RMS Newsletter
December 4, 2020
Contact Us
Email: ymcnulty8711@pcssd.org
Website: rms.pcssd.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JTRobMid
Twitter: @JoeT_RMS
Principal's Message
Season’s Greetings!
The month of December is here and we are nearly complete with the 2nd Quarter. Formally, 2nd Quarter ends on December 18th. Winter Break is scheduled to start December 21, 2020 to January 5, 2020. Our administration team along with the teaching staff would like to compliment students and families on their commitment to learning and we see that commitment daily in the majority of our virtual and in-person students, especially during the last two virtual learning days before Thanksgiving. While we are very proud of our students meeting expectations and having success with in-person learning or virtual learning, we still have students that are struggling to attend classes, actively participating during instruction, and turning in class assigned work. Our staff is working very hard to communicate with students and families, but unfortunately, we are having a hard time getting a hold of some families due to wrong numbers or inaccurate information regarding home addresses. Please reach out to the school to schedule a conference if your child is struggling and needs more support as guidelines for passing courses this year is based on student performance. PCSSD does not support social promotion. As partners in the education of our students, all hands must be on deck to ensure the achievement that our students deserve.
Congratulations to the 174 students who made the Honor Roll last quarter. We still have a few weeks left and we are encouraging all students to finish the quarter strong. Parents, if you still have not accessed Schoology, please contact RMS teachers or administration to arrange for virtual training. This week we have scheduled two advisory days with a focus on students' understanding of where we are academically as a school and what are the next steps to making individual and collective growth. Furthermore, on Monday, we will have grade level meetings to motivate and energize students to attain their potential.
Congratulations to our students and teachers because we have had very little school discipline this year. As we review our school discipline data, we have concluded that we have six times less discipline referrals than last school year. This is a positive place to be and indicates that PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports) is working. A big thank you to the PTO for continuing to support our school store and opening the store bi-weekly for students to shop and earn recognition for their Senator behaviors!
As you know, Covid-19 is a grave concern as winter approaches. Please continue to remind our Senators to follow the guidelines for physical distancing in the lunchroom and in the hallways. We have been so impressed and proud that many follow the expected safety precautions. As a school team, our goal is to make the year a positive experience despite the pandemic. We want all Senators to be recognized for what they have done to make this year a success! However, we recognize that an area for improvement for our school is how to incorporate our virtual learners in our school-wide incentive programs. This is not an easy task, but we are trying to figure out innovative ways to engage all learners. If you have any insights to support our virtual learners please feel free to contact administration!
We wish all families a Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
2021 Holiday Statewide MLK Essay Contest
Please read the link below about the 2021 Essay Contest on Martin Luther King. All students will be participating in this contest through their Social Studies Classes. Our school-wide team is working on improving the writing skills of all students and this opportunity offers that as well as learning about and celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King!
Middle School Students Taking High School Courses!
Semester Exams will be held December 14th - 17th. December 18th will be a makeup day. All students, including virtual students, will take exams during their assigned period. Cameras must be on for the entire exam. Grading will be based on our current grading policy. I have also included the link to School Board Policy 5.15P Grading. The exemption language is found in the last paragraph and listed below. I have also attached the fillable exemption parental permission form. It is required per board policy. If parents are unable to send it back, you may accept verbal permission to sign for them.
Students in grades 9-12 shall qualify to be exempt from taking the semester test in a class when they have: (a) maintained at least a “B” average for the semester; (b) 4 or less unexcused absences; and (c) not been suspended from school. Semester grades will be determined by an average of the two Quarters (9-weeks).
RMS Secretary- Mrs. McGibbony
Hello Robinson Senator families :
Picture day will be Friday December 11. Flyers went home with students on Wednesday and Thursday with information regarding ordering. A link will be sent out next week via signup.com for virtual students to schedule a time to come and have their photo taken. Make-up picture day is scheduled for Friday January 11, 2012.
Please be aware that students are asked to bring a water bottle from home everyday. We only have a limited supply of disposable water bottles in the front office for those students who accidentally forget.
We are committed to doing our best to support a strong finish to this semester, please stay diligent about wearing masks and keeping social distance with hand sanitizing regularly.
We wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday Season.
Thank you,
Melissa McGibbony
RMS Attendance Secretary- Mrs. Gilbert
1. Make sure your child attend classes whether they are in-person on virtual.
2. Students need to be on time and if they have tech issues logging on, please contact teacher so they are counted present as we mitigate the technology issue.
3. Send all doctor's notes and parent notes to the school office within the week of appointments.
4. Email me for additional concerns or questions. rgilbert9221@pcssd.org
“Absences add up! Missing just 2 days a month means a child misses 10% of the school year.”
– Attendance Counts
School Health Corner
I know we are all especially concerned about the health of our children and families this year. For that reason, I want to remind everyone that flu season is upon us. If you haven’t gotten your flu vaccine this year, please plan to do so. You can make an appointment with your doctor or your local Health Unit. I would also like to remind everyone that there are immunizations that are due for Middle School age children. Any child who turns 11 years old is required to have a Tdap vaccine in order to attend school. There is also a required immunization due when a child reaches 7th grade, the Meningococcal (MCV) vaccine, that can be given at the same time, which will save you a trip the next year. If your child has not gotten any of these required vaccines, please make plans to do so as soon as possible and send a copy of the record to the School Nurse. I hope everyone has a safe and healthy Christmas and New Year!
Terri Jolly
Float Nurse
tjolly@pcssd.org
District middle school reading competition has started. RMS school-wide goal is 63,720 minutes of reading by December 18th; 93% of our students (531 students) must participate in the reading challenge. That's roughly 10,650 minutes per week school-wide and/or no less than 175 minutes of documented reading per student per week. Please instruct your child to complete the daily reading log after they read home.