What's Happening at Western?

Dear Western Families,

It has been a wonderful week at Western Middle School! To top off a great few days, I am thrilled to officially welcome two fantastic additions to our school family: Scott Rusk, our new Professional Assistant, and Elizabeth Mills, our new Night Head Custodian. We are so glad to have you both on board!

Looking ahead to next week, we proudly celebrate Paraeducator Appreciation Week! Our dedicated paraeducators make up a critical team for our school community. Every day, they can be seen working tirelessly to support student learning, foster inclusive classrooms, and provide the individualized care that helps our students thrive. Whether they are guiding a small reading group, assisting with physical or emotional needs, or offering a steadying word of encouragement, their impact is felt in every corner of our building.

We invite all students, parents, teachers, and staff to join us in honoring these extraordinary professionals. Take a moment next week to express your gratitude—whether through a simple note, a kind word in the hallway, or a thoughtful gesture. Let’s make sure our paraeducators know just how valued, respected, and crucial they are to our school family!

Warmly,

Matthew Laskowski

Principal, Western Middle School

#WestsideBestside

Si desea leer esta actualización en español u otro idioma, haga clic en "Traducir" ("Translate") en la parte superior del boletín (al lado de "Share" (Compartir)) y seleccione español o el idioma de su elección. Gracias.

Thank you to the WMS community for our most successful Breast Cancer Awareness week ever! This past week, we raised $2,200 for Breast Cancer awareness and research. This is an incredible accomplishment and shows that when we join together as a community, we can achieve amazing things.

A special thank you to the WMS Volleyball team and 7th grade SS teacher Ms. Traina for organizing this special week.

Donations can still be made until 11/1. Click HERE to make a donation-

You’re warmly invited to the GHS Orchestra Spooktacular on Wednesday, October 14 at 7:30 p.m. in the GHS Performing Arts Center. 8th grade students will be performing alongside the GHS Orchestra. It is a fantastic, family-friendly concert and a great event to bring your kids to- plus, anyone in costume gets candy!

If you ordered mums please bring your payment (cash or check made payable to Western Middle School) to pickup. Pick up will be outside of the large cafeteria on Wednesday, October 14th 2pm-4pm and Friday, October 16th 8:30am-10:30am.

🎃 The Diversity Committee is hosting a fundraiser for International Night — and it’s going to be spook-tacular! Starting Monday, October 19th through Friday, October 21st, you can buy Boo Grams for $2 before school from 7:55 a.m. to 8:15 a.m.

What’s a Boo Gram? 🎃

It’s a fun way to send a friendly Halloween message and a sweet treat to your friends or teachers.

Come support the Diversity Committee, celebrate our amazing cultures, and spread some Halloween spirit! Don’t miss out — get your Boo Grams before they disappear! 👻

NWEA MAP Growth Family Reports for students in grades 3-8 (ELA and Math) are now available on the Linkit Parent Portal. Based on benchmark assessments administered in mid-September, these reports provide a helpful snapshot of your child's academic achievement and personal growth compared to peers nationwide. The report also includes suggested strategies and guiding questions to help you support your child's continued learning at home.

For families with children in grades K-5 and grades 6-8 with targeted reading support, the DIBELS Beginning of Year Home-Connect report is now available on the Linkit Parent Portal. DIBELS is GPS’s universal reading screening assessment tool that measures early literacy skills aligned to the five pillars of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The Home-Connect report reviews the skills your child was assessed in September and suggests things you can do at home to support their continued progress as a reader. If you have questions about your child’s scores, please reach out to your child’s teacher or building administrators. For more information about DIBELS, please read the parent guide in English or Spanish. You can also watch a past PTAC informational video on “What You Need to Know About DIBELS Scores” from the fall of 2024.

Click here for more information on Accessing Parent Portal

The Western fall sports teams had a very successful week with Boys Soccer and Volleyball beating Central. There are a couple of weeks left before the playoffs. Please come to a game and support Field Hockey, Boys and Girls Soccer, and Volleyball! The Athletics schedule can be found here.

6th Grade

Red Team HW Hub

7th Grade

Yellow Team HW Hub

Purple Team HW Hub

8th Grade

Orange Team HW Hub

Green Team HW Hub

World Language HW Hub