Message from the Principal

I hope this issue of the VandenBerge Vibe finds you and your family in good health during this festive season. Many things have been written regarding the stresses that come with this time of year. Be aware that your child can be affected by the very same issues that affect adults, and they might be exhibiting behaviors due to these issues. Our Counselor, Dave Crocker, and Social Worker, Krista Brannan, are available to assist students during the school day. Please do not hesitate to reach out to either of them.

Ashley Nieland, the Regional Suicide Prevention Coordinator from Central MN Mental Health Center, will be presenting a Suicide Prevention Workshop for parents in the VandenBerge Media Center on Thursday, January 17 at 6:00 pm. The presentation will cover three steps anyone can learn to help prevent suicide. Individuals trained in the Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) response system will learn how to recognize the warning signs of suicide and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to access help. We hope you will join us for this informative workshop.

I enjoyed seeing many of you during our fall conferences. We appreciate the support and communication. If you have questions or concerns, please contact your student’s teachers by phone or email to set up a plan for success.

I would like to remind you that our doors do not unlock for students until 7:45 am. As winter sets in, please ensure your child does not get to school prior to 7:45 unless he/she has made arrangements with a staff member.

As we head into the holiday break, I wish you the very best this holiday season and hope everyone will enjoy some time with family and friends. On behalf of the staff at VandenBerge, I would like to thank you for your help in making VandenBerge the best it can be.

Suicide Prevention Workshop for Parents

VandenBerge Coat Drive for CAER

Thank you to everyone who donated coats to our coat drive!  We reached our goal of collecting 300 coats - WOW!  Thank you to all our families for your phenomenal giving spirit.  Our coat drive was a success because of YOU!

Mrs. Boche's Rally won the donut breakfast for collecting 42 coats.

We'd like to send a special THANK YOU to Nature's Dry Cleaning in Elk River for cleaning the coats we collected.  

High School Registration for 8th Graders 

In January, 8th graders will begin the high school registration process for the 2019-2020 school year. Watch for Campus Messenger emails from Elk River High School with details about the registration process.

Please mark your calendar for the following night at ERHS and click HERE for the complete details.

"A Tradition of Excellence: It's Good to Be An Elk"

Incoming Freshman Registration Night

ERHS Zabee Theater

January 7th, 2019

6:00 - 7:15 pm

All registration information can be found on the ERHS Counseling / Registration webpage.  You or your student will complete their registration online via Campus Portal. 

Online registration opens: Monday, January 7, 2019 at 12pm

Online registration closes: Friday, January 18, 2019 at 3pm

If you have any questions about high school registration for your 8th grader, please contact your student's high school guidance counselor at 763-241-3424.

Students of the Week

Congratulations to our November/December Students of the Week!!!

Evan Anderson, Kaitlyn Bahneman, Princess Ben, Brennen Brothers, Sadie Goggleye, Kaitlyn Hanson, Ernie Jones, Addison Louder, Addison Kolles, Jackson Rebrovich, Lauren Risk, Tessa Traynor

Middle School Math League

VandenBerge students competed in their 2nd and 3rd meets in the month of November.

The Red team finished in 4th place at meet two. High scorers were Kaylyn Breyen and Isabelle Silvola who were tied for the 6th highest score at the meet. 

Meet three was very difficult for every student in attendance. The Red team finished in 3rd place at the meet. Isabelle Silvola scored the second highest points and Kristin Landrus tied for the 8th most points. 

After their first three meets, the VandenBerge Red team is in 4th place overall.  Top placed students overall are Kaylyn Breyen (5th place), Isabelle Silvola (10th place), and John Palmer (13th place).

There are two more meets coming up with the next meet being held at Prairie View on December 18.

Yearbooks

Have you ordered your yearbook yet? Yearbooks are now $30.

Visit www.jostens.com and search for VandenBerge. Click "2019 Yearbook” to view products and add them to your cart.  Check out online and be sure to enter your email address so you get a receipt for your purchase. Yearbooks will be delivered to school in the spring.

Please contact Morgen Schultz at morgen.schultz@isd728.org if you have any questions about yearbooks.

AVID

Congratulations to our new 6th Grade AVID students! We are excited you are joining the AVID family here at VMS!

