June 17, 2023
Dear West Hills School Community:
1967-2023. Hard to believe that yesterday we sounded the last bell for West Hills Middle School. It marked the end of a truly fabulous year filled with learning and growth! A thank you goes to Natalie Finerty and Paulina Hakopian for bringing their idea to commemorate West Hills to fruition. See the article below. On Thursday morning, we celebrated our fifth graders' completion of their elementary careers. It was so nice to have so many loved ones join us to honor the first set of sixth-grade students at South Hills Middle School! A special thank you to our eighth graders and their families for making this a memorable year! Tuesday’s 8th Grade End-of-the-Year Party at Paradise Park was such a fun celebration for our students! A huge thank you to Jaime Ben, Carole BenEzra, and Karen Kaplan, along with a great team of volunteers, for organizing a fantastic party that truly sent our students off in style. Our eighth grade also did a tremendous job yesterday at their recognition ceremony. We are so proud of all of their efforts while at West Hills. They are a talented group, who have left an important legacy, and we look forward to following them as they go on to do so many great things!
Thank you to our WHMS PTO and for the service of President Jaime Ben. The opportunities supported by this organization continued to enhance our students' experiences during their years at WHMS. I encourage you to get involved at South Hills by joining the newly formed PTO in the fall. The article below shares information about a meeting scheduled for late July.
Also thank you to both Ms. Capicotto and Mrs. Jones in the main office for all their help "keeping the ship afloat" this school year. We could not have done it without them! It was great to see Mr. Durecka at the 8th-grade ceremony celebrating. This school year certainly would not have been the same without his leadership in the building.
As we head off in different directions for the summer, please take time to enjoy your children. As you probably have heard by now, I will not be at South Hills Middle School as Melissa Palmeri will be the associate principal. I am working with the district on new leadership oppotunities. If there is anything we can do to help over the summer, please do not hesitate to contact us.
HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!
2023-24 BHS Calendar At-A-Glance
Two quotes for the last message of the school year . . .
In honor of the upcoming Father's Day . . .
"My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me." - Jim Valvano
In honor of our 8th graders (and really all of our school community) . . .
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” - Winne the Pooh
Andy Gignac
Principal
West Hills Middle School
Bloomfield Hills Schools
Twitter: @AndyGignac
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With the end of the second semester upon us, we have items in our lost and found.
The remaining lost and found Items, as well as any medication you may have in the WHMS office, must be picked up 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Monday, June 19 and Tuesday, June 20. All remaining lost and found items will be donated the following day.
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On Monday, June 12, Mrs. Finerty and Mrs. Hakopian unveiled a commemorative banner that will hang in Lone Pine (the WHMS building) for years to come. The design of this banner includes the names of all 491 students and 60+ staff members that filled the hallways of West Hills during its final year. Thank you to the PTO for providing ice cream treats to all the students during the short ceremonies on Monday. I am so thankful for this banner as it is a wonderful way to remember WHMS!
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The 2022-2023 yearbooks were handed out this past week. If you were still interested in purchasing one, you can stop in the office on Monday (6/19) or Tuesday (6/20) between the hours of 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Didn't order one, but you'd love to have one? No problem! We have a limited number available on a first-come basis. The cost is $45. You can bring a check (payable to BHS) or cash to the WHMS office.
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The final report cards for both elementary and middle school students will be shared with families electronically by the middle of next week (Wednesday or Thursday). To access, your child's report card, select the parent portal at https://webconnect.bloomfield.org/Zangle/ParentPortal/ and click on the Report Card Marks tab.
Enter your username and password and you will be able to print a PDF of your child's report card. Please feel free to call our communications department at communi...@bloomfield.org should you need assistance logging in.
Note: Specific to behavior and effort feedback, please click on the following link for details on West Hills Behavior and Effort Grades for all students in grades 6 - 8.
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We would like to provide some insight on how to access the PSAT 8 scores as your children begin a journey towards college, military, or workforce preparedness in the upcoming years at Bloomfield High School. The college board requires for families to complete the following process (click here) to access PSAT results.
If you experience difficulties with this process please contact the college board at 866-433-7728.
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SOUTH HILLS MIDDLE SCHOOL PTO: Due to the transition to South Hills and upcoming Fall activities, we will have a summer PTO meeting. Please join us virtually June 28 at 7:00 pm. Topics include proposed budget, joining the PTO, welcome back activities, spiritwear.
Don't forget to join the new South Hills PTO Facebook page!
