Lansing Middle School
Parent Newsletter - November 2023
A Note From Mr. Jenkins
We are now over a quarter of the way into the 2023-2024 school year. There are a lot of noteworthy positive accomplishments at Lansing Middle School and things that we would like to highlight in this newsletter.
A focal point at LMS is always how students treat one another and staff. We emphasize that all students have the right to be treated with kindness and respect. Additional emphasis is placed on their words and actions and we encourage thinking before acting to limit negative impact. A few ways we have further emphasized this topic include --
- Anti-Bullying Week and Unity Day (article below)
- Positive Words activity in Advisory classes on November 2nd. This was an activity where students sit down and then other students write specific positive words/phrases about the student - either on the marker board, a poster, or something else. Students do not know what is written until the conclusion. Students and teachers consistently report that this is one of their favorite activities that we do.
- Becky Lowery, LMS Counselor, has started to give lessons on "Words Can Hurt", which is an effort to eliminate the use of slurs and provide background on language. She will continue with lessons through December and all students will receive the lesson at some point.
- Our next unit in Advisory with Second Step is on "Recognizing Bullying and Harassment" and the underlying goal of this unit is eliminating both bullying and harassment.
This is just one area to recognize. A lot of other information follows in this newsletter and I thank you for taking the time to look it over. It's a great day to be a Lion!
Anti-Bullying Week and Unity Day
Lansing Middle School participated in Unity Day on Wednesday, October 18th. LMS joined the other schools in USD 469 for this day along with schools throughout the United States. “Unity Day, the signature event of National Bullying Prevention Month (observed in the United States on third or fourth Wednesday of October), has been recognized in the United States since 2011. To participate in Unity Day, individuals, schools, communities, and businesses wear or share orange to unite for kindness, acceptance, and inclusion to prevent students being bullied. One in five school-age children report being bullied at school.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unity_Day_(United_States))
Lansing Middle School students were encouraged to wear orange on this day. This year, the district expanded the event into a week-long anti-bullying campaign. Each day had a different theme and students were encouraged to wear attire for the “spirit” week. Students also created a bulletin board that displayed leaves showing unity against bullying. Our peer leadership did several things to add more attention to the theme. They created videos that were shown to all LMS students; this was specifically organized by peer leader, Ava Diaz. Kyndal Schneider, another peer leader, gave information about bullying on announcements each morning. We felt like this week was impactful for our students. A thank you to Becky Lowery, LMS counselor, and Maggie Peterson, LMS social worker, for organizing the event along with help from Jennifer Bishop from Peer Leadership.
Grades, Behavior, and Attendance
Academically, for the 1st quarter of this school year, the average Grade Point Average (GPA) for LMS students was a 3.35 with the median GPA being 3.57. GPA is calculated in the following manner - A --- 4.0, B --- 3.0, C --- 2.0, D --- 1.0, F --- 0.0. This is an impressive statistic and accomplishment for our students. Additionally, it is an improvement from last school year during 1st quarter; for that period, the average GPA was 3.28 and the median was 3.50.
We are very pleased to report that LMS had a 50% reduction in out-of-school suspensions (OSS) during 1st quarter this school year compared to 1st quarter of last school year (’22-’23). Compared to two school years ago (’21-’22), it was about a 20% decrease.
Finally, our overall attendance rate for 1st Quarter has improved.
1st Quarter Attendance Rate this year (’23-’24) – 94.66%
1st Quarter Attendance Rate last year (’22-’23) – 93.1%
1st Quarter Attendance Rate ’21-’22 – 91.6%
Attendance is an area that we continue to stress as there is no substitute for the first-hand instruction that takes place when students are present at school. A high attendance rate for a student is foundational to their success.
We believe the improvements in behavior and attendance have been made possible by several factors – BIST training for all staff to start the 2023-2024 school year, fully staffing behavioral programs like SBS, adding additional staff in counseling and behavior (Becky Lowery, Counselor and Alexis Shepherd, Behavior Intervention Aide). We have also revamped several practices at LMS to better address these areas. We also know that these areas are ongoing and will require continued focus as the year progresses.
