Eagle Update December 2019
This is Summit. We are Eagles. We will RISE!
From Mrs. Adams
I hope you enjoyed Thanksgiving and the time with your families. There are three weeks left of the semester before we head into Winter Break. Before the holiday break begins, Summit will be kicking off a "Think Before You Post Campaign." It seems that there has never been a greater need to really educate our students on the dangers of social media posts that are false, hurtful, or unhealthy.
While there are positive aspects to social media, there are responsibilities to consider when providing adolescents access to social media. Parents, please consider this information related to child development and your students' need to connect socially. You know your child better than anyone else, but there are some factors to consider when giving your students access to social media and digital communication.
Think about this: in adolescents the prefrontal cortex of the brain is not fully formed. This is the part of the brain that is associated with reasoning. This area of the brain along with all the brain cell endings are responsible for emotions and impulse control, which are changing rapidly until a person hits his early to mid-20's. It is likely that this could explain the lack of impulse control and emotional regulation that some adolescents experience. This can also explain why social media can be dangerous in the hands of adolescents. Unfortunately, it's all too common for students to send messages through text or social media conveying ideas or messages that they would never share in a face to face interaction. Students often send things as a result of an emotional response. Often, I find it necessary to remind students that when they are emotional, they are not doing their best thinking. Furthermore, for some students texting and social media is like an alternate reality where they never have to be accountable for their comments.
Something else to consider regarding your students' use of social media is the potential negative impacts it can have on their confidence and well-being. In a recent article, the Child Mind Institute referenced a survey conducted by the Royal Society for Public Health that found that "Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram all led to increased feelings of depression, anxiety, poor body image, and loneliness in teenagers" (Ehmke).
It is common knowledge that adolescents place significant value on peer acceptance. This fact complicates adolescent use of social media because adolescents are more inclined to post things that they believe will help them gain peer attention (positive or negative) or popularity.
Here are some parental tips regarding student use of social media:
1. Delay student access to social media.
2. If your student has social media, you need to follow, monitor and be able to access their accounts.
3. Talk to your service provider about ways to regulate the purchase, downloads, and time spent on social media apps on your student's phone.
4. Make sure you are having regular conversations with your student about what they are posting and reading in social media: Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it Inspiring? Is it necessary? Is it kind?
5. Limit screen time. Students will lose track of time. Use a clock or timer.
6. Provide opportunities for your students to interact face-to-face with peers.
7. Spend non-tech time with your student as much as possible.
Please help us this month by talking to your child about the responsibility we all have to think before we post.
Sources
Allen, Arthur. "Risky Behavior by Teens Can be Explained in Part by How Their Brains Change." The Washington Post, 1 Sep 2014, Accessed 1 January 2019.
Ehmke, Rachel. "How Using Social Media Affects Teenagers." Child Mind Institute. Accessed 3 January 2019.
Please talk to your students about the dangers of social media
T- Is it the TRUTH?
H- Is it HELPFUL?
I- Is it INSPIRING?
N- Is it NECESSARY?
K- Is it KIND?
Thankful for a very successful Summit Food Drive
Thank you to all the families that supported your students in participating in the Summit Food Drive. This year Summit collected 12,000 items for the school food pantry. That is twice as many items as collected last year! I am so proud of how eager our students were to give, and I am inspired by their kindness, generosity and the power of their collective effort. Your efforts at home to raise well-rounded, kind, and hard working kids is evident.
Food items collected and sorted by the leadership class
The pantry is full.
Really, really full.
Tips for the end of the semester
- Check your student's academic progress using Infinite Campus and use Canvas for assignment information.
- Ask your students about upcoming assignments, projects and assessments.
- Make every effort to have your student at school daily.
- Remember that students will be taking semester/ unit exams the week before the break. Help your students review for these assessments.
- Email your student's teachers soon if you have concerns or questions.
Eagles of Excellence for December
6th grade
7th grade
8th grade
Pizza Day - Wednesday, December 4th
Raising Cane's Night- Monday, December 9th
Concession- Friday, December 20th
Counselor's Corner- Tis’ The Season for Selfies!
Parents, do you remember back in the day, when one of the most exciting days of school was the first day of school because you had on your new school clothes, your hair was the neatest and you couldn’t wait to see how everyone had changed? Do you remember being excited to rock whatever the latest fad was at school so that all your friends could see how cool you looked, standing at the pencil sharpener? Well, the kids of this generation have no idea of what that feels like because of the millennial phenomenon of the “SELFIE,” which became most popular around 2013. People from grandmothers to United States Presidents join in on selfie-fun, so it is only normal to expect that our teens would want to engage in the fad that seems to only become more intense, but are selfies healthy?
