The Weekly Update #4

October is moving rather quickly and our first quarter is coming to a close in the upcoming weeks. Parents can view their student's progress in their courses on Infinite Campus. If you have questions about your child's progress please check your child's Google Classroom for that course or reach out to their classroom teacher. The first quarter ends on November 8th and grades for the first quarter progress report will be available on Friday, November 22nd.

As a school our staff continues to work towards our two School Improvement Goals. We have two focus areas for the school year. Our first goal will focus on having 80% of our students scoring at or above proficiency as scored on the MAP Reading test in the Spring. Our second goal will look at increasing our attendance rate from 95% to 97% percent. Each grade level team and content area has action plans that they are collaboratively working on to achieve these goals.

With the weather starting to change, now is a good time to make sure your student has an extra sweatshirt and pair of sweatpants that they can leave in their PE locker to wear on cooler days. For students with earlier PE times in the day, extra gym shoes is also a good idea as the ground is wet with dew and shoes and socks do get wet some days

Results from the fall assessments are now available to parents via the Parent Portal. Please review this letter from the Department of Teaching, Learning and Assessment.

Boys Basketball registration is now open. All students that wish to try out must complete the registration and have a current physical on file. Tryouts will take place during the week of October 28th. If you would like your student to tryout please complete the registration form. The coaches for Boys Basketball are: Mr. Pike, Mr. Bruns, Mr. Vassos, and Mrs. Lucash

Our staff is beginning to plan some activities for Veterans Day. We are reaching out to our community to see if there are any veterans that would be willing to be interviewed by some of our students. This interview would be recorded for our student body to watch during Veterans Day. We would also like to construct a Wall of Honor for the families members of our community that have served or are currently serving in the Armed Forces. If you would like to have your family member highlighted on the Wall of Honor we are asking the following:

• Send in a picture of your veteran
• Provide a brief description of the veteran that includes their name, the years they have served, the branch they served with and their rank.
• We would like to received those photos between October 22nd- 29th

We will display the Wall of Honor the first few weeks of November. The photos will be returned to the students after November 20th.

As we prepare to welcome students to the new school year, I want to emphasize the importance of creating a focused learning environment for all students. To ensure that our classrooms are conducive to learning, the expectation is that cell phones must be kept powered-off or silenced and out-of-sight during the regular school day. Please review the student-parent handbook for additional details. By following these guidelines, we can create a positive and productive classroom community where students can fully engage in their education.

Save the date! The Plum Grove Middle School Halloween Bash is on Friday, October 25th from 6:30-8:00. There will be a DJ, photo booth, costume contest, basketball, crafts, snacks, and fun! More information and ticket sales ($5 per student) can be found on the permission slips that were sent out this past week with students.

We will also have a sign up for a variety of volunteer opportunities that night.

District 211 will be mailing out information to parents by October 1st to provide information for parents and students. They are in their final planning stages and will have more information coming out to families. The district has a website that will have all the necessary information you will need. Your 8th grade students will take a freshman placement test on Saturday, October 26th. This will take place at the high school. If you have questions about the testing or any other information about the transition please directly contact the high school. Mrs. Brand, our associate principal, that will work directly with our 8th grade families this year.

PGMS Art Club T-Shirt order forms are now available in the office or room 223, Mrs. Shapera's art room! The short sleeve shirts are in Charger Blue with an Andy Warhol inspired "Creative Soup Can" theme in our school colors. The shirts are $16 CASH and anyone is welcome to purchase--not just Art Club members! Dad, Mom, and siblings can show their support for Art and our PG Spirit!

The first meeting of the Art Club - Group B is Tuesday, October 15th - Activity Buses are available.

Please mark your calendars, Art Club - Group A will meet again on Tuesday, October 29th!

From the Art Department: PTA Reflections Art Competition Entries Due by November 8th.

The Plum Grove PTA and the Art Department encourage ALL Plum Grove Middle School students interested in entering the annual National PTA Reflection Competition to email or stop by Mrs. Shapera’s art room, #223 for entry information. The theme this year is: “Accepting Imperfection” This is an awesome opportunity to showcase your artistic talents in the areas of Visual Art, Photography, Music Composition, Literature, Dance Choreography and Film Production! Or check out the following email address for more information: plumgrovereflections@gmail.com

Conferences will take place on November 25th and the 26th at all District 15 schools. Conferences at the middle school have a slightly different format than the elementary school. Conferences at the middle school are team conferences and are facilitated by team request. If a team wishes to have a conference with a parent, you will receive an email requesting parents to sign-up for a conference electronically the week of October 28th. Teams are requesting parents to have their child present during the team conference. We request that if you receive an email requesting a conference that you take time to sign-up for a conference. The window for the sign-up will be available for a few days before we open the team conference availability to the rest of our parent community on November 15th

Make this year's PGMS memories last a lifetime with our personalized yearbooks! Each book includes TWO customizable pages for your unique touch. Don't miss out on this special opportunity to capture your school experience. Order before October 31 and enjoy a 10% discount! Full details on ordering are here!

November 1st our students and staff will participate in our SEL day, where students will work through lessons on Developing a Positive Sense of Self, Media Balance, Revisiting PGMS Core Values and each grade level will have an assembly with a little fun. The lessons our taught from our SEL curriculum, Second Step.

Below are some key dates for families for the upcoming 2025-205 school year.

• October 22nd-District Basketball Tournament @ PGMS
• October 23rd-District Basketball Tournament @ PGMS
• October 24th-Orchestra Concert
• October 25th-PTA Halloween Bash 6:30-8:00 p.m.
• October 28th -8th Grade Band Concert
• October 29th-7th Grade Band Concert
• November 4th-PTA Chipotle Dine and Share
• November 5th- No School Election Day

You can also access the official district calendar for all important dates on the district's website