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Hi Watertown Middle School Families,

Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year! We're excited to have students back in the building filling our halls with laughter and energy. We are honored to be serving as Principal and Associate Principal for the 24/25 school year. Our team has worked tirelessly through the summer to make sure that this school year is your student's best one yet. Below is important information about the first day of school and WMS procedures. We will also be mailing important forms next week as well as your student's cluster assignment. We ask that your student bring the forms back the first week of school. For incoming 6th graders and new students, please see information below about a tour and popsicles with the principals on August 26th.

The beginning of the year can be a lot for students to process. We get it! It can be a bit overwhelming for staff, as well. We're all in this together and will show each other plenty of grace as we work through the opening of the year. We appreciate you trusting us with your student and look forward to partnering with you.

Be well,

Mr. Joel Giacobozzi

Principal

Mr. Stephen Duffy

Associate Principal

We know that students and families are eager to receive their cluster assignments and schedules. Cluster assignments will be mailed out the week of the 19th and PowerSchool schedules will be available on August 23rd.

The first day of school is September 3rd! School starts at 7:45 am. Students should be in their advisory class by this time.

During the first day, students will have an extended advisory time, in the morning, to allow them to meet their cluster teachers, familiarize themselves with their schedule, practice using their lockers, learn the expectations of their teachers, and for new students, take a tour of the building.

We are very mindful that the opening days can be a bit scary for some students so we make sure these days are filled with time for questions, excitement, and plenty of time to learn the basics.

Haven't completed your summer work? Don't worry, there's still time!!

For all information about summer work, check out Ms. Cabral's summer work website.

In case you missed it, you can find our school supplies list on our website here. If you are unable to get supplies for your student, please speak to a cluster teacher or guidance counselor and we can help.

We pride ourselves on wanting feedback from our families. To this end, we will be taking on a large-scale project over the course of the first few months of school. We are committing to have staff from WMS call each and every family in our school community. It'll run like this: someone from the school will call to check in about how the year is going. While the person calling may not have all the answers, we are happy to listen and get back to you. Please don't feel pressured to chat. If you having nothing, we love to hear, "all good!" and keep it moving. If we miss you and get your voicemail, feel free to give us a call back. For those of you that have students at the high school, this may be familiar, as we did it last year.

Picture Day:

• September 18th
• Detailed information will be shared in September

WMS School Tours:

• Our 8th grade students will host tours of WMS on August 26th at 6:00 pm. This is a chance for our incoming 6th graders and new WMS students to get comfortable with our building and become familiar with the layout - students and their families are welcome to attend!

• After the tour, there will be Popsicles with the Principal at 6:30 pm. Anyone is welcome to join, regardless if you attend the tour. This is a time for Q&A with a refreshing treat.

Coffee with the Principal:

• Once a trimester, Principal Giacobozzi hosts a “Coffee with the Principal” event! These will be announced via the Principal’s Newsletter. This is a great time for families to connect with Principal Giacobozzi and Associate Principal Duffy in an open-discussion format.

Principal’s Newsletter:

• Similar to our elementary schools, Principal Giacobozzi sends a weekly newsletter to inform families of important announcements, upcoming events, and exciting things happening at our school.

• At the bottom of each newsletter are links to individual clusters and specialized programs (Band, Orchestra, Nurse, etc) monthly newsletters.

• Included in each newsletter is a link to submit any feedback, questions, or concerns to the Principal.

Getting in Touch:

• We prioritize communicating often and openly with all of our families. Linked at the bottom of each newsletter is our "Who Should I Contact" document that will help you determine who the best point of contact is for all sorts of questions.

School Hours:

• Regular day: 7:45 am - 2:15 pm

• Breakfast: 7:15 am

• Late bus: 3:45 pm

• Regular early release: 11:45

Pick Up and Drop Off:

• Drop Off: 7:15 - 7:45 am

• Students who have breakfast at school may enter at 7:15 am through the WMS main entrance on Waverly Ave.

• Students entering school at 7:30 am may only enter at the Bemis St. entrance

• The WMS main entrance (Waverly Ave.) is reserved for vans and buses until 7:45am. Please do not drop students off at Waverly Ave. (the horseshoe) before this time.

• Late Arrivals:

• Our school day starts promptly at 7:45 am

• Students who enter the building after 7:45 are tardy and will be marked tardy. Students that are tardy must enter through the main entrance (Waverly Ave.) and check in at the main office

• Pick Up: 2:15 pm

• Students being picked up at the end of the day (2:15 pm) may only be picked up on Bemis St.

• Bemis Street is one-way traffic during WMS arrival/dismissal, and will be closed off to street traffic from 8:30 AM - 1:30 PM to increase safety during the school day.
  

• Students staying after school for clubs and activities may be picked up at any entrance.

Absences and Dismissals:

• Absences: If you need to report an absence for your student, please use online absence reporting form or call the main office (617-926-7783).

• Early dismissals: If you need to dismiss your student early, please call the main office (617-926-7783).

Volunteers and Chaperones:

• CORIs: If you are volunteering or chaperoning at the school, a completed and approved CORI form is required. We are happy to assist with completing the form, in the main office, between 8:30 am and 1:45 pm. A valid ID is required.

Bus Information:

• Families who have signed up for buses have been contacted by WPS_busing@watertown.k12.ma.us for this year's bus information. Students will receive their bus passes on the first day of school.

Safety Drills:

• Fire and other safety related drills will be conducted at the beginning of the school year. Students will receive information about these drills during our opening days.

Cell Phone Policy:

• Unless directed by a teacher for educational purposes, personal electronic devices and cell phones should be off and in students' lockers. This year we are recommitting to ensuring that students have "phone free" time during their school day. We ask that you partner with us by supporting our cell phone policy.

Clubs and Activities:

• Our students thrive when involved in afterschool clubs and activities! Club sign-ups start at the beginning of each trimester and permission slips are handed out during advisory periods. Permission slips are available in all languages and will also be available online.

• A list of available clubs and activities will be listed on our website in September.

WMS Events:

• All WMS events can be found here: Save the Dates. This document is also linked at the bottom of each newsletter.

Our goal is to make your student's transition to their new grade as seamless as possible. If you have questions or concerns for any reason, please contact your student's guidance counselor.

• Grade 6 Counselor: Ms. Amanda Skypeck, amanda.skypeck@watertown.k12.ma.us
• Grade 7 Counselor: Mr. Tom Cloherty, thomas.cloherty@watertown.k12.ma.us
• Grade 8 Counselor: Ms. Lauren Petrillo, lauren.petrillo@watertown.k12.ma.us

Earlier this summer, all families received our sports registration information from our Athletics Department. You can find it here.

We are very excited to welcome some new faces to our WMS Family! Take a look here.

These links will always be available at the bottom of each newsletter.