HMK's Monday Message

I am thrilled to share some wonderful news regarding our music programs and playground enhancements. We have just received word from the Moab Music Festival that HMK Elementary has been selected for two 2025-26 Music Education Awards!

These annual awards are designed to support local educators and strengthen music programs within Grand County by providing essential educational resources.

Celebrating Our Success

• Tubano Drums for the Music Room: Congratulations to Caroline Stiles, who was awarded $800 to purchase additional Tubano drums for her classroom.

• Outdoor Musical Instruments: The school was also awarded $2,000 to help fund the installation of Soundscape Playground outdoor musical instruments as part of a partnership project that I am doing with MMF.

  
  

Next Steps & Recognition

The Moab Music Festival will officially recognize all award recipients at their upcoming Winterlude Showcase Concert:

• Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

• Time: 7:00 PM

• Location: Star Hall

The funds will be issued in early January 2026, and we look forward to having these new resources in place for our students by the end of the summer.

We are incredibly grateful to the Moab Music Festival Board of Trustees for their investment in our community and our students' musical growth. Please join me in congratulating Caroline on her successful application!

We want to send a huge "Thank You" to all of our students who worked hard to make our playground sparkle! The students did an amazing job taking pride in our school, cleaning up litter, and rescuing hundreds of lost LEGO pieces.

To celebrate their hard work, we announced the winners of the Playground Trash & LEGO Pick-up Challenge this past Friday. Here are the results:

🏆 Class Champions

• K-3 Most Garbage Collected: Mrs. Burraston’s Class (Rewarded with Ice Cream Sandwiches)

• 4-6 Most Garbage Collected (Tie!): Ms. Hall & Ms. VanWetter’s Classes (Rewarded with Donuts)

• Overall LEGO Rescue Winner: Ms. Fischer’s Class — They rescued an incredible 612 LEGOs! (Rewarded with a Hot Cocoa Bar)

🌟 "Above and Beyond" Individual Awards

Principal Harris also wanted to recognize specific students who showed exceptional leadership and effort during the cleanup. The following students received a special certificate and a small prize for going above and beyond:

• Mrs. Spencer (1st): Oakley Hymas, Braely Hymas

• Mrs. Burraston (2nd): Neil Holyoak, Hope Parra

• Ms. VanWetter (4th): Browden Jenson, Liz Bierschied

• Ms. Hall (5th): Xander Stiles, Dolton Eddie

• Ms. Fischer (5th): Dalezya Cruz, Iker Lopez

• Ms. Zender (5th): Henry Marinelli, Maeve Trim, Coen Cloward

• Ms. Nichol (6th): Tennley Jensen, Vincent Stephany, OAcelin Charleston

As the Principal of HMK my hear is so full sharing this news with parents. We have just completed our Middle of the Year (MOY) testing, and I am absolutely thrilled and beyond proud to share the results with you.

At the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year, we set a "Wildly Important Goal" (WIG) for our school: 65% of students will make typical, above typical, or well-above typical growth in both ELA & Math by the end of the year.

We are only halfway through the year, and our students are already shattering expectations and closing in on our end-of-year targets! Here is a look at the incredible progress your children are making.

📚 Reading Success

Our students are showing phenomenal growth in literacy.

• i-Ready Reading: We have already surpassed our end-of-year goal! 66% of students have achieved typical growth (beating our goal of 65%).

• Closing the Gap: 88% of students who started the year 1–3 grade levels behind have made significant growth. This resulted in a 21% decrease in the number of underperforming students since the start of the year.

• Acadience Reading: We are currently at 62% typical growth, meaning we are only 3% away from hitting our end-of-year target of 65%.

➗ Math Momentum

Our mathematicians are working hard and seeing great results.

• i-Ready Math: 60% of our students have already made typical growth (out of 65%).

• Closing the Gap: 65% of students who started the year 1–3 grade levels behind have made growth. This led to a 15% decrease in the number of underperforming students.

• Acadience Math: We are currently at 61% typical progress, placing us just 4% shy of our end-of-year goal.

🌟 Early Learning Plan Highlights

We also track specific goals for our early learners, and we are seeing wonderful trends:

• 3rd Grade Math: Our goal is to decrease students scoring below benchmark by 11%. We have already achieved a 9% decrease, meaning we only need 2% more to meet our goal by May!

• 1st Grade Math: We are working toward a 9% decrease in students scoring below benchmark. We have seen a 1% decrease so far, which is a great start as we head into the second half of the year.

Moving Forward

To see this level of growth by January is a testament to the incredible hard work of our staff and the dedication of your students. They are showing up every day ready to learn, and the data proves that their effort is paying off. Thank you for your continued partnership and support at home. Let’s keep this momentum going for the rest of the year!

🎉The Utah State Board of Education English Language Arts team would like to extend our sincerest congratulations for the exceptional progress your school demonstrated in advancing literacy during the 2024-2025 school year. We are thrilled to recognize your school for increasing the percentage of students reading on grade level in kindergarten from the beginning of the year to the end of the year by 10% or more.

