Wendler Middle School

Dear Wendler Middle School Families,

We are off to a fantastic start this school year, and it has been such a pleasure welcoming all of our students back! The energy in the building is positive and full of excitement, and we are looking forward to a great year of learning and growth.

We would also like to invite all of our families to our Wendler Open House this Thursday, September 4th. Here’s what to expect:

5:00 PM – Optional Parent Meeting in the Wendler Library
5:30 PM – Light dinner (hotdogs and chips) in the MPR
6:00 PM SHARP – Open House begins

During the Open House, parents will follow their child’s schedule and have the opportunity to meet all the teachers and staff who support your child/ren every day.

We hope to see you there!

Warmly,

Mr. Wilson

Principal, Wendler Middle School

MAP Growth testing will begin Sept 3rd

MAP Growth is the ASD and State of Alaska required benchmark/interim reading and mathematics assessment for students in grades 3-9. Grades 10-12 students identified as needing Tier II and Tier III reading and mathematics support also take MAP Growth as part of the Anchorage School District's MTSS framework.

Alaska's Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) has partnered with NWEA to implement a creative approach to a balanced statewide assessment that connects fall and winter MAP Growth benchmark/interim assessments and the Alaska spring AK STAR summative assessment. AK STAR eliminates the spring benchmark/interim assessment window for grades 3-9 by combining the summative and benchmark assessment into one test that produces a spring benchmark score, which includes a growth measure. More information is available at the State of Alaska AK STAR website, education.alaska.gov/assessments/akstar.

MAP Growth is an online, adaptive assessment that provides each student a personalized testing experience with data that speaks to their individual progress and growth in mathematics and reading.

The MAP Growth reading and mathematics benchmark will be administered in person during the fall and winter benchmark windows. The spring benchmark will be embedded in the AK STAR summative assessment as outlined above.

Fall Benchmark 1: September 3 - September 12 (make-ups through September 19)
Winter Benchmark 2: December 1 - December 12 (make-ups through December 18)
Spring Benchmark 3: embedded in AK STAR administered during the summative assessment window: March 30 - April17 (make-ups through May 1)

MAP Growth assessment only: Grades 10-12 identified as needing Tier II and III support

MAP Growth practice tests and tutorials allow students and families the opportunity to become familiar with the types of questions and tools available on the actual MAP Grow assessments such as the highlighter and calculator. An overview of these resources with links to the practice tests are compiled on the MAP Growth Practice Tests Quick Sheet.

Welcome 6th Grade Families!!

We are Team Yukon, "making waves and navigating new waters - 6th Grade is ready to flow into an amazing year!"

We’re so excited to welcome our new 6th graders to Wendler Middle School—it’s been a fantastic start to the year! This month, we’re focusing on helping students make a smooth transition to middle school, laying a strong foundation for their success and introducing them to the Wendler Way to Be—our guiding expectations throughout their time here.

To support learning, our biggest supply needs right now are 3-inch binders and dividers. Additionally, Science is asking for composition notebooks, and ELA would love students to have a 1-subject spiral notebook.

If you need help with school supplies, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your student’s advisory teacher—we’re here to support you!

Students will receive Art and Health during their Digital Literacy class. This is where the Art Fee applies, which can be paid through Parent Connect. If you’d like to support our team with extra supplies, donations are always appreciated and can also be made through Parent Connect. These donations also help support special activities and events that build our 6th grade community throughout the year.

We’ll be communicating throughout the year via Remind and Canvas, so stay tuned and connected.

Here’s to a great year ahead—see you soon!

— The 6th Grade Team

Hello Families! Just wanted to let you know we're working hard on getting the kids to come to class prepared with their binders and charged chromebooks. We are also starting to use the planner for any undone work that will become homework! We are asking kids to check Canvas for absent work. Let us know if you need help becoming a Canvas Observer or receiving messages from Remind. We will keep working on following the Wendler Way to Be in seventh grade: Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe!

Sincerely,

Team Hula Hula

Help me give my students a good start to the upcoming school year. Here is a link to my donor choose page. I make sure kids don't feel left out by having a class supply of items. Anything helps!

https://secure.donorschoose.org/project/mrs-merculiefs-class/9457818/?utm_source=dc&utm_medium=sharetray&utm_campaign=teacherhub&utm_term=teacher_9169495&rf=sharetray-dc-2025-08-teacherhub-teacher_9169495&challengeid=22178207 H

Thank you!

Theresa Merculief

7th/8th Grade Social Studies

Wendler Middle School

Amazing Sped Team

Our Care Team

Our Specialist

Turn in PE signed syllabus and bring proper shoes to PE class.

Mr. Bruce, Mr. Randy, and Mr. Leroy

Cafeteria Team

Current stats

6th 93.7 %
7th 93.3 %
8th 95.1 %

As of 8/26/25..........Way to go 8th graders!!

ASD Visitor and Volunteer Application

We are incredibly fortunate to be part of a community where volunteers support the Anchorage School District students, teachers, and staff through commitment and service. If you are interested in volunteering at Wendler MS this year (including chaperoning any events), you can complete the ASD volunteer application now! All volunteers must be approved prior to visiting the schools. Be sure to select any schools you might want to volunteer at. It takes 1-2 weeks for volunteers to be approved. Thank you for all you do!

Raptor Visitor Management System district-wide

All adult visitors must present and scan a government-issued photo ID upon entry when visiting a school during school hours.
- Student and staff safety is our top priority. In order to ensure that our schools are safe places for our students and staff, we are taking some additional steps to ensure we know who is in our buildings at all times.
  
  The District is implementing a visitor management system to aid in the standardization of visitor check-in procedures in all schools, which complies with Board Policy 3515.5

Sports and Activities Info

All students are invited to join, regardless of experience! Middle school is the perfect time for our students to explore new sports and activities in a safe, supportive environment.

To participate, students need:

A completed activity form (even if they've played other sports)
A current physical on file with Wendler
To pay the activity fee through Parent Connect (Instructions for paying online here)

Other Details:

You can sign your student up for sports starting now! Email completed forms to Elizabeth Cone and pay online!
Students can pick up paper copies of the forms in the main office.
Practices are held Monday-Friday, after school at Wendler from 4:15 - 5:30.
If you have any questions about athletics, don't hesitate to reach out to Wendler's assistant principal: Maria Humecky

Our PTA is so thankful for all of the community participation at the Back to School Night on August 13th. Thank you to all of our donors and volunteers for making this event a smashing success! We look forward to hosting more activities and events this school year and your involvement - parents, family members, caregivers, teacher and staff - makes that possible!

Please join us for our first PTA meeting of the school year on September 16th at 6 pm in the Wendler School Library! Wendler Middle School has a recently reestablished PTA and we are so excited to be part of the school community! We could use your help to grow our base and support our staff, students, and families. We are recruiting board and committee members for the 25/26 school year. There are so many ways to get involved. Please join the PTA by signing up on Givebacks: https://wendlerpta.givebacks.com/shop. There are a variety of membership options. Your support of the Wendler Middle School PTA not only directly benefits our school, but also supports our state and national advocacy network. We need and appreciate all you do!

Student Picture day is Wednesday Sept 3rd

mylifetouch.com
EVT93NDK8 - code to order pictures

The Anchorage School District has a new cellphone policy starting with the 2025-26 school year. Under the new ASD policy, use of cellphones and other electronic communication devices isn’t allowed in class at any time, in any grade. Students must put them away, and they must be off or in airplane mode. Administrators may require cellphones to be placed in a secure location such as a student locker or other specified location within the school.