Horner Parent/Family Newsletter

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!

Dear Horner Families,

As we approach the end of another school year, we want to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude for your unwavering support and collaborative spirit in nurturing the growth and development of our students. Your dedication to fostering positive home-school relationships has been instrumental in creating a thriving learning environment at Horner.

Throughout the year, your active involvement and open communication have been invaluable in meeting the diverse needs of our students. Together, we have worked hand in hand to ensure their academic success and emotional well-being. Your partnership has truly made a difference in the lives of our young learners, and for that, we are profoundly grateful.

As we look forward to the month of May, we are excited to invite you to join us for a series of fun-filled events at Horner. On May 20th, we will be hosting an Awards Night to celebrate the outstanding achievements of students who have been nominated by their teachers for various criteria. It will be a joyous occasion to recognize their hard work and dedication throughout the year.

Additionally, mark your calendars for our 8th Grade Promotion Family Carnival on May 17th, from 5-7 pm. This special event is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our 8th graders as they embark on their journey into high school. We hope our 8th grade families can join us for an evening of festivities and cheer!

We also have our exciting 8th grade trip to Aqua Adventure on May 15th from 830-120 pm Thank you to those 8th grade parents who have stepped up and volunteered to help chaperone to make this event amazing.

On the last day of school, May 31st, we will be having a DJ along with yearbook signing and an ice cream social for students (compliments of our wonderful PTSA.) This last day of school will be an opportunity for students to connect, make new friends and bond prior to the summer break.

As we approach the summer break, we encourage you to continue fostering positive and interactive relationships with your children to support their academic and social-emotional growth. We hope that your summer is filled with joy, relaxation, and meaningful moments spent with loved ones.

Looking ahead to the new school year, we eagerly anticipate continuing our partnership with you. Together, we will strive to ensure the success and well-being of all our students.

Thank you once again for your ongoing support and commitment. It has been a pleasure working with you this year, and we look forward to the adventures that lie ahead.

Warm regards,

Cindy Hicks-Rodriguez

Horner Principal

Dear Horner Parents,

We wanted to take a moment to address a matter of growing concern within our school community: the impact of students' social media activity on their peers.

In recent months, we have observed an increase in inappropriate messages and posts on social media platforms, which directly and negatively affect other students at school. As educators and caregivers, it is our shared responsibility to address these issues and work together to create a safe and respectful online environment for all students.

We understand that monitoring your child's social media activity can be challenging, but it is essential to ensure their well-being and the well-being of their peers. To support you in this endeavor, we would like to offer some tips for monitoring social media with your children:

1. Open Communication: Foster open and honest conversations with your child about the importance of responsible social media use. Encourage them to come to you with any concerns or questions they may have about their online interactions.

2. Set Clear Expectations: Establish clear guidelines and expectations for your child's social media use, including what types of posts are appropriate and unacceptable. Make sure they understand the consequences of inappropriate behavior online.

3. Monitor Privately: Respect your child's privacy while still monitoring their social media activity. Consider using parental control apps or monitoring software to track their online interactions discreetly.

4. Lead by Example: Be a positive role model for your child by demonstrating responsible social media behavior yourself. Show them how to use social media as a tool for communication and connection rather than a platform for negativity or bullying.

5. Encourage Empathy: Teach your child to think critically about the impact of their words and actions online. Encourage them to consider how their posts may affect others and to always treat their peers with kindness and respect.

By working together to monitor and guide our children's social media activity, we can help create a safer and more positive online community for all students. While we wish we had the authority to eliminate any wrong doing on social media platforms, our sphere of direct influence of eliminating inappropriate posts and interactions is very limited as school officials which is why it is critical that when you find out about an inappropriate post you contact that specific social media platform right away to report it. If you also feel that the post has a direct negative impact on the school setting or your child, please report that post to the school as well.

Hello everyone....

We are still in need of $5 gift cards and bags of jolly ranchers and hard candy for our BUZZ Bucks incentive program. We are running out of our supply to provide to students. If you can donate to this iniative please do so. The kids absolutely love the prizes and the utilize their BUZZ bucks on Friday's.