Subject Area Information
6th Grade Language Arts – Kathy Baughman, Tiffany Finn, Rachel Szmed
Sixth graders recently completed their unit on sentence types and structure so that it can be applied to writing. (W.6.10 Demonstrate command of and use knowledge of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing. Vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.)
Currently they are creating and writing mystery stories based on the picture book, The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. (W.6.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences. W.6.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.)
After the mystery stories, students will complete lessons on research and summarizing before beginning the final writing project of the semester - argumentative speeches. Students will complete lessons on research before conducting research for their chosen topic. (W.6.1 Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence. W.6.7 Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and refocusing the inquiry when appropriate. SL.6.4 Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.)
Throughout the semester, all language arts classes work on Greek and Latin roots, do journaling exercises, and a daily editing practice. Lessons include opportunities to work together when practicing new concepts. (SL.6.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher- led) with diverse partners on grade 6 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.)
6th Grade Literature – Kathy Baughman, Cheryl Borgeson, Connie Evans, Tiffany Finn, Alisha Holyfield, John Riggs, Rachel Szmed, Amanda Thomas, DeeDee Wiley
Sixth grade literature classes had fun with “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” at the end of October! The skills from the story revolved around story elements and plot while being an engaging story. The next unit will take us to back to ancient realms with stories about Egypt and mythology in study sync. To begin the 2nd quarter, our students took a pre-test reviewing the skill of inferencing. We will use that data to drive our instruction when teaching our primary skill and subject of inferencing as we read both fiction and non-fiction literature. Literature classes also take time to use the KITE mini tests to help prepare for the state assessments in the spring. As always, students are asked to use text evidence when proving their answers in all literature content.
6th Grade Math – John Riggs, DeeDee Wiley
6th Grade has been working on fractions. The students had opportunities to practice fraction operations while connecting them to real-world problems. After fractions, we moved on to decimal operations. This unit will offer the students a chance to master all four operations that pertain to decimals.
6th Grade Science – Alisha Holyfield, Amanda Thomas
In our Gravity and Kinetic Energy Unit, we are beginning our investigation into energy and collisions. Students will learn about kinetic energy and how energy transfers during a collision by colliding marbles and cubes under various circumstances to collect data. This lesson is a good introduction to Newton's Laws of Motion. Students will learn about each law individually by defining each of Newton's Laws. Then they will be asked to identify which of Newton's Laws applies to different situations and explain why. This will lead us to our Common Formative Assessment (CFA) #2. After our CFA #2, we will begin our engineering project where students have to protect their "bean brain" in a collision. In this case, we will use real eggs instead of plastic eggs filled with beans. Students will need to create a protective device that will secure the egg and keep it from breaking when dropped from the top of the stairwell to the commons area. This will take us to Thanksgiving Break. When we return, we will start our third unit - Electromagnetic Force.
6th Grade Social Studies – Cheryl Borgeson, Connie Evans
As we begin the second quarter we are starting a new chapter on ancient Egypt and Kush. While we read this chapter students are identifying causes and effects in history. We are discussing many important people in ancient Egypt to include: Menes, Khufu, Queen Hatshepsut, Ramses the Great, and of course, King Tutankhamen. Students are understanding why Egyptians mummified their dead and built pyramids. Finally, students will identify and describe many ancient Egyptian accomplishments in writing, architecture, and art. We will end the quarter with a chapter covering ancient India. Our skill for that chapter will be making inferences about history. Will we examine the religions Hinduism and Buddhism and their importance to the development of the ancient Indian civilization.
7th Grade Language Arts – Mindy Brinker, Brandy Hamilton
Seventh grade language arts classes had an exciting first quarter! Students spent several weeks at the start of the year learning about and using different sentence types – the more sentence types students know and use in their writing, the stronger and more interesting their writing will be. We did get to some writing, too. During September, students focused on succinctly relating a true story by writing a personal narrative detailing an experience in their own lives. In October, students created a persuasive sales flyer to go along with an imagined haunted house, illustrated the flyer, and wrote a spooky story to explain why the house was haunted. Students enjoyed being able to think creatively on this project!
