September 12, 2024
from Paul Errickson, Middle School director
Mark Your Calendars
- Friday, September 13: PA Grade Rep Meeting, 8-9 AM, Family Commons
- Sunday, September 15: New Student Admission & Indexed Tuition Applications Open
- Monday, September 16: MS G6 Eagle Bluff Trip
- Monday, September 16-Friday, September 20: MS G7/8 MAP Testing
- Tuesday, September 17: MS G6 Eagle Bluff Trip
- Wednesday, September 18: MS Grade 6 Eagle Bluff Trip
- Wednesday, September 18: MS G5 Osprey Wild Overnight Trip
- Thursday, September 19: MS G5 Osprey Wild Overnight Trip
- Friday, September 20: MS G5 Osprey Wild Overnight Trip
- Monday, September 23-Saturday, September 28: Homecoming Week
- Monday, September 23-Friday, September 27: MS G5/6 MAP Testing
- Friday, September 27: MS Quarterly Coffee, 8-9 AM, TBD
- Friday, September 27: PreK-12 Spirit Wear Day
- Friday, September 27: G3-12 Homecoming Assembly, 2:30-3 PM, Lansing Sports Center
- Friday, September 27: Hall of Fame Dinner, 6-8 PM, Family Commons, RSVP here >
- Saturday, September 28: Homecoming, information here >
- Monday, September 30: MS G8 Wolf Ridge Overnight Trip
- Tuesday, October 1: MS G8 Wolf Ridge Overnight Trip
- Tuesday, October 1: School Photo Retakes, 8-10 AM, Indoor Track
- Wednesday, October 2: MS G8 Wolf Ridge Overnight Trip
- Wednesday, October 2: MS G7 & New G8 Signs of Suicide Screening
Change is in the air!
We are up and rolling through September! As our students and faculty settle back into the routine of school, we are collectively leaning into a few changes in the Middle School. With our new schedule, we find more frequent movement breaks from class where students never go more than two teaching blocks without a little time, either out at recess or in a flex period, to reset and get ready for their next challenge. We have also moved advisory to the end of the day–every day for 5/6 and every other day for 7/8–and we are using this as a time to organize, help check in, and ensure that our students are heading home with all that they need to complete any lingering schoolwork or homework.
Also new this year, we have introduced a community meeting to celebrate, inform, and share our Middle School happenings with each other. This “Middle School Meeting” takes place every time we have a “B Day” on a Friday, as this is when all students end the week with their advisories. This time together allows students and faculty to share announcements and wonderings with the Middle School. It is also where we hope our community can share their learning experiences with others.
One way of doing this is through our “Dream Big. Do Right.” Advisory Challenge, in which, throughout the course of the school year, each advisory will be asked to do something for the community in the spirit of the school motto and then share what they did with the Middle School at the next Middle School Meeting. These can be small acts of kindness that bring smiles to other’s faces or BIG, audacious ways in which an advisory looks to make MPA, or our greater community, a better place for others. Teacher Claver’s advisory was chosen first, and I will be sure to update you on what they come up with once they present it at our next Middle School Meeting.
We also have a couple of other events over the next few weeks for families to be aware of. Once again, all Middle School students will be taking the NWEA MAP Growth assessments in math, reading, and language usage. Students will be assessed in the fall and spring to measure their growth and look for potential areas of new or needed growth. Seventh and eighth graders will take the assessments next week (September 16-September 20), and fifth and sixth graders the following week (September 23-September 27) in their math, English, and social studies classes. At home, the best preparation for any assessment is nothing out of the ordinary: proper sleep and good nutrition.
We look forward to sharing the MAP results with families shortly after they are completed.
Finally, our overnight trips start next week for fifth and sixth graders, and our eighth graders will head out for Wolf Ridge at the end of the month. You should have received all the information from Ms. Meras via email and in your Back To School folder with details, packing lists, and release forms. If your student is in fifth or sixth grade and traveling next week, and you have any lingering questions, please reach out to Ms. Dale, leading sixth grade (mdale@moundsparkacademy.org), or Ms. Nagle, leading fifth grade (cnagle@moundsparkacademy.org). eighth-grade families can reach out to Ms. Meras at pmeras@moundsparkacademy.org.
Overnight trips are an exceptional way to build relationships, self-regulation skills, and independence—the hallmarks of an MPA Middle School experience—and we’re excited to share these moments with your children!
All School Conferences
We are looking forward to welcoming you to campus for in-person family-student-teacher conferences this fall. Please mark your calendars and look out toward the end of September for registration details. Fall conferences are scheduled for the following dates for all divisions:
- Thursday, October 10: 3:30-8 PM
- Friday, October 11: 8 AM-5 PM (No Classes)
A Note From Our Middle School Math Teachers
We will have a Middle School math team again this year. Last year, we had a great time and took first place. The Middle School math team is open to sixth through eighth graders. We have five meets total: one in October, one in November, one in December, and one in January. Meets are on Mondays after school. Parents are responsible for getting their students to and from the meets. There are no practices for this team. If your student is interested in joining the Middle School math team, they should email Ms. Phillips at pphillips@moundsparkacademy.org by Friday, September 13.
