Principal's Message 5/3/19

5/3/19

TGIF...Twin Groves it’s Friday!

In an effort to spread positivity, Twin Groves uses our 5 Traits to recognize exemplars of the following qualities: Responsible, Accountable, Respectful, Safe, and a Community. In addition to the 5 Traits, we are also recognizing students for being an Upstander.

As part of this focus, the Twin Groves Staff would like to recognize and reward students who consistently demonstrate these qualities each month. For this month’s recognitions, we are pleased to announce that the following students have been selected for displaying these characteristics.

Drew Benjamin

Andrew DeZutter

Ishita Gorjala

Cindy Mechova

Gauri Nair

 

 


Art Fair

Please check out some of the amazing art from the SHS Consortium Art Show that was held on April 30th.

SHS Consortium Art

 

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lo ve 03

lo ve 04

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SHS Consortium Art 02

 

 

Congratulations- History Fair!

Twin Groves students earned a Superior rating in State-level competition for their History Fair entry. Their topic was the journey to the abolishment of the death penalty in the State of Illinois and the website they created reflects their learning. Take a look!

 

 

Congratulations- Math Students!

Twin Groves Math Club members are making school history!

Twin Groves Excels in State Math Competition

 

Congratulations- Cast of High School Musical!

MUSICAL PHOTO GALLERY LINK
 

Counseling Corner

Mrs. DiMare and Ms. McDevitt, School Social Workers

Mrs. Koulentes, School Counselor

Mrs. Leverentz, School Psychologist

Friendships in Middle School

Friendships will go through a lot of changes in middle school and that is okay.    Encourage your child to be open to these changes. A change in friend groups may be hard at first, but it allows them to make new friends and have new experiences.  In middle school there are students from other schools, new students moving in throughout the year, and a lot of new clubs to join. Encourage your child to take advantage of these opportunities and foster some new friendships!

Don’t let your child confuse popularity with friendship.  Having one or two true, loyal friends is better than having ten friends that they do not trust or who are not respectful towards them.  Explain to your child what it means to have healthy friendships and try to help them foster those friends. Who is friends with whom and how many likes one has on Instagram can become a way that our students are comparing and placing value on themselves.  Stressing the value of real, healthy friendships and the benefits that one receives from those relationships can help our students see what they should focus more attention on.

Teach your children about the different types of friends:  acquaintances, casual friends, and close friends. This will help your child keep boundaries between his/her friend groups and know who he/she can trust.  

Teach your child the signs of a healthy friendship. A healthy friend:

  • Spends time with you

  • Likes you for you

  • Shows interest when you talk or share experiences

  • Does not demand all of your time and attention

  • Is trustworthy and dependable

If your child ever tells you that they are being excluded from their social group, try to delve deeper to find out the “why” behind this.  Could your child need support with social skills, manners, or hygiene? These are factors that do come up in middle school as some students mature emotionally and physically at a faster rate than other students do.  This does have an impact on their friendships. Talking to your child, the teacher, or a member of the student service team may help you understand if there is exclusion happening and why it could be happening.

Self-Worth: Keeping Perspective

Middle School is challenging for our students for a variety of reasons but one of the biggest challenges we see in the counseling offices is students struggling with self esteem and self worth. One of the culprits is students comparing themselves with peers and others regarding: appearance, intelligence, test scores, social status etc.  

As parents and adults helping student with strategies to reframe and keep perspective during these times is important and useful.

Students are bombarded by body images on television, the computer, and their phones.  It is essential to stress to your students that living a healthy lifestyle by eating nutritious foods, exercising, getting enough sleep is what is important when thinking about their bodies.  The fact that the images that they may be aspiring to look like have been doctored by computers and filters should also be emphasized. We want students to know that what they are wanting to look like is not feasible or realistic.

Comparing test scores and grades is very commonplace at the middle school.  Students may feel like they did not do as well as they wanted to, as well as another classmate did, they did not reach a goal, etc. Because of this, we often have students in tears in our offices.  Obviously, as a school, we believe education is important and we want students to do well on assessments. However, we believe scores and grades need to be kept in perspective. Students should work hard and do their best.  If, on a certain day, they do not do as well as they wanted, it is not the end of the world. It is one test score. The best thing the student can do at that point is take a deep breath in and out a few times and move on.  Students need to know they are more than a test score. They should focus on the bigger picture of learning and not just one test score. As the adults in their lives we need to emphasize that the learning is what is important.

Middle school is stressful for students as well as parents due to the constant pressures our students are feeling.  Communication is one of the keys to helping our students stay healthy and feel valued and loved.

 

Cell Phone Reminder

Students are not allowed to use their cell phone during the school day. 
 

 

 

We are Twin Groves...A Celebration of Culture

Please join the Twin Groves Community on Tuesday, May 7, 2019, for a Celebration of Culture!

Given the rich diversity of cultures in our shared community, we are looking forward to engaging students and families in a night where we celebrate our own culture, learn/celebrate the cultures of others, and build on a shared community culture.

When: 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM

Address: Twin Groves Middle School

2600 N. Buffalo Grove Road

Buffalo Grove, IL 60089

Event Location: The Large Gym

Doors open at 7PM

Performances will begin at 7:15PM

Culture Fair with a variety of booths will continue after the performances until 8:30PM

This event is open to all Twin Groves families.

Please respond HERE.

 

 

 

Leadership Training Opportunity for Current 8th Graders

Eighth-grade students have an opportunity to participate in "Future Leaders of Stevenson" leadership training at Stevenson High School on May 13, 6– 9 p.m. Students are requested to complete THIS SURVEY and submit it by April 30. Participation is limited to 75 students, so those interested should submit their survey responses promptly. The admission fee is $15. Dinner will be served.



 

6th Grade Dental Information

Attention parents of 6th Graders. Proof of dental exams for all 6th graders are due by May 15th. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Borzych at 847-821-8946.

 


 

Daily Announcements

The Daily Announcements will be posted each morning. Please see Twin Groves website for up to date school announcements.  The announcements let you know what exciting activities and clubs are going on at Twin Groves. Please click HERE to access the Daily Announcements.




 

PTO

Staff Appreciation: STAFF APPRECIATION WEEK BEGINS ON MONDAY, MAY 6TH AND WE NEED YOUR HELP!!

Let's celebrate our Twin Groves staff and show them how much we appreciate them!

We are in need of donations to help make our Staff Appreciation week a success!

We are also in need of a few volunteers Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday during the lunch periods.  

Anything you can do to help is greatly appreciated!

Please head on over to twingrovesmspto.membershiptoolkit.com to sign up for one (or more) donations to ensure a successful week of celebrating our wonderful Twin Groves staff!

You can also purchase school supply kits for 2019-2020 and sign up to help run a PTO committee next year. See Membership Toolkit for more information.

 

Upcoming Events

-May 15th Dessert Day

-May 21st 8th Grade Pizza Lunch

-May 22nd Special Lunch

-Mary 29th 6th and 7th Grade Pizza Lunch

Please click HERE to access the Membership Toolkit. All items for sale from the PTO will be available on this website.




 

Band & Orchestra Boosters

Please click the BLOG to access the latest news from the Band & Orchestra Boosters.