Veterans Day, 2015, Guest Authors

Two Guest Authors in RED Included in This

Winfield Middle School Parent Blog

November 9th, 2015

PBiS 1st Quarter Data - Updated With October Data

Below is an unsolicited post from a guest blogger, delivered to Mr. McCracken and reproduced here for your contemplation.

This 6th grader does a wonderful job articulating the phrase, “Hurt people, hurt people;” a reminder that some people hurt others because they themselves are hurting.

Student Author: Pennies and Dimes

Dear Mr. McCracken,

On Monday, my sister asked if a dime costs more why is a penny bigger?” That night I couldn’t sleep a wink because I was thinking about a lesson that I could use that phrase on. Here it is, “Say a bully is the penny, and a dime is the victim. The penny is bigger and stronger while the dime is smaller. A bully approaches you and instantly picks on you and you decide to stay calm and ignore it. The bully is still picking on you, he's in your face, calling you names and you show no offense to anything that he says. Eventually the bully will stop, and when he does, he's still bigger but he knows he's only won the battle, not the war. The second that the bully stops is when you've won the war and the bully knows it. So after you've won the war, he is still bigger but he feels less worth it. Now the bully feels like he's only worth one penny. But on the other hand, the dime is happy, he's still smaller but he feels like a hero. He knows he's won so he feels like 10 cents. That is my student lesson today, I hope you've enjoyed it.

Student EW

Winfield Middle School

PBiS

Still keeping tabs on our PBiS data, a full month shows a slight increase. The fresh perspective of the Warrior Way Store and the Spirit Sticks are a big hit with social or relational capital and The Mix Bucks and McCracken Money seem to be effective motivators. We purposely keep the students guessing on who might really be winning to maintain the excitement. Students gather the tickets and redeem (spend) them in the Warrior Way Store, held in the library periodically. Pink or Purple is catching on at the Middle School.

Daylight Savings Time

It does take a few days to adjust to the time change. Even the “additional” hour seems like a benefit but the body does have to adjust. Here are some pointers to review for fun. Maybe I should have sent them out last week?  

Monday - 11/9

Ms. Mix is at a Counselor's Conference Monday and Tuesday.

Basketball just about every night this week, both boys and girls, 7th and 8th grade!

See Brackets for Tourney Play  -   

Elsberry 8th Grade Tournament   

Monday -      Girls at 4:00 - Boys at 5:15

Wednesday- Girls at 6:30 - Boys at 7:45

Thursday - TBD

Winfield 7th Grade Tournament

Tuesday -  Girls at 6:30 - Boys at 7:45

Wednesday- Girls at 6:30 - Boys at 7:45

Thursday -  Girls at 4:00 - Boys at 5:15

Tuesday - 11/10

Fundraiser Orders delivered to the Middle School at the end of the school day to the cafeteria.

Wednesday - 11/11

Veterans Day - A bit different this year. Breakfast first followed by pictures and then the ceremony.

8:00 AM Breakfast at the Middle School - guests expected - registration requested.

Student Author: Tribute

The people before you are risk takers

They are freedom fighters

They spend parts of their career watching the borders

With their bravery and courage

We’ve learned to value freedom,

Something we shall never forget

Is the protection you gave us.

Matthew Bates

8th Grade Winfield Middle School

Thursday - 11/12

AGENDA: www.breakdownstl.org

7th and 8th graders and their teachers will attend a Safe Choices presentation at the High School. There is an opt out sheet. We have published it on the web and parents may access via this link.

Friday - 11/13

Saturday - 11/14

Opening Day in Missouri

Upcoming

11/17 Limousine Rides for the top 30 fundraisers. They will head to Pizza Hut in Troy for lunch that day. We have so many, it will take two trips to get everybody there and back! Well done. Thanks for supporting our school with your purchases.

11/17  Board of Education Meeting at 6:30pm

11/18 Junior Achievement will briefly be spotlighted during the November 18th Professional Development  time with teachers and staff. Teachers will then receive additional training  in using a new assessment tool called “eValuate.” This program has garnered support among educators across the country with its unequaled track record of helping students strengthen their skills. Here’s a link, if you would like to know more.  

11/19 - ELA and Social Studies may meet for collaboration.

Professional Development

Why do some people start another project before they finish the one they are working on? How can others stay with a single project to its conclusion? To gain another perspective, similar to a personality test, we heard about an analysis of individual work modes called a Kolbe Index.

Concluding Remarks

Watching this staff work together, helping the students learn respect, academics, responsibility and how safety is more than just a nice term, inspires and motivates us in the front office to do our very best. We strive to articulate goals, reach those benchmarks and then celebrate those successes, all while maintaining a positive and happy attitude. Last week, we discussed at lunch how being happy was not the goal. We theorized being happy was our frame of mind or state of being along the way to our goals.

