Friday, November 10, 2023 |
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Horizon West Middle School |
HWMS Community Member,
This Hornet’s Buzz edition is filled with lots of celebrations, important information and calendar dates you will want to make note of with the upcoming busy couple of months! Our next Hornet’s Buzz edition will be December 1st, so please take your time to read this Community Brief in entirety.
A reminder that we are offering Homework Help Sessions from 8:00-9:00 in the HWMS cafeteria:
- Mondays: Language Arts
- Tuesdays: Social Studies
- Wednesdays: Science & Spanish
- Thursdays: Math
Students that are attending need to come prepared with homework or classwork assignments and specific questions that they need support on. Students who attend will receive a HERO point!
At the end of the month on November 30th, you will be able to see your child’s progress report grades. Be sure to check Skyward> Portfolio to view their 2nd quarter progress. This is a great time to talk with your child about each class and make plans to end the quarter strong.
Winter testing is right around the corner and below are school-wide testing dates to add to your calendars. It is very important that your student be in attendance on these days:
- FAST ELA, 12/5
- FAST Math, 12/7
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Progress Monitoring Assessments (PMA) and Common Final Exams (CFE) 12/11-12/14 - Block Schedule
Happy Veterans Day to all of our veterans out there! Thank you for your service!
Thanksgiving break takes place November 20th through November 24th. Enjoy this time off, spend time with family and reflect on all you are thankful for. The Thanksgiving Holiday presents an opportunity to reflect and express gratitude.
We are thankful for many things at Horizon West Middle School namely the support from our parents, students, faculty and community. Thank you for all that you do to make our school wonderful!
Sincerely,
Michelle Thomas
Proud Principal
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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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Nov. 11: Veterans Day (please see our special segment below)
Nov. 13: Volleyball teams at HOME
Nov. 14: SAC and PTSO meetings for November (2nd Tuesday of every month)
Nov. 15: School Spirit Wednesday
Nov. 15: Volleyball teams at HOME
Nov. 15: Willy Wonka KIDS performance, 5:30pm, cafeteria
Nov. 15: Middle Grade Mayhem author event at LBVHS, 7:15pm (see below)
Nov. 16: Annual Teach-In (parents and community members speak to students)
Nov. 20-24: Thanksgiving Break
Nov. 23: PTSO support for families in need at Thanksgiving morning, 8:00am (details below)
Nov. 29: School Spirit Wednesday
Nov. 30: School Spirit Night at Gators Dockside - supports our wonderful PTSO (please see below)
Dec. 5: FAST ELA exam
Dec. 7: FAST Math exam
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Hornets Nest Store Volunteers Needed |
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Please first sign up to be an OCPS ADDitions Volunteer, then click on the link below for time slots on Tuesdays and Fridays each week! You must be ADDitions approved to be able to volunteer (a quick & easy step). Thank you for your help.
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Our morning homework help sessions: |
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November SAC and PTSO Meetings (Nov. 14): |
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Willy Wonka Kids (Nov. 15): |
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Middle Grade Mayhem Author Event (Nov. 15) |
We are excited to announce the Middle Grade Mayhem author event on Wednesday, November 15, from 7:15 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. at Lake Buena Vista High School. While this event is geared toward middle school readers, we encourage upper-grade elementary and high school readers to join. Those interested may register for a free ticket using the link - https://shorturl.at/guzT4
Writer’s Block Bookstore will sell books at the event, and the authors will sign books after participating in a panel discussion.
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Writer’s Block Bookstore will sell books at the event, and the authors will sign books after participating in a panel discussion. Participating authors include:
• Pam Muñoz Ryan (Esperanza Rising, Echo, Solimar, Mañanaland)
• James Ponti (City Spies, Framed, Dead City, upcoming Sherlock Society)
• Stuart Gibbs (Spy School, Fun Jungle, Charlie Thorne, Once Upon a Tim, Moon Base Alpha)
• Jasmine Warga (My Heart and Other Black Holes, Other Words for Home, a Rover's Story)
• Karina Yan Glaser (The Vanderbeekers, A Duet for Home)
• Morgan Matson (Fireflly Summer, Save the Date, Amy and Roger's Epic Detour)
• Christina Diaz Gonzalez (Invisible, Concealed, the Red Umbrella, Moving Target, The Bluest Sky
• Sarah Mlynowski (Best Wishes, Whatever After, Upside Down Magic)
• Jarrett Lerner (Work in Progress, Enginerds, Geeger the Robot, Hunger Heroes)
• Julie Buxbaum (The Area 51 Files, and many YA titles)
• Alyson Gerber (The Liar's Society (upcoming), Focused, Braced, Taking Up Space)
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Great American Teach In (Nov. 16): |
Each November, in celebration of American Education Week, the Foundation brings business and civic leaders into the classroom- in a fun and engaging way- to talk with students about academics, careers, and the future.
