Metter Middle School

Future Georgia Educator Clubs to host "Thankful Trees" this week and you can help! American Education Week celebrates all things education. Each day this week we ask administrators, teachers, support staff, students, families, and the community to share thanks for the excellence we see in our schools every day. If you are not in the school system or would prefer to send a digital note of thanks, please fill out the form below. Future Georgia Educator Club Members will add your notes to the tree! To send your note of thanks: https://forms.gle/Kf34vevKxbNznC4RA Daily themes: (but we'll take any thankful note on any day!) Monday: Share thanks for the excellent teachers and administration in each school. Tuesday: Schools share thanks for families and students that support excellence in our schools. Parents and community members chat with students about what is happening in the classrooms and send thanks for the great moments you hear about. Wednesday: Share thanks to our education support staff: our Teacher Assistants and Para-Professionals, our Bus Drivers, our Office Staff, our Custodial Staff, and our Maintenance Staff Thursday: Share thanks to our community for their support in our schools: Communities in Schools and Community Members. Friday: Share thanks for our Substitute Teachers. Thank you!

🐅 Round 1 of the Playoffs! When: Saturday, November 16 (GHSA requiring all Class A schools to play on Sat) 4:30 pm in The Jungle at Metter High School against Hawkinsville! Tickets are GoFan or credit card. No cash at the gate. https://gofan.co/event/2222289?schoolId=GA23136 no Booster Passes allowed. Concessions are cash or credit card. **Please note the ticket gates are different for already purchased GoFan tickets and for those who need to pay for a ticket using a credit card. See the different locations on the map below.** #WINatEVERYTHING

Use loving notes to build vocabulary You can increase your child's vocabulary and positive feelings by including an encouraging note with your elementary schooler’s lunch. From time to time, write a note to say you are proud of your student. Use simple words your child knows and also a few challenging words that your child might have to sound out or look up. Your student will enjoy getting it and may even write back to you! https://tpitip.com/?14kO19702

Choose discipline that promotes learning Did you know the word "discipline" comes from a Latin word that means "instruction or training"? Most experts agree that the goal of all discipline should be to teach children, not to punish them. The late Dr. Lee Salk, a noted pediatrician and family dynamics researcher, suggested that discipline should be an "element in showing love for a child." What are your family's discipline policies teaching your child? https://tpitip.com/?14kM19702

E-Tip from the Parent Institute: True or False? These strategies improve test success Many tests feature true or false questions. Share these tips for answering them with your child: For the answer to be true, ALL of the information in the statement must be true. Your child should also think carefully if the statement contains absolute terms such as "always" or "never." And if your student doesn't know the answer? A guess has a 50 percent chance of being right. https://tpitip.com/?14kH19702

The Homecoming Parade scheduled for today has been canceled due to inclement weather. Additionally, the previously announced Early Release from school has also been canceled. Schools will operate on their regular bell schedules.

**Schools will be dismissed early for the Parade on November 7.** Elementary School at 1:50 pm and Middle & High Schools at 2 pm. Parade will be held Thursday, November 7 at 4:30 pm in downtown Metter. If weather is an issue, we will post on all of our social media pages as soon as we hear if it's cancelled or not. PARADE ROUTE CHANGE: Because Leroy Street (the one by the train depot) will be under construction the day of the parade, the parade will instead turn at Lewis Street (Hwy 121), making the route just a little shorter this year. I apologize for the change, but this was a City of Metter decision based on the construction downtown. In addition, also due to the construction downtown, parking will be extremely limited compared to what it normally is. Please be prepared to park a bit further away than usual. You may also not be able to stand in certain areas near the center of town due to construction as well. See below for Parade Route for 2024. Green line is parade route, red line is parade line up.

E-Tip from The Parent Institute: Tell your child's teacher about concerns or life changes You and the teacher are a team, working for your child's benefit. Reach out to the teacher if you see a dramatic change in your child's behavior, if grades drop, or if you suspect your child may be telling you things about school that may not be true. The teacher also needs to know if there has been a major change in your family. A serious illness, death, marriage, divorce or new baby can all affect your child's performance in school. https://tpitip.com/?14kF19702

Happy HoCo Week! Each day, a Social Media Craze post will be posted on Facebook asking all Metter Tigers to do something fun and crazy, take a picture or video of it, and then post it as a comment on the Facebook post with the hashtag #MetterHOCO24 Classes will get extra points toward the coveted spirit stick and community members/businesses that participate will receive special prizes for those who do the best job and post their participation online as well! 🧡🖤 Today's Social Media Craze is "Take a Selfie with your Boss or Principal Day!" Upload your selfie and the hashtag on the Facebook post or email them to vfordham@metter.org!

