Talon Talk

Hello HMS Parents and Guardians,

We have had an exciting start to the year and September seems to have flown by. As fast as things have moved so far, it has truly been a great start for HMS and we plan to keep that going into October. As quarter 1 comes to an end, I think it is important that you are all aware of what we have done to create success are HMS. We started the year with iReady testing. This is such an important piece to the puzzle of successfully educating the students at HMS. Once students take the diagnostic test, we are able to hone in on their overall needs, and provide a more specific education to promote their growth. Please understand that these tests aren't for busy work or just to put your students through testing more times in the year. They serve a huge purpose in showing the overall success of our education and help us move each student toward proficiency. Please, help us make sure all students are aware of the importance of taking these tests seriously and how they help our teachers cater to their needs.

Here is some quick information for you dealing with the end of quarter, and basic FAQS answers for the month of October

• Quarter 1 ends on Oct. 12th and grades will be sent out the following Monday. Please be paying attention to your students grades leading up to this and know that they will be finalized by Oct. 16th.
• Students that have schedule changes at quarter will start their new schedule. This means that when quarter ends on Thursday, Oct. 12th, they will begin those new courses on Friday, Oct. 13th. This effects students exploratory schedule.
• Parent teacher conferences are scheduled for the evenings of Oct. 16th and Oct. 19th. Look for an email link or use the link below for our signup genius to sign up for a time slot to meet with your students teachers. We are excited to have you all in to meet with us. It is always helpful to look at your students grades via parent portal before your conference times.
• Halloween happens on a Tuesday this year and we are open to students having some fun and dressing up for the holiday! Some things to know about wearing costumes on Halloween to school:
• Costumes must be school appropriate with regard to dress code. Students still need to cover up.
• Halloween Masks, face coverings, and props are not permitted with the halloween costumes at school for safety purposes.
• Students should be able to go through their normal daily schedule wearing the costume that they have come to school in.

Finally, our fall sports are coming to an end and our HMS athletes will be given the opportunities to meet with our basketball and wrestling coaches for Winter sports starting the week of Oct. 9th. Please, make sure your students that like to participate in those sports attend the appropriate meetings which will be announce on the morning and afternoon announcements. Let's have a great October!

Parent/Teacher Conferences are coming up later this month. Sign up with any teachers you would like to meet with to discuss your student's performance. Available slots are from 4:00 to 8:00 on Monday, October 16 and Thursday, October 19. We hope to see you then!

We’re continuing each day in Advisory with our Gratitude journals and the kids and teachers are enjoying the few minutes of reflection each day. Kids can be very authentic because they never have to share their journal entries. Gratitude is good for our mental health and we are working on making positive changes in our kids’ lives.

This month we are learning about the differences between being rude, mean, and bullying. We are beginning our bullying prevention unit focusing on different types of bullying as well as using our VictimProof program to help students learn how to be assertive and prevent themselves from being targeted by a bully. We encourage students to be “Upstanders” instead of “Bystanders” and speak up for someone who feels helpless in a bullying situation. We will review what a trusted adult is and encourage each student to identify their trusted adults. Trusted adults are so important for each student to have. A trusted adult is any adult a student feels comfortable with and knows that they want the best for them and will help them. That adult can be a parent, other family member, teacher, coach, counselor, principal, friend’s parent, pastor, or neighbor. In addition to lessons, we’ll do school door banners about stomping out bullying in Holden Middle School.

Advisory students were so kind in making cards and banners to celebrate our school custodians for Custodian Appreciation Week! Thank you Mikey, Shelby, and Teresea for taking such good care of us and our school!

Week of September 5 - September 8

Week of September 11 - September 15

6th- Ahriya G., 7th- Ryan M., 8th- Mason D., Explo- Faith S.

Week of September 18 - September 22

6th- Thad J.; 7th- Shelby H.; 8th- Nevaeh J.; Explo- Jaden W.

Week of September 26 - September 29

6th- M'Kayla H.; 7th - Burke S.; 8th - Truman W.; Explo- Izzy D.

This month in Soar time, we will focus on math. We also have an enrichment group for each grade level that all students get to attend once a semester. These are groups designed to take a fun, educational concept, and give students an opportunity to learn something they wouldn't normally be able to in the classroom. In 6th grade, Mrs. Littrell's enrichment group is doing a project with environmental impact. 7th grade students go to Mrs. Ferguson to make transformation creations. Mrs. Pemburlin has created some survival-type skills for the 8th graders to learn, such as first aid, knot tying, and coordinate reading.

If any parents wish to see their student's diagnostic results from the beginning of the year, they can email Mrs. Fennewald at afennewald@holdenschools.org to receive them.

Meet our 7th Grade team! (from left to right) Mrs. Schuetz (Math), Miss West (ELA), Miss Page (Civics), Mrs. Orton (Science)

They have a combined 38 years of experience and degrees from University of Central Missouri, Park College, and Drury. 3/4 of the team says vanilla is the superior ice cream flavor, but Miss Page is holding her own and votes for chocolate!

PTSO has two events coming up this month:

Kids' Night will be Friday, October 13 from 5:30 - 7:30. Admission is $3.00. Concessions will be available.

Candy Grams sales will begin October 16th. For $2, send a treat to a student or teacher. Choose from either M&Ms or Sour Patch Kids to be delivered. No tricks, just treats!

The Holden R-III School District and Katy Trail Community Health are excited to announce they have joined together to offer a School Based Dental Program. This program will provide your child an opportunity to receive dental services at school, during normal school hours. Katy Trail owns and operates a mobile dental unit that will park beside the Multi-Purpose building and the football field.

Services on the mobile unit will include comprehensive dental services, diagnostic services such as exams, X-rays, preventive services such as cleanings and sealants, and restorative services such as fillings, caps on baby teeth and extractions. There may be some procedures that cannot be completed on the mobile unit, and it may be necessary to refer those patients to either the Sedalia or Warsaw clinic.

Katy Trail accepts all Missouri Medicaid and most commercial dental insurances; if your student is uninsured, Katy Trail will work with your family to obtain coverage. Missouri Medicaid programs included are MO Health Net, Missouri Care, Home State Health Plan, and United Health Care. There is no cost financial requirement to the parent if the student is covered by Missouri Medicaid.

Forms will be sent home this week Oct 10th and need to be turned in by October 26th.

Please reach out to your school nurse for additional questions.