August 21, 2017
Dear Parents and Guardians, We wish to welcome you back to the fast approaching start of a new school year! Summer is a great time to decompress, relax and spend time with family and friends. As we move into the school year we are excited to see new and familiar faces here at the middle school. “We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character -- that is the goal of true education.” Martin Luther King, Jr. This quote reminds us that here in Merrimack Valley we are about more than academics and book learning. As important as those are to the future success of our students, we must always keep in mind the value of good citizenship and character. Intelligence alone does not make us “smart”. Teachers, parents, and administrators must work together to engage our learners in the value of good character along with the importance of knowledge. This is a monumental task for us all; one we at MVMS will take on with passion and dedication. We welcome some excellent new staff members to our community this year. First, Mr. Brian Lynch joins us as the new Assistant Principal. He brings a strong background in teaching and learning from his time at Alvirne High School. We are pleased to have him aboard, along with our following new additions: Tony Burnell, Special Education; Katie Deshaies, Special Education; Bob McNutt, PE; Jeff Hamilton, Science; Samantha Smart, Art; Kate Boudreau, French and Laura Harwood, Permanent Substitute. Communication is a critical component to each student’s success. Please visit our school website www.mvsdpride.org for information about school activities and important dates. Also, please follow us on twitter @mvmspride for middle school announcements and other happenings. Don’t forget to give us your email address on the registration form that will be sent home on the first day of school, as we will be communicating via email throughout the year. Your child will receive a planner within the first two weeks of school to support their organization and we encourage your child to share it with you on a regular basis . To ensure the safety of all students and staff at MVMS we request that students arrive to school no earlier than 7:20 and be dropped off at the far end of the first parking lot by the bright green signs. Please form a single line in the center of the parking lot and pull up to the sign before releasing your student. Please do not pass other cars when in the parking lot! When picking up your student at the end of the school day we ask that cars follow the same procedure, being careful not to block the building entrance or handicap parking spaces. This will also help alleviate congestion in the lot. Sports try outs are the first days of school. Our website has updated days and times. Picture Day is upon us quickly this year - Thursday, 8/31. Forms are available on our website. All students will be photographed, even if you choose not to purchase photos. Our annual Open House will be on September 7th from 6-7:30. This is an opportunity for you to tour the school, meet our teachers and learn about the curriculum. This is also when you will be receiving the login user name and password for Web2school. We would ask that you regularly check web2school with your child. Each student will also receive a login to Web2School, and our standard reply to ‘What is my grade?’ will be ‘Check Web2School!’ This is vitally important, and the way you and your son or daughter can track their learning progress, assist with organization and better communicate. Other important student information, such as the Student Handbook (which outlines many of our expectations for students), Technology Responsible Use Policy, the respective student sign off sheets for both, DC trip information, upcoming events and important dates will be continually added to our site. Please use it as information resource. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the main office at 753-6336. We look forward to a great school year with your child! Sincerely, Kara Lamontagne Suggestions for Success In pursuit of our mission of teaching students to be active learners, critical thinkers and responsible citizens we encourage students to exemplify 10 learner profile characteristics: Inquirer, Knowledgeable, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open Minded, Caring, Risk-Taker, Balanced and Reflective. It is our belief that achieving these goals are possible with a strong partnership between home and school. We ask that parents establish a routine of engaging their students in conversations about their learning experiences. Positive expectations are powerful motivators! Each student will be provided with a planner that includes the school handbook and assignment calendar. We ask students to use these to plan out long-term assignments, manage their time and record homework. Please review these with your students regularly, this will help keep you informed as to their learning and allow you to assist them in their organization. The Merrimack Valley School District has a new website! This valuable tool can be used to access relevant school information, district, building and teacher calendars, co-curricular information and stay up to date on all of the latest MVMS events. In addition to regularly accessing our website, we encourage you to track your student’s learning progress on Web2School, a link is available on our webpage. 6th grade students will receive their login information from Guided Study teachers at our Open House. Reminders To ensure the safety of all students and staff at MVMS we request that students arrive for the school day no earlier than 7:20 and be dropped off at the far end of the first parking lot by the bright green signs. Please form a single file line in the center of the parking lot and pull up to the sign before releasing your student. Please do not pass other cars when in the parking lot! When picking up your student at the end of the school day we ask that cars follow the same procedure being careful not to block the building entrance or handicap parking spaces. This will also help to alleviate congestion in the lot. Please remember that NH statute and MVSD policy requires MVMS students be current on their immunizations. Prior to entering 6th grade students need to have received both the varicella #2 vaccine as well as the Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular, pertussis) vaccine. Documentation of these immunizations needs to be given to Ms. Marie Jones, the school nurse, and any questions that you have may also be directed to her at mjones@mv.k12.nh.us. The school dress code is included in the student handbook and can also be viewed on the school website. We ask that students wear shorts and skirts that extend to mid thigh while sitting and standing. If students opt to wear spandex under shorts or skirts then those must extend to mid thigh. Leggings must be accompanied by appropriate outwear including long shirts, skirts or shorts. Tank tops must have straps that are at least 2 inches thick. We appreciate your help in reminding students of this before they head out the door in the morning. In order to decrease learning distraction student are asked to power off their electronic devices during school hours and leave them in their locked locker. If you need to communicate with your student during the school day please contact the main office and we will get a message to your student. Thank you in advance for your support with this policy. We look forward to celebrating the start of the school year with you on September 7th from 6:00-7:30 at our annual Open House. There will be opportunities to tour the school, meet teachers and learn about curriculum. |
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