Andrews Middle School

September 15th & 17th - NWEA MAP Testing ELA

September 15th - Meet the Assistant Superintendent of Student Services, Kim Clinton

September 22nd - WIN: NWEA MAP Testing Math

September 24th - WIN: NWEA MAP Testing Science

September 29th: WIN: Clubs and Activities Fair

September 30th - School Picture Day

October 1st - Canoemobile; 6th grade

Based on some parent feedback from last evening's curriculum night, we would like to share information regarding the role and function of our Challenge Block and WIN Block.

Challenge Block

The Challenge course meets four times per week to ensure every student receives targeted instruction tailored to their unique academic profile, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. Students needing extra help are matched with dedicated support blocks—such as Reading, Literacy Skills, Math Skills, or general Academic Support—to close learning gaps, build foundational competencies, and promote long-term success. Students performing at or above grade level participate in quarterly hands-on rotations that connect core academic subjects with real-world applications and project-based learning. By differentiating instruction during this shared block, all students receive the specific tools, challenge, or intervention they need to thrive without missing essential academic classroom instruction.

WIN Block

WIN (“What I Need”) Block is a flexible, twice-weekly dedicated period designed to provide students with personalized, targeted support and enrichment driven by their specific needs and progress data directly tied to academic classroom instruction. During this structured time, teachers work closely with students in small groups to offer "just-in-time" help—such as re-teaching challenging concepts, revising work, building executive functioning skills like organization and goal setting, or working through skill-building exercises. This is also a common place for students to participate in grade-level or school-wide Social Emotional Learning that provides practical tools, such as improving academic engagement, building resilience and identity as an intellectual, and managing the complex social dynamics of middle school. The last goal of the WIN block is to allow student assessments so teachers can identify what students understand, where misconceptions or gaps exist, who needs additional support, and who is ready for enrichment or a greater challenge.

To create the best learning environment for your child, we are sharing that beginning next week, we will conduct MAP testing to provide you and your child’s teachers with information so we can establish precise instructional levels and identify areas to focus on for academic growth. Students in grades 6-8 will take the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) assessment, developed by the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA). NWEA is a nonprofit organization that created this norm-referenced assessment to help educators measure student growth over time. Each session will be about 90 minutes in length. We plan to administer these assessments three times this school year.

As you may recall, the MAP Growth Assessment is a computer-adaptive test. As your child progresses through the assessment, the test will adjust to ensure the questions challenge the student without overwhelming them. These results will help teachers inform instruction, personalize learning, and monitor individual student growth. Educators will utilize the data to assess performance and progress made at each grade level, school, and across the district. It will help us learn more about where students need interventions and identify what those interventions might be at the classroom, school, and district levels.

You will receive your student's progress report, which will show your child’s growth over the school year. This growth progress report will display all the data points, allowing you to track your child’s learning trajectory. The following provides additional information on the MAP Growth Assessment. Please click the following links:

• Family Guide to MAP Growth

• Video to help you understand the MAP Growth Assessment

Congratulations to the Middle School Cross Country teams on winning their first meets of the season! The boys scored 22, and the girls scored 16. The scoring runners are as follows.

Boys

2Einar Hansen

3Flynn Rexford

4James Elliot

5Rohan Rahman

8Tobin Mitchell

Girls

1Kaye Benowicz

2Ava Dutkiewicz

3Avni Hutchison

4Frankie Sipe

9Eliza
Felix

My name is Kim Clinton, and I am delighted to begin the school year as the new Assistant Superintendent of Special Education & Student Services for Medford Public Schools. As part of my transition into this new role, I plan to meet with each of our school communities across the district to introduce myself, gather your valuable insights, and further learn how to best support our students, staff, and families.

These meetings will be offered both in-person and in evening Google Meet sessions. I hope these conversations will provide an opportunity for open dialogue where you can share your thoughts, ask questions, and help shape the direction of our Special Education & Student Services Departments.

In Person: Tuesday, September 15, 9-10 a.m. at the Andrews Cafeteria

• Coffee & Tea Provided

Google Meet: Wednesday, October 7, 6 p.m. (Click Here For Link)

If you are able, I invite your participation as we work together to ensure a smooth transition and continue supporting our students, families, and staff. I look forward to engaging with each of you and hearing your perspectives.

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to our MPS community.

As you may know, we want to host and support several events and activities to make students' middle school experience meaningful and creative, helping them find joy in the process and celebrate every step of progress. We absolutely can't do this without a strong PTO and parental support. Sixth-grade parents, please do not hesitate to jump right in; we need you. Our first meeting will be September 16th, 2026, 6:30 - 7:30. If you need to attend virtually, the picture below also links to this evening's Zoom meeting.

We wanted to send a huge THANK YOU to everyone who donated, baked, shopped, and helped make today's Welcome Back Breakfast happen!

It was such a great way to kick off the school year and show the teachers and staff how much we appreciate them. We couldn’t have done it without you!

We hope you’ll join us again for future events. The more parents who pitch in, the more we can do for our Andrews community!

From Tracy + Nora + Jacque