IHMS Weekly News
September 2 - 9, 2022
Upcoming IHMS Events
Monday, 09/05:
School/Office Closed - Labor Day
Tuesday, 09/06:
- N/A
Wednesday, 09/07:
- Jr. Board 7:45 am
- 7th Grade Suicide Awareness Presentations (by team)
- Board Game Club Rm 25 3:45 pm
- Volleyball @ HG 5:00 pm
Thursday, 09/08:
- PLC Late Start Thursday (school begins at 9:19 a.m.)
- 8th Grade Suicide Awareness Presentations (by team)
- Chess Club Rm 240 3:45pm
Friday, 09/09:
Wrestling Student Mtg during Knight Time
Upcoming Events:
09/13: Keeping Kids Safe Online 6:00 pm IHMS Library
09/14: Volleyball @ IH vs TR 5:00 pm
09/14: XC Meet @ SMNW 5:15 pm
09/15: Wrestling Parent Mtg 6:30 pm
09/16: Cheer Club Mtg 8:00 am
09/16: Lancer Day
09/19: Volleyball vs. IW @ IH 5:00pm
09/20: Choir Concert 7:00pm
09/21: Jr. Board Parent Mtg 7:30am
09/21: Volleyball @ WR 5:00pm
09/22: XC Meet @ IW 5:15pm
=============================================
Section 1: Important IHMS Information
=============================================
Suicide Prevention Week is 9/6 - 9/9: Student Services Update
Next week is Suicide Prevention Week in Shawnee Mission School District. All Indian Hills students will attend a presentation from Dr. Julie Connor who is a local youth mental health consultant and public speaker. She is also a trainer for the Sources of Strength program that we implement as a building-wide social emotional wellness initiative.
Our 7th graders will attend the presentation on Wednesday, September 7th and our 8th graders will attend on the 8th. The students will also have ongoing activities throughout the week at lunch and in Knight Time. We are working on a Parent Night for this topic for later in the school year but if you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to our IHMS Student Services team! Thank you for your support during such an important week for our community.
=============================================
The Knights' Walk: Our One and Only Fundraiser - Friday, September 30
Online registration for The Knights’ Walk is now LIVE!
Your student won’t want to miss this fun afternoon full of friends, music, games, and prizes. The Knights’ Walk is our one and only fundraiser for the year, and it takes place during the school day so every student can participate.
Sign Up is easy! Just click here to register and choose your level of donation.
https://form.jotform.com/222055550234143
All students will get to participate in the walk around the campus regardless of whether their parents, friends, or family members donate. However, your student can unlock additional fun through donations.
Money raised will be spent this year to benefit your student and IHMS teachers!
Our goal is to raise $50,000 to fund items from the list below (and more!):
- Instructional and Classroom grants: Equipment and items that enhance classroom learning. This includes flexile classroom seating for students, creating flexible learning spaces throughout the building, updating classroom and building signage and club supplies to list a few.
- Outdoor learning areas as well as security and school ground improvements: Outdoor classroom learning spaces, Outdoor HONOR café, outdoor space overhead coverings, and more.
- Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS), which fund student raffles, wheel prizes, school store inventory, and many other student appreciation and rewards throughout the year! This also includes school spirit building with funding for our quarter celebration assemblies and the hopeful purchase of a school mascot.
Register early to enter your student into drawings for prizes - like $5 and $10 gift cards to local hangouts, SME spirit wear, and more - throughout the registration period!
Want to volunteer? Be sure to check out next week’s newsletter for opportunities to help before and during the event.
Thank you in advance for your support!
=============================================
Save The Date: Keeping Kids Safe Online Parent Presentation - 6:00 p.m. on 09/13/22 in the IHMS Library
We are hosting the Sunflower House parent presentation: Keeping Kids Safe Online.
Learn more about the possible dangers of internet usage, practical safety tips and tools as well as the cyber crime reporting process. This 1-hour presentation is for parents and caregivers on child sexual abuse awareness in our community, safety tips and effective methods to take with children about personal safety.
=============================================
Student Online Safety Presentations: 9/20 and 9/21 During School Day
Sunflower House is coming to share an online safety presentation: E-Safety: Online and Technology Safety with our students, 8th Grade on 9/20, and 7th grade on 9/21. They will share the risks and dangers students may face online. As well as giving them some practical tips to stafe safe, healthy and happy online.
