Update for December 15-12

Staff Party - Thanks Heidi and Mary + Thanks to those who were able to attend!

Big thanks to Heidi and Mary for their work to organize our staff party on Friday. It was great to see so many staff members together celebrating. It was also nice to meet the spouses/partners of our staff members. From the sounds of the veteran staff members, we did a great job of representing JMS as we celebrated:) 

Spirit Week

Spirit week is this week. As we prepare for the upcoming break let's go out with a little dress up fun!. 

The days are as follows: 

• Monday 15th – Pajama Day 

• Tuesday 16th – Christmas Colors Day 

• Wednesday 17th – Hawaiian Day 

• Thursday 18th – Christmas Hats, Headbands, and Socks Day

• Friday 19th – Ugly Sweater Day 

Fill the Bus Food Drive

We only have 5 more days to fill the bus. Please try to pump up this initiative!

JMS Athletics Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball, and Wrestling

JMS Athletics - Boys Basketball & Girls Basketball

Boys Basketball

• Last games of the boys basketball season are today. We have JV teams playing at home today and we have our Varsity teams taking on Sacajawea at LHS. Games start at 5:30 for grade 7 and 6:45 for grade 8. This will be a special event for both schools playing at LHS! 

Girls Basketball

• Before we head to Christmas Break, we will have open gym nights for girls basketball on Tuesday, December 16th, Wednesday, December 17th, and Thursday, December 18th from 3:00-4:30. The objective is for students to come and shoot around and have some fun before the season officially begins. 

Feedback from Fire Drill

There was no feedback entered in our : Fire Drill Feedback

• Teams did share that there has been positive improvements to the process, however behavior is still an issue for many. 

  • Recommendation for teams to practice leading their students to their muster points as well as practicing returning from these locations. 

Vector Solutions Training

We have checked off those staff members who have shared their certificates of completion for vector training. Please review our list and let Aaron know if you have completed the training and not submitted the certificate. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w3gehqFRmLei5iKq0D9ZKPFoeYAx318a3121AbpZi3U/edit?gid=0#gid=0 

December Book Club!!!! - From Kinsey

Just a reminder about Friday 😊**YOU DO NOT HAVE TO PARTICIPATE TO COME HAVE A GOOD TIME!!**

December 19th: Blind Date with a Book! It was requested to do this twice a year, and what better time to do it than right before break so you can "escape" over break!! Cover up that book and put a teaser on the front. Thrift or regift a favorite to share some great reads! If you're panicking about this-reach out to Desirae!!! She has these already done and ready for you 😎

We also talked about bringing holiday treat/snack/candy (think holiday chocolates you can get, candy canes, etc.) to bring and create candy bags to take home. I will bring some baggies for everyone 😊 TOTALLY optional!!!!

Excited to see what additional book will be added to my TBR list Friday 📚 As usual, we will meet at The Villa (they have soda and mocktails as well!!!) as soon as you tape your check out sheet on your classroom door or turn in your timesheet to Brandee!!! 🌟

Mid-Year Feedback for Leadership

Attached are the mid-year feedback forms for our Leadership team. Mr. DeLane, Mr. Aldous, and Mr. Miller all have forms attached to collect feedback from our staff. Your feedback is needed to help us grow and develop in our roles. Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback!

Update for December 8-12

We had a busy first week of December with an awesome turnout for our boys basketball game on Tuesday. Lots of credit goes to our WEB coordinators for organizing the event for our grades 6 and 8 WEB students. We also had another successful professional development day led by Justin. Thanks to all the teams for their effort to continue to improve our PLC process by developing units based on guidance from the 15 Day Challenge. I heard very positive feedback from our Social Studies team from their time with the Social Studies Curriculum Committee. Lastly, we had our Drama Club perform Murder on the 518 on Friday and Saturday. Great job to Trace Steele for his work in this production. We are lucky to have him as our drama coach!

