West Hills News
West Hills News
 Dear West Hills School Community: This week was filled with new beginnings! Our 6th grade students visited the Global Village (see article) while our 8th grade students celebrated Constitution Day at the 48th District court. These outstanding learning opportunities are the result of partnerships with our community, PTO, and our teaching staff. In addition, we completed our annual curriculum nights and wish to thank the many families represented that evening. We have had requests for the slide shows presented at our annual curriculum night, and we will get those to you next week as links. Lastly, the week ended with our school picture day which is always exciting for our students. Next week, students in grades seventh and eighth will be receiving their loaner iPads. Please reference the article below. As always, as the school year progresses, let us know if you have questions or concerns. We are here to help! "Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be." It's Grest to be a West Hills Warrior! Rob Principal West Hills Middle School 2601 Lone Pine Road West Bloomfield, MI 48323 http://www.bloomfield.org/west-hills/index.aspx "Enabling learners to become architects of their futures . . ." Monday, September 21 - "A" day UPCOMING EVENTS: September 21st & 24th - 4th & 5th Grade Goal Setting Conferences. September 29 - Note Changed from the 28th to the 29th - 4/5 Coffee with Counselors 10:00a.m. - 11:00a.m. September 28 - DAERR Meeting - Doyle Center - 6:30p.m. - 8:30p.m. Last year Bloomfield Hills Schools developed a "One‐to‐World" program, which afforded middle school students the opportunity to use a "loaner" iPad from the school district. Students in grades 6, 7 and 8 received iPads to take back and forth between school and home. 4th and 5th graders use iPads that are kept in the classroom. We will be distributing iPads for the second year of this program beginning next week. Please read the information that relates to your student's grade, so you will know what is required for your student to participate in the program this year. For RETURNING students in grades 7 and 8: iPad distribution will take place on Monday, September 21, to returning 7th and 8th graders who turned in required forms last year. For 7th and 8th grade students WHO ARE NEW TO THE DISTRICT: iPad distribution for new 7th & 8th graders will take place when the required student and parent forms are returned to the main office. Please read and follow the instructions for 6th graders. For 6th grade students: iPad distribution is tentatively scheduled for September 28, or at a later date if you have not returned the required forms. All required forms for your student to obtain a loaner iPad for the school year can be found on the One‐to‐World page of the District's website. In addition, students received a hard copy of the forms from their classroom teachers. Please follow the exact instructions below.
a. RECOMMENDED: Create a new Apple ID without a credit card, using your student's EHMS gmail address. Instructions on how to create a "No Credit Card Apple ID" is available on the Apple Support Websitehttp://support.apple.com/kb/ht2534. b. Use a current Apple ID if you have a family ID or your student has one, you may keep the same one if desired. No changes necessary as the student will just login to their iPad account with their current Apple ID. *NOTE: Bloomfield Hills Schools can neither access nor manage Apple IDs. Our 6th grade students all had the opportunity to kick off their school year with a field trip to the Global Village. The themes students explored will be revisited throughout our school year. The trip also provided an excellent opportunity for our 6th grade students to build their own sense of communityin their first year of middle school! Thank you to our parent volunteers, 6th grade teachers, and our PTO for defraying part of the cost of the trip! Howell Nature Center operates the Heifer Global Village, one of four educational training centers in the United States. The Global Village aims to educate students and adults alike about the causes and effects of hunger and poverty, and to empower them to make a difference the lives of those in their own communities and around the world. For more information on their mission, please click here. A HUGE thank you to everyone who has joined the PTO this year! If you haven't had a chance to join, it's not too late! Membership gets you access to our online directory and supports numerous school programs such as clubs, field trips, activity afternoons, clinic, ice cream social, multicultural night, and so much more!! You can send your membership to the office. Checks made out to BHS with WH PTO in the memo. If you aren't sure whether you have joined PTO this year, please email megan.j...