Circle Middle School
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Circle Middle School or CMS is a middle school located in Benton, Kansas. It is the home of the Thunderbolts. Students from Benton Grade School, Towanda Grade School, and Oil Hill Grade School attend this school in their seventh and eighth grades. Most of the students score highly on the state assessment tests. After graduating, the students move onto Circle High School in Towanda, Kansas.
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[edit] History
Circle Middle School used to be a combination of Benton Grade School and Towanda Grade School, which, at the time, were both K-8 schools. Oil Hill Grade School bused their kids over to Towanda Grade School for classes. When the schools became too crowded due to the influx of jobs in nearby Wichita, El Dorado, and Andover, the school board voted to build a middle school in Benton. The project was completed by Summer 2002. Classes began in the fall. The first 8th grade class to go through the middle school will be graduating in 2007 from Circle High School.
[edit] Athletics
The CMS athletic department is led by the athletic director, who, as of June 1, 2006, is Doug Bacon. Many coaches have participated in this department with varied success. Generally the school's programs find success in some fashion since Circle is the smallest school in the Walnut Valley League (WVL). Athletics are broken up into four seasons.
- Season 1: football, volleyball, cross country
- Season 2: boys basketball, cheerleading
- Season 3: girls basketball, wrestling
- Season 4: track
The athletic department at CMS has won numerous league titles, most of them in basketball. However, the track program has produced a few titles. The basketball program has had many great coaches have produced league titles, such as Mrs. Scott, Mrs. Gibbs, Mr. Hobbs, Mr. Taylor, and Mr. Reilly.
[edit] League
Circle Middle School is a part of the Walnut Valley League. The WVL consists of Circle, El Dorado, Rose Hill, Newton, Ark City, Winfield, and Haysville. The Walnut Valley League offers the sports of football, volleyball, cross country, boys and girls basketball, wrestling, and track. Other schools in the league may offer other sports. For example, Newton also offers tennis. Circle, however, offers all of the sports that are in the WVL. The sports Circle offers, they continue to get last in however.
[edit] Teachers
The teaching staff is separated into two teams, the Gold Team and the Black Team. This system is used to decide which teachers educate which class of children. Each team switches which grade they teach each year.
| Gold Team | Black Team | |
|---|---|---|
| Science | Davis Laughlin | Cal Ammons |
| Mathematics | Tammy Leis | Howard Bruno |
| Communications | Shawnda Wishart | Julie Johnson |
| Social Studies | Makenzie Smithson | Paula Liker |
| Spanish | Tish Lovett | |
| Art | Brenda Collins | |
| Technology Lab | Greg Walls | |
| Physical Education | Misty Gawith | |
[edit] Spirit
Circle Middle School is known as the "T-Bolts", and they use a bolt of lightning to symbolize this. The school's colors are black and gold, which is reflected by the event shirt and various other C.M.S. materials. C.M.S. celebrates Spirit Week for one week out of every year. Each day during the week, students often dress up outlandishly using a different theme for each day.
[edit] Classes
The days at CMS are broken up into three 90-minute core classes, one 32-minute seminar period, one 32-minute lunch period, and 56-minute a placement class period.
[edit] Core classes
The core classes include Science, Mathematics, Communications, Social Studies, Physical Education, Spanish, Technology Lab, and Art. In the first semester of the year, the seventh graders will have the first six classes. In the first semester of the year, the eighth graders will have the first four classes, Technology Lab, and art. At the end of the semester physical education and Spanish become eighth grade classes, while Technology Lab and art become seventh grade classes. Each day is run on a tandem, except for in the case of certain students. Science and Math, Communications and Social Studies, Physical Education and Spanish, Technology Lab and Art are always on opposite days at the same time each day.
[edit] Music and Band
Music and Band are two of the more popular placement classes. Music is during the time a student would normally be in seminar, so they are excused from that class. It is led by Mrs. McWilliams. Band is on different days for the each grade, but on both days, Band is led by Mr. Minton. Seventh graders have Band on A days, and eighth graders have Band on B day's.
Every year the band will put on at least two concerts. The music program will put on about two plays each year in collaboration with the drama program, also led by Mrs. McWilliams.
[edit] Mock Schedule
| Period | Time | A | B |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8:30-10:05 | Science | Math |
| 2 | 10:08-11:35 | Communications | Social Studies |
| 3 | 11:38-12:10 | Seminar | |
| 4 | 12:10-12:42 | Lunch | |
| 5 | 12:45-2:14 | Technology Lab | Art |
| 6 | 2:17-3:10 | Placement 1 | Placement 2 |
[edit] Standardized testing
Most of the students score highly on the state assessment tests. During the school year of 2005-2006, the seventh graders played Survivor and had math and reading challenges to prepare for the tests.
