WMS Family Smore

To translate this newsletter, please use the link to the right.

Para traduzir este boletim, clique nele e use o link à direita.

Para traducir este boletín, haga clic en él y luego use el enlace a la derecha.

لترجمة هذه الرسالة من المدرسة ، اضغط عليها ثم استخدم الرابط الموجود على اليمين.

Այս տեղեկագիրը թարգմանելու համար կտտացրեք այն, ապա օգտագործեք աջ կողմում գտնվող հղումը:

Чтобы перевести этот бюллетень, нажмите на него, затем воспользуйтесь ссылкой справа.

Bu bülteni çevirmek için üzerine tıklayın ve ardından sağdaki bağlantıyı kullanın.

I hope you are enjoying time with loved ones. As we head into 2023, it is a natural season to re--establish a sense of community and remember how to daily live out our SOARS principles: Success, Ownership, Achievement, Respect, and Service. We will have a special schedule on January 3 and 4 - more information below. One important thing you can help us with: remind your children to charge and pack their chromebooks for us to take our mid-year i-ready diagnostics.

Covid Tests were sent home prior to the vacation week. I encourage you to test students prior to the return to school, especially if you have traveled and/or spent time with many people. As covid, the flu and cold season is here, we remind all of our WMS families to practice healthy habits. This includes hand washing, using hand sanitizer, coughing/sneezing into the elbow, and wearing masks. Thank you for helping keep our whole school community safe and healthy. See Superintendent Galdston's seasonal flu/COVID update here.

Here are some other quick announcements:

• We want to remind families how seriously we take safety at school. Students may not have weapons or toy weapons on school grounds. This includes pocket knives or toy guns such as orbeez (see picture above). Reach out to myself or Officer Anna Margaryan with any questions.
  
• Thank you for your feedback in completing our 5 Essentials surveys - we received parent/caregiver feedback from 38% of our population. We will share results, analysis of results, and next steps in the coming months.
  
• Check out some pictures below from our Geography Bee - congratulations Eduardo!
• Assistant Principal Susan Carle is returning this week to WMS! Huge thank you to Interim Assistant Principal Patrick Dayton for your heart and service the first half of this year. In the next two weeks, we will be working hard to smoothly transition as Mr. Dayton joins the ISP program as a Special Educator.

Here are some other dates to be aware of this week:

• January 3-4: Special schedule for WMS, with advisory and i-ready midyear diagnostics in the morning, shortened classes in the afternoon.

• January 3: School Site Council - agenda (7:00pm, virtual)

• January 5: Bookmobile parked at WMS Main Entrance (3:15-4:30pm)

Respectfully yours,

Ms. Jennifer Chen Fein, Principal

Ms. Jennifer Sarmiento, Assistant Principal (Clusters 2, 4, 6)

Ms. Susan Carle, Assistant Principal (Clusters 1, 3, 5)

Mr. Patrick Dayton, Interim Assistant Principal (Clusters 1, 3, 5)

On January 3 and 4, students will start their morning in advisories. This will allow us to re-establish routines as we re-enter a new year. We will then take i-ready midyear diagnostics, with Reading on January 3, and Math on January 4. These diagnostics give us important information about what students have learned and what they still need work on as we prepare to place students in WIN classes for the second half of the year. We ask that parents/caregivers help remind your children to charge their chromebooks fully before coming back to school on January 3rd.

We will start the day at 8:30am with students in advisory groupings for the morning. Then we will have shortened periods of each class for the rest of the school day.

Dear 8th Grade Families,

For those interested, WMS is offering a program for our 8th grade students called “Meeting Myself”. This program will be run by Wayside Counselors with the support of School Counselors and School Mental Health Clinicians. “Meeting Myself” is focused on helping students make positive choices as they navigate adolescence. Specific topics will include self-identity, self-esteem, substance use, and managing stress and peer pressure.

Please look at the attached flier for more information.

Join us on Wednesday, January 18th from 7-8pm for a Zoom Q&A with Christina Lupica, Youth Engagement Specialist with Wayside Youth and Family Support Network. We can answer any questions pertaining to this program.

