HERGET HIGHLIGHTS

We are now entering the time of year when the weather gets nice, many are excited about the opportunity to be outdoors, and the 2020-2021 school year is quickly moving into our final two months. Albeit a challenging year, we will all continue to work hard as our students prepare to transition soon. It is a pleasure to have our students back in the building.

Please continue to encourage and support your child with their academic achievement and to seek support when needed; find out about homework club with Mrs. Andrews and Mrs. Devlin or math support with Mrs. Dukes in this issue. The staff at HMS will continue to work hard to provide your student with challenging and enjoyable learning experiences through the remainder of the school year.

Cheerfully,

Ms. Larry

As the 4th quarter is unfolding, we welcome back all of our students to finish up this very challenging school year. In the past several weeks, we have purchased more tables for the cafeteria and classroom areas to provide more seating for students, ensuring that the proper distance is maintained for everyone’s protection.

Additionally, teachers are configuring their classrooms to provide proper distance while encouraging participation and engagement.

As students return to the building, all students should enter through Door #1. The doors will be unlocked at 9:05am. Students will have to time to visit their lockers and move to their first period class. Students are encouraged to carry backpacks and keep their belongings in their backpacks.

Even though the weather has not been consistently warm outside…the Social Studies teachers are keeping students warmed up with exciting lessons and topics inside the classroom! Here is what is going on in Social Studies this Spring…

Sixth-grade will continue exploring the ancient world. We just wrapped up our unit on Ancient China and we are ready to jump into the world of Ancient Greece. Learning about the foundation of the democratic process will set the foundation for future courses in our study of history and the world we live in today. In addition to the democratic process, students will also learn about the many achievements of the Ancient Greeks and how those achievements still affect us today.

Seventh-grade recently completed our unit reviewing different world conflicts. This quarter we will learn about exploration, imperialism, colonialism and the American Revolution. We will focus on how exploration changed the world and the impact it had on the world today. We will then evaluate life in the American Colonies and causes of the American Revolution. Our central question for the unit is whether the conflict of the American Revolution was avoidable. This unit will provide seventh graders with the background knowledge needed for our civics unit at the beginning of 8th grade.

Eighth-grade students are wrapping up activities and discussions on World War I and the 1920’s focusing on the impact that the era still has on present day. To start the fourth quarter we will be looking at the 1930’s and how the United States was impacted by the Great Depression. After the 1930’s students will learn about the significant and lasting impacts WWII has had on different groups of Americans and the United States as a whole.

Seventh graders have been back in class and working on MLA formal argumentative writing using CER (Claim-Evidence-Reasoning) to argue a point. We have done a sequence of activities to lead them to success, from viewing a crime scene picture and identifying and discussing ‘universal truths’, defending or prosecuting SpongeBob, to arranging puzzle strips in proper paragraph order for an argumentative essay.

Students have had the opportunity to work with a peer, in groups and as a whole class with conversations of opposing views on topics like school uniforms, screen time, cell phone privileges, and video games. Our seventh graders have shown their critical thinking with the topics they chose for their independent writing process. We are excited to see them sitting in front of us again, and anxious to read their great essays.

Hello Herget Huskies! The math department couldn’t be more proud of how students have persevered the last three quarters under such unpredictable circumstances. We have one more quarter to make it to the finish line. We can do it! Let’s make this quarter the most successful of them all!

What are some pathways we can take to reach our goals the last 8 weeks of school? Here are a few recommendations that may help steer your student in the right direction.

Your student could:

• Reach out to his/her teacher if they have any questions or concerns about an assignment or assessment. This can be done in class or through Schoology. Communication is key!

• Attend Homework Club. This is a fantastic opportunity to get some extra help on an assignment or just have a structured environment to complete their homework or project. Homework club is every Tuesday and Thursday from 4:45-5:30 via zoom. The zoom link is posted on the Herget Schoology main page.

• Set up a time with Mrs. Dukes, our math interventionist. Mrs. Dukes is available for help most Monday’s, Thursday’s, and Friday’s for extra help in math. If you go to her calendar link, you can set up a time to work with her. Link for Mrs. Duke's Help Desk

• Make a quizlet. Have you been to quizlet.com? This is a free site that provides opportunities to practice math skills, or other subjects too, by using interactive tools and games to get the extra practice student may need. Check it out!

We got this Huskies! We are almost there. Fourth quarter will be the best one yet!

6th graders will begin April finishing up their study of weather and climate. They will then begin their exploration of the universe and its stars. This will include a study of Earth and the solar system. This unit will continue into May.

7th graders will study photosynthesis and the flow of energy in ecosystems. Through a variety of activities and class projects, students will learn about food chains, food webs, and how plants use the sun’s energy to produce their food.

