NORTH NEWS

The Sources of Strength committee has decided to run a food drive as our first campaign! There will be a table set out in front of the main office where students can drop off donations. The drive starts on Monday, October 28th and ends on Wednesday, November 20th. Please help us by donating or spread the word through your social media platforms! Let's work together to feed the hungry!

Senate Bill 530 requires that the FITNESSGRAM physical fitness assessment be administrated to all students in grades 3-12. FITNESSGRAM is a health-related fitness assessment developed by The Cooper Institute for Aerobic Research and is a research-based criterion referenced test.

Students will begin testing for the FITNESSGRAM on November 4th. Testing will continue until all components are completed. During your child’s test day(s), they should wear appropriate PE clothing and tennis shoes. If your child forgets proper testing attire, they will be required to proceed with the fitness test.

Please read the attached letter from Ms. Mangold & Mr. Nuhfer, or visit the link below, if you want more information about the FITNESSGRAM test.

As the holiday season approaches, North Middle School is proud to continue the Angel Tree program—a heartwarming initiative designed to bring holiday joy to NMS families who may need a little extra help this year. Through Angel Tree, we work together as a community to provide gifts and holiday meals to families in need, ensuring that everyone can experience the warmth and joy of the season.

Each year, we’ve been able to support dozens of families thanks to the generous donations from individuals and businesses who contribute to Angel Tree. This generosity has created countless smiles, filled holiday tables, and lifted the spirits of families in our community.

Families in Need: If you or someone you know could use some extra support this holiday season, please fill out the link below to apply for assistance through Angel Tree. We’re here to make sure your holiday season is filled with joy.

Community Donors: For those who wish to make a difference, we welcome donations of gifts or financial contributions to the Angel Tree program. Participating businesses that contribute to Angel Tree will receive advertisement in our program’s press releases, acknowledging your generous support and positive impact on our community.

Let’s make this holiday season unforgettable for everyone in our NMS community! Please refer to the attached letter and link below for more details on how to apply for assistance or donate. Together, we can make a difference—one family at a time.

6th grade would like to give a big shout out for our i-Ready contest winners for this week!

The enrichment class who was the most on task for reading was Mr. Little, and the enrichment class who was the most on task for math was Mr. Ware.

Our top 5 sixth grade students for reading i-Ready were...

1st place Alora Carpenter

2nd place Elijah Cooper

3rd place Abigail Smith

Tied for 4th place we have Felicity Messick-griffin, Felix Lugo, and Aiden Franco

Our top 5 sixth students for math i-Ready were....

1st place Jazalyn White

2nd place Camille Cornell

Tied for 3rd place Baylee Montgomery and Alana Yost

Tied for 5th place Aiden Hodges and Zayden Hughes

Student Council will meet on Monday, October 28th meet in cafeteria after bus call to work on dance decorations and continue planning the Veterans Day program.

Save the date October 29th on your calendars for our first after school dance of the year after school until 4:15pm!! Dress in a costume (no masks, hats, or real/fake weapons) for school and stay for the "Batty and Boujee" Afterschool Dance. $5 tickets will be sold Monday, October 28th & Tuesday, October 29th in your grade's hallway. There are a limited number of tickets being sold in each grade! Concessions will be sold at the dance so bring a few extra dollars if you want to purchase a treat.

**We will NOT be allowing students to use the office phone to call home if they forgot their money on Monday so please prepare now if you want to purchase tickets tomorrow!

"The Great Math Escape" event is on Wednesday, October 30th at 5:15pm! If you RSVP'd for the event, make sure you bring a parent and a charged iPad to see if you can help Ms. Pleva escape the shackles of the math teachers in time for the Reader's Theatre event! We look forward to seeing you there!

Students selected for the Ren Club should be prepared to stay after school on Thursday, October 31st for our first meeting until 4:15pm. Please meet in Mr. Jackson's room 3115, as soon as bus call is over.

Pay $1 on October 31st to wear a costume and help us raise money in the fight against cancer! Students may wear costumes WITHOUT masks, hoods, or weapons (fake or real).

Bring a veteran to school on Friday, November 1st! We want to honor those who sacrificed for our nation and our freedoms. If you know a veteran, invite them to our annual Veterans Day assembly! Send pictures of the veterans in your life to Ms. Updike for our slideshow of heroes (email to mupdike@k12.wv.us).

