We Are South, We Are One!

Email: msattendance@avon-schools.org
Website: https://www.avon-schools.org/mssouth
Location: 7199 East US Highway 36, Avon, IN, USA
Phone: 317-544-5700
Twitter: @avonsouth

January 20 - MLK, Jr. Day - NO SCHOOL!!

February 11 & 13 - ILearn Checkpoint 3

February 17 - President's Day - NO SCHOOL!!

If your student is arriving before school for a club please be advised that our office does not open until 8AM. Teachers that sponsor these clubs have told students they should not arrive before 8AM due to the office not being opened yet.

With the weather being as cold as it is, we would hate to have any students waiting outside in the cold if the office staff is unable to get to the door immediately. Additionally, please make sure that your student has been let into the building before driving away. Again, we want to make sure that students are safe and not left outside unattended.

AHS will start communicating with the current 8th graders in mid January about our Class of 2029 Parent Night but wondering if you would mind to add this date to your upcoming parent communications.

Class of 2029 Parent Night

February 4, 2025

6:30PM-8:30PM

AHS Auditorium, Enter Door 38

7th to 8th grade Course Selections

On Monday, all 7th grade students watched this Scheduling video. (if you were absent please watch this video).

On Monday evening, your parents were sent a link through ParentSquare to the form that you need to complete to sign up for 8th grade classes. This is due Monday, January 20.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

This fall, Avon Schools announced the results of our 2025 Redistricting Project, and you received your child's school assignment for the 2025-26 school year and beyond. As we have done during past redistricting projects, we are providing a process whereby parents/guardians of children currently in grades 4 and 7 can apply for their children to remain in their current schools for the upcoming school year. Please note: parents/guardians must provide transportation, siblings of students in grades 4 and 7 are not included, and requests should be made with the assumption that many teachers and/or classmates may also be moving to new schools.

If you would like your child to remain at AMS South for the 2025-26 school year, please visit our school during school hours to complete a request form. This process opens on Tuesday, January 7, and must be completed no later than 4:00PM on Friday, February 21.

If you have questions, please contact our school office at (317) 544-5700.

Scott Adams - Athletic Director

Joni Johnson - Athletic Trainer

1/22 - Conference @ Brownsburg West 5:30PM

1/25 - NSC Tournament - time & location TBD

Good luck!!

1/22 HOME vs. Danville 5:30PM

1/23 AWAY vs. Plainfield 5:30PM

Good luck!!

1/22 AWAY @ Chapel Hill 5:30PM

Good luck!!

Avon Middle School South will be offering an online ticket option for all athletic events. Online tickets will be available for purchase on the platform EventLink. These tickets will become available for purchase ten days prior to the date of the event. We encourage you to download the EventLink application on your mobile device from the App Store or Google Play Store.

All athletic tickets cost $5. Children between the ages 0 and 5 years old will be free in addition to adults who are 62 years old and older. When purchasing a ticket online through EventLink, there will be a service fee included.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU:

Maddie Gregory

Gabi Jenkins

Jackson Freije

AJ Depp-Neeb

Dee Aplogan

Melissa Avila-Escamilla

Soliana Fikadu

Surah Barrett

Isreal Akinrolabu

Juelz Joiner

Caden Cazley

Mary Aduyemi

Erandy Vera

Sydney Bangel

Daphne Hardin

Kaylen Reed

Lucas Sullivan

Kadence Whitt

Mikenzi Muhammad

Lucas Qiu

National Junior Honor Society will offer after school study help sessions on Wednesday’s after school from 4:10 - 5:00PM.

During this time, there will be a NJHS teacher sponsor with the students while they wait for the late bus to arrive. Students that will be a car rider home on these days can be picked up at door 1 at 5:00PM. Students will then go to the front commons area and wait for the late bus or parent pick-up.

If your student will be staying for the study session and they need bus transportation home they must sign up for the late bus in the Guidance Office at lunch that day. For those students taking the late bus home, the bus will leave AMS South at 5:10pm.

Each week your child's team will give an update about the current week or week ahead. Please find your child's team below for that information. In addition, you will find news from our Encore teachers, Media Center, and PE/Wellness teachers.

Ms. Costello, Mrs. Dugan, Mrs. Williams & Mr. Uhl

In Language Arts, student will continue reading about Phineas Gage and the brain, as they work on analyzing informational text. They will also have a writing workshop to improve and show how well they can write a constructed response with textual evidence. Math will be continuing to learn how to solve different types of 2-step equations. Pre-Algebra will begin their probability unit. Next week, Science students we will learn about how different forces impact the motion of objects. Students will review how to calculate speed and velocity along the way. Next week in Social Studies we will finish kingdoms and test on Friday!

