Author: Mr. Jenson

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Skylert Wally the Wapiti

Parent Conference Scheduling

Parent Conferences on 2/16 (Virtual) and 2/17 (In Person)

We will once again be holding parent conferences this coming week. Please schedule a time in Skyward, and remember that you are always able to connect with teachers, regardless of the time of year. Wednesday will be for virtual conferences (Zoom) and Thursday will be for in-person conferences. Both nights are by appointment only. For help scheduling appointments, check out this video.

On a completely unrelated note, if you need to communicate with your student, please try to do so during passing time or by calling the office and we’ll relay the message. When you call during class, they feel pressured to answer and it can be somewhat disruptive. The digital age brings new challenges every day, and we appreciate your help keeping the focus on school while at school.

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PTSA Skylert Wally the Wapiti

Set Building, Memory Books, & 9th Grade PCCR

Have Building Skills? Our Musical Could Use Your Help!

This year’s musical is Music Man, and we’re looking for someone to lead us in the actual construction side of the set on 2/12 and 2/26 from 12:45 – 4:00 pm. We have lots of labor, and the design work is done, so we really just need someone to guide the construction process.

We are also looking for a lead painter for the sets – nothing elaborate, but someone with artistic ability that can direct us in where to paint what.

If you can help, email jacqueline.vuki@jordandistrict.org

Last Day to Purchase Memory Books is March 1st

If you haven’t already purchased a Memory Book, your last day to do so is March 1st. If you’re not sure if you purchased one at the start of the year, go to fee management to verify – don’t guess, because if you guess wrong, you won’t have a Memory Book. The cost is $25.

COUNSELING CENTER

9th Grade PCCR Appointments

9th grade PCCR appointments are available February 14th-March 4th. This is a chance to meet with your counselor and talk about high school class options and career plans. Go to Skyward to schedule an appointment. 

Free Digital Parenting Resources

Digital Respons-Ability has a list of free resources on their website for parents looking for help: https://respons-ability.net/free-resources/ They also share resources and a parenting gaming review site at https://digital-parenting.com. Join them for free monthly webinars aimed at parents and educators by signing up for their newsletter. You can also see past archived trainings on their SchoolTube channel: https://www.schooltube.com/channel/Digital+Respons-Ability.net/190101523.

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PTSA Skylert

Open PTSA Board Positions

Elk Ridge PTSA needs your help for the 2022-2023 school year! We have lots of open board positions. If you are looking for a chance to get involved and make a difference in our school community, look no further. There is a required once a month board meeting the first Friday of the month at 10 a.m., usually less than an hour. If interested please email contact info to ptsaelkridge@gmail.com. We really need the first 3 positions filled in order to even have a PTSA next year.

  • President Elect – will be President of PTSA during the 2023-2024 school year. Will shadow the president during the 2022-2023 school year.
  • Treasurer – will keep track of the PTSA budget and checkbook. Past treasures report about about 2 hours a month doing the books.
  • Secretary – making an agenda for board meetings and typing up the minutes after the meeting is done. Usually takes 30-45 minutes once a month to type up agenda and meeting minutes.
  • Legislative VP (2 members needed) – you will be working with our PTSA Ambassadors, which is a twice a month after school leadership training class. You will have a teacher from Elk Meadows to help you also. This is a great opportunity if you are interested in helping kids learn about service and what makes a good leader.
  • Membership VP – you keep track of the number of PTSA members during the school year. You get a printout of members from the school office and you just have to separate the student memberships from the parent memberships and keep a total of each.
  • Health & Safety (Ribbon Week) (2 members needed) – help plan and implement activities for the students during ribbon week which covers cyber safety, mental health and other issues. Usually involves going into the school during lunch hours to pass out treats.
  • Reflections – you would advertise about reflections and pass out prizes to those who enter the contest. Entries are all online and we usually only have about 15-20 students enter. It is a million times easier than elementary reflections.
  • Newsletter – you would design a quarterly (or less) newsletter about happenings with PTSA activities and other activities going on in school.
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COVID-19 Registration Skylert Wally the Wapiti

