Facebook  Instagram

November 3, 2025

Important Upcoming Dates

11/3 - Homework Club, Room 204, 3pm

11/3 - All Grades After School Cross Country, 3pm

11/3 - 6th Grade After School Football, 3pm

11/4 - Minimum Day - 11:44 Dismissal

11/5 - Site Council Meeting, 8-9am

11/5 - 7th/8th After School Badminton, 3pm

11/6 - Homework Club, Room 400, 3pm

11/6 - All Grades After School Cross Country, 3pm

11/6 - 6th Grade After School Football, 3pm


11/10 - NO SCHOOL - School Recess

11/11 - NO SCHOOL - Veteran's Day Holiday

11/12-13 - Tue/Fri Schedule (no late start, no block days)

11/13 - Homework Club, Room 400, 3pm

11/13 - 6th Grade After School Football, 3pm

11/13 - 7th/8th After School Badminton, 3pm

11/17 - Homework Club, Room 204, 3pm

11/17 - 7th/8th After School Badminton, 3pm

11/17 - Ed Fund Meeting, Zoom, 6:30pm

11/18 - Ed Fund Dine In/Out - Mendocino Farms

11/18 - Board of Education Meeting, 6pm

11/20 - Homework Club, Room 102, 3pm

11/20 - 7th/8th After School Badminton, 3pm

11/24-28 - NO SCHOOL - Thanksgiving Break

Note: Sometimes Gmail clips our newsletters. Look at the bottom of the newsletter for this message, "[Message Clipped] view entire message"


Volunteers must be fully cleared through Be A Mentor before signing up.


Library Volunteers Needed

Our school library is looking for volunteers to help keep things running smoothly! Duties may include shelving books, checking materials in and out, assisting students in finding books, and helping with library organization. Your support helps foster a love of reading in our students—thank you for considering!


Lunch Supervision Volunteers Needed

We’re looking for parent volunteers to assist with lunchtime supervision. Your presence helps ensure a safe, welcoming environment where students can enjoy their break and connect with friends. Volunteers must be fully cleared through Be A Mentor before signing up. Thank you for supporting our school community!

Special Thanks

Staff Sweets & Spooky Treats — A Fang-tastic Success! 


A huge thank you to all the generous Iron Horse families who donated to our Staff Sweets & Spooky Treats event!


The tables were overflowing with devilishly delicious goodies, ghoulishly good snacks, and spook-tacular sweets for our amazing staff to enjoy.


Your kindness and creativity made this Halloween celebration frightfully fun — and our Iron Horse staff felt truly appreciated! 


Happy Halloween from your IHMS PTA — you’re all boo-tiful inside and out!


School Updates


Spirit Wear Pick-Up — Thursday, November 6th


Good news! Spirit Wear orders have arrived! Students can pick up their Spirit Wear after school on Thursday, November 6, from 2:45–3:45 p.m.


Location: In front of the school next to the Flagpole.


Thank you for your patience and school spirit, Jaguars!

IHMS Thanksgiving Food Bank Fundraiser


Nov. 10th-21st

Virtual Giving = Real Impact


Please support Iron Horse's efforts to end hunger in our community!

 

Join our team of hunger fighters and help end hunger in our communities!

The Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano provides food to fill the need today as we advocate for tomorrow. Whether you create, join, or donate to a Food & Virtual Fundraising Drive, you allow the Food Bank to use its bulk buying power to purchase food that we know our neighbors experiencing food insecurity need and want.


$1 = 2 Meals!

25-26 8th Grade Panoramic Class Picture


Cherish the memories of the 205-2026 school year with your classmates!  Purchase your panoramic picture now!


Cost: $20 


Click HERE to purchase online


Or pay cash or check (payable to “IHMS”) to the Front Office


*Please note this is an unframed picture.

Inclusion Matters @ SRVUSD


Hoodies, sweatshirts and t-shirts are now available for preorder and will be delivered to your school site before SRVUSD Inclusive Schools Week in January 2026.


This exclusive design features the Disability Pride Flag, symbolizing the strength and diversity of the disability community:


 💚Green for sensory disabilities

 💙Blue for emotional and psychiatric disabilities

 🤍White for invisible disabilities

 ❤️Red for physical disabilities

 💛Gold for neurodiversity


Order Deadline: December 1st at 11:59 PM.


Let’s celebrate and support every student in our community!

AI in SRVUSD Parent Education Series

"Raising Future-Ready Students"


Join us for the first session of the SRVUSD AI Parent Education Series, "Raising Future-Ready Students". This series is designed to help San Ramon Valley Unified School District (SRVUSD) parents and guardians understand the role of artificial intelligence in their children’s education. Our goal is to explain how SRVUSD approaches integrating AI into education. We will highlight the district's guidelines and empower you to help your children navigate this technology safely and ethically.


Presented by Kelly Hilton, SRVUSD Director of Technology

AMC 8


The AMC 8 is a 25-question, 40-minute, multiple choice examination in middle school mathematics designed to promote the development of problem-solving skills. The AMC 8 provides an opportunity for middle school students to develop positive attitudes towards analytical thinking and mathematics that can assist in future careers. Students apply classroom skills to unique problem-solving challenges in a low-stress and friendly environment.


The material covered on the AMC 8 includes topics from a typical middle school mathematics curriculum. Possible topics include but are not limited to: counting and probability, estimation, proportional reasoning, elementary geometry including the Pythagorean Theorem, spatial visualization, everyday applications, and reading and interpreting graphs and tables. In addition some of the later questions may involve linear or quadratic functions and equations, coordinate geometry, and other topics traditionally covered in a beginning algebra course.


