Look Back, Look Forward; A FMS Year In Review

By: Rilynn Reigles (8th grade editor)

2025 is coming to an end, and with that comes remembering, celebrating, and hoping for the future of our school

The New Year is coming, and 2025 is being reviewed by the staff and students from Fruita Middle School. From new policies, new principles, and new schedules, FMS has changed a lot in the year of 2025. With new faces, and old friends, this year feels like it has flown by. 

Mrs. Romero, FMS counselor for kids with the last names A-L, has given us some insight on how she feels about 2025 as whole, along with some things she hopes to see in the New Year. On the positive side, FMS has changed a lot for the better throughout this year, and Mrs. Romero has recognized this. “I feel like, overall, we’ve gotten to know each other more" said Mrs. Romero. She explains that even though there have been challenges, the students are starting to get to know staff, along with each other. Relationships are really big in building a great community of students and staff.  

When asked what Mrs. Romero would like to see different in the upcoming future, she replied with some details about our new 9th hour classes. “I would like the ninth hour (extra elective) to be more steady.” When elaborating on this, she explains that having a class where all grades in middle school are mixed, can be chaotic, and she would like to see more of a balance in the future. Another piece of advice Mrs. Romero discussed was the need for students to keep working hard. “Finish strong.” She said. Eighth graders especially need to keep preparing for high school and finish the school year smoothly. 

Mrs. Morgan, a 7th grade social studies teacher, was asked many questions about this past year. She replied about many of the changes she, in a teacher perspective, loves, and some things that we should work on moving forward together as a school. Like Mrs. Romero, Mrs. Morgan also talked about the importance of strong relationships especially amongst the students. “I do like the fact that kids get a little more time at lunch because I think it is one way students are able to spend more time with their friends and it increases our overall belonging amongst peers." But with the good changes can also come challenges. Longer lunches, mean shorter class periods, and Mrs. Morgan says, “Unfortunately, longer lunches can play a part in contributing to less time to teach the content…I feel like kids are missing out sometimes on important content because of the lack of time.” Everybody wants something out of the New Year, and Mrs. Morgan would like to see FMS continue building, “More kindness, and more belonging.” Although FMS already has a good community, it can be said strengthening acceptance and love is never a negative thing. “We need to celebrate the good things.” Mrs. Morgan said, explaining that even the smallest of actions, the actions that some may not see as important, should be recognized. 

So what do the students think? Marley Cordova, an eighth grader here at FMS has given the Fruita Feed some insight on how some of the students may feel about how 2025 in review. “The changes I have seen have been good.” Marley further stated that "shorter Fridays are definitely nice." Marley also acknowledged the maturity level in some of the older students "has improved, and is still improving, I just want our school to be the best of the best. With fierce and loyal kids who are able to help one another.” Upon further clarification, Marley said, she wants a school that is safe for everyone, with kids who know when to do the right thing and act on it. 

As Fruita Middle School reviews 2025, we must reflect, and decide what we want as a school. From building a good community, to celebrating the small things, FMS is ready to start the New Year with strong and focused mindsets and a desire to continue building on the amazing community we already have.

By: Scarlett Rosier 7th Grade journalist 

There are many ways to celebrate Christmas but the most common way to celebrate is the birth of Jesus Christ. The Bible does not specify the date of Jesus's birth, so church officials chose December 25th in the 4th century. Christmas also has some Pagan and Roman influences for example there is a roman festival held in december which involves feasting and gift giving. As well as sol invictus the roman festival “unconquered sun” which  is celebrated on December 31 with naked winter and the return of longer days.  

In conclusion Christmas is about gift giving and spending time with loved ones and its coming up fast, are you ready?

By Scarlett Rosier, 7th Grade Journalist 

Since 2026 is rapidly approaching, the year is coming to an end and a lot has happened in the USA and around the world these past 12 months. Let's take a look.

January 

•   In California state parks, the first day of the year was met with hiking.

• The Roses Parade happened on January 1st, and the International Day of Education happened on January 24th.

• Also on January 24th, Burns night which celebrates the birth of a Scottish poet.

• Holocaust Remembrance Day took place on January 27th.

• International Lego Day happened on January 28th, along with a lunar eclipse happening near the first of the month.

 February 

•  Starting off strong in February we had the 67th Grammy awards with Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, and Chappell Roan being among the big winners.

• We also had the Super bowl on February 9th, with the Philadelphia Eagles winning against the Kansas CIty Chiefs.

• Although the date of Mardi Gras varies, it often falls in February, with parades and celebrations happening around the country, as well as the lunar new year with celebrations such as light parades and family gatherings.

