Inside this issue:
Honor Roll 3
Parent Information 4
Counseling Corner 5
Green Council News 6
APPC News 8
Corporation News 9
Calendar 12
1251 N. DAN JONES ROAD, AVON, IN 46123 PHONE: 317-544-5500 FAX: 317-544-5501
March 2013 PARENT NEWSLETTER
Frank Perkins - Principal Ginger Davis - Assistant Principal Beth Ornelas - Grade 7 Counselor Allison West - Grade 8 Counselor
Please help us help your child by requiring regular school attendance.
“Preparing for Tomorrow . . .Today”
Upcoming Events:
March 12, 13, 14, 15 - Quarterly Exams March 16 - ISSMA Organizational Contest March 21 - Staff Development (one-hour delay for students) March 22 - Report Cards sent home March 25 - April 8 - Spring Break - No School
Daylight Savings Time begins March 10!
Don’t forget to set your clocks forward one hour.
Dear Parent or Guardian, ISTEP+ testing begins on Tuesday, March 5. This important standardized test is given to all Indiana public school students in grades 3-8. The ISTEP+ results provide important information regarding how well your child understands the Indiana Academic Standards. The results are also a piece of data that is used to determine which courses your child will take next year. Our middle school students will be tested in math, language arts and social studies (7th grade only). The test itself is divided into two different components and given at two different times during the second semester. The first part of the test is called the Applied Skills test, and it consists of essay and open-ended type questions. In addition to covering the regular course curriculum, our teach-ers and students have been reviewing previously learned material. We developed a list of Test Taking Tips and included it in this newsletter. Please encourage your child to become familiar with these tips to reinforce good test taking habits. Frank Perkins, Principal
March 2013 Page 2
SHORT ANSWER Test Taking Tips
Before the Test
Get a good night’s sleep, at least nine hours is recommended.
Eat breakfast the morning of a test. Having food in your stomach will give you energy and help you focus, but avoid heavy foods and sugar which can make you groggy.
Go to the restroom before walking into the exam room. You don't want to waste any time worrying about this during the test.
Do not bring a cell phone into the testing area. Any use of a cell phone will cause your test to be-
come invalid.
During the Test
When you first receive your test, do a quick survey of that test so that you know how to efficiently
budget your time. Don't rush but pace yourself.
Don’t spend too much time on any one problem, especially if you have trouble understanding the question. If you decide to skip a question make sure that you write down the number of that question so that you won’t forget to come back to answer it.
Always read the entire question carefully, looking for key words. Don't make assumptions about what the question might be asking. Some short answer questions have multiple parts.
Think through your answer before you start writing. You may be given a pre-writing space to get your thoughts organized. Using a Thinking Map or outline can be helpful.
Write legibly. If the graders can't read what you wrote, they'll most likely mark it wrong. Neatness counts.
Restate the question and provide the answer in the first sentence of your essay. Let the reader know exactly where your essay is going.
Support each topic with specific examples.
Write a concluding sentence. This is often just a restatement of your opening sentence.
Do not leave an answer blank. Show your work and write down your thoughts. Even if you don't get the exact answer, partial credit is usually awarded.
Don't worry if others finish before you. Focus on the test in front of you.
When you are finished, re-read all of your answers. Make sure that you have answered all the ques-tions. Only change an answer if you misread or misinterpreted the question. Look for spelling, gram-mar and content errors. Remember, neatness is important.
Keep a positive attitude throughout the test and try to stay relaxed. Have faith in yourself. We are all
behind you!
