Pacetti Bay Middle School Wildcat Weekly

Volume 109

https://www-pbm.stjohns.k12.fl.us/

Good afternoon Wildcat families,

We hope you had a wonderful weekend and are ready for the Winter Break. This shortened week marks the end of the second quarter as well. Teachers are finalizing grades and students are completing their final assignments and assessments this week. Furthermore, our Student Council is sponsoring Spirit Days this week below.

Monday: Holiday or Crazy Sock Day

Tuesday: Ugly Sweater Day

Wednesday: Hat Day

Our next Wildcat Weekly will be sent on January 1, 2023. We hope you all have a relaxing and restful winter break.

Due to Hurricane Nicole, the SJCSD has designated Monday, February 6 as a regular school day for all students and staff. This date was previously scheduled as an inservice day for staff and a holiday for students.

8th grade students and families, Gradventure information was sent out via schoolmessenger a couple of weeks ago. Please make sure to read through all the information including how to reserve a spot and the expectations for students until the trip. This year we have contracted with Kelly Tours, reservation and payment will go directly through Kelly Tours.

Yearbook sales are now open and details are listed below.

We will continue to review expectations and consequences to all students. It is critical for the school to provide a safe and secure environment for students to learn and grow. We ask that you partner with us by encouraging your child to actively support the Wildcat Way! The 22-23 Expectations presentation can be seen at https://vimeo.com/740462750.

We currently have one teacher vacancy, Science/STEM. We have been aggressively looking to fill this position and are very thankful for the dedication of our science department as they have been working to keep the students learning by planning lessons and grading for our substitute teachers.

We encourage families to visit our website frequently, as there will be many updates as the school year begins. This can be viewed at https://www-pbm.stjohns.k12.fl.us/ and click on the grade level link on the left side navigation. These are general supplies and additional details may be given by your child's teacher during the first weeks of school.

Here are some important pieces of information for this coming school year:

·      Doors will open for students starting at 7:10am. We are NOT able to monitor students before 7:00am. Our office hours are 7:00am- 3:00pm.

·      Students MUST have possession of their ID at all times on campus. These are used for a number of purposes on campus.

·      School begins at 7:30am, students who arrive to class after 7:30am will be marked tardy to class.

·      Parent drop-off and pick-up are the second entrance on Meadowlark lane from Pacetti Road. Please do not use the parking lot as a drop-off location as it is unsafe. When pulling up, please pull up all the way to the oak tree at the entrance of the school.

·      Please remind your children that cell phones need to be put away and off once entering the building and can be be turned back on at the end of the school day.

·      Bottle refilling stations are located throughout the school for refillable water bottles.

FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM!

• December 21st - Second Quarter/First Semester Ends
• December 22nd-January 3rd - Winter Break
• January 5th - Classes Resume
• January 16th - Martin Luther King Jr Day - No School
• January 18th - Report Cards Issued
• February 2nd - Interims Issued
• February 6th - Regular School Day

The Fourth Annual Holiday Tree Contest!

Old Town Trolley Tours is proud to be partnering with the St. Johns County School District and INK!, a non-profit support organization that works with the district, for their Holiday Tree Program. Vote once a day, voting ends Monday, December 19th at 11:59pm. Winners will be announced December 20th on social media.

Voting will began on Monday, December 12^th on www.voteholidaytrees.com and will end on December 19^th at 11:59 PM. Individuals may vote daily! 

Please vote daily for PBMS's Elf tree!

The Art Club will not meet again until Tuesday, January 10^th from 2:00 - 3:00 pm. Students who missed the last meeting but want to take home their bowls/holiday ornaments before the break, need to stop by either before or after school to collect them. 

State Assessment Results

To access your student’s assessment results,

• Log on to your Home Access Account, (HAC) account. https://www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/hac/
• Click on the tab that says Grades.
• Click on the tab that says Test Scores.
• Assessment results are listed in alphabetical order by date.

