OMS Friday Knight Live
December 16, 2022
Last Friday Knight Live of the Semester
In This Newsletter:
- Spirit Days Coming Up
- OMS PTO Spirit Night Sale Tonight @ Kendra Scott
- Tuesday, Dec. 20th- 10:50 a.m. dismissal
- End of Semester Grades & Canvas Info
- Complete today: Parent/Guardian Consent for Kansas Communities that Care
Winter Student Spirit Week! 12.4-12.20
- MONDAY- … Are you RED’y for the break. Chiefs jerseys & other team spirit.
- TUESDAY- … Too comfy Tuesday. PJs for our short day!
OMS PTO Spirit Night at Kendra Scott TONIGHT 12.16!
Gather your friends or shop on your own - it is OMS PTO Spirit Nights December 15th and 16th at Kendra Scott! What a great way to finish your holiday shopping and support our school!
20% of proceeds go back to OMS!
Tuesday, Dec. 20 ~ 10:50 a.m. dismissal
- We will dismiss students at 10:50 a.m. Tuesday, December 20th for winter break.
- Students will return to school January 4th.
- Students may view 2nd semester schedules through StudentVue or ParentVue prior to January 4th.
End of Semester Grades & Canvas Info
The end of the first semester is nearly here. Our students have had a great first semester of learning and we continue to see the positive impacts of our learning management system, Canvas, in our classrooms. As we gear up for the end of the semester, please take note of the important information below regarding grades and courses in Canvas.
End of Semester Information
At the end of the day on Tuesday, December 20th, courses in Canvas will conclude and will no longer be visible on the Canvas Parent app. A concluded course is only visible through the Canvas Website. To view concluded courses, open Canvas in a web browser, log in, and click on the Courses tab. Click View All Courses and scroll down to find the past enrollments. Access Past Enrollment guide (Video tutorial)
Final exam scores and other individual assignment grades can be viewed in Canvas. Semester grades reports will be published in ParentVUE on January 11th.
Need some help?
Blue Valley has a variety of resources available for parent support on the district’s Canvas web page, www.bluevalleyk12.org/canvas.
Kansas Communities That Care- Action Step Needed
Thank you to everyone who has already responded to the Kansas Communities That Care consent form in ParentVue. If you haven’t done so yet, we kindly ask that you complete this by December 16, 2022. More information follows below:
Current Blue Valley students in 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th grades are invited to take the Kansas Communities That Care student survey in January 2023. The survey is built on a framework of prevention to support effective, evidence-based strategies in Kansas communities. The survey is voluntary, and parents or guardians must complete a form granting permission for their student to take the survey.
Blue Valley has participated in this survey for many years, and continued participation allows our staff to understand yearly trends, measuring the effect that our prevention and responsive programming has on our students.
The Kansas Communities That Care student survey is offered by schools across Kansas and is supported by Greenbush Education Service Center and the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services.
Questions for the Kansas Communities That Care Survey (KCTC Survey) can be found on the district website under “useful links.” Questions are related to substance use, school climate, bullying, depression, and suicide. The survey is completely anonymous, and no identifying student personal information is collected. The Blue Valley School District receives data summarized by school and our overall district results.
Permission for the Kansas Communities That Care survey can be entered in ParentVue until December 16, 2022. For questions related to the Kansas Communities That Cares survey please contact Mindy Wells, Coordinator of Student Support Services at mmwells02@bluevalleyk12.org or Adam Wade, Director of Academic Achievement & Accountability at awade@bluevalleyk12.org.
Upcoming Dates @ OMS
December 20- End of First Semester; 10:50 a.m. dismissal
December 21-January 3- Winter Break!
January 4- 2nd semester begins
Helpful Repeated Information
Community Service Hours for 2022-23 Recognition
Community Service hours for this year's Blue Valley Volunteer Service Awards are due to Allyson DiNitto in the Counseling office by Friday, April 14, 2023! Students who have completed 50 or more service hours from April 1, 2022-March 31, 2023 will be recognized with service awards at the end of the school year. We have 3 levels of recognition: Bronze (50-74 hours of service), Silver (75-99 hours of service) and Gold (100+ hours of service).