Mrs. Barnes, Mr. Blackmore, Mrs. Boroff & Ms. Weinstein

In Science, we will be working on understanding what speed is and how to calculate speed. We will also work on understanding the difference between speed and velocity. Towards the end of the week, we will begin looking at Newton's 1st Law. Math students will be finishing their unit on solve equations and learning how to solve equations with combing like terms and distributive property. The unit test is scheduled for Wednesday, January 29. Pre-Algebra students will be starting their unit on proportional relationships, slope, and graphing linear equations on a coordinate plane. In Language Arts, students will continue reading about Phineas Gage and the traumatic brain injury he suffered. Next week we take a turn into studying the various physical components at work in the brain, and we will wrap the week up with a short Gallery Walk assignment on Friday. Social Studies students will be finishing the first part of unit 6, Sub-Saharan Africa trade kingdoms. There will be a quiz on Friday 1/24 over the Kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, Aksum, Kush, and Great Zimbabwe. Also included on the quiz will be the European explorers who led to the colonization of Africa. Students will receive a review sheet on Thursday to prepare for their quiz on Friday.

Mr. Leach, Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Ringham & Mrs. Schaffer

Mr. McDonald, Ms. Schaber, Mrs. Shambaugh & Mr. Thoennes

Language Arts

Mrs. Ringham - Language Arts students will read and annotate one of the passages they will eventually see again on their unit test sometime in February. They will also map out their own personal traits on the brain.

Mr. Thoennes - Students will be reading about Phineas Gage and comparing his injury to that of the adolescent brain.

Math & Pre-Algebra

Mrs. Schaffer - In Pre-Algebra, students will begin Unit 9 where they will explore likelihoods, frequency, and probability.

Mrs. Shambaugh - Students will continue to solve one and two step equations.

Science

Mrs. Miller - In Jaguars science, students will be learning about forces, inertia and motion.

Ms. Schaber - Students will be learning more about physics. This next week we will continue to learn more about speed, velocity and forces.

Social Studies

Mr. Leach - Social studies students are learning about the Kush, Axum and Zimbabwe Kingdoms. Early African test is next Friday.

Mr. McDonald - Students will learn about the East African Kingdoms.

Mrs. DeBow, Mr. Goson, Mrs. Mellen & Mrs. Zimmerman

Mr. McDonald, Ms. Schaber, Mrs. Shambaugh & Mr. Thoennes

Language Arts

Mrs. Zimmerman - Students will complete their Unit 8E test on Friday, January 24th. This will also be the last day to turn in any missing work from this unit.

Mr. Thoennes - Students will be reading about concentration camps and the end of the Holocaust, while having their Unit Assessment on 1/24 (Friday).

Pre-Algebra & Algebra

Mrs. DeBow - Pre-algebra students will test over Chapter 7 on Wednesday, January 22. Algebra students will begin to factor quadratic expressions.

Mrs. Shambaugh - Students will take the Chapter 7 test on Wednesday, Jan. 22. We will then learn about the Pythagorean Theorem.

Science

Mr. Goson - Science students will continue our natural selection/evolution unit by looking at evidence of the evolution of organisms. Biology students will continue their cell reproduction unit by looking at the process of meiosis and its phases.

Ms. Schaber - Students will continue to learn about evolution. This next week we will be diving into evidence of evolution.

Social Studies

Mrs. Mellen - Students will have their Unit 6 Test on Tuesday 1/21. All missing work for the unit is due by Tuesday 1/21. The rest of the week, we will be working on our political party project.

Mr. McDonald - Students will take their Unit 6 test over the Federalist Era.

Mrs. Warthan, Ms. Kegley, Mr. Casey & Mr. Osen

Science: Students will be learning about evidence for natural selection.

Biology: Students will be learning about biological causes of cancer.

Pre-Algebra: Students will take a test over linear functions and scatter plots on Wednesday and then start learning about the Pythagorean Theorem.

Algebra: Students will learn about factoring polynomials.

Social Studies: Students will be using their knowledge of early political parties to create their own.

Language Arts: Students will be finishing the Holocaust unit with a ToSeec response and taking the unit 8E assessment on Friday.

Mrs. Cadle, Mr. Garrison, Mrs. Hood & Mr. Williams

Science: Students will continue to investigate how traits adapt over time with our bird beak lab. We will then begin our evidence of evolution notes and packet.

Biology: Students will continue to learn the importance of cell size and the steps of mitosis. We will have a Mitosis Quiz on Friday, 1-24.

Language Arts: Students will be continuing readings related to the Holocaust. They will also do an in-class writing related to the strategies that that Nazis used. Finally, they will take the unit test on Friday.

Social Studies: We will be wrapping up Unit 6 Federalist Era with a unit test on Thursday. We will also be testing the location of the 50 states on Friday.

