Weekly Newsletter HMS: Week of March 10th

THIS WEEK

• HHS Vocal Dimensions at HMS- THURSDAY! 
• Assembly- MTV Dance Crew!  Check out the promo! Thursday
• Activity Night FRIDAY- 2:45-4:30 ($5.00 sold at lunch FRIDAY ONLY)

Upcoming Dates:

• March 17 & 18:  5th Graders Visit HMS

• Week of March 17th: Women’s History Month Celebrations

• March 20: 8th Grade Field Trip to MiCareerquest Career Fair in Grand Rapids

• Week of March 24th: March is Reading Month- Spirit Week 

• March 25: 7th Grade Field Trip to Air ZooMarch 28 (HARRIS= admin)

• March 28: School-Wide Read in

• March 31: 7th and 8th Grade Orchestra at HHS 2nd and 3rd hours

• March 20 8th Grade Field Trip to MiCareerquest Career Fair in Grand Rapids

Statewide Assessments – Please Plan Ahead

As we approach this year’s statewide assessments, we kindly ask for your help in ensuring students are present on these important days. Whenever possible, please try to avoid scheduling appointments during testing dates so students can focus and perform their best.

We appreciate your support in making sure our students have every opportunity to succeed! Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Assessment Dates Below

April 16, 2025 PSAT 8

April 17 & 21 M-STEP 6 & 7

April 22 & 24 M-STEP 8

PBIS Spotlight: “Committed” in DUTCH  (March) 

At HMS, we believe in helping students be COMMITTED in what they say and do in and out of the classroom.  This is why it’s a core value in our PBIS framework, DUTCH (Diverse, United, Thrive, Committed, Honorable).

What does it mean to be COMMITTED?   Being Committed means sticking to our goals, showing effort in everything we do, and always striving to be our best. Whether it’s consistent attendance, active participation in class, Being on time for class, completion of classroom work, maintaining a positive attitude, and supporting friends and classmates, we encourage our students to demonstrate commitment every day.

How We Show Commitment at HMS: 

• Being on time for class

• Showing active participation in class

• Completing assignments

• Demonstrating good study habits

• Displaying organization and time management

• Having a positive attitude

Some examples of how we have support the Commitment value:

• Tardy Patrol- Recognizing student for being on time for class

• Reward Day-  Recognizing students for improvement on their Math and Reading tests

• Pep Assemblies- Recognizing team sports and the school culture

• Student of the Month- Recognizing a student from each grade who demonstrates all the DUTCH values 

We encourage parents and adults to support Commitment by:

• Remind your child that mistakes are part of learning, and their effort matters more than perfection. 

• Help your child set achievable goals and celebrate their progress, big or small.

• Acknowledge when your child works hard, even if they don’t succeed right away 

Let’s work together to help our students stay committed to their success and growth! Thank you for being part of the HMS community and supporting our shared values.     If you see your child showing commitment, share it with us! We'd love to celebrate their efforts with you.

If you are interested in donating to the PBIS store or are a business that would like to partner with HMS, please reach out to our Community Coordinator, Kelly Ashby by email at kashby@hollandpublicschools.org or Assistant Principal, Rakendra Davis, at rdavis@hollandpublicschools.org. 

Community Coordinator Updates:

Power H Shop: ‭ The‬‭ HPS Community Coordinators‬‭ and DHHS P2P‬‭ serve‬‭ Holland Public Schools‬‭ families‬ with a range of economic backgrounds. Being able to support a family experiencing‬ crisis or financial hardship, with free household items through a dignified retail setting,‬‭ helps offset their monthly expenses and alleviate the financial stress many of our‬‭ families face.‬

‭The vision of the‬‭ Power H Shop‬‭ is to lessen family-stress‬‭ by providing‬‭ FREE‬‭ household‬ items, thus creating a better opportunity for students to thrive in a school setting.‬‭ The‬‭ Power H Shop‬‭ is located at Maplewood Elementary‬‭ (‬‭ 925 Central Ave, Holland‬‭ ) and‬‭ is open to HPS families who need non-food stamp eligible items such as person hygiene items, clearing supplies, school supplies, and other items to help reduce students’ barriers to school. If you’d like to donate, please consider viewing our amazon wish list or reach out to Kelly Ashby at kashby@hollandpublicschools.org or 616-494-2406

Food Services: 

Check out the Top Ten Reasons to Try School Meals: www.hollandpublicschools.org/pub/news/posts/3022

Tutoring: 

FREE Afterschool tutoring will start THIS week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Parents are responsible for the transportation. This will be 2:45- 4:00. Here is the sign up! ALL SIGNED UP MAY ATTEND!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfYBXSL6FP6PSDI-wwNgW3KaHf54syZqo5H7xGVclR_hnRHaw/viewform?usp=sf_link

Bus Info:

Information about your child’s bus route - in the palm of your hand. Download the MyRide app.

https://www.hollandpublicschools.org/pub/news/posts/2965

Nurses Corner: 

• Having trouble finding affordable glasses? West Ottawa Eye Care is the only practice in Holland that accepts all Medicaid insurance plans for both eye exams and glasses, along with a variety of other commercial medical and vision insurance plans. See the link below for more details.  West Ottawa Eye Care

With cold and flu season among us - please also remember that students must be free from fever/vomiting for 24 hours before returning to school.  

Covid testing is offered through the Holland Hospital School Nurse team for students and staff. We are NOT handing out testing kits this year.  Please complete the form below and one of our school nurses will contact you to discuss the best time to come for a test.   Results will be communicated to you after the test is completed via a phone call.  Sorry we are unable to test family members. To request testing please complete this google form  Covid test request form.