7th Grade Literature – Charity Briggs, Tom Cretors, Julissa Flanders, Katie Larson, Brandy Hamilton, Rachel Sheeley
The 7th grade Literature classes are currently reading, “The Lottery”, by Shirley Jackson. The students are learning about mood and tone during this story along with how suspense is created in the story. Students also reviewed story elements and theme while reading the story. Students will start reading The Giver at the beginning of November and throughout the month. Students will read the book together in class and have discussion around the story elements and theme. Students will also work on inferencing skills, along with how the setting and characters interact to create plot and mood in the story.
7th Grade Math – Denise Dixon, Theresa Fields, Theresa Jones
7th grade Math 1 students are currently working on Unit 2 Proportional Relationships. They just finished Unit Rates with fractions, proportional equations, tables, and graphing. They just completed their CFA for proportional relationships, and we still need to test a few more students that were absent, but the results were outstanding with 100% of our students passing with an 80% or higher. We are starting percentages, many of the skills obtained in proportional relationships will apply to percentages.
Math 2 students are currently working on Equations and will take their CFA next week. After Equations they will work on Inequalities and should finish this unit by Thanksgiving break.
Our first quarter CFA covered all operations with Rational Numbers. After reteaching and retesting, 92% of our students demonstrated mastery with 80% or higher on this CFA. Students will continue practicing rational number operations throughout the year as they work on other concepts.
7th Grade Science – Julissa Flanders, Stacey Jenkins
In 7th grade Life Science, students recently completed a unit on bacteria and viruses, comparing and contrasting them, as they learned how their lives can be impacted by both. To experience helpful bacteria, students got to make and eat yogurt in class.
Now students are learning some chemistry basics focusing on the elements of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. There will be a variety of activities modeling how these three elements get rearranged into the substances that cycle through photosynthesis and cellular respiration. This will take them into a deeper understanding of how cells function and how plants and animals are important to each other.
7th Grade Social Studies – Tom Cretors, Edward Fenton
In 7th grade Social Studies, we have just started our second unit on Kansas History. We begin the unit with understanding the tragedy of slavery in the United States and the role Kansas played in the great divide created by the issue that ultimately leads to both Kansas becoming a state and the Civil War. We end the unit discussing the great migration of white settlers to Kansas after statehood is established.
8th Grade Language Arts – Shari Jacobs, Tracey Carney-Linn, Julie Price, Danielle Perry, Stacey Ward
Eighth grade ended our unit on Suspense with an essay on how authors use suspense in their stories. Students had to look at techniques like manipulating point of view, conflicts between characters, utilizing dramatic irony, and using setting to heighten the narrative impact. They worked for a week to review the mechanics of suspense with two stories and how authors used those techniques to increase suspense.
Quarter 2, the curriculum shifts its focus to the theme of courage, studying how individuals demonstrate bravery in diverse circumstances. This will include analysis of several poems like Invictus by William Ernest Henley and Sonnet by James Weldon Johnson show courage within their poems. Students learned how to write context about the author when using text evidence with poems. This unit is well-aligned with the concurrent study of WWII and the Holocaust in Literature. Together, these students provide examination of human experiences during a time of global conflict, shedding light on both darker aspects of history and inspirational demonstrations of bravery with Anne Frank.
8th Grade Literature – Dana Blew, Tracey Carney-Linn, Jessica Graves, Shari Jacobs, Julie Price, Danielle Perry, Stacey Ward
Quarter 2 will focus on World War II and the Holocaust, providing students with a historical context for this period in human history. Students have done several days of background learning on the deadliest and most extensive war involving multiple nations with the loss of millions of lives with videos like Path to Nazi Genocide and WebQuest with the United State Holocaust Museum website. The importance of studying these events is understanding war’s impact and how courageous everyday citizens such as Anne Frank were at their age. We will have a firsthand account of the Holocaust during this dark period with the play version of “The Diary of Anne Frank.”