For more information check out our E-Safety Parent Letter.
=============================================
Does Your Student Plan to Attend a Home Athletic Event? Please Read!
Student who are wanting to attend IHMS home athletic events will need to check-in after school in the cafeteria at 3:50 to join the Knight Nation Spirit Squad. Students will sign in with the supervising teacher (student ID required) and will have time for homework completion, spirit poster creation, and a variety of other after school activities. If a student has after school clubs or activities that they are attending on game days, they will report to the office so they can be sent to the Knight Nation Spirit Squad check in location.
Students who do not attend the after school Knight Nation Spirit Squad will be unable to attend the athletic event without guardian supervision.
Game Day Reminders:
Once a student leaves the building, they will not be readmitted unless they are under the supervision of a guardian.
Food is not to be ordered to/delivered to the school.
A light after school snack is appropriate for the student to pack along with a water bottle
Click here to see important athletic dates
=============================================
Mark Your Calendars - Late Start is Every Thursday
Thank you to our wonderful community that successfully navigated our first Thursday PLC late start! From here on out, each school-day Thursday through 4/27/22 will begin with 1st hour at 9:19 a.m. Please note that one of two options are available to you each week (see below):
Option 1 (preferred by school and likely preferred by your student):
- Frankly, for your student, it will likely be better for them to take advantage of a little extra sleep and arrive around 9:10 a.m. for our first hour beginning at 9:19 a.m. each Thursday. However, we realize this is not feasible for all families. If you cannot take advantage of the late start, or find a Thursday car-pool, walk, or bike option that works for your family, a second option exists. See below.
Option 2:
- Each Thursday, bus pickups and routes will continue to run on the same daily schedule, and students will still be able to enter the school at 8:20 a.m.
- If your student must arrive to school at the normal time because your family cannot feasibly make late start Thursday transportation work, they will be split by grade level and housed in of our larger spaces (e.g. gymnasium, cafeteria, etc.).
- These larger spaces will be supervised each week by a rotating group of teachers, but your student will need to bring a book, homework, etc. because they will not be released to the hallways until 9:10 a.m. Students would be allowed to appropriately use their cell phones during this time if they bring them.
What does the Thursday schedule look like?
The only difference in the schedule each Thursday from 9/1/22 - 4/27/23 is that we do not start at 8:45 a.m. with Knight Time like every other day of the week. Instead, we start with 1st hour at 9:19 a.m. The schedule is pictured below:
=============================================
Section 2: Still Relevant From Previous Weeks
=============================================
Picking Your Student Up During School? Heads Up!
Appointment Pick-ups:
There will likely be a time during the school year that you will need to take your child out of school for an appointment (doctor, dentist, etc.). To make your pick-up run smoothly, please note the following protocol at IHMS. This protocol is in place to preserve both the safety of our students and a disruption-free learning environment.- Call our attendance line at the beginning of the day to report the appointment time. Be sure to include your name, your student's name, and what the nature of your student's absence will be (e.g. doctor's appt.).
- Park your vehicle and then enter the IHMS front office to pick up your student.
- Your student will meet you in the front office and you can check out with the front desk secretaries.
Although the protocol is simple to follow, many forget step 1 - notifying the school ahead of time. Notifying us of the pick-up time in advance allows us to load our appointment pass for your student into the eHallpass system. This notifies our teachers (who check appt. passes only at the beginning of each class period) that a student will be leaving their classroom at the designated time and prevents classroom disruptions for calling into classrooms continuously.
If you accidentally forget to call in advance and show up to the school without prior notification, we will retrieve your student by calling into the class, but only one time per school year. A second instance of a pick-up without prior notification will result in your student not being called out of class until the next passing period. Keep in mind this protocol is for preplanned appointments - we understand family emergencies may require flexibility.
Sick Student Pick-ups:
Please keep in mind that any student who becomes sick at school needs to be attended to by our school's registered nurse. If your student communicates with you that they feel ill, please direct them to go to the school nurse. If the student's pick-up from school is not medically and/or statutorily necessary based on the nurse's evaluation (e.g. a minor stomachache), the student will remain in school and return to class when they are able. If, by parent preference, you decide to take your student out after our nurse has cleared the student for a return to class, our attendance clerks will mark the first absence as a parent requested absence, but only one time per school year. A second instance would result in an unexcused absence from school.
