WMS Family Newsletter
December 3, 2023
Trimester 2 is starting: December 5
Trimester 2 begins on December 5. While much of the school day will continue as usual, here are the changes that students will experience:
- 2 new specials classes (Art, Health, Music, PE 1, PE 2, Tech Ed)
- New lunch times - see picture to the right. Students are reminded that there is free grab-n-go breakfast in the cafeteria every day starting at 7:20am.
- Up to 2 new WIN classes
We are excited to be offering refined WIN courses this year, as we provide important learning opportunities to meet each student's needs. Here are some things to know about WIN courses this year:
- WIN classes are designed to be an intervention or an extension of learning on grade level standards.
- Most WIN classes are one trimester long, meeting twice a week. Exceptions are some yearlong courses including Band, Orchestra, Chorus and Kingian.
- We have 106 different WIN classes running in Trimester 2. Some titles include: Coding, Study Skills and Executive Functioning, Current Events, Newcomer Academy, Math Intervention, Reading Informational Text, Latin Heritage Spanish, Creative Writing Extension, Energy & the environment, among many more!
- We place students in classes based on data including student diagnostic need (i-ready, IEP goals), teacher recommendation, and when possible, student interest.
If your child has a question about WIN, they can ask their homeroom advisor or guidance counselor.
WMS Bell Schedule and Trimester Dates 2023-2024
Please note that Trimester 1 report cards will be mailed home on December 15, and that there may be more up to date information before that on PowerSchool.
5 ESSENTIALS SURVEY
We need your feedback! Watertown Public Schools is , and we need at least 20% of parents/caregivers to complete the 2023 Watertown Parent Survey (so far 3% have completed it). The survey will be open until December 22, 2023.
Here is a short quote from Dr. Galdston's message to all families:
Research has shown that schools that are strong on three or more of the 5Essentials were 10 times more likely to improve student learning gains than schools weak on three or more of the Essentials.
The 5Essentials are:
Effective Leaders
Collaborative Teachers
Involved Families
Supportive Environment
Ambitious Instruction
With three years of data after this year's administration is complete, we look forward to sharing the data with staff and with the larger community.
Watertown Middle School
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Find us on...
Website: https://wms.watertown.k12.ma.us/
Location: 68 Waverley Avenue, Watertown, MA, USA
Phone: 617-926-7783