Week of January 24

As many of you may have noticed, some nefarious characters appear to have hacked our email system and are trying to get you to buy them Apple gift cards.  While our wonderful attendance administrative assistant, Mrs. Woelk, probably has a niece and her niece would most certainly enjoy Apple gift cards (I mean who wouldn't?), I promise you that we will never ask you to buy anything for us.  I apologize for the inconvenience and spam in your inboxes.  Our technology department is aware of the situation and is taking steps to make sure our system is safe and secure. 

Our sixth and 8th grade students have the opportunity to complete the Wyoming Prevention Needs Assessment (PNA) on February 3rd. Since the 2001-2002 school year, the PNA has tracked critical indicators of health and well-being of students in Wyoming. Conducted every other year in nearly all the middle and high schools in the state, the PNA gathers information about substance use and abuse, attitudes on risky behaviors, and other beliefs of Wyoming's young people.  Students were provided with information to take home to their families.  If you would like to learn more about the PNA, please visit https://www.pnasurvey.org. You can also view a copy of the survey in the LMS main office. If you do not want your student to complete the PNA, please have them return the form they were provided with to their English teacher or to the LMS main office. 

Selected 8th graders will be taking the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) on February 11th. NAEP is the largest nationally representative assessment of what students know and can do. It is administered by the National Center for Education Statistics, within the U.S. Department of Education.  NAEP is different from WYTOPP because it is a common measure of achievement across the country.  The results are released as the Nation's Report Card, which provides information about student achievement to educators, parents, policymakers, and the public.  Our school was randomly selected to participate and the participating students were also randomly selected.  Participating students will either take a test in the morning or afternoon on the 11th.  No student or school level results are provided.  The scores of all of the tested students in Wyoming are lumped together for comparison with other states and the national average.  Please read this letter for more information regarding NAEP. 

The first semester ended last Friday.  Teachers will finalize their grades Monday and report cards will be mailed out towards the end of the week. Our student leadership team is planning a family night to recognize students who made the honor roll on February 3rd. More information will be coming soon regarding this event.  Thank you for supporting your student and our school during the first half of this school year.  Everyone else in our school is working very hard to be their best and their efforts are paying off.  It's been a great start to the school year and we are excited to make the second half even better. Make it a great week.

Upcoming Events 

• February 3                Prevention needs assessment 
• February 3                Honor roll family night
• February 13              NAEP testing
• February 18              Early release for students and staff
• February 21              No school 

Week of January 17

I can hardly believe it, but the first semester ends this Friday, January 21st.  Friday is a full day of school at LMS and we will dismiss at our normal time, 3:05. Students have until the end of the school day on Friday to turn in missing work.  Teachers are available to provide assistance in Scout Learning Lab after school each day this week. Please talk to your student about their grades and work with them to make up any missing assignments. Report cards will be mailed out next week.

Students will receive their second semester schedules in Scouts for Scouts (S4S) on Tuesday.  If necessary, students can request a schedule change using the schedule change form located on our website and on posters around the school. Please know that we will do our best to grant schedule changes, but we may not be able to accommodate all requests. 

Last week our students participated in a kindness challenge. Each S4S class decided what they would like to do to spread kindness in our school community.  Some classes wrote encouraging notes, some hung up posters, while others did something else.  It was a really fun way to show support for each other. Please use this link to see some of the ways our students have been spreading kindness in our school. 

Thank you for helping to make the first semester a successful one.  There have been many challenges and we will face more obstacles before the end of the year, but our students are doing a great job because of your support, their hard work, and the efforts of our teachers and staff. It takes teamwork for our students to be successful and we are succeeding. Thank you for your continued support and feedback. 

Upcoming Events 

• January 17                No school-professional development
• January 21                End of the 1st semester  
• February 3                Prevention needs assessment
• February 13              NAEP testing
• February 18              Early release
• February 21              No School 

Week of January 3

Welcome back and welcome to 2022!  It's going to be another great year at LMS. We are so excited to have our students back and looking forward to a successful "second" half of the year.  Our semester actually ends on January 21st so students will follow their first semester schedules for another 3 weeks.  Students who are struggling have time to get caught up and teachers are available after school every day for Scout Learning Lab.  

Masks and face coverings are no longer required in our building.  Students are strongly recommended to wear masks while indoors.  The CDC recently released some updated guidelines for quarantines after exposure.  School nurses are meeting this week to determine what that means for our district and information will be shared soon.  Our district previously shared information related to masks and vaccines.  This and more COVID information can be found on our district webpage. 

Our CKH focus word of the month is respect.  Respect is not only an important character trait, but it can also be a source of real joy.  Respect implies a certain appreciation, which makes us more aware of other people’s needs and feelings. Respect comes in many forms: respect for life, for property, for parents, for elders, for nature, and for the beliefs and rights of others. Respect includes being courteous and polite, as well as avoiding self-criticism. Please read more about respect, including activities you can do as a family, in this month's CKH newsletter. 

We are thankful for the opportunity to work with you and your student in the new year.  We appreciate your continued support and feedback. Make it a great week. Stay warm and make the most out of the 2022!

Upcoming Events 

• January 3                  School resumes
• January 3                  Boys basketball begins
• January 17                No school-professional development
• January 21                End of the 1st semester