There are so many good things happening at Finn Hill Middle School! Check out the pictures below to see just a few highlights from last week!

Congrats to all students for working hard to exhibit PRIDE and earn PRIDE tickets. Because of their efforts, every house has earned over 1,000 House points. That means we've reached our school goal and will get to have our House point celebration on Friday, December 17. Students will get to sign up for a fun activity of their choice on Monday! See the totals below for each House.

Another great week for the Falcon Time Planner Competition! So far here are the scores after Week 4:

1. Alturismo - 145 (Erikson - 34)
2. Reveur - 131 (McWilliams - 34)
3. Amistad - 128 ( Holland - 26)
4. Isibindi - 110 (Briehl - 30)

Keep up the good work and encourage your student(s) to fill out their planners to stay organized and on top of their school work!

Monday, December 13

• Girls Badminton: RHMS @ FHMS

• Boys V/JV Soccer: KaMS @ FHMS at JHS

Tuesday, December 14

• Regional Soccer, KiMS @ Finn Hill at JHS
• Band Concert, FHMS gym, 7:00 PM

Wednesday, December 15

• Girls Badminton (Varsity Only): FHMS @ KaMS

• Boys V/JV Soccer: FHMS vs KiMS, EHS Stadium, 4:40 pm
• Boys V/JV Soccer: KiMS vs FHMS, EHS Field 3, 4:40 pm
• Boys V/JV Soccer: KaMS vs FHMS, EHS Stadium, 5:20 pm
• Boys V/JV Soccer: FHMS vs KaMS, EHS Field 3, 5:20 pm

Friday, December 17

• House Celebration Day

Please encourage your student to check the lost and found. All unclaimed items will be donated on Friday, December 17.

In order to avoid classroom disruption for teachers and long waits for parents, we ask that you notify the front office at least one hour in advance if you are planning on picking up your student early from school.

Concerned neighbors have reported that some FHMS kids are being unsafe while walking back home. Students are running on the road trying to touch or high-five moving trucks. Please help us reinforce our message at school by talking with your students about pedestrian safety.

Students in 4th-9th and 11th grades recently took the Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) in English language arts and math. Students in 6th, 9th and 12th grade took the Washington State Comprehensive Assessment of Science (WCAS). The primary purpose of these tests was a brief check-in on how students are doing compared to some of the state standards.

This test was different from prior years’ tests in three ways. It was given in the fall instead of last spring, there were fewer questions overall, and this test did not assess as many areas as previous tests. For these reasons, we recommend that these fall results not be compared to other years’ test results.

The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has completed the scoring for these tests and they are now available to school districts. We have uploaded the achievement level and scale score to Skyward/Family Access. Families will receive a more complete graphical report from OSPI in February. Scores for sub-sections of the assessment (such as reading, writing, and math problem solving) are not available for the fall assessment due to the shortened length of the test.

State tests provide a snapshot of how your child performed during testing and are not indicators of classroom performance. Classroom performance should be the primary measure of your child’s skills and knowledge. If you have a concern about your child’s testing performance, please talk with his/her teacher.

To access the test scores:

1. Login to Family Access.

2. Select “Test Scores” on the left menu.

3. Select “Show Scores” for the assessment.

Skyward Family Access support is available on the LWSD website. Regular spring state testing will resume in March-June 2022.

Here are some COVID-19 updates for your information:

• See the link below for CDC recommendations on domestic and international travel over winter vacation.
• See the excluded student letter linked below that will be sent to close contacts identified by contact tracing. One change worth noting is that teachers will no longer be offering look-ins; instead, all assignments will be posted on teachers' Teams pages and a teacher will reach out to excluded students and their families at least once during their exclusion period. If you have questions, please reach out to your student's teachers if your child is required to be excluded.
  
• Did you know you can access current COVID-19 data for in-person learning in LWSD? Go to the LWSD homepage. Click on "COVID-19" at the top and then click on "Health & Safety Dashboard." You can scroll down to see COVID-19 data by building. To see FHMS specifics, go to the middle school tab and find Finn Hill/EAS in the table.

December 20-January 2

• Winter Break

Monday, January 3

• First Day Back to School

January 10-21

• Intramural Sports

Mission

Each student will graduate prepared to lead a rewarding, responsible life as a contributing member of our community and greater society.

Vision

Every student future ready: Prepared for college, Prepared for the global workplace, Prepared for personal success

Website: https://fhms.lwsd.org/
Location: 8040 NE 132nd St, Kirkland, WA, USA
Phone: (425) 936-2340
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FinnHillMiddleSchool
Twitter: @FinnHillMS