Lansing Middle School
Parent Newsletter - April 2024
A Note From Mr. Jenkins
Dear Parents/Guardians,
I hope this message finds you well and ready for the final stretch of the school year. As we embark on the 4th quarter, I wanted to take a moment to welcome you to our latest newsletter and share some exciting updates and important information with you.
This quarter promises to be filled with opportunities for growth, learning, and celebration. As we reflect on the journey we've taken so far, I'm filled with pride for the progress our students have made and the dedication they've shown to their education.
In this newsletter, you can expect to find:
1. Highlights from the 3rd quarter: We'll take a moment to celebrate the achievements our students have reached over the past quarter, whether it's academic accomplishments, extracurricular successes, or acts of kindness and leadership.
2. Looking ahead: As we dive into the 4th quarter, we'll provide a glimpse into what lies ahead, including upcoming events, projects, and opportunities for students to excel and shine.
3. Important reminders: We'll share important dates and announcements regarding assessments, school activities, and classroom updates.
4. Ways to stay connected: We'll provide information on how you can stay connected and engaged with our school community.
Your partnership and involvement in your child's education are invaluable, and we're grateful for your continued support as we work together to empower every student to reach their full potential.
Thank you for entrusting us with your child's education; I am confident it will be a successful 4th quarter!
State Assessments and Fastbridge Update
We are making progress with state assessments. All students have completed the ELA (reading) assessment, as of last week. Overall, teachers have reported seeing great effort from students on the assessments. The math assessment will be given from April 8th - 12th to all grade levels. After that, the 8th grade science assessment will be given on Tuesday, April 16th and Wednesday, April 17th. The assessment window closes a week earlier this year on Friday, the 19th, so we will need to have all make up testing completed by that date. A shortened testing window is significant because it compacts the amount of instruction that can be provided to students ahead of the assessments, compared to previous years.
We are using two different schedules during testing – a “red” schedule and a “white” schedule. Both are a modified block schedule with the classes that are testing having longer class periods – 65 minutes. This allows us to test all students in the morning and is done because we believe students perform better in the morning. In preparation for assessments, we did a countdown to the assessment on the morning announcements. We emphasized for students to take their time, use all the tools that are available to them on the assessment, and to give us their best effort.
Additionally, teachers also completed goal-setting individually with students so they could gauge where they were last year and decide on a reasonable goal for this year. We have offered some incentives to students for improvement from last year, as a whole – this involves an extended lunch outside in May. We hope to get results at or around the same time as last year – early to mid-May.
All students will take their third Fastbridge assessment of the year in reading and math beginning the end of April. The window for this is April 29th - May 17th. This gives us important data and helps us to place students into classes for the following school year.
A reminder about how our parents can help with assessments –
- Talk to your child about the importance of doing his/her BEST on the assessments
- Be positive and supportive regarding the assessments
- Make attendance a priority and please be on time for the start of the school day
- Make sure your child has a good night’s sleep (minimum of 8 hours)
- Provide a healthy breakfast
- Help your child remember to charge his/her iPad
State Assessment Results - 2022-2023
Results for last year's state assessments are pictured below. LMS students performed very well on the state assessments overall and were above the state average in all tested areas. The state assessment has some variance from one grade level to another, which is why the state average is different from one grade level to another, even within the same discipline area, i.e. math, reading, science. Lansing Middle School teachers align their curriculum with state standards and tested indicators. We always aim for improvement from one school year to the next -- individually and as a building. We began state assessments on March 26th.
ELA (Reading) Assessment Scores - 2023
Math Assessment Scores - 2023
Science Assessment Scores - 2023
Academic Updates from Teachers
6th Grade Language Arts – Kathy Baughman, Tiffany Finn, Rachel Szmed
Most of 4th quarter 6th grade ELA classes will focus on the research process, note taking, citing sources, and writing an informative essay using a formal voice (W.6.2; w.6.10; W.6.11). For most 6th graders, the research project is the first big multi-step writing assignment. This project finishes with a “Career Fair” in which students present their information and answer questions based on their research (SL.6.4; SL.6.5; SL.6.6). Parents are invited to this as well.
6th Grade Literature – Kathy Baughman, Cheryl Borgeson, Connie Evans, Tiffany Finn, Alisha Holyfield, Diane Peintner, Rachel Szmed, Amanda Thomas, DeeDee Wiley
6th grade literature students will be taking state assessments this month. Students have been completing KITE mini-tests throughout the year. These helped to inform teachers on which skills we needed to focus on to prepare students. We are wrapping up the novel The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis and will begin reading the novel Hoot By Carl Hiaasen. Reading novels allows for exploration and learning of all literature standards and how they work together to create meaningful literature (RL.6.1-13).
