News from Elkins Pointe Middle School Edition 2013-2014 Issue 17

January 24, 2014

Hello Titans!

We've had a great week here at EPMS, starting off on Monday with our Hands on Atlanta event. We had over 100 volunteers at the school, for organizations such as Lexus Nexus, Georgia Perimeter College, the Boy Scouts, Roswell Rotary Interact Club, and more. The group was able to get lots of work done, including improvements to our Nature Trail, Science Labs on 7th grade, Picnic Table Area, and Hallways. We are so thankful for everyone's contribution.

This week at EPMS

Celebrations:

Congratulations to Harshita Yepuri, who won first place in the State Nengajyo, Japanese New Year's Card Contest. The winning cards are posted at https://sites.google.com/site/gatjweb/home/award. Take a look!
Congratulations to our On Pointe Students for their recent graduation from 8th grade, as well as the article in the Alpharetta-Roswell Revue & News on January 23rd. Check out the article here: http://www.northfulton.com/Articles-EDUCATION-c-2014-01-21-202304.114126-sub-Students-get-on-pointe-in-accelerated-learning.html.

Informational Items:

Our Honors Breakfasts are coming up next week for 6th and 7th grade. This is a wonderful event hosted by the PTSA and sponsored by local businesses including our Business Partner of the Year, Chick-fil-A at Holcomb Bridge Road and Hwy 9. Be sure to check the list next to the upcoming dates below to see if your child is invited. Though we send invitations home, I know that they may not always make it to you. If your child's name is not listed but should be (or is listed on the wrong part of the honor roll), please email me at springmanm@fultonschools.org as soon as possible so that we can make the correction.
On January 28th, we will have our first Parent Night presentation focusing on the Common Core math curriculum. Susan Baker, the STEM Program Specialist for the Northwest Learning Community will be presenting. Click here for more details in English and Spanish and mark your calendars for this important event.
Our Lost and Found is overflowing with items! Please have your child stop by the clinic to look for any lost items. On January 31st, we will donate all remaining items to NFCC. Thank you!
Elkins Pointe presents... Parents' Night: Success Through Standardized Assessments on February 25th. Standardized testing can be so confusing, from the CRCT in middle school, to the EOCT and the GHSWT assessments in high school. What do all of these assessments mean, and how do I prepare my student to do well on each one? Click here to learn more about the workshop.

Special Announcement:

I am pleased to announce a new Business Partnership for EPMS: Crossville Veterinary Hospital. To kick off this new partnership, CVH would like to help us update a computer lab! Dr. Denning wants me to share:

" For every family that becomes a customer of our veterinary hospital, we will donate $25 on their first visit and $10 for each subsequent visit. Send your friends or family members and we will give them the same credit when they mention our Elkins Pointe Middle School Partnership." Click these links for more information about the fundraiser and their business.

Upcoming Dates (Note Change to MHS Transition Dates):

January 28 - 7:30am 6th Grade Honors Breakfast (check list for your child's name)
January 28 - 6:00pm Parent Math Night
January 30 - 7:30am 7th Grade Honors Breakfast (check list for your child's name)
January 30 - 6:30pm 9th Grade Parent Night @ RHS
February 4 - 7:30am 8th Grade Honors Breakfast (check list for your chilld's name)
February 4 - 10:00am - Rising 6th Grade Parent Coffee @ EPMS
February 4 - 7:00 - 9:00pm - MHS Meeting for Rising 9th Grade (includes Elective Info & AP Courses)
February 13- Progress Reports Come Home
February 14-17 - Staff and Student Holiday
February 18 - Scoliosis Screening (6th and 8th grade only)
February 19 - Career Day (8th grade only)
February 24 - RHS counselors hold appointments with students re: registration @ EPMS
February 25 - Parent Night for Student Success on Standardized Assessment

Club Opportunities:

We are excited to offer Golf Squad Spring at Elkins Pointe Middle this semester with the start date on Thursday, March 6th for an eight week semester. This activity encourages boys and girls of all skill levels to participate and build the social and technical skill necessary to enjoy golf for a lifetime. Additional information on Golf Squad can be found at www.golfsquad.com. For specific info (dates, times, cost, etc) and online registration, click on the Elkins Pointe Middle page here: http://golfsquad.com/programs/georgia/greater-atlanta-2/elkins-pointe.
Does your child play Lacrosse? Or are they interested in learning more? Click here to learn more about Roswell Lacrosse!
Roswell HS Band is excited to announce "Passion for Excellence," Rising 9th Grade Parent Meeting, February 6th at 7:00pm in the RHS Band Room. Click here for more information.
Have you heard about W2W Sports Camps? Click here to learn more

Something to Think About:

Within the next few weeks, our state will release the CCRPI results for the 2012-2013 school year. The calculations have changed substantially, so this will be a new baseline year, meaning that the scores cannot be compared between 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. We are currently approving data and combing through information as we prepare for the results. While the data shows that we still have work to do here at EPMS, I am pleased to report that the areas identified in the CCRPI data were already identified by our team in August of this school year. We have already begun new programs and changed practices to better support our struggling students. So even though the data will seem to be "new news," we have already been doing the work. When the results come out, I will hold a parent meeting to explain and answer any questions, just have we did last year. As always, we'll make sure that all of us work together to support all students at EPMS.

Have a great weekend, Titans!

Your partner in education,