EAGLE NATION NEWS

Newsletters will be sent via e-mail attachment monthly to all households with students enrolled at Norwich School. If you wish to be added to the e-mail list and you do not have a student enrolled, please contact Megan Dheming at the school 620-478-2235, mdheming@knusd331.com, and we will add you to our e-mail newsletter list.

How can it be that December is already here?

The first semester of the school year has flown by and here we are ready to begin the holiday season full of hustle and bustle!

December will be busy with the beginning of basketball season, practicing and performing the Christmas program and preparing for semester finals.

We will celebrate all the hard work and accomplishments made during the first semester as well as the holidays on December 14th.

Elementary parties will begin at 10:15 a.m.

School lunches will be served and students will be dismissed at NOON.

School will resume on the morning of Wednesday, January 3rd and students will be released at NOON on the 3rd as well.

The administration has made the decision to go back to a full block schedule for 2nd semester and we will no longer be having standard days. This will allow more time for teachers and students to dive deeper into their learning each class period.

Wishing everyone a joyful holiday season and a Happy New Year!

The Goal of Athletics/Activities at Norwich Schools

1. Teach life lessons of being a part of a team, working towards a common goal, time management, and communication.

2. Build memories and relationships that will last a lifetime.

3. We want to be competitive, and learn from both wins and losses.

Equation for Winning

Those who say it isn’t all about winning have never put forth the substantial amount of effort to have had any meaningful success. Winning is not strictly the end result.

A Successful Mindset Consists of:

Ethos: Never Be Outworked

1. Be On Time: Great things don’t happen when you’re late.

2. Be Prepared: Great things don’t happen when you’ve failed to prepare.

3. Be Disciplined: Attention to small things=success in big things.

4. Be Coachable: Listen to and follow directions. No response is needed.

5. Be Respectful: Treat others as you wish to be treated.

6. Never Be Satisfied: Get better, stronger, and tougher as a whole person.

7. Be Selfless: Team before self.

8. Be Competitive: Life is a competition whether you like it or not.

Winter Activities in Full Swing

• High School Boys Basketball: 21 players on the roster and are working hard at practice.

• These young men are working hard and absorbing all the coaching they’re getting.

• High School Girls Basketball:

• The ladies are putting in the time and the effort in practice for a successful season.

• Cheerleading: 12 student/athletes on the winter roster.

• Girls are currently running the candy gram fundraiser; this is a great opportunity to support these ladies who support all of our sports teams.

• As two sport athletes, these girls give extra time that we don’t see; they are the true definition of ALL IN.

• Junior Basketball:

• Season got underway this past Monday at Conway Springs and all teams have been practicing hard and working on the fundamentals that make great teams.

• Scholar’s Bowl

• Is back underway since Thanksgiving. Today they travel to Cunningham to take on the Wildcats.

Final Thought

Referees don’t grow on trees, especially nowadays. How many times have you offered up your Friday nights to be yelled at and ridiculed by strangers. Last Friday Night’s Varsity games didn’t have a full crew until less than a day beforehand. Most of the Eagle fan base does a wonderful job representing our school and our community; but as always it takes only one to spoil the bunch. All it takes is one act of poor behavior and then our entire school/community is branded as one of low character. The idea of being ALL IN is not just an idea it is an attitude, a state of mind, a way of life. Refer back to “A Successful Mindset Consist of…” There is an opportunity for great things here at NHS; above and beyond the norm. Ultimate potential is never reached with the same mindset and effort. If you are truly ALL IN we’ll put these words to action and not just talk. Thank you for your time, GO BIG RED!!!

Coach Foley

Is your child sick or plans have changed during the day? If you need to contact the school office for any reason by email, please use our new email address norwichoffice@knusd331.com. This will help us get messages to your child when there are substitutes in the office for the day.

There will be no preschool on Thursday the 14th. Christmas parties will be on Wednesday the 13th.

The following information outlines the USD 331 Board Policy regarding our district meal policies and procedures.

· Board policy allows students to charge up to 3 days.

· Once they have charged 3 days, we will provide students an alternative meal (lunch only.)

· Parents will be notified using the following protocol:

o 1st charge - parents will receive a text and email from Thrillshare.

o 2nd/3rd charge - parents should receive a personal phone call to discuss payment arrangements or alternate meal plans.

Free and reduced meals are available to students who qualify. If you think your child may qualify for free or reduced meals, please fill out an application. These can be found on your Skyward parent portal account or there are paper applications in each school office. The information on the application and the results are completely confidential.

At any time if you feel your family may qualify for free or reduced price lunches, you can apply. If you have applied before but were denied, remember that a job loss or change, a disability or accident that prevents you from working or a life status change (divorce, marriage, etc.) may change your status. Once you qualify for free or reduced lunches, you maintain that status for the rest of the school year. You can apply through your parent portal in Skyward or there are paper applications in each school office. A child’s free and reduced lunch status is confidential.

For more information contact your child's school office or Amy Wallace at (620) 532-3134.

Breakfast is served at school daily between 7:45 and 8:00 a.m.

Hot breakfast is served on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

If you would like for your child to eat school breakfast, please make sure to have them at school by 7:45 as students need to be through the line by 8:00.

