Cardinal Corner
September 1-15, 2022
Sept 1: RULER Kick-off
Sept 5: Labor Day, No School
Sept 6: 8th Grade Candor Health zoom presentation 6:30pm
Sept 7: IAR Results Sent Home in student backpacks, Cross Country Dual Meet @ Palatine Hills 3:30PM, Golf Girls Sectional
Sept 7 & 8: NWEA MAP Testing, All Grades
Sept 8: Golf Boys Sectional, 7th & 8th Grade Curriculum Night, 6:30-8:15pm
Sept 9: Cross Country Meet vs Prairie @ Beese Park 4:00PM
Sept 11: Patriot Day
Sept 13: Cross Country Dual Meet @ Salk Park 3:15PM, Superintendent Open Door 2-4PM @ Dunton; School Board Meeting 7PM
Sept 14: Crisis Drill Practice in morning (Fire Drill, Tornado Drill, Lockdown Drill)
Sept 15: RULER; PTA Meeting 6:30pm; Cross Country Triad Meet @ River Trails 3:15PM - 5:30PM
Sept 16: Lockdown Drill in morning (if unable to be completed within allotted time on 14th)
2022-2023 District 25 Calendar is linked here.
Dear South School Families:
I am happy to say that we have had a very smooth start to the school year. After our first full week of school, students and staff have settled in and now have a routine. Students are becoming more accustomed to opening the lockers and knowing when they should be using them. This has reduced the number of materials in their backpacks.
The focus of the first week of school was on getting to know and building relationships with our students. Staff worked their with their students on reviewing classroom and school expectations, as well as school procedures.
Back to School Assembly
On Friday, August 19th, we held our Back-to-School assembly. We would like to thank the South PTA for sponsoring The Pro Kids Show which incorporated magic, drama, comedy and life lessons. The performer, Tim Hannig talked with our students about empathy, kindness, perseverance, respect, and how to be an UPstander. All good reminders for our students as they start a new school year! This performer astonished the enter school with his clever magic tricks, while supporting South's Cardinal Way: Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe, and Be Kind. I have added pictures below of the wonderful event.
Crisis Drills
South students and staff will be practicing in our Crisis Drills (Evacuation, Take Cover, and Hard Lockdown) on September 14, 2022, during Homebase. We practice these drills multiple times during the school year to ensure we are aware of the safe practices. Please see further information about the drills in the column below. As a result of these drills on September 14th, we will run an extended Homebase Schedule. If we are unable to accomplish all of the drills during that timeframe, we will hold any additional drill needing to be completed on September 16th.
Student Tardy To School Procedures
Please help ensure your child’s morning routine is conducive to arriving to South no later than 7:45 am while accounting for weather and traffic. We would like to convey the message that coming to school on time is an important skill that is applicable in and outside of school. If your child has been tardy to school 3 times, parents will receive a notification email to inform you that your child has been tardy to school. The next time your child is tardy to school, they will receive a lunch detention. Please note a child is still tardy to school if they arrive on campus on time, but are not in their Homebase by 7:50am. Tardy to school procedures will take effect September 1, 2022. Thank you for your support in helping your child arrive to school on time.
7th and 8th Grade Curriculum Night
Please see the section below regarding South's 7th and 8th-Grade Curriculum Night. On September 8, 2022, at 6:30pm, 7th and 8th-Grade parents will follow their child's schedule. During each period, parents will receive information on that particular class. These sessions are only 8-minutes long. Please note that this is not the time for one-on-one conferences, this is meant for general information about their classes only.
Safety Precautions
Please be patient with our South Administrative Assistants when you wish to enter the building. As you have read in the letter emailed out on Friday, August 26th, we are instituting additional safety protocols. You will be asked to identify yourself and your reason for entering the school. Also, we will require your driver’s license or State ID to be scanned by the RAPTOR™ system for entry further into the building.
Student Assistance
If your child needs further assistance or has a question regarding classwork, they can attend their teacher's "Office Hours" which takes place after school. Office Hours is a time for students to ask teachers clarifying questions, makeup school work from an absence, and/or it offers a quiet place for students to work—on their own, when arrangements are made with the teacher. To attend a teacher's Office Hours, students must arrange the meeting ahead of time. Please note, Office Hours is not a 1:1 tutoring session or an additional class period for students. Students will not be placed in Office Hours as an intervention if a student falls behind on work.