Virtual Learning Instructions

Well, what a start to 2022! We will send out more information if needed early next week, but here are a few highlights you’ll find in this Skylert:

  • Accessing Virtual Classes W-F
  • New Semester Classes
  • Breakfast and Lunch W-F
  • Registration (Course Selection) Timeframes
  • PTSA Ambassadors Planning Meeting
  • Web Development Workshop

Accessing Your Virtual Classes

This coming Wednesday-Friday, all classes will be virtual. In order to keep things as simple as possible, here’s what you need to know:

  • Classes Happen Live at Normal Times
  • We Will Keep our Normal Bell Schedule
  • Attendance Will Be Taken, except for DEAR – just read a book for that
  • Zoom Links Will Be On Canvas Landing Pages for Each Class
  • If You Can’t Access a Class, Email the Teacher – They’ll have direct links ready.
  • It’s Only Three Days – Don’t stress too much, so get what you can from it and stay safe

New Semester Starts Wednesday

Please check Skyward on Wednesday morning to make sure you’re attending the right classes with the right teachers. Classes on Canvas should roll automatically on Wednesday, but email the teacher listed in Skyward if you have any trouble connecting. You can find staff emails on this page.

Breakfast and Lunch W-F

We will serve both breakfast and lunch all three days we are virtual. Students will need to enter the cafeteria on the west side of the school and it will be both grab-and-go and something they can eat in the cafeteria. 

We are hoping to serve from 11:00 am – 12:30 pm. If you plan to come for breakfast or lunch outside of those times, please give us a heads up so we can have food ready for you. Call Holly Taylor at 801-412-2823 to let us know you’re coming outside of those times.

Registration/Course Selection Timeline

We had planned to hand out course selection cards to students on Wednesday. We will post PDF’s of the cards on this page by then for you to review, and you can visit that same page for course overviews, videos, course requirements, and all things registration. 

We will then hand out the physical cards to students on Monday, January 24th. 7th graders will complete them on Tuesday, January 25th and 8th graders will complete them in class on Thursday, January 27th. We plan to hold a registration night for incoming 7th graders on January 27th, where cards will be both distributed and collected. Contact the counseling center if you have any questions about course selection.

PTSA Ambassadors Planning Meeting

On Wednesday, January 19th from 3-4 pm, PTSA ambassadors will be meeting in the Media Center to plan and make posters for Red Ribbon Week.

Web Development Workshop

Jan 26 | 3:00- 4:00 pm

Join us at Elk Ridge Middle School and learn the basics of web development! Students in grades 7- 9 are invited to this introductory workshop. No previous experience necessary! Come & learn with other future coders! See this flyer for more information.

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Uncategorized

End of 1st Semester/2nd Quarter

Welcome back from Winter Break! It was a cold day, and there are many more cold days in the forecast. We know it’s not cool to wear coats when you’re in middle school, but if we have a fire drill (yes, that’s a hint) or something else in the near future that requires students to be outside unexpectedly, the temperature is bordering on dangerous if you don’t have a coat. Students have lockers assigned to them if they need a place to store it during the day.

We have several upcoming things to be aware of as parents:

First, the end of 2nd Quarter and 1st Semester is next week on January 14th. Please have your student do whatever they need to do for the grade they want now and not next week. Deadlines for late work and large projects often land this week and not next week, so looking at grades now instead of at the end of the term is especially important. We’ve asked teachers to go over what can and can’t be made up, upcoming deadlines, etc. now with students as well so that there is no confusion.

Second, we will be heading into some of the preparation for next year shortly after 1st semester ends. This primarily means course selection. If you want to start the conversations with your student about what classes they are interested in, it can avoid the last-minute panic of selection during the week or two of course selection toward the end of the month. The information on our website will be updated in the next week or two so that you can start exploring early.

That’s all for now, but we’ll be sending out more time-sensitive information over the coming weeks. For now, just get things wrapped up and where you want them grade-wise for the 1st semester. If you have any questions about a class or grade, it’s much better to reach out now while there is still time to do something about it.

