Monday Morning Minute
Monday, January 29 2018
In this Issue:
  • Wayland Cares Parent Coffee Feb. 6th & Parent Resources
  • Dismissal for Appointments
  • Student Access to HAC
  • Orange and Black
  • Geo Bee Finalists
  • Wayland-Weston Hockey Night
  • PTO News
  • Artist of the Week
  • Reminders
  • Important Dates
Parent Coffee: Jason Verhoosky of Wayland Cares Discusses New State-Mandated Interview Based Health Screening
Tuesday, February 6, 9:00 - 10:00 AM
Wayland Middle School Faculty Lounge

On whole we can be proud to say that we have a very healthy community. The MetroWest Adolescent Health Survey data ( link to survey) consistently demonstrates that a very small number of our students try alcohol, marijuana and other drugs as they begin transitioning to high school and by the end of high school, more students report substance use.

In order to help prevent students from starting to use substances we have a research-based health education curriculum grounded in healthy decision making. Additionally, beginning this year, the Wayland Middle School guidance team and Wayland Cares staff will be providing an interview-based state-mandated screening for all 8th grade students about the use of alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs called SBIRT (Screening, Brief Intervention, Referral to Treatment). A letter regarding this program was emailed to all 8th grade parents and guardians last week, which includes information for opting your 8th grader out. I hope you will consider joining us next week to learn more about the upcoming SBIRT screening with Jason and get all of your questions answered.
Resources for Parents from Wayland Cares

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the presentation and discussion of the key results of the MetroWest Adolescent Survey data. Jason Verhooskey of Wayland Cares did a wonderful job facilitating a rich conversation, helping us think more deeply about the data and the many issues and challenges our middle and high school youth face. One request that emerged from the evening was for more information around vaping for families so that they were better equipped to engage in meaningful conversations with their children about this important topic. Wayland Cares staff has added some resources to their  parent resource page. We encourage you to peruse their comprehensive website.
Need to Pick up Your Child Early? Send a Note!
Here are the steps to follow if you must dismiss your child before the end of the school day:

1)      Send a dismissal note to school with your child with date and
time you will pick up.

2)      Instruct your child to bring the note to the office upon arriving to school.

3)      Your child will be given a dismissal pass to give to his/her teacher with
the dismissal time.

4)      At the indicated time, your child will come to the office to check out and
meet you at the entrance.

If all steps are followed, there is no need for you to come in to the office to sign out your child.

This process is designed to avoid calling classrooms and minimize teaching interruptions. It also fosters independence in students by allowing them to be responsible for their part in the dismissal routine. If you are unable to send in a note, you will need to come in to the school office to sign out your student.
Student Access to HAC

On Tuesday, January 30th, students are going to be given directions on how to log-in to Home Access Center (HAC) to view their own schedules, progress reports and report cards. If students have problems with access they should see Ms. Monahan.
Middle School Newspaper - The Orange and Black

Be sure to check out our student run newspaper featuring news, stories, poems and other work! - The Orange and Black
Geo Bee Winners and Finalists

Congratulations to  Dylan Aufman, the winner of the Geo Bee. Dylan is a 6th grader in the Henry Cluster and he missed NO questions in his path to victory! Dylan will move on to take a written test, and pending passing of the test, he will move on to the state finals in April.

Please also congratulate the following participants:

Runners-up:
2nd place: Grant Larsen, Grade 6
3rd place: Jayant Kuppuswamy, Grade 6

Finalists:
Ayaan Rashid, Grade 8
Kaylee Mai, Grade 7
Aditya Weling, Grade 7
Eric Hiebert, Grade 7
Azan Salahuddin, Grade 6
Harrsion Dale, Grade 6
Graham Schwendt, Grade 6

Additional participants - first round:
Om Paithankar, Grade 7
Amelie Martin, Grade 7
Zachary Grossman, Grade 7
Anshuman Parulekar, Grade 6
Thomas Kiernan, Grade 6
Annual Wayland-Weston Hockey Night
The Rivers School, Weston
Saturday, February 10 at 6:30pm

You don’t have to travel far for a great night of hockey featuring the middle school boys and girls’ teams, the Wayland/Weston Girls’ Varsity team taking on Boston Latin School with the Wayland Boys’ Varsity team facing off vs. Weston to defend their title as last year’s Steve Henley Memorial Post Road Cup Champs! Food Truck, 50/50 Raffle and More!

