Viking View

There has been a recent increase District-wide in the number of COVID-19 cases as evidenced by the COVID-19 dashboard. While we do not see evidence of significant disease spread at the campus, we must all do our part to stop the spread of COVID-19 both at school and in the community.

Keep in mind these east tips on ways we can stop the spread as a community:

• Maintain 6 feet of distance when possible and wear a mask that covers the nose and mouth
• Wash your hands often or use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol
• Screen your student daily prior to school for signs and symptoms of illness
• Keep your student home if an undiagnosed symptom or illness is noticed
• Be wise with social activity and follow recommendations from the CDC and local health service authorities

The Frisco ISD COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions is an excellent resource as you have questions about how this pandemic has impacted our District.

Regular 8 Period Day Schedule

Viking Time Schedule: Week 2/5th Period

Basketball Parent Meeting (Girls)

• 5:45 p.m. (Virtual)

8 Football VMS vs. Fowler @ Lebanon Trail HS

• 6:00 p.m. (CANCELLED)

Tuesday, November 17

Regular 8 Period Day Schedule

Viking Time Schedule: Week 2/6th Period

VMS Chic-fil-A Fundraiser (Detail Below)

7 Football VMS vs. Fowler @ Lebanon Trail HS

• 6:00 p.m. (One 1 Game)

Career & Technical Education Information Night

• 6:30 p.m. (Details Below)

Wednesday, November 18

Modified Block Schedule

• Period 1, 3, 5, 7

Viking Time Schedule: Week 2/7th Period

Support the Fight Against Epilepsy - Wear Purple

8th Grade IB Interest From Deadline (See Below)

8 Volleyball Nelson vs. VMS @ VMS

• 5:30 p.m./6:30 p.m./7:30 p.m.

MS to HS Transition Meeting

• 6:00 p.m. (Details Below)

Thursday, November 19

Modified Block Schedule

• Period 2, 4, 6, 8

Viking Time Schedule: Week 2/8th Period

PTA Silent Auction Begins

TNS/C-Hall

• 3:45 p.m. - 5:54 p.m.

Basketball Ball Tryouts (Boys)

7 Volleyball VMS vs. Nelson @ VMS

• 5:30 p.m./6:30 p.m./7:30 p.m.

• 6:00 p.m.

Friday, November 20

Regular 8 Period Day Schedule

Advisory

Basketball Tryouts (Boys)

November 19-22

PTA Silent Auction

November 23-27

Thanksgiving Break

This weekend almost a billion people will be celebrating the Hindu Festival of Lights, known as Deepwali or Diwali. Deepwali is usually celebrated for five days during the Hindu Lunisolar month between mid-October and mid-November. This year, the festival will be celebrated this weekend. This is a joyous occasion in the Hindu community. If you rolled a bit of Christmas, New Year’s Eve and the Fourth of July all into one, then catered the affair with mountains of sweets and savory snacks, you would have a taste of what it means to celebrate Deepwali/Diwali. It is a day of Hindu solidarity, when all Hindus gather in love and trust. It is observed by lighting rows of oil lamps and exchanging greeting cards, clothing and other gifts. Family bonds are strengthened and forgiveness sought. For many, Diwali marks the beginning of the new year.

• Students must come to school with a charged device. We have depleted our inventory and no longer have chargers available for checkout on daily basis.
• Students should take a picture of their ID card so that they can easily access it at breakfast and lunch. The cafeteria staff can still scan the barcode from a digital picture.

Veterans Day originated as "Armistice Day" on November 11, 1919, the first anniversary of the end of World War I. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and November 11th became a national holiday beginning in 1938. Unlike Memorial Day, Veterans Day pays tribute to all American veterans--living or dead--but especially gives thanks to living veterans who served their country honorably during war or peacetime.

We would like to extend our gratitude to all military veterans! Thank you for your dedication and service to our country. Your sacrifice has afforded all Americans the protections granted in the United States Constitution, and we thank you!

A special thanks to the orchestra, band and choir for working with their students to prepare this wonderful Veterans Day virtual tribute. Enjoy!

Veterans Day Tribute: https://youtu.be/yyTdi3x_Q4Q

Let’s show our teachers and staff how much we appreciate them! In lieu of teacher gifts, parents and students are encouraged to donate gift cards in $5 to $20 denominations that will be distributed to the entire staff. Donations can be dropped off at the front office. We ask that all donations are submitted by Wednesday, December 16th. Please write the $ amount and the name of the family who donated in a permanent marker on each gift card/sleeve so the teacher/staff member can extend their appreciation once they receive it. We truly appreciate the support of our community! Happy Holidays!

