	WEST MIDDLE SCHOOL News and Notes September 26, 2008	.

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SAFETY CONCERNS FOR STUDENTS

Students SHOULD NOT be in the side parking lot walking, running, or biking, etc. before or after school. Teachers and staff park in the lot and are concerned with the safety of our students. As school is dismissed, students are to go leave in a quick manner. Students are not allowed to simply “hang out” at school after 2:20 P.M. Only those students who are staying with a teacher, coach, or sponsor as a supervisor are allowed to stay.

EARLY RELEASE

Martinsville schools will be released at 11:45 A.M. on Tuesday, September 30, due to Professional Development for staff. Transportation is provided as normal. Lunch will be served before the students are released. There will be no after school homework help and no activity bus on PBA day.

WEST MIDDLE SCHOOL OFFICE HOURS

West Middle School’s front office is open to the public Monday through Thursday, 7:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M., and Fridays, 7:00 A.M. – 3:00 P.M. West Middle School’s phone number is; (765) 342-6628.

PROCEDURE FOR REPORTING ABSENCES

If a student is absent from school, his/her parent should call school the day of the absence, before 9:30 A.M. If the school has not been notified, the school will call home to ask why the student is absent. Please send a note with the student the day the student will return. Otherwise, the absence becomes an unexcused absence.

CLUB MID – FREE – AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM

The local YMCA is offering Club Mid, an after school program, for West Middle School students. Every Tuesday and Thursday, beginning, Thursday, October 2 – December 12, after school, students will meet at West’s flagpole to be transported to the YMCA. Students involved in extra-curricular activities can participate, too; transportation is available at 4:00 P.M. as well. The program provides a safe, fun, environment for homework help, snacks, swimming and other fun activities. The students are challenged and taught to make good choices in life’s situations. Club Mid is a free program and participating students will receive a free YMCA membership. Students should be picked up at the YMCA, by 6:00 P.M. Registration forms are available in the cafeteria. If you have any questions, call the YMCA, Robin McDaniel at 765-342-6628.

THE HAVEN – FREE – AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM

The Haven Youth Center at 39 E Jackson Street is offering Afternoons ROCK in Indiana beginning Monday, September 29^th. This is an alcohol, tobacco, and other drug prevention program developed specifically for middle school students. It is absolutely free. Youth may enroll through Monday, October 6^th. Enrollment forms are available through the school and at The Haven, open for middle school students Monday – Thursday, 2:30-6:00. Please call The Haven at 342-5102 if you have any questions. Funding for this program is provided by FSSA/Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) through the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) Block Grant 93.959 and the Problem Gambler's Assistance Fund.

PICTURE RETAKES

West Middle School picture retakes will be on Monday, October 6. Picture order forms are available in the cafeteria and the front office.

NEW PHONE SYSTEM

West Middle School has a new phone system. After dialing, 765-342-6628, we encourage the public to listen to the ‘prompts’ and choose accordingly. Below is a list of ‘prompts’ for your convenience:

‘0’ – Operator

‘1’ – Absence/Attendance

‘2’ – Clinic

‘3’ – Cafeteria

‘4’ – Library

‘5’ – Office

‘6’ – Athletic Director/Asst. Principal

‘7’ – Principal

‘9’- Staff Directory

PRE-ORDER YEARBOOKS

A WMS yearbook is a 72-page, hardback keepsake for all students. The price begins at $26.50. Pre-Ordering is the ONLY way a student can get his/her name on the cover of the book. The last day for ordering is November 30^th. Below are the ways to secure your WMS yearbook.
1) Place your order on our secure website at www.yearbookordercenter.com. Enter order #0532.
2) Place your order by calling the toll-free number of Herff Jones at 1-866-287-3096, MON-FRI, 8am-5pm Central Time.
3) Send your payment to Herff Jones through the mail.

AFTER-SCHOOL HOMEWORK HELP PROGRAM

West Middle School’s After-School Homework Help Program runs Monday – Thursday, each week, 2:30-4:00 P.M. (H.H. will not meet on PBA, early release days). Students whose parents have given them permission by signing and returning the program form are available to participate. The immediate goal for the Homework Help Program is for the student to have extra help and supervision doing his/her homework. Homework Help applications are available in the office.

Any student enrolled in Homework Help who would like to attend other after-school activities such as Drama Club, STARS, Drug Free Club, etc., must bring a note signed by his or her parent. Then, the Homework Help Supervisors know that the student has parent approval to be absent from Homework Help on those club meeting days. Thank you.

