Tumwater News

Principal 's Message

Dear Families,

It was wonderful seeing so many parents/guardians at Back to School Night. We value strong home-school partnerships and encourage your involvement. Talking with your child about their school experience is one of the most important ways to be involved. To encourage your student to share their experiences try asking open-ended questions. Here are some examples:

What was the best (funniest, most surprising) thing that happened at school today?
What was the most interesting thing you learned today?
How does your homework schedule look tonight (this week)?
What part of your essay/presentation/project do you think was best?

The IB Learner Profile Traits introduced in an article below are listed on Page 3 in the Student Planner. Asking your child about how they embodied one of the attributes or which of them is easiest/hardest to demonstrate are good conversation starters too.

Now that we are four weeks into the school year, student progress scores are beginning to appear in ParentVue/StudentVue. In the Student Planner there are rubrics for each subject area that can be a useful tool for students to reflect on their current level of achievement and set goals for the next step in their learning. Students and parents/guardians are encouraged to communicate directly with the student''s teachers if they have questions about scores or need additional support.

In the next few weeks we are looking forward to sharing information about Family Conferences (Oct. 19-20) and After School Clubs. This information will be shared through ParentSquare and our next newsletter.

Warmly,

Jill O'Neill

Principal

Upcoming Events

Oct 12 Walk + Roll to School Day

Oct 13 Spirit Day: Pink Out

Oct 14 Staff Development Day - No school

Oct 19 Fall Conferences, 6-8 pm

Oct 20 Fall conferences, 8:15am- 8:00 pm - No school

Oct 21 No school

Oct 27 Band concert

6:15 pm 6th grade
7:15 pm 7th & 8th grade

Be sure to check the calendars on ParentSquare and our school website (scroll to the bottom of the home page) for the school all school events.

Learner Profile Corner

WHAT ARE LEARNER PROFILE TRAITS?

The IB’s mission statement reads “The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.” To aid in this, the IB learner profile attributes were developed and represent the IB’s mission statement in action. The learner profile describes a broad range of human capacities and responsibilities that go beyond academic success.

The IB learner profile represents 10 attributes valued by IB World Schools and are the foundation of all of the IB programmes. These attributes can help the members of our school community become responsible members of local, national and global communities. The IB Learner Profile embodies the traits students strive for as part of the IB programs.

There are 10 Learner Profile Traits: Balanced, Caring, Communicator, Inquirer, Knowledgeable, Open-minded, Principled, Reflective, Risk-Taker and Thinker. We want these attributes to be a part of our students’ learning journey.

Parent/StudentVue, Canvas, & ParentSquare

There are three primary communication tools we will use to provide timely information to students and families. They each have related, but distinct functions.

ParentVUE is a web portal that allows parents/guardians to access real-time information related to their students, including Attendance, Calendars, Course history, Emergency contacts, Grade Book information, Report cards, Schedules, and School information. It is also used each fall to verify student enrollment information.

Access to ParentVUE requires a username and password, which parents/guardians set up with an Activation Key code. If you have questions or would like assistance with ParentVUE, please contact our Registrar at 503-356-2731.

StudentVUE is the student version of ParentVUE. It allows students to access near real-time information on assignments and scores, attendance, class schedules, class websites, course history, grade book, report cards and more.

Learn more about ParentVUE and StudentVUE here.

Canvas is used by middle and high school teachers as an extension to in-class instruction. Teachers use Canvas to post assignments, give feedback, and communicate with students. Students use Canvas to access lessons assignments, manage their time using the calendar feature, submit work, and receive feedback on completed work. Parent/guardian Log In ID and password are the same as ParentVue. Directions, informational videos, and FAQs can be found here.

ParentSquare is a simple tool that allows staff, students, and families to connect. You can choose to receive messages from the district and school via email, text or app notification. You can also choose whether to receive the information as it comes or all at once at 6 pm daily. It allows you to communicate in your preferred language and direct message teachers and staff. Learn more here.

Find more Parent Apps & Resources here.

Be Mindful in the Parking Lot

When dropping off your student on school grounds, be sure to follow the school’s arrival/departure procedure to help ensure safety and efficiency for all.

Find your school’s map here.

● Know the plan, follow directional arrows and volunteers

● Pull forward as far as possible before dropping off in the zone marked by yellow curb

● Students MUST enter/exit vehicle onto/from the sidewalk (not driver's side)

● Students must cross at intersections: DO NOT wave students across travel lanes

● 5 mph/maximum speed on school property

● When dropping students off, driver must stay at the wheel

Please park the car if you need to: walk your student to the door; watch your student enter the building; get supplies from the trunk; help with a coat or backpack; or send your student off with anything more than a wave or good-bye.

Thank you for keeping the parking lot flow smoothly so everyone can stay safe and be where they need to be in a timely fashion.