March 2013 Page 3
AVON MIDDLE SCHOOL NORTH SECOND QUARTER HONOR ROLL STUDENTS
Grade 8 - High Honor Roll
(Students that earned an A– or above in all subjects)
Jonathan Ball, Leah Bode, Samantha Branham, Rebecca Brown, Cale Camacho, Mitchell Demerly, Kaleigh Dennison, Kiley Dowers, Nicole Dwenger, Duncan Emsweller, Carl Erbowor-Becksen, Jordan Foster, Abigail Gulley, Nathan Heim, Jessica Hess, Colette Jackson, Elze Kaupaite, Justin Kopp, Jasmine Le, Ryan Maddox, Austin Mock, Taylor Nicholson, Rushi Patel, Kenneth Patterson, Keion Powell, Emily Rasmussen, Kelly Roy, Ehryn Shaw, Cassandra Stall, Rebecca Stein, Alyssia Weber
Grade 8 - Honor Roll
(Students that earned a B– or above in all subjects)
Austin Alarie, Jasmine Alberts, Riley Banks, Cole Bartek, Diamond Battles, Andrew Benner, Georgia Bentrud, Jackson Berger, Crystal Blazek, Frank Bogan, Jacob Boyd, Emily Bridegroom, Christopher Brodasky, Robert Buetow, Alec Bur-cham, Riley Burton, Rus' sel Butts, Annalee Camacho, Nishma Chakraborty, Denzel Clark, Evan Cobb, Jeremy Costelle, Destiney Davis, Lauren Davis, Brady Dean, Hurshdeep Dhami, Jason Donner, Perry Drum, Paige Eichelberger, Gilbert Escobedo, Kaitlynn Fogwell, Lauren Francis, Zachary Funkhouser, Matthew Gaby, Destiny Glover, Rhys Grealish, Abigail Handlon, Emily Hannefey, Brandon Hatfield, Audrey Hay, Cole Hensley, Michaela Hess, Rachel Hubbard, Hunter John-son, Ikbir Kaur-Bassi, Rachel Kettering, Luke Kimery, Maurice Lacy, Gunnar Larson, Olivia Lazaro, Zackary Leech, Lauren Lekse, Bryce Lenz, Alyssa Madrigal, Brea Malone, Jacob McCalment, Joseph McCrocklin, Nina McGrew, Kayleigh McIn-tyre, Griffin McPhail, Ryan Michael, Taylor Mock, James Moeller, Shirlyn Mthethwa, Zachary Mullen, Christian Myers, Mary Najmon, Paige Nicholson, Carson Nihiser, Brittany Osman, Chelsea Owens, Natisha Pabla, Logan Para, Emily Par-sons, Dylan Patterson, Katelyn Qualls, Kirsten Marie Reyes, Ariahna Rodgers, Abigail Russo, Jay Sangani, Evan Schafer, Dorien Scheets, Katy Smith, Logan Smith, Mallory Smith, Trevor Snapp, Logan Springer, Stephanie Stegemann, Brooklyn Thomas, Alex Wilhoite, Ethan Willey, Jacob Woodrow, Zachary Zeis, Amanda Zoiss
Grade 7 - High Honor Roll (Students that earned an A– or above in all subjects)
Max Anderson, Yuritzi Avila-Robledo, James Burnell, Madison Carroll, Kristin Compton, Joseph Dougherty, Brayden Enz, Lauren Friars, Sierra Howell, Yooran Im, Kayla Jones, Drew Kobold, Ha Lang, Ryan Larson, Jonathan Le, Abigail Lee, Andrew Lewis, Mason Miranda, McKay Moran, Lazarus Nelson, Gabriele Rasdall, Miranda Schwent, Alexander Shoe-maker, Dawson Smith, Jesslynn Smith, Michaela Spinazze, Gillian Stopinski, Claire Sutton, Tyler Swartz, Julia Taylor, Mariah Van Hoose, Timothy Wilson, Alexander Zeigler, Carson Zeller
Grade 7 - Honor Roll
(Students that earned a B– or above in all subjects)
Keith Abramson, Zachary Adams, Ashley Aldridge, Derek Anderson, Annie Auth, James Baker, Kyndra Barker, Karalynn Barnett, Ishmael Bate, Cassandra Baxter, Zachary Bendel, Abigail Birch, Joseph Bredlow, Ryan Brodnik, Tyra Bruner, Samuel Bullock, Brandon Chappelle, Ava Cherry, Alexus Collier, Jacob Darney, Madison Delay, Nathan DeMyers, Lauren Dennig, Zachary Deurloo, Samantha Eastridge, Rebecca Edlund, Rylee Elder, Emma Finlinson, Briawna Francis, Madeline Garcia, Taylor Gillis, Ryan Gott, Dean Gracia, Ericka Gretzinger, Shelly Groves, Sydney Hamilton, William Harmon, Justin Heidorn, Noah Hicks, Thi Kim Ho, Kayla Hochgesang, Cali Howard-Klotz, Marissa Hulse, Alayna Iles, Adam Johns, Jason Jones, Payton Judd, Gloria Kaliman, Emilija Kaupaite, Naomi Keough, Nia Kimbrough, Bryce Koehl, Derek Kohn, Ryan Krueger, Jacob Landes, Kaley Larkin, Pauline Le, Allyson Lindsey, Emmett Long, Tiana Marsh, Brody McFadden, Meghan McLaughlin, Ethan Mickelson, Cameron Misner, Ambrose Monday, Clemette Briana Morris, Carol Mukorombindo, Alexa Murphy, Andrew Nguyen, Spencer Nguyen, Nolan Nihiser, Grace Oliver, Stephanie Paiz, Mallary Pflum, Christopher Prab-hakar, Marcus Readus, Tyler Riggles, Amna Rizvi, Madeline Roggy, Vincent Rondinella, Kyle Saylor, Julianna Sercer, Ava Smith, Luke Smith, Paige Snodgrass, Ryan Soel, Cameron Sowder, Autumn Stanbary, Yasmeen Terry, Lexi Tillman, Tay-lor Toney, Marissa True, Abigail Unrue, Brittany VanderBrink, Megan Vukusich, Austin Wagner, Hunter Wallace, Nicho-las Waterfield, Mitchell West, Jared Westcott, Nolan Whitesell, Carly Whiteside, McCarthar Williamson, Gwynne Wyatt
March 2013 Page 4
Two Hour Delays, Early Dismissals,
Cancellation of School
Please visit the ACSC website for important
information about Avon Community School
Corporation's process regarding two hour
delays, early dismissals and school cancel-
lations. Here is the link to the letter from Dr.
