The Cyclone Watch
December 2019
Principal Updates
Wednesday: Math Finals
Thursday: PE/Health and World Languages Finals
Friday: PE/Health and World Languages Finals
We were planning on administering our second round of iReady testing on Thursday and Friday. The testing will be postponed until January. As for activities, evening events for this Tuesday will go on as scheduled. There have been a few alterations to the schedules. Coaches or Directors will be communicating throughout the day regarding changes. Make sure to be checking your email and the JMS web page.
We have had a very successful first semester. It has been exciting to pilot our new STEAM electives. To facilitate the integration of project based learning throughout our classrooms. We are excited to be starting our journey in becoming a STEAM school. It is a great time to be a Cyclone!
Media Center
We have BOOKS! Thanks to the generosity of our JMS families, the media center book fair was a whopping success. We were able to add over $600 dollars of books to our media center, English and various STEAM classrooms. We also recently purchased requested books from our student list. Please send your student to the media center for a great read for our upcoming breaks.
The media center continues to energize our students before school. We have added a jigsaw puzzle to our mix and it has become a popular table for students to gather. Once finished the puzzle will be framed and displayed in the media center. We still have our Connect 4, Uno, Tic Tac Toe, and Legos for students to do while they wait in the media center before their school day starts.
We have many students who gather and play cards, draw and just sit and read. The media center is a place for all. Please encourage your student to check out the diverse choices the media center has in the morning. Students who have printing needs or need a book can find these in the media center as well. Our group is a happy group.
Ipads at JMS
The JMS staff wants to remind families that the district issued iPads need to come to school charged EVERY DAY. We are seeing a lot of iPads at school that do not have the necessary charge for students to do their school work. Recently our staff voted to take student iPads that do not have the keyboards on them. The keyboard not only serves to enhance the educational functionality of the iPad but it also protects the screen. Replacing the keyboard is a $50 cost. All keyboards have student names attached with stickers. While reminding your student to charge their iPad, please check that their keyboard has a sticker on it.
Book Club
JMS book club met on November 21 to get our books selected for our upcoming breaks. We meet each month, have snacks and we read/discuss our books. We like hanging out with each other and enjoy reading. We are a low key reading group. Students bring their books to each of our club meetings. We will meet again in January in the media center right after school. Questions? Mrs. Kiley in the media center is the sponsor.
Sixth Grade Update!
Math 6:
In Math 6 with Ms. Urie, Mrs. Boggs, and Ms. Cooper, students have been working through their Integer Unit. Throughout this unit students are comparing and ordering integers, solving for absolute values and opposites, plotting ordered pairs on coordinate grids, and reflecting polygons. They’re test will be on Tuesday Nov. 19th. After the test, the students will work independently on a project to practice skills from the Integers Unit. This project is called a Timeline Project and it will show events that happened before and after each students’ birthday. Next unit we will be learning about ratios. Students will learn how to write ratios, set up proportions, solve for unit rate, and solve percent proportions.
Advanced Math 6:
In Advanced Math 6 with Ms. Urie and Mrs. Boggs, students have been working through their Accentuate the Negative (Rational Numbers) unit. During this unit they learned how to add, subtract, multiply and divide rational numbers, solve and graph inequalities, plot ordered pairs on a coordinate grid, and solve for absolute value. Students will also complete a rational numbers project where they created a Board Game! This project assesses their skills on adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing rational numbers. Next unit we will be learning about rates, ratios, conversions, and proportions in our Comparing Bits and Pieces unit.
Science:
In Science class, the students have begun their Force and Motion Unit. They will be using their knowledge of Newton’s Laws to relate to daily life. The Force and Motion Test will be December 12th with test corrections on December 13th. Please have all Science work completed and turned in before the test and test corrections completed by December 18th. After the test we will begin our next unit, Energy.
Social Studies:
We are in the midst of our Mesopotamia Unit. For this unit, students are pretending to be spies that get sent back in time to investigate what made this first civilization so great. Instead of a test for this unit, students will be creating a podcast to tell everyone what they learned. We will also be doing other mini projects throughout the unit.
In December we will be teaching a unit on western religion. We will be comparing the religions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam in several ways: The brief history of each, the people central to each religion, religious texts and the houses of worship used by each group. The purpose of this unit is to teach factual information that illustrates the similarities and differences between each of the western religions. It is in no way intended to be a lesson in beliefs or morality. With so many U.S. current events centering on the conflicts in the Middle East, we feel it necessary to provide students a framework of basic knowledge about each religion so that our study of that region can be more meaningful. This unit is endorsed by both the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Grade Level Expectations, and Columbia Public Schools. As always, we will never force a student to remain in an uncomfortable situation. Please discuss this with your child and let us know if you have any questions or concerns.
Choir News
Upcoming Choir Events
December 19 starting at 12:30pm – 7th Grade Choir trip to see “Wicked” at The Fox Theatre in St. Louis (returning ~12:30am)
NOTES FROM THE NURSE
Since the cold and flu season is upon us, here is a reference from the Columbia Public Schools student handbook to help you decide if your child should attend school. To decrease the spread of potential communicable diseases, students exhibiting symptoms of impending illness will be sent home from school. Factors considered before sending students home are the effect of symptoms on their ability to be productive at school and/or a temperature of 100 degrees or greater. Students SHOULD NOT come to school if during the PREVIOUS 24 HOURS they exhibit ANY of the following symptoms: (1) a temperature of 100 degrees or greater, (2) vomiting or diarrhea, (3) an unusual or unexplained rash, (4) a persistent cough, (5) ongoing symptoms of discomfort or immobility from an injury. Students with communicable diseases should have a release from their doctor to return to school. Please remember to notify the attendance secretary each day that your student will be absent. Common communicable diseases in school include:
· Chicken Pox (Varicella)
· Conjunctivitis (Pink Eye)
· Fifth’s Disease
· Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD)
· Impetigo
· Scabies
IS IT A COLD OR INFLUENZA?
Cold Symptoms: Runny or stuffy nose, itchy or sore throat, cough, congestion, slight body aches or a mild headache, sneezing, watery eyes, low-grade fever, mild fatigue.
Flu Symptoms: Fever over 100 F (38 C), aching muscles, especially in your back, arms and legs, chills and sweats, headache, dry, persistent cough, fatigue and weakness, nasal congestion, sore throat.
REMEMBER: The staff are not allowed to dispense Tylenol, Ibuprofen, cough drops, or cold medication without a prescription from the doctor. However, Middle School students are allowed to carry ONE daily dose of these over the counter medications as long as it is in the manufacturer’s original container. Please place a pain reliever in your students’ purse or backpack. Many times, a student must call a parent to bring medication to them at school when they could carry it themselves.
Thank you for your help in keeping Jefferson Middle School a healthy and safe environment for all of our faculty and students.
8th GRADE IMMUNIZATIONS
It is not too early to consider getting the required vaccines for your student. All incoming 8th graders require a Tdap (adult tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis booster) and meningitis vaccine before they start school in August. These can be given any time after age 10 and will fulfill this state of Missouri requirement. Be sure to give written proof of vaccine to the health room staff.
Happy Holidays from
Betty Cramer, RN, BSN, School Nurse, and Shawna Volkart, Health Secretary
New Phone Number? Please notify the school secretary to update contact information