Nathan Hale Newsletter 4Q -- 2019: Home

Summer School Main Number

(531) 299 -2377

Office 

(531) 299 - 2360

Attendance

(531) 299 - 7027

Nurse

(531) 229 - 2361

 

Health Office Summer Checklist

Incoming Sixth-Grade Students

* Physical NOT needed.

* Dental exam is highly recommended.

* Vision exam is highly recommended.

* Asthma/Severe Allergy, Diabetic, Seizure Action Plans filled out by physician.

* Permissions for medications to be taken at school from physician and parent.

Incoming Seventh-Grade Students

* Seventh-grade immunizations.  Must have 1 dose of Tdap (must contain Pertussis booster).

* Physical dated after 3/1/19.

* Dental exam is highly recommended.

* Vision exam is highly recommended.

* Asthma/Severe Allergy, Diabetic, Seizure Action Plans filled out by physician.

* Permissions for medications to be taken at school from physician and parent.

Incoming Eighth-Grade Students

* Catch up immunizations.

* Physical (only if participating in a sport) dated after 5/1/19.

* Dental exam is highly recommended.

* Vision exam is highly recommended.

* Asthma/Severe Allergy, Diabetic, Seizure Action Plan filled out by physician.

* Permissions for medication to be taken at school from physician and parent.

Outgoing Ninth-Grade Students

* Catch up immunizations.

* Physical (only if participating in a sport) dated after 5/1/19.

* Dental exam is highly recommended.

* Vision exam is highly recommended.

* Asthma/Severe Allergy, Diabetic, Seizure Action Plan filled out by physician.

* Permissions for medication to be taken at school from physician and parent.

 

Boys Soccer

The Patriot's varsity team finished in fourth place this year which is the highest Nathan Hale has ever placed.  Both the varsity and junior varsity worked hard every practice, and it showed with a varsity record of 5 - 3 and a junior varsity record of 4 -1.  The teams were coached by Mr. Novotny and Mr. Clerc.

Girls Soccer

The girls soccer team was coached by Ms. Wolf.  They were seeded the highest in Nathan Hale history, as well.  They were a very young team.  Only five eighth-grade athletes will be moving on to high school.  These veteran leaders will be greatly missed.  Coach Wolf, however, feels that next year looks promising!

Track and Field

Nathan Hale's track and field team, coached by Mrs. Ridgley, Mr. Stark and Mr. Clayburn, experienced a great amount of success this year.  Throughout the season, the team had a number of athletes who set district records, and many athletes who beat their previous personal best times.  At the City Finals on May 10th, the Patriots had several athletes who walked away with a gold medal and the title of "City Champion."  The track team did an awesome job representing the school and truly defined what it means to be Nathan Hale Patriots.  Way to go!

Intramural Boys Basketball

The sixth-grade boys basketball team went 1 - 1 during the intramural season.  The Patriots progressed throughout the season and started understanding some essential components of the game to make them successful.  Nathan Hale overcame a 12-point deficit to defeat Monroe in their season finale.  If these athletes continue to work hard and expand their knowledge, Coach Hansen thinks we could see some seventh-grade students compete on varsity next year.  

The Patriots would like to know your thoughts about the newsletter.  Please email your comments and feedback to Mrs. Tetschner at angela.tetschner@ops.org.  Thank you.  

Like us on Facebook.  Nathan Hale has a Facebook page.  Find us.  Like us.  Follow us for updates.  You can "like" Nathan Hale Middle School or @NathanHaleMS.  Thank you.

Omaha Public Schools does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, age, genetic information, citizenship status, or economic status in its programs, activities and employment and provides equal access to Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups.  The following individual has been designated to address inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies.  Superintendent of Schools, 2315 Cuming Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68131, 531 - 299 - 0220.

Around 200 Nathan Hale students were recognized for their academic achievements at Honors Night on Thursday, May 16, 2019.  These Patriots received awards for a variety of academic accomplishments ranging from earning a 4.0 or 3.5 grade point average to having perfect attendance.  The night's keynote speaker, Jermaine Ballard, kept his advice short and sweet as the gym was very hot.  The heat, however, did not stop the Patriot pride from overflowing.  Thanks to Mrs. Swain for leading the Honors Night committee.

Dear Parents and Guardians, 

Another year has come and gone -- all too quickly!  I want to thank you for sharing your students with us this school year.  We are proud of their growth and many accomplishments.

To all of the eighth-grade students heading to high school and to all the families moving out of Nathan Hale attendance area, the staff wishes you all the very best in the future.

I would like to thank the parents, staff, students, and community members who helped us through this school year.  To all of our students we ask that you give more to the community than you take and, of course, remember that you represent yourself, your family, and this community with your actions.

