Dear EMS Families,
Recently I have had several families ask for Digital Citizenship resources. Navigating the world of social media and your children’s access to technology is challenging at best. The truth is that regardless of the controls we put on devices, children are able to find access to what they seek in one form or another.
With that in mind I would encourage all adults supporting youth to seek a healthy balance and use of devices to consider: 1) creating a collaborative family agreement regarding the use of devices, including how adults and children will foster open communication around the use of social media and devices in general; and 2) educating and keeping yourselves informed and up-to-date with regard to social media and access devices provide.
Below are a few starting places to support these suggestions:
Open the lines of communication and make a plan
Inform yourself
As a school we are also working to support students in their digital citizenship. This starts with our own awareness of how much time we ask students to spend on their devices as well as explicit teaching of healthy habits and clear expectations regarding the use of their device. This is partnered with the frequent monitoring of students while they are using devices. We monitor use both in class by circulating among students as well as through Go Guardian. When devices are used in an inappropriate manner, student access to sites is limited. This is partnered with a conversation to process their choices and identify what they need to do moving forward in order to have their access reinstated.
Typically, middle school is a time when students test boundaries. It is a time when mistakes are regularly made, and thus it is a beautiful opportunity to support students in trying again and working to find the intrinsic balance and motivation that will support them in making good choices throughout their lives.
With gratitude for your partnership,
Meg
Friendly Reminders
November 19th - 23nd - NO school
December 12th - 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. PTO meeting
December 12th - 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. Chorus concert
December 19th - 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. Band/Strings concert
December 24th - January 2nd - No School
Community Announcements
As we continue to work to create a community where all students and faculty feel safe, we work to maintain clear and consistent expectations. With that in mind, it is a good time of year to remind ourselves - families, faculty and students - of these expectations so we can continue to uphold them. Please take a moment to remind yourselves and your children about the expectations below:
Attendance Expectations
Attendance is taken at the start of each class.
Any student entering after the start of class will be recorded as unexcused tardy.
Starting from the beginning of the week and resetting at the end of each week, when a student accumulates a total of 3 tardies from any classes they will serve a lunch detention the next day.
A list of students who have lunch detention will be posted on the board outside the front office every morning and an automated message sent home via School Messenger.
Students required to serve a lunch detention will be gathered from the cafeteria after they get their lunch and brought to the Student Support Center.
- In All Settings - Expectations
Adults will make a reasonable request and remind students to please remove their hood/hat/gum/candy, put away their device/backpacks, or “safe bodies”.
- Hoods and hats off
- Personal electronic devices out of sight - including headphones
- Safe Bodies
- Backpacks in lockers
- Gum/Candy away
- Food/Snacks only in cafeteria and in classroom at teacher’s discretion
Consequences
If a student does not respond to a reasonable request - the following will occur:
- 1st time: Student Support Center referral for repair
- 2nd time: Parental contact
- 3rd time: 3:00 - 3:30 detention
*skipped detention will lead to SSC the next morning and parent communication with the expectation that the detention will be served another time.
**repeated refusal to respond to adult requests - either throughout the day or repeatedly over several days - will result in a detention.
Evolution’s Social Studies teacher, Stephen Boyle, will be out for a short term leave through the new year. Please help us welcome Casey Thomas as his substitute. Casey has been working at EMS as a para-educator for the '18-19 school year and is thus well acquainted with our community.
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