Vikan News STUDENT EDITION
Vikan Knights, ARMOR Up!
From Principal Velez
Dear Community,
Today we attended the BHS Homecoming Parade. I am very proud of our Knights (staff and students) for their ADAPTABILITY we made last minute adjustments to our plan so that everyone could participate. Students got a lot of candy and have been quite hyped up this afternoon. So, I apologize in advance for the extra energy they will be displaying when you see them today.
Our Knights demonstrated great ARMOR today and represented us very well. They were safe and respectful and there were no concerns reported during attendance.
On another note, today we met with the Student Advisory Committed. I asked the SAC to share celebrations about this year with me. We also discussed areas of growth that need to be addressed. Below is what they said.
Celebrations:
Teachers/staff are using ARMOR on a consistent basis. Sometimes they use it a lot and sometimes not so much but most teachers/staff do use ARMOR daily.
It feels a lot safer when compared to last year. They feel that they can see us from afar because of the vests.
Bathrooms also feel safer and school overall.
Teachers are very ADAPTABLE when things don’t go well. When they didn’t have computers, teachers ADAPTED and used paper and pencil. Seventh graders were the last ones to get devices but they appreciate teachers changing their teaching and using paper and pencil.
Lunch is going well. They feel it is more organized and students are RESPECTFUL because they don’t want assigned seats so they do better so they are allowed to sit with friends.
Growth:
Going to recess takes a long time, which reduces their recess time by a lot. Sometimes all they get is 7-8 minutes of recess. It would be helpful to go out a bit faster so they can enjoy more recess time.
It takes a long time to get a pass through eHall Pass. Some students are always the ones who go so others have to wait.
When they are trying to explain something or why they do something, they feel that we don’t listen with enough attention to what they are trying to say.
Great insights directly from our clientele! We will be sharing our areas of growth with our teachers to make sure we increase recess time, address eHall concerns, and pay more attention to what our Knights are saying to better support them.
Stay strong Vikan...and ARMOR up!
Principal Velez
Whole Child Needs Assessment Information
We doing the assessments for WCNA on the following dates
8th grade - 9/13
7th grade - 9/20
6th grade - 9/27
Infinite Campus Student Fees
Infinite Campus Fall Annual Update
If you have not created an Infinite Campus account please contact our office and request your access code.
Chromebook Reminder
Now that classes are in full swing, students are utilizing their Chromebooks a lot. Please help remind your child that they should be bringing their Chromebook AND charger to school EVERYDAY. If your child has lost their charger they need to pay for their charger ($30) before they can receive a new one.
Please remind your student to be responsible when using their chromebook and carrying it in between classes. There is a fee involved with any chromebook repair from $70-$350.
Lockers
If you have questions regarding locker assignment please contact our office at 303-655-4050.
Free Dental Services, Sept. 12 - 13
English Form - https://intakeq.com/new/vN4XLy/ut1j6e
Forma en Español - https://intakeq.com/new/vN4XLy/It1cba
Royal PEN - Recipe for Resilience with Shelly Mahon
Recipe for Resilience with Shelly Mahon
Research tells us that parents are the #1 source of a child’s resilience.
So how do we give that to them?
In this interactive conversation, we explore what resilience looks like for you and your family. We’ll dig in to specific strategies that will empower you to go home and apply what you’ve learned. You will see that resilience is in each and every one of us, it simply needs to be grown and nurtured.
Shelly Mahon Bio: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drshellymahon/
Dr. Shelly Mahon has over 20 years of experience working with youth and families. With a Phd in Human Development and Family Studies, she has dedicated her life to helping parents understand what their child needs, making resources available, and creating supportive environments that promote health and well-being. She is the parent of two grown children, and spends her free time cycling, skiing, and running around in the woods with family and friends.
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Wednesday, Sep 13, 2023, 05:30 PM
Rodger Quist Middle School, Yosemite Street, Thornton, CO, USA
Health Clinic Reminder
Colorado law requires all students attending Colorado schools and licensed child cares to be vaccinated against certain diseases unless a medical or non-medical exemption is filed. For more information about vaccine requirements, resources and exemptions, please visit the CDPHE Immunization Resources for the most up to date forms and requirements.
