Celebrating the Best of GMS!

We are excited to announce and congratulate our 2027 Teacher of the Year, Mr. Stephen Brecher, and our 2027 Employee of the Year, Mr. Robert “Ben” McDonald!
Both of these incredible Tigers go above and beyond to make Gifford Middle School a special place for our students and staff.

We are so grateful for their dedication, hard work, and positive impact on our GMS family! Please join us in congratulating them on these well-deserved honors! 🎉🐯

GMS Weekly Update

Our teachers spent the day learning, collaborating, and strengthening their instructional practices to better support our Tigers! 🍎 A huge thank you to Value Teachers for providing breakfast and sharing valuable information about retirement planning with our staff! We also want to thank our SDIRC Curriculum & Instruction Department for leading informative and engaging professional learning sessions!

Introducing our GMS 2026-2027 Girls Basketball Team!!!

In 7th grade ELA students created "Talking Walls" where they rotated and created a class gallery walk for the short story "Sucker".

Boo Bash was a HUGE success!

What an AMAZING night at GMS! Our Band, Orchestra, Chorus, and Flag Team put on OUTSTANDING performances, showcasing the incredible talent of our Tigers!

A HUGE thank you to all of our incredible volunteers, staff, families, and community members who helped make this event possible! We couldn't have done it without your time, generosity, and hard work!

GMS YEARBOOKS ARE ON SALE!
Yearbook Pricing:
$40 through February 14
$45 after February 14, while supplies last

Order Online: BuyTheYearbook.com
School ID: 385149

8th Grade Families: Want to celebrate your Tiger with a special yearbook ad? The deadline to purchase 8th grade ad pages is February 14!

Today we celebrated our hardworking Tigers who earned Straight A Honor Roll and A/B Honor Roll for the first quarter

Please join us for the GMS Boo Bash Concert on Wednesday, October 28th at 6pm in the gym. The band, chorus, color guard, and orchestra will all be performing. After the concert, we will have trick or treating in the courtyard for any students/children that are accompanied by adults. Admission is free, but we will be accepting donations at the door. Costumes are encouraged! KONA Ice and Grammy's Italian Kitchen food trucks will also be on site to purchase dinner and a dessert!

If you would like to donate bags of candy to the trick or treating portion, please feel free to drop it by the music room anytime between now and next Tuesday!

GMS Weekly Family Update

Happy Boss’s Day, Mr. Thimmer! We had a little fun celebrating our favorite principal today! We hid HUNDREDS of mini “Thimmers” throughout the school for our staff to find! Thank you, Mr. Thimmer, for your leadership, dedication, and for always being such a great sport!

🏀 GMS BASKETBALL TRYOUTS! 🐯

🏀 GIRLS BASKETBALL TRYOUTS
📅 Monday, October 26 & Tuesday, October 27
⏰ 3:10–4:30 PM
An additional tryout may be held Wednesday, October 28, if needed.

🏀 BOYS BASKETBALL TRYOUTS
📅 Monday, November 2 through Wednesday, November 4
⏰ 3:10–4:30 PM

IMPORTANT: All FHSAA paperwork, including the EL2 Physical Form and EL3 Consent Form, must be completed in its entirety and on file BEFORE students can participate in tryouts.

The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to GMS!

📅 October 19–27, 2026
⏰ Open Daily: 8:10 AM–3:10 PM
🌙 Conference Night: October 21 | 3:30–7:00 PM

All students will have an opportunity to visit the Book Fair during their Reading and Elective classes. Families can also shop online October 19–November 1, with 25% of online purchases benefiting GMS!

Book Fair Disclosure:
The materials available for purchase at the Book Fair were not selected by the School District of Indian River County. We encourage parents and legal guardians to review their student’s wish list and have a conversation about what they wish their student to purchase at the Book Fair before sending money to make any purchases. You can preview books from the Scholastic Book Fair by visiting our Book Fair Home Page. Some books in the Preview might be excluded based on availability; likewise, you may see books that aren’t featured in the Preview sent as substitutes for other titles.

📅 GMS Conference Week is coming!
Gifford Middle School will hold Conference Week October 19–23, 2026. This is a great opportunity for families to connect with teachers and discuss their student’s progress.
Conference Night:
📍 Wednesday, October 21
⏰ 4:00–7:00 PM
Families, please review the step-by-step directions attached to this post for information on scheduling and attending conferences. Families can start scheduling the week of October 12th.

GMS Weekly Family Update:

As we continue through the school year, we want to remind our Tiger families of the importance of following the SDIRC Student Dress Code each day.

Please take a moment to review the dress code guidelines with your student and help ensure they arrive at school dressed appropriately and ready to learn!

🦑🔬 Dissection Friday in Marine Science! 🐯

Our Marine Science students were at it again! This week's hands-on dissection featured squid!

A HUGE thank you to our wonderful GPAC for surprising our Tigers with sweet treats to celebrate a fantastic first quarter of the school year! 👻🍭

We appreciate all you do to make our students feel special and recognize their hard work!

📰🐯 Hot Off the Press! Mr. Rains’ Journalism students are hard at work in our Innovation Station, putting the finishing touches on the first edition of Tiger Times! We can’t wait to see what our talented student journalists have been working on!