V O L U M E 1, I S S U E 4 D E C E M B E R

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1 Mowat Middle School Ed Sheffield Principal Cynthia Walker Assistant Principal Angela Reese Administrative Assistant Elizabeth Swedlund Administrative Assistant Mowat Guidance Crystal Wicker A-K Nancy Smith L-Z Dates to Remember Early Release- December 20th Winter Break- December 22nd January 3rd V O L U M E 1, I S S U E 4 Office Fax D E C E M B E R Principal s Corner by Ed Sheffield The weather is turning colder and students are wearing more hoodies. Please help us with the dress code by checking your child s attire each morning. Hoodies are very popular and we are seeing them every day. Your child may wear a hoodie only if it is a Mowat hoodie or a hoodie that is a solid school color (navy blue, yellow, or white). All other hoodies are a dress code violation. Thank you for your help in this matter. With the holidays approaching, many of you are planning out-of-town trips to visit family and friends. Students are granted five days of family leave; HOWEVER, the leave must be approved prior to the absence. If you know that your child will be out for family leave, send him or her to the front office at least five days prior for the necessary paperwork. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Go Mustangs! Ed Sheffield

2 P A G E 2 Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education. Martin Luther King Jr. Go Mustangs! Please be kind...some noses are sensitive to certain perfumes, cologne, and/or body sprays. Remember to keep to a minimum. School Lunch Breakfast: $1.50 Lunch:$2.50 For free and reduced meals contact the school for an application. For paying online go to You will need your student s 10- digit school identification number. 7th graders.make certain your shot records are up to date! Sign up online ParentPortal.aspx T-Shirt Days December 6th December 13th Yearbooks are on sale for $40 through the month of December. Go to to place your order. The price will go up at the beginning of the new year so order early! SGA Our members proudly carried the flags for our wonderful veteran's Day Program. We want to thank Mrs. McQueen for all her hard work! SGA is now planning to do something special for our staff for the holidays. Our next meeting will be on December 6, 2013, at 8:15 in Mrs. Hinson's portable. M O W A T M I D D L E S C H O O L

3 V O L U M E 1, I S S U E 4 P A G E 3 Mustangs RACE! PBS, Positive Behavior Supports, is in it s third year at Mowat. Each month, Mustangs learn a new character trait that exemplifies the acronym RACE (Respect, Act responsibly, Care for others, Engaged). As Mustangs prepare for high school and beyond, they are becoming responsible and building character. Students are able to earn RACE tickets randomly when caught following school rules or being a good citizen. Caught Reading tickets are earned by students caught reading during less structured time such as lunch or before school. Weekly drawings are held for prizes such as $10 Itunes cards, restaurant gift cards, candy,trinkets, etc. A selection of novels is available to those names drawn for Caught Reading. If you would like to donate prizes or funds to assist with this ongoing program, please contact Angela Reese, Administrative Assistant, Class Rotation Rotation 1: 1,2,3,4,5,6 Rotation 2: 3,4,5,6,1,2 Rotation 3: 5,6,1,2,3,4 Dress Code Mustang s RACE There have been comments in the News Herald that the dress code is confusing, so I wanted to clarify things for Mowat families. The only change in our dress code is that students no longer are required to tuck in their shirts. They still have to wear belts. They still must wear a collared shirt in Mowat colors: navy blue, yellow or white, or Mowat spirit t-shirts. The district dress code policy allows for black pants at the discretion of the principal; however, Mowat will NOT BE ALLOWING BLACK PANTS. Like always, bottoms must be khaki, denim (indigo blue) or navy blue. If students wear hoodies (tops with hoods that must be pulled over their heads), they MUST be either a Mowat hoodie or plain navy blue, yellow or white. Students will be required to remove any non-dress code hoodie. If your student gets cold in the classroom now, or as you are purchasing clothing for the fall, be sure they have a jacket that fastens in the front with a zipper or buttons (must unzip all the way, not partial zipper). If your student has holes in his or her pants, even the decorative variety, they will be required to change into another pair of pants--which parents will be called to bring--regardless of where the holes are located. Respect Act Responsibly Care for Others Engaged What do you do when the grass gets high? GO MOWAT!!!! Chick-fil-a sandwiches are now on sale in the cafeteria for $3.75 as an a la carte item.

4 P A G E 4 PTO-Our hoodie and jacket sale was a success! We have a second order running now due to high demand for our magnificent Mustang outerwear. Place your order with Ms. Kendrick in the front office. We held our first Yankee Candle fundraiser and our second PaPa John's fundraiser in November. We do not know how much Mowat will receive from either at this time, but we feel we did well. December 19, 2013 is our Talent Show. Students may wear their favorite T-Shirt and see the Talent Show for $2. Join us and see all of the awesome performances that afternoon. The show begins at approximately 1:45 that day. PTO has done quite a bit for Mowat this year. We are supplying coffee for our teachers each morning. We purchased 3 sets of Sunshine State Books for a classroom, a popcorn machine to be used for fundraisers, paid for the royalties fee for our Drama Club's first performance on December 12, 2013 at 6PM, provided a Thanksgiving luncheon for our seventh grade ASPIRE classes and guests, and provided breakfast and lunch for the language arts teachers while they scored Bay Writes papers, all 1,020 of them. PTO meets with SAC on the third Thursday of the month at 3:45 PM. Please encourage your students to keep up with their reading assignments for Language Arts and/or Reading. The first reading reward day is December 18 and teachers will be taking students to the Grand Theater at Pier Park (with parental permission, of course!). The movie theater has graciously consented to show three different movies for Mowat students. The 6th graders will see Frozen, and the 7th and 8th graders will have a choice between the new Hunger Games movie and the new Hobbit movie (again, only with parental permission). The price has yet to be determined but there will some scholarships available to defray costs if necessary! So, keep your child reading!! PAJAMA DRIVE FOR BABIES AND CHILDREN For most children, bedtime is a time of comfort, love and security...a time when children share special moments with their moms and dads, a few minutes of bonding and sharing in a safe, secure environment. But for many children in need, a good night is a luxury they do not often experience. Winter is considered the "danger time" for displaced and needy families. In connection with Scholastic Books and The Great Bedtime Pajama drive, Mowat is collecting new pajamas for babies and children who are living in local group homes and shelters. This is what is needed: * Brand-new pajamas in all sizes, from newborn to adult. (Items must be packaged as pajamas because they are designed to be flame retardant.) * Pajamas must be complete sets a top and bottom or an appropriate nightgown. * Pajamas for all seasons, but especially for the winter months. * THE DEADLINE TO DONATE ISDECEMBER 14, BRING PAJAMAS TO ROOM 801 OR 802. Library Hours The media center is open before school on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. It is open after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students who stay after school to work in the media center must have a ride and be picked up by 4:30.

