PIRATES’ SPYGLASS

Website: www.phillipsprep.com

Twitter: @phillipsprep42 Facebook: Phillips Preparatory School

Facebook (PTSA administered): PPS PTSA Instagram (student administered site): pps_students

November 2016

IMPORTANT DATES November 1-9 Cookies and Coffee PTSA Fundraiser (see newsletter announcement); Orders due by Nov. 9 November 2 Shoebox Outreach Gift Submission Deadline (see newsletter announcement) November 4 Box Tops Game Day Party @ 1:45 PM November 7-16 Food Drive for Feeding the Gulf Coast (our area food bank - see newsletter announcement) November 8 Progress Reports to be sent home (see I-Now for daily & weekly updates) November 11 Veterans Day HOLIDAY November 15 Duty-free lunch for Faculty, Staff, & Administration (information & details to be sent later, via

School Messenger) November 17 International Festival Field Trip for 8th Grade November 18 Food Drive “out of uniform” shirt day for donators (favorite college team - see announcement)

November 19-27 Thanksgiving HOLIDAYS December 1 Schoolwide PPS Spelling Bee December 6 PPS Chorus Concert at Davidson High School, 7 PM December 7 Babes in Toyland Field Trip for 6th Grade December 8 PPS Band Concert at Davidson High School, 6 PM

EVERY DAY 1st Bell of the Day rings at 7:23 AM 1st Class of the Day begins at 7:30 AM (tardy bell) Final Bell of the Day rings at 2:30 PM 2:35 PM. Carpool & walkers report to side or

front of school for pick-up.

NEWS from PTSA

PPS PTSA FALL FUNDRAISER Our fall fundraiser will run from October 24-November 9. We will be selling COOKIE DOUGH and COFFEE. Each student will receive a sales packet from his/her homeroom teacher. We will be selling 10 kinds of cookie dough and 4 blends of coffee – delicious treats for the fall and holiday seasons. Cookie Dough and Coffee will be delivered before Christmas break. Pick-up times

and dates will be sent out at a later time. Orders are due by Wednesday, November 9.

SPECIAL THANKS TO CHILL

Many thanks to CHILL for bringing their food truck to our PPS homecoming festivities. Everyone loved the frozen yogurt and the proceeds benefitted our athletic department.

JOIN THE PPS PTSA – ALL GRADES We need YOU! Membership in the PTSA is STILL OPEN! We are trying to reach 100% and are only 15% from our goal. You don’t even have to be a parent to join – parents, grandparents, teachers, and friends are all welcome. You can even sponsor the membership for another child in your

student’s homeroom whose family might not be able to join for some reason - $5.00 single membership or $15.00 for a family membership. PLEASE JOIN TODAY! Registration forms are available in the school office and on the PPS website: http://images.pcmac.org//SiSFiles//SCHOOLS/AL/MobileCounty/PhillipsPrepatory/Uploads/News/Documents/PPS_PTSA_Membership_Form_2016-17.pdf

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Tawonia Napier, PTSA VP for Membership ladyT5@bellsouth.net. And don’t forget to “LIKE” PTSA on Facebook - Phillips Preparatory School PTSA. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/PPSPTSA/?ref=page_internal

NEWS for PARENTS & STUDENTS from TEACHERS MCPSS SIGNATURE ACADEMIES OPEN HOUSE – 7th & 8th Grades

Ms. Stacey Eiland, 7th & 8th grade counselor, has visited 8th grade classes to briefly present information about the MCPSS Signature Academy Showcase to be held on November 1 at the USA Mitchell Center from 5:00-7:00 pm. Both 7th and 8th graders and their parents are invited to this Open House. All 8th grade students and their parents are strongly encouraged to attend this important event so that you can find out more about MCPSS's high school choice options and make the best decision for your

academic future. Eighth graders were given the attached flyer (2016-17 Academy Showcase information.pdf) as a reminder of this upcoming event. More detailed information about options and about arranging shadowing visits in area high schools will be discussed with them this month. A detailed letter about shadowing dates, guidelines, etc. will be distributed then. Eighth graders should not arrange any visits until that information has been presented to students. In addition, information about the International Baccalaureate programs at Murphy and Davidson High Schools and the application process for each IB program will also be presented at the MCPSS Open House.

