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A note from the principal . . .

4th

quarter, here we come! Once again, another year is flying by. Eighth grade parents are getting ready to become high school parents, and 7th grade parents are getting ready to experience the joy of an 8th grader! What a great time for all of us!

For this months column, I struggled finding something to write

about that would not simply repeat the other topics. I happened

upon a quote by John F; Kennedy that sparked my inspiration; Let

us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and

greater strength for our nation; This quote, to me, epitomizes

middle school. I believe that our job as middle school educators is to help students explore in order to begin to develop those hopes and dreams. This age is fun because they are often still tied to their childhood dreams of becoming a professional athlete or award winning actor, while beginning to realize that there is more out there and that some dreams may not be as realistic as they once thought. That does not mean that we squash those childhood dreams, however. Instead we get to encourage them to dream big and hope even bigger while exposing them to new learnings, explorations, and contents.

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Mountain Ridge will join schools across Colorado on April 17 to

participate in College Friday; Its a day designed to raise awareness about the importance of higher education for Colorados youth; Students and

staff will be encouraged to wear their favorite college logo apparel and show their college spirit on College Friday.

The Counseling Department and Student Council will hold drawings for

students and staff that wear college apparel; Its a fun day and great

opportunity for parents to talk with their kids about their own college experience.

!nd its not just schools that support College Friday:

Visit any participating Qdoba on College Friday and receive free chips and 2 oz. queso for wearing your college gear. For a participating location near you, go to collegeincolorado.org and click on the College Friday logo.

Visit any participating Cold Stone Creamery from 3:00 PM 7:00 PM on College Friday and receive a $1 ice cream scoop with one mix-in for wearing your college gear. For a participating location near you, go to collegeincolorado.org and click on the College Friday logo.

General Announcements -TRAFFIC Morning

Traffic??

Cars, Buses, and SUVs -oh my!

We need your HELP!

Anyone who has experienced morning traffic here at MRMS knows it is far from being a picnic. In fact, the traffic issues seem to have multiplied as the school year has gone on.

The combined efforts of MRMS and MVHS security have resulted in a traffic loop and drop-off system that really does work efficiently when everyone is following it. But even the most efficient system cannot handle the immense volume of traffic we have been experiencing.

As a result, our buses are getting caught in the loop and are held up in the drop-off process. We are regularly experiencing waves of students arriving late, sometimes up to a couple of hundred students arriving up to 10 minutes late to the building.

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General Announcements -TRAFFIC

WE NEED HELP!!

Please consider the following suggestions to help make the morning a little easier:

If your student can walk or ride the bus and is not, please have him/her do that. We understand there are bad weather days or special projects due that make a car ride easier, but in general, cutting down on the sheer numbers of cars coming into the parking lot will help. Consider carpooling. Most of the cars coming into the parking lot have just one rider. Carpooling is more efficient

and the added benefit is parents dont have to face the drive

every day!

Get in line earlier. Cars getting into the loop closer to 7 a.m. seem to move through more quickly and smoothly. Anyone getting into the line at 7:15 or later is almost guaranteed a long wait and a late student! Do you have a high school student driving to school with a parking permit in the upper lot? Again, carpooling (if possible) can help. Students with other permits should use the far west parking entrance. And, again, getting into line closer to 7 a.m. than 7:30 is strongly recommended. (Yes,

we DO realize we are talking about teenagers)

Avoid the traffic loop altogether and drop your student off in a safe neighborhood location so he/she can walk the rest of the way up to the building. (Again, yes, we DO realize we

are talking about teenagers)

If you are driving in and dropping off, thank you for driving as FAR around the loop as you can before stopping to let students out. Remind them to exit on the sidewalk side of the car and to be ready to exit immediately when you are able to come to a safe stop.

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General Announcements -TRAFFIC

Over the years, there have been significant improvements to our traffic flow and process. The double turn lane into our schools was put in a few years ago and has been tremendously helpful. Our security guards are well-versed in moving traffic efficiently. Thank you for recognizing their effortsthey love your smiles, waves and good humor in the morning!

We appreciate your efforts in helping us run a smooth traffic pattern and in trying to reduce the volume of vehicles coming in each morning. Our goal is to get students in safely and quickly and to get our school started on time!

