Welcome to CLMS!
Welcome to the website of Crystal Lake Middle School, CASE and STEAM Academy, the on-line home of the Mighty Mustangs! We invite you to browse through our website to learn more about the exciting new programs we have to offer with more to come! Our focus is on student excellence and achievement providing rigor and relevance each day into each class period.
Our school begins at 8:15AM and ends at 3:10PM. Please help us ensure your student's academic success by having them in school and on time everyday!
We also encourage you to be an involved parent by becoming an active member of our SAC and PTO.
Together, we are making this a great 2012-2013 school year!!!
Upcoming Events »
Mustang Mania
Lucid Film Festival To Showcase Student's Creativity
Please join us for an exciting night of film! One of the featured
presentations will be 'Confectious', which recently won BEST SHORT FILM at
the Polk County Instructional Television Video Awards.
WHAT: Lucid Film Festival
WHEN: Friday, May 24, 6-8 p.m.
WHERE: CLMS Cafeteria
The Lucid Film Festival is a celebration of student creativity and higher
order thinking. During the first semester of their media production course
at CLMS, students wrote screenplays with heavy emphasis on plot structure,
setting, and character development. Classes then voted on which screenplays
to produce during the second semester. The Lucid Film Festival is a chance
to showcase these awesome short films and recognize students for their
stellar achievements this year. The site has several trailers for the
various short films our ITV department, under the direction of Mr. Craig
Barber, will be showcasing.
PTO will be selling refreshments
Click here to access the Lucid Film
Festival website
FFA Aquaculture Team Wins at State!
The Crystal Lake Middle School FFA Aquaculture team reached the pinnacle of success on Friday, May 10, 2013 by winning the statewide competition. After appearing on FOX News 13 that morning, team members traveled to Ruskin, Florida to the University of Florida's Tropical Aquaculture Lab. There they competed against other middle school FFA chapters in identifying fish, aquatic plants, fish anatomy, and parts of aquaculture systems. Team members also took a written test on aquaculture and gave an oral presentation on bio-security. The team will be recognized at the 85th annual State FFA Convention in Orlando, Florida on June 12th. We are so proud of these students accomplishments! Congratulations, FFA Aquaculture team sponsor, Mr. Greg West, and team members: Luke Tefoe, Garrison Russell, Cassie Toner and Kaley May!
CLMS Voted 'Cool School'!
We are proud to announce that Crystal Lake Middle School was voted a "Cool
School" on My FOX Tampa Bay. As the weeks winning school, FOX's
Charley Belcher visited our campus and filmed various STEM and STEAM
programs around our campus. Different segments were featured LIVE at
CLMS on Good Day Tampa Bay, Friday, May 10th, 2013.
We are so excited to show off all the great things happening at CLMS!
Click here to view clips from the show
CLMS Cool School on Fox News
C.A.S.E. Academy's 'Exploration Day' Field Trip
During the third quarter, CASE academy students participated in a STEM hands-on unit that encompassed the theme of exploration. On Friday, May 3, 2013 those students did not attend their regular classes. Instead, they had the opportunity to participate in an on-campus field trip entitled Exploration Day!
Again this year, Sun N Fun partnered with our school and brought in many hands-on and real world STEM activities for our students that involve the theme of exploration. Students were placed in groups and traveled around to different classrooms throughout the day, as well as, to Crystal Lake to learn about exploration from their teachers and volunteers from Sun N Fun. They participated in some of the following activities: core drilling at Crystal Lake, flight simulators, building airplanes, engineering stream tables, pollution and the environment, riding a hovercraft, and building and launching rockets! These are only a few of the exciting activities that our students participated in. It was a great Field Trip Day enjoyed by all! Thank you, CASE faculty and staff, for a job well done! And, a very special thanks goes out to Sun N Fun for once again providing our students with an exciting learning experience they won't soon forget!
Social Studies Department's
"Case of the Stolen Car" Enjoyed by All!