WEST MIDDLE SCHOOL’S ONLY
SCHOOL-WIDE 2008-09 FUNDRAISER

West Middle School’s ONLY Fundraiser this year, will be a school-wide Spirit Shirt Sale. West’s Staff encourages each family to purchase at least ONE shirt. The student, parent, or grandparent, who wears the Spirit Shirt to a home sporting event, will receive FREE ADMISSION. (Events that are excluded are Jr. Mid-State and Tournament events). WMS Spirit Shirts are on sale for $30.00 during school hours. West Middle School’s goal is to sell 700 shirts. Again, there will not be trinkets, candles, candies, jewelry, wrapping paper, or any other typical fundraiser item to sell this year. West’s goal is for every staff member and every family to purchase at least ONE SHIRT. Money collected from this drive will go toward student activities and student programs.

STUDENT RECOGNITION

At the end of each trimester, students who have earned a grade point average of 3.5 or above are recognized. Therefore, West Middle School staff members encourage all students to continue to pursue their short and long term educational goals.

Tuesday, September 30- PBA, Early Release, 11:45 A.M.

Thursday & Friday, October 23 & 24- Fall Break

IMPORTANT DATES

Tuesday, September 30- Progress Report distribution
Tuesday, September 30- PBA, Early Release, 11:45 A.M.
Thursday & Friday, Oct. 23 & 24- Fall Break
Sunday, November 30- Yearbook order deadline
Monday, Oct. 6- Picture Re-takes
Tuesday, Oct. 28- District Spell Bowl @ WMS 6:00 P.M.
Wednesday, Oct. 29-Career Day & PBA Early Release 11:45 A.M.
Sunday, Nov. 2- TIME CHANGE, Set clocks back one hour 2 A.M.

USE OF SCHOOL LOCKERS

Lockers are provided for the convenience of the student. Students, for safety and security reasons, SHOULD NOT SHARE LOCKERS, GIVE OUT COMBINATIONS, OR TAMPER, WITH OTHER STUDENTS’ LOCKERS. In addition to the regular school lockers, students will be issued a gym locker and lock when they are enrolled in physical education class and/or when they participate in a school sport. When used correctly, lockers provide a fairly safe storage place for personal property. Students are not permitted to place a personal lock on any locker, unless approved by the principal. Students who lose their lock are required to purchase a new one for $5.75 from Mrs. Browder or Mrs. Voland

WEEKLY CALENDAR: SEPTEMBER 26 - OCTOBER 4, 2008

Friday, September 26

7^th FB 2:30-4:15 PM

Boys’ Golf Jr. Mid-State @ Hickory Stick 4:30 PM

Saturday, September 27

8^th FB 8:00-10:00 AM

MJFB 10:00-7:00 PM

LAYB 11:00-4:00 PM

Monday, September 29

6^th GBB TRY-OUTS 2:30-4:15

Spell Bowl 2:30-4:00 PM, rm 4

FB 2:30-4:30 PM

CC 2:30-4:00 PM

Cheer 2:30-4:15 PM

VB 3:00-5:00 PM

Tennis vs. Center Grove Central 4:30 PM @ MHS

Tuesday, September 30

PBA Early Release 11:45 PM

FB 12:15-2:30 PM

Tennis 5:30-6:30 PM

VB vs. Paul Hadley (H) 5:00 PM

Golf vs. Greenwood @ Smock 4:00 PM

CC @ Tri-North 5:00
Bus departs 3:30, returns 7:00 pm

Wednesday, October 1

6^th GBB TRY-OUTS 2:30-4:15 PM

Spell Bowl 2:30-4:00 PM

Stars 2:30-4:00 PM

CC 2:30-4:00 PM

FB 2:30-4:30 PM

Cheer 4:15-6:15 PM

VB 3:00-5:00 PM

LAYB 6:00-8:30 PM

Thursday, October 2

6^th GBB 2:30-4:15 PM

VB 3:00-5:00 PM

Golf vs. Center Grove Central @ Foxcliff 3:45 PM

CC @ Bedford 4:45 PM

Bus departs EMS 3:30, returns 7:00 pm

FB vs. Batchelor 6:00 PM (H)

