PCMS Weekly Update

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, we want to take a moment to express our gratitude for our Pirate community. We are thankful for our dedicated families, our amazing students, and our committed teachers and staff who make Platte City Middle School such a special place. We are blessed to get to do what we do each day for the youth in our community - thank you for allowing us to help them grow to be the best version of themselves.

From all of us at Platte City Middle School, we wish you and your family a safe and blessed Thanksgiving! GO PIRATES!!

Score of the Lost & Found: 107 after Week 14!! We will be donating all these items when we leave for Winter Break. Please have your children retrieve their items before December 20th!

The CharacterDare is a heart workout, inviting students and adults to practice kindness, patience, and respect with themselves and others. These school-wide challenges encourage staff and students to put character into action, fostering personal growth and positively impacting school culture.

This Week's CharacterDare is: The Gratitude List (see below).

We invite families to join us in these challenges and look forward to the positive impact they will have on everyone.

Wrestling: Mattie Blankenship is our pin leader with four pins after the first two events. Against Liberty North and Osage Trail they had a 67 percent win rate. Against Excelsior Springs and Kearney they had a 58 percent win rate. We’ve had a total of 43 pins and 8 tech falls in the first two meets. We are proud of the early start for all our wrestlers!

Boys Basketball: On Tuesday the Boys played at Pioneer Ridge. The A team had a good season opening win. Jayden Horn led the way with 29 points. B and C teams fell short but played hard. On Thursday we hosted Walden middle school, where A, B, C got a win for the Home opening sweep.

Girls Basketball: On Tuesday, the A, B, and C teams kicked off their season against Pioneer Ridge. The A team won their game 32-28, and was led by Lilliana Ibarra, who had 18 points. The B and C team fought hard, but lost to some great competition. Addison Leach made two 3 point shots for the C team. On Thursday, the A and B team travelled to Walden Middle School, and lost both games. Sam Jones had 7 points, Lilliana Ibarra and Emma Schank both added 4 points. The teams are off until after the Thanksgiving Break. They will resume with a home game on December 3rd against Maple Park.

These students were nominated by their teachers for doing it the Pirate Way by showing great character! These students were recognized at our Assembly on Thursday where they received a certificate and a gift bag with goodies. Today, they were able to have a pizza lunch with a friend and play in the game room with a friend during Advisory. Congratulations - we’re super proud of them!

Platte County School District will be offering suicide prevention and awareness training this Fall 2024.

Most of the content is new this year, but is the same format as last year. Students will be watching videos and will complete a google form at the end of the presentation to offer support if needed. Families can view the videos and the content through the link provided in the suicide prevention parent letter attached below.

If you do NOT wish for your child to participate in the SOS program, please complete the form that is linked in the suicide prevention parent letter before November 29th. If we do not hear from you by this date, we will assume that your child has permission to participate in this program.

This holiday season, we’re coming together to make a difference in the lives of families in our community. Join us in our Gift Card and Money Drive to help provide meaningful support.

• Gift Cards: Donated gift cards will go directly to families in need, allowing them to purchase essentials and gifts to brighten their holidays.

• Monetary Donations: Your contributions will be used to pay off student lunch balances, easing financial burdens for families and ensuring every child can focus on learning without worry.

Every donation, big or small, makes a meaningful impact. Let’s bring hope and joy to those who need it most. Together, we can make this holiday season one to remember!

7th Grade Parents: On Tuesday, December 17 the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA) will be at PCMS to speak to 6th on the topic “Healthy Relationships.”

MOCSA’s Healthy Relationships explores how all types of relationships need to be equal and healthy, including friendships. This presentation discusses how everyone has different boundaries and how to understand each person’s. This presentation also explores what healthy vs. unhealthy relationships are and what to do if we feel like we are in an unhealthy relationship. Finally, we discuss and practice intervention skills as well as identifying safe adults that we could talk to should we need help.

If you do NOT want your child to attend this presentation, please complete THIS FORM by Friday, December 13th.

With Winter Sports underway, PTO needs parent and student volunteers to help out with the PTO Concession stand at each home game. Please sign up below to help out!

We are excited to share a helpful "Canvas How-To" video designed to support parents (and students) in navigating their child’s Canvas account. This guide covers tips on how parents and students can:

• Understand what assignments are due and where to find them.
• View grades and recent feedback.
• Communicate with teachers and access helpful resources.
• Set up and customize an Observer account, including adjusting notifications and using the Canvas Parent App.

With these tools, we aim to strengthen family communication and involvement to help drive student success. You can find logins, guides, and this video linked on our Parent Portal and Canvas landing page here. Should you need assistance in setting up your Observer account, please reach out to your child's advisory teacher or contact our office.

Our 7th Graders will have the opportunity to go on a Field Trip to tour Kauffman Stadium and complete team building activities around the center. The Skulls Team will be going on January 8th and the Crossbones Team will be going on January 10th. They will leave the school at 9:00 am and return to the school around 1:45 pm. There is a $10 admission fee for this field trip and our amazing PTO is paying $5 per student, so parents are responsible for $5.

