Howards Grove Middle School

Dear Howards Grove Middle School Families,

It has been a wonderful start to the school year, and I want to thank you for the support you have already shown our students and staff. Our hallways and classrooms are filled with energy, learning, and the excitement that comes with a new school year.

At HGMS, we are committed to creating a school where every student feels known, valued, and supported while being challenged to grow academically and personally. That work is a partnership between our school and our families, and I am grateful for the trust you place in us each day.

Thank you for being an important part of the Howards Grove Middle School community. I look forward to a great year together!

Go Tigers!

Jason Duff
Principal, Howards Grove Middle School

September 21 - 25 Homecoming (see dress up schedule below)

September 21 After school Study Club 3:00 - 3:45

September 24 CC Meet @ Mishicot

September 24 After school Study Club & Chess Club 3:00 - 3:45

September 25 Homecoming Parade 2:00

September 28 After school Study Club 3:00 - 3:45

October 1 After school Study Club & Chess Club 3:00 - 3:45

October 1 CC Meet @ Ozaukee

October 5 5th Grade Field Trip

October 6-8 6th Grade Field Trips

October 8 CC Meet @ Brillion

October 12 Staff Professional Development - No school for students

October 15 MS Girls Basketball @ Elkhart Lake

October 17 CC Conference Meet @ Ozaukee (8th grade only)

Howards Grove Middle School Athletics & Activities Registration is Still Open!

Arbiter Registration Link

All documents will be completed online. All athletes will need a current physical form in the system. Before uploading a new physical form, please make sure it is completed, signed and dated by provider and parent to be valid. Physical Form

We encourage you to register for all sports you plan to participate in when you register. In doing so, you will not have to complete this process at the start of each season. Fees will be added to Skyward at the start of each season. You can pay this fee through eFunds or by bringing payment to the HGHS or HGMS Office.

NEW THIS YEAR! We are asking for all clubs and activities to register as well. If you have previously registered through an Arbiter Registration account, please log into your existing account and go to the Activities Registration.

If you need assistance with your online registration, please reach out to Arbiter Registration Support at 800-311-4060 or registration@arbitersports.com

Youth Basketball (Boys and Girls) Coaches Meeting

September 30th, 6:00 p.m. in the HS Library

7th & 8th Grade Girls Basketball Sign-Up

Season begins Monday, October 5th! If you are on the Cross Country team, don't worry, we can make it work to participate in both sports.

Parents -- please have your daughter fill out the form because they will have to use their school account

Students -- please fill out this form

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeY2X8L0hE2o5F0K2qAuydvEOqc0pUd6Y2af0RnQJjvNfL5VQ/viewform

Regular school attendance is one of the most important ways families can support their student’s success. Each day at Howards Grove Middle School provides opportunities for students to learn, build relationships, participate in classroom activities, and stay connected with their teachers and peers. When students are frequently absent, even for understandable reasons, it can be difficult to make up missed learning and maintain momentum.

We understand that illness and other circumstances sometimes make an absence necessary. When your child is healthy and able to attend, however, every day matters. Thank you for partnering with us to make regular attendance a priority and helping our students make the most of every day at HGMS!

5th Grade:

Math

It is hard to believe that we have been in school for three weeks. The students have learned so much this year already. Some things were academic, while other things were more procedural.

In Math, your child is learning how to multiply quickly when the numbers include a 10. They also learned what an exponent is. This is new for them, so they think it is cool! Later in the unit we will be multiplying decimals by 10’s as well.

The class will be “sharpening their Math skills” each day. I will be giving the students a spiral review which will be done in class together. (Never assigned for homework). This will help students remember concepts from year to year. Stay tuned.

5th Grade Math is off to a great start!!! Many of the kids are excited for Math class! I love their enthusiasm for learning!!!

If you ever have any questions or concerns about Math, please feel free to reach out to me. Math is awesome!!!

Social Studies

The class is starting the year with a study of maps and how to use them. Eventually, they will apply the skills they learn over the next several weeks to produce their own map.

We discussed the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and will begin studying early colonial history of the USA.

In early October, the group will take a field trip to Madison, including a visit to the state capitol. Before we take that trip, we will discuss Wisconsin.