Join Book Club
Student Corner - Creative Writing
The Creative Writing students were given the opportunity to write about their one perfect day. They could go anywhere, be with anyone, and have as much money as they needed to live out their one perfect day. They were asked to include the time frame of when they got up that morning until they went to sleep that night and to also include some dialogue in the writing. Here are some wonderful and creative examples from our fabulous Vikan 8th graders! Thank you for reading their stories.
Ms. VP
JACK DILWORTH 8th Grade
Perfect Day
It is 6:00 in the morning and I wake up in a queen sized bed with beautiful decorations and a fresh smell of nature. I get out of bed, refreshed and happy, and I go downstairs to eat breakfast. Scrambled eggs and a huge cinnamon roll are waiting for me on the breakfast table inside my huge kitchen. I live in a mansion on the side of one of the Rocky Mountains. I finish my breakfast and walk out to my balcony. The range of trees and the sound of a rushing river relaxes me and I drink some coffee as I admire this beautiful view.
As soon as I am done with my coffee, I go out on a walk. I am meeting a friend from Florida by the calming river which I heard earlier from my balcony. When I am walking, I see deer running down a hill in search of food, I presume. The walk continues and I am seeing a ton of animals and plants that burst with life. I arrive at the white waters of the river and sit down. The river is fast, but not annoying.
I look around for my friend and I finally see her walking from afar. I wave to her and she waves back with a smile on her face. She sits down next to me and we begin to talk.
“So we finally found a place to meet,” I say.
She nods her head and says, “I have been waiting for this forever. What have you done to get this place though?”
I chuckle and reply, “I talked to a wealthy friend of mine and he set us up here. I thought it would be perfect.”
“It definitely is perfect,” she sighs.
“What have you been up to? We haven’t talked in ages,” I start.
She looks at me for a second and then tells me all about her life now. We talk for hours on end. By the end of our conversation, I look at my phone to see the time. It is 5:00 now and the forest is getting quieter. We decide to just lay there and enjoy this wonderful setting.
It is 7:00 now and we have just finished talking again. The sun is beginning to set and we decide to walk back up to my house. We can't stop talking as we walk and when we finally get there, we both decide to eat something. I have a copious amount of all kinds of sushi. We enjoy as much sushi as we possibly can while laughing and watching a movie.
It is 9:30 now and the movie is over. We are both still wide awake and decide to go for a nice car ride. I have an assortment of expensive cars. I pick one and we start driving on the newly paved road. I ask her, “What kind of music do you like?”
She smiles and says, “Just put on anything, I’m not picky.”
I put on a random playlist of chill songs and just drive around these beautiful mountains. It is 11:00 when we return home and we are exhausted. We fall into the queen sized bed and I close my eyes. The world starts fading away and I fall asleep.
NAYLA DEXTER - 8th Grade
Perfect Day
I roll over on the super comfy bed that is in my private beach mansion. I yawn and look at the clock. It’s 10:00 AM. I slept in longer than I was planning on, but oh well. The robotic chef knocks on the door.
“Breakfast time,” says the robot. The robot opens the door and goes through my bedroom to the balcony. It sets down the tray. On the tray, there is a Thanksgiving amount of food. Pastries are spilling over the edge. Maple syrup oozes down the pancakes. The robot grabs a cup and pours orange juice into it. I know I won’t eat all of it, and I will save it for tomorrow. There is so much food. I start shoving it into my mouth. It doesn’t take long for me to feel like I’m going to explode.
After that, I decide I will go swimming in the lake. The lake is at the perfect temperature. I dive under the surface. I love the fact that I bought this lake. It’s nice to not have random people ruining my vacation. I did invite my friends, though. They are supposed to arrive later today. After swimming for a couple of hours, I hear a noise above me. I look up and see the private helicopter I rented for them.
“Hi,” I say.
“Hi,” my friends respond.
“This is our private beach house thingy,” I explain to them.
“Lovely,” one of my friends says.
