Muskego Lakes Family Newsletter

Dear Muskego Lakes Families,

It's hard to believe that the end of Quarter 1 is quickly approaching! Now is a wonderful time to sit down with your child and check Infinite Campus for any missing assignments or identify areas where they might need to make a plan to finish strong for the end of the quarter. Our hope is that your child is able to finish the quarter strong and feeling successful.

If you notice your child is struggling in any subject, please know that we are here to support them every step of the way. Our staff is just an email or phone call away, and we’re more than happy to work with you to help your child succeed. Whether it’s checking in on progress, reviewing class activities, or finding extra resources, we’re in this together.

Thank you for being such a vital part of our community. Let’s finish this quarter with confidence and motivation!

• 10/29: Photo Make-Up Day
  

• 10/31: Costume Day at MLMS

• 11/5: End of First Quarter

• 11/21: Choralfest

• 11/27-11/29: No School

Musical is getting started! This year it's Newsies Jr! There's a student information meeting for any 5-8th grade student interested in cast, backstage crew or artistic crew on Monday Nov 4 from 3:10-3:50 in the choir room.Parent pickup is afterwards at door 14. Parents and guardians as well as students looking to be involved in cast or crew should join the On-Going Rehearsal Schedule for many more important dates and information.

If your son is hoping to play basketball for Muskego Lakes this year, there will be an informational meeting for stuents on Thursday, November 7th until 3:30pm. Tryouts will be on November 12th and 13th. Student should plan to stay after school until 4:30pm. If you have questions, please reach out to either:

• Mitch Hendrix (mitch.hendrix@muskegonorway.org)
• Jack Thompson (jack.thompson@muskegonorway.org).

We look forward to seeing students in costumes on Thursday, October 31st if they choose to do so. We went over the following expectations with students in homeroom on Monday, but wanted to share with you this week to review with your child prior to next week.

• All costume preparations are to be completed at home. (No dressing or applying of makeup or colored/glitter hairspray once students arrive at school.)

• Any accessory that is used improperly, distracts the learning, or is considered inappropriate for school will be turned in and students will be able to collect it at the end of the day.

• Students wearing inappropriate costumes will be asked to call home (from in their classroom) to ask for a change of clothes.

• Students should reach out to their homeroom teacher if concerned about a costume being appropriate prior to Halloween.

• School rules regarding the dress code must be followed with the exception of hats. Hats may be worn.

• Foot attire must be worn at all times. No bare feet, stocking feet or slippers

• Students will need to change for PE still if you have it that day, so be mindful of how long it will take you to get in and out of your costume.

The following are items that will not be allowed:

• No inflatable costumes

• No fake weapons (i.e. swords, guns, nunchucks, knife, etc.)

• No costumes or accessories that are offensive and/or depict, represent, solicit or promote alcohol, drugs, tobacco, gangs, cults, sex, violence, or profanity.

• No mask/headwear that covers your entire face can be worn.

A reminder that if your child missed picture day on the 11th, we have our make-up picture day on Tuesday, October 29th. Students will be briefly miss class to get their make-up photo taken.

Did your child participate in track and field last year or do they have an interest in participating in the future? If so, they may be interested in this opportunity. Muskego High School is holding camps for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students on November 4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th. This link has registration and coach information. If interested, it is recommended to sign up soon, as registration is capped.

Money can be tight, especially around the holidays. If you are looking for assistance this seasons please consider reaching out to the Christmas Clearing Council for financial Christmas gift assistance.

The 2024 Client Application for Christmas assistance is now available. Applications are due by November 15th, at 11:59 PM.
The application is linked here.

To qualify a family must:
-Live in Waukesha County
-Have custody of the children (ages 0-18) they are applying for
-Provide proof of financial hardship (such as qualifying for free and reduced lunch)

Reach out to Stacy Pawlak, School Social Worker, if you have questions or are interested in additional community supports: (262) 971 1810 ext 6282 (Bay Lane), ext 5403 (Muskego Lakes), or stacy.pawlak@muskegonorway.org

We would like to remind you that bus behavior is an extension of the school day and riding on the bus is a privilege afforded to our students. Just as we expect respectful and responsible behavior in the classroom, we also expect the same standards to be upheld while traveling to and from school. It's crucial for the safety and well-being of all students that good behavior is maintained on the bus. We kindly request your support in reinforcing this message with your child, emphasizing the importance of respectful conduct during their bus rides. Together, we can ensure a positive and safe environment for all students. Thank you for your cooperation.

If you have any concerns regarding bus behavior, we ask that you reach out to Officer Sandretti at jared.sandretti@muskegonorway.org, as he is our lead on transportation safety.

This year, for our November 11th Community Day/Veterans Day experiences at MLMS, we are again sharing time with students to learn about Veterans Day. During this year's events, students will have the opportunity to recognize our community members who are or have served in our Military through our honor walk (alongside a traveling exhibit from the Madison Veterans Museum), a history and importance of Veterans Day video, and we hope to have speakers present to our student groups.

