The Howl
Tuesday, November 3, 2020
Note from the Principal!
Dear TCI Families,
I love the month of November! It is the start of the holiday season and a time to reflect and be thankful for family, friends, and life. What a crazy start to our school year it has been, it is like no other. I am thankful for our TCI students, staff, and families, and I am grateful to be the Principal of Cox Intermediate. Happy Holidays!
Debbie Spoon
Dates to Remember
Tuesday, November 3
- Student Holiday/Teacher staff Development Day
Wednesday, November 4
- Dyslexia Awareness Day at Cox (wear blue)
Wednesday, November 11
- Veterans Day (student and staff assembly)
Tuesday, November 17
- Progress Reports Go Home
Monday, November 23-27
- Thanksgiving Holiday
Coming in December: Student Picture Day, Thursday, December 3, 2020
Veterans Day Celebration!
Tom Cox Intermediate will continue with our tradition of honoring Veterans through an assembly for our students and staff. Due to our current circumstances, the assembly will be for students and staff only.
In order to distance students as much as possible we will hold four assemblies on Wednesday, November 11, 2020. One of the assemblies will be video recorded and uploaded that day for our virtual learners and our Cox families to view. The video can be accessed through the student's CANVAS page under library.

Gifted and Talented (GT) Program News
Gifted and Talented Referral Process:
GT referral process is open for CISD's Gifted and Talented program. Although the testing will not take place until late January for both remote and in-person platforms, referral requests are accepted at this time. Referral requests can be made by the parents and/or teachers. If you are interested in referring your child, you may want to discuss this with your child’s teacher. Referrals will be accepted through December 18. You may request a referral form from the front office or the Assistant Principal. You can also find the referral form and other GT information on the CISD GT homepage.
UIL Program:
UIL A+
Congratulations to the students who qualified for 1 of our 3 UIL A+ teams. These students will represent TCI on December 5th in our districts UIL Academics meet. Practices will begin the week of November 2nd, so be on the lookout for informational emails from your child's coach.
Our Coaches:
Mrs. Tsamouris - Maps, Graphs, and Charts
Mrs. Moore - Number Sense
Ms. Doherty - Listening
Fifth Grade Core Subjects (click on image below)
Sixth Grade Core Subjects (click on image below)
Tom Cox Intermediate School Library
Check out the news below to see what's happening in our library and the world of reading!
COUNSELORS' CORNER
Bike Safety
During Bike Safety Week, we had Sgt. Mann, Conroe ISD police officer, discuss rules for the road and the importance of wearing bike helmets on the morning announcements.
Mr. Perry (Ms. Perry’s, husband) shared his personal experience about his bike accident that occurred last year. He said he went out for a short ride and forgot to put on his helmet. It was dark outside so he didn't see the parked car, and he ran into the back of it. He spent time in the hospital and it took several months for him to recover from his injuries. Now when he rides his bike he always wears his helmet.
In addition, we were able to purchase 30 bike helmets to give away. We would love to give a big shout out to our PTO and Student Council for purchasing the helmets for us. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Safety First! Wear a helmet while riding your bike! | Several TCI Students won a bike helmet during Safety Week! | Students are encouraged to wear a hemet! |
Red Ribbon Week!
We celebrated Red Ribbon Week and learned the importance of saying NO to drugs. We had an amazing guest speaker, Ms. Diller, that discussed how friends can influence of us in a positive or negative way. Thank you, Ms. Diller, for sharing your story.
We had a great time getting to dress up and being kind to our family and friends. We collected over 10 boxes of canned foods, which will be donated to the Montgomery County Food Bank. We also collected lots of socks, which will be donated to Bridgeway Youth Shelter. Thank you to everyone that participated in the random acts of kindness and donated canned foods and socks.
National Dyslexia Awareness!
The month of October was National Dyslexia Awareness Month. Our school took time to learn about the characteristics of Dyslexia, what it is, and how it effects learning. We are proud of our staff members, Ms. Doherty, Ms. Logan, and Ms. Tackett for sharing their experiences, and talking about the strategies they used in school to help them with their learning. We also recognized famous people who have been identified as Dyslexic.
Wear Blue on Wednesday, November 5, 2020 in Recognition of Diabetes Awareness.

WORLD KINDNESS DAY!
TCI students and staff will celebrate World Kindness Day on Friday, November 13, 2020. We encourage our staff and students to do random acts of kindness.
We will also have a bulletin board designated in the cafeteria where students and staff can post a "thank you" to someone for showing them kindness.
GENERATION TEXAS!
During November 16 – 20, we will be celebrating Generation Texas! and learning the importance of obtaining a skill and/or college degree in a field of your choice. We will learn the schools our teachers attended and their career path. We cannot wait to hear everyone’s unique stories.
POWER OF POLITE!
Later in the month we will learn how to tie ties. This is always a fun lesson and everyone seems to enjoy it. To enable everyone to participate please send your student to school with a tie on Monday, Nov. 16th.

TCI SPIRIT SQUAD!
Spirit Squad News
The 2020-2021 Timberwolf Spirit Squad is starting up!
The Timberwolf Spirit Squad is a school spirit organization with the purpose of promoting school spirit by participating at school assemblies. As recognized school leaders, Spirit Squad members are expected to be positive role models at school and in their community.
Fees for this season are $10 per member. Due to social distancing we will only take the first 60 eligible applications. The application process is online this year:

From The Clinic
Notes from the Nurse:
As we head in to cold & flu season, I know there are a lot of questions pertaining to the symptoms that are similar between Covid 19, Colds, Flu, and Asthma/Allergies. The chart below helps to show the some of the similarities and differences. The CDC website and has a lot of useful information to help you and your student understand the different symptoms associated with each ailment.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/symptoms/flu-vs-covid19.htm
Please remember to wear your mask, wash your hands, and keep sick students home.
Parents please contact the clinic at 281-465-3211 or email the nurse, Margaret Saxe RN, msaxe@conroeisd.net with any questions.
Stay safe and healthy Timberwolves!


Tom Cox PTO

Support TCI PTO
Help support Tom Cox Intermediate School PTO
Shop with Amazon Smile!
0.5% of all eligible purchases will be donated to Tom Cox Intermediate School PTO.
Register today!
How to Register: Visit www.smile.amazon.com
Select Tom Cox Intermediate School PTO as your charitable organization Start Shopping!
Kroger Community Awards
Box Tops
Join me in earning cash for our school by using the Box Tops app. It’s an easy way to make a difference. All you have to do is buy Box Tops participating products (like Cheerios!) and scan your grocery receipt. Box Tops are worth $.10 each and they add up fast! Twice a year, our school receives a check to help pay for whatever we need - equipment, supplies or experiences the kids love!
Download the Box Tops for Education app here: https://btfe.smart.link/c2jjdifkw?referral_code=I9G499H6
RAINY DAY DISMISSAL PROCEDURES
Rainy/Cold Day Dismissal
If your student is a walker/biker they will be expected to walk or ride their bike on rainy days, unless you and your child have an alternate plan in place. If you choose for your child to be a car-rider on rainy days it is not necessary to complete a transportation change form.
In the case of severe weather (thunderstorms, lightening, blizzard) we may hold walkers/bikers until we feel it is safe for them to walk or ride home. If that does occur we will contact the parent to inform them of the delay. Bus transportation will run as scheduled.