6th Grade Math – Diane Peintner, DeeDee Wiley
6th grade has been diligently working on learning to use variables in equations and inequalities. The students have learned to solve single variable equations using all four operations. They are taking that knowledge and are currently using it to graph inequalities. Later in the quarter we will work on Geometry. The students will find the area of trapezoids, parallelograms, triangles, and composite figures. We will finish the year focusing on statistics.
6th Grade Science – Alisha Holyfield, Amanda Thomas
At the end of March, we began our study of Chemical Interactions, which will be our final unit of the year. Students started by observing a mystery mixture which contained two white, solid substances. They recorded the physical characteristics of the dry mixture, then added water to the mixture and recorded the results of their observations. In April, students will observe nine different white substances that could possibly be in the mystery mixture. They will record their observations of their physical properties and develop a plan for testing pairs of substances to see which two were in the mystery mixture. When students add water to different pairs of substances, they will record which pairs have similar results as when water was added to the mystery mixture. After we complete the Mystery Mixture investigation, we will move onto the Periodic Table of Elements. Students will become familiar with element names and symbols. We will continue this unit into May as students study the elements of the world and what make up substances on Earth.
6th Grade Social Studies – Cheryl Borgeson, Connie Evans
6th grade social studies is wrapping our unit on ancient Greece. We will be finishing off the school year learning about the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Our study will begin with the Roman Republic and the legend of the brothers Romulus and Remus and how they founded Rome. Building on content we have been learning about ancient forms of government, students will analyze what led to Rome becoming a republic. Students will learn about Rome’s tripartite government and how written laws helped create a stable government. Our lessons will cover some causes of the Roman Republic becoming the Roman Empire. Students will learn about Roman achievements in science, architecture, art, literature, and language. We will also learn how the Roman Empire practiced many religions before Christianity spread and ultimately became Rome’s official religion. We are wrapping April with identifying some of the causes and effects of the fall of the Roman Empire. Students will also take a Common Formative Assessment over different ancient forms of government to include: monarchy, oligarchy, tyranny, democracy (direct and representative), and theocracy.
7th Grade Language Arts – Mindy Brinker, Brandy Hamilton
During March, seventh grade language arts classes focused on three grammar/writing skills in preparation for the state assessment: subject-verb agreement, commas between coordinate adjectives, and misplaced/dangling modifiers. These all fit within Kansas Writing Standard W.7.10, W.7.10d, and W.7.11b.
Moving forward, we plan to celebrate the joy, expressiveness, and pure delight of poetry during April – National Poetry Month. Students will learn about types of poetry and write several poems of their own. We will finish out writing for the year with a spring descriptive essay and argumentative letter to the principal about school lunches.
7th Grade Literature – Adam Bremer, Charity Briggs, Tom Cretors, Katie Larson, Brandy Hamilton, Rachel Sheeley
During the month of March, 7th grade students read some short stories to focus on foreshadowing, mood and tone, story elements, and suspense. They started the month reading “Bargain” where they focused on identifying a claim and providing reasons to support their claim. This tied into what students were learning in language arts. Students then read “Beneath the Crags of Malpelo Island” and “Three Skeleton Key”. These stories focused on foreshadowing, mood and tone, and building suspense. Students finished the month with state assessments. We will finish the year reading, The Outsiders, where we will focus on character development, conflict, and plot.
7th Grade Math – Denise Dixon, Theresa Fields, Theresa Jones
Math 1 Students finished all the 7th grade content standards and are reviewing for state assessments. After state assessments, students will begin their work in Go Math – preparing for 8th grade concepts.
Math 2 Students have finished the 7th grade standards and the first 3 modules of 8th grade. They are currently reviewing for state assessments. After state assessments, they will continue their work covering 8th grade concepts.
Math 2/Algebra Ready Students have completed all the 7th grade standards and 6 modules in 8th grade. They are currently reviewing for state assessments. After state assessments, they will continue their work covering 8th grade concepts.
7th Grade Science – Adam Bremer, Stacey Jenkins
In 7th Grade Life Science, students are using the scientific method to run plant experiments that will start the plants for our gardens. Along with the experiments, they are learning about the importance of biodiversity in genes, species, and the environment. Students are studying a variety of environmental issues that limit biodiversity such as oil spills, bee populations, losing wetlands and coral reefs, and overfishing. They are studying a variety of solutions along with the benefits and constraints of their ideas and will present the final project to their peers.
7th Grade Social Studies – Tom Cretors, Edward Fenton
In 7th grade Social Studies, we just finished learning about World War II and The Great American Dust Bowl in Kansas. We are currently learning about The Cold War and the Civil Rights movement. In the next week, we will be wrapping up learning about Kansas History and beginning to learn more about American Geography. Students will learn the basics about making and reading all different types of maps and then apply that knowledge to survive a fake Zombie apocalypse scenario.
