Dust Devil Weekly

Once again this school year we will be focused on improving school wide attendance at JMMS! Each week we will report out our daily attendance rates. Our goal is to be above 96% each day...we can do it!

Monday 1/6: No Students

Tuesday 1/7: 91.56%

Wednesday 1/8: 89.33%

Thursday 1/9:

Friday 1/10:

Did you know that an Excused absence is the same as an Unexcused absence for a student? If your child is going to be out for an extended amount of time, you can request and Independent Study Contract. This contract acts as attendance for the time they are not in school, as well as, allowing students to stay on top of their studies!

-At our first Leadership Assembly of 2025, our teachers being transformed into Snow People!! What good sports they all are!

-This week, Grade 8 students in science planned and experimented with the factors that affect the potential energy of an object. The guiding question was: 'How can we make an action figure jump higher?' Students analyzed the collected data and learned that the higher an object is from the Earth and the more mass it has, the more potential energy it possesses.

• If your child sold See's Candy online as a part of our fundraiser during the Holidays, please email Mrs. Tompkins with any names so she can give credit to your child for the sales. You can email her at dtompkins@alpineschools.net
• ASB is looking for any donations of candy for rewards during our Spirit Days. If you would like to donate any candy to our JMMS ASB, please send it in and make sure it has a note that states it is for our ASB class! Thanks in advance for your support!

Mr. Bailey will host an Informational Meeting on Tuesday, January 14 from 3:15-4pm about our upcoming Yondr Pouch rollout in room 302. He will cover FAQs and will have a sample pouch available for parents to see.

Tomorrow we will be sending home information about our upcoming rollout of the Yondr Pouches. Your child will be bringing home some important information and a Phone Agreement for families to read and sign. These agreements are due back on Friday, January 17 and all classes that have 100% return will receive a reward! We are excited to add Yondr Pouches to our Cell Phone Policy beginning in January. As we enter 2025, we look forward to less distractions on campus and a reenergized focus on learning and school culture.

We invite all parents to join us for an informative session with the San Diego Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Unit. This valuable presentation will cover how to protect your child from the dangers of improper app usage and provide practical tips on teaching them how to use their devices safely. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn how to better safeguard your child’s online experience. We hope to see you there!

The Alpine Education Foundation is excited to invite students to participate in the upcoming STEAM Fair at Joan MacQueen Middle School on February 1st! This is a fantastic opportunity for students to showcase their creativity and innovation by submitting an age-appropriate science project for the fair or hosting a vendor booth to share or sell their businesses, creations, or inventions. We encourage all students to get involved and be part of this inspiring event! Click on this link to learn more and register your student.

We know that the colder weather is upon us. We wanted to give families a reminder that students are not allowed to bring blankets to school. Unfortunately, the blankets have become a distraction on campus. Students should focus on jackets, sweaters, or sweatshirts to stay warm. We do allow hats including beanies. Thank you for your continued support.

We appreciate your patience as we put all of the pieces in place to get our JOAN MACQUEEN PTA MEMBERSHIP DRIVE underway! And....it is time! Our Membership Drive has begun! You can join online beginning NOW for just $15 a membership. We have set a goal of 200 members and we are well on our way with already 50 members! Please consider joining our newly formed PTA. PTA is a vital part of any school community and JMMS is excited to have a PTA back on campus to support our students, staff and greater school community! We will be hyping up the students by hosting a little membership competition. The grade level with the most memberships will receive a MEGA ICE CREAM SUNDAE SOCIAL! The second place grade level will receive ice cream cone party and the third place will receive a popsicle party. We want to reward all grade levels as this is an exciting time for JMMS and our newly formed PTA! You can join by using the link here:

https://jointotem.com/ca/alpine/joan-macqueen-pta/join

We are excited to announce that our 6th grade class will be attending Camp Cuyamaca from March 17-21, 2025! We know that is months away; however, because the week has a cost of $350 we like to give our families the time to start making payments asap. If you would like to start making payments or pay for camp in full, you can pay cash or make a check payable to Joan MacQueen Middle School beginning now. You can bring the cash or check to the JMMS office. Time to start getting excited for camp!

As we begin the year, it is important to remind your student that they need to have their Chromebook each day charged and in their backpack. While we know that we want our middle schoolers to work on becoming more independent, we also know that it takes time. So, as they work to develop these skills, please help them by giving them reminders nightly to charge their Chromebooks and then to put it in their backpack in the morning. Thanks for your continued support!

JMMS is excited to offer Spirit wear for our Dust Devils! You can find offers and options here:

https://macqueenmiddlespiritwear.com/

Weds 1/15 - Late Start

Fri 1/17 - Progress Reports

Mon 1/20 - Martin Luther King, Jr Day (No School)

Weds 1/22 - Twin Day