Paola Middle School
November Newsletter
Important Events
November 1st- Wrestling @ Eudora
November 3rd- Wrestling @ Emporia
November 5th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Spring Hill; 7th @ Home
November 6th- Wrestling @ Home- (PHS)
November 8th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Home; 7th @ Eudora
November 10th- Wrestling (league) @ Pioneer Ridge
November 12th- Veterans Day Assembly @ 2:00
November 13th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Trail Ridge; 7th @ Home
November 17th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Paola; 7th @ Louisburg
November 19th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Home; 7th @ Baldwin
November 21st- 23rd- NO SCHOOL
November 27th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Pioneer Ridge; 7th @ Home
November 29th- Girls Basketball, 8th @ Home; 7th @ Ottawa
December 1st- Girls Basketball; 8th @ Pioneer Ridge; 7th @ Home
6th Grade "Survivors"
The Survivor Challenge has begun in sixth grade! Two seminar classes have combined to make up a group. Each group has chosen a name, made a flag, created a totem for a totem pole, and each member has received a "buff" (headband) that is the color of the group. Sixth graders will compete in monthly challenges for the privilege of keeping the totem pole outside the classroom. At the first challenge, which was a marble/pipe team building competition, the Ravens came in first , the Pandas came in second , and the Giraffes came in third.
6th Grade Survivor Challenge
Green Pandas win the October 31st Challenge!
6th Grade Survivor Challenge
HOPE! More than just a feeling!
Sponsored by: Mrs. Hudgeons
This is the 8th year for the HOPE Club and it is the largest it has ever been! Since the schedule has changed this year, our 6th grade students are able to participate. Right now, there are over 150 HOPE members! Students were able to choose between several different activities to participate in.
Animal Shelter Outreach met with Ms. James. Students in this activity worked on making dog and cat toys to donate to a local shelter.
The Military Outreach group met with Mrs. Ingle and created bead flag pins that they plan to pass out to the Veterans at our school's annual Veteran's Assembly.
The Staff Appreciation Group met with Mrs. Yerkes and put together popcorn balls to recognize the support staff in our building for all of the hard work that they do.
The Level 3 Group had fun working together on a project.
The Elementary Visit Group traveled to Cottonwood Elementary with Mrs. Snouffer and Miss Aldridge. They made spider headbands with Mrs. Glen and Mrs. Koechner's Kindergarten students. They all had such a great time!
Helping Other People Every day. Hope, is more than just a feeling.
H.O.P.E
H.O.P.E.
H.O.P. E.
Immunization Deadline
Paola Panther Booster Club STUDENT OF THE MONTH- Academics
Paola Panther Booster Club STUDENT OF THE MONTH- Athletics
Paola Panther Booster Club- STUDENT OF THE MONTH- Arts
BAND STUDENTS SELECTED FOR HONORS
Parent Corner: Is your Teen Vaping?
Vaping is the act of inhaling a vapor produced by an electronic vaporizer or e-cigarette. The inhaled vapor can contain nicotine, THC (a chemical found in marijuana), and other substances. The liquids that are vaporized come in many different flavors and might even smell fruity. Many of the flavors of these liquid concentrates, or ‘vape juices’, are sweet and have names such as, cinnamon roll, marshmallow, bubblegum, lemonade and cookies.
Vaporizers and e-cigarettes come in all different shapes and sizes; some will look like pens, a stylus for computers, and even flash drives. Most of these devices are very small and can be easily hidden. One of the newest trends in vaping is ‘Juuling.’ Juuling is a very discreet form of vaping; a Juul closely resembles a thumb drive. Please see the pictures below.
Much like other tobacco/nicotine products, stores cannot sell vaping items to anyone under the age of 18; however, students have reported that these items can easily be purchased on-line. It remains our goal at Paola Middle School to partner with parents to best support all students in making positive decisions. Please consider talking to your child about the dangers of electronic cigarettes and vaping. If you think your student has been experimenting with vaping, or has a nicotine addiction, please contact one of our school counselors for support. For more information about vaping please visit the websites below.
E- Cigarettes
Juul
Vape Oil
NEW STAFF SPOTLIGHT- MEGAN FORREST
Written by: Anna Campa and Hazel Downum
7th Grade Journalism Students
Mrs. Forrest is 31 years old and was born in Newton, Kansas. She has two kids, an 8 year old daughter named Jerusalem, who likes to go by J-lee. She also has a son, Aspen he is five.
Before Mrs. Forrest was a teacher, her first job was cleaning at a hair salon. Although she hated the smell, she loved getting her hair done for free. Before coming to Paola Middle School, Mrs. Forrest taught in Denver, Colorado for three years. When she was deciding what subject she wanted to teach she decided on being a science teacher because she likes doing hands on activities and doing labs experiments. Her favorite thing to teach in science is Genetics. However, if she could teach any other subject she would teach Language Arts because she loves to read. Her favorite book genre to read is murder mystery, her favorite author for this genre is Ted Dekker. When Mrs. Forrest retires her plan is to travel the world. When she isn't traveling she’ll be watching Netflix especially Chopped, her favorite T.V show. The craziest thing on her bucket list is to sing on stage in front of a crowd. The song she would sing is Stitches by Shawn Mendes.
Mrs. Forrest lives to do sports. When she was in school her favorite subject in was gym class. She especially likes to run, in high school she participated Cross Country and Track. Although, Mrs. Forrest said that in middle school she did just about any sport. Mrs. Forrest is definitely a good runner because she runs marathons!
Her favorite ice cream is Chocolate Chip Mint. Her favorite food is anything with chocolate and her favorite drink is coffee. Regarding her favorite food, the most exotic thing she has eaten is crocodile. We asked “Given the chance to have dinner with a famous person (past or present) who would you pick and what would you talk about?” She replied, “ Lady Gaga because she is a very intelligent person and was once a fashion designer. I have wondered for a while why she chose to be a singer when she has so many other talents.”
When she was a teenager her favorite song was Averleen by Blink 182. She was definitely not afraid to admit that she still loves to jam out to Averleen when no one's listening.
Mrs. Forrest’s favorite color is green, because when she was little she thought that your favorite color had to be the color for the month you were born. Since, she was born in March and green is the color for March, that is her favorite color.
Even though Mrs. Forrest seems like a hard-core person she is quite sentimental. Her favorite quote states “It’s okay to be a glowstick sometimes we need to break before we shine.” After Mrs. Forrest shared that quote she then gave this advice, “Make sure you’re doing what you want to do, not what you think you have to do. You should try your hardest and never give up.” We hope you are enjoying your first year at Paola Middle School.
Paola Middle School
Email: amy_wright@usd368.org
Website: www.usd368.org
Location: 495 North Hospital Drive, Paola, KS, USA
Phone: (913)294-8030