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Willow Springs Middle School Principal Newsletter - December 13, 2018
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Dear WSMS Parents and Guardians,
Our students have done an excellent job gearing up for their final exam schedule starting tomorrow and continuing next week. We are officially half-way through the 2018-2019 school year. I hope you and your family have a safe and relaxing holiday, see everyone back on campus on January 7th, 2019.
Thank you to our teachers, students, and staff for a successful Flapjacks for Finals this morning. Our teachers made over 950 pancakes this morning for our fabulous students.
2018 Fall Final Exam Scheduled Time Slots for the CAT
December 14th 8:50-10:23 & 2:32-4:00
December 17th 9:45-11:13 & 1:41-3:09
December 18th 8:50-10:23 & 12:51-2:19
December 19th 8:50-10:48 & 10:52-12:50
We would appreciate your help in volunteering in the CAT to support our students. To sign for one of these times and/or dates, please
click here.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Center for Academic Training (CAT)?
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What is the purpose of the CAT? The CAT is designed to assist all students by providing before and after school support in all subject areas. It is also where all students with testing accommodations such as small group testing, oral reading of exams, etc. take their test during class time.
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On average, how many students use the CAT during semester exams? On the testing side alone, we will see approximately 330 students during the week of final exams who have some type of testing accommodation. This number does not include the students without testing accommodations who utilize the CAT during finals weeks.
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Who else helps students?Teachers and Instructional Aides are available to help; however, their priority is helping students in class during instructional time.
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Does a volunteer need previous knowledge of an exam before they arrive? Volunteers do not need any special training or knowledge to help in the CAT. Volunteers will be reading the questions and answer choices on an exam to a small group of 1-5 students. The students are not permitted to have help understanding any of the content on the exam, so the volunteer would strictly be reading verbatim from their own copy of the exam.
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Early Release/Student Holiday
Just a reminder that we will have full days each day until December 19th. Due to exams the high school has half days on December 14th-19th. However, our only half day is December 19th. Students will be taking their 4th period final exam from 8:50 a.m.-10:48 a.m. and 8th period exam and lunch from 10:52 a.m.-12:50 p.m. School will dismiss at 12:50 p.m.
Thursday, December 20 - Friday, January 4 is Winter Break. School will resume on Monday, January 7.
Technology Survey - December 3rd-19th
Lovejoy ISD is partnering with BrightBytes, an educational research organization, to learn more about our students' school and home technology use and the impact it has on instruction. We are reaching out to ask you to take part in the Technology & Learning questionnaire. This is a semi-annual initiative, and your participation is essential in helping us form a more complete picture of the role technology plays in your students' learning.
Please know that all of your responses will remain anonymous to protect your privacy. Please
click here
to begin the survey.
Principal's Coffee - Friday, December 14th
I would like to invite you to our upcoming Principal's Coffee, on Friday, December 14th at 9:00 a.m. The Principal's Coffee is a forum discussion for all 7th and 8th grade parents. Topic for this session will be Test Performance and Final Exam Prep.
Final Exams, December 14th-19th
For a copy of the fall semester final exam schedule, please
click here
.
Final exams will officially begin, Friday, December 14th. Teachers are expected to provide students with final exam reviews by Friday, December 7. In addition, all final exam reviews will be loaded on the WSMS website on December 7 (under both student and parent) and teachers will upload exam reviews into their Google Classrooms. Please encourage your son or daughter to begin working on their final exam reviews early. As they begin to study, encourage them to study every night in short 15-20 minute increments rather than "cramming" the night before the test. Research shows that students who study in small chunks of time over a period of days are more successful on assessments.
We will be sending out more information about middle school final exams over the next two weeks.
Lost and Found - Donating December 18th
Please encourage your son or daughter to look through the lost and found and claim any sweatshirts, shoes, hats, etc. they may have left behind. All lost and found items are located on the stage in the cafeteria. Students can visit the lost and found before or after school or during their lunch. All items not claimed by December 18th will be donated to area shelters.
WSMS 3 on 3 Basketball Tourney and Student Social - January 25th
Our winter social will be on January 25th from 4:30--6:30 p.m at WSMS. From 4:30--5:30 p.m., we will hold our annual 3-on-3 basketball tournament in the WSMS gyms. The cost is $30 per team, which will also admit your student into the social. A portion of the proceeds will go to the American Heart Association. During the 3-on-3 basketball tournament, we will have a DJ in the cafeteria and the gyms will be open for volleyball and basketball after the tournament. Cost for the social is $8.00 on-line and $10.00 at the door. Students will have the opportunity to purchase pizza, snacks, and water at the dance. All items can be purchased for $1.00.
More information to come about parent chaperone sign ups.
