Muskego Lakes Family Newsletter
October 14th, 2022
Dear Muskego Lakes Families,
Here at Muskego Lakes, we work very hard to maintain a learning environment where all our students not only feel safe, but are treated with dignity and respect. In addition, we empower students to look out for one another. One measure we have in place to support this work is each month in homerooms, we ask all students to complete a survey asking whether they have witnessed or experienced rude, mean, or bullying behavior. We launched this monthly survey this past week in homerooms.
The purpose of the monthly survey is so that students all have a safe and confidential way to let us know about rude, mean, or bullying behavior. After each survey, we work with the Student Services team to look into any reports that are made. While honoring students' confidentiality, we are able to intervene proactively.
Anytime incidents are reported to us as principals, we learn what we can, follow up with all students involved, and then work through conflict resolution and/or restorative conversations to allow students the time, space, and support to make things right with their peers.
We will continue to set aside time once a month in homerooms to ask students to let us know if they witness or experience rude, mean, or bullying behavior. However, we encourage you and/or your child to reach out to us anytime! We are here to partner with you and support you and your child.
Thank you for trusting us as we work through the middle school years with your children. We know that middle school students are still learning how to build relationships with one another, how to work through conflict, how to stand up for themselves, and how to advocate for what they need. So, know we are here to walk alongside them and support them no matter what!
In Partnership,
Rachel Rydzewski & Nancy Pasch
Muskego Lakes Principals
Important Dates Ahead
Fall Parent Teacher Conference Dates - October 19th (Virtual)
November 4th No School - Professional Day
November 23rd - 25th No School - Thanksgiving Break
MNS Choral Festival - November 30th
Mid-Term Grades
Mid-term grades are posted in Infinite Campus for you to review with your child. In order to check your child's grades you need to:
- Log into Infinite Campus parent portal
- If you have multiple children in one family, select student in upper right corner
- Select documents
- Choose Midterm Progress Report Qt 1
You should have received a mailing if your child has a D or F in a class, but if your child does not have a D or F, you will need to go to Infinite Campus to check their progress.
Should you have any questions about grades for a specific class, we encourage you and your child to reach out to the classroom teacher.
Getting Ready for Your Virtual Parent-Teacher Conference Ahead
Thanks to everyone who came to in-person Parent Teacher Conferences this week!! In looking ahead to next week's virtual conferences, please make sure to check your technology before your first conference begins on Wednesday, October 19.
Check that you’re using a compatible web browser
The following web browsers are supported for making video calls:
iPhone/iPad: Safari
Android: Chrome or Firefox
Windows: Chrome, Firefox, or Edge (latest version only)
Mac: Safari, Chrome, or Firefox
Check your firewall settings
Please run this test https://networktest.twilio.com/. You will need to allow access to your microphone and camera. This test checks to see if there will be any firewall issues. Firewall issues during conferences are exhibited by seeing "black screens" or "Error 53000."Important Note About Scheduled Conferences
Meet the Teacher holds firm to the start and end time of each scheduled 10 minute conference. The conference timer begins at the scheduled start time, not when the family joins the conference. When the 10 minutes is up, the conference ends automatically. This is a feature of Meet the Teacher that our teachers cannot manipulate. The benefit of this feature is that teachers will not get backed up causing conference start times to move back. Families can count on every scheduled conference starting on time.
If your conference ends and you need more time, please reach out to your child's teacher to schedule another time.
Joining a Parent-Teacher Conference on Wednesday, October 19th
Click here to attend your conference! This link is the same that you used to book your conferences.
Meet the Teacher: Troubleshooting Common Issues
Having difficulty logging in to Meet the Teacher?
When logging into the program on the parent login page, you must enter your details that match the information in our Infinite Campus system exactly.
Use Samantha not Sam, if Infinite Campus uses your daughter's full name
When entering an email address, ensure it is one associated with the Infinite Campus profile
Having difficulty accessing your conference?
If you are having difficulty accessing your conference via your computer, Meet the Teacher asks you to consider using a personal smartphone if you have access to one. Smartphones often have the microphone and camera enabled. Additionally, there are generally no firewall issues with these devices. However, if you test the program when accessing video calls for the first time, your web browser should ask you if you wish to allow access to the camera and microphone.
If your camera and/or microphone is not detected, Please follow these suggestions below and then press Try Again.
Try refreshing the page to see if the web browser prompts you for access to the camera and microphone. If you're prompted for access, choose Allow.
Otherwise, continue to step 2.Check if your web browser is blocking access to the camera and microphone and if so, unblock access. The steps to do so depend on which web browser you're using. Click on the link to view the guide:
- iPhone/iPad: Safari - open Settings from the Home screen, then choose Safari, and scroll to the Camera & Microphone Access option.
Windows: Chrome, Firefox, Edge (latest version) - press the three dots in the upper right and choose Settings, press Site permissions on the left, followed by Camera and Microphone on the right. Ensure camera and microphone access isn't blocked for this website.
Help Needed to Keep Drop-Off and Pick-Up Safe!
We focus on two main areas for drop-off and pick-up: safety and capacity. We want to ensure that we can get as many cars through as quickly as possible while ensuring students, families, and staff are safe in the process.
