North News

Greetings, North Families!

The end of Trimester 1 is Wednesday, November 25^th. Monday, November 23^rd students will attend Advisory and Periods 1 – 3. On November 24^th students will attend Advisory and Periods 4 – 6. November 25^th students will attend Advisory only and teachers will be available for student support throughout the remainder of the morning (similar to a typical Friday). There is no school on November 26^th or 27^th. Trimester 2 begins on Monday, November 30^th.

All things considered, we had a great first trimester! We maintained a safe and welcoming learning environment during Hybrid Learning and transitioned fairly smoothly to Distance Learning 2.0 in mid-October. A short spate of attendance concerns at the start of Distance Learning were quickly addressed by staff, students, and families and we observed huge gains in student attendance and engagement over the month of November. The most exciting news coming out of Trimester 1 is that our students are continuing to learn and grow whether they are attending in-person or learning from home.

As we enter Thanksgiving weekend the Staff at North Junior High would like to thank North Families for all you have done and continue to do in partnering with us to provide your children the best educational experience possible. We are thankful you are part of the North Community and wish you and your families the very best as we head into Thanksgiving weekend.
 

Respectfully,

Principal Brian Nutter 
Assistant Principal William Sininger

On November 18th, Governor Walz announced that all youth and adult sports will be placed on pause through Friday, December 18th.  This means the upcoming winter athletic season in our schools will not begin in-person until after the 18th.  Please know our coaches are prepared and ready to follow recommended health and safety protocols upon return to in-person activities.

Students interested in winter sports that are 7 - 12 programs may enroll and make payment online.  For middle school students, these sports include boys swimming, wrestling, girls hockey, nordic skiing, and dance.  Please click this link Online Registration Letter for specific information on using the online registration process.

Students interested in grades 6 - 8 girls or boys basketball WILL NOT use the online system to sign up.  Registration forms can be obtained in the main office or found on our school's website under "Activities."  A reminder that grades 6 - 8 girls and boys basketball will begin when it's safe to return to in-person learning.

If you have any questions, please email me at charles.eisenreich@isd742.org or call my office at 320-370-8209.

Charlie Eisenreich, Director of Middle School Activities

*A Sports Physical is required for all students in grades 7 – 8 participating in athletics.  The physical will become part of the student’s records and is good for three years.

Winter Volleyball Camp

ATTENTION ALL CAMPERS -

The Winter Camp will take place December 4-5 for students grades 7-12. Cost for the two-day camp is $120, which gives junior and high school aged campers the opportunity to develop individual and position specific skills with the St. Cloud State volleyball coaching staff and student-athletes. There will also be position specific skills and training along with 6 on 6 play.

Due to COVID-19, participants at both the skills clinic and Winter Camp will be required to wear masks for the entirety of the event and must fill out a brief health assessment before arrival. Additionally, space is limited, and participants must pre-register by emailing the registration form to associate head coach Marci Taumalolo at mataumalolo@stcloudstate.edu.   Space in each clinic will be limited due to COVID-19. Payment for the camp must be made the day of.  More information and the registration form can be found on the Winter Camp flyer (see below). Thanks and hope to see you on the court soon!

1. Go to www.schoology.com. 
2. Click Sign Up at the top of the page and choose Parent.
3. Enter your Parent Access Code. This is a 12-digit code in xxxx-xxxx-xxxx format that you receive from one of your child's instructors. 
4. Fill out the form with your information.
5. Click Register to complete.

When you use a Parent Access Code to create an account, you are automatically associated with your child. You can add additional children to your account using the Add Child option. 

Notes on Attendance

As we enter distance learning students must check into every class’ google meet on time. Students must remain in class as instructed and if given time to work independently return to class when the teacher has indicated. If a student will not be attending their online classes a call must be made to the North Office at 320-370-7000 to report the student absence.

Feeding Area Children Together (FACT), a non-profit founded by four ISD 742 parents, will be offering our FACT Packs program again this year. FACT Packs are provided free of charge to K-8 students who are in need of food on weekends and over school breaks.  All menus are peanut-safe and do not contain pork products. This is NOT a government program; all food and supplies are paid for by donations from individuals, foundations, and businesses. All information is confidential. 

Signing up for the FACT Pack program means your child will receive a child-friendly, non-perishable breakfast, lunch, and snack each day school is not in session during the 2020-2021 school year. Students can pick up their bags on Wednesdays and Thursdays at North Junior High School after they are signed up for the program. 

Here is the link to the main website for the FACT pack program: https://stcloudfact.org 

Technology help during Distance Learning

As we all know, technology does not always work how it is intended. Before reaching out for device support, be sure you have explored the following common suggestions:

· Restart your device (power it down and power it back up) This is the first thing that should be tried before seeking help from anyone else. Most issues are solved with turning it off and on again.

· Ensure you are connected to the internet

· Reached out to a friend for help

· Search the internet for common solutions?

· Check out Schoology’s Status Website (https://status.schoology.com/) up-to-date information.

Students and families can find resources for Distance Learning 2.0 on the district website (http://isd742.org/) under “742 Back to School” or by clicking here: Distance Learning 2.0 (https://www.isd742.org/Page/9602)

One of the best resources for commonly asked technology questions is the Student Remote Learning Cheat Sheet.

Students also have access to a form that will get the information to the best person to help in their situation: Distance Learning 2.0 Technology Support (https://forms.gle/LQBErxBbTcVkWkkK9).

There also are hotline numbers in English (320-370-8000) Soomaali (320-370-8118) and Espanol (320-370-8117)

Books -- online and in your hands

Students have a variety of options for reading books this year -- both online and print.  

Here’s a selection of options.  If you or your student have questions about accessing books, please contact Ms. Shaddrick (mary.shaddrick@isd742.org) in the media center.

Mackinvia -- www.mackinvia.com Students use their Google apps login information to access their personal “backpack.” Both ebooks and audiobooks are available with ebooks in several languages.

Open ebooks -- catalog.openebooks.us  Students can get their Access code and PIN from their language arts teacher or Ms. Shaddrick. There also is an app on the Chromebooks. 

Ebooks Minnesota -- ebooksmn.org   No login or password needed. Great site with free ebooks for anyone in Minnesota.  The juvenile fiction section has tons of titles. 

North’s Destiny catalog -- Students use their lunch number and Google apps password to log into Destiny and place print books on hold.  Books will be delivered to Advisory teachers. Until it’s safe to allow students to browse the physical shelves, this is a great way to get 1-5 print books in your hands or to get on the waitlist for the most popular titles.  

Great River Regional Library -- We are lucky to have such a large, vibrant regional library system in the area.  The branches are open for quick “grab and go” book checkout and with a public library card everyone has access to tons of online resources including the new hoopla service with movies, books, audiobooks, music and more for free.  

If you have trouble with any of the above options, please contact Ms. Shaddrick in the media center. Happy reading.