Tumwater News
October 15, 2021
Principal 's Message
Dear Families,
Congratulations to our students for successfully preparing and leading Family-Teacher Conferences this week. I had the opportunity to join a few conferences and enjoyed listening to students share their learning and successes, as well as their goals for this year. Thank you to all the Tumwater families who participated. Our staff deeply values the home-school partnership to support the learning of all students.
With conferences and last week's Staff Development Day, students have had several days without school, but our staff continue to work together to build a learning community focused on inclusiveness and developing students' skills. During our Staff Development Day last week, teachers collaborated on topics including Tribal History/Shared History and implementing Middle Years Program components such as rubrics and unit planning. Together, these elements strengthen the academic program at our school.
Warmly,
Jill O'Neill
Upcoming Events
Tues., Oct. 18-20th - Play Auditions
Mon., Oct. 25- Fri., Oct. 29 - Spirit Week
Thurs., Oct. 28th - COVID-19 Testing Consent Forms due
Thurs., Nov. 4th - Picture Retake Day
Tues., Nov. 9th - 5th Grade Family Open House (virtual), 6:30 - 7:30 pm
Thurs., Nov. 11th - Veterans' Day, School Closed
Fri., Nov. 12th - Grading Day, No school for students
Be sure to check the calendar on ParentSquare and our school website (scroll to the bottom of the home page) for the school all school events.
Free COVID-19 Screening
The Beaverton School District will be offering weekly, take-home tests to screen for COVID-19. The tests are free to families. This will become available to Tumwater students on November 19th.
On Monday, October 18th, all students will receive an informational packet with consent forms for voluntary, weekly COVID-19 testing. Please ask your child to share the packet with you Monday evening. Consent forms should be returned by the child to their Science teacher no later than Thursday, October 28th.
Our first distribution day for testing kits is Friday, November 19th. This will take place in Science classes. Our first collection day for testing kits is Monday, November 22nd. Test kits will be collected from students at school entrances during morning arrival.
For additional information, please review the packet your child brings home on Monday and visit the BSD COVID-19 Protocol Information webpage and open the "COVID-19 Testing" tab under Frequently Asked Questions.
IB MYP At Tumwater
At Tumwater, teachers use the IB MYP criteria to determine the progress each student is making on the Beaverton School District learning targets. Soon, you will begin to see, if you haven’t already, scores being entered into ParentVue.
Teachers use scores of 1-8, which are then converted to a letter grade for the semester report card. Each subject area has four criteria that students will receive feedback on throughout the year. Students should be receiving a rubric at the beginning of any major assessments, that outlines what will be expected of them. These rubrics are a good tool for students to use before they turn in an assignment, to ensure they have completed the assignment fully and to assess themselves.
Now is a good time for students to begin reflecting on their learning and identifying areas in which they are strong and areas in which they may need to focus in order to meet their learning goals. Using the rubrics before and after turning in work, students are able to reflect on their growth. When talking to teachers about how to improve, students should use specific criteria as the basis for the question. Rather than, “How can I get an ‘A’,” students should ask “How can I improve my score in criterion A?” This allows the teacher to give specific advice about areas of improvement.
Picture Retake Day - Thursday Nov. 4th
Picture Retake Day is Thursday, November 4th. Retake Day is for students who were absent or not yet enrolled on Picture Day. It is also for students who purchased a picture package but wish to exchange it for a new picture and for students who wish to purchase a picture package for the first time. Picture order forms are available in the student information center by the main office and online here. Dorian will email portrait packages directly home.
Spirit Week - October 25th - 29th
All students are encouraged to show their school spirit by participating in dress up days during Spirit Week. As we launch the yearlong Grade Level Class Competition, students will have the chance to earn points for their grade level by participating. We encourage students to be creative, re-fashion/reuse/recycle items from home, and hone their artistic talents to participate in each day.
Mon., Oct. 25th Sports Day: represent your favorite sport
Tues., Oct. 26th Decades Day: dress like the 60s, 70s, 80s, or 90s
Weds., Oct. 27th Pink Out: wear pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Thurs., Oct. 28th Ties vs Tie-Dye Day: go formal or laid back by wearing a tie OR tie-dye
Fri., Oct. 29th Costume Day: see guidelines below
When choosing a costume, keep in mind that culture is not a costume. As an inclusive community, we expect that students will dress in a manner that is respectful of their own and other cultures. Costumes perpetuating stereotypes related to gender, race/ethnicity, culture, or economic status are not allowed.
