Hickory Creek Middle School

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.

Tricia Dotson tdotson@fsd157c.org

Jason Crockett jcrockett@fsd157c.org

Tyler Sinclair tsinclair@fsd157c.org

• 11-1 FSP Scholastic Book Fair
• 11-1 Q1 Report Cards available online and Honor Roll Certificates Distributed
• 11-1 Hot Lunch Honor Flight
• 11-5 No School Holiday
• 11-6 Hot Lunch FSP
• 11-7 Run-Hide-Fight Drill
• 11-8 Popsicle Sale during Lunch
• 11-13 Hot Lunch Athletic Boosters
• 11-15 IESA Speech Contest @ HCMS
• 11-20 Hot Lunch Education Foundation
• 11-21 Fall Choral Concert
• 11-22 School Improvement Day Early Dismissal
• 11-22 Chorus Trip to Paramount Theater
• 11-25 Parent/Teacher Conferences
• 11-26 Parent/Teacher Conferences
• 11-27 No School Non-Attendance Day
• 11-28 No School Holiday
• 11-29 No School Non-Attendance Day

8th grade vision screenings are almost complete. Children that do not pass these screenings will be sent home with a referral letter. At this age many students refuse to wear their glasses, but we do ask

to see that they have them and they are in good condition. Please consider having your child keep a change of clothes in their locker.

Here are a few tips for staying healthy. Remind them to:

• Wash their hands frequently and thoroughly.

• Cough and sneeze into their sleeves.

• Keep their hands away from their face.

• Please do not send students to school if there is:

• A fever of 100 degrees or greater

• A rash of unknown origin

• Suspected conjunctivitis “pink eye”

• Vomiting

• Uncontrollable diarrhea

Before returning to school, students must be:

• Fever free for 24 hours without medication

• No vomiting in the past 24 hours

• No diarrhea in the past 24 hours

Helping your child develop time management skills can be a game-changer.

In our world today, distractions are everywhere, attention spans are shrinking, and teens are busier than ever. A typical day for a teen may include juggling school, extracurricular activities, and spending time with family and friends, leading many teens to feel stressed out and overwhelmed. Teaching your child how to effectively manage their time will not only help them get things done but will also allow them to enjoy their free time without feeling guilty or rushed. Below are some strategies to assist as you help your child build this life-long skill.

Teach your child to prioritize based on importance and urgency: Urgent tasks may include projects or upcoming tests that are due within a few days. Important tasks are those that need to be completed with the next few weeks. Emphasize the importance of completing urgent tasks first then move on to important tasks. You can also include categories such as would like to do and want to do.

Time blocking: have your child list all the tasks that need to be completed in the day and allot a specific time slot for each task.

Breaking down a task: Help your child break down larger tasks by “chunking” them into smaller tasks that your child can complete one at a time.

Creating a routine or schedule: Having a consistent daily or weekly schedule will help your child manage their time by knowing what needs to be done next. This will also ensure that urgent and important tasks do not get overlooked.

Advisory lessons are moving along for the year! We finished up all of the Executive Functioning lessons in October. We are now working through our SEL lessons. We also had a variety of lessons at the end of October celebrating Red Ribbon Week. The month of November will feature lessons leading up to Veteran’s Day and Anti-Bullying lessons towards the end of the month.

7th grade has finished up with all of our Executive Functioning lessons and have begun our SEL, Social Emotional Learning, lessons. For our SEL lessons, we use a curriculum called Second Step. These lessons allow students to learn, discuss, observe, and relate to different scenarios to help them regulate their emotions as well as help others. The last week of October will be dedicated to participating in Red Ribbon Activities. As November takes off, we will be incorporating Veteran’s Day activities and our first Digitial Citizenship lesson, with the continuation of our SEL curriculum.

Eighth Grade has wrapped up our Executive Functioning lessons and have begun our Social Emotional Learning lessons using Second Step and Red Ribbon Week activities. Throughout the month of November, we will learn about and celebrate Veterans Day. We will also focus on Anti-Bullying lessons, a Digital Citizenship lesson on “Being Aware of What You Share”, and a Native American Heritage Month activity.

