Well, we have done it! We have come to end of the accreditation visit week! A team of fellow principals and teachers came to OSLS this week to look through and validate our accreditation document and school in action, and it went very well. The team really had great things to say about our middle school students like how welcoming the students are and engaged in their learning. Way to go Our Shepherd Lutheran School!
Also, there is no school tomorrow! Have an awesome Valentine's Day. IMPORTANT INFO FOR NEXT WEEK No School on Monday, February 17th! Happy President's Day There is a LATE START on Friday, February 21st. OSLS Scifest competition will be Friday, February 21st, also. What are we learning? Religion: we are wrapping up our discussion on Confession and Absolution as we navigate through what the Office of the Keys means for Christ's church and His people. Science: we delved into why baking bread works the way it does by learning the chemical reaction of Cellular Respiration. We are currently working on a virtual lab that applies this information to baking at higher altitudes. Health: our guest teacher from Sheltering Wings lead us through a discussion on recognizing unhealthy (abusive) relationship red flags. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have a restful weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Monday, February 17th - NO SCHOOL Presidents' Day Friday, February 21st - LATE START Friday, February 21st - OSLS SciFest Friday, February 21st - End of Trimester 2 Other dates to keep in mind: Wednesday, February 26th - Ash Wednesday Friday, February 28th - Report Cards go home Wednesday, March 4th - Muffins with Mom Thursday, March 5th - SciFest at Lutheran High School Friday, March 6th - Late Start Monday, March 9th - PTL Meeting Wednesday, March 11th - Spring Picture Day Friday, March 20th - Late Start March 21 - 29 - Spring Break https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html
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Okay, it seems like each week I have commented on how much we have going on...but this time I really feel like we have had some jam packed weeks! Last week was National Lutheran Schools' Week, and each day the students had an opportunity to dress up, participate in a school-wide activity, and reflect on what it means for us to be able to attend a school like Our Shepherd. It was A LOT of fun!
This week, we welcomed a new student on Monday, Ben McIntire! Keep him in your prayers as he adjusts to life at Our Shepherd, and keep the whole class in your prayers as we adjust to being a group of 11 instead of 10 students. We made breads on Tuesday, set up for our play and practiced Tuesday and Wednesday, then Thursday was dress rehearsal and Drama Night. Today, we made cinnamon rolls and cinnamon knots, which was a process that took a long time....but I believe the students have learned a few new life skills...baking, measuring, preparing food, and cleaning up afterward. We will discuss more about how the foods we enjoyed this week were made possible due to cellular respiration. IMPORTANT INFO FOR NEXT WEEK PTL is collecting Box Tops again, bring in all your box tops by Thursday Feb, 13th. PTL is also advertising the OSLS spirit wear again! A sheet will come home Monday with info. Next Friday, February 14th, there is NO SCHOOL! Happy Valentine's Day! AND there is NO SCHOOL on February 17th either! What are we learning? Religion: we are still discussing Confession and how God speaks to us through our neighbors and pastors when we seek forgiveness from others, and when we forgive others who have sinned against us. Science: we started the week with making breads, spent some time discussing what cellular respiration is and how it relates to respiratory system function, and then ended with making sweet treats. For these baking endeavors, we uses yeasts, because as they perform cellular respiration to make energy by breaking down the sugar in the mixture, they release carbon dioxide, which causes the breads to rise. Health: we have a guest teacher from Sheltering Wings, a women's shelter that focuses on providing for the needs of those leaving abusive relationships. While we have this guest, we are learning about what types of relationships we will encounter in our lives (family, friends, peers, coworkers, dating, and marriage) and how we can set a foundation for developing and maintaining healthy relationships in our lives. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have a restful weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Tuesday, February 11 - Thursday, February 13th - Accreditation Assessment Visit Friday, February 14th - NO SCHOOL Other dates to keep in mind: Monday, February 17th - NO SCHOOL Presidents' Day Friday, February 21st - OSLS SciFest & End of Trimester 2 Wednesday, February 26th - Ash Wednesday Friday, February 28th - Report Cards go home Wednesday, March 4th - Muffins with Mom Thursday, March 5th - SciFest at Lutheran High School Friday, March 6th - Late Start Monday, March 9th - PTL Meeting Wednesday, March 11th - Spring Picture Day Friday, March 20th - Late Start March 21 - 29 - Spring Break https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html Whew! This week just flew by, but we did have a good week. We have been practicing our play (which we will present on Feb 6th at 6:30 pm). Several of the 7th graders have speaking parts, and those that don't have the super important job of making everything and everyone look amazing the night of the play. If you know that your student is unable to be there Feb 6th, please let me know ASAP, as trying to fill roles gets more difficult the closer we are to the performance.
