Westwood Intermediate/Middle School

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Welcome back from the short break and into the start of trimester two.

Official report cards will be available in Campus Parent Portal next week on Tuesday, December 10. Grades 7 and 8 students honor roll certificates will be ready on Friday, December 13.

December can be a busy month for families and at Westwood. We have several fine arts events in December. We hope you can join us for these special performances. Mark your calendars:

• Grades 5 and 6 Play – “The Lost Boys” is December 6 and 7 at 7 p.m. in the Spring Lake Park High School Fine Arts Center. Check out ticket availability here.
• Grade 7 Band/Symphonic Concert – December 10, 7 p.m. in the Spring Lake Park High School Fine Arts Center
• Grade 6 Band Concert – December 12, 7 p.m. in the Spring Lake Park High School Fine Arts Center
• Grade 6 Choir Concert – December 17, 7 p.m. in the Spring Lake Park High School Fine Arts Center
• Grade 5 Choir Concert – December 18, 7 p.m. in the Spring Lake Park High School Fine Arts Center

We hope to see you at these events where our students showcase their work for the Westwood community.

Have a great week,

Tom Larson

Principal

Join the Spring Lake Park Schools team as a paraprofessional and work with kids to make a difference in our community! Apply online today.

Job details:

• Full-time opportunities on a school schedule
• Hourly rates starting at $20-$23.45
• Full benefits (medical, dental, retirement, paid time off)

If you or someone you know – friends, family, neighbor – may be interested, please help spread the word. See this flier with paraprofessional details or share specific openings posted online.

If your child participated in state assessments last year, their report is now available in Campus Parent Portal. Students in Grades 3 through 8 and high school complete the MCA or MTAS in reading, math, and/or science and students in English Learner programs take the ACCESS for ELLs language proficiency test. More assessment reports will be available in the portal in coming months.

Here are the steps to access the reports:

1. Log into Campus Parent Portal account.
2. Click on “More” on the menu on the left-hand side of the page.
3. Go to “Student Reports” at the bottom of the page.
4. Select your child’s name and the report you want to view.
5. Click “Generate Report” and a PDF will download.

If a report is not available (either because the student is in a grade level that does not take the assessment OR because that particular student did not take the assessment), a message will be displayed that the report is not available. If you believe that is incorrect and your child did take the assessment, reach out to Assessment@district16.org.

Our Lost and Found area in the cafeteria was completely full! All items were donated on December 2.

• December 6-7 - Westwood grades 5/6 play "Lost Boys," Fine Arts Center, 7 p.m. - purchase tickets

• Saturday, December 7 - Winter Market, Spring Lake Park High School (door 29), 9 a.m.-noon

• Tuesday, December 10 - 7th Grade Band/Symphonic Concert, Fine Arts Center, 7 p.m.

• Thursday, December 12 - 6th Grade Band Concert, Fine Arts Center, 7 p.m.

• Friday, December 13 - PTO sponsored- Trimester Treat Table, During lunches

• Monday, December 16 - Grupo de Padres Hispanohablantes de SLP reunion, 5 p.m., Woodcrest Spanish Immersion School

• Tuesday, December 17 - 6th Grade Choir Concert, Fine Arts Center, 7 p.m.

• Wednesday, December 18 - 5th Grade Choir Concert, Fine Arts Center, 7 p.m.

• December 23-January 1 - No school, holiday

• Monday, January 13 - Grupo de Padres Hispanohablantes de SLP reunion, 5 p.m., Woodcrest Spanish Immersion School

• Thursday, January 16 - Office Hours, 3:30-5:00 p.m.

• January 17-20 - No school

• Monday, January 27 - PTO meeting at 10 a.m.

• Tuesday, January 28 - 7 and 8 grade Choir Concert, Fine Arts, 7 p.m.

November - Student of the Month Theme: Example Setter: Sets an EXCELLENT example for other students. Follows expectations, completes assigned tasks, helpful and etc.

Thank you students for being an Example Setter at Westwood Intermediate and Middle School!