Hoernemann: http://www.avon-schools.org/
cms/lib02/IN01001885/Centricity/
Domain/4432/2_Hour_Delay_2.pdf.
News from the Nurse
Reminder:
Students are not permitted to carry water bottles
in the school building unless documentation from
their doctor is provided to the school nurse.
Avon Community School Corporation has added
the 2013-14 Immunization Requirements quick
reference guide to the District Health Ser-
vices webpage Immunization Requirements for
2013-2014 School Year. The exclusion date
for the 2013-14 school year is August 28,
2013. Students with delinquent records will be
excluded if their immunization records do not
comply with the state required immuniza-
tions. Parents/students may contact the
building nurse with any questions.
Congratulations to the following Spanish students who were selected by
their peers and Senora Clark as “Estudiantes Espectaculares” (Spectacular
Students) for February 2013.
1st Conner “Pablo” Hutchings
2nd Amanda “Carla” Thompson
3rd Jeremy “Nacho” Costelle
5th Jasmine “Jasmin” Le
6th Austin “Javi” Mock
7th Riley “Alejandra” Banks
Choir Director’s Corner
All seventh grade choir members will participate in a Festival Day, where professional music judges
will be brought in to hear them and give them feed-back and scores. This will take place during the
school day during choir classes on Wednesday,
March 20. Unfortunately, this is for the students
only; parents are not invited. However, you are invited to our Spring Choir Concert on Monday, May 13. On the Festival Day, all seventh grade
choir students will need to wear their choir uni-forms (khaki pants, short-sleeved black choir polos,
and dark-colored dress shoes) to school for the day.
Eighth grade choir students will be participating in the ISSMA Organizational Choir Contest held on Saturday, March 16, at Avon Middle School
North. Specific performance times will be pub-lished as soon as they are available from the
state. All eighth grade choir students need to at-tend this performance as a part of their choir
grades, as indicated in the choir handbook. They will need to wear their complete choir uniforms (Khaki pants, short-sleeved black choir polos, and
dark-colored dress shoes) for that performance.
March 2013 Page 5
Beth Ornelas Seventh Grade Counselor
(317) 544-5500 ext. 5517
A laugh, to be joyous, must flow from a joyous heart, for without kindness, there can be no true
joy. -Thomas Carlyle
Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expec-tation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one
day someone might do the same for you. -Princess Diana
ISTEP+ Applied Skills Test Dates-March 5, 6, 7
The Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress-Plus (ISTEP+) is used to show
student achievement while providing educators with the opportunity to see how well Indiana
students are measuring up to our state's academic standards. Students will take the
ISTEP+ test during the months of March (part 1) and April (Part 2). To read more about the
specifics of ISTEP+, what is on the test at each grade level, when the testing windows are,
etc., click on the link below:
http://www.doe.in.gov/achievement/assessment/istep-grades-3-8
Helpful Hints:
Please be sure that your child is present for each testing day.
Your child should be well rested for school. Please make sure he/she gets a good
night’s sleep.
Breakfast is very important. Please be sure your child eats breakfast every morning.
UPDATED GUIDANCE WEBPAGE
Check out the updated Guidance webpage! Both students and parents will find helpful
information on such topics as improving study skills, note-taking, and reducing test taking
anxiety. Parents will also find helpful internet resources they can access. The website is
updated often. Be sure to check back frequently for new information.
Important Dates:
March 5, 6, 7-ISTEP+ Applied Skills Test Dates
March 10-Daylight Saving Time begins
March 22-Report Cards issued-Please ask your child to see his/her report card. The report
card will be sent home with your child, not mailed.
