Eckstein Weekly News March 21, 2025

Upcoming Dates

March

• Mar. 21: 6th/7th Grade Eagle Night (7-8:30 pm)
• Mar. 24: Track Family Meeting & Cookie Swap (7 pm)
• Mar. 25: Girls Volleyball Tryouts (4 pm)
• Mar. 25: Boys Soccer Tryouts (3:45 pm)
• Mar. 26: Girls Volleyball Tryouts (4 pm)
• Mar. 27: Student Led Conferences (No school for EMS students only)
• Mar. 27: Girls Volleyball Tryouts (4 pm)
• Mar. 29: Band Solo & Ensemble & Orchestra Day

April

• Apr. 3: Biker Donut Day (8-8:45 am)
• Apr. 8: End of Quarter 3
• Apr. 8: Spring Choir Concert (7 pm)
• Apr 9: Beginning of Quarter 4
• Apr. 10: Band, Choir & Orchestra Top Ensembles (7:30 pm)
• Apr. 14-18: Spring Break
• Apr. 21: PTSA Board Meeting (7 pm)
• Apr. 25: ASB Elections Open
• Apr. 26: Band Rummage Sale (9-3 pm)

Eckstein Cellphone Policy – Please Help Us

We’ve noticed an increase of students and parents texting each other while the student is in the classroom during class. The Eckstein cellphone/smart watch policy is for cellphones to be off and away for the entire school day. Smart watches are only supposed to be used to tell the time.

Please remind your student that if they need to contact you, they should come to the Main Office to use their cellphone or watch. If you need to contact your student during the day, please call the Main Office and we will get them the note.

Please help us with our cellphone/smart watch policy by not responding to your student if they are texting you from the classroom.

Come Cheer on our Boys & Girls Varsity Basketball Teams!

Our Eckstein Eagles Basketball teams head to the finals on Saturday. Come cheer them on!
Girls Varsity – Semi-Final – 9 am against Aki at Lincoln High School Court 2; Final 12 pm at Lincoln HS
Boys Varsity – Semi-Final – 10:30 am against Meany at Lincoln High School Court 1; Final 1:30 pm at Lincoln HS

Student-Led Conference – March 27, 2025

Hello Eckstein Families! Homeroom teachers will soon be reaching out to you to schedule a Student Led Conference on March 27, 2025.This is a non-school day for Eckstein students only, so that we can hold these conferences. Your student will have the opportunity to share with you in a formal setting, their goals, accomplishments, and areas of growth. Please look for a message from homeroom teachers and sign up for a time on that day for you and your student to come to school for the conference. Remember, these are student led, and teachers are only hosts this day. We look forward to seeing you March 27!

Talking Points Notifications Options

Talking Points is a tool we use to send text messages to families. During our recent shelter-in-place we sent out multiple texts via Talking Points. Some parents indicated that they did not receive the texts. This was due to them having installed the Talking Points app on their cellphone. The texts went to the app and did not show up as a text on their phone. If you prefer to get your Talking Points messages via text and you have the app:
1) Open the Talking Points app.
2) Log out of the app.
3) Uninstall the app.
Once the app is uninstalled, you will start receiving Talking Point texts directly to your cellphone.

Spring Sports Tryouts

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: We have a new coach this year Avree Lester. She coaches at Roosevelt with Coach Jana. Tryouts are March 25, 26, & 27 at 4 pm in the gym. Practices for Varsity and JV will be on Monday and Wednesday from 4-6. Students will learn their teams through an email from their coaches.

BOYS SOCCER: Mr. Kenyon is coaching the varsity team. We desperately still need a JVC soccer coach. The commitment is Tuesdays & Thursdays from 3:45 – 5:30 pm and Saturday games. Please contact Mr. Grandbois if your are interested or need more information. djgrandbois@seattleschools.org.
Next Tryout is Tuesday, March 25 from 4-5:30 p.m. Practices are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-5 pm.

Additional Track Coaches Needed: We have over 200 students participating in this no-cut sport. We have already have three coaches and could use more volunteers. Please contact Mr. Grandbois if your are interested or need more information. djgrandbois@seattleschools.org.

