Horner Parent/Family Newsletter
November 2024
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As we enter the month of November, we are reminded of the importance of giving and gratitude. This time of year encourages us to reflect on the many blessings we have and to share our abundance with those in need.
In the spirit of giving, we are excited to announce that we will be holding a coat drive throughout November. We invite you to donate gently used, clean coats to support families in our community. Coats can be dropped off at the school office, where we will have a collection bin ready. All donated coats will be taken to housing shelters in Fremont, helping to keep our neighbors warm this winter.
Additionally, we will be conducting a supply drive to support students who may need essential school supplies. Your generosity can make a significant difference in the lives of our students, ensuring they have the tools they need to succeed.
I would also like to give a HUGE shout out to our PTSA for providing dinner to the teachers for parent teacher conferences. It was wonderful and the staff was so grateful for their support.
Thank you for your continued support and all that you do for our school community. Together, we can foster a spirit of kindness and compassion this November.
Cindy Hicks-Rodriguez, Principal
Horner Vision and Mission Statement
Horner Vision Statement
We at Horner Middle School, envision a future in which every student receives an effective, equitable, and engaging education that allows them to reach their full and unique potential.
Horner Mission Statement
At Horner Middle School our mission is to provide students with the Knowledge, Tools, and Skills they need to master content standards, make effective decisions, and collaborate with others, which will enable them to be successful lifelong learners.
Knowledge, Tools, Skills = Master, Make, Collaborate!
The Horner teachers have voted and it was determined that our bell schedule for the 24-25 school year will be the exact same bell schedule as this year. Please note that our AC Transit bus will continue to provide pickup and drop off's on regular day Monday's, Tuesday's, Wednesday's, Thursday's and Friday's. The only days that after school bus service will not be provided is on minimum days that are NOT Wednesday's. Those dates will be as follows:
November 22 (Friday before Thanksgiving break)
December 20 (Friday before Winter break)
April 17 (Thursday before Good Friday)
May 27 (Tuesday last week of school)
May 29 (Thursday last week of school)
May 30 (Friday the last day of school)
Bell Schedule 24-25
M/TU/TH/F
Start time: 815 AM. End time: 228 pm
WED
Start time: 815 AM End time: 120 pm
Other minimum days that are NOT Wednesday's
Start time: 815 AM. End time: 120 pm
Last day of School
Start time: 815 AM. End time: 1248 PM
If your child is interested in trying out for a Winter or Spring sport please print out the forms that are attached prior to the school year. At MAZE day you are able to turn the forms into the athletic table if you have the physical form from your doctor attached. All students trying out for a sport MUST have all paperwork and physicals completed and submitted on the due dates below in order to try out. If you have any questions you can email Mr. Sean Davis at Horner Middle School as he oversees the athletic programs.
Forms due for Girls Basketball: December 20
Forms due for Boys Volleyball: February 27
All deadlines are firm and we cannot accept forms past the due date listed above. Thank you.
First Day of American Indian Heritage Month
Friday, November 1
Lockdown drill period 3
Monday, November 4⋅10:15 – 10:45am
Boys BB game @ Horner (Hopkins)
Tuesday, November 5⋅3:00 – 5:30pm
PTSA meeting (zoom)
Wednesday, November 6⋅6:30 – 8:00pm
Veterans Day- No school
Monday, November 11
Progress reports Quarter 2
Tuesday, November 12
Boys BB game @ Centerville
Thursday, November 14⋅3:00 – 5:30pm
CHKS for 7th grade Science classes
Friday, November 15
Vision and hearing screening in C129
Monday, November 18
Boys BB game @ Horner (Thornton)
Tuesday, November 19⋅3:00 – 5:30pm
Board meeting
Wednesday, November 20
Boys BB game @ Horner (Walters)
Thursday, November 21⋅3:00 – 5:30pm
Minimum day - NO AC Transit at 120 pm
Friday, November 22
Thanksgiving break
November 25 – December 1, 2024
Native American Heritage Day
Friday, November 29
December 2 - School resumes from break
Hello Horner Families!
