DEC 2017- JAN 2018

GROSSE POINTE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM

PIERCE POINTER www.gpschools.org

LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL Dec 2017/Jan 2018

DATES TO REMEMBER

December/January PIERCE JAZZ BAND Friday, December 8 7PM @ SOUTH H.S.

PIERCE STUDENT CAREER DAY Friday, December 8 All Day HUNGRY HOWIE’S PIERCE FUNDRAISER Wednesday, December 20 WINTER BREAK Dec 25, 2017– Jan 2, 2018 Classes Resume Wednesday, January 3rd MLK HOLIDAY Monday, January 15, 2018 No Classes EXAM/RECORDS DAY Tuesday, January 19 AM Classes Only

Pierce Middle School

Dear Pierce Parents, Due to the holiday break, please note that this edition of the Pierce Pointer includes both December and January information. First, thank you for taking the time to stop by to connect with your child’s teachers during parent/teacher conferences. We recognize that there are a variety of ways to communicate (phone, e-mail, etc.) surrounding your child’s progress. Thank you for continuing to show your interest and enthusiasm for learning. November was a busy month at Pierce. Pierce students had the opportunity for several outstanding experiences this month, including: the Turkey Trot, the start of Boys Basketball, an 8th grade orientation at South High School, Band and Orchestra Concerts, and tremendous student performances were on display for the play Letters. As hard as it is to believe, we will begin January with the preparation for the 2017-18 school year. Our 8th graders will be preparing for scheduling at South High School, and our incoming 5th graders will begin their preparation to join us at Pierce. In addition, current 6th and 7th graders will be working on their 7th and 8th grade schedules. Highlights of the scheduling process include: Jan 09 @ 8:30pm Jan 10 @ 6:30pm Jan 16 @ 7:00pm Jan 18 @ 6:00pm play) Jan 23 @ 2:30pm Jan 24 @ 2:30pm

South Parent Night (for current 8th grade parents) South Parent Night (for current 8th grade parents) Current 5th Grade Parent Night in the Pierce Aud. Coney Night for 5th Graders (Elective class info on disPierce Staff visits Maire Pierce Staff visits Trombly

15430 Kercheval Grosse Pointe Park, MI 48230

313.432.4700

Attendance Line 313.432.4701

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LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL (CONTINUED) Jan 25 @ 2:30pm Defer comes to Pierce Auditorium Jan 25 @ 8th graders enter high school courses on-line throughout the day Jan 31 (during advisory) 6th graders get 7th grade course sheet Feb 1 (during advisory) 7th graders get 8th grade course sheet Feb 2 8th graders enter high school courses on-line throughout the day

On behalf of the faculty and staff of Pierce Middle School, Happy Holidays! Sincerely, Chris Clark

CLINIC OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATION POLICY PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THE SCHOOL DOES NOT PROVIDE TYLENOL

STUDENTS MAY NOT RECEIVE ANY “OVER THE COUNTER” MEDICATION UNLESS THE MAIN OFFICE HAS RECEIVED A PERMISSION FORM AUTHORIZED AND SIGNED BY A PHYSICIAN, AND THE MEDICATION HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY THE PARENT/GUARDIAN. This policy was formally adopted by the Grosse Pointe Public School System. In addition to the prescription medication, it prohibits the distribution of parent purchased OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATION fr om the Pier ce Clinic or Office, without appr opr iate documentation on file in the Pierce Main Office.

Forms are available online on the Pierce Middle School web page in the “Site Shortcuts” section.

