January 16, 2016
Spelling Bee Crowns a new Champ for 2016 
Emma Chau  2016 Spelling Bee Winner
Katie Hearst and Emma Chau

Sixth grader Emma Chau won our School Spelling Bee on Wednesday, January 13 when in the 13th round, she correctly spelled the word "vainglorious" v a i n g l o r i o u s!  Emma will go on to compete in the Ventura County Bee next month, and hopefully on to Washington, DC from there!  Katie Hearst, 7th grade, came in second place.  Congratulations to both students.  Good luck to Emma at County. 
ASB Upcoming Events
Dear Parents and Faculty at MCMS,

I hope everyone had a fantastic winter break and a great New Year! Recently we had our second quarter dance, and it was extremely successful. About 450 students attended, and we hope to see more at our final dance of the year, coming up in April. ASB (Associated Student Body) is planning many events for Valentine's Day to bring the school community together. There will be Valentine's Day grams sold from February 3rd to the 10th and passed out on the 11th. All of the MCMS intramural teams successfully beat Lindero in sports such as soccer and football, and we hope to beat them in other sports too. An event called "Jellybean Jumble" is coming up, in which students will guess the amount of jellybeans in a jar, and the person who guesses the closest or correct amount will win the jar of jellybeans! Currently, we have been trying to plan getting a special speaker to come to Medea and speak to the students about being better people. There will be events every other Friday on the stage at lunch where student can play games to compete for a prize. We are trying to make the announcements more fun by allowing staff to participate in them. I really do hope all the students are having a great time on campus and will have an amazing second half of the year.

Sincerely,
Beck Schlatter
MCMS 2015-16 ASB President
Notes from the Office
How to know when your child is "STAY AT HOME" sick  
  • A morning temperature of 99.0 degrees or greater
  • Fever-free for 24 hours before returning to school
  • Vomit-free for 24 hours before returning to school
  • When your child has diarrhea
  • Severe coughing, green nasal discharge or severe earaches
  • Severe sore throat with trouble swallowing
With the flu season fast approaching please follow these simple tips to help your child stay healthy. Hand washing is the easiest and most effective way to prevent germs from spreading. Keeping your sick child home will help prevent the spread of illness to teachers and other students.
 
Friendly reminders from the office:
  • Be sure to call the attendance line for every day that your student is absent: 818.597.4261
  • Homework requests can be made through the office attendance line after 3 consecutive days of illness
  • If you are requesting homework directly through your teacher you do not need to request through the office as well
  • Items from the lockers and homework can be retrieved before or after school, not during
  • If it is absolutely necessary to come on campus during the school day you MUST sign in at the office
Are you a STEAM Professional?

STEAM Professionals Needed  
We are recruiting STEAM professionals to be guest speakers for the STEAM Career Exploration night. Would you be willing to share your experience with students in middle and high school? If you are interested please complete this survey. Our hope is to represent a wide range of STEAM careers, and careers that require STEAM skills and attributes.
Ability Awareness Fair - Volunteers Needed
The Ability Awareness Fair will be held at MCMS on February 9th and 10th, 2016. Volunteers are needed to help coordinate 7th grade students as they move through the different stations. This wonderful hands-on event gives our children an opportunity to experience the challenges that individuals with special needs or learning disabilities meet every day. The activities students participate in help them understand the different ways these individuals overcome some of their limitations and how challenging that can be.

You can sign up to volunteer online by clicking here or email Darla Christensen at darlachristensen@hotmail.com.
A Message to the 8th Grade Parents
All 8th graders have received information about the evening of Thursday, January 21st.  Here is a reminder!

Medea Creek Middle School is proud to host,  Kaiser Permanente's Educational 2016 Theater Program, Someone Like Me. The performance uses theater, comedy and music to reach out to students and let them know that they are not alone during the sometimes difficult and confusing adolescent years. Through frank skits, the performers help students to make healthy choices (mind and body) in order to avoid drugs and alcohol, deal with negative peer pressure, evaluate friendships, build self-esteem and communicate with adults about health issues.  

This year, Kaiser's Educational Theatre Group will be at MCMS on Thursday, January 21st from 6:00-7:30 p.m. in the gym. We are inviting all 8th grade students with their parent(s) to attend this unique opportunity to learn together, share and dialogue about crucial issues facing our adolescents. After the performance we will have some debrief time with the show's actors and our Medea Creek counselors.  Upon conclusion of these events, there will be a paper given out at to be submitted to the science teacher to earn extra credit science points available for each 8th grade student who attends with their parent.  In addition, the Director of the production has selected us for a special focus group discussion (about 30 minutes) with him after the show-one adult group and one student group.  

We are grateful to host this outstanding event and share it with you.  Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at 818 707-7922.

Amanda Bagheri
Assistant Principal
Do you Recognize any of these Glasses? 

We have a huge collection of prescription eye glasses in our Lost and Found. If you recognize any of these glasses please ask your student to come and collect their's at the Student Window. All glasses not picked up by February 5th with be donated.  
Save the Dates
  • 1/18               -   No School - Martin Luther King Holiday 

  • 1/21               -   "Someone Like Me" Assembly for 8th Graders 6-7:30 pm 

  • 2/4                 -   PFA Meeting in the Staff Lounge at 8:30 am 
  • 2/6                 -   SUPER SATURDAY - Sustainability Fair and Recycling Drive
  • 2/9-10            -   Ability Awareness Fair 
  • 2/12               -   No School - Pupil Free Day
  • 2/15               -   No School - President's Day Holiday
  • 2/17               -   Demonstration Day for Gate Parents 
  • 2/18               -   STEAM Career Night in the MCMS GYM 7pm - 9pm
  • 2/22               -   Future Freshman Night at OPHS 6pm
  • 2/23-24          -   Hoops for Heart 
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