The Cougar News

Hello Apex Middle School Families,

We've enjoyed another great week at Apex Middle! As we continue to work together to create a safe and productive learning environment, I want to remind everyone of a few important procedures:

1. Arrival and Dismissal Safety: Please help us ensure the safety of all students by following our arrival and dismissal practices. We have a carpool line for a reason. There have been near misses when parents drop off students in the middle of the road or fail to follow traffic signs. Please help us in keeping everyone safe.

2. Early Student Pick-Up: We kindly ask that parents do not request students be called from class before arriving on campus for early pick-up. This disrupts valuable instructional time. Your understanding and adherence to this policy help us maintain a focused learning environment.

3. Early Check-Out Cutoff: A reminder that early check-out must happen by 2:30 PM. This is not a new rule; we begin preparing for bus arrival at this time and manage critical tasks to ensure a smooth and safe dismissal process.

4. 6th Grade Family Engagement Night: We are excited to invite our 6th grade parents and guardians to our first annual "Navigating Middle School: What Every Teacher Wants Families to Know" next Tuesday at 6:00 PM in the Auditorium. This event is designed to provide valuable information specifically for parents and guardians, and we look forward to seeing you there!

Thank you for your continued support in making Apex Middle a safe and thriving school community. Together, we can ensure that our students have the best possible experience every day.

Kind regards,
Raleigh Bame

Hello Everyone!

My name is Officer Alex Cossifos, I am the Apex Police Officer assigned to Apex Middle School as the School Resource Officer. I have been the School Resource Officer (SRO) at Apex Middle School since January 2017. Since my last name is not that easy for the kids to say and since I want to have a more personal relationship with the kids, I have them address me as “Officer Alex”, please feel free to do the same.

Prior to becoming a police officer in the Town of Apex, I was a Police Officer / Sgt. in New York (Westchester County) for 21 years (1994 – 2015).

I would like to start off with the fact that I don’t want my parents/guardians to only see me as just a police officer, I also want you to know that I am a father of two kids (a 23 year old son and a 20 year old daughter), so I know first-hand what it's like to have children go through middle school, high school and college years of their lives.

I would now like to go over the role of the SRO (School Resource Officer):

Of course, when most parents/guardians are asked to describe the role of the SRO, they say, "the SRO is there to protect the kids", and everyone would be 1,000 % correct about that! However, there is more to the SRO role.

While my main priority is always to protect “my kids”, I am also there to give them guidance, counsel them when and if needed, and hopefully provide mentorship (just like a father, uncle or guardian would). I always like to remind them that even though I am “really old”, I too, was once in middle school, so I know their mindset and understand the issues they go through.

I am also here at the school to build relationships with the kids. I don’t want the kids to see me, or any other officer, and feel uncomfortable saying hello or approaching an officer to ask a question or for help. I want them to know that they can come to me, or any other officer, for anything they may need, and that no officer is there to bother them or hurt them.

Lastly, I want every parent or guardian to know that I am always here for you as well, you can reach me by calling my school office phone at 919-387-2181 (ext 25876) or reach me by email at acossifos@wcpss.net.

Students - Need to reach your counselor during class? Here are some ways to make a request:

• bit.ly/apexmscounselors Use the Bit.ly Link posted in your classrooms to fill out a request form. This link is also posted in Canvas pages for all homeroom teachers

• Email Your Grade-Level Counselor: You can email your counselor directly to let them know you need to be seen. Their email addresses are listed below:

7th : Akazi@wcpss.net

8th: Hdabagian@wcpss.net

• Talk to Your Teacher: If your teacher is not in the middle of a lesson, you can let them know you need to see a counselor, and they will contact us on your behalf.

We’re here to support you, so don’t hesitate to reach out!

Cafeteria Updates

• Our cafe lines are moving much faster this year, with the addition of a second register. Please consider buying lunch from our school cafe this year.
• To view daily menus: https://schools.mealviewer.com/school/ApexMiddle
• If you would like to set up an account for your student: My School Bucks

Educational Leave Requests

• Educational Leave Requests - up to five days of excused educational leave per school year. Submit form to the main office for consideration or email the form to sbeaumont@wcpss.net

Girls Soccer

Tryouts for girls soccer will continue through Monday 9/9. Please be sure someone is on campus to pick up your student at 4:45. It would be best to plan to arrive at 4:35/40. This is a nonnegotiable as Coach G has outside school commitments.