​​Join Zoom Meeting

https://watertown-k12-ma-us.zoom.us/j/87335466752

Click on the link below to find updates from your child's teachers. These cluster/class smores are a helpful tool to know what your child is learning. These s'mores are shared and updated every other week in the WMS Family Smore.

Cluster 1

Cluster 2

Cluster 3

Cluster 4

Cluster 5

Cluster 6

The Specialists

Reading

ELD/Phonics

Connections

LB Math

Wilson Reading

We live in New England, and whether we love them or hate them, snow days may be just around the corner. As such, please review the information contained in this section regarding school closure protocols. State law requires 180 days of instruction and also requires that any school closures (“snow days”) be made up before June 30. In the case of inclement weather or school closure for emergency reasons, information about school closures can be found at this link.

In the event that a student is absent, a parent or caregiver must call the absence hotline at 617-926-7783 before 8:30 a.m. Please state the name, grade, homeroom of the student and the reason for their absence. In the event that the absence is not reported, a Robocall will automatically go out to the student’s home or the place of employment of the parent or caregiver to inform them that the student is absent. Students are responsible for working with their teachers to make up work they missed while absent.

Check out page 26 of the WMS Family Handbook to see all of our attendance procedures in more detail.

The WMS SSC meets once a month on the first Tuesdays at 7:00pm, virtually. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. Here is our agenda, with our K-7 and 8-12 Math Coordinators coming as special guests.

The PTO meets virtually on the second Wednesday of each month, and the next meeting is on Wednesday, January 11 at 7pm. Reach out to the PTO President Erin Macomber at erin_macomber@neds.org with any questions or to express interest.

The WMS Diversity Council meets once a month on the third Thursdays at 7:00pm virtually, with the next meeting on January 19. We will be focusing on actionable steps outlined in the district equity audit taken last school year.

Reach out to Jen Sarmiento at jennifer.sarmeinto@watertown.k12.ma.us to express interest in joining or with any questions.

The Bookmobile is coming! Starting in January, the Bookmobile (aka The Speed Reader) will be making regular stops at Watertown Middle School.

If you haven’t been able to get to the Watertown Free Public Library, the library is now coming to you. We’ll be able to check out books, get new library cards, learn about library services and talk to friendly librarians.

Catch the Speed Reader in the WMS Waverly Ave front parking lot on the first Thursday of each month from 3:15-4:30pm. Upcoming dates include:

• January 5
• February 2
• March 2

In the event of inclement weather, Bookmobile service will be cancelled.

Watertown Recreation winter sports are live! There are several indoor and outdoor options.

Please see here for the entire Watertown Rec brochure- pages 8-11 focus on middle-school aged activities. The Ski Program is completely full but if there is enough interest from more students, they will add an additional bus! In the meantime, students can still get a discounted ticket to the mountain and provide their own transportation.

Lastly, the City of Watertown has Boston Bruins and Boston Celtics tickets for any resident or employee of Watertown. See here for Bruins and here for Celtics. Tickets are first come first serve.

• December 26-January 2: Winter Recess - No School
  

• January 3-4: Special schedule for WMS, with advisory and i-ready midyear diagnostics in the morning, shortened classes in the afternoon.

• January 3: School Site Council (7:00pm, virtual)

• January 5: Bookmobile parked at WMS Main Entrance (3:15-4:30pm)

• January 11: PTO Meeting (7:00pm, virtual)

• January 13: PD Day - No School
  

• January 16: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day - No School

• January 18-22: ACCESS Testing for English Learners

• January 18th: "Meeting Myself" Zoom Q&A session for 8th grade caregivers with Wayside Youth and Family Support Network (7-8pm)

• February 2: Bookmobile parked at WMS Main Entrance (3:15-4:30pm)

• March 2: Bookmobile parked at WMS Main Entrance (3:15-4:30pm)

• Watertown Public Schools Calendar 2022-2023
  

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter

Website: https://wms.watertown.k12.ma.us/
Location: 68 Waverley Avenue, Watertown, MA, USA
Phone: 617-926-7783