PIRATES’ SPYGLASS

Website: www.phillipsprep.com Twitter: @phillipsprep42

Facebook: Phillips Preparatory School Facebook (PTSA administered): PPS PTSA

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December 2016/January 2017

IMPORTANT DATES December 2 Schoolwide Spelling Bee December 6 PPS Chorus Concert at Davidson High School, 7 PM (see newsletter announcement) December 7 Babes in Toyland Field Trip for 6th Grade December 8 PPS Band Concert at Murphy High School, 6 PM (see newsletter announcement) December 12-15 EQTs – by subject area in regular class periods each day

Monday, 12/12 – Social Studies/PE; Tuesday, 12/13 – Science/Electives; Wednesday, 12/14 Language Arts/Foreign Language; Thursday, 12/15 Math

December 12-15 SWAT “Creative” Sweater Competition Fundraiser (teachers wear sweaters; students vote on them) December 13 Sweet Treats for Teachers, Administration, and Staff (see newsletter announcement) December 17-January 3 WINTER BREAK – Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Happy Holidays! January 4 First day of 3rd quarter January 5 & 6 - PPS “See and Sign” Open House for Prospective Students; Invite friends to visit PPS (see

newsletter announcement) January 10 2nd quarter report cards sent home January 11 & 12 MCPSS Honor Band Festival; Concert at Baker High School on 1/12 @ 7:00 PM January 13 & 14 MCPSS Magnet School Open Houses at other schools (see newsletter announcement) January 16 Martin Luther King HOLIDAY January 20 PPS “See and Sign” Open House for Prospective Students; Invite friends to visit PPS; (see

newsletter announcement); MCPSS Magnet School Open Houses at other schools January 21 MCPSS Magnet School Open Houses at other schools (see newsletter announcement) January 24 Zaxby’s Night Fundraiser for PPS; “Bring Your Family to School Night” (more info to be sent out) January 27 Bay Area Food Bank Field Trip for Student Council and Ambassadors EVERY DAY 1st Bell of the Day rings at 7:23 AM and 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 MCPSS MCPSS and WKRG are going to Stuff the Bus with Christmas toys again this year. If you would like to donate new toys for children of ALL ages – birth to teens – please bring them to PPS between December 5 & 9. Toys will be picked up from all participating schools on December 12 & 13, but the best part is this year’s MCPSS incentive– in the form of Santa and Mrs. Claus visiting with and/or reading to students at schools that have collected the most toys by December 9.

NEWS from OUR ADMINISTRATION

2017-18 PPS “See and Sign” OPEN HOUSE DATES For ALL Prospective Students – SPREAD THE WORD! January 5 @ PPS (8 am - 2 pm) January 6 @ PPS (10 am - 6 pm) January 13 @ other magnet schools (1 pm – 6 pm) January 14 @ other magnet schools (9 am – 12 pm) January 20 @ PPS (10 am - 6 pm)

& at other magnet schools (1 pm – 6 pm) January 21 @ other magnet schools (9 am – 12 pm)

We hope you will invite any fifth grade students and their parents/guardians you know to visit Phillips on Thursday, January 5; Friday, January 6; or Friday, January 20, while school is in session, so that they may see what we do here each day; tour our campus; meet some of our administrators, teachers, and students; become familiar with the curriculum that we offer; and see our newly renovated school! The other magnet schools will host open houses on January 13, 14, 20, and 21.

It’s important that prospective students and parents visit PPS as soon as possible because magnet school applications will take place during the month of January for the first drawing held in February. Applications will be accepted in February and March for remaining drawings held, but the chances of being selected for one’s first choice will not be as great as in the first drawing. Applications may be submitted online via the MCPSS website (www.mcpss.com). Please share this information with friends and encourage them to visit and apply for PPS for 2017-2018.

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REMINDER: SLOOOOOW DOWN in CARPOOL LANES! And PLEASE, NO CELL PHONE USE in carpool areas from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Be alert!

NEWS from PTSA PPS PTSA FALL FUNDRAISER WAS A SUCCESS! Our fall Cookies and Coffee fundraiser was a BIG SUCCESS! We sold over $13,000 on our fall fundraiser!! We were able to purchase the benches for the front of the school with the proceeds! Our top 3 sellers were: Shelby Collins, Michael Irby, and Alex Miller. Congratulations! And thank you to EVERYONE who sold and bought cookies and coffee. We are hoping the cookie dough and coffee will be delivered before Christmas break. Pick-up dates and times, and party information for qualifying sales, will be sent out when we receive confirmation.