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Dear Eighth Grade Students and Families,
I am reaching out to you in my role on the new Bloomfield Boosters Board (athletics). This week I have been visiting 8th graders during lunch to share some athletic information as they transition to Bloomfield Hills High School.
Students have had many great questions. Some of them include:
- Are there summer practices?
- What season are certain sports offered?
- How do we know who the coaches are?
- Which sports are offered during which seasons?
I was able to generally answer many of these questions with the help of this BHHS Athletic Schedule. This is a “live” document and will be updated as coaches, sport boosters and the athletic department have additional information. You can always reach out to the identified coach or booster parent with questions since their email is also provided. If there is an interest in playing any of the fall sports, be sure to click on the link above to see when pre-season training/practices/camps/tryouts are being held this summer!
Note: Students who are interested in playing football should fill out this Football Registration form by Friday, June 9th. This will help the booster group as they must pre-order spirit wear in order for it to be ready for giving to the players at the August 5th BBQ.
There are also still some slots available for players to get their physical for the 2023-24 school year. Use this signup genius link to register for June 13th between 5pm-7pm at BHHS.
Sincerely,
Lynne Gibson
Bloomfield Boosters
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The IB Learner Profile Trait for June: REFLECTIVE
The school year is winding down and the final Learner Profile trait of the school year begins at the start of June. This trait is fittingly ‘reflective’. Throughout the school year, students and staff have walked their way through the ten Learner Profile traits, examining how these traits are embodied in themselves and others. As the students move through these final weeks, teachers will ask them for their final reflections on their school year.
As an IB World School, reflection is a part of our student and our teacher practice. So, consider taking some time over the weekend to reflect with your student on their school year and consider setting a goal or two to reach for in these last weeks of the school year. We appreciate your efforts at home to help support the Learner Profile Traits each month.
A helpful year-end activity is to have students evaluate their growth in all areas of the Learner Profile:
Inquirers, Knowledgeable, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open-Minded, Caring, Risk-Takers, Balanced, and Reflective.
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Model an interest in the outdoors. Show your enthusiasm for getting outside and doing some fun things as a family such as hiking, fishing, visiting a wildlife refuge, bird-watching, and biking. A study at Cornell University has shown that children who fish, camp and spend time in the wild before age 11 are much more likely to grow up to be environmentally-minded and committed as adults (Wells, Nancy; 2006).
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Learn about the natural environment along with your student through local, state and national programs and places. State Parks and National Parks are excellent examples, our E.L. Johnson Nature Center is a wonderful place to visit in the summer.
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Consider media balance this summer, and start at an early age to establish the habit of making good media choices. If there are family rules about screen time, children will be more likely to make choices involving outdoor activities.
Wishing everyone a wonderful and relaxing summer!
Kristen Vigier
IB Teacher Leader and k-12 Social Studies Teacher Leader
kvi...@bloomfield.org
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As we end the school year, we wanted to take a moment to say how proud we are of the work your children have put into their learning! With summer upon us, we can sense the excitement in our students. Summer break is a wonderful time to rest, rejuvenate, travel, and spend time with family.
To help encourage learning over the summer, we have put together a Smore of summer learning resources. It includes reading ideas and activities, math skills-builders, tutorials, and games to help our students maintain and build upon the knowledge they have developed this year. We encourage your children to read and practice math skills over the summer to prepare them for another successful school year!
Click HERE to access the Summer Learning Resources 2023. Thank you to our colleagues at East Hills for sharing this resource with us.
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If you paid a pay to participate fee for your student(s) for the 2021/2022 school year and the student did not participate in a sport or club, or if you paid a sports fee and your student only participated in a club, you may be entitled to a refund.
Please note, if your student attended a club meeting at least three times, the club fee is applicable. For sports, if they attended at least three meetings (intramural) or one game (travel), the sport fee is applicable and no refund will be issued.
Refund Request Form
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Reconnect with nature at the Johnson Nature Center by joining us on a guided hike that reveals the wide, wonderful, and whimsical world of birds!
With an area that spans nearly 45 acres, the nature center has become a popular “stop-over” for migrating birds. This gives interested birders the opportunity to view them within several habitats the nature center offers, such as forest, prairie, and wetland. What birds will be spotted next? What are some crazy bird stories that have happened here? Is a bird a dinosaur in disguise? Find out all these things and more in this recurring program being held the last Saturday of the month, April through August.
Cost: $12 per person (1 year old and younger - Free)
All ages
Time: 8-10 am
Available Dates: May 27, June 24, July 29, Aug 26
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September 25, 2023 All day |
What's Happening at Other Schools
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