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November 3, 2024 - Issue 5

Dear Families,

Thank you so much for your generous donations! We are thrilled to share that we reached our fundraising goal. Your support will directly fund initiatives that benefit all students at Anthony Middle School. We are incredibly grateful and humbled by your kindness.

Thank you once again for making a difference!

At our first Site Council meeting this past Tuesday, October 29, we provided a broad overview about Anthony along with recent happenings from Quarter 1, and we also shared our SIP (School Improvement Plan) for this year.

Click here to view the presentation from the meeting. If you have any questions, please reach out to maichang.vue@mpls.k12.mn.us

Future Site Council Meetings - all are welcome to attend.

• December 10
  
• February 11
• March 18
• May 20

Meetings are from 4:00-5:00pm (5:30 at the latest) in room 102.

Anthony Middle School's SIP is aligned with the district's four priorities - academic achievement, student well-being, effective staff, and climate. Although we are working on many things, below are four goals that we are focusing on for this school year.

Dear Anthony Community,

We regret to inform you that Mr. Seng Lor will be departing from Anthony to pursue a teaching position in Language Acquisition at another middle school in Minneapolis. We express our gratitude to Mr. Lor for his contributions during his time at Anthony and wish him the very best on his new journey. Mr. Lor's final day will be November 5, coinciding with the end of Quarter 1.

We have been diligently searching for a new choir/music teacher and are thrilled to introduce Mx. Rebecca Henning, who hails from Michigan. Mx. Henning will officially join us on November 6, marking the beginning of Quarter 2. As Mx. Henning acclimates to our community and gets to know our students; we kindly ask for your support in extending a warm Minnesota welcome to them!

Below is their biography for your reference.

Your child will be switching their Quarter rotation class on Wednesday, 11/6. See the graphic below to identify where they will go next based on their current class. 6 th grade students will take all four Quarter rotation classes (Design & Modeling, Exploratory French, Explore Writing, and Exploratory Japanese) unless they are enrolled in a pull-out support class.

You may contact your child’s current Quarter rotation teacher or megan.gustafson@mpls.k12.mn.us if you have questions.

Academic success requires organization!!

Seventh graders, you are approaching the end of your first quarter. It is imperative that you build on your successes and reflect upon being more organized to correct any weaknesses. You can do it. How might you ask? Reflect on the goals set during the first week of school; do any of your goals need revision? In addition, please take the time to add action steps to each goal. As the second quarter begins, please have a plan to track how well you are achieving your academic goals. Now is the time to organize and plan for an academically successful second quarter. Be prepared to put forth earnest effort and reach out for assistance. You know how to access help; take advantage of before and after school opportunities to meet with teachers and mentors. Invest your time and energy wisely!

Our robotics students have been hard at work on an exciting project – designing and building robots that can shoot mini-hockey pucks! Anthony 8th graders are putting their design and engineering skills to the test as they work in teams to tackle this challenging task. Each group is learning to use gear ratios for power and speed, use Scratch programming to control their robots' movements, and following the design process from initial concept to working prototype. Each group also worked on 3D modeling and printing a custom hockey stick for their robot!

Students are mastering fundamental programming concepts through Scratch such as loops, wait until, if/then, etc. Working through mechanical problems and learning valuable collaboration skills are highlights of the project (as well as scoring goals!). Students collected data and worked together to improve their robots' accuracy and consistency. It's been wonderful to watch their problem-solving abilities develop as they test, adjust, and refine their designs. It's been a great rotation of robot designing here at Anthony!

ATTENDANCE

See full district attendance policy here.

ABSENCES

If a student must be absent from school, a parent should call the Attendance Line at 612-668-3271 or use our google form Anthony Attendance Form each day to report the reason so it can be coded into the computer. Lawful excuses include: sickness, doctor’s visit (must have verification from clinic), religious holidays, funerals, and extreme family emergencies.

Examples of non-excused absences: missing the bus, oversleeping, or attending non-MPS sponsored activities.

Families will receive notification via email/robo call of any unexcused absences.

Students with habitual unexcused absences will be placed on a Student Success Plan with input from the student, staff, and families. After 15 days of unexcused absences, students will be dropped and referred to Hennepin County.

COMING TO SCHOOL LATE

School starts at 8:40 AM. If a student is late to school, they need to sign in at the front desk or main office to receive a pass to class. The students can sign themselves in; parents are not required to come in with them unless needed. We will not adjust their attendance until they sign in. If a student was at a doctor/dentist/counseling, etc. appointment, they will need some form of written evidence from that office that they were at an appointment for it to reflect as such on their attendance. A personal note or signature will still reflect as unexcused on their attendance. This is an MPS district policy.

LEAVING SCHOOL EARLY

If parents need to pick up students early, students should come to the main office in the morning with a signed and written note from a parent/guardian stating the student’s full name, the time they need to leave, and the reason. We will issue them a GREEN pass so that they can leave the building at the time stated on the note after signing themselves out in the main office. A parent will not have to come into the school to sign the student out if their child is issued a leave early pass.

