Oregon Middle School

Thank you for coming...

Parent Orientation
August 2009
 Introduction

Principal
Chris Telfer

Administrative Intern
Kerri Modjeski
 Agenda
• OMS mission
• Characteristics of
middle school students
• School structure
• Parent information
• Questions & answers
• Tour of OMS
 Mission
• The mission of Oregon Middle School is
to develop conscientious citizens, foster
positive attitudes, respect and appreciate
individuals, and achieve academic
excellence.
• Citizenship
• Attitude
• Responsibility/Respect
• Excellence/Effort
 Middle School Students
• A distinct group…

• Intellectually
• Physically
• Emotionally
• Socially

UNIQUE
 Intellectual Traits
• Intensely curious
• Changing from concrete to abstract
• Prefer active over passive learning
activities
• Prefer peer interaction during learning
activities
• Inquisitive about adults, but often
challenge their authority
 Physical Traits
Rapid, irregular growth
Body changes: increased nose size, protruding ears, long arms,
awkward posture
Restlessness or fatigue due to hormone changes
Need daily physical activity due to increased energy
May adopt poor eating habits--junk food
May demonstrate risky behaviors with drugs and sex
(pre-frontal cortex development)
 Emotional Changes
• Intense and unpredictable mood swings
• Seek increased independence
• Concerned about peer acceptance
• Psychologically vulnerable
• Concerned with major societal issues
• Reach for adult identity and acceptance
• Believe their problems, feelings and
experiences are unique to them
• May appear confident, but lack self-esteem
 Social Changes
• Strong need to belong to a peer group
• Immature behavior as social skills lag
behind mental and physical maturity
• Like fads, especially those shunned by
adults
• Often overreact to ridicule,
embarrassment and rejection
 Alcohol, Tobacco, & Other
Drugs
• Change in friends, attitude, & activities
• Isolated in room, especially with door locked
• Drop in grades
• Lack of energy/motivation
• Short-term memory
• Hunger/munchies
• Red eyes, dry mouth, coughing
• Associative items—leaf, 420, tweaking (backpack)
 Parenting Matters
• Build your son/daughter’s developmental
assets
• What you do matters!
• Maximize your protective influences:
• Involvement/Responsiveness
• Demands/Expectations
National research shows that…

Strong, positive family relations are a

powerful deterrent to teen AOD use
and abuse
source: CASA (2005)
National research shows that…
• Frequent (5-7 weekly) versus infrequent (0-2
weekly) family dinners
• Parents report:
– knowing teen’s friends better
– knowing more names of teachers
– having better quality parent-teen relations
Teens report:
– less association with AOD-involved peers
– less AOD use and risk for substance abuse
– achieving better grades
source: CASA (2006)
 2 2 %
007 008 Decrea
- - se
200 200
1 242 76%
8 9
009
(w/
HW
L)
573 242 58%
(w/o
HW
L)

Reduction in Detentions
0708 by 58% (if you
include HW Lunch 76%)
 Of the 71 (13%)
students that received
suspensions
ISS and OSS (6.1%) 34 Reduction in
ISS Only 5.8% 32 ISS by 26% this
OSS only .07% 4 is also a
significant
decrease
Only 63
different
students (11%)
received an ISS
Of those 63, 31
only received 1
ISS

36 different students were

given OSS students last
year for a total of 73 OSS,
this makes up 6.5% of the
overall student population
 School Structure
• Daily schedule
• Teams
• Encore & elective classes
• “Orange” & “Black” days
 7th Grade Schedule
1 7:55 - 8:41
2 8:44 - 9:30
3 9:33 - 10:19
HB 10:22 - 10:36
4 10:39 - 11:25
5 11:28 – 12:14
Lunch 12:17 – 12:47
6 12:50 – 1:36
7 1:39 - 2:25
8 2:28 - 3:15
 7th Grade Teams
Subject Team 7O Team 7M
English Mr. Johnson Ms. Vandermause