8th Grade Math – Miranda Cote, Theresa Jones, Penny Wagner
Math 1 students are finishing the Unit 1 section over Rational and Irrational numbers, Square and Cube Roots, Exponents and Scientific Notation. They will take the Unit 1 test in November. For Halloween, students are solving Halloween/Fall themed activities that relate to Exponents and Scientific Notation as a review activity. They will begin Unit 2, Modules 3 and 4 where they will learn about Proportional and Nonproportional Relationships, finding slope, the y-intercept, and graphing the relationships. Unit 2 will carry us through to Winter Break.
Math 2 students have completed Unit 1 and started Unit 2 in October. They have learned how to find slope and the y-intercepts, determine if they are proportional or nonproportional, and to graph lines from a table, slope and y-intercepts, equations and ordered pairs. They will be completing Unit 2 in November and moving into Functions.
Algebra students are busy working on Unit 3 - Sequencing, Equations, graphs, and Functions. Algebra is a self-paced, mastery-based classroom setting where they are all working in different sections of Unit 3. In November they will begin reviewing Module 11, Transversal Angles and Triangles.
8th Grade Physical Science – Josh Yoakam
Students finished their exploration of Newton’s Laws. Students focused on applying their knowledge in real world applications. We discussed safety innovations in the field of automobiles comparing evolving car safety. Safety and prevention measures were discussed in terms of Newton’s second law, in particular manipulation of the time over which negative acceleration occurs to reduce the force on occupants. Students completed an engineering design challenge. We will be shifting our exploration to work and energy.
8th Grade Science – Jessica Graves, Kaylea Krumm
We have returned to earth after our space travels. Students have explored Earth's Geologic Time Scale and discovered the massive changes in earth and its inhabitants. As we move forward with our Earth Science unit we will be “digging” into earth's tectonic plates and the rock cycle. In this unit we are also working on our note taking skills and study skills. We are looking forward to Rock Cycle Projects and Mineral Discoveries!
8th Grade Social Studies – Ann Andrews, Dana Blew, Nicole Ashford (Student Teacher)
Eighth grade Social Studies classes are finishing our unit on Thomas Jefferson and James Madison- 1800-1815, and the leadership challenges they experienced domestically and abroad. Using a simulation activity, students were placed in decision making scenarios, like those experienced by Lewis and Clark (Corps of Discovery). Students created “conflict” videos explaining/illustrating some of those conflicts (Barbary Pirates, Battle of Tippecanoe, Embargo Act). Finally, we will conclude the unit by mapping some of the major battles from the War of 1812 and will take our assessment later this week. Next week, we will begin a unit that examines our new nation’s growing sense of pride and unity (1815-1840).
Advanced Studies – Josh Yoakam
Students in the sixth and seventh grade classes continued work on their Battle of the Brains competition submissions. Each group has selected a theme and is developing their interactive exhibit ideas and graphics. Sixth and seventh grade students visited Science City in early October to gain ideas and insight in the aesthetics of a successful exhibit. This aided greatly in the design process. 8th grade students have a variety of independent projects in progress including: aeronautical/aerospace engineering, architecture, 3D printing, forensic psychology, mental illnesses, forensic accounting/entrepreneurship, exploration of potential medical careers. There are a few students working on written works as well. In addition, students in all grades have participated in Odyssey of the Mind challenges aimed at improving creativity.
Art – Emily Bucher
6th grade art students: 6th graders just completed a cave art pastel drawing inspired by the "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" documentary about Chauvet cave in France. Prior to this, students were encouraged to create a Halloween drawing challenge that featured various prompts to choose from. Currently, students are working on enlarged animal eyes where they study realism and use value, texture, and color to respond to realistic images of natural eyes.
7th grade art students: Students recently finished glazing clay food sculptures inspired by pop artists Wayne Thiebaud and Claes Oldenburg. Currently, students are creating their Federal Junior Duck stamp artworks for the national contest after hearing about the history and entry requirements regarding the contest. Prior to this, students created a haunted silhouette and pumpkins at night for Halloween. Both 7th and 8th graders have also created yearbook designs to have a chance to be featured on this year's cover.