We head inside to eat lunch. The robot chef has prepared an all you can eat buffet. We get some food and head over to the table. We’re sitting just like we do at lunch, same spots. We talk about random stuff to pass the time. Eventually, we end up playing who’s most likely to. The same person loses. Nobody is surprised.
After we do that, we explore the mansion. We discover a waterslide. There is a waterproof poster that says it’s a tube slide. We walk over to the stack of tubes.
“Where are the six person tubes?” joked one of my friends.
“I mean,” I replied, “we could tie them together. The weight capacity is 1000 pounds.”
“True.” We grabbed the tubes and tied them together from the rope of the safety ring. We hauled our contraption up the stairs, got in it, and started down the slide. We talked the whole time, screaming together when one of us got super close to the edge. By the time we got to the bottom of the slide, none of us wanted to go down again. We decided to keep looking for things to do around the mansion. We find a trapeze in another room, over a foam pit. We jump into the pit a few times. Before we know it, it is time for dinner. We eat the leftovers from our lunch, the all you can eat buffet. After that, we hang out. We lose track of time. By the time we realize what time it is, it is already 1 AM. We all yawn and get ready for bed.
Once we finally get ready for bed, I comment, “I wish that every day could be like this.”
“Me too,” a friend adds.
“But if every day was like this, we wouldn’t realize how good today was,” someone wisely says. We all agree, though I still am sad that tomorrow is just a normal day again.
A.S. (this student would like to remain anonymous)
Perfect Day
I didn’t quite remember what time it was, maybe it was about 2 pm or such, I was walking hand in hand with my partner, our flip flops flopping against the bare sidewalk, we were on our way towards the beach nearby in Cancun, Mexico. I’d promised them years ago that I would take them to a beach and to a restaurant on the pier, and now I finally could do so.
We talked about various things, such as our surroundings of the beach as the salty sea air was tangy against my perfume. Once we stepped on the beach, I’d almost fell from the sudden change from stiff floor to soft sand; luckily I didn’t and was able to catch myself as my partner laughed quietly, clearly stifling their laughter.
I groaned silently, embarrassed. But we continued on regardless, strolling along the white sandy beach. Our flip flops were beginning to be filled with sand, but we tried not to mind, it’s better than burning our bare feet on the hot sand. After a small moment of pausing our stroll to talk of what to do to compensate, we decided to walk through the shallow water to avoid getting our feet burned and to avoid getting more sand than necessary in our flip flops.
The small waves brushed over our feet as we walked along the beach, and we both were in a comfortable silence. The only sound being distant talking and the waves in the background, sometimes a seagull would squawk.
“The water is beautiful,” I commented, glancing towards the open ocean, which was a teal fading to a dark blue as it went on. Yet the waves stayed consistent throughout, even when the color of the ocean did not, leaving behind white ruffles throughout the cold color palette of the ocean.
“It is just like you,” they teased, and I playfully rolled my eyes in response. The conversation almost ending as fast as it started, leading us into another silence, the only other sounds being the distant sounds from the background.
We would go back eventually, back to the place we were residing at for our vacation in the tropical country, where there would be palm trees standing tall. Once we got back, we would relax for a bit, clean ourselves off from the salty air and sea, and have a nice dinner where we could both have a delicious meal for the two of us. But for now, we sauntered beside each other, holding hands that hung by our sides. It was peaceful, almost like it was everything I had been wanting, I think I would describe it as my ‘Perfect Day’.
LIANA HENRY - 8th Grade
Perfect Day
It's 10:00 in the morning and I'm just waking up on my giant bed next to my best friend. As I open my eyes and look out the window, I see the beautiful sky and an amazing view of the ocean. Our beach house is the biggest one there and has the best view! We only have a few neighbors but it’s better that way, always so peaceful and nice. We even got a chef! My best friend woke up about 5 minutes after I did and we were talking about what we wanted to eat for breakfast. We then went downstairs and talked to Chef Marvin.
“Hello ladies.”
“Hi Marvin! What are you cooking today?” she said politely.
“I was thinking about making fruit pancakes, would you guys like that?” Marvin asked.
“Yes, of course!” she said.
“Sounds delicious!” I added.
“Okay, I'll start that now!” Marvin exclaimed.
