Weekly Update

We spent these days doing some team building, getting to know each other, and going over expectations for school.

A couple of reminders on important items in the handbook, teachers will also go over these more during our back to school night on August 21st.

Chromebooks for 7th and 8th Graders-

We are lucky to have brand new Chromebooks and nice cases for our 7th and 8th graders to use this year. This will allow them to reinforce what they have learned in their keyboarding and computer classes and will help them with their typing skills. With that being said we need to make sure we are treating these with lots of care and respect.

All students were charged a tech fee this year that will be for the first incident if something happens and it needs to be repaired, after that families will be responsible to pay the full cost for the repair. That is why it is important for students to follow the expectations with their Chromebooks and to take care of them.

Chromebooks will be taken home and is the students responsibility for the entire school year. They have all been issued a charger that has the same tag as their Chromebook tag, it is their responsibility to make sure their Chromebook is charged and ready to go every day. Their Chromebook case has an ID tag that should not come out of the case it must be in there at all times for easy identification, the tag on the charger should also stay and not be peeled off.

They are not to take the Chromebooks out of the case they are to stay in their protective case at all times, they can still access the plug in for their headphones and for their charger without taking it out of the case.

Chromebooks do not go in their backpacks they are to be zipped up and carried either in their hand or with the strap that came with the case.

Chromebooks do not go to PE or to Weights as they will not need them for these classes, they must put them in their locker, this will also help ensure the safety of their Chromebooks and that they will not get stepped on or damaged.

Students should not put papers on the keyboard of the Chromebook and shut the Chromebook this could crack the screen and cause other damages that they don't want to have.

The Chromebooks are also touch screen so it is important for students to think about what they have been eating, especially if they are working on homework and snacking.

Cell Phones- We are a no cell phone school, these are to be powered off and in their lockers or their backpacks for the school day, this does also mean smart watches with cell service.

Dress Code- This is taken from the Handbook that was board approved on August 5, 2024

Student Dress and Appearance

Student clothing needs to be appropriate for the school setting. Appropriate clothing DOES NOT:

1. Present a danger to the physical health or safety of you or others.

2. Promote or imply regulated items such as alcohol or tobacco.

3. Display or imply obscene or indecent printed messages or symbols.

4. Detract from the teaching/learning process.

A total shirt must be worn. No bare midriffs/half-shirts, fish nets, undershirts or

undershirt-type shirts and no sleeveless shirts that are open down the side, front or

back may be worn. Undergarments should not be visible.

Students wearing clothing that violates the dress code, will be asked to change. We will contact parents to coordinate the process.

Dear Families,

We are so grateful you are a part of the JWMS community this year.

One of the aims at our school is to equip young people for all the realities of today’s world. With that in mind, we have partnered with CharacterStrong - an organization that provides training for educators and social & emotional learning curriculum for students. Their work focuses on 3 main outcomes: increasing a sense of belonging for all students, improving skills that support student well-being, and deepening student engagement in their academics, in their school, and in their community.

Students will receive CharacterStrong lessons one day a week in their advisory class. Throughout the year, I will use this space to provide information about what students are learning through these lessons. This week, the students will begin with an introductory lesson.

To learn more about CharacterStrong, visit the links below:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p-qE5k-Yf8

• https://www.characterstrong.com/familystrong

Practice starts Monday August 19 for ALL Sports

Volleyball-

Practices Monday-Thursday are 3:35-5:25pm

Friday practices end at 5. Be there no later than 5:05 to get your child. All practices will be at the middle school.

Cross Country- Practice is over at 5pm

Please bring shoes, socks and practice shorts and shirt. We will dress immediately after school and meet in Coach Williams room before traveling to the HS. Also, for anyone that would like to help, the Tiger 5K is tomorrow morning (Saturday) here at the MS. The race starts at 8:00 but if you can help, please come to the table by the library about 7:30 and Coach Wiliams will get you a spot to help!

Football will be 3:30-5:45 pm at the Football Field.

Wednesday practice will end at 5:30pm so players and coaches can get to the school by 6pm for Back to School Night.

Reminder we MUST have your physical on file at the school before your child can practice. IF you have not dropped it off it must be brought in by 2pm on Monday the 19th or handed directly to the coach at the start of practice in order for your child to be able to practice.

Fees need to be paid too, fees are $45 per sport.

We are waiting on a link for cross country spirit wear but will update when we get it.

We want all students to be safe when exiting vehicles and buses and walking to the building. Please follow the following procedures when dropping your child off at school and picking them up.

In the morning drop off starts at 7:30am please drop off at the cross walk on the south side of the school, go through the south parking lot (gravel lot) to get to the cross walk.

NO Vehicles can be in the Bus Loading Zone.

In the afternoon please pick up in the south parking lot (gravel lot) and exit out the same driveway you came in. The unloading lane is for the shuttle bus. Do not park in this lane or block it, our shuttle bus is waiting to load up the football players to get them to the field for practice.

Do not parking in the main parking lot for picking up your child.

Please have a conversation with your child about crossing the street.

• look both ways
• give the driver a wave to make sure they see you
• use the crosswalk to cross
• do not cut between cars
  

Cost for Breakfast is $2.25- we start serving breakfast at 7:30 am

Lunch cost is $3.50- Salads and Ala carte will be offered after Labor Day

Extra Milk is $0.50

There’s still time to get your booster club membership forms in! We now have an online form! The deadline to get your name/logo in the program and banners is August 23rd.

What does Booster Club do?
We help with teacher requests for special activities in your kids' classes
We coordinate food for parent teacher conferences for our amazing teachers and staff
We coordinate the middle school game night and dance
We coordinate the Barn Burner 
We purchase items for the schools that are needed, but no extra money for (basketball goals, grill)

Want to join the Booster Club? Click the link link below and fill out the form!

Monday August 19th there will be a Special Board Meeting at 6:30pm in the High School Commons- please plan to attend as this will be an informational meeting from the facilities committee to talk about the needs of our district facilities and the consideration of a bond issue.

Important Dates to Remember-

Wednesday August 21st at 6pm is Parent Night- This will start at 6pm you will meet in your child's advisory teachers class.

Tuesday September 10th- Picture Day for all students as well as sports pictures for Cross Country, Volleyball and Football.

Friday September 13th- First Late Start- This is a change from previous years as it will be a 2 hour Late start. Doors open for the building at 9:30am.