The Vandeventer faculty, staff and students would like to thank the PTA for their generous donation of the Neptune GameTime Voyager system. Schools, colleges, and universities. utilize this program across the country. This program allows us to play music, which is content and lyric safe, prerecorded messages, and announcements during athletic and other school related events. We have already began using the system, and we love it! Again, thank you for your generosity!

We would also like to thank the PTA for providing this new and vibrant fence sign. With the help of our parents, students and staff we we were able to complete the Viking portion of the sign. Hopefully, we will be able to add the VMS to the sign soon! Thank you so much!

We need your help! In order to improve Vandeventer's Virtual Academy, we would like your feedback regarding the facilitation of our virtual instruction. Please complete the survey via the link below by Friday, November 20th. We value your time and appreciate your input.

Survey: https://forms.gle/yBHgyvYiLpXiUebg7

Students in Grades 5-7 and their parents are invited to learn more about Advanced courses, Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), Dual Credit, and Career and Technical Education (CTE) offerings in Frisco ISD. These events will be in a Webinar format and will start at 6:00 PM. Please register for one of the two evenings through the links below.

Thursday November 12th from 6:00-7:30

It’s time to start thinking about Academic Pentathlon. Academic Pentathlon will allow you, as a middle school student, a chance to start experiencing the benefits of Academic Decathlon before entering high school. Pentathlon is open to 7th and 8th grade students, and our topic this year is The Cold War. You will attend weekly virtual meetings and compete against other are schools in April. An interest form link is included in this week’s Viking View. If you are interested, please sing up on the form or see Mrs. Roberts in B105 or Ms. Buzan in B104 if you have any questions.

Pentathlon Interest Form

Thank you,

Mrs. Roberts and Mrs. Buzan

Career and Technical Education (CTE) will host three webinars that will give an overview of Frisco ISD CTE programs, new Health Science dual credit courses, and Collin Technical Campus dual credit opportunities. Please register for the webinar and see our FISD CTE website for additional information.

November 17th @ 6:30

December 15th @6:30

January 12th @ 6:30

Frisco ISD will provide school meals at no-cost now through December 18th, thanks to a waiver and reimbursement from the federal government. The District has been approved to offer breakfast and lunch at no cost to all students, both on-campus and virtual learners, as well as to children age 18 and younger who are not enrolled in FISD. To receive a free meal, on-campus students must select a complete meal with a fruit or vegetable. No sign up is required.

Parents of virtual learners, as well as non-FISD students, who are interested in picking up free to-go meals should complete the sign-up form for the remainder of the first nine weeks. There will be a separate, additional sign-up form for the second nine weeks (Oct. 19 - Dec. 18) because of the opportunity for students to switch instructional environments. In order for the District to qualify to provide free meals, Frisco ISD had to modify the pick-up locations for families participating in virtual instruction.

Sign Up Form

Learn More

The admissions form link for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme at Frisco HS is now available on the FISD IB school of choice website:

Any interested 8th grader needs to submit an interest form before the November 18th deadline to be included in the admissions process for the IB Class of 2025 cohort. Please email any questions to Jenna Gates, IB Coordinator at FHS, at GatesJ@friscoisd.org.

FISD librarians believe that reading is the foundation for all learning and contributes greatly to student success in school. Recent research suggests that print remains the preferred medium for reading. As such, we believe that getting books into the hands of FISD students is critical to increase opportunities for independent reading and academic success.

In order to support literacy development, Frisco ISD has created opportunities for students enrolled in the Virtual Academy to checkout print books from their home campus library and pick them up on designated days and times.

Please review this presentation for specific guidelines for Vandeventer Middle School. Reach out to Mrs. Hon for questions at hona@friscoisd.org.

Please use this link to schedule your lunch visitation. Due to social distancing guidelines, there is a two family minimum for each lunch time.

• Parents will be allowed to eat lunch with their student(s) during the fall semester; however, we are asking parents to notify the administration as least 24 hours in advance.
  