We need all families to follow the procedures communicated this year to achieve this. Even a few not following those can cause back-ups and potentially serious safety concerns or accidents. We are asking that all families:
- Pull all the way forward in the drop-off/pick-up lane. Fill in all available space before stopping. Stopping too soon negatively impacts the lane in two ways: (1) it reduces the capacity of the lane, causing a backup and slowing down the flow of cars and (2) cars stopping too soon or multiple times surprises families behind them, which could lead to a fender bender.
- Do not park in the drop-off /pick-up lane. We need cars to continue to moving in the drop-off and pick-up lanes. Even a few cars stopping for prolonged periods can cause backups and people not being able to proceed forward through the line.
- Proceed slowly and be aware of surroundings once you enter the main drive of Muskego Lakes. Many individuals are outside of our building, in vehicles, and on foot; excessive speed puts everyone in danger.
- Stay in a single file line and only drop-off or pick-up by the designated area. We ask that you stay in the drop-off/pick-up lines and do not pull out to bypass parts of the line or others dropping-off/picking-up. If this happens, it negatively impacts the systems in two ways: (1) it causes a safety concern for pedestrians, and (2) cars pulling out to pass and then moving back into the line causes congestion and could surprise families leading to a fender bender.
Attendance Matters
It's officially fall in Wisconsin, meaning the spooky season is upon us. In honor of this time of year, here's a scary fact - If your student has missed three or more days of school so far this year, they have missed out on 10% of the instructional time and social opportunities so far this year at school.
Don't hesitate to contact Stacy Pawlak, School Social Worker, if you are struggling with your child's attendance and would like guidance and a partner to create a plan moving forward. She can be reached at stacy.pawlak@muskegonorway.org or call: (262) 971 1800 ext. 5403
Christmas Clearing Council of Waukesha County
The 2022 Christmas Clearing Council Client Application is now available online! Parents struggling financially may apply to receive Christmas gift assistance for their children this season.Deadline to apply is Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at 11:59 p.m.
Understanding Stress and Anxiety Speaker
Explore sources of stress for children and adolescents, understand common symptoms associated with stress, and identify ways to intervene. Learn how to differentiate stress response from more impairing anxiety disorders and understand how anxiety can manifest at home and school. Dr. Jacobi will review current anxiety disorders and discuss how they are treated using cognitive behavioral interventions. Time for questions will be provided.
Where: Hamilton High School Little Theatre, W220N6151 Town Line Rd, Sussex
When: Tuesday, October 25, 2022 Time: 6:30 P.M. - 8:00 P.M. To Register:
PTO Mid-Week Munchies
Health Services - Reporting of an Illness/ Reporting of COVID
Reporting of Illness
If your student is ill please keep them home and notify us at 262-971-1860 ext 5000. You may also use the Campus Parent App to report the illness.
Reporting of COVID
If your student has a positive COVID test please keep them home and Report your student's COVID ISOLATION using the COVID-19 SYMPTOM OR STATUS NOTIFICATION.
Please refer to the Health Services website for additional information.
October Lunch Menu
Food Service Reminders
At the middle school level, each student is offered 5 lunch components (protein, grain, fruit, vegetable, and milk). If your child is eligible for a reimbursable lunch, they must take a minimum of 3 of the components (but may take all 5) with 1 of those components being a ½ cup serving of fruit or vegetable for the meal to qualify as a fully reimbursable meal at the price point listed below. Whether your child is fully paid, free or reduced, if they do not take the minimum as noted above, their lunch account will be charged for each item individually at the ala carte rate.
Ala carte foods are NOT covered under the free and reduced meal program. If you wish for your child(ren) to purchase ala carte items throughout the school year, you need to make sure there are adequate funds in the lunch account(s). Once a student’s account is in the negative, they are not allowed to purchase any ala carte items. Weekly reminders will be sent to families once your account has gone negative. Payments can be made to lunch accounts through Infinite Campus, under Lunch Payments.
If you would like your student(s) to be blocked from purchasing any ala carte items, you may contact the Food Service Office at 262-971-1790 x4622, or email Deb Matson (deb.matson@muskegonorway.org) and request the ala carte block be placed on your student(s) account.
2022-2023 Meal Prices LUNCH
- Elementary School - $2.55
- MS Lunch 1 - $2.95
- MS Lunch 2 - $3.50
- MS Creation Station - $3.90
- Milk Carton - $0.50
- Adult (MS & Elementary) - $4.65
Yearbook Ordering Information
If you're not certain if you've already ordered a yearbook, please search your email for "Jostens" and look for a confirmation of sale. Or, if you created an account when ordering, you may login to Jostens.com, and view your purchase history.
To inquire about financial assistance, please reach out to Stacy Pawlak, Social Worker.
Get Involved By Joining The Muskego Lakes PTO!
Please consider joining the Muskego Lakes PTO. We meet monthly in the MLMS library at 6:30pm. We always welcome new faces and would love to hear your ideas in how we can make this an amazing school year ahead!!
MLMS PTO Meeting Dates for 2022-2023
- October 19th
- November 16
- January 18
- February 15
- March 15
- April 19
- May 17
Community Events
Children's Wisconsin Mental Health Walk-in Clinic
Speak Up Speak Out Wisconsin
Muskego Lakes Associate Principal
Muskego Lakes Principal
Muskego Lakes Middle School
Website: https://www.muskegonorway.org/schools/muskegolakes/
Location: W124 S8009 North Cape Rd.
Phone: 262-971-1860
Twitter: @MLMSmuskies