WMS Family Smore

To translate this newsletter, please use the link to the right.

Para traduzir este boletim, clique nele e use o link à direita.

Para traducir este boletín, haga clic en él y luego use el enlace a la derecha.

لترجمة هذه الرسالة من المدرسة ، اضغط عليها ثم استخدم الرابط الموجود على اليمين.

Այս տեղեկագիրը թարգմանելու համար կտտացրեք այն, ապա օգտագործեք աջ կողմում գտնվող հղումը:

Чтобы перевести этот бюллетень, нажмите на него, затем воспользуйтесь ссылкой справа.

Bu bülteni çevirmek için üzerine tıklayın ve ardından sağdaki bağlantıyı kullanın.

We hope you are able to enjoy a change in routine with April Vacation this past week. When we return to school on Monday, we will have 39 school days left. We encourage you to talk with your child about the goals they have to finish this school year strong!

Quick announcements:

• We are planning to have a school dance on May 5th from 6-8pm! Right now, we are looking for any caregivers that are interested in contributing to the event (chaperoning, setting-up, donating, decoration). You must be CORI'ed in order to attend the event. We are happy to help with that process! Please contact Assistant Principal Susan Carle (susan.carle@watertown.k12.ma.us) to express interest.

• Quarter 3 report cards are being mailed today, and should arrive by end of this week.

• Students who were not able to take the ELA MCAS before we went on April vacation will be given the opportunity to do make-ups on April 25-27 this week.

• We want to wish a happy Eid Mubarak this weekend to our celebrating families!

Here are some dates to be aware of this week:

• April 6-May 2: Watertown Public Schools Art Show
  

• April 17-21: April Vacation - no school
  

• April 20: Quarter 3 Report Cards mailed home

• April 27: Diversity Council (7:30pm virtual)
  

• April 28: Music Fest (5:30-9:00 PM, WMS)

Respectfully yours,

Ms. Jennifer Chen Fein, Principal

Ms. Susan Carle, Assistant Principal (Clusters 1, 3, 5)

Ms. Jennifer Sarmiento, Assistant Principal (Clusters 2, 4, 6)

Click on the links below to find updates from your child's teachers. These cluster/class smores are a helpful tool to know what your child is learning. These s'mores will be updated monthly in the WMS Family Smore.

Cluster 1

Cluster 2

Cluster 3

Cluster 4

Cluster 5

Cluster 6

The Specialists

Reading

Connections

LB Math

ELD/Phonics

Wilson Reading

School Nurse

Our school is proud to celebrate our diverse community with our first annual WMS Diversity Night!

This special evening will be a showcase of the many different cultures, traditions, identities, and backgrounds that make our school such a unique and wonderful place. We believe that diversity is a strength, and that everyone has something valuable to contribute to our shared human experience. Clubs, student groups, families, and individuals are all encouraged to sign up to host a table. Please use this form to sign up.

Dates for upcoming WMS Diversity Council meetings:

4/27 (7:30pm virtual)

5/18

6/8

All are invited to share their suggestions/feedback on the Equity Action Plan draft

This meeting will be held on Thursday, April 27th from 6:30-7:30 pm via Zoom.

Please register in advance for this meeting.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Any stakeholder who is unable to attend the virtual meeting, is welcome to share their thoughts using the electronic form. The collection form will close at the end of the virtual meeting. The form is both linked above and pasted below for your convenience.

A Meeting of Caregivers of Students of African Descent

A racial affinity group is a group of people sharing a common race who gather with the intention of finding connection, support, and inspiration. A racial affinity group is a critical form of support within our learning community at large.

A Meeting of Caregivers of Students of African Descent will be held on Monday, May 1st at 6:30pm. Please sign up here if you are interested in attending. The Zoom link will be sent at a later time.

The Clough Memorial Committee has been working collaboratively to identify the best road forward for making revisions to the mobile that has hung in the middle school for a number of years. With feedback from students and staff in hand, we have agreed that the continents in the center of the original structure will remain removed completely and imagery changes will be made to the outer rings, respectively. The next phase of our collaboration will be working with the original artist to identify the next artistic steps, so that we can create a thoughtful and thorough plan to gather student feedback for the creation of the new components. Please stay tuned for what's to come. Reach out to Dr. Henry at kimberlee.henry@watertown.k12.ma.us with any questions regarding the Clough Memorial.

The WMS Diversity Council meets once a month in the evenings, and more regularly after school so students can be included.

Our next meeting will be on Thursday, April 27 virtually, at 7:30pm. We will be focusing on planning and hosting an in-person event that celebrates the diversity of our school, as well as actionable steps outlined in the district equity audit taken last school year. Any and all are welcome to join.

Reach out to Sarah Seldomridge at sarah.seldomridge@watertown.k12.ma.us with any questions or to express interest.

