SIDEWINDER SCENE

Our holiday concerts fill the heart with the joy and excitement of the season. The 8th grade Band/

Chorus concert is December 11th, and the Jazz Band/7th grade Repertory Band/Orchestra concert is De-

cember 12th. Both concerts will be at 7:00pm in our auditorium. Smith has an outstanding performing

arts department and our students do a remarkable job. Treat yourself to some rejuvenation by attending

the concerts. Parent Survey’s will be coming home with your child this week, please take a few minutes

to complete the form and send back to Smith with your child.

It is hard to believe that we are coming up on the end of our first semester already. The students have

done a great job and we thank you for your continued support of the high expectations academically

and behaviorally set for the Smith students. We hope that each of you truly enjoys this special time of

year!

LOST and FOUND

This is the time of year that our lost and found bins begin to overflow. If your child has lost any clothing including PE clothes and/or oth-er miscellaneous items, please remind them to stop by the Bookstore to see if we have it. Common items turned in are jackets/sweaters, bags of PE clothes, misc. clothing, keys, earrings, and dress shoes. Any items still in Lost & Found at the end of each semes-ter will be donated to Goodwill or charity.

If you have lost a cell phone, IPOD or other expensive item, you will need to see Mrs. Hansen in Student Services, those items are not kept in the Bookstore.

Thanks to Donor’s

Choose and family and friends, ten Kindles have been donat-

ed to be used in Mrs. Hickman’s reading classes. Donor’s

Choose is an educational website in which teachers can go

and request items for their classroom. After writing a small

grant through Donor’s Choose and asking for ten Kindles, her

dreams were realized this September when the “Kindles for

My Classroom” project was fully funded. The students are

very excited about the Kindles and can’t wait to use them

when we are reading a novel as a class, working on vocabu-

lary or just plain reading for fun. With the Kindle they will

have access to hundreds of books on just one device!

December 4th ….Spring semester schedules handed out to students

December 4th ….Papa Kelsey’s Ellsworth/Apache Trail Rds. (eat out opp.) December 6th…..winter Dance concert (auditorium) December 11th….Band/Chorus Concert 8th grade (auditorium) December 12th…...Jazz Band/7th Grade Repertory Band Orchestra /(auditorium)

December 13th…...Winter Dance –Summer in Winter Aloha (cafeteria)

December 20th…...Early Release 1:55pm last day semester

January 6th…...School Resumes at 9:05am

January 8th…...Papa Kelsey’s Ellsworth/Apache Trail Rds. (eat out opp.)

PERIOD TIME CLASS LENGTH

Lunch A

Lunch 11:10 - 11:40 30 min.

Lunch B

Lunch 12:00 - 12:30 30 min.

December 20th Early Release 1:55pm

Bell Schedule

The 2013-2014 year-

books are cur-

rently for sale

in the Bookstore.

The cost is $30 un-

til we sell out.

once they are all

sold, you will not

be able to pur-

chase any in may.

All yearbooks

will be distribut-

ed sometime in

may.

Can you feel the buzz in the air? Spelling Bee time is here

once again. Smith’s English class winners will compete in

the school spelling bee on Thursday, January 9th begin-

ning at 4:00pm in the auditorium. Family members of

participants are invited to attend. The winner will then

compete in the District Spelling Bee on Saturday, January

11th starting at 9:00am at Franklin at Brimhall.

Mesa Public Schools is in the process of evaluating elementary, junior high and high school mathematics resources for adoption this spring for the 2014-2015 school year. In keeping with the focus and organization of the standards, it has been determined that MPS desires one resource program for adoption in these grade/course bands: Kindergarten-Grade 5, Grades 6-8, Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Personal Finance, Honors Geometry, and Hon-ors Algebra II.

Parents and community members are invited to attend the Mathematics Resources Publish-ers’ Presentations to hear about the materials before Mesa considers the adoption of new math resources.