Kids Essay Contest

• Kids-World-Travel Essay Competition Flyer
• Kids-World Travel Website

Lost and Found Trackers will begin next week

Any lost items from the gym bin and cafeteria locations will be sorted and organized by the Trackers and placed in the lost and found area in the electives building. Students can search for their personal belongings during non instruction time or permission from their teacher.

School Pictures - Fall 2024

• Fall Picture 1st take: October 16, 2024
• Retake: December 3, 2024

• Our cafe is running two registers this school year, reducing wait times for students purchasing lunch. In addition, we offer a snack/ drink only line.

• Child Nutrition Services contributes to all Wake County Public School students' academic success by providing nutritious meals with quality service at an affordable price. A full lunch is $3.75.

• School dining rooms are inspected more often than other places that serve food because they serve children. Middle and high schools are inspected three times a year.

• Nutrition standards for school meals are aligned with the latest nutrition science. Age-appropriate meals are designed for grades K-5, 6-8, and 9-12 based on the meal pattern established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and dietary specifications including limits on fats, sodium, and calories. We perform a nutrient analysis using specially developed software for school meal programs and we adapt our menus to reflect the recent nutritional guidelines established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

• CNS's Smart Snack Solutions food and beverage service for in-school activities give schools the assurance federal law and WCPSS Wellness Policy Smart Snacks requirements are met. For more information click HERE.
  

ELA UPDATES:

• We have begun reading Percy Jackson and will continue through chapter 4 next week. Please be aware, not all chapters will be read/listened to in class and students will be required to do some reading at home. This week we will focus on character traits and making inferences. We will also continue to talk about how to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words. Please check through your child’s workbook on a regular basis.

• Percy Jackson Novel $5

Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Friday, September 13: Unit 1 Mid Unit Assessment (minor)

• Monday, September 16: STAR Reading Assessment

MATH UPDATES:

• Math 6: In Unit 1, we will complete Lessons 5-8 in the student workbook. Students should also complete 5 lessons of DreamBox this week.
• Math 6 Plus: Students will begin Unit 1: Area and Surface Area. We will complete Accelerated Accelerated Lessons 5-8 in the student workbook. Students should also complete 5 lessons of DreamBox this week.

Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Math 6: Minor grade Wed, 9/11

• Math 6+: Minor grade Tues, 9/10

• WCPSS Family Math Support

SCIENCE UPDATES:

• We will begin our unit on matter. We are starting by Introducing students to what is matter? Atoms,elements and molecules.

Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• None this week

• There will be a couple of skill assignments

SOCIAL STUDIES UPDATES:

• We will continue studying map skills, migration, absolute and relative location, movement, and primary & secondary sources.

Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Tuesday, September 17: Five Themes of Geography Quiz (minor)

• Fun Dinner Conversation Topic Featuring ELA: Who are Nya and Salva? How do you think their stories will align in the end?

ELA - Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Mid Unit Assessment Friday, 09/13 (Minor)

• If you would like to purchase your own copy of our book, A Long Walk to Water, you may use this link. It is not a requirement but may be helpful.

  
  

MATH - Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Math 7: Mid-Unit Assessment Tuesday, 9/10 (Major)

• Math 7+: End of Unit Assessment Tuesday 9/10 (Major)

SCIENCE - Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Layers of Earth’s Atmosphere Foldable Due Tuesday, 9/10 (Major)
• Earth’s Atmosphere Quiz Wednesday 9/11 (minor)

SOCIAL STUDIES - Upcoming Minor/ Major Assessments:

• Five Themes of Geography Graphic Organizer Due Wednesday, 9/11 (Minor)
• Timeline Mini Project, Due Friday, 9/13 (Minor)

Please note that we have begun using our bathroom passes. Students will have six opportunities during class each week, as well as any time during homeroom, electives, and lunch. If there is a reason your student needs more opportunities to use the bathroom during core instructional time, please let your student’s homeroom teacher know and we will make that exception.

ELA UPDATES:

• We have begun Unit 1 by reading chapters 1-3 of Summer of the Mariposas by Guadalupe Garcia McCall.
• Theme and point of view are introduced through the text, as well as discussion norms.

Upcoming Major and Minor Assignments:

• No Major or Minor Assignments

MATH UPDATES:

{Math 8}:

• We will be reviewing the coordinate plane. At the end of the week, we will start Unit 1- Rigid Transformations.

Upcoming Major and Minor Assignments:

• On Thursday, 9/12, we will have a Quiz on the Coordinate Plane.