This week will be busy as well! Our Fill the Bus project starts on Monday. We have games here at Jenifer on Tuesday and Thursday. We have Dept Meetings scheduled for Wednesday. And we have our staff part on Friday!

Please make sure you welcome back Mr. Norwood and Mrs. Lumley when you have a chance. It's great to have them back. 

Drama Club's Dinner Theater - Murder on the 518

Congratulations to our Drama Club Students and Trace Stelle the Drama Club Coach for their performances over the weekend! Students did a great job! 

We will have another performance in the Spring. More information to come! 

ELA Team - Spelling Bee Update

Reminder to our ELA team that class spelling bees need to be completed before we go on Christmas break. The school spelling bee will take place next year on Monday, January 12, 2026 so winners can be shared by Thursday, January 15, 2026.

ELA Team & Social Studies Team

Please have a look and at the "Americanism Essay" competition and share with students. 

Vector Solutions Training

We have checked off those staff members who have shared their certificates of completion for vector training. Please review our list and let Aaron know if you have completed the training and not submitted the certificate. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w3gehqFRmLei5iKq0D9ZKPFoeYAx318a3121AbpZi3U/edit?gid=0#gid=0 

What would you like to teach next year?

Please complete the teaching preferences form attached below for the 2026-2027 school year. When completing the form, assume that are structure is the same as this year for next year. 

• Form - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSef1FJC_IUnhDQQgWw9AhpKQ4gzRuNq17z_Dj-LG21E2hXdyA/viewform 

Staff Party - Please mark your calendar for 12-12

JMS staff will have the annual staff party at Orchards Lanes on Friday, December 12 from 4:00-6:00.

• All staff members are invited to attend. 

• Please complete this Google Form as your RSVP. This will give us a headcount for how many pizzas to purchase and about how many bowling lanes we will need. 

Fire Drill on Tuesday, December 9th at 1:00

Our last fire drill for 2025 will be towards the end of 1:00. This is one of our highest transition times as grade 8 comes back from lunch and grade 7 transitions to core classes. Please add your feedback to our feedback doc: Fire Drill Feedback

• Grade 6 has been trained to use the wheel chairs and fire stair chair. Big thanks to our Lewiston Fire Dept for training our team! 

Christmas Spirit message from Quinn

I.                   Winter Spirit Week – 15th – 19th

a.      Door Decorations – Volunteer in class – You can start your door decoration anytime – Judged on Wednesday, 19th

• Best 3 - 5 Doors will get a Donut Party.

b.      Dress Up Days

Monday 15th – Pajama Day

Tuesday 16th – Christmas Colors Day

Wed       17th – Hawaiian Day

Thurs.    18th – Christmas Hats, Headbands, and Socks Day

Fri.         19th – Ugly Sweater Day

c.       Pep Assembly – Gym on Friday 19th @ 2:10

d.      Make posters with Dress Up Days on the poster

II.                Canned Food Drive – December 8th – Dec 19th.

1. We must go back and promote this in our classrooms.

2. Make Posters

• The classroom that brings in the most food items will receive their choice of a donut or pizza party after the break. To be eligible your class must bring in at least 200 canned food items.

• The classes that bring in the 2nd most food items will receive a class Donut Party. To be eligible your class must bring in at least 200 canned food items.   

• Teachers will turn in their canned food count to the office every day to be counted.

III.                Grade Competition – During Spirit Week

The Grade competition will be based on 3 things.

1. You get points for Best Door

2. You get 1 point for your grade per can of food you bring in. There is a can count board on the bulletin board as you enter the school.

3. Class Competition winners at the Christmas Assembly on Friday, 20th
   
   ***Our Goal, The Challenge - The goal is to have every classroom bring in at least 200 canned food items and 4,000 cans of food. 

Students of the Month - november

Attached are the students of the month for November. Thank you for completing these on time so they can be announced. Congratulations to these great students!

Update for December 1-5

Thanksgiving Break

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving break and had time to rest, relax, and recharge. My wife's mom was with us for Thanksgiving and will be here till next week. It's great for our kids to be able to spend time with their grandparents. This was a lot harder to do when we lived overseas. 