The WMS SSC meets once a month on the first Tuesdays at 7:00pm, virtually. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, May 2nd, 2023, with an updated time of 4:00pm and updated location in person/hybrid at WMS. We will be drafting the 2023-2024 School Improvement Plan. Full agenda to be shared soon.

The PTO meets virtually on the second Wednesday of each month, and the next meeting is on Wednesday May 10th at 7pm. Reach out to the PTO President Erin Macomber at erin_macomber@neds.org with any questions or to express interest.

Our Recreation Department Spring Summer Program Registration began on Monday, April 17th at 6:00. Our Spring Brochure is now available for your preview.

Watertown Recreation Spring Brochure - 2023

=======================================================

The Watertown Recreation Department is pleased to announce that registration for our 54th year of our Pequossette Summer Program began on Wednesday, April 5th at 6:00pm.

The Pequossette Summer Program Documentation and Registration Packet is included.

Pequossette Summer Recreation Program Packet

Please follow the directions in this packet and register online. In addition, these forms must be filled out and returned to the following address: recreation@watertown-ma.gov. The forms are fillable. A current physical is also required with immunization records.

Please join us on Thursday, May 11th for a performance of Listen to Sipu (https://newrep.org/productions/listen-to-sipu/)

Details below and on the attached flyer!

When: Thursday, May 11th, 6:30 PM-8 PM

Where: Watertown Middle School

Cost: FREE with a light dinner provided at 5:15 PM

Thank you caregivers for remembering that students are welcome to come to WMS starting at 7:45am through the Waverly main entrance. Due to increases in safety protocols, we are not able to open doors earlier than that moving forward. In addition, parents that are dropping students off in a car need to drop students off on the Bemis entrance from 8:15-8:30am, rather than the Waverly entrance. This helps keep traffic flowing smoothly for Watertown.

Is your child looking for ways to get extra help with school? The Learning Lab is available in the WMS library M-F from 7:45-8:15am and M-Th from 3:00-4:15pm. Late buses run M-Th.

In the event that a student is absent, a parent or caregiver must call the absence hotline at 617-926-7783 before 8:30 a.m. Please state the name, grade, homeroom of the student and the reason for their absence. In the event that the absence is not reported, a Robocall will automatically go out to the student’s home or the place of employment of the parent or caregiver to inform them that the student is absent. Students are responsible for working with their teachers to make up work they missed while absent.

Check out page 26 of the WMS Family Handbook to see all of our attendance procedures in more detail.

It's that time of year where you get to order a yearbook! This is an opportunity open to ALL grades. The deadline to purchase your yearbook is MAY 12TH. Students who would like a yearbook must order one online by that deadline; we can not order additional yearbooks after. Yearbooks cost $23, and can be purchased here: YEARBOOK ORDER ONLINE

• April 1-31: Third Annual YardArt Watertown

• April 17-21: April Recess- No School
  

• April 20: Quarter 3 Report Cards mailed home

• April 27: Diversity Council (7:30pm virtual)
  

• April 28: Music Fest (5:30-9:00 PM, WMS)

• May 2: WMS School Site Council Meeting (4:00pm, at WMS/hybrid)
  

• May 4: Coffee with the Principal - School Safety Q&A (8:35-9:25am, WMS Cafeteria)
  

• May 5: School Dance (6-8pm for students, 5:30-8:30pm for chaperones)
  

• May 10: PTO Meeting (7:00 PM virtual)
  

• May 12: Quarter 4 Progress Reports reminder emailed home
  

• May 12: Deadline to order a WMS Yearbook

• May 15: Math MCAS, special schedule
  

• May 16: Math MCAS, special schedule

• May 17: Early Release PD Day, 12:30pm dismissal with grab n go lunch (Day B1, will see every class for a shortened period of time), "Third Wednesday" PLCs/ MESSS Dept Meetings (3:15-4:35pm)

• May 23: STE MCAS (8th grade only), final reading i-ready diagnostic (6th and 7th grade), special schedule
• May 24: STE MCAS (8th grade only), final math i-ready diagnostic (6th and 7th grade), special schedule
• May 29: Memorial Day - No School
  

• June 1: Diversity Night hosted by the WMS Diversity Council (5:00-7:00pm, WMS Cafeteria)

• June 5-9: 8th grade Washington DC Trip/Watertown Week

• June 6: WMS School Site Council (7:00pm, virtual)

• June 14: PTO Meeting (7:00 PM virtual)
  

• June 15: 8th grade semi

• June 16: Last day of school

• June 16: 8th Grade Awards Ceremony/Graduation

• June 23: Quarter 4 Report Cards mailed home to families

• Watertown Public Schools Calendar 2022-2023

Let us know how we are doing with our communication from WMS here.

Find us on...

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter

Website: https://wms.watertown.k12.ma.us/
Location: 68 Waverley Avenue, Watertown, MA, USA
Phone: 617-926-7783