Volume 3 / December 2020
December
Happy Holidays - We wish you great joy and a restful break.
Calendar of Events
Dec. 21- Jan. 1 - Winter Break
Jan. 4 - 1st day back after break. Make sure you have taken your computer by a school parking lot - shut it down and restart it BEFORE this date to make sure updates are done and to help solve any "glitchy" problems.
Jan. 18 - MLK Day - No School.
Jan. 28 - 7th graders register for 8th grade classes today in Social Studies.
Jan 29 - END OF 1st SEMESTER
Feb.1 - Semester Break Day - No School.
Feb. 2 - 4 Second Semester Materials Distribution (see below for more info.)
Feb 3 - 6th Grade Parent Night - Virtual Webinar.
Feb 5 - 1st Semester GRADES ARE FINAL - Log on to PS to view.
Feb. 15 - President's Day - No School.
Message from the Principal
December. 2020

Happy holidays to our entire Sacajawea learning community. December was overwhelming (in a positive way) as a Principal. I was overwhelmed with the generosity of our students, staff and families. Each year, our school partners with our PTG (Parent Teacher Group) to provide gifts and support over the holiday season. Even in the midst of a pandemic, the flexibility, kindness and generosity of our parent volunteers and staff blew me away. This program, called Sac Gives, provided presents and holiday joy to over 40 families including an additional 24 gift cards for many of our neediest students. 

Additionally, behind the scenes, I witnessed teachers and support staff from our school, taking individual students under their wings, providing food, clothing, resources and basic needs. Staff, on their own time, are delivering close to 50 food bags weekly. This gracious giving occurs often at Sacajawea, but the holidays magnify the need.  Knowing that our teachers and staff are giving all they have to kids for 8 to 10 hours every day and then secretly identifying individuals with unique constraints, is again overwhelming. 

Moreover, it is staggering to witness the support of our community members who are aiding the Sacajawea Positive Behavior Support program. Every month our school has a theme or trait of positive behavior.  The trait for December is Purposefulness. This theme is embedded in our Character Strong curriculum. Our community members work with our Parent Teacher Group to provide a $75.00 donation to be used for students who are exhibiting the monthly trait. A remote randomized drawing is used for students who earn SAC cards.  This program is one of many that service our learning and academic culture at Sacajawea.  These businesses are added to our website, reader board along Grand and more. Even in a world-wide crisis, our school is committed to academic excellence and social emotional well being.
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Finally, I sent a message to families reminding them that over break it is a good idea to have your children using Spokane Schools laptops to log in to the Spokane Public Schools network and restart their devices.  This will require your family to go to any SPS site, get close the school and simply restart the computer. Doing this will add any necessary updates and fixes to the laptop and get it ready for school on January 4th. 
Happy Holidays!


Jeremy Ochse
IMPORTANT -
District-created Microsoft Teams will be "archived" during winter break.
What does this mean for you?
If a team is archived it means you will not have access to the TEAM or any work you may have planned on doing over the break. It also means that you can not turn in assignments through TEAMS. One Note is accessible but in a "read only" format (printable not editable). Teachers are able to unarchive (open up) their class teams but are responsible for actively monitoring the team and therefore actively working over their winter break. Some will choose to do this and some will not.

We want to publicly say that we respect both decisions and hope that you will too.

If you had planned on doing school work over break, please don’t panic.
There is a solution!! Download any work you had planned on doing over break before the end of school on Friday. You can turn it in when we return on January 4th.
 
Your teachers should be announcing whether or not they plan to unarchive their class teams over break. If they do, you will have access to any work through Teams. If they do not, you will want to download your work to your computer prior to school ending on Friday.
Preparing for Next Year's SAC Registration!
We will begin registration for 2021-2022 in January. The process will be all online through PowerSchool. In order to prepare, it will be important for you know your login and password to PowerSchool and you can get into the program (the login/password is different from your Clever/MS365 login/password).

Directions:
Using a computer (not your phone), go to PowerSchool and try log in.