IMPORTANT INFO FOR NEXT WEEK We are celebrating National Lutheran Schools' Week all next week. Students will have opportunities to dress up, participate in school-wide activities, and donate to Sheltering Wings and our playground equipment purchases through Penny Wars. See Ram News for all the details! What are we learning? Religion: we have been talking about Confession and how God speaks to us through our neighbors and pastors when we seek forgiveness from others, and when we forgive others who have sinned against us. Science: we finished up diffusion with a quiz today, next week we will discover how diffusion is how cells are then able to get the materials they need to produce energy for life functions. This is called Cellular Respiration. Health: we are continuing to talk about Emotions. The students are discovering how we are able to perceive and respond to non-verbal forms of communication and emotions. We also discussed the idea of color psychology-how certain colors are associated with certain emotions and how we can maybe use that to help us regulate. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have a restful weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Sunday, January 26th - Sunday February 2 - National Lutheran Schools' Week See Ram News for all the dress up days and Penny Wars information. Other dates to keep in mind: Thursday, February 6th - Middle School Drama Night 6:30 pm Friday, February 7th - Late Start Friday, February 14th - NO SCHOOL Monday, February 17th - NO SCHOOL Presidents' Day Friday, February 21st - OSLS SciFest & End of Trimester 2 https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html We had a good week in 7th Grade, even though the weather went from spring-like back to winter. Something to make sure gets on your calendars: February 6th, is our Middle School Drama Night. The 5th - 8th grades will be presenting their plays starting at 6:30 pm.
IMPORTANT INFO FOR NEXT WEEK Monday, is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and we DO NOT HAVE SCHOOL. So enjoy the long weekend everyone! What are we learning? Religion: we have been talking about how worship and praise are not just things we do on church days. Thank you again, parents, for sharing your responses to the "interviews" with your student. We had really great conversations about life as a Christian. Science: we completed a lab with eggs, in which we explored how water moves into and out of a cell. Health: we are continuing to talk about Mental Fitness. The students turned in emotional selfies, in which they depicted three different emotions. This week, students are delving into how our emotions relate to God, and even how the devil can manipulate us through them. Students are continuing to read their books as well. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have a great weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Monday, January 20th - NO SCHOOL Martin Luther King Jr Day Other dates to keep in mind: Sunday, January 26th - Sunday February 2 - National Lutheran Schools' Week Thursday, February 6th - Middle School Drama Night 6:30 pm Friday, February 7th - Late Start Friday, February 14th - NO SCHOOL Monday, February 17th - NO SCHOOL Presidents' Day Friday, February 21st - OSLS SciFest & End of Trimester 2 https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html Welcome back from break everyone! I pray that you all had a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. It has been good to be back (from my end anyway).