The first day of school for the 2019 - 2020 school year will be Wednesday, August 14, 2019 for sixth-grade students and seventh-grade students.  The first day of school for the eighth-grade students will be Thursday, August 15, 2019.  In July 2019, we will be mailing out information about the upcoming school year.

Summer orientation will be Monday, August 12, 2019 from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. 

Student instructional hours for 2019 - 2020 will return to aligning with other secondary schools.  School hours for the 2019 - 2020 school year will be 7:40 a.m. - 3:05 p.m.  Please be on the lookout this summer for detailed information regarding next school year.

Thank you for your support and have a safe summer.  Complete as many fun activities as you can.  Looking forward to August!

Sincerely,

Darin K. Williams

Principal

 

 

Math 6 -- Mrs. Quedensley and her students finished the year working on area, surface area, and statistics.  She wants to remind her students to work on IXL to enhance their math skills over the summer.  She also wants her students to know that it was great to teach them.  Ms. Ross and her mathematicians finished the year working on algebraic expressions.  She hopes her students enjoy their summer.  Mr. Ohira and his math students were "back in stats" as they finished the year working with surface area and statistics.   Ms. Johnson and her scholars began fourth quarter with equations and expressions.  Next they moved to area, perimeter, and volume of prisms and pyramids.  These mathematicians ended the year making icosahedrons and dodecahedrons that showcased their sixth-grade memories.  

Advanced Math -- During fourth quarter, Mrs. Quedensley and these talented students worked on angles, area, surface area, and statistics.  They also built their dream houses and problem solved text message plans.  According to Mrs. Quedensley it was a joy to teach this group of scholars, and she hopes they have a great summer.  

English/Language Arts --  Mrs. Miller and her creative crew had their noses stuck in a book during fourth quarter.  They read two novels: The Watson's Go To Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis and Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea.  The also worked on their "Decisions That Matter" unit in the Collections textbook which included skills like citing text evidence and identifying elements of poetry.  Ms. Workma, Mrs. Patton and their scholars worked on a variety of skills to finish the year.  They worked on comparing and contrasting, analyzing autobiographies and biographies, putting events in sequence, identifying point of view, identifying characteristics of narrative poetry, completing analogies, and using the correct homophone.  Whew!  Mrs. Worthy and her readers and writers read Rob Buyea's Mr. Terupt series during fourth quarter.  They focused on character development, and students wrote character analysis papers.  Additionally, these students read and wrote memoirs.  Narrative poetry was analyzed, and the last performance task of the year was literary analysis.  Students read the short story "The White Umbrella" and wrote an essay about the theme of the story.  

Social Studies --  During fourth quarter, Ms. Wolf and her students finished up Medieval Europe and then worked hard to prepare for their Wax Museum by researching a prominent person from history, building a display board about this person, and rehearsing what to say when they stepped into this person's shoes.  Ms. Johnson and her world travelers explored the Trans-Saharan Trade that led Ghana to be one of the wealthiest West African Kingdoms, the spread of Islam, and the cultural aspects of the West African Kingdoms.  They also worked very hard to prepare for the school's third annual Wax Museum -- which turned out to be a great success.  Kudos to all!

Science --  Ms. Eltouny and her scientists learned about the body systems and their functions during fourth quarter.  They also studied the interactions between the different body systems.  Mr. Novotny and his scholars finished off the year with cells, growth, and reproduction.  

Math --  Mr. Ohira and his seventh-grade students spent fourth quarter working on probability and statistics. Mr. Stark's students also worked on probability and statistics.  What are the chances of that?  Now that the year has come to a close, Ms. Carver, and Mrs. Price would like to thank their Math 7 students for a wonderful year.  Ms. Carver wants to remind them that math is one of those subjects that if "you  don't use it, you lose it."  She implores her students not to get stuck losing the ground they gained over the school year.  Here are some links that she suggests you use to stay well practiced over the summer.

https://www.ixl.com  (You will still be able to use your school login.)

https://www.mathplayground.com  (This is fun way to keep up with those skills.)

https:// www.mathgames.com  (This is another fun site to use.)

English/Language Arts --  During fourth quarter, Mr. Samson, Mrs. Bridgeford and their scholars worked on writing about the environment and the repercussions of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911.  Mrs. Foley and her students read the novel The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton during fourth quarter.  They also worked on creative writing.

Science --  Mrs. Swain and her scientists rocked and rolled out of school with Earth Science's weathering, erosion, and deposition.  Her seventh-grade honors students debated genetic modifications.  During fourth quarter, Mr. Clerc and his students learned about the use of natural resources and the impact humans have on the environment.  These hard-working seventh-grade students also completed a project that compared the advantages and disadvantages of renewable and nonrenewable resources.  