·   If you get in, you're good to go! Please write down the login/password in case you forget it before January. There is a chance that even if you know your login/password, it might take you to a screen that says "an administrator has changed your password". You will need to select a new password, so just follow the directions on the screen and enter your current password, then choose a new one that is 8 characters or more.

·   If you can't get in, your password will need to be reset. Click on the link below to send an email to Mrs. Leyde. Provide your name and simply ask for a password reset. You will receive an email back with directions on how to use a temporary password so that you can get into the system and choose a new password. Please write down the login and new password you choose in case you forget it before January.

Semester 1 Textbook Turn-in
&
Semester 2 Textbook Check-out. 
Plus Library Book Turn-in

Come by to get the materials you need for 2nd semester and turn in any library books and/or text books you no longer need.
Feb 2 – 4 (Tues-Th)
1:00-3:00 in the gymnasium.  
LEVY is for LEARNING
Levy Facts for the February 9 Special Election:
ï»żThe levy is a way for the Spokane community to provide a well-rounded experience for SPS students by funding extracurricular activities, support for students with special needs, and critical health and wellness services. Learn more at spokaneschools.org/levy
What Is a School Levy? School levies support essential programs, staff and services that provide a quality education for our students. The levy is a way for the Spokane community to provide a well-rounded education for SPS students. The 2021 levy replaces the expiring 2018 levy and is not a new tax. The total estimated tax rate for schools will be less than in 2018 and prior years.

What does a Levy Fund? Levy funding supports essential programs, people and services, such as:
·   Nurses
·   Counselors
·   Behavior specialists
·   Student intervention programs
·   Special education services
·   Technology support
·   Smaller class sizes
·   Advanced Placement courses
·   Athletics
·   Arts, music, and drama

What Will the Levy Cost? The 2021 levy replaces the expiring 2018 levy and is not a new tax. The total estimated tax rate for schools will be less than in 2018 and prior years. Estimated tax rates (per $1,000 of assessed valuation) are:
·   2022: $2.40
·   2023: $2.45
·   2024: $2.50
PBIS Rewards

PBIS stands for Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports. A school wide SAC program to help encourage students to make positive choices academically, behaviorally and socially.
 

Congratulations to our recent SAC way winners:

Tracy Akem was nominated by Mrs. Miller in the category of Awesomeness. Tracy is an overall awesome student who always has his camera on.

Neel Clarke was nominated by Mr. Weed in the category of Courage. Neel took initiative to want to improve her vocabulary.

Jada Coleman was nominated by Mrs. Pearman in the category of Awesomeness. â€œJada is always the first one in the meeting with her camera on, greeting her classmates. She is also completing all of her required practice and engaged in choir activities. I am so proud of her!”.

Ella Ingwaldson was nominated by BOTH Mr. Rise and Mrs. Crow in the categories of Awesomeness and Problem Solving. â€œElla’s camera is on most of the time and she is working hard in Math lessons.”

Neil Davis was nominated by Mrs. Miller in the category of Courage. â€œNeil frequently has the courage to have his camera on and share out his ideas in class discussions”.

Riley Green was nominated by Mr. Kuehn in the category of Leadership. â€œAlways has camera on, participates and helps others.”
News/Info
Report cards will not be mailed home moving forward. With every student having a computer and access to Power School... detailed, up to the minute grades are ALWAYS at a parent and student's fingertips.
Virtual Clubs are up and running.
We want our students to be involved. Multiple studies show that involved students are happier, healthier and do better academically. CLICK HERE to see all the great clubs you can be a part of!
ATTENDANCE Plea for HELP!!

24 HOUR ATTENDANCE LINE
509-354-5515
Please call anytime your student will not be attending class
ï»ż(Don't just tell the teacher - we need to know in the office too!!)
TECH TIP for STUDENTS:

HEADS UP ....IF you are having issues with your computer take it to a SPS school parking lot so that it within the range of our "intranet", shut down the computer and restart it while in the parking lot. This is solving a lot of glitchy issues.

ASSIGNEMENT for all STUDENTS....before school begins on Jan. 4th take the computer to a school parking lot and do the shut down/restart to allow all the updates and fixes to happen so that you are ready to go at 8:30 on Jan. 4th.