Students are expected to adhere to the school dress code, particularly those related to safety and modesty. In addition, the following costumes/accessories are not allowed:
- Masks or full face paint
- Dripping or gooey makeup/accessories
- Inflatable costumes
- Weapons or look-alike weapons (daggers, scythes, swords, light sabers, etc.)
- Implements (hockey sticks, baseball bats, etc.)
- Gang-related
- Costumes marketed as "sexy"
Lost & Found
Our lost item collection is growing. There are many jackets and water bottle longing to be found by their owner. If you recognize any items in the picture below or are looking for something that has gone missing, please remind your child to look in the lost and found stations beneath the B Hall stairs, at the top of the C Hall stairs, or in the recess area. Smaller items such as glasses, phones, watches, and jewelry are kept in the Main Office. Students are welcome to come check before or after school, at lunch, or during passing periods.
Join the 8th Grade Celebration Team
8TH GRADE FAMILIES: Planning for the 8th grade celebration is underway. If you would like to help with additional fundraising and/or planning of this end of the year event contact email Amber Ferschweiler at
amber.fer@frontier.com. This is an awesome opportunity to meet fellow parents & plan community-building events for our 8th graders.
Pie Sales begin soon
SAVE SOME FREEZER SPACE: Support your 8th grade class and buy handmade and delicious pies from the Willamette Valley Pie Company. Sales open in November, so free up some freezer space because these pies are delicious! Ordering info coming soon.
Rising Tides Surpasses $33,500!
Impressed. Grateful. Thrilled.
We are feeling all the feels this week as we proudly announce that this Tumwater community has raised over $33,500 in our first annual Rising Tides campaign.
We are honored & thankful to have 254 individual donors put their belief in this organization and we will spend all year ensuring that your dollars are SPENT WELL on our 900+ students. Please dive into our
newly approved 2021-22 budget to learn more.
Miss the boat on donating? (See what we did there...) Our new goal is to raise $35,000 and we are THIS CLOSE. Head to
www.tumwaterpto.org/fundraising to help take us over the top of this already incredible effort.
Huge shout out to our PTO Vice President Kelly Kinzer and Ava Palmquist for being the wind in this ship's sails. Bravo.
"Apple of Our Eye" Staff Appreciation Event on Thursday, 10/28
October Community Meeting Parent Checklist
As promised, here's the action list from our October Community Meeting last Tuesday. What have you missed?
MOVE INTO OUR TMS VOLUNTEER DATABASE: Check out www.tumwaterpto.org/volunteer for all the instructions.
UPLOAD STUDENT VACCINE INFO INTO PARENTVUE: Yes, it is time-consuming, but it's a huge help to our school nurse & contract tracing efforts.
UPLOAD YOUR VACCINE INFO INTO MIP: The 10/18 deadline is coming up fast & all have to be reviewed by District staff (which takes awhile), so get on it ASAP! Head to www.tumwaterpto.org/volunteer for instructions.
SIGN-UP FOR THE STAFF APPRECIATION EVENT: Our next event is "Apple of Our Eye," scheduled for 10/28. Sign-up now!
8TH GRADE FAMILIES: JOIN THE SEND-OFF TEAM! Email Amber if you are interested in joining the team to make some magic this year to celebrate our 8th graders!
DONATE: Help us take it over the top of our new $35k goal. Head to www.tumwaterpto.org/fundraising for more info.
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA & LIKE EVERYTHING: Are you following @tumwaterpto on both Insta & Facebook? Here's a huge help: LIKE ALL THE THINGS. Any interaction helps spread the word. It's called organic growth (google it), which means our message is at the mercy of the algorithm. It's so easy to help us out this way!
SAVE THE DATE: November's Community Meeting is Thursday, 11/18. We only have five community meetings in a school year, so don't miss a moment! We promise to 100% respect your time by always being prepared & efficient.
And oh, did you see that we have ANOTHER four-day weekend in November that’s NOT Thanksgiving? Mark your calendar now!
Well, now you all understand the assignment! Get on it, TMS!
Tumwater Middle School
Building the knowledge and skills that empower students to change the world.