=============================================
Important Nursing Updates!
Immunizations:
We need updated IMMUNIZATIONS!!
If you have not already, please send updated immunizations your student may have received to the nurse’s office so we can update Skyward. As a reminder, incoming seventh graders are required to have the Tdap booster along with the Meningococcal-Serogroup A,C,W,Y (MenACWY) vaccine. If they have an appointment to get those vaccinations, we would appreciate knowing that as well.
Students contacting parents about not feeling well:
Parents – If your student has texted you to go home because they aren’t feeling well, remind them that they need to visit the nurse’s office before going home. Please speak to Nurse Sonja Radtke (913-993-0407) before coming to Indian Hills to pick up your student.
Extra clothing:
Pack extra clothes - - Stuff happens! Plan ahead. We have had a number of students request a change of clothing and our supply is very limited. Students are welcome to keep extra clothes in their locker or backpack. We recommend extra layers as well.
Daily medication drop-off:
Daily medications can be dropped off at our office in the original prescription bottle with your student’s name. EPI pens and Emergency inhalers can be dropped off OR kept with the student in their locker or pencil bag. The appropriate forms must be filled out from your physician. Check out our Health Services Website for more information or feel free to email me.
https://www.smsd.org/about/departments/health-services
Sonja Radtke
913-993-0407
=============================================
Individual Plans of Study Through Xello
Our students began to work on their Individual Plan of Study in Xello this week. The IPS is not only a product, but also a process employed by the school to help students think about possible college and career options and opportunities. The purpose is to assist students as they explore areas of interest and how those areas intersect with possible career choices.
=============================================
Late Bus Monday - Thursday Each Week
Our IHMS late Bus began on 08/26. Any IHMS student who lives within the IHMS attendance area has access to the late bus after attending after-school clubs, activities, or Academic Learning Lab. This includes those students that do not regularly ride a bus to and from school.
Your student will need to be issued a late bus pass from the club sponsor or the teacher hosting A.L.L. in order for after-school transportation. The late bus boards each day at 4:40 in the front circle drive.
=============================================
Back to School Knight Resources
The linked BTSK document contains QR codes that direct you to the information provided by the school on Thursday evening.
Whether you attended the event or not, please take two minutes to fill out the feedback form linked here.
=============================================
YES Club Wants You!
YES is a wonderful opportunity for our Indian Hills students to give back to their communities and to take part in some very rewarding experiences. YES Club is more than just doing community service to accrue service hours. It is a way to practice care, compassion and empathy - traits that will help them succeed both now and later in every area of their life.
Consider signing up for some events by clicking the picture below or visiting the linked document.
=============================================
IHMS Wrestling Information
Indian Hills Wrestling is open to all 7th and 8th grade boys and girls. We are hosting a Parent and Athlete Information meeting on September 15th at 6:30 pm, in the IHMS cafeteria. There will be a Student Information Meeting on September 9th, during Knight Time. Practice will begin on September 19th.
Practice will be held Monday through Friday. Meets will take place at the Shawnee Mission high schools. Here is our Meet Schedule.
All athletes will need to complete their athletic paperwork, physical, and concussion forms before our first practice. These documents can be found here. Make sure they are turned into the front office before 9/16.
Sign-up for more information on the Parent Contact Form.
Check out our website for more information: IHMS Wrestling Website
=============================================
=============================================
Academic Learning Lab (A.L.L.) begins 9/6
Academic Learning Lab begins on September 6th.
Click here to learn more about A.L.L.=============================================
Battle of the Books Club Information
=============================================
22-23 PTA Membership: Please Join Us!
NEW…Indian Hills PTA Directory and Website!
For the ‘22-‘23 school year, we have a NEW online directory and website called Membership Toolkit. Our secure site will allow you to:
Purchase your PTA Membership and make a donation
Access the secure online directory for students, family, and faculty information (PTA Membership required)
View the School Calendar
Signup up for school events and clubs
Get started today by clicking HERE!!
Register and create an account on our new website. Once you create your account, you have the power to decide what information is shared on the directory accessible ONLY to other registered IH parents.
Our directory will only be as useful as YOU make it. We need each of you to register to help us build a stronger community network for parents and students.
