Spartan Gazette
Indian Mound Middle School
Greetings From Aaron Tarnutzer
Why Was This School Built?
It may seem obvious to you why this school was built, but the staff of IMMS has spent a great deal of time discussing this important question. We asked ourselves this question and a few others including “What is our fundamental purpose?” and “What have we been brought here to do together?” as we developed our school mission statement. The purpose of creating a mission is to clarify our priorities and sharpen our focus. The process included time for staff members to share their personal thoughts and to discuss their ideas as teams. A group of building leaders, the Middle School Council, used this information to create this mission statement:
The mission of Indian Mound Middle School is to develop globally engaged and resilient citizens who are critical thinkers, collaborators, and curious learners.
This mission statement may seem simple to you, but I can tell you that we had some long and passionate discussions about each and every word. Since this mission statement is ultimately about your children, I thought you might appreciate a little explanation of some of the highlights:
· Globally engaged: We recognize that technology has shrunk our world. We previously wanted our students to be globally aware including having knowledge of different cultures. Our mission now is to give students experience with other parts of the world such that they can do so in their life beyond school.
· Resilient: We know our students will face challenges throughout their lives and we want them to have the tools they need to face these challenges and be successful.
· Critical thinkers: Our role is not simply to depart our wisdom and have the students memorize it. We want our students to encounter a variety of situations and challenges and be able to think through the problem and make a reasoned decision.
· Collaborators: The jobs of today and tomorrow require that our students are able to work together not only to accomplish a given task, but to create things one could not do by themselves.
· Curious learners: Curiosity is the key to lifelong learning. Our mission is to develop and nurture a passion for learning such that they will seek out information and new experiences throughout their life.
We hope that when you see this mission statement you feel it aligns with your child’s experience at IMMS. Of course, we know we can always improve and we welcome your thoughts on how we are doing. Thank you for your involvement in your child(ren)’s education!
Aaron Tarnutzer
IMMS Principal
MYC and IMMS Host Shared Table Meal
Guidance News: 8th Grade Students Register for High School
With the start of the New Year comes the impending transition to High School for our IMMS 8th graders. This is a very exciting time full of choices and uncertainties. These decisions can be supported and anxious times alleviated through active involvement for students and their parents in the decision making process. Therefore, it will be crucial to keep in mind some important dates when looking to allow for an efficient and successful transition:
Wednesday, February 3rd: MHS counselors will present important High School registration information to 8th graders in their Social Studies class.
Wednesday, February 10th: Parent Orientation Meeting & tour at MHS from 6:00pm - 8:00pm. ALL PARENTS/GUARDIANS OF 8TH GRADERS AND 8TH GRADE STUDENTS ARE URGED TO ATTEND.
Friday, February 19th: Registration for high school classes must be complete on Career Cruising and a printout is due to the student’s Social Studies teacher.
If you have any questions, please call Jill Runde at 838-4577 – she will be most happy to help!
Talent Show
"Overture, Cue the Lights, This Is It, The Night of Nights..." Who has talent? The students & staff of IMMS have talent! All are welcome to come join the fun on Friday, March 18, 2016 as Indian Mound students perform, sing, dance…and entertain! Will there be some staff surprises again this year? Performance application forms are due February 19th and auditions are scheduled in the lunchroom after school on Tuesday, February 23rd. Please direct your questions to Mr. Kramer at 838-4576.
December Student of the Month Winners
6th Grade Science News
Here Mr. Mandli shows the phases of carbon dioxide using water and dry ice.
Student Council News
The Indian Mound Middle School Student Council has had a busy semester with projects that focus on the 5 S’s of Leadership (Students, Service, Staff, Senior Citizens, & Student Council). Let’s recap as we look forward to second semester…A big THANKS goes out to our officers, Will Karls, Laetitia Hollard, & Shaleah Yang for being such great leaders & helpers.
We had a very successful all-school dance & open gym thanks to everyone’s positive energy, parent & staff volunteer chaperones, & Student Council workers. We’ll have another dance in March.
Our Fuel Up to Play 60 committee sponsored a Green Bay Packers Milk Mustache Picture Party and all those dairy smiles fueled a lot of laughs as well as a Packers’ win. Our Morgan Burnett autographed football was awarded to Aaron Landphier for his dedicated participation in Fuel Up to Play 60. Visit the FUTP 60 website for lots of great ideas.
The Students & families of IMMS supported a food drive and donated 298 ponds of food to the McFarland Food Pantry. Thank you for caring!
The Indian Mound Student Council cohosted the Region 5 leadership conference sponsored by the Wisconsin Association of School Councils (WASC) and helped more than 500 middle school students (themselves included) have a fun & worthwhile experience.
The WASC offers an unbelievable summer camp experience that ALL IMMS students (not just Student Council) are encouraged to attend:
Whether you're involved in student council, the national honor society, the drama club, a sports team, the school musical, cheerleading, or your local FFA — WASC camp is for you! In fact, the camp programs are for anyone who wants to improve their leadership skills!
Middle School Camps: Levels 1, 2 & 3 — July 10-14, 2016 (http://www.wasc.org/camp/)
LEVEL 1: LEARN – July 10-14, 2016 During the Level 1 experience, students will participate in fun activities focused on skills essential for the middle level including: building self-esteem and self-advocacy skills, learning what it means to be a leader, and ways to create exciting and interesting student activities.
LEVEL 2: ENGAGE – July 10-14, 2016 (for those who did level one last summer) Team building, goal setting, communication, and organization are key components to being an engaged leader. Participants at this level will have the opportunity to explore concepts of leadership, improve their leadership skills in a creative, engaged way, and gain a better understanding of self and sensitivity to others.
All IMMS students will receive $50 scholarships to attend camp. Please contact Mr. Kramer for details.
Blue Notes and IMMS Choir Perform at Assembly
Request From Health Services
In order to get an accurate accounting of student illnesses, Health Services is requesting that when you call an absence in for your child, please specify if they are ill and what their illness is. Also, please continue to specify vacations, parent request (not an illness), funeral, etc.
Indian Mound Middle School
Email: TarnutA@mcfsd.org
Website: http://www.mcfarland.k12.wi.us/schools/middle/
Location: 6330 Exchange Street, McFarland, WI, United States
Phone: (608)838-8980
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Indian-Mound-Middle-School-McFarland-WI/204736889672509?ref=hl
Twitter: @ATarnutzer_IMMS