Gator Family News 2/16
From the desk of Christopher J. Blake
Learning Today, Leading Tomorrow
Vision:
Empowering today’s students to embrace tomorrow’s possibilities.
Mission:
Our mission is to foster and motivate high level learning through innovative strategies to create lifelong learners in a safe and positive environment that partners with a diverse community.
It's Friday!
It's been a great week at the Swamp! I hope your work week was a great one too!
This week, I had the opportunity to visit one of our elementary feeder schools and do learning walks with some of our district administrators. What are learning walks? Learning walks are brief classroom visits that provides principals and teachers opportunities to reflect on what students are learning, learning strategies, student interaction with the content, and student engagement. The goal is to observe, gather data and then use that data to improve. It's all about improving our practice as educators!
It is always awesome to be in classrooms and to see the great learning that is occurring. At Three Lakes, our team of administrators and campus leaders have been conducting learning walks. We are always focusing on how we can improve...not only improving personally, but also focusing on how we can help our teachers and students improve.
Three Lakes Middle School is moving in a positive direction! I am proud of the effort of our students and staff! Thank you Gator Family for your continued support of this awesome school!
Have a great weekend!!!
Mr. Blake
Gator News
2/17--Cheer Competition @ TLMS
2/20--8th Grade Math Benchmark
2/20--Cheer Parent Night from 5:30-6:00 PM
2/20--Chamber Concert @ 6 PM in the Cafeteria
2/21--8th Grade Reading Benchmark
2/22--7th Grade Writing Benchmark
2/22--Cheer Parent Night from 5:30-6:00 PM
2/23--Benchmark Makeup Day
2/24--MS UIL Competition @ TLMS
IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER
February 19 Board Meeting
February 20-23 Dist BMII 5th & 8th R&M; 4th & 7th W; EOC Eng I and Eng II
February 23 Send Home Report Cards
March 6 PE Showcase
March 8 PE Showcase
March 12-16 Spring Break
March 23 - 29 Dist BM II All
March 26 Board Meeting
March 30 Good Friday
April 10-13 STAAR 5th & 8th R&M; 4th & 7th Writing; EOC Engl I and Eng II
April 13 End of Fifth Six Weeks
April 16 Board Meeting
April 16 Beginning Sixth Six Weeks
April 20 Send Home Report Cards
April 30 District Wide Recognition Ceremony 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Caldwell Auditorium
May 8 Algebra EOC
May 9 Biology EOC
May 10 US History EOC
May 14-18 STAAR
May 15 Teacher of the Year Banquet 6:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Harvey Hall
May 20-25 Elementary Track Meet
May 21 Board Meeting
May 28-June 1 Patriotic Week
May 28 Memorial Day
June 6-7 Bad Weather Make Up Days (Staff Only)
June 8 Send Home Report Cards
June 18 Board Meeting
Traffic Plan for Student Drop Off and Dismissal
As you may have noticed, we have modified our morning drop off procedures. We ask that you do not drop off your child in the front parking lot, but rather follow the traffic procedures in the diagram below. Student safety comes first in all decisions we make. We are asking that you pull as far down as possible in the drop off area to release your child/children each morning. By doing so, more vehicles will be able to release their children at the same time, thus decreasing the time it takes to drop off your child/children. The left hand lane is for vehicles exiting the drop off loop. Our campus officer will be present to assist each morning. We thank you for understanding that student safety comes first.
Mr. Blake
Attention 6th and 7th Grade Parents...Course Selection Sheets
All 6th and 7th grade students have received their course selection sheets for next year.
The deadline for returning those sheets has already passed. If your child has not yet shared their choice sheet with you, please ask them for it. If they have lost their sheet, they can get another copy from their social studies teacher, the front office, or electronically on the Three Lakes website. They’ll be posted above the online registration link (on the left hand side of the home page) and on the counselor’s corner link.
4 year plans for 8th graders
The counselors have completed the process of creating a four year plan for all 8th grade students.
Students received their plans through their college and career readiness, professional communications, or AVID classes. Please sign and return those as soon as possible.
Please keep in mind that the plan that is written for grades 10-12 is tentative and can be updated at any time, as needed.
Early College High School Applications
The window for ECHS applications is now open. Students can pick up an application in the front office, or they can apply online.
