Did You Know? LifeTouch Pictures Pictures from LifeTouch have arrived. Students on Hybrid schedule A will receive them from their advisor on Monday, October 26. Students on Hybrid schedule B will receive them from their advisor on Tuesday, October 27. Distance Learners may come in on Friday, October 30 from 9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. to pick up your LifeTouch pictures in the main office. Stay tuned for a picture re-take day. Show your Trojan Pride with Wayzata Spirit Wear and Shop for the Holidays! West PTA is offering students and their families the chance to purchase some great Wayzata Spirit Wear through two vendors this year. Support your School!!! A portion of all purchases are donated to our school PTA! Go to MemberHub.com for additional Spirit Wear details!!
24-7 Active Purchase 24-7 Active Spiritwear apparel at West Middle School again this year! You may also shop at the 24/7 ACTIVE retail store located in downtown Wayzata. 247sportzgear.com (Please disrecard the deadline of Oct. 18)
First Place Spiritwear New this year - 1st Place Spiritwear! You will have over 150 unique spirit wear designs at your fingertips! 1stplacespiritwear.com
For questions, see Memberhub or contact Robin Bjella. Please note: All orders placed online are custom made to order and are non-returnable
Fall HYPE Hi Families— We are holding HYPE WEEK next week, October 26-30, to have some fun and build community. Please encourage your student(s) to dress up with us: Fall HYPE Week! Monday- Inside Out Day Tuesday- Celebrity Look-a-Like Day Wednesday- Jersey Day, Concert or Play/Musical T-shirt Thursday- Island Vibe Day Friday- Trojan Pride Day
Parking in crosswalk Please be mindful to not park in the crosswalk on the west side of the building when running into the office or picking up a student. This is also a ramp for handicapped entrance. Thank you!
Winter Gear With winter weather coming early this year, PE classes going outside and all of the Wayzata middle schools not using lockers this semester, students have been carrying a lot of winter gear. Starting next week, students are able to put excess winter gear in the Art hallway and come get as they need. This hallway will be monitored. Students are encouraged to take coats with them and hang on the back of their classroom chairs.
Winter Middle School Activities At this time we are moving Girls Basketball and Wrestling to our Winter 2 season.
Nordic Ski, Boys Swim and Dive, and Gymnastics WILL be offered since these are high school programs.
Middle School Activities will be allowed in a Virtual Format. Activities will start around 4:40 p.m. to allow some kids who ride the bus home to participate.
Reminders Music Attendance A reminder to families that attendance for virtual music class is required. We have had a higher rate of student absences for music class. We want to provide clarity and reiterate that music class attendance is required in order to prevent an unexcused absence.
Water Bottle It is strongly recommended that Hybrid students bring a water bottle from home on the days they are in school. Drinking fountains are turned off but water bottle fill stations are available.
Extended Illness for Hybrid Students If students are home from school for an extended time because of illness or because they need to be isolated for any reason, it is a good idea for learners to contact their teachers so that the teacher can connect with the student on a plan for their learning.
Distance Learning Pictures Some parents of Distance Choice Students have expressed an interest in sending in a photo to be included in the yearbook rather than having them come into the building for pictures or picture retakes. We will need a list with names, email addresses and current grade to collect images. Each family will be sent a personalized link to upload their image. Please fill out this form if you are interested. If this form is not working for you, please email the name of the student, email address and current grade to Danni English. This is only if the student is in Distance Choice and will not be coming to West for a picture.
From Student Services Although we feel positive about how the beginning of school has rolled out for our students, we don't want to forget the fact that some students may still be feeling anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic. Students already impacted by anxiety and/or depression can be particularly affected. "Children and teens may have a particularly hard time making sense of what is happening given their pending brain maturation, their lack of experience, and their inherent suggestibility and vulnerability." (Bhatia, Richa. ADAA.org, 2020) The following links offer excellent suggestions regarding how to support your children during this point in time:
As always, please never hesitate to contact student services if you have concerns about your child(ren).
Math League Do you enjoy math? Do you like a challenge? Math League might be the place for you. Math League is a competitive math club where your skills will be put to the test. If you think you would be interested in putting your math skills to the test, please join us for one of these meetings. Math League Canvas page. You can use the Zoom link on the Canvas page to attend the meeting.
Attention Students and Parents West's Future Problem Solving Team is kicking off the season. FPS is a program in which students gather in teams of four to creatively find and express future world problems that are supported by evidence.
Attendance Guidelines Distance Choice: Students must attend their Virtual Advisory each morning for attendance to be taken by their advisor. Advisors will then enter the attendance information into Skyward. Individual teachers will reach out to students and households if there is a pattern of attendance and/or engagement issues.
Hybrid
Automated absence notification calls and emails will be sent to households after 12:00 p.m. Parents/Guardians will either need to submit an absence reason into Skyward or call the attendance line to clear up the unexcused absence.