8th grade art students: Students recently finished glazing their clay piggy bank inspirations. Students successfully created and submitted their Federal Junior Duck Stamp contest designs. Currently, 8th graders are creating ceramic holiday mugs and adorning them with their choice of holiday theme. Prior to this, students created a self-portrait inspired by the work of Tim Burton. They also had the choice to create a haunted silhouette and pumpkins at night to celebrate Halloween. Both 7th and 8th graders have also created yearbook designs to have a chance to be featured on this year's cover.
9th hour art enrichment: Students created black and white ink fall characters featuring their favorite fall colors in the background. Currently, students are creating self-portraits inspired by Tim Burton. Prior to this, we had been enjoying time outside chalking and drawing self-directed works. Some students also submitted yearbook designs, as well.
Band – Aaron Edwards
The 6th Grade beginning band is moving along nicely on their instruments. Their first concert is on November 15th at 7:00 pm. The 7th and 8th grade bands are working on building their skills on the instruments nicely. Their next concert is on December 11th, also at 7:00pm.
The basketball pep band is getting ready to start the Girls’ Basketball season this week. We have several students that are participating this year, which is exciting!
We’ve had six 7th/8th graders chosen for the Northeast Kansas All District Honor Band. We are excited for them to represent Lansing Middle School at a concert on December 2nd at Topeka Seaman High School.
Choir – Josiah Ketterman
All Choirs at the middle school are beginning their music for the Winter Choir Concert on December 13th! 6th Grade Students are also finalizing their GarageBand projects.
Students selected for District Level Honor Choir that will take place on December 2nd include – Avery Baragary, Laney Chastain, Carson Ellington, Madeline Huhn, Machlin Marshall, Eliana Silva, and Ethan Valverde.
7th and 8th Grade Choir students that auditioned for All-State Mid-Level Choir will get their results on November 6th!
Many students in the middle school choir program also participated in the talent show on October 27th! It was a great success. As part of the admission to the show, we collected donations for the Lions Pantry. In total, 234 items were donated, which includes 74 boxes of cereal and 160 canned goods!
Computers – Sara Meyers
6th grade computers - Our new batch of 6th grade students for the second quarter have recently joined the computers classroom and started off creating an all about me presentation using Google Slides. Students also gained a brief introduction to the various parts of the computer and how to properly use one in class. Our classes are working on completing our unit on Google Slides, where they created and designed slideshows about their favorite Halloween movie, practiced typing applications, and created slides about their favorite things. We will begin to move onto introducing Google Docs, learning how to format documents, create menus, and design professional presentations on their dream dog. Since Google Docs is widely used across the district, it was important that students know all the in's and outs of this Google Platform. Once we complete our Google Docs unit, classes will migrate over to learning how to use Google Shapes and learn how to create works of art for the holiday season using shapes and creativity.
7th Grade computers - In 7th grade computers, students have been working on a unit planning and creating items for a big Halloween Bash. Students began brainstorming party ideas including a party name, location, and menu items. Students then needed to put their party together and create a Halloween invitation, menu, and finally a digital invitation where they applied skills of using the green screen and iMovie. As November starts, students will work on creating Google presentations centered around the Thanksgiving holiday and completing an “I am Thankful For…” Google Slides presentation.
8th Grade computer applications - 8th graders continued their introduction to CTE pathways (Career and Technical Education) with learning more about marketing. Students have been busy planning and creating their own haunted house, complete with advertisements, marketing their brand, and coming up with promotions to captivate their prospective consumers to visit their haunted house. Students also learned the importance of brand recognition and logos and created paper pumpkins with a logo to tell me the brand, without telling me the brand. We will then move on with an introduction to consumer and personal finance. Students will learn the importance of having a budget, what a budget is and looks like, and how to stay within your means when purchasing items.
Library – Karen Averill
We’ve had a busy first quarter at the Middle School and High School Libraries. We began the year with orientation for all students. I have a session with all incoming freshman and new students the first day of HS. Some of that information is review for students that attended our middle school. I have both libraries set up by similar genres. There are 16 different genres, including adventure survival, classics, historical fiction, sports, and realistic fiction. The middle school also has a couple of lessons to help students learn how to find books and how to use the library services.