Friday, October 3

7^th FB 2:30-4:15 PM

Saturday, October 4

8^th FB 8:00-10:00 AM

MJFL 10:00-6:00 PM

LAYB 11:00-4:00 PM

Jr. Mid-State Golf @ Foxcliff 2:30 PM

EXTRA-CURRICLAR ACTIVITES

BAND- Pep Band will participate in home football games. Students should arrive ½ hour before the game begins. Mr. Miller is Band Director.
CHEER- The cheerleaders will be collecting money and pledges for the Jump-O-Thon. The event will take place Tuesday, October 7, 4:00 - 5:30. All of the money will go to the cheerleaders' new warm-ups. Pledge any amount of money. Every dollar counts. Each girl is required to earn $100.00.
CIRCLE THE STATE - All 7^th & 8^th Choir students will meet Wed., Oct. 15, 2:30-3:30 P.M. Mrs. Shover is the sponsor.
CLUB-MID- Will begin Thurs., Oct. 2, 2:30-6:00 P.M., transportation provided to by the YMCA. Club-Mid meets each Tues., and Thursday. Detailed information will be made available at a later date.
DRAMA CLUB- Will meet on a Monday, in October, in the Library, during Success. Exact details will be made available soon. Mrs. Brinegar is the club sponsor.
DRUG-FREE CLUB- Drug-Free, Red Ribbon week, is October 21-24. A special activity will be done each day. Wear RED on Tuesday, Oct. 21. Ms. Mitchell & Ms. Forler are club sponsors.
I.D.T. CAMPUS CLUB- The kick-off meeting will be Wed., Oct. 8, 2:30-4:00 PM. Robin McDaniel & John Wes, from the YMCA are club leaders. Mrs. Kempe, rm 18, is the class sponsor.
LEADERSHIP ACADEMY- Applications are available for 7^th & 8^th grade students who are interested, in Mrs. Thatcher’s room, 26.
MOVIE CLUB- Thursday, Oct. 30, 2:30-4;00 P.M., Boys will view Spiderwick Chronicles, rated PG. Mr. Lindsey, Counselor, and Mr. Allanson, Art teacher, are the club sponsors.
NATIONAL JR. HONOR SOCIETY- Officers meet Oct. 13, and NJHS meets Oct. 14, 2:30-3:00 P.M., in room 28. Mrs. Shover is the sponsor.
ORCHESTRA- Students should practice daily. Wed., Nov. 5 is the Fall Ochestra Concert, 7:00 P.M., High School Auditorium. Ms. Phillips is the orchestra director.
SPELL BOWL- October 6, Spell Bowl is traveling to Franklin Community Middle School. Competition begins at 6:00 P.M. October 15, The Martinsville Middle School Invitational will be held at MHS at 6:00 P.M. October 28, The District Spell Bowl will be held in West gym at 6:00 P.M. Ms. Mitchell is the sponsor.
STARS- GIRLS ONLY - The STARS club will meet every Wednesday, 2:30-4:00 P.M., in the Library. This club is a blast! All girls welcome! Mrs. McPike is the club sponsor.
STUDENT COUNCIL- The club began its Humane Society Drive. All WMS students can help by bringing in paper towels, bleach, dog food, cat food, and old towels. Any practical items can be donated. Drop boxes are in Success Classes. The drive began Monday, Sept. 15, and runs through Friday, Oct. 3. Mrs. Thatcher and Ms. Baldwin are the club sponsors.

Directions to away events:

Batchelor Middle School, Bloomington – Travel south on S.R. 37 to Tapp Road (light past Sam’s Club exit), turn left. Travel to right. Rogers St., turn right. Travel to Gordon Pike (4-way stop), turn right. Batchelor will be on the

Cloverdale Middle School – Travel south on S.R. 67 to Hwy. 231. Turn right on Hwy. 231 and travel approximately 11 miles to Logan Street. Turn right at the stop light on Logan Street. The school is located at 312 East Logan Street.

Custer Baker Middle School, Franklin, Indiana, (now Franklin Community Middle School) - Take State Road 44 east to Hwy. 31. Turn left and Grizzly Cub Dr. is about ½ mile on the east side of street.

Tri-North, Bloomington – Travel south on S.R. 37 to the College/Walnut exit in Bloomington. Travel past the Colorado Steakhouse and turn right at the stop light at 17^th Street. Travel approximately ¾ to 1 mile to Monroe Street. Turn left on Monroe Street. The school is on the left.

Center Grove Central Middle School – Travel north on S.R. 37. Turn right on Stones Crossing Road (yellow flasher light). Go to the second 4-way stop. Center Grove Middle School is on the left. The High School is on the right sid

Brown County, Nashville – Travel east on Hwy. 252 to Morgantown and turn right (south) at 4-way stop (Hwy. 135). Follow Hwy. 135 South to Nashville, go straight at the light in Nashville. The school is at the junction of Hwy. 135 and Hwy. 46.

