English Station Middle School

Special Jeans Day

Mr. Mounce — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 00:04:57 +0000

As many of you may know most of what I do each day is centered on overseeing the discipline in the Middle School. Now I am fully aware that most of the time your student(s) would prefer not to be called to my office. I understand that; it is just the nature of the job. But because they are, that means I am blessed to talk with your student(s) about the various aspects surrounding the choices they make. As well, this often provides me the opportunity to share with your student(s), from a biblical perspective, regarding those choices. There are two downsides to this part of my job. I end up only dealing with a small percentage of the student-body and I am continually responding to the negative issues.

In order to change things around, as it relates to those two areas, I want to offer a special jeans day to all students that did not receive a log entry during the 1^st quarter. They will have the opportunity to wear jeans on Tuesday, 12/16. The purpose is to reinforce the positive; those students not receiving log entries. The students will be given a coupon in homeroom this week that they will turn in, on the above date, to their HR teachers. As well, a list of those students will be given to each teacher.

There may be some concern from students that they were overlooked. Some may feel it is not fair for them to be excluded. Please know that we strive to be fair, consistent, and as accurate as possible. We have done a good job at this as it relates to consequences, on the other hand we have not done a good job as it relates to positive reinforcement; thus the special jeans day. Overall, your students do well in following the standards placed before them. You are to be congratulated and your students as well, for receiving this honor. Thank you for allowing us to partner with you in the education of your student(s).

Please note that your student(s) will again have the opportunity to participate in a special jeans day during the 3^rd and 4^th quarters of this school year.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…

Mrs. Thomas — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 22:38:18 +0000

Middle School is officially in the Christmas mood. Wow! The students outdid themselves in decorating homeroom doors in an International Christmas theme. Since adult participation would disqualify a room, homeroom teamwork was required of students to complete this project. Students had to select a country and decorate the door to communicate three Christmas traditions. Internet research and teamwork were needed to meet the objective within the short time frame allotted to decorating. Thank you, parents, for getting your students on campus for some early morning decorating. Thank you to our Middle School Student Council for sponsoring this seasonal activity. The winning homerooms, one on each hall, will receive ice cream treats next Tuesday.

Congratualtions to the following homeroom winners!

Mrs. Tapp Greece

Mrs. Cusick Australia

Mrs. Fornwalt Denmark

Mrs. McFarren Japan

We want Y.O.U. on the Academic Team!

Mrs. Hayes — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:41:43 +0000

Our Middle School Academic Team is seeking students that would like to compete and practice their academic skills in many subject areas. This club is great for students that enjoy competition and a challenge! Mrs. Cox and Mrs. Preston help with Math Counts, Quick Recall, and even the Governor’s Cup. Come on Wednesdays from 3:15-4:15 in order to practice skills that will prepare any student for the Duke Tip Talent Search and other academic achievement competitions! Mrs. Preston and Mrs. Cox make it fun and exciting to learn and grow with other students that want to push themselves a little further! We’d love to see you there!

The following link will give parents and students more detailed information on Governor’s Cup competitions that the Academic Team will be participating in this year: http://www.kaac.com/govcup/index.html. The MathCOUNTS competition will be held on February 28th at the University of Louisville.

You can also e-mail Mrs. Cox (lcox@christianacademyschools.org) or Mrs. Preston (mpreston@christianacademyschools.org) with any questions or comments.

Operation Christmas Child

Mrs. Thomas — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:55:53 +0000

I had the privilege of helping to distribute Operation Christmas Child boxes in Bosnia. What a joy it was to watch the children receive these gifts. We will collect the boxes on Wednesday, November 19, and they will be presented during Chapel on Thursday. The cost of a box is $7 and guidelines for gifts can be found on the form. Operation Christmas Child forms may be downloaded for your convience.

Middle School Spirit Week

Mrs. Thomas — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:55:12 +0000

What a week (November 18-21) we have in store! You may download the Spirit Week Flyer which has detailed information and was sent home a couple of weeks ago.

Tuesday – Crayola Day: Choose one color or wear as many colors as you can. If you are going to wear tights (on any day) remember that knee length shorts or skirts are to be worn over tights.

Wednesday – Holi-Day Dress as your favorite holiday! You may wear holiday colors or dress as a character associated with a holiday.

Thursday – CAL Spirit Day Show your CAL pride! Wear any CAL logo clothing.

Friday – Decades Day Any decade will do! Choose a decade and dress modestly.

