HMMS Happenings!
November 8, 2022
Dear HMMS Families,
Happy November! I hope you are all doing well and enjoying this wonderful season.
Our school community has been busy these last few weeks with many different academic and community offerings taking place. We greatly enjoyed spending the evening with families at Back to School Night a few weeks ago. Since then, our students have continued to engage in high-quality lessons that offer opportunities in hands-on learning, critical thinking, peer discussions and creative writing. And our after school clubs have had a positive start with students staying after to play games, make connections and be a part of positive service projects in our school!
Please see below for additional information and timely updates, including:
- HMMS Conference Days November 9 & 10
- Update on School Norms and Student Behavior
- After School Club Fees and Late Bus
- HMMS School Council November Meeting
- Update on HMMS Advisory and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)
- Private School Application Process
- Health Reminders from our Nurse's Office
Calendar reminders for the rest of this week:
- Wednesday (11/9) - Early Release Day for Students, Parent Conferences 11:15-2:10pm
- Thursday (11/10) - Early Release Day for Students, Parent Conferences 11:15-2:10pm
- Friday (11/11) - No School, Veteran's Day
As always, we have included Main Office contact information and "Important Dates to Remember" at the bottom of this newsletter.
Sincerely,
Ms. Motte
Principal
HMMS Conference Days November 9 & 10
Teachers are looking forward to their upcoming conference days with parents/guardians. If you have not yet signed up for a conference, please reach out directly to your child's team of teachers. We do not have enough time slots for all parents to meet with teachers on these days, however there are other options. If you would rather have a phone call, get an update via email, or schedule a time to meet with the teachers in the coming months please let the teachers know.
If you have a scheduled time during our November conference days, please arrive on time and be respectful of the ending time. We appreciate your help on this!
Visiting Author Highlights!
School Update: Behavior Norms & Expectations
Each year, we welcome our students back from their summer break and use the opening week of school for orientation. We expect to see a transition period as students adjust back into the rigor and routines of school life. We expected some additional transition time would be needed this year as students and staff returned to full-in person learning with COVID safety measures minimized.
As part of those orientation activities, we engage students in multiple conversations to understand our building norms and expectations. We do this through classroom conversations, grade level team meetings, and building-wide messaging. Administration and staff explain the role each of us can play to ensure a comfortable and safe community and a positive school experience for all. We provide support and reminders as needed and usually see our students become more independent in meeting expectations shortly thereafter. At times, the learning environment may be disrupted and we address those incidents on a case by case basis.
This year, we are finding that students are needing ongoing support and frequent reminders of building norms and expectations well into the school year. Gum chewing, cell phone use, and running in the hallways are common, repeated, daily violations. Respectful behavior toward peers and adults, school appropriate language, and maintaining physical boundaries ("keeping hands to yourself") continue to be disruptions we are seeing in our classrooms, hallways, bathrooms and buses.
To respond to this, we continue to implement proactive strategies as well as "marking the moment" to address student behavior as it occurs. Explicit conversations about respectful verbal and non-verbal communication, escorting students to and from lunch, and staggering dismissal to avoid large crowds are a few specific examples. Assigned tables at lunch for a period of time is another strategy we have used with multiple grades to reset behavior expectations.
In addition to proactive measures, we have and will continue to react to school behavior incidents by following our district procedures and issuing consequences when needed. This may include lunch detention, office referral and after school detention. Educational and restorative measures are also used whenever possible. When teachers see a pattern of behavior, they will reach out to notify families.
Ways that you can support at home are to have conversations with your child about school and community expectations and why they are important. If your child reports any concerning behavior they have witnessed, please reach out to a teacher or administrator to let us know. We are committed to building a positive school community and value your support and partnership in this work!
After School Club Fee & Late Buses
After School Club Fee
Throughout the month of October, students have had the ability to join different clubs to see if they are interested in joining. Now that we are up and running, we will be requiring a payment of $75 for students to join the clubs. This is a one-time fee to join as many clubs as possible.
The club fee can be paid with this website (search: Franklin Public School-->Extracurricular --> HMMS Extracurricular). A list of club offerings for this year is provided below.
Late Bus Information
The late bus is available for everyone. Students will let the bus drivers know where they live in order to be dropped off at or near their typical bus stop. There is a fee of $1 for any student who does not already pay to ride the bus (6th graders over 2 miles from HMMS and students who do not typically ride the bus). A pass can be purchased in the HMMS office each day.
HMMS Clubs for 2022-2023
HMMS School Council
Are you interested in joining in a conversation about our school community, what our goals are for this school year, and how we can ensure our building reflects our core values of COMMUNITY, GROWTH, ACHIEVEMENT and RESPECT?
With the school year underway, I would like to invite parents/guardians to attend our November School Council Meeting at Horace Mann Middle School. This meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 15, from 2:30-3:30 pm.