Do you have a family member or friend that would like to participate in our annual Teach In Event? Please share the info below regarding this upcoming event!
“Teach In” at HWMS will take place Thursday, NOVEMBER 16th, 2023
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We are looking for people to participate in Horizon West Middle School’s Teach-In Event on November 16th! This program is designed to give students an insight into different careers. We would like for you to be a teacher for the day and share your career/hobby/interest with our middle school students.
by November 3rd. If you have questions, please contact Teach-In Coordinator, Tiffany Stanley at tiffany.stanley@ocps.net
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Every Wednesday is our School Spirit Day!
Wear your blue, yellow and black to show your Hornet spirit!
💙💛🖤
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Testing
Common Final Exams (CFE) in December
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6th Grade-
Isabelle Basora Hernandez
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6th Grade-
Jaxson Blackburn
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Nominated by Ms. Hamaric-
“Isabelle is kind, respectful, and hard-working.”
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Nominated by Ms. Kelly-
“Jaxson is such a pleasure to have in class. He is always helping out with other students and staff without anyone asking him. Jaxson shows such compassion towards his peers.”
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7th Grade-
Victoria Pirritano
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Nominated by Mr. Karim-
“Victoria is always ready to learn and do her best every day. She is awesome!!”
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Nominated by Ms. Duarte-
“Madison has been an amazing student this week. She has been concentrating on doing the classwork and is always ready to come to the front of the class to show her work. I am very lucky to have her in my class!”
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Nominated by Ms. Parrish-
“Jordan is an outstanding helper and student in both Chorus and all of his extra-curricular endeavors. He helped to ensure the chorus concert went smoothly and even stayed after for 45 minutes to help clean up and set up the tables in the cafeteria again!”
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Nominated by Miss Bontempo-
“Jose is so smart and helpful. He is inquisitive and hard-working and always puts forth his best effort in his work.”
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Nominated by Ms. Van Bart-
“Mr. Nguyen brings light to the 6th grade floor. My students are always talking about how excited they are for world history and how intriguing that class has been. I believe a lot of that excitement stems from the person delivering the instruction. You are making kids fall in love with learning about our history- well done!”
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Nominated by Mr. Nguyen-
“Hello Horizon West family! It’s your Hornet of the Week Mr. Nguyen, and I wanted to pass this off to our very own School Resource Officer Deputy Grange! Ever since my first days here at this school, Deputy Grange has always had me feel at home and safe. Not only was I shocked to see he hadn’t earned this nomination this year, but I was also happy to see the overwhelming applause and approval with me mentioning Grange as the next nominee. To Deputy Grange, keep doing what you do out there!”
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National Junior Honor Society |
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Induction Ceremony Highlights |
We are proud to announce that 56 new members joined National Junior Honor Society. This is a huge accomplishment for these students and they should be celebrated for their commitment to academic excellence as well as their leadership qualities that they have displayed on campus. Congratulations to all the new members. |
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Congratulations to Piper Shpigler who was honored for representing the Young Marines Program and received the Proclamation for Red Ribbon Week by Mayor Demmings! |
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Our Dance Ensemble Group at the All-County Dance audition. Congratulations to Ekaterina Cherednichenko who made the All-County Dance! |
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Final Home Volleyball Games |
Please join us for our final home volleyball games next Mon. & Wed.
