Westwood Intermediate/Middle School
September 22, 2021 - Newsletter
See translation information below / Consulte la información de traducción a continuación.
Westwood Families,
We are well on our way into this school year. I have had the opportunity to be in each classroom over the last few weeks. The students are in their routines and understanding schedules.
Next Tuesday, September 28, we will host an online curriculum night. Teachers will provide a narrated presentation you can access that will introduce themselves to you and cover the major learning outcomes for the year, schedules, and grading. If you have questions after watching the presentation, you can join an optional live question and answer session with your child’s teachers live on WebEx. Find the links to each teacher/team’s WebEx in this curriculum night schedule and note the times:
- 5-5:45 p.m. - Grade 7 and center-based teams
- 5:30-6:15 p.m. - Grade 8 teams
- 6:15-6:45 p.m. - Grade 7 and 8 elective teachers and Grade 5 and 6 specialists
- 6:45-7:30 p.m.- Grade 5 teams
- 7:15-8 p.m. - Grade 6 teams
On October 6 and 7, we will use a tool called Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) to check in on student learning progress. This is an assessment tool that helps us understand student growth over time in reading and math. Our intent is that this isn’t a stressful activity but is one input for us to use to personalize learning for each student. Find more information in today’s newsletter and reach out with questions.
Parent/teacher conferences are also coming in October. The purpose of the fall conference is to share the learning profile and map with parents and seek information about your child that will help them to learn and grow this year. Detailed information on sign-up for parent teacher conferences will be coming in the October 6 newsletter.
I am happy to report the TikTok challenge has calmed down. Thank you to our students and families for reporting any Westwood TikToks to us so we can follow up.
Thank you for your continued support,
Tom Larson
Principal
Update immunizations by November 1
Minnesota School Immunization Laws currently require all students enrolled in school to be immunized against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTap/Td/Tdap), polio, measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), Hepatitis B, and varicella (chickenpox). One dose of the meningococcal (MCV) vaccine is due in 7th grade, and a booster dose at age 16.
Students whose immunizations are not up to date by Monday, November 1 will be excluded from school until their immunizations are current.
If you have questions about whether or not your child is due for immunizations, please contact their healthcare provider. If you are interested in access to low-income options for vaccines, please reach out to Anoka County Public Health at 763-324-4240.
Reminder: Send students to school with a face mask
Washington D.C. Field Trip - Parent meeting
8th grade students have the opportunity to attend a four-day, three-night trip to Washington D.C. May 11-14, 2021-2022 school year. This is an optional trip that allows students the chance to see our country’s past, present, and future through monuments, museums, memorials, and historical sites.
Students will be receiving information in their 8th grade social studies class. This provides an overview of the trip, the company we travel with, and the financial information. You can also view the trip information here.
If you and your student are interested, please join us for an informational meeting Today, September 22 at 5:30 p.m. in the Panther Den (Media Center). If you prefer to attend virtually, please use Ms. Visser WebEx Link.
Checking in on student progress using MAP
Westwood students will participate in the MAP Growth assessments for reading and math on October 6 and 7. Each subject takes about 45 minutes. There is no need for special preparation.
Students in Spanish Immersion programming participate in these assessment in English and Spanish in alternating years (Grade 3 in English, Grade 4 in Spanish, Grade 5 in English, etc.) to be able to check on progress in both languages.
Teachers will use this information to personalize learning experiences and will share information with families during upcoming conferences. Our school and district use information from these assessments to look at overall math and reading performance over time. This helps us determine how learning is going for all students.
Please reach out to your child's teacher or contact our main office, 763-600-5300, if you have questions.
Announcement of Game Coming, Starting September 27
Win $500 for your school and $50 Panther Store gift card for you! Starting Monday, September 27 visit the sweepstakes page to enter the daily Panther Pride Sweepstakes. Show your Panther Pride and Spirit by answering a trivia question daily, September 27 – October 6. Families can enter one time each day and can include all students in the family. A student winner and a staff winner for each school will be drawn on Thursday, October 7 and winners will be acknowledged at the Spring Lake Park High School Homecoming game on Friday, October 8. Good luck!
Starting the year with PE!
The middle school PE department had a fun start to the school year. They kicked off the year with lots of team building and collaborative games that required students to work together, encourage one another and get to know each other. Communication and problem solving skills were used in many games to help them complete fun challenges.
The next Westwood PTO Meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 25 at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom.
We are looking forward to working with all of our parents and families this year to support the staff and students at Westwood.
Visit the PTO Facebook page: Westwood Intermediate and Middle School PTO
- Click here to receive email notifications about Westwood PTO.
Fall Fundraiser is coming!
We are excited to team up with Club's Choice again this year to raise funds for our PTO. These fundraising efforts are used for enrichment items or activities for our students throughout the school year. Please see our fundraiser flyer here.
This year's fundraiser will start on Wednesday, September 29. Students will received their fundraising packet on this day in their homeroom or Panther time.
Thank you for your support!
- Wednesday, September 22, 5:30 p.m. - Washington D.C. Field Trip, Parent Meeting, WW Den
- Tuesday, September 28 - Curriculum Night, please see above for times
- Wednesday, October 6 and Thursday, October 7 - MAP Testing
- Monday, October 11 - Westwood's Picture Day
Celebrating our retirees
Congratulations to the 25 staff members who retired during the 2020 and 2021 school years and who were honored and recognized at yesterday's retirement event. As a learning community, we gather to recognize their tremendous contributions to our schools and community and celebrate their next steps with them.
Read more as staff members shared words they wanted to convey to our Spring Lake Park Schools community about their journey and plans for the future.
In case you missed important information from last week's newsletter, check out the topics below and click to learn more.
Translate This Message / Traducir Este Mensaje
To translate this information to another language, please click anywhere on the message to open it in a web browser and at the top of the page, select your language from the dropdown menu.
Para traducir la información a otro idioma, por favor presionen en cualquier lugar del mensaje para abrirlo en un navegador web y en la parte superior de la página seleccione su idioma del menú.