TJ Today
Thomas Jefferson Middle School
2016-17 School Year - November Edition
Oct.
28 - Report Cards Available on Skyward
Nov.
1 Spell Bowl, TJMS Mock Election
2 6th Grade Around the Table dinner
4 Fundraiser Orders are due, 8th Eva Mozes Kor
8 No School - Election Day
9 6th Grade Around the Table Dinner
10 Poetry Alive!
11 Veteran's Day Program in the main gym - All Grandparents Invited
14 Yearbook sales starts
16 Parent Advisory Meeting
17 Five Guys Restaurant Fundraiser - flyer coming soon
23-25 Thanksgiving Break - No School
Dec. 5 - Parent Informational Help Meeting 5:30 - 6:30
6th Grade Around the Table Dinner 5:30 - 7:00
- Many Give-Aways
- Who doesn't want a night away from the kitchen?
- Nov. 2nd - Fried Chicken and Mashed Potatoes
- Nov. 9th - Tacos
- Great Desserts and Coffee
Fund Raiser is Due this Friday, Nov. 4
Our fall fundraiser started Oct. 20, and we hope to have a great sale! The money earned from this sale will go towards audio / video equipment for the cafeteria and start a PTO to help with our school activities. We are hoping ALL students will sell at least 12 items so they can participate in the laser tag event that will be coming to our school! Please help make Thomas Jefferson Middle School the best it could be!
Increase your sales by using the Internet. See the attached sheet for details. All students who register for online sales will go into a company-wide drawing for an iPad mini! Cookie dough that is ordered online must be delivered to the school and cannot be delivered to the home.
Turn in your orders and money by Friday, November 4th. Checks should be made payable to Thomas Jefferson Middle School. Cash and money orders will also be accepted. Delivery for the products will be at the beginning of December. All students who sell for the fundraiser will earn accumulative prizes!
Veterans Day Programs - 7th/8th Grade 8:20 a.m. 6th Grade 9:20 a.m. Grandparents Welcome!
Parent Advisory Meeting
Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, November 16th from 6:00-7:00 in the media center. Also, we are looking for at least 4 - 5 parents who would be willing to serve as officers and establish a PTO or PTA for Thomas Jefferson Middle School. If you are interested please email Mrs. Krutz.
Parent Informational Help Meeting
NEW DATE - Dec. 5th, 5:30-6:30 pm in the media center.
Skyward and Canvas information
Setting up Canvas and Skyward apps
Questions about our 1:1 computer usage
Printing report cards
Babysitting provided
8th Grade Plan for Busy Month ahead
Students will be studying about the Holocaust in many of their classes prior to attending a special presentation on November 4 given by Holocaust Survivor Eva Mozes Kor. At the age of 10, Eva and her family were taken to Auschwitz. Upon arrival, Eva and her twin sister, Miriam, were subjected to experiments by Dr. Josef Mengele. At one point, Eva became gravely ill and almost died. Her determination kept her alive, and TJMS 8th graders are fortunate to hear her story of hope, forgiveness, and life lessons. This event has become an annual tradition for our 8th grade students thanks to Tri Kappa. Eva has a Holocaust Museum, CANDLES, in Terre Haute, IN. You can learn more by visiting the museum’s website: http://www.candlesholocaustmuseum.org/.
Another important annual tradition at TJMS for all students is the TJMS tribute to Veterans. This year’s program will be on November 11. During the program, Veterans in attendance are recognized and thanked for their service. All Veterans are remembered and honored through music, a guest speaker, and 8th grade students Veterans Day Essay Contest winners who read their personal essay about a special veteran in their lives.
While this grading period is off to a busy start, we would like to remind both parents and students to make sure that they are staying on top of assignments. Please check Skyward at least once a week for grade updates and Canvas for daily assignments as well as helpful resources.
7th BOO-GATTA!
To end our first semester, the 7th graders had a fantastic time participating in the BOO-GATTA! Each homeroom worked together to design and build Halloween-themed boats! Here is what they came up with:
Even though each advisory came up with these brilliant designs, only one team could win the race, and that was Mrs. Olsen’s homeroom. After the race, the students participated in the following activities: Halloween Slimericks (limericks), Math games, Entomophagy (bug-eating), and Scary stories. Overall, the students had a great time and ended their first term of 7th grade on a positive note.
To kick off our second term, the Social Studies classes have been focusing on the upcoming Presidential election. To learn what it takes to win the White House, they’ve been introduced to interactive games that let them see what it takes to manage a political campaign in our country. The Language Arts classes have started the hunt for the poems that the students will use to compete in the poetry contest. Their in-class-competitions will occur around Thanksgiving. Science has started their energy unit and will be building Rube Goldberg machines. Lastly, Math classes are learning about rates and ratios, which will help them decipher the best deals around the upcoming holiday season.