Midterm was Wednesday, and attached with the weekly email you will have the link to your student's grades. IMPORTANT INFO FOR NEXT WEEK Monday, is the PTL Dine Out at Chick-fil-a. Friday, is a late start. What are we learning? Religion: we finished reading Ishtar's Odyssey on Monday, which ends with the Magi coming to worship Jesus in Bethlehem. This was perfect timing since Monday was Epiphany! We are talking about worship and how God's expectations for us are found even there. Science: we have finished our Mitosis and Meiosis concepts! We will be moving on to talk about cellular processes such as Diffusion, Respiration, and Photosynthesis. Health: we are continuing to talk about Mental Fitness. Students have been leaning about emotional intellignce, and are continuing to read their books. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have a great weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Monday, January 13th - PTL Chick -fil-A Dine Out Friday, January 17th - Late Start Other dates to keep in mind: Monday, January 20th - NO SCHOOL Martin Luther King Jr Day Sunday, January 26th - Sunday February 2 - National Lutheran Schools' Week Thursday, February 6th - Middle School Drama Night 6:30 pm Friday, February 7th - Late Start Friday, February 14th - NO SCHOOL Monday, February 17th - NO SCHOOL Presidents' Day Friday, February 21st - OSLS SciFest & End of Trimester 2 https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html Only one more week before Christmas break! Our classroom is slowly transforming into a winter scene. Next week we will get to complete the transformation with Christmas decorations. We have been enjoying our Advent story, Ishtar's Odyssey, quite a bit, and we all agree that the main character has some serious challenges when it comes to thinking before he speaks or acts....especially since he is travelling by foot and camel from Persia to Bethlehem.
IMPORTANT INFO FOR NEXT WEEK Our all school Christmas Program, is coming up on Monday, December 16th at 6:30 pm. Friday, December 20th, is a late start day! PLUS we will be having a White Elephant Gift Exchange, and class fun time. The White Elephant exchange is not meant to be stressful, all I have in mind is for the students to bring something from home that they no longer need and is approved by you. There is really no need to spend money on this exchange, if you do wish to purchase something, please limit to under $5 dollars. If you have questions between now and then, please let me know. Here is what the class discussed today at the end of the day for food - Meat & Cheese Tray -Luke & Hannah Crackers-Michael Meatballs-Jenna Veggies-Gavin Fruit-Mia Cookies-Aderinoye Ice Cream- Luke Drinks-Grace & Luke (non-caffeinated please - root beer, sprite, ginger ale, etc...) Pretzels & melting chocolate - Mierow Chocolate truffle stuff - Mierow What are we learning? Religion: we have been reading Ishtar's Odyssey. Science: we have created paper slide videos to explain this process. Health: we are talking about Mental Fitness. We just had our first book check in this week. Each student had a chance to tell us about the book they chose and what they have discovered so far. Our next book check in will be December 18th. Please reference the email I sent about our new book project. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have had a great weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Monday, December 16th - All School Christmas Program 6:30 pm Friday, December 20th - Late Start & 7th Grade Christmas Party Other dates to keep in mind: December 23 - January 3 . Christmas Break - No School Monday, January 6th - First day back after break Monday, January 13th - PTL Chick -fil-A Dine Out Friday, January 17th - Late Start Monday, January 20th - NO SCHOOL Martin Luther King Jr Day Sunday, January 26th - Sunday February 2 - National Lutheran Schools' Week Thursday, February 6th - Middle School Play 6:30 pm Friday, February 7th - Late Start Friday, February 14th - NO SCHOOL Monday, February 17th - NO SCHOOL Presidents' Day Friday, February 21st - OSLS SciFest & End of Trimester 2 https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html Can you believe we only have 19 more days until Christmas? December always seems to fly by, but the warm weather is also out of place, thought definitely welcomed! This week, 7th grade has been able to enjoy numerous mini-economy bonuses: homework passes, special seating, tasty treats, and extra recess. We also were able to share stories from our Thanksgiving break, and we started our new hymn of the month - O Come All Ye Faithful. Speaking of starting something new, we just began to read our Advent Story, Ishtar's Odyssey, and it is really neat to see how the stories of Tabitha (6th grade year), Bartholomew (5th grade year), and Jotham (4th grade year) all connect in this year's story.
