PTMS Weekly Parent Newsletter
August 11, 2023
Coming Up
August 14 - Chromebook Check-Out - 8:00-3:00 p.m. - Learning Commons
August 14 - Mosey Monday - 12:00-2:45 p.m. - self-guided tours
August 15 - First Day of School - Single Period Day - please see this bell schedule for class period times and refer to this calendar for bell schedule changes through the year.
August 16 - Single Period Day
August 17 - Block Period 1-3-5 Day
August 18 - Block Period 2-4-6 Day
August 18 - New Student Social during Homerooms - 11:45-1:10 p.m.
Message from the Principal
Wolfpack families,
The excitement is building as we inch closer to the first day of school. This week we held our PTMS orientation for new students and families. Families had a chance to hear from our counselors and me in separate sessions as they began to familiarize themselves with our school and the student experience. If you were unable to attend, or just wish to review the information, you can find the slides from both sessions here and on the homepage of our website:
As a staff, we joined all district staff at Torrey Pines High School on Wednesday for training and then on Thursday, our Pacific Trails staff gathered together for a day of fun, planning and learning. Our focus this year is "The Next Step" and we educators continue to think how we can improve and evolve our practices and systems to meet the needs of all students. Our staff is excited and cannot wait to welcome your student next week.
I know many students and families are eagerly anticipating their schedules and those will be available on Monday morning by logging into Aeries. A reminder that Monday from 11:30 - 1:30 pm we have "Mosey Monday". This is a time to take a self-guided tour through campus if your student wishes to familiarize themselves with their class locations prior to the start of school.
This weekend is a good time to remind students to get back in the habit of bedtime routines, hopefully making waking up for school a bit easier. If your student will be riding a bicycle, scooter, skateboard or e-bike, please review all safety rules and guidelines, including wearing a helmet at all times. There is nothing more important than their safety.
Have a wonderful final weekend of summer, and we look forward to beginning the school year on Tuesday morning.
Message from the Assistant Principal
STAR Testing
This year all students will participate in the Renaissance Star Reading and Star Math academic universal screening tests to measure student’s learning and growth over the school year. The Star tests help our schools and teachers evaluate student performance and progress over time in order to provide the necessary student support.
Star Reading and Star Math are both short (30 minute), low stakes, computer adaptive, academic assessments. Star assessments help teachers better understand what students know and can do in the areas of reading and math. As a student takes the test, the software selects items based on the student’s responses. If the student answers correctly, the next item will be more difficult. If the student answers incorrectly, the next item will be less difficult. By adjusting the difficulty of the items based on a student's responses, the assessment is an accurate way to help teachers identify what skills students are ready to learn. Teachers use this information to guide their instruction.
Scores will be posted by the district in Aeries once they are available.
Fall STAR Testing Dates
STAR Reading: Monday, August 21st in English classes
STAR Math: Thursday, August 31st or Friday, September 1st in Math classes
Feel free to contact me at kathryn.freeman@sduhsd.net, or Lisa Graciano, at lisa.graciano@sduhsd.net, if you have any questions.
Helpful Hints for the First Week of School
The first day of school is TUESDAY, AUGUST 15. Students are expected to be in their classrooms and in their seats by 8:10 a.m. Drop-off and pick-up traffic is always busy, so plan ahead and practice patience. Drop-off/pick-up is done on the circular drive or in the CCA parking lot. Please do not utilize the shopping plaza across the street. Due to the very large number of student bike riders, parents are encouraged to drop-off/pick-up next to a sidewalk rather than in the middle of the parking lot for safety. Dropping-off before 8:00 a.m. and picking-up after 3:00 p.m. will ensure the least amount of traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian, to content with. Our young bike riders are still learning the rules of the road so please be aware of your surroundings at all times when you are near the campus.
Nothing is more important to us than your child's safety. We need your help keeping student bike riders (and the cars and pedestrians around them) safe. Please review Bike Safety 101 and tips for fitting a helmet with your student bike rider. Additionally, we'd like parents and students to complete this Vehicle Permit so we know you have together read and agree to the regulations within and understand potential reasons a student may lose the privilege of riding their bike/scooter/e-bike/skateboard to school. The Vehicle Permit is also a good place to record the make/model/color/etc. of the student's vehicle in the event it is stolen. Please drop the Vehicle Permit off with Vetha in the front office.
Message from the Counselors
Happy Friday Wolves!
We enjoyed meeting our new families at Monday’s Orientation session. If you were unable to attend you can view our presentation here.
