Rising 5th Grade Newsletter

Rising 5th grade students and families,

We hope you and your families are doing well and staying safe during this time. This will be our final of three spring newsletters sent out to our rising 5th grade families. Our goal is to work to communicate with you and give you information as we head into the summer months. We are so excited to have you join JMS and become a part of our school. Please check out the information below to learn more about Jefferson Middle School:

- 5th Grade Virtual Open House Curriculum Guide

- 20-21 School Year Device Sign Up

- What is Canvas? How will it help my middle school student?

- Understanding Blended Learning and Remote Learning

- Transitions to Middle School

- Remote Learning is strong at JMS

- A day in the life of a 5th grader

- Helping Students Attain 21st century skills

- The Power of Reading

We can't wait to have you join us at Jefferson Middle School. Please reach out over the summer if you have any questions. We will send more information as we near the start of next school year and communicate more information to you.

Have a great week,

Phil Cox, Principal

Chris Layton, Vice Principal

Jenifer Laurendine, Dean of Students

We are planning to have our rising 5th grade student orientation for students and parents on Friday July 24th from 8:30 am - 11:30 am. This is all contingent upon our access to open the building for students, teachers and families. We will provide more information as we near this date, but for now we wanted to provide you with this date and information as a "Save the Date" announcement. The Orientation will be where students will learn about their schedule, get to tour the school, meet their homeroom teachers and receive their devices. We will keep you posted going into the summer, but for now we wanted to provide you with this date as a "Save the Date".

When: Friday July 24th 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM

Where: Jefferson Middle School Gymnasium and Building

Welcome To JMS Virtual Open House and Curriculum Guide!

Because of the current school closure situation, we have unfortunately had to cancel our Spring Orientation events that occur each year in our building. Yet, we realize that parents and students receive so much information about Jefferson Middle School at this event that we had to find a way to create a digital version to provide as much information as we could.

Our staff has worked hard to provide our parents and students with a virtual Orientation/Open House experience! In addition, we have included the Course Curriculum/Registration Pages so you can move forward in preparing for the 2020-21 school year. Our staff has worked hard to provide our parents and students with a virtual Orientation/Open House experience!

The information is listed by grade level below for your convenience. Students can see these files in the JMS School Counseling Canvas course, under Modules. All information will be provided in this Sunday’s Parent Newsletter and is also housed on our website. You can simply click on this link to see our Spring 2020-2021 Digital Open House Orientation AND Course Curriculum and Registration pages!

JMS Spring Orientation and Open House

https://www.ortn.edu/jefferson/academics/counseling-center/2020-2021-oar/

JMS 5th Grade Curriculum Course Guide

https://www.ortn.edu/jefferson/academics/counseling-center/2020-2021-oar/jms-5th-grade-curriculum-guide/

Or in a PDF handout: https://www.ortn.edu/jefferson/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2020/04/JMS-5th-Grade-Curriculum-with-Video-Links-2020-21.pdf

Again, if you have any questions regarding the information above, please reach out to our admin team or you can also contact our School Counseling Department by reaching out through the JMS website: https://www.ortn.edu/jefferson/academics/counseling-center/2020-2021-oar/ We hope you and your families are well and healthy and we are anxiously looking forward to seeing you and your students soon!

Principal - Mr. Phil Cox – pcox@ortn.edu

Vice Principal - Mr. Chris Layton – calayton@ortn.edu

Dean of Students - Mrs. Jenifer Laurendine – jllaurendine@ortn.edu

Instructional Technology Coach - Mr. Ben Fowler – bjfowler@ortn.edu

We hope you and your family are safe and healthy at this time. It’s that time of year again where we need parents to sign up for student devices for the 2020-2021 school year. The process to sign up needs to completed in Skyward. Students will not be issued a device for the 2020-2021 school year until the appropriate CELA and TUA forms have been signed on Skyward. Below are the steps on how to complete the sign up process. In addition, you can watch the following video to help walk you through the process: Click Here for the Video (Also featured above)

This should be available in Skyward beginning Monday May 18th . We wanted to provide this video before that time to help alert you to the information before Monday May 18th.