Our 7th grade AVID students took a trip to St. Cloud State University at the end of November and had a great time touring the campus and hearing about college opportunities. Our 7th and 8th grade students have been working on tutorials and using questioning techniques to help other students with homework and tests. Our 8th graders had a great time exploring Anoka Ramsey Community College and Anoka Technical College at the end of October.

If you would like more information about AVID, please contact Sarah Weinhold or Dave Crocker.

English

Grade 6 students have been reading, writing and collaborating throughout the past months. Recently, students worked through understanding point of view and theme, as well as filling out plot diagrams for what they read. Students have also been enjoying time in the Media Center for lessons on genre. Many students chose to participate in National Novel Writing Month during November and produced great novels or short stories during that time. 

Grade 7 students will be starting the play version of A Christmas Carol the first week of December. We will be reading it aloud in class and filling out a study guide together. There will then be a summative essay and multiple choice test the week before winter break. Please let us know if you will be traveling out of town early that last week so we can make arrangements for your student to take the tests before you leave. As always, you should see your student reading a novel at home, especially on nights where other class homework is light. We encourage students to try to read a minimum of 5 novels this quarter. Novel guidelines are the same and books that are over 350 pages can count for two books. Please Mrs. Boche or Mrs. Hoffman know if you have any questions.

Grade 8 students will wrap up 2018 by reading a class novel. They will be expected to complete a portion of the reading outside of class, so please ask them about their novels and what is happening within the story to spark conversation at the dinner table! Encourage your child to keep track of their assignments with their Schoology calendar so they stay on top of their work.  We encourage parents to check Parent Portal for grade updates and email teachers if questions or concerns arise.

VMS Library Media Center 

The Media Center focused on all things related to creative WRITING during the month of November by celebrating and highlighting the Young Writers Program of NANOWRIMO (NAtional NOvel WRIting MOnth).  In case you haven’t heard of NaNoWriMo, it is an international event that encourages people to write a novel during the month of November.

We had 31 Students choose to participate in the challenge. They received ongoing support through a Schoology Group as well as participation in a SOAR hosted by Ms. Schultz. Those who met their writing goal earned an invite to a writer's breakfast where they received a certificate documenting their writing success.

Congratulations to all the NaNoWriMo participants (some of them pictured below).  

Science

Grade 6 finished the unit on Engineering and Technology, which included various projects and labs.  They have now moved on to learning about matter.  There are a few pictures below from the density lab they completed.

Grade 7 is learning about Mitosis, Meiosis and human karyotypes.

Grade 8 started the geology unit with a crystal-growing lab and are currently learning about minerals and then will move on to rocks. Check out the pictures of the lab groups and the crystals they grew!

Social Studies

Grade 6 is currently working on the Fur Trade Unit.  They are learning the everyday operations of the Fur Trade business in Minnesota between 1600 and 1850, as well as the important jobs people had to complete for the Fur Trade to be successful.  They will be wrapping the unit up by completing the Voyageur Journal, where they will write about the Fur Trade from the perspective of a French Canadian Voyageur in a journal they create themselves.    

Grade 7 is digging deeper into the Civil War. They are learning about the differences between the North and the South, the advantages/disadvantages each side had, and the causes of the war. They will finish the unit by creating a stop action video before the holiday break. 

Grade 8 started their first region of study, Australia/Oceania. Students are working on mapping, and will have class time to work on it, but should also be working outside of class if they do not finish it during class time. Students will be learning about the relationship Australia had with Great Britain, about the aboriginals, and about the Great Barrier Reef. After Australia, our next region of study will be South America where students will create a Pecha Kucha by incorporating the 5 Themes of Geographym.

Are you looking for that last minute gift? 

VandenBerge Middle School is selling Flower Cards for $20.  Give the gift that keeps on giving!

Each card entitles you to pick up a seasonal bouquet (like shown in the pictures below) each month for 12 months from Flowers Plus in Elk River for a onetime fee of $20.

This is our ONLY fundraiser this year and VMS KEEPS 100% OF THE PROCEEDS FROM THE FUNDRAISER!

If each family buys or sells just 1 card, VandenBerge will make nearly $10,000! But why stop at 1?  The holidays will be here before you know it, and a Flower Card makes a great gift!  Click here to purchase your card now and HELP SUPPORT VMS! 

Contact the office at 763-241-3450 for more information.