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The General Gist (Week of May 8, 2023)

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The General Gist Weekly Newsletter
Dream Big Dare To Fail - Generals

This Week’s Message…It’s Time to “Level Up!”
This week, we kick off state testing!  All students will take the required Smarter Balanced (SBA) state assessment for English Language Arts (ELA).  In the following weeks, all students will take the Math SBA.  In addition, our 8th graders will take the Washington Comprehensive Assessment of Sciences (WCAS).  Here is a link to our Assessment Calendar.

 

We are offering incentives to students who “Level Up” or score a 4 on their state assessments this spring.  Students can become “Test Terminators” and earn one or more prizes by leveling up at least one level from last spring’s SBA and from 5th grade on the WCAS.  Prizes include a t-shirt, vinyl decal sticker, water bottle, lanyard, and keychain.  Click here for more details on our “Level Up” testing incentives.

 

Please help your child(ren) perform their best by ensuring that they attend school, get plenty of rest, and eat nutritious meals on and around assessment days.  Most importantly, please encourage them to do their best on every assessment.  While state assessments are not the only indicator of success for our students, they are valuable tools which help us measure growth and target intervention and enrichment moving forward.  Click here for more details.

 

During our testing window, please ensure that you CHARGE YOUR CHROMEBOOKS each night, and bring your power cord to school with you!

This Week’s Events
May 8-26: State Testing Window
*May 11: Unity Council Meeting, Library, 3:15-4:30 pm (moved to May 23)

Events on the Horizon (Tentative)
May 16: EMS Team Meeting, 7:15 am
May 16: PTSA Meeting, Library, 6:30 pm
May 17: 2023-24 ASB Officer Election Info. Meeting, B-111, 8:30 am and 2:50 pm
May 18: Staff Meeting, Library, 7:15 am
May 18: 7th Grade Energy Expo, Commons, 5:30-6:30 pm
*May 23: Unity Council Meeting, Library, 3:15-4:30 pm
May 29: Memorial Day (No School)
May 30: AVID Site Team Meeting, A-234, 7 am
May 30-June 13: 2023-24 ASB Officer Campaign Season
May 31: 8th Grade All-Music Extravaganza, SKSD, 6:30 pm
Jun. 1: Staff Meeting, Library, 7:15 am (SPBD Survey)
Jun. 2: Class of 2030 Visit, JSMS, 11:00 am-1:30 pm
Jun. 3: Music in the Parks 8th Grade Field Trip, TBA
Jun. 5: Final Choir Concert, JSMS, 6:30 pm
Jun. 6: Guiding Coalition, Library, 3:15-4:30 pm
Jun. 8: Staff Meeting, Library, 7:15 am (Staff Agreements)
Jun. 8: Marine Science Field Trip to Seattle Aquarium (All Day)
Jun. 8: Final Band and Orchestra Concert, JSMS, 6:30 pm
*Jun. 9: SKHS Grad Walk, JSMS, 10-10:30 am
Jun. 13: AVID Site Team Meeting, A-234, 7 am
Jun. 13: WEB Field Trip to Tacoma Rainiers Game, TBA
Jun. 14: 2023-24 ASB Officer Election, Advisory
Jun. 14: 8th Grade Class Photo, Gym, 2 pm
Jun. 14: JSMS Staff Photo, Commons, 3 pm
Jun. 15: Staff Meeting, Library, 7:15 am
Jun. 16: Early Release, 11:25 am
Jun. 16: 8th Grade Dance, Commons and Gym, 5-7 pm
Jun. 19: Juneteenth (NO SCHOOL)
Jun. 20: 8th Grade Breakfast and Celebration @ DEFY, TBA
Jun. 20: 6th and 7th Grade Carnival, TBA
Jun. 22: Student Recognition Assembly and Talent Show, Gym, 8:45-10:45 am
Jun. 22: Last Day of School, Early Release, 10:45 am

*Events added to The General Gist this week

SKSD Bond
During the regularly scheduled School Board meeting on Wednesday, May 17, there will be a presentation on our district’s upcoming bond proposal.  Join at 5 pm at the district office to learn more about the proposed projects and share your feedback.

Counseling Corner

Next school year, parents will have the ability to request their student be placed in advanced humanities classes.  High achieving students who are self-motivated, organized, and willing to embrace a challenge would typically be successful in these advanced courses.  Space is limited, and students who qualify for QUEST will have priority. 

The forms are online in Skyward Family Access under ONLINE FORMS>2024 JS ADVANCED HUMANITIES REQUEST.  (Online forms cannot be completed on the app.)

