Incoming 6th Grade Information for Families

Slide 1 – Title Slide
Alt text: Title slide reading “Welcome to MacDonald Middle School” with Principal Amy Martin.

Slide 2 – Student Supports
Alt text: Overview of student support staff including associate principal, guidance counselors for each grade, dean of student success, student success specialist, restorative practices coordinator, special education social worker, and safety team.

Slide 3 – Middle School Schedule
Alt text: Explanation of the middle school schedule including team structure, four core classes, required electives (PE and Tech Essentials), optional electives like band and art, daily Trojan Time, start times, and sixth grade entrance location.

Slide 4 – Lunch and Noon Recreation
Alt text: Description of lunch procedures including team-based lunches, two lunch lines with pizza available, and noon recreation options like the media center, sports, or social time in the gym.

Slide 5 – Extracurricular Activities (Sports)
Alt text: List of sports opportunities including cross country, track and field, archery, volleyball, and basketball, with some sports available through school teams and others through community clubs.

Slide 6 – Extracurricular Activities (Clubs)
Alt text: Examples of after-school clubs including Science Olympiad, Book Club, Math Counts, Art Club, World Language Club, and Theater Club.

Slide 7 – Extracurricular Activities (Additional Clubs)
Alt text: Additional club options including Cooking Club, Christian Student Union, Robotics, Club SJ 4All, Club Unified, Dungeons and Dragons, and intramural sports.

Slide 8 – Lockers
Alt text: Information about student lockers, including that lockers are assigned with attached locks, staff can help if combinations are forgotten, and students should secure their belongings.

Slide 9 – Math Course Flowchart
Alt text: Math course progression overview presented by an East Lansing High School math department representative showing typical middle school math pathways.

Slide 10 – Sixth Grade Registration
Alt text: Notice that sixth grade elective registration forms will be sent to families on March 19 and are due March 26.

Slide 11 – The Drink (Social Media Analogy)
Alt text: Image of a bottle used as an analogy introducing the topic of social media and its effects on students.

Slide 12 – Social Media Side Effects
Alt text: Slide listing potential negative effects associated with social media use such as anxiety, depression, bullying, lower motivation, and poor school performance.

Slide 13 – Mental Health Impact
Alt text: Slide emphasizing a dramatic increase in lifelong mental health disorders associated with social media use.

Slide 14 – Impact Across Backgrounds
Alt text: Slide explaining that social media impacts can occur regardless of trauma history, demographics, family income, or family structure.

Slide 15 – Social Pressure
Alt text: Slide illustrating common peer pressure statements children may hear about social media, such as “all my friends have it” or “everyone else’s parents allow it.”

Slide 16 – Parent Reflection Question
Alt text: Slide asking parents to consider whether they would give their child a product with these types of side effects, continuing the social media analogy.

Slide 17 – Social Media Topic Introduction
Alt text: Slide showing a bottle labeled “Social Media,” introducing the topic of social media use among students.

Slide 18 – Social Media Failed Experiment
Alt text: Slide describing social media use with the phrase “failed experiment,” highlighting concerns about its effects on young people.

Slide 19 – Parent Resources
Alt text: Slide providing links to parental control resources for iOS and Android devices.

Slide 20 – Upcoming Dates
Alt text: Key transition dates including fifth grade classroom visits by middle school staff, fifth grade school visits, elective registration timeline, Middle School 101 camp, and back-to-school orientation.

Slide 21 – Contact Information
Alt text: Contact information for Principal Amy Martin and Associate Principal John Atkinson for questions about MacDonald Middle School.

Slide 22 – Closing Slide
Alt text: Closing message thanking families for attending and welcoming incoming students to the MacDonald Middle School community.