Time is really flying this year. Can you believe we are a quarter through the year?
Couple ASB announcements for you. It was awesome to see all the amazing costumes on Halloween! Thanks to everyone who dressed up and participated in the ASB costume contest.
We still have sweatshirts that were not picked up. ASB members reached out to those students via school email and only one student has gotten it. Please remind your child to swing by room C102 to pick up their sweatshirt if they haven’t already.
ASB also hosted a door decorating contest for Halloween. Make sure you check out our site and instagram for some amazing pictures of spooky doors.
Lastly the big event for ASB for the month of November and December is our annual charity drive. In the past we have done canned foods but this year ASB is happy to be hosting a coat/jacket drive. Again please head to hornerhornets.org or follow us on Instagram @hornermiddle.hornets for more updates on this incredible event to help families in need.
Finally our next social will be taking place on December 6th. If you don’t have a gold card, to purchase a ticket, we will be selling the week before the social, which turns out to be the week before Thanksgiving break. Of major note this social is from 5:00 PM-7:00 PM. The theme is Night in Vegas!! Much more info to come on this!
Hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving break and spending time with your families!
Mr. Shaffer
Activities Director
Dear Horner Families,
We want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to each of you for attending our recent Parent-Teacher Conferences. Your participation is vital to the success of our students and our school community. Your engagement not only fosters a strong partnership between home and school but also reinforces the importance of education in your child’s life. It was wonderful to see so many of you connecting with our teachers and discussing your child’s progress. Your support and insights make a significant difference in our collective efforts to nurture and inspire our students. As we move forward in the school year, we encourage you to stay involved and continue to communicate with our staff. Together, we can create a supportive and enriching environment for all our students. Thank you once again for your commitment and involvement. We look forward to seeing you at our future events! Sincerely, Horner Middle School Assistant Principals
Horner will be offering the AMC 8 Math test on January 23, 2025.
The fee for participating will be $40 per 8th grade student.
Payments will be made to Horner Middle School (cash only please) in order to purchase the testing materials and supplies.
Please note: Horner only provides this test to current 8th grade students.
If your 8th grade child is interested in participating in this math competition please complete the Google form below no later than December 6th.
Payment must be received in the office no later than December 17th.
Horner will be hosting its Annual College and Career week during March 31 - April 4th at lunch time.
We are looking for parents/guardians or community business connections to come set up a table at lunch time to meet and greet with students about their careers.
During this week long event we will have career booths so that students can receive handouts and flyers about different careers and we will have college booths with different colleges coming to provide students with college information.
We will also have first responders and some of our ROP groups from FUSD coming to provide information to students.
If you are interested in coming to Horner to talk with students about your career please be on the lookout for the Google form coming through parent square in the next few weeks.
Thank you in advance for helping us make career week an amazing experience for students.
Dear Parent/Guardian:
The Fremont Unified School District Board of Education and our school faculty believe it is important for students to assume responsibility for their own health and well-being. They benefit from instruction that fosters the development of positive health behaviors and the prevention of negative unhealthy behaviors. FUSD’s Comprehensive Health, Puberty, and Sexuality Education (CHPSE) curriculum focuses on information that is essential for students’ well-being. This course of study conforms strictly to the guidelines provided by the California State Education Code 51933 and the California Healthy Youth Act.
These lessons will be taught by your childs Science teacher in their Science class. The 7th and 8th grade Science teachers will be providing the CHPSE lessons between Jan. 6 - Jan. 17th.
A letter will be coming home in October regarding the lessons and an opt out form will be attached if you do not wish for your child to do the CHPSE lessons. The due date to return the opt out letter is Dec. 20th which is the Friday right before Winter break. The sixth grade CHPSE lesson date will be coming out soon.
Please be on the lookout for the information and opt out form. If you do not wish to opt out you do not need to return any information to the Science teacher.
