Bruin Bite — 10 September

Greetings!!!

It was nice to have a little break after the first two weeks of school.  Hopefully you spent some quality time with your families, had some fun, and everyone stayed safe and healthy.  This week has been full of learning and sharing.  It is wonderful to see our students in the classrooms. 

Midterms--It is surprising to think that we are almost halfway through the 1st quarter.  Midterms will be posted on Wednesday, September 15th.  I will send a reminder email with instructions on how to access this report on Skyward.  

Lockers – We have been working through spacing and assigning this week.  It has taken a bit longer than we anticipated.  Students will be able to access that information through Skyward.  We are planning to have a training for students on Wednesday, Sept. 15th.  Thank you for your patience through this process.  Once assigned, students can use their assigned locker for the remainder of the year.   

Parent-Teacher Conferences – September 21st & 22nd from 4:00 to 7:30 PM we will be holding parent teacher conferences at BMS.  Tuesday, Sept. 21st will be by appointment and in person.  We are doing something similar to Brighton High’s appointments.  On Wednesday, Sept. 22nd, we will have virtual appointments through Zoom.  We will send more information about this in a parent letter on Monday, Sept. 13.  All appointments will scheduled through Skyward.  

7th Grade Immunizations – If you have not completed this, please get that information to our Main Office ASAP.  You are welcome to have your health care provider fax this information to 801-826-6809.  7th grade Immunization Requirements 
 

PTSA – 

• Business Partnership–Come to Cafe Zupas for a house-made meal and Butler Middle School will earn up to 25% back! Mark your calendars and order your favorites on Tuesday, Sept 14th from 4pm-9pm.

Showing your support has never been so simple.  Code:Fundraiser25–

• The PTSA needs volunteers for our awesome 8th grade event called Reality Town! Reality Town is an educational program that gives realistic financial experience to our eighth-grade middle school students. The PTSA is searching for 60 volunteers to come help make this a successful event!  We need help with setting up Reality Town (booths) which will take place October 21st after school.  The big event is Friday, October 22nd.  We will ask all volunteers to attend the orientation Friday morning (we will feed you breakfast!).  And, we will feed you lunch after the event, too!

The simulated event takes place in the school gym where students receive a Student Handbook and personalized pay stub which contains information about their Reality Town family, such as their spouse, or lack thereof, and the ages and gender of their children.

Students choose a job they would like to do and get a chance to see if they can support a family on that salary. As part of the preparation for the Reality Town simulation, students learn about student and business loans and tax withholding as they examine their personalized pay stub.  The event is put on every year by faculty and multiple volunteers, community partners, and businesses to give students a better idea of what life in the real world is like.

• PTSA REFLECTIONS – National PTSA Reflectionsprogram provides opportunities for recognition and access to the arts which boost student confidence and success in the arts and in life.  The 2021–2022 Reflections theme is I Will Change the World By… Students submit their completed works of art in one or all of the available arts categories: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, Visual Arts. 

Students participate in the appropriate division for their grade: Primary (Pre-K – Grade 2), Intermediate (Grades 3-5), Middle School (Grades 6-8), High School (Grades 9-12), Special Artist (All grades welcome).Students who identify as having a disability and may receive services under IDEA or ADA: Section 504 may enter in the Special Artist Division or grade division most closely aligned to their functional abilities.*

More information can be found at: https://www.pta.org/home/programs/reflectionsDeadline to enter Reflections is October 1, 2021 so get your entries in soon!

Parent Resources – Each week I try to send home various articles or links that I think parents might find useful. This is just a resource that you as a parent might find interesting.  Sometimes I share my thoughts about it; sometimes I just share.  It takes a village to raise our children and to keep them safe.  I hope that some of what I am able to send is helpful.  Sometimes there are repeats, but I do try to provide at least one resource each week.

• 8-best-parenting-tips While this talks about the stresses of parenting through the holidays, it also has some tips for the stress you might be experiencing as this pandemic continues.  
• Parenting Kids with Anxiety –This is a longer read from The Atlantic.  About one third of adolescents experience anxiety in some form.  I liked the effort to normalize and help us work through it along with the premise that there are disorders that need more help.  
• This-is-most-important-lesson-parents-need-to-teach-middle-school-students-according-to-a-school-counselor.html This is a quick article about teaching kids to take healthy risks. 

Upcoming Events

• September 14               PTSA Dinner Night–Cafe Zupa (25% back to PTSA)
• September 15               Midterm Progress Reports—these will be available on Skyward
• September 16               6th Grade SBO announcement at end of day 
• September 21               Netsmartz Assembly–Digital Citizenship
• September 21               Parent Teacher Conferences by appointment in person
• September 22               Parent Teacher Conferences by appointment virtually
• September 22               SafeUT in Science Classes
• September 23               Cross Country Quad Meet at BMS 
• September 24               No School, PTC Compensatory Day 

Help Wanted – We are looking for a full time Hall Monitor, a part time Nutrition Service Worker, and part time Paraprofessional Educator.  If you or someone you know is interested in the opportunity to work with students, please apply at https://jobs.canyonsdistrict.org/human-resources/#!/jobs/.

Have a great day and remember . . .

It’s always a GREAT day to be a BRUIN!

Ms. Paula Logan

Principal

Butler Middle School

paula.logan@canyonsdistrict.org 

Previously shared information:

Contacting Teachers: There are two ways to contact teachers:

• Email—firstname.lastname@canyonsdistrict.org
• Call the Main Office and leave a message, 801-826-6800.

Once you have sent an email or left a message, please allow 24-48 hours for a response.  If you are coming to the building to meet with a teacher, I encourage you to set an appointment.  This just helps everyone know when and where and why, so the meeting/appointment can address the concerns productively. There are various meetings, classes, and activities that involve teachers after school.  We tend to have our school faculty meetings on Mondays after school.  Beyond that, teachers are involved in various trainings, Bruins Den, Math Help, after school activities, student meetings, etc.  While these are not every evening, it is frustrating for everyone when a drop in meeting cannot be accommodated.  

Electronic Devices:  We are asking students to have their phones and any headphone device put away during the entire school day, including lunch.  I spoke about this with parents at Back to School Night and in our 6h grade orientation.  

1. Phones create a disruption within the school day.  Phone calls, texts, various alerts are ongoing and they distract students creating disruptions in classes. 
2. Phones/headphones also have created a safety hazard as students are walking and moving about the building with little awareness of what is happening.  If there was an emergency, those with headphones in cannot hear to respond quickly. 
3. Phones and social media contribute to a high percentage of our student conflict issues—taking pictures during the day, making memes, cyber bullying, threats, etc.  We are hoping to limit student access during the school day to keep our students focused and safe. 
4. We hope to encourage more socialization during lunch by having students talk with one another and interact.  Our student government has put posters with conversation starters around the cafeteria to assist.  

Students certainly can keep a phone in their backpack or locker.  If a student wants to  check their phone during the passing period, that is fine.  Beyond that we are asking for all phones to be put away. I understand that as children walk to and from school, a parent would like to be in contact.  During the school day, the best way to contact your student would be to call the main office and we will get the message to them. 

We do have a school policy.  It is in our planner under Electronic Devices and has been for several years.  It states: “Personal electronic devices and accessories designed for entertainment purposes are strongly discouraged during school hours.  Cell phones and/or other electronic devices may be confiscated if they disrupt the educational process or environment.” We hope as we work with our students to understand the purpose behind it, they will comply.  So far most of our students have been understanding.