Paw Prints

The Sullivan Heights Huskies defeated the Sullivan Central Cougars Thursday night to claim the Conference Football Championship!

All the hard work, determination, and teamwork paid off! We are so proud of our Huskies and the heart they showed on the field! CONGRATULATIONS, HUSKIES!

This week, Sullivan Heights Middle School was all about spreading kindness, building connections, and leaving bullying on READ!

In recognition of National Bullying Prevention Month, we were excited to welcome our community partners from United Way, Ballad Health, ETSU GEAR UP!, and other amazing organizations for our Ghost the Hate event! Together, we reminded our Huskies that a little kindness can go a long way and that everyone deserves to feel safe, supported, and included.

ETSU GEAR UP! shared an important message about how building strong support systems and working as a team can help students overcome challenges and reach their future goals.

Our Huskies also had opportunities to:

• Sign an anti-bullying pledge
• Write positive affirmations for their peers
• Create positive messages through coloring activities
• Pick up bullying prevention swag, bracelets, buttons, ribbons, and stickers
• Connect with community partners and learn about available resources

🐾 Back in the Kennel & Bringing Home the Hardware! 🏆

Fall Break is officially behind us, and our Huskies have jumped right back into the swing of things! 🍂🐾 We've kicked off the second nine weeks, settled into new Related Arts classes, and picked right back up where we left off in our classrooms.

But before we get to all that learning, we have some BIG Husky news to celebrate!

🏈 CHAMPIONS! CHAMPIONS! CHAMPIONS! 🏆

YOUR HUSKIES ARE CONFERENCE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONS! 💙🐾

Our Husky football team brought home the conference championship with a big win this week, and we couldn't be prouder! A huge congratulations to our players, coaches, and everyone who helped make this season such a success. The hard work, determination, teamwork, and Husky pride these athletes have shown throughout the season have certainly paid off!

Way to represent Sullivan Heights and show everyone what it means to RUN WITH THE PACK! 🏆🐾

📬 Quarter 1 Grade Reports Are Here!

First nine weeks grade reports went home this week!

It's hard to believe we've already completed an entire quarter of school. Families, please take a few minutes to review your student's grades and celebrate their successes while also identifying any areas where they may need a little extra support.

The start of a new nine weeks is a great opportunity to set goals, build better habits, and make a fresh start. We're ready to make Quarter 2 even better!

📚 ELA: Curiosity Got the Best of Victor Frankenstein! ⚡

Our ELA Huskies are still plowing through Frankenstein, and let's just say Victor's curiosity has certainly created a few problems! 👀 Students are continuing to read closely and analyze the novel, examining Victor's decisions and the consequences that follow. They're exploring important themes such as ambition, responsibility, and what can happen when someone pushes the boundaries of what they believe is possible. As the story unfolds, students are looking beyond what happens to consider why characters make certain choices and how those choices affect others.

There's definitely plenty to discuss, and Victor is giving our students no shortage of material! ⚡📖

➗ Math: We've Got the POWER! 💥

Our 8th Grade Math classes are working through Chapter 8 in Big Ideas Math, and it's all about exponents, powers, and the real number system! Students are building on their understanding of numbers as they explore rational and irrational numbers, roots, and the rules that make working with exponents possible. They're learning how to recognize patterns, simplify expressions, and make sense of numbers that might look a little intimidating at first glance.

And while exponents may make numbers grow quickly, we're making sure our understanding grows right along with them! 🔢🧠

📈 Algebra I: Another Chapter in the Books!

Mrs. Iddings' Algebra I students have officially wrapped up Chapter 3! 🎉

Students have spent the chapter exploring functions and the different ways mathematical relationships can be represented through equations, tables, and graphs. With another chapter behind them, they're continuing to build the algebra skills and connections that will carry them through the rest of the course.

One chapter down, another mathematical adventure ahead! 📈✏️

🔬 Science: May the Forces Be With You! 🧲🌎

Our 8th grade scientists are continuing to investigate magnetic forces and how they connect to other forces, including gravity. Students are exploring how forces can act without objects even touching and comparing the ways different forces affect the world around us. From magnets attracting and repelling to Earth's gravitational pull, students are making connections between what they've learned in class and the forces they experience every single day.

Who knew there was so much invisible action happening all around us? 🧲🌎

🇺🇸 Social Studies: We Declare Independence!

Things have officially reached the breaking point in Social Studies! After exploring the growing tensions between the American colonies and Great Britain, our students are moving into the Declaration of Independence and the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. Students are learning about the colonists' decision to break away from British rule, the ideas behind independence, and the events that launched the fight for a new nation.

They're discovering that declaring independence was one thing—but winning it was an entirely different challenge! 🇺🇸

🐾 Quarter 2: Let's Keep That Husky Momentum Going!

