OMS Friday Knight Live
January 27, 2023
In This Newsletter:
- OMS Conferences: February 15 & 16
- Conferences: Dessert Sign Up
- Kleenex donations needed!
- Shrek the Musical
- Last Day to Order Yearbooks TODAY!
OMS Conferences Coming Up: February 15 & 16
Walk-ins: Walk-in conferences are an opportunity for families to visit any or all teachers their student has. These conferences are 5-7 minutes in length. Walk-ins are first come, first served. If there is a line for one class, we encourage families to visit other teachers and return when the line has gone down. Students may attend.
Zoom conferences: We host scheduled zoom conferences for families who want to reserve a time to meet with teachers via zoom. These conferences are 5 minutes in length similar to in-person walk-ins. Students may attend.
Scheduled Team Conferences: Teachers may reach out to families to schedule team conferences throughout the day Thursday. Students may attend.
Please mark your calendars for the following dates:
Wednesday, February 15th 3:15-8:15 p.m.
3:15-6:00= Walk-Ins @ OMS
6:30-8:15= Zoom Conferences
Thursday, February 16th 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
7:30-9:00= Walk-ins @ OMS
*The rest of the day there will be group conferences and additional individual zoom scheduled conferences. Available slots for zoom conferences will vary by teacher in ParentVue.
*Parents will be able to sign up for zoom scheduled conferences next Friday, February 3rd at 4 p.m. in ParentVue.
Conferences Dessert Sign-Ups
Parent Teacher Conferences are the week of Feb. 13th. The PTO will be providing dinner on Wed, Feb. 15th, and lunch on Thurs, Feb. 16th. We are looking for dessert donations to go with the meals, as well as being available to the staff throughout the week. We'll take any type of dessert - homemade, store made or even bulk produced! Desserts can be dropped off in the office between Monday, Feb. 13th - Wed, Feb. 15th. Please reach out to Laura.Pinkepank@farmers.com with any questions.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F094BA5A82FAAF58-conferences1
Thanks! Your OMS PTO
ACHOO!!! Donations Needed!
Oxford families, our stockpile of boxes of tissues is running very low. Cold, flu, and allergy season hit hard this year. When you come for parent teacher conferences, would you bring a box or two of tissues? We will collect in the main entrance foyer and distribute to all the classrooms in the building. Gesundheit and thank you!
Purchase your SHREK tickets for February 9 & 10
Click the link below to purchase your tickets for the 7:00pm performances of Shrek the Musical. All tickets are $6.00 and there are no ticket purchases at the door. Seating in the enchanted forest is first come first serve (no seat assignments). Join us and all your favorite fairy tale creature friends Thursday February 9 and Friday February 10.
Click HERE to purchase tickets online.
TODAY Last Day to Order 22-23 Yearbooks!!
Families may purchase yearbooks (or check to see if they already ordered) by logging into ParentVue and going to the Fee page. The yearbook will be listed under “Optional Fees” and will show as “YRBOOK Yearbook 22-23 OMS”. Yearbook orders will close at 11:55pm on Friday January 27 and additional orders will not be taken. There will NOT be yearbooks available for purchase at the end of the school year. Please avoid end of the year tears and confusion and order today.
If you have multiple children at Oxford and are ordering a yearbook for each of them, please purchase one yearbook separately in each student's account (not 2 yearbooks in one student's account). Yearbooks are passed out on the last day of school in class and if a sibling has both yearbooks, one sibling will not have a book to be signed by friends.
Helpful Repeated Information
PTO Trivia Night – Half of Tables Already Reserved!
Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 25th, 6:00pm-10:00pm, for the most fun evening of the year! Held at The Fountainbleau at 12701 Grandview Street off 127th, just a mile away, the OMS Trivia Night is a blast, and you don't want to miss it.
We have a silent auction (Golf Foursome at Brookridge? Weekend Lake House at Lake of the Ozarks?) and awards for the best-dressed table. The theme this year is Famous Couples. If you don't have a partner, feel free to come as a super famous Person.
Date: March 25
Time: 6:00pm - 10:00pm
Cost: $35 per person
Sign Up: As a team of 8 or individually
Ticket Order Link: https://omspto.membershiptoolkit.com/form/m/217235
Bring your own treats and food for a wild and crazy evening!