Grades 6 & 7 only require a parent signature.  Advanced ELA & Advanced SS are blocked for 6th & 7th grade.  Grade 8 requires a selection from the drop down menu and a parent signature.  Choices are either Advanced ELA 8, Advanced Social Studies 8 or Both.  Requests must be submitted no later than June 1.


Hidden in Plain Sight
Kitsap County Juvenile Court, Olympic Educational Service District, Washington State Health Care Authority, and South Kitsap School District are partnering to host an event called “Hidden in Plain Sight”, on May 24 from 5-7 pm at Cedar Heights Middle School.  Participants will walk through a mock bedroom and try to identify 70+ items that may indicate risky behaviors or problems.  After walking through the teen room, attendees will participate in a presentation and discussion which will cover identification of items and how they may indicate problems or risky behaviors, popular local youth trends, tools to help navigate the teen years, and discussion points for family conversations.  Attendees must be 18 years or older.  See the attached flyer for more details.
 

Brain Research
Our Guiding Coalition team members are doing a book study on John Medina’s Attack of the Teenage Brain.  This final excerpt from Chapter 7 is about Sleep and Beyond:

“‘A joint study between Oxford and Harvard calculated what ideal start times for school would look like if teen cognitive optimization were the driving goal.  Their recommendations surprised most people.  In the ideal world, classes would start at 8:30 for 10-year-olds, 10:00 for 16-year-olds, and 11:00 for 18-year-olds.
 

These recommendations run over the typical American school schedule like a circadian Sherman’s march to the sea.  Implementing such radical changes is costly to districts, costly to extracurricular sports programs, and costly to impossibly busy parental work schedules.

Even so, a number of school districts have negotiated an armistice with these data, switching to later start times (8:30 am is common).  The cognitive consequences of even this modest change have been studied, famously at the University of Minnesota (a study involving more than 9,000 high schoolers).  A teaching guide found online summarized the findings: ‘Grades, test scores, and overall performance in core subjects advanced significantly when school start times were switched to later hours.’”


Athletics
Here is a link to our Spring Sports Schedules.  Be sure to click on each event to verify the level and location of each event.

Clubs
After school clubs are a great way for students to explore their interests and connect with peers.  We will provide a list of active clubs in The General Gist, on our website, and on our TVs in our commons.  Please make sure you pick up your student promptly at the club’s end time.

Anime Club meets every Monday from 3-4 pm in Portable 2.  Join the club’s Google Classroom: LTYU556.  Ms. Chalmers is the advisor.  For more info, contact chalmers@skschools.org.

Art Club meets every Wednesday until 4:00 pm in Room A-123.  Ms. Million is the advisor.  For more info, contact million@skschools.org.

Chess Club meets every other Tuesday in Room C-206 from 2:50-4:00 pm.  Ms. Cave is the advisor.  For more info, contact cave@skschools.org.

Dance Club meets every Thursday from 2:50-4 pm in Room A-246.  Ms. May is the advisor.  For more info, contact may@skschools.org.

Diversity Club meets every Wednesday from 3-4 pm in Portable 4.  Ms. Steen is the advisor.  For more info, contact steen@skschools.org.

Gamers Unplugged meets every Wednesday from 3-4:30 pm in Room A-224.  Mr. Wallach is the advisor.  For more info, contact wallach@skschools.org.

K-Pop Club meets every Wednesday from 3-4 pm in Room A-230.  Ms. Happold is the advisor.  For more info, contact happold@skschools.org.

Magic: The Gathering Club meets every Thursday until 4:30 in Portable 1.  Mr. Musselman is the advisor.  For more info, contact musselman@skschools.org.

Photography Club meets every Friday from 3-4 pm in A-233.  Mr. Durham is the Advisor.  For more info, contact durham@skschools.org.

Pickleball Club meets every Tuesday morning from 7-8 am in the Gym.  Ms. Langhorn is the advisor.  For more info, contact langhorn@skschools.org.

STEAM Club meets the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month.  Mr. Lantz is the advisor.  For more info, contact lantz@skschools.org.

Yearbook Club meets every Thursday until 4:30 in Room C-206.  Ms. Cave is the advisor.  For more info, contact cave@skschools.org.

AVID
As an AVID Schoolwide Site of Distinction, our school has the responsibility and honor to open our doors to representatives from other schools and districts.  Last year, we hosted representatives from North Kitsap School District.  On June 6, we have the privilege of hosting a contingent of educators from Peninsula School District who want to learn more about how we do AVID in South Kitsap schools.

STEAM
We are delighted to announce that our school, along with Cedar Heights and Marcus Whitman Middle Schools, have been recognized as Project Lead the Way Distinguished Schools – three of only four PLTW Distinguished schools in Washington State – for the 2021-22 academic year!

