Holland Middle

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HMS WEEKLY UPDATE 2/28/21

We continue our dedication to keeping our school open and our students and staff safe. Our safety protocols, especially around wearing masks, will be strictly enforced. Covid numbers in our area continue to trend down and are now similar to numbers seen in the summer. In order to keep cases down, our families must diligently monitor students and keep students home if they are experiencing symptoms or if they have been exposed to others with COVID. Please feel free to check out Covid numbers by visiting https://www.miottawa.org/Health/OCHD/coronavirus.htm

Please read through this weekly update and if you have any additional questions or concerns, please email the following staff members:

Mr. Cassidy (ncassidy@hollandpublicschools.org ) safety protocols, general questions

Mrs. Bair (rbair@hollandpublicschools.org )- Online instruction, schedules

Mrs. Legg (klegg@hollandpublicschools.org ) Online instruction, schedules

Mrs. Ortega (aortega@hollandpublicschools.org ) Registration

Nurse Byl (ebyl@hollandpublicschools.org ) Medication or health related questions

Stay Connected:

Sign up for HPS text alerts regarding school closings, emergencies, and school related information.

https://mobile-text-alerts.com/subscribe/hps/

Important Upcoming Dates:

4/13/21- PSAT Testing for 8th graders (Required for both face to face and online learners)

4/13/21- Remote Learning for 6th and 7th graders (No Zooms)

Parent Teacher Conferences Update and Schedule:

3/4-Full-Day Students/Staff: P-T Conferences from 4:30-7:30pm

3/9- Half-Day for students: P-T Conferences from 12:30-3:30pm

3/11- Full-Day for students/Staff: P-T Conferences from 4:30-7:30pm

3/12- Half Day for Students

3/18- Virtual Parent Meeting for Incoming 6th Graders 6:00pm (see website for link)

3/22- Virtual PATH Information Meeting for Parents and Students 6:30pm

Student-Led Conferences-

Please make sure that you have signed up for a conference time with your student’s facilitator. Students will be presenting their grades, goals, and explaining what they are learning in their classes. This is a great opportunity for you to see your child’s ability to present and take ownership of their learning. The presentations were created by the student in Advisory and with the oversight of their individual classroom teachers.

If you did not receive the letter or would like help signing up, please call the HMS office and 616-494-2425.

PATH Information Meeting-

HMS will be hosting a virtual information meeting for parents and students who are interested in learning more about the PATH (Program for Academically Talented at Hope). PATH was developed to serve academically gifted middle school students by offering fast-paced and accelerated instruction in composition, literature, mathematics and biology. PATH is an academically challenging environment, allowing academically gifted students a more appropriate learning pace while also building relationships with equally gifted peers.

In early April, PATH will be evaluating students for participation in the program during the 2021-2022 school year. This meeting will give you the background information you need to decide if your child is a good fit for participation. The meeting will be held at 6:30 on Monday, March 22. A link to the meeting will be posted soon, please mark your calendars.

Protect App-

Protecting our kids from online harm is one of the primary concerns that we hear from parents today. As a school, we are confronted with more discipline issues related to digital situations than any other area. Because of that, we are providing parents free access to a brand new tool that can help you have kids who are predator-proof, porn-resilient, and screen wise.

The Protect App was created by Protect Young Eyes as a way for amazing parents and caring adults to have quick access to hundreds of bite-sized mini lessons about digital safety. And Holland Middle School is making this amazing resource available to all of our parents for free!

First, download the app:

Link to Apple version

Link to Android version

Tap on “Register” (iPhone) or “Go to Registration” (Android), complete the information, and where it says, “Access Code,” enter: wrk5y1

This is our unique access code that we’ve licensed for our families. Please do not share this code with others.

Protect Young Eyes has a number of resources available to families. Please visit them online or on social media. Protect Young Eyes will also be hosting some parent workshops soon, so be on the lookout for that information.

After School Tutoring Will Start this week!

HMS will begin offering tutoring after school on Wednesday and Thursday from 2:15-3:15 in the cafeteria for those who have signed up. Letters were sent home with students who qualify on Friday. Please have your student return the bottom of that form to the front office. There is limited space available. Students must come to the tutoring sessions with their work, stay on task for the duration of the session, and have transportation home at 3:15. There is also a virtual option on Monday and Tuesday from 6:00-7:00 by appointment only.

100 Mile Challenge

Officer Bron has organized a 100 mile challenge at HMS. The challenge will be for students to run or walk 100 miles in 100 days. The first day of the challenge was Wednesday, February 24th. To kick off this challenge several of the students and staff ran/walked a mile during lunch. This challenge will go until June 4th. Students can count 20 minutes of physical activity as a mile on their recording sheet. These sheets will be turned into Officer Bron every week. We will continue to organize some group walks/runs during lunch and after school. Please be on the lookout for notices.

Winter Clothing:

All students will go outside for sensory breaks and for dismissal . Please make sure students come to school dressed for the weather.

Calendar Items- Please continue to check the Holland Middle Webpage for updated calendar items.

COVID Updates-

Covid Dashboard

https://www.hollandpublicschools.org/.../weekly_covid...

Please check out the Ottawa County Department of Public Health for Covid trends in the area.

https://miottawa.org/Health/OCHD/

Positive Behavior at HMS

Our PBIS team continues to meet monthly and continues to focus on the D.U.T.C.H. matrix, which stands for Diverse, United, Thrive, Committed, and Honorable. The expectation is that all students and staff exhibit these each day, and Dutch tickets are given to students that are exhibiting these characteristics as a positive reward. These tickets are entered into a drawing to receive Jimmy Johns as a fun lunch on Friday!

Staff members of our team met with a group of students to gain input into a survey, centered on rewards for positive behavior. All students at HMS then took the survey and our PBIS team will now analyze the results during our March Meeting. We value our students' input and want to work together to continue to find new ways that encourage students to exhibit the D.U.T.C.H. matrix every day!

Reminder of HMS Cell Phone Policies-

Cell phones are to be off and out of site (in backpacks) from 7:30-2:00. This includes lunch times and breaks. Moving forward, students with phones out between 7:30 and 2:00 will have their phones confiscated and they will need to pick it up in the office after school. On the third time their phone is taken it will need to be picked up by their parents.

Notes from Nurse Byle

"Too many kids and teens have high blood pressure (hypertension) and other risk factors for heart disease and stroke. A CDC study shows that about 1 in 25 youth ages 12 to 19 have hypertension. High blood pressure in youth is linked to health problems later in life. The good news is that you can both help prevent high blood pressure and manage it. Helping children keep a healthy weight, eat nutritious foods, and get regular physical activity can lower their blood pressure and reduce their risk for cardiovascular disease later in life. Try these tips to help your child keep a healthy weight and normal blood pressure:

https://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/youth.htm"--