Olympia Middle School

Today, Friday, February 14th all Olympia schools will begin one hour late due to the extreme cold.

Family Tip 3: Role-play. If kids feel like they might have trouble removing themselves from digital drama, experiment with some different ways they can make a graceful exit. Talk through words they can use, ways they can steer conversations in positive directions, etc.

All Olympia activities are cancelled for today, February 13th. All Olympia buildings are closed today as well.

All after school activities are cancelled for tonight, February 12th. Please be safe on your way home.

Q&A Time! bit.ly/OlyCBQ1 Responding to Haters & Trolls Online. Finding out that your kid has been cyberbullied is emotional. You or your kid might want to retaliate, but it's best to help your kid defuse the situation, and make rational efforts to put a stop to the bullying.

Family Tip 2: Check in about online life. Just like you'd ask your kid about their sleep, exercise, and eating, stay on top of their online life. Who are they chatting with? How do people treat each other in the games and on the sites they're using?

OMS Phone Number | We are aware that a Google search for OMS displays the incorrect building phone #. We have requested a change. In the meantime, our number (309-379-5941) is correct on the OMS website.

Family Tip 1: Define your terms. Make sure kids understand what cyberbullying is: repeated and unwanted mean or hurtful words or behavior that occurs online (through texts, social media posts, online chat, etc.).

Once kids go online, their chances of finding cyberbullies, haters, and trolls is, sadly, quite high. Find age-specific guidelines, videos, and articles to help with tough conversations -- whether your kid is a bully or is being bullied. Common Sense Media addresses your cyberbullying questions, offering age-appropriate advice, school resources, and more from parents and experts. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/cyberbullying

MS Volleyball at home tonight 2/5/20 is cancelled.

JV Girls Basketball in the BCC tournament today 2/5/20 has been cancelled.

MS Performance was GREAT! Last performance is Sunday the 2nd at 2pm.

Fam Tip 5: Choose a Variety of Sources Show kids how you get news & information from different places, & explain how you make your choices. Use words like "credible," "trustworthy," "respected," and "fair." As kids get older, introduce the ideas of bias, satire, and clickbait.

Have you been keeping up with our News and Media Literacy suggestions? Here are some questions that you could use as discussion prompts to see how things are sinking in! bit.ly/OlyNMQ

When we get news from our social media feeds, it often only tells us part of the story. Our friends - and the website's algorithms - tend to feed us perspectives we already agree with. Escape the filter bubble and have your ideas challenged! https://youtu.be/mh1dLvGe06Y

Thank you to the St. Joseph Ogden Spartans for teaming up with the Olympia Spartans in supporting the Olympia to Peoria St. Jude Run. #SpartansLoveSt.Jude @SJOBoysHoops, @OLYMBB

Family Tip 4: Discuss Fact vs. Opinion! Play with ideas and decide which are facts and which are opinions. Ask: How tall are you? What's the best food in the world? Do you like dogs? Point out that both fact and opinion show up in the news, but opinion is usually(!) labeled.

Due to slick roads and dense fog, Olympia schools will have a one hour late start today (Friday, Jan. 24, 2020)

Fearless Fact Finding! Check out this list of trustworthy resources to help you learning what's true (and what is not!) on the web. You can even use one of them to look back in time and what was on a website in the past!

Wikipedia.org is where millions of people stop first for information. Tools like it are what make the internet so valuable. But they also teach an important lesson, one you can start teaching your kids now: don’t believe everything you read. Family Tip Sheet: bit.ly/OlyNMFR2