"The time is always right to do what is right."
Dear Isaac Families,
I hope you are doing well and staying healthy. Our staff is rejuvenated, well-rested, and ready for the next half of the school year after a much-needed break. We are enthusiastic as wonderful things continue to happen at the Castle.
We had a busy week before the winter break, including a fun-filled Winter Fest Spirit Week. This was a fantastic opportunity to build community and celebrate a successful first half of the school year while having fun. Students wore their ugly sweaters, colorful wacky hats, and their cozy pajamas to finish out the week. They were treated to the joyous sounds of the season with concerts from our choral, band, and instrumental groups. Our Castle Dancers wrapped up the assembly with moves and grooved to popular music beats. Thank you to our PTA for donating treats for the student holiday gift bags. A special shout-out to our Castle Ambassadors for volunteering their time to make and hand out 1100 student goody bags. It was much appreciated!
January is a month of transitions and new beginnings. Staff will revisit our school expectations for behavior and what it means to be a scholar student. We will continue to plan and host a series of events and activities designed to enhance student learning. Counselors will begin meeting with current eighth-grade/rising ninth-grade students to begin preparing for high school. Counselors will also begin preparing sixth and seventh-grade students for their course selections for the 2024-2025 school year.
We are quickly coming to the close of the second marking period and we encourage all students to finish strong both academically and behaviorally. The marking period ends on January 26. Report cards will be available in Home Access on February 8, 2024. As a reminder, students must be in good academic and behavioral standing throughout the year to participate in all field trips and special events. This includes the eighth grade Moving Up Ceremony and end-of-the-year grade-level field trips. Students with two or more academic failures, those who are considered chronically absent from school and late to school, and those who demonstrate a pattern of inappropriate behavior will be ineligible to participate in these events and will be excluded.
We strongly encourage parents and guardians to connect with their child’s school counselor if their child is experiencing difficulties in school. Counselors and support staff can work in collaboration to create action plans for school-based concerns as well as make recommendations for community-based support if needed. As always, the IEYMS staff is here to support your child and partner with you in service to children. Please do not hesitate to contact a member of the staff if you have questions or need assistance.
Wishing you all a fabulous 2024!
Teacher Spotlight
Congratulations to the IEYMS Literary Magazine Resist, Refuse, Restore, Reclaim on winning the rank of Distinction for Recognizing Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines (REALM) for the National Council of Teachers of English (NTCE). This year, schools in 46 states and five countries nominated 375 student magazines. Magazines from middle school, high school, and higher education were welcomed for the 2023 contest.
The REALM program publicly recognizes excellent literary magazines produced by students with the support of their teachers. REALM is designed to encourage all schools to develop literary magazines that celebrate the art and craft of writing. Schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, US territories, Canada, and American schools abroad are eligible to nominate magazines. For more information about the REALM Program, please visit: https://ncte.org/awards/program-to-recognize-in-student-literary-magazines/.
Thank you to Ms. Maldanado, Art Teacher, Ms. Danielle, ELA Teacher, and Dr. Lopez, Humanities Chairperson for your making this prestigious recognition possible. Click the link below to view the IEYMS Award Winning Literary Magazine.
