T-Bolt Newletter
CMS December 2018
From the Principal
I've decided to include this article due to having teenagers of my own. It is a simple reminder that as parents and educators we still need to teach our students how to keep themselves safe when it comes to strangers. I also want to take time to let you know that we have partnered with Butler County Child Advocacy Center to have Digital Citizenship lessons for our students. These will happen during second semester and information will be sent home for you to see. Parents are welcome to come to CMS on December 4th to hear “Let’s Talk Teens” from the Child Advocacy Center.
Kids and Online Communities Written by: Patricia Nan Anderson
One source estimates that 20% of children who use the Internet are propositioned by an adult while online. Many of these children didn’t realize that the person they were interacting with was a whole lot older than them.
Is the solution keeping your teenage children off the Internet?
Well, let’s not panic.
The truth is that online communities are here to stay and have a lot to offer. And social networking is such an important part of many kids’ lives that any attempt to eliminate it will likely drive it underground where you’ll be unable to influence it.
So a better course is to teach and reteach all the personal safety stuff you teach your four-year-old. “Don’t talk to strangers” is still a good idea, but older kids online need to know how to identify a dangerous stranger pretending to be just another kid. Older kids need to know what information is safe to share in a public space like an online forum. And kids need to know how to move safely from online conversation to in-person conversation over a Pepsi at the mall.
Pay attention not only to “regular” social media sites like Facebook but also to video gaming sites and other forums. The expansion of social media in the past few years means that your child may be connected to others through media you know nothing about. Realize too that some new sites permit anonymous postings, which is an open invitation to cyber bullying.
Keep in mind that social media sites have age limits for a reason. Don’t enable a child’s participation in social media by helping her lie about her age to get an account. At the same time, keep on top of social media use by children who are old enough to have their own accounts legally. This includes their email accounts. You may have learned how to identify and remove spam messages and you may be aware of the danger of clicking on unsolicited links, but your children may not.
Keep up with the tech world yourself. If you use social media you’ll have a better idea of the hazards your child may face and you’ll be more credible to your kid when you offer advice. A great site from the Washington State Attorney General provides helpful information for teens online – information that will help you realize just how much kids might not know about online interactions.
The worry we have about children’s social media use is a worry that they will get into situations they are unprepared to handle. Talk with your kids about using caution online and keep the lines of communication open at your house.
You want to know what’s going on. You want to be the first to know if the Internet turns into a monster.
Almost History: That Whole Space-Time Continuum Thing
Free will donations will be accepted. All donations will go toward expanding the CMS Drama department.
Saturday, Dec 1, 2018, 07:00 PM
Circle Middle School Auditorium
Dates to Remember
Dec 1st- 7 pm CMS Play: Almost History: That Whole Space-Time Continuum Thing
Dec 3rd-7th- Food Drive, please bring non-perishable food items
Dec 6th- Lifetouch Group and Winter Sport pictures
Dec 12th - Spelling Bee
Dec 18th - 3:30 pm Wrestling Awards
Dec 19th - End of First Semester, Dismissal at 1 pm
Dec 20th-Jan 2nd - Christmas Break NO SCHOOL
Jan 3rd - Classes Resume
Lunch Accounts
You can easily pay online at http://www.circleusd375.com/
Just go to Parent/Students and then click on Efunds Online Payment.
You can also come in and pay anytime or send cash or a check with you student.
Counselor's Corner
Hello, I want to take this time to update you all on the exciting things taking place here at Circle Middle School. November marked the start of the student’s taking part in Xello. Xello is the new career planning platform that we are using to help the students explore their future options. In the coming months, your student will be navigating through Xello during their seminar time here at school. Xello is a wonderful tool that will help your student to better understand their interests, skills, and learning styles among many other things. With the information that they gather from taking a ‘Matchmaker’ assessment, the student will then be able to explore many career options and pathways based on their interests and skills that they have discovered. As they explore these careers, the student will discover what needs must first be met for these career options which may include things like education planning.
We are tying the Xello activities to real life experiences by taking the students on trips that tie to career and education. In October, the 8th graders visited many Butler CC campuses and got a chance to see what pathways (Fire Science, Aviation, Technology, etc) and classes they could take when they are juniors and seniors that will open many doors for them after high school. Most recently, the 7th graders had the opportunity to attend the Career Expo in Hutchinson, KS that is put on by ESSDACK. This was an incredible opportunity to explore what future options are available to the students. There were over 160 different post-secondary vendors that included two and four year degree opportunities, industry certified programs, apprenticeships, military careers, and business partners. The students had a great time and it was a very valuable learning opportunity. With these new experiences, I encourage you to talk with your student and see what insight they have gained about themselves.
In October, we kicked off in conjunction with South Central Mental Health Counseling Center two groups here at the school. Those two groups are ‘Emotion Regulation’ and ‘Lifeskills’. These groups meet during lunch/MTSS times on Tuesday and Thursday. It has been a valuable resource for our students to have this support in learning the skills necessary to cope with day to day stress as well as building the skills necessary to be successful in life. We are hoping with the success of first semester’s group, we will again offer groups in the spring.
Finally, for the month of November and December during late start we will be focusing on the topic of ‘empathy’. In the late start and seminar lessons, are goal is for the students to make efforts to understand others: their contexts, feelings, and behaviors as well as to communicate their understanding of someone’s personal situation. I encourage you to practice this at home with your student by following these steps in situations as they present themselves: Step 1 - Watch & Listen to what is going on, Step 2 - Remember a time that you may have been in a similar situation, Step 3 - Imagine how you would feel if you were the other person, Step 4 - Ask if there is anything you can do to help, Step 5 - Show you care by responding with kindness.
If you have any questions about the information I have provided or any concerns as they arise, please feel free to reach out to me here at the school.
Recycle
- Old cell phones can be in any condition
- ink cartridges need to be the size that can fit in the palm of your hand
Athletics
Wrestling
The wrestling season started shortly after the fall seasons finished up. Head Coach Art Torrez and his assistant, Edmon Schrader, have about 30 boys and girls out this season. They have competed in several duels plus two tournaments so far. The season ends on December 15th at the league tournament in El Dorado.
Basketball
Basketball season has officially started. Currently the boys are practicing in the morning and girls after school. After the holiday break they will switch. The season will consist of 13 regular season games, a B tournament the first weekend in February, and a league tournament starting on February 16. All four teams have about 18 kids. The 8th boys are coached by Jean Gibbs and Dan Rose. The 8th girls are coached by Jeff Slane and Tami Boettjer. The 7th boys are coached by Andrew Stauffer and Wendy Tien. The 7th girls are coached by Sherri Coble and Chelsea Sawyer.
Cheer
Coach Amanda Burk hosted basketball cheer tryouts starting on November 13. They will be cheering at all of our home basketball games.
Box Tops
Have your student put their name on the back for a monthly drawing for $5.