November 6th is Plano's semi-annual Fall Waterways Cleanup day

11/1/2021 10:30 pm

If you have not already registered, today, November 1st, is the last day to do so!   Sign up to participate in the Fall Waterways Cleanup to make our creeks less polluted and safer for wildlife.  If you are busy on November 6th, individuals and groups can sign up to clean Plano creeks and roadways (pre-creek cleanup!) year round because litter never ends, unfortunately.

National PTA News

11/1/2021 10:27 pm

November is Healthy Lifestyles Month.  Try Texas PTA's Healthy@Home Idea Sheet bingo to practice healthy habits with your family.  The bingo sheet is available here.

 
November is Children's Grief Awareness Month. Register for a webinar on November 10th at 2 p.m. EST entitled The Power of Partnership: A Conversation with National PTA and First Book to discuss the value of partnership, the importance of community, and exciting new resources and support for the childhood bereavement field as part of PTA's Healthy Minds initiative.

Webinar Registration - Zoom

In the latest Notes From the Backpack podcast, Episode 48, Supporting Students of Color, Dr. Shawn Jones, psychologist and professor at the Virginia Commonwealth University, offers guidance on creating schools that better serve students of color.  Listen to the podcast here:  Supporting Students of Color - Podcast | National PTA

Red Ribbon Week

10/26/2021 11:53 am

This week is Red Ribbon Week.  Red Ribbon week began in 1985 as a response to the murder of DEA Agent Enrique Camarena, an act that led people in communities across the country to begin wearing Red Ribbons as a symbol of their commitment to raising awareness about the destruction caused by drugs in America. In 1988, National Family Partnership sponsored the first National Red Ribbon Celebration.  Red Ribbon week is celebrated annually from October 23-31 and serves as a way for people to come together to keep children, families, and communities safe, healthy,  and drug-free.  NFP suggests the following ways that families can observe this week at home: 

• Use Red Ribbon Week as an opportunity to continue talking to your kids about drugs. Let them know that alcohol and drug use will not be tolerated.
• Enter the Red Ribbon Photo Contest for a chance to win an iPad for you and your family - and $1,000 for your child's school:  2021 Red Ribbon Photo Contest
• Encourage your kids and other students to take a stab at creating the 2022 National Red Ribbon Theme. Gain national recognition and $500 of Red Ribbon theme merchandise for your child's school. This year's theme was created by Marin Wurst, a 7th grader at Solon Middle School in Solon, Ohio.
• Watch Natural High’s free celebrity drug prevention videos with your child and use their discussion questions to have a conversation with them about drugs and alcohol.
• For more activity ideas, go to:  Red Ribbon Week Activities for Parents. 

Schimelpfenig Middle School will be observing Red Ribbon week starting today with theme days and events.  

National PTA News

10/26/2021 11:48 am

• Celebrate Arts & Humanities Month! Halloween is next week! Encourage your child’s creativity by challenging them to create a spooky piece of art. Then share it with National PTA by using #PTAReflections.

• In the latest Notes From the Backpack podcast episode, host and guest Dr. Sameer Hinduja tackles cyberbullying, dangerous social media challenges and more. Listen now.

• National PTA thanks everyone who participated in National Unity Day.  Together we sent a visual message that no child should ever experience bullying. Check out their post and get involved in National Bullying Prevention Month.

Fall Social - date change

10/26/2021 11:46 am

You may have noticed that our Fall Social/Fall Treat, originally scheduled for Friday, October 29th, is no longer on the calendar.  PISD recently issued new PTA guidelines, allowing for larger group social events on campus, and we have rescheduled our Social for mid-January.  We will announce more details about the Schimelpfenig PTA Winter Social in this newsletter and on our website, so stay tuned!

Join our SMS PTA Membership Today!

10/25/2021 11:53 pm

Help your Schimelpfenig PTA reach 600 members by October 31st and earn the Snappy Increase award!  We currently have 521 members, we need 79 more members to reach our goal of 600, one more than last year! Click Here to Join!

Parents, Students, Grandparents and other Community Members can join to support Schimelpfenig PTA.  

Thank you in advance for your support!

Ways to Help Raise Funds for SMS PTA this Fall

10/25/2021 11:52 pm

1. Donate to the PTA online!

Your generous TAX-DEDUCTIBLE donation will fund programs, social events, and classroom materials for students as well as SMS staff wish list items.  

We thank you in advance for your contributions!

Please visit here to donate online!

2. You just keep shopping – let these stores do the donating for you!

Visit our Fundraising Page here for more information.

Link your Kroger or Tom Thumb rewards cards to Schimelpfenig to help our school raise money. The stores will donate a percentage back to the school help show their support for the local communities.

• Kroger Community Rewards Program
• Tom Thumb Good Neighbor Program  
• Office Depot
• Box Tops
• Amazon Smile – Same products and prices as Amazon.  Their foundation matches a percentage of your purchases to donate to nonprofits like our school!  So easy and you are helping by shopping.

3. World Wear Project – Clean out your clutter of old toys, kitchen items, unused towels and bedding and of course CLOTHES!  Bring them up to the BIG BLUE Bin located in the west parking lot.