Maize South Middle School
October 2022
A message from Principal Mr. Cort Haynes
Dear Maverick Families,
I hope the recent Thanksgiving holiday brought your family together for fun, food, and rest. The holidays bring an anticipated joy and hope for the new year. We hope 2023 is one of the very best for all of our Maverick Families!
With only 15 days left in the semester, please encourage your child to finish the semester strong academically. It is important for students to ‘advocate for themselves’ by reaching out to their teacher regarding any missing or late work. Seeking extra credit opportunities may also serve to benefit students seeking to boost their grades.
To incentivize all of our students, we will conduct Go Do It activities on Wednesday, December 21st. Students are eligible for participation as long as they do not have any disciplinary office referrals between now and the end of the semester. The activities will range in variety such as reading, bingo, creating holiday decorations, baking, dodgeball, and board games. Students will sign up for activities on Monday, December 19th.
We continue to conduct Second Step character lessons each Tuesday. This week, we began lessons over Bully Prevention. This character program was provided to us via a grant by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. As part of this grant, we are asked to survey students. In order to do that, we must have parents opt-in to allow their children to complete the survey. Please be on the lookout for this opt-in form along with the sample survey questions.
As always, we appreciate your support. Please let us know how we can partner with you toward making MSMS the very best for all of our students.
Happy New Year!
Cort Haynes, Principal
Dates to remember:
Friday, December 16th : Formal Dance ($5) sponsored by Student Council
Thursday, January 5th : School resumes
Monday, January 16th : No School Martin Luther King Jr Day
MSMS Traffic Flow Map
Stay Connected
Visit our school website at www.usd266.com/msms.
Connect with Mr. Haynes at chaynes@usd266.com or 316-722-0421.
Maize South Middle School is located at 3403 N. Tyler Rd. in Wichita.
Facebook: msmsmavnews
Instagram: msmsmavnews
Twitter: msms_news
Boys' Basketball Parent Meeting
We will have a parent meeting for any boy interested in trying out for Boys Basketball on Wednesday December 14th at 5:30 in our Commons. All players must have a physical on file before the first day of practice. If your student played a sport earlier this school year they can use the same physical.
Kay Club Supply Drive for Maslow's Pantry
KAY Club is hosting a supply drive for Maslow's Pantry from December 5th through December 9th. Maslow's Pantry is an organization run at Maize High School that offers food and supplies to students in need. Maslow's Pantry is requesting donations for their 10 most needed items. Please send your donations to your student's Mav Time teacher. Mav Times with a participation rate of 80% or higher will receive a prize!
Please email Shelbi Self (sself@usd266.com) or Tiffany Bernabe (tbernabe@usd266.com) with any questions!
Spelling Bee
We will be hosting our school Spelling Bee on Dec. 7th. The competition will begin at 8:15 am. Parents of the participating students are invited to come and watch the Spelling Bee. Please congratulate the following students for qualifying:
7th grade:
Chase Bough
Zack Byrum
Ryan Coomes
Brock Epke
Jacob Hansen
Rafy Hijazi
Skylar Johnson
Kaedin Lamas
Jonah Martinez
Ashlynne McCullyJonah Peyton
Emery Philbrick
Elise Reyes
Annabell Taton
Seth Tyson
8th grade:
Mav Buckingham
J.J. Davis
Adeline Diem
Gurshan Hayer
Mira Hendrickson
Ely Hull
Kate Kelly
Paige Kelly
Jace Knight
Rachel Moore
Trenten Moon
Asher Smith
Gavin Smith
Will Tyson
Kendrick Welch
Megan Vogts
Nurses Corner: Health Room reminders
- Flu season is upon us- please get your child their influenza vaccine.
- Continue doing a good job of washing hands.
- Do not go to gatherings if you are sick
- Please send a clean full water bottle to school with your child every day. This is very important! I see a lot of headaches and stomach aches that I do not think would occur if students drank more water.
- As the weather changes, try to make sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather and send a jacket to school with them. We go outside after lunch unless it is snowing, raining or below freezing- otherwise we are going outside.
---Thank you for helping me keep your kids healthy and safe—
Nurse Lisa
STUCO Winter Formal Dance
When: Friday, December 16th
Time: 6:30-8:30 in our Commons
Although this is listed as a Winter Formal, formal attire is not required. School dress code still applies.
We will have the concession stand open! Picture ID's will be required to enter the dance and only MSMS students will be allowed to attend. If a student is on the FOCUS list or absent the day of the dance they will not be allowed to attend.
Counselor's Corner
Counselor’s Corner
Second Semester Classes
As your students return in January, their Mav Time, Math and ELA classes will remain the same while their semester classes will change. Please take time to review their upcoming schedule changes so they are ready for their new classes on January 5th. Due to how full our electives are, counselors are unable to maneuver classes/make changes at this time.
Freshman Enrollment: Save the Date
More information will be shared in January, but if you’d like to mark your calendars for the Parent/Guardian Freshman Enrollment Meeting, it will take place on Tuesday, January 31st from 6:30-7:30pm in the Maize South High School auditorium. Maize South High School counselors will also be visiting with all students during the school day right around this time. Class selections will be made in early February.
Connecting during the Holidays
Life can grow especially hectic during the holiday season. As we talk and engage with students, a theme we often hear is that they just want to talk and connect with their families--even if they don’t always act like it. Whatever your holiday traditions include, maybe consider taking time for simple, face-to-face connection with your family. This might include cooking together, playing a board game, taking a walk, or making cards for friends and family. It really doesn’t have to be extravagant--just spend time with each other. Kids and teens tend to open up more when they are engaging in simple, everyday activities.
If you’re looking for things to do in Wichita with your family, Wichita on the Cheap updates their website daily with a variety of activities for families that are inexpensive or free. We wish you all a happy holiday season!
Library Notes
Battle of the Books is in full swing! There is still time to register if your student would like to participate. Students will read 8 books by February 1st and then participate in a trivia game against Maize Middle School. Prizes will be awarded for the winning team! Ask Mrs. Blurton, Ms. Mark, or Mrs. Williams for more information.
Students will be learning about a new audiobook resource in the library this month. If you are interested in free audio books without a library card, visit galaxyaudiobooks.com to check it out!
MSMS PTO
Mark your calendars for December 14th! Make plans for dinner from Freddy’s, to support our Spirit Night from 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm. Don’t forget to mention the school when you order!
Check the PTO website,https://www.msmspto.com, for our new t-shirt option and reduced prices on sweatshirts! MSMS Spirit Wear items make perfect Christmas gifts!
Don’t forget to support the PTO with your Holiday Shopping at Amazon! Select the Maize South Middle School PTO in AmazonSmile and Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to the PTO, at no additional cost to you!. To use AmazonSmile, simply go to smile.amazon.com on your web browser or activate AmazonSmile in the Amazon Shopping app on your iOS or Android phone within the Settings or Programs & Features menu. On your web browser, you can add a bookmark to smile.amazon.com to make it even easier to return and start your shopping with AmazonSmile.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, December 6 at 6:00 pm in the library at MSMS, Enter through the exterior library door, just to the west of the main entrance.. We welcome anyone to join us!! Come help us make a difference for our students and teachers at MSMS!
We want to connect with you. Like us on Facebook at Maize South Middle School PTO. Also, check out our website at www.msmspto.com, and if you need to get in touch with us, you can email us at maizesouthmspto@gmail.com.