Murphy Middle School eNews
December 16, 2015
Leaving Early During Final Exam Week
Parents, we would really appreciate your help with continuing a rather new tradition here at Murphy Middle School. In the past, students and parents have been under the impression that it is acceptable for students to miss partial days during exam week. This is not the case as these days are required, and students are expected to attend. Students being picked up in large numbers places stress on the front office, stretches our staff and student aides, and can inadvertently weaken our school security.
That being said, students are expected to attend full days on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (December 15-17) and from 8:30 – 12:45 on Friday, December 18. Class time missed will be recorded as unexcused unless the absence meets the requirements for being documented as excused.
I truly appreciate your help in this matter because the ultimate decision regarding students leaving campus early on those days is in your hands. If you have individual questions, please direct those to your grade level counselor.
Thanks in advance for your cooperation,
Dr. Perry
Plano ISD Facilities and Technology Study Task Force Seeks Parent and Community Feedback
Dear Parents,
The Facilities and Technology Study Task Force, assembled by the Plano ISD Board of Trustees in August, is hosting a public hearing to gather community input as they evaluate district needs with regard to a possible bond initiative. I encourage our parent community to attend this public forum, as this will be your opportunity to provide feedback or ask questions related to the committee’s work of reviewing enrollment trends and projections, as well as establishing construction, renovation and technology needs. The hearing will be hosted as follows:
Facilities and Technology Study Task Force Public Hearing
Thursday, December 17, 2015, 6:00 p.m.
Plano Senior High School Doyle Dean Performing Arts Center
2200 Independence Pkwy, Plano, TX 75075
Speaker cards will be required from all who wish to speak at the hearing and will be available beginning at 5:30 p.m. through the end of the meeting.
Additional opportunities for input are available at the regular school board meetings scheduled for January 12 and February 2, 2016, and via district e-mail at askpisd@pisd.edu. For more information on the work of the Facilities and Technology Study Task Force, please visit the Plano ISD website at: http://www.pisd.edu/news/2016bond/index.shtml.
Murphy Middle School Events & Information
Secondary Transfer Online Numbering System - Opened Monday, December 14 at 6:30 a.m. Parents must log onto the PISD website at http://k-12.pisd.edu/transfer to receive a number. See document attached to eNews email for further information.
Final Exams - Tuesday, December 15 - Friday, December 18
Winter Break for Students - Monday, December 21 through Monday, January 4 (no school for students on Monday, January 4)
Teachers return to work - Monday, January 4
Athletic Events - December & January
Admission cost for athletic events is $2 for students and $4 for adults. Please help out our ticket takers by bringing small bills.
7th Grade Girls Basketball (6:00 & 7:00 unless otherwise noted)
Thursday, 1/7 vs. Robinson at MMS
Thursday, 1/14 vs. Rice at Rice
Thursday, January 21 vs. Schimelpfenig at MMS
Thursday, 1/28 vs. Renner at MMS
7th Grade Boys Basketball (6:00 & 7:00 unless otherwise noted)
Thursday, 1/7 vs. Robinson at Robinson
Thursday, 1/14 vs. Rice at MMS
Thursday, January 21 vs. Schimelpfenig at Schimelpfenig
Thursday, 1/28 vs. Renner at Renner
8th Grade Girls Basketball (6:00 & 7:00 unless otherwise noted)
Wednesday, 1/6 vs. Robinson at MMS
Monday, 1/11 vs. Rice at Rice
Tuesday, 1/19 vs. Schimelpfenig at MMS
Monday, 1/25 vs. Renner at MMS
8th Grade Boys Basketball (6:00 & 7:00 unless otherwise noted)
Wednesday, 1/6 vs. Robinson at Robinson
Monday, 1/11 vs. Rice at MMS
Tuesday, 1/19 vs. Schimelpfenig at Schimelpfenig
Monday, 1/25 vs. Renner at Renner
Reflections Results – District Level
Congratulations to the following Murphy Students for their awards at the district level of the PTA reflections competition!