At the end of the school day, please make sure to ‘Restart’ your school laptop before you ‘Shut Down’ your laptop. During ‘Restart,’ your laptop will install any updates or software that is needed along with resolving any errors. After your laptop has restarted completely, you can shut down your laptop and it will be ready to go for the next day.
8th Grade Parents....

We are still planning on trying to do a student/family-funded Spring Break trip to Washington, D.C. and New York City. This trip is a long-running tradition here at Sacajawea and we are hoping we can still make it happen. Obviously, things will be different than usual and we will be navigating things as we go. If you are interested or have any questions, feel free to email Mr. Allen at AaronA@SpokaneSchools.org

Thunderbird Closet... is still taking donations. If you are Mari Condo-ing your life bring the kid's clothes/accessories here!!! We need all sizes!

KIDS growing like weeds??? If you NEED clothes/toiletries come see us between 8:00 and 3:00!! We are well stocked and would love to help out our SAC families.

Special request - We could ALWAYS use hangers, socks/underwear and shampoos, deodorants, toothpaste etc....
PTG Corner

Get Involved. Please join the Sacajawea PTG. This parent group helps support Sacajawea students and staff. Honor Roll Celebrations, supporting needy students, 8th grade fun day, and more are all examples of the way our PTG supports our learning community.
Our next meeting is Wed. Jan. 20, 2021

Donate.
We strive to provide the BEST middle school experience for your child. Many of the activities we offer here at SAC are unfunded and don't happen at other middle schools. This is because of YOUR PTG. Sacajawea PTG is solely funded by your direct donation. Parents tell us that they don't want to sell cookie dough, wrapping paper, chocolates, etc..... If every parent donated a minimum of 20.00 our PTG would net 16000.00 to support student activities and events. Funds are getting low....CLICK HERE and donate today!!! Or pick up an envelope in the main office. Please make checks payable to Sacajawea PTG.
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Volunteers are needed. Please volunteer your time. Contact our office to get in touch with our volunteer coordinator at 509-354-5500.
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Free Online Tutoring: Gonzaga University and Priority Spokane are partnering together to provide free tutoring and educational support for K-12 students in Spokane County. Gonzaga and Priority Spokane said they have partnered together due to the academic struggles K-12 students face in the pandemic. Parents are asked to sign up for one-hour sessions 24 hours in advance online here
Digital Library Cards: The Spokane Public Library is introducing Digital Access Library Cards for all middle and high school students. These specialized library cards give students online access to most of the library's digital learning resources that are ideal for research. How to access: go to www.spokaneschools.org/students. Click the ‘Clever’ button and log in like normal. Click the Spokane Public Library icon, where you’ll see your library card number and pin displayed at the top of the page.
Congratulations/Good News/Celebrations
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Congratulations: Share your good news with us! We love to feature the incredible things our students are doing inside and outside of school. If you have good news to share, please send it to Tracey Leyde (traceyl@spokaneschools.org) to be included in the SacNYCU
BIG THANK YOU to Kim Wolfe who was our 8th grade counselor substitute for 1st semester while Mrs. Thomas was on maternity leave. Mrs. Wolfe, thank you so much for everything you did to support our SAC family.
Welcome back Mrs. Thomas. We missed you!!!
Community Partners
About our Community Partner's Program..... We would appreciate you partnering with us in supporting the PBIS program at Sacajawea. There are 2 ways to participate and help the Sacajawea community.
  1. We ask that businesses pick one month of the school year to sponsor our PBIS program, with a suggested donation of $75.  When your business sponsors a month of PBIS, it will be recognized in Sacajawea “News You Can Use” email with a link to your businesses’ website. This email gives your business exposure to the families of the 800+ students enrolled at Sacajawea. We will also advertise your business for the entire month on our brand new Sacajawea Middle School electronic reader board, located on Grand Blvd. at 32nd Ave.
  2. Other businesses provide us with rewards and tangible goods for students and staff.

If you are a business owner and would like to partner with us by contributing to our Sacajawea family with donations of time or resources please email Laura Treece at laurat@spokaneschools.org