Have a great week!
Dr. Jim Morrison
Principal
Ms. Sheri Rosen
Associate Principal
Dr. Perkins
Associate Principal
Back-to-School Assembly Photos
PATRIOT DAY- SEPTEMBER 11
A day to honor the victims who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Approximately 3,000 people were killed on that day. Patriot Day encourages families and governmental buildings to fly their flags at half mast or display additional flags in remembrance of the victims.
HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH
A month to celebrate the rich heritage of Hispanic Americans and the many contributions they have made to American culture.
Celebrated Sept. 15- Oct 15
NWEA Fall MAP test
The NWEA MAP test is a computer-administered assessment that aligns with the Illinois math and reading standards. District 25 uses the information from the MAP assessment in a few ways: to help determine academic intervention groups, as an essential part of the advanced learning placement, and to identify student strengths and needs for the next school year.
All South students will be taking the NWEA Fall MAP assessments on Wednesday September 7, 2022 and Thursday, September 8, 2022.
Please remind your child to charge their Chromebooks, and bring in earbuds for the testing sessions. As a reminder, it is important for students to eat a healthy breakfast, and get a good night's sleep before testing so they can perform their best. Thank you for your assistance in helping to prepare your child for NWEA MAP testing. Please see below for the adjusted bell schedule.
7th and 8th Grade Curriculum Night - September 8th @ 6:30pm
RULER - Kick Off Sept 1st
South will continue to grow and strengthen our Social Emotional Learning skills this year through work with the RULER approach. RULER was developed by the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and is used in thousands of schools across the country including all District 25 schools.
The acronym RULER stands for the following emotional skills:
Recognizing emotions in oneself and others through facial expressions, body language, voice, and behavior
Understanding the causes and consequences of emotions in oneself and others
Labeling emotions with accurate words from a nuanced vocabulary
Expressing emotions differently depending on context, situational expectations, and culture
Regulating emotions with effective strategies and supporting others in their regulation of emotions
During the 22-23 school year, several RULER lessons will be taught in Homebase. However, unlike last year, many lesson concepts will also be integrated into pre-existing academic instruction. What could this possibly look like? In literature there are numerous examples of characters confronting emotions and conflicts. An ELA teacher can use the RULER approach to guide students in thinking more deeply about how characters recognize, understand, label, express, and regulate their emotions. When did characters choose positive regulation strategies? When could they have made a better decision?
We will kick-off our year with RULER on September 1st with a fun extended Homebase for all grade levels full of fun review games and activities. Welcome to another year of RULER! South is committed to improving the emotional intelligence and well being of our students and we look forward to partnering with families toward this goal.
Mental Health Support at South Middle School
South has four full time Social Workers and one School Psychologist.
Social Workers:
Mrs. Erin Lille-McMains, 6th grade
Mrs. Rossana Woldman, 7th grade
Mr. Jeff Busse, 8th grade
Ms. Miranda Fanella, ERP/ILP Instructional Programs
Mrs. Keshia Gipson, School Psychologist
The purpose of school based mental health support services are first and foremost to promote the positive development of skills related to social connection, self-esteem, problem solving, and coping with difficult emotions. Adolescence is a time of many changes and although these changes can create challenges, they also present an incredible opportunity! Students in middle school can form strong social bonds, explore new hobbies and interests, and develop critical reflection and self-awareness skills.
When struggles related to adolescence do occur and are interfering with academic performance, South mental health professionals are available to provide individual and/or group counseling support and crisis intervention. Services are typically short term and often collaborative with families and community counseling services.
Band & Choir Program
Students can participate in both band and choir if they wish!
Join choir at South! In choir, we welcome any singer, with or without prior music or singing experience! We meet twice a week before school in the music room (258) from 7-7:45. We sing a vast variety of music, spanning music styles from pop-contemporary, to classical choral music.
For more information, join the Schoology Page using this code: FK5R-WQNG-B5BGT or stop by the Music Room to talk to Mr. Cook!
