Narwhal Newsletter
December 3rd, 2023
Hello Marsh Creek,
I hope that everyone is having a great weekend. Thank you to all of our students and families that participated in our Choir Concerts this past week. It was amazing to see how talented our students are, and it was a great way to start off the holiday season for our Marsh Creek families! This week, our Orchestra Concert will be held on Monday evening, and we are excited to complete our winter concert series when our Band performances are held next week. A special thank you to all of our families for your support of our CHOP Pajama Day this past Friday. As a community, we were able to raise $1,155.00 to donate to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia! This month, we are collecting gift cards in order to support a number of families that are in need of support this season. Thank you for anything that you can do to support those in need within our wonderful community. You can find more information related to our Gift Card Drive below. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your student's life, and I hope that you and your family have a fantastic week!
-Matt
This week at Marsh Creek - Week of December 3rd
Monday - 12/4
- Orchestra Concert - 7:00-8:00pm
- CTC Parent Connection Meeting - Classroom B272 - 6:30-8:00pm (more information below)
Tuesday - 12/5
- BLUE house Band Rehearsal - 3:30-4:25pm
Wednesday - 12/6
- GOLD house Band Rehearsal - 3:30-4:25pm
Thursday - 12/7
- Home and School Association Meeting - Marsh Creek Library - 6:30-8:00pm
Friday - 12/8
- Kindness Breakfast - POD Pride Winners - Cafeteria - 1st Period
Notable Upcoming Dates:
- 12/11 - BLUE House Band Rehearsal - 3:30-4:25pm
- 12/12 - GOLD House Band Rehearsal - 3:30-4:25pm
- 12/12 - BLUE House Band Concert - 7:00-8:00pm
- 12/13 - GOLD House Band Concert - 7:00-8:00pm
A Day at Marsh Creek
Our POD Pride winners for the week hold up their prizes from our monthly drawing! Keep up the great behavior Narwhals!
Our students prepare for their Choir Concert. It was an amazing performance!
Students in Mrs. McManus' class participate in a Breakout Room challenge related to their novel.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Pajama Day
Our school participated in Pajama Day on December 1st to help the kids at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP)!
We are so grateful and proud of our community for raising $1,155.00 for CHOP! Thank you so much for your support, and all that you do for our community!
How You Can Help
Consider supporting us by making a tax-deductible donation as we say YAY to Pajama Day. Please click the link below.
Holiday Gift Card Drive
MC6GC is seeking gift card donations to spread some holiday cheer to our Marsh Creek families in need this holiday season. If you would like to contribute to our drive, MC students can drop off donated gift cards to their first period teacher, or to the MC Counseling Office through Monday, December 18, 2023. The most requested gift cards from families are for Target, Walmart, Giant and ACME. Gift cards in denominations of $10 or $20 are very much appreciated. We thank you for your kindness and generosity this holiday season!
Sixth Grade Physical Exam
If you have not already submitted your student's Sixth Grade Physical Exam (either during yearly online registration renewal or a hard copy to the nurse), please turn in your student's well-child physical and updated immunizations for sixth grade to the nurse. Physicals can be no older than August of 2022. Your student can hand in the physical to the nurse's office, or you can email a scanned PDF to mlozito@dasd.org. (We are unable to accept screenshots/photos)
Blank Physical Exam Forms can be downloaded from the DASD website at the link below
Amphitheater Update
The Downingtown Community Education Foundation (DCEF) and our District are partnering together to provide innovative educational opportunities for our students. Construction on the new Amphitheater/Outdoor Classroom on the Marsh Creek campus is well underway. Our families and staff may continue to see increased activity on campus, primarily to the left side of our building as we arrive at Marsh Creek. We will continue to provide updates throughout the duration of the project.
Pod Pride Update
Thank you so much to our students and parents for all of their support of our bus drivers over the past month. We still have work to do to ensure that our students are representing the best of Marsh Creek on the trips to and from school, but we have seen a lot of positive behaviors from the vast majority of our students. Congratulations to our Bus of Month for December, Bus 52!
Mental Health Awareness
As part of our district and community's efforts to increase Mental Health awareness, and to reduce the stigma around discussing Mental Health for students, we will be providing lessons and supports in the coming weeks designed to teach students about this topic, and encouraging them to seek help and support if needed.
