Dear Parent/Guardian,

We are off and running with a new school year. Opening the doors for the first day of school is awesome. Few things compare to the excitement and energy that circulate through the school. Thank you for letting us be a part of your child’s life. I hear great things from our staff about the students we have this year.  Currently, we have 669 students enrolled; 208 6^th graders, 224 7^th graders, and 237 8^th graders, which is slightly less than last year.Thank you for your patience as we went through the balancing of classes and the changing of schedules.

We would like to thank you for making our drop off and pick up area safer for all involved.  I know it is an inconvenience as we work out the kinks, but blocking off one entry area and making it an exit only will hopefully allow better traffic flow and a safer area for our students. If your student rides the bus to and from school please make sure they know their bus #.  If your student is heading to the Boys and Girls Club after school they will need a note from you.

We had a wonderful turnout for our Back to School Night and we would like to thank you for attending.  Anytime you are able to connect with your student’s teachers is an excellent way to have open lines of communication.  We will have our first progress report available by mid-October and you should be receiving information from South the week of 10/16-20th.  We will be conducting Parent/Teacher Conferences on Wednesday, 11/1/16 & Thursday, 11/2/17 from 4:00-7:30 p.m.  Friday, 11/3/17 there is no school for students.  There will be a separate email on conferences as we get closer to these dates.

We encourage all of our parents to please check out our school’s website. You can find it through the District website, www.grantspass.k12.or.us; click on schools and choose South from the drop down menu.  We have all of our information about SMS on this site, along with our staff web pages, which will allow you to know what is going on within the classrooms. 

The middle school years bring a challenging time in adolescent development.  It is an exciting stage, and I want you to know that we are committed to working with you to make these years as successful as possible. In partnership, we can accomplish a great deal in the areas of academic and social development. I hope to see you at our activities and PTSA meetings. 

Thank you for allowing your students to be involved in all of our co-curricular and extra-curricular teams, classes, and clubs.  The more our students are involved in our school, the more well-rounded they become.  We are very fortunate that our district provides these programs for all of our students, and we love the fact we have great representation.

We understand circumstances come up from time to time that does not allow your student to be at school. Please communicate with us regarding your student’s attendance.  We are encouraging everyone on how important regular attendance is to the success of your student. Our new program emphasizing the importance of school attendance is called Attention 2 Attendance (A2A).  You might be receiving letters for excused absences along with unverified absences. We are trying to communicate to everyone how important school attendance is and the correlation with student success.

One last item is how important communication is between our families and our school.  We issued everyone a username and password to access your student’s grades and attendance through PowerSchool Parent Access.  If you would like to be included in the Remind program please contact our front office at 541-474-5750.

Sincerely,

Jeff Weiss

7th & 8th grade Fall Choir Exchange field trip to Grants Pass High School Performing Arts Center to sing with the high school choirs. Approximate time of trip: Wednesday, October 18th from ~9:45 AM - 12:45 PM

 

NURSE’S NOTES NURSE’S NOTES NURSE’S NOTES NURSE’S NOTES NURSE’S NOTES

Pediculosis, or head lice, is a condition that affects approximately six to 12 million children between the ages of three and 12 years of age. Head lice are parasites that are generally found on the scalp, around the ears, and at the back of the neck. An adult louse is about the size of a sesame seed, and can be a reddish brown color. Eggs, or nits, are smaller and may appear yellowish, white or silver in color.

Head lice are not a sign of poor hygiene and they do not transmit disease. Transmission from one child to another is most commonly spread by direct head-to-head contact.  It is also possible, but not common, to spread head lice by sharing of personal items such as combs, brushes, caps, helmets, or towels.  Keeping long hair contained in braids and ponytails can help prevent spread.

Parental observation and monitoring plays an important role in a child’s health.  While lice are spread more easily in younger children, it is important to check everyone in the family if one has a case.  Signs and symptoms of possible head lice include itching, scratching, sores on the head caused by scratching and a tickling feeling.  Checking your child’s hair regularly can save you a lot of time if you identify a case of lice early—before it has become a huge problem.  You should check your children’s hair regularly (daily for two weeks after having a case of head lice and then every week or two).

Use safe and effective products to treat lice, that you can get over the counter and by doctor’s prescription, (it is important to follow the directions carefully), in addition to nit picking with a fine-tooth comb (metal combs are usually more effective). It is also important to be aware that some studies have shown that head lice are learning to develop resistance to these products, in much the same way that bacteria have developed resistance to antibiotics.  Please contact your doctor/care provider if you are seeing signs of possible resistance.  Parents should also use hot water to wash in all recently worn clothing, hats, used bedding, and towels, or dry-clean items. Personal care items such as combs, brushes and hair clips should also be washed in hot water. Items that can’t be washed can be sealed in a bag for two weeks.

The following websites have some reliable information about lice.

https://www.nasn.org/portals/0/resources/HFLL_101_parents_2015.pdf http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/index.html

Martha Covrig RN BSN, MPH, GP#7 District Nurse

Saturday November 18th, 9am to 4pm.  Get your Christmas shopping done here and help support local vendors! 

If you are interested in having a booth at the Bazaar and have not  reserved your space please call the SMS front office

All vendor fees go towards SMS’ Christmas for Kids progam.