A permission slip is now available to fill out on the PowerSchool Parent Portal. Please fill out the form only if you are giving permission for your student to attend. If you are using the app on your phone, please select the "More" icon at the bottom of your Dashboard screen. Then you will select the "Forms" icon to find the 7th Grade Field Trip Form. If you are on a Desktop, you will just need to select the Forms tab from the Home screen. (see pictures below)

While you are filling out the permission slip, you will be able to pay the $5 for the trip via debit/credit card. You will not be able to submit the online permission slip without payment, so if you are unable to pay via debit/credit card, please contact the office for a physical form to fill out.

If you have any questions, please contact the office.

Parents/Guradians,

I hope you all are doing well and ready for the Thanksgiving Break. Personally, I am very thankful for ALL of you. As you know, I have been working with our student population at PCMS to improve our attendance at PCMS and every minute counts. To date, here are the strategies that we have deployed to increase attendance:

1. Attendance drawings at lunch for free Ala-Carte

2. Weekly attendance tracking by teams resulting in a STAR if higher than 95%

3. STAR team parties when they reach 25 STARS which tracks attendance

4. Celebration and Recognition of student attendance growth (kids receive candy and a high five)

Due to our collective efforts, currently Our School Based Weighted Score percentile is: 89.87 (highest secondary school, 3rd place out of entire district). If you know me at all, you know I want to be first and the kids are really getting into the competition. Thanks for all you do at home...keep encouraging your student to be at school as every minute counts. Let's aim for 100% attendance next week as we only have 2 days of school. Go Pirates!

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Dr. Chris Miller

Here is our current data:

Come join the community at the Platte City Holiday Lighting Celebration on Wednesday November 27, downtown Platte City, starting at 5:00pm. October and November character/leadership students will be recognized during the event and PCHS's Concert Choir, PCHS Treasures Dance Team, and 4th/5th Grade Barry Elementary Choir will be performing!

Platte County School District is conducting its family survey to gather feedback on strengths of the District, as well as areas to consider for growth. Your input is valued and will be considered when making future decisions.

During Parent/Teacher conferences, we will encourage families to take this survey. You can complete the survey by clicking on the link below or using the QR code. Thank you in advance for your feedback!

*If you have multiple children in the District, and want to complete a separate survey with feedback for each child, click submit and then complete a new survey.

School Messenger is our automated phone calling and text notification system. We use this system to notify parents quickly for sudden changes in schedules due to emergencies, school cancellations, or just important school announcements.

If you aren't receiving the District's text reminders and notifications and would like to opt in to receive these, simply text "YES" to 67587. Standard text messaging rates apply.

Please visit the Winter Weather Information page on the Parents Tab of the District website for information on recess and clothing considerations (there will be no outdoor recess when the wind chill is at 20 degrees or below), cancellations, two-hour delayed starts, how the District will notify families, and Y-Club info.

In the event of school cancellation or delayed start, PCR-3 will get that information out as early as possible through automated phone calls and text messages, the District website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, the District Hotline (816-858-2752), and local media. Parents: To opt in to receive texts, please text the word "YES" to 67587.

For the 2024-25 school year, PCR-3 will implement Inclement Weather Virtual Learning Days for the first five canceled school days. These days will not need to be made up. Any additional canceled school days may be waived, or may need to be made up (added to the academic calendar). Click here for details on our Inclement Weather Virtual Learning Days.

Nov 23

• NWMCDA Middle School Honor Choirs
  
• Robotics Tournament @ KU
  
• All-District Jazz Clinic/Concert @ Northwest Missouri State University
  

Nov 25

• Wrestling Meet @ PCMS
  

Nov 27, 28, 29

• No School - Happy Thanksgiving

Dec 2

• No School - PLD Day

Dec 3

• Girls Basketball A/B/C Team vs Maple Park Middle @ Home, 4 pm
  
• Boys Basketball A/B/C Teams @ Maple Park Middle School, 4 pm

Dec 4

• Wrestling @ Smithville Middle School, 4 pm
  

Dec 5

• Jazz Band Rehearsal, 7 am
  
• Girls Basketball C Teams vs New Mark Middle School @ Home, 4 pm
  
• Boys Basketball C Team vs New Mark Middle School @ Home, 5 pm
  

Dec 6

• NJHS Meeting, 7:20 am
  

Dec 7

• Robotics Tournament @ Platte Purchase Middle School
  

Pirates R.O.C.K. (Raising Outstanding Character Kids) is a program designed to surround our families with examples of strong character traits through school experiences, at home, and reinforced in their community. Each month our community focuses on a specific character trait and students are recognized for exhibiting these traits: Self Confidence, Pride, Responsibility, Citizenship, Compassion, Individuality, Self Control, Integrity, Perseverance, Respect, Honesty, and Cooperation.

November's #PiratesROCK trait is CITIZENSHIP: providing service and duty to your community.

Leader in Me connections to CITIZENSHIP:

• Habit 1: Be Proactive - You are in charge of you.
• Habit 4: Think Win-Win - Find ways where everyone can win.
• Habit 6: Synergize - Work together to do better.

Character Strong connections to CITIZENSHIP:

• Social Awareness
• Commitment
• Selflessness

Email: tomlinson.kristie@pcr3schools.org
Website: http://www.pcms.plattecountyschooldistrict.com
Location: 900 Pirate Drive, Platte City, MO, 64079
Phone: (816)858-2036
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/plattecitymiddleschool/