HCMS November Newsletter

Thank you for taking time to read this monthly newsletter. One of our goals is to ensure that our families have all of the information needed to help support your children as they make the most of their middle school years! In addition to our building monthly newsletter, each grade level team will send a weekly newsletter on Friday afternoons.

Our doors are always open should you have questions, compliments or concerns. We know that in order to provide the best education for the "Whole Child" our partnerships with caregivers and parents are essential. You will find our email addresses below.

Sincerely,

Tricia Dotson - Principal (tdotson@fsd157c.org)

Jason Crockett- Assistant Principal (jcrockett@fsd157c.org)

Tyler Sinclair- Assistant Principal (tsinclair@fsd157c.org

Academic Goal:

We will continue to provide rigor and opportunity for academic growth to all students in grades 6th- 8th.

Social/Emotional Goal:

We will support staff and student social and emotional needs and enhance the opportunity for growth in relationships with one another.

Communication Goal:

We will increase opportunities for family engagement both during the school day and through extra-curricular activities.

Safety Goal:

We will provide a safe learning environment for staff and students in our learning community.

February 2026

2-4 Hot Lunch - Education Foundation
2-5 LWE 8th Grade Step-Up at HCMS 9:00 a.m.
2-11 Hot Lunch - FSP
2-11 LWE Orientation for 8th Graders at LWE Time TBD
2-13 School Improvement Day - Early Dismissal 10:45 a.m.
2-16 Holiday - No School
2-18 Hot Lunch - Chorus Boosters
2-20 Hot Lunch - Student Council
2-25 Hot Lunch - Band Boosters

Dropped off Lunches

As a reminder- Students may only have lunch dropped off by a parent or guardian. We are unable to accept food from others, including Uber eats or deliveries.

Any dropped off food must be for an individual student, not for friends or lunch tables.
Any dropped off food must not have drinks that have straws- screw tops only please.

Attendance and Participation in Extra-Curricular Activities

Students who plan to participate in extracurricular activities must be in attendance at school for at least 1/2 a day. The Hickory Creek 1/2 day time is 11:00 A.M.

Save the Date- IAR Testing in March

Hickory Creek will be administering the IAR ELA and Math assessments to all 6th-8th graders on the dates below. Eighth grade students only will take the ISA (Illinois Science Assessment).

Please be sure to avoid scheduling appointments or other absences on these dates.

ELA Assessment

March 19, 2026
March 20, 2026

Math and Science (8th grade only) Assessments:

March 24, 2026
March 25, 2026
March 26, 2026

6th Grade

6th grade advisory classes are moving right along for the year! We continue to watch Tiger TV and This Week at the Creek on Monday mornings. Tuesday and Thursday lessons continue to navigate the Second Step SEL curriculum. We also will have the next lesson in Digital Citizenship towards the end of the month. Wednesday is our WIN Day (What I Need) for students and teachers to discuss grades and check in on assignments for all classes. Friday is dedicated to some form of team building. We will focus on Kindness Day activities for the School Improvement Day on February 13th. Do something nice for others!

7th Grade

As third quarter begins, students will continue to view Tiger TV and This Week at the Creek on Monday’s, as well as continue to have WIN (What I Need) on Wednesday’s, and Team Building Days on Friday’s. To start off the first week of February, students will engage in our Second Step SEL lessons about reframing situations and creating positive self talk on Tuesday and Thursday. The following week will be a catch up day for any missed advisory lessons, with a Trivia Challenge where all 7th grade advisories compete in a game of Kahoot! The following Thursday’s will consist of a Digital Citizenship lesson on speaking up or taking action against cyberbullies, and a lesson on CPR. Kindness activities will take up our SIP Day on February 13th!

8th Grade

In 8th grade Advisory, Mondays will continue to be the viewing of This Week at the Creek or Tiger TV. Wednesdays will continue to be W.I.N. Days. Fridays will continue to be Teambuilding games/activities. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, we will work on building confidence and understanding stress and anxiety. We will also have a Digital Citizenship lesson on “Responding to Online Hate Speech”. Lastly, the 8th graders will have a lesson on CPR.

