News from Panther Headquarters
March 2018
From the desk of the Principal...
Hello Panther Families –
March has always been a busy time of the year with state ISTEP testing and scheduling of classes for the next school year. We have worked harder and smarter to ensure that 8th grade students/families are prepared for high school scheduling, 6th and 7th grade students/families are well-informed and selecting courses for next year, and new students from the elementary feeder schools are transitioned appropriately. In the midst of it all, we must not forget the ‘here and now’ regarding the remainder of this school year. It is imperative that all staff and students maintain their focus and purpose on doing their personal best each and every day. At HIJH, we have promoted the 212 Degree concept every Monday to start off our week. The idea being that at 211 degrees water is hot, but at 212 it begins to boil. With boiling water comes steam, and steam can power a locomotive. Raising the temperature of water by one extra degree means the difference between something that is simply very hot and something that generates enough force to power a machine- a beautiful, uncomplicated metaphor that ideally should feed our every endeavor- consistently pushing us to make the extra effort in every task we undertake.
We appreciate the opportunity to serve our students and families and thank everyone for your continued support throughout the year.
Respectfully,
Tim A. Mankin
Upcoming Important Dates
March 2 Spring Musical, Annie, Jr. - 3 and 7 pm
March 3 Spring Musical, Annie, Jr. - 2 and 7 pm
March 9 PTO Meeting - 9:30 am
March 9 NJHS Late Night - 2:45 - 9 pm
Week of March 12-16 Book Fair
March 13 Choral Preview Festival Concert - 7 pm (6, 7, and 8th Grade)
March 14 Orchestra Concert - 7 pm
March 14 Book Fair Family Night - 4 - 7 pm
March 17 HsEART District Art Show - 2 - 5 pm at HSE High School
March 20 DC Parent Meeting - 7 pm LGI Room (7th Grade)
March 21 Band Concert - 7 pm at HSE High School Auditorium
March 23 Panther Fest 5:30-8:00 pm (5 and 6th grade)
March 27 Choir and Ukulele Club Concert - 7 pm (5th Grade)
March 30 - April 6 SPRING BREAK - NO SCHOOL
Student Absences
Parents - If your student is going to be absent, you MUST call the attendance line, 317-594-4126 for the absence to be excused.
Early Dismissals and Returning to School
Bus Notes
Safe Visitor Badges
Counselor's Corner
ISTEP Testing Dates to Note. Mark your calendars to ensure your child is in attendance these testing periods.
ISTEP+ Part 2 - April 16 - May 4, 2018
It is extremely important that your child be in attendance and on time during these testing days. Please assist us by ensuring that your child is well rested and eats a healthy breakfast. Also, it would be advantageous to reschedule any appointments you have scheduled during these days. Thank you in advance for your assistance with this testing process.
Course Scheduling for 2018-19. All 6th, 7th and 8th grade students should have been scheduled for the upcoming school year. Those students still needing to select courses will be called down to the guidance office to assist them with those scheduling options.
ALL SCHEDULE CHANGES MUST BE MADE PRIOR TO SPRING BREAK (March 30th) TO ALLOW FOR COURSE OFFERINGS AND STAFFING! (8th grade student’s course changes with the high school must be done prior to leaving for the summer).
Current 5th Grade Students, course selections for the 2018-19 school year will be a natural progression of the courses they are currently scheduled.
We are very excited to have reached such an exciting point in the year!
Click here for the Northwestern University's Midwest Academic Talent Search (NUMATS).
Click here Twenty-First Century Scholars.
Messages from the Nurse
Breakfast, ISTEP & Sleep. Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day! It “breaks our fast” that occurs while sleeping. Please make sure your children are having something to eat in the mornings. It really will help them feel their best! Please make sure your kiddo gets much needed rest too. We also offer breakfast as a purchase option at school.
Colds, Flu and ISTEP. In order to help keep all our children and staff healthy, please keep sick children at home until they have been fever, vomit, and diarrhea free, without being medicated for a FULL 24 HOURS per HSE policy. Please remind your children to wash their hands with soap and water to prevent the spread of germs and to cough into their elbow. Students are given time to make up missed material, tests, and standardized testing. Students who aren't feeling well will not perform well. Thank you for helping to keep our students healthy by following HSE Illness Policy and your best judgement when your child is sick.