 

The criteria for a PLTW Distinguished Gateway Schools:

  • Your school offered at least one PLTW Gateway unit in each grade (6-8) during the 2021-22 school year.
  • At least 50 percent of students in your school participated in a PLTW Gateway unit during the 2021-2 school year.
  • At least 25 percent of students who participated in a PLTW Gateway unit during the 2021-22 school year also participated in at least one other PLTW Gateway unit (two or more units total) during their tenure at your school.
  • Your school has strategies and/or procedures in place to support reasonably proportional representation within your PLTW program with regards to race, ethnicity, poverty, gender, etc.


National Blue Ribbon Update
In Fall of 2018, our Guiding Coalition established three long-range goals: to become a Washington STEM Lighthouse School, an AVID Schoolwide Site of Distinction, and a National Blue Ribbon School.  We are honored to have accomplished the first two goals, and we are excited to share that we are within a stone’s throw of a National Blue Ribbon!

The National Blue Ribbon program was created in 1982 to recognize outstanding public and private schools in our nation for their overall academic excellence or their progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups.  To qualify, schools must be in the top 15% of schools in their state.  A most recent snapshot of John Sedgwick’s academic performance finds us in the top 20% of schools!  Additionally, we have been on a positive trend since setting our “Big 3” Goals in 2018, rising 42 places in the WA Middle School Rankings on SchoolDigger, an independent website which rates schools based solely upon their performance on state standardized tests.

It takes our whole Sedgwick Community to achieve a goal like this, and with your continued support, we have no doubt that we can achieve a National Blue Ribbon this spring!  For more details, take a look at our National Blue Ribbon Status Report which includes links to comparable middle schools as well as SchoolDigger’s data (on last slide).

PTSA
Membership: Our PTSA is healthy because of our strong membership.  You can become a member for only $10.  To learn more about how you can be involved, visit our PTSA website.

New Board for 23-24: Congratulations and thank you to Wendy Vanover (President), Cory Butler & Ray Jean (Co-Vice Presidents), Brandy Chermak (Treasurer), and Emily Stougard & Erin Graf (Co-Secretaries)!

Attendance Matters
Did you know?  By 6th grade, absenteeism is one of three signs that a student may drop out of high school, and by 9th grade, attendance is a better predictor of graduation rates than 8th grade test scores.  Statistically-speaking, students should miss no more than 9 days of school each year to stay engaged, successful and on track to graduate. 

It may come as a surprise, but in Washington State, starting at 8 years of age, students are responsible for getting to school; parents are only required to provide an alarm clock and a bus route or transportation.  Seven unexcused absences within a 30-day period or 15 within a full year requires that schools file a court petition.  All absences should be cleared within 48 hours (via phone, email, or ParentSquare) and cannot be cleared after two weeks.  Keep in mind that excused absences may require a note from a medical professional. 

School Entry
On school days, our doors open to students at 7:30 (8:15 on late start Wednesdays).

Student Drop-Off and Pick-Up
If you plan to drop-off or pick-up your student in a personal vehicle, please follow the directional signs upon entering school property.  Here are the basics:

  1. Turn RIGHT upon entering the school.
  2. You may drop-off or pick-up your student in the roundabout OR the parking lot.
  3. If you are dropping off, picking up, or planning to park in the parking lot, USE THE THRU LANE ON THE RIGHT.
  4. If you are dropping off or picking up in the roundabout, USE THE LEFT LANE UPON ENTERING, THEN MOVE OVER TO THE CURB WHEN TURNING INTO THE ROUNDABOUT.
     

Most importantly, DO NOT BLOCK TRAFFIC IN THE RIGHT-HAND THRU LANE.  Instead, continue into the parking lot to drop-off or pick-up.  If you park in the lot at the end of the day, please be aware that you will be blocked in until around 2:50 pm.

Celebrations and Thanks

  • Congratulations to this week’s Caught Being a General student winners: Wyatt Glazner (6th), Quincy Carson (7th), and Jack Cook (8th)!
  • Thank you to our amazing PTSA for spoiling our staff during Staff Appreciation Week!
  • Thank you to Mr. Langley and Mr. Cole for working overtime to re-hang our freshly dry-cleaned Holocaust Quilt!
  • Thank you to our Sedgwick Food and Nutrition Services crew – you are our heroes!


Quote of the Week
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” — Henry Stanley Haskins

Stay Connected
We love keeping in touch with our families!  Here are some ways to stay up-to-date on important information and events throughout the year:


Links to Important Resources
JSMS Website
General Guide
Skyward Family/Student Access
HelloID
Meals
Transportation

 

 

Dan Novick

Principal

 

 

John Sedgwick Middle School

8995 SE Sedgwick Rd.

Port Orchard, WA  98366

 

Office: 360.874.6090

Fax: 360.874.6430

 

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