Science

The school year is off to a wonderful start, and our 5th grade scientists have been focusing on building relationships and creating a strong classroom community. We’ve spent time learning about the “science of each other” through get-to-know-you games, team-building activities, and class discussions that highlight respect, responsibility, and collaboration.

We have also been practicing the foundations of science by strengthening our observation skills and learning how to make hypotheses from those observations. These activities encourage curiosity and set the stage for deeper scientific investigations throughout the year.

Looking ahead, our 5th graders will begin exploring engineering and technology. Students will take on challenges that spark creativity, problem-solving, and teamwork while discovering how science and math play an essential role in designing solutions to real-world problems. It’s been a fantastic start, and we’re excited to see where our scientific journey takes us next.

6th Grade:

Math

The 6th grade students kicked off the new school year by participating in a variety of math review games. Students learned several games using a standard deck of cards that provide an engaging way to review math facts, basic operations, and comparing positive and negative numbers. We will continue to use these games throughout the school year, and students can easily play them at home as well. All you need is a deck of cards!

Students have also nearly completed Module 1: Integer & Rational Number Concepts within the first few weeks of school. This unit introduced students to the world of negative whole numbers, while also building their understanding of absolute value and how it can be used to represent real-world situations. Students also learned how to compare and order rational numbers presented in different formats.

Next, students will begin Module 2: Polygons and Distance on the Coordinate Plane. In this module, students will build upon the concepts learned in Module 1 as they learn to graph and interpret coordinates in all four quadrants of the coordinate plane. We are excited to continue building students’ mathematical understanding and confidence throughout the year!

📚 ELA ✏️

We are off to a great start in ELA! Students have completed our new Amplify Welcome Unit and have jumped into Lessons 1 and 2 of Dahl & Narrative. We’ve been learning how authors grab a reader’s attention and bring memorable moments to life.

Our sixth graders have already been busy writing.✏️They are using their five senses to add descriptive details to their own memorable moments and are being challenged to write 100 words in just 10 minutes. Students are building their writing stamina, stretching their creativity, and discovering just how much they can accomplish in a short amount of time!

And now…the fun continues! We are excited to begin reading excerpts from Boy: Tales of Childhood by Roald Dahl and explore his unique storytelling style, humor, word choice, and the techniques he uses to keep readers engaged.

We’re off to a fantastic start, and there are lots of great stories ahead! 📚

Science

The 6th-grade scientists have hit the ground running with an exciting start to the school year! In these first few weeks, students have been revisiting what science really is and, perhaps more importantly, who can be a scientist. Through engaging activities such as “The More You Look, the More You See” and a mystery puzzle investigation, students have been practicing observation, asking questions, looking for patterns, and thinking like scientists.

We’ve also spent time learning about the “science of each other” through get-to-know-you games, team-building activities, and class discussions. These activities have helped students get comfortable working together while building a classroom community centered around respect, responsibility, and collaboration.

Students have also begun diving into hands-on explorations of scientific methods through labs and STEM Challenges. Along the way, they are learning that science is not simply about finding the “right” answer, it’s about asking questions, testing ideas, learning from what happens, and using evidence to make sense of the world around us.

Looking ahead, we’ll continue exploring scientific methods while beginning our unit on Engineering, Science & Society. I’m excited to see where students’ curiosity, creativity, and enthusiasm take us throughout the rest of the year!

7th Grade

7th Grade Social Studies

In Mr. Ryan’s 7th grade Social Studies classes, students are settling into the year with an “About Me” presentation project that gives students the opportunity to share their favorite hobbies, dreams, and interests for this school year. We also took the time to honor the 25th anniversary of 9/1l. Students did this by a station activity that defined and showed key events of 9/11 and what transpired that day. We are starting into the Industrial Revolution this week and are very excited to get into the curriculum.

7th Grade Science

Science this year is a biology focused class where we will be covering topics in microbiology such as cells and genetics to macrobiology focusing on ecosystems and ecology. The 7th graders have had a great start to the school year! We just completed a lab looking at their own skin cells and yogurt under the microscope and will be moving forward with labs about structure and functions of different types of cells.