MMS recently held its Realizing Educational Achievement Can Happen (REACH) Scholarship interviews for 13 eighth-graders. MMS awarded four winners and these student will sign their Scholarship acceptance contracts at the Board of Education meeting on November 21. Scholars who successfully complete the program and graduate from high school are awarded a $10,000 scholarship. The 2024-2025 winners are: Emanuel Bautista (white shirt), A'Bria Fields (Good Vibes shirt), Jo'el McCullough (Tiger Football shirt), and Ayamyrah Santiago (pink shirt). Congratulations, REACH Scholars!

It's Homecoming Week! You can find all info about HOCO here: https://www.metter.org/o/mhs/page/homecoming2024 Thursday, Nov 7 is the Homecoming Parade at 4:30 pm Sign up: https://docs.google.com/.../1FAIpQLSfv8u7xqPYJ4I.../viewform **Schools will release EARLY on Thursday to allow everyone to get in place for the Parade** Friday, Nov 8 is the game against ECI at 7:30 pm Be there and cheer loud!!

Pumpkin math is a seasonal treat-- Today is a great day to do some pumpkin math with your child! Get a pumpkin, and have your child: Estimate how much the pumpkin weighs. Weigh the pumpkin, and then add or subtract to see how much heavier or lighter it is than the estimate. Estimate, and then measure, how many inches the pumpkin is around at its widest point (its circumference). Then, cut the pumpkin open and have your child count its seeds by fives, 10s and 20s. https://tpitip.com/?14je19702

Earlier this week, CCSD was privileged to host many of the National Rural Education Association conference attendees for a day to show how "Education is Better in Metter." The NREA conference was being held in Savannah, but one of their networking outreach opportunities was to come to Candler County Schools! We hosted them for the entire day, complete with an agenda including: •Tours of the facilities, including the construction of MCCA • High School Student Panel, a chance for them to tell their story of career paths • Dual Enrollment opportunities • Discussion on Business, Industry and Community Partnerships • Korea trip attendees discuss their abroad opportunity • Top Tiger & Hard Hat Awards at MES • Amazing Shake & Winning 50 at MMS • Transition Program from Middle to High School • FLEX entrepreneur program at the High Schools • Regular Education Initiative collaborations with other GaDOE Divisions There were over 30 educators from all over the country on our campus for this special trip. We are thankful they chose to visit Candler County Schools and see what great things we are doing!

Encourage reading, one chapter at a time-- Foster excitement about the idea of reading by introducing your child to the pleasures of chapter books. Find a book you think your student will enjoy. It could be a classic or a new book recommended by a teacher or the librarian. Have your child read (or you read aloud) just one chapter a night. Then, talk about the story. Ask your child to predict what will happen next. If your child enjoys the book, see if it has a sequel and read that one, too! https://tpitip.com/?14jd19702

Create a routine to take the hassle out of study time-- Schoolwork isn't on most kids' lists of favorite things to do at home. But it doesn't have to be a hassle. To make study time go more easily at your house, set a regular weekday time for it. If your child is irritable or tired, offer a healthy snack beforehand. Hunger can be a big distraction. It may also help to give your child 30 minutes to run around outside and blow off steam before settling down. https://tpitip.com/?14jb19702

FBLA and Shepeard Blood Center will be hosting a blood drive on Friday, November 1  on the Bloodmobile buses from 8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m..   Donors should be sure to eat a nutritious breakfast and drink lots of water on the day of the blood drive.  Additionally, donors should begin now eating iron rich foods in their meals to help avoid low iron which eliminates a person from donating. Students must be at least 16 years of age, meet height and weight requirements, AND have parent permission to donate blood.  Morning donors will receive a free breakfast item.  And all blood donors will receive snacks and a free piece of Shepeard Blood Center swag while supplies last. All students who donate blood will also receive a free 100 ticket to be used in a high school classroom at the teacher's discretion.  Students under the age of 16 are encouraged to recruit a donor on their behalf to also earn the free 100 ticket.   Additionally, students who donate OR recruit donors on their behalf three times during one school year will earn a Red Cord to wear at graduation.  This is our SECOND  blood drive of the year, so this is your SECOND chance to work toward earning that Red Cord for this school year!!!   Faculty and staff are also encouraged to join a great cause and donate!  Our goal is to have 75 people present to be blood donors on Friday, November 1. Blood donor forms are available from Mrs. Donaldson in Room 206 or Mrs. Deal in Room 207.   Remember each blood donation saves up to three lives!