@att.net Thanks! New this year, Family Connections is a Lone Pine-West Hills parent group designed for anyone new to the district, international families, or anyone who just wants to make some new friends! Our first gathering will take place on Friday, September 25th at 9:30 am at West Hills Middle School. All are welcome! Please come with any questions you may have about our schools, area resources, or anything else! Contact Leah Abel at leah...@hotmail.com for more information about Family Connections. Anne Westphal - Counselor - EHMS/WHMS - Grades 4 & 6 Kate Philp: 4th Grade General Music - LP/WHMS John Drake: 4th Grade Physical Education - LP/WHMS Irina Burgman: 4th Grade Spanish - LP/WHMS Jennifer Bratton: 4th Grade Teacher Mary Baldwin: 5th Grade General Music - BHMS/WHMS Derek Weghorst: 5th Grade Physical Education - EHMS/WHMS/BHMS Rachel Lucas (Newly Married - Still appears as Rachel King): 5 - 8 Band - EHMS/WHMS Nat Erde: 5 - 8 Orchestra - EHMS/WHMS Tim Kelley: 6 - 8 Design and Technology - EHMS/WHMS Mary Bogrette: 6 - 8 Drama - EHMS/WHMS Lisa Lockhart: 6 - 8 ESL Teacher and Title III Coordinator Gary Swain: ELL/GERT Para
Please click on the link below and complete your purchase to show your school spirit and support the West Hills PTO. West Hills Spirit Wear Online store open until September 25th. Order TODAY! FREE SHIPPING for orders over $40.00. Secure the lowest price of the year for the yearbook with great perks included: Don't miss out! Act NOW! Buy now at our lowest price and when you personalize your yearbook, we'll add up to four FREE icons to include on their yearbook cover. Order online with a credit card @jostenyearbook.com or print out an order form from the school website and send your order with payment into school. Offer ends September 21, 2015 Questions: email jse...@bloomfield.org SPOTLIGHT ON THE IB AT WEST HILLS MIDDLE SCHOOL Learner Profile Focus: Caring At PYP and MYP schools across Bloomfield Hills School District, we feature one Learner Profile trait each month. While all of the traits are addressed in classrooms throughout the year, a different trait will get some extra attention each month. In September in Bloomfield Hills Schools, we spend time thinking about, talking about, and developing the Learner Profile trait of Caring. This connects perfectly with one of our school district's 10 Guiding Principles-- to develop Strong, caring relationships. How Can I Help Support my Child as an IB Learner? Promote the IB Learner Profile at home! The IB Programmes encourage students to embody the IB Learner Profile. When appropriate and natural, make connections to these characteristics. The more that we 'speak the same language' between the school and the home, the more we build learning that will last. What does a CARING student look like? "We show empathy, compassion and respect toward the needs and feelings of others. We have a personal commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference to the lives of others and to the environment." – IB Learner Profile How can I help encourage CARING behavior? 1. Role model the caring behavior you would like to see in your child all the time. 2. Think about how your family can get involved with community organizations. 3. Have discussions about how to show caring during difficult situations--disagreements with friends, standing up to bullying, and including others who are being excluded are typical examples for this age group. We love to hear examples of how you are incorporating each Learner Profile trait at home. Please email us!
Kathy Janelle, PYP Coordinator Jenelle Williams, MYP Coordinator kjan...@bloomfield.org jwil...@bloomfield.orgWest Hills Middle School continues to be a nut-restricted school. As a reminder, this also includes all field trips, sporting events, and all other before and after school events. Please carefully read and review all food packaging prior to sending food items to school. For further information on food allergies, consult www.foodallergy.org. We appreciate in advance your full cooperation.