Staff & students, please remember to wear your RED, WHITE, & BLUE to honor our Veterans on November 1st!

6th & 7th Graders interested in 9/11 are welcome to join the Flight 93 Memorial field trip on Nov 4th. No students with ISS/OSS will be invited to join. If you are interested, your $40 is due ASAP to Ms. Updike in the 6th grade hall. Limited spaces will be available and will be filled by those who submit payment first to Ms. Updike. Please email Ms. Updike with any questions at mupdike@k12.wv.us.

Don't know what to get your loved ones for the holidays? Stop by the annual NMS Sock Sale! Every pair of socks is $1! Help Royce get rid of their extra inventory while contributing North Middle!

Our Girls Basketball and Cheer teams want to extend a heartfelt thank you for your generous support during our first ever Craft and Vendor Fair. Your contribution means the world to us and has helped us raise an incredible amount, which will go a long way in ensuring that our team has the resources we need to succeed this season.

The cheer team has two fun exciting fundraisers coming up. Our Spaghetti Dinner, Basket Raffle and Showcase will be on November 15th. Tickets are $10. Please see a cheerleader to purchase a ticket.

Our Little Blue Devil Cheer Clinic will be held on December 14th. Scan the QR code on the flyer below or click the link to register.

Boys' basketball try outs will be November 11th & 12th from 3:00- 5:00 p.m. JV tryouts will be from 3:00-4:00 p.m. & varsity tryouts will be from 4:00- 5:00 p.m.

Girls' basketball tryouts will be November 4th from 6:30-8:30. Sports physicals must be completed, signed (by a doctor, parent, and player) and turned in prior to boys or girls tryouts. No player may tryout without a completed sports physical - no exceptions. We have one Thursday left to utilize the Shenandoah clinic to get your players physical. The clinic is at North during school hours, every Thursday. Please contact our school nurse for clinic packet/form.

North Boys & Girls Basketball teams are in the process of raising funds to buy new chairs for the home and away team's bench. We are one of a very few schools who does not have our own padded bench chairs, and we would love to give the players in both programs the same experience as other school's players. Anyone interested in and willing to donate, please reach out to Coach Callis, Rhoden or Mejias.

North Middle School is lucky to have the Shenandoah Community Health van visit our school EVERY THURSDAY! If you still need a physical for basketball season, please pick up a form from the nurse so you can be seen by a healthcare provider with Shenandoah Community Health.

Next week marks College and Career Exploration Week, a valuable opportunity to encourage conversations with your child about their future aspirations. This week offers a chance to share insights from your own career journey and discuss the many different paths available, sparking early interest and helping students envision their goals.

Our school counselor, Ms. Poe, began meeting with 8th graders individually last week to complete their Personalized Education Plans for high school, which includes career planning discussions. On Wednesday, all students will participate in virtual college tours during their TEAM period, offering an exciting glimpse into various college options.

Students will also have the chance to engage in our popular College Bingo activity. This challenge encourages students to connect with adults in their lives who match squares on their bingo cards, opening the door for meaningful conversations about education and career choices. Those who complete the entire Bingo card (with each square signed) and submit it to their TEAM teacher by homeroom on Friday will be entered into a prize drawing.

We look forward to a week of exploration and inspiration that will set the foundation for future success!

West Virginia has partnered with My Mobile Witness to implement a “see something, send something” reporting system that can be completed on a smartphone or other mobile device. All West Virginians are encouraged to participate in this initiative by downloading the free See, Send application from the App Store or Google Play. All of our students have this app on their school-issued iPads. The user may submit tips for “Crime/Suspicious Activity” or “School Threat or Safety Issues,” and they may also request help for “Suicide or Addiction.”

Our students also have access to our school counselors from their iPads as well. There is an icon on the iPad that takes students directly to the school counselor forms on our website where they can request to see Ms. Poe or Ms. Sigler for assistance.

NEVER SUFFER IN SILENCE! As Mr. Rogers once said, in times of crisis "look for the helpers."

Did you know that your student could receive important health care at school? This can help save time in making doctor's appointments. If you would like your child to see one of Shenandoah Community Health's medical providers, contact our school nurse or the main office for a permission form. The Shenandoah Community Health van visit North Middle EVERY THURSDAY throughout the school year.

Did you know you can manage which schools you receive communications from on a weekly basis? North Middle will be sending all communications through the app this year, trying to reduce the number of text messages we send to parents. We will reserve text message and emails for the weekly newsletter and the most important information. So, to stay "in the loop" be sure to download the app today!