Track Family Meeting & Cookie Swap – Monday, March 24

Do not miss the first Track Family Meeting and Cookie Swap! Monday 3/24 at 7pm in the cafeteria (enter by the east doors). Bring cookies to share (not required to bring if you can’t, but we count on enough people doing it so all 200 kids get a treat, and store bought is FINE!). Meet the coaches, find out about the schedule, see a short video, and get inspired! Did we mention cookies? Still want to join? Register and Sign all Final Forms here. Lace up, take flight, Soar Eagles!

Sixth/Seventh Grade Eagle Night – March 21 – 7-8:30 pm

Tickets are only available at the door for $5 in cash. There will be snacks that cost $1 cash available.

All students who attend Eagle Nights must have a completed Dance Contract in FinalForms. The deadline to turn in the contract was Thursday, March 20. We are unable to allow students into the Sixth/Seventh grade dance who do not have a Dance Contract. We set this deadline as we have to ensure we have proper staffing for the number of students attending.

Are You Taking Extra Time Off of School Around Spring Break?

If you know that your student will be missing school around spring break, please have them complete a Preplanned Absence form. Your student can pick one up in the Attendance Office. Parents/guardians need to complete the top and bottom portions. Students will then take the form around to each of their teachers. When the form is complete, students will turn it into the Attendance office to have the absence excused.

ASB Fee Needed to Help Fund the ASB

Please consider paying a small Eckstein Associated Student Body (ASB) fee to help support:

• Eagle Night dances
• Spirit Weeks
• Lunchtime activities
• Assembly speakers
• Hot cocoa and cold lemonade mornings
• Birthday beads
• And more!

We ask that families pay the $10 ASB fee on SchoolPay to help support these endeavors. You can also send $10 check or cash with your student to the Main Office. We have only had about 50% of our normal participation rate this year in funding our main fundraiser.

Eckstein PTSA is Seeking Volunteers to Join the Nominating Committee

We are looking for volunteers in our Eckstein community to join our nominating committee for board members for the 2025-2026 school year. This committee will present a slate of candidates by the end of the current school year for the PTSA membership to vote on for the 2025-2026 Eckstein PTSA Board. The committee’s role is to distribute information on board positions, provide information to prospective board members and organize the interested parties. It is a short-term time commitment, but a high-impact role in helping ensure our PTSA has capacity to continue our important work to support our students, staff and family. To volunteer or learn more about this work, please reach out via email to president@ecksteineaglesptsa.org.

Call for Logo Design Submissions for EMS 75th Anniversary

Do you have skills in graphic arts? Are you interested in being part of Eckstein history? The committee planning events to celebrate Eckstein’s 75th anniversary has the job for you. The committee needs a logo to use in communications about the anniversary and on any associated merchandise such as stickers, t-shirts, etc. The logo should incorporate one or more of the features that makes Eckstein unique – architecture, Eagles mascot, or people – and include both the school’s name and 75th anniversary in it. The logo may be in black and white or color. Please email submissions to Jessica Levine jclevine@seattleschools.org by Friday, April 4. Thanks for helping this effort!

Celebrate Earth Day by Recycling Plastic Film

Do you know that 7 trillion plastic bags are used every year worldwide? Thanks to efforts by our sixth graders and our amazing science teachers, we can help ensure plastic bags and other film don’t end up in the environment by joining the Eckstein Plastic Film Drive. Eckstein is keeping Plastic Film from landfills with Ridwell this spring! As part of this limited-time drive, you can bring these types of Plastic Film to school now – May 6th and Ridwell will make sure they stay out of landfills and are turned into new decking materials instead! Start collecting these items at home now. Collections will take place in the main office and in the bins marked in the science hallway.

You can also help Eckstein recycle our school’s Plastic Film for the entire ‘25/’26 school year! Be sure to join Ridwell with an at-home membership by May 23rd, 2025. If we sign up 10 or more new members by this date, we will be awarded monthly Plastic Film pickups for our school next year! We did this last year, lets do it again! If you’ve been thinking about subscribing to Ridwell, this is a great opportunity to double your environmental impact! Also, we could use a few extra volunteers to help with this drive in the coming weeks. If you are interested in helping out, please contact jclevine@seattleschools.org.