Hello Horner Families!

A quick ASB update for this month.. 23 days left?? This year has really flown by and we appreciate everything PTSA has helped us with this year including our last social of the year April 26th.

ASB has two things left in May to let you know about. The first thing is the 8th grade trip on May 15th. Thank you so much for filling out the necessary paperwork but we are still going through it so don’t be surprised if your student brings it back. Please return it ASAP if this happens. We are also looking for parent volunteers to help us chaperone this trip. Please email Mrs. Hicks if you are an 8th grade parent who is interested.

Finally ASB is hosting the final spirit store of the year. We are finalizing the dates but points reset after the year so make sure you spend them.

Please head to hornerhornets.org or follow us on Instagram @hornermiddle.hornets for more updates on things going on in the ASB classroom!

Mr. Shaffer

Activities Director

Hello 8th grade Horner Parents,
We are excited to let you know about our annual Promotion Family Carnival that takes place each year at Horner during the month of May.
The Promotion Family Carnival is our celebratory event for 8th graders, that we have yearly as our promotion activity for our current 8th graders.
This carnival allows family and friends to come together with their 8th grader to celebrate their advancement to 9th grade. This event is free to all Horner 8th graders and their family.
8th grade students will receive their carnival pass during the month of May and the carnival pass will allow entry for 6 family members (not including the 8th grade student). The event will take place on May 17th from 500-700 pm on the Horner campus and will have the following activities:
*8 different food trucks (families will need to pay for their own food truck experience)
*Video game truck (free to everyone)
*2 photo booths (free to everyone)
*1 face painter (free to everyone)
*1 baloon twister (free to everyone)
*Carnival games with prizes (free to everyone)
*Music DJ with dancing (free to everyone)
*8th grade T shirts (free to all 8th graders)
*Video presentation of 8th graders (free to everyone)
*Celebration activity at end of Carnival to declare advancement to High School (free to everyone)
AND much more!
We hope that you will join us at the the annual 8th grade Promotion Family Carnival as it is a super fun filled event and last year we had over 2100 participants to celebrate our 8th grade students. Please be on the lookout for your family pass coming home with your student at the beginning of May.

8th graders will receive their family passes the week of May 6th. Parents, be on the lookout for the passes. Passes are non transferable and cannot be used by any other grade level student.

PTSA meeting online

Wednesday, May 1⋅6:30 – 8:00pm

Boys VB @ Thornton

Thursday, May 2⋅2:45 – 4:45pm

SBAC ELA PT testing

May 2 – 3, 2024

Teacher Appreciation Week

May 6 – 10, 2024

SBAC Math CAT testing

May 6 – 7, 2024

SBAC Math PT testing

May 9 – 10, 2024

Spring band concert in gym

Friday, May 10⋅6:30 – 8:00pm

Awards night in MUR

Monday, May 20⋅6:00 – 7:00pm

Spring choir concert in MUR

Tuesday, May 21⋅6:30 – 7:30pm

6th grade band concert in MUR

Thursday, May 23⋅6:00 – 7:00pm

WEB training day after school for selected WEB leaders

Thursday, May 23⋅2:45 – 3:45pm

Memorial Day - no school

Monday, May 27

Minimum day early dismissal at 120 pm

Tuesday, May 28

Minimum day early dismissal at 120 pm

Thursday, May 30

Last day of school early dismissal at 1248 pm

Friday, May 31

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:

August. 15 (Second day of school..Thursday)

October 31 (Halloween)

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

What is Maze Day?

Maze Day is an event that is held every August for students in grades 6-8 and their parents/guardians. During Maze Day students and parents receive student schedules, take yearbook pictures, obtain student ID cards, purchase a number of items for the school year as well as sign up for clubs and express interest in sport teams. Returning students may also return textbooks found over summer.

MAZE DAY SCHEDULE –

There will be two different MAZE day's in August for the new school year.

August 6th will be for incoming 6th grade students only. MAZE day for our incoming 6th grade students will be from 9 AM - 330 pm at Horner Middle School. Please know that only 6th grade materials will be available on this day.