October was a busy month in the library. We continued to recognize Hispanic Heritage month in the first two weeks with books about Hispanic countries and their culture and novels by Hispanic authors. Our focused book theme in the second half of October was Spooky Books. We had a selection of haunting tales, scary thrillers and a few ghoulish cookbooks.

The month of November is Native American Heritage Month and is dedicated to honoring the culture, traditions, and achievements of Native Americans and Alaska Natives. Our themed focus will be on books about their cultures and by their authors. We will also have a selection of books on the subject of being thankful to celebrate the season of Giving Thanks.

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.

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. 🙂

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

A fundamental part of a successful middle school experience is getting involved in activities outside of the school day. Hickory Creek is proud to be able to offer many different opportunities for our 6th-8th graders. Please take some time at the start of the school year to discuss these opportunities with your child and encourage them to find at least one activity to get involved in. Throughout the year, sponsors and coaches will be sending information to students, through Microsoft Chat and announcements, with details on how to sign up or try out for the activities. Details about each activity can be found our school web site. An Activity newsletter is linked below as well as a direct link to our Athletics Web Page.

Band and Orchestra

• The Band and Orchestra will perform this November 11 at the HCMS Veterans Day Assembly, then again on December 4 at our big Winter Concert, which will feature all the music we’ve been preparing this fall!

Chorus

• Some chorus members will perform this November 11 at the HCMS Veterans Day Assembly which will feature some patriotic tunes we’ve been preparing this fall!

NJHS

• NJHS created a great display to thank all the Veteran’s that have served (active and retired) at the October meeting. Students will be updated with their Quater 1 Cumulative GPA and current service hour totals in the month of November.

Student Council

• We’re excited to announce our new Student Council executive board! Congratulations to Danielle Hampton (President), Olivia Antonelli (Vice President), and Elisa Lester (Secretary). At our first meeting, we kicked off the year with a fun team-building activity and brainstormed some creative ideas for upcoming Theme Thursdays. We also had a blast planning and decorating for the Pink Out Game in October. We are looking forward to other opportunities to make a difference here at HCMS!

Best Buddies

• Best Buddies has over 60 members in our Hickory Creek chapter. Our first meeting was a huge success, we are looking forward to our next meeting on Monday, November 4th!

Mathletes

• The six Mathletes teams have been engaging in a variety of competitions throughout the month of October, and there has been an abundance of excitement! Students participated in Grudgeball, a school scavenger hunt, an individual competition, and a mental math showdown, in a continued effort to take the lead during this 2024 season. The leading team will be announced on Tiger TV each week. There are only two competitions in the month of November before the season winners will be announced during our final meeting on November 18th. Good luck to all our Mathlete teams!

Drama Club

• The Drama team is putting the finishing touches on the memorization of their scripts. They are working on fine tuning their character’s role and looking forward to our competition at HCMS on November 15th.

Makers Club

• Thank you for an amazing first round of the Maker’s Club meeting to all those who attended! The creativity and collaboration that happened was truly something great!

Intramural Soccer

• October 29th , we celebrated the conclusion of Intramural Soccer, which ended on a high note! Our players have shown tremendous dedication, improving their skills and endurance on the field. It was a joy to see their hard work pay off and to witness the teamwork and sportsmanship they displayed.

Fitness Room

• A friendly reminder that registration for the fitness room is still open and available on Snap Manage for any interested students. They only need to have a current physical on file with the nurse and to stay after school on any Monday, Wednesday or Thursday they are interested in participating.

