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What are the school colours?
Blue, White and Silver
2. What time is recess and how long is it?
Recess is at 11:00am and lasts 15min. Grade 6s, 7s and 8s have a common recess in 2025-2026.
3. When is lunch and how long is it?
Grade 6 Lunch is at 12:35pm-1:15pm (40 minutes). The 7s and 8s have lunch at 1:15.
4. When do I get my locker?
You'll get your locker on the first day of school after we practice using the combination lock several times. Each student is only allowed 1 locker and has to use the school-provided lock.
5. Do we have to go outside at recess and lunch?
No, usually you can stay in the cafeteria. Sometimes the gym or some teacher's classrooms or the library may also be open.
6. Do we get needles in grade 6?
No, the school vaccination program happens in grade 7.
7. What sports are there?
WHMS Sports Opportunities8. Are the teachers nice?
9. How many people are there?
Roughly 585 students
We have 23 homerooms
3 Resource/Learning Support Teachers
1 ESP Teacher
1 Learning Center Teacher
2 Physical Education Teachers
1 Music Teacher
1 Tech Ed & 1 Family Studies Teacher
1 part-time Librarian
1 day-time Custodian and 4 Night-time Custodians
1 School Counsellor
~15 EAs
4 Cafeteria Workers
2 Secretaries
3 Admin.
10. Is middle school longer than elementary school?
Yes, it is, but with recess, lunch and homeroom time, you'll have lots of opportunities to stretch your legs.
11. Do we stay in the same room all day?
No, you have 2 main classrooms for your core subjects, and you'll also see the music teacher in her room (Mrs. Ashley) and the Phys. Ed. Teacher (Mr. Ward) in the small gym as well as Ms. Parker for French in her room in the upstairs grade 6 wing. Some of you also visit the resource room or learning centre during the week.
12. What is the homework list?
The homework list is a list of students who have some work to catch up on. You cannot play sports or go to the dances if you are on the homework list; however, your teachers always give you plenty of notice if you are on the list.
13. Are there dances?
Yes, there is usually a dance every month (6-8pm). Tickets are $7. There is also a canteen for snacks and drinks. You can also invite friends of the same age from other schools as long as they are in good standing (you will hear about the invitation process when it gets closer).
14. How long are the classes?
Most classes are scheduled in 40-minute blocks although you may have 2 blocks of, for example, math in a row for 80min.
15. What subjects will I have?
You will have English Language Arts, Math, Health, Science, Social Studies, Visual Arts, Music, Physical Education, French, and ICT (Integrated Communication Technology). Some of you will also have some resource classes.
16. Do we stay with the same teacher all day?
No, you have at least 5 teachers. Depending on your schedule, you might spend more time with one teacher in a day, but you'll always see at least 2 in one day.
17. Here is the daily schedule:
***Starting in the 2025–2026 school year, WHMS will follow a 5-day schedule. That means the first day of school for students — Thursday, September 4 — will be Day 1. Wednesday, September 10 will be Day 5, and Thursday, September 11 will circle back to Day 1.
If there’s an unexpected closure (like a snow day or power outage), we skip that day in the schedule. For example, if school is closed due to a snow day on a Day 2, the next school day will be Day 3.
If the closure is planned (like a PD Day or holiday), we don’t assign a day to it — we simply continue counting after the closure. For example, in 2025, Remembrance Day falls on a Tuesday. That week, Monday will be Day 4, and Wednesday will be Day 5.
18. What can we do at recess and lunch?
You can go to the cafeteria or go outside. Outdoor sports equipment can be signed out for you to play with. In the cafeteria, there is a collection of board games and cards. You can also spend time hanging out quietly in the library when you see the door open! Some days some of your teachers may also allow you to stay in to catch up on work.
19. What can we buy in the cafeteria?
The cafeteria usually has many choices for snacks and lunches. You can preorder your lunches online, so you can use the express window for pick-up at lunch.
Lots of changes are coming to our menu and ordering system for September 2025. The changes will be similar to what you had in your elementary school last year. Stayed tuned for updates.
20. What if I get lost?
There are lots of people here to help you find your way especially the first few weeks. You can always go to the guidance office or main office to get directions. You can also ask anyone you see in the hall- students and staff at WHMS are very helpful!
21. What things do I need to bring?
Check out the Orientation Booklet on the homepage. Also view Mr. Ward's videos to find out about your gym gear.
22. What's the morning routine?
When you arrive at school, head to your locker to get organized for the morning. The Breakfast program starts at 8:35am every morning outside of Ms. Sampson's room if you need to get a snack. Don't forget to see your teachers if you missed a day or if you need to catch up on some work.
At 8:55am the first bell will sound and you should head to your homeroom class. Here your teacher will do attendance and O'Canada will be played followed by school announcements then you are off to your first class (9:00am).
23. What are the rules?
Check out the Saber school behaviour matrix. This will be replaced in the 2024-2025 with a Vibe Check.
The Orientation Handbook also has more specific rules and expectations in it.
24. What if I have a question over the summer?
Please visit this page to send us your question and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.
25. How often is Phys Ed, and what gear do I need?
How Often is PE & What to Wear26. How many students are in my house?
There are 7 Houses
Each house contains approximately 36 students from each grade level and grade level staff
All new staff & students will be welcomed to their new House Team at the September Assembly
Each house has a name, colour, flag and symbol
27. What supplies do I need?
Student supplies for the 2025-2026 school year are going to be purchased by the school. The school fees ($60) will cover those costs. If your child wants a backpack, zipper binder, lunch bag, water bottle, gym clothes, etc., they are not covered in the fees and can be purchased by parents/guardians.
Student supplies for the 2025-2026 school year are going to be purchased by the school. The school fees ($60) will cover those costs. If your child wants a backpack, zipper binder, lunch bag, water bottle, gym clothes, etc., they are not covered in the fees and can be purchased by parents/guardians.
28. Hungry?
We don't ever want you to go hungry. You can't concentrate on learning when you need food. We have a number of options for students to get food:
Breakfast program
In some cases, if a parent/guardian reaches out to the school, the school or SchoolsPlus will also cover the cost of lunches.
29. Does every student get a Chromebook?
No, teachers will sign out a Chromebook Cart when needed - on class-set per teaching team.
30. How do we get graded?
You may see comments and/or a 1, 1+, 2, 2+, 3, 3+, or 4 on your assignments. Students will get grades based on achievement levels. Check out this link for a description of the achievement levels.
31. Where can we see our grades?
You may be able to see a few grades in your Google Classroom, but all grades for assignments get posted to the PowerSchool Parent & Student Portal. Please visit here for Parent Portal Set up instructions.
32. What bus do I take?
Here is a link to the Bus Planner Parent Portal. Don't worry! There will be lots of people helping you get on the right bus at the end of the day for the first few days.
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