NHD INFORMATION FOR SOCIAL STUDIES – All Grades This year all PPS students are required to complete a National History Day project. Project information was sent home with every student in their social studies classes. Please look for this information and ask your child for this information if you haven’t already seen it. The library will be open each Wednesday afternoon from 2:30-3:40 pm for students to receive help and work on their projects. Students must sign up in the library no later than the Tuesday before the scheduled help session, letting Ms. Adkison (librarian) know they will be planning on staying after school the following day on Wednesday. Please make arrangements for pick-up in advance. If you have any further questions, please free to call or email your child’s social studies teacher. You may also contact Mrs. Cheryl Burch, cburch@mcpss.com, the National History Day sponsor for PPS. National History Day website: www.nhd.org SCIENCE INFORMATION – 6th Grade Test Dates: THESE ARE NEW DATES. Test 2- November 9 Test 3- December 6

Science Project Dates for 6th Graders: November 14- Photos Due November 17- Handwritten Procedures Due November 28- Data Table, Results and Conclusion Due December 2- Abstract Due December 9- Project Showboard and Copies Due.

Extra boards and labels will be available for sale. They will be sold on a first come, first served basis. PPS YEARBOOK SALES & ADVERTISEMENTS - LAST CALL! – All Grades

The yearbook staff is also currently selling yearbooks through October 31st. The price of the yearbook is $38.00. You may pay the full price of $38.00 or you may put a payment of $19.00 down now, and pay the $19.00 balance in January. Do not depend on there being extra books sold in May - RESERVE YOUR BOOK NOW! Please see Mrs. Fosnight in room 106A for details.

Now is also the LAST time to think about placing an ad in the 2017 Phoenix yearbook! The yearbook staff is currently selling personal yearbook advertisements through October 31st that will appear in the 2017 yearbook. Prices range from $30.00 for 1/8th of a page ad to $125.00 for a full-sized ad. Students who purchase a full page ad will get a FREE YEARBOOK! Please see Mrs. Whitney in room 102A for details.

MIDDLE YEARS COUNSELING NEWSLETTER – PARENTS of All Grade Levels The PPS counselors, Madonna Burden (6th grade) and Stacey Eiland (7th & 8th grades) send out a monthly Middle Years newsletter for parents. It will usually come as second attachment in the email with the Pirates’ Spyglass newsletter and will also be posted on the PPS website (www.phillipsprep.com). The purpose of each newsletter is to promote ways for home and school to work together for school success.

SHOEBOX GIFT PROJECT – All Grades The PPS Ambassadors are participating in a service project and we could use your help. We are filling shoeboxes with gifts to send to less fortunate students in Honduras and would love it if you could help us fill the shoeboxes up. Please review the attached list of items (Shoebox Project Gift List.pdf) that can be sent to put in the shoeboxes. Many of these items can be purchased at Dollar Tree or Wal-Mart for less than a dollar each. Please give the items to your homeroom teacher no later than Wednesday, November 2nd. Remember when purchasing any of the listed items, they must be small enough to fit in a shoebox and meet the suggested guidelines for the project. We thank you in advance for your support as we strive to reach out to the international world. FEEDING THE GULF COAST FOOD DRIVE – REACHING OUT TO OUR NEIGHBORS – All Grades

Phillips Pirates will kick off the holiday season by donating non-perishable items to our area food bank. Each student is asked to bring in 2 items between November 7 and 16. On Friday, November 18, those students who participated in the food drive will be allowed to wear their favorite college jersey or t-shirt to school.