Seventh-grade Orange-Team students have been diving into the exciting, fast-paced world of the 1920s—a decade of soaring skyscrapers, scientific breakthroughs, and jazz! Students had the chance to step back in time during an engaging hands-on hour of stations. They raced against the clock to build the tallest skyscraper possible out of Legos, tested their communication skills with the classic game of telephone, and explored the world of chemistry by creating models of key compounds from the era. And, of course, no 1920s adventure would be complete without a little jazz, so they wrapped up their hour by showing off their best dance moves with The Charleston!

Mrs. Post Schaffer’s 5th grade classroom learned about different emotions and self-care. In our culminating project students examined Plutchik’s Color Wheel of Emotions and created self-portraits with significant colors to them to express their feelings. They wrapped up by writing and completing self-reflection about the artistic choices they made for their self-portraits.

Gold team students worked in groups to research and design a model of one of the human body systems. Some of the systems included the circulatory system, digestive system, nervous system, and integumentary system. The students had a great time working on this project and worked hard to create some really creative models. They got to have a gallery walk at the end of the week to admire everyone’s hard work and to learn about all of the body systems.

Mrs. Ketz and Ms. Angel's class finished reading Thunder Rolling in the Mountains and to show their mastery of learning, the students created their own dioramas in groups using knowledge from the book as well as teamwork!

In Mrs. Golanowski’s math class, students are working on identifying and writing equivalencies with decimals, fractions, and percentages. To review this skill, students were given the challenge of putting several equivalency puzzles together in pairs.

In this season of gratitude we owe some thank yous for last month! Thank you to volunteers who helped with BINGO, Maud Hart Lovelace reading challenge kickoff and with laminating library books! You are appreciated!

Sign up now for help with our first Trimester Treat Table of the year! All students and staff can purchase 1 item on the way into lunch for $1 to celebrate the end of the trimester. 7/8th grade A/B Honor Roll students get their item free. https://band.us/band/89454140/post/119

There are 16 weeks left to read at least three books to be a voter. Each week names will be drawn from turned in review slips for prizes. Don't forget graphic novels are due 1 week after checkout, and other books 2 weeks after check out. Please return books as soon as you are done reading them, so books can get to the other students who are waiting.

WW PTO is Westwood’s Parent Teacher Organization, whose goals are to increase parent involvement and enhance student learning and experiences. WW PTO focuses on family enrichment, staff/student support, and community engagement. It is free to participate and any staff/student guardians are welcome to join the fun.

Join our BAND app at to get all the volunteer sign-ups and information throughout the year. We are also on Facebook. Or contact us any time with questions or ideas at slp.westwood.pto@gmail.com.

This fall, Panther athletics, activities, and fine arts offered opportunities for students to connect, grow, and shine. With 15 sports for girls and boys, plus 48 student-led clubs, over 85% of high schoolers got involved in something meaningful.

The season, highlights include section runner-up finishes in football, girls’ soccer, and adapted soccer, as well as state-level participation in cross country and swim and dive. Eighteen Panthers earned NWSC All-Conference honors, and Brianna Finnegan signed her National Letter of Intent to play soccer at South Dakota State University.

Clubs like bowling and ultimate frisbee also made their mark with conference showings and placing in the top three, while our fine arts programs impressed with the Fine Arts Festival and the fall theater production of Puffs (for Young Wizards). See all fall highlights.

Each year, the school board welcomes student representatives from the high school’s student council to join their board meetings and update members on student life and the SLP experience. This year, the board has welcomed senior Alyson Pederson and junior Mia Swinarski. Learn more about them.

Join us for holiday shopping and festivities at the Winter Market & Gift Shop on Saturday, December 7, from 9 a.m.-noon at Spring Lake Park High School. The event features a K-4 Gift Shop (registration required), Panther Store pop-up, local vendors, crafts, treats, and entertainment for the whole family!

Shop the Panther Store Holiday sale online, December 2-13 and save 15% using code: 24HappyHolidays

• (Last call) Intermediate Dance Team – Grades 5-6 students are welcome to join the Junior Pantherettes program! This team gives dancers a chance to experience high school dance with the Spring Lake Park High School Pantherettes. Dancers of all skill levels are welcome. The season will include learning a competition routine, improving technique, and building strength. The team will perform or compete at the SLP Invitational on Saturday, January 25. This program starts December 10.

• Exploring careers and improving personal health
• All About AVID
• 8 Reasons Families Choose Spanish Immersion

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