• Parents/guardians are NOT allowed to bring food and/or eat lunch with students other than their own.
• Social-distancing guidelines will be strictly enforced in the cafeteria.
• There will be tables designated for parents eating lunch with their students(s).
• Parents/guardians MUST check-in at the front office to receive a visitor badge.
• Parents/guardians must comply with campus expectations regarding face coverings and social-distancing.
• Students may still receive lunch drop-offs via the grade level coolers/buckets placed outdoors in front of the cafeteria entrance.

Epilepsy is a brain disorder that causes seizures, which is a change in the normal brain activity. It is important to remember that these are seizures NOT caused by something like a high fever, however you should always communicate with your primary care provider when one occurs even if it is a first-time occurrence.

• 1 in 26 people in the United States will have epilepsy at some point in their life
• 1 in 10 Americans will have a seizure
• 5.1 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with epilepsy or a seizure disorder and of this amount, 3.4 million American adults and children live with epilepsy
• 60% of epilepsy cases have no known cause
• 30-40% will live with active seizures because available treatments do not work

What is SUDEP?

Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy, (SUDEP) refers to death of a person with epilepsy who was in their usual state of health dies suddenly and unexpectedly. The death is not known to be related to an illness, accident, or seizure emergency such as status epilepticus. Upon autopsy results, no other cause of death can be found. You may have heard of SUDEP when the Disney star, Cameron Boyce, suddenly died in July of 2019.

WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF SUDEP?

Most often SUDEP occurs during or right after a seizure. Research is being done to look at all possible causes and potential genetic links.

HOW CAN RISK BE LOWERED?

The first step to lowering one’s risk for SUDEP is to take seizure medication regularly and at the right dose. Learn about triggers for seizure activity and take care of your overall health by eating right and getting enough sleep.

The Academic Partnership and Community Partnership teams are working on gathering information about virtual service opportunities for students. Click here to view a list of cooperating agencies willing to provide virtual service opportunities.

To capture Vandeventer Middle School related activities and to ensure that all students are included in this year's yearbook, we need your help. Faculty, students, and staff can upload pictures here (password: 415464688). Students who are not allowed to be photographed will be edited if the submission is selected for publication. Adding a photograph to this link does not necessarily guarantee publication. We appreciate your assistance!

To order a 2019-2020 yearbook, please click here.

In order to provide the safest and most orderly environment possible at VMS sporting events, please adhere to the following rules:

• Parents should only purchase their allotted number of tickets (up to 3). Attendance at games should be limited to families of participants only. Sharing codes or purchasing more than what is allowed may hinder other families from attending games and could result in a loss of privilege of attending games.

• Family groups should sit together, but 6 feet from other family groups.

• Masks are required at indoor events and encouraged at outdoor events, especially if unable to stay 6 feet apart.

• Families, including younger siblings, should not have the following items or similar items with them: football, soccer ball, tennis ball, volleyball, skateboard, scooter, etc. The items may be confiscated until the end of the event and individuals will be asked to return to their seats.

• Families, including younger siblings, should remain in the stands to watch the games.

• Food and drinks are not permitted in the gym. Bottles of water are allowed.

• Family conduct should promote sportsmanship and reflect our team in a positive and respectful manner. Conversations should be appropriate and profanity is prohibited.

We ask for your continued support in creating a safe environment for our athletes during the pandemic. Potential risks for your family are also a risk for the VMS community. Please consider the following:

• Keep your student home if symptoms are noticed.

• Be forthcoming regarding exposure, potential exposure, or illness with your student and/or family member.

• Be wise with social activity and follow recommendations from the CDC and Health Department. Social activities away from school continue to impact the campus.

Thank you for your support of our FISD athletes, families and spectators – we’ll see you at the games!

We would like to reiterate the importance and expectation of attendance for our virtual academy students. Please make sure your student is adhering to the following expectations:

• Follow the campus bell schedule
• Attend all classes virtually (i.e. Zoom or Google Meets)
• Participate in virtual classes by keeping the CAMERA ON (the teacher needs to see the student's face)
• Stay on the required virtual session until the teacher dismisses the class for asynchronous assignments
• Complete all assignments as directed by the teacher

Virtual students are expected to adhere to all compulsory attendance laws, district policy and campus expectations. Failure to follow these attendance guidelines will be considered a violation of law, and students will be subject to disciplinary action.

STUDENTS WHO DO NOT TURN THEIR CAMERA ON WILL BE MARKED ABSENT. If you are experiencing camera issues with your device, please reach out to our receptionist, Emily Waltz @ waltze@friscoisd.org, to schedule a time to pick-up a Chromebook from the school.

