YMS NEWS

Hello YMS Parent(s)!

What a fantastic first quarter we had at YMS. Students were challenged by their teachers to be creative, collaborate with each other, and think critically. Teachers at YMS are constantly pushing students to grow. They expect great things from your child and they are happy to be the driving force that pushes them to succeed.

The last week in October was Red Ribbon Week at YMS. Red Ribbon Week was started by parents in response to the murder of DEA agent Enrique Camarena. The parents wore Red Ribbons as a symbol of their commitment to raising awareness of the killing and destruction caused by drugs and alcohol in America. Here are some suggestions for parents of middle school kids from the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids.

• Make it very clear that you do not want them to use alcohol, tobacco, marijuana or other drugs.

• Find out if they really understand the consequences of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use.

• Get to know her friends by taking them to and from after-school activities, games, the library, and movies. Check-in with her friends’ parents often to make sure you share the same anti-drug stance.

• Be sure you know his online friends – as well as his other online activities such as websites he visits, with whom he emails, chats, and instant messages, his Facebook page, and who he text messages.

• Volunteer for activities where you can observe him at school..

• Get your kids involved with adult-supervised after-school activities.

• Make it easy for your child to leave a situation where alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs are being used.

• Call kids’ parents if their home is to be used for a party; get assurance that no alcoholic beverages or illegal substances will be at the party.

• Set curfews and enforce them.

• Encourage an open dialogue with your children about their experiences.

At YMS we are continuously working on changing student mindsets. A mindset according to Dr. Carol Dweck is a self-perception or “self-theory” that people hold about themselves. Believing that you are either “intelligent” or “unintelligent” is a simple example of a mindset.

Here are some examples:

Students with a fixed mindset believe that they are born with basic abilities, intelligence, and talents and they can’t change that. Their goal is to look smart and never look dumb

Students with a growth mindset believe that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort, good teaching, and persistence. They believe everyone can get smarter if they work at it. They are not afraid to fail and therefore don’t mind not knowing the answer.

Students with a fixed mindset fear failure and are less likely to take risks.

Students with a growth mindset value the challenges of taking a risk and know that they will learn from their failures and improve.

Here are some strategies you can use at home to help your child change from a fixed to a growth mindset.

1. Have a daily learning discussion. Ask your student “What did you learn today?” “What did you try hard today?”

2. DO praise the process DON’T praise ability. Instead of saying “you are so smart” or “you are good at playing the piano” say “You really work hard on your Math” or “Your many hours of practice on the piano are paying off”

3. Explain to kids that their brain is never done growing. Remind them they can always learn and improve throughout their life.

4. Let your kids fail. It is OK to fail. It is NOT OK to give up. When students fail, ask them “How can you get better next time?” “What did you learn from your mistake?” Then as students finally succeed, praise their persistence.

5. Encourage positive talk in your home. Stop the use of the words “I can’t” and instead remind people in your house to say “I can’t, yet”

We are going to have a fantastic second quarter at YMS. Teachers and staff are here for your student(s). We are going to continue to push them to grow and be better students and young men and women. Thank you for your help as we work together to make the years at YMS some of the best years in their academic life.

Kenny Loosvelt

This summer I read the New York Times Best Seller The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt. This book caught my attention because during the last several years, I have seen an increase in anxiety levels in the students I work with each day. In my interactions with students, I have become increasingly concerned about the amount of screen time they report as well as the declining social skills I see in some young people.

York Public Schools participates in strategic planning for long term growth, achievement, and consistency. One focus area is Social Emotional Learning (SEL). YMS supports SEL in many, many ways. We use the Second Step curriculum every Tuesday to teach concepts such as positive mind-set and goal setting, developing a positive sense of self, handling thoughts, emotions and decisions and how to effectively manage relationships and social conflict. Through Family and in our regular classes, teachers are incorporating these SEL concepts.

The York Middle School SEL team is also doing a book study of The Anxious Generation. Chapter 11 in the book is titled “What Schools Can Do Now.” Two of the major suggestions are to have a phone free school as well as incorporate more free play into the day. We are proud to say that we do both of these things fairly well. Our phone rule at YMS is that students are not to have their phones on their person from 8:00 until 3:13. Since incorporating this rule, we have witnessed students playing more, talking and laughing more, socializing more appropriately, and having fewer conflicts. Our SEL team recently talked about the positives of students being off of their phones for 7 hours each day. For those who are involved in after school activities that prohibit phone use, that could go up to 9 hours a day. This is a great start!

Below are some suggestions of what you can do as a parent to limit phone/screen usage during the day and once they are at home:

• As a parent, you can support your child by not texting them or allowing them to text you during the school day. If you need to get a hold of them, please call the office.

• Dinner should be a social gathering to discuss the events of the day and connect as a family. During dinner, everyone’s phone should be turned off and put away. TV’s should be turned off.

• During homework time, phones should be turned off and out of sight so as not to be a distraction

• Students of middle school age should get 9-12 hours of sleep at night! Do not allow your child to have a phone in their bedroom. Get a real alarm clock!

Imagine if we all limited our screen time to less than one hour per day! I would guess we would be more regulated, happier, more content, and would have more positive relationships.

Report Cards at YMS

We do not mail report cards home until the end of the school year, in May. You can access grades on the parent portal on Infinite Campus. Please direct any specific grading questions to the classroom teacher. You can access the Infinite Campus parent portal using the directions below:

• Visit https://necloud1.infinitecampus.org/campus/portal/york.jsp
• Log in with the proper username/password (contact YMS to reset password if needed)
• You may be asked to verify your device as trustworthy for security purposes.
• Select your student.
• Click the three horizontal lines on the upper left hand corner. You will be able to access Grades, Schedules, Attendance Records, Fees, and Documents. (Quarter 1 can be found under Documents)

November 3 FFA Harvest Moon @ 5:30PM

November 5 Election Day

November 11 Veterans Day & Veterans Day Program(YHS Theatre)@ 10:00AM

Picture Retake Day

• November 20 📸

• November 27-29 🦃

YMS Choir Concert will be on Tuesday, December 17th at 6:30 in the YHS theater.

Influenza (flu) is a contagious disease of the respiratory tract (nose, throat, and lungs) that can lead to serious complications, including pneumonia and the worsening of other chronic health conditions. Flu symptoms may include fever, headache, extreme tiredness, dry cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, and muscle aches. The best way to protect your family from new influenza strains is to get vaccinated each year, practice frequent handwashing, stay home or keep family members home if flu-like symptoms are present, disinfect surfaces often, and avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Your healthcare provider can offer advice specific to you and your family members regarding questions you may have about the flu vaccine.

Well-child visits with your pre-teen/teen’s healthcare provider and staying up to date with their immunizations are two important practices in helping to keep them healthy. Well-child visits provide an opportunity for you to discuss any concerns that you have, allow for continued tracking of growth and development, and can offer the needed vaccinations or information regarding local vaccination clinics. Consider scheduling appointments if your child is due for either of the above.