Posted 09/18/2015 10:36AM As a reminder, for the safety of our students, staff, and visitors, no dogs are allowed on school grounds between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. when school is in session or during school events at any time. Dogs on school grounds must be on a leash and owners are responsible for disposing of waste. Dogs are only allowed on school grounds between the hours of 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., assuming no other school activities or events are happening at that time. In the event that an ice cream social or other school event is taking place, dogs would not be allowed during that time, regardless of the time of day or day of the week. Posted 09/17/2015 03:35PM Don't be bummed - You can still get Plums! (...and cucumbers, too!) We are thrilled to partner with Farm Logix to get delicious and fresh farm to school products in! Each week deliveries will bring in a new rotation of fresh products for you to enjoy. Posted 09/13/2015 10:15AM All Biff Radio fans are invited to attend a Dedication Ceremony on Thursday, October 1, at 3:30 p.m. at BHHS. Share a trip down memory lane with special guests and alums and tour the brand-new Biff studios! Posted 09/11/2015 11:00AM How do you see the future of our properties? Join us for the next series of Master Property Planning Meetings on September 21 BHMS Cafeteria, 4:30 & September 29 EHMS Cafeteria, 6:30. Posted 09/10/2015 08:00AM The next DAERR meeting is scheduled for September 28, 2015, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Doyle Center for Professional Development (7273 Wing Lake Road). To learn more about DAERR click here. Posted 09/09/2015 03:30PM Following in a fall tradition of the last several years, Preservation Bloomfield and the Friends of Preservation Bloomfield will once again host their Annual Corn Roast on Sunday, September 20, 2015, from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Bowers School Farm on Square Lake Road between Adams and Opdyke Roads. Admission for the event is $20 for adults; $5 for children under five-years; and children under two are free. Posted 09/09/2015 03:20PM Join us for a day of fun for the whole family! Saturday September 19, 2015 from 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm at the Johnson Nature Center. Enjoy canoeing on the pond, a live animal presentation, catch and release fishing, guided nature walks, nature crafts, and a nature scavenger hunt! Posted 09/09/2015 03:12PM There's no guide to parenting. Online safety, inclusive learning environments, social struggles and college applications are just a few concerns facing parents of school-age children in 2015. Fortunately, these concerns don't have to be addressed alone, and experts are available locally to serve as resources. Recognizing the similar needs in our communities, Birmingham Public Schools and Bloomfield Hills Schools have joined to offer the informative, self-empowering ParentCamp 2015 on Saturday, Sept. 26 from 7:30 a.m. – noon at the Birmingham Public Schools Education and Administration Center, 31301 Evergreen in Beverly Hills. Posted 09/09/2015 03:00PM The Athletics, Recreation & Community Services Department is hosting two Holiday break camps for your children! Monday, September 14 is "Recess All Day!" and Wed, September 23 is "Pool Party!" Posted 09/09/2015 10:10AM Grab your running shoes, it's time to join the fun at the Heart of the Hills 10K/5K run 5K walk event on Saturday, October 10, 2015 at 8:00 a.m.! Register online at www.bloomfieldrec.org and email questions to racedi...@heartofthehillsrun.com.
Posted 09/17/2015 01:41PM Check out the fantastic upcoming events at the Bloomfield Township Public Library! Posted 09/17/2015 11:46AM Posted 09/16/2015 01:07PM Check out the exciting programs that are coming up! Posted 09/10/2015 09:56AM Weekly Updates
Posted 01/24/2014 12:00AM Bloomfield Hills Schools is hiring. A list of all current open jobs can be viewed on our website located here: https://applicant.bloomfield.org/Job_List.aspx | |
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Rob Durecka
Dear West Hills School Community: |
Believe it or not, next week marks our first full week of school as we enter October. Students and staff have established routines, and we look forward to a productive and meaningful stretch filled with new learning! In addition, our sports competitions are well underway, and clubs and forensics will be starting this upcoming week (see articles below). Please encourage your children to be risk takers and try something new! Obstacles, of course, are developmentally necessary: they teach kids strategy, patience, critical thinking, resilience and resourcefulness. - Naomi Wolf |