We're back from Fall Break, our football team is bringing home championship hardware, and our classrooms are buzzing with new learning! As we settle into the second nine weeks, we're continuing to encourage students to demonstrate our P.A.C.K. values: Persistent, Accountable, Courteous, and Knowledgeable.

Let's carry that championship-level effort into our classrooms and make Quarter 2 a great one!

🏠 Family Connection

Need a few conversation starters for the weekend? Try these instead of the usual "What did you do at school today?" (We all know how that answer usually goes! 😄)

• ⚡ ELA: "What has Victor Frankenstein learned about the consequences of his curiosity?"

• 🔢 Math: "Can you explain what an exponent tells you to do?"

• 📈 Algebra I: "What is a function, and how can you show one using a graph or table?"

• 🧲 Science: "How are magnetic forces and gravity alike? How are they different?"

• 🇺🇸 Social Studies: "Why did the colonies decide to declare independence from Great Britain?"

• 🏆 Husky Pride: "What was your favorite part of our championship football season?"

• 📬 Quarter 2: "What's one goal you'd like to work toward this nine weeks?"

Here's to a great start to Quarter 2—and one more time for our CONFERENCE CHAMPION HUSKIES! 🏆💙🐾

🐾 7th Grade News!

🍂 Welcome Back! We hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing fall break! While we hope you enjoyed some well-deserved time off, we are so happy to be back with our students and ready to get this quarter rolling! We’re excited for all the learning, growth, and fun ahead as we jump into the second quarter together.

🏈 Husky Football Champions! A huge congratulations to our Husky football team for defeating the Central Cougars and becoming Conference Champions! 🎉 They have been so much fun to watch this season, and we couldn’t be prouder of their hard work, dedication, and accomplishments. Way to go, Huskies! 💙🐺

🌍 Social Studies

Our 7th grade social studies students are wrapping up their study of the Islamic empires and how Islam spread throughout the world. Students have enjoyed exploring Islamic arabesque art and learning about beloved characters from The Thousand and One Nights, including Aladdin and Ali Baba. ✨ They have also discovered the many mathematical, scientific, and medical achievements of the Islamic world, including Hindu-Arabic numerals, the development of algebra, and discoveries about how blood moves through the circulatory system. 🧮🩺 We’ve had a wonderful time exploring the lasting contributions of these civilizations and their impact on the world today!

📚 ELA

Our 7th grade ELA students are wrapping up their Gold Rush unit by writing an argumentative essay answering the question: Was the Gold Rush good for the state of California? ✍️ Students are using the primary and secondary sources they have explored throughout the unit to develop their arguments, support their claims with evidence, and consider the different perspectives surrounding this important period in history. We’re excited to see them put their critical thinking and writing skills to work as they build strong, evidence-based arguments! ⛏️📜

🔬 Science

Our 7th grade science students are diving into the microscopic world! 🦠 Students are examining microscopic organisms and exploring the tiny living things that are all around us but often too small to see with the naked eye. Through observation and investigation, they are building their understanding of the diversity of life and the important roles these organisms play in our world. 🧫🔍

➗ Math

Our 7th grade math students are continuing to build their skills with integers, the distributive property, absolute value, and working with variables. 📐 Students are strengthening their problem-solving skills and building a strong foundation for the concepts ahead.

🎉 Celebration Time! A special shout-out to Mr. Overbay’s classes for meeting their Quarter 1 benchmark goals! 🥳 Students are celebrating their hard work and accomplishments with a well-deserved party today. Way to go, Huskies! Keep up the great work! 💙🐺

This week, our 6th grade students had the exciting opportunity to participate in the Junior Achievement BizTown simulation at Bristol Motor Speedway! Through this hands-on experience, students stepped into the world of business, explored real-world careers, practiced financial literacy, and learned the importance of teamwork, leadership, and responsible decision-making.

Experiences like these help our Huskies connect classroom learning to real-life opportunities while building skills that will prepare them for a successful future! We are proud of our students for embracing this opportunity to learn, lead, and grow!

Here is a look at what our middle school STEM students are working on across classrooms this week!

Mr. McClure’s Classes

6th Grade STEM

Our 6th graders are diving into 3D modeling using Tinkercad. They are currently designing a variety of custom objects, including:

• Custom dice

• Fidget spinners

• Flexi toys

Once their designs are finalized, each project will be 3D printed for students to take home and keep!

7th & 8th Grade STEM

Students in 7th and 8th grade are focusing on content creation, design, and media production.

• Podcast Creation: Working in pairs, students are developing a 3-episode podcast series that will be submitted for teacher review. Alongside their episodes, they are designing promotional ads and building a dedicated website for their show.

• Pitch Presentations: Currently, teams are preparing pitch presentations to get their podcast concepts approved for production. Presentations will begin next week.