The Metter High School Performing Arts will represent A One Act Play entitled Alice at the Wilcox Auditorium for 3 performances: Monday, October 28 at 6 pm Monday, November 11 at 6 pm Thursday, November 14 at 6 pm $10.00 Adult Admission $5.00 Student Admission Tickets available at the door, or advanced tickets are available at GoFan (https://gofan.co/event/1581394?schoolId=GA23136) or at https://mhsarts.booktix.com Alice follows the white rabbit down the rabbit hole into Wonderland, where she meets a cornucopia of strange creatures. A caterpillar gives advice, the Mad Hatter and March Hare are always at tea time, and the Queen of Hearts continually cries, "Off with her head!" The Cheshire Cat says everyone in Wonderland is mad, and therefore Alice must be too. Has Alice lost her head? Only the Cheshire Cat knows for sure...

Help Your Child Learn to Concentrate While Studying Your child is actually sitting down ready to learn. But every sound is a new distraction. Try three tips that can help children learn to concentrate. Help your child: Prepare to learn. When adults start the working day, most have little rituals that say, “It’s time to get to work.” Help your child establish these rituals, too. Your student might turn on a study light, lay out pencils or put books on the table. One child even put on a hat—he called it his “thinking cap.” Wearing it reinforced that it was time to study. Set goals. Help your child set some study goals for each session. You might put a dry-erase board on the wall of the study area where your student can post them. Take short breaks. Brain researchers know that children learn more in two 20-minute study sessions than they do in one 40-minute session. For some children, even 20 minutes may be too long at first. Set a timer for 10 minutes and help your child set a goal for what to accomplish in that time. At the end of the ten minutes, check to see whether your student has met the goal. Together, set another goal and set the timer for another 10 minutes. Even this short break will help your child stay focused while learning.

Boys middle school basketball tryouts will be held on Monday Oct 28 and Tuesday October 29 at the MMS Gym from 3:15-5:00 pm. Players to be picked up from MMS Gym at 5:15 pm. Players must have a physical on file. Wear your basketball shoes and shorts and bring your water bottle.

Dr. Fred “Bubba” Longgrear has just been named the recipient of the Bill Barr Leadership Award by the Georgia School Superintendents Association (GSSA). The announcement was made at the GSSA’s annual Bootstrap Conference. The Bill Barr Leadership Award is named after Dr. Bill Barr, who served as GSSA’s executive director from 1991 to 1999. It is considered a coveted award in public education in Georgia and is given to a superintendent who represents the service-minded and mentorship characteristics that embody Dr. Barr. “This award is humbling and truly an honor,” says Dr. Longgrear. “I have had so many others mentor me throughout my career. This is a recognition for the great work going on throughout our school district.” “Dr. Longgrear’s leadership within Candler County Schools has been transformative,” says Mr. Richard Smith, Executive Director of First District RESA. “One of his standout achievements is founding the Metter College & Career Academy, which bridges the gap between education and the workforce. This academy offers students hands-on experience, helping them succeed after high school and setting the student up for future success.” Dr. Longgrear believes in giving every student a chance to thrive; a competitive advantage. His leadership is also clear in the district’s strategic plan, which focuses on providing high-quality, well-rounded education to all students. This plan is a living guide that drives decisions throughout the district, ensuring that every step taken is aimed at student success. Dr. Longgrear is a leader who truly cares about education and the people around him. His commitment to excellence, mentorship, and community involvement has transformed Candler County Schools and has impacted education across Georgia. His leadership is an outstanding example of what it means to guide with both heart and strategy. As the Bill Barr Leadership Award winner, Dr. Longgrear accepted a plaque at a luncheon during the Bootstrap Conference this past week in Athens. pictured: left to right: Dr. Rob Brown the 2023 Bill Barr Award recipient; Dr. Bubba Longgrear; and GSSA Executive Director Dr. John Zauner.