Mr. McCracken

Principal

Winfield Middle School

Newsworthy: Winfield Middle School Parents

Red Ribbon Wrap Up

Winfield Middle School Parent Blog

November 2, 2015

HEADLINE NEWS WORTHY INFORMATION:  SCHOOL WIDE DISCIPLINE MUCH IMPROVED

Winfield Middle School is striving to be that school.  Thanks to so many for such great growth.

PBiS Report

One component of education is behavior.  Teachers consider behavior and the time students are actually in class as important and necessary to establish routines, accountability and habits leading to present and future success. To measure and assess progress, we take data points frequently and regularly. The above chart provides some evidence of the current state at Winfield Middle School.  As we shared with our Board of Education, the purple bars in the figure above actually shows great improvement and success regarding student behavior.  Following the Warrior Way, building student social capital, Mix Bucks and McCracken Money could all be factors. Parental support, community involvement and extracurricular activities are also contributing factors. Regardless of the influence, we commend the students for their attitudes, behaviors and willingness to participate in their education by choosing to be in the right place at the right time with the right people doing the right thing.

Middle School Building Guests

We frequently host guests in the building taking tours, visiting, and checking on how we do things here. Comments vary, but guests’ observations are predominantly positive and encouraging. Substitutes remark about the attitudes of both staff and students. Others appreciate the orderliness and volume in the hallways. Even our PBiS representative from Jefferson City noted our Safety Survey Results and also that the PBIS Data reflected a definite positive trend. Again, thanks for working so hard to make us ‘that’ school, in “that” town, in “that” county! We are on that path but could not do it without everyone's support.

Meet some of our Middle School Staff:

Did you know this about Kenneth Higgins?

Or Courtney Harmon?

Practicing the photobomb during CRAZY DAY, Winfield Middle School Staff can’t help but smile at the mention of their students.  Even their best “straight face” shows smile in the eyes!  Well done, Ms. Harmon and Mr. Higgins.

Routines:

We intend to maintain routines for a few weeks before the Holidays.  Basketball season, Progress Reports, and even deer season are on the minds of many of us. Even so, let’s rally and focus on the future by focusing on the actions we complete today.  Healthy habits, procedures and follow-through are vital at this stage of the school year for strengthening student connections and adolescent development. Thanks for all you do.

WEEKLY SCHEDULE:

Monday - 11/2

PROGRESS REPORTS and BREAKDOWN STL Flyer being sent home with students today as well as emailing through the SIS Parent Portal.

Basketball practice continues.

Tuesday - 11/3

Election Day.  Be sure to take part in the political process.

Wednesday - 11/4 - Early Release -

Teachers participate in Professional Development.

Thursday - 11/5

Our first set of Basketball Games is tonight as we open against our county rival, Elsberry.  

Boys at home and Girls away!  Talk with the players and take in a game or two throughout our short but fun season.

Friday - 11/6

Our basketball team hosts Van Far is slated to host the 7th graders tonight.

Saturday - 11/7

Upcoming events and details are ALL available here on the district maintained EVENT CALENDAR!

Next Week:

11/11 Veterans Day - A bit different this year. Breakfast first followed by pictures and then the ceremony.

11/12 Breakdownstl.org for 7th and 8th graders in the AM. Here is an opt out sheet if you wish for your student to skip the event.

We have published it on the WEB and parents are allowed access via this link

Conclusion

Last Friday, the 30th, PBiS celebrated students and their efforts in academics, behavior and attendance all together hosting a special event.. Reaching this mark takes discipline, diligence and extra efforts.  Students reaching benchmarks were treated to a movie with some even earning a sno-cone.  Special thanks to the students for working so hard and the teachers for attending to all the details to make that happen and parents for supporting their efforts at home.

After the movie, students ate lunch. We spent the afternoon watching an exhibition basketball scrimmage among the 7th and 8th graders, with the AC LAB Challenge ending the school day.  Concluding the day’s activities was a COSTUME CELEBRATION.  Be sure and see our facebook site for some fun pics.

Some are reading a book titled The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor.  The book claims happiness is before success and if we wait for the right amount of success, we will never be happy.  As perpetual learners, we are wondering how this fits into the middle school setting. Does it mean we must be happy, regardless of our circumstances? Does it mean we put our heads in the sand and ignore problems?  Does it mean we build our success on happiness or build our happiness on success?  We are not quite sure of all the applications but we are having fun exploring happiness.