Dance Choreography
Riley Wilburn – 6th Grade – Award of Merit
Music Composition
Noah Henson – 8th Grade – Honorable Mention
Film Production
Carole Walker – Grade 6 – Honorable Mention
Photography
Hailey Baldwin – Grade 8 – Award of Excellence
Alex Dauenbaugh – Grade 8 – Honorable Mention
Literature
Raishma Kazi – Grade 8 – Award of Merit
Elena Hamlin – Grade 8 – Award of Merit
Katherine Creevy – Grade 8 – Honorable Mention
Madelyn Osborne – Grade 8 – Honorable Mention
Visual Arts
Shruti Rajamani – Grade 7 – Award of Excellence
Nitya Lohia – Grade 8 – Award of Excellence
PISD Education Foundation Grant (written by Karyn Collins) Provides New Titles For 6th Grade ELA Classroom Libraries
Murphy’s 6th grade English Language Arts Department recently won a $1500 grant from the Plano Education Foundation. With this grant, the teachers were able to purchase about 350 new, popular titles for their classroom libraries. What a wonderful chance to foster a life-long love of reading with our students through these exciting and engaging titles! A special thanks goes out to Karyn Collins for writing the grant and making it all possible. The picture here represents the approximate number of books that EACH teacher was able to acquire for their classroom library.
Soccer Club Registration Now Open!
Team and individual player registration is now open!
Use Google Classroom code nxy9sr to view the Club newsfeed and fill out online registration forms (Word docs are available for printing).
All teams and/or players must submit the following by Friday January 8th to Mrs. Isbell (K103) or Mr. Murtaugh (B129):
· Team or individual application (online or paper)
· Permission form signed (paper only)
· Registration fee ($20 team or $2 individual player)
8 v 8 Games on Fridays beginning January 22nd!
Grit and the Power of YET!
In order to demonstrate to students the Power of Yet, to encourage them to try again when they struggle, and to develop their grit, teachers will start adding the phrase “Power of Yet Tutorial (with the date and time of the tutorial)” on graded assignments when students are able to make another attempt at mastery. Teachers will also explain this change in grading communication so that students understand the meaning and purpose of “Power of Yet Tutorials.”
6th grade Science Fair (Student Handbook Attached to eNews email)
Any sixth grader interested in competing in the Science/Engineering Fair will need to ask their Science teacher for a packet. All projects are due on Tuesday, January 12th in the MMS library. Any questions? See Mrs. Pilgrim.
The Student Handbook for the Science Fair is attached to the original eNews email.
Science and Engineering Fair Winners
PACE Testing
Spring PACE testing referral packets are now available in the front office or through the website, http://pisd.edu/parents/advanced.academics/gifted.pace/.
All referral packets are due by January 13th to Mr. Matisoff in N101. PACE testing at MMS will occur on February 29th for all students. Students should currently be in or plan on taking at least one honor’s class before deciding to test. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Matisoff, Murphy’s PACE Specialist.
Dress For Success!
The right clothes can boost our confidence, and now studies show it may even help us to focus. Knowing the right clothes to wear in professional situations can be make or break. Wednesday January 6 is the next Murphy Dress for Success day. Let's start the new semester off focused on success!
InfoCenter - Managing Communications From Your Child's School & From the District
Plano ISD has implemented InfoCenter, allowing you to better control how you receive communications from your school or district. The following is a guide to help you get started.
What is InfoCenter?: InfoCenter provides access to all the messages and information sent by your organization. Accessible from any internet-enabled device, InfoCenter visually displays and organizes alerts, notifications, and attachments for easy review and reference. InfoCenter also allows you to customize how you receive communications from PISD (campus and district).