- 11/13 vs Bridgewater @ 5:30 PM
- 11/15 vs Sunridge @ 5:00 PM
* Boys play first followed by girls
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Sixth grader Arianna Bermudez, Hugo the Hornet, and Principal Thomas cheered on our volleyball teams this week! |
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Basketball tryouts begin January 10th. All interested students must have a completed Aktivate account including a valid sports physical. |
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Our school cafeteria is donating "share table" items to charitable organizations in the county. Also, we are supporting the OCPS Food and Nutritional Services Sustainability Program and our school garden by giving all produce items past its freshness/"use by" date to our SGA to use for composting. |
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Congratulations to our HWMS students that made All-State Honor Chorus! |
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Josephine Dubiel - 7th
Leticia Scarpin - 7th
Karelyz Serrano - Rios - 8th
Sarah Kron - 8th
Vaishnavi Mandadapu - 8th
Salvador Novaro - 8th
The Florida Music Educators Association All-State Honor Chorus is an ensemble made up of students from all over the state of Florida. Students are selected to participate in the choir through a series of challenging tests and competitive vocal auditions. This is an outstanding opportunity for students to learn more about music and participate in a very rewarding ensemble. Only a handful of the best musicians from around the state get selected to be a part of this ensemble. These students made it into this amazingly prestigious ensemble, and we are so proud of their hard work!
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Students in Ms. Mullings' 3D Art classes have been doing some tradition native American projects, such as loom weaving, in which the students created small scale weavings that draw inspiration from Navajo weavings |
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Snapshots of the fun during our fall themed staff social! |
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Staff and students showing their Red Ribbon Week school spirit on Crazy Hair Day! |
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October HERO Raffle Winners |
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Got to invite a friend to eat outside and paint a pumpkin! Watch for our HERO November Raffle and redeem your points for tickets! |
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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! |
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Rube Goldberg Competition |
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Career and Technical Education |
On Tuesday, October 24th, two teams of students from HWMS attended the Rube Goldberg competition hosted by the OCPS CTE team at the Orange County Convention Center. Both teams worked towards creating a machine that included all SIX simple machines while also learning perseverance and teamwork along the way.
The students that participated were Ben Goetz, Tyler Sisaleumsakca, Pedro Carrero, Vidushi Venya, Aman Malik, and Ralph Iapichino. They had a great time and enjoyed participating in this event.
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Students in Mrs. Hanson’s reading classes were doing a Context Clue Word Sort. Students had to determine if the clues were examples of a definition, antonym, synonym or inference. |
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Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a holiday that celebrates life. It takes place each year on November 1-2. Similar to the United States celebration of Memorial Day, Dia de los Muertos is a time to honor and celebrate loved ones whom have passed away.
Dia de los Muertos is mostly celebrated in Mexico and South America. More recently, it has become popular among Latino Communities in the United States.
Students that are in Spanish Courses have the opportunity to learn about this Mexican culture and the importance of the celebration. The mural represents the characters such as Catrinas and Catrinos, sugar skulls, and altar for the loved ones that are important elements to the celebration.
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Do you see anything that looks familiar? If so, PLEASE ask your student to retrieve it. |
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Horizon West Middle Celebrates Our Veterans!
Veterans Day: Saturday, November 11
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We thank those who have served or serve our country! Happy Veterans Day! |
Thank you for your service to our very own Mr. Gonzalez, 8th Grade Math: |
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Name: Arley Gonzalez
Branch of service: United States Marine Corps
Years: 8
Rank: E-5
Duties/responsibilities: 8th Tank Battalion / TOW Missile and Scout Platoon
What did you enjoy most about your military service experience? The things I enjoyed the most while serving in the military were traveling and meeting other service members from different parts of the country. An exemptional group of people!
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Thank you to Ms. Arce’s (Spanish teacher) brother and husband for their service! |
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Name: Rosendo Henriquez (Mrs. Arce’s youngest sibling )
Branch of service: Army
Years: 27 years
Rank: CSM (Command Sergeant Major)
Duties/responsibilities: Lead Groups and Platoons
What did you enjoy most about your military service experience? Serving and leading others. Being their mentor in this career.
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Name: Jose A Ramos (Mrs. Arce’s Husband)
Branch of service: Army
Years: 2 years (Vietnam Veteran)
Rank: E 3
Duties/responsibilities: Supply Ammunition Depot
What did you enjoy most about your military service experience? Knowing people from different parts of the world that work with the US Army and serving this American nation.
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Thank you to Mr. Fluke’s (8th grade ELA) father for his service! |
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Mr. Fluke’s father, Clair Fluke, served in the United States Marine Corps including seeing action against the enemy during World War II at the Battle of Iwo Jima. |
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Windermere High School Baseball |
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Youth Baseball Camp Nov. (20-22): |
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Golf Tournament (Dec. 17): |
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Have a great weekend Hornets!
Ms. Thomas, Principal
Horizon West Middle School
Friday, November 10, 2023
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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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