News from Panther Headquarters

Hello Panther Families –

March has always been a busy time of the year as we begin to plan and schedule classes for the next school year. We have worked harder and smarter to ensure that 8th grade students/families are prepared for high school scheduling, 6th and 7th grade students/families are well-informed and selecting courses for next year, and new students from the elementary feeder schools are transitioned appropriately, and the families being redistricted are connected to their new schools. In the midst of it all, we must not forget the ‘here and now’ regarding the remainder of this school year. It is imperative that all staff and students maintain their focus and purpose on doing their personal best every day. At HIJH, we have promoted the 212 Degree concept every Monday to start off our week. The idea being that at 211 degrees water is hot, but at 212 it begins to boil. With boiling water comes steam, and steam can power a locomotive. Raising the temperature of water by one extra degree means the difference between something that is simply very hot and something that generates enough force to power a machine- a beautiful, uncomplicated metaphor that ideally should feed our every endeavor- consistently pushing us to make the extra effort in every task we undertake.

I am also excited to report that with the assistance of our wonderful PTO donation combined with the District matching grant that we have finalized all plans with our new Playground. Our new Parkour playground in the north parking will begin construction before Spring Break and should be ready for our kids to enjoy when we return from Break. How Fun!

We appreciate the opportunity to serve our students and families and thank everyone for your continued support throughout the year.

Respectfully,

Tim A. Mankin

March 1 NJHS Late Night - 2:45 - 9 pm

Week of March 4-8 Book Fair

March 5 Community Night for the Book Fair - 430-730 pm (enter through Door 1 or Door 14)

March 8 PTO Meeting - 9:30 am

March 8 Spring Musical, Beauty & The Beast - 3 and 7 pm

March 9 Spring Musical, Beauty & The Beast - 2 and 7 pm

March 11 Choral Preview Festival Concert - 7 pm (6, 7, and 8th Grade Choirs)

March 12 Orchestra Concert - 7 pm

March 16 - 17 HsEART District Art Show - 2 - 5 pm at Fishers High School

March 20 Band Concert - 7 pm at HSE High School Auditorium

March 21 Dine to Donate - Chic-fil-A (6-8 pm)

March 21 DC Parent Meeting - 7 pm LGI Room (7th Grade)

March 22 Panther Fest 6:30-8:30 pm (5 and 6th grade)

March 25 Choir and Ukulele Club Concert - 7 pm (5th Grade)

March 29 - April 5 SPRING BREAK - NO SCHOOL

If your student is going to be absent in the future for any reason, please leave a message on the attendance line at 317-594-4126.

If you need to pick your child up from school early, please call the attendance line 317-594-4126 by 9 AM, the morning of dismissal. We will send a pass to your child and have them in the office at your requested time. You will need to come in the office and sign your child out. If your child is returning to school due to a Medical/Dental appointment and has their excuse slip, they can come in on their own and sign back in.

Anyone requesting new bus transportation for their child, due to a move to a new home, MUST provide proof of residency to the attending school to make this change. Residency documents needed are posted on the corporation website under “For Parents” and “Enrolling Your Child,” Step 3, Residency Documents. Once documents are provided to the school, new bus information will be provided to you and will be available on Skyward within a 24-hour timeframe.

Testing Dates to Note: Please mark your calendars to ensure your child is in attendance these testing periods.

ILEARN testing window - April 22 - May 17, 2019

It is extremely important that your child be in attendance and on time during these testing days. Please assist us by ensuring that your child is well rested and eats a healthy breakfast. Also, it would be advantageous to reschedule any appointments you have scheduled during these days. Thank you in advance for your assistance with this testing process.

Course Scheduling for 2019-20.

Grades 6, 7 and 8. All 6th, 7th and 8th grade students should have been scheduled for the upcoming school year. Those students still needing to select courses will be called down to the Guidance Office to assist them with those scheduling options. ALL SCHEDULE CHANGES MUST BE MADE BY APRIL 1ST TO ALLOW FOR COURSE OFFERINGS AND STAFFING! (8th grade student’s course changes with the high schools must be done prior to leaving for the summer).

Current 5th Grade Students. Current 5th Grade Student course selections for the 2019-20 school year will be a natural progression of the courses they are currently scheduled.

Withdrawing Your Student. If your child will be withdrawing from Hamilton Southeastern Intermediate/Junior High School, anytime prior to the end of school, you MUST notify the guidance office at least two days in advance of your child’s last day. Withdrawal forms prepared by the guidance office must be signed by the parent/ guardian. Once all administrative items are completed, a copy of the withdrawal form, current grades and schedule will be given to the student to provide to their future school for enrollment.

2019-2020 School Year. If your child will be attending another school outside the HSE school district next year, please call the guidance office (317.594-4124) before May 1st, so records can be prepared for the new school prior to leaving for the summer.

HONOR ROLL postings are on the HIJH website! HIJH honor roll is located on the Home page of the HIJH website. https://hij.hseschools.org. Students receiving high honor roll have received no grade lower than an A-. Students receiving regular honor high honor roll have received no grade lower than a B-.

