Mustang Minutes
Gemini Middle School - March 2024
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Dear Gemini Families,
With the promise of spring on the horizon, it's a time of blossoming opportunities and exciting endeavors for our students. From engaging classroom discussions to collaborative projects and extracurricular pursuits, each day presents new opportunities for our students to explore their passions, expand their horizons, and embrace their unique talents. March is filled with many activities and events so please make sure to check out all that is happening below.
Your Admin team,
Lewis, Erica, Wendy, David, & Tim
5Essentials Parent Survey
We are at 16% parent participation, our goal is to get at least 30%. There is still time to take the 5Essentials survey. Your participation will help us better understand how we’re doing - and how to guide improvement. Your identity and survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your child. The survey is available in English and Español.
Parents will be able to take the 5Essentials Survey through March 29, 2024. To take the survey please visit Link to survey: http://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/survey/parent/ and select the appropriate County and School to begin. For those that are not aware, we are in COOK COUNTY and our school is listed as GEMINI MIDDLE SCHOOL-Niles.
Erin's Law Presentation
Erin’s Law (House Bill 6193), signed by Governor Pat Quinn on January 24, 2013, requires schools to implement an age-appropriate sexual assault and abuse awareness and prevention curriculum for grades PreK through 12. It is recommended that four communications a year on Erin’s Law be made available to all students.
McTeacher Night - Tuesday, March 5 - Support The Teachers And Your School
Iceland Parking Lot
Iceland has been a great neighbor to Gemini and we want to maintain that relationship. As was stated in our communication at the start of the year, Iceland should not be used as a drop off and pick up site for students. However, because drop off and pick up does not normally interrupt operations at Iceland they have not made an issue that this has been occuring.
Performing Arts Events
There are many exciting arts events coming this Spring. We invite you to check out a new facet of Gemini student life and support our student performers. For all events in the Gemini Auditorium (Mustang Gym), please enter through Door 12.
Choir Spring Concert
Wednesday, March 13 - 6:00 PM in the Gemini Auditorium
Admission is free
Please make note of the date change and change of venue for the D63 Band Festival.
It will be held May 7th at Maine East High School this year. The concert will begin at 6pm and is free. It will feature all of the D63 band students from 4-8th grade.Sports Updates
Home Game information
7th and 8th Grade Volleyball Home Games
- March 5 - Springman - 4:15 PM
- March 6 - Maple - 4:30 PM
- March 11 - Shepard - 4:30 PM - 7th / 8th
- March 13 - Wood Oaks - 4:30 PM
- March 14 - Field - 4:30 PM
6th Grade Volleyball Home Games
- March 6 - NBJH - 4:30 PM (Mustang Gym)
- March 7 - Field - 4:30 PM
Girls Softball (6-8th)
- March 20 - Informational Meeting (Learning Stairs) - 3:45-4:00
- April 3, 4 - Tryouts
Track
- March 19 - Informational Meeting (Learning Stairs) - 3:45 - 4:00
- Practices start April 2
Student Spectators
Spring sports are gearing up and we encourage students to come and support their friends from the sidelines.
Here are a few guidelines to keep in mind for our student spectators:
- If a Gemini student is staying to watch an after school sporting event, they must report to the school cafeteria by 3:35 PM.
- If a Gemini student leaves the school grounds and they want to return for a sporting event, they MUST be accompanied by a parent (and the parent must stay the entire time).
- If a student is absent from school on the day of the sporting event (or had an early dismissal), they are not permitted to attend the Gemini sporting event.
Time to SPRING Forward
Library Updates
General Gemini Library Information
This month has been busy in the library! Sixth and seventh grade classes have been working on research skills and creating citations. Eighth grade classes have been busy learning more about the genre of literary nonfiction and its features. We hosted Famished for Fiction this past week, and our next one will be in April featuring poetry and books in verse. Please contact Kris Buican or Jillian Wahlers if you have any questions.
March Book Madness
It’s March, which means that March Book Madness is upon us! We will join other schools from across the country choosing the winning book among 16 options. Each week, students will be able to vote for their favorite books that they think should move forward in this elimination game. Check out the March Book Madness website for more information; these books are all great choices for leisure reading!
Community Libraries
Our community libraries continue to provide wonderful programs for students. Please check out your local library’s teen page to see what is new!
Ramadan Observance
The month of Ramadan begins on the evening of March 10. If your child will be fasting during the upcoming month in observance of Ramadan and you would like them in a supervised alternate location during their 20-minute lunch period, please complete this Google Form to let us know. Students will be expected to go to the alternate location every day.
Home-School Connection
Parents,
We recently started our home-school connection where our students are encouraged to engage in conversations around the content they are learning at school with people in their homes and their communities. The purpose of the home-school connection is to provide opportunities for students to review and reinforce concepts at home, make emotional connections to the material, and develop problem solving skills.
Each Monday, a different department will post a home-school question on our website to foster discussions with topics they are currently learning in their classes. If you have any questions related to the questions, please reach out to your child's department teacher.
Visit our home-school connection page on our website. There will always be a link under our "Announcements" page and we plan to share it on our Instagram page as well.
Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)
Save the date: March 12th
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 968 3945 3205
Passcode: GeminiPTO
Please join us on Tuesday, March 12th from 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM for our monthly meeting.