The presentations will be held at the Mesa Convention Center, 263 N. Center Street, Mesa, AZ 85201

Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II: December 12, 4:30 – 5:40 PM Personal Finance: December 17, 3:30 – 4:40 PM Honors Algebra: December 17, 4:50 – 6:00 PM Honors Geometry: December 17, 6:10 –7:20 PM

Grades Six through Eight: December 18, 4:30 PM – 5:40 PM

In addition to the presentations, parents and community members are invited to visit Smith’s Media Center, (8:15am-4:15pm) December 16th—January 17th to preview the math materi-als and complete a feedback form. Remember that these new math resources will be used for the next 5-7 years and could affect about 63,000 students.

For more information or if you have any questions please contact Sue Bartow, Family Sup-port Specialist 472-9940 or Shawna Sirois 472-4668 Title I Specialist

Please send in your Box Tops.

The collection box is in the front

office. Don’t forget to ask your

friends and relatives to collect

for Smith, too!

Your continued support of the extra-curricular activities through the ECA donations is

appreciated. Please make sure you either specify the activity or designate it for the general fund. Your tax

-exempt donation can be made online, dropped off at Smith, or mailed to the district (Mesa Public

Schools, 63 E. Main Street, Mesa AZ 85201)

Make an Online Tax Credit Contribution at www.mpswebpay.mpsaz.org/signin.aspx This is a secure site.

If dropping off at Smith, it needs to be done by December 20th at Noon. If mailing to the district it must

be post marked by December 31st!

Second semester class schedules

were handed out to all students the

week of December 2nd. Please ask

you teen to share their schedule

with you. If they did not receive

one then they need to stop in the

front office before December 20th

to see Mrs. Mercer our registrar

7th & 8th Grade Athletics

Season III athletics registration has began for Cross

Country, Coed Flag Football and Girls Volleyball. Prac-

tices and/or tryouts begin when school resumes Janu-

ary 6th. Registration is only excepted until teams are

full. Teams practice a minimum of twice per week.

Most games are played on Wednesdays with a multi-

team tournament at the end of each sports season.

The cost of enrolling in these sports is $75. Financial

assistance is available for those who qualify. Fliers are

available in student services or at

www.mesasports.org/jha_13_14/

Any questions contact Mrs. Hansen at 472-4651

On-line Grade Check?

Welcome to My MPS Parental Portal your school /home communication tool.

Review and monitor your child’s grades, attendance and other education-related in-formation from your home, phone or work computer.

To begin your my MPS account, please visit the school office with a photo ID and complete the required form. Your Activation Key will be emailed to you in a few days after receipt of the form.

If you have children at more than one school in the district, you will need to visit only one of the schools; one activation key will give you access to all the children in your family. For further information please contact Sue Bartow, Family Support Specialist at 480-472-9940

Chick-Fil-A Bonus Offer at Superstition Springs Mall: Free four pack Kid’s Meal with the pur-

chase of any adult meal now through December 31st, when you use the coupon on the School

Cents flyer (www.shoppingpartnership.com/points/superstition.htm). Please consider signing

up for email when you are on this site. We could earn up to 2,000 points for everyone that

does.

Not only will you get a free meal but you will help Smith earn 1,000 bonus points for each

coupon used (triple points on Wednesday’s), but than you can log in your purchase at Guest

Services for triple points.

Wednesday, January 8th from 11:00am-9:00pm join us for lunch or dinner at Papa Kelsey’s

Pizza and Subs located at 9124 E. Apache Trail (NW corner of Ellsworth/Apache Trail).

Take out, delivery or eat in is available. Flyers with the menu will be available on our web-

site. 10% of the days earnings will go to Smith.

Due to the wonderful

generosity of Christ’s

Church of the Valley

(CCV) we will be able

to assist some* of our

Smith families with

non perishable food over the two

week winter break. Please contact

Sue Bartow, Family Support Specialist at

472-9940 to schedule your appointment

time to pick up your boxes at Smith.

