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Hickory Creek Middle School

March 2025

Hickory CreekMiddle School March 2025

School Goals 2024-2025

Academic Goal:

  • We will continue to provide rigor and opportunity for academic growth to all students in grades 6th- 8th.

Social/Emotional Goal:

  • We will support staff and student social and emotional needs and enhance the opportunity for growth in relationships with one another.

Communication Goal:

  • We will increase opportunities for family engagement both during the school day and through extra-curricular activities.

Safety Goal:

  • We will provide a safe learning environment for staff and students in our learning community.

Hickory Creek Administration Team

Mrs. Tricia Dotson

Principal

Mr. Jason Crockett

Assistant Principal overseeing discipline, supervision and scheduling.

Mr. Tyler Sinclair

Assistant Principal overseeing student support services, including IEPs, 504s and MTSS.

Contact Information for Hickory Creek Administration

Tricia Dotson tdotson@fsd157c.org

Jason Crockett jcrockett@fsd157c.org

Tyler Sinclair tsinclair@fsd157c.org

Important Dates

February Dates


  • 3-1 IGSMA @ HCMS
  • 3-1 Chess State Tournament
  • 3-3 Student Government Day
  • 3-3 thru 3-7 FSP Book Fair
  • 3-4 PE Classes to Laraway Lanes
  • 3-5 PE Classes to Laraway Lanes
  • 3-5 Hot Lunch Chorus
  • 3-11 thru 3-14 Track and Field Tryouts
  • 3-12 Hot Lunch Athletic Boosters
  • 3-14 Student Council Dance
  • 3-19 Hot Lunch FSP
  • 3-21 Smoothies FSP
  • 3-26 Hot Lunch LWSRA
  • 3-27 Wheelchair Basketball Game
  • 3-28 Early Release 1:10 p.m.

Highlights from the Past Month 🙂

Student STEP Dancers for Black History Month

Cheerleading Team-IESA State Runner Up!

Notes from the Nurse

A physical is needed for participation in after school intramurals and to try out for spring sports. Sports Physicals are good for 13 months and can be found on the district website or your child can stop in the nurse’s office to collect one. We are still in need of Dental forms for several 6th graders, please send them if you haven’t already.

From The Social Work Team 🙂

Helping Teens Manage Big Emotions

At times, your child may experience a negative emotion, such as sadness, loneliness, fear, rejection, or jealousy, which can be difficult to manage. Below are some tips that can help your child navigate these strong emotions.

  • 1. Label or identify the emotion: it may take some practice for your child to learn to notice and label what they are feeling. Encourage them to check in with how their body is feeling when experiencing the strong emotion. Often, your child may feel sensations with certain emotions, such as clenching teeth when angry. Try to help your child determine what caused their strong feeling. This will help them figure out the best way to hand the feeling and solve the problem.
  • 2. Work with your child to decide the best way to express the emotion they are feeling. Sometimes, talking with your child about the situation may help but other times they may want to do something to help them cope. Maybe they need to gently confront someone, talk with their friend about the situation, or exercise to help relieve the feeling.
  • 3. Help your child build positive emotions by teaching them to focus on the good things in their life. Focusing on the good can help shift your child’s emotional well-being from negative to positive during life’s challenges.

Advisory Updates 🙂

6th Grade Advisory

Our advisory classes participated in Kindness week activities and celebrated Black History month throughout the month of February. Classes continue to focus on SEL lessons on Tuesday and Thursday. Tiger TV episodes are featured on Monday, Wednesday is set up for a WIN Day, and team building ends the week on Friday. We ended the month with lessons on CPR. February is National Heart Health Awareness Month which is dedicated to raising awareness about heart disease.

7th Grade Advisory

Seventh grade advisory classes participated in Kindness week activities and celebrated Black History month throughout the month of February. Classes continue to focus on SEL lessons on Tuesday and Thursday. Tiger TV episodes are featured on Monday, Wednesday is set up for a WIN Day, and team building ends the week on Friday. We will end the month learning about CPR and the importance of being aware.

8th Grade Advisory

In February, 8th grade participated in activities in celebration of Black History Month and Kindness Week. We then discussed strategies for dealing with stress and online hate speech. We ended the month with discussing values and a lesson on CPR.

