West Word
A Weekly Update from Perkiomen Valley Middle School West
A Word from Mr. Creeden
I also want to take a moment to reflect, remember, and honor our fallen heroes from September 11th, 2001. Many of our teachers acknowledged Patriots Day today with their students. We will never forget the bravery and sacrifice of so many that lost their lives or were personally affected by this tragedy.
Quick Snapshot
- Meet The Teacher Night Presentation
- PV West Virtual Student Trivia Night
- Counselor Corner
- Middle School Mentoring Program
- Link to PV West Announcements
- Attendance Info
- First Day Packet Info
- Upcoming Calendar
Meet The Teacher Night Presentation
PV West Virtual Student Trivia Night
Counselor Corner
As it was a difficult start to the school year for all of us, take a moment with your student(s) to reflect on how they can become better students. At the beginning of each calendar year many people make New Year's Resolutions. Now is the time for your student(s) to think of their “School Year’s Resolutions.” Resolutions require you to manage yourself differently than the prior year, essentially Self-Management. Self-Management skills apply to basically all areas of life including academics.
Self-Management is the ability to successfully regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in different situations — effectively managing stress, controlling impulses, and motivating oneself. The ability to set and work toward personal and academic goals. These can include: impulse control, stress management, self-discipline, self-motivation, goal-setting, and organizational skills.
Self-Management is believed to be associated with higher test scores, being perceived as more socially competent, and better able to handle stress. Later in life students who are better at Self-Management are more likely to graduate high school and college, less likely to use drugs, more likely to be financially stable, and less involved with criminal activity.
We challenge you to help your child make a goal to manage themselves better. Make the goal specific and simple. A goal for stress management can include attempting a different coping strategy. A goal for impulse control can include increasing self talk. A goal for organizational skills could be writing down all of your assignments daily.
Try setting a goal with your child and help them stick to it. Try to make it last longer than a New Year Resolution. If you need any assistance in helping your child find a goal or if you have any concerns or questions, please reach out to your child’s counselor.
East/West Middle School Ursinus Mentoring Program
A unique opportunity for middle school students at East and West to meet virtually for two hours a week with Ursinus College students. You will engage in a variety of activities to build a relationship with each other. This program will assist you with making connections and setting goals. There is no cost to the program but you must apply as there is limited space.
Students must submit a completed application (below) by next Friday, September 18th at 3:00PM to be considered for participation in this 1st Semester. Mentoring groups will meet weekly on Monday & Wednesday OR Tuesday & Thursday. Groups of middle school students will be paired with Ursinus College students for the entire 1st Semester. Groups will start meeting virtually in the last week of September.
Link to PV West Announcements
First Day Packet Info
This year’s First Day Packet materials are being shared online. You can get to First Day Packets by going to PVSD website, select Parents and then select First Day Packets. Click on the folder that is for your child’s level. There are several forms that must be completed and returned to school. Those forms are:
- Limerick letter/authorization form
- Health Emergency Information from
- Symptom Monitoring Acknowledgement form
You may return theses forms in any of the following ways:
- Download, print, fill out the form and mail it to your child’s school
- Download, print and fill out the form, take a picture of it, and email it to your child’s building secretary (see emails below)
- Download, print and fill out the form, scan it, and email it to your child’s building secretary (see emails below)
Evergreen: dharp@pvsd.org
Schwenksville: wledford@pvsd.org
Skippack: pjacobson@pvsd.org
South: kajones@pvsd.org
PVMS East: dimelville@pvsd.org
PVMS West: csitron@pvsd.org
PVHS: nvenezia@pvsd.org
There is an optional publicity refusal form to complete - this only needs to be submitted if you do not want your child’s image used for publicity purposes in the coming school year. A student accident insurance form is also available and optional.
Attendance Info
If your child will be absent or missing class time, please send an email (from the email you have listed in our new SIS system) to:
This will count as your call-out AND parent excuse. Please indicate in your email the date of absence, student’s grade and the reason for the absence. An absence is considered unexcused when the child’s school has not received an email providing an acceptable reason for the absence within a 3-day period.
You may also call our attendance line at: 1 (484) 977-7210, option 1. If you do this, you would still need to submit an email with the above information in order for it to be excused.
Any medical notes should be scanned in. When back to school (in person), any Dr.’s notes should be placed in the Attendance Box, right outside the Guidance Department.
If you have any questions at all, please contact Brenda Continelli at bcontinelli@pvsd.org.
Upcoming Calendar
September 11th - PV West Student Trivia Night
September 15th - PV West Home & School Meeting
September 18th - Rosh Hashanah (No School)
September 28th - Yom Kippur (No School)
October 12th - In-Service Day (No School for students)