Wilson Wildcats
Your Weekly Update from Wilson Middle School
Hello Wilson families,
As we approach the holiday break, we want to take a moment to thank you for your continued partnership and support throughout this school year. We hope this break provides an opportunity for rest, joy, and quality time with loved ones. Whether you’re celebrating holidays, reflecting on the year, or simply enjoying a well-deserved pause, we wish you all the best this season has to offer.
We look forward to welcoming students back recharged and ready to learn in the new year!
Warm wishes for a safe and happy holiday season. We return to school on Thursday, January 2.
Parent Conferences in January
We wanted to share some details about our upcoming parent-teacher conferences on Wednesday, January 15. These 15-minute virtual conferences will take place from 12:30–3:30 PM. The purpose of these conferences at the middle school level is for families to connect with the team of teachers, world language and specials teachers to discuss student progress, celebrate successes, and address any areas for growth. Some teams and teachers have reached out directly to families, while some will after the holiday break.
If you do not receive an invitation, please know that you are always welcome to contact your child's team to schedule a conference at a later time during their team meeting hours.
Thank you for your continued partnership in supporting your child's education. We look forward to connecting with you!
RTI/Enrichment Cycle 2 Begins January 7
We are excited to begin our second cycle of Response to Intervention (RTI) and Enrichment on January 7. RTI and Enrichment are key components of our Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), which helps ensure that every student receives the academic and social-emotional support they need to thrive.
Through RTI, students receive targeted support to address areas of need, while Enrichment provides opportunities to deepen and extend learning in different academic areas. We look forward to continuing this important work to meet the unique needs of all our students! You will hear from students' teachers regarding the focus area during the week of January 6th.
2025 Annual Community Martin Luther King Jr.Celebration Writing/Art/Performance Piece Contest - see link to contest and prompts HERE.
On Monday, January 20, 2025, from 10:00-11:00 AM at Natick High School, the 20th Annual Community MLK Celebration will take place (more details HERE on the event website, event registration link is HERE).
Students at Wilson and Kennedy Middle Schools are invited to submit an essay, poem, creative writing (400 words or fewer) OR performance OR presentation of an art piece. Both Middle Schools will select the winning submission(s) to represent the school at the MLK celebration. The creator of each winning entry will win a $100 prize; additionally, other submissions will be featured in the event program and/or on the event website. Students who collaborate on a winning entry will share the prize money.
Students must SUBMIT ENTRIES by NOON on MONDAY, January 13th, 2025 (Please submit on this Google form). Students who are selected as contest winners will be expected to join in person at the event on 1/20 from 10-11 am.
Traffic and Drop Off and Pick Up Reminders:
It is important to follow the traffic flow in the morning when dropping off your child. Drive slowly and carefully. This is a large school with many people walking, riding bikes and driving into the school parking lot. We need your full attention, patience and cooperation to keep things running smoothly. It is not okay to drop your child off in the parking lot. It is not safe.
When picking up, you need to cue up near the gymnasium sidewalk when it is your turn. Again, please be patient and drive slowly when you are on the school property.
Attendance:
Consistent attendance and arriving to school on time are essential for your child’s success. Being present and punctual ensures they don’t miss important instruction, helps them stay connected with their peers, and builds lifelong habits of responsibility and commitment.
We appreciate your support in helping your child be in school every day and ready to learn! We understand that life is busy and unexpected situations arise. However, we kindly ask families to make every effort to ensure that students are present at school whenever possible. Missing even a few days can disrupt a student’s learning and make it harder for them to stay caught up, particularly in middle school, where lessons build on one another and absences can lead to gaps in understanding.
We also ask that you avoid scheduling vacations or other discretionary travel during the school year. While we value the importance of family time, missed school days can be difficult to make up and may impact your student’s progress.
If your child must miss school due to illness or other unavoidable circumstances, please notify the school as soon as possible and work with teachers to ensure they stay up to date on missed assignments. Asking teachers to provide work ahead of time for a trip is not a reasonable request, and it is impossible to "make up" what is missed in a class period.
Thank you for your support in prioritizing your child’s education. Together, we can help them achieve their full potential.
Attendance Highlights:
Attending school is your child's JOB!
Students need to be in school for academic & social emotional success.
Let’s partner - Schedule a meeting with us to discuss how to best support your child in school!
School Communication:
- At 5 absences: School counselor/nurse will email or call families to check in
- At 10 absences: Vice-principal’s will reach out to families.
***View the visual below with some facts about absences.
Required Yearly Forms:
Important required yearly forms are needed at the beginning of every school year.
These forms ensure that parent/guardian contact information is up-to-date, as well as other pertinent health information.
Please complete these forms as soon as possible on your PowerSchool parent portal.
If you are having difficulty accessing your portal, please contact PowerSchool support at pssupport@natickps.org
We will send out the newsletter every two weeks.
Respectfully,
Teresa Carney
Instagram: wmsnatick