Service hours can be for any volunteer work done to help an organization or person that you do not receive payment or goods for the service. Service work is to help others, outside of yourself or your family.
Examples: being a team manager, volunteering at a food pantry, doing yardwork for an elderly neighbor, being a peer mentor for another student, helping at an animal shelter, cleaning up an area park. **Being part of a school club or activity does not count for service hours, unless the group worked on a project to help another organization or cause.
Please use the 2022-2023 Volunteer Log (or your own version of it) to record your volunteer hours! If you have questions, please contact Allyson DiNitto at adinitto@bluevalleyk12.org.
Allyson DiNitto
O.M.S. Counselor (L-Z)
Student Absence Reporting ** Help Needed
Parents/Guardians we need your help. Please do not email or call staff members directly about student absences, late arrivals, or early dismissals (that includes Mrs. Orenstein, Mrs. Domoney, Mr. Holsapple, or any teacher). When those individuals are absent, your messages do not reach the attendance team.
We Highly Encourage you to use the “Report An Absence” feature in ParentVue. You may leave comments in the notes section if you are notifying us of a late arrival or early pick up. Please do not call Mrs. Orenstein directly – call the attendance line at 913/239-5505.
Thank you – we appreciate your assistance.
8th Grade Boys Basketball - Starts January 4, 2023
The 8th Grade Boys Basketball season will begin Wednesday, January 4th @ 3:00 PM in the gym (the first day students return from Winter Break).
Students who wish to participate must first complete the Blue Valley Participation Packet which includes a signed doctor’s release in the form of a sports physical. Once completed, please upload this document to the rSchool website by clicking HERE.
Students who do not have this document completed and uploaded to the rSchool website prior to the first day of practice/tryouts will not be allowed to participate until this form is received. Any student who participated in football for OMS will already have this completed.
If your 8th Grade student is interested in participating in boys basketball, please use the google form to unofficially “sign-up” as soon as possible so we can get a sense for how many boys will be participating in basketball this winter.
OMS Premiere Social Event of the Winter: Friday Knight Club January 6, 2023
OMS Parents and Guardians, mark your calendars for Friday January 6th! Friday Knight Club returns! But we cannot have FKC without you — please click the Jan 6, 2020 Friday Knight Club link to help us put on this amazing student event!
Student may pre-purchase tickets at Student Ticket Purchase for FKL Jan 6, 2023
** Students who pre-purchase tickets will check in at the registration table – no physical tickets are given. Cost is $5.00 Or Venmo $5 per student to @Oxford-MiddleSchoolPTO (be sure to include your student's name and grade in the comments)
8th Grade Families: Mark Your Calendars
Parents Still Matter – December 2022 Newsletter
This great newsletter has many articles tailored for middle school families. Topics this month include sleep, school attendance, knowledge retention, reading for fun, after school time, and so much more!
Click HERE for the December 2022 newsletter
8th Grade Families- 8th grade celebration
Hello 8th grade families. It is time to start planning for the end of the year 8th grade celebration! This fun event involves a ceremony in the OMS gym, refreshments and an 8th grade only field trip.
In order to make this event memorable we need a committee. If you would like to help plan this fun 8th grade tradition, please click this link 8th Grade Celebration Committee
If you have any questions, please email us at oxfordmspto@gmail.com
Thank you,
Oxford PTO
* 22-23 Yearbook Information * MAKE SURE TO ORDER NOW
Please purchase your 22-23 yearbook as you pay fees for the coming school year. Yearbooks MUST be ordered in advance and extra copies are not available at the end of the year. Families may purchase yearbooks by logging into ParentVue and going to the Fee page. The yearbook will be listed under “Optional Fees” and will show as “YRBOOK Yearbook 22-23 OMS”. Yearbook orders will close in January 2023 and additional orders will not be taken. Please avoid end of the year tears and confusion and order today.
