Elkhorn Middle School Newsletter
September 2022
MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Antler Proud!
Thanks to students, families, and staff for an impressive start to the 22/23 school year! I am really proud of the determination our students showed as they navigated a return to early mornings, lockers, class schedules, lunch expectations, and Antler Pride! We will continue to encourage, expect, and celebrate behavior that is Safe, Respectful, Responsible, Trustworthy, and Proud - that is The Antler Way! Thank you for your partnership as we settle into this school year. I’m excited to see what our students accomplish!
Important Dates:
September 1 - Volleyball and Football games - check EMC calendar for additional dates and information
September 5 - No School; Labor Day
September 9 - School Pictures
(NOTE - picture retakes are October 18 - this is a correction from previous information.)
September 27, 28 - Parent/Teacher Conferences/ 2:20 student dismissal
September 29 - Teacher in-service; no school for students
September 30 - No School
School Safety:
The start of the school year always includes teaching and review of various safety systems and processes in place at EMS. We follow the Standard Response Protocol (SRP) that is in place at all EPS schools. We will practice various drills throughout the year and have already conducted our first fire drill.
On September 1st, in conjunction with the Omaha Police department, all students and staff at EMS will participate in a lockdown drill. This drill will pause our normal academic routine for approximately 15 minutes to practice our lockdown procedures. We believe Elkhorn Middle School is a very safe school, but want to be prepared in the event of an emergency. Students will engage in the Standard Response Lockdown protocol which requires the teacher to lock doors, turn off the lights, and move students away from being visible from the hallway.
The link below contains information we share with staff members and students annually. It is important to note that SRP is a national program, thus responses to emergency situations are the same whether students are in school or in public buildings. I Love U Guys Foundation LINK
On the topic of safety, please note that our receptionist will be requiring all visitors to state their name and purpose prior to being buzzed into the building. We appreciate your patience, cooperation, and understanding as we all work to maintain a safe school.
If you have any questions about our lockdown procedure, please feel free to contact me at 402-289-2428.
Jennifer Allgood
Notes and Reminders:
Please leave the marked handicap accessible parking spaces in the front and back lots open for our community members with handicap stickers and tags on their vehicles. We have several community members who need access to those specific stalls each day.
Starting in September, students will be allowed into the hallways at 8:05. Classes begin at 8:10.
Look for your student to charge their Chromebooks overnight every night. Please help establish a routine location for your student’s Chromebook and charger.
Keep an eye out for your student’s gym clothes! Students should bring them home regularly to be washed and then returned to school for gym class.
Students are expected to turn off their phones and keep phones in their lockers during the school day. If you need to contact your student during the day, the office is happy to help! We can easily get a message to your student. Students are welcome to use the phone in the office if they need to contact a family member.
As the weather cools, students should be prepared to wait outside if they arrive before 8:05. Jackets and coats are encouraged and will be stored in student lockers during the day. Hats must be stored in lockers and hoods must remain down during the school day.
- There is an admission fee at all athletic events at EMS and all of our opponent sites. All sites are cash only. Admission for middle school events held at EPS sites are: Adults $3, Students $2. EPS Athletic Passes are accepted at EPS sites only.
Booster Club News
Your EMS Booster Club is looking for volunteers to help with football and volleyball concessions. If you are interested in volunteering or have a high schooler that needs volunteer hours please consider signing up. You can sign up using the SignUpGenius, This is our most immediate need because concessions are our biggest fundraiser and the money is used to benefit students, teachers, and the school. Thank you!
Please follow us on Facebook by searching for Elkhorn Middle Booster Club. We will be posting information about ordering school apparel soon as well as other ways you can support EMS.
If you are looking for ways to get more involved with the Booster Club we welcome you. We will have a meeting on September 12th at 7:00 pm at DJ's Dugout on 192nd & Maple. You can also contact us at emsboosterclubelkhorn@gmail.com with any questions.
Attendance Policy reminders
Students that arrive to school after 8:10am bell will be counted as tardy.
All students must be excused verbally by a parent or guardian.
**Please remember to email the office at ems@epsne.org or call the office at 402-289-2428 when reporting a student tardy or absent (not the teachers).
Students that are absent for professional appointments must either provide documentation from the appointment or call the school office to inform the school why the student will be (or is) tardy in order to have the tardy excused.
Excessive tardies may result in disciplinary action and contact from the administration.
DATES TO REMEMBER
Picture Day is almost here!
Picture day is Friday, September 9th.
You can now order your student's pictures at www.mylifetouch.com using one of the following codes:
Picture Day ID (regular school pictures): EVTJFPS9T
Sports Pictures (will be taken the same day during practice time): EVTMTBDN9
Parent Teacher Conferences
Tuesday September 27th and Wednesday September 28th
One hour early dismissal.
Conferences are from 4:30pm - 8:30pm
Welcome to another exciting school year! I am looking forward to working with the students and staff of Elkhorn Middle School again this year. Ms. Nora Jean Baker is our returning Band Teaching Assistant and Mr. Kyle Dreessen is our returning EHS Band Director. Both are outstanding and will be helping and assisting your students in numerous capacities this year. We have about 250 students enrolled in band and are eager to get started.
