Message from the Principal

It is hard to believe that November is already here! The first couple of months of school have flown by and conferences are underway. Our first night of conferences was a success with many families attending. If you did not attend conferences in October, please schedule a conference with your student’s RALLY teacher on our next conference date, Monday, November 25 from 12:00-7:00.

Stay up to date on current news and all the great things occurring at VMS by following us on Twitter. Our account is filled with pictures of students and staff and will give you a taste of what a day is like at school. You do not need to have a Twitter account if you follow us using this link: http://www.twitter.com/ElkRiverVMS.

We have some great news to celebrate at VMS! Our students and staff have reached their PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) goals for first quarter. We challenged students to turn in 20,000 PRIDE tickets by October 25 in order to have grade-alike lunches on October 31. They surpassed this goal by turning in 22,490 tickets for a variety of incentives. WOW! We challenged staff to send parents/guardians 1,000 positive messages via email or phone calls by the end of October. They have already sent out 1,338 messages!

Please remember that our doors to the building do not open for students until 7:45 am. The weather is getting colder, so please ensure your student does not arrive before 7:45. Students are required to wait outside until the doors open unless they have arranged with a staff member to enter the building early. Students should also be out of the building by 3:15 pm unless they are directly supervised by a staff member.

November 5 is Election Day. If you have not taken advantage of early voting, please make a plan to vote between now and November 5. Here is a summary of voting options for this Referendum. You should also confirm your polling location, as it may be different from where you typically vote. Remember that every vote counts!

We appreciate having your student at VandenBerge and enjoy working with them. I look forward to seeing you at conferences.

Clearing the Cloud on Vaping

VMS Math League

The VMS Math League is up and running, and we are off to a great start! Here are the results from our first two meets.

Meet 1: VMS = 4th place, Jeron Hall was a top 10 finisher in 6th place.

Meet 2: VMS = 2nd place, Jeron Hall finished in 1st place and Katrina Simonette finished in 7th place.

VandenBerge students have the opportunity to participate in Math League for FREE. The top 10 students and the top 3 scoring schools are awarded for their efforts. The top four or five scoring members of team VandenBerge will be invited to compete in the national Mathcounts competition in February. This is a great way for students to start building a college resume and to prepare for high school math league. Most importantly, it's a great way for your kids to challenge themselves, expand their knowledge of math, and have some fun!

Practices are led by Mrs. Boyer and Mrs. Olsen. The commitment is once per week after school until mid-January. It is perfectly acceptable for students to miss a practice or meet, if necessary. Students who just want to try it for one meet are welcome to come.

• Practices are every Thursday from 3:00 - 4:00 (snacks provided).
• Our next meet is Monday, November 11th, from 3:00 - 5:00 at Rogers Middle School.

Field Trip Fun for 6th Grade

6th grade students took part in a Field Trip to Fish Lake Park and French Lake Park in October. Despite the weather being a challenge, students enjoyed things such as rock climbing American Indian/Historical games, and shelter building. They participated in these activites with a group of their peers to build relationships, boost confidence and self-esteem, and experience new things. Fun was had by all!

VandenBerge Honor Society

On October 11, the VandenBerge Honor Society held its annual induction ceremony.  This year, we inducted 27 new members into the organization.

The VandenBerge Honor Society is an organization for students in grades 7 and 8 who have attained membership based on high scholastic achievement, character, citizenship, leadership, and service.  The purpose of our organization is to promote these five ideals. Our aim is to encourage others scholastically, to develop qualities of citizenship, to take part in worthy service, to lead in those things which will advance the welfare of our school, and to grow in character.  

We are involved in community service projects for our school and the wider community. Each year, we donate $200.00 for a scholarship to a graduating senior who attended VandenBerge and was a member of our organization.

We are excited for this year and look forward to a fun year of service and leadership.

Students of the Week

Congratulations to our September and October Students of the Week!

Breanna Allen, Atreyu Bennett, Addison Brandt, Juliet Clusiau, Emma Diederich, Alexis Diedrich, Joseph Guevara-Orellana, Alex Hoosline, Lauren Kammann, Annika Kangas, Gracieann Khang, Makayla Kurr, Evelyn Rist, Johnathon Stolp, Ruthie Zeller

From the Health Office....

Influenza season has begun, so please use this questionnaire each day your child is sick with flu-like symptoms and follow the instructions for when to keep your child home. If your child has received the flu vaccine, he/she is much less likely to get sick. It is certainly not too late to get the vaccine this year. Getting a flu shot (or nasal spray) helps protect your child from getting the flu, so the flu won't be passed to people who risk getting very sick - like babies, elderly 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.

Just a reminder of the attendance procedure:  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.