Our Social Studies Department did a great job hosting our most recent family night on April 9th! For this family night students performed a mock trial and the audience members participated as jurors. Many thanks to Judge Yancey who was in attendance to answer any questions! And, thanks to both students and faculty members who helped make this a wonderful family night! Kudos to our great Social Studies Department and to our Drama Coach, Mrs. Jeffery!
Big Turn-Out for
Student & Parent Career Night With
Thursday, March 21st proved to be another great evening at CLMS!
Traviss' Director and Assistant Director, Workforce Ed, Financial Aid and Guidance representatives were on hand for our Student & Parent Career Night to answer any questions. We were also pleased to have the Regional Coordinator for Project Lead the Way with us. There were presentations with videos, props and take-home brochures.
Some of the Programs and Presentations included:
Avionics, Airframe Mechanic, Aerospace Technologies, Electricity, Lakeland
Electric Energy Academy, Cosmetology, Digital/Web Design, Health Science,
Optometric Assisting, Health Science High School Academy EKG, Biomedical
Academy, Engineering, Brick & Block Masonry, Automotive, HVAC, Diesel,
Welding, Nursing, Commercial Art, Computer Systems Technology and Dental
Assisting.
Thank you Mrs. Driver and all the teachers & staff who helped make this informative evening a success!
T.S.A. Competition in Orlando
Mr. Reginald Northern, CLMS TSA Advisor, reports that out of some
1300 students present at the 2013 Technology Student Association(TSA)
conference in Orlando held March 13th-15th, our students competed very
well and scored in the Top 10 in the following events: Career Prep,
Inventions and Innovations, Systems Control (Lego Robot Engineering) and
Techno Talk.
The following hard-working students are to be congratulated for their
outstanding efforts at this years competition:
Clayton Canning
Devin Bryan
Adam Saoud
Alexander Jackomino
Britney Heffner
Xandria Bogard
Braden Cariaga
Special thanks go out to Ms. Melanie Vann for her assistance at the
conference. Great job TSA Members, and Mr. Northern! You make us
PROUD!
FFA Members Place BIG at Event!
On Tuesday, March 12th, Crystal Lake FFA members competed in the county
Nursery and Landscape Career Development Event at Hollis Gardens, in
Lakeland, FL.
Students were required to take a written exam, identify tools, pests, and
plants, and complete a job interview. Placing first was Luke Tefoe, Garrison
Russell and Cassie Toner. These three also had the top three individual
scores in the contest. Placing third were Heidy Valle, Kaley May, and Carlyne
Crawn. CONGRATS, FFA!!
Hh4h 1st Place Performance
Our CLMS Hh4h (Hip-Hop 4 Health) Swagg dance team won first place in the large group division on Saturday at the health fair in Munn Park. This is our second year in a row placing first! Ms. Barrows and Ms. 'Honey' would like to give a huge 'shout-out' to these students for a great job performing and conducting themselves in a well-mannered way while in downtown Lakeland during the performances: Ariel Palmer, Vonzetta Jordan, Joe Cash, De’Tron Calloway, Henry James, Brianna Porter, Tanya Louissaint, Deshaunna McKinley, and Cherri Ghent! In addition, they were very respectful to the adults that sponsored them and conducted positive sportsman-like conduct, telling the other teams that they did well! Way to shine, Hh4h!
Math & Science Family Night Fun!
It was another exciting night at CLMS on March 11th as students and parents
learned how Math and Science can be all fun and
games! Activities included: Estimate Measure Water Testing, Learn
about Pi, Follow a Recipe, Global Warming And much more!!! Students
accompanied by their parent were
eligible to receive a NUT pass. Good times were enjoyed by all!
'About Face' Award - Paul Carter
For
the past fifteen years, TECO Energy, Inc. has sponsored the About-Face
Awards which honors one student from each middle and high school making a
positive turn-around in academics, behavior and/or attitude during the
present school year. This event is always special because it allows students
who may have never been recognized before to be honored for their efforts in
front of their parents and peers. CLMS is proud to announce that Paul
Carter received the About Face Award this year. An Awards Presentation
was held on April 3, 2013, at the Nora Mayo Hall in Winter
Haven. Each student was recognized on stage and received a medallion.
