Blythewood Middle School is helping all students develop the World Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate. To this end, all of our teachers are required to have the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate displayed in their classroom. This serves as a daily reminder to all of our students, the skills needed for them to be successful in the classroom and beyond.
Our theme for the 2024-2025 school year was "New Beginnings'. This theme highlighted the completion of our school renovations/construction, as well as the promise that each new school year brings: the opportunity to start anew.
Per our mission statement, “At Blythewood Middle School, our goal is to provide engaging and meaningful opportunities in a rigorous environment where relationships are built, successes are celebrated and students are competitive in the 21st century". To this end, during the 2024-2025 school year, Blythewood Middle School worked to ensure that all students were provided with engaging learning opportunities. While both, our district and our school is a 1:1 learning environment, Blythewood Middle School placed a greater focus on paper and pencil assignments as our school continued to commit to our 80/20 initiative from last school year: 80 percent of instructional time would be focused on direct instruction with paper/pencil assignments as a means for getting students to be more focused on reading and writing, and committed to productive struggle, while being less reliant on technology. Only 20 percent of class time would utilize technology. In addition to this, all teachers placed greater emphasis on utilizing textbooks, particularly in math classes, as there was an emphasis on getting students to take guided notes in the math classroom. To this end, teachers were intentional about scheduling, one day each week to promote focused "offline". Additionally, as we continued to prepare our students for academic rigor, we highlighted test-taking strategies using our school mascot, "CHARGERS" and came up with an acronym that helped students remember good test-taking skills:
C - Consider what the question is asking;
H - Highlight key words;
A - Apply what you know;
R- Ready instructions carefully;
G - Guess strategically (if there is no penalty);
E- Eliminate wrong answer choices;
R - Review your work;
S - Stick with it even if it is hard.
This CHARGERS acronym was reinforced throughout the school year and our students were quizzed on it repeatedly. In time for SC READY testing, our Administrative Team created a song, "Where Dem CHARGERS At?" to the tune of "Boots on the Ground". This song reiterated the test-taking skills and was an instant hit with our students.
In alignment with our mission statement, Blythewood Middle School celebrated numerous student and staff achievements. We increased our number of Junior Scholars to 29 - up from 16 two years ago - and added two more from last year. Three students were recognized by our School Board for earning perfect scores on SC READY: one in science and two in math. Our performing arts program also thrived, with 14 band students earning placement on the Region Honor Band; 3 band students earning SC All-State distinction; 23 receiving Superior ratings at the Band & Solo Ensemble Festival; and 9 receiving Excellent ratings at the Band Solo & Ensemble Festival. Our chorus and orchestra programs both received Superior with Distinction at their Concert Performance Assessment (CPA).
Our students excel academically, artistically, and athletically. Both our volleyball and girls' soccer teams won District Championships. Additionally, a 7th student broke the high school record in the 100-meter hurdles. Our dedicated staff received recognition as well: one teacher was appointed to the Network Governor's Council on Wellness, another was named Columbia Chamber Teacher of the Quarter, and an assistant principal was recognized as an SC ASCD Emerging Leader.
Looking ahead, during the 2025-2026 school year, Blythewood Middle School will pursue our 6th re-designation as a National Schools To Watch.
Karis M. Mazyck, Principal
Denean Rivers, SIC Chair