7th Grade ELA

We are off to an exciting start in 7th grade ELA! Students started the year by introducing themselves to their classmates with trivia questions about their lives. Now, we are beginning our first unit: Red Scarf Girl & Narrative. Students have begun by experimenting with some narrative writing techniques, creating focused descriptions by zooming in on a moment and using strong verbs, dialogue, and vivid details to capture the feeling of a moment. It is wonderful to see all the thoughtful and creative ideas students are getting excited to write! Next, we will dig into analyzing a highly engaging memoir about a young girl growing up in China in 1966 during the Cultural Revolution. As students follow Ji-li’s journey through a world turned upside down, they will track how her understanding and feelings about what is happening to her society change over time. It is shaping up to be a great year of growth for reading and writing!

7th Grade Math

Mrs. Koeller-Billmeier’s Math Class September 2026 Newsletter

Building Relationships in Our Classroom

The first few weeks of school have been full of energy, teamwork, and relationship-building! Our main focus has been reviewing math skills while also creating a strong and supportive classroom community. Here’s a glimpse of what we’ve been up to:

Teamwork and Teambuilding

Students participated in a 7th grade wide team building activity called Zombie Walk and The Human Knot. In classes, students have learned about each other via music, find someone who, four corners, and a values game.

Classroom Roles & Responsibilities

To help groups work smoothly, each student has a rotating team role. Sitting at color-coded desks, students know whether they are the:

• Materials Monitor (keeps supplies organized)
  
  

• Recorder (takes notes for the group)
  
  

• Focus Keeper (helps the group stay on task)
  And Praiser (encourages teammates and celebrates progress)
  
  

• Alexa (our new role…when in doubt, ask our human Alexa what the instructions were)

These roles ensure that everyone has a voice and a responsibility in their group’s success.

Classroom Cheers

When a student stands to share an answer, their group celebrates with a cheer. These cheers bring energy and positivity into the room, helping students feel supported when sharing ideas.

Looking Ahead

As we continue into the school year, our classroom will keep blending academic review with community-building experiences. These foundations will help students feel safe, supported, and ready to tackle new challenges together.

Thank you for sharing your students with us—we are off to a fantastic start!

8th Grade

8th Grade Math

It's been a great start to the school year in 8th grade math. The first several days of class, students completed a diagnostic test covering what they are expected to know and be able to do by the end of this school year. This assessment indicated that students already have an understanding on some topics, but still have much to learn overall. Our first unit of study is Real Numbers, Exponents, and Scientific Notation. We've spent the last week beginning to learn about rational and irrational numbers with an emphasis on write repeating decimals as fractions. Currently, our focus has been placed on evaluating square roots and cube roots.

8th Grade Algebra

Eighth grade algebra students are beginning to settle into a routine. These high ability learners have chosen to take a high school level course. They’ll need to be at their absolute best each and every day as the content in algebra will present challenges for them throughout the year. As their teacher, it will be exciting to see how these students rise to the occasion.

Starting off the year, algebra students are learning foundational skills that will carry them throughout the course. Our first unit of study is focused on solving equations and inequalities.

8th Grade ELA:

This unit aims to teach students to read like writers. They practice paying attention to the craft of writing: to the moves a good writer makes to shape the way we see a scene or feel about a character—to stir us up, or surprise us, or leave us wondering what will happen next. Students closely read a variety of short, engaging examples of narrative non-fiction, analyze both the themes and the techniques of each author, and practice applying these techniques to their own narrative writing. Right now, students are writing focused descriptions with strong verbs and vivid details to capture the feeling of one singular moment; speeding up and slowing down a moment in writing; and using dialogue and description to capture characters and points of view.

Eighth grade science this year will focus on physical sciences from planetary motion, to physics, to chemistry. The eighth grade has been working on the sun, Earth, and the moon and their motion and how that affects life on Earth. We will be carrying these topics in learning about interstellar bodies and other galaxies etc.

8th Grade Social Studies

In Mr. Ryan's 8th grade Social Studies classes, students are settling into the year with a “Summer Catch-Up” presentation project that gives students the opportunity to share their favorite trips, music, films and goals they have for this school year. We also took the time to honor the 25th anniversary of 9/11. Students did this by a station activity that defined and showed key events of 9/11 and what transpired that day. We are starting this week and are very excited to get into the first curriculum of the year covering World War I.

