SMS Weekly Update

Inclement weather helped keep things interesting this week! Wednesday's late start shook up our regular routine a bit, but we are settling back into a normal schedule next week, with no snow in the forecast so far. Thank you for your flexibility throughout this winter storm.

March 6 -10

• National School Breakfast Week Raffle Contest (see details below)

March 8

• Early Release, dismissal at 2:20 pm

March 9

• Sparrow Club Fundraiser begins (see details below)

• Spring Choir Concert, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm, Sherwood High School Auditorium

March 10

• End of Trimester 2

March 12

• Daylight Saving Time Begins

March 13

• Teacher Workday - No School

March 14

• Middle School Choral Festival, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm, Chehalem Cultural Center

• McMenamins Band Fundraiser, 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm
  

March 15

• Early Release, dismissal at 2:20 pm

March 18

• Swingin’ The Green Band Fundraiser, 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm, The Oregon Golf Club

March 21

• SMS Spring Band Concert, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm, SMS Gym

March 22

• Early Release, dismissal at 2:20 pm

March 24

• District Wide Furlough Day - No School

March 24 - 31

• Spring Break - No School

Additional events may be viewed on the Sherwood Middle School Calendar and the Revised 2022-2023 District Calendar.

All schools in our district will be participating in lockdown drills February 27-March 10. These drills are an essential part of our emergency preparedness, and help students and staff to practice specific protocols that would occur in an emergency situation. This will be the second lockdown drill of the year and will not be announced to students or staff in advance to allow for an accurate observation of any response protocols that need improvement or additional training. Practice drills such as these are also an opportunity for our administrators and staff to collaborate with the Sherwood Police Department. You may notice increased police presence if you are on/near campus during a lockdown drill, as SPD officers do participate in these drills.

During a lockdown drill, staff and students are secured within their individual classrooms/offices, and there is no movement in the building. No one will be allowed to enter or exit the campus until the drill has been completed.

For more information on District emergency response protocols and communication, please visit the SSD website here.

March 6-10 is National School Breakfast Week! To celebrate, our Nutrition Services Department will be hosting a raffle contest for a Nintendo Switch Lite (furnished by our partners at General Mills).

Each time a student receives a school breakfast, they will receive a raffle ticket. The winning raffle ticket will be announced on Friday, March 10th. Good luck Archers!

Oregon's Statewide Assessments in science, mathematics, and English language arts will begin in April for students in grades 3-8. Scheduled testing will take place during the school day. For additional information on the State Assessments from the Oregon Department of Education, please review the following link.

While no single test can give a complete picture of your child’s progress, statewide tests provide information to students and families, as well as to educators and administrators about what educational approaches are working and where additional resources are needed. Your child’s participation is important to ensure schools and districts receive the targeted resources they need to help all students succeed. Districts are rated on their participation levels as well as student performance on this exam.

Oregon law (ORS 329.479) permits parents and adult students to annually opt-out of Oregon’s statewide summative tests in English Language Arts and Math by submitting a form to the school the student attends. If you decide to opt your child out of the math and/or ELA state assessments, please submit the following form to your child’s teacher or the front office by April 7, 2023 to best support our school with planning.

• English combined 30-day notice and opt-out form

• ​Spanish combined 30-day notice and opt-out form

• Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified)

• Vietnamese, Russian, German, French

• Tagalog, Japanese, Korean, Arabic

POSTPONED

Unfortunately, because of the severe weather and road conditions in the area, we had to make the decision to postpone Parenting and Mental Health event.

Parenting and Mental Health in Sherwood will now take place on Saturday, April 22nd, 9am-1pm.

We were so looking forward to meeting you, connecting with you, and learning valuable information together about how to support our youth's mental health. But most importantly, we want to make sure we can host this event at a time when we know we can keep you all safe!

So in the meantime, stay safe and warm, and if you need any support, please don't hesitate to reach out to us, by email or by calling our NAMI building Mon-Fri 10am-4pm at (503) 356-6835.

We are here for you, and you are not alone.

Parenting and Mental Health, a morning workshop all about addressing the youth mental health crisis. It will feature presentations from both parents and youth who have dealt with mental health challenges, information on specific mental health challenges kids face, tools parents can use with children and families in their community, and talks from local mental health professionals who know what your kids are going through. The event is taking place at the Sherwood School District Office, in the multipurpose room.

The event is free, and open to parents, caregivers and other adults who interact with youth. It's not limited to parents of children with mental health conditions, because we believe a whole community should be knowledgeable about mental health!

Please view this flier for additional details.

May 23 - 26 (more details to come)

Attendance is one of the most important factors for academic success. Studies have shown that students who regularly attend school are less likely to struggle academically as they move on to high school. At the same time, there are several uncontrollable factors that can make coming to school difficult, from illness to family events to mental health. We understand how these factors can impact a student’s attendance.

The Sherwood School District has been working on helping to inform families of their child’s attendance rates this year via postal letters and electronic communications. These attendance letters are strictly informational and are automatically generated every six weeks for students who have attendance rates lower than 90%. If your family receives an attendance letter, there is no action required on your family’s part.

If you would like help increasing your child’s attendance, we are here to partner with you. Please reach out to our administrative team if you have any questions or concerns:

Associate Principal Emily Anderson: Eanderson@sherwood.k12.or.us, (503) 825-5505

Associate Principal Nick Sidlin: Nsidlin@sherwood.k12.or.us, (503) 825-5506

Dean of Students Kyle Virding: Kvirding@sherwood.k12.or.us, (503) 825-5504

Thank you for your partnership!

At Sherwood Middle School, we are committed to providing exceptional opportunities to our students and are excited to be offering Flex! Flex is a block of time in our schedule dedicated for our students to receive extra academic support, make up missing work, meet with clubs, and attend enrichment activities.

Students go to Flex twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, in place of their regularly scheduled Flight Time. Students sign up weekly, on Fridays, in StudentVUE for the following week. Students can sign up for and attend the same Flex for both days or choose two different Flex offerings for that week. If a student is behind or struggling in one or more classes, they may be requested to attend a Flex session with their teacher.

The window for Flex sign ups remains open for students through the weekend and closes every Monday at 2pm. Automated emails are generated and sent out to students every Monday and Wednesday afternoon notifying students of their Tuesday and Thursday selections/placements respectively. Students can also access the location of their upcoming Flex by logging in to StudentVUE and clicking on Flex schedule. Flex will show up as Period 8 on their schedule.

Flex is treated like any class. Attendance is required and will be taken. If a student misses a Flex period, phone call notifications will be sent home notifying parents/guardians of the absence. Attendance is one of the most important factors for academic success. We appreciate your partnership with this, and if you have any further questions regarding Flex or attendance, please reach out to the school.

Please remind students that they need to be walking their bikes on the SMS campus. Recently we have noticed that students are riding quickly through crowds creating a safety concern. Remember, it is also the law for students on bikes and skateboards to wear a helmet until they are 16. Thank you for your partnership in keeping all students at SMS safe.

Order your 2022-2023 SMS Yearbook now. You can begin personalizing your yearbook right away with back to school photos, fall sports/activities, summer vacation memories etc. Click here for or more information.