Panther Pulse
January 21, 2022
News from Parcells Middle School
Greetings Panther families! The weekly Panther Pulse from Parcells Middle School appears below. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Ken Milch, Principal
Debbie Redlin, Assistant Principal
Samantha McGrath, Assistant Principal
Yearbooks!
Additional copies of the 2021-2022 Parcells Yearbook are now available for purchase. Be sure to reserve yours for $30. Order your book by clicking on this link. Parcells Yearbook
Congratulations to the winners of our Yearbook Cover Art Contest! All three students will receive a free yearbook! Special thanks to Ms. Hughes and Ms. Leslie for organizing the contest and to all of their art students who participated!
Family and Consumer Sciences
It’s hard to say goodbye. We had a blast in Foods this semester, and Life Skills this quarter. Students learned a lot and gained independence in the kitchen! We wrapped up our semester in Foods with Cupcake Wars. I was so impressed with the effort of all of the groups, and want to congratulate all students for a job well done! Thank you for a great start to the year!
If your student is heading off to HS, please check out the Family and Consumer Science Course Offerings. We would love to have your student continue their culinary journey with us! Please let me know if you have any questions about FCS courses for MS or HS.
Here’s what we made this week- Microwave Lava Cakes, Parmesan PotatoesAdvisory
5th grade: In this week’s lesson, your child practiced breaking down situations that feel big and unmanageable into smaller, more manageable pieces. They also practiced identifying a small change someone could make to manage their strong emotions the next time a situation occurs. Try this at home: Tell your child about a recurring situation in your life that typically causes you to feel a strong emotion, like stress or anger. Ask your child what you can change to make the situation better, and why they would suggest that change.
6th grade: In this week’s lesson, your child learned how to view situations from multiple perspectives so they can better avoid and resolve conflicts. To reinforce this idea, try telling your child about a time when your view of a conflict changed because you were able to see it from another person’s perspective. Ask your child if they have changed their view about a conflict lately.
7th grade: During this week’s advisory, seventh graders participated in adolescent health education.
8th grade: In this week’s lesson, your child practiced viewing conflicts from multiple perspectives to keep conflicts from escalating. To strengthen this skill, try telling your child about a time when your view of a conflict changed because you were able to see it from another person’s perspective. Ask your child if they have changed their view of a conflict lately.
6th Grade News
We have four solid weeks before mid-winter break and we plan to pack them full of curriculum. Much of that curriculum will be completed using computers. The school procedure to “borrow” a device is changing. As always, all students are expected to have a charged device at all times as part of our BYOD policy. This means a charging cord is essential. Starting soon, depending on limited availability, students may be able to check out a school device for emergency situations between 8:00 and 8:15 from the library. Students without devices in class will be at a disadvantage and may have additional at home work to complete. If a student is unable to complete an assessment due to not having a device, individual arrangements will need to be made which may include 7th hour testing. Please avoid these pitfalls by making sure your child has a charged device and cord each day. We appreciate your help with this.
7th Grade Adolescent Health Notice
Unfortunately, we were not able to complete the Seventh grade Adolescent Health Education (AHE) during the two advisory sessions (1/22 and 1/18). A third date (3/25) has been added.
Topics covered will include puberty, pregnancy and childbirth, HIV and AIDS and Michigan law and consent. Parents who wish to review the curriculum may do so by contacting the main office to schedule a review appointment.
AHE teachers are asking for your partnership in preparing your student for the material covered and also the combined male and female class setting. We ask you to please discuss these topics with your student often and be sure to ask them what they learned in class during the AHE lesson.
If your student was “opted-out” of Adolescent Health Education during the registration process, they will be assigned to an alternate location during the periods of instruction.
Thank you!
Counseling
Ms. Gina Hawkins,counselor for students with last names A-K.
Mrs. Carla Palffy (L-Z). Here is a link to our Parcells Counseling page.
Parcells School Counselors are beginning the process of 2022-23 Course Registration. If you click on the Parcells Counseling link above, it will direct you to the page where you can find ALL registration materials for each grade level. In each grade level link you will find a copy of our presentations, parent letter, timeline, downloadable Course Selection sheet, GPPS Program of studies, and honors criteria.
Rising Freshman (Current 8th) - Student presentation in Science classes 1/12 Parent Presentation 1/13 Brownell 6:30pm (livestream link available)
Rising 8th graders (Current 7th) - Student presentation in Science classes Feb 15 (Gulyas) Feb 16 (Maison)
Rising 7th graders (Current 6th)- Student presentation in Science classes Feb 8 (Nyenhuis) Feb 9th (Schultz)
Rising 6th graders (Current 5th) - Student presentation in Science classes Feb 1 (Hool) Feb 2nd (Shirar)
Rising 5th graders (Current 4th) - Student presentations Ferry 1/13 & Mason/Monteith 1/14. Parent Presentation 1/11 Parcells 6:30pm (recorded presentation available on site.
Parcells Middle School is a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) school. Click here for information about BYOD. At Parcells, chromebooks are available for students who demonstrate financial need. Please email your counselor to receive the required paperwork. All information will be kept confidential.
