Weekly Family Message

We are sending the Family Message early this week to remind you about a few upcoming events.

• Attention 8th Graders: The MoHS Curriculum Expo is tonight, Thursday, Dec 5^th 5:00-6:00 PM with tours for Rising 9th graders at 4:30 and 6:00 p.m.
• Dance This Friday! The Dance will run from 4:05-5:30 p.m. and will include an Open Gym and Music in the cafeteria by D.J. Coop. Tickets will be on sale Friday for $5 at lunch. Tickets include an entry wristband and three tickets for three snacks and drinks. Additional concessions will be on sale at the dance for $2 per concession. All students staying for the dance should be picked up by 5:30 p.m.
• Mr. Walton will be on the bucket truck at Toy Lift at  from 6:30-7:00 p.m. at Fashion Square Mall. Come wave high and drop off some toys for children in need!

 

Care and Share

In this season of giving, we are beginning our annual Care and Share Drive led by T.J. Steger. Care and Share raises money and food donations for our community with a goal of providing a family style meal to those in need over the Winter Break. Additionally, Karen Collier leads a toy and clothing drive to provide for families. We are so fortunate to be in such a giving community. If you feel compelled to give to Care and Share please make checks payable to Walton Middle School and notate Care and Share in the memo. Additionally, we do accept cash donations. Finally, we will be conducting a food drive through our advisory classes. All funds and food go directly to deserving families in our community. 

Attention 8^th Grade Families: High School Registration is Coming!

• Please read/review our High School Transition webpage for details.
• Here are some important dates immediately following Thanksgiving Break
  • Thursday, Dec 5^th 5:00-6:00 PM MHS Curriculum Fair at MHS
  • Friday, Dec 6^th (during school hours): 8^th grade fieldtrip to CATEC/Center 1 (please return permission forms)
  • Thursday, Dec 12^th 7-8 PM (following Multicultural Night): High School transition meeting hosted by counselors and administration. 

Multicultural Family Night

Our Diversity Resource Teachers, Jen Graham and Tegan Scroggs, are helping to plan our next Family Engagement Night, which will be a celebration of our various cultures at WMS. We would love to have families volunteer to share aspects of their culture which could include sharing favorite dishes, dance, dress, music, or anything else that you think will help showcase all the various cultures that our community is made of. Additionally, if you have a business or a connection to a business that would like to donate items for this event, we would welcome that!

Come Visit!

🌍 Cultural Booths: Discover the traditions, crafts, and stories from around the world at booths hosted by our families and students.

🎶 Live Performances: Enjoy music and dance performances that showcase the richness of global cultures.

🍴 International Food Tastings: Savor flavors from different cuisines prepared by our talented community members.

🎨 Interactive Activities: Engage in hands-on activities like traditional art, games, and more!

Please complete this form to RSVP: RSVP/Volunteer for our Multicultural Night

 

Virtual/In-Person Community Session: Vaping & THC-December 9-6:00 p.m.

Albemarle County Public Schools (ACPS) and the Office of Safety and Security (OSS) invite families, educators, and community members to join the next event in the Community Gatherings Series, which will focus on addressing critical issues related to community youth:

“Vaping, THC, and Drug Trends Among Our Youth: Education and Awareness”

Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
Time: 6 – 7:30 p.m.
Location: Monticello High School
Live Stream: http://streaming.k12albemarle.org/ACPS/acpsevents.htm 

Order Make-up/Retake Pictures

Visit this link: WMS Make-Up-Retake Picture Orders 2024 to order retake/makeup pictures. You will need your child’s student ID number to complete the order, which is the same as their lunch number and can be found in PowerSchool Parent Portal. 

Builders Club Hurricane Relief

The Walton Builders Club (a division of Kiwanis) is sponsoring a drive to support our partner school Claxton Elementary which is located in Asheville, North Carolina. The Assistant Principal at Claxton, Paul Garrity, is a former student of Mr. Walton’s. The students at this school were severely impacted by Hurricane Helene, and Builders Club intends to support the students there during this difficult time. Money should be collected by your advisory teacher, the front office, or Mrs. Graham in room 4. The deadline for money to be submitted is December 19th, prior to winter break.

In addition to our partnership with Claxton Elementary, we are collecting the following items: any new socks, cases of bottled water, gently used items of clothing, and money are being collected to donate to those affected by the devastation of Hurricane Helene. The last day to send in items is December 19th.

Family’s can donate directly to Claxton Elementary here: https://www.claxtonfamilies.com/hurricane-relief 

Smile Tutors

A local tutoring group of high school students, Smile Tutors, is offering free tutoring sessions. You can learn more here: www.smiletutors.org

Nominations Are Open for the 2024-2025 Golden Apple!

