Weekly Family Update # 6
September 20, 2020
Principal's Message
Hello Falcons Families,
This week is our Virtual Back to School Night event. Teachers will be providing a video overview of their course or a live Zoom meeting. Parents will access their student’s individual teacher presentation via Canvas. You must login as your student, meaning you are using your student’s login information and not your parent login to access each teacher’s Canvas page.
*** This is critically important, you must login to MyPlan as your student and click on the red Canvas icon to access the information from teachers. ***
Our Zoom for education accounts do not allow for anyone outside of PUSD to enter, so if you do not login as your student, you will not have access.
Please use the flyer below and ask your student to fill in their class schedule and login information.
There will be a “Back to School Night Parent Login Tutorial Video” posted on the front of our website for parents needing help as well as a Welcome Video from me that will be available to view before you begin or anytime during the evening.
For those of you who are new to middle school, we follow a bell schedule during Back to School Night, with 10 minute periods and 5 minute passing periods. You will follow along using the schedule provided in the flyer below. Once you login successfully as your student, you will click on each individual teacher on the Canvas main course page as you follow the schedule. Back to School Night will start with your student’s Connections teacher at 6:00pm. Our staff are excited to see you all this week!
Please read the information below from our attendance office and check out the club information later in this newsletter.
*** Reminder, we have school tomorrow following our regular Monday Connections bell schedule ***
The calendar in the Falcon Planner was printed last Spring before the School Board changed the start of school and canceled the originally scheduled professional growth day for 9/21. There is school tomorrow!! We apologize for the confusion.
Thanks for being such an amazing Oak Valley Falcon Community!!
Beaming with Falcon Pride,
Colin Young
Principal
Oak Valley Middle School
Reminders from the Attendance Desk
Attendance is required in each class/period (including Connections period “0”). If your student misses any class(es), a parent/guardian should call the 24/7 Attendance Hotline just as you normally would if classes were held on campus. The hotline # is 858-676-6963. Notifying your student’s teacher is also great, but only the Attendance Secretary can update your student’s attendance record. This includes if your student attended the wrong class by mistake.
If you have a medical note to provide, please email it to: kandrews@powayusd.com
If your student misses Zoom (technical issue, etc), please make sure they are still participating in class through Canvas. Zoom is not the only aspect of each class. Students should still check Canvas to access any non-zoom activities or assignments.
Is your student having Zoom issues? Please make sure your student follows this procedure daily:
1. Log on to MyPlan: myplan.powayusd.com
2. Click the blue “Zoom” icon. Make sure your student is logged in to Zoom (PUSD account).
3. Click the red “Canvas” icon to display all OVMS classes.
4. Find the Zoom link within your teacher’s Canvas page (different link per class).
If your student still can’t log on to Zoom, please make sure they have set up their PUSD Student Zoom Account.
Instructions can be found HERE:
Is Today an Odd Day or an Even Day??
We have an Odd/Even calendar posted on our website for your student so that they are sure to attend the correct classes each day. The Odd/Even calendar can be found HERE:
ODD day = periods 1, 3, (Lunch is period 5), and 7
EVEN day = periods 2, 4, (Lunch is period 6), and 8
Period “0” Connections = Monday and Thursday only. Does not follow Odd/Even.
Our OVMS Virtual Learning Bell Schedule can be found on our website. We recommend printing this out or writing it down and keeping this posted somewhere in the house to make sure your student follows the correct schedule depending on the day of the week (not every day is the same). The Bell Schedule can be found HERE.
PTSA Reflections
Does your student enjoy the Arts? Help them share their talents by entering the PTA's annual Reflections Art Contest. The 2020-2021 theme is "I Matter Because..." Students may enter original pieces in any of these six categories Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, and Visual Arts.
Students should submit entries ONLINE. The Due Date for ALL entries is October 15, 2020.
The link for our OVMS ONLINE Reflections Program can be found here HERE. Please note, this link will serve OVMS students only!
For those students with limited internet access, a drop off box will be available at school office between 9:30am- 1:00pm from Oct 12 until Oct. 15, 2020. All required paperwork/information on the student, artwork and parent contact will need to be filled in entirely for the entry to be valid.
For questions, please contact Andrea at: reflectionsovms@gmail.com
ASB Announcements
OVMS Studios Club
Robotics Club
Hello! Are you looking for a fun, exciting, interesting club within robotics and coding, but don’t know how or where to learn more? The OVMS Robotics club is looking for hardworking, organized, and interested kids to join our team. You don’t need to know robots or coding. An open mind and a will to learn is all you need. If you are interested in joining the club, please complete the interest list on this google form. Send any questions to OVMS robotics president OVMSRobotics@gmail.com or Mr. Cox, club teacher representative. jcox@powayusd.com.
Science Olympiad
OVMS Science Olympiad is gearing up for a virtually fun and exciting year! To learn more about how to become part of our 1st Place program, view the “Information Night” slide deck that will be available at www.ovmsso.org starting at 8:00pm on Sunday, September 20th. On Thursday, September 24th we will have a live Q&A via Zoom. The Zoom link will be emailed to parents and students on our Interest List later this week.
Please sign up on the Interest List if you have not done so already. That will be the only way you will receive the Zoom link.
Science Olympiad is an international nonprofit organization led by parent volunteers dedicated to giving students access to science in a fun but competitive atmosphere. All OVMS students in grades 6-8th are welcome. Registration fees are $85, and scholarships are available. If you have any questions, please email us at ovmsso@gmail.com.