We are still in need of Dental forms from some 6th grade students. Please send those in if you haven’t done so already.

Also, a reminder for students that plan on trying out for Track and/or signing up for intramurals; a current physical needs to be on file. Forms can be found on the district website. Please call if you have any questions. Physicals must be turned into the front office.

8th grade parents, it’s not too early to get things ready for next year. Schedule an appointment to have the IL Health Exam completed soon.

February is the month we celebrate all the time and effort our students have dedicated to reading Rebecca Caudill books. Be sure to remind your student to fill out a form for each book they’ve read. The link to the form can be found on their ELA teacher’s TEAMS page. Students who have read three or more books will be eligible to vote for their favorite title at our annual pizza lunch and raffle party held at the end of this month. Hickory Creek’s votes will be counted along with other participating Illinois middle schools, and the winning book and author will be announced in March.

Managing Automatic Negative Thoughts:

An “ANT” is a thinking pattern that doesn’t match reality. When you notice that you are having one, you can begin to train your mind to ignore them. Here are a few ways to help manage an “ANT”:

Notice the thought and label it as untrue.

Challenge the truth of the thought with evidence and fact.

Remember that positive emotions undo negative thinking.

Distract yourself with something happy.

Always remember, Thoughts are JUST thoughts. They are NOT facts. YOU ARE NOT YOUR THOUGHTS.

We encourage all students to get involved with extra-curriculars at Hickory Creek!

Throughout the year, we will provide all sign-up information through our Tiger Time Advisory Teams page to students. There will be announcements on Power School and Tiger TV to notify students of when new activities are starting up.

Please be sure to look at the list below with your child and encourage them to keep their ears out for upcoming activities that they may want to be a part of this year.

Link for descriptions of Extra-Curriculars

Band and Orchestra

The Band and Orchestra Spring Socials are coming! Please mark your calendars for April 21 and keep your eyes peeled for details! These are some of our most popular events of the year! (Cheslea’s social will be held at HCMS the following day, but will likely include performances by a few HCMS students, so hold that date as well!)

Chorus

It’s a BUSY time of the year for our Chorus members! Varsity Chorus, Advanced Choir, and Show Choir are hard at work preparing new music for the IGSMA District Choral Contest on March 7. HCMS is hosting contest again this year and will be welcoming talented choirs from middle schools in the surrounding area. We have 28 vocal solos and ensembles preparing for IGSMA Solo-Ensemble contest on February 14. And we just finished amazing auditions for this year’s spring musical, “Bye Bye Birdie” and will be posting the cast list in the next few days. Public performances will be May 15, 16, and 17 – you won’t want to miss this fun-filled show with phenomenal HCMS talent!

Student Council

Student Council has been busy making a big impact! Our students have been working closely with the Lions Club on this years' service project—a personal hygiene drive. They’ve done an amazing job preparing the school by creating an advertising campaign to spread the word and build excitement. Student Council members also organized and distributed collection boxes to every advisory and are already looking ahead to the end of the month, when they will sort and deliver the donated items. We’re proud of their leadership, teamwork, and commitment to serving others.

Best Buddies

This year is flying by! Best Buddies is gearing up to celebrate “Best Buddies Month” in March. This is the opportunity to spread the word for inclusion. Our chapter will be looking for ways to include others here at “The Creek”. Our next chapter meeting will be on Monday, February 2nd from 2:30-3:30.

