We have had an amazing start to the school year and I would be remiss not to acknowledge all of the people, events, and systems we have in place to bring our middle school community together. I would like to extend my gratitude to those involved in the Back to School Bashes, Open House, the WEB program, Student Council, our Mahtomedi Middle School Parent Association (MMSPA), Mahtomedi Area Education Foundation (MAEF), and the entire middle school staff for creating a welcoming environment as we ushered our students into the 2024-2025 school year. 

Establishing a family, school, and community partnership is an important practice for us at the middle school. We have several ways for families to get or remain involved with life at MMS. Please check out our Community Education website for information about programs available to students and families outside of the school day.  Parents who want to be involved in our active MMSPA can contact Megan Reitan at lmreitan@gmail.com and watch the weekly eNews for a variety of volunteer opportunites. For additional community outreach information, whether you are in need or would like to provide support, please contact Ali Middlebrook at ali.middlebrook@isd832.net

Again, thanks to the Mahtomedi community for making such an excellent start of the year possible for our kids. We are excited to celebrate homecoming week with all of you! Please keep reading below for more specific information about all the fun things that are happening next week.

Mr. Beyer's 6th grade students have been building and launching straw rockets in Design & Make. In the Straw Rocket Challenge, students need to work with a partner to design and build a rocket that, when launched, will land on a 20 cm. target 7 meters from the launchpad. Students are learning to record data and make observations that will help them understand how to improve their designs, so they are more accurate. Students also learn about how rocket mass, launch angles, and force (air power) can be adjusted for more accurate launches.

During the summer, Mahtomedi Community Education offered several classes in culinary arts. Our teen chefs loved making recipes from Nick DiGiovanni in the Cook Like Nick class. Students made recipes from his cookbook, Knife Drop. Recipes they made included Fettuccine Caciofredo, Compost Cookies, and Watermelon Skewers. They even watched his video about how he became a YouTuber.

Opportunities continue at Mahtomedi Middle School this fall with the popular MMS Zephyr Cooking Club that meets after school. The club is open to any MMS student who loves to cook or wants to learn. No cooking experience is required. Click here to register for the Zephyr Cooking Club.

The atlatl is a spear-thrower that was used for hunting by the indigenous people of MN to increase the speed of their spears as well as the distance that their spears would travel. Ms. Ward's and Mr. Collins' Minnesota Studies classes had the opportunity to practice throwing with the atlatl in class this week.

There are always reasons to celebrate! If you know of a staff member who has gone above and beyond, or have heard of a particularly excellent experience that your student had at school, we would love to hear about it! Click here to submit a celebration form and we'll make sure to take note and celebrate along with you!

Check out these upcoming opportunities to get involved in our school community.

• The Middle School Parent Association (MMSPA) is always looking for parent volunteers! If you would like to get involved, contact Megan Reitan at lmreitan@gmail.com

• MMS has an Amazon Wish List of a variety of items that we utilize regularly. If you are interested in purchasing anything on the list to help us stay well-stocked, we would appreciate it greatly!

• Community Ed. Registration & Class Descriptions: Youth Enrichment and Youth Athletics

• MMS Activities Web Page: Information about all the activities offered at MMS