Holland Middle

Important Dates:

Tuesday, November 19th- STEM Fundraiser- Spaghetti Dinner/Dessert Auction (details below)
Wednesday, November 20th- 2nd Quarter Progress Reports will be sent home
Thursday, November 21st- Student Activity Night (3:00-5:00)
Monday, November 25th- 5:00-8:00 Culver’s Share Night- Fundraiser at Culvers
Monday, December 9th- 7:00pm Middle School Band Concert at HMS
Tuesday, December 10th- HMS Winter Choir Concert @ 6:30pm
Thursday, December 12th- 7:00pm Middle School Winter Orchestra Concert

Student Activity Night-

Thursday, November 21st will be the first student activity night from 2:45-5:00. The event will include a DJ, unlimited photo booth, open gym with dodgeball, a video game room, and minute to win it games. Tickets are only $4 in advance and $5 the day of and students can buy tickets during lunch next week or . Snacks, like pizza, pop, chips, and candy, will be available to purchase. Criteria to attend have been shared with students over the last two weeks which include limits on tardies and discipline referrals. Students must be in attendance the day of the event to attend.

Red Ribbon Week Details-

Did you know that 13 is the average age when alcohol and drugs are used for the first time? Armed with the right information and concrete strategies, we can support our kids in making good choices.
This week (November 18-22), HMS will be celebrating National Red Ribbon Week. Schools and youth support organizations across the country use this time to engage youth in dialogues about the importance of making positive life choices and avoiding the temptation to use drugs, tobacco, and alcohol.
The theme for red ribbon week this year with be finding your “Natural High”. This comes from a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering young people to make good choices and live life well.
Research shows that if young people discover their passions and are directly engaged in a compelling way by people they look up to and trust, they are more likely to make positive life choices and much less likely to choose drugs and alcohol.
On Wednesday, we will host a speaker from the Ottawa Co. Health Collaborative who will teach our students about the scary and dangerous trend of vaping. We will follow this presentation with discussion in our “HMS Family” groups. We will also present the students with facts and activities highlighting the dangers of substances.
To add fun to the week we will have the following dress-up theme days---
Monday= STAYING AWAY FROM SUBSTANCES IS NO SWEAT- Wear your most comfortable sweat-pants and sweat-shirts
Tuesday= 100% ME, FROM HEAD TO TOE TOBACCO FREE- Wear your favorite crazy hair and crazy socks
Wednesday= OUR FUTURE IS BRIGHT BECAUSE WE SUPPORT RED RIBBON WEEK- It’s a RED OUT...Wear as much red as you can
Thursday= TEAM UP AGAINST MARIJUANA- Wear your favorite sports team jersey or t-shirt
Friday= WE CAN’T HIDE OUR SUBSTANCE FREE PRIDE!- Wear your Holland gear and show your school pride.
To make this an even more powerful experience for your child, we encourage you to talk with your kids about what they are learning this week. Here are a few prompts to help you get the conversation rolling and engage with your child at home:
● What is one thing you learned about the dangers of substances this week?
● What is one thing you learned that you think I should know?
● What do you think concerns me most when it comes to you and drugs and alcohol?
Here are some other tips for talking with your tween about drugs/alcohol/tobacco (from talksooner.org):
Take time to be a family--- Still plan family outings, even if your kids think it’s not cool. Make family dinners a priority—eating together has been shown to reduce risk-taking behaviors in youth while increasing things like self esteem and GPAS.
Consider Your Actions--- At this age, kids will notice when a parent has a glass of wine or beer at home, or grabs medicine from the cabinet every once in a while. Being responsible with your own use of alcohol and drugs is also teaching an important lesson.
Look for teachable moments in any place possible---The car can be a perfect place as they are “trapped.” Ask open ended questions and really listen to their answers.
Establish yourself as a resource---If kids know they can count on you for answers to their questions, they will come back for more information.
Never stop building your relationship with them---Continue to work to establish a level of trust so they know they can come to you with any concerns.
Continue to establish and enforce clear rules---Be willing to talk about why these standards are important to you.
Make sure to share your views and opinions with them---Let them know how you feel about drugs/alcohol/etc. and what your expectations are for issues like these.
Help them learn to resist peer pressure---Role playing scenarios will help prepare them for possible situations and build confidence in standing up for what they believe in.
For more information or to find a variety of videos and resources to use for starting family conversations, please visit the Natural High website at www.naturalhigh.org. There is a portal with a ton of great information for parents. The website and app https://talksooner.org/ is also a powerful resource for parents on this topic.