8th Grade Language Arts – Shari Jacobs, Tracey Carney-Linn, Julie Price, Danielle Perry, Stacey Ward
Eighth grade started our final unit Graffiti: Art or Crime? This is an argumentative writing unit that will focus on presenting students with both sides of graffiti. They will read laws on graffiti from New York, Texas & Pennsylvania. Learn laws in New York on how they battle with graffiti in their town. Then they’ll learn techniques for crafting a convincing argument, which they’ll use in their final argumentative essay. This unit will certainly be one that students remember every time they see graffiti in the years to come. By the end of the unit, students should be able to evaluate multiple examples of graffiti and refer to their understanding of “public art,” “recognized stature,” and “vandalism” to construct a well-reasoned argument. Students will assemble evidence and weigh opposing points of view through discussion and debate.
8th Grade Literature – Dana Blew, Tracey Carney-Linn, Jessica Graves, Shari Jacobs, Julie Price, Danielle Perry, Stacey Ward
Quarter 4 brings us back to the Civil War and the power of words to create a movement. This unit focuses on iconic speeches by Abraham Lincoln and Sojouner Truth that shows students that the right words can challenge a diverse audience. We will look at Lincoln’s “House Divided” speech, “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech by Sojourner Truth, and a novel Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt that shows a family’s journey to find the right words to deal with a war that is driving them apart. We will be reading the non-fiction novel Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James Swanson this quarter along with watching the movie The Conspirator on Mary Surratt’s trail for Lincoln’s murder.
8th Grade Math – Miranda Cote, Theresa Jones, Penny Wagner
Math 1 students are beginning their final module for 8th grade skills. Module 6, Functions will end right before they take the state assessments. Math 2 students have completed the final module for 8th grade skills and will spend the next two weeks to review for the State Assessments. Math State Assessments are April 8-12. On days that students are not testing they will watch, “The Martian” movie. “The Martian” shows how a human can utilize a variety of math knowledge to survive on an unhospitable planet in unimaginable circumstances. There will be a lesson on vocabulary and math skills used to prepare for and live in space following the movie. After state assessments, students will begin preparing for Algebra I their 9th grade year.
Algebra students have completed their review of 8th grade skills and have returned to Algebra skills. Students are completing a unit on Systems of Equations and will spend the next week learning about Systems of Inequalities. Algebra students will participate in watching The Martian when not testing. After the state assessments, students will move on to Unit 7, Polynomials.
8th Grade Physical Science – Josh Yoakam
Students learned about makeup and organization of the periodic table, elements, and their properties. Students learned how to develop Bohr and Lewis dot diagrams. Students learned how to identify oxidation numbers and make predictions about whether an element would be more likely to gain or lose electrons. Students learned how to predict whether ionic or covalent bonding would occur and the proper naming of ionic compounds or molecules. Students learned how to write chemical formulas. Students are currently learning how to write and balance chemical equations utilizing coefficients. Students made use of the University of Colorado -Boulder’s PhET Balancing Chemical Equations module and guided inquiry to explore these concepts. Students are learning about chemical changes and how to classify chemical reactions. After wrapping up our exploration of chemical reactions we will be taking some time to review for state assessments. Students will revisit terminology and concepts introduced at the middle school level.
8th Grade Science – Jessica Graves, Kaylea Krumm
We have begun our new unit on Earth Catastrophes. Students are learning about Volcanoes, Tsunamis, Earthquakes, Hurricanes and Tornadoes. Students are connecting what they have learned about plate tectonics to the volatile earth-shaking science of earthquakes and volcanoes. Students are currently engineering and building earthquake proof structures using recycled materials and what they have learned about the current technology. Moving forward we will be studying Tsunamis and tornadoes. This will then lead us to the Disaster Movie Project.
8th Grade Social Studies – Ann Andrews, Dana Blew
8th Grade Social Studies has been studying the American Civil War, and how people, places and things affect the outcome of the Civil War. We are analyzing the different strengths and weaknesses of both sides at the beginning of the war and their possible impacts on the outcome. We learned about the early battles in the East and the West and the struggles and successes of both the Union and the Confederacy. Currently, we are studying the middle of the Civil War 1863, after the Battle of Antietam and Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. We are looking into how the Civil War influenced civilian life and the politics surrounding the division of our nation. Next, we will study how the “Tide Turns” with the victory at Gettysburg and Vicksburg, Gettysburg Address, and other significant Civil War battles. We will end the Civil War in a couple of weeks, with the Union victory and General Grant accepting General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House, VA. In our next unit, we will be learning about the challenges of rebuilding a broken nation and securing newfound rights and freedoms.