For the fifth straight year, we are using a program called SOS (Signs of Suicide). The program teaches students about this difficult topic and encourages them to seek help. It is delivered during a single lesson in Health class. SOS has been used by thousands of schools over the past few decades. Studies have shown that it effectively teaches students about depression and suicide while reducing the number of students’ self-reported suicide attempts.
Through the program, students learn:
• that depression is treatable, so they are encouraged to seek help
• how to identify depression and potential suicide risk in themselves or a friend
• to ACT (Acknowledge, Care and Tell a trusted adult) if concerned about themselves or a friend
• who they can turn to at school for help, if they need it
We encourage you to visit http://www.sossignsofsuicide.org/parent for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn.
Community and Family Support - Backpack Boost Program
This program provides supplemental nourishment for our students. Participating students receive a bag of non-perishable food items every Wednesday, which will be distributed in a discreet and caring manner by our staff. Click on the flyer below to complete the confidential form so that we can help in any way that we can.
Counselor's Corner
Greetings from the Marsh Creek Counseling Department! We will use this area to keep you in the loop with updates from our department as well as helpful resources throughout the year. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns. We are here to help!
Hey Narwhals! We can always use a reminder to pay attention to our stress level. On days you are feeling stressed, try some of these tips. Taking a few minutes to care for ourselves can make a big difference in how we feel!
Check out this local resource! Communities That Care offers groups, blogs and podcasts to support parents and guardians in the Downingtown area.
Click here for more information.
Please encourage your child to check out the Marsh Creek Counseling Department Schoology course. It’s filled with lots of great resources including stress management strategies, study skills, directions for how to check your grades and more!
As always, reach out if you need anything!
Marsh Creek Book Fair
The Book Fair is coming to the Marsh Creek Library. Find all the details on our fair website.
We need volunteers! Check out our Sign-up Genius page.
Want to help students in need? Donate to the Book Fairy eWallet to grant book wishes!
Clubs and Intramurals
Below is a link to the Activities page on our Marsh Creek website, which has been updated with all information that students and parents will need to engage in our extracurricular programs. It contains information related to the options available this year, as well as information related to Activity Fees, and the Activity Shuttle Bus. Students can work with our teachers to pick up information and to express interest in the activities offered this Fall.
Cultural Connections Club
Join MC6 Cultural Connections Club!
The CCC will allow students to get together once a month for group discussions, activities, leadership opportunities, and games. It will be a fun way to make new friends while celebrating diversity and strengthening our connection to the school community.
There is still time to join MC Cultural Connections Club! Sign Up Here -
MC6 Cultural Connections Club Interest Form
“We are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike.” ~ Maya Angelou
Marsh Creek Home and School Association (HSA)
Thank you to our HSA for all that they have done this year to support our students and staff! We are so lucky to have a wonderful team of parents willing to help Marsh Creek. If you are interested in participating in our HSA this year, please consider joining us for future meetings. Our next HSA meeting has been scheduled for THURSDAY DECEMBER 7th, at 6:30 pm in the Marsh Creek Library. If you would like to contact our HSA to find other ways to support our students and school, please feel free to contact them at marshcreekhsa@gmail.com.
Chromebook Care
The most frequent damage to a Chromebook is a cracked screen. Follow these tips to avoid damage.
- Always carry a Chromebook closed. Never hold a Chromebook by its screen and always use two hands to carry the device.
- If carrying the device from classroom to classroom, hold the Chromebook close to your chest much like a hug.
- Be sure to set a Chromebook on a flat surface during use and avoid slanted, uneven surfaces which could lead to the device sliding off and dropping to the floor.
For more tips about protecting your device, and information related to getting a protective case for your device, click the following link to our technology page. Thank you for your assistance!
https://www.dasd.org/departments/technology/11-technology-initiative/chromebook-care
2023-24 Yearbook Sale
Order your child’s 2023-2024 Marsh Creek 6th Grade Center Yearbook online at www.balfour.com. Click on Shop My School and enter our school name. Then click on the icon for Yearbook Products and Ads. You will need to enter your child’s name and grade. Then select your child’s Advisory teacher. Yearbooks cost $30 and will be delivered to students at school during the last week in May. Order now before they are all sold out!
Any Questions? Please contact:
Mrs. Allen at lallen@dasd.org or Mrs. Leister at rleister@dasd.org.