Tri-North, Bloomington – Travel south on S.R. 37 to the College/Walnut exit in Bloomington. Travel past the Colorado Steakhouse and turn right at the stop light at 17^th Street. Travel approximately ¾ to 1 mile to Monroe Street. Turn left on Monroe Street. The school is on the left.

Greenwood Middle School – Travel north on S.R. 37. Turn right at light where West Grove Elementary is located (Smith Valley Road). Follow Smith Valley Road past Hwy. 31 to Madison Avenue. Turn left on Madison Avenue. The school is on the right side.

Center Grove Middle North – Travel north on S.R. 37 to Fairview Road and turn right. Travel on Fairview Road to South Morgantown Road and turn right. The school is located at 202 North Morgantown Road.

Clark-Pleasant Middle School – Travel on S.R. 37 to Hwy. 144 and turn right. Travel approximately 2.5 miles to Road 500N (Whiteland Road) and turn right. Travel on Road 500N to S.R. 31. Cross S.R. 31 and Whiteland High School will be on the right. Clark Pleasant Middle School is behind the high school complex.

Decatur Township Middle School – Travel north on S.R. 67 past Decatur Central High School. At the first stoplight turn right on South High School Road. The middle school is about ¼ mile on the right side.

Center Grove Central Middle School – Travel north on S.R. 37. Turn right on Stones Crossing Road (yellow flasher light). Go the the second 4-way stop. Center Grove Middle School is on the left. The High School is on the right side.

Franklin Community Middle School (formerly Custer Baker) - Take State Road 44 east to Hwy. 31. Turn left and Grizzly Cub Dr. is about ½ mile on the east side of street

Paul Hadley, Mooresville – Travel north on S.R. 67 to Indiana Street (by Gray Brothers’ Cafeteria) and turn left. Drive through town to Carlisle Street. Turn left on Carlisle Street and Paul Hadley Junior High School will be on the right side past Mooresville High School.

Bedford – Travel south on S.R. 37 to Bedford to Hwy. 50 (second traffic light) and turn left. Go east through Bedford and follow Hwy. 50 about 3 to 4 miles east of Bedford to the school.

Owen Valley, Spencer - Travel South on S. R. 67 through Paragon and Gosport to U.S. 231 and turn left. (If you turn right you are headed for Cloverdale.) When approaching Spencer, you will come to a 4-way stop sign. At this 4-way stop sign, turn right and go through the main part of Spencer. This is still S.R. 67 to the right. Follow this road off to the right and soon you will see Owen Valley High School and Owen Valley Middle School by the high school.

St. Charles (Bloomington) - Travel south on S.R. 37 to the College/Walnut exit. Travel on Business 37 to the Hwy. 45/46 Bypass and turn left. Travel past the IU campus to 3^rd Street and turn right. The school is approximately ½ mile down 3^rd Street on the left.

WEST MIDDLE SCHOOL

ISTEP+ ANNOUNCEMENTS

ISTEP is Tuesday, September 16, Wednesday, September 17, and Thursday, September 18.

· Get a good night’s sleep before each testing day.

· Eat breakfast.

· Attend school every day during ISTEP+.

· Bring a pencil.

· Bring a library book.

· Finish all tests.

· Take your time

· Check answers.

· Study measurements.

· Know multiplication tables.

· With the writing portion, go through all of the writing steps, do brainstorming, organize, and check your work.

· With the writing portion, write as much as you can write. One paragraph is not enough.

· With the reading comprehension, read the passage first, then write the answers to the questions after you have read the story.

· With the reading comprehension, look for answers from the details in the paragraph.

· Study vocabulary.

· Be able to read a ruler.

· With the math sections that are not multiple choice, show all of your work in detail.

· Check your arithmetic.

· Use educated guessing and logic; eliminate down to two possible right answers.

· Make sure your answer is reasonable.

· When you are finished with a section, go back and recheck your answer.

· Make sure you are bubbling in the right answer for the right question.

· Read questions carefully, and follow directions.

· Don’t get frustrated on the first problem.

· On the Applied Skills portion, read the directions, follow through, go back and reread the directions.

· Taking the ISTEP+ test is kind of like participating in an event that you want to win.

· With ISTEP+, we all need to win for ourselves and for our school.

· We need to be the best we can be.

Good Luck!!

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