SPARTAN SCOOP

• Progress Reports: Details for Accessing Progress Reports
• Picture Highlight: Bus Driver Thank You Bags
• PTO: Staff Appreciation (Looking for Donations) + PTO December Newsletter
• Tips for Middle School Parents- From Strong4Life
• Washington, D.C. Deadline Reminder
• Spartan Pride Award Winners-
• Community Fitness Opportunities
• Cell Phone Reminder
• Thank-A-Teacher Opportunity
• Information from Previous SMORE

Your child's progress report is now available on Skyward.

Here are the steps you will follow to access your child's second quarter progress report:

• Login to Family Access

• Click on the Portfolio Folder for your student

• Find the report called Second Quarter Progress Report November 22, 2022

• Click on the download arrow to download a PDF of the Progress Report

• Once the Progress Report has been downloaded, you may view and/or print a copy

If you have more than one student, you will need to follow the steps for each child. If you are experiencing a technical difficulty, please send an email to familyaccess@phm.k12.in.us and we will assist you.

Our students made Thank You Bags for our bus drivers and handed them out at the end of the day this past week :) A big thank you to our students and staff who helped orchestrate this celebration!

PTO has created a sign-up genius for the November and December staff appreciation events. December's treat will be coffee and cookies. If you would like to sign up to help contribute, please use the signupgenius link below.

Thank you!

3 Keys to Connecting with your Preteen (or Teen)

1. Listen. When your child is ready to talk, be available. Listen Actively. Be there with an open mind and hear what they are saying. It may be difficult, but try not to interject. Just listen.

2. Don’t be afraid to have hard conversations. Parenting a middle schooler is a tough job. Not only are you dealing with changing emotions in a developing preteen, but you are also confronted with conversations that may make you uncomfortable. It’s important, however, to create a space where your child feels safe to report anything going on in their life. Let them open up; it will set a great precedent for the future.

3. Don’t judge or overreact to things your child tells you. This can be difficult, but if you react harshly or judgmentally in the moment, your child will be less likely to open up to you in the future.

Here are 4 Things you can do to Help your Middle Schooler Succeed:

1. Be OK with your child’s mistakes. “Let your child manage their own agenda and calendar,” says licensed therapist Jody Baumstein, LCSW. “It might be tempting to do it for them, but the only way they will learn is to try themself. It’s OK if they fail! Experiencing failure, and learning from it, is an important part of building resilience.”

2. Help your child learn from their mistakes. Baumstein says, “Once failure occurs, have a sit-down and talk it through together: ‘What happened? What can we learn from this experience?’”

3. Set firm limits and boundaries, and stick to them. It may not seem like it to your child, but children (even at this age) thrive with rules and limitations. The limits you set create a sense of predictability and comfort, and they can help reduce stress and anxiety.

4. Enforce rules consistently. Although it can be uncomfortable at times, consistent enforcement of rules teaches kids to respect order and authority, and it gives them “ground rules” for how to behave as adults.

*Tips taken from the article, Tips for Middle School Parents, published by Children's Health Club of Atlanta.

For eighth grade students traveling to Washington, D.C., the second payment for your trip is due to HemisphereTravel.com by December 14.

This week we had our second Grade Level Meeting of the year where we celebrated our Marking Period 1 successes, highlighted ways to get involved, shared code of conduct reminders, played a game of Heads & Tails with Advisory classes and celebrated our Spartan Pride Award Winners. These winners were nominated by teachers for displaying our SMS motto of Showing Respect, Making a Difference and Setting the Bar High every single day! Below are our MP1 winners but many of our students were nominated--just proving how incredible our students are!

Please help me celebrate the following students:

Show Respect:

6th Grade- Beckett Fini

7th Grade- Lucy Dunham

8th Grade- Pierson Faas

Make a Difference:

6th Grade- Ethan Blest

7th Grade- Rebecca Kollar

8th Grade- Eva Kungu

Set the Bar High:

6th Grade- Jackson Wells

7th Grade- Jocelyn Huber

8th Grade-Sean Njorge

Just a friendly reminder that students should not have their cell phones on them during the school day. Cell phones should be off and in your student's locker. Should your student need to get a hold of you during the school day, we have a phone students can use in the main office. Please see our Code of Conduct verbiage covering this item. We appreciate your help and support in maintaining student focus on academics and minimizing outside distractions.

22. Possession of electronic equipment and cell phones; the school supplies most electronic equipment necessary in school. While students may possess cell phones and electronic devices on school property, students are prohibited from turning on their personal devices or allowing them to be visible during the school day without permission of a staff member

As the weather quickly shifts from fall to winter, the school district is happy to pilot free fitness opportunities for the P-H-M community. This will take place four (4) days per week at the sites listed below.

Who is eligible to participate: The P-H-M Adult Community and Staff (no students). This includes residents of the school district and non-resident parents/guardians of attending students.

