The eScoop
September 29, 2017
The eScoop is a weekly publication of the Shaker Heights Middle School PTO.  
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SMS Weekly Calendar
SAVE THE DATE  

October 11 | Parent Advisory Group Meeting
October 13 | Counselor Coffee "Cyber Safety & Social Media"

Visit the  Online Calendar  and filter by Shaker Heights Middle School for more upcoming events.
From Mr. Glasner
Hello Shaker families!
As we near the midway point of our first quarter, I encourage all parents and guardians to log in to ProgressBook to check your child’s academic progress at this point in the quarter. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s school counselor or teachers.

This is also a reminder that our next Parents’ Advisory Group will be meeting on Wednesday, October 11 from 7pm-8:30. At the meeting, parents will have the opportunity to continue exploring barriers that contribute to our persistent achievement gap and ways to support the work we are doing to meet our Strategic Plan goals. Thank you in advance for your input and support!

I look forward to seeing everyone soon!
Sincerely,

From Your PTO Co-Presidents
We hope everyone is having a great week at SMS! The PTO is still glowing from the successful Rainbow Run and we look forward to using the money we raised for programs and events at our school.  

Looking ahead at our events, we will be hosting a Book Fair on the conference days in October. We are partnering with Scholastic to offer books for purchase for your children as well as to supplement classrooms at the middle school. The teachers will get a preview of the books and then create a wish list for books they want in their classroom. This is a great way to support our teachers and possibly buy holiday or end of the year gifts! We will need volunteers to help with the book fair—details are below! 

We have cancelled the October PTO meeting but hope to see you in November!

Thanks!

SMS News & Events
Book Fair is Coming!

The Annual Scholastic Book Fair is coming to the Middle School Library on conference days, October 16 & 17! The fair will run from 8am to 4:30pm both days. You can get a sneak peek at some of this year’s exciting titles by going to the Middle School Book Fair Homepage . Online shopping, where you can order books and e-books, begins October 8.

Funds raised at the Annual Scholastic Book Fair provide reading materials for individual Classroom Libraries, which includes Foreign Language classes and classroom magazine subscriptions. This year, teachers will have the opportunity to complete Classroom Wish Lists and recommendations, just in case you want help making choices.

Volunteer to Help Out with the Book Fair!
Please help us make this year's book fair successful by volunteering for a time slot. Questions? Contact Mary Ellen Miller .
Google Services in the SMS Classroom

The 2017-18 school year marks the second year Shaker students have been provided access to Google services such as Google Drive, Docs, and Classroom. Over this time, students in kindergarten through 8th grade were provided a Shaker Google account after a signed permission slip was returned indicating parent/guardian consent.

As the district evolves and grows in its use of Google services in the classroom, it has become more important than ever for students to have access early in the school year. As a result, Shaker Schools will move to an "opt out" approach for parent/guardian student Google account consent. With this new approach, Shaker students will be provided a Shaker Google account, with access to grade level appropriate Google services (see table below), beginning October 2, 2017. At any time prior to or after this date, parents/guardians may opt their student(s) out of having a Google account by contacting the main office of their student’s school. If a parent/guardian opts their student out of Google services, the district will adjust account settings to prohibit access accordingly.

Please refer to the table below for a summary of Google services available to students.
Gmail Restrictions
As noted in the table above, Gmail services for grades 4-8 are available with restrictions. Students may access Gmail using their Shaker Google account and are restricted to only exchanging email with other Shaker accounts. This is a precautionary step in order to begin exposing students to the use of electronic communication while preventing anyone who is not a part of Shaker Schools from communicating with students via email. 

Thank You
For parents/guardians who have already provided a signed student Google permission form, thank you. You do not need to do anything further. Your student’s Google account is available or not based on how you previously completed the form.    
Parent/Teacher Conferences Coming Up in October

Parent/Teacher Conferences will be held at Shaker Middle School on Monday, October 16 and Tuesday, October 17. Conferences will be held from 8am to 4pm (no conferences are scheduled from 12pm-1pm). The last conferences of the day are scheduled at 3:45pm. In order to accommodate a maximum number of parents, please select only one day for your conference. Students will not attend school on these two days.
 
For your convenience we have an online scheduling system for you to use to set up conferences.  Click here to schedule your parent conference. If you have any questions, please contact Leslie Burdine in the Main Office at 295-4106.
Fall Sports Pictures

Did your middle school or high school athlete have their fall sports picture taken? Click here to view and order their sports photos. 

Upcoming SMS Sports picture dates:
  • October 4: Football & Boys Soccer A Team
  • October 5: Boys Soccer B Team & Field Hockey

After these picture dates, you can order pictures, by clicking here
Box Tops

Welcome back! SMS has been very fortunate to have amazing parents and students who are diligent about collecting Box Tops. If you have a stash of Box Tops that you have been collecting over the summer, please send them into the office. Each Box Top collected earns the school 10 cents. That adds up quickly! 
Heinen's Teaming Up for Education

Don't forget: when you use your Tasteful Rewards Card throughout the school year, Heinen's will donate 1% to Shaker Middle School. Be sure to select SMS as your preferred school this year, either online at Heinens.com/schools or in-store at the Customer Service Desk.
Helpful Links
The Shaker Heights Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is dedicated to facilitating the active and informed involvement of all parents and families to achieving the educational success and well being of children. You are receiving this email because you have expressed an interest in Shaker Heights Schools PTO. Add  smspto@gmail.com  to your address book so we'll be sure to land in your inbox! 
 
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