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Horizon West Middle School |
HWMS Community Member,
Happy New Year and I hope you had a wonderful winter break! I am looking forward to an amazing school year ahead! We will make 2024 the best!
Report cards will be sent home on Thursday, January 18th for quarter 2 and will be available on Skyward. Once available, please take some time and review your child’s grades with them. Remember we are starting a new quarter. This is the time to break old habits, start fresh and begin the second semester with a positive outlook and focus on our academics. Also, as you review grades with your child, please start to talk to your child about what classes they are interested in taking next year.
A reminder that we are offering Homework Help Sessions from 8:00am-9:00am in the HWMS cafeteria.
- Mondays: Language Arts
- Tuesdays: Social Studies
- Wednesdays: Science & Spanish
- Thursdays: Math
Also, please remember that there will be no school on Monday, January 15th in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!
Again, Happy New Year! Looking forward to a wonderful year with our Hornets!
Your Proud Principal,
Michelle Thomas
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8200 Tattant Drive
Orlando, FL 37486
(407) 554-1570
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Communication is KEY to the SUCCESS of our SCHOOL, STUDENTS and FAMILIES. Stay connected to our school by following and liking our OFFICIAL social media accounts. |
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Jan. 15: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday - No School |
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Jan. 17: Wednesday School Spirit Day |
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Jan. 17: Hornets Nest (PTSO Spirit Store) open from 10:54pm to 12:48pm
Jan. 18: Quarter 2 Report Cards available on Skyward
Jan. 18: Horizon High School's "Freshman Flight Night" - Doors open at 5:30pm for Meet & Greet followed by the Academic Presentation at 6:30pm
Jan. 22-26: Literacy Week - 2024 Theme: Believe in your “Shelf” – Building Resiliency Through Reading! (HWMS Literacy Week opens Jan. 22 with fun activities in the media center at 9:00am)
Jan. 22: Start of the 2024 Basketball season with an away game at Hamlin Middle
Jan. 24: Hornets Nest (PTSO Spirit Store) open from 10:54pm to 12:48pm
Feb. 05: First HOME Basketball game of the 2024 season vs. Lakeview Middle
Feb. 05: NJHS Fundraiser at Chipotle (3317 Daniels Road), 5-9pm
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We are excited to announce the implementation of our new student digital hallway pass system. This past week we piloted the program with our students, teachers and staff.
The purpose of the program is to transform student movement, enhance student safety, limit classroom disruptions, increase of student achievement, and overall maximizing instructional time. In the short time since implementation, we have seen a reduction of students missing instructional time, decrease of discipline concerns, and have received positive feedback from teachers and students.
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Our Top Readers for the month of November were celebrated in the Media Center! |
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Congratulations to the following students pictured above with Principal Thomas and Media Specialist Mrs. Manganiello- Darien Amirtharajah, Johann Villalba Garcia, Jillian Turpish, Manuela Mirabelli De Almeida Correa Sp, Luke Mullings, Vidushi Venya, Sarah Kron, Alianna Caswell, Josephine Dubiel, Miguel Fonseca |
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Congratulations to the following “Student of the Week” recipients! |
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Nominated by Mrs. Kelly-
“Kehoe is such a great kid! He has the best stories and always comes to school with a smile on his face.”
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Nominated by Ms. Warid-
“Anthony has worked very hard to make up work and be onboard in class. He brings a great smile and attitude to call every day. He is the winner of my Spelling Bee contest!”
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Nominated by Ms. Duarte-
“Arden is a wonderful student! She is always prepared for class, pays attention and is ready to participate and answer any questions. She works hard and does all of her assignments on time!”
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Nominated by Mrs. Harrell-
“Michael is a leader in class and is always willing to step up to help. He is a hard worker and is excelling this year!”
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Nominated by Ms. Burt-
“Lilah is a kind, creative, and hardworking student! She always comes to class prepared and goes above and beyond to create and edit fun news segments and graphics for The Daily Buzz!”
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Nominated by Ms. Martinez-
“Paola is a dedicated student! She gives forth maximum effort and is helpful to those around her. It is a joy to have her in class. Congratulations Paola!”
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“I would like to nominate Mrs. Alejandra Cabezas to be Hornet of the Week. Mrs. Alejandra is a wonderful teacher at Horizon West Middle School. Mrs. Ale, your passion for teaching shines every day in your classroom. We appreciate your dedication and commitment to all your students. You make learning fun and your students love you. You motivate all your students to learn with your positive energy. You believe in your students and help them succeed. Your kindness and compassion for your students make you an amazing teacher.” |
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Mrs. Ale with PE/Volleyball Coach Hortas-Burgos,
prior Hornet of the Week recipient.