Social Studies --  Where in the world is Mr. Garcia and his social studies students?  During fourth quarter, they were in the middle of a culminating research project.  Each student researched and analyzed two third-world or developing countries.  Based on their finding, they had to decided if they would "stay" in these countries or "leave."  Fourth quarter found Ms. Skradski's students also worked on their final district project of researching a country.

 

Algebra --  During fourth quarter, Mrs. Peters and her mathematicians worked on exponents and factoring.  They also completed a unit on polynomials.  

Pre-Alegbra --  Eureka!  Mrs. Peters, Mr. Jensen, and Mr. Matthews had their eighth-grade students figuring out the volume of cylinders, cones, and spheres.  They also reviewed integers and equations.  They reviewed curriculum for their final test -- and are set up for success next year in Algebra.  

English/Language Arts --  The fourth quarter unit for Mrs. Kissinger and her scholars was "The Legacy of Anne Frank."  Students worked hard on reading The Diary of Anne Frank play, researching a WWII risk-taker for an essay, and reading stories of children who survived the Holocaust.  In a similar fashion, the focus of Ms. Carlson and Ms. Lee's classroom turned toward WWII.  While reading the play, The Dairy of Anne Frank, their students increased their knowledge of events during the Holocaust.  They discussed and experienced elements of a screenplay, including characters, setting, scenes, and acts.  Students also researched and wrote a five-paragraph essay about a risk-taker from WWII.

Social Studies --  Mr. Bedore and his American history students were busy during fourth quarter.  In fact, they "reconstructed" the South after the Civil War and studied the Industrial Revolution, Urbanization, Immigration, and Progressive Reform.  Whew, let's hope all this work doesn't lead to a depression.  Ms. Benson's scholars also learned about the Reconstruction Period and Immigration.  

Science --  The end of the school year found Mr. Elder and his eighth-grade scientists learning about how organisms change over time.  They also worked to understand how traits are passed from parent to offspring.  Mr. Clerc and the students in Physical Science launched a high altitude balloon with many experiments latched on.  The balloon reached 90,000 feet and most experiments remained intact.  These students also learned about climate change.  Students focused on the evidence, cause, effect, and solutions.  They are geared up to change people's greenhouse gas emissions to near zero!  

Health and Human Growth and Development --  During fourth quarter, Mr. Clayburn and his students learned about tobacco addiction, drug addiction, nutrition, STDs, and how to be a wise consumer.

Spanish --  Hola!  Mrs. Peters and her Spanish students worked on the verb "gustar."  This Spanish verb can be translated as "to like."  They played review games and ended the year with weather.   

Reading --  During fourth quarter, the students in Mr. Irvin's reading classes learned about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln by reading and summarizing articles.  

Affective Skills --  The end of the year found Ms. Moore and her students working on responsibility and appropriate social comments.

Music --  Ms. Boesch and her General Music students continued their genre studies during fourth quarter.  They finished up with Rock 'n Roll and Hip-Hop.   Mr. Karpf and the Instrumental Music students gave a great Spring Concert and wrapped up the year prepping for summer.  Ms. Sewell and her Chorus students hit all the right notes during fourth quarter.  The eighth-grade singers went to the TAC building for an exceptional adjudication performance.  For the months of April and May, the choir members worked hard to prepare for the Spring Concert titled: A Spring Vision -- Singing As One, and it was a HUGE success. The concert featured 14 soloists, evoked powerful conversations about our world and our dreams, and debuted Nathan Hale's very first bucket drumming group.  Ms. Sewell is full of hope for what Nathan Hale's choir program holds for next year.

Art --  Ms. Konvalin and her sixth-grade artists explored various art types from across the world.  They expanded their knowledge of materials and discussed the definition of art.  Ms. Konvalin's seventh-grade artists discovered and used different art materials.  They did this to discover their personal voice and to express themselves.  Her eighth-grade artists discovered what it means to be an American artist and focused on diversity, freedom, pop art, modern art, and contemporary art.  Whew!

ESL --  Ms. Darling and her industrious students worked hard during fourth quarter on literary devices and fictional writing.  Nathan Hale's ESL students are true authors.  During fourth quarter, Mrs. Taylor's American Studies class learned about our government.  They wrote essays to compare the past and the present.  Mrs. Taylor's writing class learned about regions of America.  They wrote a biography.  Her ESL B Reading class continued to use academic vocabulary as they read and responded to fiction and nonfiction texts.  

Physical Education -- The students in Girls Physical Education and Ms. Kowal played team handball and floor hockey during fourth quarter.  They finished the quarter strong as students presented dances for their peers.  The dances allowed students to collaborate with peers and show their creative side.  Ms. Kowal hopes everyone has a safe summer and is well.  The students in Boys Physical Education worked extensively on communication and teamwork skills in a variety of activities.  They talked about how these skills go beyond the classroom and will translate to other aspects of their moving forward.  The students and Mr. Hansen also incorporated some fitness circuits to provide avenues of working out without equipment in an inside area.  With the rainy weather this spring, this concept came in handy for the students.  