Counseling Team

Your Tumwater Counseling Team is here to support you. On our Counseling website you will find helpful information and resources, as well as ways to contact us. On the student page, students can also find an appointment request form, to request an appointment if they'd like to meet with their counselor. Tumwater Middle School Counseling

Picking students up early from school

Our hope is that most appointments for students can be scheduled outside of the school day, but occasionally some families need to pick up their student during the school day. When this happens, please send a note to school with your student. They should show it to their teacher or lunch/recess supervisor and will be sent to the office. A parent/guardian will need to check them out of the office. This process will help us reduce interruptions to learning in progress!

Dropping off student materials or lunches

If you need to drop something off for your student, please bring it to the office. To avoid disrupting classroom learning, items will not be delivered to the classroom, but ask that students check in the office during passing periods or their lunch/recess if they're expecting a notebook, lunch etc. It may be helpful for you to email your student that you've dropped the item off and it's ready for them to pick up.

Restaurant Deliveries

TMS only allows food delivery from parents/guardians during the school day. Students can pick up the food from the office during their lunch period or after school.

We do not allow pizza and other food deliveries to students during the school day, including services like UberEats, Door Dash, or GrubHub. We will decline the delivery to avoid disruption to students' learning and to staff members' other responsibilities.

Guest Bus Passes

Occasionally, students may ride as guests on bus routes other than their own. If your child needs to ride a bus home with another student, please send a signed note to school with your child. Before school or at lunch, they should turn the note in to the front office where they will receive a Bus Guest Pass to use on that date. We ask that students pre-arrange these passes before the end of their lunch period and will not provide them after school as office staff will not have enough time to verify parent/guardian signatures.

Join Tumwater’s Volunteer Database

Instructions on how to join our Tumwater volunteer database are available at www.tumwaterpto.org/volunteer. This is a two-step process. We’ve also included an extensive FAQ with the most common volunteer questions.

**Please note: your profile does not automatically move from your previous BSD school. Email update_volunteer_locations@beaverton.k12.or.us in order to add your profile to Tumwater Middle School.

The covid vaccination & medical exemption requirements remain in place, per state mandate. Please ensure that you have completed this process so that volunteer opportunities can be available to you.

Email our Volunteer Coordinator, Kristi Nelson (volunteer@tumwaterpto.org) with any questions.

Donate to Tumwater’s Success Through Rising Tides Campaign

Our 2022-23 Rising Tides fundraising campaign continues to raise these Rapids. This annual fall event is our only PTO fundraiser, focusing on giving what we can to raise all kids.

The more successful our fundraising, the greater our impact on our 1000+ students.

PAY ONLINE: Any amount donated is gratefully received. Donate directly via PayPal.

Now is the time for this community to show up for each other & support the students, staff & classrooms of TMS. Please join us in that effort. Learn more at www.tumwaterpto.org/fundraising.

Matching Funds are a Powerful Tool in Reaching Rising Tides Goal

Corporate matching funds play an invaluable role in achieving our fundraising dreams. Head to www.tumwaterpto.org/matching-funds for instructions on how to double your donation to Tumwater PTO through your employer’s giving program. Peruse our list of local employers who will match your contribution.

Common local employer links:

SAVE THE DATE: TMS PTO Community Meeting on Thursday, 10/6

The first Tumwater PTO community meeting of the 2022-23 school year will be Thursday, 10/6 at 6:30pm in the TMS Library.

Join us to hear school & PTO updates with principal Jill O'Neil and your Tumwater PTO Board, and of course, meet/see/chat with other parents who are also navigating (surviving?) this middle school scene.

MIX & MINGLE BEGINS AT 6:15pm: Come say hi! Tumwater community members are invited to a 15-minute informal mix & mingle prior to the meeting, beginning at 6:15pm. Parents will have the ability to chat, ask questions, and connect with other TMS parents, while enjoying a bite & beverage, prior to our meeting start.

A Zoom link (for audio only) & agenda will be sent via email to parents closer to the date.

SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS: In an effort to communicate effectively & efficiently, the Tumwater PTO will be taking questions BEFORE our community meeting on 10/6. This will ensure that our meeting agenda and topics will clarify any lingering questions for our parent community.

Please submit your questions at: https://forms.gle/JPNSHmo6p6FKZ4eH7

Please remember that we only have five community meetings a year. All parents are automatically members of Tumwater PTO. Join us as we kick off another successful year!

Questions? Email Hannah (president@tumwaterpto.org).

Dear BSD Families,

We understand that it can be challenging to access current information regarding your child’s schooling in your own language. We do our best to send out messages about important updates, especially during these challenging times. However, you can access the BSD website — and specifically, our return-to-school page — at any time. Below, we’ve included a link that will take you to our website, where you’ll find it already translated into your language. Please know, the translation is generated by Google Translate. It’s not perfect, but we do hope it’s helpful.

If you need additional assistance, please contact our Multilingual Department at 503-356-3755.

View the BSD website in Arabic قم بزيارة الموقع الإلكتروني للقطاع التعليمي لمدارس بيفرتون باللغة العربية