Dear Lange Middle School Families,

We are well into the second semester of the school year. Our focus is always on our scholars and their success. The priority is to engage them as much as possible academically while also providing ways for them to interact in a positive manner socially. It will be important for our scholars to stay focused on meeting our school expectations in order to establish a good foundation for success. We are approaching the time of year when we will become more intentional in our preparation for state testing. Our teachers will be using additional planning days to create more effective ways to help our Lange scholars meet their goals for the remainder of the year. Please don’t hesitate to communicate with us to find out how you might support your child at home as we continue to work with them at school. You may want to consider the following suggestions to help your child:

• Ask about the school day (What did you learn? Tell me about your classes.).
• Help your child think about and set short and long term goals.
• Discuss the best way to prioritize their schedule (extracurricular activities and daily tasks to accomplish).
• Recognize when your child needs support even if he or she doesn’t specifically ask for it.
• Find ways to regularly celebrate successes with your child.

I am excited about the various programs, activities and events taking place now and in the next few weeks. Scholars are finalizing their classes for next year.

• We will have an awards recognition program on Monday, February 13th, during RtI. This program will be held via Zoom and recorded so that parents can watch it later.
• Our MAC Scholars will be hosting their annual Black History Month Program on February 22, 6-7:30 PM.

• 6th grade trip to see Lightening Thief on Feb 10th at Jesse Auditorium (Guardians should have received information from their team contact)
• 7th grade Science camp coming up in April. (Guardians will receive more information from their students Science teachers)
• MAP testing coming up this spring. Dates have not yet been determined.

Teachers will begin sending out information about our next round of Parent Teacher Conferences. Our PBS Team is sponsoring various activities this semester that will create some additional excitement in our building. Along with the activities will be a set of attendance criteria. Make sure your child shares the eligibility criteria with you. We will soon begin promoting summer school as a way to keep our scholars academically engaged during the summer.

All of these events are sponsored to help our scholars have a successful experience and strengthen their relationships with us and with each other. We truly thank you for being a valuable member of the Lange Leopard Family. Go Leopards!

1. With music, students are more likely to stay engaged in school. Students learn to improve their work and feel a sense of achievement. (Gucker, 2022)

2. Music reduces anxiety and physical effects of stress. (Levy, 2017)

3. Music reduces depression by triggering activity in the part of the brain that releases dopamine (the “feel good” chemical). (Gucker, 2022)

4. Music improves attention and focus; music is good for learning pattern recognition and improving memorization skills. (Gucker, 2022)

5. We make learning to sing fun every day- participation in contests, competitions and receiving prizes are possible if you regularly attend choir class or choir club.

6. Music can be used at school to focus on higher level social and academic skills, including language development, reasoning skills, empathy, turn-taking, compromise and problem-solving skills in social situations (Jacobson & Artman, 2013).

7. Like pop music? Like to dance or want to learn? Throughout the year, we rehearse as a show choir to prepare students for the competitive show choirs that they’ll have the chance to join in high school.

8. If interested, you can be invited to sing with the Battle HS Choir, perform at LMS pep rallies and LMS athletics events like volleyball, basketball and football games.

9. Music is good for emotional development; music increases opportunities for self-expression and improves communication and self-confidence. (Gucker, 2022)

10. There are TONS of opportunities for you to get solos and perform on your own, but they aren’t required. It’s completely up to you.

11. “Data collected by the National Association for Music Education indicates music students are less likely to be truant, less likely to get involved with drugs and alcohol, more likely to graduate on time and more likely to go to college.” (Gucker, 2022)

12. Music fosters teamwork and provides children a safe social environment to make long lasting friendships and create a sense of belonging.

13. Music teaches discipline and helps to improve development in creative thinking. (Gucker, 2022)

14. Singing is physical. The breathwork and physical actions we use to engage our bodies while singing increase coordination. (Gucker, 2022)

15. We go to Six Flags in May for Music in the Parks at the end of the year!

*These are my top 15 reasons, but there are so many more! Remember to have your student choose CHOIR as their FIRST or SECOND CHOICE when scheduling forms go out, otherwise they probably will not be put in the class!

Sources:

https://www.nemc.com/blog/?p=why-music-matters (Gucker, 2022)

https://positivepsychology.com/music-therapy-benefits/ (Jacobsen & Artman, 2013)

https://draxe.com/music-therapy-benefits (Levy, 2017)

From their website: https://jabberwockystudios.org/

“We invite you to explore this website to find out more about the many ways we capitalize on the power of art to lift individuals and strengthen our community as we Learn (classes and camps), Share (outreach and public performances), Work (paid internships in the arts), Speak (slam poetry team), Innovate (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math program), and Celebrate (Africa Fest).”

Please take a moment to look at the info graphic with information about some of their programming. They welcome Lange students to join them for any and all of their programs. Any student who receives free or reduced lunch can participate for free. They would just need to enter the “waiver” at checkout.

Parents, please note that it is an Exit Only for the northeast drive. We want to make sure to be safe when driving through our parking lot. Notice the Exit Only drive and please never pass on the right of cars in the drop off and pick up area.

Parent/Guardian Legal Proof of Residence

Bring a current copy of one of the following:

-Contract of home purchase

-Real estate lease -Current water, electric, or gas bill showing address

-Notarized letter from owner of the residence with whom the family is living, along with owner’s legal proof of residence as listed above.

• Visitors are asked to schedule visits in advance with the person you need to see.
• Visitors will not be allowed to come for lunch with students in the cafeteria. An alternate eating location may be arranged if you contact the LMS main office in advance at (573)214-3250. We will let you know if it is possible at the time of your call. Please keep in mind that health protocols change constantly and we can't guarantee that we will be able to accommodate your request to be in the building.
• To schedule an appointment, please e-mail the person you would like to meet with OR call the LMS main office.
• If picking up your student, remain in your car and call the LMS main office and your student will be sent to your car.