The Weekly Line
Aspen Middle School Family Update
“A FEW CELEBRATIONS & A REFLECTION”
Monday, October 26, 2026
Dear AMS Students, Parents/Guardians & Staffulty,
Happy Monday everyone! Five days to raise the bar. As we continue navigating this school year, I want to share a few celebrations and a quick reflection with all of you.
A few celebrations: Our Scholastic Book Fair in the library last week grossed $4,691.44 in sales, the Aspen Words Student Poetry Showcase in the AES theatre on Friday had over 50 students read their poems to the whole school, we ended the week on Saturday with the 71st Annual ASD Ski Swap in our gym and cafeteria to support ASD’s Outdoor Ed. Program, and today 205 students received an attendance award (a popsicle at lunch and this parent letter) for maintaining a 95 - 100% attendance rate in all of their classes during the first quarter (9 weeks)!
A reflection: Striving for greatness can be grueling. Behind every achievement, breakthrough, and successful event or classroom at AMS lies the hard conversations, persistent effort, setbacks, and exhausting work that happens behind the scenes. Excellence is rarely by accident, it’s forged through relentless dedication, resilience, and a daily commitment to do better. Thank you for leaning into the messy work of educating young people, embracing complex challenges, and doing the heavy lifting. Let's keep pushing forward; together. It’s grueling, but it’s also rewarding.
Have an amazing week AMS F-A-M-I-L-Y. Forget About Me I Love You!
All In,
T. DODD
Tom Dodd, PhD
Principal
#AMSAllIn #AMSF-A-M-I-L-Y #TheAMSDifference
Did You Miss Picture Day?
Retake Day is Thursday, October 29th in the morning at AMS
ANNOUNCEMENTS 10-26-26
AMS CALENDARS & SCHEDULES
AMS ATHLETICS Winter sports have begun. Visit our AMS Athletics page for more info.
AMS IB MIDDLE YEARS PROGRAM (MYP) UPDATES
Toddle Family Access: Parents who need support accessing their child’s family Toddle account can contact Harpreet Mehta (hmehta@aspenk12.net) or Catherina Lemons clemons@aspenk12.net) for their child-specific Family Invite Code. We can provide the code by email or in print. Here is a sample of what the Family Invite Code document will look like. Alternatively, we can send the Toddle login invitation directly to the parent’s preferred email address.
New Parent Guide to MYP: For families who are new to the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP), please see our MYP One-Page Guide, which provides a quick overview of MYP and what parents can expect.
International Academic Competitions
As previously announced, AMS will host the IAC regional trivia competition on November 14th. Your student will need to take a qualifying exam in Science, Geography, and/or History to be able to participate in those sections of the competition. Here are instructions to take the qualifying exams at home. Please reach out to Timbah Bell tbell@aspenk12.net if you have any questions.
AMS Upcoming Dates
Add our AMS Family Calendar to your Google calendar and see important upcoming dates:
Thursday, October 29th ~ AMS Picture Retake Day
Friday, October 30th ~ AMS Halloween Fun Run
Tuesday, November 3rd ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs New Castle 4:30pm / 7th AMS Gym - 8th New Castle
Thursday, November 5th ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Rifle 4:30pm / 7th Rifle - 8th AMS Gym
Saturday, November 7th ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball Rifle Tournament
Tuesday, November 10th ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Carbondale 4:30pm / 7th AMS Gym - 8th Carbondale
Thursday November 12th ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Grand Valley 4:30pm / 7th Parachute - 8th AMS Gym
Saturday, November 14th ~ International Academic Competitions
Tuesday, November 17th ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Glenwood 4:30pm / 7th AMS Gym - 8th Glenwood
Thursday, November 19th ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Riverview 4:30pm / 7th Riverview - 8th AMS Gym
Monday, November 23rd - 27th ~ Thanksgiving Break - NO SCHOOL STUDENTS & STAFF
Tuesday, December 1st ~ 7th / 8th Grade Boys Basketball vs Basalt 4:30pm / 7th Basalt - 8th AMS Gym
Tuesday, December 1st ~ Winter Choir Concert 6:00pm - ASD Theater
Thursday, December 3rd ~ Winter Band Concert - 5th 4:30pm / 6th, 7th & 8th 6:00pm
Saturday, December 5th ~ 7th Grade Boys Basketball League Tournament - Parachute
Saturday, December 5th ~ 8th Grade Boys Basketball League Tournament - Aspen High School
Important Information
A HUGE THANK YOU to the VICEROY
Thank You to Matt Zubrod, Nate Kargman & Gaurav Bhandari for the awesome lunch they put together during SLC Conferences for the AMS Staff. We appreciate it and was delish!