From The Library ⭐

Yes, it is that time again. We are trying to track down all those overdue library books. Please help our students find missing books by checking home libraries, under beds, on coffee tables, etc... Encourage your child to check their lockers and backpacks. Books can be turned into the book drop at any time during the day. Before school, on the way to the lockers, is perfect

Lunches at Hickory Creek

Students in grades 6th- 8th will have a 30 minute lunch period daily. The time for grade level lunches are:
  • 6th Grade 10:52 A.M. - 11:22 A.M.
  • 7th Grade 11:33 A.M. - 12:03 P.M.
  • 8th Grade 12:15 P.M. - 12:45 P.M.

Students should bring their own lunches to school unless your family has pre-ordered one of the designated Hot Lunches at the start of the year - through My School Bucks.


Students are not allowed to receive delivery of food at school from anyone other than a guardian or parent during the school day.


The expectations for deliveries are as follows:


  • Food must be clearly labeled with student's first and last name and grade level.
  • Only drinks with screwed on caps will be accepted- nothing with straws or lids can be accepted.
  • Guardians will put lunches in grade level bins found in the vestibule by the front doors. Deliveries must be received prior to student's grade level designated lunch period.
  • Students are only allowed to receive food for themselves. They will not be able to share large orders of food dropped off.

Power School

Families are encouraged to access Power School regularly to monitor student progress. Grades will be update at a minimum of every two weeks. Staff are happy to answer any questions or concerns that may come up throughout the school year in regard to student progress. 🙂


If families would like to check student GPA for National Junior Honor Society, please reference the desktop version of Power School to access students' Cumulative GPA. Students applying for NJHS or wanting to stay eligible for NJHS must have a 3.8 GPA or higher.

Link to District Parent and Student Handbook 2024-2025

Attached below is the link to our Parent and Student Handbook.

Highlights from Extra Curriculars

Band and Orchestra


  • ALL HCMS Band students will be performing at Lincoln-Way East on the evening of Thursday, February 27! And ...
  • ALL HCMS Jazz students will be performing at Lincoln-Way East on the evening of Friday, March 7!

Spring Musical


  • Spring Musical rehearsals are up and running! Starting the week of March 3, all after school rehearsals will be focused on the spring musical – make sure to check the detailed schedule that was handed out at the parent meeting and given to all performers. The chorus for the musical will start rehearsing on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:15-3:30 starting the week of March 3. Make sure to put the weekend of May 16, 17, and 18th on your calendar – the show is going to be amazing!

Chorus


  • Varsity Chorus, Advanced Choir, and Show Choir are performing at the IGSMA District Choral Contest on March 1, hosted at HCMS! After that, rehearsals for these groups are done until after the spring musical – there will be one more week of rehearsals the week of May 19 to prepare for “Music In The Parks”.

NJHS


  • Next member meeting is Friday March 21st from 2:15-3:00p.
  • A total of 10 service hours (4 must be completed at school) are due no later than May 1st.

Student Council


  • The student council recently wrapped up a successful drive to support NAWS, showing their dedication to helping animals in need. They also planned exciting Theme Thursdays, adding creativity and spirit to the week leading up to Valentine’s Day. After much discussion, they chose the perfect theme for the upcoming school dance and are now counting down the days until the whole school can dance the night away on Friday, March 14th. Get ready for a night to remember!

Best Buddies


  • March is Best Buddies month across the world!!! The HCMS Best Buddies chapter will be having a special segment on Tiger TV to help spread the word about inclusion. We also hope to have as many Best Buddies members attend the HCMS annual Wheelchair Basketball event on March 27th at 6:30pm!

Technology Club


  • The Technology club kicked off with a lot of excitement. Students have enjoyed the student-centered approach of working on their choice of technology offered. This club will continue on Wednesdays from 2:30-3:30 until March 26th!

Dungeons and Dragons Club


  • We will be wrapping up our Dungeons and Dragons club this month! We had a great time making new friends, working together as a team, and a lot of laughs.
  • If your student is interested in joining our club next year – have them reach out to Mrs. Nemeth in Teams


Fitness Room

  • Fitness room will remain open Monday, Wednesday, and Thursdays into May! It’s not too late to sign up. Check out registration tab on the athletics site, reminder all participants must have a current physical on file.


STEP Dance

A note to the student performers from Mrs. Doman

  • As we conclude this season, I want to take a moment to recognize the incredible hard work and dedication each person has shown. Your determination to improve has truly made a difference. Throughout this journey, you have not only developed valuable skills but have also fostered a strong sense of community and teamwork. Every practice and meeting were a testament to your perseverance and passion .Your performances were nothing short of outstanding! It was inspiring to witness the growth and progress you all achieved. Each one of you contributed uniquely to our success, and I couldn't be prouder of our accomplishments. Thank you for your hard work, enthusiasm, and for making this club a wonderful experience. Let's carry this momentum forward into the next season, continuing to strive for excellence together!