5 V O L U M E 1, I S S U E 3 Mustang Sports Schedule P A G E 5 Girls Basketball Boys Soccer Tues. Dec. 3 Mowat v. Bay Haven Tues. Dec. 3 Mowat v. Bay Haven Thurs. Dec. 5 Jinks v. Mowat Thurs. Dec. 5 Jinks v. Mowat Tues. Dec. 10 Mowat v. Everitt Tues. Dec. 10 Mowat v. Everitt Thurs. Dec. 12 Post Season Rnd higher seed school Thurs. Dec. 12 Post Season Rnd higher seed school Dec. 13&17 Rnd Bay Haven Sat. Dec. 14 Rnd Breakfast Pt. Mowat Salutes Our Veterans Non-perishable food drive & personal hygiene items December 9th thru 17th Items Needed: canned food bath soap boxed dry foods shampoo pasta deodorant rice toothpaste beans, dry or cans toothbrush fruit cups diapers baby foods baby wipes juice boxes dish detergent protein/breakfast bars laundry detergent fruit cups lotion microwave meals antibacterial wipes cereals shaving cream crackers/cookies paper products The grade with the most items donated will win a 6th period Gym Party! All items will be donated to holiday baskets for needy veterans in our community. Sponsored By Jr. Beta Club

6 Balloons or Flowers Delivered to School: P A G E 6 We know that, as parents, we like to let our children know that they are very special. We encourage you to continue to recognize your children on special occasions, but we ask that you consider whether school is the appropriate place to do so. Students are NOT allowed to receive flowers and balloons during school hours due to disruptions they may cause in classrooms, around school, and on the buses. THESE ITEMS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AT SCHOOL! Attendance Line before and after school: If your student is absent for ANY reason, you must contact the school. Menus, nutrition information, and prices can be Tryouts for Girls Soccer will be held the week of January 6th. All girls interested in trying out for the team must have a physical and player participation form. Forms can be picked up in the office or in Coach Hicks's room (908). 6th grade tryouts will be January 6th. 7th and 8th grade will be January 7th. Final cuts will be January 8th. Tryouts will be conducted from 3:30-5:00. All participants must arrange to be picked up at 5:00. BYOD Bay District Schools is committed to aiding students and staff in creating a 21st century learning environment. Students and staff will now be able to access our wireless network with their personal mobile devices ( laptops, netbooks, tablets, smartphones, etc) during the school day. With classroom teacher approval, students may use their own devices to access the internet and collaborate with other students. Students may NOT have their devices out between classes, before school, or in the classroom without teacher permission. All devices are the responsibility of the student; the school will not be held responsible for lost or damaged devices.

7 Parent Pick-up/ Parking V O L U M E 1, I S S U E 4 P A G E 7 Please be mindful of those picking up/dropping off students in front of the gym. If you are parked in the traffic pattern, you are impeding progress of those whose students are already in the pickup zone. Parent parking is available in our sand lot in front of the gym. Please utilize this area if you know your child may be running a little late in the afternoon. Please avoid pick up and drop off in our bus loading zone. **Note: Teacher parking is the lot directly in front of the gym. ESE NEWSLETTER This newsletter is provided by Bay District Schools for parents of ESE students. Please visit the link to access the newsletter. If you would like a paper copy, please stop by the guidance office. It s hard to imagine that Christmas is right around the corner! The Mowat Athletic Program will be sponsoring this year s Christmas Dance. The theme for this year s dance is A Winter Masquerade Ball. It will be held on December 6 th, 2013 from 6 9pm. Tickets will go on sale upon the students return from Thanksgiving break. There will be two different prices for the tickets; a five dollar ticket which simply allows entry into the dance and a ten dollar ticket which comes with a dance theme 4x6 picture frame in addition to entry. The frame will be on display at the ticket table in the cafeteria. Tickets will also be sold at the door the night of the dance, however; the cost increases to eight dollars. Due to safety and security reasons, the student s will not be allowed to wear a mask or dress in costume. Please adhere to the following guidelines when shopping for attire: Girls: No strapless dresses. Spaghetti straps are fine. (If you are not wearing straps you must have a jacket or sweater to cover shoulders). Dresses may not have any type of cut out that exposes the mid-drift area. Dresses must be AT LEAST finger tip length. Boys: Nice jeans or slacks. Shirts must have a collar. No flip-flops or crocs. Belts are required.