March 2013 Page 6
“Specialty” Recycling Available!!
A gentle reminder for all our returning 8th grade fami-
lies, and a happy announcement for all our new 7th grade
families- we have a specialty recycling center in the
media center where students can drop off old cell
phones, used batteries, plastic bags, and empty ink car-
tridges.
All students need to do is bring in the item, drop it off
in the MC, and we will take care of the rest!
Volume: 3 Issue: 7 March 2013
Get your home energy
assessment!!!
Eligibility Requirements:
-Single-family homes, duplexes, triplexes,
quadplexes or mobile homes, occupied by
the owner
-Non-owner occupied homes where occu-
pants have the electric service in their
name
-Homes 10 years or older
-Homes that have not had a utility-
sponsored assessment in the last 3 years
-Electric service must be provided through
Vectren, Duke Energy, IMPA, NIPSCO, Indi-
anapolis Power & Light or Indiana Michigan
Power
*See attached enrollment guide!*
Home Energy
Assessment AND help
the Outdoor Learning
Center!!!
ACSC has partnered with
Energizing Indiana to of-
fer Residential Home
Energy Assessments. The assessments can help you
raise your home’s per-
formance, lower energy bills and improve in-home
air quality. It only takes
one hour and every household that completes
a Home Energy Assess-
ment will receive a com-prehensive report and the
free Energy Savings Kit.
In addition, ACSC will re-ceive $25 per completed
assessment. All proceeds
will benefit the Avon Out-
door Learning Center. You
do not have to live in
Avon to earn the Outdoor
Learning Center $25!
March 2013 Page 7
March 2013 Page 8
The Avon Parent Partnership Committee (APPC) is comprised of two parent representatives
from each building. The purpose of the APPC is to facilitate communication between parents
and administrators on academic issues in the Avon Community School Corporation.
The February meeting began at 6:30 p.m. with Dr. McMahon updating the committee on the
Arts and Enrichment Camps running March 25-29 and April 1-5, at AISW from 9:00am-
3:00pm during Spring Break 2013. Mr. Chris Kates and Mrs. Wendy Natalie will be the camp
directors. Camp updates and a course catalog will be posted on the school webpage this
week. Currently, the first week of camp has 19 camp opportunities and the second week has
11 options. Camps will be mostly geared toward K-8; however there will be options for 9-12.
Cost of the camp is $130.00 per student per week and registration will be held February 15-
March 1st online as well as a paper form. Twelve students will be needed per camp opportu-
nity with each camp limited to 32 students. Parents will provide transportation and a sack
lunch for their student. The YMCA Before and After Care Program will be available for an ad-
ditional cost. Future scholarship funds may be available next year if the camps are success-
ful.
Next, Dr. DeKoninck shared information on the RISE Evaluation Process for Teachers. The
new process focuses on teachers increasing student achievement growth. Teachers now will
only receive an increase in compensation if they are designated as “effective” or “highly effec-
tive”. The evaluation process looks at teacher performance in planning, instruction, and lead-
ership as well as student growth and core professionalism. All pieces will factor into the
teachers evaluation. Overall this process has brought about more purposeful communication
between teachers and administrators. Also highlighted by Dr. DeKoninck was the new board
policy adopted regarding high school courses taken while students are in middle school. Stu-
dents will have the option to have these grades and credits placed on their high school tran-
script. If the grade is on the transcript, it will be part of the students’ grade point average. In
addition, Dr. DeKoninck shared information regarding online courses available via the Indi-
ana Online Academy through CIESC (Central Indiana Education Services Center). This has
been a great option for students as 1,016 courses were taken this past year compared to 604
the previous year. Next, Dr. DeKoninck discussed the administration’s desire to receive feed-
back from parents, students and staff on the balanced calendar option. A Survey Monkey will
be sent out to gather opinions and information. Dr. DeKoninck updated the committee on the
search for a new high school principal. The position has been posted and the goal will be to
have a new principal recommended to the board by late spring. Lastly, Dr. DeKoninck dis-
cussed school delays and snow days. The decision is a process taking into account many fac-
tors with an effort to make the best decision with the latest weather information. The deci-
sion to delay or close school will normally occur in the morning. The meeting adjourned at
8:00 p.m. The next meeting will be on Monday, March 4th from 6:30-8:00 p.m.
March 2013 Page 9
Introducing the Spring Break Intercession
Avon Academic and Arts Enrichment Camp!
The full Course Catalog can be found on the front page of the Avon Community School Corporation website. Click on the picture (like the one on the right) and it will take you to the course catalog and registration forms.
