Welcome back - South Cinco

We were happy to have everyone back at South this morning, hopefully, refreshed--and germ-free--after a week away!

(1.) Student report cards were due back, signed by a parent or guardian, before the break. Please send that in if you haven't already done so. 
This month, South Middle School also received our report card! The state's school & district report cards are available for review on the DESE website. There is a link for families' convenience on the South website, under the About Us section. Please let me know if you have any questions about our report card, or would like to discuss further.

(2.) There is still time to donate to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital to support childhood cancer research, as well as children with cancer and their families. This is an annual fundraiser organized by Ms. Mac and supported by South's Student Council for this noble cause. Everyone's support is greatly appreciated!
(3.) Over the break, I noticed at home how hard it was for my kids to get off their devices--and for me too! Videos and social media posts scrolled from one to the next and time flew by before we noticed. Even when we settled down to watch a movie together, I kept checking my phone and my son slowly drifted back to his tablet. When I tried to get someone to take the dogs for a walk with me, you would think I had asked them to go to the dentist or take a polar plunge! Jonathan Haidt's book might have been better titled "The No Attention Generation" because it really shines a light on how cell phones & social media attract our attention and disrupt our focus, even from things we enjoy.
Tomorrow night is the second meeting of the book club to discuss The Anxious Generation. You do not need to read the book to participate in this valuable discussion! Tomorrow's discussion will focus on adolescents' use of cell phones and social media, which Haidt covers in chapters 5-8, but there are other ways to get the crucial information:

• You can easily skim the bulletpoints at the end of each chapter to get the "Cliffnotes" version if you have the book but haven't read the 100 pages yet. 
• You can watch The Social Dilemma documentary on Netflix about how these apps and devices are designed to hook users, like an addiction. 
• Read this article about the psychology of addiction being used by our devices' & apps' algorithms to keep us hooked: "The Dark Psychology of Social Networks," by Jonathan Haidt & Tobias Rose-Stockwell (The Atlantic, December 2019)
• Read this article by another author: "Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?" by Jean Twenge (The Atlantic, September 2017). This article probably influenced Haidt's book, and Twenge's book, iGen, is next on my "To Read" pile!
• Read a quick article on Instagram's own research about its addictive qualities: "Social Media is Attention Alcohol," by Derek Thompson (The Atlantic, September 2021)

Then, join us tomorrow night, 2/25, at 7pm in the South Library Media Center to discuss what we've learned, what you have questions about or disagree with, and what we can do about all this! Don't worry if you missed the first meeting; several people said they couldn't come at the beginning but plan to join in now, so you haven't missed anything. The more voices we have sharing what you've seen with phones & social media--whatever you've read, heard, seen, or experienced yourself--the better our discussion will be!

(4.) Don't forget, Thursday is an early release day and dismissal will be at 11:45 AM for middle schools. Pre-order a Grab-N-Go lunch here!

(5.) With some major religious holidays approaching, please contact the Main Office to report any absences for religious observances. Religious absences are excused per district policy, but students should let their teachers know they'll be absent to plan any make-up work. Students are not expected to complete schoolwork on religious holidays, and we hope you'll enjoy time with family or in observance. If any in-school accommodation is required during religious holy days, please reach out to Guidance or Administration to discuss what's needed.