Appointments available

December 16th—December 20th,

from 9:15am—4:15pm (Monday-

Thursday)

and Friday (12/20) until Noon.

*Due to a limited supply all requests

may not be meet. Requests for appoint-

ments will be first come, first served.

All 8th graders will create a four year plan for

high school toward the end of January, before

high school counselors visit to discuss enroll-

ment in classes for next year. Students will

create their plans on the College and Career

Planning System (Kuder Navigator) website,

so parents will be able to see the plan from

home. These plans are considered fluid and

may be adjusted at any time throughout high

school.

All students are currently enrolled on Kuder

Navigator and may access the site by going to

www.mpsaz.kuder.com

Please encourage your students to read daily. Even if all they are reading is comic books,

magazines or looking for cheat codes on the computer. Research is showing that some

students will read a book quicker using technology such as Nooks, Kindles or other elec-

tronic devices (consider checking one out from the Mesa Public Library). Some teens look

at the size of a book and get discouraged even before they start reading.

Below are the top 3 books checked out of Smith’s Media Center this school year.

1. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

2. Dairy of a wimpy kid: the last straw by Jeff Kinney

3. Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Tips to Motivate your Teen to Read

1. Let your child choose what to read. While you may cringe at his/

her preferences, he/she may never touch a title if it’s force-fed

2. If they are struggling or bored with a book, let them put it

down. Forcing him/her to stick with a difficult or dull book that’s intend-

ed for pleasure will reinforce the idea that reading is a chore

3. Play games that utilize reading. Word and vocabulary building

games like Scrabble or Boggle are great, but many board games provide

reading opportunities (even if it’s just instructions). Crosswords provide

opportunities for learning new words and spelling practice, too

4. Listen to books on tape in the car. If you’re heading on vacation,

or even back and forth to school, try listening to a novel that will appeal

to everyone

Books have the ability to change your thoughts, perspective, and dreams. Find a new

favorite book as we celebrate Read A New Book Month. What a better way to spend the

holiday break than to curl up with a new story; a journey that will expand your imagina-

tion and knowledge. Plan a family outing to the library or local bookstore and choose a

new book to read or give a book as a gift for the holidays. It could also mean it is time

to try reading in a different format (nook, kindle, computer, Ipad), trying a new genre,

author, classics or finish a book that you started but never finished for whatever reason.

However you choose to celebrate enjoy this special month.

Smith is happy to announce that we are now registered to participate in Fry’s new Community Rewards Program

(this replaces Cool Cash). To sign up you need to have a Fry’s VIP Shoppers Card and reg-

ister it online using the following instructions:

PLEASE NOTE: Before you can link your Fry’s V.I.P card to an organization, you must have an email address. STEP 1: Creating an Online Fry’s Account **NOTE: If you already have an online Fry’s account, skip to #2 *Go to www.FrysCommunityRewards.com *Select ‘Create an Account’. *Under Sign-In information, enter your email and create a password. (Write down your email & password—will need it in step 2) *Select ‘Use Card Number’. *Enter your Fry’s V.I.P Card Number, last name and postal code. *Under ‘Select Your Preferred Store’ enter your postal code. *Select ‘Find Stores’. *Choose your store then select ‘Create Account’. *You will then be prompted to check your email for a confirmation email. Click the hyperlink in your email to finish creating your Online Fry’s Account. *Continue to step #2 to register for the Fry’s Community Rewards Program of your choice. STEP 2: Register for the Fry’s Community Rewards Program *Go to www.FrysCommunityRewards.com *Select ‘Sign-In’. *Enter your email and password then select ‘sign in’. (This will be the email and password you created in step 1) *Select ‘My Account then select ‘Account Settings’ from drop down menu. *Click ‘edit’ under Community Rewards. If prompted, enter personal information. *Under Find Your Organization: Enter the NPO number or name of organization then select ‘search’. (Smith Junior High School Organization 81621) *Under Select Your Organization: Select box next to your organization *Then select ‘save changes’. *If you have registered correctly, you should now see your organization information listed under ‘Community Re-wards’ on your Account Summary page.