This month we want to share with you a St. Vincent Blog. Please take a moment to read it below:
HOW TO KNOW IF KIDS ARE TOO SICK FOR SCHOOL
By: #Taketime4u on February 19, 2018
When children have a runny nose or complain of a sore throat, it's not always easy to decide if they should stay home. Here's what you need to know to make an informed decision about whether or not your child is too sick for school. You likely know kids need to stay home if they're vomiting, having diarrhea, or running a fever (defined as 100 degrees of higher). What to do about other symptoms isn't always as clear-cut. If your child isn't running a fever, ask yourself if symptoms are likely to interfere with learning. For example, children with a mild cough or runny nose who are playing normally will probably be fine at school, but kids who have no appetite or simply don't seem like themselves may benefit from staying home, according to the Nemours Foundation.
Children should also stay home if there's a chance they're contagious. Common contagious illnesses that require at least one sick day and a doctor's visit include:
· Strep throat, a bacterial infection that can cause a severe sore throat, fever and swollen glands
· Hand-foot-and-mouth disease, a viral infection that often affects babies and young children and causes a fever, sore throat, and a rash or blisters commonly found in the mouth and on the hands and feet
· Pink eye, inflammation of the part of the eye known as the conjunctiva that can cause itchy, red, teary eyes
WHAT TO DO ABOUT THE FLU
The 2018 flu season is one of the worst in recent history. The predominant strain circulating through communities-influenza A (H3N2)-causes more severe symptoms than other strains, especially in young children and older adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If your child begins exhibiting flu symptoms, call his or her pediatrician for advice about next steps. Your child's provider may recommend fluids, rest and over-the-counter remedies to ease fever and cough, depending on symptom severity. Because the flu spreads easily from person to person, kids with the flu should stay home from school until they have been fever-free for 24 hours.
It's not too late to get a flu vaccine! To find a Peyton Manning Children's Hospital at St. Vincent pediatrician who can administer your child's flu shot, visit stvincent.org/peytonmanning. To access a symptom checker that offers quick advice about your child's symptoms, download the 4Kids Health app.
https://www.stvincent.org/womens-health-blog/2018/02/23/13/48/too-sick-for-school
Free Math Tutoring
HIJH Sports Information
Click here to learn about all of the HIJH Athletic Info.
The Athletic Department needs parent volunteers to work the ticket tables at our home sporting events! Sign up here: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080548adaa23a02-20172018. Thanks for your support of Southeastern Athletics!
HIJH Library News
HIJH Choir
Attention all parents of 7th Graders
Mark your calendars! It is time to start planning for next year’s legendary Washington DC trip! Mr. Brown will be holding a meeting on Tuesday, March 20 at 7 pm in the LGI room at HIJH for any parents interested in learning more about the trip. You are welcome to bring your 7th grader too! Mr. Brown will be handing out info, taking questions, and opening fundraiser opportunities at the meeting. More info is posted on our trip website at www.dctrip.info. Contact Eric Brown ebrown@hse.k12.in.us if you have questions but can’t make the meeting.
PTO News
PTO Website. Checkout our PTO website (www.hijhpto.wordpress.com) for the 2017-18 PTO calendar, PTO meeting schedule, past meeting minutes, newsletters, and more.
March PTO Meeting. The next PTO meeting will be Friday, March 9 at 9:30 am at the school. All parents are invited to join us.
PTO Board Members and Committee Chairs Needed. It is time to be thinking forward to the 2018-19 PTO year. If you are interested in becoming a member of the PTO, please contact the PTO Board. Check our website for contact information - www.hijhpto.wordpress.com.
Panther Rewards. Thank you Panther families for linking your Kroger cards and Amazon accounts to our school. In doing so, you help to raise a lot of money for the PTO to allocate throughout the school. It is simple to do and doesn’t cost you anything!
Kroger - If you would consider doing so, you simply go to www.kroger.com/communityrewards and create an account or sign in. Find Hamilton Southeastern Intermediate Junior H.S. PTO and link your card to our account.
AmazonSmile - To link your Amazon account, go to www.amazonsmile.com and choose our school (under Hsjh Pto Inc). You will need to go to www.amazonsmile.com on your web browser every time to shop. Thank you!
