Every Day matters. The school year is creeping up to that time of year when we have lots of things going on both inside the building and out of it. Between fields trips and holidays, class parties and CBAs, we have to make the most of every moment we have here. Please take some time this month to discuss as a family the importance of showing up each day. By committing to doing on best to be here each day, we ensure that we have every opportunity to be successful. I hope you are all well during this magical holiday season and that you stay safe and healthy.

Pine Tree Middle School will use Remind to help facilitate messages in a timely fashion. To join text @7bch982 to 81010. This is a school wide account and is not tied to any specific teacher.

This is updated for the next school year. We do have two separate PTMS Reminds but they both will receive the same information. It is only necessary to join one.

https://www.remind.com/join/7bch982

Pine Tree Middle School will also communicate regularly through our Facebook page. Please "Like" our page @PTMiddleSchool.

Principal: Mickey White, mwhite1@ptisd.org

Assistant Principal: Sarah Beth Sage, ssage@ptisd.org

Assistant Principal: Kenneth Morris, kmorris1@ptisd.org

Counselor: Elizabeth Banta, ebanta@ptisd.org

Principal's Secretary: Jojean Arnett, jarnett@ptisd.org

PIEMS and Attendance: Norma Nix, nnix@ptisd.org

Receptionist: Dulce Barron, dchavarria@ptisd.org

I am proud to be a Pine Tree Pirate

I will work hard and be relentless in all my pursuits.

I accept responsibility for my actions.

I will respect myself and others.

I see my future and it is bright.

We are stronger together.

We are ONE!!

That's right, PTISD has it's own APP. Stay up to date with all the latest news and events by downloading the APP to your smart phone. You can download the APP through your APP store or by visiting:

https://www.ptisd.org/

UIL Practices are currently underway for our 6th grade students. UIL practice will kick off for 5th grade students next week. If your student in planning to participate this year, please make sure they are at practice as much as possible.

Friday, January 24: 6th Grade UIL Speaking, Writing and Spelling, Location to be announced.

Saturday, February 1: 6th Grade UIL Meet, Pine Tree Junior High School

Saturday, February 22: 5th Grade UIL Meeting, Pine Tree Middle School

We are going to try something new this year. On Wednesday, November 6 we are going to host our first ever campus spirit competition in conjunction with our first nine weeks awards assemblies. We are going to be a running a modified schedule this day in order to be able to get everything done. Here is what you need to know.

1. Lunch visitors will not be permitted on campus on this day. We are condensing from 4 lunches to 3 lunches and students will most likely not eat at their normal time period.

2. We will be hosting our awards assemblies in the gym as part of our rotations that day. Because we are holding it in the gym, unfortunately we do not have seating available for parents. To compensate parents, we will be streaming the awards assemblies live on Facebook that day. We apologize for any inconvenience.

3. Assembly times will be based upon which House the student is in.

11:35: Excellence and Tenacity

12:15: Perseverance and Integrity

12:55: Resilience and Adaptability

We are required to provide information on the dangers of Fentanyl to all 6th grade students. We will be conducting this training on Wednesday, November 20 at 8:40 am. All 6th grade students will be required to attend.

Our second round of CBAs are coming up. CBAs are kind of like practice STAAR tests. We use these exams to see how well our students are retaining information and then develop plans, as needed, to help them in areas where we see gaps. Here are the key points you need to know to help your student be successful:

1. Be present. Our reading CBA is on Thursday, December 5, 5th grade science is on Thursday, December 12, and math is on Tuesday, December 17. Please try to avoid any appointments on these days.

2. Work Hard. Each student has a goal for each of these exams. Ask your student his or her goal. Cheer them on to success and encourage them to do their best.

3. Schedule Change: the day is going to be different on testing days and we will not be in our normal routines. Because of this, we will not be able to accommodate any lunch visitors on testing days.

4. Morning Tutorials: due to testing restrictions, we will not have morning tutorials on testing mornings.

Live School is an app that allows teachers to reward students with House points for positive behaviors and actions. Students then have the option to redeem House points for various prizes throughout the school year. Each student (and each teacher!!) have been sorted into one of six Houses:

Perseverance

Integrity

Resilience

Adaptability

Tenacity

Excellence

Students were sent home with information during the first couple of weeks of school on how to log in to Live School to view their points. If you need that information, please contact the office and we will send another sheet home.

