Good Evening Mustang Families,

I hope everyone is staying warm, dry, and most importantly safe. It has been a wild week of weather, not something we San Diegans are used to, but it's provided some time to stay inside with family and friends.

I wanted to share a refreshing experience I had while walking through classes this past week. I visited an 8th-grade science class and was curious when I saw the whole class arranging their seats in a large circle, rather than the usual gathering around lab tables. Once seated, the teacher asked students to review the "8 norms" of a circle discussion. Each volunteer read the title from the screen and paraphrased what each meant to them. I don't know what prompted the discussion, but I was fascinated that a science classroom would take a break from content to reconnect as a small community to discuss issues that were arising in class. Here's a list of those norms that one can't help but see the connection in our lives.

• Be Present- Try to focus on being mentally and emotionally "here" during the discussion.
• Speak and Listen with Respect- While everyone wants to speak, it's equally important to listen.
• Maintain Confidentiality- Don't use what someone says in here against them outside at lunch. Respect this space.
• Speak from the Heart- We all preface comments with "I think...", it's acceptable to also preface it with "I feel..."
• Just Say Enough- "Enough" is different for everyone. When it's your turn to speak, be true to what's "enough" for you.
• Respect the Talking Piece- Only speak when you have the talking piece.
• Don't Yuk My Yum- Resist the need to immediately express your distaste for something someone says just because you disagree.

Learning is deeply personal. Cognitive science has taught us that learning happens through and with others. It's important to remember that while we are tasked with imparting our students the content knowledge to be successful in high school and beyond, we're also developing young communicators. These are great norms we can all use and try to incorporate outside of science class too.

Have a great week!

Josh Way, Ed.D

MMS is excited to host the San Diego School Police and San Diego Police Department emergency training on the Marshall campus during spring break, March 27-31st. All week, officers will be training and practicing how to respond to active threats on a school campus. We're excited that Marshall is hosting, so school police can learn the ins and outs of our site. Volunteers will be needed on Friday, March 31st from 8:30-12:30 to act as role players. To sign up, fill out this google form.

Also, please be aware there will be heightened police activity on campus during spring break.

The Title VI & Johnson O’Malley Indian Ed Programs are coordinating a Saturday Pow-Wow event on March 18. All educators, students, and families from SDUSD are invited to attend and learn more about local indigenous history from local tribal members and leaders. It will be held at the Ballard Center. Here's the link: Youth Social Pow-Wow Flyer.pdf

On Monday, March 13th. MMS will be hosting Anti-Drug Presenter Rocky Herron. Mr. Herron recently retired from the DEA, now works for the San Diego County Office of Education, speaking to schools and the community about the dangerous impacts of drugs. Mr. Herron speaks directly about the rising fentanyl crisis and what students and parents can do to stay safe. Rocky, will be speaking to MMS students during the day, then will be having an evening, in-person presentation at 6pm for parents. Mark your calendars and be sure to join us.

The 63rd Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament is the most prestigious minor hockey tournament in the world. It takes place in the beautiful city of Quebec, at the Videotron Center and allows a hundred teams from 13 countries to complete in front of thousands of fans. This year, three Marshall Middle School students, Jack Silva (6), Turner Munsch (6), and Larry Van Fossan (7) with the SDIA Oilers had the honor of competing against some of the best teams in the world. Although they didn't win their division, they had a solid showing for a team from Southern California. While at the tournament, one of the traditions is that players stay with a host family and experience a French immersion and become familiar with Quebec culture.

It has been an experience these three Marshall Middle School students are grateful for and will never forget.

Registration for Spring Flag Football is now open. If MMS has enough students sign up, we can have a boys and girls team. Be sure to sign up here by March 6th. For more information, be sure to check out the the Parent FAQ's or visit the Middle School Athletics webpage.

Enrollment forms for Summer School are now available until April 14th. Fill out the paper enrollments forms and turn in the MMS front office. You can download the forms here: English; Spanish; Vietnamese; Tagalog

Enrollment forms are not necessary for students who are already enrolled in the ESY through their IEP. Marshall Middle School is not a Summer School host site this summer.

Did you know there are 39 languages spoken at MMS? Let’s celebrate all the many different countries and cultures represented at MMS at our first ever FESTIVAL OF CULTURES! It will be on Wednesday, May 10 at lunch. We are looking for students who would like to host a country table, perform a cultural dance or song, or make a video sharing their culture. If you’d like to participate, fill out this Google Form and more information will be sent to you!

Marshall Middle Parents!

Here is a quick reminder of our special events coming up:

• The Marshall Market Student Store opens Wednesday, March 1st. Be sure to send your kids with money to buy some mechanical smencils, keychains, erasers, and vinyl stickers
• A spirit week is coming soon in March from 3/20-3/24. Make sure your kids are ready for International
• International Sports Day on Monday, Tie-dye Tuesday, Wacky Sock Wednesday, Throwback Decades Thursday, and Friendly Tourist Friday.
• Save the Date: ASB is organizing the Red Carpet Gala Spring Dance with on Friday, April 28th from 5:00-7:00.

Be sure to check out our new logos to our ApparelNow shop, so there are more options for customizing your Marshall Spirit Wear! All proceeds help fund ASB activities on campus, so be sure to check it out! Show your school spirit all year!

Website: https://sites.google.com/sandi.net/marshallmiddleasb/home

ApparelNow: https://apparelnow.com/marshall-middle-school-spiritwear

TikTok: @theactualmarshallasb

Instagram: @asb.marshall

Facebook: @Marshall ASB

Education Columnist Jay Mathews, reports on a new broad study that finds merit in a fundamental element of standards-based grading. As a self-described skeptic of the new grading movement, Mathews shares new research that demonstrates how effective formative assessments (intermittent practice) can be on learning outcomes. When students work with teachers to monitor their progress towards mastery, not for a grade, but for mastery, leads to significant improvements in end of course tests. As a school, we have been discussing the many complicated parts of SBL like conversion scales, grade reporting, and reassessment timelines, just to name a few, but at its core, the role of formative assessment is essential to SBL. As this article points out, there is success when students and teachers use the feedback from formative assessments to make adjustments to their approach to learning and have the opportunity to reassess. You can read more here.