Advanced Studies – Josh Yoakam
Students completed a second quarter first/semester reflection to examine work habits, successes, shortcomings, and identify any changes that needed to occur to have improved or continued success. The sixth-grade class worked on the ABC’s of Middle School book as a parody of the middle school experience. The seventh and eighth grade classes completed a CREDO assignment to identify their core beliefs and provide supporting text as to the why behind these beliefs. Students completed an Odyssey of the Mind Activity-Making the Future exploring imagination’s role in innovation. The sixth-grade class participated in a discussion/debate on the topic of banning homework. The seventh-grade class worked on a short-term project exploring issues with the current school model and developed a plan for an ideal school setting. The eighth-grade class participated in a discussion/debate on the topic of year-round school. Middle school students prepared for student-led conferences during a portion of time in the third quarter when advanced studies classes were scheduled. Students continued work on a variety of independent and small group projects.
Band – Aaron Edwards
The 7th and 8th grade bands performed at the KVL Band and Orchestra festival on February 28, hosted at LMS. Both groups performed very well with the 7th grade band earning a “2” rating and the 8th grade band earning a “1” rating. We hosted 14 bands from the KVL League in the district auditorium. The day went very smooth, and the directors were happy with our amazing facilities.
We had our spring concert on March 4th and featured all of the bands at LMS. It was a great concert!
Through March, we are recognizing Music in our Schools Month by participating the President’s Own Marine Band “March Madness”. In band class we listen to traditional recordings of band marches performed by the Marine Band. The students vote for their favorites and we turn in a school vote to the Marine Band daily. The students even filled out their own brackets. More information is here.
Some of our 6th grade students are getting ready to switch to the “big” instruments like Saxophone, Tuba, Oboe, etc. They are excited to try the new challenge and we know they’ll have lots of success.
The next performance for the bands is May 14th at the Fine Arts Fair. We hope you can join us in celebrating all the arts programs at LMS.
Choir – Josiah Ketterman
All choirs have wrapped up their 3rd quarter Spring Concerts and are starting preparations for their final large concert of the year, Fine Arts Fair on May 14th.
6th Grade has finished their GarageBand unit on song composition and presented their projects and are starting their new music for the Fine Arts Fair. Later in the semester they will complete a project on Commercial Music where they will explore music jingles and create their own to sell a product that they choose.
7th and 8th grade choirs performed at KVL Choir Festival on March 20th and both choirs earned “2” (Excellent) ratings. They performed very well and should be proud of the work that they put in preparing for this event. To prepare for the Fine Arts Fair, 7th and 8th grade choir students have completed a “Create Your Own Program” project where they take the roll of the director and choose two pieces of music for each choir using real life publication websites to select music that fits the voicing requirements of each choir. This provides them an opportunity to see what goes into selecting music for a choir concert.
Sound FX Choir is also preparing for their trip to Worlds of Fun on May 4th for the Music in the Parks Festival where they will perform for three judges and receive a rating and clinic.
Many choir students are also involved in the MS Spring Musical – Shrek Jr!. We hope you can attend one of the performances: April 19th at 7pm or April 20th at 1pm. Tickets will be available to purchase for $5 at the door or in the MS office starting April 8th.
Math Intervention – Emerald Peters
During March students continued to use IXL Diagnostic to target missing math skills. Class periods focused on building missing skills and reviewing difficult core math concepts to help prepare for upcoming Kansas State Assessments. IXL provided a specific set of skills divided into grade levels to target high frequency skills that will be used on the assessment. Every other week, progress monitoring was also conducted using the Fastbridge Math CAP assessment tool. Students had discussions with their interventionist to better understand their progress during their time in tier and what their goals are for the remainder of the 2023-2024 school year.
PE – Jennifer Bishop, Jon Bishop
In PE, both girls and boys have been focusing on getting more track and outside time in (as the weather allows) and stressing the importance of lifetime fitness. Although games and sports are fun activities that the students still participate in, the concept of how to keep up with fitness without a class of thirty is paramount in understanding and making lifetime fitness goals. Teachers work on discussions during workouts in regard to cardiovascular fitness, progressive overload, and overall stressing the system in order to improve heart and lung function and capacity.
Reading Intervention – Rachel Sheeley
We continue to individualize our tier instruction using IXL so students can work on missing skills. We have also used IXL to prepare for State Assessments. It is exciting to see how their IXL scores are rising as the year progresses.
We did a Reader’s Theater Play before Spring Break with a St. Patrick’s Day mystery twist. Students each had parts. We looked at vocabulary words, setting, characters, theme, identifying important events, and problem/solution. We also incorporated some math computation into the play with some relay type activities that were part of the play.
Progress monitoring for fluency and comprehension continues. Most students are seeing some gains during each of their progress monitoring sessions or at least remaining constant. We evaluate and compare their results each time they complete progress monitoring.