A resource was created to help families understand the information found on the FAST Grades 3-10 Individual Student Reports, which are posted to HAC within two weeks of the student completing the test.  

Understanding FAST Grades 3-10 ELA and Mathematics Reports: A Guide for Families

Any student who has been absent from school shall provide a note from a parent or guardian within forty‐eight (48) hours of returning to school stating the cause of the absence.  Failure to provide a note will result in an automatic unexcused absence.  However, the fact that the student provides a note does not require the school administration to excuse the absence.  The principal or designee will decide whether the absence meets the criteria for an excused absence, and that decision will be final.  The administration may request additional documentation  Student Code of Conduct Page 19), such as a doctor’s note.  The excuse must state specific dates of absence, and must be signed by the treating, licensed physician.  After fifteen (15) days of absence, whether excused or unexcused, a student must present verification from a licensed doctor for all subsequent absences due to illness.  

Battle of the Books Club:

If you have been reading the Sunshine State books and are interested in being a part of our Battle of the Books team, please:

1. Join the Battle of the Books Schoology group using this access code: MQR2-6W62-3R2Z7
2. Join our club meetings after school on Tuesdays 1:50-2:45 in the Media Center. You must have transportation home promptly at 2:45 to participate.  

Media Center Policy:

Our students are expected to check out books and read throughout the school year. Students are responsible for returning or renewing their library books and textbooks by the due dates given. Students with outstanding materials or fines need to clear their account before being allowed to continue checking out books. Students, and their parents, are responsible for the replacement costs of any lost or damaged materials. Please check before attempting to replace a book with your own copy as many of our books are library bound. Therefore, a copy you get at retail is not a suitable replacement. Students may be excluded from end-of-year activities with Media Center materials outstanding. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this policy, please contact our Media Specialist at Karin.gowens@stjohns.k12.fl.us .

Parental Choice Library Book Restriction Form:

If you would like to change your student’s level of access to library books at school, please complete the Parental Choice Library Book Restriction form found on the Media Center website (or click here) and submit it to the Media Center.    

Schoology Information:

·        Schoology is our online learning management system. Teachers will be posting announcements, calendar events, assignments, and materials in Schoology.

·        Students should check their account regularly, at least once a week. It is strongly recommended that students check Schoology daily when absent.

·        All of our students have completed Schoology training and received the “Getting Started with Schoology” guide. 

·        If your student is having trouble signing in at home, please make sure they are following the specific steps in the guide provided above. Also, clearing the Chrome browser history completely and restarting your computer often solves login issues. 

·        Parents are encouraged to set up their own Schoology accounts. Parents will need their child’s parent access code to set up a new account or add a child to an existing account. Parent access codes are available in HAC. Click on the Registration tab and look under Additional Information. If you don’t see your parent access code listed, please keep checking back, it could take up to a week to populate for new students.

·        Visit the PBMS Schoology Information webpage and the SJCSD Schoology for Parents webpage for additional information and resources. 

Student Expectations

https://vimeo.com/740462750

Please be advised that as per the Student Code of Conduct , students are not permitted to wear pajamas to school.

• In accordance with statutory requirement F.S. 1006.07 (students are prohibited from wearing clothing that exposes underwear or that exposes body parts in an indecent or vulgar manner) enforcement will focus on positive guidance without embarrassment to the student and should not disrupt the educational process.
• Clothing must cover the area from armpit to armpit, and down to mid-thigh
• Tops must have shoulder straps and be long enough not to expose your midriff
• See through clothing or rips in jeans must not expose your underwear or your body between the mid-thigh to your arm pit area

Our lost and found is located in the cafeteria. Please check there if you have any missing items. Items are donated at the end of each month.

IMPORTANT IMMUNIZATION INFORMATION

All rising 7^th grade students are required to have a tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis (Tdap) booster prior to entering 7^th grade. If your student needs or has already received this immunization, please bring, fax or email the updated Florida DH680 form to Pacetti Bay as soon as possible. The Health Department or your physician can update your DH680 form.

