Orville A. Todd Middle School:
Clubs & Activities

• In addition to sports, there are other ways to be involved after school.
  
  
• Being involved in an after school activity/club, does not interfere with being on a sports team.
  
  
• Sign-ups for after school clubs and activities take place by attending meetings and signing up with the club advisor. Meetings will be announced during morning and afternoon announcements.

Art Club

The Todd Art Club meets every week after school from 2:30-3:00 in the art room. The Art Club is open to students in grades 6 - 8 of all artistic abilities. The main objective is to beautify Todd Middle School with temporary wall murals. Sign-ups are the second week of school.

Chess Club

The Todd Chess Club meets every week after school from 2:30 – 3:00 in the dining hall. The Chess Club is open to all students at Todd from beginner to advanced players. A chess tournament takes place during the fourth quarter for all members. New members are always welcomed and sign-ups are the second week of school.

Computer Club

The Todd Computer Club meets every week after school from 2:30 – 3:00 in the computer lab and begins the third week of school. Topics covered in the club will include programming in BASIC, understanding the Windows 95 environment, photo imaging with Corel Photo Paint, digital cameras and designing web pages in HTML code and Netscape Composer. New members are welcomed.

Continental Math League

Todd M.S. offers all students the opportunity to participate in the Continental Math League. It’s an enjoyable experience where the students can share and learn new ways of solving problems and take part in an organized competition as well. Continental Math League meets every week from 2:30 – 3:00 and the members take part in a variety of activities that include games, puzzles, cooperative learning, films, and practice for the actual tests administered by the Continental Mathematics League. There are 5 tests during the year, one a month from November to March. During a regular after school meeting, the students take a timed six question test on problem – solving. The top two scores from each grade are reported to the C.M.L. During the remaining part of the year, the students will work on a variety of activities, including making a math journal magazine. New members are always welcome and sign-ups are the third week of school!

Environmental Club

We strive to bring awareness to students about environmental issues affecting the Hudson Valley and around the world. Our focus will be on recycling and learning about Hudson River species. The environmental club is open to all students. Our mission is to continue the paper recycling at Todd and extend it to cans and plastic. We are involved in raising money to help save land for wildlife agencies and have been successful in saving 9 acres of land in Panama. The environmental club participates in the annual "I*MA*GREEN*ATION celebration in Albany. We also maintain the greenhouse and nature trail at Todd. The club is open to all students and meetings are held after school from 2:30 – 3:00 and begin the third week of school.

Handball Club

The Todd Handball Club is open to all students in grades 6-8 and meetings are after school from 2:30 – 3:00. No prior experience is necessary to participate in the club and all students are welcome. The club aims to improve physical conditioning and to develop skills such as hand/eye coordination, speed and dexterity. It also teaches students the value of good sportsmanship and provides the opportunity for competition. The club is supported by the United States Handball Association and receives equipment such as gloves, eye guards and balls. The Handball club will begin in late October and run through June.

National Junior Honor Society

Candidates eligible for election must be members of the eighth grade class. Membership in the National Junior Honor Society is an honor earned by a student for outstanding scholarship, leadership, service, character and citizenship. To be eligible for election to the chapter, candidates shall have a minimum sixth, seventh, and first quarter of eighth grade cumulative average of 92.0. Additionally, candidates shall have no final course averages below 85.0 in sixth or seventh grade and no eighth grade first quarter course averages below 85.0.

Odyssey of the Mind

Odyssey of the Mind is designed to create problem-solving opportunities for all students grade 6 - 8. This program promotes creativity by challenging members to solve divergent problems by working in teams. Students learn the important skills of teamwork, self-respect and respect for others through such activities as brainstorming and role-playing. Every October, Odyssey of the Mind publishes five problems for which students may sign-up to solve. Based on the number of students who chose to participate, teams are created to solve a particular problem. These teams meet after school from 2:30 – 3:00 starting in late October to prepare for the regional competition in late February. Winners of the regional competition go on to State Finals in March.

