Westwood Intermediate/Middle School

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February is one our favorite months and we have many opportunities for you to connect with staff, friends and enjoy the talents of students.

• Connect with staff: Office Hours for families are February 13, 4-7 p.m. Stop in or schedule a time with your child’s teacher. Staff will also be reaching out to families to connect on specific topics.
• Celebrate reading: Our PTO will have a book fair open February 4-7 during the day, 7:25 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Students may make purchases using cash, Apple/Google pay, or credit cards. They can also set up an e-wallet. See PTO section below for more information.
• Connect with friends: Our PTO is hosting a family game night on Friday, February 7, 6-8 p.m. Browse the book fair, play Bingo or board games, and more.
• Enjoy student talents: Don’t miss the Middle School Musical – High School Musical One-Act Edition, February 27, 28 and March 1. Be entertained by the singing, acting, and dancing talents of our students. Get your tickets today.

Watch for our next pulse check tomorrow, Thursday, February 6. You will see an email/text from our partner, Possip, with a very brief set of questions. I hope you’ll take a moment to respond.

Families of 6th graders – You’ll have a chance to learn more about the transition to middle school during two online info sessions February 11 – at 10 a.m. or 6 p.m. Participate via WebEx or watch for a recording. These sessions will cover everything you need to know about 7th and 8th-grade programming, registration and schedules. Westwood counselors are meeting with 6th-grade teams this week to discuss this transition and help choose elective courses. Registration materials are now available on the Westwood Registration Hub.

Looking ahead – please remember there is no school for students Thursday, February 13 – Tuesday, February 18. These days are a combination of conferencing conversations with families, professional learning, and a holiday…and we’re looking forward to connecting with families.

Have a great week,

Tom Larson

Principal

Are you looking to learn tips and tools to share with your child regarding healthy relationships including red/green flags, boundaries and consent? There will be a Health Relationships event presented by Noah Shepard with Alexandra House on February 25, 6-7 p.m. in the Den at Westwood Intermediate and Middle School. RSVP for this event by February 14.

Our next pulse check is coming your way tomorrow, Thursday, February 6. You will receive a text message and email with a few simple questions asking for feedback on your experience with school. Watch for the messages from our partner, Possip, and make sure to reply - in your preferred language - to the brief survey. Help keep us updated on your experience. You can choose to share your name - or stay anonymous. We do appreciate when people share their names in case there is a need to follow up. It all takes less than a minute.

• February 4-7 - PTO Book fair open during school hours

• Wednesday, February 5 - Explore your Options event at the high school for grades 8-11, 5-7 p.m.

• Friday, February 7 - PTO Family Night & Book Fair, 6 p.m.

• Tuesday, February 11 - 6th to 7th grade transition online info sessions, 10 a.m. or 6 p.m. | WebEx

• Wednesday, February 12 - MN Student Survey, 5th and 8th graders only

• February 13-18 - No school

• Thursday, February 13 - Conference Office Hours, 4-7 p.m. (walk-in only, no scheduled conferences)

• Friday, February 14 - High school registration closes for the 2025-2026 school year

• February 16-22 - Panther Foundation's Panthers for a Purpose Week of Giving

• February 19-27 - ACCESS testing, Grades 5 and 6

• February 22 - Panther Foundation's Panthers for a Purpose Party

• Tuesday, February 25
• 7th to 8th grade transition online info session, 6 p.m. | WebEx
• Caregiver Learning event: Healthy Relationships, 6-7 p.m., the Den at Westwood

• February 27-March 1 - Westwood Spring Musical "High School Musical," SLPHS Fine Arts Center | Purchase tickets

• Thursday, March 6 - End of Tri II

• March 7-17 - No school, spring break
• Wednesday, March 19 - Live on 65: Ring of Kerry (Celtic music), FAC, 7 p.m. | Purchase tickets
• March 31 - No school, holiday

6th grade general music with Mrs. Geist is learning how to play the ukulele.

8th graders in Ms. Duffy’s and Ms. Dulka’s Spanish 1 classes started reading a novel called “Berto y sus buenas ideas,” which is about a student in Spain named Berto and all the fantastical daydreams he has at school. Students practiced both their comprehension and pronunciation by reading out loud to each other.

Our 8th Grade Band finished a concert series with a combined concert with the SLPHS Wind Ensemble. This was the cumulation of months of practice, and exchange and mentorship experiences between the 8th band students and high school band students.