For more information related to attendance, please visit the district's webpage @ https://www.friscoisd.org/about/resources-and-information/school-attendance

If your child is going to be absent from school for any part of or the entire day, please submit the attendance information before 8:30 a.m. via the REPORT AN ABSENCE form by clicking the REPORT AN ABSENCE tab on the top right corner of our campus homepage.

Phone calls are a courtesy, but this form (as outlined below) is the only means for official absence reporting. Parents will be expected to complete the following information by clicking the form from the REPORT AN ABSENCE tab on the top right corner of our campus homepage:

REPORT AN ABSENCE

STUDENT ID - OPTIONAL

STUDENT LEGAL NAME - REQUIRED

DATE OF ABSENCE - REQUIRED

(If absent more than one day, include all days of absence in the explanation on the next field.)

REASON FOR ABSENCE - REQUIRED

(Please include specific information or symptoms; "sick" is not sufficient for our records.)

COVID-19 - REQUIRED
Is this absence related to Covid-19? Yes No

Please provide an email (required) or phone number (optional) where you may be reached.

EMAIL - REQUIRED

PHONE - OPTIONAL

DOCTOR NOTE - OPTIONAL: Upload a doctor's note explaining the reason for your child's absence.

Curricular Clubs: Reach out to the sponsors for virtual meeting dates/times.

National Junior Honor Society - Sponsor Kim Shea

Art Club - Sponsor Leanne Rainey

Academic Pentathlon - Sponsors Kristen Roberts & Jamie Buzan

STUCO - Allison Hillman

Vikings Read Book Club - Amy Hon

Non-Curricular Clubs: Students may provide information related to their non-curricular club to their peers via student created posters, word-of-mouth, and student announcements.

Students and parents will be able to access teacher lesson plans via our campus website by clicking this Vandeventer Website link. Once you have accessed the website, please follow these instructions:

• Find the news section on our campus website
• Click on the eLearning 2.0 button
• Find the teachers and click their name
• Follow the teacher's instructions for synchronous and asynchronous learning

Lesson plans will be posted on our campus website by 8:00 a.m. every Monday morning during 5-day work weeks. During holiday/professional development weeks availability to lesson plans dates/times may vary.

If you have trouble locating the teacher lesson plans, please reach out to your teacher. Teacher emails can be located on the Vandeventer Staff Page.

Students may click the link below if experiencing technology issues (Canvas, FISD login, Student Portal, Zoom). From the main FISD homepage, students must click on the word Virtual under the Instruction button, then choose Technology Resources from the menu on the left side of the screen.

Vandeventer Spirit Night with Chick-fil-A: Come out and support VMS on November 17th from 5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. at the Chic-fil-a at 121 and Custer.

World Wear Project: Please continue to donate your unused and unwanted clothing, shoes, backpacks, and toys.

Healthy Snack Food Contest: Sweet, salty, or savory, everyone has a weakness for snacks. Parents, have your student send their favorite healthy snack to the following link: HealthyLifestyle.vmspta@gmail.com. The PTA board will choose a submission once a month to be posted in this weekly newsletter and the PTA Facebook group.

Join PTA: Parents, teachers, and students, if you have not had the chance to join VMS PTA this year, please join either through the PTA website http://vandevikings.my-pta.org/content.asp?PageID=8 or directly at https://www.joinpta.org/. Texas PTA is having another contest for the PTA with the most joining in one week. The contest ends Sunday, November 15th at 11:59 p.m.. It is a BIG prize! A Texas PTA past State President will deliver VIP training to our executive board.

Visit http://vandevikings.my-pta.org/content.asp?PageID=6 to purchase Spirit Wear, Yard Signs, and/or Car Decals.

Like VMS PTA Facebook page to see the latest updates vis the following link: https://www.facebook.com/vandeventerpta/

For questions regarding VMA PTA , please contact president.vmspta@gmail.com

Melani Smith, MS, LPC, NCC

Virtual Counseling Office

Student Support Coordinator

smithmela@friscoisd.org

Virtual Counseling Office

Virtual Appointment Request Form

6075 Independence Parkway

Frisco, Texas 75035

Email: vandeventer@friscoisd.org
Website: http://schools.friscoisd.org/campus/middle-school/vandeventer/home
Phone: 469-633-4350
Facebook: facebook.com/VandeventerMiddleSchool
Twitter: @VandeventerMS