Steps to complete (You can also watch in the video, shown above)

1. Go to www.ortn.edu

2. Click on Tab Online @ORS

3. Click on Tab for Students and Families

4. Log on to Family Access to Skyward

5. You should see on the Homepage a message that states, “An Online Form is Now Available to Fill Out”

6. Click on the link “Fill Out an Online Form”

7. Pop Up “Would you like to complete it now?” Answer Yes.

8. Read the form and complete the tasks at the bottom

9. Complete and submit. You will see that you have successfully submitted at this point

If a parent/guardian has not completed these steps as outlined in the video and above then students will not be issued a device until the forms have been completed.

If you have not signed up for Skyward, please see the back of this sheet for more instructions. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Mr. Layton at calayton@ortn.edu or 425-9301

When we return to school, we will continue to use Canvas in order to help keep continuity and also as a part of our Blended Learning model. In addition, we will continue to grow this model in preparation if there are any future closings. We feel confident in our staff and their amazing abilities to connect as best as we can through digital resources like Canvas. During this closure we have seen great innovation promoted through Canvas and amazing learning opportunities achieved by students during this phase. It's not all about technology, but Canvas does allow us to have the platform necessary to communicate, provide resources, information and opportunities for student growth and learning. To learn more about Canvas and how we use it to help with students and parents, check out the video below.

Canvas is our learning management system. We utilize Canvas in order to communicate with students and parents including announcements, information that is important to the class, links to resources to help support in class learning and also in some cases digital assignments.

Canvas is our learning management system. What does that mean? Well in this section, we will work to explain what that means and how it applies at Jefferson Middle School.

Our goals through Canvas is to communicate effectively, provide resources, information and also online grades for students and parents.

In Canvas our teachers work to provide:

Announcements - A weekly look at what will be taught throughout the week

Assignments - Some assignments will be digital and completed through Canvas and some will be analog and completed on paper. The goal for teachers here is to update with information to help explain the assignment and the due date.

Calendar - A student calendar that shows all of the student's class and helps to color code each. The calendar allows for parents to see due dates for assignments, quiz and test dates

There are two loops on the campus one on the gym/football field side of campus which is a car drop off loop all morning long. The second loop on the softball field side is the bus loop at the beginning of the morning and becomes a car loop after buses leave.

Bus loop from 7 am - 7:10 am

When 5th grade students arrive on campus they report to the gym until 7:30 am

We will be working over the summer months to equip this new area with 21st century furniture and resources as it will be unveiled to serve as space for innovation, creativity, and learning for the 2020-2021 school year. We are excited to have begun work on this new resource designed to support our students and staff. Also, this will provide more seating and area for students during am lobby hours prior to the start of first period. We will keep you posted on the progress in the coming weeks. The removal of these lockers downstairs also coincides with the installation of new lockers in the building. These lockers have been replaced and 7th and 8th students will be receiving new lockers, set to be installed later this summer.

Special thanks to Mr. Randolph and his crew along with several school district building and maintenance crew members for their efforts to so effectively and efficiently work on this project this week. They were amazing at removing the lockers, concrete and getting the sites prepped for installation of new lockers in 7th grade and 8th grade along with getting the lobby space ready for the learning lab.

For the first time ever, due to school closure, we are providing our 5th grade Orientation online. If you look above in this newsletter you will see the information posted. In addition, over the next three weeks we will send these newsletters that are designed specifically for rising 5th grade students and parents. We want to make the transition as smooth and seamless as possible for you and your student.

A few thoughts about the transition:

We keep our 5th grade divided into "teams" Blue and Gold. The Blue team meets down stairs and the Gold team on the third floor. One of the benefits of having students on teams is to help students with the transition to 7 different classes as for most students all of their core classes and reading class will all be within the same section of the 5th grade wing. Students can seamlessly cross the hall from core class directly into another core class during the class exchange.

Using a school device and taking it home

It can be a dramatic change to see a rising 5th grade being given the responsibility of taking home a school laptop device. It is important for students to appropriately maintain and care for the device and also appropriate for the students to understand how to utilize it as a tool. The device itself should be considered a tool, not a substitute or replacement for instruction. We are working to help develop students for the jobs and world in which they will work, live, compete and grow. As a part of that world, we know our students are going to have expectations in their abilities to utilize technology. For some 5th grade parents, the device can be a source of frustration due to a lack of student academic progress. Please know the following:

- Devices are monitored by classroom teachers using a program called LAN school, which allows the teachers to have a glimpse of all students screens on their laptop as students work.

- Devices are also monitored by a program called Gaggle, which uses Artificial Intelligence to scan and search student use of devices. If a student types a concerning or inappropriate message or search etc. it will automatically flag the content and send information to JMS administration to provide assistance.

