It is exciting to share that Burchell High School, Wasilla Middle School and Iditarod Elementary School were awarded the 21st Century Community Learning Center Grant. This is the 4th year, of a 5 year partnership. A 21st CCLC is defined as a place that offers academic support and enrichment activities in tandem with a broad array of other enrichment activities in the area of arts and culture, youth development, and physical activity to students.

After school activities will be offered Monday - Thursday and busing is provided (with limited stops) for those students in our boundary. Permission slips are available in the front office for both activities and busing. Please review the bus stops on the back side of the permission slip to be sure there is a suitable stop for your student.

2:15-2:45 – nutrition break

2:45-4:15 – elective session

4:15 – dismissal

Students must be picked up prior to 4:30 or they will be assigned a bus stop for future attendance.

All After School Courses will have time built in for students to work on homework or receive teacher assistance with any regular day assignments.

BUILDING BRIDGES AT WASILLA MIDDLE SCHOOL

Mrs. Nelson and Mrs. Taylor will be setting up different support groups based on students needs during 2nd and 3rd quarters. If you are interested in learning more about one of these groups, please call Mrs. Taylor at 352-5314.

Parents just a reminder that Quarter 1 ends on October 13. Students with passing grades will be signing up for a connection class the week of October 16. Students who are struggling academically will be placed into a mandatory study hall, or a Language Arts or Math support class.

The counselors were in classrooms a few weeks ago talking to all students about bullying/harassment and our policies regarding bullying/harassment. Just a reminder of the WMS harassment policy….

1st offense = Warning

2nd offense = kindness contract + call home

3rd offense = possibly suspension

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact us at 352-5305

We will be celebrating Red Ribbon Week on October 16-20. Throughout the week we will be doing activities to promote a drug-free lifestyle. Please talk to your student(s) about the importance of being drug free

http://redribbon.org/about/

Science Olympiad will be starting second quarter on Mondays and Wednesdays after school. Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Troutman will be organizing events and competitions this year! There is a regional tournament this year on 2/17/18 at Redington and the State Competition is 3/3/18 at UAA.

If you are interested, grab a sign-up sheet from the front office

Now is the time to pre-order the 2017-2018 yearbook for only $30!!!!!. Yearbooks are an 80 page, full color, hard back book that will last a lifetime. Don’t miss out on this year’s memories.

There are several options to order:

1. If you would like to add any personalization to your yearbook, you can order directly at www.yearbookforever.com and pay online OR you can pick up an order form in the front office and pay by cash or check.

2. If you do not wish to add any personalization and would just like to order a yearbook, you can use the 2 options above OR you can go straight to School Cash Online and order through there.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at Tina.Wake@matsuk12.us or leave a message at 352-5374. Thank you.

Spirit wear is available in the front office! Purchases can be made online at schoolcashonline.com or in the front office!

Hats ~ $20

Hoodie and SportTek Shirt ~ $30

Hockey Lace Hoodie ~ $40

The Wild West Scholastic Book Fair is a reading event that provides the books kids want to read. It's a wonderful selection of engaging and affordable books for every reading level.
Reading for pleasure inside and outside of school has real and long-lasting benefits. It unlocks the power of information and imagination and helps children discover who they are. Please make plans to come to our Book Fair during conferences. The fair runs from October 24th to November 3rd. Shopping early or online is the best option for the popular books. The WMS Book Fair webpage also offers previews of the books.
Remember, all purchases benefit the WMS Library. See you at the Book Fair!

LAW Crew

We are excited to have the LAW Crew here at Wasilla Middle School. This is the first year that we have offered the LAW Crew and is has been a big hit!

What do we do?

We want all students who come to WMS to get a helping hand so that they feel welcome. The LAW Crew consists of current 8th grade students who are willing to take time to learn to be student mentors to our incoming 6th grade students. They also serve as tour guides and a helping hand to new 7th and 8th grade students at WMS.

Beginning the first day of school, the LAW Crew is available to help new students find classes, figure out how to work lockers, and deal with any other situations our new students find stressful. In addition, the LAW Crew will goes in to 6th grade classes throughout the first quarter to do various "get to know you" activities, teach helpful strategies, and work on the new “Positive Action” activities with the students.

The LAW Crew is not here to just help students. They are be available at Open House and other parent nights to help students and answer parent questions as well. In addition, they are available anytime we have community members come to tour our building.

How do I become a LAW Crew member?