Parent Teacher Conferences
Save the date and check your email - and our website - on Monday, March 4. At that time, you'll be able to schedule a virtual or in-person appointment with your child's teacher(s) during Spring Conferences.
Conference dates:
Thursday, March 21, 5:00-8:00 PM
Friday, March 22, 8:00-11:00 AM
IAR and ISA Testing
All Gemini students will take the reading and mathematics tests for the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) April 3 - April 9. In addition, all eighth-graders will also take the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA) from March 18 - March 20. Please ensure your child gets a good night's rest, eats a healthy breakfast, and brings their charged Chromebook to school on time each day!
Great America Field Trip
8th Grade Graduates
Friday, May 31, 2024, from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
- Students will travel by school bus to Six Flags Great America in Gurnee at 9:00 AM.
- Students will return to Gemini between 5:00-5:30 PM. All students will need to be picked up or walk home from Gemini.
- No refunds.
Please read below and select the option that fits your child's needs. You may only select ONE OPTION.
- Option 1: My child DOES NOT have a season pass to Six Flags Great America. The cost of the trip is $76. This fee covers admission to Six Flags, a Mega Meal Deal Package, including a meal voucher, snack voucher, a beverage, and the bus fee.
- Option 2: My child DOES have a season pass to Six Flags Great America. The cost of the trip is $36. This fee covers a Mega Meal Deal Package, including a meal voucher, snack voucher, a beverage, and the bus fee. Before leaving for the trip, students will have to provide proof that they have a valid season pass. They will not be allowed to purchase a pass or ticket upon arrival.
- How to register for field trips
Support from Student Services
Grade Level Social Workers
6th Grade: Laura Mell
7th Grade: Zoe Turner (Habla espanol)
8th Grade: Kaarin VandenBranden
Winter Coats and Accessories
If you need help getting a winter coat for your child, please call or email the social work team. We also have accessories like mittens, hats, etc. You can also reach out to us if you need help with access to food or other community resources.
Lost and Found
Our Lost and Found area is getting pretty full. If you've lost something, please come by and check it out (near door 13 and in the cafeteria).
D63 Family Resource Center
From youth development classes, to adult education, to family events, there are many options available for your student and family this winter at the D63 Family Resource Center. Visit our Family Resource website for the most up-to-date programming for the D63 community!
Summer Camp Academy
Even though it's cold outside, we are getting ready to open Summer Camp Academy registration! Register your child for summer programs on the FRC Website.
RULER at Gemini
Beginning this fall, the Gemini Middle School community will be learning about how we can use emotions to reach our goals. We have committed to implementing RULER, an evidence-based approach to social and emotional learning developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. RULER is also an acronym for the skills of emotional intelligence: Recognizing emotions, Understanding emotions, Labeling emotions, Expressing emotions, and Regulating emotions. Research from the field of emotion science finds that children who understand and manage their feelings make more responsible decisions, have stronger relationships, and perform better in school.
We will be infusing RULER into all parts of our school by having school wide activities and introducing routines that build emotional awareness into all classes. In middle school, students learn about emotions and emotional intelligence within the context of their real world experiences: personally, at school, in our communities, and in our understanding of the world around us. Each lesson addresses a developmentally appropriate topic such as healthy and unhealthy relationships, conflict resolution, coping skills, and identifying personal values. Over the course of the year, I will be providing ongoing communication to you about RULER. For now, if you would like to learn more visit the RULER Family Engagement website.
Breakfast and Lunch Information
Breakfast
- Breakfast is available from 8:00 - 8:20 AM each morning in our school cafeteria. Bus riders will enter Door 6 once they arrive. Car riders and walkers will enter at Door 2 or Door 13.
- Students entering the school for breakfast must purchase a breakfast. If they do not purchase a breakfast, they will be escorted back outside and will wait with everybody else.
Lunch
- We do NOT accept student lunches from food delivery services such as Uber Eats, Grubhub, etc. If food is delivered from a delivery service, we will send them away with the order. A parent or family member is the only person from whom we will accept a lunch delivery for a student.
Gemini Social Media
- We encourage you to follow us on our website and social media, this is a great way to stay informed.
- Gemini Website
- Gemini Twitter @D63Gemini
- Gemini Instagram @geminid63
Upcoming Events
March
4: Parent Teacher Conference sign up opens
5: McTeacher's Night
8: School Improvement Day - early dismissal
10: Dayling Saving Time starts
12: PTO Meeting
13: Choir Spring Concert
18-20: 8th grade ISA testing
19: Track Informational meeting
20: Girls Softball informational meeting
21-22: Parent/Teacher Conferences
29: 5Essentials survey closes
25-29: Spring Break
April
1: Spring Break
2: School Resumes
3-9: IAR testing
3-4: Girls Softball tryouts
9: PTO Meeting
10: EID - No School
12: School Improvement Day - early dismissal
25-27: Spring Musical: "Moana Jr"
Upcoming Sporting Events
- Check out the sports calendar on Gemini's calendar.
#hereatgemini
Email: gemini411@emsd63.org
Website: https://gemini.emsd63.org/
Location: 8955 North Greenwood Avenue, Niles, IL, USA
Phone: (847) 827-1181
Twitter: @D63Gemini
Office Hours: Monday- Friday 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. on days when students are in the building.