{Math 1}:

• We are starting arithmetic and geometric sequences. Please encourage your child to study their notes every night.

Upcoming Major and Minor Assignments:

• Quiz on Friday, 9/13

{Math 2}:

• Module 1, Lesson 2 is about Transformations and Function Notation

Upcoming Major and Minor Assignments:

Pathway Activity One and Two are due this week and count for 25%

SCIENCE UPDATES:

• We will be identifying the differences between elements, compounds, and mixtures and begin understanding how the periodic table works.

Upcoming Major and Minor Assignments:

• Flocabulary-atoms to elements are due on 9/12 by 11:59 pm.

• Vocabulary quiz #1 will be based on the words from interactions of matter #1 set

• Elements, compounds, and mixtures quiz on 9/13

SOCIAL STUDIES UPDATES:

• We will be finishing out our Thinking Like a Historian Unit. We will be remembering 9/11/01 on Wednesday.

Upcoming Major and Minor Assignments:

• Notebook Check on Tuesday 9/10.

• Unit 1 Test on Thursday 9/12

Mrs. Ryan and Mrs. Clark are hosting Arts and Crafts Club this year! Join the fun after school! Registration required. Please fill out the following form https://forms.gle/5XdJbYqCxDVaDeam7 Seating is limited! Registration will be confirmed by email.

The Apex Middle School Robotics Team invites all 7th or 8th grade students interested in engineering, robotics, computer programing, and other STEM skills to apply, and join us as we design a robot that will compete against 120 middle school and high school teams from across North Carolina in a robotics program called the First Tech Challenge. You can learn more at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5NPp_5KHuk&t=2s.

Tryouts for the team will be held from 3:30 – 5:00pm Thursday, September 12th and Tuesday, September 17th in Mr. Cook’s classroom. Applicants must attend both days of tryouts. The 12 members of the team will be announced Friday, September 20th.

The team practices Tuesdays and Thursdays from September 24th to mid-February, and we have tournaments most Saturdays in January and February. Team members are expected to attend all practices and tournaments.

Contact Mr. Cook (decook@wcpss.net) if you have questions.

2024-25 Volunteer Renewal Link

https://www.wcpss.net/Page/57875

As a valued member of our volunteer community, we would like you to renew your volunteer status for the 2024-25 school year.

The volunteer renewal process is quick and simple for all volunteers who were approved for the 2023-24 school year. The renewal window is now open through Oct. 1, 2024. Go to the MyVolunteer Volunteer Renewal site to renew your volunteer status today! Log into your MyVolunteer account and follow the directions for Volunteer Renewal. The process should only take a few minutes. Once approved, the renewal date in your MyVolunteer profile will be updated.

All 2023-24 approved volunteers received an email on July 1 from no-reply@criminalrecordcheck.com with a link to renew your approved volunteer status for the 2024-25 school year.

If you have any issues during the renewal process, contact the MyVolunteer customer support team at 877-272-0266 or customercare@mycrc.com.

Educational Travel Opportunity: Want to zipline through the forest, snorkel with tropical fish, and make pottery while learning about Mayan and Belizean culture? Come to our interest meeting on Tuesday, September 17th from 6:30 pm-7:30 pm in the AMS auditorium to learn more about our trip to Belize in June 2025. Use this link to RSVP to the meeting: https://bit.ly/3WPXhvD We look forward to seeing you there!

**This is a trip by EF tours and is not WCPSS-sponsored. If you have questions, please contact Ms. Hayes.

Apex Middle School uses SchoolCash Online (SCO) to collect payments for many school items and activities such as field trips. If you haven’t registered yet please take a moment to create an account. This will help save time and reduces the risk of lost payments. In addition, you are automatically informed about school activities! Scan the QR code and follow the directions below.

What is Canvas?

Canvas is a web-based learning management system (LMS) used by Wake County Public Schools (WCPSS) to enhance the learning experience of students. It's used by teachers to design courses that encourage creativity, collaboration, and communication through features like online assignments, discussion boards, and collaboration rooms. Students can use Canvas to connect with teachers, keep track of assignments, and access organized class materials. Parents can use Canvas as observers to see what's happening in a course without participating in it.

CANVAS LOGIN PAGE

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Email: apexms@wcpss.net
Website: www.wcpss.net/apexms
Location: 400 East Moore Street, Apex, NC, USA
Phone: 9193872181