If you have multiple children at Oxford and are ordering a yearbook for each of them, please purchase one yearbook separately in each student's account (not 2 yearbooks in one student's account). Yearbooks are passed out on the last day of school in class and if a sibling has one child's yearbook it cannot be signed by friends.
Student text “Come Get Me”?
Parents and guardians, we need your help. If your student texts or calls you from their cell phone saying they don’t feel well and want you to pick them up — please tell them to go to the nurse’s office. The school tracks contagious illnesses, number of students out due to illness, and Nurse Piper watches for illness trends. Your student should only be calling you from the nurse’s office if they are going home ill.
Families, it is flu and cold season. Please keep your students home if they have (or in the past 24 hours have had) a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea.
Holiday Resources
Social Worker Resource: Johnson County Christmas Bureau
The Holiday Shop will be available for Families December 2 - December 10. You must be a resident of Johnson County. Please see details and the application link below.
Click HERE for the flier and application link
OMS Traffic Line
Please follow the OMS traffic loop entering through the south entrance, going all the way through the loop and exiting through the south entrance. There are no left turns when the light is flashing. Cars must pull all the way down the line and students must exit on the building side of the car. Cars may not drop students off on Switzer or before they are on the building side of the line.
Thank you for your help in ensuring safety for all students and staff in our parking lot!
Safe Schools Reporting
Blue Valley Schools is committed to promoting and fostering a safe environment in and around all of our schools. Through the convergence of physical and intellectual security measures, we are continuously working to prevent, mitigate, respond to and recover from a wide range of emergencies. Please check out available ways to report safety concerns
Student Picture Gallery
The OMS website has a Student Picture Gallery showing everyday classroom activities, science labs, activities, clubs, athletics, and special events. Want to see the Pre-Engineering egg drop? 6th grade science project? Sept 22 Cross Country Meet?
Click HERE for the Student Picture Gallery and feel free to download your favorite shots!
Clubs and Activities
We have had requests for a listing of clubs and activities by day. We have had new clubs start (Welcome Anime Club!!) and several change days and times (Check Photography Club and Show Choir).
Click HERE for 1st Semester Club and Activity List by Day and Week
ASK Locations and Day Update
Our Academically Successful Knights (ASK) program is up and running for first semester! Students may come for homework help or a quiet place to work on assignments and projects. See the updated days and locations for ASK 1st semester.
Candid Photos for Yearbook and Website
OMS families we would love to have some candid photos of your student at games, meets, practices, etc..
Photos must be .jpg, .jpeg, or.png for inclusion on the website, the parent newsletter, and the yearbook.
Photos must be in focus
Please do not send multiple photos of the same pose, group, or action – we love variety!
Thank you for uploading photos directly to the yearbook google drive! Click HERE for the 22 23 Yearbook Photo Link
Securly at Home
Your child’s online safety, in the palm of your hand. The time to take action is now. We recognize that student safety and well-being in the online world is a shared responsibility between our schools and families, and with Securly - the district’s cloud-based filtering system - taking an active role in your child’s online safety has never been easier.
Click HERE to access the Securly Parent Toolkit to setup your parent portal and custom notifications.
OMS Building and Office Hours
Doors open in the morning for students at 7:15am – students will be waiting outside until the doors open. Students are to proceed to the Commons/Gym and they may not go to lockers or to classrooms. Students must be in their seats in their 1st period classroom by 7:51am. When the afternoon bell rings at 3:00pm students must leave the building unless they are at a supervised after school activity or practice. Office hours are 7:15am - 3:30pm.
For the Latest Announcements and Information
Want to keep up on the latest OMS announcements and information? Check out the NEWS section on the OMS website. NEWS is located under the About Us tab.
Contact Us! We Are Here To Help!
Attendance Number: 913-239-5505
Mrs. Domoney, Principal: cdomoney@bluevalleyk12.org
Mr. Holsapple, Assistant Principal: jholsapple03@bluevalleyk12.org