Performing Arts
6th, 7th and 8th grade choirs are preparing music for choral festival. Students are rising to the challenge of singing in multiple parts (soprano, alto, baritone) in languages such as Latin, German and Hebrew. We will perform a pre-festival concert on February 17 at Grosse Pointe North High School. Then, in March we will be participating in Michigan Schools Vocal Music Association District XVI Choral Festival. More information will be shared when our schedule is finalized. Please encourage your singer to rehearse their music at home using practice recordings on Schoology at least 10 minutes each day.
Broadcasting
Students are finishing up their Parcells Hype Videos for our school webpage. Check the website next week to see the winning video.
Drama
Rehearsals are in full swing for our all school musical Willy Wonka Jr. The show will be March 10th and 11th at 7:00 P.M.
In Drama Class we are finishing up the quarter with Formal Performances for our Creating Character Unit.
Communications
We are finishing up the quarter with a Persuasive Commercial Project. Students are using what they learned about persuasion and what they’ve learned about video production to create commercials for original products that solve everyday problems for students.
Communities United in Diversity
PBIS- Our Positive Behavior Intervention and Support Program
January Panther Bucks featuring Mr. Aue, our 8th grade science teacher, are up and running! This month we will sell chips at the end of the month during lunch for 2 Panther Bucks! Students can enter up to 3 raffles this month, Jimmy John’s Gift Card ($10.00), Pick a Prize, and being a guest Anchor for our announcements WPBC! Thank you for the donations we have received so far! If you signed up to donate, please drop it off in the main office by 1/28 labeled PBIS. Banking our Panther Bucks to save for the auction will be held on 2/1. We are running low on our monthly treats so any help you can be is greatly appreciated! It’s not too late to donate snacks for the reward day! You can sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0C4AA9AF29A6FE3-pbis
PANTHERPALOOZA - New date has been set to May 12th! Stay tuned for more details!
School safety is always our priority, each and every day. Please encourage children to talk to a trusted adult. If your child sees or hears something that doesn’t seem right, they can also submit a confidential tip to OK2SAY. OK2SAY allows anyone to confidentially report tips on criminal activities or potential harm directed to Michigan students, school employees, or schools. Call 855-565-2729; text 652729; or email OK2SAY@mi.gov. For emergencies, dial 911. The OK2SAY link is available at http://www.michigan.gov/ok2say.
The Homework Station is open!
The Parcells Homework Station is open for business. It's located in room 108 and runs from 3:18 - 4:18, Monday through Thursday. The Homework Station is a place where students can get help with homework, just work on assignments or borrow supplies to finish projects. There is no sign-up needed, and students do not have to stay for the entire hour.
What’s ALWAYS happening at Parcells?
Students who arrive late to school must enter through the secure entrance (Vernier side of building). Students will not be admitted through the Mack Avenue doors after 8:15 AM.
Late start Mondays: Every Monday, school begins at 9:00am. Doors open at 8:45am. Tuesday through Friday, school begins at 8:15am. Doors open at 8:00am.
Water bottles: We encourage our students to stay hydrated by bringing a refillable water bottle to school every day. Water filling stations are located around the building.
Morning Basketball takes place at 7:45am Tuesday - Friday. Students may enter through the Gym doors off Sunningdale to participate.
The Parcells Chess Club is open to all students. All you need is a desire to learn and play chess! No prior experience needed-we'll teach you! We meet on Wednesdays to play games from 3:25pm until 4:10pm in room 103.
Reminder: Cell phones/electronic devices are to be turned off and out of sight at school. This includes all devices associated with cell phone usage such as Apple Watches or similar devices.
Student drop off: Student safety is our number one priority, especially in the morning. In the back entrance of our building (Sunningdale), please be mindful of Drop Off & Pick Up procedures. The employee parking lot is active and is not a drop off or pedestrian zone for students. Students should not cross through the lot to access the building at any time. For their safety, please refrain from dropping students off any place other than the loop around the parking lot.
Please note:
- When dropping your student off, please pull up as close to the end of the ramp outside the door as possible. Do not stop directly in front of the doors.
- Students should be prepared to exit your vehicle quickly. Do not impede traffic waiting to drop off other students.
- Parents must exit the parking lot as soon as your child is out of the car. No U-Turns or cutting through aisles. Please drive around the loop and exit with the flow of traffic.
- Parking spots/rows are reserved for staff only and are not for drop off or pickup before or after school.
- Please do not park/stop/wait between entrance and exit driveways along Sunningdale.
- Refrain from making left turns out of the school parking lot off Sunningdale during drop off times (8-9 AM and 3-4 PM).
Along Mack Ave (front of building):
- Students must be dropped off in the school driveway. Do not exit a car while on Mack Avenue.
- Please keep traffic moving. Students should be prepared to exit your vehicle quickly. Exit the driveway as soon as your child is out of the car.
We have been asked by Summit Oral Surgery to ask parents to please not use their parking lot as a pick-up spot. Their parking lot is small and is reserved for patients only. Thank you!