Please use Skyward Family Access to report absences, late arrivals and early dismissals. Students are considered unexcused until an absence request is received from a parent/guardian. When you are submitting the attendance request you must be logged in as a parent/guardian, not a student. You can still call the attendance line (763-745-6455) to report an absence and we recommend calling if it is a last-minute request. More information and directions on submitting an absence online.
Update Your Emergency Contacts Now is the perfect time for you to update your students family and emergency contact information in Skyward Family Access. Please list 2-3 contacts who have your permission to pick up your student from school. This includes parents and/or guardians listed in the family section, as well as grandparents, neighbors, nannies or family friends that are typically used for emergency contacts. Please note your emergency contacts will only be called if we have exhausted every attempt to reach the immediate family members. The health office must have a current phone number on file in case of an emergency.
Academic Enrichment Canvas Page
Distance Students: Media Center Book Pick Up If you are a distance student, you can place books on hold through the Destiny Catalog and pick up your holds at the main entrance of the school on Fridays from 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Please note that all requests will need to be made by 4:00 p.m. on Thursday in order to pick them up on Friday.
Hybrid Students: Media Center Checkouts and Book Holds If you are a Hybrid Student, Mrs. Scott will be coordinating with your Flex teacher to schedule days that she will bring books to your classroom for you to browse and check out. If you have a book you know you'd like to read, please watch this tutorial for instructions to place a book on hold through the Destiny Catalog. Mrs. Scott will deliver your book to your Advisory/Flex teacher when it is available (even on days she does not come to your classroom for book check out). If you have any questions about putting a book on hold or need a book recommendation, please contact Mrs. Scott. Thank you!
Media Center Canvas Course Please make sure your students are enrolled in the WMS Media Center Canvas Course. You will find tutorials for requesting books, downloading ebooks, book recommendations and more updates throughout the year.
Technology Help Requests In alignment with health and safety best practices, the District Technology Office has put in place an appointment system to better serve technology needs. This system is to be used by both staff and students. The first step to making an appointment is to create a help desk ticket via the Helpdesk website. Please take note of the help desk ticket number. You will need it when making an appointment. After creating a help desk ticket, make an appointment with Mrs. Tombers. There are some issues with iPads that may be solved quickly, and do not need an appointment, such as forgotten passcodes, iPad won't charge, WiFi issues, etc. For these types of issues, students can make arrangements with their teacher to visit the Tech Hub in the media center.
2020-2021 Yearbook Information Due to our unique start to the school year we are reaching out to students and families to submit their photos from the first week of school. Please feel free to submit photos of you learning at home, waiting for the bus, working on your music class and even for some families the traditional first day of school pictures. You can also submit additional photos through March 26. Please see this flyer with all the information on how you can submit photos to be used in the yearbook this year. Students can find the app in their Self Service and create an account using their school email address. There is no upload code and if you have any questions please feel free to email Alycia Knabensue or Jodi Spohnholtz.
For students who have chosen Distance Choice and are unable to come into the building for pictures Lifetouch will be sending us information on how to submit photos so that all students are included in the yearbook. Look for that information to come after picture re-takes are complete.
Yearbooks are on sale now until January 31 for $25. You may order through the Balfour website or send a check made out to WMS for $25 with your student's name and advisor listed.
Safety Updates Please be sure to visit our Wayzata Learns webpage for up-to-date information.
PTA News Please visit the PTA page to get meeting dates, minutes, and sign up to be a volunteer, sign up for the directory and more.
Volunteer Needs
Around the District Distance Learning Meal Options Stay Home When Ill and Be Prepared to Quarantine If you or someone in your family is ill, please reference the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) Decision Tree document to learn what your next steps should be. Report any student absences into Skyward Family Access, specifying if the absence is COVID-19 related. Our school nurses will follow up with any COVID-19 related cases. If you are tested for COVID-19, even if you feel well, it is important that you remain home and away from others until you receive the results. Everyone must be prepared to stay home and quarantine for up to two weeks if you become ill with or are exposed to COVID-19. We know being quarantined for two weeks will be extremely challenging, but it is absolutely necessary to stop the spread of the virus. Learn how you can prepare for a possible quarantine. Our nurses will be working closely with MDH to notify students and staff as soon as possible if you have been exposed to COVID-19 at school. Always answer your phone if MDH is calling. If you have questions, please contact the licensed nurse at your school. More detail and helpful information can also be found on our Wayzata Learns webpage. Planning travel out of the state or country? October Wayzata Legislative Action Committee Update
Community Ed Wayzata Spirit Avenue
Parent Tool Kit: Mental Health and COVID-19
Parent Tool Kit: Friendships, Relationships, and Social Distancing
Financial assistance is available or call 763-745-5200 for more information.
Calendar School Events District Events Thursday, November 5, 2020 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM Wednesday, November 18, 2020 4:30 PM - 7:30 PM School Board Meetings |