Band registration and auditions are underway! All students can play a band instrument in our program. If your child is a returning or new band member and you still need to register for band, please sign up here. More information on the jazz program coming soon!
8th Grade Parents only - Candor Health Education program
On August 24th, all parents of eighth grade students should have received an email from Dr. Bein about an upcoming virtual parent night on September 6, 2022 at 6:30 pm to learn more about the Candor Health Education program. Please check your email if you are unaware of this event..
If you have any questions on this matter please call or email Melanie Zenisek, the district Science, Social Studies, and Physical Education & Health Coordinator (847-758-4877 or MZenisek@sd25.org).
Food Service
Students have the option of bringing their lunches from home or ordering through our District 25 Food Service. Students have a number to identify with their lunch accounts that follows them school year to school year. More information can be found at the above link.
- Payments can be made online or cash/checks can be sent to school.
- All families need to use the mealtime payment system to monitor their child’s balance.
- Once you have established an account for your child, please check the box to have an email reminder sent to you when your balance is low.
- Basic Meal Price : $3.75 (includes a main dish, 3 sides & milk or juice cup)
- Additional Food Options : Ex. ice cream, chips, cookies & flavored water are an additional cost.
Morning Breakfasts
South Middle School will still offer a limited menu of breakfast items for purchase. All students interest in morning breakfast should enter through South's Main Entrance, from 7:30-7:45am.
Student Council Fundraiser For Lemons of Love
The SMS and TMS Students Councils are teaming up to raise money for Lemons of Love. Be on the lookout for lemonade stands all over Arlington Heights on Saturday, September 17 from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm. All money collected at the lemonade stands will be donated to the Lemons of Love organization.
Rules of the road for stopping for IL school buses
Please take a moment to read this important article Rules of the Road for Stopping for IL School Buses to help keep our children safe.
COVID School Information
Please contact Mrs. Chapin at echapin@sd25.org if your child has COVID. Students need to be quarantined for 5 days from the positive test results or the start of symptoms.
EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT DURING EXCLUSION
Please refer to our COVID-19 page for educational support provided by Arlington Heights School District 25 during this period of exclusion.
Staff Identification
To increase safety at our District 25 schools, all staff members will wear a green lanyard and ID so we are easy to identify. Guest teachers will wear yellow lanyards and visitors will wear red.
Prospect HS Football Games
Prospect High School is excited to see so many future Knights at football games on Friday nights, but non-high school age students will only be admitted with their parent/guardian(s) at the gate. Students are expected to sit with their parent/guardian(s) during the game. We are no longer allowing groups to be admitted with only one paid adult due to the number of disciplinary issues with unsupervised non-high school age students in and out of the stands. Spectators are not allowed to engage in pick up games or bring other sporting equipment into the stadium.
Physicals/School Sports Information
All students must have a current sports physical (dated within the calendar year) in order to try-out or practice with a team. This requirement should already be met for all incoming sixth grade students as part of the registration process. More information can be found on the South and District 25 web pages. Cross Country and Golf (grades 6, 7 & 8) have begun and girl's basketball tryouts are underway. Students can find much information about all sports on Schoology.
If they are interested, 7th & 8th grade students who have not received Cross Country information; please feel free to contact Ms. Sophia Vassos svassos@sd25.org. Here is a link to the Cross County calendar.
Information regarding Girl’s Basketball tryouts (grades 7 & 8) will be in the school announcements during the first week of school. If you have any questions about Girl's Basketball, please email coaches Scott McTague at smctague@sd25.org or Dan Burdi at dburdi@sd25.org .
Join South's PTA
Remember to join South PTA during your student’s registration to support all our student, family, and school programs. Note that each D25 school’s PTA is independent.
Our first PTA meeting will be virtual on September 15, 2022, at 6:30pm. Link - Google Meet
Office Information
The SMS Office is open Monday-Friday, 7am-3pm. (Summer Hours: Friday, 7-11am)
Address: 400 South Highland Avenue, Arlington Heights, IL 60005
Twitter: @AHSD25South
Main Line: (847) 398-4250
Absence Line: (847) 506-6999 x7300
Fax line: (847) 394-6260