Pre-Algebra: We will wrap up Chapter 7 with closure activities and test on Wednesday, 1/22. Our next unit be our Geometry unit, and we'll start that with the Pythagorean Theorem!

Algebra: We will begin Chapter 8 with an introduction to factoring and specific strategies to factor quadratic polynomials.

Señora Barker (Spanish), Mrs. Hauptmann (Japanese), Mr. Parr (Computer Science),

Mrs. Leonard (Art), Mr. McFarlin (Engineering and Technology), Mr. Wolf (Robotics),

Mrs. Snyder (Flight & Space and Medical Detectives),

and Mr. Tarnowski (Digital Literacy & Communication)

Spanish

Students will continue practice of conjugating -ar verbs and have a quiz Wednesday. They will then learn the verb tener, to have, and be able to express what classes they have and their age.

Japanese

The Japanese class topics will be: expressions with kanji numbers, fast, slow, expensive, inexpensive, and occupations.

Computer Science

7th graders will be starting and working on their first project the Captioned Scene!

8th graders will be working on Inputs and Outputs!

Art

This week in art we are using charcoal to draw a marshmallow still life. Charcoal is messy but can be washed out of clothes so no worries. If your student would like to bring in an apron or something to protect their clothing, they may.

7th grade Engineering and Design & 8th grade Gateway to Technology

7th and 8th grade: This week students will begin working on measuring and sketching skills. We will officially start project 1 on Thursday/Friday of this week.

Digital Literacy & Communication

This week in Digital Literacy, my students are completing their first project. 7th graders are putting together video tutorials to show off skills they know how to teach while 8th graders are putting together informational posters about how to responsibly engage with the digital world!

Robotics

Robotics 1- Students will continue working to build and analyze various gear mechanisms using VEX V5 components.

Robotics 2- Students will continue working to design, build, and test their pull toy projects.

Flight & Space

Flight and Space will learn how to schedule a flight crew using a Gantt Chart. They will then begin their first project.

Medical Detectives

Medical Detectives will learn about disease agents and do a lab with E.Coli.

Pictures of Medical Detectives students taking each other's vitals in class, enjoy!

Mrs. Lucas, Mr. Jackson & Mr. Van Winkle

This week, students will continue their units in Speedball/Handball, Badminton, and Fitness. Dressing out is crucial for participation, accounting for 30% of their overall grade. Students should wear grey shirts, black shorts, and tennis shoes to every class.

As a reminder, PE is a high school credit course, meaning the grade will be part of their academic record moving forward.

Resources for Success

• Study guides are available on Schoology.
• Blookets to assist with test preparation should have been posted by 1/17.

Please encourage your student to come prepared and actively participate each day.

Thank you for your support!

Mr. Basso (Band), Mr. Miller (Orchestra) & Mr. Nelson (Choir)

Band

The bands are working on their solo project. Please be sure to check out the band newsletter this week for more information.

Choir

In choir, we are slowly but surely working through our ISSMA repertoire we will perform in March. We are also moving in on our first show choir performance at Show Choir Preview Night at Avon High School on Jan 31st.

Orchestra

We are back in full-swing in orchestra, and we have had great rehearsals the first week back from break. Parents, continue to encourage your students to practice at home and play for you - this is the best way to keep them motivated and to help nurture the love of playing an instrument.

Please check ParentSquare for Solo & Ensemble Rehearsal Updates.

Important Dates this semester:

Saturday, February 1st - Solo & Ensemble - times TBA

Tuesday, March 4th - ISSMA Contest Preview Concert @ South 6:30pm

Friday, March 7th or Saturday, March 8th - ISSMA Jazz Contest for AbC Orchestra

Friday, March 14 - ISSMA Contest @ AMS North - time TBA

Saturday, March 15 - ISSMA Contest @ AMS North - time TBA

Thursday, May 15 - Spring Orchestra Concert @ South 6:30pm

Thank you! - Mr. Miller

Mrs. Sever

All South students have now visited the library to start off Quarter 3! Many students checked out new books to read during SSR in class and during WINN. Some students are still missing books from before Winter Break. Please encourage your students to double-check their lockers and belongings to make sure missing books aren't tucked away and hiding. Thank you for your help!

ABSENCE PROCEDURE

If a student is absent from school, the PARENT must call the school by 10:00 A.M. to report the absence. If no call is received, the automated school system will make an effort to contact the parent, but if NO PARENT CALL has been received by 3:00 P.M. the day following the absence, the student will be charged with an unexcused absence. You may also send an email to us to notify us of your child's absence at msattendance@avon-schools.org.

EARLY DISMISSALS

Please be advised that we cannot take early dismissal information over the telephone.

