It was wonderful to see so many families join us yesterday for Mrs. Hamid's retirement reception. Thank you for coming to celebrate her with us.

Parent Survey - Curriculum

Plano ISD has contracted with Curriculum Management Solutions, Inc. to conduct a comprehensive audit of the educational program of our school district. It is intended to provide the district with feedback regarding strengths and weaknesses, so changes can be made to improve student learning on every campus. Parents and guardians have the opportunity to complete an online survey regarding the school district before the auditors visit each campus. If you would like to participate, please use the link below. Thank you, in advance, for providing your valuable and anonymous input.

SURVEY LINK (English)

SURVEY LINK (Spanish)

CONGRATULATIONS

Science Fair

Grand Prize Winners Nirvaan Das (upper division) and Prisha Patkar (lower division)

First Lego League (FLL) Robotics Teams

North Region FLL Qualifiers - Pheonixes & Team Machine Maniacs

WordMasters

Andrew Li - Outstanding Performer

Mary Li- Perfect Scorer

Sincerely,

Karen Lee

Jan. 31 = opt-in consent forms due

Feb. 7 = PTA Spirit Night @ Chipotle (Independence & Legacy) 4-8pm

Feb. 13-17 = Friendship Week (more info will come soon)

Feb. 14 = friendship parties

Feb. 20 = President's Day / No School

Feb. 28 = spring picture day

Mar. 2 = Open House

Mar. 4-13 = Spring Break

In compliance with Senate Bill 9 and House Bill 1525, all school districts in Texas are required to provide parents an “opt in” consent for their child to receive instruction in the required Texas Essential Knowledge & Skills for the following topics, rather than the previous “opt out” process:

• anti-victimization education (child abuse and human trafficking prevention - taught by Mrs. Carranza in guidance);
• violence prevention (family violence prevention and healthy relationships - taught by Mrs. Carranza in guidance); and
• reproductive health (grades 4, 5 - taught by Nurse Jenny).

Topics vary by grade level and are designed to be developmentally and age-appropriate, in accordance with the state standards.

Students who do NOT receive explicit parental consent (opt in) for this instruction WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE CLASSROOM learning environment while the instruction for the above listed topics is provided. A non-response will default to your child not receiving instruction in the classroom environment as the statute clearly requires parents to opt in.

If you would like for your child TO receive instruction you will need to complete the “opt in” form by this Tuesday, January 31, 2023. Parents will need their child’s student ID number to complete the form (available in the Parent Portal or by contacting your child’s school). After entering your child’s student ID number and the first three letters of the last name, you will receive the form to read and complete electronically.

Please click here to complete your child's consent form.

Mrs. Walker is so excited to announce our optional Spring Skaggs Community Book Club! This book club will be outside of school hours, and will require the purchase of one copy of the book per family. We will be reading the award-winning book Hope Wins edited by Rose Brock. It is a collection of inspiring stories and essays about hope from some of the most popular middle grades authors today. All families that participate will be able to meet the editor Rose Brock, get their books signed by Dr. Brock, will receive resources for reading and discussing the book at home, and will be able to attend an exclusive virtual visit with multiple authors from the book!

Meeting dates will be 2/2, 2/9, 2/16, and 2/23 from 6-7pm in the Skaggs library. At least one adult must be present with children. All family members are invited to join!

For more information, please watch the video found at tinyurl.com/HopeWinsVid. If your family plans to participate, fill out the form found at tinyurl.com/HopeWinsForm.

Books can be purchased from any store; the Stonebriar Barnes and Noble has lots in stock, Amazon has copies, and some will be for sale at the kickoff event. Dr. Brock and one of the authors have generously donated some books to any families that would like to participate but can not afford to purchase the book. Email courtney.walker@pisd.edu if you are in need of one of these copies.

We can't wait to come together around this incredible book!

The Rice Middle School PTA is looking for a 2023-2024 School Supplies Chair and a 2023-2024 Spirit Wear Chair!

• As the School Supplies Chair, you will work with the lead teachers and manage the selecting, pricing and ordering of school supplies online in the Spring. Then in August, you will work with the volunteers chair to coordinate the volunteers and distribution of school supplies the week before school begins. The previous school supply coordinator will be there to help guide you through the learning process.
• The Spirit Wear Chair works with our Spirit Wear vendor on designs. The Spirit Wear chair will also be responsible for selecting, ordering, and selling Rice spirit wear during the school year.. Summer work is necessary to prepare for spirit wear sales during back-to-school time.

The great news for both of these positions, the previous year’s chair would be working closely with you during the transition. Thank you for considering volunteering with our amazing PTA and school!

If you have questions about these positions, or any volunteer positions at Rice MS, email Gabby at volunteers@riceravenspta.org. You can also visit RiceRavensPTA.org to sign up!