WGO - MS Archive: Aug 13

WGO

Issue #1: August 13, 2026

Home

ES Matters

HS Highlights

PTG

Calendars

Main Contacts

From the Principal

Mr. Chris McBride

Dear Middle School Families,

Welcome to the 2026–2027 school year! I am excited to join the Middle School team, and I look forward to connecting with our students and families as we partner together this year.

The first few days of school have gone smoothly, and students are already getting the hang of their daily schedules. Advisors will continue to spend morning advisory time guiding and supporting students as everyone settles into the routine.

Daily Back-to-School Essentials:

Please help ensure your child brings the following items each day:

Charged computer
Water bottle
Packed snack
Student ID card
Packed lunch (or access to a loaded ID card / credit card)

In addition to leadership updates, you will find more helpful information in the sections below:

MS Celebrations: Highlights and photos from around campus this week
Important MS Announcements: Key dates, policy reminders, and presentations
Athletics Office: Updates on Athletics and After-School Enrichment Programs (AEPs)
Learning Commons: Library updates and reading resources
Tech Office: Monthly tips and resources to help students navigate technology
Learning in the Middle School: Curricular highlights and updates from Middle School courses

We look forward to connecting with all of you throughout the year. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to send an email or schedule a meeting with us. Important contact information can be found at the bottom of this page.

MS Celebrations

It has been an absolute joy to feel the energy, laughter, and excitement back in our hallways this week! Our focus for these opening days has been all about building strong connections - helping students connect with friends, get to know their teachers, and feel a true sense of belonging in their classrooms.

MS Updates

NEW FAMILY ORIENTATION

It was a pleasure to meet many of our new families on Monday at the New Family Orientation. If you would like to review the slides, you can reference the New Family Orientation Presentation.

We are all here to support you and your family in any way we can so if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out.

MS BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT

You are cordially invited to the Middle School's Back To School Night:

Monday, August 24 from 5:00pm - 6:30pm

This is a wonderful opportunity to hear from the MS Leadership team and to meet all of your child's teachers.

MS ACTIVE PARENTING COURSE

Join our MS Counselor, Ms. Martinez, for a 6 week parenting course.

Learn and practice parenting skills relevant to raising tweens/teens like building cooperation, problem support, and when to use different types of consequences.

Additionally, this is a great chance to build some connections with other middle school parents and grow together.

Check out the details and sign up here.

CURRICULUM SPOTLIGHT

At ACS, we believe that keeping you informed about your child’s academic journey is key to their success and growth. To help you stay connected with what’s happening in the classroom, we have published the Unit 1 Overviews for all Middle School courses.

You can now view what your child will be exploring, creating, and learning over the coming weeks by visiting the "Learning in Middle School" section towards the bottom of this site.

We encourage you to take a look and spark some great dinner-table conversations about their learning! As always, if you have any specific questions about a course or unit, please feel free to reach out directly to your child’s teacher via email.

Happy learning!

ATTENDANCE

Consistent school attendance is vital to the long-term academic learning and personal success of each student - nothing can make up for time missed from a classroom environment involving discussions, lectures, experiments, and other collaborative experiences.

To better understand our expectations around attendance please read through ACS Middle School Family Handbook.

Should your child be absent:

Please inform the school through the PowerSchool parent portal.
This video shows you how to report a student's absence.
Should you have any issues regarding PowerSchool, please contact powerschool@acsamman.edu.jo.

CAMPUS HOURS

For the safety and security of our students, please remember that adult supervision is only provided during regular school hours.

Unless students are participating in a school-sponsored, adult-supervised activity, they should not be on campus outside of these times:

Mornings: Campus opens at 7:40 a.m. (and 8:40 a.m. on Tuesdays). Please do not drop students off earlier, as there is no supervision.
Afternoons: All students must depart campus promptly at 3:00 p.m. dismissal unless enrolled in an official after-school program.

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our students safe and our campus secure!

From the Athletics Office

WELCOME BACK SCORPIONS!

We hope you've had a restful summer and are ready for an exciting year ahead. The ACS Activities Department has been busy planning a full slate of athletics, arts, service, and leadership opportunities for Elementary, Middle, and High School students.

Everything you need to know for 2026–2027 is now available in our Activities Preliminary Information guide: schedules, tryout dates, uniforms, SAISA and AAC tournaments, AEP registration windows, and more.

Access the 2026–2027 Activities Information Guide here

Whether you're a new student, a returning Scorpion, or a parent looking to get involved, there's something here for everyone. We look forward to a great year together.

Middle & High School Registration Now Open on PowerSchool

Log on to PowerSchool to register for the Activities on offer below. On PowerSchool - Go to Student Profile → Student Form, and you will find the form under General Forms.

The links below lead you to all details needed about the activity :

Cross Country (MS & HS) - starts the week of August 16
SAISA Swim Team (MS & HS) - starts the week of August 16
SAISA/AAC U18 Boys Volleyball HS only - starts the week of August 16
SAISA/AAC U18 Girls Volleyball HS only - starts the week of August 16
SAISA/AAC U16 Boys Volleyball HS only - starts the week of August 16
SAISA/AAC U16 Girls Volleyball HS only - starts the week of August 16
Montana MUN & MUNoM Grades 8 to 12 - starts the week of August 23
U14 Boys Volleyball Grades 6-8 - starts the week of August 30 (website link with information available soon)
U14 Girls Volleyball Grades 6-8 - starts the week of August 30 (website link with information available soon)
U14 Boys Soccer Grades 6-8 - starts the week of August 30 (website link with information available soon)
U14 Girls Soccer Grades 6-8 - starts the week of August 30 (website link with information available soon)

From the Learning Commons (MS/HS)

GREETINGS

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Welcome to the start of the 2026–2027 school year! My name is Ms. Lori Black, and I am excited to serve as your child’s Middle & High School Librarian this year alongside Ms. Kelli Harris in the Learning Commons.

Our goal in the Learning Commons is to foster a vibrant, welcoming space where students can cultivate a love of reading, develop strong research and information literacy skills, and find the academic support they need to succeed.

Throughout the year, we will be working closely with teachers and students to:

Guide students in finding independent reading books that ignite their interests.
Teach effective research strategies, source evaluation, and database navigation.
Provide quiet study areas, collaborative workspaces, and access to key digital resources, including Sora, The New York Times, and The Economist.

We encourage you to ask your child about their visits to the Learning Commons and what they are currently reading. If you ever have questions about our library collection, digital subscriptions, or research tools, please feel free to reach out to us at any time.

We look forward to a wonderful year of learning and discovery with your students!

Warmly,

Ms. Lori Black & Ms. Kelli Harris