CHMS Weekly Update

Our first Activity Afternoon for 5th and 6th graders is scheduled for this Friday! Remember, an Activity Afternoon is an after-school event, from 3:00 - 5:00, where students will be able to dance in the cafeteria, play in the gym, buy concessions, and more! We split these events into 5th/6th graders together and 7th/8th graders together, and the cost is $5 to get in the door. Money raised at these events goes back to the students to pay for things like field trips, concession items, behavior rewards, etc. If your child stays for an Activity Afternoon, please make sure they have transportation planned to pick them up at 5:00 PM.

**Special note! Pizza will be available for $2 per slice. Everything else (pop, candy, chips) will be $1.

Schedule for the Remainder of the Year

10/23/26 - 5th & 6th Graders - This Friday!!

11/20/26 - 7th & 8th Graders

1/15/27 - 5th & 6th Graders

2/12/27 - 7th & 8th Graders

3/19/27 - 5th & 6th Graders

5th Grade - Unit 1: Empathy and Skills for Learning

Lesson 8 - Responding with Compassion

Why This Lesson Matters: Having empathy and expressing concern are two different skills. Both skills require practice. This lesson puts empathy into action, with a focus on children responding sensitively and respectfully to their peers. By directly expressing empathy, students can help their peers feel less isolated, provide emotional support in difficult circumstances, and strengthen friendships. Students who are bullied can experience fewer difficulties if other students are compassionate and show them empathy and support. Increasing students’ ability to show compassion helps to create a caring and positive school climate.

6th Grade - Bullying Unit: Recognizing Bullying & Harassment

Lesson 1 - Common Types of Bullying

In this week’s lesson, your child will discuss different types of bullying, and increase their awareness that bullying can look and feel different in each situation.

Try this at home: Ask your child if they have experienced bullying or negative jokes recently. Encourage them to tell you how it made them feel and let them know you’re there to support them.

7th Grade - Bullying Unit: Recognizing Bullying & Harassment

Lesson 1 - What is Harassment?

In this week’s lesson, your child will learn how to recognize harassment and tell how it’s different from bullying.

Try this at home: Talk to your child about an example of harassment you heard about, or—if you’re comfortable—something you experienced. Ask your child how this is different from bullying.

8th Grade - Bullying Unit: Recognizing Bullying & Harassment

Lesson 1 - Understanding Bullying

This week’s lesson will help your child examine common beliefs about bullying and harassment. They will begin to gain a perspective on how their opinions compare to those of others.

Try this at home: Ask your child what they think enables bullying and harassment. Encourage a conversation about why bullying and harassment still happens.

ParenTeenConnect.org, a free website for parents and their teens created by the makers of Second Step® Middle School, is a great resource for middle school families. It provides expert advice and practical tools for dealing with real parent-teen issues.

If students miss out on grabbing breakfast before 1st hour, they have a second chance to get it after WIN Time and before 2nd hour. While this is a great opportunity for our students, we are running into the issue of students being 10+ minutes late for 2nd hour classes. We encourage students to get breakfast before school as often as possible. When students get off the bus, even if the bus is running a little late, students can grab breakfast and eat it in 1st hour. Students should not skip getting breakfast before school to intentionally wait in the long line for Second Chance Breakfast. If this continues to be an issue, we may have to rethink how we offer Second Chance Breakfast.

Hoops for Hunger is a fundraiser for the Isabella Community Soup Kitchen, and it culminates with all participating schools attending a women’s basketball game at CMU. This year’s game is taking place on November 2nd.

Permission slips will be coming later, but I wanted to bring our behavior expectations to your attention sooner rather than later. Because this is a fun, very big event, we need to be sure that students are going to behave appropriately and represent our WARRIOR expectations while at the game.

Students will not be permitted to attend if they receive 3 or more behavior referrals from October 5th, 2026, through October 30th, 2026, or any major behavior referrals that result in suspension during that time.

The permission slip will have more details and will be sent out in a couple of weeks.

Check out the latest edition of the Warrior Watch!

Any students who were absent on picture day or who end up not liking their picture will have an opportunity for retakes on Thursday, November 12th.

The CHMS Parent Club is sponsoring a Neon Dance Party for our 5th and 6th graders on Saturday, November 7th! This is free for all current 5th and 6th graders who attend Chippewa Hills Middle School.

Warrior Weekly: Understanding the 2026 Bond Proposal

This week on Warrior Weekly, we were joined by Superintendent Michelle Newman, Assistant Superintendent Kyle Talicska, and Board of Education President Tony Gibson to discuss the November 3 bond proposal.

Hear what's changed from the previous proposal, which safety, security, and facility improvements are included, and how school bond funding works in Michigan.

Have questions about the bond? Join us for our Bond Town Hall on Wednesday, October 21 at 6:30 PM in the High School Media Center.

Warrior Weekly airs Wednesdays at 8 AM on B103.9 Big Rapids.

7th & 8th Grade Volleyball

Tuesday, October 20th - Away at Tri County- 4:00 PM Start Time - Bus Departs at 2:30

Thursday, October 22nd - Away at Central Montcalm - 4:00 PM Start Time - Bus Departs at 3:00

MS Cross Country

Saturday, October 24th - Late Season Warrior Invite - Home - 12:45 PM Start Time

Join us for the Chippewa Hills Fall Band Concert featuring performances by our Middle School and High School Bands.