Jazz Band – The Jazz Band is open to any and all 7th and 8th grade band students, regardless of instrument. Any interested students will be expected to fill out and submit a Google Classroom “2022-23 Jazz Band Interest” form. Students should have completed at least one year on their instrument and be able to read music. Our Jazz Band will begin rehearsing on Thursday, September 22nd from 7:00-8:00 am in room M008. Students may enter the building after 6:45 am at the west entrance by the band room.
November 10th Concert – On Thursday, November 10th, all the band students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade will be performing their first concert of the year. It will take place in the EMS gym and starts at 6:30 PM. All students will be expected to arrive by 6:00 PM for warm-ups.
Please come to support your students and enjoy the concert. Concert attire will be expected for all students and will include: black pants, black socks, black shoes, and the EMS “Noteworthy” polo shirt (tucked in). This shirt may be purchased through an online store for $12.
Home Practice and Practice Records – One of the areas of emphasis for this year (and a portion of every student’s grade) is regular home practice. With the limited amounts of contact time we have with each student, it is vitally important that every student reserve some time at home to practice their instruments and improve their skills. The amount of time per day suggested will vary by the grade, but we strongly suggest a minimum of an hour a week for all students. However, students should practice as much as necessary to master their concert/jazz band music and to be prepared for their regular playing evaluations. All students will have bi-weekly or monthly online practice submissions this year starting in September. We also encourage parents to listen to their students when they practice and encourage them in their musical pursuits.
Mrs. Wagner’s August Library Corner
Digital + Audiobooks: Want to listen to a good book or read one on your phone phone or Kindle? You can for free on the Libby app! All you need is an Omaha Public Library card. Here are the steps to set up Libby:https://tinyurl.com/4tm6w8bx (also on your student’s Media Center Google Classroom).
EMS SPORTS AND ACTIVITIES INFORMATION
We are ready to begin the 2022-2023 DI season! Join DI for a fantastic year of fun and
creativity!!! DI is an exciting and creative problem-solving competition in which students
work together in small teams of 4-7. Over the next several months, students will choose
one of six DI challenges, interpret that challenge, and then solve it using critical thinking
skills and creativity. Some of the challenges include the construction of technical
devices. Other challenges are more fine arts and theater based. Each team will have
the opportunity to solve their problem in the way that they interpret it.
Regionals, the first competition to be held at Davis Middle School in Omaha, will be held
in early March 2023 (date to be announced soon). The State competition will be held in
Kearney at UNK on Saturday, April 1, 2023. Globals is now in Kansas City and will be
held in late May 2023.
Each team needs a parent Team Manager to help the students manage their time and
solutions. Being a DI team manager is a great way to get involved and watch how kids
can solve multi-level challenges using their talents and creativity. Meetings will be
outside of the school day on site at EMS. All EPS district DI teams are required to meet
in our school buildings. Meetings can be after school, in the evenings, or on the
weekends. A “Facility Use” form is required to reserve your space and times. Team
Manager training will be provided by NCAPS (Nebraska’s Creative Association for
Problem Solvers) for the parent volunteers in October via Zoom. Team Managers will
need to complete an EPS Volunteer Background Check.
To form a team, students should get their friends together (3-7 total), recruit a parent
Team Manager, and turn in the team roster to the ERMS front office by Thursday,
September 15th, 2023. Please include student’s full first and last names, grade, and
parent phone numbers for all of the student team members. Please turn in the Team
Manager’s name, phone numbers, and email address. Students who do not have a
team put together can email Mrs. Ghannam at mghannam@epsne.org for assistance in
finding a team to join.
Check out the DI website (www.destinationimagination.org) for more information on how
DI works, or email Mrs. Ghannam with specific questions.
Google Classroom directions for Guardians
Starting September 7th, guardians will be able to receive email summaries about their student’s activity in Google Classroom. Guardians will receive an email invitation on September 7th and will need to accept the invitation in order to receive Google Classroom email summaries. When you receive the invite email and click the accept button, you will be taken to a page verifying your email address. Please make sure this is the email address you would like to use before clicking accept. If it is not the correct email address, do NOT click decline or accept, and see bullet number 3 under "Get email summaries" in this document Guardian Email Summaries - for Guardians.
You may not receive an invite email if you are still signed up from last year or if teacher(s) have not enabled email notifications in their Google Classrooms.
In email summaries, you can review:
- Missing work—Work not turned in when the summary was sent
- Upcoming work—Work that is due today and tomorrow (for daily emails) or that is due in the upcoming week (for weekly emails)
- Class activities—Announcements, assignments, and questions recently posted by teachers
- Email summaries do not include grades.
If there’s no activity to report, or if a teacher turns off email notifications, you might not get an email summary.
Please see this document for more information Guardian Email Summaries - for Guardians.
Did you know?
You can access Elkhorn Middle School daily bulletin board. Just head to our website and click on the red pin to see all the fun things happening at EMS daily.
Bulletin Board
Safe2Help
Contact Information Updates
Send changes to contact information to ems@epsne.org
2022-2023 Academic Calendar
The approved 2022-2023 academic calendar can be viewed here.
3200 North 207th Plaza, Elkhorn, NE 68022
Phone:402-289-2428
Fax: 402-289-1639