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EVERGREEN EAGLE EXPRESS
Week of March 6, 2016 - Issue 29
EVERGREEN MIDDLE SCHOOL ǀ 6900 208TH Ave. NE, Redmond, WA 98053 ǀ 425-936-2320
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PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
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Hello Evergreen Families -
We hope this edition of the Eagle Express finds you well and dry. The adage, "March comes in like a Lion" is certainly holding true right now; perhaps it will "go out like a Lamb" in a few weeks as well. Regardless of the swings in the weather and the temperature highs and lows, we will remain steadfast and committed to supporting your student throughout March and the remaining months in the school year. We have seen significant growth and maturity in your student these first seven months and we look forward to the remaining weeks and months as well.
We continue to grow and improve as a staff as well and we look forward to our professional development opportunities each week and month. We are grateful to our community for supporting our professional development on early release Wednesdays and on selected Fridays throughout the year. This Friday will be a day off for students but a day on for teachers. We will focus on Growth Mindset in addition to having time with colleagues in departments, job-alike teams, and collectively as a staff. One of the key words we use with students when discussing Growth Mindset is yet. Yet can be used as a conjunction to conjoin two independent thoughts, and it can also be used as an adverb indicating time. If students say "I can't" we don't let them stop with that phrase; we press on and persevere and add yet. "I can't (yet)" means "I might not be able to now but I will be able to one day." We want students to grow and stretch and realize that the purpose of school is to learn things they don't already know and to stretch themselves as they prepare for the next step in their education. Some simple examples from early in their childhood could be learning to walk, tying their shoes, riding their bike, learning to read, adding two digit numbers; the list is endless. Fortunately, there were people along the way in their education who did not let them quit the first time they said "I can't." Perhaps someone even added the adverb yet to finish off their sentence. We will persevere and support students in their education and turn can'ts into cans by changing mindsets and perspective.
In my recent classroom visits and observations, I noted 8th grade language arts students discussing perspective and point of view; students were asked to consider The Cask of Amontillado (Edgar Allan Poe) from Fortunato's perspective rather than Montressor's. This certainly challenged students to stretch and reach and grow as they looked at the story from another view point. For the last 24 weeks, you've read the Eagle Express from my perspective and I wanted to give an opportunity to our two outstanding Associate Principals to share their insights and knowledge and give you an opportunity to read and learn about EMS from their perspective. Anne Balicki and Katy Rudolph are two amazing teammates and I am fortunate to call them colleagues and friends. Anne will be writing the Eagle Express next week and Katy will be writing later in March. Each will share insights from their perspective and give another view point into how we support students and staff at Evergreen Middle School on a daily basis. Together, we are committed to supporting your student as they learn and grow and mature. As always, please let us know how we can best support your student.
Wishing you all my best for a great week ahead,
Robert Johnson
Principal
Evergreen Middle School
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IMPORTANT DATES
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Fri., 3/11 - NO SCHOOL: LEAP Day
Tues., 3/15 - LWSD Middle School Orchestra Festival; 9am-1pm @ Redmond High Performing Arts Center
Wed., 3/16 - Redmond Region Band Concert, Part 1: 7-9pm @ Redmond High Performing Arts Center
Fri., 3/18 - EMS Play "Once Upon a Mattress" @ 7pm; Old Redmond Schoolhouse Auditorium
Sat., 3/19 - EMS Play "Once Upon a Mattress" @ 2pm & 7pm; Old Redmond Schoolhouse Auditorium
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SCHOOL NEWS
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BATTLE OF THE BOOKS UPDATE *new*
The 2016 edition of the Evergreen Middle School Battle of the Books was another huge success this last Wednesday at school.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the program, Battle of the Books allows 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in each middle school to work together as a team and challenge other schools to correctly answer questions about twelve terrific books. For the competition the teams work together to answer 45 challenging questions which are based on specific and factual information within the twelve books.
For the second year running, Evergreen had an amazing number of participants! Over 100 students, in 23 different teams met after school in The Commons to celebrate teamwork, reading great books, and to compete for the right to represent EMS at the district competition later this month. I would like to thank the students, staff, parents, and PTSA for their generous support of this program each year! The top two teams were the Page Turners and the Tome Raiders, and the members were...
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1st Place- Page Turners * Aditi Ekbote * Alice Hofsetz * Tejasree Kandibanda * Melena Orton * Neha Ramanath
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2nd Place- Tome Raiders
* Ishan Bansal
* Siddanth Chari
* Anish Pal
* Anton Petushkov
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And finally, special shout out to the following parent and staff volunteers that helped to make it all go great!