8th Grade Robotics

Our 8th-grade robotics team is in full preparation mode, building and programming their robots to compete in upcoming competitions.

8th Grade Announcements

The daily announcement crew is hard at work producing broadcast updates for the student body while developing new strategies to expand and refine informational content around the school.

7th Grade Robotics

7th-grade robotics students are actively helping set up and organize their temporary lab space to prepare for hands-on building and testing.

Mrs. Ferguson’s Class

Engineering & Design

Mrs. Ferguson’s students are engaging in hands-on engineering challenges designed to introduce and reinforce the core stages of the Engineering Design Process. Through trial, testing, and iteration, students are learning how engineers approach real-world problem-solving.

At Sullivan Heights Middle School, we believe the most meaningful recognition is earned by students who consistently demonstrate our P.A.C.K. values (Persistent, Accountable, Courteous, and Knowledgeable), even when no one is watching. The Portrait of a PACK Leader Recognition is designed to celebrate students who routinely model what it means to be a Husky. These students demonstrate character, integrity, and positive leadership, even on challenging days.

Each week, a P.A.C.K. value will be highlighted for teacher nominations. This week, we highlighted two of our values by honoring students who exhibited the character traits of being Persistent and/or Accountable within our classes, the hallways, their extracurriculars, or just routine interactions with others.

Addison was nominated by both Mrs. Wilson. Mrs. Wilson had this to say about Addison: Addison shows persistence and accountability daily. She works hard, has a good attitude, and holds herself and others to high standards.She is a leader and an asset to our classroom and our school.

Avery was nominated by Mr. Carpenter. He had this to say about Avery: Avery has shown academic and character growth in my class. This growth is evident in her work and in her attitude towards accomplishing her tasks. Well done!

Lanei was nominated by Mr. Overbay. He had this to say about Lanie: Lanie always volunteers to participate in class and you can depend on her to do the best she can while in the classroom. She consistantly performs at a high level!

Skyler was nominated by Mrs. Dougherty. She had this to say about Skyler: Skyler always participates in class. She volunteers to read, she participates in discussions, and she is always conscientious about her class work. We really appreciate how Persistent she is!

Reagan was nominated by Mrs. Fake. She had this to say about Reagan: Reagan consistently demonstrates what it means to be a Persistent PACK Leader. Even when faced with challenges, she continues to push herself, stay engaged, and actively participate in class. Reagan’s determination to keep moving forward and give her best effort each day is a wonderful example of persistence and shows the strength of character we are proud to see in our PACK!

Gracie was nominated by Ms. Watterson. She had this to say about Gracie: Gracie is always prepared for class, keeps up with her workload, helps others and consistently follows all PACK values.

Elsa was nominated by Mrs. Hayes. She had this to say about Elsa: Elsa is very persistent in making sure she is working hard, understanding material, following expectations, and helping others. She shows all of our PACK values every day, and I am proud to be her teacher.

Esme was nominated by Mrs. Hayes. She had this to say about Esme: Esme is very accountable. She asks questions when she doesn't understand because she knows that is what the brightest and best students do. She makes sure she follows all expectations, and she is accountable when no one is watching which is what makes true character great!

Bryson was nominated by Mrs. Osterman. She had this to say about Bryson: Without fail, I can always count on Bryson to give 100% effort in ELA! He consistently demonstrates persistence through his hard work, willingness to ask for help, and determination to keep improving. Bryson also goes out of his way to lend a helping hand to others whenever they need it. His positive attitude and perseverance make him a wonderful example of what it means to be persistent. I have truly loved having him in class, and I am so proud to nominate him for this value!

Hadley was nominated by Mrs. Sexton. She had this to say about Hadley: Hadley is the model student! I can always count on her to come to class prepared and with a smile on her face! She has an incredibly positive attitude and always gives 100%. She is very meticulous in her work and always strives to do her best. Best of all, Hadley is always repsectful and kind. Hadley is most definitely a PACK leader!

Mason was nominated by Mrs. Dougherty. She had this to say about Mason: Mason is a great example of being Accountable in the classroom. He takes care of his supplies and surroundings. He always offers to hold the door open for others and volunteers to distribute and collect supplies and books. We truly appreciate his considerate behavior!

Dayton was nominated by Mrs. Cox. She had this to say about Dayton: Dayton is always Persistent and Accountable. She consistently follows our PACK values. She is helpful, courteous, respectful, and responsible. She is a hardworker and a great example of a PACK Leader

Esmee was nominated by Mrs. Dye. She had this to say about Esmee: Learning isn’t always easy, but Esmee' shows us what true persistence looks like this week! When faced with a challenging math concepts or assignment that caused a moment of frustration, she didn't just give up and not complete her work. Instead, Esmee' took a deep breath, asked for help if needed, and kept trying until she understood the concepts. She always turns in her work by the due date and never makes excuises.