Also, we need volunteers! This is a fun way to be involved and attend for free! You can sign up to volunteer here: Trivia Night Sign up
You can also Venmo to @Oxford-MiddleSchoolPTO with the names of everyone attending and a table host if applicable. Please include tax which makes your total $38.19 pp.
*** Proceeds go towards Teacher Appreciation Weeks and beautifying the school - we have some projects planned including putting flags around the lamposts in the parking lot, similar to BVNW. Suggestions welcome!
Winter Edition of the OMS Student Newspaper Now Available
Click HERE to read the Winter 2023 edition of the OMS student newspaper. Great articles, comics, and photographs! Well done OMS Newspaper Club!
Crossing Guards Needed – Keeping Kids Safe
Are you looking for a part time job that matters and keeps kids safe? All City Management is looking for additional crossing guards. The job takes 1-2 hours per day. Please contact Ashley Helm (Lead Supervisor) for information, pay rate, locations, and hours.
Ashley Helm
ahelm@thecrossingguardcompany.com
Direct (913)203-7856
Updated Boys Basketball Game Schedule
A game date has been added to the boys basketball schedule. Click HERE for the updated 2023 schedule.
2nd Semester Course Fees
Course fees have been added to ParentVue accounts and are due at this time. Course fees are assigned based on your student’s enrollment. Not all courses will have fees, so please sign in to your ParentVue account to see if you have any fees due. Please note that fees cannot be paid through the ParentVue app. You must be logged into the website to pay fees. Fees may also be paid by cash or check made payable to Oxford Middle School. Questions regarding fees should be directed to Christina Fowles, OMS Bookkeeper, clfowles@bluevalleyk12.org
Thank you!!
Christina Fowles
Bookkeeper
Oxford Middle School (Tues, Thurs, Fri pm) 913-239-5508
Blue Valley Special Education Fair
Blue Valley Special Education Fair
Join us for the Special Needs Resource Fair on Thursday February 9 from 5:00pm - 8:00pm at Hilltop Conference Center. If you are a parent, teacher, caregiver, or self-advocate please join us – the event is free and open to the public.
Click HERE for more information
Parents Still Matter – January 2023 Newsletter
This great newsletter has many articles tailored for middle school families. Topics this month include sleep, school attendance, knowledge retention, reading for fun, after school time, and so much more!
Click HERE for the January 2023
5th Grade Families... Mark Your Calendars for Middle School Enrollment!
Attendance Reporting and Notifications
Families can expect automated attendance messages by email, phone, and text if a child is absent and their absence has not already been reported by a parent/guardian. It is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to report an absence or reply to the automated email or phone message.
What is the purpose of attendance notifications?
We realize that students may occasionally need to miss school for planned absences, illnesses, and appointments. However, when a student does not arrive at school or unexpectedly misses a portion of the school day, we are concerned and want to make sure you are aware that your child is absent.
How can I get push notifications?
Families who would also like a push notification can download the ParentVUE app and manage their notifications. If a child has an unreported absence when a teacher submits attendance, then a push notification will immediately be sent to the parent/guardian's mobile device.
Interested in push notifications? Simply download the ParentVUE app (iTunes app store or Google Play), enable push notifications in device settings and select attendance notifications through in-app settings. Once the app is downloaded, these instructions will help you complete the set-up.
Safe Schools Reporting
Blue Valley Schools is committed to promoting and fostering a safe environment in and around all of our schools. Through the convergence of physical and intellectual security measures, we are continuously working to prevent, mitigate, respond to and recover from a wide range of emergencies. Please check out available ways to report safety concerns
Updated Community Resources
Community Service Hours for 2022-23 Recognition
Community Service hours for this year's Blue Valley Volunteer Service Awards are due to Allyson DiNitto in the Counseling office by Friday, April 14, 2023! Students who have completed 50 or more service hours from April 1, 2022-March 31, 2023 will be recognized with service awards at the end of the school year. We have 3 levels of recognition: Bronze (50-74 hours of service), Silver (75-99 hours of service) and Gold (100+ hours of service).
Service hours can be for any volunteer work done to help an organization or person that you do not receive payment or goods for the service. Service work is to help others, outside of yourself or your family.
Examples: being a team manager, volunteering at a food pantry, doing yardwork for an elderly neighbor, being a peer mentor for another student, helping at an animal shelter, cleaning up an area park. **Being part of a school club or activity does not count for service hours, unless the group worked on a project to help another organization or cause.
Please use the 2022-2023 Volunteer Log (or your own version of it) to record your volunteer hours! If you have questions, please contact Allyson DiNitto at adinitto@bluevalleyk12.org.