Encores

Agriculture: This year- Mrs. Malone has the honor of hosting student teacher Hanna Thelen, a student at UW- River Falls, originally from Sheboygan Falls. Ms. Thelen has been taking the lead on Middle School Agriculture with the guidance of Mrs. Malone. Please join us in welcoming Ms. Thelen for this semester!

Agriculture 1- Agriculture 1 students are learning all about their connections to Agriculture! Whether we live on a farm, raise plants and animals, or have never even been to a farm- we are ALL connected to agriculture! Students have been exploring these connections through writing their “Agriculture Story”, brainstorming the ABC’s of Agriculture, and researching a commodity to find a connection too! Students are now starting letter A of our alphabet journey in Agriculture- starting with learning all about Apples!!

Agriculture 2- Agriculture 2 students are expanding on their knowledge from last year- they are starting the year learning all about plants! Students have explored various plant science industries like Agronomy, Forestry, and Horticulture. Students have learned vocabulary words and now are putting their knowledge to practice by growing radish plants in an activity called Radish Races! They will be “racing” against each other to figure out which ground can grow the tallest radish plant while creating a research experiment. Students will create an experiment with a control plant and a variable plant! They will gather and analyze data on their plants. Stay tuned to see the results!

Library Class:

5th grade: The 5th graders have been learning all about how the library at the Middle School works, where things are found, and other procedural things.They have also learned how to use the printer, now that they are able to print their own projects. They have checked out books and have begun reading them. Next week they will get their accounts set up in Destiny Discover, learn how to place holds on books, and how to find books that will interest them. Next, they will learn how to find books using the call numbers.

6th grade: The 6th graders have been reviewing how to use Destiny, classroom procedures and expectations, and have begun reading books they have checked out. Next they start to practice keyboarding skills using an app called TypingClub, where they will focus on using the correct fingers to type in order to be able to improve their speed and accuracy which will help them in the future. This practice will continue throughout the school year.

Physical Education:

In Phy Ed students are starting to get into their football unit. Please have clean athletic shoes ready to wear when we are having class inside the new gym. 5th grade and new students were issued locks and lockers for the Phy Ed locker rooms. Please keep your locks locked on your lockers at all times when not in class.

5th Grade Cultures:

¡Hola! Students in 5th grade Cultures Class are working on a personal coat of arms. They are exploring what matters to them and drawing it on their own coat of arms. Their projects are beautiful, and we cannot wait to share them with you.

6th Grade Exploring Languages:

¡Hola! 6th-grade Exploring Languages students are working on a personal coat of arms. They are exploring what matters to them and drawing it on their own coat of arms. Their projects are beautiful, and we cannot wait to share them with you.

7th and 8th Grade Spanish:

¡Hola! 7th grade Spanish students are learning so much Spanish! I hope they have already come home and told you all the things they are learning to say. First, we worked on greeting someone in Spanish and asking and telling their name. Then we analyzed Spanish words that look similar to English. We just started learning how to count to 31.

7th and 8th Grade Choir

We are off to an AWESOME start in 7/8 Choir! With 70 singers in the room, we are definitely making some noise—and learning how to make it sound good together!

So far, we’ve been building our ensemble skills by learning simple rounds and canons. We’ve also explored a variety of folksongs, patriotic selections, and even a few pop tunes. Keeping three (or more!) different rhythmic patterns going at the same time is still a work in progress—sometimes our brains and voices don’t quite agree on what’s happening—but I’m confident we’ll have it mastered soon!

One of our biggest accomplishments so far is that we have memorized and nearly mastered our National Anthem, which we will proudly perform on Veterans Day.

It has been so much fun watching this group grow, learn, and find their voices together. Thank you for supporting music and the arts here at Howards Grove. —Mr. Holzer 🎵

Middle School Band:

We have had a great start to the school year! Students have reviewed band expectations, participated in team-building activities, and jumped back into making music. The 6th grade band is reviewing musical concepts and skills from last year, while the 7th/8th grade band is developing sight-reading skills with new rhythms and learning a piece for our Veterans Day performance. Our beginning band students are learning their first five notes and already making music with their peers! I’m excited for all the music-making and growth to come this year!

Ms. Wasmer