* Sara Carroll * Betty Wong * Ms. Dunn * Ms. Moe * Ms. Berton * Mr. Compton * Ms. Kesler * Ms. Lybeck * Ms. Ozeri * Ms. Parnell Thanks!! Take care and keep smiling, Mr. Olson
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LWSD 2016 BOND MEASURE
The April 26 bond measure will address the district's most urgent needs concerning overcrowding and aging facilities. Learn more in the new bond section of the LWSD website. There, you will also find the "Let's Talk" section where you can type in your questions or comments and expect to hear back from a LWSD employee.
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EVERGREEN ATHLETICS
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3RD SEASON SPORTS *updated*
February 1 - March 25
VOLLEYBALL - 7th and 8th Grade Girls
WRESTLING - Boys and Girls
Please click on the links below for the current schedules.
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PTSA
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CLASSIFIED STAFF APPRECIATION WEEK *new*
The week of March 14-18 is Classified Staff Appreciation Week. This honors all the staff that work with our kids (who are not the main teachers), including IA's, office staff, kitchen and maintenance workers and bus drivers. We will be doing different things throughout the week.
On Thursday, March 17, we will be inviting them to the Staff Appreciation Lunch so we are asking for help providing food for over 100 people. We are also collecting donations to be able to give them each a small thank you gift. Please sign up to make a donation of food, time and or money through the link below. As always, thank you to everyone for your support of our wonderful Evergreen Staff. If you have any questions, please contact Allyson Cohen or Becky Vonderhaar.
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EMS PTSA BOARD OF DIRECTORS - POSITIONS FOR 2016-2017 SCHOOL YEAR
Interested in joining the Evergreen Middle School PTSA Board of Directors next school year? Below are the board positions, any of which can be done solo or with a partner. If interested, please email Sabrina Schriner, Christie Denholm, and Allyson Cohen. Thanks!
PresidentTreasurerSecretaryVP ServicesVP Ways and MeansVP CommunicationsLegislature |
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EXTRACURRICULAR
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LEADERSHIP PREPARATORY ACADEMY *new*
Grades 6-12; 308 4th Avenue South, Kirkland 98033
Looking for a school with more personalized and engaged learning? With low teacher-student ratios, STEM math projects, student-designed electives, and mastery learning at the pace of the learner, LEADPrep may be the school for you! Click below for more information.
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INTRO TO DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY AND STORYTELLING *new*
Ages 9-13; Wed., March 16 @ 2:30pm; Redmond Library
In this free class, learn the foundation skills of digital photography including compositional techniques and controlling camera settings to achieve desired effects. Limited to 10 students. Registration required.
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RHS FOOTBALL INFO NIGHT - KICK OFF TO THE 2016 SEASON
For current 8th grade students:
March 14th - RHS Auxiliary Gym - 7pm
Coach Rimkus will start the evening with information on the 2016 Redmond High School Football season followed by an open house for all parents to get current year questions answered. Topics of interest include: · Spring Football June dates, paperwork, and expectations · Summer Camp - the ultimate experience and best memory for almost all graduating players · Practice uniforms/Spirit gear · Booster Membership · Volunteer opportunities · Team Dinners · Script (a way to raise money for your player to pay for football camp) · Texas Hold Em Dinner and Silent Auction All families are expected to check in.
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TEEN BOOK CLUB @ REDMOND LIBRARY
Meets the 2nd Thursday of the Month, 4-5pm
Teens in middle school and high school are invited to
attend this monthly meeting to discuss a young adult novel and share what we've been reading. New members are always welcome!
March 10 - Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King April 14 - The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman May 12 - I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
Sponsored by the Friends of the Redmond Library.
Questions? Contact Stephanie Zero, Teen Services Librarian, Redmond Library
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NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY
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The Lake Washington School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, gender, marital status, creed, religion, honorably discharged veteran, military status, sexual orientation, including gender expression or identity, the presence of any sensory, mental or physical disability, or the use of a trained guide dog or service animal by a person with a disability, in its programs and activities and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups.
The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies:
Director of Human Resources
16250 NE 74th Street
Redmond, Washington, 98052
(425) 936-1266
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Evergreen Middle School PTSA
Eagle Express is published by parent volunteers of Evergreen Middle School.
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