We are still in need of veterans who are willing to speak to our students as part of our upcoming Veteran's Day school activities from 10:15am-12:45 pm. If you would be willing to share with students your experiences with the Military, we would like you to present to 2 groups, ranging from grades 5-8, for 20-25 minutes each session. If you are able or have any contacts inclined to be speakers, please reach out to Jen Ruditys (jennifer.ruditys@muskegonorway.org).

For anyone interested, the Muskego - Norway Best Buddies has a fall apparel order open until November 3rd at 11:59 PM. Check out all they have to offer HERE.

Students can be excused by parents each year for up to 10 days. Any absence(part or whole day) after 10 days needs a doctor's excuse. With that being said, any day a student misses counts towards their total days of school missed for the year (doctor excused or not). Our goal is to have your student in school everyday but we know things come up. You can help keep students total days out of school low by:

• Scheduling appointments for after school hours or on breaks
• Bringing your child before/after an appointment to school during the day
• Scheduling vacations or trips when possible over school breaks
• Talk about the importance of showing up everyday with your child.
• Help your child maintain daily routines.

In order to keep you updated about your child's attendance, you can expect that we will send home a letter when your child reaches:

• 5 Days Out
• 7 Days Out
• 10 Days Out

The purpose of this letter is to serve as a reminder that we are here to support and partner with you. In addition, it is a reminder of the Compulsary Student Attendance requirements.

We know that unexpected situations sometimes arise and that you might need a partner in supporting your child being at school. So, If you are worried about your child's attendance, have a unique situation or want to partner together, reach out to Stacy Pawlak, School Social Worker.

We are here to help!

Common items we find are:

• water bottles
• school supplies
• assignment notebooks
• lunch bags
• sweatshirts

Please encourage your child if they are missing sweatshirts, jackets, water bottles, pencil cases, hats, headbands, etc. to stop by student services to check for their missing items. We will continue to update our photos weekly, but any items remaining on October 25th will be donated. We will have tables up at conferences for you to stop and check for missing items as well.

Shown below are the upcoming co-curricular events at Muskego Lakes.

If a change occurs from the date of this newsletter, we post on Infinite Campus in the announcement section. We commit to letting students/families know about changes and updating Infinite Campus announcements as soon as possible once we've been notified of a change.

For more detailed information about MLMS events, click here.

We are proud to continue to partner with Clinical Psychology Associates (CPA) to offer on-site counseling services for students enrolled in Lakeview Elementary, Mill Valley Elementary, Bay Lane Elementary, Lake Denoon Middle, Muskego Lakes Middle, and Muskego High School. For information about CPA’s services and therapists or to get started with an appointment, please visit our website.

Would you like to Skip the LINE and enjoy FOUR reserved seats at the event of your choice? If so, you can purchase raffle tickets to enter one of two chances to win a set of four tickets to your selected event:

• Winter Band Concert- 6th Grade
• Winter Band Concert-7/8th Grade
• Winter Choir Concert
• Spring Musical (You pick the show!)

Tickets must be completed, cut out, and sent to school in an envelope labeled “Seat Raffle” with your child’s name. Be sure to indicate which event you’d like to win! Students will be bringing home a hard copy of this raffle sheets in their Musky Folders. Additional raffle copies can be found HERE. All entries must be received by 8am November 25th. Raffle winners will be drawn and notified November 25th.

Interested in getting some new spirit wear and support the MLMS PTO? You can shop now HERE until Sunday, November 10th. Plenty of options for all.

The MLMS PTO is looking to continue the traditon to have snacks for staff each Wednesday. We need your help though by signing up to donate snacks each week. This greatly helps them make it through the week. You can donate snacks or a group of families can donate. We have roughly 100 staff members. Snacks can be anything you'd like.

Please sign up HERE for a date below if you can. Drop off will be in the front office by 8am on the Wednesday you sign up.

Please consider joining the Muskego Lakes PTO. We meet monthly in the MLMS library at 6:30pm. We always welcome new faces and would love to hear your ideas on how we can make this an amazing school year ahead!!

Our last meeting Dates for the 24-25 School Year are:

• November 4
• January 6
• February 3
• March 3
• April 7
• April 28

In an effort to ensure students can move through the lunch lines efficently, we ask that you remind your student to ensure that they bring their school ID card with them to lunch daily or ensure that you have gotten your finger scanned.

For you ease, we have linked the September menu below with other helpful resources. You can always find the link to updated lunch menus, at the end of this newsletter.

• October Lunch Menu
• Guide to Making a Complete Meal
• Top Ten Reasons For School Meals

2024-25 Lunch Prices:

• Elementary School $2.55
• MS Diner meal $2.95
• MS Pizza meal $3.50
• MS Grab n Go $3.50
• MS Creation meal $3.90
• Adult $4.65
• Milk Carton $0.50
  
  

Questions related to the food service program can be directed to Benny D’Epiro, Food Service Director at 262-971-1790 x4522.

Please make note of days off and important events on the 24-25 calendar. It is ideal to make dentist and doctor appointments on days we do not have school whenever possible.

Website: https://www.muskegonorway.org/schools/muskegolakes/
Location: W124 S8009 North Cape Rd.
Phone: 262-971-1860
Twitter: @MLMSmuskies

To view current support staff job vacancies, click HERE