Honor Roll Celebration-

On Friday, 54% of our students celebrated making the Honor Roll for the 1st Quarter with Hudsonville Ice Cream. Thanks to the Holland Police Department for the donation of the Ice Cream from their Polar Patrol program.

Emergency Response Bags-

Holland Public Schools and Kids’ Food Basket are partnering to provide Emergency Meals in case of extended snow days like we had last year. These bags should provide enough food for 2 meals to school age residents and will be delivered to the following 5 neighborhoods:

Heights of Hope Community Center( serving Stratford, Oxford, Abbey residents)
Meadow Lanes
Harbor Village
Crown Point
Lincoln Estates
**These would be available when there is MORE than 1 day off IN A ROW due to weather.
**All sites wish to have the pick- up time listed as between 10 am and 11 am. This way they won’t have to worry about being gone over the lunch hour plus one of the meals is more of a breakfast.

Thanks to Village Inn and 16th Street Jimmy Johns-

Thanks to Jimmy Johns and Village Inn for their support of HMS and our desire to reward kids who model appropriate behavior. On Friday, Jimmy Johns donated 12 meals for students and Village Inn donated 8 pizzas. Students can earn DUTCH tickets for modeling appropriate behaviors. At the end of the week students can play PLINKO for 10 tickets or can enter into a drawing for meals from Jimmy Johns or Pizzas from Village Inn.. We are so thankful for the support from Jimmy Johns and Village Inn.

EASY AND YUMMY FUNDRAISER @ CULVERS!

Mark your calendars! HMS has been given a great fundraising opportunity! We will be hosting a "Culver's Share Night" (they will share some of the profits for the night with us) on November 25. It is PERFECT timing because who wants to cook on the Monday before Thanksgiving? The hours for share night are 5:00-8:00pm and we will even have HMS Celebrity servers working during that time to bring you your food! Come out to grab a meal, have some fun, and help support our school!

Seeking Prize Donations for Activity Night-

Mrs. Legg is hoping to gather some donations of prizes for our upcoming activity night. She will be running a "Minute to Win It" hands-on game room and we would love to have prizes to give to the kids who participate. The prizes really add to the fun! We are looking for candy so please consider donating leftover Halloween candy or purchasing some candy to donate. So that we can keep track to ensure there is enough, please add your name to our sign up genius (link below) if you are willing to donate. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F084CA4A62CA02-game
Many, Many Thanks!

Indoor Recess Games - Please Help!-

We would love to offer students board and card games to play at indoor recess and for our school-family times. With all of the pre-holiday sales coming up, making games more affordable, we are seeking donations to help make this happen. The donations can be new games or used games that you may have around the house. We have created a sign-up genius to help give ideas of games that are popular options. Here is the link...
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F084CA4A62CA02-game
Thank you for your donations!

Spaghetti Dinner/Dessert Auction=only a little over a week away!

Would YOU like a night of not having to cook dinner? Would YOU like to have somebody else make dessert for your Thanksgiving feast? If you answered yes to either, or both, of those, you are encouraged to join us at the Spaghetti Dinner/Dessert Auction on November 19th (Dinner=5:30-6:30; Dessert Auction=6-7:30). Forms went home last week to sign up for tickets ($4 each). Extra forms are in the office! We hope you join us as we have over 35 delicious desserts coming in ranging from hand-dipped chocolate covered strawberries to Mulders' Morsels! If you have questions, feel free to e-mail Mr. Boerman at bboerman@hollandpublicschools.org.