Help VandenBerge Raise $10,000 

VandenBerge Middle School is selling Flower Cards for $20.

Each card entitles you to pick up a seasonal bouquet (like shown in the picture 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 one card, VandenBerge will make nearly $10,000! But why stop at one?  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.

AVID

On November 4th, we will start the process of recruiting 6th grade students to join the 2019-2020 AVID program at VMS. You might be wondering what AVID is and who is an AVID student?

AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination. AVID is a program dedicated to helping students achieve their dreams of going on to higher education after high school. 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 for learning. An AVID student would likely benefit from learning to stay organized, assistance with work completion, and creating good study habits.

If this sounds like a program that your child might benefit from, ask them to pick up an application packet from the VandenBerge Counseling Office, Mr. Sears or Mrs. Weinhold. Applications are due Tuesday, November 14th and can be turned in to Mrs. Weinhold or dropped off in the Counseling Office.

Please note: If you have a current 7th or 8th grader who is interested in joining AVID, they can also pick up an application.

If you have any questions about AVID, please feel free to contact Sarah Weinhold (sarah.weinhold@isd728.org) or Dave Crocker (david.crocker@isd728.org).

English

Grade 6 students worked their way through October with tons of reading and writing! We worked on reading short stories while learning about plot, inferences, conflict, theme, predictions, and more. In addition to constantly reading, we worked on grammar skills, complete sentences, and writing about what we read. Please remind your students to continue to read at home to help reach their reading goals for the year!

Grade 7 students are finishing a slideshow project to help with background information on an upcoming story that takes place in the 1930s in a lighthouse. This is the last assignment that will go on first quarter grades. Next, we will be reading the story together, and then students will complete five stations of interactive work to help them process the literary concepts we covered in the story. These five stations will be some of the first assignments of their second quarter English grade.

Students will be listening to/watching video clips and screen casts in the coming weeks. Please make sure your student has working headphones or earbuds. They are available to purchase in the media center for $2. Please let me know if you have any financial concerns and I can assist. 

Students should email Mrs. Boche when they have submitted late work due to absences or other reasons. This way I have a digital copy and can make updates as time permits.

Grade 8 students are working hard on their fiction unit, incorporating skills with writing, grammar and annotating texts. As the next month approaches, most of the 8th grade students will be reading a novel, which we ask the students to purchase. Your child's teacher will send out communication about this soon. Please help us at home with checking Parent Portal AND Schoology for regular classroom and grade updates. As we get further into the school year, it takes a TEAM to help these students build good study skills and organizational habits. We appreciate your support!

Feel free to contact your child's English teacher with any questions or concerns. If we didn't see you at conferences in October, we hope to see you at the next conference date on November 25th.

Math

If your student needs extra help with math, please encourage them to take advantage of Math Help!

Science

Grade 6 students are currently working on Engineering. We are implementing projects to help students understand the design and redesign process.

Grade 7 students have been working on photosynthesis and respiration. The labs to support this are osmosis and diffusion.

Grade 8 students started digging into the layers of the Earth. Students completed a density lab this week and will delve into minerals and rocks starting next week. The star lab is up and running! Our students really enjoy this grand finale to our astronomy unit. Thanks to our student helpers for keeping it up and running for all our students to enjoy.

Social Studies

Grade 6 students are finishing their unit on the Early Dakota and Ojibwe people of Minnesota.  They used their creative and artistic skills to make an Ojibwe foldable to help prepare them for their unit exam.  As we begin the 2nd quarter, students will be studying The Fur Trade and examining the first contact Europeans made with the early Native American tribes in Minnesota. Students will put themselves in the shoes of a Voyageur and Fur Trader in this unit and create a fur trading journal.  

Grade 7 students are currently working on topics and ideas related to U.S. Westward Expansion in the 1800's. Students have also been working very hard to put together a large "Westward Expansion" map that illustrates how different areas of the country have been acquired over time. At the start of Quarter 2, we will continue to explore Westward Expansion by elaborating on topics such as the Oregon Trail, the annexation of Texas, and the Mexican-American War.

Grade 8 students learned about the 5 major world religions (Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity). Moving forward, they will be learning about different forms of governments and economies. On November 15th, students will be taking a field trip to Anoka Ramsey and Anoka Tech to get experience on a post-secondary campus. Watch for more information about this in the next week or two.

Yearbooks

Have you ordered your yearbook? Yearbooks are $30 and will be available until we sell out. Almost half of the yearbook supply has already been purchased so order today!

Visit  www.jostens.com and search for VandenBerge. Click "2020 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 (morgen.schultz@isd728.org) if you have any questions about yearbooks.

Thank you!