Wilson Wildcats
Your Weekly Update from Wilson Middle School
Hello Wilson families,
As we enter the week of Thanksgiving, we are reminded that it is a time to give thanks and show gratitude.
Also, please note that next week is the last week of the first trimester. Grades close on Wednesday, November 27. Parents/Caretakers should be reviewing students' progress in Powerschool and ensuring they are up to date on assignments and assessments. Grade 5 Standards Based Reporting and Grade 6-8 Report Cards will be published on Friday, December 6.
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:
One of the most important factors in a student’s academic success is consistent school attendance. Attending school every day helps students stay on track with their learning, build strong relationships with peers and teachers, and develop the habits necessary for success in school and beyond. 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.
Healthy Harvest:
We are wrapping up the Healthy Harvest Drive. Monday, November 25 is the last day of collections!
This is a wonderful opportunity for us to come together as a school community to support those in need. The leading homeroom in each grade will receive delicious breakfast treats on Healthy Harvest Day (November 27), our half-day before Thanksgiving. Additionally, the top homeroom in the entire school will earn the chance to pie an administrator in the face and will be awarded the Healthy Harvest Trophy!
Thank you for your support of this Food Drive! Last year, Wilson Middle School was the largest contributor to the food pantry, donating around 7,000 items. We appreciate all of your contributions!
Cell Phones/Social Media:
If your child has a phone.... here is how you can monitor and manage what they have access to and how long they are on it...
- Avoid use of social media in middle school: Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, etc.
- If they have it:
- check the phone often have have
- have them charge the phone in a common area at night
- restrict use when in school
- there are apps to monitor sites and set timers on phone
- not allowed in school (we’d like more students to use the lockers
Viewing Grade 5 Comments and Grades 6-8 Progress Reports
Step 1: Log in to your PowerSchool Parent Portal
Step 2: From the left side menu, click on “Grades and Attendance.”
Step 3: For Grades 6-8. Once the portal is open, the grades for all classes will show under the Term column.
Step 4: For Grade 5 Comments, click on the Grade you see next to the class listed. There may be a tab that says, “Standards Grades” that you may need to click to open the grading/comment area.
Annual Chromebook Fee:
Natick Public Schools has a required annual fee for the cost of maintaining equipment.
Annual 5th - 12th grade student Chromebook fee for the 2024/25 school year:
$50.00
Family cap of $100.00
How to pay:
Electronic payments can be made at myschoolbucks.com
Checks (made out to Natick Public Schools) can be mailed or delivered to front office at Wilson
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
Wilson Extra-Curricular Activities:
Please click here for the updated extracurricular listings for this school year.
Laps After Lunch Needs:
We try to get the students out every day during lunch to get some fresh air and walk/run around the building. We are always in need of parent volunteers to supervise the corners of the building to help keep the students safe during this much needed break from school. Please sign up here (tabs on the bottom for each week). We need at least 3 parent volunteers for each lunch. Thank you in advance.
Call for Cafeteria Waste Sorting Line Adult Volunteers:
You may have heard that Wilson Middle School is one of three Natick schools currently sorting waste in the cafeteria. Students are learning how to compost, and we need your help guiding them at the sorting line. Check out the Sign-Up Genius to sign up to volunteer!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A4EAFA622A2FAC16-51810920-waste
Thank you!
Amber Keller
Natick Public Schools Waste Reduction Coordinator
Winter Athletics at Wilson:
Winter Athletics registration at Wilson is now open on ArbiterSports.com. Here is a link for step-by-step directions on registering. The deadline to register for a Winter Athletic Sport is 11/22. Here is the link for the basketball virtual informational meeting presentation. Here is the link for the wrestling virtual informational meeting presentation. Please visit the Wilson Athletic Website for more information including schedules, team websites, coaches contact info, etc. Please reach out to Adam Shute (ashute@natickps.org) if you have any questions.
Please be sure to read through the entire newsletter and check out all of the pictures. We will send out the newsletter every two weeks.
Respectfully,
Teresa Carney
Instagram: wmsnatick
Frosty 5K
Sign up for the Frosty 5K for a day of fun, competition, and school spirit! You can run, walk or stroll your way to the finish line. Make sure you indicate that you are competing for Wilson so you can win the middle school challenge! There will be a pizza party and trophy for the middle school with the most sign ups! Go to Racewire to find all the information.