Monday, October 19 | 7 PM | Middle School Gymnasium

Come spend an evening with our Warrior musicians and hear what they’ve been working on this fall. We’d love to see a great crowd there supporting our students!

Our next Reward and Recovery Day is scheduled for next week on October 29th! Remember, stduents who have zero missing assignments will get to participate in some reward time, while students who do have missing assignments will have time to work with teachers to get caught up. After going through our first R & R Day, we are going to change things up a bit, and students who are scheduled into a Recovery space will stay there for the duration of the R & R time. Hopefully this helps with the quality of work that is turned in during this time. Get those missing assignments in, Warriors!

Our talented Middle School and High School Orchestra students are preparing a beautiful evening of music, and we can't wait to hear them perform!

Please join us on Monday, October 26 at 7 PM in the High School Auditorium for our Fall Orchestra Concert.

These concerts are always such a wonderful showcase of our students' hard work and musical talents. We hope you'll join us!

Our High School Student Council’s annual Family Halloween Event returns on Saturday, October 31, from 11 AM–2 PM! Last year, more than 1,600 trick-or-treaters joined us for an afternoon of Halloween fun, and our CHHS Student Council is getting ready to transform the High School once again!

• FREE trick-or-treating through the decorated halls of CHHS
• Fun for all ages
• The return of Student Council’s massively popular Haunted House — available by donation for those looking for an extra thrill!

Save the date, start planning those costumes, and get ready for some Halloween fun!

Ms. Spry - Ag Science Teacher

"We get to learn about animals and take care of them"

Mrs. Ruthruff - 5th Grade Reading Teacher

"She's very nice and a great teacher! She's my favorite teacher!"

The Middle School has a Parent Club! Please go to their Facebook Page (linked below) and click "follow" to stay up-to-date on what they have going on and ways to volunteer!

Dear Warrior Families,

We're excited to bring back a favorite Chippewa Hills fundraiser this holiday season! Our district-wide Holiday Wreath Fundraiser begins today, Friday, October 9, and runs through October 30.

Wreath sales were a popular fundraiser at Chippewa Hills Middle School several years ago, and we've heard from many people who would like to see them return. It's a simple way to support our schools while purchasing a beautiful, fresh Christmas wreath just in time for the holiday season!

Funds raised through the wreath sale will help support activities and events for students and families throughout the district. Our goal is to create a funding source for some of the fun extras that bring our schools and community together.

Students can collect wreath orders and payments from family, friends, neighbors and others in the community. Completed order forms and payments should be returned to your child's school office by Friday, October 30. Wreaths will arrive in early December, with family pickup scheduled for December 3–5. Additional pickup details will be shared closer to delivery.

A Little Friendly Competition!

We'll have some fun incentives and prizes for our top student sellers, classrooms/homerooms and buildings! Participation is completely optional, but we hope many of our Warrior families will join in the fun.

Fundraiser materials will be sent home with students early next week. In the meantime, we've attached the fundraiser flyer and order form to this email if you'd like to print a copy and get started today!

Thank you for supporting our Warriors and helping us bring this Chippewa Hills tradition back for the holidays. We can't wait to see what we can accomplish together!

Michelle Newman
Superintendent
Chippewa Hills School District

November 2026 Bond Proposal: A Closer Look

Chippewa Hills School District will have a revised bond proposal on the November 3, 2026 ballot.

The revised $29.9 million proposal focuses on Safety & Security and Essential Building Updates throughout the district, with a 20-year term and zero mill increase from the current levy of 1.99 mills.

Wondering what's included? We've put together a breakdown of some of the major projects proposed for our schools. Take a look at the graphic below to see what improvements are planned for each building. To see the complete project list, visit our November 2026 Bond webpage.

📅 Have Questions? Join Us for a Community Bond Town Hall!

We invite our community to join us on Wednesday, October 21 at 6:30 PM in the High School Digital Media Center to learn more about the proposal, hear directly from district leadership, and have questions answered.

💻 Can't attend in person? A virtual attendance option will be available through Google Meet. Visit our Bond Information webpage for the meeting link.

❓ Have a question you'd like answered? Community members can submit questions in advance using our online form.

All community members are welcome!

Chippewa Hills is once again proud to offer FREE breakfast and lunch to ALL students for the 2026-2027 school year!

Note: Milk without a meal, a la carte items, and second meals will still need to be purchased.

The August breakfast and lunch calendars are attached below.

Thursday, October 29th - Reward & Recovery Day

Friday, October 30th - Early Release Day!

Monday, November 2nd - Hoops for Hunger!

Tuesday, November 3rd - Parent Club Meeting at 6:15 PM in the Middle School Library

Saturday, November 7th - 5th and 6th Grade Dance, 6:00-8:00 PM in the Middle School Cafeteria

Thursday, November 12th - Picture Retake Day!

Friday, November 13th - End of Trimester 1 and Rotation 2! - Early Release Day!