Congratulations, Paul!
1st Annual P.E. STEM Night a Success!
Our 1st Annual Physical Education STEM Night took place on February 21st, 2013. The night included a scavenger hunt that needed to be completed by students and their families. Once the families received their clue sheet, they proceeded to decipher the clues in order to find out where the different tasks were located. There were a total of 12 tasks that needed to be completed to finish the scavenger hunt. Tasks included a three-legged race, a football toss, as well as, many others. In all, students and their families covered about 1.5 miles while maneuvering around the campus. We had over 200 people competing in the event, and three different families finished in under 48 minutes! Thanks to all who came out to support this exciting STEM learning event!
Britney Heffner Represented CLMS in County Spelling Bee!
Tuesday, March 5th, 2013, Britney Heffner represented our school in the Polk County Spelling Bee at Jim Miles Professional Development Center. Britney was one of 30 students in the county to qualify to move on to this final oral county bee. We want to thank everyone who attended this exciting event and for supporting Britney! Good job, Britney!
National FFA Week Celebrations!
The week of February 18th-22nd members of the Crystal Lake Middle FFA Chapter joined over 550,000 members from around the United States to celebrate National FFA Week. This year is especially remarkable for our members and school as Dr. Steve Brown, the national FFA advisor, visited our campus.
FFA Officers (Luke Tefoe, Garrison Russell, Heidy Valle, Kaley May, Lauren Young, Brittney Crawn and Carlyne Crawn, accompanied by Mr. Greg West and Principal Canning) escorted Dr. Brown and several other county dignitaries on a tour of our awesome Agriculture and Aquaculture Programs.
As a special 'Thank You' to teachers and staff for their support of FFA students, FFA officers went around school each morning handing out special treats! FFA members were very excited to celebrate this week and also recognize the great leadership they have under the direction of Mr. West, our FFA Sponsor. Great job, FFA and Mr. West!
On Your Mark....Get Set....READ!
New books have been ordered for our Media Center! Mrs. Castle invites students to come by and check out all the exciting new reads due to arrive after the first of the year. Also, be sure to take care of any over-due books or fines you may have so you'll be ready to enjoy these great new selections! Enter a different world....READ!
CLMS Welcomes Leadership Lakeland and Leadership Bartow
CLMS was proud to host meetings on our campus for both Leadership Lakeland and Leadership Bartow on Thurs., Jan. 10th, 2013. Members attended their scheduled meetings, and also toured several of our STEM classrooms. Students demonstrated their skills in our Robotics classroom (pictured above) and assisted members by showing them how to create a "smiley face" using their program software. Coach Canning led a tour of our Aquaculture program. Great discussions took place on how STEM programs benefit both students and our community.
Music Performance at Tenoroc High
CLMS performed in the Tenoroc High School auditorium on
Tuesday evening, Dec. 18th, 2012 for what turned out to be a very festive evening
for all! The performing ensembles included: Tenoroc High School
Marching Titans, Elementary Strings, Crystal Lake Middle Strings, CLMS
Beginning Band, CLMS Symphonic Band, and the Combined Choruses at CLMS, Symphonic Band, Beginning Band, Chorus, Select
Chorus, and Orchestra. Those attending enjoyed an evening of holiday
music, and witnessed first-hand all of the hard work that these students have
been putting in for this special event
STEM NIGHT Brings Reality to Life!
Crystal Lake Middle School and Crystal Academy of Science and Engineering
held their annual STEM NIGHT on Dec. 13th, 2012. Excitement filled
the air as both parents and students went from STEM activity to STEM
activity. Teacher activities focused on the use of Science,
Technology, Engineering and Mathematics as a way to prepare students for
future careers showing how knowledge gained in the classroom can be used
once their schooling is complete.
STEM Night activities included:
• Energy Expo
• Engineers R’ Us!
• Let it Snow!