The middle school Literature classes come to the library every other week for a lesson, time for check out, and silent reading. Besides orientation, we’ve had lessons on plagiarism, Book talks on the William Allen White (WAW) books and discussed the award named after him and watched the promotional video for our Scholastic Book Fair. If the students read and pass a 5-point quiz on 5 of the 10 WAW books, they can attend an ice cream sundae voting party in April. I worked with the 7th grade Language Arts classes for several days in the library doing animal research. They use print and internet sources for their reports. At the middle school, I also held a Scholastic Book fair during conferences. Students get excited to see all the new books.
The high school English classes come in to check out books for reports and for enjoyment. To add some fun to the holidays, I held a pumpkin decorating contest at both the middle school and high school. Students have fun decorating the pumpkins and coming in to vote for their favorite.
Life Skills – Amanda Edwards
From an article on the USD 469 website --- "The Lansing Middle School Life Skill class took a trip the the Red Barn Farm on Friday, October 20th." Additional information is in the articled linked below.
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/6538012094503?in_archive=1
Math Intervention – Emerald Peters
During October 2023, Lansing Middle School started new math tier groups based on fall Fastbridge scores. We continued spiral review in order to re-teach and fill in missing skill gaps on a variety of grade level math skills and structures. IXL has continued to provide students with specialized specific instruction targeting skills that students are specifically missing. Twice a month progress monitoring has continued to track student growth and areas in need of re-teaching.
PE – Jennifer Bishop, Jon Bishop
Students have started the second quarter where they left off from the first - continuing in their fitness workouts twice a week and developing and learning new skills. This year we also added soccer to our units which works on cardiovascular fitness and endurance as well as ball control, strategy, and teamwork. We have been able to go outside and play inside which teaches and works on different skills based on the playing field. Some classes have been able to complete the second mile and all classes should have that completed by next month in order to collect data on improvement testing cardiovascular endurance. Many students are continuing to find lifetime fitness skills the like best that range from sports skills to core workouts and stations. The addition of music to almost all of our workouts seem to encourage more movement as well. We continue to research and work on various activities to continue to encourage movement not just now, but for their future lifetime fitness goals.
Reading Intervention – Rachel Sheeley
We revamped the reading tier groups at the start of the second nine weeks. We had some movement of students as we revamped the groups. All groups have started with a focus on vocabulary and context clues so far. We have used a lesson in the Rewards material to review vowels, syllables, and being able to pronounce words based on these skills. Taking it to the next level we have worked on definitions of these words and using the words in our everyday conversations. We spend some time looking at vocabulary words students may be using in their Literature classes too.
Students continue to use IXL Language Arts to build on deficient skills. Students are also participating in quizzes on specific topics or Group Jams as a part of IXL to support daily learning. Six Minute Solution passages are used to build fluency and comprehension skills while focusing on vocabulary. Study skills like highlighting and rereading material is another focus in our classes.
Progress monitoring for fluency and comprehension continues. Some students were able to share their progress with parents at conferences. We celebrate student gains each time we do progress monitoring.
During our Thursday’s Game Days, we have especially enjoyed Word A Round, Bananagrams, and Super Sleuth. Check out these games if you are looking to expand your vocabulary!
Spanish – Regan Gatson
A glimpse into the daily activities of the Spanish classroom.
6th grade has officially finished their Greetings and Goodbyes section and are now learning pronouns. This will then lead to them being able to describe themselves and the people around them.
7th and 8th grade are both on similar units: Hobbies. In class they have learned and practice verbs that describe their everyday activities and interests. They are progressing into being able to explain their likes and dislikes and will soon learn how to describe the likes and dislikes of others.
This week also has Día de los Muertos, where the students will have a lesson where they learn about the holiday, and there will be an activity that goes along with that activity.
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.
Fall Choir Concert
Athletic Information
The 7th grade football team finished at 2-3 and the 8th grade football team finished their season at 3-4.