Accessing Class Schedules: Schedules will be available to view in Aeries on Monday, August 14 at 8:00 a.m. Please click here for instructions to log into your Aeries account to access student class schedules.
SDUHSD Middle School Class Schedule Guidelines:
We have done our best to honor students’ first, second, or third elective choice and are unable to accommodate teacher requests, period requests, or changes to schedules for extracurricular/athletic activities.
Level changes in English and mathematics can be addressed through September 12, 2023.
The Counseling Office will address scheduling errors only leading up to and during the first two days of school (ex: students missing a class period on their schedule). Please email your student’s assigned counselor if you see an error on your student’s schedule.
Counselors will be outside of the counseling office during break and lunch to help with any questions or any errors on student’s schedules the first week of school. If students need a printed copy of their schedule, they can come to the counseling office to get one.
We can't wait to see our students next week and wanted to wish everyone a great first day of school!
Lisa Curry, Counselor (A-Ma) lisa.curry@sduhsd.net
Carsen Anderson (Murt), Counselor (Mc-Z and EL Students) carsen.murt@sduhsd.net
Samantha Eels-Taylor, Student Support Facilitator samantha.eelstaylor@sduhsd.net
From the Attendance Office
Welcome Back!
If your student is unable to attend school or if you need to pull your student from class and obtain an Office Campus Pass for a doctor appointment or other reason, please email the Attendance Office at ptattendance@sduhsd.net just as soon as you know about the absence. If we know in advance, we can have your student in the office waiting for you when you arrive.
In your email, please list your name and relationship to the student, your student's name, and the reason for the absence.
~ It's cool to be in school! Attendance matters.
ASB and Student Announcements
You can check them out on the Students tab of our website under "Student Announcements" for a running post of each week's student announcements.
Department News
From the PE Department
Please follow us on Instagram to see what your student is up to during PE class.
PE Clothes and Spirit Wear/Gear
Comfortable and plain t-shirts and shorts as well as covered tennis shoes are required for PE class here at PTMS. No pockets or pictures/advertisements. When the weather cools off and sweats are wanted, they also need to be comfortable and plain. The idea is freedom of movement with no physical restrictions due to clothing. Parents can provide those from their child's own closet of clothes or you can purchase PTMS PE clothes ($10 per short or t-shirt) at the PTMS Webstore. Orders placed from this webstore will be filled and delivered to your student the following day after school starts. Orders placed before the first day of school will be filled on Monday, August 14th, and you will be contacted via email to let you know they are ready for pick-up. For sweats and other PTMS swag, you can order from the PTMS Spirit Wear online store. Items purchased from the PTMS Sprit Wear store will be mailed home to you or, if you choose, will be delivered to PTMS for you to pick-up (no delivery fee!). Parents will, again, be notified via email that those items have been delivered to the school and are ready for pick-up.
Science Notebooks
Are you going Back-to-School shopping? Don't forget to pick up a science notebook!
All 7th and 8th grade science students will need a notebook that they will bring to their science class daily. These can be a composition style or a spiral bound notebook. We recommend the 8.5x11” spiral bound, 100 page, college-ruled notebooks, but the 7.5x10" size will work as well. We DO NOT recommend the 3 or 5 subject notebooks, as this science notebook must be used EXCLUSIVELY FOR SCIENCE; no other subjects should be in this notebook. (If a student needs a notebook for another class, please get a separate notebook for that class.)
Students should bring their science notebook to class by Monday, August 21st. If a student is unable to get a notebook, please contact your student’s science teacher.
Check out this Guide for Science Notebooks
Submit Summer Photos for the Yearbook!
Yearbook is looking for photos of your student's summer adventures or activities! Please click here to submit summer photos that may potentially be used in the 2023-2024 yearbook.
Clubs
Club activity will be posted here throughout the year. To get a list of all Clubs currently active, please check our Activities page on our website.
NEW! Family Handbook
Everything from Academic, Cell Phone, and Discipline Policies to information about our Associated Student Body, Attendance Procedures, Dress Code, Health Office, Wellness Center, and more can be found in this new Family Handbook. For your convenience, this handbook will always be found in this newsletter because after a couple of weeks a link in the "Other" section of the newsletter (below) will house it. You can also find this handbook on the homepage of our website under "Quick Links" at the bottom right of the page.
From the PTSA
PTSA welcomes new students and parents. Thank you to those who stopped by the PTSA booth and enrolled as members during the Orientation this week. For those who would like to know more about what PTSA does and membership perks, please visit our website.