August 7th will be for our 7th and 8th grade students only. MAZE day for our 7th gand 8th grade students will be from 9 AM - 330 pm at Horner Middle School. Pleae know that only 7th and 8th grade materials will be available on this day.

The purpose of having two different days is to specialize for those grade levels and to also cut down on long lines. Thank you for your understanding with the grade level break downs for MAZE day.

During MAZE day you will find the following:

• School pictures (we will be using a new photography company this year)
• Student ID cards (temporary cards will be provided to students on this day)
• Club information
• Sports information and forms
• Yearbook sales
• Library/Media donations
• School activity donations
• 8th grade activity donations
• PTSA memberships
• AC Transit information/Clipper cards
• Student schedules for the 24-25 school year
• Child Nutrition Services information
• Coffee/Dessert trucks

Please find the the school donations forms below if you are interested in donating to Horner Middle School for the 24-25 school year. Forms will be collected at MAZE day in August and note that any donation of $150 or more wil result in a free school T shirt. Shirts will be available at MAZE day when donation sheets are turned into the donation table.

More information to come as we get closer to August. Please calendar these dates for the future.

Horner Middle School students will be participating in the standarized testing SBAC starting on April 29th. See below for the testing schedule at Horner:

• California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP)
  • Smarter Balanced Summative Assessment (SBAC)
    State mandated test for grades 6-8

    
    

    • English Language Arts - April 29 through May 2
    • Mathematics - May 6 through May 10
  • California Alternative Assessment (CAA)
    For eligible students.

    
    

    • English Language Arts - April 29-May 10
    • Mathematics - April 29- May 10
    • Science - April 29- May 10
  • California Science Test (CAST)
    State mandated test for grade 8 - May 13 through May 14
• Physical Fitness Test (PFT)
  State mandated test for grade 7 - March - May

Please refer to the attachment below to view the 24-25 FUSD Instructional Calendar. This will hopefully help you plan the return for your summer vacations and help you calendar when official holidays and non school days exist during next school year. It will also show you when progress report periods will be and when the quarter and semesters end next year.

If your child is interested in trying out for a Fall, 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 Volleyball: August 22

Forms due for Boys Basketball: October 17

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.

April 25th was "bring your child to work" day. It was a huge success and the 6-8th graders enjoyed seeing the little ones on campus. Everyone had a super day and we will totally do this again next year. Great fun. See pictures below!

Aeries Parent Portal & 2024-25 MAZE Process

Fremont Unified will transition from Infinite Campus to Aeries as our student information system for the 2024-25 school year.

In July 2024, parents and guardians of students enrolled for 2024-25 will receive information to activate their Aeries Parent Portal, and will use the Portal to complete the annual MAZE process, called “Parent Data Confirmation” in Aeries.

MAZE is Fremont Unified School District’s annual data confirmation process in which parents/guardians:

• provide required information for each enrolled student - such as emergency contacts,
• acknowledge certain parent/guardian and student rights and responsibilities, and
• access specific school forms/information.

Completing the MAZE process ensures your student’s school has accurate information, and allows families to view student schedules/classroom assignments and their teachers when that information is released in August.

Please look out for additional information about activating your Aeries Parent Portal and completing the MAZE process in the coming months.

Password Reset Tool for Students

As part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the security and independence of our students' digital learning experience, Fremont Unified School District is introducing a new Self-Service Password Reset Tool through the ClassLink platform. ClassLink is designed to empower our students by allowing them to manage their own account passwords securely and efficiently.

The FUSD Technology Department will be rolling this tool out over the next several weeks on a site-by-site basis. When you receive the password reset instructions, we request your prompt action to ensure your student continues to have access to school devices and curriculum, while increasing the security of their user account. More information to come as it is released.

During the month of June & July we will be posting a school supply list on our website for parents and students to view. Please keep in mind that this is a very basic supply list for each subject area. Once students return to school in the fall and meet their actual teachers in every class, the teachers will be providing students and parents with a required list of supplies they will need for those classes. The list that we will be post on the website will be basic supplies in the event that parents and students want to just get a head start on the basics. Thank you in advance for patience as the teachers work on the "actual" supply list that students will need when they return to school in August.