Cheerleading

Our Game Day team competed in their very first competition, marking an exciting first for our school as we entered the Game Day division for the first time. We are so incredibly proud of them! Both the Game Day and Routine division teams will compete at the state competition on Feb. 11th

6th Boys Basketball

The boys completed a strong regular season with an 8-6 record, earning the 4th seed heading into the DPVC tournament. Throughout the season, the team showed steady improvement, resilience, and a commitment to getting better each week. That growth was on full display during the tournament, where the boys played with confidence, energy, and determination.
In a thrilling semifinal matchup, they defeated the number one seed to earn a spot in the championship game, an incredible accomplishment and a testament to their hard work and belief in one another. Over the course of the tournament, the team played three outstanding games and ultimately finished 2nd overall, competing at a high level until the very end.
Beyond the wins and results, the growth of this group as teammates and friends was one of the most rewarding parts of the season. Players supported one another, learned how to compete with confidence, and represented their program with sportsmanship and pride. Leaders and top scorers this season included Riley Street, Levi Atkins, Logan Hardy, Drew Goodwin, Luke Campos, and Logan Eichenlaub, all of whom played key roles in the team’s success.
Coach Kroen is incredibly proud of every player’s effort, improvement, and attitude throughout the season and is excited to watch them continue to grow and compete as they move on to 7th grade.

7th Boys Basketball

The boys have recently ended their regular season with an astounding record of 17-5. They currently are in regionals as they just won their first-round game. The 14 boys have created a great team bond and look to continue their greatness as they head further into the post season. Some of the leading scorers for the team have been Diesel Enselman, Colin Richards, and Ben Philips.

8th Boys Basketball

The boys just keep getting better and better! There was a slow start for them at the beginning of the season, but the boys are recently playing with great speed and new confidence. Winning the last 3 of their 5 games to end the regular season, the boys finished with an 8 – 14 record. Some of the leaders and top scorers of the team have been Gavin Murphy and Jaxon DiFiore. Good luck to the boys and Coach Ford as they head into regionals!

JV Girls Volleyball

Congratulations on a great start to the seventh-grade girls volleyball season! They are currently 2-0. Come join us for our home games 1/26, 1/27, 2/6, 2/10 and our 8th grade night 2/26. Go Tigers!

Varsity Girls Volleyball

Varsity volleyball is off to a strong start! Our 8th graders have been putting in the work at practice, showing great focus and insane effort. That hard work paid off right away with a dominating win over Bourbonnais Upper Grade Center to open the season. We’re excited to keep the momentum going and are looking forward to a competitive month ahead as we push for another winning season.

Wrestling

Homer Invite 12/20/25

Our wrestling team members were invited to participate in the Homer Invite. 29 teams from across the state came to this tough tournament. We had 3 wrestlers place. Most of the brackets were 24-man brackets or greater. The team came in 15th place out of 29 teams from all over the state.
126 - Kardiais Richardson - CHAMPION
90 - Dominic Grieco - 3rd Place
70 - Cameron Weldon - 4th place
185 - Stevie Gwin - Consolation 1st Place (2nd year wrestler)

Coal City Invite 1/3/26

Our wrestling team members were invited to participate in the Coal City Invite. 16 teams from across the state came to this tough tournament. We had 8 wrestlers place and our team finished in 5th place. We will be seeing many of these wrestlers at State!
126 - Kardiais Richardson - CHAMPION
75 - Cameron Weldon - 2nd Place
167 - Ian Donovan - 2nd Place
185 - Steven Gwin - 3rd Place
215 - Jackson Langys - 3rd Place
80 - Dominic Ankarlo - 4th Place
90 - Dominic Grieco - 5th Place
95 - Hunter Guisinger - 6th Place

The team gained valuable experience. We will be seeing most of these wrestlers at our Regionals and Sectionals. The wrestlers are getting better and stronger with every match! We will continue our dual meet schedule in January and February before beginning our Regionals, Sectionals and State run! Stay tuned!

Tiger TV

The Tiger TV production teams are in full swing with each group recording at least 1 full episode. We continue to be impressed with the level of dedication these students continue to show to the club each time we meet with them. The students truly make the broadcast, and we look forward to continuing the wonderful work throughout the rest of the school year. Live streaming has also been a success so far. We have many Tiger TV members volunteering their time to live stream our events so family members can view them at home. We will continue to provide live streaming for as many events as we can. We are also excited to learn some new equipment that will be used next school year.

