Dear Families in the Middle,

July seems to be the fastest month of the summer! Suddenly we're talking registration, school supplies, and back-to-school schedules. Online registration opened Monday, July 18. You will find this link helpful as you anticipate Registration Days at HMS. Please don't hesitate to call us (Tasia, Cheryl, Trevor, Diane and Ann) with questions!

Message and invitation from our Parent Group leaders:

Our Hudson Middle School Parent Group (HMSPG) is looking for volunteers to help during Registration Days, so please consider signing up for a shift!   Come join the fun in welcoming parents and students to a new school year.  Assist at the HMS Parent Group Information Table with the following tasks: 

* distribute School Supply Kits to those who ordered

* invite parents to join our email list

* collect orders for Locker organization units from Locker Works

* highlight our NEW Hudson Spirit Wear (samples and ordering info will be available).

We hope to have 2 volunteers for each shift; however, we understand if you can only come for part of a shift.  Additionally, let's try to cover the 6th grade registration day first (August 10th) as we want to fully assist all of the new students and parents.

NO experience or past HMSPG involvement is needed, just your fun and outgoing personality!   We'll have all the information you need.  

Questions:  please contact Anne Wasmund via this link: Sign Up Genius 

Thank you for your help!  
Hudson Middle School Parent Group

Dear Families in the Middle,

We're nearing approval of conceptual plans for the middle school addition! The addition will help us...
...create houses and advisories with fewer total students
...include students with special education needs in each house to strengthen our learning community
...provide a home-base classroom for teachers who have previously "traveled" from house to house

Have you marked your calendar with our HMS Registration Days?
Monday, August 8 - 8th grade
Tuesday, August 9 - 7th grade
Wednesday, August 10 - 6th grade

Please add to your calendar our first HMS American Red Cross Blood Drive! Thanks to the initiative of Gabe Wolf and his mother Teresa, we are hosting a blood drive Tuesday, August 9, 4 - 8 PM in our multi-purpose room. Here's a message from Gabe encouraging us to contribute. I've already signed up to give a pint at 6:45 PM.

Hello all,

Hudson Middle School and the American Red Cross are hosting an upcoming blood drive.

Please join our lifesaving mission and schedule an appointment today!

Drive Details:
Site: Hudson Middle School
Address: 1300 Carmichael Rd., Hudson, WI, 54016
Room Name: Multi-Purpose Room
Date: Tue Aug 9, 2016
Time: 4:00: PM - 8:00: PM
Coordinator Name: Teresa Wolf
Coordinator Phone Number: 6129737349
Click here to make an appointment

I'm Gabe Wolf, from Hudson, WI. I'm the blood drive coordinator for American Red Cross Blood Drive. I'm working towards my Eagle Scout Project. Please e-mail me and help donate on August 9, from4:00-8:00 P.M. Please call me at 715-441-7698, or send me an e-mail at william_wolf@ymail.com to confirm a time. Thank you.

The need for blood is constant and only volunteer donors can fulfill that need for patients in our community. Nationwide, someone needs a unit of blood every 2 to 3 seconds and most of us will need blood in our lifetime.

Thank you for supporting the American Red Cross blood program!

Dear Families in the Middle,

Such spectacular weather for our summer work and play! We'll keep this message brief so you can get back outdoors and enjoy the fresh air, warm sunshine and nature's bounty!

Our new district website is READY! Please check it out and offer feedback via e-mail or a comment on this blog post. www.hudsonraiders.org

We are hopeful this will be your one stop shop for registration details, communication and updates, and information from your child's advisor and teachers.

Please mark your calendar with our HMS REGISTRATION Days:
6th Grade - Wednesday, August 10 - 10:30 AM - 6 PM
7th Grade - Tuesday, August 9 - 10:30 AM - 6 PM
8th Grade - Monday, August 8 - 10:30 AM - 6 PM

Each family will be receiving registration information by e-mail during July. The e-mail will include registration links and information, including house and advisor assignments.

Our HMS Parent Group has also been planning for the coming year. Thanks to their suggestions, you will see positive changes in our Registration Day details!

We hope you and your family enjoy Hudson Booster Days, Fourth of July family gatherings and/or the middle month of summer with gusto!

Warmly,

Mrs. Ann Mitchell

Dear Families in the Middle,

Our school is in summer mode. That means we have the joy of seeing several students and adults each day enjoying summer enrichment classes (like digital photography, computer programming, movie-making, and painting). The presence of students - whether for swimming, School Age Care, or summer classes helps keep the spirit in our learning community!

We're also very grateful for a hard-working crew of custodians cleaning, repairing, and re-organizing spaces amid all the activity. Please take a moment when you're in our building to express your gratitude for their diligence. Mr. Stejskal, our District Director of Facilities & Grounds noted during the school board meeting Monday night: Hudson School District custodians clean the equivalent of 24,000 square feet per 8 hour shift. That translates into cleaning one 3000 sq. ft. home per hour! Another consideration? Based on our enrollment, that home would have 17 occupants. KUDOS to our HSD Custodians!!