We understand that situations arise where parents can’t send a note, in which case someone will need to come to the main office to sign the student out. To sign a student out, an adult needs to be on the student’s emergency contact list and show a photo ID.

If the student leaves for a medical appointment, the student will still need to bring written evidence of the medical appointment to the office the following day.

TARDINESS

Students are expected to be on time to school and to each of their classes. Students are given four (4) minutes to get from class to class. Students are encouraged to use the restroom or go to their locker during passing time.

Each teacher will communicate to students the expectations when class starts and ends.

Teachers will communicate with families of students with excessive tardiness.

Students with habitual tardiness will be placed on a Student Success Plan with input from the student, staff, and families.

Students late after 15 minutes will be marked as unexcused absence.

VACATIONS

When possible, try to plan vacations during district-scheduled breaks (district calendar). Families should notify the attendance office and the teachers in writing before leaving. This can be done in advance by completing the Family Activity Form. Do not expect homework to be provided before your trip. Students are responsible for completing missed assignments within a reasonable time upon their return.

Thanks for showing your support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

Enjoy a few photos from this past week. Thanks for everyone's participation. Check out more photos on our Anthony Facebook page.

Anthony spirit wear is available for purchase through the MPS district. Makes a great gift, especially for our newest middle schoolers!

Click link to go to district online store.

GO PANTHERS!

Anthony Middle School wants to take this opportunity to invite your child to participate in our athletic programs throughout the school year. The winter sports window is now open for Girls and Boys Basketball. Tryouts will start the week of November 11th. Once registered, we will be sending out more information.

Below you will find links to all the necessary forms that are REQUIRED to be filled out.

Also, we are always looking for parent coaches or volunteers. If you have any questions, please reach out to me.

Links:

District Athletics Website

Register Student-Athlete Here

Eligibility Forms

Physical Examination Form

Make Online Payment Here

Thanks,

Dempsey Miller

Associate Principal/Athletic Director

(612) 668-3269

Students and staff who are new to Anthony, or were absent on picture day back in September can get their photos taken on Thursday, November 7 in the morning.

For those wanting to retake their photos, please remember to bring your photo packet and hand it directly to the photographer.

We’re excited to invite you to a casual meet-up on Thursday, November 7th at Wild Minds Ale! This is a great opportunity to connect with other 6th grade parents and share in the experience of our kids making new friends.

Let’s come together, enjoy some refreshments, and build our own community.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Questions? Email at anthonypta23@gmail.com

If your student contacts you directly about feeling unwell and wanting to go home, please encourage them to go to the health office. We need to assess them and will reach out directly to parents and guardians if they need to go home.

Thanks!

What’s next? Student Voting Day

On Nov 4th students will participate in a mock election - come be an election judge for a period of the day.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0B49A8A62CA0F49-52174132-student

Plan ahead - get these dates on your calendar!

Many volunteers will be needed for these two events and they are a great way to see your student’s classmates work or to scope out what next year has in store for them.

7th Grade History Day - February 13th

8th Grade Model UN - March 21st

Check here for other available opportunities: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0B49A8A62CA0F49-50803392-anthony

Any questions about volunteering can be directed to Kelsey Tritabaugh at ktritabaugh@gmail.com

Is your student interested in joining the high school downhill ski team?

Minneapolis Alpine Ski Team (aka MAST) is for all 7th-12th graders.

Registration is now open!

For more information visit www.mplsalpineski.org

November

• 3 - Daylight Savings - fall back 1 hour
• 4 - Quarter 1 Ends
• 4 - Student Mock Election Day in Individuals & Societies Class
• 5 - No School - Record Keeping Day for Teachers
• 5 - General Election Day - Make sure to get out and vote!!
• 6 - Quarter 2 Starts
• 6 - Dining for Dollars
• 7 - Picture Retake Day
• 18 - Native American Family Involvement Week
• 27-29 Holiday Break - No School

Click to view full calendar of events

Note: This is not a complete list of events at Anthony. Subject to change.

Please make sure the following forms are filled out and turned into the main office. Forms can be downloaded or picked up in the main office.

• Emergency Contact Form -- (required)

• Media Release Form -- (required)

• Student Behavior Acknowledgement Form -- (required)

• Technology/Bus/Cell Phone Form -- (required)

• Technology Use Pledge -- (required)

• Health Form -- (required)

• Medication Authorization Form -- (only applicable if student takes medication at school)

• Family Activity Form -- (only if student will be absent more than 3 days in a row during school year)

Attendance Line: (612) 668-3271

District Transportation: (612) 668-2300

Secretary: Annie Smith

Principal: Mai Chang Vue

Associate Principal/Athletic Director: Dempsey Miller

Website: anthony.mpschools.org/

Address: 5757 Irving Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55419

Phone: (612) 668-3240
Facebook: facebook.com/AnthonyMiddleSchool/
Instagram: @mps.anthonymiddle