Box Tops & Tyson Rewards - Keep clipping Box Tops and Tyson Rewards. Our next collection will be on March 21. Each student that brings in 15+ rewards gets a treat at lunch. Put all rewards in a baggie labeled with your student’s name, grade and teacher. Contact Lisa Gruber with questions at gruber5@comcast.net.
Panther Fest. Save the date of Friday, March 23 for our third annual Panther Fest: A night of games, sports, challenging activities, music, food, and fun for HIJH 5th and 6th grade students. From 5:30-8 pm our school will be transformed into a carnival, street fair, sports arena, and fun house all rolled into one. Mark your calendars now and save the date. If you would like to volunteer, please go to http://signup.com/go/OQdRqgS and register. Contact Tim Baldwin (baldwin.timothy@gmail.com) with any questions.
8th Grade Dance. Everyone is invited to the 8th grade dance planning meeting. The meeting is March 6th at 6pm at Kroger dining area near Starbucks. Please email Tabitha Jennings at tabi2203@gmail.com if you are interested in helping but cannot attend.
Hot Box Pizza Madness. Hot Box Pizza Madness will be running this year from March 13 to April 2. Every time you order Hot Box from March 13-April 2nd mention HIJH and they will keep track of our weekly sales. We will be competing against other schools. 20% of sales will go back to HIJH. Be on the lookout for more information on this event. The school that raises the most “dough” will receive an extra 5%.
HSE Foundation’s Game Day Baskets. We would like to thank all the families who donated toward the Hamilton Southeastern Foundation’s Game Day baskets. The fundraiser was Friday evening and our baskets brought in $1,645 that goes toward much needed teacher grants and scholarships. Thank you all for your continued support of HIJH and the Foundation. ~Denise, Kathy and Gina
Panther Palooza. Thank you to everyone who volunteered and donated items to make Palooza a hit! We had a great turnout!
Panther Pride Geist 5K Team
Planning on running the Geist 5K or half marathon this year? Then join our Panther Pride Geist 5K team and run or walk with fellow Panthers! Not only will you have fun and get fit, but a portion of your race entry fee comes back to benefit the students and staff at HIJH. Click here to register.
HIJH Intramural Volleyball
5th and 6th Grade Intramural Track
HSE District Art Show
It is time again to celebrate another creative year of the arts! HsEART will host the 8th annual District Wide Art Show at Hamilton Southeastern High School on March 17 & 18 from 2-5 pm. It is FREE to the public and features over a 1,000 pieces of art work from students grades 1-12. Also, don’t miss the amazing demonstrations and musical performances from many of our high school students. It is definitely a show worth seeing!
5th Grade Choir and Ukulele Club
The Choir and Uke Club will be having a joint concert on Tuesday, March 27 in Panther Hall at 7:00 pm. The student call-time for this concert is 6:30 pm. Students should wear jeans with their Choir or Uke Club Shirt. The Dress rehearsal for this concert is Monday, March 26, immediately after school until 3:30 pm. Choir singers and Uke Club members should be regularly checking Canvas for updates on rehearsals and other important information!
Indianapolis for Youth Art Month
HIJH will have five artworks at the Statehouse in Indianapolis for Youth Art Month (March). A reception was held to celebrate the students and their artwork on Feb.25. We proudly congratulate the following HIJH artists: Maddy Berry, Revah Murugesan, Andrew Knotts, Natalia Nieset, and Neel Patel. Honorable Mentions on their art goes to Andrew Knotts and Revah Murugesan as well as an extra special congratulations!
E-Waste Recycling Program
HIJH Connect
Middle Years
Multicultural Holidays
NEWS AROUND THE DISTRICT
Permitted use of school newsletters as required by the Equal Access Act is not an endorsement of this group or this group’s beliefs by Hamilton Southeastern Schools or the Board of School Trustees.
Hamilton Southeastern Intermediate/Junior High
Ph: 317-594-4120
Attendance: 317-594-4126
Guidance: 317-594-4124
Fax: 317-594-4129
hse.k12.in.us/hij/home.aspx
Twitter: @HIJPanthers
Athletics Twitter: @HIJathletics