We are excited to announce that nominations are now open for the 2024-25 Golden Apple Awards, a program designed to honor outstanding teachers in public and private schools in Albemarle County and Charlottesville City. From now until Monday, January 27, 2025, students, staff, families, and community members may nominate a teacher for this honor using the link above. Teachers who have won in the past three years are not eligible. You can view past WMS winners here: WMS Golden Apple Winners  

Access Your Child's SchooLinks Account

Recently 7th and 8th graders completed some career pathway activities in Advisory+ and 6th graders will do more of this later in the year. We encourage families to be involved in this work through access to SchoolLinks. 

• SchooLinks is used by ACPS for student course and pathway exploration, college and career resources, goal-setting, and personalized assessments. 
• The 7^th and 8^th grade students have been completing a activities in SchooLinks and you can view their progress by following the steps below. Please note that 6^th graders will begin using the platform during the second semester. 
• Students can access SchooLinks by going to their ACPS Bookmarks, click ClassLink, then select the SchooLinks icon.

To create a Guardian account and claim your child in SchooLinks, your child must invite you with a Claim Code. Please ask your child to log in to SchooLinks and follow these steps:

1. Click on the Gear icon in the top-right corner.
2. Select Account Settings.
3. Click on Your Guardians from the menu on the left.
4. Click on the green View Guardian Instructions and Unique Claim Code button. A pop-up window will appear containing both a claim code invite link and written email instructions.
5. Copy the link or the email instructions and share it with the guardian who you want to invite to SchooLinks

 

Advisory Lesson Slide deck for December 2-6

Each morning, students begin the day with a greeting & share, a morning message, and daily reminders that help them stay informed about school events. On Wednesdays, we return to Advisory classes in the afternoon for Advisory+ lessons that focus on our developing identities, interests, and future plans. We want to share this information with families so that you know about upcoming events. Please note that these slides are revised throughout the week. If you find empty sections, refresh later in the week for the most up-to-date information.

 

Percussion Class Offered in Semester 2 for 7th and 8th Grade

A new Percussion Ensemble will begin in the second semester for any students who are interested in learning to play drums and percussion! All levels of percussion experience are welcome, from beginners to experienced drummers (no prior experience necessary). Students will explore a variety of percussion music, including both drumline and concert band music, and have several (optional) opportunities throughout the semester to perform. This class will be taught by our Band/Chorus teacher, Ms. Erwin. Students should talk to their guidance counselor or email Mr. Walton if they are interested in this opportunity (jwalton@k12albemarle.org). 

 Computer Repair Information

Students are expected to take care of their school issued laptop and charger. Occasionally, physical damage may occur due to normal wear and tear, but if we see excessive damage students are responsible for paying for this damage. Our procedure is to repair for free the first two times, with the second time involving an administrative conference and involvement with the student’s family. You can read more at the link above and see the prices for items that may need to be replaced as part of the repair. 

Families, please speak to your children about proper care for their laptops and chargers. 

 

French A Section for Semester 2

There is now a 7^th and 8^th grade semester-long French class now available for semester 2! In class, students will learn some basic French vocabulary and grammar and French culture. They will learn about francophone music and will even “adopt” stuffed animal pets that we will integrate in the lessons. We will celebrate Mardi Gras and La Chandeleur (crepe day) and learn about other French holidays. We will also make up stories in French and write a book about our pet. Any 7^th or 8^th grader not already in French 1 is eligible to join! This is a great way to get a taste of French before taking French 1 for high school credit. Sign up today by emailing Mr. Walton at jwalton@k12albemarle.org. 

 

This Week and Next Week

Thursday, December 5-A Day

• Thursday, Dec 5^th 4:40-6 PM MHS Curriculum Fair at MHS

Friday, December 6-B Day

• Dance 4:05-5:30 p.m. 
• 8th Grade Field Trip to CATEC and Center 1
• Mr. Walton at Toylift from 6:30-7:00 p.m.

Monday, December 9-A Day

• Virtual/In-Person Community Session: Vaping & THC-December 9-6:00 p.m. (MoHS and on Zoom)

Tuesday, December 10-B Day

Wednesday, December 11-A Day

Thursday, December 12-B Day

• Multicultural Night-5:30-7:00 p.m. 
• Orchestra Concert-7:00 p.m. at MoHS
• 8th Grade Registration Information Session-7:00 p.m. in Amphitheather
• Virginia Growth Test for Reading (Modified Schedule)

Friday, December 13-A Day

 

Upcoming Dates

December 17-Virginia Growth Test for Math (Modified Schedule)

• Band/Choir Concert-7:00 p.m. 

December 23-January 3-Winter Break-Schools Closed (Offices open intermittently)

January 6-No School for Students-Professional Development Day

January 7-Students return from Winter Break