Sikeston Junior High to host community open house to give public glimpse into the classroom

SIKESTON -- Sikeston Junior High School is giving community members the chance to go back to school and see what it's like to be a seventh and eighth grader in 2016.

A community open house is planned for Nov. 2 at the Sikeston Junior High School. Registration is required by Oct. 25 and limited to the first 20 adults.

"Within the district and each building, we want to reach out to the community and build those bridges," said Junior High Building Principal Frank Staple. "We value the community and how it partners with us and want to do this for them."

The idea to have an open house for the community came about as administrators were brainstorming ways to bring parents and community members in the school, Staple said.

"We want people to see what we do every day so they can have an idea of what goes on in the classroom," Staple said.

Other than driving past the building, many patrons haven't seen the inner workings of the school, the building principal pointed out.

"This is our first go-around with a community open house, and we'll start small and make adjustments as we go," Staple said.

However, those who register to attend the open house will arrive at 9 a.m. and can expect to break into groups of four or five people to tour classrooms and see students and teachers in action, according to Staple.

"We've blocked out two classroom hours of the day -- during our second and third periods -- and participants will have some time afterward to talk to administrators," Staple said.

The goal at Junior High is to help students be college and career ready in life and prepare for high school, Staple said.

"We work on building the whole student," he said.

He anticipates the open house being completed by around 11:30 a.m.

"We want them to see our teachers in action and the different programs we offer," Staple said.

Among those programs are DRAFT, which stands for Developing Relationships and Focus Teaching.

"DRAFT is one thing we've implemented this year," Staple said.

He'd also like visitors to learn about the school's Professional Learning Community, or PLC, which is driven by four questions: What do we want students to learn?; How will we know when they learn it?; What will we do when they have learned it?; and What will we do when they haven't learned it?

Those who attend the open house will also learn about the Junior High's Positive Behavior Support; its 1:1 initiative; and the iLead team, which is a group of teachers that focuses on and best enhancing teachers, the building principal said.

"There are a lot of assemblies coming up, too," Staple said. "We will have a Veterans Day assembly at the Junior High this year."

Open house attendees will receive a more in-depth look at how the school runs, he said.

"This is something that we will build upon, and we're excited," Staple said. "We're here to serve the community, and we want them to be a part of our school."

For more information or to secure a spot to participate in the open house, call 573-471-1720. The school is unable to accommodate children.