Schedule of games:
  • 6:30PM -- Wayland MS boys and girls vs. Weston MS boys and girls
  • 7:00 PM – Wayland/Weston Girls Varsity vs. Boston Latin School
  • 8:30 PM – Wayland Boys Varsity vs Weston Boys Varsity
  • 10:00PM – Post Road Hockey Night Cup Presentation
PTO News
M iddle & More Coffees
All events will be held in the WMS Teacher Lounge, unless otherwise noted.

A Sporting Chance: Finding the Right Balance with Youth Sports & Other Activities
Dr. Robert Evans of Human Relations Services
February 1, 2018, 7:00 - 8:30 pm (WMS Auditorium)

English, Writing Center and Social Studies
February 13, 2018, 8:45 - 9:45 am
We will be joined by department heads and Ms. Gavron for an overview of the
curriculum in these departments, including the new Writing Center, with plenty of time for parent Q & A. 

Preventive Measures for Stress & When to Worry
Dr. Dossie Kahn of Wayland Youth & Family Services
March 12, 2018, 9:00 - 10:00 am

Internet Safety: Creating a Safe Environment & Experience
Discussion with Jason Verhoosky (Wayland Youth & Family Services) and Detective Castagno and Officer Bowles of Wayland Police
April 30, 2018, 7:00 -8:30 pm (WMS Auditorium)

Parenting Your Teen: An Interactive Workshop on Communications
Mark Altman of MindsetGo
May 22, 2018, 9 – 10:30 am

Building Resilience in Children
Dr. Ben-Levi of Human Relations Services
June 4, 2018, 9-10:15 am

Any questions or comments may be directed to the coordinator, Sejal T. Srinivasan sejsri@gmail.com
Make Sure You're in the Loop
Online All School Directory

Need to contact other parents in the school district? Register your family in MySchoolAnywhere. This is an online directory of families in the Wayland school system. You can search by first name or last, by school, and by grade. This is how you get in touch with other parents and let others get in touch with you! For everything you need to know and to get the APP for your phone:

ARTIST of the WEEK
Artist: Lauren Grant-Lubin
Grade: 8
Medium: Cardboard, hot-glue & acrylic

Reminders from Previous Emails
Gift Card Calendar Fundraiser
Results Posted in January

Be sure to check our website announcements page each school day for the exciting results of our Gift Card Calendar Fundraiser. Thank you to all who participated!
WMS Art Show
February 3 to 27
Wayland Public Library

Throughout the month of February, the Wayland Free Public Library will host a display of student artwork from Wayland Middle School. Over forty young artists will be featured in this mixed-media exhibition, representing grades 6, 7 and 8. 

An opening reception is planned from 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm on Sunday, February 4 in the downstairs Raytheon Room of the library. The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Pete Curran, visual art educator, at peter_curran@wayland.k12.ma.us. 
Dates to Remember
2018 MCAS Dates

Please mark your calendars. If at all possible, we ask you to avoid scheduling appointments for your child on his or her testing dates. Many thanks! 

6th Grade
ELA: 4/2 and 4/3
Math: 5/7 and 5/8

7th Grade
ELA: 4/9 and 4/10
Math: 5/10 and 5/11

8th Grade
ELA: 4/26 and 4/27
Math: 4/30 and 5/1
STE: 5/3 and 5/4
All Grades
2/1 - Middle & More, A Sporting Chance w/Dr. Evans, 7PM
2/2 - Q2 Report Cards

6th Grade (note date changes for Thoreau & David clusters)
2/5 - Henry Cluster, Weston Ski Track Trip
2/8 - Thoreau Cluster, Weston Ski Track Trip
2/9 - David Cluster, Weston Ski Track Trip

7th Grade
1/29 - Cape Cod Parent Night, 7:00 PM, http://wmsrlc.blogspot.com/
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