Oak Valley Coding Club
The Oak Valley Coding Club (OVCC) is a club dedicated to learning computer programming. This year all club activities will be entirely online. We plan to meet weekly and learn both basic computer science theory and hands on programming using Python. We are planning to participate in multiple competitions this year including the American Computer Science League (ACSL), USA Computing Olympiad (USACO), and multiple in-club competitions created through HackerRank.
We will have parent coaches, experienced club members, and Del Norte High School students teach classes, organize competitions, and discuss special topics. Some special topics last year included Android game development, connected graphs using Python, and basics of machine learning.
Whether you are already a good programmer, or interested in learning how to code, make games, compete, or just have fun coding, the coding club is for you! If you are interested in joining, signup here. For more information visit our website or contact us at oakvalleycodingclub@gmail.com
Speech and Debate Club
Help Oak Valley Become A School of Excellence!
The OVMS PTSA will be applying for the National PTSA’s “School of Excellence” designation this year. The School of Excellence (SOE) is a recognition program that celebrates partnerships between PTSAs and schools to enrich the educational experience and overall well-being for students. Designated Schools of Excellence qualify for consideration of the Phoebe Apperson Hearst Award - a $2,000 grant.
The OVMS PTSA is looking for 4 committed parents, students, teachers, administrators or community members to join our SOE team! This team will work to identify a goal and implement a strategy to improve and promote family-school partnerships. If you are interested in being a part of OVMS’s SOE team, please email falconsptsa@gmail.com.
Join the PTSA!
The number one reason to join the Parent Teacher Student Association is to benefit your child and an opportunity to stay better informed and connected to other parents and the school.
Click HERE to join.
A Message From the Library
Click HERE for more information and to submit your request.
Oak Valley Falcon Foundation
Welcome “back” to school, Falcon Families! While school looks different and a little strange for now, we still have the same world-class educators and exceptional students filling our Zooms, Kahoots and FlipGrids. Your Oak Valley Foundation is already working behind the scenes to help fund programming, equipment, training and materials to support all Falcon students and faculty. Did you know Foundation donations funded the shade structures that are part of the new building? We were getting our campus ready for outdoor learning before it was cool! Want to learn more about past and future funding plans? Be sure to follow the Oak Valley Falcon Foundation on Facebook
We need your help funding the budget gaps between what Oak Valley is given for expenses versus what we need to maintain our highest standards in education. Can you help with a donation of $150 or more to fund things like Science class lab consumables that students can use at home? What about $300 to support our Gateway to Technology or Art electives for much needed, non-funded supplies? Make your tax-deductible donation now at www.oakvalleyfalconfoundation.com and help us support learning for all of our Falcons!
The Foundation is run by parent volunteers, and with only three short years at the school, our board is ever-changing. Want a voice in fundraising and spending? We’d love to have you join our board of directors. Contact Foundation President, Darrell Keller, at ovfalconfoundation@gmail.com for more information.
School Site Council
The Oak Valley School Site Council has one (1) open parent positions for a two-year (2020 – 2022) term. School Site Council is an elected position. If you are interested in running for an open position, please submit your name, your student’s name, and a brief description of no more than 250 words introducing yourself and explaining why you are running for the position, to Assistant Principal Dr. Shannon Chamberlin at schamberlin@powayusd.com or bring it in to the Welcome Center. This description will be added to the election ballot. The deadline for submitting your name for candidacy is Monday September 21st. An election ballot will be sent out to all families on Wednesday September 23rd, the same night as Back to School Night.
The council will meet approximately 5 times during the school year (via Zoom), primarily in the fall to review school-wide goals, discuss site monetary funds, and approve a yearly plan for student achievement. The School Site Council consists of elected members representing parents, teachers, students, the school principal, and other school employees, each of whom serve a 2 year term. The first scheduled meeting will be on Monday September 28th from 3:00-4:00pm. All meetings will take place via Zoom.
We greatly appreciate your willingness to support Oak Valley Middle School with your time. Please contact Shannon Chamberlin, Assistant Principal, at (858) 487-2939, extension 6114 or by email, if you have any questions.
Weekly Tech Tip
PUSD Parenting Academy
Grab & Go Breakfast and Lunch
Effective immediately, this is a notice that PUSD’s Food and Nutrition Department will be providing FREE meals to all children in the community 18 years and younger and any PUSD Transition students up to age 22.
Additionally, to make meal service more convenient for families, Food and Nutrition has expanded the schedule for meals to be picked up two times every school day. Breakfast and lunch meals are available for pick-up Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Students may pick up breakfast and lunch meals (together) from any of the 12 school sites at the time most convenient for them. Students do not need to be present to pick up meals but parents/guardians must provide evidence they have children 18 years or younger in the community for meal accountability.
We hope that this will be more convenient for our families, allowing students to have two pick up times that includes both lunch and breakfast for the following day. Free breakfast and lunch meals will be available at the school sites listed below.
Oak Valley Middle School
Email: coyoung@powayusd.com
Website: https://www.powayusd.com/en-US/Schools/MS/OVMS/Home
Location: 16055 Winecreek Road, San Diego, CA, USA
Phone: (858) 487-2939
The Poway Unified School District (PUSD) is an equal opportunity employer/program and is committed to an active Nondiscrimination Program. PUSD prohibits discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying based on actual or perceived race, color, ancestry, national origin, nationality, immigration status, ethnicity, ethnic group identification, age, religion, marital or parental status, physical or mental ability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or gender expression or association with a person or a group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. For more information, please contact: Title IX/Equity Compliance Officer, James Jimenez, Associate Superintendent of Personnel Support Services, Poway Unified School District, 15250 Avenue of Science, San Diego, CA 92128, 1-858-521-2800, extension 2761, jjimenez@powayusd.com