• And NASCAR fans get to enjoy Daytona 500 which is a major race held in February,  as well as fun holidays such as Valentines day on the 14th, National pizza day  on the 9th, Pokémon Day on the 27th, National Pancake Day on the 28th, Groundhog day on the 2nd,  and National Random Acts of Kindness Day on the 17th.

 March

•  In March we had International Women's Day on the 8th and St Patrick's day on the 17th.

• March 2025 also included a wildfire in South Korea, the Myanmar earthquake, the Bangkok Skyscraper Collapse, and an earthquake in New Zealand. 

 April 

• Starting off strong on the first of the month we had April fools day, along with World Autism Awareness day on the 2nd, Walk to Work Day on the 4th, World Health Day on the 7th, and on the 10th we had National Siblings Day.

• National Pet Day occurred on the 11th and grilled cheese day on the 12th.

 May

• In May we had the territory days which is celebrated in Colorado.

• The Fat Tire Festival in Fruita Colorado, a schools out party, and a F4 tornado outbreak. 

June

• In June there was a Los Angeles protest. 

• In North Dakota, a tornado, and in Nigeria, floods.

• National Flag Day on the 14th and Father's Day on the third Sunday of June. 

July

• In July we had the 4th of July celebrating Independence Day along with central Texas floods and Ramses Exchange fire.

August 

• In the start of August on the 9th we had a full sized moon, and a rare lineup of six planets that were visible in the sky from the 10th-14th, a meteor shower on the 12th and 13th along with a volcano erupting in Russia for the first time in 600 years.

• There were also earthquakes in Afghanistan, floods in Pakistan and landslides in Sandana. 

September 

• In the start of September we had fun things like a full blood moon on the 7th as well as a solar eclipse on the 21st with the moon fully covering the sun.

•  Italy won their second world championship for volleyball, and a golf team in Europe won the Ryder cup.

October 

• Other than Halloween at the end of the month, October has lots of fun festivals and fairs for all to see. For example, Breckenridge Craft spirits festival, Redland International Orchid Festival, The Cowboy Poetry gathering and a Balloon Festival in New Mexico, as well as a meteor shower on the 6th.    

November 

On the first of November we had National Cook For Your Pet Day as well as World Vegan Day and  of course Thanksgiving.

December 

December had lots of celebrations such as Hanukkah, Christmas, and light parades.

And lots of whale watching due to the cold weather, as well as several meteor showers that happened on the 13th.

In conclusion, the new year is coming up and there are lots of holidays approaching. Are you ready for the new year? 

By Brystal Dawes, 8th Grade Reporter

Ever wonder what options there will be in high school? Maybe you are even struggling to think about which high school best fits you. On Nov 19th, 2025 FMS 8th graders got the opportunity to ask those questions by exploring the classes that they could take at the Options Fair at Grand Junction High School.

At the fair, they learned about what classes they could take and were shown details of what the schools, such as CMU tech, Fruita High School, Central High School, Grand Junction High School, Palisade High School, and  Career Center have to offer. These high schools are all options for current FMS 8th graders  to go to next year, and they showed many classes like Health classes, AP classes, and many more. The event organizers,  gave students papers with information about the classes and clubs that you can take. In addition to the learning, there were also games and activities for students to do as well, like a culinary class, where at the booth, they had you frost a cookie.

This fair gave the students an opportunity to show all the things that are offered around the Valley, and allowed students to see how much they can be participating in. 

Hanukkah Celebrations and Facts 

By Kyrie Miller, 7th Grade Reporter 

As many should know, the month of December is filled with a variety of jolly holidays. However, many people don’t know about Hanukkah and its traditions. This year, Hanukkah goes from December 14th to December 22nd. This is about two weeks of endless celebration!

Each day, people light a menorah and recite blessings. Families everywhere play dreidel and eat exquisite foods like latkes. Every day, most families also exchange gifts to celebrate! Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights and can be spelled like “Chanukah”. Even though they are spelt differently, they are both pronounced as “Han-a-kuh”. 

A menorah is a seven branched candle. The amount of candles can differ depending on the celebration, going from 7 to 9. The candle represents enlightenment in Jewish culture. 

The dreidel game is played by many people who don’t celebrate Hanukkah! To play, every player has to have an equal amount of tokens (Tokens aren’t specified). Then, a player spins the dreidel and what Hebrew letter it lands on determines how many tokens you get from another person. Nun means none, Gimmel means all, and Hay means one half. 

Hanukkah is an important holiday to know about, as it is a very sacred for those who believe and celebrate it. Families are the main people who celebrate and enjoy it, and many people in our school may celebrate it too!