MMS

October has flown by at Marshall Middle School, and what a fantastic month it’s been! From vision screenings and parent-teacher conferences to our very first school dance, we’ve had a lot to celebrate.

As we wrap up Quarter 1 and look ahead to Quarter 2, the excitement continues. We’re gearing up for our first quarterly celebration to recognize students who have been living out our Tiger Traits: respect, responsibility, and pride. To honor them, we’ll be holding an all-school gathering in the gym.

Our clubs are off to a great start as well. Students can get involved in Conservation Crew, Knowledge Bowl, Math Team, or FCA. Winter sports for grades 7 and 8 are also starting soon. If you have any questions about winter sports registration, Amber Gorter from the High School Activities Department will be available during 7th and 8th grade lunch on Thursday, October 30.

Quarter 2 begins on Monday, November 3. Student schedules will be changing, so please make sure your child checks the portal for their updated schedule. All schedules should be finalized by Friday, October 31.

Lastly, we encourage you to vote in the school referendum on November 3. You’ll find more information in the referendum section below about how the middle school could be affected if the referendum is not approved. Voting will take place at the district office from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM.

As always, we truly value our partnership with families. If you have any questions or need support, please don’t hesitate to reach out—we’re here to help.

Mrs. Reynolds, Principal

peggy.reynolds@marshall.k12.mn.us

Mr. Appel, Assistant Principal

bennett.appel@marshall.k12.mn.us

November 3 - Start of Quarter 2

November 4 – Election Day – District Office

November 5 – Early Dismissal - 2:20p

November 11 – Kindness Closet Open – 3:30 – 6pm

November 12 – Early Dismissal - 2:20p

November 19 – Early Dismissal - 2:20p

November 26 – Early Dismissal - 2:20p

November 27 – 28 – No School

How to Vote: Stop by the district office (Door 12) any weekday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to complete your ballot on the spot.

Learn More: Visit TomorrowsTigers.org to learn more about the challenges our district faces and the referendum plan to resolve them.

If you've recently visited the Parent Portal, you may have noticed changes in the Language Arts

and Science gradebooks. These updates are part of a broader effort to improve transparency and

better reflect student learning.

Why the Change?

Minnesota’s K–12 public schools follow statewide Academic Standards, which outline what

students are expected to learn. Each standard includes specific benchmarks—skills and

knowledge students must master at each grade level and in each subject area. These standards

apply to Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, Math, Arts, Physical Education, and Health.

To help families better understand their child’s progress, our student information system Infinite

Campus, now integrates these benchmarks directly into the gradebook. This means you can see

not only what your child is learning, but also how they’re progressing toward meeting each

academic standard.

What’s Been Updated?

• This year: Language Arts and Science gradebooks were updated to reflect new academic standards with specific benchmarks adopted in the past two years.
• Next year: Social Studies will be updated.
• Following years: Math, PE/Health, and Arts will be updated accordingly.

Schools across Minnesota are adopting this enhanced gradebook system to provide greater

clarity and transparency in student education.

What to Expect

While the new gradebook layout may feel overwhelming at first, please know that it’s new for

everyone—including teachers. We're committed to supporting you and answering any questions

you may have about the benchmarks and assessments listed. Importantly, report cards will

remain short, focusing on the main strands of each subject area to ensure they’re easy to read

and understand.

If you would like more information about the MN Academic Standards, please use the following

link: Academic Standards (K-12) or visit the website: https://education.mn.goov/mde/dse/stds

Flu shots will be offered at the middle school - nurse's office this Friday, October 31st at 9:00 AM. If you'd like your child to receive the vaccine, parents and guardians can give consent by filling out the form available through the provided link. This is a great opportunity to help keep our school community healthy as we head into flu season.

To help keep our students and staff safe, we kindly ask all families to stay in the designated drop-off line and follow the traffic flow. Recently, we've seen some vehicles pulling out of line or parking in the lot, which creates safety risks and disrupts traffic.

Here are a few important reminders:

• Use the front main entrance for all drop-offs and pick-ups.
• Move as far forward as the line allows for student drop-off and pick-up
• Do not use Door 14 at the back of the building.
• Avoid parking in the lot to drop off students—it’s unsafe for students to cross through traffic.
• Do not park behind the Middle School—this area is for authorized vehicles only due to deliveries and maintenance.
• Students should use the designated sidewalk, not the service road.
• Students biking from the south should use the designated sidewalk shown below to ensure a safe arrival.
• Please drive slowly and stay off your phone while in the drop-off lane.

Thank you for helping us keep our school community safe!

The Marshall Public Library has requested that students NOT be dropped off or picked up after school in the library parking lot. This is out of respect for the other patrons that are utilizing the library.

Please contact Student Services for the following:

📌 Reporting absences
📌 Notifying about tardies
📌 Appointments during school hours
📌 Picking up your child during the day
📌 Leaving a message for your child

📞 Phone: 507-537-6938 Option 1: Attendance

📧 Email: laura.fennell@marshall.k12.mn.us

Thank you for helping us keep things running smoothly!

Leah Bueltel teaches Agriculture to 7th graders. The main subjects explored are plants, soils, animals, ag technology, and ag by-products. The class builds a foundation for their high school classes. They do several group projects, make pickles, create leather fobs, hands-on experience with livestock, soil, equipment identification, and they learn about careers in the agricultural community.

Erica Hess teaches PAES. This is a class where students are able to have hands-on experience with different careers. This helps students identify their interests and goals to achieve in order to find where they belong in the workforce. She shared that they have added jobs to the curriculum to expand the number of career opportunities using grant money.

Laura Moorse teaches FACS at the Middle School and sees students in 6th grade and 7th grade. In 6th grade they learn about foods, personal finance, relationships and character. In 7th grade they learn interior design, sewing, and advanced cooking skills. She gave examples of projects they do, such as, cooking French toast, designing a room and working on the budget and cost of items. They will be sewing lanyards, scrunchies, and pillows. They are also doing a grilled cheese challenge, where they have to create their own recipes. Moorse shared that she feels this class fills the gaps between academic and real life which helps them to thrive in the community.

In FACS 6 & 7, we’ve been having a blast in the kitchen! Students have whipped up delicious smoothies, pizzas, scrambled eggs, breakfast burritos, French toast, and muffins. Along the way, they’re learning important kitchen safety skills, how to read recipes, and the value of teamwork - and as a bonus, the FACS room smells absolutely amazing! 😊

Sara Runck teaches Spanish for 8th graders and teaches them Cognates, Super Seven verbs, calendar geography and culture. They learn through interaction by doing interviews, music bracket competition, reader’s theater, games, illustrations, pictures and video talks, running dictations, cooking, songs, calendar talks, escape rooms, crafts, and they read a novel. She also teaches an Advanced Spanish class for native speakers. They learn literacy skills, bicultural identities, and heritage and native speakers. They also learn through activities, movements, and group learning. Runck shared that these classes will create cognitive and social benefits, exposure to other cultures, and encourages problem solving skills.