Family Hawk Talk

What a week! Our students participated in a mock election and discussed the election process in the US, measured the amount of calories burned in common snacks through a lab, and argued the sanity of the narrator in The Telltale Heart to a jury using claim, evidence and reasoning.

The middle school teamed up with the high school and the elementary to raise money for the American Red Cross for hurricane victims. We sold raffle tickets for the opportunity to pie teachers at an assembly last Friday. The campus as a whole was able to make a $708 donation!

Each week, our staff nominates students for the Student of the Week award, based on their good character. This week, the nominees are:

Ian D.

Peyton B.

Larry C.

Mahdiya J.

Carter B.

Kaelyn F.

Way to go, Hawks!

As part of continuing efforts to provide services that support student wellness, Valley Park School District is partnering with Hazel Health to offer free mental health teletherapy visits for all students.

Appointments are available WITHOUT going through our school counselors. To contact Hazel Health click here.

With Hazel HEART, students can meet with a licensed therapist from school or at home, bridging the gap until local therapists become available or helping with less acute issues. The referrals can come from school personnel or directly from a parent or guardian. Like all Hazel telehealth services, parental consent is required.

This service is available to all Valley Park School District students and it is provided at no cost to VPSD families. Please note, Hazel works with insurance plans, and collects insurance information as part of the consent process. Hazel works with all students at no cost to families, regardless of insurance status, including families that do not have insurance. When insurance is billed, the district will cover any out-of-pocket costs. We encourage families to check with their insurance plans to determine if there are any annual caps on the number of allowed therapy sessions, as Hazel visits might count against any limits.

Hazel HEART mental health services include:

• Short-term therapy visits: Therapy sessions can help students cope with everyday issues such as anxiety, bullying, withdrawal, grief, peer and family relationships, depression, not enjoying things they used to enjoy or simply not feeling like themselves.

• Care coordination: Family resource managers from Hazel work closely with families to coordinate their child's care. If your child needs additional services outside of what Hazel can offer, Hazel will help families connect with great local providers.

• Therapists who care: Hazel therapists know how to connect with children and teens. Their multilingual team practices culturally competent care for all students.
  
  

This expanded partnership is designed to increase access to quality health care for all students, working in partnership with community providers to quickly address the social-emotional needs of students who may be struggling.

Learn more here.

There are so many cool activities available to our middle and high school students through our school library. Check out the flyer below for more information.

Through a grant with DESE, all Missouri School Districts have a partnership with Varsity Tutors, an on-demand, online tutoring and learning support services program, free of charge. We are now set up to begin using this program with our students so I wanted to provide you with some information as well as some things you could send out to your parents.

Varsity Tutors is accessible to all students, K-12, via Classlink. Students access it by logging into Classlink (which they can log in at home or at school-does not need to be on a school device) and choosing the Varsity Tutors icon.

A reminder for parents, if your student is not feeling well with the following symptoms, please do not hesitate to keep them home from school:

• Fever over 100.4 (24hrs without medicine: Tylenol/ibuprofen)

• Cold symptoms (coughing, sneezing, runny nose, congestion)

• Stomachache and/or vomiting, Diarrhea (vomiting/diarrhea to stay home 24 hours after vomiting is done)

• Sore Throat

• Unexplained Cough/ Shortness of Breath

• Signs of Conjunctivitis (pinkeye)

• Signs of Head lice (persistent itching scalp, nits in hair, or lice present)

• Rash (if present need to be evaluated by physician)

• Covid precautions as well, follow the Healthy Hawk Way.

Any questions or concerns please contact the nurse office:

Nurse Candice Herb

Email: cherb@vpschools.org

Phone: 636.923.3634

Each year, our team uses data to create a plan for growth and improvement within our building. This year, we have set five goals that we are excited to work towards:

1. We will work to increase the feeling of belonging and mutual respect amongst our students.
2. We will work to increase the number of students showing typical growth in reading.
3. All of our students will show growth on essential standards in ELA, math, social studies, and science.
4. We will increase the number of opportunities for families to engage with us on campus in events that benefit our students.
5. We will work to make progress towards a culture of success for our staff and students.

We have a detailed plan and a lot of wonderful ideas to make these goals achievable! Watch the Family Hawk Talk throughout the year for updates on each of these goals.

Nov. 27-29: Thanksgiving Break

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Facebook: @ValleyParkMiddleSchool

X (Twitter): @MrsSyron