ESports

ESports wrapped up their first 3 week run in December. Students competed in various games on the Nintendo Switch console including super smash brothers, Mario kart, and more. The group will open again for registration again in late April for another 3 week run for anyone who was not able to sign up last time and hopefully some room for returners.

Fitness Room

The fitness room continue to be a great place for students to stay involved and in shape during the winter months. Registration is open on snap manage for anyone who wants to participate. Students are able to run a self directed work out under the supervision of a staff member on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays every week at HCMS.

Bowling

Bowling sign-ups are now open on the athletics website! Whether you’re an experienced bowler ready to compete at the IESA State Finals or a beginner who just wants to have fun and hang out with friends, everyone is welcome to join. This is a great opportunity to improve your skills, meet new people, and enjoy some friendly competition. We will meet every Thursday starting February 19th, so grab your friends, sign up, and get ready to roll! All bowlers must have a current physical one file. If you have any questions, please reach out to Coach Purpura, or Coach Connolly.

NJHS

The National Junior Honor Society met this January and discussed the pillar of academics. We played a fun trivia game that tested our knowledge, and the officers even threw in some riddles that stretched our minds! Many students applied for the Outstanding Achievement Award through the national chapter of the NJHS. We look forward to hearing back on all our applicants.
For 6th and 7th grade students who have maintained a 3.80 cumulative GPA, NJHS applications will be available in Teams in early February. Have your child be on the lookout to apply.

Chess Club

The HCMS Chess team is happy to welcome Mrs. Caruso on as our 2nd coach. We have grown in numbers and that means we’ve also grown in learning opportunities. Our team is busy playing in-house games against new competitors each week, while working on our strategy and sportsmanship. 20 students will travel to State in Peoria, IL to represent our team at the state series in February. Go Tigers!

Scholastic Bowl

Tryouts for Scholastic Bowl will take place on January 27th after school until 4 pm. From there, practices for students who made the team will start January 29th and will take place Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. First meet for the year will be home on Thursday, February 19th.

Dungeons and Dragon Club

Dungeons and Dragons continue to be underway! We meet Monday-Thursday from 2:30 – 4:00.
If you have a student still interested, please reach out to Mrs. Nemeth!

Technology Club

2026 Tech Club Sign Up – Fill out form
Signups are underway for the 2026 Tech Club. The Tech Club meets every Wednesday in the months of February and March from 2:30-3:30p. If you have any questions, reach out to Mrs. Caruso (acaruso@fsd157c.org) or Mrs. Fletcher kfletcher@fsd157c.org.

STEP Dance Club

Step Club meets weekly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2:30–4:00 PM. The club provides students with a fun opportunity to meet new friends, try something new, and stay active. The girls are working hard to learn choreography and are excited to showcase their performance for their peers in February.

Board Game Club

Excited to begin our first board game club on Tuesday, January 27th with HC students! This club will be meeting from 2:15-3:15pm every Tuesday (except March 17th) through April 21st, Students are welcome to join at any time. Please sign up for the SNAP app which can be found on the HCMS website under intramurals. If you have any questions, please feel free to chat Mrs. Gatsios. Students may bring games from home, and there will also be games provided as well. Looking forward to a fun, friendly, social time for students at the Creek!

NJHS

The National Junior Honor Society met this January and discussed the pillar of academics. We played a fun trivia game that tested our knowledge, and the officers even threw in some riddles that stretched our minds! Many students applied for the Outstanding Achievement Award through the national chapter of the NJHS. We look forward to hearing back on all our applicants.
For 6th and 7th grade students who have maintained a 3.80 cumulative GPA, NJHS applications will be available in Teams in early February. Have your child be on the lookout to apply.

HCMS November Newsletter