Drama Club's Dinner Theater - 12/5 & 12/6 - 6:00-8:00

Please consider attending one of the performances for the Drama Club's Dinner Theater. The production is Murder on the 518 at the shows are this Friday and Saturday. Entry is $5 for adults and students with a discount for seniors at $3. 

ELA Team - Spelling Bee Update

Reminder to our ELA team that class spelling bees need to be completed before we go on Christmas break. The school spelling bee will take place next year on Monday, January 12, 2026 so winners can be shared by Thursday, January 15, 2026.

ELA Team & Social Studies Team

Please have a look and at the "Americanism Essay" competition and share with students. 

Vector Solutions Training

We have checked off those staff members who have shared their certificates of completion for vector training. Please review our list and let Aaron know if you have completed the training and not submitted the certificate. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w3gehqFRmLei5iKq0D9ZKPFoeYAx318a3121AbpZi3U/edit?gid=0#gid=0 

November students of the month

Please complete the students of the month form for November. Student of the Month Form

Reminder that when you complete the explanation/description for nomination, these are used in letters home to parents. 

What would you like to teach next year?

Please complete the teaching preferences form attached below for the 2026-2027 school year. When completing the form, assume that are structure is the same as this year for next year. 

• Form - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSef1FJC_IUnhDQQgWw9AhpKQ4gzRuNq17z_Dj-LG21E2hXdyA/viewform 

Staff Party - Please mark your calendar for 12-12

JMS staff will have the annual staff party at Orchards Lanes on Friday, December 12 from 4:00-6:00.

• All staff members are invited to attend. 

Congratulations Turkey Winners. 

Turkey in your Pocket

Thanks for playing the "Turkey in your Pocket" game. It's a fun way to head into Thanksgiving break and potentially get some great prizes! Not pictured: Mrs. Kadau and Mrs. Young. Maybe next year a grade 7 teacher or an elective teacher can get into the winner pool!

Spelling Bee - Complete this month

Dear ELA Teachers,

It is that time of year to begin our spelling bee competition! The timeline is a bit different than last year.  You need to have a winner from your classes finalized before we go on Christmas Break on December 19th. 

The school spelling bee will take place next year on Monday, January 12, 2026 so winners can be shared by Thursday, January 15, 2026.

This year I have our parents from our parent advisory board helping the school spelling bee, if you are interested or know someone else in the community that would be interested in also helping, please let me know.

Please see the email from Aaron on Friday, November 14th that has the spelling bee class competition lists.  

Attendance Blitz Update

Key question: Does an attendance blitz actually improve student attendance? 

Some points to consider when it comes to student attendance:

1. We have more students at JMS this year as compared to last year. 

2. We did not have a school wide positive recognition system for attendance at the start of last year. However, Lori and Amanda have worked to create monthly recognition badges that we started in September. We have also added a bulletin board for perfect attendance recognition right outside the main office that is updated each month. Additionally, we select 1 student per grade level with perfect attendance to receive a prize of free movie passes. 

3. We had grade level assemblies where admin discussed the attendance blitz and retaught expectations for attendance and consequences for poor attendance. 

So what?

• Our attendance actually was 2.5% better during the last week of the attendance blitz compared to last year during the same week. 

• Our attendance is currently the best compared to other secondary schools in Lewiston. 

• Our attendance is 1% better at this point in the year as compared to last year.

• What are you currently doing as a classroom teacher to improve attendance or what incentives/initiatives are you or your team doing that admin may not know about?

Ok... but who get's donuts? 

• The advisory class with the best attendance per grade level gets the donuts. You'll get donuts tomorrow before the Thanksgiving Break. 

NAEP Assessment Update 

We will conduct NAEP Tests this year in grade 8

• NAEP reps have confirmed Friday, March 3. 

• NAEP assessments take 2 hours and they usually pull 50 students for the assessment.