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Our Beginning Band, Orchestra, and Guitar Concert took place on December 19th, and it was a wonderful night filled with great music! |
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Basketball Season is Here!! |
Congratulations to all of our students that made the basketball teams!!
Come out and cheer on our teams this January and February!!
Boys play first and girls play immediately following the conclusion of the boys' game.
- Monday, 1/22 @ Hamlin Middle
- Wednesday, 1/24 @ Water Spring Middle
- Monday, 1/29 Bye
- Wednesday, 1/31 @ Ocoee Middle
- Monday, 2/5 vs. Lakeview
- Wednesday, 2/7 vs. Bridgewater Middle
- Monday, 2/12 vs. Sun Ridge Middle
Monday games start @ 5:30
Wednesday games start @ 5:00
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National Junior Honor Society |
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Ms. Rifenberg and the NJHS members went to “Clean the World” where they were able to sort shampoo, conditioner and soap from hotels into different containers to that it can be recycled and provide soap to those in need! |
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Celebrating the Holidays! |
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Nearby pictures: Teachers at Horizon West “Twinning” during Spirit Week! |
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Staff members show support and awareness for our students with autism. |
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Thank you for all of your toy donations to our Toy Drive in December. They were delivered to Baby DJ by our PTSO prior to the Winter Break! |
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Hornet’s participating in PJ Day! |
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Nearby pictures: PTSO treated our staff to an after-school luncheon with games and prizes and it was a wonderful celebration! Thank you to our PTSO for this special event and for everything done on behalf of our teachers and students during 2024! |
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Literacy Week '24
January 22-26
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Literacy Week is January 22-26. This year’s theme is Believe in your “Shelf” – Building Resiliency Through Reading! We’ll have a bookmark decorating contest, teachers and students sharing book recommendations, our annual door decorating contest, and more. Stay tuned to see the daily activities that we be shared on Talking Points and social media.
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HERO Olympics Celebration Highlights |
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Hornets having a great time during our HERO Olympics celebration! |
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8th Grade Hollywood Glam Night - Student Picture Request
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The Horizon West Middle School Student Government Association is proud to present A Hollywood Glam Night for our 8th Grade 2024 Dance. The event will be held on Friday, May 17th, 2024.
We will be collecting back (elementary) then and current photos (middle school) of your 8th grader to be shared at the event. If you would like to submit your past and present pictures of your student, please send them to Hwms8gradedance@gmail.com. Make sure to include your student's first and last name. Stay tuned for ticket sales information. |
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Horizon High School
Freshman Flight Parent Night - Thursday, Jan. 18th
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Initial Superintendent's Message of 2024 (Monday, Jan. 8): |
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As the second semester begins, Superintendent Vazquez discusses what’s on tap, including graduation dates, spring break, magnet applications and more. |
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Horizon West parents make submit suggestions for future superintendent weekly topics (Mondays with Maria) using the QR code above. |
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National Junior Honor Society Fundraiser
February 5th at Chipotle - Winter Garden
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Thank you very much for reading this first edition of 2024. Have a wonderful weekend and MLK holiday on Monday!
Ms. Thomas, Principal
Horizon West Middle School
Friday, January 12, 2024
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Horizon West Leadership Team |
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This communication may contain information that is legally privileged, confidential or exempt from disclosure, and intended only for the use of the addressee(s) named above. If you are not the intended recipient, please note that any dissemination, distribution, or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. Anyone who receives this message in error should notify the sender immediately by telephone or by return e-mail, and delete the message from their computer and any printout thereof. Please note that OCPS utilizes spam and junk e-mail filtration applications in its e-mail systems. That filtering process may prevent or delay delivery of certain e-mail communications. If you do not receive a timely response to an e-mail communication, please contact the intended recipient by phone. |
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Copyright Notice
Reproduction of this material, either written or electronically, including the general layout, graphics, analyses, and content topics without the express approval of Target Performance Systems, Inc., a Florida corporation, and OCPS-Horizon West Middle School is forbidden without written consent. Thank you for your support of the Orange County Public Schools and OCPS-Horizon West Middle School. Please contact Ms. Tiffany Stanley at tiffany.stanley@ocps.net with any questions.
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