Student Government Day

  • The students are looking forward to Student Government Day on March 3. They will be going on their field trip that day and participating in the Mock Village Board Meeting that evening. Families are invited to attend the meeting,


Cheerleading

  • Our team finished our season competing in Peoria last week. The girls achieved a second-place victory among 27 teams in the state.


Chess Club

  • 44 students participated in intramural chess club at HCMS. We met for 6 weeks and worked on strategy and sportsmanship. 23 contenders will continue on to State and are slated to compete on February 28th and March 1st. Let’s cheer them on and show our tiger pride!


7th Boys Basketball

  • The team had a very well-rounded season finishing with a record of 18-7. The team ended up losing in overtime in the regional championship. Some of the standout leaders on the team were KJ Owens, Kardiais Richardson, and Gavin Murphy.


8th Boys Basketball

  • The team had one of the best seasons in Hickory Creek boys' basketball history. They finished up with an 18-7 record. The boys finished 1st overall in the DPVC conference and were ranked 1st in their regional. They ended up winning the regional championship and were one of the last 16 teams left in the state. Coach Ford is extremely proud of everything they have overcome the past two seasons. Some of the standout leaders on the team were Oliver Lavin, Jonas Haberkorn, and Martell Frazier.


Wrestling


  • Our dual season continues. Our wrestlers have been working hard both on Varsity and JV. We began the month at Bradley Central Quad. It was a tough weekend, but our wrestlers fought hard. We then ripped off 4 straight victories over Manteno, Lukancic, Kankakee and Ottawa before losing to Homer and Morris which concluded our regular season.
  • We had a great 8th Grade Night on Feb 4th to congratulate our future high schoolers! Our team moms did a great job in creating a great celebration and send off.
  • On Saturday, February 8th, wrestling team members were invited to participate in the Dale Keith. 20 teams from across the state came to this tough tournament. We had 8 wrestlers place. The team gained valuable varsity experience. We will be seeing many of these wrestlers at Regionals, Sectionals and State! The wrestlers are getting better and stronger with every match! The team came in 9th place out of 20 teams.
    • 105 - Declan Schleder - 2nd place
    • 119 - AJ Shalabi - 2nd place
    • 75 - Hunter Guisinger - 3rd place
    • 135 - Ari Bradley - 4th place
    • 100 - Timmy Lorimer - 4th place
    • 65 - Cameron Weldon - 4th place
    • 70 - Dominic Ankarlo - 6th place
    • 80 - Dominic Grieco - 6th place
  • We are beginning our State Series run with Regionals this week. We wish all of the wrestlers well on their road to State at NIU!
  • Our parents and families have been great supporters this season!



8th Grade Girls Volleyball


  • Congratulations to our 8th Grade Girls Volleyball team on winning the DPVC tournament! The girls are going strong with an 11-1 record going into our final three matches of the regular season vs. Manteno, Beecher, and Coal City. We are gearing up for regionals starting the week of March 3rd.



7th Grade Girls Volleyball

  • Congratulations to the 7th grade girls' volleyball team on winning the DPVC tournament! The Tigers are undefeated this season with a 12-0 record going into the last week of play before regionals. They are seeded first in the regional bracket and will play against Summit Hill on March 1st.


Bowling

  • Bowling team is gearing up to participate in the IESA sectional tournament and hopefully the IESA state finals.


Track


  • 2025 Hickory Creek Track and Field Tryouts:
  • March 11/12 - 7th and 8th Graders 2:30-4
  • March 13/14 - 6th Graders. 2:30 - 4
  • March 18th – First Practice
  • We look forward to having our great student athletes come out for track this season. Our program has opportunities for all types of athletes and experience levels.
  • Sign Up is on “This Week at the Creek” Teams page as well as 8to18 via athletics webpage.

Save the Date for the Education Foundation Casino Night!

Opportunities for Parent Involvement

Opportunities to be part of our Parent Organizations

Hickory Creek is extremely grateful to the parent volunteer groups that help support our students and programs. There are many opportunities to get volunteer and get involved. Please see the organizations and contact information for these groups linked here: Parent Organizations – Parents – Frankfort School District 157-C (fsd157c.org)
Hickory Creek Middle School
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