Links to the curriculum, opt-out information, and parent resources, can be found at: https://fremontunified.org/about/instructional-services/curriculum-instruction/curriculum-instruction-health-resources/
Independent Study
A short-term Independent Study contract is a voluntary alternative to a regular classroom program of
instruction when a student is absent from school for not less than five (5) and not more than ten (10)
consecutive school days. In Grades K-12, only one Independent Study contract per school year is
allowed. Students may not be on short term Independent Study more than three (3) times while in
Grades K-12. (BP/AR 6158)
No Independent Study contracts will be issued for the first 20 days, the last 20 days of the school year,
or during state testing times.
Schools are not obligated to provide students with an Independent Study contract. The availability of
an Independent Study contract must be agreed upon by mutual consent of the principal, teacher,
parent/guardian, and student. Students should only be placed on Independent Study if the student can
successfully accomplish their academics. (EC 51745 and 51747)
Requests for Independent Study contracts must be given to the teacher(s) at least 10 school days prior
to the first day of the absence (in the event of an emergency, contact the principal).
A written Independent Study contract must be completed, signed and dated for each participating
student prior to the starting date of the Independent Study. The contract must contain all the
components prescribed by law.
Each student’s Independent Study contract shall be coordinated, evaluated and carried out under the
general supervision of a certificated teacher.
All assigned work is due on the day upon which the student is scheduled to return to the classroom and
shall be graded by appropriately credentialed teachers.
Students, who have previously been granted an Independent Study Agreement and have not
successfully completed a previous Independent Study agreement, are not eligible for any subsequent
short-term Independent Study agreements.
No individual with disabilities, as defined in Education Code 56026, may participate in Independent
Study unless the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) specifically provides for such
participation. (EC 51745 (c))
We could use help with collecting school supplies for students in need. We are looking for school supplies to begin to build our resource center whereby students who need specific supplies can come to get what they need for free. We are looking for a variety of supplies such as:
- Highlighters
- Pens
- Rulers
- Glue sticks
- Pencils (both mechanical and #2)
- Erasers
- Portable pencil sharpeners
- Markers
- Binder paper
- Spiral notebooks
- Colored pencils
Pretty much any supply that students might need for classroom work. If you would like to donate to our portable resource center for students please drop items off in the front office during the month of November. We greatly appreicate your support.
When to keep your student home
Any student exhibiting one or more of the following conditions/symptoms must be kept home from school. Unless otherwise noted, students may return to school the following day after it is determined to the satisfaction of District representatives that a contagious or infectious disease does not exist. (EC 49403 and 49451)
● Temperature of 100.4° F or higher. Students may return to school when the student has been without a fever overnight without the use of fever-reducing medication.
● Nasal discharge that cannot be controlled with tissue and proper hand washing.
● Non-allergy related sore throat and/or persistent cough. Students may return to school when symptoms are resolved or medical provider documents that the student can return to school.
● Continued symptoms within 24 hours of illness-related absence.
● Vomiting or persistent nausea. Students may return if vomiting has stopped over the night or medical provider documents that the student can return to school.
● Diarrhea. Students may return after diarrhea has improved or medical provider documents that the student can return to school.
● Rash of unknown cause. Students may return when the rash is gone or the medical provider documents that the rash is not contagious.
● Lice. Students found with live lice should be sent home to start treatment as soon as possible to avoid the spread of lice. Students may return to school upon satisfactory treatment and after there are no visible live lice upon re-examination. Students with knits only are allowed to return. (AR 5141.33)
● Suspected contagious condition (i.e., Impetigo, Ringworm, Scabies, Pink Eye, etc.). Students may return to school when condition has resolved or medical provider documents that the student can return to school.
● Asthma symptoms not relieved with medication.
● Allergic reaction. Students may return to school the next day if reaction has resolved.
● COVID-19 with symptoms, with or without fever. Students may return to school once: 24 hours have passed with no fever (without the use of fever-reducing medications), AND their symptoms are mild and improving.