Both 7th and 8th grade volleyball squads are also finished with their seasons. The Kaw Valley League Volleyball tournaments for 7th and 8th grade “A” teams were held on Saturday, October 7th. This is the concluding event for volleyball. Our 8th grade girls finished 3rd at the tournament. Unfortunately, our 7th grade girls did not qualify for the tournament as only the top (8) schools in the league take part.
The Cross-Country teams were very successful this season – LMS had several medalists at each meet. The Kaw Valley League meet was held on Tuesday, October 10th. The meet was highlighted by Kendall Bankston taking first in the league for our 8th grade girls. From Coach Averill, LMS Cross-Country Coach – “Lansing Middle School Cross Country completed a very successful season. We had an awesome bunch of kids who gave superior effort throughout the season. I feel as though the improvement throughout the season gave us many opportunities to bring home hardware from the various meats. The team had six competitions throughout the year for which we had 14 individuals earning a total of 37 medals. The final competition was the KVL meet in which we had six medalists including Kendall Bankston who placed first in the Eighth Grade Girls competition. Seventh grade cross-country medalists for the season were: Breanna Banker, Kaitlyn Boian, McKenna Bomar, Emmalin Mains, Eliana Silva, Zoie Wacker, Simon Tanner, and Jett Torres. Eighth grade medalists for the season were: Kendall Bankston, Rachel Dowty, Amelia Gould, Naomi Jorgensen, Katherine Wangsgaard, and Cullen Hocket-Fry.”
Girls’ basketball and wrestling seasons have both begun. Both sports have a good number of athletes participating. The basketball team plays its first games tomorrow with the 7th grade playing at Basehor-Linwood and the 8th grade hosting Basehor-Linwood here. Wrestling will have its first competition next Tuesday. LMS will be busy with wrestling tournaments this season as we host two meets on back-to-back weekends. We will host the Kaw Valley League meet on November 11th and the Lansing Invitational on November 18th.
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. Their second issue came out on Friday, November 3rd. The second issue is linked below.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Fv7mJPCidfJeTFpXbUcejX4PLbgaBrzE/view?usp=drive_link
Pep Rally - November 3rd
Lansing Middle School held its second pep rally of the year on Friday, November 3rd. During the pep rally, Girls Basketball and Wrestling teams were recognized by their coaches. The LMS Pep Band and Cheerleaders also performed. Additionally, there was a free-throw competition between staff and students. In case you are wondering, the staff won :)
LMS Talent Show - 10/27/23
LMS held a talent show on Friday, October 27th, in the auditorium. Students auditioned at the beginning of October. There were a total of (12) student performances and included musical performances, monologues, and dancing. Student performers included – Zachary Barna, Nicholas Benitez, Penelope Graetz, Elliana Harwood, Madeline Huhn, Madilynn Jones, Nichole Mack, Clayton Marsh, Athena Rodriguez, and Eliana Silva. Additionally, there were (14) students that worked on the tech crew – Laney Chastain, Payton Closser, Rachel Dowty, Jacob Finnigin, Quentin Fitzhugh, Luke Hedges, Dellaney Manning, Rilynne Manning, Anden Miller, Bryce Mugford, Leah Nickelson, Mya Simmons, Erin Slattery, and Abigail Tanner. Mr. Ketterman and Mrs. Brice directed the talent show in conjunction with drama club.
Additional 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 first group of students were recognized on Tuesday, October 10th. Awardees included the following students – 6th Grade – Gabrielle Balma, Raelyn Boswell, Kinley Hawks, Christian Kenney, Daxton Kessler, Javier Leftwich, Harlo Swift, Everett Vandall, Brayden Williams. 7th Grade – Breanna Banker, Madeline Huhn, Hayley McLaughlin, Allison Murphy, Eliana Silva, Rodney (RJ) Thomas Jr., Jared Wangsgaard, Clayton Welch, Colby Whitlow, Silas Williams. 8th Grade – Jackson Aguilar, David Michael Bonds, Kiah Bridgette, Zanna Garza, Maria Hernandez Salazar, Cash Knetter, Jacob Quintana, Kyndal Schneider, MacKayla Welch.