During our Thursday’s Game Days, we continue to reinforce skills we work on during the week. Some games have allowed us to expand our vocabulary after game sessions to build on specific vocabulary activities like multi-syllable words or multiple meaning words.
We will end the year with FastBridge screening again in May. These results will determine our groups for the start of next school year. It will be amazing to show student the growth they’ve made during this school year.
Spanish – Regan Gatson
Currently in the wonderful world of Spanish class, 6th grade is finishing up their greetings unit and will begin to learn about pronouns and “ser” (to be). This will lead to them being able to describe themselves and others.
7th grade is finishing their weather unit and will begin to learn hobbies and how to talk about their likes and dislikes.
8th grade is in their “ser” vs. “estar” unit (learning when to use ser vs. estar, since they both mean “to be”). They are also continuing to practice the conjugation of -ar, -er, and -ir verbs.
Technology – Ron Averill
The 7th and 8th grade students are working through their Expeditions as expected. We should be able to get two or three more Expeditions completed by the end of the semester. It is our desire that the experiences that the students have throughout this semester will impact decisions for future education and careers.
The sixth-grade students have started a new quarter. We have completed orientation and have started working through their missions.
Poetry Cafe - 6th Grade - March 21st and 22nd
LMS 6th grade students recently completed a poetry unit. Students read and analyzed several poems before exploring different styles and writing their own. This unit culminated in a Poetry Café during class time on Thursday, March 21st, and Friday, March 22nd. This is always a highlight during the year because students get to showcase their work to their parents and other family members in addition to presenting to their classmates. Students take great pride in sharing their work and it is evident that a great deal of time and preparation goes into this event. Mrs. Kathy Baughman and Ms. Rachel Szmed are the language arts teachers at the 6th grade. I would also like to recognize Mrs. Kathy Baughman for her efforts this year. Ms. Szmed was not able to attend due to a family emergency and Mrs. Baughman covered and took both days. This link is to the article that appeared on the district website about the event -- https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/6604356a82988
Solar Eclipse - Monday, April 8th
Lansing Middle School students will have an opportunity to observe the partial solar eclipse on Monday, April 8th. This is a rare event – Lansing was in the path of the full solar eclipse in August of 2017. The next time there is a solar eclipse that will be visible in the United States is 2033 or 2044, depending on the amount of sun coverage. Lansing Middle School science teachers will provide a lesson on solar eclipses prior to the event. We will modify our schedule so students can be outside leading up to the maximum eclipse point at 1:54 PM and for a little while afterwards. We will follow all safety precautions and students will have protective glasses on during the event.
LMS Dance - Friday, April 26, 2024
Lansing Middle School will host a dance on Friday, April 26th. The LMS Student Council is sponsoring the dance. Student Council representatives have worked with LMS administration to come up with parameters for the dance.
These are the qualifications for eligibility --
- GRADES - The 4th quarter began on Monday, March 18th, after spring break. Students will be ineligible if they have two (2) D's or one (1) F during 4th quarter --- the cutoff will be Friday, April 19th. Students and parents always have access to their grades through Skyward. Students look at their grades and do goal-setting each Thursday during Advisory. Students have been provided with strategies to avoid low grades on multiple occasions throughout the school year.
- BEHAVIOR - Students may not have three (3) or more discipline points during the 4th quarter. These will be calculated from March 18th through the day of the dance on April 26th. A reminder that discipline points are calculated as - Each Day of Out-of-school suspension (OSS) = 3 points; Each Day of In-school-suspension (ISS) = 2 points; Each After-School Detention (ASD) served = 1 point; Each Lunch Detention = ½ point.
Dances are a great social opportunity for students and we hope that ALL students are eligible.
Some other important information about the dance --
- The dance will start at 6:30 PM and end at 8:30 PM.
- Drop off and pick up for dance will be on the west side of the building (where the gym and auditorium doors are located).
- The cost of admission is $5.
- The school dress code and all other school rules are applicable to dances.
- Students need to be present during the school day in order to attend a dance.
- Only students from Lansing Middle School are allowed to attend the dance.
- Students are not to leave the dance once they have entered the building. Students can only leave during the dance if a parent talks to a chaperone and picks them up. Unless prior arrangements have been made with administration, a parent may only pick up their child during the dance itself. Students may leave with other parents after the dance is over.
LMS Fine Arts Fair - May 14, 2024
Lansing Middle School will host a Fine Arts Fair on Wednesday, May 10th. This is an annual event that brings together student artwork, instrumental music, and vocal music. It highlights the art pieces of our students and they will be on display in the LMS commons area for viewing.
At 6:00 PM, music performances begin. All LMS choirs and bands will perform during the evening. We hope the weather cooperates and we are able to hold the music performances outside on the northwest side of the building. This is the area outside of the auditorium and band room entrance. If there is inclement weather, the music portion will be held in the auditorium.