Florida Department of Health in St. Johns County

200 San Sebastian View

St. Augustine, FL 32084

(904) 506-6081

Contact Us | Florida Department of Health in St Johns (floridahealth.gov)

Call for hours of operation for immunization services.

If you have any questions, please call our Guidance Department at (904) 547-8760.

PBMS Fax: 904-547-8775

Email: kimber.ponce@stjohns.k12.fl.us

Attention 8^th grade parents and guardians

Get your calendars set ahead of time by checking out the CTE Department’s schedule for everything related to the High School Academies and Programs of Choice.

For the timeline of events, please follow this link https://cte.stjohns.k12.fl.us/timeline/

Gradventure:

• Register by January 13^th, 2023 by paying $50 deposit
• Payment plans are available and final payment is not due until April 7^th, 2023
• PBMS- no OSS or full day of ISS
• See Mrs. Jutte for more information

Kelly Tours Information

We appreciate our Business Partners! If you know of a business that may be interested in partnering with PBMS, please direct them to: 

https://pbmsptso.memberhub.com/w/Support

Did you know when you reserve the Pacetti Bay marquee you get an entire WEEK of your message being displayed!?

That's right, your message will be displayed Monday - Friday the week of your choosing!

The deadline for submitting your request for the week is the Wednesday prior to the week you would like your message displayed.

Head over to: https://pbmsptso.memberhub.com/w/Marquee for more information and you make your reservation!

To keep up with the latest information, please join our Pacetti Bay Middle School PTSO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/PacettiBayMiddlePTSO

Battle of the Books Club:

If you have been reading the Sunshine State books and are interested in being a part of our Battle of the Books team, please:

1. Join the Battle of the Books Schoology group using this access code: MQR2-6W62-3R2Z7
2. Join our club meetings after school on Tuesdays 1:50-2:45 in the Media Center. You must have transportation home promptly at 2:45 to participate.  

NJHS meeting on 12/19 from 2:00-2:45pm. Students should secure a ride home as transportation will not be available.

National Junior Honor Society Members from Pacetti Bay Middle School have volunteered to take part in a fundraiser called “The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) School & Youth programs, Pennies for Patients. NJHS members are collecting change to help Florida residents diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma. The Pennies for Patients campaign kicks off on December 5^th and runs through December 16, 2022. The two-week campaign helps provide funding for research, financial aid, and support programs.

The concept behind collecting change is to teach the students they can give a little bit and it can add up to make a difference. Can more than pennies be donated? Sure! You can donate coins and paper money.

Thanks in part to Pennies for Patients, LLS was able to provide educational programs for nearly 500 patients last year. Programs included family support groups, informational hotlines, and back-to-school programs to support and teach guidance counselors, teachers, and school administrators how to help families of students with cancer or students dealing with cancer in a parent.

NJHS members are given their own containers to take home and collect change. The containers are returned at the end of the two-week collection period.

For more information on the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, visit www.lls.org.

Info Box:

Did you know:

Every 4 minutes one person is diagnosed with a blood cancer.

An estimated 139,860 people in the United States were diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma in 2009.

New cases of leukemia, Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma account for 9.5 percent of the 1,479,350 new cancer cases diagnosed in the United States this year.

Source: www.lls.org

Parents can complete the online Free and Reduced lunch application by using this link https://www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/food/free/ We encourage you to fill out the online application-English or Spanish, but you can also print a form on the same website and return it to school. Parent should not delay applying to prevent a gap in their student’s meal eligibility.A new application must be completed every school year.

If you have any questions please contact the Café Manager, Jeanie Gray.

Jeanie.gray@stjohns.k12.fl.us

904-547-8776

SJCSD Microsoft Office 365 Offer

Families and employees of SJCSD are eligible for free Microsoft 365 Pro Plus. Please click the link for details: https://www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/advantage/

Information below are neither sponsored by nor endorsed by the School Board of St Johns County, its agents or its employees.