Ping-Pong

The ping-pong club is open to all sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students. The club is run by Mrs. Joy. She teaches serves, spins, forehand and backhand loops, blocking, pushing, footwork and tournament strategies. The club meets every week from 2:30 -3:00 and at times during lunch periods. Several students have also participated in tournaments in Boston and New Jersey. Come and see how much fun ping-pong can be!

School Store/Bookbag

The Bookbag originally began in 1997 as a used bookstore made possible through a school-to-work grant funded by BOCES. Over the years The Bookbag has evolved into its current business – a school supply and snack center. Mrs. Heidi Espinoza, a sixth grade teacher, designed the project to be used as a tool to teach students crucial math and language arts skills. Students learn not only the math and language skills important in running a business but they also learn vital work place skills that will last them a lifetime. Students have the opportunity to work as accountants, sales people, publicists, and stock and ordering personnel. Students are even chosen through an application process to fill the manager positions in each of the above named positions.

The Bookbag provides the students at Todd with reasonably priced school supplies and snacks at a convenient location. The profit goes to help the store continue its growth, to fund school activities, and to contribute to charitable organizations. Each year the students select a charity to donate to. Monies were given to the following charities over the years: Dutchess Outreach, Dutchess County SPCA, Roberto Morelli Medical Trust, The American Cancer Society and the Alzheimer’s Foundation. Hours of operation are Monday thru Friday 7:30 – 7:45 a.m. and 2:25 – 2:35 p.m.

Science Club

The Science Club meets every other week after school from 2:30 – 3:00. Students in grades 6 – 8 are welcome to join at any time throughout the school year. The club starts in September and continues through the spring. The Science Club is designed to provide extra help to students interested in participating in the Science Fair although all students are welcome to join. The majority of the club meetings are spent working on hands-on activities. Some of the activity topics include crime scene detection, genetics, speed and acceleration, electricity, chemistry, and magnetism. The science club also arranges for guest speakers from the community to come in to speak about their area of science. If you are interested in how things “work”, join the Science Club!

Science Olympiad

Science Olympiad meets weekly after school from 2:30 – 3:00. Students in grades six thru eight are welcome to join at any time throughout the school year. The club starts in September and continues through the spring. The Science Olympiad tournaments are rigorous academic interscholastic competitions that consist of a series of individual and team events, which students prepare for during the year. The competitions follow the format of popular board games, TV shows and athletic games. These challenging and motivational events are well balanced between the various science disciplines of biology, earth science, chemistry, physics, computers and technology. There is also a balance between events requiring knowledge of science facts, concepts, process, skills and science applications.

Ski Club

The Todd Ski Club is a great experience for skiers of all skill levels. Students enjoy four trips during the ski season, weather permitting, to local mountains. One trip is scheduled before the Christmas Holiday and three trips are scheduled after. All trips are on Saturday and the bus leaves Todd at approximately 7:00 a.m. and returns around 5:30 p.m. The ski club can accommodate 50 members and because of this eighth and seventh graders receive preferential seating. There is a mandatory meeting for parents and potential members at the time of sign-ups that is tentatively planned for the first week in November. Two student co-presidents are chosen to help the advisor organize the club, collect money, create the phone chain and roster and to perform safety checks [counting heads, helping inexperienced skiers, etc.]. The Ski Club is a great way to have fun during the long winter months.

Student Government

Student Government is an organization that represents student interest at Todd Middle School. Students arrange activities such as assemblies, dances, and other special events. Student Government members also provide input to help solve school-wide problems along with teachers and administrators. Each homeroom elects one student representative to serve on student council. Officers such as president, vice-president, treasure, secretary, and committee chief are elected in school-wide elections. Homeroom representatives are elected in September and the other officers are elected in October/November. Meetings are usually held twice a month after school. All students are welcomed and encouraged to run for homeroom representative or other positions.

Yearbook Club

The yearbook club has fun gathering all of the memorable experiences of Todd students on film and incorporating them in an artistic collage culminating in the yearbook. During weekly meetings, from 2:30 to 3:00, the club’s advisor helps students to plan, design, publicize and sell Todd’s yearly book. Students will get experience in using a camera, page layout, artistically creating the yearbook, sales and purchasing as well as acting as sport and club liaisons. If having your work enjoyed by all is appealing, join the yearbook club today.