It’s hard to believe that it’s already November! The first couple months of school have flown by and conferences are almost here. Conferences will be scheduled on Monday, November 21 from 12:00 to 7:00 and Tuesday, November 29 from 4:00 to 7:00 through your child’s RALLY teacher. We look forward to seeing you.

To see all the great things going on at VandenBerge and to keep up on current news, we now have a Twitter account filled with pictures of students and staff to give you an idea of what a day is like at VMS. You don’t need to have a Twitter account if you use this link https://twitter.com/ElkRiverVMS.

We have some great news to celebrate at VMS! Our students and staff have reached their 1^st quarter goal. Students were challenged to turn in 12,500 PRIDE tickets by November 4 in order to have grade-alike lunches on Friday, November 11. After turning in 10,406 PRIDE tickets last Friday, the total turned in this year jumped to 13,520! We were busy at lunch handing out incentive passes, and we enjoyed every minute of it.

VandenBerge’s staff has sent out 2,070 positive messages to parents/guardians letting them know their child is doing well in school. We truly appreciate having your child at VMS and enjoy the opportunity to work with them.

Please remember that the outside doors to the building do not unlock for students until 7:45 am and students need to be out of the building by 3:15 pm. As the weather gets colder, please make sure your child does not arrive before 7:45 am and is picked up by 3:15 unless prior arrangements have been made with a staff member.

October Students of the Week

Hailey Andres, Tyler Bakken, Jackson Burg, Jack Dahl, Andrew Foss, Jack Germscheid, Joe Greniuk, Kristin Landrus, Avery O'Donnell, Isaac Paaverud, Hannah Schumacher Sasse, Blaise Schutt, Nathan Severtson, and Ryan Wingard

Health Services...

Health Awareness

 Now that we are in flu season (October-April), please use this questionnaire each day your child is sick with flu-like symptoms and follow the instructions for when to keep him/her home. If your child has received the flu vaccine, he/she is much less likely to get sick. Getting a flu shot helps protect your child from getting the flu, so he or she won't pass it to people who risk getting very sick, like babies, elderly people and people with chronic diseases. 

Please refer to the additional guidelines below to prevent the spread of illness at school.  If your child has been diagnosed by a doctor or clinic with a different disease, such as strep, please notify your child’s school Health Office.

The attendance policy states that a doctor’s note is required for absences that extend beyond three consecutive days or ten total absences due to medical reasons. The doctor’s note must be provided within three days of the request.

WEB students took it to the sidewalks sending positive messages to ALL VMS students!

 Dear Parents/Guardians:

We are currently recruiting AVID students.  You might be wondering what AVID is and who is an AVID student.  AVID is the acronym for Advancement Via Individual Determination. AVID is a program dedicated to helping students achieve their dreams of going to college.  The AVID classroom is made up of students who are in the academic middle;  GPA of 2.0-3.5, average to high test scores and most importantly, a desire and determination. An AVID student will more than likely benefit from assistance with staying organized, completing work, turning the work in and/or creating good study habits.

Your student may be a potential AVID candidate.  If interested, please contact Mr. Crocker for more information.

Thank You!

Mrs. Sykes' 8th grade AVID students visited

the University of Minnesota on October 7.

Veterans Day

Friday, November 11 is Veterans Day.  We have an annual tribute to this day with a Veterans Day program for our 8th graders.  Local community veterans participate in a program of recognition, music and a flag ceremony at VandenBerge.  Staff and students have been busy preparing a display with memorabilia from family members.  We feel it is important to honor those that have served our country. 

All students brought home an invitation to contribute to this event which should be returned by Friday, November 4 (see preview under flag below).  We are asking students to honor family members who have served or are currently serving.  The list of Veterans and/or those currently serving will be placed in the hallway near the office. 

November 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,

In recognition of Veterans Day and to honor those who serve or have served our country, we will have a Veterans Day display in the Media Center. We would like to honor family members of our students and staff who have served our country by having students and staff contribute the names of relatives who have served or are currently serving. The list of Veterans and/or those currently serving will be placed in the hallway near the office.

If you have a family member currently serving or a Veteran (in combat or non-combat) and would like to contribute and/or be a part of honoring our military personnel, please fill in the form below. Please return this form to school by November 4, 2016.

Thank you for your time,

VandenBerge Social Studies Teachers

Social Studies...

 Eighth grade students are currently learning about the five major world religions exploring their symbols, structure, origin, figure, holy book, and beliefs. Students will soon be learning about different forms of government around the world. 

Seventh grade students are currently in the middle of the Westward Expansion. They are using their artistic skills and to make their own maps of the Louisiana Purchase and label the famous trail that Lewis & Clark made during their expedition. 

Sixth graders just finished our unit on Early Dakota and Ojibwe in Minnesota.  We will now be moving into our unit on the Fur Trade, where students will write Voyageur Journals, simulate trade to learn about methods of currency and discover the impact that the European arrival had on our state. 

The Social Studies Dept is looking forward to Election Day. All students will cast a vote for a presidential nominee during class. Votes will be counted by the Math Dept. 

Science...

Sixth grade students are learning and implementing metric measurement, metric conversions and graphing. These mathematical tools are part of the 6^th grade curriculum of forces in motion.  These basic metric tools are used throughout all middle school science curriculum. Seventh grade, which focuses on Life Science, is scoping in on the processes of the cell.  This includes photosynthesis, cellular respiration and osmosis. Eighth grade, which focuses on Earth and space, has finished their space unit and is now digging into the layers of the Earth starting with the basic physical properties of substances.

Family and Consumer Science...

There are two big changes to FACS (Family and Consumer Science) this year: the classroom was completely renovated, including all new appliances and equipment, and 8^th graders get the option of taking Food Science or Pro Chef Challenge. Pro Chef Challenge focuses on technical cooking skills, recipe development and a little competition. In each food category, students work in groups to develop a recipe, create a presentation, cook their food and present it to staff judges. Students are having a lot of fun and enjoy the creative competition. It’s been a great 1^st quarter in FACS, and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year brings!

World Language...

This quarter has flown by in World Language! With less than two weeks left in the quarter, 7th graders are wrapping up the German unit and will start preparing for their final projects.  They will get to "travel" to a country of their choosing for 5 days and tell me what they did. Eighth graders are wrapping up their French unit by having a fashion show in class and will end the quarter by having a class debate about which language is the best one to learn. It's been awesome having this group of kids,  and I will be sad to see them go, however I'm excited to see what next quarter will bring!

 Congratulations VandenBerge Math League!

The first middle school math meet of the year was held at VandenBerge Middle School on October 24. There is increased competition in the league this year as Big Lake and Monticello have joined the division. VandenBerge represented themselves very well despite the increase in competition. The VandenBerge designated scoring team won first place with a score of 178 points. Big Lake was second with 165 points and Salk was third with 157 points. There were four perfect scores at the first meet, two of which came from VandenBerge students Gabe Livingston and Sophia Tobin. There were four VandenBerge students who tied for the 8th highest score: Katie Gerold, Mya Yoder, Lindsey Redepenning and Harper Westgaard. The next meet will be held on November 11 in Zimmerman.  This year the season runs until the beginning of February. Students in all grades are welcome to join the team at any time. Please contact Curt Michener at curtis.michener@isd728.org with questions if your child is interested in joining the team.