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Campus Information and Reminders
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For security purposes, all exterior doors to the campus are locked during the day. If your student is dropped off early or picked up late for tutorials, practice, rehearsal, etc., please encourage them to stay inside the building when the weather is cold. Once they exit the building in the evening, the doors will lock behind them. During the winter months, please encourage your student to wait inside until you arrive. They can wait in the rotunda in the front hall at WSMS.
Inclement Weather
School closures will be determined based on safety. In the event of a school closure, notifications will be announced on the district's website, Facebook, and Twitter pages. We will also announce any closure through the media and by phone. Links to our social media accounts are shown below.
Lovejoy ISD App
The Lovejoy ISD App is available for download on both Apple and Android devices. To download the app for Apple devices, please
click here
. To download the app for Android devices, please
click here
.
Twitter and Facebook
Are you following the district on
Twitter
? Have you liked us on
Facebook
? Join us on social media for news and announcements.
Final Exam Reviews
Teachers provided students with a copy of the final exam review December 7th. In addition, an electronic copy will be posted in Google Classrooms and on the WSMS website under "Parent Resources." Teachers will be going over their review in class prior to the final exam. Each review will provide vocabulary, concepts, and/or skills needed to be successful on the final. Students will be expected to take the information from the review and apply it to questions on the exam that include graphs, charts, maps, diagrams, and excerpts. These application based questions provide a foundation for the level of thinking that aligns with the higher level thinking of our state standards in middle school and high school. Rather than studying the review for 2-3 hours the night before the final exam, we encourage students to prepare for each exam by studying for approximately 15-20 minutes a day. In addition, students should refer to notes, handouts, assignments, and their textbook to support their learning and preparation. For an example of a final exam review topic and how it might be tested on the final exam in each of the core subjects, please
click here
(these questions are from the 7th grade curriculum in ELAR, math, science, and social studies).
Final Exam Grades
Final Exams are a summative assessment over material that has been covered during the first semester. Teachers will be closing out their grades for the first semester once final exams have been completed. As a result, students will not have the opportunity to re-take their final exam. The summative data from final exams will provide teachers with a road map for instructional planning and intervention during the spring semester. As the semester comes to a close, please continue to work with your son or daughter to stay on top of their school responsibilities. This time of year is traditionally very busy for our students and families, both often get pulled in several different directions as we approach the holidays. If you or your student needs any assistance or support with academic or behavioral support, please partner with our teachers, counselors, and administrators. Let's work together to ensure that our students finish strong in their first semester of learning.
Shark Week at WSMS
This week our 8th grade students dissected tiger sharks as part of the science curriculum . Over the course of the week, our 8th grade students participated in problem based learning where they analyzed sharks that washed up on shore and tested the water, researched the coral reef ecosystem, and performed a dissection in order to come to a conclusion as to why the sharks had washed up on shore. This
directly aligned with the 8th grade state science standard on Organisms and environments. The student knows that interdependence occurs among living systems and the environment and that human activities can affect these systems. Nice job students!
WSMS Orchestra Student Performs With The Greater Dallas Youth Philharmonic Orchestra
Each year, the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra (GDYO) offers concerto competitions for four of the ensembles. These competitions cultivate solo performances, encourage personal excellence, and acknowledge the high degree of talent and hard work exhibited by the musicians in this organization.
WSMS 8th grade student
Ayana Dalley
was named the winner of this concerto competition and performed Symphonie Espagnole (movement 1) by Lalo with the Philharmonic Orchestra of the GDYO. She performed this piece on Sunday, November 11. Ayana was born in Wales, UK and moved to Dallas when she was one year old. She began studying violin at the age of 5 with Yukako Jones and currently studies with Jina Lee-Aleman and Lucas Aleman. A member of the local orchestras since she was 8, this season she is a member of the GDYO. At Willow Springs Middle School Ayana is concert master of the Chamber Orchestra. When she is not playing her violin, Ayana is passionate about ballet. She has been a student at the Ballet Academy of Texas in Coppell for 8 years and is currently an apprentice with the Ballet Ensemble of Texas, their official company.
PALS Food Drive for Vogel Alcove
The PALS would like to thank the WSMS student body for their help in the Vogel Alcove Bye-Bye bag food collection. Thanks to your help WSMS will be donating an abundant amount of items for Vogel Aclove to use through the holiday season.
Students feeling under the weather?
As you know, it is prime cold and flu season. To help best manage our students and to keep in line with the policy in the Student Handbook, if students are not feeling well at school, they need to be checked out through the school clinic. The student must be fever free (Temperature of 99.9 or less for 24 hours without the use of over the counter medications to keep the temperature down) and must NOT have vomited or had diarrhea in the last 24 hours.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Reporting an Incident at WSMS
One of our top priorities at Willow Springs Middle School is to ensure the safety of all of our students. Our most important asset in this is the eyes and ears our students can provide us on campus. We will begin using the Safe Schools Alert System this year for students and parents to report incidents they are aware of happening. You can access the system by going to
www.lovejoyisd.net
. Under Quick Links click on "REPORT IT!" You will have four ways to submit an incident. Furthermore, you will receive an access code to follow the progression of how an incident is being handled.