It's Grest to be a West Hills Warrior! Rob Principal West Hills Middle School 2601 Lone Pine Road West Bloomfield, MI 48323 http://www.bloomfield.org/west-hills/index.aspx "Enabling learners to become architects of their futures . . ." |
Monday, September 28 - "A" day UPCOMING EVENTS: |
September 29 - Note Changed from the 28th to the 29th - 4/5 Coffee with Counselors 10:00a.m. - 11:00a.m. September 28 - DAERR Meeting - Doyle Center - 6:30p.m. - 8:30p.m. |
October 14 - PTO Meeting - 10:00 a.m. On Wednesday, October 7 and Thursday, October 8, West Hills will have an Author Visit from Tui Sutherland. Here is her bio: Tui T. Sutherland is the New York Times bestselling author of the "Wings of Fire" series and the fifth book in the Spirit Animals series, along with more than 30 other books for children, including everything from easy-to-reads to middle-grade biographies to teen sci-fi and romantic comedy. She also wrote three of the bestselling Seekers books (as part of the Erin Hunter team), the Pet Trouble series, the Menagerie trilogy with her sister, and she has been published under a number of pseudonyms, including Heather Williams (for two Little House on the Prairie spin-offs) and Tamara Summers (Never Bite a Boy on the First Date). In 2009, she was a two-day champion on Jeopardy!; she once jumped out of a plane in New Zealand; and her favorite authors include Diana Wynne Jones, Jo Walton, Roald Dahl, Rainbow Rowell, and Grace Lin. She currently lives in Boston with her family. Visit her online at www.tuibooks.com or at the official Wings of Fire site: http://wingsoffire.scholastic.com/. Tui's books will not be available for purchase during her school visits, so if students are interested in purchasing her books, check out Scholastic.com or Amazon to order them online, or visit a local bookstore before her school visits on October 7 and 8. She will happily sign books on her visiting days. For a detailed list of all her books click here. The schedule for Tui's school visits are as follows: Wednesday, Oct 7 8:25-9:10 for 7th/8th graders at West Hills 9:45-10:30 for 6th graders at West Hills 2:30-3:15 for 2nd/3rd graders at Lone Pine Thursday, Oct 8 9:15-10 am for 4th/5th graders at West Hills Lunchtime (11:18 - 12:26) small group discussions at West Hills with students familiar with Tui's work. Tui Sutherland will also be making an appearance at the Northville Barnes and Noble, located at 17111 Haggerty Road, at 6 pm on Wednesday, October 7. BOX TOPS: Collection sheets are due Monday, October 12; click here to access our first U of M vs. MSU box top competition. We can earn FREE CASH for West Hills Middle School by cutting Box Tops- Here's how: 1) Find Box Tops on hundreds of products. For example, Ziplocs, Betty Crocker products, General Mills cereals, Go Gurts, Green Giant produce... they're everywhere! Make sure the Box Top is NOT EXPIRED! 2) Clip Box Tops from packages. Each Box Top is $0.10 for West Hills. 3) Send the Box Tops to West Hills. We have a bin in the office for collection. We run frequent contests for Box Tops, and the kids win prizes! 4) Look out for products that have bonus Box Tops. Many stores run promotions where they give away extra Box Tops. Check your receipts. 5) Thank you for collecting! All of our kids benefit from Box Tops Collection. Knitting Club is looking for yarn and knitting needles to be used in Knitting Club. We could use any type of yarn, any color, and any amount, (even small balls). The members use these materials as they are learning the basic skills of knitting. Please leave any donations in the Media Center. THANK YOU! West Hills Forensics Auditions will be after school on Wednesday, September 30th and Thursday, October 1st. Sign up for an audition time in the main office. Audition time slots are 10 minutes in length and will start at 3:30 and run to 5:30 each day, if necessary. 1st Semester Fall Forensics Auditions will be held in the cafeteria. You do not need to be at both days. Any 6th, 7th, or 8th grader may audition. You do not have to have any experience, just a desire to perform in front of others for competition. Students may choose either of the days to attend auditions. For a description of events click here. Also, please fill out the Forensics Team Audition Form and bring it with you to your audition. Our Fall Competition is on Saturday, November 21 at Seaholm in Birmingham. Students may choose to bring an excerpt from a book, poem, movie or short story to read aloud for our coaches, Mr. Rodriquez and Mr. Ernst, or if you do not have a piece, the coaches will provide a short piece for interested students to read. The audition piece should be a minute or less. It does not have to be memorized for auditions but you may memorize it if you like. Students should be prepared to read/act the piece with emotion, energy, character, and volume. Remember...RELAX AND HAVE FUN!! If you have additional questions, please don't hesitate to contact our Head Coach, Mr. Rodriquez, at erd...