Students will meet weekly on Wednesdays at 7:20am through December. We will meet at the front office doors then proceed to Ms. Lampe’s room. Parents please help me by encouraging your teammate to read their books at home throughout December and especially over the Christmas break. In January we will switch to practices twice per week. This is a fun activity to be involved in and I look forward to a great season with my team. Ms. Lampe

Every day of school is an important opportunity for students to learn as well as to connect to their peers and teachers.

We thank:

● Our students and their families who do their best to show up daily even when it isn’t easy.

● Our teachers who go above and beyond to make school a welcoming and safe place for all students to learn.

● Our administrators who help us work together to ensure we create a physically and emotionally safe and engaging learning environment.

● Our many, many healers and helpers - the support staff and community who provide the extra hands and attention our children need.

We appreciate each one of you. May these days off be restful and healing.

● If your family or your child needs support, please reach out to Mrs. Howard, Mr Foley or Mrs. Boen for help.

● We look forward to seeing you again when school resumes on January 3rd.

Thank you for partnering with us!

Producing a yearbook takes a great deal of commitment and time. Staff is persistently working to complete pages as activities and sport seasons conclude. Their goal is to complete the fall sports and event pages by end of this semester. They are well on their way as they work to complete enough pages to meet their first and smallest deadline. The staff and club members are confident they will meet their goal and have planned a deadline/Christmas party to celebrate the last week of the semester. I appreciate all their efforts and hard work. If you see them out and about taking photos or working at various activities, please let them know you appreciate the task they have undertaken. Check out this sneak peek of the August academic/activity pages. Staff continues to encourage club members, students, parents, and patrons to share their original high-resolution photos. Credit will be given for photos used. Thanks to those who have shared photos with us! Special thanks to Micoli Bates and club member Jillian Wineinger for all the sports photos they are providing for yearbook staff. The support given to yearbook staff is greatly appreciated!

Senior salutes are parents’ opportunity to commemorate student achievements and important milestones. Jostens is managing the senior salute sales so please do not contact or send materials to the school. This opportunity is for senior parents only! Page space is limited so ONLY ¼ page MAXIMUM is allowed PER senior. Room only allows for ¼ page to be dedicated to each senior. Parents in different households may share the ¼ page space and create it together or each buy an 1/8 page. The staff needs to know how much space to reserve so all online senior salutes MUST be complete and paid for by January 31, 2024. The staff needs to know how much space to reserve so all salutes MUST be finalized and purchased by this date. A printable instruction sheet and link to order online will come home with your senior. Senior salutes can be created online from both desktop and mobile devices. Parents have various salute designs to choose from giving them more creative freedom over their salute. Watch the school newsletters and school social media for important information regarding seniors. Contact Mrs. Brewster at tbrewster@knusd331.com with questions.

Yearbook staff has set up YBK+ again for students, parents, and teachers to upload 10 photos to be seen digitally from their portrait. YBK+ allows the yearbook to be more digitally interactive, and it is a way to see more of your student in the yearbook. Pre-K -5 students need parents to upload photos using their parent email that is on file, and 6-12 students use their own school email to log into the website. Click the image, link, or scan the code to get started with YBK+ and begin uploading your photos NOW!

Please be aware that yearbook fund gets a commission from Strawbridge for the photos you purchase. It is one of the yearbook fund raisers. Thank you in advance for your support in purchasing pictures. Mark your calendars as it’s IMPORTANT for all students, teachers, and staff to be present on picture days!

1/17/24: Spring individual portraits, winter sports and second round of clubs/organizations.

3/20/24: Spring sports and final round of clubs/organizations.

Hello from the Counselor's Corner! December is quickly upon us and with it there is a chill in the air and lots of fun going on in our school and community!

In K-5 Character Strong we are wrapping up our Responsibility unit and moving into Gratitude. December is a great time to reflect on what we are grateful for. Even in the most troubling days, there is always something we can find to be thankful and blessed by.

For NMS and NHS, the focus has been on Building Community and Community Agreements. We're ALLIN This Together, and we want to commit to respectful ways to treat each other not only in our home families, but in our school families as well.

Our amazing USD #331 Psychology Team had a wonderful service project last month during School Psychology Week. Our students donated hundreds and hundreds of cans of soup and open-and-heat meals for anyone who needs them. Please contact any school counselor if you have a need or know of others who do and we will respond!

I would like to leave you with some December Affirmations as we close out 2023 and look forward to 2024!

1. I will have a good month of December.
2. I’m staying grounded in the joys this month has to offer.
3. The holidays are a great time for making memories.
4. I can have fun and also prioritize my mental health and wellbeing.
5. I enjoy the gift of having my family and friends in my life.
6. I am slowing down to enjoy the gift of the present.
7. The end of this year marks great hope for the next year.
8. The winter season brings so much beauty for me to appreciate.
9. I feel so much gratitude for the gift that is my life.
10. I am remembering to breathe when things get overwhelming.

As proud Eagle alumni of Norwich High School, we want to help get the word out to all alumni of important events that will interest you so you can remain involved and support your high school alma mater. Please help us in making sure that we have your most current up to date information by either sending us an email at norwichalumni2015@gmail.com or sending us a note to Norwich Schools 209 S. Parkway Norwich, KS 67118.