Science Ms. VanSteendren Mr. Eveland

Geography Mr. Symes Mr. Gasner

Math Mr. Roemhild Ms. Heller

Resource Ms. Lust Ms. Gilbert

Resource Ms. Knepper

7th Grade Encore & Elective Courses
Two Encore Groups:
• FACE, Art, and Technology Education
• Physical Education, German, and Spanish

Electives:
• Band, Orchestra, and Chorus
 8 th
Grade Schedule
1 7:55 - 8:41
2 8:44 - 9:30
3 9:33 - 10:19
HB 10:22 - 10:36
4 10:39 - 11:25
Lunch 11:28 – 11:58
5 12:01 – 12:47
6 12:50 – 1:36
7 1:39 - 2:25
8 2:28 - 3:15
 8 Grade Teams
th
Subject Team 8O Team 8M
English Ms. Port Ms. Bintliff

Math Ms. Schmidt Mr. Kissling

Science Mr. Mahr Mr. Connor

History Mr. Lindsey Ms. Brewer

Resource Ms. Mueller Ms. St. Clair

Resource Mr. Johnson

8th Grade Encore & Elective Courses
Two Encore Groups:
• Health, Art, and Technology Education
• Physical Education, Business, and Careers

Electives:
• German, Spanish, Band, Orchestra, and
Chorus
 “Orange” & “Black” Days
• Alternate days (“Org” and “Blk”)

Physical Education/German/Spanish
• Physical Education meets every other day all
year
• Spanish/German (7th) and Business/Careers
(8th) meets every other day for one semester
 Encore & Elective Teachers
Spanish German Phy-Ed
Ms. Davis Ms. Panzer Mr. Faulkner
Mr. Falcon Mr. Fleming
Ms. Zielinski

FACE Art I Tech

Ms. Nesheim Mr. Sproule Mr. Howard

Band Orchestra Chorus

Mr. Baxter Ms. Buehl Ms. Rattman
Health
Mr. Hartberg
 Parent Information
• Office Secretaries
Ms. Lynda Graber
Ms. Roxie Butterfield
– Ms. ??????

• Guidance/Student Services
Ms. Mary K Bishop—Counselor
Mr. David Rutherford—Psychologist
Mr. Ryan Foley—Counselor
Ms. Brenda Knipfer---Secretary
 Communication
• Teacher, team, office, and support staff
• Telephone and/or email
• OMS Twitter
• OMS E-Newsletter
• Feedback Page on Website
• PowerSchool access
• – Set up auto-email
Attendance
• Homework
835-4891 byClub
9 AM
•• PAG
Dress5-to-8
code
– “If you have to ask, then it probably violates code.”
– - 4 inch inseam
 PowerSchool
• Anywhere there is Internet Access
• Parent Log-In different then student log-in
• Can subscribe to updates (daily, weekly,
monthly)
 Student Led Conferences
• Spring Conferences
• Directed by the student
• Communicates the work and progress of
student
• Represents student as a person and a learner
• Contains samples of work from each class,
goals they have set, and their progress on the
goals
• Work happens in homebase through the year
 Retention Year 8 grade
th

• District Retention Policy

• NCLB, State Statute
• Other indicators
• Importance of WKCE, MAPS, Outcomes
 Involvement
• Parent-Teacher Conferences (Traditional)
– November 19 & 23rd T.B.A.
– Scheduled Time Ranges
• Student Led Conferences
March 23rd & 25th T.B.A.
• Parent Information Night
September 3rd 6:45-8:00pm
• Volunteer - Cynthia DiCamelli
 Important Dates
• August 25 7th Grade and New Student
Orientation/Locker drop-in 9:00-10:00 AM
• September 1 (Tues) First Day of School
• September ?? Picture Retake Day
• September 17-18 Upham Woods 7O
• February (TBA) Upham Woods 7M
 Our Vision…to INSPIRE
• Individualizing learning for parents, students and staff
• Navigating toward excellence
• Sharing responsibility for success of all students
• Producing positive, collaborative energy
• Including ALL
• Reflecting and collaborating for continuous
improvement
• Engaging students in rigorous learning
Thank you!
Questions