Valley Middle School
May/June Newsletter
*PLEASE CONTINUE TO CHECK THIS NEWSLETTER AS IT MAY BE UPDATED DAILY*
FROM THE OFFICE OF THE PRINCIPAL:
Attention Valley Families:
As I sent out in an earlier communication, I will be leaving Valley at the end of the year. I leave with great fondness of my time here. Wonderful people surrounded me in the likes of staff, students, and families. So many highlights come to mind. I have 37 years in education and the 7 years here have contributed positively to my career.
Most of the positions I highlighted earlier have been filled. And I am very excited and confident in the hires we made. Next year we will be adding a 3rd Dean of Students to allow those staff to concentrate their time with a certain grade level. We see this as a huge positive. Additionally, we will be adding three new positions. They include an additional .5 social worker, a .4 restorative practices position that is housed right here inside Valley, and a security officer (similar to what the high schools have) that will monitor entrance to the building and sweep the building during class time to ensure students are where they belong. All of these positions are essential to bring safety, compliance, support, and order to the building.
In closing,I wish you the very best for your child and his/her education. I bid farewell with a warm spot in my heart for Valley Middle School.
Warm regards,
Todd Selk
Go Royals!
IMPORTANT INFORMATION IN THIS NEWSLETTER:
Important Dates
Attendance Line / School Hours / Office Hours
Student Transportation / myschoolbucks.com / Water Bottles & Water Fountain
End of Year Letter
2022-2023 GFPS District Calendar
Summer Basketball Camp & League Info
GF Central Knight Youth Football Camp
Hello from the Mentor Center
ParentsLead
School Social Worker Corner
Eagles News
Mustangs News
Attachments
IMPORTANT DATES:
May/June
- May 18: Early Release Day 1:00 p.m.
- May 18: Middle School Band Solo/Ensemble Festival @ UND 9:00a.m.-12:00 p.m.
- May 19: Character Challenge (Eagles Team)
- May 20: Character Challenge (Mustangs Team)
- May 23: 6th Grade Track Meet
- May 24: Choir Concert (Large Gym) 7:00 p.m.-8:15 p.m
- May 26: Orchestra Concert (Large Gym) 7:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.
- May 30: NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day)
- June 1: 8th Grade Awards 2:00 p.m.-3:30 p.m. (More info to come for awards recipients)
- June 2: LAST DAY OF SCHOOL
Attendance Line: (701) 746-2326
8:40 - 3:30
- School begins at 8:40 a.m. and ends at 3:30 p.m. (Band and Orchestra start at 7:50 a.m.).
- Breakfast starts at 7:45 a.m.
- Students should exit the building by 3:45 p.m. unless they prearrange a meeting with a teacher or are involved with music, sports practice, or remain in assigned areas.
7:45 - 4:00
Once school begins, our front doorbell (door #7) should be rung for visitor access. All doors are locked for security.
Student Transportation
myschoolbucks.com
Water Bottles & Water Fountain
END OF YEAR LETTER:
2022-2023 GFPS DISTRICT CALENDAR:
SUMMER BASKETBALL CAMP & LEAGUE INFO:
GF CENTRAL KNIGHT YOUTH FB CAMP:
PARENTSLEAD:
Get to know your child's friends and their families
An advantage to getting to know the parents/guardians of your child's friends is that you will know the kind of people that are influencing your child. Also, by getting to know their families, you can verify your child's statements when he or she says, "All my friends get to do it." Most importantly, connecting with the families of your child's friend will help form a safety net for your child because you can help supervise each other's children and look out for their safety. It is common in small towns for everyone to know everyone even through generations! Here are several ways you meet other families: set playdates, arrange to share driving for after-school activities, volunteer at your child's school, join PTO, attend community activities, attend sporting events or other social gatherings, etc.
ASSISTANCE OPPORTUNITIES FOR FAMILIES IN NEED:
St. Joseph's Social Care:
https://stjosephssocialcaregf.org/programs.php#:~:text=for%20your%20family.-,St.,free%20lunches%2C%20no%20questions%20asked.
Helping Hands Youth Volunteer Program:
https://www.gfschools.org/Page/326
The Summer Performing Arts Company:
GF Parks Youth Programs:
https://www.gfparks.org/programs-activities/youth/
FREE Plant Fitness Membership for Teens This Summer:
https://hip2save.com/deals/planet-fitness-membership/Cross School Collaboration!
Mrs. Bollman's 7th grade Life skills teamed up with Ms. Finger's kindergartener class for a special project! The kindergarteners colored monsters while the 7th graders made them come to life with their sewing skills to make felt monster stuffies! They were delivered to the class by Hailey Chesoli, Chris Reed, and Hope Ferry. The 7th graders learned how to sew on a button, the running stitch, and the whip stitch. Job well done!
EAGLES NEWS:
Eagles parents/gaurdians,
In the last "month" with our 8th Graders, we are planning lots of exciting activities! We will be having one final Donut Day in RT, preparing for Character Challenge Course on May 19th, and recognizing fabulous students at the 8th Grade Awards Ceremony. It all leads up to the final day of school, where we'll put the students' knowledge to the test in the annual Knowledge Bowl against the Mustang team, and battle it out in the Civil War Reenactment Water balloon fight!
We've enjoyed getting to know and build relationships with these great 8th graders and are excited to see them take their next steps in high school!
Go Royals!
MUSTANG NEWS:
Mustang parents/guardians,
We are in the final stretch! A reminder the Mustang team has the Character Challnege Course trip scheduled for Friday 20th. We leave at 6am from Valley. Students have been given permission and liability forms (green and yellow paper) These are due back ASAP. Please reach out with any questions or concerns. Below, you will find a brief synopsis of what teachers are currently covering in their classrooms.
Tech and Engineering
We have been charging ahead with Robotics this month. We are just completing building and testing the basic mechanisms and will begin building prototype push/pull toys. We will get to coding mid month and hopefully create some remote control balloon battle bots!
Science
In Science class we are wrapping up our chapter on volcanoes and earthquakes. To end the year we will spend two weeks on weathering and erosion, and finish off the school year learning how to identify various types of rocks. The hope is to do as much hands-on learning as possible to keep the kids locked in to end the year.
Team Reminders:
Please continually check-in with your child and encourage them to communicate with teachers, as needed. Assignments are never intended to cause hours and hours of work and/or frustration. We have several supports in place that students can take advantage of. Students can:
email teachers
leave private comments in Google Classroom
come in for help before school starts (8:00-8:30)
stay for help after school ends (3:30-4:00)
request help during lunch
and, perhaps most importantly, pay close attention to class instruction, and use given practice and work time intentionally
Students who have a 0 for a grade in PowerSchool have been informed that their grade can be updated upon completion of that work. Zeroes are not permanent unless no work is done. Additionally, students can talk with teachers about opportunities to re-do assignments, projects, tests, etc.
As always, we are excited to have your child as a Mustang! Please do not hesitate to reach out to us with further questions/concerns.
ATTACHMENTS:
- GFPS Parent and Family Engagement Policy
- Medication At School Form
- Medication Authorization Form
- District Calendar
- Dispute Resolution Policy 2021-2022