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Minnetonka Middle School West highlights inclusion programs, readathon and student projects
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Summary
Principal Freya Schirmacher and staff reported on a year of inclusion and literacy initiatives at Minnetonka Middle School West, including a readathon that raised about $600 and 637 donated books, a unified advisory and Best Buddies expansion, and a third-grade class honored for a NASA 'Plant the Moon' best-in-show award.
Minnetonka Middle School West Principal Freya Schirmacher and teachers presented the school’s annual report to the Minnetonka School Board on March 13, describing inclusion programming, a literacy readathon and student science projects.
Schirmacher described the school’s theme and core values for the year — belonging, empathy, joy, courage and integrity — and summarized initiatives intended to boost belonging and academic engagement. She said staff are grounding middle school changes in research from the Association for Middle Level Education and noted the school has prioritized clarity of expectations, strong PLCs and literacy.
Readathon and literacy work Social studies teacher Demi Berg described a school readathon themed “reading for joy” conducted in February. Berg said students read at least 10 minutes in core classes each day during the event, participated in dress-up days and a book swap, and helped the school run a fundraiser for a local charity called the Free Book Buggy. “As a school, we read in 5 days, 315,325 minutes, which equates to about 220 days,” Berg reported; she said the readathon raised about $600 and collected roughly 637 books for donation. Berg also said a PTO grant funded a Little Free Library called the “Bookie Monster.”
Inclusion and unified programs Schirmacher introduced school staff and students who described unified advisory and plans for unified physical education next year. Student speakers and staff said the unified advisory mixes students with and without disabilities in advisory classes; Best Buddies operates as an after-school program. Students described field trips, Special Olympics participation and peer support elements. “The best buddies in the Unified Program's goals are to create an inclusive environment, where students with and without disabilities can participate together in activities,” a student speaker said.
Student STEM recognition Schirmacher also recognized a third-grade class from Deep Haven Elementary for earning a best-in-show distinction in the elementary division of NASA’s Plant the Moon junior competition. Teacher Heather Toten’s students tested soil simulants and hypotheses about indoor and outdoor growth; Schirmacher said the Deep Haven project was one of four elementary teams to earn best-in-show out of about 100 teams nationally.
Context and next steps Schirmacher said the school is implementing changes to the middle school program model and schedule and is preparing for spring standardized assessments after spring break. She highlighted Full Sail Awards (student recognition) and extracurricular activities including dances and sporting events. Board members thanked the presenters and asked a few follow-up questions about the inclusion work and the readathon.
Sources: Presentation March 13 by Freya Schirmacher, principal, and remarks from Demi Berg and student speakers at Minnetonka Middle School West.
