Westwood Middle School News

2023-2024 School Year - October Edition

Fall is here!

Can you believe we have been in school for 6 weeks already. We appreciated seeing all of you at conferences. The end of the grading period is October 20th. Please check PowerSchool to stay informed of you child's grades. We sent an e-mail earlier this week asking for help and support with a few behaviors we have seen a rise in. Thank you for reminding your student(s) to keep their hands to themselves. We also have to remember the rules on the bus for safety reasons. Thank you for reminding your bus rider(s) to stay in their seat, talk at a reasonable volume using school appropriate words, and to keep their hands and objects to themselves.

We are excited to start our October PBIS incentive. We give out Petey Bucks when we see students following the PBIS matrix. Our matrix is Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Ready to Learn. Each grade level will tally up their Petey Bucks for each week and track who is winning. Thank you to Mrs. Reese for the beautiful charts that are hanging in our front lobby. The winning grade will earn a reward on Friday November 3rd. We appreciate any support you can give your student(s) to encourage these behaviors.

Chili Cook-off

Back To School Update

If you have not already done so, please fill out the back to school student update ASAP so we have the most current information for your student(s).

News from the Nurse

Here are 10 common myths about the flu:

1. MYTH: You can catch the flu from the vaccine.
The flu shot is made from an inactivated virus that can't transmit infection. So, people who get sick after receiving a flu vaccination were going to get sick anyway. It takes a week or two to get protection from the vaccine. But people assume that because they got sick after getting the vaccine, the flu shot caused their illness.

2. MYTH: Healthy people don't need to be vaccinated.
While it's especially important for people who have a chronic illness to get the flu shot, anyone can benefit from being vaccinated. Current CDC guidelines recommend yearly vaccination against influenza for everyone older than 6 months of age, including pregnant women.

3. MYTH: Getting the flu vaccination is all you need to do to protect yourself from the flu.
There are a number of steps you can take to protect yourself during flu season besides vaccination. Avoid contact with people who have the flu, wash your hands frequently, and consider taking anti-viral medications if you were exposed to the flu before being vaccinated.

4. MYTH: The flu is just a bad cold.
Influenza may cause bad cold symptoms, like sore throat, runny nose, sneezing, hoarseness, and cough. But according to CDC, the 2019-20 flu (normal year before covid) season led to at least 18 million medical visits, 24,000 deaths and 410,000 hospitalizations. The hospitalization rate for children ages four and under that flu season was 95.1 per 100,000 people as of the week ending on April 25, 2020.

5. MYTH: You can't spread the flu if you're feeling well.
Actually, 20% to 30% of people carrying the influenza virus have no symptoms.

6. MYTH: You don't need to get a flu shot every year.
The influenza virus changes (mutates) each year. So, getting vaccinated each year is important to make sure you have immunity to the strains most likely to cause an outbreak.

7. MYTH: You can catch the flu from going out in cold weather without a coat, with wet hair or by sitting near a drafty window.
The only way to catch the flu is by being exposed to the influenza virus. Flu season coincides with the cold weather. So, people often associate the flu with a cold, drafty environment. But they are not related.

8. MYTH: Feed a cold, starve a fever.
If you have the flu (or a cold) and a fever, you need more fluids. There's little reason to increase or decrease how much you eat. Though you may have no appetite, "starving" yourself will accomplish little.

9. MYTH: Chicken soup will speed your recovery from the flu.
Hot liquids can soothe a sore throat and provide much needed fluids. But chicken soup has no other specific qualities that can help fight the flu.

10. MYTH: If you have a high fever with the flu that lasts more than a day or two, antibiotics may be necessary.
Antibiotics work well against bacteria, but they aren't effective for a viral infection like the flu. Then again, some people develop a bacterial infection as a complication of the flu, so it may be a good idea to get checked out.