WMS Community Bulletin 5-03-20
EXCELLENCE*EQUITY*COMMUNITY
To translate this newsletter, click on it then use the link to the right. (English)
Para traduzir este boletim, clique nele e use o link à direita. (Portuguese)
Para traducir este boletín, haga clic en él y luego use el enlace a la derecha (Spanish)
لترجمة هذه الرسالة من المدرسة ، اضغط عليها ثم استخدم الرابط الموجود على اليمين. (Arabic)
Այս տեղեկագիրը թարգմանելու համար կտտացրեք այն, ապա օգտագործեք աջ կողմում գտնվող հղումը: (Armenian)
Чтобы перевести этот бюллетень, нажмите на него, затем воспользуйтесь ссылкой справа. (Russian)
Bu bülteni çevirmek için üzerine tıklayın ve ardından sağdaki bağlantıyı kullanın (Turkish)
Watertown Middle School 2019-2020
Hello and Happy Sunday - I hope this community bulletin finds you and your family, near and far, healthy and well. What a gorgeous weekend! I hope you all were able to get outside for a bit and enjoy the warmer and sunnier weather.
As we have entered Phase 3 of remote learning, and reviewed the guidance from the state, we found that Watertown was already implementing the majority of the curriculum and the suggested remote learning guidelines. Everyone has been working so diligently to ensure that your children are continuing to receive the best education possible in our given situation, and we love that we are able to continue working with your children regularly. We have about six weeks left before summer vacation, and we will be encouraging students to keep their focus on their learning as new content is being taught and our expectations are high. If students have any questions at all, they should reach out to their teachers or guidance counselor. We are all here to support them both academically and with any social-emotional issues they may have.
As I stated last week, in order to have the most impact, however, students should be attending and participating in scheduled Zoom meetings. We realize Zoom can be awkward, but the more practice we have using it, the less awkward it becomes. Students can participate during Zoom meetings by asking questions, contributing to a discussion, and/or typing a question or comment in the chat. Additionally, we request that students turn on their videos whenever possible. We love seeing their faces, and I know students miss seeing each other regularly. If there a specific reason your student cannot attend a Zoom meeting, please let the teacher know, or have him/her let the teacher know.
Last week a survey was sent out to students in grades 6-12 to gather feedback about the remote learning experience. Next week I will report the results to you. If students have not completed it, they should within the next day or so. The link is: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdJZJUwy7fnZ4hkPAWeaAyUj3-pzcXXnb0sw_UM01wF1lJ1Pg/viewform?usp=sf_link
***Important*** If your contact information has changed at all (phone numbers, email, home address) please contact me as soon as possible. We want to be able to get important information out to families without delay.
A couple of reminders from my previous bulletin:
Personal belongings in lockers: As the weeks go by, and the curve continues to hopefully flatten, we will develop a plan so that students may retrieve their items from their lockers and classrooms in a safe and organized manner.
For 8th-grade parents/guardians:
- The 8th-grade students have received course verification sheets from WHS. WHS guidance counselors and Mr. Cloherty will be working with the students to ensure that students are placed in the correct course for next year. Below I have added videos explaining the math and science course pathways, as they can be confusing. WHS will be having a virtual Program of Studies night on Monday, May 4th to make up for the one missed earlier this month.
- We will be working together to determine ways to honor our 8th-graders in lieu of the traditional graduation and other fanfare. We will be able to make better decisions in a few weeks as we see the guidelines from the state, but we will certainly figure something out! If you have any ideas, please feel free to email me or any of the 8th-grade teachers, or join our next PTO meeting on May 13th.
- DC Refunds: The refunds were sent from the WPS Administrative offices to Town Hall on Friday and will be processed there with all other payments, and will then be mailed out by the Treasurer's office as soon as possible.
I hope you all have a wonderful week. Let's hope this great weather keeps up!
Take good care of each other,
All my best,
Donna
Teacher Appreciation Week: May 4-8
This week, May 4-8, is Teacher Appreciation Week. How do we celebrate and appreciate our teachers during the School Closure? Here are a few suggestions that will bring joy to our educators throughout the week.
- Make the image your background on Facebook
- Fill out the Virtual HIgh Five for a Teacher, Staff Member or Administrator form by Tuesday, May 5
- Use #ThanksWatertownPSTeacher and give a shout out to a teacher or staff member on social media
WPS will gather your shout-outs and High Fives and share them with the larger community throughout the week!
