Joseph Niemantsverdriet, Principal Harding Herald May 2016 Principal’s Message: As we enter our final month of school for the 2015-2016 school year, I feel it is important to take a moment to reflect on many of the events of the school year. Great Things That Happened At Harding Middle School This Year! Clubs and Activities Field Trips and Guest Presenters Cappellas 8th grade Underground Railroad Field Trip Ski Club Washington, D.C. Trip Mine Craft Club Physics Day Chess Club Court of Common Pleas conducted at Harding for Grade 8 HIROS Club Multiple HIROS Field Trips reaching out to the community and Mock Trial other schools in the district Kiwanis Builders Club A Christmas Carol for Grade 7 Anime Club PBIS Rewards Trips for Grade 6 Games and Learning Club Severance Hall Field Trip for Orchestra Art Club Football Hall Of Fame Field Trip F.O.R. Club Youth Sing Out Choir Field Trips – Stop the Hate Harding Ambassadors Buddy Day Tour of LHS for the 8th Grade Students Drama Club Performances at the Beck Center Yearbook News Crew PBS/WVIZ Ideastream TV Studios H2O Local Archeologist Presents to Grade 6 News Crew Egyptologist Presents to Grade 6 Photography Club NASA Presents to Grade 6 Dodgeball Service Project Mock Trial State Competition in Columbus Fantasy Football Club Students Showing Their Talents Harding Student 360 Jazz Band Cappellas Harding Singers PTA Reflections Contest Harding Singers Too Science Fair Strolling Strings Much Ado About Coconuts Play Star Gazers Club Willie Wonka Junior Musical Student Council Student Art & Photography Show at the Winter Play Walking Club LHS Sprit Parade Yoga Club STEM Project Creations STEM Sleds on Channel 3 News Community Service Fox 8 Showcase of Harding STEM and Star Gazers Spring Blood Drive – May 9th Jazz Band Thanksgiving Food Drive to benefit local families Harding Singers December Food Drive for to benefit families Harding Singers Too Patriots Pen Strolling Strings St. Baldrick’s for Childhood Cancer Celebration of Writing Sponsored by the Lakewood City School Builders Club Flower Planting District Department of Teaching and Learning – May 3 H2O Cemetery Decorating for Memorial Day Harding Football, Volleyball, Basketball, Cheerleading, Track, Outreach to families in need during the holidays Softball and Wrestling Conduct and Climate Programs Dances F.O.R. Club Outreach Fall Dance – Theme was Haunted Hollywood Harding Ambassadors Winter Dance – Theme was Valentine’s Implemented Golden Ticket PBIS Spring Dance – Theme was Beach Luau Spirit Weeks 8th Grade Dance – Theme is Black and Red Best Buy vs. Staff Basketball game Ranger 360 Student Group Comfortable Cafeteria for Grade 6 Best Buy vs Staff Kickball game 5/23 Thank you for a wonderful school year. I look forward to seeing you in the fall. Regards, Harding Herald MESSAGE FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT: Another school year almost in the books! It doesn’t seem possible that it could speed by as fast as it does. Perhaps the excitement of watching our new elementary buildings rise over the course of many months helped move the time along more quickly. The District is planning some very special Dedication Celebra- tion ceremonies to mark the opening of these new buildings. I hope you can join us at one or all of the fol- lowing dedications: Grant Elementary: Aug. 16, 6 pm Lincoln Elementary: Aug. 17, 6 pm Roosevelt Elementary: Aug. 18, 6 pm It wouldn’t be an end-of-year message without wishing our seniors congratulations on their coming gradu- ation and offering our best wishes as they move on to the next chapter of their lives. We are proud of each of you and we hope you leave Lakewood High with fond memories of your days with the Lakewood City Schools. Jeffrey W. Patterson Superintendent Board of Education Tom Einhouse, President Betsy Bergen Shaughnessy, Vice President Emma Petrie Barcelona Linda Beebe Edward Favre 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Incoming Student Orientation Session #1 12:00 Session #2 6:00 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 1st Day of School 28 29 30 13 September 1 2 3 Ripcho Photo Day 2 Harding Herald Eighth Grade News The HIROS program, Helping Immigrants and Refugees Obtain Support, closes out another year of reaching out to the newcomers in the Lakewood community. Funded by the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation, students in Mrs. Pangrace's classes once again planned activities that would bring them together with many of the immi- grants and refugees that go to school on the other side of town. We wrote penpal letters, tutored, created holiday crafts, enjoyed ethnic feasts, and travelled to theaters, on Lolley the Trolley, the Nature Center, and Madison Park for learning experiences and socialization. In addition, this year we expanded the program with HIROS International. Led by student Karla Hedges, a spin off group, planned fundraisers to benefit needy newcomer families right here in Lakewood. HIROS also brought in a speaker from Building Hope in the City, to address all of the students in the school and raise awareness about the world refugee population. The simulation posted on the Harding website was informative and fun. All of the students who were part of HIROS were changed by the relationships we built with new friends in the community. The real heroes are the families that have over- come great hardship and are enriching the fabric of Lakewood. Thanks to all the staff and families who have been supportive! MIDDLE SCHOOL MOCK TRIAL-MURDER??? The 7th and 8th grade language arts classes of Ruth Pangrace once again participated in the OCLRE Middle School Mock Trial program. This year, it was a murder trial based on Hinton's The Outsiders. Students read the book, analyzed the facts and witness statements of the young people involved in the two gangs, the Greasers and the Soc's. Every student wrote arguments either condemning Jordan Cade or defending him. Fi- nally the students took on the roles of the attorneys and the witnesses to present a mock trial. Attorney and par- ent, Dan Shields, was our legal advisor. The teams wrote up their cases and rehearsed their roles. Finally in March, six trials were held to determine who the top lawyers and the top witnesses were, so that they could form the official teams that would head down to Columbus. Area attorneys judged our trials at Harding, along with three actual judges from Cuyahoga County Common Please Courts. These judges scored the students' prepared- ness and performances. Those high scorers, more than twenty students, travelled to Columbus on April 22. Four trials were held at the State Judiciary Center. Judges and attorneys from the area presided over the trials, made up of teams from students all over the state of Ohio.Harding's teams were rated "Superior" and "Excellent." Receiving special "Best Witness" awards for their dramatic portrayals were Ivy Rook, Lily Fordu, Emma Carson, Willow Rosser, and Erin McHugh. Winning "Best Attorney" awards were Grace Gill, Nikena Norris, and Mira Getrost. Congratulations to the winners, the teams, and all of the students who participated in this exciting and challenging civics/language arts activity. 8th grade Social Studies will finish the year with an in-depth look at the Civil War. The Civil War contains many stories of hope and perseverance that spark student learning and engagement. Students will build on prior knowledge obtained from their journey on our Underground Railroad field trip. The causes and effects of the Civil War will be highlighted as students learn through a variety of methods. 8th grade science classes will end the year with a few traditional competitions that students enjoy. One is the toothpick bridge competition and the other is the egg drop competition. The toothpick bridge is a small group competition in which students only use white glue and toothpicks to build a bridge to hold as much weight as possible. The egg drop is a competition that only allows students to use paper, cardboard and rubber bands to build a crate that protects a raw egg from a fall out of a 3rd floor window to the concrete below. Both projects are engineering opportunities that students look forward to experiencing and it is a fun way to end their middle school science careers. 3 Harding Herald Dear Parent/Guardian, Please be sure to pick-up any remaining medication from the Health Center by the end of the school day on May 26, 2016. