The Warrior Weekly

Monday September 9

• First Note Night

Friday, September 13 OR Monday, September 16, 2024

• Strong Connections

Our first week has come and gone in a flash, and it has been another great one! We love being able to reconnect with our students and families after our time apart in the summer. The start of school is always filled with many feelings of excitement and possibly apprehension, after a vacation that is structured very differently. Here are some recommendations for parents to consider to support the best possible start to the year for all students(summarized from healthychildren.org)

• Remind your child that teachers know that students may be nervous about the first day of school; they will make an extra effort to make sure everyone feels as comfortable as possible.

• Reset earlier bed times to ensure your child is getting enough sleep at night

• Create a consistent bedtime routine

• Turn electronic devices off (ie cell phones/ipads etc) well in advance of routine bedtime

• Encourage your child to eat breakfast in the morning

• Pack a balanced lunch for your child, and check with them regularly to ensure they are eating it - make adjustments if necessary.

• To support homework completion, designate an area that is quiet, without distraction, and promotes study.

• Supervise computer and internet use (including on personal devices)

• If your child is having difficulty with their work, or any other aspect of school, speak to your child’s teacher

Mr. Terrick and I look forward to another great year of learning and achievement at MMS for all of our students. We wish all of our students a successful and enjoyable year!

To keep up to date on daily happenings at MMS you can visit our school website. In addition, you can access our Twitter, Instagram and Warrior Weekly publications.

To read about our Home to School Communication Flowchart you can check this page out on our homepage. Be sure to check our school blog often as it is continually updated.

Have a great weekend!

A.J. Neufeld

Principal

aneufeld@hsd.ca

John Terrick

Vice Principal

jterrick@hsd.ca

Ms Shayli Patrick (5P homeroom teacher)

Ms Nicole Adamyk ( 8A homeroom teacher)

Ms Reanne Poirier (8P homeroom teacher)

Mr. Michael Friesen (Phys Ed teacher)

Ms Alivia Martens (teacher candidate)

Mr. Kyle Kelpin (teacher Candidate)

The canteen will open for student use on Monday, September 16, and Pizza Fridays will resume on September 27.

A canteen menu will soon be posted on the school website again this year, as will the pizza menu. Click here to find them, or find the canteen menu under the “Students” drop down menu on our website.

A reminder for all students to pack a full lunch with snacks for next week.

A reminder that work on our 4 - classroom addition continues at MMS. For their safety, students are reminded to:

• avoid entering or exiting the school grounds from Neufeld Drive

• stay out of the parking lot

• stay well away from any area where construction work is happening

Update: at the time of publication, the millwork has been completed and the floor is almost done! Stay tuned for more information.

With the start of another school year, it is always important to review the safety practices for coming and going from school.

1. Remember to use the sidewalks when they are available.

2. The crosswalks are to provide safe crossing for all walkers. In addition, the crossing guard is on duty before and after school on Highway 52 to assist students in crossing safely.

3. Drivers, please watch for the crosswalks, school zone speed limits, stop signs, buses and walking students.

4. Always watch for and follow stop signs. Remember when the lights are on and the stop sign is out on buses to please stop to ensure the safe pick up and drop off of bus students.

In addition, we would like to remind parents that the MMS drop off zone immediately in front of the school should not be used as a parking area. This area becomes very congested and it is safer if we keep these areas clear. Thanks for your help in this endeavor to keep our kids safe. Parking is now permitted on the east side of Willow street from Walnut Ave N to Morley.

And, here is a friendly reminder of our MES neighbours to the South and the new ONE WAY school zone. Please see ONE WAY diagram and allow for enough time at drop off to accommodate the change.

As in previous years, we will be holding our Strong Connections days on Friday, September 13th and Monday, September 16th.

Your child will attend ONE of these days to have a day of connection, thinking, and camaraderie with their homeroom teacher.

Your Strong Connection Day can be found in your HSD Parent Portal Account.

A reminder that Manitoba Education has instituted a cell phone free policy for all K - 8 students in Manitoba, with the goal of removing distractions during the school day and allowing students to direct their attention to learning.

Please click on this link for more information regarding Mitchell Middle School and the Cell Phone Free Policy. Parents, if you have any questions, please be in contact with Mr. Neufeld (principal) or Mr. Terrick (vice principal).

Parents, please remember to check the Parent Portal for any updated permissions that may need to be provided. These permissions include

• Responsible Use of Technology Agreement

• Permission to walk to events

• others

These forms can be located in the parent portal and can be approved digitally on that site.

If you need help accessing the Parent Portal, our secretaries would be happy to help you. Please contact them at the school office.

School volunteers play a valuable role in the life of our school and we appreciate your gifts of time and energy very much. To ensure the safety of our students, all volunteers must have the following documents approved and on file before working with our students:

• Criminal Record Check

• Child Abuse Registry Check

• Pledge of Confidentiality

• Respect in Sport (if coaching)

Please contact us at the school office for more information

Please be reminded of the following policies for our students at lunch time

• students who go home for lunch each day are dismissed at 12:20. They are expected to remain home for the lunch break, and return for 1:10 pm to rejoin their classes.

• please be reminded that afternoon classes start at 1:15 pm

• students who wish to go to the CO-OP at lunch require a note or email from their parents that is given to the homeroom teacher in the morning. MMS requires new permission each time a student wishes to leave at lunch time. When they leave, they should sign out at the office, and sign in when they return.

• parents please be reminded to send a note or email to your child's homeroom teacher to communicate whether your child will eat lunch at school or at home. This helps us account for our students in the event of a lunch time emergency.

Good information on the school website

To stay on top of everything MMS please follow these sites.

• School Calendar (find school wide events, schedule of practices and games)

• Bell Schedule

ConnectwithMMS

Instagram

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https://www.instagram.com/mmshanover/

Twitter

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https://twitter.com/search?q=mmshanover&src=typd&lang=en

Check our website often!