I would like to open up a conversation about how our school lobby and hallways reflect our current HMMS community. This will include a conversation about our building as a community space, the current artwork on display, and what ideas our students, staff and families have for updating these spaces.
School Council serves as an advisory group that meets with the school's administrative team. The Council provides valuable perspective and feedback about the school's short and long-term goals. The Council will meet monthly on Tuesday afternoons from 2:30-3:30pm.
After the 11/15 meeting, a schedule will be published for future dates and topics.
If you are interested in joining the November HMMS School Council meeting, or if you have any clarifying questions, please email Ms. Motte directly at motter@franklinps.net.
School Update: HMMS Advisory & SEL
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) for students continues to be an important focus for Horace Mann Middle School and the district. A vision statement developed by Franklin's SEL Committee states that: “The Franklin Public School District is an inclusive and respectful learning community committed to developing individuals who are kind, healthy, empathetic, and resilient.”
A revised middle school advisory program is one way that HMMS, RMS and ASMS are engaging all students in staff in a common Social Emotional Learning experience.
The goals of the MS Advisory program are to:
Provide opportunities for students to develop meaningful connections and build relationships with a small group of peers and their Advisory teacher
Directly teach and provide opportunities for the development and practice of SEL skills and Portrait of a Graduate skills
Celebrate differences and embrace inclusive practices in a safe place
Create a common shared experience for all students and staff with opportunities for ongoing input
Develop compassionate citizens who can effectively communicate their needs, ideas, and hopes and who feel an increased sense of belonging and purpose in the school community
In addition to SEL activities, Advisory has also provided a time for us to learn about the diverse identities and interests within our school community. Students have learned about Hispanic Heritage month, fall holidays such as Rosh Hashanah and Diwali, and also participated in STEM-based activities during STEM week.
We look forward to our continued work on our middle school Advisory program!
Reminder: Private School Applications
It is the time of year for private school applications and the need to meet specific timelines. While this information may not apply to the majority of our families, it is important to share our processes to anyone who may need it.
When applying to a private school, either for middle school or high school, there are certain timelines and requirements that need to be followed. Most schools have an application process, followed by requiring letters of recommendation and transcript requests from our school. This takes some time to complete for our teachers, counselors, and administrators.
We ask for families to provide at least 5 (school) days for requests to be processed by our school office and for the information to be funneled to the appropriate people. After that, we will complete letters of recommendation and transcript requests from there within another 10 (school) days.
If enough time is not given to process requests, there may be a delay in the information being shared with private schools. Please reach out with any questions about the process.
Health Reminders from the HMMS Nurses
As we enter the cold and flu season, we are asking for your collaboration in helping to ensure we keep our schools, students, and students healthy and safe. As per Franklin Public Schools policy, please remember and adhere to the following protocols:
Keep your child home from school if :
your child has a fever of 100 degrees or higher
your child is vomiting or has diarrhea
your child has a contagious illness such as flu, strep throat, chicken pox, COVID, etc. If unsure, please contact the school nurse for guidance.
your child's eye is pink, red, or itchy, and/or a crusty drainage from the eye is present.
your child has tested positive on a rapid antigen or PCR test for COVID and/or awaiting results of COVID testing (all positive COVID test results should be reported to school nurse for return to school guidance/masking protocol upon return).
Students may return to school when :
fever-free for 24 hours without the aid of fever-reducing medicines.
24 hours after the start of antibiotic therapy for a bacterial infection.
24 hours without vomiting or diarrhea.
We are committed to maintaining the health and wellness of our students and staff. Thank you for your help, and as always, please contact the Health Office with any additional questions and or concerns that you may have.
Carrie Kalemkerides, LPN
Oak Street/Horace Mann Nurse
Phone (508) 541-6230 ext. 2639
Fax (508) 613-1506
Stephanie Leeber, MSN, RN.
Oak Street/Horace Mann Nurse
Phone (508) 541-7890 Ext. 2640
Fax (508) 613-1506
Important Dates to Remember...
November
- Tue Nov 8 - No School, PD Day for Staff
- Nov 9-10 - Early Release Days, Parent/Guardian Conferences
- Fri Nov 11 - No School, Veteran's Day
- Nov 15-17 - 6th Grade YMCA Field Trip (rescheduled from October)
- Nov 23-25 - No School, Thanksgiving Break
December
- Mon Dec 5 - Last Day of Term 1
- Tue Dec 6 - Term 2 Begins (students transition to new UA trimester course)
- Wed Dec 7 - Early Release Day for Students, dismissal at 10:45 am
- Wed Dec 14 - Term 1 Report Cards Released in Aspen
- Dec 26-30 - No School, Winter Break
About HMMS
508-541-6230 ext 2816
Mr. Healy's contact information
508-541-6230 ext 2846
Email: name@franklinps.net
Website: https://www.franklinps.net/horacemann
Location: 224 Oak Street, Franklin, MA, USA
Phone: 508-541-6230
Twitter: @HMMSLightning