@gmail.com We have a variety of clubs available to our students. Clubs will be starting up in October, and students are encouraged to try out clubs of interest to them. Students can attend a club meeting to see if it is for them before they need to make a commitment to the group. For meeting schedules and descriptions of clubs available click here. Clubs meet typically before school (7:15-8:00 AM) or right after school (3:05-4:00 PM). If your son or daughter is currently playing a sport and has paid the $100 pay-to-participate fee that fee covers clubs as well. If they have not paid the $100 pay-to-participate fee, or are not playing a sport, the Club ONLY fee for 2015-2016 is $30. All pay-to-participate fees will need to be paid once a student decides the club is for them. Fees are used to cover stipends for sponsors and the materials used for various clubs activities. |
Last year Bloomfield Hills Schools developed a "One‐to‐World" program, which afforded middle school students the opportunity to use a "loaner" iPad from the school district. Students in grades 6, 7 and 8 received iPads to take back and forth between school and home. 4th and 5th graders use iPads that are kept in the classroom. |
For 7th and 8th grade students, iPad distribution took place the week of September 21. For 6th grade students: iPad distribution was tentatively scheduled for September 28, but it is now scheduled for Monday, October 3, 2015. All required forms for your student to obtain a loaner iPad for the school year can be found on the One‐to‐World page of the District's website. In addition, students received a hard copy of the forms from their classroom teachers. Please follow the exact instructions below. |
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a. RECOMMENDED: Create a new Apple ID without a credit card, using your student's WHMS gmail address. Instructions on how to create a "No Credit Card Apple ID" is available on the Apple Support Websitehttp://support.apple.com/kb/ht2534. |
b. Use a current Apple ID if you have a family ID or your student has one, you may keep the same one if desired. No changes necessary as the student will just login to their iPad account with their current Apple ID. *NOTE: Bloomfield Hills Schools can neither access nor manage Apple IDs. |
A HUGE thank you to everyone who has joined the PTO this year! If you haven't had a chance to join, it's not too late! Membership gets you access to our online directory and supports numerous school programs such as clubs, field trips, activity afternoons, clinic, ice cream social, multicultural night, and so much more!! You can send your membership to the office. Checks made out to BHS with WH PTO in the memo. If you aren't sure whether you have joined PTO this year, please email megan.j...@att.net Thanks! |
Please click on the link below and complete your purchase to show your school spirit and support the West Hills PTO. West Hills Spirit Wear Online store open until September 25th. Order TODAY! FREE SHIPPING for orders over $40.00. |
Secure the lowest price of the year for the yearbook with great perks included: Don't miss out! Act NOW! Buy now at our lowest price and when you personalize your yearbook, we'll add up to four FREE icons to include on their yearbook cover. Order online with a credit card @jostenyearbook.com or print out an order form from the school website and send your order with payment into school. |
Questions: email jse...@bloomfield.org |
Sixth-Grade Students Visit Howell Nature Center's Global Village By: Brandon H. The sixth grade recently went to the Howell Nature Center's Global Village to learn about the people in other countries and how they live. We visited different regions such as an African mud hut, Thai stilt home and a rural America poor family. We learned how these families farmed and hunted for food to survive. We also learned about other continents who have greater populations, but have less food. Some of the sixth graders cooked our lunch of quinoa, rice and potatoes to learn what meals were like in other countries. I think the Global Village field trip has inspired many kids in the sixth grade to help others around the world. From this field trip we will now be more caring about the people around us. This field trip helped us learn about others in the world and how lucky we are to have so many resources. Two key components of IB schools are international mindedness (raising awareness of internationalism) and service as action. The Global Village field trip is an excellent way to inspire such qualities in our students! We love to hear examples of how you are supporting international mindedness and service as action at home. Please email us! |