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FROM THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL’S DESK Please be aware that the Field Trip eligibility guidelines below are in effect for the 2017-2018 school year. These guidelines have been shared with students and can be found in your student’s planner. FIELD TRIPS It is a privilege to participate in school field trips. Students are expected to conduct themselves in such a manner that exhibits the responsible behavior and respect that occurs during the school day at Pierce. A student will NOT be eligible for any field trip(s) for the current AND following quarter when he/she accumulates 3 disciplinary office referrals, any ISS (In School Suspension) / OSS (Out of School Suspension), or more than 4 hours of detention assigned for any reason. If a student accumulates 3 disciplinary office referrals, any ISS (In School Suspension) / OSS (Out of School Suspension), or more than 4 hours of detention assigned for any reason, yet still wants to participate in an educational field trip experience he/she must: Complete a community service project that is approved by the principal and write a one-page summary explaining his/her participation at the completion of the project AND Obtain administrative recommendation for attendance and participation in field trip, activity, or competition AND Upon discretion of the administration be accompanied on the trip by his/her parent or other designated adult/legal guardian who is responsible for ALL costs related to their own trip. These guidelines are included in your student’s planner. They have been shared with students via town hall meetings and communicated to parents during the registration process and via the Pierce Pointer. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I can be reached at (313) 432-4711 or via e-mail at [email protected]. FRIDAY SCHOOL Friday School is an academic intervention that will be assigned to students who have not completed assignments or projects. I receive notification of Friday School assignments by the end of the day on Thursday. That afternoon, parents will be notified and given a list of missing assignments. If students complete the missing work by Friday morning, their Friday School will be cancelled. Otherwise students will be expected to stay after school until the work is complete or 5:30, whichever is first. Friday school will be held in the library and supervised by a teacher who can help students complete their missing assignments. The assignment of a Friday School is at the teacher’s discretion. Students who skip Friday school will be assigned a Friday Detention.

ELECTRONIC DEVICES As inter active devices, including smar tphones and tablets, become incr easingly valuable learning tools, our electronic use policy allows appropriate use of these devices, at the teacher’s discretion. Although use of electronic devices remains prohibited in the hallways, teachers will now be able to determine if and how this equipment may be used in individual classrooms. We acknowledge this ambiguity may cause difficulties but as we gain experience with these devices as instructional tools, our guidelines will continue to evolve until we reach a clear and consistent practice. It is our hope that these policies will help us to improve the learning process and environment for our students. As always, if you have questions, concerns or input you would like to share, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Sincerely, Judith Gaffrey—Assistant Principal

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COUNSELOR CORNER Counselor Corner-Career Explorations & Upcoming Registration It is a very busy time in the Counseling Center! First quarter ran smoothly and with the holiday rush, second quarter is in full swing! In December, we will be hosting our annual 8th grade Career Day on Friday, December 8th from 8:00-11:30. We have a host of parent volunteers lined up to assist us with this great event. Connecting with Career Day, our 8 th graders will get a chance in the labs to research career interests with our new program Naviance the following week. Seventh graders will do so just prior to the holiday break in December, while 6 th graders (for the first time ever) will work with the Naviance program in end January 2018. Also during the month of January, 8th graders will be planning their South courses. We will host an 8th grade parent meeting in our auditorium from 8:30-9:30 am on Tuesday, January 9, 2018. We will then go into 8th grade classrooms on January 17 & 18, 2018 to further discuss the South selection process with students. All forms and entry into Student Connect will occur before the end of January 2018. In addition, 5th, 6th and 7th graders will choose their courses for next year in January or early February. Counselors will do presentations for our current 6th and 7th graders during advisory time, outlining what choices are available and walking them through the registration process. Counselors and administrators will also present information to each of the elementary schools on this process the week of January 22nd; after meeting with 5th grade parents on January 16th at 7 PM in the auditorium. Once the forms are complete for all four grade levels (including parent signature), we will have selections input into our system prior to the February winter break. Enjoy all the upcoming time off with family and friends, near and far .

Andrea Bolton 313.432.4716

Marie Fachini-Kurily 313.432.3914

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Geo BEE: Pierce is again participating in the National Geography Bee. Social studies teachers are conducting fun classroom bee’s to determine the classroom winners. The schoolwide will be conducted on Wed, January 10th. Our school winner will then take a one hour on-line test to determine if he/she will score high enough to continue on to the state finals for Michigan. Stay tuned for our results.

MICHIGAN SOCIAL STUDIES OLYMPIAD Social Studies Olympiad: Ms. Brousseau will be starting work with Pierce SS Olympians in a variety of categories to compete in this year’s state wide event to be held this year Clarkston High School on Saturday, May 19th. The theme is “The Earth, Our Home” and many events will be tied to this important environmental theme. The Olympiad has over 20 different events in which students can compete such as drama, posters, quilt-a-thon, historical monologue, essay, primary source document journal, poetry and Quiz bowl. Pierce has a long tradition of successful competition in a variety of events including last year’s Quiz bowl tie for gold with Parcells, our back to back gold in essay and our gold in drama. All are welcome to participate. Students should see Ms. Brousseau in 103 for information.