Honored and grateful,

Tom McCracken

Winfield Middle School Principal

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Red Ribbon Week Oct 26-30

Winfield Middle School

RED RIBBON WEEK

Oct 26-30th

At the Half Price Books store in Chesterfield, chill-axing with a free cup of coffee, a few good books and an hour to invest, the writing and creating process flowed freely. Those chairs look just like our library's. (Nice touch, Mrs. Emily Hines!) The free coffee satisfied a late night caffeine urge and the wireless was hyper-fast. Google Docs worked like it was on my own hard drive, making for a truly refreshing evening!

Celebrations

This week at Winfield Middle School there were multiple reasons for celebration. Student behavior has been adhering to the Warrior Way, doing the right thing at the right time with the right people. They were apparently excited to be back at school on Wednesday after their five day Fall Break. They seemed to miss their friends here at school. Emotional Intelligence was tested and pushed to the limits for many of them but they endured the distraction of a three day week and did a great job.

Emotional Intelligence

Current research in education ties positive correlations between student emotional intelligence and success at school. (Emotional intelligence includes three basic skills: identifying what you are feeling, identifying what others are feeling, and finally, being able to manage your own feelings in a productive and helpful way.) Students who address their emotions in healthy ways, understand the emotions of others and process the outcomes are better able to strengthen connections and facilitate learning and efforts. 

Here's Mrs. Gracey, proud to attend Winfield High School’s National High School Honor Society celebration and reminding us all to persist.

As 7th grader Drew Songer put on a poster recently, "When you feel like quitting, remember why you started!"  

So simple but so profound.  

Seeing success in others drove many of us into education.

Now, we are hooked.

See our Counselor's Corner at...

RED RIBBON WEEK

DAILY DETAILS

Here is the schedule in graphic form as well as the written details below.

Monday: 10/26 - Shade out Drugs (Shades and Hats)

www.cridercenter.com has presented to the 6th and 7th grades, and will now present in Mr. Ross' Room - Mon, Tues and Weds of this week.

Basketball practices continue: girl's early, boys late

Tuesday: 10/27 -  Too Bright for Drugs (Bright Neon)

Wednesday: 10/28 - Join the Fight Against Drugs (Military or Camo)

Thursday: 10/29 - Wild About Being Drug Free (Wacky Hair/Dress)

Friday: 10/30 - Team Up Against Drugs (Sports Teams / Class Color)

ASSIGNMENT NOTE:Teachers will compile Progress Reports this weekend and will need all student work submitted prior. Please ensure your students have all their work completed and turned in for maximum credit.

AC LAB Dodgeball Tourney for 7th and 8th hours - Mr. Daugherty's AC LAB will host this in-school event.

After school, a Costume Social in our Cafe will be hosted by members of the Winfield Middle School Honor Society. Student costumes are expected at the party but not required. However, they are not to be worn during the school day.  Students may change into their costumes after the Dodgeball Tournament at school, and then attend the event from 3-5pm. Students should be picked up at school at the end of the event.

Upcoming events for your radar:

Nov 11 - Veterans Assembly will be held in the MIDDLE SCHOOL Gym after a breakfast for VETERANS and student guests. Please RSVP to let us know of a potential meal count. At the Middle School, we enjoy honoring the VETERANS from our community on this special day through an assembly and meal. We are proud to host this annual event at the Middle School and feel our minor act of gratitude is a small token of appreciation. The events and proceedings of the day are always special and typically appreciated by those VETERANS who have attended in the past. Feel free to call for additional details as well.

Nov 12 - Breakdown St Louis will present at our High School in the morning for 7th and 8th graders. This contemporary assembly, coming from local students, shares an inspiring message of self-advocacy, empathy and healthy peer relationships. The high school students will attend first, then the 7th and 8th graders will be shuttled over to attend a second presentation. See their website for additional details and follow them on twitter.

Nov 17 - Our FALL FUNDRAISING EVENT was so successful at the Middle School and so many students earned a PIZZA HUT LIMO PARTY, the 22 passenger limo will need to travel to Troy in two shifts. Additional details and permission slips will follow.

TBD - DART 6th Grade Survey

TBD - Preferred Family Health Conference: bringing area agencies together at one time, in one location, to inform our community of available resources

Progress Reports

Current settings in our online student grade book, SIS, allow our grades to tally cumulatively since August. Term 2 is an extension or continuation of the Term 1 grade. It does NOT average or start over, but adds to the previous scores, presenting a single, overall grade. Parents view the overall grade on the emailed report cards and individual reports still remain available through the parent portal.

Conclusion

Thank you for the support and care of our students. This fall and Halloween season can lead students to take unnecessary risks. Encourage them to make good choices and do the right thing.

Remember: The Warrior Way focus encourages and fosters desired behaviors rather than punishment and giving attention to bad behavior. It’s not a big difference but the results are 
amazing!

Thanks

Tom McCracken

Winfield Middle School

email to:  tommccracken@winfield.k12.mo.us

On Twitter: @mccracken63

Facebook: Middle School facebook