Weekly Cluster Schedules / Links to Schedules
https://www.smore.com/wxjkh-cluster-1-weekly-update?ref=email-content#w-8378113421
Cluster 2: Here is the link to the Cluster 2 weekly schedule/Smore:
https://www.smore.com/pz8eh-cluster-2-newsletter?ref=email-content#w-0666997455
Cluster 3: Here is the LINK to the Cluster 3 weekly schedule and the link to the Cluster 3 Smore newsletter: https://www.smore.com/s1wr3
Cluster 4: Here is the link to the Cluster 4 assignments and information: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UFZ3vtTrGSC6f38mKHPAYIGNH6mImvtzbemFoYpr-rc/edit
Cluster 5: Here is the link to the Cluster 5 weekly schedule/Smore:
Cluster 5 Smore, Schedule and Assignments for the week
Cluster 6: This link: Cluster 6 Week of May 4 has all of the Cluster 6 assignments for next week. We will also be posting this doc to the Cluster Google Classroom.
Here is the link to the Specialist Zoom Schedule for all grades:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qvtrWi-puKctgIHPznOrl3qk_ZdxSJkCoiM_aNdNyRY/edit
2019-2020 YEARBOOK!!!
Here is the ordering information - ORDERS DUE BY MAY 6TH!!!
ID code 7822620
$25
Mother's Day Walk for Peace event
ONE SCHOOL ONE BOOK (1S1B)
For each book there is a brief description, reviews from our 1S1B committee, a book excerpt and matching audiobook excerpt. There are also some videos and links with additional information.
Both books are terrific, and we are excited to see which one the whole school will be reading over the summer! Thank you to Ms. Maroni-Wagner, Ms. McDonagh, Ms. Spillane, Ms. Conceison, and the entire 1S1B committee for narrowing down the choices so we are able to read an excellent book as a school.
Personally, I think we should all read the second one as well! :)
Updates from Ms. Maroni-Wagner in the WMS Library
For the latest information on digital literary resources and WMS Library happenings, read the weekly WMS Library Newsletter.
Digital Learning and IT Resources Links /Family Support
Greetings WMS Faculty, Staff and Families
Rashmi and George shared the following link to the 04/30/2020 Digital Learning/Technology Weekly Updates, which include application updates, Famly and Educator Tech collaboration session information, and other helpful resources. This information is posted on our WPS Extended Learning Website.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
Please use Applications that are “in progress or approved” in the WPS Online Applications Database
Link to WPS Remote Learning Professional Development Sessions & Resources
Link to Digital Learning and IT Weekly Updates (April 30 - May 7)
Link to 1:1 WPS Educator Technology Collaboration Sessions (April 30 - May 7)
**Link to Weekly WPS Family Technology Support Sessions. Please check regularly for upcoming sessions.
Join us for WMS Family Technology Support Session Information
Upcoming Dates: May 14, May 28 and June 11
Time: 6:00PM - 6:30PM
Join Zoom Meetinghttps://zoom.us/j/97345120815?pwd=R0Vqc01VVjk2a1llQzgzWGpmZVk2Zz09 Meeting ID: 973 4512 0815 Password: 590587
Questions? Please email Library Media Specialists & Digital Learning Specialists at your school & CC District Digital Learning Coordinator Rashmi Pimprikar (rashmi.pimprikar@watertown.k12.ma.us). Please contact ‘Computer Repairs’ if a Chromebook is broken and needs repair.
Thank you so much for all that you do!
-Rashmi & George
Free Daily Online Drawing/Cartooning Lessons
This School Library Journal article lets us know that author Jarrett (JJ) Krosoczka, creator of Hey, Kiddo and other popular titles, is doing a YouTube drawing/cartooning lesson every weekday at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time at https://www.youtube.com/studiojjk. All previous lessons are available here: http://www.studiojjk.com/draweveryday.html
2020-2021 Middle School BUSING - REGISTER ONLINE NOW
PTO News
The PTO is still requesting your family recipes! WMS International Cookbook Information
We are also looking for students to submit designs for the cover of the Cookbook!
Free Daily Support Groups for Parents
https://docs.google.com/document/d/11Fg5EvfInKPNNjGTIbUpDOohvL9LCvgat_4SuTXUizA/edit
Read Aloud BINGO!
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Resources
Dr. Galdston's Update 4-21-20
Link to Smore: https://www.smore.com/ngf2v
**EMERGENCY ALERTS**
Watertown Middle School
While we are out of school, please email with any questions, or text/call my work cell (617-631-6807)
Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:00 pm.
Thank you,
Donna Martin, Principal
Email: donna.martin@watertown.k12.ma.us
Website: https://wms.watertown.k12.ma.us/
Location: 68 Waverley Avenue, Watertown, MA, USA
Phone: 617-926-7783
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/watertownms/