The Middle Matters
OMS Nov. 2-6, 2020 Parent Newsletter
Inspiring Excellence. Every Learner. Every Day.
Calendar
IMPORTANT REMINDER TO BRING YOUR MASKS EACH AND EVERY DAY
Monday, November 2, 2020
Group 1 - A Day
Tuesday, November 3, 2020
Group 1- B day
Homework Help 7:00 am - Learning Stairs
No Tech Tuesday in the Cafeteria
Don't forget to get out and vote!
Wednesday, November 4, 2020
College Wear Wednesday
Thursday, November 5, 2020
Group 2 - A Day
No Tech Thursday in the Cafeteria
Last Day of 1st Quarter
Friday, November 6, 2020
NO SCHOOL - Teacher Work Day
Group 1 and Group 2 Schedule for Quarter 2
SNOW DAYS
As we head into winter weather, we need to be prepared for potential snow days. If we should run into inclement weather that requires the district to cancel in-person learning, we are going to do things differently than we have in the past. For the first two potential snow days, we will continue to offer learning to students scheduled for those days. If we go beyond two days, we will communicate how those additional days will be handled.
For instance, if we have a snow day on a Monday, Group 1/A Day classes will still post learning. Each teacher will post learning activities at the start of each class period for that day. In addition, teachers will have a Google Meets link available for offering help to students. Some teachers may require live learning sessions on these days. Attendance will be taken on snow days!
If we happen to end up in a situation with a snow day, we will follow up with a message reminding students assigned to that day by Group 1/Group 2 (distance and hybrid) that they are expected to be logging into each class following their normal schedule.
MASKS
Students are required to come to school with masks each day they are here. While we have some masks as back-up, we regularly hand out 30+ masks each day. It is difficult for us to keep up with that many masks. PLEASE remind your child to bring his/her own mask to school for everyone's safety!
Does Your Child Need Help?
Homework Help: Tuesday and Friday mornings--7:00-7:55 (Learning Stairs). Students may come on their own or may be referred by a teacher. Students should enter the new cafeteria entrace, Door #13.
Saturday School: Dates for November--14th and 21st from 8:00-11:30. If you are intersted in your child attending, please reach out to your child's teachers of appropriate administrator:
6th Grade: Mr. Zurbriggen (mzurbriggen@isd761.org)
7th Grade: Mrs. Halverson (ehalverson@isd761.org)
8th Grade:
Bulldogs Team: Mrs. Sullivan (jsullivan@isd761.org)
Scots Team: Mrs. Halverson (ehalverson@isd761.org)
Storm Team: Mr. Zurbriggen (mzurbriggen@isd761.org)
Cold Weather
With the colder weather approaching, this is just a reminder that students are not able to enter the building until 7:55. Please have them dress appropriately for the weather.
Last chance to vote on school funding!
If you haven’t voted yet, be sure to vote on November 3rd. The back of the ballot includes two funding requests for the Owatonna Public Schools:
Question 1 requests a straight renewal of the district’s existing operating levy which is about to expire. Operating levies provide critical funding for staff, classroom supplies and other school operating costs. The average homeowner would see a 50 cent per month tax increase to cover inflation.
Question 2 requests a phased-in increase to the district’s operating levy. If approved, funds would enable the district to maintain quality programming and activities, appropriate class sizes and career-technical education opportunities. By phasing in the levy over time, the tax impact is also phased in - with no tax increase until 2022.
The school district is asking for a levy increase in Question 2 because state and federal funding has not kept pace with inflation and increasing educational needs. To balance the budget and keep the levy request as low as possible, the school district already cut $2.5 million from the 2019-20 and 2020-21 budgets. This shared approach of cuts along with a phased-in levy request only asks for what is needed, when it’s needed.
And remember that Question 2 is contingent on Question 1 - meaning Question 2 can only pass if Question 1 is first approved by voters. In other words, if Question 2 gets more than 50% yes votes but Question 1 does not, neither question will pass.
Learn more at www.isd761.org/levy - and vote on November 3rd!
Early voting is still available! Click here for more information on early voting.
KIDS FIRST Sports
OMS Winter Sports Registration is currently open online for basketball and wrestling. Please visit the OMS website and click on the Athletics tab for all of the information you will need.
Saturday School
Last year, we started a program called Saturday School. This generally runs twice a month from 8:00-11:30 and is supervised by two teachers/OMS employees. Our intent behind this is to offer a safe place for students to work on schoolwork. We do not want this to be seen as a punishment; on the contrary, we hope students and families see this as a way for us to offer support outside the normal school hours in order to help students find success in school. In addition to academic support, we provide a light breakfast of fruit, donuts, and juice/milk for students. Teams work with administration to identify students who could use this support, but we also have students and families reach out to us to sign up. If you are interested in this for your child, feel free to reach out to your child's counselor. Upcoming dates for this are as follows:
November 14
November 21
December 12
A Look Ahead
November 14, 2020
Saturday School
November 21, 2020
Saturday School
Week of November 23rd (Thanksgiving Week)
Monday, November 23 is a Group 1 day
Tuesday, November 24 is a Group 2 day (Group 1 will NOT attend this day)
November 25-27 there is NO SCHOOL
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Information below has already been given to you in previous newsletters but we wanted you to have it readily available in case you needed it. Previous newsletter can also be found on the website.
School Work and Schedule
Your child should have work to complete on the days he/she is not in school or online with teachers. Set a routine in the "off days" that includes regular time to work on classwork. Students should be checking their Google Classroom and email for updates on work that needs to be completed when they are not in school or live with their teachers! There will be homework in each of the grades that needs get done.
Be Prepared
Every student must bring their Chromebook to school every day, fully charged.
Teachers will be using these on a daily basis; it is crucial your child brings his/her computer to school every day!
Mask Up
Masks are required each and every day. Please have your students bring their own masks to school.
We are unable to continuously provide masks for students that are not bringing theirs from home. We have a limited amount for loss or breakage but we do not have enough for students that repeatedly forget their masks.