We went outside and walked around the beach for about 15 minutes, like we do every morning while Marvin’s cooking. We put our feet in the water and let the little waves come crashing over our feet. There are a lot of seashells there, so we picked some up on the way back. We have a collection of our favorites and we put them in a big, clear, glass bowl. Our house was the perfect beach house! We went back inside and sat down with our fruit pancakes sitting at the bar table looking very fancy. Marvin always does a good job with making our food look neat, but it tastes even better!
We finished while talking about things any best friend would, and went upstairs to our room. We both wanted to get ready, so we did. I curled my hair and did my makeup at my big vanity. It took us both around an hour and a half to get ready.
We got in our fancy, shiny, purple car and I drove off. We blasted the speakers in the car with the music we love. We were going to a concert that night so we were singing along to each other. I pulled up to the mall and we went shopping! We got something new in each store. It was so peaceful there, not many people and just the two of us. I felt the happiest I've ever felt knowing my best friend and I came this far. We were shopping for about 30 minutes until I got hungry. We decided to leave and I drove us to Cane’s to get crispy chicken fingers, their delicious crunchy toast, and their perfectly salted fries. We sat there and ate our food, it was both of our favorites!
After we had finished eating, I drove us back to our beach house and we took everything inside. We then fixed up our hair and makeup. Our concert was in an hour and it was a 30 minute drive, so we decided to start heading down. We both looked so good and felt even better!
It was very full, but we got the short line. We went in and we didn’t even have to wait! The workers took us backstage and we met Brent Faiyaz and a whole group of famous singers. I was so happy I could faint! We took pictures, then they were about to start, so we went down to the front row and watched. It was around two hours, but it was definitely worth it! It was so crowded, but thankfully we were able to get out quickly.
By then it was around 7:30 and we drove back and arrived back at the house at around 8. We went inside, took off our makeup and put on our bathing suits for a late night swim in the ocean. Before we left, we told Chef Marvin what we wanted to eat and he waited a bit to cook so it wasn’t cold by the time we went in. We swam until around 9:30.
We went inside and our food was done, it smelled amazing! We took our food upstairs and went to our movie room to watch our favorite show. It was so peaceful, but it was getting late. We decided to go to sleep, so we headed to our room and I opened the window to hear the waves crashing as we lay down and went to sleep.
NAI’A DESHONG - 8h Grade
Perfect Day
I wake up at 9:00am in the most comfy bed I have ever slept in - with the perfect temperature to sleep in with all of the covers on, no feet out. I can’t believe I woke up in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Nobody is around, only the sounds of cars driving by. I decide to get out of my pajamas and go explore the wonders that Canada has to offer. I pick out my outfit and decide to go with a pink ruffly crop top with blue-gray boot cut leggings. I walk out of my condo and roam around the city of Toronto.
I go inside the restaurant and order. “May I order the spaghetti with meatballs, and put extra parmesan cheese on that please? May I also have an enormous side of bacon with that?” I say.
The waiter agrees and goes back to the kitchen beginning to prepare my food for maybe the next 30 minutes. As I predicted, he came out with my food 30 minutes later. And to make it better, he gave me my own wheel of parmesan cheese! As usual, I finish the spaghetti in 10 minutes or less along with the fat stack of bacon and put the wheel o’ cheese in my pink Chanel bag. Since it took an awful long time for the food to be cooked, I considered that as my brunch.
I continue walking around for the next maybe 15 minutes and come across a street dancer. I also noticed that it’s my friend Camila! She is dancing for some moola so she can buy 17 pounds of skittles. She is obviously enjoying herself because she is putting her heart AND soul into these spectacular moves.
I tell her, “Hey Camila, you don’t have to dance anymore.”
She responds with, “🤨, what do you mean by that?”
“I mean that you don’t need to dance for your skittles anymore.”
“Gasp, really?”
I respond with, “Yeah!” and I hand her a briefcase with 30 grand inside of it.
She opens her mouth in awe. “You are so awesome, pal.” she says. I know she doesn’t need an exclamation mark with that statement because she doesn’t say it very exclamation mark worthy and she said it very depressingly.