Camps operate Monday - Friday from 9:00am - 3:00pm at Avon Intermediate School West.
On-site early drop-off and late pick-up care will be available at an additional cost through the YMCA with registration available through our website.
The per student price for one week of camp is $130.00.
March 2013 Page 10
Opportunity to donate to the Avon Outdoor Learning Center Do you want FREE light bulbs, low-flow shower heads, sink aerators, a surge protector and pipe wrap? Do you also want the Avon Outdoor Learning Center to receive $25? If you said yes to either question, then sign up for an Energizing Indiana Home Energy Assess-ment! ACSC has partnered with Energizing Indiana to offer Residential Home Energy Assess-ments. The assessments can help you raise your home’s performance, lower energy bills and im-prove in-home air quality. It only takes one hour and every household that completes a Home En-ergy Assessment will receive a comprehensive report and the free Energy Savings Kit. In addition, ACSC will receive $25 per completed assessment. All proceeds will benefit the Avon Outdoor Learning Center. You do not have to live in Avon to earn the Outdoor Learning Center $25! Please see the attached Enrollment Guide to see if you qualify! Please feel free to visit http://www.energizingindiana.com/ for more information. Click on the following link for more information about the Avon Outdoor Learning Center http://www.avon-schools.org/Page/262 .
Set up your FREE home
energy assessment
today!
$25 will be donated to the
OLC upon completion of
your assessment and you
will receive these items
free!
March 2013 Page 11
NOTICE TO STUDENTS AND PARENTS
AVON COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION
2012-13
SCHOOL CALL-OFF, EARLY DISMISSAL AND DELAYED OPENING PROCEDURES
At times it is possible that school may be called off, dismissed early or delayed in opening because of weather and road conditions or failures of heat, water, etc. in school buildings. If this occurs, school officials will notify TV and radio stations that have offered to make “NO SCHOOL” announcements.
These stations have offered to make our announcements:
Announcements will also be posted on the district webpage and social media pages:
www.avon-schools.org (District Website)
www.facebook.com/Avon.Schools (Facebook)
www.twitter.com/OrioleTweets (Twitter)
Every effort will be made to arrive at a decision and notify the TV/radio stations and post on our district webpage and social media pages by 6:00 a.m. if school is to be called off or delayed by an hour or two. Announcements will be made/posted EACH DAY there will be no school.
✮Students and parents are requested to not call school officials on mornings when weather conditions
are questionable. It is important that telephone lines be free to gather information and communicate
with TV and radio stations.✮
On school days when weather conditions worsen during the day, it is possible that school officials may determine that it is neces-sary to dismiss school early. Parents are urged to keep tuned to our cooperating TV/radio stations or to view our district webpage or social media pages on such days so that they may be made aware if schools are going to be dismissed early. SPECIAL CARE AND ARRANGEMENTS SHOULD BE MADE IN ADVANCE FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF EARLY SCHOOL DISMISSALS IN CASES WHERE BOTH PARENTS WORK AND NO ONE IS AT HOME DURING THE SCHOOL DAY TO CARE FOR CHILDREN.
WRTV TV – 6
WCBK – FM 102.3 Martinsville
WISH TV – 8 WEDJ – FM 107.1 Indianapolis
WTHR TV – 13
WXIN TV – 59
AVON MIDDLE SCHOOL NORTH Important Dates
2012-2013
March 12, 13, 14, 15 Quarterly Exams March 16 (Saturday) ISSMA Organizational Contest March 21 (Thursday) Staff Development (K-12 on one-hour delay) March 22 (Friday) REPORT CARDS SENT HOME WITH STUDENTS March 22 (Friday) Parent Newsletter Posted March 25 (Monday) Spring Break Begins NO SCHOOL April 8 (Monday) Return to School April 25 (Thursday) Staff Development (K-12 on one-hour delay) April 30 (Tuesday) Parent Newsletter Posted May 3 (Friday) Progress Reports Issued May 9 (Thursday) Orchestra & Show Choir Concert 6:30 pm May 13 (Monday) 7 & 8 Grade Choir Concert 6:30 pm May 14 (Tuesday) 7 & 8 Grade Band Concert 6:30 pm May 23 (Thursday) Academic Awards Night 6:00 pm May 27 (Monday) MEMORIAL DAY NO SCHOOL May 28, 29, 30, 31 Quarterly Exams May 31 (Friday) Parent Newsletter Posted May 31 (Friday) Last Day of School June 3 Teacher Record Day June 4, 5, 6 Make - up Days (if needed) June 7 Report Cards Mailed Home * Dates and times are subject to change.