What: Access to walking/jogging tracks, open gym/basketball courts, and weight room.

When: Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays at the sites listed below. Note: The fitness centers will be closed during designated school recess dates.

Weekly Schedule:

Questions? Please see the assigned staff at each site to help answer your questions.

P-H-M teachers and staff are known for excellence. As a way to say THANK YOU, consider a

donation to the P-H-M Education Foundation’s Grant Fund. This tells your child’s “Special Person” that you honor him/her and value education at P-H-M. Your contribution to the Grant Fund will be returned to the schools in the form of TEACHERS GRANTS for programs and projects that cannot be funded through school budgets.

Your child’s “Special Person” will receive a special note with your message, a pin for their lanyard, and name of the donor (not the amount given). The first 100 employees to be recognized will receive a free Gold Carwash at Drive & Shine ($17 value)! We will also be doing weekly drawings for a chance (for nominees) to win gift cards!

A “Special Person” can include a teacher, aide, librarian, bus driver, custodian, or any other

P-H-M employee.

All contributions to the Foundation are tax deductible, please contact the office if you would like a tax receipt.

Click here to order a yearbook. You can also share your photos here, enter schumucker for the school code.

Please note that each Friday morning, beginning at 7:45am, our Intramurals Sponsor, Mr. Sears, holds an Early Bird Open Gym. Students are welcome to enter through Door L and participate in a variety of games and activities. Please reach out to Mr. Sears (DSears@phm.k12.in.us) for specific questions or details.

The state has provided COVID home tests free of charge for students. Limit 1 kit (2 tests) per student. Interested parents/guardians should pick them up from the office while supplies last.

PTO Members & Volunteers:

Please see the PTO Newsletter for the month of December.

Educational Assistant: If you or someone you know has a passion for helping students succeed and feel yourself to be a life-long learner, problem solver and collaborative team member, then this is the position for you! Please reach out to me (KMartin3@phm.k12.in.us) if you would like to talk about the details regarding this position.

Universal Substitute: If you or someone you know loves being in the classroom, and collaborating with teachers and students, then please reach out with interest or questions to me at (KMartin3@phm.k12.in.us). The daily rate for this position is $115 and there is flexibility within the schedule.

It is important for us to maintain a high level of academic excellence here at Schmucker Middle School. In order to help with student focus and to eliminate possible distractions, we ask that students keep their cell phones in their locker at all times during the school day. Students have access to school phones here at school (main office, nurse, teacher classrooms) should they need to get a hold of you during the day. We thank you for your support in this and focus on academic excellence.

Click the button below for more information.

Parents,

Families have the option of receiving weekly emails outlining your students online activity while using Chromebooks. This online service is free and it gives parents an opportunity to maintain a safe learning environment at school and at home. Please click on the attached links to learn more about how Securly can help you.

• Click to read and download a copy of the parent letter that provides step-by-step instructions on how to set up your Securly Parent Portal.

If you see something, hear something, say something! The Safe School Helpline is a convenient, confidential way for anyone to report information about situations that might affect safety at any P-H-M school or building. You can call the number any time of the day or night to report concerns about unsafe or potentially disruptive activities or situations including drug or alcohol abuse, weapons, harassment, bullying or threats. All calls are completely confidential.

• 800-418-6423 (800-4-1-VOICE, ext. 359)

• TEXT: 66746, TIPS

• www.safeschoolhelpline.com

• Chromebooks- Lee Riley (lriley@phm.k12.in.us )

• Attendance- Linda Brown (lbrown2@phm.k12.in.us)

• Textbooks and Fees- Ashley Kirkpatrick (akirkpatrick@phm.k12.in.us)

• Special Education Teachers

• 6th grade- Courtney Heck (check@phm.k12.in.us )

• 7th grade- Meaghan Donahue (mdonahue@phm.k12.in.us )

• 8th grade- Allie Chrise (achrise2@phm.k12.in.us )

• Multiple Grades- Chiffon Williams (cwilliams7@phm.k12.in.us)

• School Counselors

• Jenny Shaw (Last Names A-G) (jshaw@phm.k12.in.us)

• Cara Watt (Last Names H-N) (cwatt@phm.k12.in.us)

• Andrea Hoover (Last Names O-Z) (ahoover@phm.k12.in.us )

• Athletics- Jim Modlin (jmodlin@phm.k12.in.us )

• Enrollments/Withdrawals/Address Changes- Aly Abel (aabel@phm.k12.in.us)

• PTO- (schmuckerpto@phm.k12.in.us)

Email: kmartin3@phm.k12.in.us
Website: http://schmucker.phmschools.org/
Location: Schmucker Middle School, Bittersweet Road, Mishawaka, IN, United States
Phone: 574-259-5661
Twitter: @SMSSpartanPride