Dinner will be available prior to the concerts, beginning at 4:45. Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Wixon will run the grill and dinner will consist of hamburgers, bratwurst, or hot dogs.
The Fine Arts Fair originated as and continues to be a Site Council venture, starting in the year 2000. Thank you to Celeste Hoins and Jessica Schroeder for chairing this event.
We invite all LMS parents to attend!
Math Fair - 8th Grade - May 15th
“Lansing Middle School is excited to announce their upcoming Math Fair, organized by Penny Wagner and Miranda Cote, to be held on May 15th. This event aims to provide our eighth-grade students with an immersive experience in understanding how mathematics intertwines with various careers in our community.
Community members are invited to participate by filling out the following Google Form:
Community Member Interest Survey
This form will help match them with eighth-grade students who will conduct interviews via email and then craft informative/research essays on their respective careers.
Students will then showcase their information on tri-fold displays (similar to a Science Fair) to present to classes during the school day and will be open to families from 4:00 pm-6:00 pm on May 15th.
Whether you are or know an engineer, accountant, architect, data analyst, entrepreneur, or have a profession that utilizes mathematics in any way, we hope you will consider donating your time to the students in our community!” https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/6605cbd7af8da
Grade Level Reward Field Trips
Each grade level at LMS will have their reward field trip for the 2023-2024 school year during May. More information will come out in the next few weeks. The 8th grade field trip will be to Worlds of Fun on Friday, May 17th. The 6th and 7th grade field trips will be to Main Event --- the 6th grade field trip will be Monday, May 20th and the 7th grade field trip will be on Tuesday, May 21st.
A reminder that the following system is used to determine eligibility for the field trips:
BEHAVIOR POINTS
Each Day of Out-of-school suspension (OSS) = 3 points
Each Day of In-school-suspension (ISS) = 2 points
Each After-School Detention (ASD) served = 1 point
Each Lunch Detention = ½ point
Students who accumulate fifteen (15) or more points during the 2023-2024 school year will NOT be allowed to attend the field trip.
GRADES
A student cannot have an “F” for the 4th quarter or 2nd semester and be eligible for the field trip.
Thank You to Community/Parent Volunteer - Kirsha Coates
"Lansing USD469 and Lansing Middle School thank our fourth Community Connect Volunteer, Kirsha Coates, for spending her day helping students and staff at the middle school. Ms. Coates received a tour of the building and helped with lunch duty. She spent the majority of the day helping with the sixth-grade Poetry Cafe, transitioning students from the classroom to the presentation space, and providing snacks to students and community members after the presentations.
"Lansing Middle School deeply appreciates the invaluable contributions of our dedicated volunteers," said Principal Brooks Jenkins. We are grateful for their help, which allows us to further our capabilities in helping our students receive a quality education. We look forward to the ongoing partnership with our volunteers—their contributions truly embody the spirit of community and collaboration, and we are proud to have them as part of our team."
The Community Connect initiative aims to bridge the gap between our educational institutions and the broader community by allowing community members to see what goes on behind the scenes in each of our buildings."
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/65fde7e79be4e?in_archive=1
Staff Spotlights
Mrs. Stacey Jenkins, 7th Grade Science Teacher, was recognized at the February BOE meeting as the Staff Member of the Month. Congratulations to Mrs. Jenkins!
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/65cab6bf7cab8?in_archive=1
Mr. Tom Cretors, 7th Grade Social Studies/Literature teacher, was featured in the Staff Spotlight by Miles Azzeh in March. The story is linked below.
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/657cd42a2645a?in_archive=1Mr. Joell Pierre, LMS Paraeducator, was featured in the Employee Spotlight on the district website in March. The story is linked below.
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/657a02de1ca9e?in_archive=1
Stacey Jenkins, 7th Grade Science Teacher - February Staff Member of the Month
Tom Cretors - 7th Grade Social Studies/Literature Teacher
Joell Pierre, LMS Paraeducator
Fine Arts Updates
The LMS bands performed at the Kaw Valley League (KVL) Band Festival on February 28th. Lansing Middle School hosted all the schools in the league for the event and it was held in the auditorium. The 7th Grade Band received a "2", which is an excellent rating and the 8th grade band received a "1", which is considered a superior rating. Mr. Aaron Edwards is the band instructor and Mr. Blake Vignery is the assistant band director.
The LMS choirs performed at the Kaw Valley League (KVL) Choir Festival on March 20th and that was held at Basehor-Linwood Middle School. Both choirs received a “2”, which is an excellent rating. Josiah Ketterman is the choir teacher and Jonnie Brice is the accompanist for LMS choirs.