- The use of devices always has a plan coinciding with it. Students and teachers work to learn, assess, reflect, collaborate, discuss, innovate, design etc. utilizing the device in the classroom. Tools like Microsoft Suite Products, NearPod, OneNote, Canvas etc. are all digital resources designed to help student learning.

- What if my child is easily distracted and falls into games rather than school work?

This does happen and often is addressed by classroom teachers with a simple redirect by telling the student to minimize the game. If this goes beyond this request and a student continues to play, often in class consequences are assigned by the teacher including isolated lunch etc. Beyond that and a referral may be written for computer misuse. At that time, the device is taken to IT and all game sites found on a search history are blocked.

RTI- (Response To Intervention) is a multi-tier approach to the early identification and support of students with learning needs. This a fluid process that allows students to move into and out of RTI every 4.5 weeks, if data supports the move.

Tier 1: The Whole Class (every student is served at this level)

In the general education classroom, the teacher measures everyone’s skills. This is known as a universal screening that is given 3 times a year to the whole school (Fall, Winter and Spring) to determine the students that fall at the 25th percentile or below for extra Tier 1 support. If your child falls at or below the 25th percentile your child will be placed in a Tier 2 or Tier 3 class in the areas of Math or English to provide more support because they are performing below their grade level. The screening helps the teacher work with students in small groups based on their skill levels. The school will let you know if your child is struggling and will update you on his/her RTI progress. If your child scores at the Tier 2 or Tier 3 level they will be taken out of one or both of their electives. This class is a revolving door class, which means your child can make their way of the class with showing progress and gains above the 25th percentile. A goal is made for your child in their Tier 2/3 class an academic goal is developed in the progress monitoring software. It takes on the average 6 weeks for the progress monitoring tool to show if your child is making progress on their goal.

During the intervention, the RTI team monitors students’ progress to see who might need additional support. Many students respond successfully to Tier 1 support and achieve grade-level expectations.

Tier 2: Small Group Interventions (25th percentile-11th percentile)

If your child is not making adequate progress in Tier 1, he/she will start to receive more targeted help. This is in addition to the regular classroom instruction (Tier 1), not a replacement for it. Tier 2 interventions take place every day during a designated period and will not miss any core instruction in the classroom.

During these extra help sessions, he/she will be taught in small groups using a different method than in Tier 1 because the first method was not successful. The teacher may also ask you to work with your child at home on certain skills.

The school will monitor your child’s progress so it is clear whether the Tier 2 intervention is helping through 4 ½-week progress reports sent by the school.

Tier 3: Intensive Interventions (at or below 10th percentile)

Typically, only a small percentage of the class will require Tier 3 support. In many schools, though, that number is much higher. If your child needs Tier 3 support, it will be tailored to his/her needs. Every day he/she will receive one-on-one instruction or work in very small groups.

Your child will continue to spend most of the day in the general education classroom. If he/she does not make adequate progress in Tier 3, it is likely that the school will recommend an evaluation for special education services.

The school will monitor your child’s progress so it is clear whether the Tier 2 intervention is helping through 4 ½-week progress reports sent by the school.

Core Focus-(English or Math) This class is for those students that score close to above the 25th percentile or the teacher has identified will benefit from extra support with current core classes. Students will be able to work on homework intermittently during the week and may need re-teaching of Tier 1 instruction.

A - 93 - 100

B - 87 - 92

C - 75 - 86

D - 70 - 74

F - Below 69

We realize that this will be a change and adjustment, but we wanted to make sure we communicate it to you before next school year.

In addition, at Jefferson Middle School we have worked to include a few other items in our vision to help support students for the career opportunities and pathways of their future. We also focus on Grit, Growth Mindset, Perseverance, and Soft Skills. We will have more information about these skills and how we work to promote and utilize these skills each and every day in our classrooms.

The JMS PTO would like to welcome all new 5th Grade families to middle school and invite you to learn more about PTO activities and how you can get involved.

If you would like to receive PTO text or email alerts, please click below to be added to our contact database. We use the Remind app to send meeting announcements, information about volunteer opportunities and other reminders.

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=vdNYGNb6YE61OeUm8KqiP2Oz2qvUyvVNvrYWhtzgeydURTg2TVcyT1FCREVGVDlSUUdKUzNVOFIyOS4u