Save your Stuff and Save the Date!

Get a jumpstart on your spring cleaning! Eckstein Middle School’s Annual Band Rummage Sale is on Saturday, April 26th, from 9am—3pm. This is one of the band program’s biggest fundraisers of the year, and we need your donations to make this event a success! Please set aside your gently used clothing, household items, books, music, small furniture, sporting goods, and more. All All donations accepted on Friday, April 25 from 1:30-6:30pm   in the Eckstein cafeteria (3003 NE 75th Street). Donations that we will accept. Please share with neighbors, friends, and family. We need your help to make this event a success for our incredible music program.

Attendance Matters

Keep Your Child On Track in Middle School: Pay Attention to Attendance Build Routines

Showing up for school has a huge impact on a student’s academic success. Even as children grow older and more independent, families play a key role in making sure students get to school every day and understand why attendance is so important for success in school and on the job.

Did You Know?

• Students should miss no more than 9 days of school each year to stay engaged, successful and on track to graduation.
• Frequent absences can be a sign that a student is losing interest in school, struggling with school work, dealing with a bully or facing some other difficulty.
• By 6th grade, absenteeism is one of three signs that a student may drop out of high school.
• By 9th grade, attendance is a better predictor of graduation rates than 8th grade test scores.
• Missing 10%, or 2 days a month, over the course of the school year, can affect a student’s academic success.

What You Can Do

• Encourage your students to join meaningful after-school activities, including sports and clubs.
• Talk about the importance of showing up to school every day.
• Help your children maintain daily routines, such as finishing homework and getting a good night’s sleep.
• Try not to schedule dental and non-urgent related medical appointments during the school day.
• Keep your student healthy. If you are concerned about a contagious illness, call your school or health care provider.
• If your children must stay home because they are sick, make sure they have asked teachers for resources and materials to make up for the missed learning time in the classroom.
• Find out if your children feel engaged by their classes, and feel safe from bullies and other threats.
• Monitor your students’ academic progress and seek help from teachers and tutors when necessary.
• Stay on top of your students’ social contacts. Peer pressure can lead to skipping school.

Next Debate Club starts April 1, 2025

We will have another session of Debate Club with Climb the Mountain starting on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. It will meet from about 3:55 pm – 5:30 pm on April 1, 8, 22, 29, May 6 and 13. May 20 is an optional prep meeting for the tournament.

The fee is $300. Scholarships are available. Please email the Eckstein social worker, Ms. Davenport at esdavenport@seattleschools.org.

• Students engage in the MS Public Forum Debate using quotation based debate going indepth on the national debate topic.
• Students will learn how to debate with step by step instruction and engage in practice debates with extensive feedback.
• Students typically need to spend 30 to 60 minutes to prepare for each class day (except no preparation needed for the first day).
• Students can also sign up for the Seattle U tournament as a culminating experience (additional $75 approx fee). Tournament date options for middle school debate include Fri May 23 (online), Sat May 24 (at Seattle U), or Sun May 25 (at Seattle U).

 Learn more about debate and register

Needs and Leads with Ms. Davenport, School Social Worker

Thank you for donations! Community Cupboard could use more socks, shampoo/conditioner and we are now getting low on water bottles and backpacks. Community Cupboard supplies: Amazon Wishlist

For summer program scholarships, you can apply through the Assistance League for up to $500 : https://www.assistanceleague.org/seattle/enrichment-scholarships/# Reach out if you need help applying.

LEEP Lakeside summer program application for rising 9th grade students closes on April 1^{st. LEEP: Lakeside Educational Enrichment Program (Grades 6 and 9) – Lakeside School}

The next Community Cupboard pick-up will be during Student Led Conferences in Portable 9, 9am-3pm.

Erica Davenport
Social Worker, MSW
Eckstein Middle School
Work phone 206-252-5098
esdavenport@seattleschools.org

Save the Date

• Student-Led Conferences – March 27, 2025 – No school for Eckstein Students Only.
  Learn more about Student-Led Conferences.
• Eckstein Band Rummage Sale – April 26, 2025 (9-3 pm)
• Eighth Grade Promotion Celebration – June 17, 2025, 5- & Eighth Grade Cruise – June 18, 2025