Important papers sent home: A yellow half sheet about the PTL Movie Night Friday, Dec 13th, at 6 pm. $1 Candy Cane Gram order form. Money and form due next Wednesday. Important information for this weekend: 5th-8th Grade Youth BLAST Christmas Party and Caroling starting at 12pm. Bring a dish to share for potluck lunch. Caroling until 1 pm, then Christmas festivities and hot cocoa bar until 2:30 pm. Important information for this month: Today, we talked about our all school Christmas Program, which is coming up on Monday, December 16th at 6:30 pm. This year, we are presenting a program centered around the hymn "Savior of the Nations Come" and each of the classes will be singing a song from one of the many nations around the world. The 7th and 8th grade classes will lead the audience in singing the central hymn, and a few of these students will also narrate during the program. Friday, December 20th, is a late start day! PLUS we will be having a White Elephant Gift Exchange, and class fun time. In past years, we have also played games, watched Christmas movies, sung Christmas hymns, and enjoyed a variety of snack foods. The White Elephant exchange is not meant to be stressful, all I have in mind is for the students to bring something from home that they no longer need and is approved by you. There is really no need to spend money on this exchange. If you have questions between now and then, please let me know. Foods in previous years have included lemonade, hot chocolate, apple cider, sparkling cider, meat and cheese trays, crackers, chips, fruits, veggies, meatballs, and other appetizer type foods. I also provide materials for us to make chocolate truffles and chocolate covered pretzels for treats. If this class would prefer to do a meal instead of appetizer/snacky foods, that works too, just let me know and I can send a sign up out for that. Either way, we always have fun and have plenty of food. What are we learning? Religion: we have been talking a lot about how to witness to others, maybe to our family, friends, and neighbors, or even to those who ridicule us for our faith. We have also started reading Ishtar's Odyssey. Science: we are still working on meiosis. The students are working on creating a paper slide video to explain this process. Health: we are talking about Mental Fitness. We just had our first book check in this week. Each student had a chance to tell us about the book they chose and what they have discovered so far. Our next book check in will be December 18th. Please reference the email I sent about our new book project. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have had a great weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Sunday, December 8th - BLAST Christmas Party and Caroling 12 pm Friday, December 13th - PTL Movie Night 6 pm Other dates to keep in mind: Monday, December 16th - All School Christmas Program 6:30 pm Friday, December 20th - Late Start & 7th Grade Christmas Party December 23 - January 3 . Christmas Break - No School https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html We had a good week in 7th grade! Many of the middle school teachers passed along compliments about how the class was doing this week, and it has been great to hear that the students are seeing success in so many areas. Way to go 7-uppers!
Mini-economy ended today with Tax Day. Next week the students will get a chance to buy items like homework passes, extra recess, and use of fun chairs or seating options for a designated period of time. Thank you to Grace for being our Mayor, Mia for being our class banker, Hannah for being our class teacher, Aderinoye for being our courtesy director, Jenna for being our class attendance officer, Michael for being a custodian, Luke for being on table and chairs crew, Gavin for being a reporter, and Tanner for being a board cleaner! We also really enjoyed Indi's treats she sold as an entrepreneur! I am very excited to report that our class project for All Saints' Fest did VERY WELL! So well, in fact, that we had two separate families ask if they could pay into having us come to their properties too. This means that our original donation of the service and $250 Lowes gift cards went to one winner (don't know who yet!), and two add on service requests (no gift cards) went to to other winners. We were able to raise $350 dollars for Our Shepherd! Way to go 7-upper families! More information will be sent along about what days and what equipment we will need for fulfilling our service for these three families. Important information for this weekend: Girls: Volleyball tryouts for the LuHi Club team is this Sunday, 1 - 3:30 pm at LuHi A white sheet with info went home with the volleyball girls a couple weeks ago, but let me know if you have any questions. All: Auditions for the LuHi Musical: Suessical are this Sunday too, 1-4pm at LuHi What are we learning? Religion: we have been talking a lot about what the church is, why churches are different, and how we fit into different vocations. Science: we just started talking about meiosis. We will be doing a voice over for our Mitosis video we choreographed this week. Health: we are talking about Mental Fitness. Please reference the email I sent about our new book project. All students now have a copy of the book they chose, and many have begun reading already! Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have had a great weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Tuesday, November 26th - Middle School Chic-fil-a lunch (if you ordered it) Wednesday - Friday, November 27-29th - Thanksgiving Break - No School Other dates to keep in mind: Friday, December 6th - Late Start Friday, December 13th - PTL Movie Night Monday, December 16th - All School Christmas Program 6:30 pm Friday, December 20th - Late Start December 23 - January 3 . Christmas Break - No School https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html This week was definitely a challenge with the frigid weather causing us not to have our outside time. Today, though, we had beautiful weather for outside recess! We ended our First Trimester last Friday, and the start of our Second Trimester has been pretty smooth. Tonight is All Saints' Fest, and I am very excited to see who wins our Yard Work Service Project this year! Thank you all for your prayers and monetary support in this. Once we know who the winner is, I will be sending information about when our service day will be in the spring.
Important Papers to Look for Today Your student's report card and green acknowledgement/concerns slip (return this form) Chick-fil-a Thanksgiving Lunch paper (also green) Hearing screening paper (small white paper) What are we learning? Religion: we have started our study on the Table of Duties, and will be delving into what vocation means. Science: we are working on a choreographed simulation of a cell that goes through the cell cycle. Health: we are examining what a role model is, what God says about role models, and how we see ourselves as role models. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have had a great weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Wednesday, November 20th - Zip City Reward Trip Other dates to keep in mind: Wednesday - Friday, November 27-29th - Thanksgiving Break - No School Friday, December 6th - Late Start Friday, December 13th - PTL Movie Night Monday, December 16th - All School Christmas Program 6:30 pm Friday, December 20th - Late Start December 23 - January 3 . Christmas Break - No School https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html Well, October has flown by so quickly! And it doesn't feel like fall anymore either, especially after the snow we had this week.
We have started our new hymn of the month: For All The Saints, and the 7-uppers sound really great already! Mini-Economy started today! Grace will be our Mayor, Gavin will be a Reporter, Mia will be a Banker, Hannah will be a Teacher, Jenna will be an Attendance Officer, Aderinoye will be our Courtesy Director, Tanner will be a Board Cleaner, Luke will be on Table and Chairs Crew, Michael will be a Custodian, and Indi will be an Entrepreneur. Things to be thinking about.... Don't forget to set your clocks back this weekend! Yay for fall back! Tuesday is an E-Learning day, due to OSL being a voting station. Students will receive their assignments from their teachers on or before Tuesday morning. Friday is the end our first trimester of 201-2020. Report Cards will be sent the week after. It's not too late to donate toward our All Saints' Yard Work Service Project, you can still send in money toward the gift cards. What are we learning? Religion: we have been discussing who Martin Luther was and the important work he did. We have also been having great class discussions on why there are different denominations. Science: we are learning about mitosis and the cell cycle. Health: we are learning about responsible decision making. As a whole, we know what the right choice is usually, but we are recognizing that sometimes it is still very hard to choose that option due to influences around us. Ask your student about the classes they have outside of our room too! :) I pray that you have a blessed and restful weekend! In Christ, Nicolette Mierow Coming up this week: Tuesday, November 5th - E-Learning Day Friday, November 8th - End of 1st Trimester Other dates to keep in mind: Monday, November 11th - Fall Picture Retake Day Friday, November 15th - Late Start/All Saints' Fest @ Embassy Suites Friday, November 22th - PTL Ornament Painting Wednesday - Friday, November 27-29th - Thanksgiving Break - No School https://ourshepherdmiddleschool.weebly.com/other-useful-information.html |