All State Choir
· Lansing Middle School had three students selected for Middle Level All-State Choir. Students chosen for this honor include – Carson Ellington (8th Grade), Machlin Marshall (8th Grade) (2nd year of acceptance), and Hayden Reynolds (7th Grade).
From Mr. Josiah Ketterman, LMS Choir Teacher – “These students were selected from schools across the state. In total, nearly 800 students auditioned and around 150 are selected. This is the highest level a student at the middle school level can achieve in the state and LMS Choirs is proud to have these students represent choral excellence at Lansing Middle School.”
Shrek Jr. - LMS Musical Performance - April 19 and 20, 2024
Lansing Middle School will present a musical on April 19th at 7:00 PM and April 20th at 1:00 PM. The cast will perform, Shrek, Jr. Jonnie Brice is the director and Josiah Ketterman is the assistant director. Auditions were held on January 29th and January 31st and the cast has been practicing daily. Tickets will be available to purchase for $5 at the door or in the LMS office starting April 8th.
Athletics - Track
More Student Accolades
- Lansing Middle School recognizes students for improvement throughout the year as well as academic and behavioral success through our Student of the Month program. Lansing teachers nominate students by team periodically throughout the year for this honor. Students receive a certificate and pizza at lunch. Our fourth group of students will be recognized this week. Awardees included the following students – 6th Grade – Gage Bankston, Hunter Dilka, Maddie Everhart, Elliana Harwood, Andrew Hatzinger, Nora Kite, Derek Lorenzo, Javian Ramirez, and Gabby White. 7th Grade – Addyson Agnew, Christopher Chocon-Andrade, Andi Delgado, Aeslynn Dodd, Stephan Espinoza, Chloe Ford, Stella Lawler-White, Bryce McGaan, Anthony Wahlberg, and Bree VadDeBerghe. 8th Grade – Kinley Aufdemberge, Avery Baragary, GG Kane, Machlin Marshall, Mychael Murphy, Corey Sivils, Luca Swift, Ashlyn Turner, and Khaniya Walker.
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Lansing USD469 is incredibly proud of our middle school students who participated in the Leavenworth County Spelling Bee on Friday, February 9th. Congratulations to sponsor Ms. Rachel Sheeley and the following students:
Penelope Graetz, 6th grade, placed 17th
Eliana Silva, 7th grade, placed 5th
Charlotte Kuhn, 8th grade, placed 3rd
“Saturday, March 2nd, the Unified Special Olympics Bocce Ball teams participated in a tournament at Olathe East High School. Lansing Red and Black teams both won gold medals and Lansing White won a silver medal. There was a great turn out by families and community members! Lansing had the loudest cheering section! Lansing Red – Declan Nauman, Addison Lynch, Anthony Brown-Henley, Kara Wessel, Colby Whitlow. Lansing White – Jeremiah Jenkins, Titus Adebiyi, Canyon Meadows, Gavin Hope, Christian Meadows. Lansing Black – Laine Durler, Brie Hope, Paytin Beeman, Bentley Kolin. https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/65e5f0e44179a?in_archive=1
Lansing Middle School Honor Roll - 1st Semester
"Congratulations to our Lansing Middle School honor roll recipients! Lansing Middle School uses a three-tiered honor roll system. Students who have earned a 4.0-grade point average qualify for the Lion Honor Roll. Students with a 3.50 - 3.99 grade point average qualify for the Red Honor Roll. Students with a 3.0 - 3.49 grade point average are classified as White Honor Roll recipients.
Congratulations to these students for their hard work and their parents for their support!"
Honor Roll can be found at this link --- https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/660300c71265a?in_archive=1
Lion's Paw - LMS Newspaper
Mrs. Tracey Carney-Linn is the sponsor for the Lansing Middle School newspaper. Under her direction, the LMS Newspaper continues to be an outstanding opportunity for student participation and excellent information source. Students in all grades can take part and they meet daily during 9th period. The newspaper comes out monthly and is usually 5-8 pages in length. Students are learning valuable writing and reporting skills as stories focus on relevant events and people at LMS. It has become something that students are interested in reading and look forward to each month. The most recent, April issue, is linked below.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-Ft_6CbkdQZLAZrq1FqRrmN8sCZhgR1g/view?usp=sharing
Upcoming Events for LMS
- Monday, April 8th – Friday, April 12th – State Math Assessments (6th, 7th, and 8th Grade)
- Tuesday, April 16th and Wednesday, April 17th – State Science Assessment (8th Grade)
- Thursday, April 11th – Track @ Lansing Middle School (vs Leavenworth Warren and Piper)
- Tuesday, April 16th – Track @ Perry-Lecompton
- Thursday, April 18th – Track @ Patton Junior High
- Friday, April 19th – LMS Musical Performance – Shrek, Jr.
- Saturday, April 20th – LMS Musical Performance – Shrek, Jr.