To redeem their points, student need to log in to their Google Classroom and complete the Google form. Our goal is to get them their rewards within 48 hours of completing the form.

All students to PTISD are required to have documentation that they live in district. This is the proof of residency. Examples of acceptable forms of proof of residency are an electric bill, water bill, gas bill or internet bill. The items cannot be over 30 days old. Thank you for getting this taken care of.

Please know that we are working diligently to ensure all of our students have the right classes. When it comes to schedule changes, we will do our best to accommodate any reasonable request. Please note that we do not accept schedule change requests for specific teachers or so that students can be in classes with friends.

At this time we are planning to be fully open for campus visitors during the 24-25 school year. If you wish to eat lunch with your student, you are welcome to check in at the office and come to the cafeteria during their lunch time. Please do not drop off fast food for your student. If you have fast food, please come in and enjoy it with your student.

For the 2024-2025 school year, all students in 5th and 6th grade will receive a free breakfast and a free lunch each day. There is no paperwork to complete for your child to receive their free meals. Please make sure your child knows his or her student number to take advantage of this incredible deal.

Please be aware that our final bell rings at 4:00 PM. While we understand that sometimes doctor's appointments have to be scheduled late in the day or emergencies may come up, we would ask that all changes to transportation be made before 3:15 PM. Our primary goal is to ensure that students get home safely each day. Late changes to transportation can cause confusion and may create an unsafe situation. The front office staff at PTMS thanks you for your attention to this matter.

Attendance is a key component to student success. By law, students are required to have at least 90% attendance in a course to receive credit. In reality, we need them here as much as possible. However, must also take certain precautions when students exhibit symptoms of not feeling well. If you feel like your child is sick, please take them to the doctor and get a note to return to school.

**We will only accept 3 parent notes per semester. All other absences not covered by a doctor's note may require attendance at Saturday School.

The front doors open for car riders at 7:00 am. Please do not leave children unattended prior to 7:00 as this presents an unsafe environment.

Bus doors will open at 7:45 am.

The school day ends at 4:00 pm.

Sunday, November 3: Daylight Savings Time Ends

Monday, November 4: Begin STUCO Fundraiser

Monday, November 4: Begin Book Fair

Tuesday, November 5: Election Day

Wednesday, November 6: 1st Nine Weeks Awards Assemblies/House Competition

Thursday, November 7: Special Olympics Bowling, 9:00 AM

Thursday, November 7: Book Fair Family Night, 5:30-7:30 PM

Friday, November 8: 5th Grade Trip to Tyler State Park

Friday, November 8: PT @ Palestine, 7:30 PM

Monday, November 11: Veterans' Day, School Holiday for Students and Staff

Wednesday, November 13: Kona Ice, All Lunches

Thursday, November 14: School Picture Make Up Day

Saturday, November 16: TMSCA Hallsville Meet

Saturday, November 16: Tamale Fest, 5:00 PM, Pirate Stadium

Monday, November 18: School Board Meeting, 6:00 PM, Central Office

Wednesday, November 20: Fentanyl Training for 6th Graders, 8:40 AM, GYM

Monday, November 25: Begin Thanksgiving Break

Thursday, November 28: Thanksgiving

Thursday, December 5: Reading CBA 2

Saturday, December 7: TMSCA Foster Meet

Monday, December 9: School Board Meeting, 6:00 PM, Central Office

Wednesday, December 11: Kona Ice, All Lunches!!

Thursday, December 12: Science CBA 2

Tuesday, December 17: Math CBA 2

Friday, December 20: Early Release, 1:00 PM

Friday, December 20: Class Party Day

Friday, December 20: End of the 2nd Nine Weeks

Friday, December 20: End of the 1st Semester

Monday, December 23: Begin Winter Break!!

Tuesday, December 24: Christmas Eve!!

Wednesday, December 25: Christmas Day!!

Tuesday, December 31: New Year's Eve!!

Wednesday, January 1: New Year's Day!!

Monday, January 6: Professional Development Day, No School for Students

Tuesday, January 7: Begin 3rd Nine Weeks.

PTMS proudly serves the 5th and 6th grade students of the Pine Tree Independent School District!! Go PIRATES!!

Email: mwhite1@ptisd.org
Website: www.ptisd.org
Location: 600 Pine Tree Parkway, Longview, TX, USA
Phone: 903-295-5160
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PTMiddleSchool/