Students in Ms. Davé and Mrs. Bowman’s ELA class participated in a Socratic Seminar about the transformation of the main character, Billie Jo, from their novel "Out of the Dust." Students were able to show the depth of their understanding by citing text evidence and adding on to what other classmates said in order to have a meaningful discussion about the novel.

5th grade students in Mrs. Bowman, Mr. Olinger, Mrs. Johnson, and Mrs. Rosengren’s ELA classes have been busy studying the experiences of the boys who fought in the Civil War. To show what they learned, they were asked to pretend they were one of the boys in the war and write a letter home to their families in first person point of view. They included evidence from the first-hand accounts they read and tried to make an authentic looking letter. To make it more realistic, students stained, crumpled and aged the letters.

Westwood Middle School and Spring Lake Park High School singers joined together to sing for their midwinter choir concert! The middle school singers enjoyed watching a performance by the high school choirs and they had the opportunity to sing with mature voices.

This week, February 4-7, the book fair will be open during the school day, 7:25 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Students will have chance to make purchases using credit cards, apple/Google pay, cash or they may set up e-wallet/shop online by clicking here.

The book fair will also be open during our Family Fun Night Friday this Friday, February 7 from 6-8 p.m. Families and friends can play Bingo and other games, have open gym time, and $1 (cash only) concession snacks/drinks will be for sale. This is not a drop off event, students must have a guardian in attendance.

Please volunteer at these events! As a thank you, you will receive a $5 off coupon for use at the book fair. If you can't stay for the entire time, you can sign up for a partial shift.

• Family Night Volunteers can sign up here.
• Book Fair Volunteers can sign up here.

Trevor Sherbert gets a knee hug and a "hey, Mr. T" as he welcomes kindergarteners to school. He’s the day's sub. As substitute teachers are harder to find, Educator Apprentices, like Trevor, are part of an innovative approach to keeping learning going when teachers are gone. For Trevor, a Spring Lake Park Schools grad, the job is helping him explore teaching as a career.

Educator Apprentices and Resident Teachers are important members of our teams this year in the elementary grades. They teach lessons and units, provide classroom support as teachers work with small groups and one-to-one with students and step in as substitutes when teachers need to be away. These roles are part of an innovative approach to the nationwide substitute teacher shortage. As daily substitute “fill rates” decreased, our school leaders were in a daily, morning pinch to figure out coverage plans. Even with a substitute in place, there was no guarantee of learning. They wanted to get off the roller coaster - to be able to cover absences, support continuity in learning and create calmer mornings.

There are 15 Educator Apprentices and Resident Teachers working as part of the team. Four of them, including Trevor, graduated from Spring Lake Park High School. Learn more about them, their unique roles and the difference they are making for students. See the full story.

Students in grades 7-8 can try out for high school athletics offered as 7-12 programs. Registration for Minnesota State High School League athletics is now open for the spring. Visit the registration page to register today. Registration will remain open for the first few weeks of the season. There are many great opportunities for students to get involved.

Here's what is available for grades 7-8:

• Boys Golf
• Boys Lacrosse
• Boys Tennis
• Girls Golf
• Girls Lacrosse
• Softball
• Track and Field (Co-ed)

To learn more about grades 7-8 play-up guidelines, start dates, physicals and insurance, and reduced athletic fees, please refer to the email that went to families of students in grades 7-12 earlier this week.

Last chance to put your skills to the test and register for the 3rd annual Panther Puzzlemania 2025 Jigsaw Competition on February 8. Gather your dream team (up to 4 players) and dive into the ultimate 500-piece puzzle challenge! Register for Puzzlemania.

Get ready for an incredible week filled with Dine to Donate, an exciting Silent Auction, and the can't-miss Panthers Party! This is your last chance to grab tickets for the party—don’t miss out on a night of fun and community spirit! Only limited seats remain!

Can’t make it to the party? No problem! You can still join the excitement by bidding on 400+ amazing silent auction items. Register for the Silent Auction today so that you don't miss any exciting updates!

Here's a tease of just some of the incredible packages:

• Pickleball for 4 Basket
• Gopher Men's Hockey Game Tickets
• Pizza Pub Gift Card
• Apple AirPods
• Bert Blyleven Autographed Baseball
• Panther Gear

Let’s come together to support a great cause—Panthers for a Purpose starts soon!

• Engineering Custom Bathroom Passes

• 5 Ways to Know Your Child Is Prepared for Kindergarten
• Teacher's Union requests SLPTU Teacher of the Year nominations
• It’s time to start planning for the 2025-2026 school year
• Now Hiring Paraprofessionals - apply online today

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