Family Hawk Talk

December arrived with snow and cold temperatures! Although we only have two weeks until our Winter Break, we have a lot coming up for our students!

Each week, our staff nominates students for the Student of the Week award, based on their good character. This week, the nominees are:

Emma F.

Brian Z.

Britany A.

Marisse C.

Lilly H.

Way to go, Hawks!

If you haven't had a chance to read the Counselor's Corner Newsletter, please take a minute to do so! Mrs. Steinkamp always provides great information for families and our students.

Our kids are using social media at an increasing rate! We found this article that outlines some of the newest trends that kids may be exposed to. Please talk to your kids about these and encourage kindness!

Student Council is hosting our Annual Winter Mixer on Thursday, December 12. The dance will start after school and there will be snacks for sale. Please plan on attending!

Several years ago, we lost an elementary student to cancer. Since then, our elementary school has hosted a Jammies for Jenny fundraiser to benefit Children's Hospital in her name. On Friday, December 13, we will have a PJ day at VPMS. All students are encouraged to wear their pajamas to school, and make a $1 donation. Our NJHS students will be collecting money to contribute to the elementary school's fundraiser.

Each December, we hold a Cocoa & Cram session for our students. It provides students the opportunity to study for finals, get help with homework, or work with friends on class work. There are teachers available to help while we snack, drink cocoa and listen to music. Students should sign up in the office if they plan to attend, so we have enough snacks!

We are continuing our speaker series for parents!

NAMI will be on campus on January 21, 2025 at 6:30pm for a one hour mental health presentation for parents/guardians of middle or high school aged youth. The presentation will include warning signs of mental health struggles, facts and statistics, how to talk to your child, and how to work with school staff.

As part of continuing efforts to provide services that support student wellness, Valley Park School District is partnering with Hazel Health to offer free mental health teletherapy visits for all students.

Appointments are available WITHOUT going through our school counselors. To contact Hazel Health click here.

With Hazel HEART, students can meet with a licensed therapist from school or at home, bridging the gap until local therapists become available or helping with less acute issues. The referrals can come from school personnel or directly from a parent or guardian. Like all Hazel telehealth services, parental consent is required.

This service is available to all Valley Park School District students and it is provided at no cost to VPSD families. Please note, Hazel works with insurance plans, and collects insurance information as part of the consent process. Hazel works with all students at no cost to families, regardless of insurance status, including families that do not have insurance. When insurance is billed, the district will cover any out-of-pocket costs. We encourage families to check with their insurance plans to determine if there are any annual caps on the number of allowed therapy sessions, as Hazel visits might count against any limits.

Hazel HEART mental health services include:

• Short-term therapy visits: Therapy sessions can help students cope with everyday issues such as anxiety, bullying, withdrawal, grief, peer and family relationships, depression, not enjoying things they used to enjoy or simply not feeling like themselves.

• Care coordination: Family resource managers from Hazel work closely with families to coordinate their child's care. If your child needs additional services outside of what Hazel can offer, Hazel will help families connect with great local providers.

• Therapists who care: Hazel therapists know how to connect with children and teens. Their multilingual team practices culturally competent care for all students.
  
  

This expanded partnership is designed to increase access to quality health care for all students, working in partnership with community providers to quickly address the social-emotional needs of students who may be struggling.

Learn more here.

There are so many cool activities available to our middle and high school students through our school library. Check out the flyer below for more information.

Through a grant with DESE, all Missouri School Districts have a partnership with Varsity Tutors, an on-demand, online tutoring and learning support services program, free of charge. We are now set up to begin using this program with our students so I wanted to provide you with some information as well as some things you could send out to your parents.

Varsity Tutors is accessible to all students, K-12, via Classlink. Students access it by logging into Classlink (which they can log in at home or at school-does not need to be on a school device) and choosing the Varsity Tutors icon.

A reminder for parents, if your student is not feeling well with the following symptoms, please do not hesitate to keep them home from school:

• Fever over 100.4 (24hrs without medicine: Tylenol/ibuprofen)

• Cold symptoms (coughing, sneezing, runny nose, congestion)

• Stomachache and/or vomiting, Diarrhea (vomiting/diarrhea to stay home 24 hours after vomiting is done)

• Sore Throat

• Unexplained Cough/ Shortness of Breath

• Signs of Conjunctivitis (pinkeye)

• Signs of Head lice (persistent itching scalp, nits in hair, or lice present)

• Rash (if present need to be evaluated by physician)

• Covid precautions as well, follow the Healthy Hawk Way.

Any questions or concerns please contact the nurse office:

Nurse Candice Herb

Email: cherb@vpschools.org

Phone: 636.923.3634

Dec. 4-5: iReady Reading Assessment

Dec. 10: Exploring Medical Science field trip

Dec. 10: Principal's Council meeting during lunch

Dec. 11: District Choir Concert, 6:30pm

Dec. 12: Winter Mixer, after school

Dec. 16: Cocoa & Cram, 6-8pm

Dec. 17-20: iReady Math Assessment

Dec. 18-20: Early Release Days

Dec. 18: Board of Education meeting

Dec. 23: Winter Break Begins

Jan. 6: Students return from break

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Facebook: @ValleyParkMiddleSchool

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