What does it mean when a teen fills the camera roll with endless bathroom selfies? According to Salamon and Brown (2018, p. 2-4), “Social media use among adolescents continues to increase each year”, and in a cross-sectional study, researchers explored how “the amount of time spent using social media and specific behaviors on social media, namely, behaviors that involve self-objectification, were related to adolescents’ body shame…”. Recent studies have found that teens and their use of social media has a direct correlation with negative attitudes about their bodies. Researchers have coined the term “body surveillance." Body surveillance is the “excessive monitoring of the outer appearance, and results in individuals maladaptively paying more attention to how their bodies look [rather] than how their bodies feel."
So, how can we get our teens to pay more attention to how they feel, rather than how they (or their social media followers) look? Here are some tips:
Be mindful of your own interactions on social media and the example that you are setting. (How often are you taking selfies? How often are you on your phone?)
Show an active interest in your teen’s authenticity, personality and inner qualities, and teach them to value those same things in others.
Teach your teen to balance self-acceptance and self-improvement.
Praise the effort over the outcome.
Model self-confidence.
Remember to talk to your child about being safe and being a positive digital citizen while online:
Never give out personal information like your full address, what school you attend, the teams you play on or your address.
Report cyberbullying to an adult as well as to the site where it occurred (every social media site provides the option to ‘Report abuse’)
Remember, the more you post, the more online accounts you create, the LARGER your digital footprint.
Digital posts are virtually immortal.
Tis’ the season to love your “selfie”, inside and out!
References
Salomon, I., & Brown, C. S. (2018). The Selfie Generation: Examining the Relationship Between Social Media Use and Early Adolescent Body Image. The Journal of Early Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431618770809
Students cannot exceed 18 absences for the school year
2nd Annual Duck-Pong Tournament
This year Summit is starting a new tradition. We will be organizing a grade level duck ball and ping pong tournament for students that will take place during their elective classes on Friday, December 20th.
Students will organize their own teams. Each duck ball team will consist of eight players. Duck ball teams must include at least one girl. Summit staff members can participate on student teams. The ping pong tournament is a singles tournament. The cost is two dollars per student to participate in the ping-pong tournament and $15.00 per team for the duck ball tournament. Registration for the tournament begins Wednesday, December 4th and ends Tuesday, December 17th. Registration forms will be provided to students in their homeroom class, and completed forms along with registration money can be turned into the front office.
Participants and spectators will have access to our concession stand for drinks and treats.
Did you miss the opt-in to receive text messages from the school?
Did you miss the opt-in invitation to receive text messages about school cancellations, safety alerts and more?
If so, text the words "opt in" (NO HYPHEN )to shortcode 67587. Make sure your phone number is on file with Infinite Campus or you will not receive text messages.
For frequently asked questions about this service, go to https://edmondschools.net/parents-students/communication/
December Calendar
Monday December 2nd
4:30/6:30 7th/8th Girls Basketball @ Summit
5:30/7:30 7th/8th Boys Basketball @ Summit
Wednesday, December 4th
Pizza Day - students may buy pizza during lunch for $1.00 per slice
Friday, December 6th
6:30 Summit Winter Orchestra Concert @ Santa Fe High School
Saturday, December 7th
8:00 - 1:00 7th/8th JV Girls Basketball @ Heartland
8:00 - 1:00 7th/8th JV Boys Basketball @ Summit
Monday, December 9th
Raising Cane’s Summit night - buy dinner @ Cane’s to benefit Summit
4:30/6:30 7th/8th Girls Basketball vs Yukon @ Summit
5:30/7:30 7th/8th Boys Basketball vs Yukon @ Summit
Friday, December 13th
8:30 - 10:30 The Talk (8th grade)
10:45 - 2:30 Choir Caroling Trip to Elementary Schools
Saturday, December 14th
VEX IQ Blackwell Conference @ Blackwell OK
8:00 - 1:00 7th/8th Boys JV Basketball @ North
8:00 - 1:00 7th/8th Girls JV Basketball @ Santa Fe
Monday, December 16th
4:30/6:30 7th/8th Girls Basketball vs Mustang Central @ Mustang Central
5:30/7:30 7th/8th Boys Basketball vs Mustang Central @ Mustang Central
Tuesday, December 17th
12:30 Super Sac @ Memorial
7:00 pm Winter Choral Concert 7th/8th Grade @ Summit
Thursday, December 19th
TSA Cookie Decorating Party
7:30 pm Winter Band Concert @ Santa Fe
Friday, December 20th
Duck Pong Tournament - Concessions sold for 1.00 a piece during tournament
9:00 - 2:00 - 8th Grade Orchestra Caroling @ Elementary School
Monday, December 23rd - January 6th WINTER BREAK NO SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!
Summit Middle School
Website: summit.edmondschools.net/
Location: 1703 Northwest 150th Street, Edmond, OK, USA
Phone: (405)340-2920
Facebook: facebook.com/summitmiddlschool