Smith’s sweatshirts, t-shirts and other items

have been redesigned. A fundraiser officially

begins in early January, but if you are looking to

use as a gift, you can stop in at the Bookstore

beginning Monday, December 16th to place an

order. Just pay for what you would like and we

will give you a receipt that you can use as the

gift. Items will not be received until later in Jan-

uary. Full details will be coming after break.

Keep your eye open.

Bookstore will be closing at

1:00pm on Friday, December

20th.

Want to monitor your stu-

dents grades, attendance,

health records; search for a

job, need to print a resume or something

else but don’t have access to the internet, a

computer or printer? The Family Resource

Room has a computer and printer that is

available for your use. The Family Resource

Room is open from 9:00am-4:00pm (Monday

-Friday).

If you have access to a com-

puter visit

www.mpsaz.org/nclb/

familiesintransition/

for complete details, down-

loadable forms and other

information.

If you lost your housing due to

foreclosure (yours or renting and

the landlord lost it to foreclosure)

and now live doubled up with fam-

ily or friends; in a shelter, motel,

vehicle, camping ground, or tem-

porary trailer; on the street; or in

another type of temporary or in-

adequate housing, your child(ren)

may be able to receive help

through a federal law called the

McKinney-Vento Act. Under this

Act eligible children and youth

have the right to:

go to school, no matter where

they live or how long they

have lived there.

Continue attending their

school of origin or be enrolled

immediately in the local school

where they are living.

Receive transportation to and

from the school of origin at no

cost to the parent or student.

Receive free school meals

Enroll in the new local school

immediately, even if missing

required records. Attend clas-

ses and participate fully in all

school activities (including af-

ter school sports, tutoring and

other activities).

If this is your child(ren) please

contact Holly Mercer, Registrar

472-9902, Sue Bartow, Family

Support Specialist 472-9940 or

Rita Bracamonte-Rodriguez, MPS

Homeless Family Liaison 472-

0291 for the required forms, or

more information.

Earn Triple Points for all your

December shopping. That is 15

points for every dollar spent for

receipts dated December 1st-31st.

We are still collecting receipts dated August 15, 2013 through December 31st. It’s

easy, just save all of your receipts from Superstition Springs Mall, write your name

on the back and have your student bring them to the School Cents box in the

bookstore (receipts can be returned upon request). Not only will Smith earn points,

but your student will be entered into a monthly drawing for some cool prizes. You

can also have your receipts logged, stamped and returned on the spot when you stop

at Guest Services before you leave the mall. Receipts that are logged and stamped at

the mall may also be turned in at the bookstore for the monthly prize drawing. Smith

will earn 5 points for every dollar spent at any of the stores, restaurants and ser-

vices (including kiosks and the food court).

If you don’t shop much; that’s ok you can still help just “Like” Superstition

Springs Mall on Facebook (facebook.com/SuperstitionSpringsCenter). Click on School

Cents select Smith and earn 500 points.

Sign up for email (www.shoppingpartnership.com) and earn up to 2,000 points. If you

already did this for another school and want to change to Smith just go to a recent

email from School Cents and update your profile preferences or sign up again and

the system will recognize your email address and ask if you would like to update

your profile.

Did you receive a receipt

via email?

Visit shoppingpartnership.com

and select Superstition Springs

Center to submit your emailed

receipt.

Purchase a Santa photo package and earn 1,000 points when you log your receipt. Find a special offer at SuperstitionSprings.com

November 29th-December 22nd Select a tag from the Angel Trees and buy the requested gift. Bring your donation slip to Guest Ser-vices by January 15, 2014 to earn 1,000 points per donation.