RECYCLE THOSE CANS AND BOTTLES – All Grades The Recycle Club would like our PPS family’s help!! Bring in your #1 plastic (clean and empty water, soda, Gatorade, etc. bottles – even the caps) and aluminum cans! Our PPS Recycle Club wants to win the $1,000 first prize for pounds of plastic collected! Keep Mobile Beautiful will also match our receipts when we reach $250.00 for aluminum cans collected. Recycle bins will be placed in front of the school and on the side by the gym.

NEWS for PARENTS & STUDENTS from our MEDIA CENTER

CHECK IT OUT! Students, faculty and parents can access resources and

eBooks anytime through the PPS Virtual Library and DESTINY! The PPS

Virtual Library provides information and access to great resources to help

students with NATIONAL HISTORY DAY PROJECTS and SCIENCE FAIR

PROJECTS!

NEWS about International Baccalaureate (IB)

Learner Profiles of the Month: Thinker & Inquirer THINKER IB defines thinkers as students or individuals who exercise initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively to recognize and approach complex problems, and make reasoned, ethical decisions. THINKERS are able to work individually to come up with the solutions to complex problems and can often come up with more than one solution to the same problem. They are creative in the way they approach situations and make good decisions. As a parent or guardian, how can you help or guide your student to be a good thinker?

Encourage your student to be independent and when a problem arises at home, allow them to try and think of a solution on their own before stepping in and solving it for them.

Pose real-life problems to your student to solve. (examples: thinking of ways they can earn money to purchase an item they want, how to estimate the total cost of items being purchased at the store on a given day, how to adjust a recipe for larger or smaller groups)

When your student is working on a problem, ask them to explain to you how they solved or figured it out.

These are just a few suggestions that will help your student continue to grow as Thinkers. INQUIRER According to IB, students who are inquirers have a natural curiosity. They acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show independence in learning. They actively enjoy learning and this love of learning will be sustained throughout their lives. We as parents and guardians can help develop our students and their natural curiosity at home.

When you are unsure of an answer to a problem, admit it to your student and show them how to seek out answers.

Nurture their love of learning by taking them to the local library to research or find books on subjects they are interested in and want to know more about.

Work with your student at home concerning proper etiquette when researching on the Internet. Explain to them that not all websites are reputable, so they will understand where they are gathering information when they do their inquiries.

Parents and educators together can help students continue to love learning and sustain it throughout their lives.

NEWS for PARENTS & STUDENTS from the NURSE

MEDICATION AT SCHOOL and ACCESS TO THE SCHOOL NURSE Students are not allowed to carry any type of medication on person. Certain medications such as inhalers for asthma may be carried on person when a completed SCHOOL MEDICATION PRESCRIBER/PARENT AUTHORIZATION FORM is signed by the prescribing physician and authorized by the parent. A parent/guardian must contact the school nurse, Ms. Donna Campbell, RN, and/or school office if a child has the need for medication at school. Nurse Campbell is available at Phillips

Prep daily from 7:00 am until 2:30 pm. You may contact her at 221-2282 to discuss your child’s health concerns or if you need a medication form, have questions or need further clarification of the medication policy.

STUDENTS IN THE NEWS

MOBILE-CRICHTON OPTIMIST CLUB STUDENT OF THE MONTH – Savannah Creel

Savannah Creel was named the Mobile-Crichton Optimist Club Student of the Month for October. She was honored and recognized with a plaque at the Optimist Club luncheon held on Wednesday, Oct. 12. Savannah was nominated by numerous teachers at PPS who had the following to say about her: “Savannah has been on A honor roll the past two years and continues to have excellent grades this year. She is on the volleyball team and is also an Ambassador here at PPS. She exemplifies great character each morning by giving up her time to peer-tutor a fellow student in math. She is here by 7:00 every day and gives up her mornings to help this student succeed in Algebra. Savannah is truly worthy of Student of the Month.” “She is pleasant, respectful, caring and a super student. She's a great role model for others! Just an all-around great person!”