Mr. Posick's Friday email
April 11, 2014
Spring Break starts Friday, April 18th
As I mentioned to the students in our Wednesday assembly this week, Spring Break doesn't start until Friday, April 18th. There is still so much to learn in the four days prior to break and the attention to these four days is very important. As I have stated in earlier Friday emails, teachers do not provide homework if students are leaving before Spring Break starts or are extending their Spring Break. Our staff does an exceptional job of putting the assignments on Skyward or their website so that students can refer to them either as a reminder or to learn what was done when they were absent.
The quote above really caught my attention this week on Twitter. It is credited to Mr. Kevin Honeycutt (@kevinhoneycutt), a school board member and speaker. I asked him if I could share this with you all. It is a powerful message that we all need to consider as our children grow up in this digital world. Mr. Honeycutt also has a YouTube channel, Your Digital Dad, that I thought I would share with you, too. As we watch our children grow up, it is important for us to take the time as parents and teachers to give them guidance, even if they don't really want it.
5th grade recess debate
On Tuesday, I was the proud mediator of a debate by our 5th graders. The students all had the same topic to research and were then to persuade their reader to their side of the topic. In this case, the topic was whether 5th graders should have two recesses or just one recess. The debate was the culmination of a Writer's Workshop unit on argument writing. I was impressed by the arguments on both sides and will wait to provide my decision once I have met with next year's 5th grade teachers once we have developed our schedule. Stay tuned for our decision.
Monthly Wednesday Assembly
On Wednesday, I was able to meet with the students before school to discuss a variety of things. We spoke about respect of ourselves, others, and our guest teachers. We also celebrated the Teamwork Spirit Week sponsored by the Student Senate. Here is the presentation I shared with the students entitled "What is your passion?"
Culver's Night!
Next Wednesday, April 16th, we'll be having another Culver's Night fundraiser for our STEM program. It will be at the Culver's on Cardinal Lane off of Highway 83. Please stop in for dinner or dessert from 5:00-8:00. We hope to see you there.
Severe weather drill scheduled for Thursday, April 17th
Mr. Budisch and I met to discuss our severe weather drill for this year. The state has chosen our Spring Break week for this drill so both the Primary School and Intermediate School will have their drill around 1:30 on Thursday, April 17th. Mr. Budisch and I just wanted you all to be aware.
Pack'er Up Donation Challenge
I was contacted by Goodwill about a donation challenge involving Donald Driver. The school with the greatest number of donations will win a visit from Donald Driver himself! If you are willing and able to help out, that would be great. Please visit this website if you are interested in donating.
Homework Club
Due to Spring Break, Homework Club will only meet Tuesday next week. We will return to our Tuesday/Thursday schedule beginning on April 29th.
About Merton Intermediate School
Email: posickj@merton.k12.wi.us
Website: http://www.merton.k12.wi.us/faculty/PosickJ/
Location: N68 W28320 Sussex Road Merton, WI 53056
Phone: (262) 538-1130
Twitter: @mertonint