2/21/20
TGIF… Twin Groves it’s Friday!
Counseling Corner
Ms. Baker and Ms. McDevitt, School Social Workers
Ms. Koulentes, School Counselor
Ms. Leverentz, School Psychologist
Depression is a disorder that can occur at any time during a person’s life. Trauma, significant life changes and stress can trigger the onset of depression. About 20 percent of teens will experience depression before they reach adulthood. It is marked by persistent sadness, discouragement, loss of self-worth, and loss of interest in usual activities.
Depression is different for every person, but a child suffering from depression may show multiple signs of the following:
-Loss of interest in activities they normally like to do
-Feeling angry
-Feelings of sadness or irritability
-Crying a lot
-Feeling guilty or hopeless
-A change in eating habits
-Feeling tense or worrying a lot
-Missing school
-Spending a lot of time alone
-Feeling tired
-Sleeping too much or too little
-Having trouble paying attention
-Having low energy or restless feelings
-Thinking of death or suicide
A small percent of teens also suffer from seasonal depression or seasonal affective disorder. This disorder is a form of depression that appears at the same time each year. Typically a person experiences SAD in the winter months, but some people are affected during the summer. Children with a family history of depression and females, in general, are more likely to develop this disorder.
Doctors and mental health professionals can make a diagnosis of depression or SAD after careful evaluation. A medical checkup is necessary to make sure that the symptoms are not due to another medical condition that needs treatment. Exercising, light therapy, counseling, and prescribed medications may be used to help treat the symptoms of depression.
Information Parents Should Know- Concerning Trends
Please CLICK HERE to read about a concerning trend that is popular with Middle School Students.
6th Grade Dental-Proof of Dental Exams
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.
Twin Groves Gives Back
We are gearing up to do our 3rd annual student raffle. If you have anything you would like to donate please give donations to Mrs. Howard by March 6th.
Examples of past donations have been.
$5 gift cards
Gently used/new games or activities that would interest middle schoolers
Twin Groves Spirit wear
All proceeds from the raffle go to St. Jude.
Parent Communication about Spring Conferences
Spring Conferences are coming on Thursday, March 12th from 5:00pm-8:30pm and Friday, March 13th from 10:00am-1:30pm .
HERE is the link to sign up.
Spring Conferences are Collaborative Conferences!
Collaborative conferences means that your child will be leading the conference. The purpose of collaborative conferences is for educators, students and families to discuss, reflect and celebrate student work, and for families to experience school through their child's eyes. Students have been working hard to prepare for the conference, and we are excited for you to learn about your child’s progress directly from your child!
Teachers will be available in the room as guides and will be available to answer student questions or elaborate on a point a student is making, but we ask that all participants respect that this is the student’s opportunity to lead the conference by sharing progress and reflections about their own learning.
Families will sign-up for a 15 minute conference. Grades 6-8 collaborative conferences will be structured with up to 4 students in the classroom at a time. Student/Family partnerships will sit in a private space to engage in the conference. The grade-level team of teachers will be in the classroom to greet families and guide the process, but students will lead the conference. Exploratory teachers, PE, Health, Spanish and Band and Orchestra teachers will host an exposition of their courses in the cafeteria. Students should plan to bring their iPad to the conference.
What is the Role of Families during Collaborative Conferences?
-Provide reinforcement, encouragement and praise
-Listen and ask questions
-Help students look realistically at quality of work
-Facilitate student’s self-reflection and goal setting
-Be a partner in learning
-See school through their student’s eyes
Questions Families Can Ask During the Collaborative Conference
-What is your favorite piece of work? Why?
-Describe your favorite activities or subjects.
-What experiences at school do you find the most exciting?
-Are there experiences that frustrate you, if so why?
-What goals have you set for yourself for this spring?
-How can I help you at home?
Culture Conversations with Students
The Guiding Coalition for Interculturalism (GCI) is looking to include student voices in the weekly staff blog! Click here to access a short survey that your child can complete if they are interested, and their answers may appear in the staff newsletter!
Daily Announcements
The Daily Announcements will be posted each weekday 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 read and access the Daily Announcements.
PTO
OPEN BOARD POSITIONS ON THE TWIN GROVES PTO
Attention all parents! The Twin Groves PTO is looking for parents to volunteer their time on the PTO Executive Board.
For a list of open positions, please go to twingrovesmspto.membershiptoolkit.com .
If you have any specific questions about any of the positions, please email Jessica Barnes at [email protected].
We can’t wait to work with you!
ATTENTION 8TH GRADERS
Get your complimentary STEVENSON CLASS OF 2024 cotton t-shirt, courtesy of the Twin Groves PTO!
Login to twingrovesmspto.membershiptoolkit.com and choose your size!
Families can also purchase additional STEVENSON CLASS OF 2024
apparel online through the PTO MEMBERSHIP TOOLKIT website at twingrovesmspto.membershiptoolkit.com by Friday, March 6th, 2020 (no late orders accepted).
Items should arrive within 2 weeks after the order deadline (before spring break!).
Upcoming Events:
2/26- Special Lunch
3/11- Dessert Day
3/18- Special Lunch
4/22- Dessert Day
4/29- Special Lunch
5/6- Dessert Day
5/13- Special Lunch
Please click HERE to access Membership Toolkit. All items for sale from the PTO will be available on this website.