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Skylert Wally the Wapiti

Angel Tree Thank You, Volunteers Needed

We hope you are enjoying the holiday season as much as we are! Our Angel Tree fundraiser was a huge success, with over 50 ‘angels’ in our school community getting gifts provided by our students. Thank you to the many, many of you with children able to contribute. Giving to others helps the climate of the school more than just about anything else, and we can’t think of a better holiday tradition.

9th Grade Job Interviews – Thursday, January 13th

URGENT – This activity cannot take place without your help.

Adult volunteers are still needed to help with our 9th grade Job Interview experience. We need morning volunteers from 7:50am -11:15am, and afternoon volunteers from 11:00am-3:00pm. The PTSA will provide food for both sessions. Volunteers will be doing short mock job interviews for our 9th grade students. The interview questions will be emailed to volunteers and you do not need to have hiring experience to help out. For more information, please contact the counseling center. If you can help with this fun activity, please fill out this form.  

December MESA-STEM activity has been canceled!

The MESA-STEM after school activity that was previously scheduled for this Wed, Dec. 15 has been canceled due to unforeseen circumstances.  We will resume our normal monthly MESA-STEM activities in January.  Thank you for your understanding!

Last Chance for Lost & Found

Our lost and found is overflowing and we need to clear it out to make room for more next semester. If you have anything you want to check for, please do it before you leave for the break at the end of the week. We will be donating anything that’s left here on Friday.

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Skylert

Skylert: Needs Assessment, Parent Volunteers

Welcome back from what we hope was a great break. We are coming up on midterms for the 2nd quarter, and are only 3 short weeks from winter break. 

URGENT – Elk Ridge Middle School “Needs Assessment” Survey:

Parents, we need your help. We are asking all parents to please click on the link below as soon as possible to take our Needs Assessment Survey. This survey will provide our counseling center with imperative data that we can use to better meet the needs of our students, teachers, parents, and community. The information in this survey will be used to align our goals with the current and future needs of all Elk Ridge Middle School stakeholders.

https://www.ctesurveys.com/CTESurvey?PointerId=618&SchoolId=155

A version of this same survey will be given to students in the next week or so to get their perspective as well. All surveys are anonymous.

9th Grade Job Interviews – Thursday, January 13th

Adult volunteers are still needed to help with our 9th grade Job Interview experience. We need 15 volunteers from 7:50am -11:15am, and 15 volunteers from 11:00am-3:00pm. The PTSA will provide lunch for both sessions. Volunteers will be doing short mock job interviews for our 9th grade students. The interview questions will be emailed to volunteers. For more information, please contact the counseling center. If you can help with this fun activity, please fill out this form.

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Community Council

Minutes

Community Council Logo

Members in Attendance: Principal Jenson, School Counselor Mr. Bennett, Shannon Bird, Mindi Allen, Marianne Dwyer, and Rachel Ferre

The council approved the minutes from last month. 

-Land Trust: Right now the school uses the money to provide coaches to the teachers.  They do goal setting, and provide feedback and support to the teachers.  Teachers are recording and watching their own lessons with guidance from the coaches.  Land trust also pays for Professional Development.  The committee was asked to think about items they would like to see this money used for and bring ideas to the next meeting. 

-TSSA: This money also covers some instructional coaching, professional development, and also needs of the school.  This could be Chromebooks, instructional aides, things for the school store, wapiti currency, ect. 

-Safe Walking Routes: We discussed the current plans and timeline of Bangerter Highway.  10400 S will be finished this winter.  They are currently doing an environmental study for 9800 S, and will have a public meeting for the final plan next winter.  Construction will not start until spring of 2023.

-Other concerns are 10400 S and River Heights Drive.  They would really like a crossing guard there, but last it was reviewed they said there was not enough student traffic. 

-Counseling Center Update by Mr. Bennet: A needs assessment will be shortly coming out and they would like to see better participation from parents.  It helps the counseling center make goals based on the answers, and create programs for teachers, and counseling for kids. Asked the committee to help spread the word about the survey when it comes out next month. 

