Arcola Weekly News

The MLK Day of Service presented an opportunity to bring a meaningful service project to Arcola. Socks tend to be the number one requested item by individuals experiencing homelessness. On January 17th, MLK Day of Service, volunteers came into Arcola to create Sock Rolls, a pair of socks rolled with a granola bar and a pack of crackers and finished off with a ribbon and a tag from the student. The Sock Rolls were donated to The Giving Tree. Thank you for your service!

The Methacton School District is once again partnering with the GIANT Company on a special school program to help support our students. From now through February 28, 2022, GIANT customers can “ROUND UP AT THE REGISTER” to support the Methacton Backpack Program. Customers at the local GIANT can “round up” their grocery total at the register and the cumulative total of all the “spare change” donated will go into a fund for the Methacton School District. Last year, this fundraiser awarded more than $6,600 to the Methacton Backpack Program.

Spirit Days for January

• Friday, January 28th - Flannel Day

• Dr. Gravinese, the High School Principal, sent a special message to all 8th grade families outlining the scheduling process, specific to their 8th grade student(s).

• On January 24, High School counselors and administrators will provide a scheduling presentation to all eighth grade students at Arcola.

• January 31: 8th grade parents are invited to the high school cafeteria from 3:00 - 5:00 to ask any department specific question of the department coordinators.

• February 28: eighth grade Arcola students will participate in the course selection process with the assistance of Arcola and High School counselors and administrators.

January is a big month for our 8th Grade students as they begin the process of thinking about what classes they would like to take in high school. This past week, students interested in the North Montco Technical Career Center (www.nmtcc.org) took a field trip to see the facility and learn more about their programs. North Montco will be hosting an open house for students and their families on Thursday, February 3, from 5 – 7:30 PM. This Monday our 8th Graders will hear from the high school counselors regarding the scheduling process and be introduced to the various electives available to them in 9th Grade. That same day, they will also attend a detailed presentation given by a number of high school teachers on the electives available to them. All of these programs are in preparation for them to choose their 9th Grade courses in February!

If you currently have or have raised teenagers, you may have experienced instances of extreme defiance. They can be argumentative, often don’t listen to what you say, and may act as if you have no authority over them. They may do their best to get their way. Are there steps you can take to deal with these situations? This article may help: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/adolescents-explained/202111/5-ways-help-reduce-teenage-defiance.

The Methacton Education Foundation just announced an EXCITING OPPORTUNITY! The MEF is seeking a passionate and experienced leader to join their team as Executive Director/Chief Development Officer. Apply Today!

Details: https://www.methactonfoundation.org/file_download/inline/3ee0657d-1afe-4a06-9589-7bf5cdb0ee9e

The Methacton Backpack program is up and running in each of our buildings and serves district families in need with supplemental food and non-food items. This program helps create food stability for breakfast and lunch when our students are not in school. Weekly, the program sends home a bag of breakfast, lunch, and snack items for the weekend and holiday breaks for students in Kindergarten through 12th grade. Families who qualify for free/reduced meals are eligible to participate in the Backpack Program. Please contact the school counselor if you would like to register your child for the Backpack program.

In order to continue to sustain the program please consider contributing and donating items to the program. Items can be donated directly to the school or you can place an order through Amazon and ship it directly to our school from the Amazon page.

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y75GZGW6DXNJ?ref

Please remember to select, “No Weekend Delivery.”

What items can I donate?

Individual Serving Food Items

· Single serving boxes of milk (shelf-stable/not refrigerated)

· Mini cereal boxes

· Canned soup (cans with “pop tops”)

· Oatmeal Packs or cups

· Applesauce and fruit cups

· Chef Boyardee, Hormel, Dint Moore Meals, etc.

· Easy Mac Cups

· Cracker packs

· Sweet snacks: Fruit snacks, pudding, granola bars, individual bags of cookies, etc.

· Salty snacks: pretzel packs, goldfish crackers, popcorn, etc.

· 100% juice boxes