Summer! Summer!  Summer!

Well, after a long winter, summer seems to have arrived!  Time to take a deep breath, breathing in the smells of summer.  Maybe it's the smell of freshly cut grass, or the distant smell of something on the grill.  For a few short weeks, let the chaos of the school year recede.  Forget about schedules and alarm clocks and stop rushing around.  Just relax.  

But then it happens, the dreaded words every parent never wants to hear,  "I'm bored."  

Here are a few things parents can do to help with the "boredom." 

* Have a routine.  Even though kids won't want to get up as early as they do during the school year, make sure they don't sleep the day away.  Give them a "time" they have to be up and dressed, breakfast eaten, teeth brushed, and hair combed.  This will make getting back into the school-year routine that much easier when school starts in August.  Ask your child to plan and cook a meal.

* Assign chores.  Kids should still have chores that need to be completed each day such as loading/unloading the dishwasher, vacuuming/dusting or mowing the yard.  Maybe even doing a few extra things that we often don't have time for during a busy school year such as wiping out kitchen cupboards, going through closets and drawers for clothes that don't fit, and cleaning out the garage/basement can keep them occupied knowing they have a task to complete.

* Encourage reading, playing board games, and crafts.  Encourage your child to occupy their time by doing something they love that doesn't involve electronics.  Finding a creative outlet or reading a book for pleasure can be a great way to spend some time in the summer.  Even just playing a game of Monopoly, that never seems to end, can keep kids busy for quite some time.  This would also be a great time to put a puzzle together!

* Checkout free community offerings.  There are many free or low-cost activities offered throughout the summertime.  Every week, the newspaper creates a list of free movies in the park, art festivals, firework shows, concerts, and plays.  All you'll need is a blanket or chair, something to munch on, and maybe some bug spray/sun screen to enjoy these free events.  Your local public library often offers free events, as well.

* Be active outside.  Plant and tend to a garden.  Ride a bike.  Enjoy a quick run.  Skateboard.  Swim.  Fish or walk your dog.  Work in the yard pulling weeds or mow a neighbor's grass.  Kids who are physically active tend to be healthier and sleep better.  Learn something new as a family such as geocaching.

* Volunteer.  There are many opportunities for community service.  Some ideas would be to clean up a local park, read to a senior citizen or young child, help in a community garden, mow an elderly neighbor's grass or offer to spend time with them chatting or playing a game.  Bake cookies for a neighbor or offer to help with a meal.  Practice recycling.  Start a canned food drive in your neighborhood.  Continue with Random Acts of Kindness.  Kids who are active in their communities build self-esteem and gain confidence.

* Discuss safety.  Talk to your child about being safe, both in the community and online.  When it comes to social media or tv/video game usage, set expectations early, even before summer vacation begins.  There are "online use contracts" that are always a good idea and define clear and understandable rules about what is acceptable and what is not.  Don't forget to set rules and guidelines regarding having friends over or letting a parent know where their child will be.  It's always a good idea to have a curfew or guidelines for checking in with an adult when children are home alone or going to be hanging around the neighborhood.

Wising you a safe a happy summer!

The Counseling Department

Ms. Redinbaugh -- Counselor

Mr. Simmons -- Counselor

Ms. Poskochil -- Social Worker

 

 

Mrs. Ridgley and her Honors Special Projects students studied the Harlem Renaissance, and the students wrote an extensive research paper on their chosen artist, musician, poet, or activist.

Seventh-grade GATE students enjoyed spending a Saturday experiencing a LAUNCH workshop.  LAUNCH is a leadership workshop with the mission to empower young leaders to transform their communities and change our world.  

Nathan Hale's Student Council worked with UNO and cleaned Benson Park.

A Nathan Hale eighth-grade student earned second place in the District's middle level Poetry Slam contest.  Snap! Snap! Snap!

 

Staff Member of the Quarter -- Third Quarter

Mr. Curry

Teacher of the Quarter -- Third Quarter

Mrs. Peters

Staff Member of the Quarter -- Fourth Quarter

Ms. Marion

Teacher of the Quarter -- Fourth Quarter

Ms. Skradski

Staff Member of the Year

Mr. McLaughlin

Teacher of the Year

Mrs. Kissinger

Thank you to Nathan Hale's paraprofessionals.  They provided the teachers, administrators, and students with incredible support and assistance this year.  

Ms. Marion -- Attendance

Mr. Moriarty -- Library

Ms. Morton -- ACP Classroom

Ms. O'Donnell -- BSP Classroom

Ms. O'Kane -- ELL Classroom

Ms. Potter -- SSC

Ms. Rief -- PAC

Ms. White -- ACP Classroom

Mr. Wilkison -- Science Classroom