- Tuesday, April 23rd – Track @ Pioneer Ridge Middle School
- Thursday, April 25th – Track @ Lexington Trails
- Tuesday, April 30th – Track @ Trail Ridge Middle School
- Tuesday, May 14th – LMS Fine Arts Fair
Substitute Teachers and Paraeducators Needed at LMS
Additionally, Lansing Middle School has several paraeducator vacancies. Paraeducators work with students that receive special education services.
Lansing Middle School is a great place to work. These positions are an integral part of LMS. We are looking for dedicated individuals that would like to make a difference in the lives of adolescents.
The link below has information about employment, including how to apply.
https://usd469.socs.net/vnews/display.v/ART/5c24f6d07feae?in_archive=1
BIST (Behavior Intervention Support Team)
- I can be OK even when others are not OK
- I can make good choices even if I am mad
- I can do something even though I don’t want to
Through this model, staff try to ensure that students are offered grace and accountability, which simply means it’s OK to make mistakes but there is a need to take responsibility for choices.
Terms you might hear with BIST include
- Safe Seat and Buddy Room – these are alternate locations intended to provide another opportunity for student to change behavior
- Processing – this entails talking through what happened with the teacher or adult
All LMS staff received professional development in BIST before school started. Almost all LMS staff had been trained at some point but this was a great refresher for our staff. Furthermore, BIST is now a K-5 initiative as well, so the training was given to all K-8 personnel.
This link gives more information about BIST -
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SAViHDcc3xEIebImYI30bLSlNQogPOnC/view?usp=sharing
The following article is from the USD469 website on the BIST training in August -
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/64d545b63a3bf?in_archive=1
Advisory and Second Step
LMS has an Advisory class that meets every Thursday for a 45 minute block -- from 12:27-1:12. All LMS teachers have an Advisory class. This allows us to keep Advisory classes small -- around 13-17 students.
Advisory is a crucial component to Lansing Middle School and student success.
- At the start of each Advisory period, students work on GBA, which entails looking at grades, behavior, and attendance. Students use Skyward to track their current grades and attendance and teachers provide behavior information. Students then use this to write and monitor goals for improvement. Students also counsel with their classroom teacher to assess their goals.
- Advisory is also used to provide lessons from our Tier 1 behavior program, Second Step. A Tier 1 program means that all students are provided with it. "Second Step® Middle School helps early adolescents learn to cope with challenges, create and maintain positive relationships, and develop the mindset necessary for success in school and life." We began our fourth and final unit in Second Step on Thursday, March 28th.
- There are four units of study for Second Step. The third unit of study is, "Managing Social Relationships and Conflict." The scope and sequence for Second Step is linked here -- https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hsDDKW9sNKkGlV_FuHKJNRrMuG7wVtfk/view?usp=share_link
- Course components and outcomes - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mVTSWdApXUTfVH4OVgP2S_OHMKsaRinV/view?usp=share_link
- Initial parental information letter - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rEzDs4TIaiaOApbJmnni2jnyt1xfgsBR/view?usp=sharing
- Slideshow of Information about Second Step - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1varmKoHWOxJG0T3mDcw3W-vFBoI-0UNM/view?usp=sharing
Additional Components of Advisory include -
- During January, students had dedicated time in Advisory over three sessions to work on the software program, Xello. Xello is an interactive program that allows students to better assess themselves in terms of current interests and helps them to better prepared to make future choices. From the Xello website, "students complete interactive career, personality, and learning style assessments to help them better understand their unique interests, skills, and strengths. Each engaging assessment encourages reflection, helping students connect who they are with relevant career options." https://xello.world/en/middle-and-high-school/
- Student-Led Conferences and preparation take place during Advisory and with the student's Advisory teacher. Student-led conferences are held in February.
Lansing USD 469 Strategic Plan for 2023-2028
"Lansing USD469 is thrilled to announce that our 2023-2028 Strategic Plan was passed unanimously during the April 10th board meeting. Thank you to our volunteers made of community members, staff, and students who served on this important committee and provided feedback to form this plan. Thank you also to our Lansing USD469 board members who served on the committee and voted to make it a reality. The Strategic Plan aims to achieve action steps that ensure our district can meet the needs of its students, staff, and community for years to come.
Our administrators and district leadership staff are excited to start on action items this plan sets forth. We will provide monthly updates about our progress and look forward to embarking on this journey together to make Lansing the best district in Kansas."
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/SEC/2023-2028%20Strategic%20Plan
About Lansing Middle School
Kerry Wixon, Vice Principal
Becky Lowery, Counselor
Maggie Peterson, Social Worker
Website: https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/SEC/Lansing%20Middle%20School%20%28Grades%206-8%29
Location: 220 Lion Lane, Lansing, KS, USA
Phone: (913) 727-1197