Holland High Jazz Band Guest Artist Concert-

Tickets are on sale now for the Holland High Jazz Band's Guest Artist Concert on November 21st, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. in the HHS Performing Arts Center. The HHS Jazz Band as well as the HHS Jazz Combo, made up of select students from the jazz band, will be presenting their annual Guest Artist Jazz concert with not 1, not 2, but 3 guest artists for the evening! The concert will feature father and son renowned jazz artists Tom and Gene Knific on bass and piano, respectively, as well as Dr. Jordan VanHemert, Assistant Professor of Saxophone and Jazz Studies at Hope College and Artistic Director of the Holland Concert Jazz Orchestra. This is sure to be an entertaining evening that will offer something for everyone to enjoy, featuring some of the most talented guest jazz artists and educators currently on the scene! Please come and support live jazz in your community and right in your own school district! Tickets are on sale now at the HPS Central Administration Office (320 W. 24th Street, Holland, 49423) or you can purchase online at https://hollandhighbands.ludus.com.

Tickets for adults are $15 ($18 at the door-cash only); tickets for students are $5 ($7 at the door with student ID-cash only).

We hope to see you there!

Shout Outs-

Each week Mr. Cassidy sends an email out to teachers called the “Holla”. It is an email consisting of anonymous compliments and praise that staff shares with each other regarding their team going above and beyond for others. If you would like to share a positive message with a staff member and have it included in this weekly message, please email it to Mr. Cassidy at ncassidy@hollandpublicschools.org. You will be copied on the “Holla” on Friday.

Nick Cassidy

Principal

Holland Middle School

(616)494-2426

Important Dates:

• Saturday, November 16th- 7th Grade Solo and Ensemble Festival at Calvin Christian MS
• Tuesday, November 19th- STEM Fundraiser- Spaghetti Dinner/Dessert Auction (details below)
• Monday, November 25th- 5:00-8:00 Culver’s Share Night- Fundraiser at Culvers
• Monday, December 9th- 7:00pm Middle School Band Concert at HMS
• Thursday, December 12th- 7:00pm Middle School Winter Orchestra Concert

Staffing Updates-

• HMS is excited to welcome Mrs. Carrie Fickel to our teaching staff. She will be taking over Ms. DeMay’s Broadcasting and Art Classes.
• Ms. Nicole Fredricks will be taking over for Mrs. Cohen’s 6th/7th grade Science Classes after Thanksgiving. Mrs. Cohen is taking an extended child care leave once her baby is born.
• We are so excited to welcome both Mrs. Fickel and Ms. Fredricks to our team and wish Ms. DeMay and Mrs. Cohen the best on their new ventures.

Emergency Response Bags-

Holland Public Schools and Kids’ Food Basket are partnering to provide Emergency Meals in case of extended snow days like we had last year. These bags should provide enough food for 2 meals to school age residents and will be delivered to the following 5 neighborhoods:

• Heights of Hope Community Center( serving Stratford, Oxford, Abbey residents)
• Meadow Lanes
• Harbor Village
• Crown Point
• Lincoln Estates

**These would be available when there is MORE than 1 day off IN A ROW due to weather.
**All sites wish to have the pick- up time listed as between 10 am and 11 am. This way they won’t have to worry about being gone over the lunch hour plus one of the meals is more of a breakfast.

First Tee of West Michigan- Homework and Hitting Program-

Homework and Hitting is a drop-in program; there is no required attendance. Students who participate must bring at least 20 minutes worth of school-work, or will be assigned something by The First Tee staff. After studemts wrap up their homework, they can play putting or chipping games with other students, or work on their swing in the set-up hitting nets. Coaches are there to help students excel in both schoolwork and their golf game.

• Cost is $70 for participants to cover the entire winter. Scholarship participants receive programming for $5 (students receiving free/reduced price lunch at school are eligible).
• Tuesdays (November 12- December 17 and January 7- March 10) 3:00-5:30pm.
• To register, sign up on their website. For more information call 616-208-1177 or email First Tee of West Michigan

Thanks to 16th Street Jimmy Johns-

Thanks to Jimmy Johns and their support of HMS and our desire to reward kids who model appropriate behavior. On Friday, Jimmy Johns donated 12 meals for students. Students can earn DUTCH tickets for modeling appropriate behaviors. At the end of the week students can play PLINKO for 10 tickets or can enter into a drawing for meals from Jimmy Johns or Pizzas from Village Inn.. We are so thankful for the support from Jimmy Johns and Village Inn.