This significant increase is a testament to the focused, high-quality instruction, tireless effort, and deep commitment of the educators in your school.

Way to go HMK Kindergarten Team! 🎉

Report cards were sent home last week! Please check your student’s backpack/folder. 🎒

If you have any questions about specific grades or comments, please contact your child's classroom teacher directly. They will be happy to assist you!

I want to send a special thank you to everyone who has signed and returned the School-Parent-Student Compact.

We know that paperwork can sometimes feel overwhelming, so I wanted to take a moment to explain why this specific document is so important and how it supports our school.

Why do we have a Compact? (Title I Compliance) As a school receiving Title I federal funds, we are required to develop a written agreement that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement. This funding is crucial for providing the high-quality instruction and research-based programs we use every day.

However, this compact is more than just a compliance requirement for funding. It is a symbol of our commitment to working together as a team to ensure that every child meets grade-level standards.

Our Shared Promises The compact outlines the specific promises we make to one another to ensure success:

• As a School: We commit to providing a safe, supportive environment , offering high-quality curriculum , and keeping you informed about your child’s progress through data like RISE, iReady, and Acadience scores.

  
  

• As Parents: You commit to supporting regular attendance and reading with your child for at least 20 minutes, four times a week.

  
  

• As Students: They commit to doing their best , being safe, respectful, and responsible , and asking for help when they need it.

  
  

Thank You! Thank you for being active partners in your child’s education. By signing and returning these compacts, you are helping us maintain our Title I status and, more importantly, reaffirming the strong community support that makes HMK such a wonderful place to learn.

If you have not yet had a chance to return your compact, please send it back with your student as soon as possible. If you need another copy select the document below.

Congratulations to Mrs. Hansen's 3rd Grade class! They have won the SESC K-6 Book Blast Pizza Party for HMK!

🔎QUICK GLANCE AT IMPORTANT INFO/DATES:

• Monday, January 12th -
• Normal Monday
• Tuesday, January 13th -
• Normal Tuesday
• Wednesday, January 14th -
• Normal Wednesday
• Thursday, January 15th -
• HMK Spelling Bee 4th-6th Grade @ 1:30 in the Gym
• Friday, January 16th -
• 🚫 NO SCHOOL 🚫 ~ District Professional Development Day

🔎QUICK GLANCE AT IMPORTANT INFO/DATES:

• Monday, January 19th
• 🚫 NO SCHOOL 🚫 ~ Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• Tuesday, January 20th
• Normal Tuesday
• Wednesday, January 21st
• 5th grade ~ Fischer Field Trip to Arches 9:20-2:00
• Thursday, January 22nd
• 5th grade ~ Hall Field Trip to Arches 9:20-2:00
• Friday, January 23rd
• Normal Early-Out Friday
• 6th grade ~ McKay Field Trip to Courthouse wash 9:00-12:30

SafeUT

www.safeut.org

Getting help through SafeUT is simple and immediate. Whether you as a parent are facing a crisis, have a safety concern, or just need someone to talk to, SafeUT makes it easy to connect with a licensed counselor anytime, anywhere.

Connecting with a SafeUT counselor is as easy as opening the app and tapping "Start a Chat," "Submit a Tip," or "Start a Call."

If you can't use your phone or don't have a smartphone, you can connect to SafeUT counselors by using the "Start a Chat," "Submit a Tip," or "Get Help Now" buttons on this page.

A real person will respond within a few minutes to share their expertise as a professional, licensed mental health expert.

SafeUT counselors' goal is to help you safely talk through your situation, feel calmer, and connect with resources to help solve your concern.

SafeUT counselors will keep what you shared confidential unless there's a concern about your safety or others’. SafeUT counselors may take action by contacting relevant authorities, such as your school or emergency services.

SafeUT also has a tip line, in which kids and parents can report threats, harassment and bullying. It will be sent to HMK administration immediately to respond and investigate.

Guide For Talking with Your K-6th Grade Students About Mental Health

Kick off the new year with intention using our January activity calendars! Each daily prompt encourages reflection, goal-setting, and positive habits, helping students build optimism and confidence as they step into 2026.

CLICK HERE for PDF access.

We are currently working to recruit and hire more substitute teachers, and we would love your help. If you or someone you know is interested in working with students, enjoys a flexible schedule, and wants to make a positive impact in our school community, this is a great opportunity. Training and support are provided, and substitutes play a vital role in keeping our school running smoothly.

How you can help:

• Consider applying to be a substitute teacher yourself.
• Share this opportunity with family, friends, neighbors, or community members who may be a good fit.
• Contact our school office for more information about how to apply or direct interested individuals to the district’s substitute application page [CLICK HERE].

Thank you for your continued partnership in supporting our students. Together, we can ensure that every classroom has the support it needs every day.