Check out the Middle School Parents newsletter for October 2024! Click on the PDF below to read more!

Next week, North Middle School will begin hosting several assemblies led by the Adolescent Health Coordinator from the Eastern Panhandle Instructional Cooperative (EPIC). This important program will address topics such as the dangers of vaping, internet safety, respecting personal space, and the serious consequences of making school threats. To reinforce these critical messages, each week we’ll feature articles in our newsletter’s Parent Corner, beginning with this week’s focus on vaping.

E-cigarettes are often marketed to teens with sweet flavors like bubble gum, cotton candy, and mango, disguising the serious health risks they pose. Even more concerning, vapes are designed to look like everyday items such as lipstick tubes, thumb drives, or highlighters. This clever packaging can make them hard to spot and easy to mistake for something harmless. Here’s what parents need to know:

• What’s in E-cigarettes? Despite the fun flavors and appealing designs, e-cigarettes contain harmful chemicals, including nicotine, which is highly addictive. The vapor from e-cigarettes also contains toxins and heavy metals that are dangerous, especially for teens’ developing bodies.
• Health Impacts: Vaping can cause dizziness, headaches, wheezing, sore throat, nausea, and asthma. It can also affect teens’ mental health, leading to moodiness, nervousness, and confusion.
• Addiction Risks: Worryingly, 25% of teens who try e-cigarettes become addicted within a month. Of those who attempt to quit, 88% find it challenging to stop.
• Poison Risks: E-cigarette liquid is toxic if ingested, with over 40,000 calls to poison control since 2013 due to accidental ingestion.

Advertisers may push fun flavors and disguises, but it’s important for teens to remember that 96.7% of middle schoolers don’t vape. Peer pressure can make students feel like they’re missing out if they don’t try it, but they are far from alone.

Our message to students is simple: Don’t let appearances fool you, and don’t be pressured. Together, we can help our students make safe choices. Thank you for partnering with us to support our kids’ health!

Our lost & found in the cafeteria cubbies is getting REALLY full! If you are missing a lunch box, water bottle, or article of clothing, you need to check out the cubbies. When the cubbies are full, we will be donating unclaimed items.

Vaping might look harmless, but the truth is, it can seriously harm your growing body. Advertisers try to make e-cigarettes seem fun with flavors like bubble gum, ice cream, and pancake, but don’t let the fun flavors fool you—vapes contain dangerous chemicals, including nicotine, which is addictive and can mess with your brain development. Here’s why vaping is a real risk:

• Harmful Side Effects: Vaping can lead to dizziness, headaches, wheezing, a sore throat, coughing, and even asthma. Long-term use can also make you feel moody, confused, and anxious. Also, vaping is relatively new; we don't have data on long-tern use and how it truly affects the body! Do you want to the guinea pig for the E-cigarette companies? No way!
• Addiction Dangers: Nicotine is highly addictive, and 25% of teens who try vaping become addicted within a month. Most who try to quit find it almost impossible because nicotine has hooked them. Most teens (75%) who say they are going to quit, are still using eight years later and wish hadn't started vaping.

The good news? 96.7% of middle schoolers and 85.9% of high schoolers don’t vape! Even though peer pressure can make it seem like everyone’s doing it, the vast majority of students are choosing to stay vape-free. So, don’t let anyone pressure you into trying it—it’s way healthier to say no and protect yourself.

Don't miss a thing!

In Ms. Stover's class last week, students had 30 minutes to build the tallest, free-standing tower they could. The structurally weak material, styrofoam cups, forced the students to deeply consider the structural design they chose. Lots of laughs were had!

8th grade Family & Consumer Science classes worked hard on snack boxes for teachers for parent teacher conference night! They also make chocolate-covered pretzels for parents in attendance!

Mr. Ware's 6th grade social studies students have been studying WWI and trench warfare. They were able to create an interactive map of WWI and record themselves explaining what they learned from the map on Canva.

Ms. French's class decorated pumpkins this week!

WE ARE NORTH!

Our mission is to provide a supportative and inclusive learning environment where every student is valued, held to high expectations, and inspired to reach their full potential. We commit to celebrating our diverse backgrounds while implementing strategies that promote respect, responsibility, and academic excellence.

Email: rachel.deavers@k12.wv.us