How do I sign up for InfoCenter?: Signing up for InfoCenter is easy. Using the email address that you have on file for your district (emergency card), follow these three steps:
1. Download the InfoCenter by SchoolMessenger app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Market. You can also access the InfoCenter web portal at https://infocenter.schoolmessenger.com/
2. Click the “New User” button, enter your email address, and create a password. An email will be sent to that address with a secure token. Note: If you receive an “already claimed by another user account” error message that means you’ve already created a SchoolMessenger account via another SchoolMessenger product, such as Contact Manager. Simply follow the “Return to login” link and login. Use the “Forgot your password” link if needed.
3. After authenticating via the token sent to your email, return to InfoCenter and sign in using your email and password.
What’s in InfoCenter?:Once you’ve created your account, the records associated with your email address will be linked automatically. You can then:
- View the records associated with your account.
- Review the last 30 days worth of messages for all your associated records.
- View your contact information, and configure how you’d like to receive notifications.
Important Things to Know:
- Regardless of how you choose to receive notifications, all messages associated with your records will be retained in the InfoCenter inbox for 30 days.
- You can opt into receiving Device Notifications (Push) under Notification Preferences. When choosing to receive Device Notifications, a badge or alert will appear when you receive new communications from Plano ISD.
Our provider, SchoolMessenger, makes the security and privacy of your data a top priority. As one of over 100 approved signatories to Student Privacy Pledge, you can feel ensured that your student’s information is safe and will never be sold, rented or shared.
So Many Ways To Be Involved - MMS Clubs (Updated List)
out some simple forms.
Here are the clubs that are formed so far - along with the name and email information of the teacher serving as custodian. Meeting times/dates are set by the teacher, so please direct your questions to him/her.
Book Club with Ms. Pearson in the Library (penny.pearson@pisd.edu)
Nintendo Club with Ms. McCutcheon & Ms. Hargrove in B120 (dena.mccutcheon@pisd.edu or lynda.hargrove@pisd.edu)
Star Wars Club with Mr. Murtaugh in B129 (michael.murtaugh@pisd.edu)
Environmental Club with Ms. Pilgrim in E113 (tina.pilgrim@pisd.edu)
Soccer Club with Mr. Murtaugh in B129 (michael.murtaugh@pisd.edu)
Baseball Club with Mr. Lagattuta in E112 (mike.lagattuta@pisd.edu)
Joy Club with Ms. Perry in J105 (clarice.perry@pisd.edu)
Reading Rain Club with Ms. Byrd in E101 (michelle.byrd@pisd.edu)
Mavs Steep Steppers with Ms. Holt in H102 (jemia.holt@pisd.edu)
Basketball Club with Mr. Henson in D101 (brian.henson@pisd.edu)
- Check out the latest Basketball Club News at www.Tinyurl.com/murphybballclub
Tennis Club with Ms. Hachtel in E111 (joey.hachtel@pisd.edu)
French Club with Ms. Nee in K104 (giang.nee@pisd.edu)
Singing & Dancing Club with Mr. Lagattuta in E112 (mike.lagattuta@pisd.edu)
Chef's Club with Ms. Thompson in D112 (kelly.thompson@pisd.edu)
Poetry Club with Ms. Edenkrans in F103 (elizabeth.edenkrans@pisd.edu)
Harry Potter Club with Mr. Lagattuta in E112 (mike.lagattuta@pisd.edu)
Student Council with Ms. Collins & Ms. McAnderson in F104 (karyn.collins@pisd.edu or melissa.mcanderson@pisd.edu)
PTA News & Updates
Important Dates:
December 17th - Chick-fil-A Spirit Night
January 12th - General PTA Meeting at 6:30 p.m. & Parent’s Program at 7
PTA Parent Program on January 12
Murphy Middle School PTA Community Partners 2015-2016
Please remember our generous sponsors when shopping for services or supplies!!
For more Murphy information, please visit the Murphy web page:
http://k12.pisd.edu/murphy-middle-school
For Murphy PTA news: http://www.mmspta.org
To unsubscribe from Murphy eNews or change your email address, please go to: http://elist.pisd.edu/
If you are getting eNews because you use Parent Portal, please go to: https://parentviewer.pisd.edu/ to revise your subscription.