Thank you for your generous donations that will be used towards students' academic enrichment, teacher grants, campus events, and more. Join PTSA today, click here.
For Membership information, Upcoming Events, Fundraiser activity, PTSA Executive Board Members and their contact information, PTSA General Meeting dates, and more, please go the the PTSA Page of the PTMS Website.
Chromebook Check-Out - August 14 - 8:00-3:00 p.m.
We are excited to be able to check-out a brand new Chromebook to each and every student (7th and 8th grade) who will be attending PTMS for the 2023-24 school year.
Students are required to have a District-Issued Chromebook, stylus, and charger for specific assignments and testing throughout the year.
How to Check-Out a Chromebook - August 14 - 8:00-3:00 p.m.
1. Sign-up for a timeslot to pick up your Chromebook. This is essential for a smooth distribution.
2. Come to the campus at your selected sign-up time. Please park in the CCA parking lot as the PTMS parking lot is closed for construction, walk through the PTMS front gate, and follow the arrow signs to the Learning Commons at the back of the campus. No need to obtain a Visitor’s Badge in the office.
Students are not required to be present to check-out a Chromebook at this time.
Students/parents who are not able come to these pre-school check-out dates/times will need to go to the Learning Commons before school/after school or during lunch once school starts to check one out.
Students will receive login information for their new Chromebook during the first week of school.
If you have questions, please contact Kathryn.Freeman@sduhsd.net.
School Supply List
Things you'll need:
1. Something to write with.
2. Something to write on.
3. Something to carry it all in.
4. Science Notebook (see Department News above)
5. Individual classes may have additional suggested items which they will inform students of during the first week of school.
Picture Days
Picture Days this year will be held on August 28 for 7th graders through PE classes and September 11 for 8th graders also through PE classes. Click on the QR code on the below flyer to receive a link to your gallery when it's ready (which will be sometime after picture days).
Click on this QR code to receive a link to your Gerardy photo gallery when it's ready (which will be sometime after the picture days conclude). This will open up a direct link to Gerardy when it comes time to see the proofs and order the 2023-24 school pictures of your child. The school site is no longer permitted to provide parent email addresses to the picture people, so parents need to provide it directly to the company.
Nutrition Services
Dear students and parents,
Welcome to the new 2023-2024 School Year!
Meals (breakfast and lunch) are free to all students. Know your Student # for meals (find it at the Aeris Portal).
Breakfast Late Start Monday: 8:55 - 9:25am.; No Nutritional Break
Non-Late Start Monday Nutritional Break: 9:50-10:00 a.m.
Breakfast Daily (Block Days): 7:40 - 8:10am.; Nutritional Break: 9:50 - 10:00am.
Lunch Daily: Follow the Bell Schedule
In Food and Nutrition we are excited to meet you and serve delicious and nutritious meals to all students! If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact us.
Job Opportunities - Nutrition Services
SDUHSD has several opportunities available in Nutrition Services. If you are looking for part time work, or know someone who is, these positions are a great opportunity to support students and work with an amazing team! Positions are available at a number of our campuses, including Pacific Trails Middle School, Diegueno Middle School, Oak Crest Middle School, San Dieguito Academy and Canyon Crest Academy. The schedules vary by campus, but typically start mid-morning through the lunch periods. Shifts can run from 2 hours to 3.5 hours. These positions are great if you are looking to have your afternoons free or connect with others in your community.
To view these opportunities, click here.
Welcome Letter from San Diego Police Department Regarding Student Safety
Other Important Items
- Boys & Girls Club - Seasonal sports information/registration.
- PTMS Live Calendar of Campus Events and 2023-24 Instructional Calendar.
- PTMS Spirit Wear/Gear - PTMS Spirit Wear and accessories for the whole family!
- PTMS Student Vehicle Permit - Register your bike/e-bike/scooter/skateboard with PTMS. Complete this form and turn in to the office.
- PTMS Webstore - PE clothes/Limited Series Clothing
- PTMS Webstore - Spirit Wear
- PTMS Yearbook. - Order today!
- San Dieguito Alliance for a Drug-Free Youth - complete the Parent Pledge here.
- San Dieguito Boys & Girls Club - click the link to the left for 2023-24 athletic schedules.
- SDUHSD - Employment Opportunities. To view a list of openings and to apply, please click https://www.edjoin.org/sandieguito or you can call Susan Gray at 760 753-6491 x5543.
This newsletter has also been posted to our website under "Parent Communications."