students develop creativity, collaboration, confidence, communication, problem-solving skills, and the ability to see things from different perspectives.
That’s why Arts in Education Week is about more than celebrating the arts for one week. It’s about recognizing the important role the arts play in a well-rounded education.
We’re proud to celebrate the creativity and talent of McDonald County students, and we’re even more proud of the teachers who create opportunities for that creativity to shine every day.
This week, we’ve seen the arts in action. And there’s so much more to come. ❤️🖤
Our students are getting hands-on with history as they work together to assemble the Preamble to the United States Constitution! This activity is a great way for students to explore the words and ideas that helped shape our country while practicing teamwork and collaboration.
Way to go, students! 🇺🇸📚
Coach Sumler is dependable, patient, and genuinely cares about our students. During football season, he drives a morning route for Anderson Middle School, a full route in the offseason, and also drives many of our field trips.
He loves kids and does a great job creating a safe, positive, and well-managed environment on his bus. He builds strong relationships with students and always puts their safety first.
Coach Sumler is a quality young man who helps set a positive tone for our students and is a valued part of the Anderson Middle School family. We are fortunate to have him on our team!
Congratulations, Coach Sumler!
His commitment goes far beyond the classroom. During the summer, he checked on his students—not because he had to, but because he wanted to make sure they were doing well. He visited students at both the high school and Anderson Elementary during summer school and even took one of his students out for McDonald’s.
Mr. Brimacombe also coaches and serves as the Junior High Athletic Director. Despite his many responsibilities, his students and classroom remain his top priority. His genuine care and willingness to go above and beyond make a lasting difference in the lives of his students.
A Historic Day at Mustang Stadium
McDonald County Schools marked a historic day as the district officially celebrated the opening of the new grandstands at Mustang Stadium.
Senior Class President Dominick Trimble helped make the moment official by joining in the ribbon-cutting Friday afternoon. Immediately afterward, the entire McDonald County High School student body filled the new grandstands for a school-wide pep rally featuring the band, football team, cheerleaders, MC Pom dancers and other high school groups.
The nearly 1,200-seat grandstands, which include a fully ADA-accessible seating area, are a major improvement for students, athletes and fans. The new home side also faces east, giving hometown fans a better view of the field without looking directly into the setting sun during evening games.
The new grandstands and press box represent the first major piece of a massive improvement plan for Mustang Stadium. Future phases will include new locker rooms and a learning center on the south end of the field, along with a new concession stand and bathroom complex on the north end.
The celebration continued Friday night as the McDonald County Mustangs hosted the Lamar Tigers for the first home game of the season. Before kickoff, veterans gathered on the field to help unfurl a large American flag as part of a special 9/11 memorial during the national anthem.
From the first ribbon cutting to the first student pep rally and the first home game, Friday marked the beginning of a new chapter at Mustang Stadium and a significant investment in the future of McDonald County students and the community.
Welcome home, McDonald County fans! ❤️🖤
Learning in Action: Noel Elementary
Learning was happening all around Noel Elementary this week as part of McDonald County Schools’ Learning in Action series.
Third grade students were using card games to strengthen their math skills, while junior high students put their algebra skills to the test in fast-paced races to solve formulas. Other classes were using games to make math engaging and interactive, while science students worked with hexagon puzzle pieces to explore connections between biology, science, and the world around them.
These are great examples of what Learning in Action is all about. Learning goes beyond reading and writing. It is also about hands-on problem-solving, critical thinking, making connections, collaboration, and finding new and different ways to approach a challenge.
At Noel Elementary, students weren’t just learning about these concepts. They were actively putting their learning into action.
📚 Tutoring Sign-Up Sheets Have Gone Home!
Tutoring sign-up sheets have been sent home with our students. If you would like your student to attend tutoring, please complete the bottom portion of the form and return it to the school.
We look forward to supporting our students and helping them succeed! ❤️🖤
Learning in Action: Exploring the World Under a Microscope
Learning comes to life when students get curious and get hands-on. That was the case recently in a 6th-grade classroom at Rocky Comfort Schools, where students transformed their classroom into a research lab.
As part of learning in action across McDonald County Schools, students learned how to use microscopes to take a closer look at the world around them. They examined slides featuring pollen grains, animal hair, fish scales, and dandelion fuzz.
The activity gave students an opportunity to see just how much detail is hidden in the world around us, while developing their skills as young scientists.
That’s Learning in Action in McDonald County Schools! ❤️🖤
Learning was happening in all kinds of ways during a recent visit to Southwest City Elementary as part of McDonald County Schools’ Learning in Action series.
In kindergarten, students were busy practicing their handwriting skills as they learned to write the letter “C.” The activity required patience, focus, and a steady hand, and the students were up to the challenge.
Down the hall, junior high students were taking learning to a much larger scale. Using math skills, graph paper, and paper chains, students were creating a unique design that will eventually cover an entire hallway wall. The project requires careful planning, spatial awareness, and plenty of creativity and craftsmanship.
Outside, STEM students were putting their technology and mechanical skills to work as they built and flew drones through an obstacle course. Students combined computer skills, mechanical know-how, and hand-eye coordination as they worked to successfully navigate their drones.
From practicing letters to designing a hallway and flying drones, there was plenty of action and plenty of learning taking place at Southwest City Elementary.
That’s what Learning in Action is all about: giving students opportunities to take what they learn in the classroom and put those skills to work in meaningful, hands-on ways.
These forms were sent home with students this week. You will need your student’s Student ID number to access their photos once they are ready.
Photos should be available to view in approximately 2 weeks.
Thank you!
8th Grade: We are practicing how to measure mass, volume, and density. Students are getting hands-on lab experience with real tools.
7th Grade: We are reviewing physical and chemical properties of matter to get ready for upcoming projects.
Learning in Action in the Classroom at McDonald County Schools
What does learning in action look like for our youngest students? At Noel Primary, it looks like counting plastic spiders, sorting colorful objects, building with blocks, cutting playdough, and even playing with UNO cards.
As part of our look at Learning in Action, we’re highlighting the many ways students across McDonald County Schools are learning by doing, and Noel Primary is a great example of how hands-on experiences can make learning meaningful for young children.
Kindergarten students are practicing important early math skills through a variety of activities. They are sorting objects by color, counting items such as plastic spiders and tiny apples, and using UNO cards to recognize numbers and colors. Students are also counting as they build with blocks, combining math practice with hands-on exploration.
Our early childhood students are developing important foundational skills through hands-on activities as well. Cutting playdough with scissors gives students an opportunity to practice fine motor control and coordination, while building with blocks encourages creativity, problem-solving, and other important developmental skills.
While these activities may look simple, each one provides an opportunity for students to practice skills, make connections, and build confidence. For young learners, being able to touch, move, sort, count, build and create can turn a simple classroom activity into a meaningful learning experience.
At McDonald County Schools, Learning in Action means finding engaging ways to help every child learn and grow, starting from the very beginning. ❤️🖤