General Announcements -SCHOOL TARDIES

Its incredibly important that your child arrives at

school on time. If a student is late in the morning he/she MUST REPORT TO THE ATTENDANCE OFFICE. At that time the student will be given a pass to class. All tardies to school are unexcused unless the student brings a doctors note. Adhering to this policy will prepare your child for high school as well. Mountain Vista has the same policy.

Activities -ICode

WE NEED YOU! Come and learn from your fellow students how to create an app for your phone or ipod. Yes, you too can learn these simple steps through xcode, starlab and other programs.

Please sign up on the MRMS website to register for 4th quarter. The cost is $30 just like all other clubs. We meet Monday through Thursday in the Tech Lab from

6:50 7:25 a.m.

So, dont delay! Come

join iCode and bring a friend or two! (or 50)

If you have any questions please see Ms. Personett in the Tech Ed Lab.

Team 7-2

4th quarter, here we come!

Believe it or not, your child is getting close to being an 8th grader. Can you believe that so much of the year has passed already? Testing for PARCC went well and we were so lucky to have most of the school test prior to our team, so most of the kinks were already worked out. Our students worked very hard during testing and the team is so proud to be able to say that. We had a successful PARCC breakfast every morning of bagels, cream cheese, breakfast bars, casseroles from parents. Jill Jenkins was an incredibly helpful parent who made breakfast possible.

Pi

Team 8-1

This month Team 81 teachers were interviewed to get their perspective on how things are going on their team.

What is the best thing about being a teacher on your team?

The team-We are 81!

Interpretation: Just like the students said last month. The team is united and there for each other.

What have your students done that makes you the most proud of them?

Applying things they have learned in one class to another. Our students have shown great resiliency. They are risk takers and consistently think outside of the box.

What can parents do to help their student finish the year strong?

Please get them to school. We want them here as much as possible. Help us hold students accountable for working hard and being a positive student. Stress the point to finish strong and how much that says about a

persons character;

What else would you like to say to the students and parents on your team?

This is not the end of your academic career. Good habits now, will create a successful high school student later. Continue to think outside the box,

Understand that this is not the end of the students academic career;

Keep calm and finish strong.

Team 8-3

Can you believe that we are already so close to the end of the year? The fourth quarter is always so busy around here. Students will be working hard until the very end of the year, while having fun, of course! Many of

team 83s traditions happen during the last quarter, including our field

trip to Cherokee Ranch, Pi Day, another interdisciplinary unit, and finals for all classes. As we get closer to each of these, we will include additional information during the weekly email. Cherokee Ranch will take place during the week of May 11 and the following week will most likely be the interdisciplinary unit, which brings us to the last week of school. Crazy!

This month was incredible for our team. We are so proud of the amazing efforts of all of our students during PARCC testing. The best part about middle school is how much the students begin to questions why we do the things that we do. Even with so many questions and fear of something new, they took on the challenge and worked diligently and purposefully during PARCC. Also, we would like to thank our parents for sending in treats for testing. It was amazing how much food we received, and the students truly appreciated having a snack ready to feed their brains.

Dont forget our next PIN meeting on Tuesday, April 14. We will be sharing information for Pi Day, Cherokee, and the final interdisciplinary unit. When we return from spring break, many of the classes will begin new units of study. Continue to ask your child what is going on in all of their classes.

Team 83 Pi Day Pics

Team 8-4 News

All The News Thats Swagworthy!

This month Team 84 teachers were interviewed to get their perspective on how things are going on their team.

What is the best thing about being a teacher on your team?

We are all flexible and willing to work together to do cool things for kids.

What have your students done that makes you the most proud of them?

They have really stepped up to the plate on some difficult challenges in every class and have learned to approach situations that do not have immediate solutions with optimism, enthusiasm and creativity. They are resilient and are not discouraged by initial setbacks.

What can parents do to help their student finish the year strong?

Allow children to take responsibility for their own work, time management, grades, etc. Hold the expectations high, and continue to provide rewards or consequences as needed, but try to let them make their own daily choices. They need a chance to practice independent study skills, but still need just a little bit of guidance.

What else would you like to say to the students and parents on your team?

Thank you for all your support and making this an amazing year so far!