Click here for the Northwestern University's Midwest Academic Talent Search (NUMATS).

Click here Twenty-First Century Scholars.

HSE Illness Policy. District policy is if student has a fever of 100 degrees they need to stay home for 24 hours. This means they need a regular temperature WITHOUT using fever reducer like Tylenol or Ibuprofen. If your student vomits then they need to be home for 24 hours from the last time they vomited. This is without using medication that helps to stop vomiting.

IMMUNIZATION REMINDER . If your student will be in 6th grade next year-they will need Tdap and Meningitis and have received (2) Hepatitis A vaccinations- please check with your doctor.

Crutches and Boots. If your student comes to school on crutches, walking boot, any type of cast- this must go thru the nurse before they go to class.

Be That Girl is a club looking for girls in 5th-8th grade that provides leadership, social, and personal development. We know that by empowering and emboldening girls, we can help them find their voices, inspire action, and make the world a better place. We provide mentoring to girls of all grades, a safe place to talk, fun activities, and games to promote self-confidence, growth, and empowerment.

Cost: $15- new members for 2nd semester only, which covers the cost of the club shirt and snacks. 1st semester members who have already paid do not owe dues for 2nd semester.

Dates: Wednesdays, 1/16, 1/30, 2/13, 2/27, 3/13, 3/27, 4/10, 4/24, 5/1 (End of Year Party)

Time: 3-4:00 p.m.- Pick up is at Door #3 at 4:00 pm.

Location: Mrs. Berry's Classroom, Room 319

Click here to learn about all of the HIJH Athletic Info.

Click here to find out the latest in Library News.

Click here to learn about National Nutrition Month.

Free Math help is available for all 5th-8th grade students every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 7:00 am. It is early, but it is FREE! Your student can get some extra assistance and help with homework or prepare for exams. Feel free to take advantage of this opportunity! Mrs. Auger will meet all students at 7:00 am in the main entrance and walk to Room 142.

Beginning on Monday, March 11th through Friday, March 22nd, HIJH students will have the opportunity to come together as a follow up to the Global Read Aloud Refugee. Student Council is providing a number of ways that HIJH can make a difference! During this two week period, students will have three opportunities to help. First, students can purchase an HIJH pop socket for $5.00. These will be sold during lunch and SLT. Second, students can purchase a Pura Vida bracelet, in the color blue, which represents refugees, for $5.00. Finally, during this two week period, HIJH will be collecting donations of clothes (all sizes) and toiletries (soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc.). The money collected and these items will be delivered to the Exodus House in Indianapolis. The Exodus House helps refugees establish a new life in Indiana by providing essential supplies. Help HIJH make a GLOBAL difference by participating in these opportunities!

Click here to find the Band Notes for the month of March.

Click here to find out about the March Choral Festival Preview Concert on Monday, March 11 at 7 pm in Panther Hall for 6th through 8th Graders.

Congratulations to the some of the HIJH Choir Students for their acceptance and participation in the Indiana Music Educator's Middle School and participating in the Indiana Circle the State with Song Festival in Anderson, Indiana. Click here for pictures from the fun events held in January and February.

Click here to find out more about some of the exciting events held in March for the HIJH Panther Orchestras.

The deadline to order 2018-19 Yearbooks online is April 20th. Please log into www.yearbookordercenter.com and enter school code 17035. The price is $35. If you are unsure whether you have ordered one yet or not, you can find this information from the website as well. Very limited quantities will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis on the last day of school for $40. Don't wait! Books are always sold out before the line ends!

Come see our Spring Musical. Beauty and the Beast held Friday, March 8th and Saturday, March 9th. Click here to find out more information. Please also join us after the Saturday matinee where the cast will host Tea & Cookies from 12:30-1:30 pm. Click here for ticket information on this fun event.

Click here to learn more about the 5th Grade Support Groups led by Mr. Willey, HIJH Student Support Specialist. Please note that permission slips are due by Friday, January 18th and groups start on February 22nd.

Click here to learn more about the 6th Grade Support Groups. Permission slips are due by February 8th and groups start the week of February 11th.

Attention all parents of 7th graders: Mark your calendars! It is time to start planning for next year’s legendary Washington DC trip! Mr. Brown will be holding a meeting on Thursday, March 21st at 7 pm in the LGI room at HIJH for any parents interested
in learning more about the trip. You are welcome to bring your 7th grader too! Mr. Brown will be handing out info, taking questions, and opening fundraiser opportunities at the meeting. More info is posted on our trip website atwww.dctrip.info. Contact Eric Brown ebrown@hse.k12.in.us if you have questions but can’t make the meeting.