• Understand the Slime and in Math You’ll Do Fine
• Why “Matter” Matters!
• History of Wind Power
• Consumable Car Contest
• What’s in the Water?
• Up, Up, and Away
• I Believe I Can Fly!
• Go Green!
There was also a booth to introduce our new veterinary academy! It was a great turn-out, and a fun evening for all! Many thanks to everyone who participated in this very exciting and informative event!
Superintendant's 6th Annual Partnership Award - Mr. Carlos Martinez
The Superintendant's 6th Annual Partnership Award Program recently recognized one partner at each school and district office department that has provided exemplary support for students, faculty and/or administration during the 2011-12 school year. Crystal Lake Middle School was proud to have Mr. Carlos Martinez, Extension Agent/IFAS with the University of Florida (pictured above second from left) recognized on our behalf! Mr. Martinez' association with our school's aquaculture program has been an invaluable service and we are so proud of his recognition with this distinguished award!
Mr. Martinez performs many hours of supervision and maintenance teaching staff and students to run and maintain aquaculture systems. He introduced knowledge of our programs to consortiums that are now involved with the program, including Florida Sea Grant and U of F Extension programs who cooperatively came to CLMS to film a documentary on our aquaculture program. Congratulations, and thank you for all you do, Mr. Martinez!
Great Turn-out for 2nd Annual Family Read Night
On Thursday, November 15, 2012, Crystal Lake Middle and CASE Academy
presented a Family Read Night focused on the novel 'Life As We Knew It'.
Over 250 participants gathered in the cafeteria to participate in
interactive STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)
activities such as Sink or Swim (determining the effects of rising sea
levels on Florida), How Far Does Your Money Go? (determining how much money
it will cost to survive in a post-apocalyptic world), Dear Diary (writing a
diary entry similar to the main character), Ice Cream Comet (creating
homemade ice cream), The End of the World As We Know It? (determining the
effects of global warming, climate change, and what we can do about it), and
many more!
The first 50 students received a copy of the novel and also a sticker which
they found out later in the evening determined their fate after the moon
shifted from its orbit. A big 'Thank You' goes out to all the parents,
students, and staff members who participated in the evening!
Random Acts of Kindness!
World KINDESS Week was celebrated at CLMS in grand style this year! Doors were opened for others, kind words were spoken, flowers were exchanged, and good deeds were done! We are proud of both students and staff as they made extra efforts to "show a little love in their hearts" by spreading random of acts of kindness across our campus!
Great American Teach-In at CLMS
The Great American Teach-In is an annual event to celebrate American Education Week. Members of the community are invited to our schools to speak to students about careers, travel and hobbies. Speakers tell how their early educational experiences relate to their current life. It is an opportunity to educate students about the world of work in a way that the students will never forget!
On November 14th, 2012, CLMS students had the opportunity to hear genuine stories from real community members. Each year Teach-In volunteers inspire students to stay focused and to continue looking ahead to the future. Volunteers have come in costume, brought in equipment, put on plays, offered potentially life-saving information, showed off their pets, discussed career options, shared precious souvenirs, talked about other parts of the world, brought the past to life, performed a song or dance, cooked delicious meals, stepped down from the pedestal of celebrity to meet students at their level or simply read a story to little ones.
The Teach-In introduces students to career options they may not have considered, hobbies they may not have discovered and activities they might never have experienced. Students learn from professionals, trades people, parents, community members and other students. A big THANK YOU goes out to all our wonderful volunteers!! Thank you for taking the time to enrich our students lives with your stories! And, a big 'Thanks' to Mrs. Debbie Johnson for coordinating the day!
CLMS Newsletter
Crystal Lake Middle now offers an informational newsletter published each nine weeks of the school year. The newsletter includes a message from our principal, information on upcoming events, special announcements and more!
