PCMS WEEKLY UPDATE
September 25, 2020
Good Afternoon PCMS Families,
It’s definitely taking a little longer to find our groove with the A/B days, but we’re figuring it out and getting there. We think the kids are kind of in the same boat with their in-person and remote days. One thing we’re noticing early on; a lot of students are thinking of their remote days this year as being the same as their remote learning was last year. As you know, that’s not the case. We know and understand that not all families can be home with their children during the day to ensure that they do their assignments. However, we ask that you help us set the expectations for those days, i.e., that there will always be learning taking place on their remote days. (It could be practice work, reading, or watching a video of their teacher going over how to do something, but there will be something.) We also know that as you and your child are still learning how to handle and work through this, we are too! We’re still figuring out where our students are academically and trying to find the balance regarding their workload at home. We keep reminding ourselves that this is new and different for all of us, and patience and understanding will be how we’ll make it better together. One other small reminder/request is to please remind your child to bring a water bottle with them. Our water fountains are disabled; however, our water bottle filling stations are still usable. (Our wonderful PTO has kindly donated some water bottles for us to provide to students who have forgotten theirs, but we still encourage them to bring their own each day.
Thank you again for your help and understanding … have a wonderful weekend! GO PIRATES!!!
#PCMS Proud Moments
Pirate Time at PCMS on Mondays and Tuesdays are all about #CharacterStrong! These pictures show students who went ‘here or there’ to learn about their personalities:)
This week’s Character Dare was the ‘Smiling Stranger’ — smile and say hello in the halls, you just might make someone’s day! #PCMSproud
Parent IgNIGHT: Parent Tips to Navigate Remote Learning - Oct 6
Platte County School District's Parent IgNIGHT series of informative parent sessions is designed to include, inform, involve, and ignite parents. As we navigate new ways of teaching and learning this school year, the District invites all families engaging in full remote or alternating schedules to join staff in a discussion on ways to best support learners through these venues. We will address processes for teaching and learning, how to navigate the learning management system, and tips for supporting your student to stay engaged and connected to staff and peers through a virtual platform. Join us via Google Meet on Tuesday, October 6, 6:30pm.
Patron Survey - Please Share Your Thoughts
Platte County School District is conducting a telephone survey of randomly selected, head-of-household, registered voters in the Platte County R-3 School District to learn their views on the District's performance, and on ideas being considered for a potential ballot issue in the Spring of 2021. Parents and District residents are encouraged to share your thoughts with us via the online version of this survey. Since not everyone will be contacted via telephone, we are making this online version of the survey available. Please complete the survey linked here by Monday, October 5.
Remote and Alternating Schedule Parent Survey
This week the District sent a survey to gather feedback on how your student's full remote or alternating schedule learning is going. Please complete this short 12-question survey by Wednesday, September 30. The survey should take less than five minutes to complete. We will use your feedback and comments to help improve our processes and to guide our discussion for our Parent IgNight event on Oct 6. Click here to complete the survey.
Homecoming 2020
There's No Place Like Home ~ Sept 28-Oct 2
Next week is Homecoming Week! Platte County's Homecoming festivities run Sept 28 through Oct 2, and although some things may look different this year, some things will remain the same. This year's theme is "Oz: There's No Place Like Home." Click here for information on Homecoming activities, including spirit week information, the reverse parade, and the Homecoming football game.
Sack Lunches to Go
PCMS has had a standing tradition of offering our students the opportunity to sign up for a sack lunch to take with them on Homecoming early release day since there is no lunch served. This year, we ask students who wish to order a sack lunch to sign up through their Pirate Time Google Classroom. Note: This would only pertain to students who will be in-person learners on Fri, Oct 2, which would be those on the A-schedule.
Counseling Corner
Message from the Counselors
So far it has been a great start to the school year! We are thrilled to have students back in the building -- even if only half are here on each day!