Even those who apply online must come to the office to pick up teacher recommendation forms. Each student who applies needs 3 recommendations- one from an English teacher, one from a math teacher, and one from a science teacher or other “community leader” of their choosing. The forms are color coded based on who is supposed to fill them out.
All applications have to be completed (and submitted to ECHS) by February 20th
2nd Annual East Texas Parent Conference
A free Parent Conference for families of children with disabilities or special health care needs, self-advocates, family members, educators, service providers, and other interested community members.
2/17/2018 from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM at the Career & Technology Center--3013 Earl Campbell Parkway
For more information, contact the Texas Parent to Parent office at 866-896-6001 or email Susan.Prior@txp2p.org.
Register online at www.txp2p.org.
Teacher of the Year...8th Grade Social Studies Teacher, Cindy Loughmiller!!!
About Mrs. Loughmiller...
From the time I was a little girl, I knew I wanted to be a teacher. My sister and I would line up our stuffed animals and take turns being the teacher! However, as often happens in life due to choices/circumstances, I didn’t realize my goal of teaching until I was in my mid-30’s.
I graduated from East Texas Baptist University as a single mom with 2 young sons and began teaching in Hallsville at the Junior High. I was blessed to marry Mark Loughmiller in June of 1999, and we relocated to Tyler. With two girls of his own, we were practically a Brady Bunch!
I began my TISD career at Clarkston Elmentary, where I taught one year of 2nd grade (would NOT have survived without Yvonne Atkins!), then moved to 4th grade for five years. After six years at Clarkston, and because my own children were getting older, I made the jump to middle school and taught at Hubbard Middle School for six years. During that time I taught Exploratory Spanish, 7th grade Reading and 6th grade social studies.
I left TISD and taught at Higgins Elementary in Whitehouse for four years before returning to TISD to teach here at TLMS.
I think all that adds up to 19 years of teaching – and what an incredible journey! Teaching is a blessing, a calling and a challenge. I know you’ve heard it said before – that things that are worth doing are often difficult. This can be true of teaching – but the rewards are worth the effort. The relationships made with students, the “light-bulb” effect when a student grasps a concept, and witnessing the compassion of caring co-workers for the struggling student are priceless.
Being selected as teacher of the year is an honor and also a tribute to the many teachers who have influenced my teaching over the years – including right now, here at our school! It is a pleasure to work alongside a staff that has student’s best interests at heart, challenges students to be/do their best, and supports each other in this important work we do every day.
Attendance
Improving attendance at Three Lakes Middle School is a top priority this school year. There is a direct correlation between student attendance and school success, so encourage your students to attend school and discuss the importance of them being here daily.
Our attendance for the week is as follows:
Grade 6: 90.41%
Grade 7: 91.67%
Grade 8: 94.05%
Overall: 91.98%
Congratulations to our 8th graders for having the highest attendance this week!!! Continue motivating your students to attend school...it makes a difference!!!
Here are some helpful hints to help with attendance:
- Establish and stick to the basic routines (going to bed early, waking up on time, etc.) that will help your child develop the habit of on-time attendance.
- Talk to your child about why going to school every day is critical and important unless they are sick. If your child seems reluctant to go to school, find out why and work with the teacher, counselor, or administrator to get them excited about going to school.
- Come up with back up plans for who to turn to (another family member, a neighbor or fellow parents) to help you get your child to school if something comes up (e.g. another child gets sick, your car breaks down, etc.).
- Reach out for help if you are experiencing tough times (e.g. transportation, unstable housing, loss of a job, health problems) that make it difficult to get your child to school. Other parents, your child’s teacher, principal, social worker, school nurse, counselor, or community agencies can help you problem solve or connect you to a needed resource.
- If your child is absent, work with the teacher to make sure she or he has an opportunity to learn and make up for the academics missed.
Parting Thought
“All who have accomplished great things have had a great aim, have fixed their gaze on a goal which was high, one which sometimes seemed impossible.” ~Orison Swett Marden
Three Lakes Middle School
Email: christopher.blake@tylerisd.org
Website: threelakes.tylerisd.org
Location: 2445 Three Lakes Parkway, Tyler, TX, USA
Phone: (903) 952-4400
Facebook: facebook.com/threelakestylerisd
Twitter: @ThreeLakesTISD