 Counselors are starting counseling groups for stress management, grief loss, anxiety…

Meeting adjourned at 7:07-Next meetings: Feb. 22, April 12

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Community Council

Agenda

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Agenda Items

Principal Update – Curtis Jenson

2021-22 Land Trust and TSSA Plan Priorities

  • Land Trust
    • Instructional Coaching
    • Other Needs if Funds Allow
  • TSSA
    • Instructional Coaching
    • Professional Development
    • Needs of the School
      • Chromebooks
      • Instructional Aides
      • School Climate
      • Etc.

Safe Walking Routes Concerns

  • UDOT Timeline
    • 10400 S Finished this Winter
    • 9800 S Environmental Study Underway
    • 9800 S Public Meetings for Final Plan This Winter
    • 9800 S Construction Begins Spring 2023
  • Other Concerns?
    • 10400 S & River Heights Drive

Counseling Center Update

Other Items from Council Members

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PTSA Wally the Wapiti

Flex Friday, Surveys, School Store

Believe it or not, we are edging up on Thanksgiving Break already with only a week and a half to go. Thank you again to all of our performing arts students, teachers and parents for the outstanding Veterans Day assembly and evening performances. It was a new format, but one that we plan to keep going forward. Be sure to check out our social media pages for a glimpse of the performance.

In this Skylert, you’ll find:

  • Flex Friday (This Week)
  • School Merchandise
  • Parent & Student Stakeholder Surveys
  • PTSA November Newsletter
  • Volunteers for Job Interviews in January
  • MESA Activities

Flex Friday This Week

This coming Friday, November 19th, will be our second Flex Friday as a district. Each school will be handling it slightly differently, but all within the structure outlined here.

For all Elk Ridge students, they should expect roughly 3 hours total of engagement in schoolwork. This will vary from class to class, but students will be able to complete this work from home. If students have questions about work, they should contact their teacher.

In addition, any student needing extra support will be able to attend in-person between 10 am and 12:15 pm, as long as they have arranged with their teacher beforehand to do so. We love to have you – we just need to know you’re coming. Busing will be provided following the normal Friday bus schedule. Lunch will be served from 12:15 – 1:15 pm, and students who are bused will work in either the cafeteria or the media center until buses come at 2:30 pm.

School Store

Want to show that Wapiti pride? If you want Elk Ridge merchandise, you can visit this link any time from now until December 6th. The store is run by Marchant Design and Elk Ridge does not benefit from your purchase in any way.

Parent and Student Stakeholder Surveys

All parents should have received a survey at the email address listed in Skyward. Please know we take the results of the survey very seriously in our ongoing efforts to improve the quality of every aspect of our school from communication to instruction.

The survey can be taken once for each teacher your student has, so thank you in advance for taking the time to give us feedback and potentially taking the survey seven times so that all teachers get that feedback. Students will also get the chance this Wednesday to take the survey during Wally Time.

PTSA November Newsletter

Our wonderful PTSA puts out a regular newsletter, which can be found here. Check it out for upcoming events, highlights from past events, and more!

9th Grade Job Interviews – Thursday, January 13th

Adult volunteers are still needed to help with our 9th grade Job Interview experience. We need 15 volunteers from 7:50am -11:15am , and 15 volunteers from 11:00am-3:00pm. The PTSA will provide lunch for both sessions. Volunteers will be doing short mock job interviews for our 9th grade students. The interview questions will be emailed to volunteers. For more information, please contact the counseling center. If you can help with this fun activity, please fill out this form.

MESA-STEM After School Activity – WED, NOV 17 @ 3 pm in Media Center

We will be holding our November MESA-STEM after school activity in the Media Center right after school (3:00 – 4:00 pm).  This month’s activity will be the “Engineering and Construction Competition”.  All Elk Ridge students are welcome and invited to participate. For further information, please contact Ms. Hardy or Mr. Bennett.