Congratulations to Mr. Benz who was honored on Monday , November 27th by the GP Board of Education as one of the distinguished employees of GP Schools. He was nominated by Mr. Clark and Mrs. Gaffrey for his outstanding everyday work his leadership with Washington DC trip, head track coach, turkey trot and a host of other activities. Mr Benz is a tireless advocate for students and the whole Pierce Community.

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THE 45TH ANNUAL PIERCE MIDDLE SCHOOL TURKEY TROT The 45th annual Pierce Middle School Turkey, sponsored by the Pierce P.E. Department And the PTO, was held November 13. One Hundred Ninety runners participated in the half mile race. Winners for each grade level are; Bottom row, Left to right 6th grade Karter Richards, Ian Dvonch, Brynn Collins, Lauren Carron 7th grade middle row Jane Kuhnlein, Megan Robert, Anthony Benard, Luke Willson 8th grade top row, Ashlyn Johnson, Anaya Coleman, James Borowicz, Seth Morandini

7th Grade Practice Monday thru Friday 3:30-5PM Stephen Benard [email protected] 8th Grade Practice Monday thru Friday 4:30-6PM Andre Williams [email protected]

Date

Day

Opponent

Home/Away

Time 7th/8th

30-Nov

Thursday

Kennedy

Away

4:00/5:00

4-Dec

Monday

Southlake

Home

4:30/5:30***

7-Dec

Thursday

Brownell

Home

4:00/5:00

11-Dec

Monday

Parcells

Home

4:00/5:00

14-Dec

Thursday

Jefferson

Away

4:00/5:00

18-Dec

Monday

Kennedy

Home

4:00/5:00

21-Dec

Thursday

Southlake

Away

4:00/5:00

4-Jan

Thursday

Roseville

Away

4:00/5:00

10-Jan

Wednesday

Brownell

Away

4:00/4:00***

11-Jan

Thursday

Parcells

Away

4:00/5:00

17-Jan

Wednesday

Roseville

Home

4:00/5:00

18-Jan

Thursday

Jefferson

Home

4:00/5:00

th th 7 & 8 Grade Girls Basketball

Try Outs Are January 22nd & 23rd

You MUST have a physical to try out! Any questions please see Mr. Williams

7th Grade practice 3:30-5PM Monday thru Friday 8th Grade practice 4:30-6pm Monday thru Friday Coach: Andre Williams—[email protected] Game Schedule Date Thursday 8-Feb Monday 12-Feb Wednesday 14-Feb Thursday 2-Feb Monday 26-Feb Tuesday 27-Feb Thursday 1-Mar Monday 5-Mar Tuesday 6-Mar Thursday 8-Mar Monday 12-Mar Thursday 15-Mar

Home Home Away Away Home Away Away Home Home Home Home Home

Opponent

7th/8th Grade

Roseville Kennedy Brownell Southlake Jefferson Roseville Kennedy Southlake Parcells Brownell Parcells Jefferson

4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:30/5:30 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00 4:00/5:00

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PARENT PACERS Students who are currently in Physical Education may earn extra credit and awards by participating in a program called “Pierce Pacers”. This program promotes having and active lifestyle. Participants will record the time they are involved in some type of physical activity, outside of school hours. This could include such things as: walking, or biking to school, swimming, using a treadmill, rollerblading, and jumping rope. Practice and game times may also be counted if the student plays on a sport’s team. All interested Physical Education students can pick up a form in class or in Google Classroom.

PIERCE YEARBOOK Haven’t purchased a yearbook for your student yet? There’s still time! Purchase a yearbook for $35 online through the Pierce Registration Webstore. Directions for purchasing online: Visit the Pierce Middle School website Click on the: For Parents tab Click on the: Registration for all Students tab Choose: Pierce Click on the: Webstore tab Login using your student’s ID number and the access key will be your student’s birthdate: xx/xx/xxxx

PIERCE BUILDING ACCESS In following the district plan of developing a more secure school environment, outside access into the building during the school day will be monitored. An intercom, monitor and buzzer system has been installed. Once classes begin, outside access into the building will be monitored through this system. Visitors to Pierce will announce themselves through use of this system located at the main entrance (Kercheval) and the north east rear parking lot door (which is handicap accessible). The periodic distribution of non-school related written materials does not constitute an endorsement by the School System of those materials or of the groups sponsoring them. All printing costs are paid for by the sponsoring organization, not the schools.