Bray Architects have been meeting with several groups over the past couple of weeks to learn more about the needs at the High School and at our Middle School. Our efforts at HMS are focused on designing the addition of two Houses and integrating Special Education spaces, so that the Merlin House can be converted to a third additional house. The opportunity presents challenges and trade-offs as we think about supporting collaboration and consider changes in the way we learn.

We've been interviewing for several positions - Physical Education and Health, Special Education, Secretary, Social Studies - over the past two weeks as well. We hope to share new staff information in the coming weeks.

Hoping you've found time for family fun between the storms and sunshine!
Warmly,

Mrs. Ann Mitchell

Dear Families in the Middle,

This Fare Thee Well Message shared with our 8th graders last Thursday evening is a testament to the thoughtfulness, strength and compassion in our middle learning community. Many thanks to Mrs. Paakkonen for initiating the video project and to Mr. St. John and Mrs. Bjerk for the collaboration and production of this meaningful message for ALL middle school students. We hope everyone enjoys a summer of healthy risk-taking, memorable moments, and inspiring experiences!



We're going to try to provide a weekly blog post update through the summer to keep our families updated with information on registration, building plans, and summer opportunities. Please feel free to e-mail or post a question to help us know what you are wondering!

Warmly,

Mrs. Ann Mitchell

Dear Families in the Middle,

Our Hudson Middle School students and families, with the coordination of Student Council and Advisors Jaclyn Smith and Nicole Anthony, raised $1200 for Pennies for Patients, a program of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Thank you to all who contributed!

Walking Wednesdays
Thanks to the initiative of our HMS Health & Wellness Team, we've started Walking Wednesdays. Students have the option to walk our track from 7:15 - 7:30 every Wednesday morning. It's a great way to give everyone a break from devices and get energized for the day! Click here to see more images.

CHROMEBOOK collection:
Please make sure your student turns in the Chromebook and charger. An invoice will be sent to parents for any unreturned equipment. New Chromebooks will be issued to all 6th, 7th and 8th grade students in the fall. Thank you!

Please consider visiting Kye Bartlett's Caring Bridge site. Kye is an 8th grader here at Hudson Middle School who had open heart surgery last Saturday (May 21).  He is recovering and wishes he could come back to school. We're hopeful to see him at the Fare-Thee-Well.
www.caringbridge.org/visit/kyebartlett

Our neighbor, Prairie Elementary, is anticipating a special event this summer (June 24) to surprise Mrs. Klanderman, a first grade teacher, diagnosed with fourth stage melanoma in her lung. For more information please click here.

I am reminded of a sign on Ms. Blakeley's, one of our counselors, door: Everyone you meet is fighting a battle we know nothing about. Be kind. Always. 

We will continue to share Middle Musings blog posts throughout the summer to help families learn new information, anticipate changes and opportunities, and prepare for the upcoming school year.

Happy June!

Mrs. Ann Mitchell

Principal

Dear Families in the Middle,

Have you heard about POWER UP!? Our Hudson Community is launching a 
TRY FOR 5 COMMUNITY CHALLENGE! Your middle school student has been encouraged to track their consumption of fruits and vegetables during the week of May 8 -14. Just raising awareness and taking the challenge earns our learning community funds for health promoting experiences and activities! Check out the website: powerup4kids.org for more information and to register for prizes.

Celebrating more HMS students and staff...
Future Problem Solvers

Students from all over the world compete in various components. At HMS, we have only competed in the Scenario Writing portion of FPS. Students write a futuristic, creative story (set at least 20 years in the future) 1500 words or less related to one of the year's topic choices. Wisconsin's State Meet was held in Green Lake. 

Anya Getschel earned 2nd Place in the Junior Division (grades 4-6) for her scenario on the topic of Animal Treatment.  

Kenzie Korent earned 3rd Place in the Middle Division (grades 7-9) for her scenario on the topic of Intellectual Property. 

Mrs. Angela Goebel, one of our Middle School Counselors, was recently elected Wisconsin School Counselor Association (WSCA) Assistant Board Chair by the Board of Directors. Proud of her grace, compassion, and leadership and thankful her work will continue to enhance our middle-level learning community. Congratulations Angela! 

HMS has initiated WALKING WEDNESDAY May 4, 2016. Students and staff seem to enjoy the refreshing start to the school day. Thanks for the team effort to provide music, supervision and optimism (device free!) for this effort! See you on the track Wednesday, May 18 at 7:15 AM. 

Thank you for joining us in celebrating student learning by coming to our Academic Open House last Thursday evening. What a wonderful museum of learning we enjoyed! 

On May 14 (Saturday), the National Association of Letter Carriers Food Drive will take place nationally. Last year, Hudson area residents broke the record of pounds donated in our community! 80 Million pounds of food were collected nationally and 20,000 pounds were collected in the Hudson community. All the food collected helps families in the hudson area. Please consider placing non-perishable items in or at your mailbox Saturday morning. Thank you!