- Lansing Middle School students did an excellent job of supporting the “Pennies for Playgrounds” fundraiser during the week of October 23rd-27th. Lansing Middle School students raised $2,667.67. The Lansing Middle School Student Council organized the fundraiser. Mrs. Stacey Jenkins is the Student Council sponsor.
- A big “thank you” to Aeslynn Dodd, Nichole Mack, and Ellie Welsh. These three middle school students took the initiative to clean up the LMS student section at the last home football game on Friday, October 20th. They did this on their own accord without being asked. Mr. Kevin McCarley was at the game and recognized them for their efforts and then passed this on to me. We are appreciative of students that lead by example and take pride in the facilities of Lansing USD 469.
- “As part of health and wellness awareness in Lansing USD469, Peer Leadership student Baylee Baragary has taken the initiative to share valuable tips and insights throughout the school year. As part of this initiative, Baylee will be providing our community with practical tips for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.”
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/65419e9290c3e?in_archive=1
Staff Spotlights
Congratulations to Judy Waters and Betty Fenton! Both ladies retired on Halloween after working in the Lansing Middle School cafeteria for the last several years. Over the course of their careers in food service, they both worked in all buildings in the district.
- Mr. Aaron Edwards, LMS Band Instructor, will be honored as the Northeast Kansas Music Educator’s Association (NEKMEA) Outstanding Middle Level Band Director of the Year. He will be honored at the NEKMEA mini-convention at the 1:00 concert at Topeka Seaman High School on Saturday, December 2nd. Mr. Edwards is extremely deserving of this award. He has tremendous vision for the program and really knows how to work with individuals to strengthen their skillset. He is skilled at building relationships with students and they genuinely love playing in the band.
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/6535de9c79d4f?in_archive=1
- Mr. Kerry Wixon, LMS Vice Principal, submitted the following article for the USD 469 website – “Lansing Middle School band teachers Mr. Edwards and Mr. Vignery recently had a great way of helping the brass class conceptualize how much air is needed to play their instrument. Students lowered their bells into the buckets and began to blow bubbles, then slowly raised their bells to create a sound on their instruments. Great job, Mr. Edwards and Mr. Vignery, in helping our band students lay a foundation for their continued success to be built upon.”
https://www.usd469.net/vnews/display.v/ART/6536ca542a8c4?in_archive=1
- Amanda Thomas,6th Grade Science and Literature Teacher was featured in the most recent "Lansing USD469 Employee Spotlight" article (link below) ---
LMS Band - Brass Practice
Amanda Thomas, 6th Grade Science and Literature Teacher
Congrats to Mr. Edwards!
Upcoming Events for LMS
- November 2nd – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Lexington Trails, 8th Grade @ Home
- November 6th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Home, 8th Grade @ Trailridge
- November 7th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Monticello, 8th Grade @ Home
- November 9th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Home, 8th Grade @ Mill Creek
- November 11th – Wrestling – Kaw Valley League Tournament @ Lansing Middle School
- November 14th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Home, 8th Grade @ Pioneer Ridge
- November 15th – Beginning Band Concert – 6th Grade – LMS Auditorium
- November 15th – Wrestling vs. Trailridge/Lexington Trails @ Lansing Middle School
- November 16th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Leavenworth Warren, 8th Grade @ Home
- November 18th – Wrestling – Lansing Invitational @ Lansing Middle School
- November 20th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Home, 8th Grade @ Turner
- November 27th – Girls Basketball – B Team Tournament – 7th Grade @ LMS
- November 28th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Piper, 8th Grade @ Home
- November 29th – Girls Basketball – B Team Tournament – 7th Grade @ LMS
- November 30th – Girls Basketball – 7th Grade @ Home, 8th Grade @ Wheatridge
- December 11th – Band Concert @ LMS Auditorium
- December 13th – Choir Concert @ LMS Auditorium
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 will begin our second in Second Step on Thursday, November 9th.
- There are four units of study for Second Step. The second unit of study is, "Recognizing Bullying and Harassment." 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 have 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