If your child needs to leave school early during the school day please send a note in with your child to bring to the office first thing in the morning or email us at

msattendance@avon-schools.org with all the necessary information: students name, date and time picking up, and the name of the person picking your child up if someone other than a parent or guardian will be picking up. This email will go directly to the front office secretaries and they will be able to get your child an early dismissal pass so that they can be in the front office when you are ready to pick them up. If leaving early for a doctor/dentist appointment, please provide doctor/dentist verification to ensure that the absence is excused.

If someone other than a parent or guardian will be picking up your child we MUST have this information in writing from a parent/guardian, please include his or her name on the note or email. Once we verify their photo ID then the student can sign out and leave. If you are unable to email us we will need you to come into the office with your valid ID, once we verify it is a parent/guardian picking up we will be able to call the student down for dismissal.

Using this email will ensure your child will get a pass out of class to be in the office. Please do not use Parent Square to send a message to your child's teachers as we cannot guarantee that this message will get to the front office to get your child a pass. Our teachers are very busy throughout the day and may not be able to check Parent Square often, or if the teacher is out that day we would not get that message in the front office in time to get your child an early dismissal pass.

We want to make sure that your information is getting to the right person in a timely manner, and hopefully prevent any miscommunication or missed messages.

If your child will be absent from school due to a virtual doctor appointment, whether leaving early or coming to school late, to ensure that the absence is excused we will need you to provide written documentation of the appointment from the doctor. Please be sure to ask your doctor to email you a note to provide to school for the appointment. You can either print the email out and send to school with your child to bring to the office, or you can email it to our attendance line at

msattendance@avon-schools.org.

It is our belief that students can best achieve academic success by being in school every day. We also understand that a student may occasionally have an opportunity to experience extraordinary opportunities that may result in a missed day of school. The principal or designee may grant a pre-arranged absence if the absence provides an extraordinary opportunity for the student and/or family. The request must be submitted at least five school days in advance of the requested absence. The student will be required to complete all missed work upon his/her return to school.

No more than three days of pre-arranged absences will be approved each year.

Pre-arranged absences will not be granted during the following circumstances:

• NWEA and ILEARN testing
• End of Quarter Assessments
• Last three days of a semester
• When the requested absence would push the student’s attendance record into excessive absence status or if the student has surpassed the allowable number of absences.

You can either print this form out and complete the information requested and send into school with your child to bring to the front office, or you can fill it out and email it to our attendance email address at msattendance@avon-schools.org

For Visitors to our Building

Avon Schools require all visitors to check-in at the front office using our visitor management system, Safe Visitor. This system requires visitors to scan their driver's license or state identification card for a check of their record. A temporary badge is provided to all visitors to wear while in our buildings. As our visitors leave school, they scan and return that badge to front office staff.

Entering the Building

Anyone entering our building beyond the front office will need to have a valid photo ID with them so that they can be checked in through our Safe Visitor Solutions system. You will be given a badge to wear while in the building so that you are identified as a visitor. When leaving you will return to the front office so that we can check you out of Safe Visitor Solutions and take your badge.

Visiting Students during Lunch

At this time, we are allowing parents/guardians to have lunch with their child during their specified lunch time in our commons area outside of the cafeteria. Parents must follow our policy for entering our building listed above; present a valid photo ID and be checked into our Safe Visitor system. Please take note that this process may take a few minutes to get you checked into our system so please allow for a few extra minutes for that process.

**If someone other than a parent/guardian would like to have lunch with your student, we MUST have that information in writing in advance from a parent/guardian. You can either send a note in with your student to bring to the office when they arrive at school in the morning, or you can email our attendance line with the information at msattendance@avon-schools.org

Avon Community Schools has chosen Worth Ave. Group as the vendor of choice to insure school-issued laptops rented by students. Insurance with Worth Ave. Group will protect the device against: Accidental Damage, Theft, Fire, Flood, Natural Disasters, Power Surge and Vandalism. This insurance policy will provide full replacement cost coverage and will protect the item worldwide (on and off school grounds). The policy is also transferable to a replacement unit. Insurance plans may be purchased online.

• Coverage Term: July 18, 2024 - July 18, 2025
  • It is up to you to renew yearly.
• Enrollment Deadline: September 6, 2024
• Cost is prorated for policies purchased after September.

Need help with Math and Science homework?

Call the Homework Hotline

1-877-ASK-ROSE

Click below to visit their website

www.askrose.org

The Mary Lee Maier Community Pantry is available to Avon school families and employees.

Every Thursday from 5:00 - 6:00PM (when school is in session, see district calendar for these dates) at Avon Intermediate School East, southside of building enter door #13.

Please do not arrive before 4:30PM due to AIS bus/school traffic

Enrollment is simple. Please complete your 2024 - 2025 enrollment before you shop. Below you will find more information for enrollment, please click the link below.

Please click on Community Flyers below to take you to the ACSC web page of all the Educational Flyers and Community Events Flyers happening in our community.