Happy New Year!
Second semester is here. Time is going by super fast. Please make sure you are looking at focus with your student weekly. It is very important that they are ready for all the state tests in May. We will be starting Saturday boot camp for the tested areas in late March early April. More information to come in May. We strongly encourage your student to attend if they are in Algebra, Civics and in 8th grade Science.
We will be having an 8th grade parent night for parents and students. Put it on your calendar and plan on attending. See upcoming dates below.
Upcoming dates
01/24 School dance 6pm - 8pm
02/07 Interim period ends
02/10 Early Release 12:50 pm
02/13 Interims Published
02/14 PBIS Day
02/17 NO SCHOOL President's Day
02/20 8th grade parent night 6pm
02/27 Chick fil A night 5pm-9pm (Airport Rd)
02/27 8th grade students visit their zoned high school
02/28 8th grade students visit their zoned high school (10 am -12 pm)
Stop by and get your A+ Gator Stanley cup for $25.00 in the front office.
Curriculum and Instruction
The end of quarter 2 was Friday, January 10. Report cards will be published in Focus on January 23rd. Please remember to check Focus weekly for updated grades for your student.
PM2 testing will take place on Wednesday, January 15 for Reading and Wednesday, January 22 for Math. Please take to your student about the importance of testing.
ELA
Our dedicated E.L.A. teachers and students are diligently preparing for the upcoming F.A.S.T. PM2 Reading assessment scheduled for January 19. Following this, a significant focus will be placed on writing to adequately prepare students for the Writing assessment in April.
E.L.A. Lab
We encourage students to take advantage of the E.L.A. Learning Lab during A and B lunches. The lab is also accessible at other times with a teacher's recommendation, providing students with opportunities to receive help with their E.L.A. assignments. Additional assistance is available before and after school, ensuring that all students have the support they need.
Spelling Bee
The Spelling Bee will take place on January 21. Each class will select two finalists to compete in a school-wide Spelling Bee. The top two finalists from this event will advance to the district-wide Spelling Bee in March. Event dates will be communicated through Canvas. We wish all participants the best of luck!
Math
We want to provide you with an update on the progress of our 6th-8th grade students as they prepare for the upcoming Mid-Year Progress Monitoring (PM2) exams. PM2 will take place on January 22nd, so it is crucial that students are well-prepared and in attendance.
The administration of PM2 will provide a mid-year score that can be compared to the baseline score from PM1, giving us valuable insights into our students' growth and development. This allows teachers to track student progress in learning the B.E.S.T. Standards from PM1 to PM2. To ensure their success, we encourage you to remind your child of the importance of attendance. Regular attendance is crucial to avoid missing vital math skills that may hinder their progress.
In other news, we are pleased to share the outstanding achievements of our Algebra students. Our Algebra Regular and Algebra Honor students have surpassed the district average in their Quarterly Benchmark Assessment (QBA2). This accomplishment is a testament to our students' and teachers' hard work and dedication.
If your child requires extra math assistance, our Math Lab, located near the school cafeteria, is open during lunchtime on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Students can receive help with assignments, homework, clarification on math skills, and make-up exams.
Thank you for your continued support in your child's education. We are confident that with your collaboration, our students will achieve great success.
Student Services
Happy New Year from Student Services! We are so excited to begin second semester knowing that our Gators are going to continue to be successful. Our December PBIS day was the best EVER! Over 800 students were outside enjoying the sunshine and fun activities. Our December PBIS event was supported by participation in dress down days, candy grams, and Holiday polaroid picture purchases. What an amazing turn out! In January, we have two dress down days planned. Wednesday, January 8 will be a $5 pajama day. On Friday, January 17 students will be able to have a regular $5 dress down day. Our students have been on top of their game this year. Students have earned 931 positive referrals this year. We are WAY AHEAD of our numbers at this time last year! Keep it up, Gators! Our students have 36 less disciplinary referrals than last year! We are on the path to keeping our A by having more students in class and out of discipline. As we begin the second semester, all student tardies will be “reset.” As a reminder, a student will have a full day of ISS (In School Suspension) once they have a total of 5 tardies in one class period. Please encourage your child to be on time to class every day. We look forward to stepping into the second semester with our Gators!