October Upcoming Events

October 1-25: Box Top Turn In

October 12: PTSA Meeting 6:15pm in the Library

October 12 & 13: No School-Progress Reports

October 16-18: Outdoor School-Session 1

October 18-20: Outdoor School-Session 2

October 18: Choir Exchange Field Trip-GPHS

October 21: Honor Orchestra Auditions

October 25: Picture Retake Day

October 25: Box Top Turn In-Last Day

October 27: Fall Dodgeball Tournament

October 30: All District Strings Play-in, GPHS Main Gym at 7pm

November Upcoming Events

November 1 & 2: Parent/Teacher Conferences

November 3: No Classes

November 10: No School-Veterans Day Observed

November 22: No Classes-Progress Reports

November 23: No School-Thanksgiving Day

November 24: No School-Holiday

Do  you remember Hurricane Harvey and the impact it had on Houston? Well Bear Creek Elementary School from Houston wants us to help! The South and North Middle School Leadership classes are teaming up to put on a giant fundraiser for this school. We will be holding a supply drive October 16-20, with a list of items to donate daily. South Middle School will be holding a coin drive October 9-13 to see what grade will win, 6th, 7th or 8th.The coin drive will raise money because students will bring nickels,dimes,quarters and pennies. The grade who wins will be the grade that brought us the most coins so we can can possibly help them recover quicker and better.  Three hundred and fifty students and their families were affected. This does not include the 17 teachers that work at Bear Creek Elementary. So are you ready to change the lives of three hundred or more?

Download the Free APP
"We Are GP"
View news stories • View calendar info
View bell schedule •  View lunch menus
Access school and staff info   •  View bus routes & schedules

Congratulation to our Students of the Month!!!

September Students of the Month:

6th grade~Davis Ledesma and Garrison Gove

7th grade~Ethan Nelson and Penelope Buck

8th grade~Matthew Amell and Aurora White

 October Students of the Month:

6th grade~Olivia Wainscott and Nicole Gardner

7th grade~Parker Jarvis and Raegan Bruner

8th grade~Adam Jenson and Grace MacDonald-Clark

Campus Closet

125 Manzanita Ave, on the corner of 6th and Manzanita.

Campus Closet is a service sponsored by Grants Pass Council PTA. It serves all school age students from families with limited income or other emergency needs. It is located at the United Community Action Network building, on the corner of 6th and Manzanita, 125 Manzanita Ave. The facility is operated by parent and community volunteers and serves Grants Pass School District students enrolled in grades K-12. Sorry, no adults, preschoolers, or infants.

For questions, call Rebecca de Greyt at (541)956-4474.

Students are welcome to shop at Campus Closet two times per school year. An admit slip is required for each family each and every school year. Students may obtain an Admit Slip from their School’s Counseling Center or Front Office. All school age Students are welcome to shop at Campus Closet. The amount of clothing student’s receive per visit varies, due to stock on hand.

Hours are Tuesday-Thursday, 10am-12pm & 1pm-3pm,

with one Tuesday a month being open for longer hours. Those Tuesdays are:

March 6th, April 10th, and May 15th

Clothing drives are held at each of the District 7 schools on a yearly basis to stock the shelves at Campus Closet. The Closet also is grateful to receive clothing donations from students, teachers, community members and retailers throughout the year. Campus Closet also benefits from cash donations by our District 7 community, including payroll deductions by GPSD #7 employees, community organizations such as Kiwanis, Rotary and others, and the general public. With cash donations, Campus Closet is able to purchase brand new socks and underwear, of which two pair of each are given to each student when they shop at the Closet.

Campus Closet is organized by Mary Cardiff, and is powered by countless volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering with Campus Closet, please sign up with Volunteer Spot. Volunteer opportunities are available for sorting donations, washing, mending, hanging, folding, helping with drives, and working at the Campus Closet during our open shopping times.

YOU CAN HELP SOUTH MIDDLE SCHOOL EARN DONATIONS

JUST BY SHOPPING WITH YOUR FRED MEYER REWARDS CARD!

Fred Meyer is donating $2.5 million per year to non-profits in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington, based on where their customers tell them to give. Here’s how the program works:

·       Sign up for the Community Rewards program by linking your Fred Meyer Rewards Card to South Middle School at www.fredmeyer.com/communityrewards. You can search for us by our name or by our non-profit number

83257

·       Then, every time you shop and use your Rewards Card, you are helping   South Middle School earn a donation!

·       You still earn your Rewards Points, Fuel Points, and Rebates, just as you   do today.

·       If you do not have a Rewards Card, they are available at the Customer Service desk of any Fred Meyer store.

·       For more information, please visit www.fredmeyer.com/communityrewards.

If you shop on Amazon, please consider shopping AmazonSmile and earning money for South Middle School!

AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon that lets customers enjoy the same wide selection of products, low prices, and convenient shopping features as on Amazon.com. The difference is that when customers shop on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to the charitable organizations selected by customers.

Requirements to Participate

All 6th, 7th and 8th grade students interested in participating in Sports must have a sports physical BEFORE they can participate! Physicals are good for two years! Students are also required to provide insurance information EACH time they sign up for a sport. (This information is not kept on file).

There is a $75.00 participation fee for each sport up to two sports. There is a $150.00 cap; so if student participated in two sports, there is no cost for the third. Physical and insurance forms are available for pick up in the South Middle School Office or on our website athletic page. A couple of offices that offer physicals are:
Siskiyou CHC ($25)              Jo. Co. Health Dept. (every Wed. $25)