Jaguar Messenger
Week of 5-3-21
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IAR Testing
It's Staff Appreciation Week!
Students and families are encouraged to send words of appreciation to teachers, assistants, related service staff, secretaries, and any other staff members who they wish to thank. Students should consider virtual appreciation ways to show their gratitude. Some ideas include an email, poem, letter, drawing, video (who doesn't love a cool TikTok), or e-card, just to name a few. We look forward to hearing about all the creative ways our students found to express their thanks for our incredible staff. We also encourage our students to consider showing their appreciation to their former elementary school teachers/staff...everyone loves to hear positive feedback. Let's spread the cheer and kindness!
End of 4th Quarter Grading Reminders
The end of the school year is quickly approaching. If you have not marked your calendar yet, the last day of school is May 28 (May 25 for students in grade 8). All assignments, projects, makeups, and any items that are included in your child's final grade must be completed and submitted by Friday, May 21.
Help your child succeed by having him/her check PowerSchool to see all grading information (assignments, assessments, projects, etc.). Any assignments marked with an orange exclamation point are considered missing and should be completed and submitted to your child's teacher(s). Please make sure your child notifies any teachers of missing work that has been submitted for credit. As always, contact your child's teachers directly with any specific questions.
District Pulse Survey
Thank you for providing feedback to the District by participating in the previous Pulse Surveys. This will be the last Pulse Survey for the 2020-2021 school year. As the year progresses with both In-Person and Remote Learning in place, we continue to value feedback from parents/guardians. These surveys are being sent to parents, staff, and students so that we may understand how to adjust our programming and supports.
Please take a moment to complete this parent/guardian pulse survey before May 4. Students in grades 3-8 will take this survey as part of their morning meeting or advisory. Students in PreK-2 will not receive the survey. Parents/guardians are encouraged to take a survey for each child in their household.
May Asynchronous Learning Day
- All students are expected to log into their live Advisory class from 8:30 to 8:45 a.m. on these days.
- Teachers will check in with students for attendance purposes and provide students with any necessary asynchronous learning information for the day.
Messages from our Jackson PTA
Book Fair
The PTA is running a SUMMER READING eFair through Follett Books from May 1- 9. https://efairs.follettbookfairs.com/guest/home?classCode=M83K2
Math Contest
The last math contest of the year is taking place on Tuesday, May 4, at 4:30 p.m. This is an hour long, two part individual test that takes place on Zoom. The kids can access the practice exams by joining the Math Contest Google Classroom (access code: znfakxb). Students who have been attending the contests all year have already joined. Below a link to a folder of practice exams so parents can access the materials, too. The students who attend this test are usually 8th graders since some of them take Algebra before going to Willowbrook. However, students in all grades are welcome to take the test. If your child likes math, he/she should go for it. There is nothing to lose!
A link to practice exams:
https://drive.google.com/…/1K9rTb85_5eI2qJQhIBoU3gbDoA3yGmn…
The kids can access the Zoom link by joining the Google Classroom. Contact Ellen McKenna with any questions: mcstellen@gmail.com.
Amazon Smile and Box Tops
Love to shop and feel good about giving back to your child's school? Then we have just what you need! Click this link to find out more about how shopping through Amazon or the Box Tops app can help you give back to our Jaguars.
PTA Membership
Click here to sign up and join the Jackson Middle School PTA. Membership has its benefits! Please note that all officers & committee chairs *must* be members and only members can vote. If you are thinking of getting involved or have some great ideas for this school year, JOIN NOW! Stay involved and receive information about upcoming PTA events.
Next PTA Meeting
Our next PTA meeting will be held virtually on May 20 at 6:15 p.m. Contact Laurie LoCoco at laurie4lou@yahoo.com with any questions or ideas. A link for the meetings can be found in MemberHub.
Water Bottle Reminder
Curbside Book Pickup
LRC curbside book pickup is still available for our remote learners. Hours are flexible and can be scheduled at the convenience of our remote Jackson families' schedules. A reminder of the checkout process, including our flexible pickup procedures, is as follows:
- Students use Destiny Discover to select books and place them on hold for pickup.
- Students complete a form indicating the day and time they will be picking up their book(s).
- Pickup takes place at the LRC door (Door #13) located at the back of the building.
We hope you find this process convenient to meet the needs of families, as we want to support and encourage our students and their reading. In-person learners will still continue to check out books using Destiny Discover. Books will be delivered to students' classrooms. If you have any questions, please reach out to Ms. Jilek, our LRC Specialist, at tjilek@d45.org.
Attendance
PowerSchool Parent Portal
PowerSchool is a proactive communication tool parents/guardians can use to stay informed about their child’s academic and work habits progress in school. Please click on this PowerSchool Parent/Guardian Quick Guide link for more information about how to navigate the PowerSchool portal. There is a mobile app version of the PowerSchool Portal for families. The interface of the mobile app is slightly different from the web version. If you experience any difficulties accessing PowerSchool, please email Mrs. Aparicio, the secretary who oversees PowerSchool for our Jackson families. Her email address is vaparicio@d45.org.
District 45 Meal Pickup
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is continuing to offer its meal program. District 45 meals will be provided free of charge to all children, 18 and under. Grab-n-go lunch and breakfast, seven days worth that is bagged together, is available for our full-remote families to pick up at either District 45 middle school every Wednesday between 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. You may pick up meals at either Jackson (door #5) or Jefferson (door #17). Signs are posted to identify the pick-up location at each school. Face coverings must be worn and social distancing must be practiced for everyone’s health and safety.