Settled In:
We have reached the point in the school year where the kids and teachers seem to have really settled in to their routines. I have been out and visiting classrooms and it’s fun to see the things happening with student learning. Teachers and kids have jumped into cool things and are working on experiments and projects already.
We have both of our Charger Times up and running now. Thursday Charger Time is time for student remediation. Teachers submit lists of students to the office of who they would like to have come to their class to get extra help/clarification of concepts that have been learned in class. Students who are not called to a specific class have a few options for the 30 minutes of Charger Time. They can go to the auditorium and do Kahoot quizzes, go to the cafeteria and work on homework, go to the library and silently read, go to the gym and play, or go outside. We also have a few of the elective teachers running things during this time. Mrs. Taylor meets with Yearbook, Mrs. Perry works on art projects, Mrs. Baguley does drama and improve, and Mr. Winn will have his computer lab open for students to work. Tuesday Charger Time is an advisory time for students. Sixth Graders will use this time for DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) due to their daily advisory class they already have. Seventh and eighth graders will use this time to track their grades, do goal setting, and then remaining time, if there is any, can be for DEAR or homework.
Mid-term is quickly approaching. Mid-term grades should be posted by teachers by Friday, September 21. Parent-teacher Conferences will then be the next week. As always, I encourage everyone to create a Parent Portal so you can track your student’s grades, assignments, and attendance.
Norovirus:
I know the district has sent out information about Norovirus. I wanted to add that it is imperative that if your student is feeling sick with any of the symptoms of Norovirus or the flu, please keep them home. The Norovirus spreads quickly and easily, and we don’t want it to run its way through the school. We are taking measures here to keep things sanitary. We have filled the hand sanitizer stations that we have throughout the building. The custodian is also making rounds with his new sanitizer backback and spraying down desks and classrooms. Finally, we have purchased sanitary wipes to use with the Chromebooks and computers in the building. None of these efforts will be curb the spread of anything, though, if kids don’t stay home when they’re sick. Thank you for everyone’s help with keep the community healthy.
Picture Day
Bell Photography will be here for picture day on Tuesday, September 18. Please remind your students that this picture is what will be used for the yearbook. We want all the kids looking their best.
Basketball Coach:
We will be in need of a basketball coach for this year. The position can be for either the boys or girls’ team. If you are interested and would like additional information, please contact me at jeleroy@graniteschools.org or 385-646-5144.
Clubs:
We are getting ready to get all the clubs up and running. To kick this off we will be having all clubs provide information to students during lunch in the next week or two. This is something new we will try this year because I have found that many students aren’t aware of what club offerings we have, or what the clubs do. Once we have this recruitment day, I will publish information about the clubs in a Principal’s Message and we will update information available on the website. It is important to get this all in line this year as we have a couple of new clubs, and we have some club supervisors switching around. Club information will also be available at Parent-Teacher Conferences.
Class Fees:
When you registered your student(s) for school you were charged the basic registration fee. This fee covers class fees for required core classes that all students take. Any class fees that will need to be charged for elective classes your student is enrolled in will not be applied to their account until September 20. So, please make sure you check your account again at that time. With our elective classes being quarter long, there will be four times this year that class fees will be charged to your account. I will make sure to give reminders each time.
Library:
Mrs. Wiebe-Strong is currently getting the library set up for this year’s district library theme: magic. She has taken this theme in a distinctly Harry Potter direction. Currently, the sorting hat is in the library and ready to sort your student into one of the four houses of Hogwarts. Next to the hat is an iPad on a stand with a short questionnaire students can answer. Based on the responses, they will be sorted into a house and then directed to see Mrs. Wiebe-Strong to receive a pin to wear that will show their house. It would be great to have all the students come up and get sorted.
The library will also be hosting Harry Potter movie days this year. Throughout the year, the library will be open after school so students can gather to watch the movies. The first movie, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, will be shown on Tuesday, September 18, after school. Students do need to have a permission slip signed by a parent to watch the movies because they are rated PG and then PG-13 for the later ones. Permission slips can be picked up and then returned to the library.
Dress Code:
I’d like to take a quick minute to review a couple of pieces of the dress code that we are dealing with on a somewhat frequent basis. They both deal with shirts. As a reminder, shirts need to be long enough that a student’s midsection is covered. The other thing is that shirts do need to have sleeves on them (no tank tops or spaghetti straps).
Sports:
Cross Country had their first meet this week. The kids have been working hard to get ready, and I’m sure they are glad that we are finally heading into some cooler weather. They have gone through a lot of popsicles after practices. Congratulations to Ellie Dirks for finishing in first place at the meet on Wednesday. There are three more meets for the kids to hone their skills before the district championships.
Soccer team selection is today and team lists are posted in the main office. It was great to see so many kids come to the intramural portion of soccer, and in talking with the coaches this morning they talked about how difficult it was to narrow down to picking kids to be on the teams. The soccer teams will have a week of practice next week prior to their first games on Monday, September 21.
Parent-Teacher Conferences:
Apparently, and erroneous email was sent out by the district to everyone, so I want to clarify a few things. We are holding conferences under the same format we usually do. We will be here, with the teachers in the gym from 4-7pm. We do not set appointments for conferences. Just come one whichever night works best for you and the make your way around the gym and visit with your student’s teachers. I recommend bringing your student with you if they are available. Our conferences are on Wednesday, September 26, and Thursday, September 27.
Important Dates:
Sept. 14 Soccer team selection
Sept. 14 Chess Club begins
Sept. 18 Picture Day
Sept. 19 Hunter Jr. X-Country Meet
Sept. 24 Soccer vs. Bonneville (Girls away, boys home)
Sept. 25 Jefferson X-Country Meet
Sept. 26-27 Parent-Teacher Conferences (4-7pm)
Sept. 28 No School
Oct. 1 Reflections entries due
Oct. 1 Soccer vs. Bennion
Oct. 2 PTSA Meeting
Oct. 2 XC East Finals
Oct. 3 Soccer vs. Valley
Oct. 8 Soccer vs. Granite Park
Oct. 9 XC District Championship
Oct. 9 Community Council Meeting
Oct. 10 Soccer vs. Wasatch
Oct. 16 Soccer final games
Oct. 18-19 Fall break, no school
Josh LeRoy
Principal