Emergency Alert System

Mrs. Thomas — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:54:34 +0000

Please register for Christian Academy’s new emergency alert system, which can send you a text/email alert instantly in the event of an emergency or school closing. The registration process takes five minutes. Instructions are posted on the registration site: http://alerts.christianacademytech.org

Abuse Awareness Program

Mrs. Hayes — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 14:06:46 +0000

This afternoon, an e-mail was sent out to all 6th grade parents to inform you of the schedule for the Abuse Awareness Program that is given to Elementary, Middle, and High School students each year by their respective School Counselors. In 2006 the Christian Academy School Board mandated this presentation be made each year in order to educate students on child abuse. The Abuse Awareness Powerpoint briefly discusses this growing challenge in our current culture. I will be visiting 6th grade Bible classes on the following dates:

Mrs. Furnas: November 17th

Mrs. Jordan: December 1st

Mrs. Paschal: December 5th

A useful link that parents can use to research sex offenders in your area is the National Sex Offender Registry found at http://www.familywatchdog.us/.

As always, if you have any questions regarding this presentation, please call or e-mail me!

Honesty

Mrs. Thomas — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 14:59:04 +0000

Honesty-seven letters of the alphabet create a word with enormous meaning.

Honesty-a small word with a powerful punch.

Honesty + Truthfulness = the way to live life.

Honesty is our character theme for the second quarter. Our Chapel speaker, Josh Cooper, last Thursday gave us a powerful challenge with this simple word… Honesty. When students make a mistake and are in the office with Mr. Mounce or me, it takes much courage for them to admit their wrongdoing. We believe that when students make mistakes, admit them, and serve the consequence, they deserve a fresh start or a new beginning. Each student deserves a chance for a fresh start.

“God has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8

I encourage you to join me in adapting this as a life verse. If, as adults, we model justice, forgiveness, and humility, then our children are empowered to adopt these principles in their lives. What a powerful impact our students, your children, can have!

Supporting Our Troops

Mrs. Thomas — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:43:52 +0000

In preparation for our annual Veteran’s Day Chapel, to be held on Thursday, November 6, we would like to prepare military boxes for troops stationed in the Middle East. We have adopted two soldiers and their units that have direct connections to our CAL family, and we need your help filling the boxes! The first is LTC James Campbell and his unit, the Farah Provincial Reconstruction Team. His daughter is in the 8^th grade. The other soldier is SSG Eric Cowin. 1st Infantry Division, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment! Wow what a mouth full!! His sister is Mrs. Marsh, a 7^th grade teacher.

Because of the overwhelming amount of supplies we received last year for our military boxes, we ask that each family only send in one item from the list. Please do not send in items in bulk. We are only able to send a limited number of boxes, and we always seem to have more than enough items to fill them! Here is a list of the items we’d like to collect:

AAA and AA Batteries
White Athletic Socks
Music CDs
Books
Candy and Gum
Kool Aid (sweetened powder) or Gatorade mix
Cheez-Its / Ritz Bits / Saltine Crackers
Baby Wipes and Hygiene gear
Carmex / chapstick
Ramen Noodles / cup o noodles
Cracker Jacks
Letter Writing Supplies
Rice Krispy treats
Pringles
Beef jerky

All items should be given to your child’s homeroom teacher by Friday, October 24. We’d like to assemble the boxes in homeroom by October 30. Thank you to the Student Council, Mrs. Peggy Preston, and Mrs. Laura McFarren for overseeing this project. Please be sure to visit the middle school blog site (esms.christianacademywebs.org) for information on including your military service family members in our special Veteran’s Day Chapel. We want your participation!

Life is fragile. Life is a miracle.

Mrs. Thomas — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 18:54:12 +0000

Do you remember when you brought that tiny baby home from the hospital? Do you remember how fragile your child felt when you gave that first bath? Life is fragile and life is a miracle was the theme of my testimony that I shared with students in Chapel last week. You never know for sure what students will take away from a Chapel speaker, but I am prayerful they heard why I value each one of them. I know that your middle school student is far from the tiny baby you brought home from the hospital, but your middle school child is just as fragile. Yes, I view the students as fragile miracles. Think of your child as fine crystal or china, so fragile that it cracks and breaks easily. The words said to a middle level student have the potential to send tiny cracks into the inner core of their being. Words said in anger or haste are often never forgotten; neither are words said by friends or classmates who are “just kidding.”

Tuesday, October 14, students will be divided into gender groups during homeroom to continue the discussion based on Frank Peretti’s book, “The Wounded Spirit.” The topic will be “Got Worth?” and the discussion will center on Psalm 139 and how God loves us and is always watching over us. My prayer for our students is that they will find their value in God and for them to know that they are created in His image with a purpose to bring Him glory in everything they do or attempt to do.

Thank you for letting me spend my days with your children.