Principal’s Update 2/13/17

by · February 13, 2017

News:
1. Don’t forget tonight is the On the Road to High School meeting for 8th grade students and their parents at the High School.  6:00-7:00 pm is open house style in the cafeteria for students to see all the extra-curricular opportunities available next year.  Everyone will meet in the auditorium at 7:00pm for a presentation about the high school scheduling process.  Starting tomorrow Tuesday, February 14th you will be able to sign up for a high school scheduling appointment. You will need to sign up for an appointment through the Parent Powerschools Portal. Please see the attached document regarding all the On the Road to High School dates for 8th graders.
2. ISTEP is just around the corner.   We are confident that our students are prepared for ISTEP!  Please try to avoid appointments during this week.  See below for some ISTEP week tips.
3. Random Acts of Kindness Week – This is Random Acts of Kindness Week.  Random Acts of Kindness is a national program and many different ideas can be found at www.randomactsofkindness.org.   Our newly formed AOK club (Acts of Kindness Club) has some great things planned!
4. Track and Field conditioning will begin on Monday, February 27th. We’re going to practice Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday before Spring Break, and start full week practices after break. Please make sure to fill out RANK ONE paperwork and get a physical. See Mrs. Sangiorgio if you have questions.

 

Upcoming Dates:
February 13: On the Road to High School – 8th Graders and their parents- open house 6pm-7pm, parent meeting 7pm
February 20: President’s Day (NO SCHOOL) – Snow Make-up Day (if needed)
February 22: NAEP Testing for selected 8th grade students
February 27:  ISTEP Part 1 Testing Window Opens
March 13-24: Spring Break (Weather Make-Up Days During First Five Days – if needed)
April 17:  ISTEP Part 2 Testing Window Opens

ISTEP+ testing February 28th – March 3rd
ISTEP TIPS FOR STUDENTS & PARENTS


Test Taking Tips for Students:
  • Read the question and directions carefully before you look at the answers.
  • Eliminate answers you know aren’t right.
  • If you do not know the answer, make a smart guess and select an answer.
  • Mark your answers carefully.
  • Make sure you work at a pace that will give you enough time to finish the test. Do not spend too much time on particularly hard questions. If you have time left, go back and check your answers.
Test Taking Tips for Parents/Guardians:
  • Praise your child for the things he or she does well, and be supportive of his or her efforts, especially in areas or activities that are challenging. Kids who feel good about themselves and their abilities – and who aren’t fearful about making mistakes – will feel more confident and less anxious when taking the test.
  • Talk with your child about what they’re doing in class and ask what he or she is reading. Studies show that kids who talk with their families on a weekly basis about school and what they read score higher on the national standardized reading test than kids who talk about these things with their families less often.
  • Limit your child’s TV time. Studies show that kids who watch fewer than three hours of television a day scored higher on the national reading test than those who watch more.
  • Express a positive attitude about the test and confidence in your child’s ability to do well on it. Research shows that parents’ and teachers’ attitudes influence children’s attitudes. So if you’re upbeat and encouraging about the test, your child is likely to feel good about it.
  • Encourage your child to read-newspapers, magazines, food labels, recipes, letters, and instructions, in addition to fiction and non-fiction books. Test makers draw on a wide variety of formats when choosing items to evaluate reading comprehension skills.
  • Reassure your child that test scores are only one measure of his or her abilities, not the whole picture. Don’t judge your child on the basis of his or her test score.
  • Please help us by making sure your child has good school attendance every day for the test.
  • Ensure that your child gets a good night’s sleep the night before the test and eats a nutritious breakfast.

 

Reminders:
1. Breakfast is available for $1.75, to students every school day, at 8:20 a.m.
2. Buy a yearbook at https://yearbookforever.com.
3. Please remember to check your child’s lunch account regularly.  The cashiers remind students when accounts are getting low.  You can log in to https://www.ezschoolpay.com/Login.aspx to manage lunch accounts and set a notification for low balances.   Students can also make deposits into their accounts with cash or checks in the lunch line.
4. With cold temperatures heading our way, please make sure your child wears a coat.  If temperatures dip below freezing, students will be permitted to come into the building beginning at 8:00 a.m.  FOCUS (homework help) is available every day, starting at 7:30a.m. in room B151
5. Sixty-three 8th grade students were chosen for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The notification letters were sent out last week.  Please contact Mrs. Belcher or Mr. Jack with any questions.

 

Connect with us:
Email- You will receive the GCJHS Parent Newsletter email weekly with news, information, and upcoming important dates.  If you talk to someone who is not receiving this weekly email, please have them sign up on our webpage!
Athletics-  Our competition schedule is available here: http://gchscougars.com/ Click on “Junior High.”

Dan Jack, Principal
Greenfield Central Junior High

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