Privacy in Bathrooms, Locker Room, and Dressing Areas

A. Individuals who use school district bathrooms, locker rooms and/or dressing areas have a right

to a safe environment, which includes a reasonable assurance that the District will not tolerate

the use of audio or visual recording devices, in dressing areas, bathrooms or locker rooms to

record or transfer images or recording from these areas.

B. When the District has reason to believe that any person has violated this prohibition regarding

the transmission of pictures of persons from the bathroom, locker room and/or dressing area, or

has, in any other way, violated the right of privacy within these areas, the principal shall take

action and may call local law enforcement.

C. Any person violating this policy may be subject to prosecution and face suspension and/or

recommendation for expulsion.

D. School officials have the right to confiscate any mobile communication devices or recording

device if there is reasonable suspicion that the cellular or recording device has been used in

violation of this policy. School administrators may search the contents of that device to ensure

that images have not been taken or transmitted from within the bathroom, locker room and/or

dressing areas.

Please have a conversation with your child about the use of their cell phone at school and please remind them that cell phones should be turned off (not on silent) when the school bell rings in the AM. They should not be answering phone calls from parents on their cell phone during the school day. If there is an emergency and you need to reach your child, please call the main office and we will inform the student of the emergency. Students can face disciplinary action for making and receiving calls or text messages on their cell phones during the school day. Thank you for your help with this.

Double Fines in School Zones

In Alameda County, fines are doubled for traffic violations in school zones. The additional revenue will

be used to pay for school and pedestrian safety programs.

Please know that it is illegal to make U-turns in front of the school and it is also very unsafe. Please help us keep everyone safe by not allowing your students to unload in the street area. There have been a few close calls of kids getting struck by vehicles when kids exit the cars in the street. The last thing we want is to have to call EMS for this type of accident. Thank you for putting everyone's safety first and foremost.

Mental Health

Fremont Unified is committed to the health and wellbeing of our students, families, staff, and

community. To this end we have established many support services for our students, staff and

community. All sites have at least one full time school counselor and a school psychologist assigned to it. Social emotional learning curriculum is delivered throughout all schools, across grades kindergarten to 12. We have partnered with local community organizations to have therapists on site to offer therapy services to students. The district has established Employee Assistance Programs to support our staff. We have also partnered with Care Solace to assist families with connecting to mental health and substance use services in the community.

If you are ever in need of assistance or are worried about your child or a friend, please reach out to the support staff at your school or utilize one of the resources below.

Health/Counseling

Alcoholics Anonymous, 925.829.3160

Alanon, 925.277.7661

Crisis Support, 1.800.309.2131

Narcotics Anonymous, 1.510.444.HOPE (4673)

Substance Abuse, 925.455.0747

Search Institute (help teens make healthy choices)

National Institute for Drug Abuse (home)

National Institute for Drug Abuse (Teens)

Mothers Against Drunk Driving/MADD877.MADD.HELP

Alameda County Health Services Department, 1.510.618.3452

National Crisis Hotlines 24/7 – dial 988

Crisis, Suicide, 800.273.8255

Grief Counseling, 800.837.1818

Youth Runaway, 800.718.4357

Homelessness, 800.808.6444

School Violence, 800.863.7600

Alameda County Crisis Hotline, 800.309.2131

Final Yearbook Sale

We will be selling our last 60 yearbooks for this year. To be as fair as possible, this is a first-come, first-serve list, and the first 60 people to respond to this form will be able to purchase a yearbook, beginning Wed May 1st.

If you are still interested in purchasing one, please follow this link to make your request: https://forms.gle/Q4KftjY9hQWT5XqN6 . Since we only have 60 books left, we cannot guarantee that you will be able to make the purchase just by filling out this form. We will confirm by email to let you know if you made the list, and instructions on where and when to make the payment. Yearbooks are $50, and we are only accepting cash or checks at this time. Thank you for all of your support! *The yearbook is limited to one per person. **Yearbooks will be given out during the last week of school.