Duty Free - Thanksgiving Gratitude & Holiday Cheer! Thank you to all the parents that have sent food or volunteered their time to make our last two “Duty Free” events for teachers, administration, and staff a success. Our next opportunity will be SWEET TREATS - cocoa and desserts - on Tuesday, December 13. Please sign up via this link: www.SignUpGenius.com/go/4090F44ADA72FA2FD0-cocoa

JOIN THE PPS PTSA – ALL GRADES We need YOU! Membership in the PTSA is STILL OPEN! We are trying to reach 100% and need ONLY 50 MORE MEMBERSHIPS! 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 SCIENCE PROJECT INFORMATION – All Grades All science projects for all grade levels are due on 12/9. Boards are required to be submitted on 12/9 for 6th grade only. 7th and 8th graders are required to submit a picture of their completed show boards with their logbooks and copies of the information on the board on 12/9. 7th and 8th graders will have assigned presentation days starting 12/14 on which they will bring their boards to school to present their project to the class. 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.

CHORUS AND BAND CONCERTS NEXT WEEK! Our PPS chorus, made up of 71 seventh and eighth graders, will present its annual winter holiday concert on Tuesday, December 6, at 7:00 PM in the Davidson High School Auditorium. Our chorus will perform for the first half of the program, and Davidson’s choirs will sing the second half of this hour-long free concert. The program will end with a combined choirs piece, wishing everyone a happy holiday season! Our PPS bands will perform at Murphy High School’s auditorium on Thursday evening, December 8, beginning at 6:00 PM. All PPS bands will be featured separately, in a staggered schedule, and there will be a small admission charge of $3.00.

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

The “HOUR of CODE” is coming to PPS the week of December 7th! For more information on the Hour of Code visit the http://ppsvirtuallibrary.weebly.com/hour-of-code.html or https://hourofcode.com/us.

National History Day (NHD) projects Check out the NHD Projects page on the PPS Virtual Library for information and resources on National History Day projects. The PPS Library Media Center and the Social Studies Department are offering Wednesday afternoon help sessions for National History Day projects. Students that are interested in attending must sign-up in the library by the end of the school day on the Tuesday before the scheduled session. Space is limited, so students should sign up early. Wednesday, December 7th will be the only session offered this month. Wednesday afternoon help session will resume Wednesday, January 11th, 2017.

2nd Quarter Points Goal: 30 points

Testing Deadline: Friday, December 9th, 2016

For more information CLICK HERE. Congratulations to our 1st

Quarter Winners!

LIBRARY RESOURCES AVAILABLE 24/7 Students, faculty and parents can access resources and eBooks anytime through the PPS Virtual Library and DESTINY! Check it out!

NEWS about International Baccalaureate (IB)

Learner Profile of the Month: Caring CARING IB defines caring as students or individuals who show empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. They have a personal commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference in the lives of others and to the environment. Here at PPS, we have many caring students as is evident with their generosity and willingness to give to many organizations. Our students have brought in supplies for flood victims and items to donate to Operation Shoebox, brought in food to be delivered for Thanksgiving, donated money for Breast Cancer Awareness and United Way, and

we see them recycling daily to care for the environment. These are just a few things PPS students have done this year to show they have a caring nature. As a parent or guardian, how can you help or guide your student to be a caring person?

Use kind words. Our students are always watching and listening to everything we do and say. Kind words go a long way with teenagers.

Help others without being asked. This can be a simple gesture such as holding a door open for someone in the store, but when we do something nice for other people when we are not asked, our children, and especially our teenagers will begin to take notice.

Begin dialogue with your student when you see events occur in the city or on the news. Ask them their opinion if they think people are being caring or how people could handle the situations differently to show a caring side.

These are just a few suggestions that will help your students continue to grow as CARING persons. And the next few newsletter articles illustrate how CARING PPS students can be!

STUDENTS IN THE NEWS

DRUG AWARENESS BOOTH at FIRST LIGHT MARATHON EXPO The Phillips Preparatory Red Ribbon Student Leader for 2016-2017, 8th Grader MaKensey Alford, along with a group of PPS students, will host a booth that will help educate the public and their peers by encouraging a healthy drug free lifestyle and support substance abuse prevention. Designed by MaKensey, this is a Red Ribbon Community Service Project that will help others #besmartbehealthy. The interactive and educational Drug Awareness booth will be hosted during the First Light Marathon Expo on January 7, 2017 from 12 noon until 6:00 PM at the Mobile City/County Courthouse atrium. This is located in downtown Mobile at the southeast corner of Government and Joachim Streets. Everyone is invited to come by and participate in this free, fun and educational effort. PPS IS A GIVING SCHOOL!