Also with your account, you can download the Membership Toolkit app from the App Store or Google Play. This gives you quick access to the directory when your kiddo texts from a new friend’s house!
Betsy Ballard - betsysballard@gmail.com
Summer Henry - summer.henry@gmail.com
IHMS PTA Co-Presidents: ‘22-‘23
Questions? Email the PTA at PTAIndianHills@gmail.com
=============================================
Section 3: Important SME Area Information
=============================================
Symphonic Stinky Feet and the SME Band
Kids of all ages, Come out for an exciting evening with Mr. Stinky Feet & the Shawnee Mission East Band! There will be carnival activities, food & live performance!
When: Friday, September 30, 2022: 5:30 pm- 7:30 pm
- 5:30 - 6:30 Family Activities / Instrument Petting / Dinner and Concessions / Raffle and ticket sales/ Face Painting
6:30-7:30 Concert / Raffle
Where: Shawnee Mission East High School - Auditorium
What: Family-friendly event supporting SME Band's trip to London for 2023 New Year’s Day Parade! Tickets $10 for adults and $5 for kids.
=============================================
Section 4: Mainstay News
=============================================
IHMS Communication Flow
Now that we are back in school, it is of note that we have a specific communication chain for parents to follow. IHMS has been, and continues to be, one of the two largest middle schools in the entire county depending on the year (we flip-flop with Westridge as the largest from time to time). This means it is important to have a solid communication plan so that your questions can be answered quickly and efficiently.
Many parents have reached out directly to IH administration in the past few weeks and noticed that it may take more than 24 hours for us to respond. Although our goal is always communication back within 24 hours, this is not always possible because our first priority is to your students in attendance at school. In addition, with only two administrators in the building for approximately 950 students and staff, we want to ensure you are able to get the information you need when you need it. To ensure the quickest and most efficient communication, please review and adhere to the contact guidelines below:
1. Mass communication from IHMS:
- Mass communication will come each Friday or Saturday in the form of the IHMS Weekly News. This is an important review for your family each week as it outlines specific events, newsworthy, and/or action-oriented items relevant to IHMS.
- There are times throughout the week a stand-alone email may be sent via a Skyward blast - especially if an important event is taking place or if important information must be shared. You have already seen this in practice (e.g.Tuesday when I sent a reminder about the ice cream social).
2. Absences:
- Please communicate absences through attendance personnel. Avoid emailing administration or student services directly to ensure absences are properly recorded.
- Call in your student's absence - including date(s) and nature of the absence - to the school attendance line: (913) 993-0412. In order for the absence to be excused, it must fall under one of the six board of education approved reasons (BOE policy JBD). Unexcused absences will be recorded for any other absence reported (or not reported).
- Do not email attendance personnel to report an absence unless absolutely necessary. However, if you need to provide documentation, ask a question, or receive prior administrative approval for an absence, you can email our attendance clerk Kerri Brisendine: kerribrisendine@smsd.org and our educational aide Constance Eddy: constanceeddy@smsd.org.
3. Grades/Classroom Questions/Issues:
- Please email your student's teacher directly for all questions/issues related to grades and/or the classroom.
- Staff email addresses can be found on our school website (click link).
- Avoid emailing administration and/or student services with issues that have not been problem solved at the classroom level first unless extenuating circumstances merit direct contact (safety issues, etc.).
4. General Contact Guidelines:
- The chart below provides parents with a general contact chart they can utilize to ensure communication remains streamlined in all circumstances.
=============================================
Give us a Follow
=============================================
IHMS Peace Corner
The IHMS Student Services team has created a virtual calming room (click link) for students, staff and families to access in times of need.
We know that stress and anxiety can be high at times. This IHMS Peace Corner has videos and activities to help manage stress, calm down strong feelings and build resiliency. We hope that this will be another resource for our families to navigate this unusual school year. You can also find this page on our Student Services tab at https://indianhills.smsd.org/.
=============================================
e-Read Access Through IHMS
=============================================
Mental Health Support Option
Parents and Guardians, if your student is in need of mental health support, and you are unable to pay, there may be relief available to you. Please visit the following link to see if you could qualify for assistance from COVID Cares Act relief funds through Johnson County Mental Health. https://jocogov.org/dept/mental-health/accessing-services/covid-19-relief-funds