Intramural Dance

• Intramural Dance has been working extremely hard for their first performance at the Pink Out Game at the end of October! These girls have been showing hard work and dedication to get their new routine down. We have seen a great deal of leadership as the girls have put their choreography skills to work and have been creating parts of the dance with each other. Additionally, we’ve had the privilege of having a dancer from LWE, who used to attend HC, with us to help choreograph as well. She has been such a positive influence on the girls, and we are lucky to have her! The uplifting and motivating attitudes from all dancers make us as coaches excited to see what they come up with for their final dance that they will begin working on in November.

Cross Country

• Cross Country capped off their season with yet another State appearance. This is the 6th time out of the last 7 years that Coach Ford and Rodgers have brought the team to the state meet. This year both the Boy’s and Girl’s teams made it to the state meet in Bloomington-Normal. We wanted to give a quick shoutout to these 20 athletes that were a part of our 2024 state Cross Country team.
• Boys Team: Adrian Beri, Colt Friederich, Ian Schroers, Eddie Matteson, Owen Czechanski, Ryan Scaletta, Nolan Tomasek, Owen Burns, Rafael Maldonado, Brody Phelps
• Girls Team:Tegan Sanderson, Lexie Sweich, Leighton Lohrens, Romanna Daoran, Lucy Corbett, Radha Beri, Madeline Mullooly, Madelyn Oconnor, Brooklyn Weldon, Annabella Kawa

Varsity Boys Volleyball

• As the Boys Varsity Volleyball season has come to a close, we are proud to celebrate the resilience and determination of our boys. The season may not have ended in victory, however, the team showcased incredible growth and sportsmanship throughout the season. Each match was an opportunity for our players to develop their skills and strengthen their teamwork. Thank you to our supportive parents and fans. We look forward to seeing what the future holds for these young athletes as they continue to build on their experiences.

JV Boys Volleyball

• We are excited to share that our JV Boys Volleyball team has concluded their season with remarkable success! They: Won their overall conference, Secured 3rd place at the DPVC Conference Tournament. Finished the season with an impressive overall record of 9-2. We are incredibly proud of their achievements and the teamwork they've demonstrated throughout the season. Thank you to the coaches, players, and families for your support!

Cheerleading

• Our girls have been diligently practicing and refining their recently completed competition routine. They have been dedicating multiple days per week to perfecting their skills and execution. In addition to the competition routine, we have also been working extensively on our basketball halftime performance. We are so excited to start cheering at the upcoming games!

6th Girls Basketball

• Both 6th Grade Girls' Teams Shine with Improved Skills and Teamwork
• Both of our 6th grade girls' basketball teams continue to impress with their growth and development this season. I'm so proud to see the players taking the skills they've been working on in practice and translating that to their game performance. As their individual skills and team chemistry have improved, the girls' confidence has really shined through. They are working together better than ever, and it's been incredible to witness. Our final tournament in November will be the perfect opportunity for the conference to see just how hard these talented young athletes have been working. I can't wait to see them showcase all their hard work and progress! #6thGradeGirls #BasketballTeam #ImprovingSkills #TeamworkMakesTheDreamWork

7th Girls Basketball

• The 7th grade girl's basketball season is off to a promising start. At the time of writing, the team has 5 wins and 3 losses with many games still ahead. The girls have been improving as a team every day and look forward to making a run at some postseason hardware!

8th Girls Basketball

• The 8th grade girls' basketball team has an impressive record of 9 wins and 5 losses. The team had two key wins in October against Liberty Jr. High and Summit Hill Jr. High, making them strong competitors in the Desplaines Valley Conference. Moving forward, the girls have seven more regular season matchups before regionals begin at the end of November. Go Lady Tigers!

6th Boys Basketball

• 6th grade boys' basketball has been gearing up during practices and excited to get the season started. The boys will play 20 games and conclude with a DPVC tournament in January. The team is coached by Sarah Kroen and John Kroen.

7th Boys Basketball

• Boys Basketball season is well underway. The athletes have 22 games on the schedule and look forward to having another successful season with Coach Ford.

8th Boys Basketball

• Boys Basketball season is well underway. The athletes have 22 games on the schedule and look forward to having another successful season with Coach Ford.

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)