Qualifying contest date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026 AFTER SCHOOL (This is an IN-PERSON Exam)


To sign up, please fill out this Google Form and pay the $20 fee no later than Friday, November, 11/7/25. NO EXCEPTIONS!

  • An annual contest offered to IHMS middle school students, grades 6-8 
  • This is one test only, this is not a club
  • Resources will be published when available
  • Please note that updates will be emailed only to the email ID listed in the Google form

To the parents of CURRENT 6th GRADERS:


Before your student can start 7th grade, we will need proof that your child has received a Tdap (not Dtap) booster vaccine. This is given on or after their 7th birthday. Please send the proof in to IHMS@srvusd.net as soon as your child receives it.


If you have any questions, please email our school nurse: Kristi Nolan knolan@srvusd.net.


Froyo Thursday!


Stop by the Menchie’s sales table in front of the traffic circle every Thursday after school and grab a treat! Yogurt is $5, boba drinks are $6, and toppings are $1 each (dairy-free/vegan options available).


20% of all sales will be donated to support Iron Horse Middle School student activities. 


Cash only.

Yearbook

Hello parents and guardians,


The yearbook students would like to include some photos of your kids playing their sports. If you would like to send us photos, we will try to fit them in. Thank you in advance. If you have any questions, please email our Yearbook adviser, Michelle Hamon at mhamon@srvusd.net


Thank you so much,

Michelle Hamon


Link: https://yearbookshare.com/eShare/?code=IHMS

Code: IHMS

Order your copy now! On sale for $65 until 1/15!


School Order Number: 16215


Congratulate your 8th grader with a personalized ad in the yearbook!

Deadline: January 16th

Lost and Found


The lost and found is already starting to pile up! Please remind your student to check the lost and found in the cafeteria.

Education Fund Updates

Principal Updates

Introducing “Interland!” - Free Gamified Digital Literacy Learning   


We are excited to introduce Interland!, a free, comprehensive program from Google designed to teach children the fundamentals of digital safety and citizenship. This engaging resource provides the essential knowledge and skills for our students, your children, and our community to explore the online world with confidence and responsibility.

Introducing Gemini Extensions for Meaningful Learning


We are thrilled to announce a new integration in Google Workspace and Google Classroom called Gemini Extensions for Meaningful Learning, or GEMS. This feature is currently accessible to our high school students and staff. 


A Gem is a custom version of Gemini that educators can create and share with their students directly in Google Classroom. This integration provides a protected, privacy-focused space for teaching and learning. To create a Gem, teachers can upload their own class materials to inform a new Gem from scratch or select one of the pre-built templates, which include:

  • Study partner: Provides personalized study sessions.
  • Quiz me: Helps students test their knowledge on specific topics.
  • Brainstorm partner: Encourages creative thinking and idea generation.
  • Real-world connector: Links academic concepts to practical applications.

Because GEMS are informed by learning science research through LearnLM, they lean into best-in-practice pedagogical behavior. This helps students to better understand concepts and test their knowledge, rather than just being answered. This new integration has the potential to support student learning by:

  • Creating Personalized Learning Paths: GEMS can help teachers generate content that adapts to individual student needs and learning styles.
  • Enhancing Feedback and Revision: The tools can provide immediate, constructive feedback, allowing for faster revision cycles and deeper understanding.
  • Streamlining Content Creation: Teachers can quickly generate a variety of materials, such as quizzes, study guides, and discussion prompts, saving valuable time.
  • Fostering Creativity and Critical Thinking: GEMS can be used to create open-ended prompts that encourage students to think critically and express themselves in innovative ways.

We believe this tool will empower our educators to create an even more dynamic and effective Deep Learning environment for all students!

SRVUSD Information

TK/Kindergarten Information Night & Enrollment   


TK and Kindergarten enrollment opens November 1, 2025, for the 2026-27 school year. Refer to the TK/Kindergarten page on the district website for additional information. The priority enrollment window is Nov. 1-30.

Community Information

2026 Contra Costa County Science and Engineering Fair


Each year, Dublin San Ramon Services District (DSRSD) joins with Central Contra Costa Sanitary District (CCCSD) and other water / wastewater agencies to offer a special “Excellence in Water / Wastewater / Recycled Water Research” award, which includes a cash prize for both the student and the student’s school. We would love to see an SRVUSD student be honored this year! Click here for more information.

Front Office Reminders

Homework Club


If your student would like a quiet place to get their homework done, they can come to Homework Club on Mondays and Thursdays from 3-3:45pm.


Each day is in a different classroom. Here are the dates and locations.

Forgotten Items


Students are to check in at the office during break or lunch if they discover that they have forgotten an item at home.


If a parent chooses to deliver forgotten items, they may be dropped off at the main office and placed on the “I forgot table” for their student to retrieve them.


It is not school policy to deliver items or take messages to the classroom (unless it is an emergency) due to the potential disruption that may occur.


The office cannot be responsible for items left at the front desk. 

Reporting and Clearing an Absence


Being in class, on time and ready to learn is one of the most important keys to success in school.


In the event that a student needs to be absent, a parent should call the attendance line before 9:00AM at 925-790-2599. The call should be made each day the student is absent.


Students are not allowed to call in their own absences. Please do not email in an absence. Calling the Attendance Line is preferred. 


Please provide the following information when phoning in an absence:

  • Student’s name (Please spell the last name)
  • Reason for the absence
  • Date of absence
  • Grade
  • Name and relationship of the person calling


Doctor’s verifications will be required to excuse a student’s absence for medical appointments. Without a doctor’s note, an absence will be considered unexcused. If a student accumulates 10 or more ILL/UNX absences within a school year, they may be referred to SARB.

IHMS Attendance Line

(925) 790-2599

Don't underestimate the power of a Jaguar!