Panther Planters is back for its second growing season. If your student is interested in learning more about gardening, starting or working in your own garden at home, or are just beginning and want to help plant our school garden, come to a Panther Planters meeting. In March, we will begin planting and growing our starter plants inside, that we will eventually move outside when the spring arrives. Want to serve your community? We donate the food we grow to families in need. Junior High students can earn National Junior Honors Society service hours by helping work in our garden. Any student is welcome to any meeting you have time to attend. You do not have to join Panther Planters and be at every meeting. Meetings are from 2:45-4 pm on March 12, 19 and 27th. We hope to see your student there!

Panther Planters is in need of donations. We accept any tools useful for gardening. Other supplies we need include newspaper, clean empty plastic milk jugs, soil or mulch. Please contact Mr. Ioannacci if you have a donation and he will arrange to pick it up or a time of when the donation can be dropped off. Thank you for your support!

PTO Website. Checkout our PTO website (www.hijhpto.wordpress.com) for the 2018-19 PTO calendar, PTO meeting schedule, past meeting minutes, newsletters, and more.

March PTO Meeting. The next PTO meeting will be Friday, March 8 at 9:30 am at the school. All parents are invited to join us.

Panther Rewards. HIJH families who link their Kroger card number to our school help earn our school money! When you use your Kroger card, a portion of the sale goes to our school. It’s an easy way to support the PTO without costing you (or your fuel points) anything! Go to kroger.com/communityrewards, click “I’m With An Organization…” then “Request Your Kroger Plus Card” and create an account or sign in. Find HIJH-PTO (WT583) and link your card to our account.

Amazon is another simple way to help our school money. Go to HTTP://smile.amazon.com/ and type HSJH PTO under “supporting”. You will need to go to smile.amazon.com each time (rather than use the app)- saving it under bookmarks makes it easy to use.

Tyson Rewards and Box Tops. Keep clipping Box Tops and Tyson Rewards. Each student that brings in 10+ box tops/Tyson rewards OR a Kroger receipt showing at the bottom community rewards going to HIJH PTO gets a treat at lunch on March 13. Put all rewards in a baggie labeled with your student’s name, grade and teacher. Receipts need name, grade and 1st period teacher written on it. Contact Lisa Gruber with questions at gruber5@comcast.net.

Panther Fest. Save the date of Friday, March 22 for our fourth annual Panther Fest: A night of games, sports, challenging activities, music, food, and fun for HIJH 5th and 6th grade students. From 6:30-8:30 pm our school will be transformed into a carnival, street fair, sports arena, and fun house all rolled into one. Mark your calendars now and save the date. Registration information and volunteer requests will be coming out soon. Contact Becky Gerig at beckgerig@hotmail.com with any questions.

Dine to Donate. Save the date! The next dine to donate is Thursday, March 21 at Chick-Fil-A from 6-8 pm. Click here and bring in the attached flier to donate to HIJH!

Interested in joining the Panther Pride Geist 5k Team? To find out how to join the HIJH team, click here.

The following HIJH art students have artwork on display at the Youth Art Month Exhibit at the Capitol Building in Indianapolis for the month of March. They are Ava Cordell, Kayla Wease, Julia Castiglione, Elliot Schwarz, and Sam Worzala.

5th & 6th Grade Intramural Track Registration is underway! If your child is interested in competitive sprinting, distance running or jumping events, please download a registration form from the HIJH website and turn it into Mrs. Miller before Friday, March 15 to join our Panther Team this season. Forms are also available on Mrs. Miller's Canvas page and in class. Questions? Please contact coach Shannyn Miller, smmiller@hse.k12.in.us.

Attention any 5th or 6th grade students interested in playing volleyball. Sign up information to join intramural volleyball is now available outside Mrs. Mockler's classroom, room 220 or in the main office. All forms are due back by Friday, March 8. No experience is necessary to play so come out and learn a new sport and join the fun! Click here to find out more about it!

One of our Panther 6th graders will be collecting pop can tabs and donating them to the Ronald McDonald's Children's House to raise funds for that organization. Please collect any pop can tabs at your home and feel free to send them in with your student. Collection bins will be located in the lunch room and outside of Room 248 where students can drop off any collected pop tabs. Thank you for your support of this student-led humanitarianism project.

The HIJH PTO is raising funds to install a playground at our school. While HIJH was originally built for 7th and 8th grade only, the expanded school enrollment now includes Grades 5 and 6 and we would like them to benefit from having a playground. Click here to learn about how and where to donate for this very worthy cause. Thank you for ALL you do!

Do you have old or unwanted electronics and cell phones? Donate today. Click here to learn how.

Click here to find out about HIJH Connect.

Click here to find a newsletter for The Middle Years. A great resource for handling your tween!

Click here to find out about the Multicultural Holidays for the month.

Permitted use of school newsletters as required by the Equal Access Act is not an endorsement of this group or this group’s beliefs by Hamilton Southeastern Schools or the Board of School Trustees.

12278 N. Cyntheanne Road, Fishers, IN 46037

Ph: 317-594-4120

Attendance: 317-594-4126

Guidance: 317-594-4124

Fax: 317-594-4129

hse.k12.in.us/hij/home.aspx

Twitter: @HIJPanthers

Athletics Twitter: @HIJathletics