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8th Grade Girls Basketball vs. Rockwall Utley
A Team:45-26
B Team: 53-4
C Team: 25-12
8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Rockwall Utley
A Team: 42-38
B Team: 52-17
C Team: 25-18
7th Grade Girls Basketball vs. Wylie McMillan
A Team: 36-19
B Team: 37-0
C Team: 28-15
7th Grade Boys Basketball vs Wylie McMillan
A Team: 40-47
B Team: 31-28
C Team: 7-18
Wrestling Update
All teams competing at Prosper HS on Saturday December 15
th
:
This upcoming Saturday we are all scheduled to compete in a tournament at Prosper HS. We are excited to participate in this event as this is our first year in this tournament and we look forward to the dual format. Please come out and Saturday and support our middle and high school men and women in this unique event. Wrestling is scheduled to begin at 10:00 am!
WSMS Cross Country Results
The WSMS Cross Country Teams wrapped up their season this Tuesday in Rockwall. The teams had a clean sweep by winning the District Title in all 4 Divisions!! We are so proud of these running Leopards and the fantastic season they had this year!
MEDAL/RIBBON EARNERS:
7TH GRADE GIRLS - ANOTHER PERFECT SCORE - 15 POINTS - DISTRICT CHAMPS
Kailey Littlefield - District champ
Sara Morefield - 2nd
Cambry Patrick - 3rd
Taylor Person - 4th
Gracyn Thompson - 5th
Brielle Scholle - 8th
Caroline Dolberry - 9th
**Katelyn Helfand - 11th
7TH GRADE BOYS - 31 POINTS - DISTRICT CHAMPS
Colin Milliken - 3rd
Luke Wright - 4th
Andrew Poulton - 5th
Grant Anderson - 8th
** Konnor Mayberry - 11th
8TH GRADE GIRLS - 21 POINTS - DISTRICT CHAMPS
Amy Morefield - District champ
Callan Snider - 2nd
Chloe Schaeffer - 5th
Dresden Colston -6th
Emily Reyna- 7th
Genevieve Jones - 8th
Emma Smith - 9th
**Malia Bowling - 11th
8TH GRADE BOYS - 34 POINTS - DISTRICT CHAMPS
Logan Pedersen - District champ
Hayden Day - 6th
Hunter Reck - 8th
Devon Larimer - 9th
Jacob Migura -10th
**Jack McClure - 11th
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| Kailey Littlefield, Amy Morefield, Colin Milliken, Luke Wright and Logan Pedersen |
Spring Tennis Tryouts, January 14-18
Students interested in trying out for the WSMS Tennis Team this spring, please see below for important information about the tryout process.
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Students interested in trying out will participate in a scheduled 2 day tryout at 7:30am at LHS during the week of 1/14-1/18.
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The tryout will consist of 2 matches against 2 players of the same age level and skill level that are currently on the team.
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Skill level evaluation will consist of forehands, backhands, serves, volleys, and match play.
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Coach Cherry and Coach Davis will evaluate all players and base their decision on the players skill level and the scores that they have against players who are currently on the team. During match play games, Coach Cherry and Coach Davis will evaluate forehands, backhand, serves, volleys, and overall match play ability.
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There is not a certain number of athletes that we will keep. The final team number will be determined based on the level and skill set of current players and players that are trying out.
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To schedule a day and time for a two match tryout with current players, please contact Coach Davis at [email protected] to schedule. Once he receives your email, he will schedule two matches with two separate players of equal skill set that are currently participating in the WSMS tennis program.
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On behalf of Lovejoy ISD we would like to thank
Jones Solar and Roofing
for participating in the Lovejoy ISD
Circle of Partners
. We thank
Jones Solar and Roofing
for their support of Lovejoy ISD and the important value they place on the education of our children.
Chadd Jones of
Jones Solar and Roofing
is pledging 10% of their profits on roofing and solar work completed in the Lovejoy ISD. Jones Solar and Roofing provides free inspections of your residential or commercial roof and property. They also offer free estimates on Solar/ Battery and Energy Efficiency upgrades to your home or business. Their website is:
https://jonessolar.com/
or you may reach them by phone at 214.412.7444 for residential or commercial properties. Members of his family have been supporters of the Lovejoy ISD since 1979. Chadd and Liesl Thompson Jones are the proud parents of Puster Elementary 1st grader Maxwell.