We wanted to share with you our contact information and our virtual Counseling Office. This week students watched an introduction video from us and we gave them a tour of our virtual office. Students can access our virtual Counseling Office on Google Classroom or the PCMS website. We also wanted to share our virtual office with parents.
To access the virtual Counseling Office:
1. Go to PCMS website: https://www.plattecountyschooldistrict.com/plattecityms
2. Click on Counseling Center
3. On the left hand side you will see "Counseling Office Virtual Classroom". Click on this.
4. This is an interactive classroom students can utilize anytime.
Guidance lessons will look a little different this year. We will be pushing out virtual counseling lessons along with in-class lessons. For a virtual lesson, students will receive the lesson from either their Social Studies or Science teacher (depending on the month) and will be able to complete the lesson at home. We will then follow up the following month in the classroom.
Message from the Social Worker
Hello PCMS Parents & Guardians! We are asking all Pirate families to please take a moment to complete the following Google Form. This brief questionnaire is your school social worker's first and primary way to help you access resources and support services. It also lets us know if you are interested in giving back to your school community to help other Pirate families. Contact Lisa Bean with any questions!
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions:
Whitney Edman - Counselor
All 6th grade
7th grade L-Z
Kim Schank - Counselor
7th grade A-K
All 8th grade
Lisa Bean - School Social Worker
Flu Vaccine Clinic at PCMS
This year it is more important than ever to keep our kids healthy. The Platte County Health Dept is coming to PCMS on Wed, Oct 14 at 12pm to administer Flu Vaccines to those who qualify.
Qualifications to the clinic include students who:
are Uninsured
are Underinsured
have Medicaid
are Native American/Native Alaskan
OR have coverage by the following insurance companies and ONLY the following insurance companies:
MO Healthnet
Home State Health
Missouri Care
United Healthcare Community Plan
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of KC
CIGNA
United Healthcare
Please make sure to call your insurance provider, making sure your plan covers these flu shots.
If you wish to participate, the attached Consent & Registration form must be completed and handed in to the school nurse no later than Sept 30. Please remember to attach a copy of the insurance card.
If you need hard copies sent home, please contact our nurse, Stacy Weed (subbing for Taylor Stodden), at weeds@platteco.k12.mo.us, and she will be happy to send them home with your student.
Archery Tryouts - Oct 14 & 16
Tryouts for the PCMS Archery Team are quickly approaching, and we are ready to get our season started! If you would like to try-out for a spot on our nationally ranked team, please sign up for a time slot by clicking on the following link:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E054CABAD23AA8-pcms2
If you have any questions, please contact Coach Ratsch @ ratschj@platteco.k12.mo.us.
October A/B Schedule at a Glance
Saturday, Sept 26
Volleyball A-Team Tourney, PCHS, 9am
Monday, Sept 28
Cross Country @ Stocksdale Park, 4pm
Volleyball vs South Valley MS, PCMS, 4pm
Tuesday, Sept 29
Football @ Moreland Ridge MS, 4pm
Wednesday, Sept 30
PLC Early Release, 12:50pm
Volleyball @ New Mark MS, 4pm
Friday, Oct 2
3-Hour Early Release ~ Homecoming, 11:50am
Saturday, Oct 3
Volleyball B-Team Tourney, Antioch MS, 9am
Monday, Oct 5 Cross Country @ South Valley MS, 4pm Volleyball vs Antioch MS, PCMS, 4pm
Upcoming Community Events / Flyers
Make sure you check out the “Community” tab on the Platte County RIII School District webpage. There you will find an option called “Community Event/Activity Flyers” where you can access flyers with information regarding various events and opportunities within our community!
Platte City Middle School
Email: snowb@platteco.k12.mo.us
Website: http://www.plattecountyschooldistrict.com/site/Default.aspx?PageID=21
Location: 900 Pirate Drive, Platte City, MO, 64079
Phone: (816)858-2036
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/plattecitymiddleschool/