It has been a busy January at VMS. We had our first round of OLPA (the MCA practice test) testing for 7^th and 8^th graders. This test gives us an idea of how each student will perform on the MCA test in the spring. We have been impressed with our first round of scores and have seen impressive growth in our students. They have been working hard to achieve their goals! Thank you for your support.

In March, we have our Spring conferences on March 2 and March 7 from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Your child’s RALLY teacher will be sending home scheduling information soon. I look forward to seeing you at conferences. Please stop by and say hello.

Once again I would like to thank all of you for allowing us the opportunity to work with your children. They educate, inspire and empower us every day. Our VMS students have so many talents and so much knowledge to share. Thank you for your support.

From Health Services...

Now that we are in the midst of influenza season (October - April), we realize that germs can be spread throughout the school and there may be days when your child is too ill to attend.  School attendance is crucial to academic success; therefore, we encourage students to practice illness prevention, such as getting a flu shot, covering their cough and good hand washing practices.  

School administration recognizes the direct relationship between attendance and achievement.  Classroom instruction is valuable;  therefore, we discourage texting between students and parents to discuss health issues.  If you become ill or injured, you need to report to the Health Services office. Please remind your children of this Health Office procedure.  Please observe the following rules:

1. You need a pass from your teacher to come to the Health Services office.  If it is between classes, report to your next class and get a pass, unless it is an emergency.
2. Health Services personnel will sign you in when you arrive and sign you out when you go back to class.
3. If deemed ill, a parent will be contacted by Health Services to go home.
4. If you do not go through the Health Services office and you go home on your own, it will be counted as unexcused and detention may be assigned.
5. For guidelines as to when to return to school, please refer to our website at Is my child well enough to go to school?

January Students of the Week

Kiyah Baker, Tucker Brady, Sydney DuBay, Paige Germscheid, Luke Gintz, Macey Hale, Anthony Hanson, Braden Junker, Gabe Kramer, Dylan Langley, Rayna Mahowald, Ruby Olson, Hannah Parker, McKenna Stoll, and Dacoda Thoennes

Yearbooks for Sale!

Don't forget to purchase a 2016-2017 yearbook for your child. The cost of a book is $30. The order deadline is April 4 which is coming quickly. Follow the link on the VMS homepage to order your copy today!

Questions? Contact Sarah Weinhold

English...

Grade 6:   In January, we learned all about figurative language (Poetry). Students are now beginning to research a variety of topics.  Students will put a research paper together with a bibliography and cite evidence.  They will also present this information to the class.

Grade 8:   In connection with our career day this month, 8th grade students have been busy researching colleges and presenting their research to classmates. It has been a great learning experience for our 8th graders, as we are trying to get all kids college and career ready! 

Students have just completed their OLPA testing.  Scores will be coming home in the next two weeks. These test scores have allowed us to plan and prepare accurately for the upcoming MCA test in April. Please continue to check Parent Portal for grade updates as we continue through the second half of the school year.

 Science...

As Bill Nye says, “Science Rules”.

Grade 6: Students are culminating our learning experience with Atoms by presenting our atom projects.  We look forward to seeing all the great work and creativity learners have put into these projects.  Next we will be moving into tracing how energy changes into different forms in our world.  

Grade 7: Students just finished their classification unit and are moving into bacteria and viruses.  Students will learn when a doctor can give you medicine to make you better and when they can't.

Grade 8:   Earth Science is digging into the layers of the Earth to analyze why we have a North and South magnetic pole and how volcanoes form.  Earthquake that!

World Language...

We are already half way through the school year! How time flies!! We had a great time in World Language class this quarter. The 7th graders learned beginning level Spanish, French, German and Ojibwe while the 8th graders dove into a little more complicated things by completing unit based activities. In German they learned how to talk about their families, in Spanish they learned how to order a meal from start to finish speaking ONLY Spanish and in French they performed a fashion show telling us in French all about what they were wearing. It was fun to see the students learning about something totally new and exploring other cultures! 

VandenBerge Career Day

VMS held its second annual Career Day on Friday January 6. Students had the opportunity to listen to and ask questions of professionals in 14 different career fields. From these 14 career fields students chose four sessions to attend. Professionals from local businesses as well as the surrounding area volunteered their time to share their expertise with students. 

Career Day was the culminating event following a unit of researching careers and colleges. As our 8th grade students prepare to register for High School and look towards their future, we had the students’ track through and figure out how they are going to reach that job or career they desire. First, they created a roadmap and discussed what events they will encounter along their journey from high school to college and ending with their career followed by understanding terms associated with colleges and choosing a college of their choice to research in-depth. They did a presentation on their college to their peers over the last couple of weeks, allowing students to see a variety of colleges, both near and far. The students have been very inquisitive about high school and college.  It has been great to see them start putting plans together for themselves and seeing their futures take shape.

A BIG THANK YOU TO:

Tim Gerber - Auto Mechanic

Duane Kozitka - Carpenter

Denny Cowen - Chef

Janine Brenteson - Cosmotologist

Karen Mendel - Counselor

Brenda Kane - FBI Agent

Chris Jussila - Game Warden

Jon Dubois - Military

Jeffery DeMars - News Reporter

Terry Rozinka - Nurse Anesthesis

Nurse/Nurse Practioner - Kathy Svendson

Chandra Shirley - Physical Therapist

Michele Wolff - Crime Scene Investigator