EASY AND YUMMY FUNDRAISER @ CULVERS!

Mark your calendars! HMS has been given a great fundraising opportunity! We will be hosting a "Culver's Share Night" (they will share some of the profits for the night with us) on November 25. It is PERFECT timing because who wants to cook on the Monday before Thanksgiving? The hours for share night are 5:00-8:00pm and we will even have HMS Celebrity servers working during that time to bring you your food! Come out to grab a meal, have some fun, and help support our school!

Seeking Prize Donations for Activity Night-

Mrs. Legg is hoping to gather some donations of prizes for our upcoming activity night. She will be running a "Minute to Win It" hands-on game room and we would love to have prizes to give to the kids who participate. The prizes really add to the fun! We are looking for candy so please consider donating leftover Halloween candy or purchasing some candy to donate. So that we can keep track to ensure there is enough, please add your name to our sign up genius (link below) if you are willing to donate. 
Many, Many Thanks!

Indoor Recess Games - Please Help!

We would love to offer students board and card games to play at indoor recess and for our school-family times. With all of the pre-holiday sales coming up, making games more affordable, we are seeking donations to help make this happen. The donations can be new games or used games that you may have around the house. We have created a sign-up genius to help give ideas of games that are popular options.
Thank you for your donations!

Spaghetti Dinner/Dessert Auction=only a little over a week away!

Would YOU like a night of not having to cook dinner? Would YOU like to have somebody else make dessert for your Thanksgiving feast? If you answered yes to either, or both, of those, you are encouraged to join us at the Spaghetti Dinner/Dessert Auction on November 19th (Dinner=5:30-6:30; Dessert Auction=6-7:30). Forms went home last week to sign up for tickets ($4 each). Extra forms are in the office! We hope you join us as we have over 35 delicious desserts coming in ranging from hand-dipped chocolate covered strawberries to Mulders' Morsels! If you have questions, feel free to email Mr. Boerman.

Notes from the Art Department-

Run With The Cops 5K
HMS students are being asked to draw a design on 81/2 by 11 inch piece of copy paper that shows the police and community working together.
The design will be limited to 3 colors with blue being one of the colors-the other 2 colors are the students choice. The design should be drawn with pencil, sharpie or pen and then add color with colored pencils or crayons. It will be due by December 1st. Please submit entries to Mrs. Jacobusse. The winner will have their design printed on a T-shirt and promotional materials and will win a free T-shirt with their design on it and get a certificate and honored by the Holland Police Department and HMS Facebook page. Please submit entries to Mrs. Jacobusse-Art Teacher

Yearbook Cover Design-

HMS students are being asked to draw a design for the yearbook cover. The design should have something to do with the school logo or Dutch and school colors on it. The design should be done on 1/2 by 11 inch piece of copy paper and should be drawn with pencil, sharpie or pen and then add color with colored pencils or crayons. There is no limit to the amount of colors. The winner will receive either a free yearbook or lunch from your choice of fast food, receive a certificate and posted on the HMS Facebook page. The winning design will also be printed on the yearbook cover. The deadline is December 1st. Please submit entries to Mrs. Jacobusse Art Teacher

**A parent volunteer is being sought to help Art teachers upload pictures of artwork into Artsonia. Please contact Mrs. Jacobusse if you are interested**

Shout Outs-

Each week Mr. Cassidy sends an email out to teachers called the “Holla”. It is an email consisting of anonymous compliments and praise that staff shares with each other regarding their team going above and beyond for others. If you would like to share a positive message with a staff member and have it included in this weekly message, please email Mr. Cassidy. You will be copied on the “Holla” on Friday.

Nick Cassidy

Principal

Holland Middle School

616-494-2425