6th Grade goes greek
Social Studies: We are so excited about our next unit of study! It's Greek to me! Athens, Sparta, Mount Olympus, the Olympics, the Aegean, and mythology are all part of the next unit. We will continue mapping our way through history as we travel the Greek world. The reigning Olympic games champion homeroom is Ms. Coberg--they need to look out as the rest of us are honing our skills--game on! Please continue to check Skyward for your student's progress and assignments. Thanks and here's to a great
second 9 weeks.!
English Language Arts: We just finished up reading Touching Spirit Bear and our Totem Pole Park looks amazing! In November we are looking forward to Poetry Alive!, learning about Greek gods and goddesses, and reading and writing Greek myths!
Math: Sixth grade math students are currently working on the relationship between fractions, decimals, and percents. One of the standards for math in sixth grade is that students will know common fraction, decimal, and percent equivalents, and that students will be able to convert between fractions, decimals, and percents without the use of a calculator. We are currently working on the methods of converting, and this week we will begin working on memorizing the common fraction, decimal, and percent equivalents. Honors classes are working on an introduction to algebra, which is a critical unit as we work towards our study on equations and inequalities. Also, TJMS has a Math Club! If your student is interested in attending, the meetings are Tuesdays after school from 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Science: In 6th grade science we are starting Chapter 4: Solids, Liquids, and Gases. Students will be learning the difference between the three states of matter and the particle arrangement for each state.
6th grade totem poles
YEARBOOK INFORMATION!
WHAT: TJ Journal, the TJMS yearbook ordering procedure
WHEN: November 14 - 22
WHERE: TJMS cafeteria before school or online at www.jostens.com
WHY: To preserve those priceless memories of this school year!
HOW: Check payable to TJMS, cash, or online
Details: Orders will be taken at school in the mornings beginning on November 14 and ending on Tuesday, November 22
You may also order online at www.jostens.com - be sure that you select Thomas Jefferson Middle School in Valparaiso, as there are several Thomas Jefferson Middle Schools listed.
The cost is $30 from November 14 through November 27 for the all-color, hardback book. Personalization can be ordered at school for an extra charge, but activity icons can only be ordered online.
After November 27, the book can only be ordered online, and the cost will be $33 through February 16. After February 16, the cost is $35, and only online.
Students will receive additional ordering information prior to the sale.
Please consider ordering a yearbook for your student. This year is definitely one to remember!
Science Olympiad Ready to Go Again
Once again the halls of Thomas Jefferson Middle School are filled with budding scientists as the TJMS Science Olympiad Team has begun to prepare for the upcoming competition season.
Last year’s squad took first place in the IUN Regional, first place in the State competition at Indiana University in Bloomington, and earned Top 25 at the national competition from a field of 60 first and second place State teams.
This year’s team knows they will have to work hard to match last year’s success and to maintain the tradition of excellence earned by more than a quarter century of success at the local, state, and national levels.
2016-17
Team Members
Zach Hatseras
Max Trowbridge
Teresa Nelson
Calvin McMurtrey
Lauren Skadberg
Ari Kessler
Caden Hamscher
Zach Heskett
Amol Verma
Joel Teeple
Lily Rengstorf
Isaac Utesch
Xander Green
Micah Nathan
Ethan Hutton
Alt. Ian Smith
Alt. Bela Fouch
Coaches
Carol Haller
Richard Bender
Poetry Alive is Coming
Student Council Update
YOLO BE DRUG FREE! TJMS celebrated Red Ribbon week with crazy dress-up days, prizes, and Wear Red Day with special guest speaker Porter County Coroner and Porter County Substance Abuse Council board member Chuck Harris. Students learned about the history of Red Ribbon Week, facts about drug use in Porter County, and played a few rounds of Jeopardy! Thank you, Mr. Harris, for your wonderful presentation! A big thank you to our wonderful Student Council for putting together such a great week!
Every year around this time, the TJ Student Council raises funds for the Angel Tree Project. This project helps our TJ families through the holidays. In the past, we have done this through Jar Wars. This year we are trying something different. It's called Dress the Turkey. Students will decide which teacher or administrator they would like to see parade around the lunchroom in a Turkey costume for the day. Students will buy feathers to put on teachers' doors. The teacher who has the most feathers will be crowned Top Turkey for the day. More information will be coming home soon!
red ribbon week activities
TJMS RED RIBBON
For more on TJMS's Red Ribbon week, click on the link below to see Valpo Life article.
http://www.valpolife.com/community/education/62332-thomas-jefferson-middle-school-participates-in-red-ribbon-week-2016Greeters Group
Greeter’s Group has started meeting this year for sixth and seventh graders. The Greeter’s Group is a group of positive students who are willing to welcome new students to TJMS. When a new student begins at TJ, a small group of 2-3 “greeters” help show the student around our school and to his or her classes throughout the day. They also invite students to sit by them at lunch. This group meets once per month during lunch where we focus on creating and maintaining a welcoming atmosphere at TJMS. We are proud of our large number of 6th and 7th graders who have chosen to be a part of the group. Many of our group members go on to join Team Peace in 8th grade, and those students help us welcome new 8th graders to our school. Our next meeting is Thursday, Nov. 17.