Lovejoy ISD is pleased to welcome Tutoring 101 to the Circle of Partners. Tutoring 101 and Lovejoy ISD have formed a revenue generating/sharing partnership to bring their services to Lovejoy families. Please see below for several offerings.
Private tutoring is available for students in grades K-12 in all subjects. Tutoring 101 recommends once a week tutoring for an hour to increase grades and learn subject matter more deeply. A once a week appointment usually results in an increase of one letter grade or more. Turn those C's into B's.
What is your SAT/ACT score? Want a better one? What do you need it to be?
Invest in a PSAT/SAT/ACT Prep program not just a class. Tutoring 101 helps high scorers get top scores, average students raise their scores and poor test takers achieve the scores colleges want. Tutoring 101 students have earned admissions and scholarships, and have saved thousands of tuition dollars every year.
Classes are conveniently located at Lovejoy High School. Call 972.359.0222 or email [email protected] for additional information.
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Foundation for Lovejoy Schools
Denim and Diamonds - The Party - We Need Your Help
We need your help to make this year's Denim and Diamonds the best yet. How can you help?
Sponsor
- the goal is to raise $100,000 in sponsorships. There are many levels available.
Click here
for options and/or contact The Party Chairperson, Kelli Litchenburg for additional information.
Donate
- trips, parties, and fun items are needed for the silent and live auctions.
Click here
for the donation form. Please note - the donation deadline has been extended.
Purchase Tickets
- Tickets are on sale now for $135 and will increase to $150 tomorrow. Click here to buy your tickets today!
Kendra Scott Gives Back Party - Thursday, December 13
Benefitting the Foundation for Lovejoy Schools
Foundation's Annual Appeal Reaches $190,400
$9,600 is needed to close the gap toward the 2018 goal of $200,000. Now is the time to make your year-end tax-deductible gift, which will impact the education of every Lovejoy student. You may click here to donate.
$27,000+ Received Through Corporate Matching
The Foundation for Lovejoy Schools has received the following Corporate Matching gifts for the 2018 Annual Appeal:
Texas Instruments - $9,037
Toyota - $7,587
Alliance Data - $2,510
Samsung - $1,150
Microsoft - $635
Various Other Companies - $6,231
Click here
to see a list of companies that match donations and check with your HR Department for Employee Portal to determine how to submit your matching gift request.
Lovejoy Men's Tailgate Tournament Raises $8,000
Around 80 Lovejoy men participated in the Foundation's annual Tailgate Tournament. Congratulations to the 2018 Tailgate Champions: Brad Havens and James Miller, team Lovejoy HVAC. The tournament generated approximately $8,000 for the Foundation. Thank you to John and Kris Dunaway for hosting the event and thank you to event sponsors Renfrow-Dunaway Group, Fable Security, Lee Lewis Construction, Lovejoy HVAC, Chick-fil-A Twin Creeks and Stacy Road.
New! Senior Project Benefiting the Samaritan Inn
LHS Senior James Rainey is asking for your help with his Senior Project.
"Hi, this is James Rainey I'm a senior at Lovejoy. I am currently working on my Senior Project, which is a gift card drive for the Samaritan Inn. The Samaritan Inn is a housing center for homeless families that are trying to get on their feet and for parents that are trying to provide for a better future for their children. I've talked to the directors and they've told me that this would be a big help for them and would allow parents to purchase gifts for their children during this Christmas time. A collection box will be located at each school through December 19. A drawing will be held for those who make a donation. The winner of the drawing will receive an autographed football from Cowboys starting safety, Kavon Frazier."
Lovejoy Lacrosse - Boys' and Girls' Teams Registration Now Open
Registration is now open for the boys' and girls' 2019 Spring season of Lovejoy Lacrosse. Join the most exciting, fastest-growing sport in the country.
Register now for Boys and Girls: Grades Kindergarten through High School
Hurry, as rosters are filling quickly!
Lovejoy Lacrosse Free Try-It Clinics - January 9, 12 and 19
Lovejoy Lacrosse will host lacrosse try-it clinics on three upcoming days at Willow Springs Middle School:
Girls only - Wednesday, January 9, 7:00 - 8:30 PM
Girls and Boys - Saturday, January 12, 10:00 - 11:30 AM
Boys only - Saturday, January 19, 12:00 -1:30 PM
The try-it clinics are free and are open to all grade levels - kindergarten through high school. Kids are welcome to attend one or both of the clinics. No registration is required. Just come on out to the field ready to have fun. Lacrosse equipment will be available to borrow.
No lacrosse experience is necessary. There will be drills for players of all skill and experience levels. The clinics will be a fun, no pressure environment where girls and boys can try lacrosse and parents can learn about the Lovejoy Lacrosse program.
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