“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious...and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” - Walt Disney
This week we focused on the character strength of curiosity through the Positivity Project. You can learn more about the Positivity Project, or P2, by reading The Family Information Letter though this link. Patriot times worked to generate curiosity. They discussed curiosity and brainstormed ways it can be positive or at times negative. Students participated in Swimming Noodles and Balloon Candy experiments in order to spark curiosity as to what was occurring, or didn’t occur, and why. Students watched a brief video on the Mission to Mars and then were presented with the task of generating only questions to find ways to help meet the goal of living on Mars. You can ask your child what their groups three top questions were. You can click here to read the character card for curiosity from the Positivity Project.
Next week in Patriot Time students will be focusing on the character strength of Teamwork/Citizenship. You can read the character card for curiosity from the Positivity Project by clicking here. Patriot Times will be viewing examples of teamwork/citizenship from watching movie clips of Remember the Titans and Chef. They will then participate in discussion questions and create idea maps to identify the most essential components of a team. Students will then be applying these to perform the Ultimate Tower Challenge. They will then reflect on attitudes and behaviors that occurred during the challenge to create 5 guidelines for successful teamwork/citizenship. Ask your child how successful their team was when completing the Ultimate Tower Challenge. What would they do the same? What would they do different?
Positivity Project Shirts
At the beginning of the year the staff all received a Positivity Project shirt with the symbol on the front and the #otherpeoplematter motto. The shirts will cost $5 and students can order a shirt in their Patriot Time class. If you would like to see what the shirt looks like you can check out the design here.
Howell Public Schools Teacher of the Year Nominations
Our school is full of outstanding teachers who make a difference in the lives of our students every day. Each year, Howell Public Schools honors one of these fantastic teachers as the Howell Teacher of the Year. The district is currently accepting nominations for this award. Nominations can be submitted at https://goo.gl/1g8Bnf. The deadline to submit a nomination is 4 p.m. on Friday, September 28.
Eligibility for Free/Reduced Breakfast/Lunch & Weekend Survival Kits
As the new school year gets underway, we would like to remind all of our families that they may be eligible to receive free or reduced-price school meals based on household size and income. Families may also be eligible to receive free weekend food kids through our partnership with Weekend Survival Kits. To learn more about free or reduced-price school meals, please click here. To learn more about Weekend Survival Kits, please click here. Additional information about both programs can also be found at https://goo.gl/FJUCzA.
6th and 7th Grade Parents
Your students will be receiving their chromebooks next week. Before a student can receive their chromebook the online form confirming you have reviewed the documents and made a decision regarding insurance must be completed. In addition the insurance or deposit must be turned in. The insurance is outlined in the Student Mobile Device Handbook.
OK to Say
The Michigan Attorney General’s office will be conducting presentations on student safety featuring the Michigan Cyber Safety Initiative (CSI) and the student safety hotline, OK2SAY. The presentation will be given to Parker Middle School students in grades 6-8 on Thursday, October 4, 2018.
All students will see a video featuring peers who promote OK2SAY. Students will learn what the OK2SAY program is, how it works, what types of incidents they can report, how to submit a tip, and what will happen with the tip. Students will then hear a detailed explanation about bullying, cyberbullying, suicide, sexting, sexual abuse, predators and advice on how to protect themselves online. Students will see a video about the power of words, deceptive ways internet predators target teens, along with a segment featuring students from Michigan that have tragically died by suicide due in part to bullying. The last two videos show the negative impact of sexting provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. If you would like your child to not participate in this assembly please fill out thisOpt Out Form and return to school by October 1st.
Parker 5K
You can still register for our Second Annual Parker Pride 5K. This is a fundraiser to raise money for field trips, additional classroom resources, enrichment programs, and positive behavior rewards. The registration fee is $25. We would love to see as many Parker Patriots out there with their families and community members. Thank you in advance for your support.
5K sign up
5K Poster
5K Sponsor Letter
Library Services Coordinator
We are currently looking for a part time Library Services Coordinator. If you are interested you can check out the posting here.
Picture Retakes
Picture Retake Day is Tuesday, October 9th. If your child wants to retake his or her pictures, he should return the original package to the photographer. If your child hasn't had a picture taken at all, he should have his picture taken on that day. You can still order online:
mylifetouch.com
Parker Middle School
Picture Day ID: LM418021Y2
PTO Elections
Our next PTO meeting will be Tuesday, October 16th at 2:30 in the Media Center. We are looking for several positions to be filled. This is a great organization that helps make Parker a better place for your children. We hope to see many of you there. PTO is providing dinner for teachers during conferences night. You can sign up to donate food on this sign up genius signup genius.
Have a great weekend,
Mrs. Poelke