The CTE department has quite a bit happening as we kick off quarter 4.

Mrs. Metallo has students in several class periods, working in the woodshop on various projects which are allowing students to actively participate in measuring, to use hand tools, sanding, and precision cutting as they work on their second project.

In Mrs. Frances’ 7th and 8th grade CTE class, students are learning how to use a sewing machine and getting a lot of practice troubleshooting. As students follow written, verbal and visual cues, they are becoming engaged learners as they actively learn how to use a new piece of machinery. They should be producing their first sewing project within the next week. Making a face mask and creating a drawstring tote bag are two projects that are on the agenda.

Our online book fair was a huge success! Thank you to everyone who supported the LMC and purchased books. All orders will ship to your home:) The profit money goes right back into the library to buy more books for our students!

Battle of the Books is underway! At this time, students should be reading their 3-4 books from the list of 12 Rebecca Caudill books. Teammates should decide who is reading which books. Students may check the books out from Herget’s library, the public library, our district eBooks, or purchase them on Amazon. We will start battling the beginning of May! Good luck to all!

World Language classes are excited and gearing up for students to finish the year strong during fourth quarter! Both level A & B have started their final unit of the school year. Level A is focusing on activities that teens do in a typical day and Level B is focusing on places around a city. Spanish classes just finished participating in Locura de Marzo (March Madness) by participating in voting on their favorite songs in Spanish. This is an international activity and schools as far as New Zealand also participated!

Heritage Spanish classes are finishing their unit 3 essays. For Level A students, it is the first time they are putting together an entire essay in Spanish! They have all worked so hard and done an excellent job. Level A essays are about clubs they would like to see sponsored at our school and Level B essays are about an influential Latino in the USA. During fourth quarter, both Levels A & B will study traditional foods from Latin America.

Khan Academy

Do you have a virtual student who needs math help?

Do you need to brush up on your math skills in order to help your child?

Khan Academy is a…”personalized resource for all ages” (Khan Academy 2019). You can search any math topic, and they will have videos and practice problems to ensure your child understands the concept they are working on. If you set up a free account, you will be able to monitor what your child is working on and assign them skills to practice. Here are the direct links to each grade level:

6th Grade: https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-sixth-grade-math

7th Grade: https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-seventh-grade-math

8th Grade: https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-eighth-grade-math

The 2021 Herget musical "Schoolhouse Rock Jr. Live” performance video will be available soon on Schoology. You can also view it here 2021 Herget MS Schoolhoue Rock Jr. Live

Herget - Spring Sports 2021

As a result of the updated guidelines from the IHSA/ISBE, our middle school sports have transitioned from an intramural to a competitive model. We will be competing against 129 schools in boys volleyball and girls soccer. *Due to scheduling issues, the track squad will not have any meets.*

Here are the details for each sport:
Boys Volleyball (7th & 8th Graders) is a cut sport
Try-outs will begin on April 19th. The season will conclude on May 14th (Friday).
Practices will be daily from 3:45 to 5:30 PM. We will have 6 game dates against 129 middle schools.

Girls Soccer (7th & 8th Graders) is a cut sport
Try-outs will begin on April 19th. The season will conclude on May 14th (Friday).
Practices will be daily from 3:45 to 5:30 PM. We will have 6 game dates against 129 middle schools.

Co-ed Track (6th/7th/8th Graders) is not a cut sport
Practice daily from April 19th (Monday) to May 14th (Friday) from 3:45 to 5:30 PM.
*Due to scheduling issues, the track squad will not have any meets.*
Track will have an intramural set-up. Based on our numbers, we might have to schedule certain kids to attend on certain days.

Important Information:
All students must register on our 8to18 website, https://il.8to18.com/herget.
No user-fee will be paid.
Each athlete must have a current physical on file.
Masks must be worn on the bus and at practice.
An activity bus will provide transportation from school. The activity bus will drop off at central locations.
If you are riding the activity bus, please fill out this link: https://forms.gle/CivEQfDZD5fSYzwN8

Any questions, please reach out to Mr. White at awhite@sd129.org or (630) 301-5755. You can register online at this link: https://il.8to18.com/herget.

Homework club will be available both in-person and virtual on Tuesdays, starting at 3:45-4:30 in room 3104 and by zoom.

Thursdays will remain virtual from 4:45-5:30 pm!

Please let Mrs. Andrews or Mrs. Devlin know if you have any questions!!

Email: hergethuskies@sd129.org
Website: https://herget.sd129.org/
Location: 1550 Deerpath Road, Aurora, IL, USA
Phone: (630) 301-5006
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HergetHuskies
Twitter: @HergetSchool