GMS Weekly Newsletter

Good Afternoon Wolf Pack Families,

What a fantastic start to the school year! During the week, we have had assemblies for all grade levels introducing them to the expectations of our school and what it means to follow the Geisler Way. Our teachers have been conducting Community Building lessons extending on the learning from the assemblies and creating opportunities for students to bond with each other and their teacher. Students are now well aware of our school's 4 Core Pillars: Diversity, Integrity, Community and Equity.

Our 6th grade students are starting to settle in. They are beginning to make it to class on time and most are able to open their lockers with ease. Next week teachers will begin to introduce content related curriculum. Please ask your students to see their planners, check their teacher's google classroom or your family access to stay up to date on assignments and grades.

In MS, all students need a personal laptop or acquire a District Chromebook (1:1 Learning). Most Chromebooks have now been delivered to students at registration or today at school. If your student does not have a device at this time, PLEASE make sure to sign up as soon as possible. It is very important that each student in the building has their own device. Many assignments and assessments are completed by using technology devices. Unfortunately, we do not have any laptop loaners or computer lab for students who do not have a device.

Wishing you all an enjoyable Labor Day Weekend.

Sincerely,

Stuart Riley

Principal, Geisler Middle School

Our Fall sports are off to a great start! Volleyball tryouts took place this week and we had a record number of student athletes show up. Teams will be finalized and practices will begin next week as the first game is on September 13th at Oak Valley. Good luck to all who tried out.

Cross Country is also off to a great start. Practices are underway as our student athletes prepare for their first meet, which will be at home on September 13th against Mason Middle School. It is not too late to come out and join the fun. If your student athlete is interested, they should bring a physical dated after April 15, 2023 to school and a permission slip and they will be able to participate.

This year, breakfast and lunch are FREE to all students! This week we have had a great number of students taking advantage of this great opportunity. With the increase in numbers of students eating cafeteria meals, lunch has taken longer for students to get through the lines. We are already working on procedures to speed lunch lines up so that students have plenty of time to eat and get a few minutes of free time. Please be patient as we continue to refine the process. We promise it will continue to get better. Students who bring their id’s with them are able to move more quickly through the lines. Please encourage your child to bring their id badge every day. We have noticed that there are a few students who have “blocked” food service accounts from prior years. In order for your child to receive a free meal, the block must be lifted. Please email Annemerchant@wlcsd.org to lift the block. You can keep the “snack items” blocked to prevent your child from being able to purchase additional items that are for sale during lunch time. Please make sure you communicate that request to the email above as well.

Please consider the safety of our entire Wolf Pack Community when you are dropping off or picking up your students. SLOW SPEEDS and following the procedures is the best way to keep everyone safe. Say long good byes while you are driving to school. When dropping off, make sure your student is prepared to exit the car quickly. Families who are prepared for this will help ensure more efficient traffic flow. Please note that our building doors open at 7:40 am and students should be picked up by 3:05 pm.

Last school year WLCSD began a new 1-to-1 Chromebook Program in all of our middle and high schools. This program provided different access to technology than our elementary school students had at their buildings. Please review the information about the 1-to-1 Chromebook Program as part of your Back-to-School Online Registration Process.

Each student will be required to bring a device to school each day as the middle schools do not have Chromebook carts in the building for students to use a Chromebook during the day. District issued Chromebooks often work much better within the building than personal devices do as they are set up to connect to the District Wi-Fi.

Important Highlights

Students will have two choices for technology use while at school:

1. Bring your own device from home

2. Sign up for a District issued Chromebook*

*Additional carts of Chromebooks will no longer be available for students to utilize extra building devices on a daily basis. Students will be expected to bring a charged device (personal device or District issued Chromebook) daily in order to utilize online curricular resources as well as participate in daily instruction within the classroom.

We strongly encourage families to sign up for a District issued Chromebook.

There are advantages to this practice including:

• Better Wi-Fi connectivity in District

• Increased support from District IT staff including

• curriculum resources

• support apps

• Streamline repair process

MIDDLE SCHOOL students (grades 6-8) must complete PAYMENT for the Chromebook deposit ($50) and Technology Protection Plan ($20) in order to receive the District issued Chromebook. Payments made after August 17 will still receive a device, but not until the first few days of school. Please be sure to review the entire 1-to-1 Chromebook Program Information that is linked on our Back-to-School Packet Website. If you are in need of financial assistance to participate in this program, please reach out to Mr. Riley directly at stuartriley@wlcsd.org

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Families, please consider joining our Geisler PTSA this year. Joining the PTSA is a great way for you to support all of the fantastic initiatives that happen at our school thanks to our PTSA Board, Volunteers and Members. Joining the PTSA is easy to do and is part of the online registration packet. A PTSA Board Member will also be at Geisler Get Going to answer any questions that you may have. Please see below for all of the great Spirit Wear items that are being offered this year through the PTSA! Many items are currently on sale!

Safety and Security in Gymnasiums and Stadium: In an effort to ensure the safety and security for all, there will be NO re-entry for any athletic event upon exiting. All bags and outside food/drink are not permitted. Ticket takers, administration, and law enforcement are instructed to enforce these guidelines. No exceptions.

All middle school and elementary school-aged children must be accompanied by their parent/guardian for the entire athletic event in order to attend any and all Walled Lake Western Athletic Events. Those who are not supervised, will not be permitted to enter the gyms and/or stadium or will be asked to leave if not continually supervised after entering.

Parking: Parking in the round-a-bout outside the stadium is not permitted as it is a fire lane for emergency vehicles only. Vehicles parked in this area will be reported to law enforcement on site.

Thank you for assisting with the safety and security at Western!

The WLSFCU is offering an outstanding opportunity for our Wolf Pack. Students are able to open an account and do their banking right at GMS! Students will also be able to apply to be involved with being a member of the WLFSCU Team and learn new skills in banking and marketing (more details to come). Please see the documents below for more information and the application to start a new account.