Kathy Janelle, PYP Coordinator Jenelle Williams, MYP Coordinator kjan...@bloomfield.org jwil...@bloomfield.org
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West Hills Middle School continues to be a nut-restricted school. As a reminder, this also includes all field trips, sporting events, and all other before and after school events. Please carefully read and review all food packaging prior to sending food items to school. For further information on food allergies, consult www.foodallergy.org. We appreciate in advance your full cooperation. |
Posted 09/25/2015 12:45PM |
How do you see the future of our properties? Join us for the next series of Master Property Planning Meetings on September 21 BHMS Cafeteria, 4:30 & September 29 EHMS Cafeteria, 6:30. |
Posted 09/25/2015 12:40PM |
There's no guide to parenting. Online safety, inclusive learning environments, social struggles and college applications are just a few concerns facing parents of school-age children in 2015. Fortunately, these concerns don't have to be addressed alone, and experts are available locally to serve as resources. Recognizing the similar needs in our communities, Birmingham Public Schools and Bloomfield Hills Schools have joined to offer the informative, self-empowering ParentCamp 2015 on Saturday, Sept. 26 from 7:30 a.m. – noon at the Birmingham Public Schools Education and Administration Center, 31301 Evergreen in Beverly Hills. |
Posted 09/25/2015 12:30PM Do you have an idea about one of our programs, schools, or other district opportunities? Think you have a solution to a big problem we are facing as a district or community? Want to share your ideas with us and with others? Head over to our new Bloomfield Hills Schools Idea Spot and share your idea today! http://bhsideaspot.ideascale.com/ Posted 09/25/2015 11:00AM Please join us for the Grand Opening Celebration of Bloomfield Hills High School! This event will take place from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. on Saturday, October 3, 2015, at 4200 Andover Road, Bloomfield Hills. Posted 09/25/2015 10:59AM A daily vocabulary routine from Mrs. Teal's English class at BHHS was recently featured on the @NYTimesLearning blog! Mrs. Teal utilized their "Word of the Day" blog to create a multi-modal technique for learning new words and tweeted freshman Adam Kridli's response, which caught the attention of the blog and they published it! Posted 09/23/2015 03:00PM Don't Miss Out on ParentCamp 2015, this Saturday Sept 26 at the Birmingham Education and Administration Center! |
Posted 09/21/2015 01:00PM Check out the Fresh Pickings options for the week of 9/21-9/26! Posted 09/21/2015 07:00AM Congrats to BHHS lacrosse alumni, Isabel Fontana and Kadie Koolwick, for being elected as captains of Albion College's varsity lacrosse team! Read more about their career at Albion here: http://campus.albion.edu/britlax/ Posted 09/14/2015 02:00PM It's that time of year again! Applications must be received before October 19th. Posted 09/11/2015 03:00AM Join us for an exciting science and astronomy adventure! The Kensington Astronomy at the Beach is hosting a FREE STEM EVENT on Sept 25 and 26 from 6pm to Midnight at Kingsington Metropark with activities for all science lovers! Special activities for grades 3 and up include: 3D glasses tour, seeing a comet being made from dry ice, participating in the "rescue of Andromeda" play, crawling into the planetarium. Grades 8 and up are invited to enjoy the keynote talk starting at 9pm!
Posted 09/25/2015 02:47PM Check out the exciting events upcoming at the Bloomfield Township Public Library! |
Posted 09/17/2015 01:41PM Check out the fantastic upcoming events at the Bloomfield Township Public Library! Posted 09/17/2015 11:46AM Posted 09/16/2015 01:07PM Check out the exciting programs that are coming up! Posted 09/10/2015 09:56AM Weekly Updates
Posted 01/24/2014 12:00AM Bloomfield Hills Schools is hiring. A list of all current open jobs can be viewed on our website located here: https://applicant.bloomfield.org/Job_List.aspx |
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