In her gratitude she takes me out to dinner at the fanciest shmanciest restaurant Toronto has to offer, Jacob’s steakhouse. We both order steaks, and to our surprise the steak was worth all 300 dollars. It was the most rich, savory, and perfectly seasoned thing we have ever tasted. And it had the most perfect amount of chewable fat. After she pays the check, we both walk back to my Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, and drive back to her place.
I am greeted by her dog Brayden. He has very long brown fur with white fur as well. She opens the door to this colossal room with trampolines and a comfy little corner with blankets and pillows everywhere. We then rest our heads on the pillows and drift off to sleep.
DALILA ESPARZA HERNANDEZ
Perfect Day
It is 9:00 in the morning and I woke up to the delicious smell of taco meat being made outside. I am so excited that I am in Mazatlan, Mexico with my 2 best friends Melany and Jazira. We have wanted to come to Mexico for so long together. I decided to go into the water for a little before we went out to breakfast. Our hotel had a buffet that smelled so good, but the water was blue and the waves crashed on the shoreline, so I had to go for a little swim first.
After my swim, I went back inside into my hotel room and put on some clothes and went outside to get my best friends. We went to the buffet, we all served ourselves and started to eat the delicious food.
When we finished eating breakfast, we all decided that we wanted to go for a drive around Mexico. We saw birds, people walking around, we heard music playing, we saw colorful statues, and we also saw little stands where people were sellings things. We stopped at a taco place to eat and we all got tacos, they are our favorite Mexican dish!
After we finished eating, we went back to our hotel and we went for a swim at the big pool at the hotel. We took pictures of all three of us and started walking around our hotel. There were many areas in the hotel and our hotel room had a balcony that was huge and we were able to see the pool and people walking around. We can also see the sunset from our balcony.
Later on that night we went to the buffet to go eat dinner. We had many types of food there and the food was very tasty and delicious; we had dessert, cake, ice cream, and more. Later on we watched the most beautiful sunset we had ever seen; it was pink, purple, yellow and orange. It was beautiful.
Later on that night we went back inside the hotel and grabbed some snacks on the way and started to watch our favorite shows and movies while eating our favorite snacks. We all loved our day because we were in our favorite place in the world and we ate our favorite food and cruised all around the place and saw all the beautiful things. We loved our trip so much!
“This was the best day ever!” shouted Melany.
“I know, right!” said Jaizra.
“I’m so glad we got to experience this trip together,” I said. “You are the best friends and this was the best day ever!”
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Community Advertisements:
London and Paris Trip
Dear Vikan Middle School families,
Exciting news! Your student is invited to join us on a once-in-a-lifetime international travel experience with their peers to London and Paris in Summer 2024!
Educational travel exposes students to new people, places, and cultures which in turn expands their knowledge of the world and their knowledge of themselves.
That’s why I’m thrilled to bring this opportunity to your family and our community.
This trip will fill up fast, so please join my informational meeting to learn:
How this opportunity will benefit your child
What we’ll see and do on our trip
Everything that’s included in this experience
How your child can earn academic credit
How we’re keeping this safe and affordable
How to enroll on this trip (before it fills up!) during EF’s risk-free enrollment period
Our meeting will be held on September 13 at 6:00 PM - there are limited spots available so don’t miss your opportunity to reserve your seat. One parent or
guardian must be in attendance.
So that I can alert you of any changes to this meeting, you must register using this link: https://bit.ly/[3YFdkg8]
Can’t make the meeting but want more information? Register and select “No but send info.”
Can't wait to see you there!
Cheers,
Sarah Butler
Campus Life Information
Support Our School
Upcoming Events
Salud Dental Clinic on Site | Sept. 12 - 13
8th grade Whole Child Needs Assessment | Sept. 13
7th grade Whole Child Needs Assessment | Sept. 20
Student Picture Retake | Sept. 27
6th grade Whole Child Needs Assessment | Sept. 27
Vikan Middle School
Website: https://www.sd27j.org/vikan
Location: 879 Jessup Street, Brighton, CO, USA
Phone: (303) 655-4050
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VikanMiddleSchool/?ref=pages_you_manage