March, 2013 School Newsletter
1st Nine Weeks - 2013 School Newsletter
WE3 Expo at The Lakeland Center
Workforce Education of Polk County Public Schools hosted the WE3 EXPO Nov. 6th and 7th, 2012 at The Lakeland Center this year. CLMS students represented our school well with four tables worth of displays showing off our awesome AquaCulture, AgriScience, and Robotics programs! This expo is a tremendous opportunity for students to explore their options and ask questions about career education programs and Polk Career Academies offered in our middle and high schools. We were especially excited that 5th graders from around the county were able to visit the exhibits this year to learn more about our special programs. Click here for more detailed info on this great event!
Free Tutoring Available!
If your student scored a Level 1 or Level 2 on FCAT Reading or Math, they might be eligible for free tutoring through SES. Supplemental Educational Services (SES) is free tutoring services that are provided beyond the school hours to assist your child in Reading or Math. Applications are available in our front office.
CLMS Robotic's Partners with Traviss
Mr. John Pivovarnik with Traviss Career Center visited our campus and filmed some of our Robotics' students in action. He is working on producing a video for Traviss to be shown at the up-coming WE3 Expo at The Lakeland Center. The video will showcase some of our Robotic's students (Micheal Romero, Paul Carter and Greg Garcia, shown here with Robotic's teachers, Mr. Mark Schuh and Mr. Reginald Northern). Students are practicing for actual competition in the FLL (Florida Lego League) tourney where they both design and plan missions. Their first league competition is scheduled for Dec 1st. Our Robotic's program will be partnering with Traviss Career Center as they impement a new high school Project Lead The Way program beginning next school year.
Jaylens Challenge Anti-Bullying Presentation on Campus
We were excited to have Jaylens Challenge on our campus for
an anti-bullying presentation Sept. 5th, 2012! The Jaylens
Challenge Foundation, Inc is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable
organization dedicated to promoting awareness and prevention of
bullying through education and community service.
Students watched a 6 minute video that shows what bullying is
like through the eyes of someone like, Jaylen Arnold, a young
man who suffers with Tourette Syndrome and severe Obsessive
Compulsive Disorder. Jaylen talks to students about the
intervention and support that prevented him from becoming a
possible 'bully-cide' statistic.
Students also heard from Hollywood actor, Dash Mihok, who travels with and introduces Jaylen and the program. He rallies students to have them join him in giving the programs main slogan, "Bullying! - NO WAY!", as a shout-out for the crowd.
If you are interested in learning more about Jaylens Challenge, click the link here to access their website: Jaylens Challenge
ATTENTION! Applications are available online at the following link to the Office of Magnet, Choice and Charter Schools website. To access more information on our academy application and admission requirements, please click on the following link to PolkAcademies.com
Click here for more information on the Crystal Academy of Science & Engineering.
Click here for C.A.S.E. Community Service Form
Exciting Things Happening in our Physical Education Department!
There
are lots of exciting changes going on in our Physical Education
Department! We have transformed part of
the gym into the new Fitness Center.
Our Fitness Center consists of an exercise machine area, a hydraulic weights machine area and an aerobic activity area. Inside our exercise machine area we have treadmills, elliptical machines, and exercise bikes. The hydraulic machine area consists of 6 different machines that focus on building upper and lower body muscle. Students are able to do bicep curls, squats, leg extensions and bench press. All of these machines are pressure-based and students can learn how to properly use the types of machines without any fear of injury.
Our aerobic activity center currently has a new Mimio inter-active white board and Xbox 360 gaming system with Kinect. This area has been used to teach aerobics with videos projected on screen, as well as, incorporating 'Exergaming' into Physical Education with use of the the Xbox Kinect.
We are excited to have our P.E. Department join in our school-wide integration of technology! Great job,
Coaches!
CLMS Announces Mentoring Program
Crystal lake Middle School’s Youth Motivators program is getting underway. We are always looking for more mentors to pair with students. The Youth Motivator program brings together positive role models from the community and students who can benefit from one-on-one attention. Students are selected by teachers and guidance counselors. Parents sign a permission form for participation in the program. Students and mentors meet, usually once a week, to work together to improve grades, set goals for improved attendance and behavior or focus on career interests. Click here for more information on this program.