The Ambassadors would like to thank everyone who sent in items to help us fill shoeboxes to send to Honduras. We were able to fill over 25 shoeboxes with toys, books, school supplies and toiletries thanks to the generosity of the PPS family. We know we have all helped brighten the holiday of many boys and girls this season.

MORE GIVING FROM PPS!

October and November Giving for United Way Our Phillips family donated a total of $2385.69 to United Way this year! On Nerd Day, we collected $347.15. The next week, students really wanted to wear out-of-uniform shoes and donated $267.24 to do so! Twin Day was a hit with $379.50 donated. And PPS faculty and staff topped off our donations this year with $1391.80! Thank you everyone! November Canned Food Drive PPS Student Council says, “WAY TO GO PPS!” Thanks to everyone, our canned food contributions for Feeding the Gulf Coast (formerly known as Bay Area Food Bank) weighed in at 731 pounds! That amount will feed 562 people!

PPS STUDENTS OF THE WEEK during OCTOBER and

NOVEMBER

KENDAL FOSTER and MICHAEL STREETER, grade 7 - Some students innately perform acts of kindness without expecting anything in return. Kendal and Michael are two of those students. Mrs. Bethany Martin proudly recommended Michael Streeter and Kendal Foster as Star Students. At one of our football games, Michael and Kendal were very helpful with a younger student. They showed that they are caring and compassionate by helping. Both are a role model for all students at Phillips Preparatory School! Great job!!

COHEN DEATON, grade 6 Cohen is definitely not a selfish student. He is always thinking of others before himself. Mrs. Foster was so proud to nominate Cohen as a Champion of Character. On “Pink Out” Day for cancer awareness, he selflessly donated $20 to the Mitchell Cancer Institute even though he wore his business attire. Furthermore, Cohen is kind and considerate to his classmates. Way to go, Cohen!

BRYAN FENG, grade 8 - Integrity, Honesty - these terms apply to Bryan. Mrs. Reed is proud to nominate Bryan as a Champion of Character. Bryan found $20 and promptly gave the money to Mrs. Reed without any hesitation. Furthermore, Bryan is just a great person- always friendly to everyone, goes out of his way to help others, is a leader- always looks, acts, and displays himself with pride. The Phillips' faculty is very proud of Bryan!

DAY OF THE DEAD CELEBRATION “Day of the Dead” (Spanish: Día de Muertos) is a Mexican holiday celebrated throughout Mexico, in particular the Central and South regions, and by people of Mexican ancestry living in other places, especially the United States. It is acknowledged internationally in many other cultures. The holiday, usually celebrated on November 2, focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died, and help support their spiritual journey with prayers, food, flowers, and music. Mrs. Purvis’s eighth graders celebrated the “Day of the Dead” by decorating skull shaped cupcakes. It was a nice opportunity to learn a little more about the Mexican culture and traditions.

SPORTS

PPS Archery Team 2016-17 Coach Melissa Thompson

Makayla Cross Nash Boone Chris Henderson Gordon Granger Shelbie Fuller

Harley Riddle Faith Riley Jayde Garretson Joshua Burnham Lien Nguyen

Abby Stork Lydia Burnham

2016-17 PIRATES BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION

11/3 CAUSEY CAUSEY 11/7 CLARK CLARK 11/10 N. MOBILE N. MOBILE 11/14 DENTON HOME

11/17 SEMMES HOME 11/29 BURNS BURNS

12/1 HANKINS HOME 12/5 CAUSEY HOME 12/8 CLARK HOME

12/12 HANKINS HANKINS 1/9 BURNS HOME 1/12 SEMMES SEMMES 1/17 OFF

The first game begins at 3:30. The second game will follow. “HOME” games will be at the location of the opponent until our gym is available for play. From Nov 3-Dec 1, girls play first followed by the boys. From Dec 5-Jan 17, boys will play first followed by the girls. Admission Adults: $4.00; Students $3.00

Phillips Preparatory School 2016-17 Lady Pirates Coach Tiara Cooper

Makaiya Bright

Kya Fields Arbany Holder

Imani Ivory Keiyah Johnson Aniya Johnson

Saniyah Morrissette Sanola Mixon

Aaliyah Muhammad Mckenzie Murphy

Emma Pickett Jermiya Robinson

Kelsey Sanders Iciss Wagner Angel Young