Allyson DiNitto
O.M.S. Counselor (L-Z)
Student Absence Reporting ** Help Needed
Parents/Guardians we need your help. Please do not email or call staff members directly about student absences, late arrivals, or early dismissals (that includes Mrs. Orenstein, Mrs. Domoney, Mr. Holsapple, or any teacher). When those individuals are absent, your messages do not reach the attendance team.
We Highly Encourage you to use the “Report An Absence” feature in ParentVue. You may leave comments in the notes section if you are notifying us of a late arrival or early pick up. Please do not call Mrs. Orenstein directly – call the attendance line at 913/239-5505.
Thank you – we appreciate your assistance.
8th Grade Families: Mark Your Calendars
8th Grade Families- 8th grade celebration
Hello 8th grade families. It is time to start planning for the end of the year 8th grade celebration! This fun event involves a ceremony in the OMS gym, refreshments and an 8th grade only field trip.
In order to make this event memorable we need a committee. If you would like to help plan this fun 8th grade tradition, please click this link 8th Grade Celebration Committee
If you have any questions, please email us at oxfordmspto@gmail.com
Thank you,
Oxford PTO
Student text “Come Get Me”?
Parents and guardians, we need your help. If your student texts or calls you from their cell phone saying they don’t feel well and want you to pick them up — please tell them to go to the nurse’s office. The school tracks contagious illnesses, number of students out due to illness, and Nurse Piper watches for illness trends. Your student should only be calling you from the nurse’s office if they are going home ill.
Families, it is flu and cold season. Please keep your students home if they have (or in the past 24 hours have had) a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea.
OMS Traffic Line
Please follow the OMS traffic loop entering through the south entrance, going all the way through the loop and exiting through the south entrance. There are no left turns when the light is flashing. Cars must pull all the way down the line and students must exit on the building side of the car. Cars may not drop students off on Switzer or before they are on the building side of the line.
Thank you for your help in ensuring safety for all students and staff in our parking lot!
Student Picture Gallery
The OMS website has a Student Picture Gallery showing everyday classroom activities, science labs, activities, clubs, athletics, and special events. Want to see the Pre-Engineering egg drop? 6th grade science project? Sept 22 Cross Country Meet?
Click HERE for the Student Picture Gallery and feel free to download your favorite shots!
Clubs and Activities
We have had requests for a listing of clubs and activities by day. We have had new clubs start (Welcome Anime Club!!) and several change days and times (Check Photography Club and Show Choir).
Click HERE for 1st Semester Club and Activity List by Day and Week
ASK Locations and Day Update
Our Academically Successful Knights (ASK) program is up and running for first semester! Students may come for homework help or a quiet place to work on assignments and projects. See the updated days and locations for ASK 1st semester.
Candid Photos for Yearbook and Website
OMS families we would love to have some candid photos of your student at games, meets, practices, etc..
Photos must be .jpg, .jpeg, or.png for inclusion on the website, the parent newsletter, and the yearbook.
Photos must be in focus
Please do not send multiple photos of the same pose, group, or action – we love variety!
Thank you for uploading photos directly to the yearbook google drive! Click HERE for the 22 23 Yearbook Photo Link
Securly at Home
Your child’s online safety, in the palm of your hand. The time to take action is now. We recognize that student safety and well-being in the online world is a shared responsibility between our schools and families, and with Securly - the district’s cloud-based filtering system - taking an active role in your child’s online safety has never been easier.
Click HERE to access the Securly Parent Toolkit to setup your parent portal and custom notifications.
OMS Building and Office Hours
Doors open in the morning for students at 7:15am – students will be waiting outside until the doors open. Students are to proceed to the Commons/Gym and they may not go to lockers or to classrooms. Students must be in their seats in their 1st period classroom by 7:51am. When the afternoon bell rings at 3:00pm students must leave the building unless they are at a supervised after school activity or practice. Office hours are 7:15am - 3:30pm.
For the Latest Announcements and Information
Want to keep up on the latest OMS announcements and information? Check out the NEWS section on the OMS website. NEWS is located under the About Us tab.
Contact Us! We Are Here To Help!
Attendance Number: 913-239-5505
Mrs. Domoney, Principal: cdomoney@bluevalleyk12.org
Mr. Holsapple, Assistant Principal: jholsapple03@bluevalleyk12.org