Hi folks,
We've been back at school now for about a month. I must reiterate an earlier statement that it is GREAT to have all of our students and staff back in the building this year. While we still face daily challenges, it's rewarding to observe students engaging in classroom discussions, talking with peers at lunch and participating in various clubs and sports. We truly value the in-person learning experiences of school and we're grateful we have such support from our entire NBJH community.
In an attempt to keep you informed of the latest happenings in the education world, we have discovered a new "fad" amongst middle and high school students. Something dubbed as "devious licks" is making its way across the nation/world via Tik Tok. The "devious lick", or prank, can be a harmless act where students remove a trivial item from its place, take a picture of it, post it on Tik Tok and (hopefully) get a positive reaction from viewers. For some situations this is nothing more than good natured adolescent fun. Unfortunately, many schools are finding these acts are becoming major acts of vandalism or theft that become costly endeavors to fix or remedy. This week we have observed a few destructive acts in a boys bathroom that we are closely monitoring. We're hopeful that we can come together as a school community to support good decision making and respectful behavior.
Enjoy the weekend...
Scott
Outdoor Ed Trip for 6th Grade
We are getting ever so close to this year's Outdoor Ed experience for our 6th graders. We look forward to a fun and rewarding camp experience at Camp Timber-lee (and at school) as we modify the activities to ensure the health and safety of all participants. Online registration for the 6th grade Outdoor Education trip closes on Tuesday, September 21st. Families can register
here for the September 29-30 trip. For additional information about this year's trip, please visit our
Outdoor Ed Webpage. We will be hosting a virtual Parent Informational Meeting next Wednesday, September 22nd at 7pm. We encourage families to attend the meeting to learn more about the trip including what to pack, transportation, student activities, health and safety protocols and much more. We will send an email early next week with the Zoom link for the meeting. All students must be registered and have an updated health form to attend the trip.
Academic Watch
After the first three weeks of a trimester, we update student grades on a bi-weekly basis. (This generally occurs at weeks 3, 5, 7 and 9 of a trimester.) We review student grades internally and communicate with families if students are failing a class or are receiving D's in more than one class. Students who are participating in extracurricular clubs or sports at NBJH must be passing all classes in order to continue participation. A reminder that parents can also monitor student grades through their TeacherEase account at
teacherease.com.
MAP Testing
This week students took the MAP reading assessment. We will continue with makeup testing next week. This Monday and Tuesday (September 20-21) students will be taking the MAP math assessment during their math classes.
SHIELD Testing
We conducted our first round of SHIELD testing on Wednesday this week with our 6th graders. Next week we will add our 7th and 8th graders who are participating in the testing program. Our weekly schedule is as follows:
6th grade: Wednesday 1:40-3:30pm
7th grade: Thursday 9:20-9:50
8th grade: Thursday 10:05-10:35
Coding Club
A quick change for one of our extracurricular clubs. The coding club was listed as a club that met on Tuesdays after school starting this week. Coding Club will be meeting on Wednesdays after school beginning this week and will continue to meet on Wednesdays until winter break.
Enjoy the weekend...
Scott
Scott Meek, Ed. D., pHCLE
NBJH Principal
(847) 504-3501
