We’re so excited about welcoming our families into our community once again. We imagine there are plenty of questions on your mind, especially if you’re new to our school. With this in mind, here's some information that may be useful to you as you plan for the new school year:
You should have received or will soon receive a paper copy of our school calendar in the welcome packet that was mailed to you. Please note that date and program changes may change after that initial printing so the most updated calendars can also always be found at www.easternmennoniteschool.org or on our blog under the “EMS Calendar” tab. Please make note of our days off as well as our early dismissals.
During the first week of school (August 23-26), school will begin at 8:00 a.m. every day. We have a 2:15 p.m. dismissal on Friday, August 26 following our First Friday festivities. First Friday is a time for middle schoolers to become more acquainted with each other, with the teachers, and with the school in a variety of activities at the EMS campus and at Westover Park (note that high school students will be going to Highland Retreat for their own activities). Transportation and lunch are available for both, unless your student prefers to pack his/her lunch.
For the rest of the school year, school begins at 8:00 a.m. every day except Tuesdays.
On Tuesdays, school begins at 8:30 a.m. This allows time for our faculty to meet and for our orchestra to have an additional class meeting time. Orchestra is generally for high school students, or middle schoolers who have taken private lessons and received approval from our music teachers to join the course. Additional information about this opportunity will be made known to students once the school year begins.
Tuesdays are also our Neighbor Group meeting days. Neighbor Groups replace our chapel period on Tuesdays and enable students to meet in small groups (typically 8-10) led by a faculty or staff member. Neighbor Groups provide the opportunity to learn more about each other and to grow closer to God. Snack is an integral part of Neighbor Group fun and group members are asked to bring snacks on a rotating basis. Neighbor Groups start a few weeks into the semester and you should expect a snack schedule and more details coming from your student’s group faculty advisor.
School ends at 3:00 p.m. every day.
EMS prefers students to leave campus by 3:15 p.m. each day unless they are participating in a school-supervised co-curricular activity. If this is not possible, options for supervised study exist for students from 3:15 – 4:30. The school cannot provide supervision beyond 4:30. EMS requests you to make special arrangements with Mr. Phil Landes, Secondary Principal, whenever your student requires an exception to the school’s hours of supervision.
*Note: Some students may also be under direct teacher supervision in Math Lab, announced clubs, and sports
Clubs generally meet with a teacher/sponsor on Tuesdays after school. Students will receive more information on club offerings a few weeks into the school year.
Sports- Students interested in playing sports should have a current physical on file with Athletic Director, Mr. Dave Bechler, before they can participate (note that generally in middle school all students will make the team). Parents can bring these forms to the main office during the remainder of the summer or students can bring these on the first day of practice. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Bechler at bechlerd@emhs.net. Your child's physician can complete this form at the conclusion of his or her yearly physical. Linked here is the sports physical form.
As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask! We look forward to seeing our new families at at new student orientation on Monday, August 15 at 7:00 p.m.
Rebecca Yutzy
No comments:
Post a Comment