On November 15th the guidance counselors will be going into the 6th grade classes to discuss individual learning styles and ways to learn and study using the learning style that works best for each student. We look forward to getting to know more 6th graders!
TJM is Civic Minded
Cool Coding Awareness Week
It sounds great, but you might ask yourself, “What is coding?” According to codeconquest.com, “Coding is what makes it possible for us to create computer software, apps and websites. Your browser, your OS, the apps on your phone, Facebook, and this website – they’re all made with code.”
Eleven Fifty Academy (https://elevenfifty.org) has partnered with TechPoint Foundation for Youth to provide the Cool Coding Awareness Week. This is taking place in Valparaiso the week of November 1st through November 4th. Representatives from the Eleven Fifty Academy will be here all week working with students in Valparaiso.
At TJMS, 7th and 8th grade students will have the opportunity to use Raspberry Pi kits (https://www.raspberrypi.org/) and Scratch (https://scratch.mit.edu/) during their advisories on November 3rd and 4th to learn and practice the concepts of coding. Mrs. Granat, Mrs. Svilar, Mrs. Rodea, and Mr. Benke will be working with the Eleven Fifty Academy representatives to provide instruction on how to develop and code a fantasy game.
“Cool Coding Awareness Week is an outreach program that will be delivered to 20 Indiana communities over the next year. This is an interactive, week-long initiative where students learn the concepts of coding and its applications in the professional tech world. Alongside trained community educators, students advance their programming capabilities.” https://learn.elevenfifty.org/about/outreach/
As part of this outreach initiative, TechPoint Foundation for Youth and Eleven Fifty Academy will be setting up CoderDojo at Valparaiso Public Library. What is CoderDojo?
“CoderDojo is a worldwide movement of free, volunteer-led, community-based programming clubs for young people. Anyone aged seven to seventeen can visit a Dojo where they can learn to code, build a website, create an app or a game, and explore technology in an informal, creative, and social environment.
The CoderDojo movement believes that an understanding of programming languages is increasingly important in the modern world, that it’s both better and easier to learn these skills early, and that nobody should be denied the opportunity to do so.” https://coderdojo.com/
We look forward to this learning experience and would like to thank Eleven Fifty Academy, TechPoint Foundation for Youth, and Valparaiso Public Library for providing this opportunity!
Builders Club News
Greetings from Builders Club! Our meetings are after school on the first and third Wednesday of each month. With so many members and so much on the agenda, we have had to extend our meetings. Beginning this Wednesday, our meetings will end at 3:45, rather than 3:30. This change will only affect the car riders.
Builders Club is currently busy helping folks near and far. Here is what is going on in November:
This week, members will be stationed at the doors in the morning to collect extra Halloween candy from TJM students. We will be sending the candy, along with letters written by Builders Club students, to the troops overseas. Thank you, in advance, for your support and candy!
For the next couple of weeks, we will be in the process of decorating a very special “We are Valpo” tree that will be auctioned off at the Choc-O-Lots fundraiser. It will be a pretty spectacular green and white sight! Choc-O-Lots is a fundraiser put on by Builders Club sponsor, the Sunrise Kiwanis. It is a night full of chocolate tasting, a tree auction, and a silent auction. Tickets are $10 per person or $20 for 2 adults and up to 3 kids. If you are interested in attending Choc-O-Lots, you may purchase tickets from any Sunrise Kiwanis member or Mrs. Janowiak at TJMS.
Lastly, we will be participating in the annual leaf raking event with the members of the Builders Club at BF, K-Kids, and Key Club members. This event takes place on Saturday, November 12, from 8:30-12:30. Permission slips will be given to members at the meeting this Wednesday, November 2. It would be great to see as many TJMS Builders Club members there as possible! Plan to pitch in and help if you are able.
It's not to late to sign up for ISSMA
The yearly Solo and Ensemble Contest sponsored by the Indiana State School Music Association (ISSMA) is approaching. Students who participate in the performance groups at school can register for a solo or ensemble. They play a piece for a music teacher who provides written comments about the performance. Students also earn medals for their outstanding work. The district contest is held at Kankakee in Jan. or Feb. but the deadline to register is in November. Interested students should check with their TJ band, choir, or orchestra teachers for details.
Homework and Study Table Procedures
- 6th Grade - Skyward
- 7th Grade - Canvas
- 8th Grade - Canvas
- AA - Canvas
All parents are encouraged to create a parent Canvas Observer account. For more information on this, please follow this link on our website.
Thomas Jefferson Middle School
Email: ekrutz@valpo.k12.in.us
Website: http://www.valpo.k12.in.us/Domain/248
Location: 1600 Roosevelt Rd, Valparaiso, IN, United States
Phone: 219-531-3140
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TJMS.Valpo
Twitter: @Valpo_TJMS