• During 3rd quarter (Jan 2018) we will be taking teacher recommendations for new LAW Crew members.

You can pay all Student fees in one spot, Click on the SchoolCashOnline link below.

For School Lunch information and payments go to SchoolCafe', link below

Did you forget your iParnt login/password information or lock yourself out of iParent? Please call the iParent Help Desk @ 907-761-4357

To Register Students for Sports on iPlay, follow these steps....

1. Sign into your iParent account
   
2. Choose the student to register
3. Click on the iPlay link on the list to the left and follow the prompts

Middle School Sports Fee is $100 per sport ($250 cap). Free/Reduced $50. Fees can be paid with credit card at schoolcashonline.com OR Cash/Check payments are accepted in the Front Office.

Students MUST have a current physical on file to participate.

There’s still time! Sign up for the Science in Motion Trip to Florida! A few of the activities your student will enjoy are:

· Blasting into space through a launch simulator at Kenedy Space Center

· Kayaking through the mangrove forests of Fort Soto State Park

· Exploring the laws of Physics and data collection, while enjoying rides such as Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Sign up soon! Scholarships are available, but won’t be available for long!

Please contact Mrs. Best for information at vonda.best@matsuk12.us

Wasilla Middle School provides many extra-curricular activities for our community, such as cross-country, basketball, volleyball, track and field, and wrestling. Our teams help develop skill, healthy lifestyles and character for each of our players. School sports also build school and community spirit.

The costs to maintain these important teams go above and beyond a school’s budget. Teams need new equipment, uniforms, and busses that transport them to and from different schools. To help offset the costs for all these expenses, Wasilla Middle School is selling advertising placards to hang in our gymnasium. They are 18”x 24” and cost $100. They will be kept in the gym throughout the year.

If you are interested, please contact our Athletic Director, Emma Demmert at emma.demmert@matsuk12.us or call the front office at 352-5300

MUSIC NOTES

WMS Music is pleased to announce the arrival of new string instruments for our Orchestra! We had so much fun unpacking 2 violins, 3 violas, 2 cellos and a large upright string bass. They were awarded to our school as part of a grant application process. We would like to thank WHS Music Boosters, and their advisor Laleya Christianson for finding the grant opportunity and matching our fundraised dollars. Also, a big THANK YOU to the Classics for Kids Foundation who provided the grant that matched our WMS/WHS combined funds!

JAZZ BAND
This favorite extra-curricular music group begins rehearsals Thursday, September 28th at 6:30 am with a pancake breakfast and informational meeting. Following rehearsals are scheduled 6:35-7:30 am every Tuesday and Thursday throughout the school year. Membership is open to all instrument students who have performed at least one-year on their primary instrument and are further studying that instrument in one of the WMS Bands or Orchestra. Yes, that is right; strings are welcome to join Jazz Band this year!

21st CENTURY GRANT

Mrs. Sharp is pleased to announce the approval of her application for a 21st Century Grant!! Funding will be used to support all WMS Music Department activities occurring outside of the school day. This includes Jazz Band; evening performances and after-school practices for participation in our school district’s Solo/Ensemble Contest and Music Honors Festival.

Upcoming Concerts Dates ~ Semester 1

WINTER CHOIR CONCERT

Monday, December 11, 2017

6:30 pm WMS Cafeteria

WINTER BAND CONCERT

Thursday, November 9, 2017
6:30 pm WMS Small Gym

WINTER WMS/WHS ORCHESTRA CONCERT

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

7 pm. WMS Cafeteria

Congratulations to the WMS Cross Country team on a stellar finish to the season....

7th and 8th grade Basketball and Cheerleading is in full swing. 6th grade Basketball begins November 20th. Be sure to sign up on iPlay and that a current physical is on file. Fees can be paid through School cash online, or by cash/check at the office.

This year Wasilla Middle School’s chapter of National Junior Honors Society have big plans! The first order of business was to hear speeches from hopefuls running in the election for office. Many wonderful speeches were given and in the end, four well-deserving 8th graders won positions. For the 2017-2018 school year, Cale Hahn is president, Kylee Griffin is vice-president, Jacob Mahoney is secretary, and Aubrey Horcsik is the historian. While learning Robert’s Rules of Order, they meet twice a week. Their plans are to participate in one community service project each month as a large group for the first semester, and then they will break into groups and run their own community projects. Their first project is a bake sale. All the proceeds will go to hurricane relief in Florida and Texas.

Where Learners Today Make Leaders Tomorrow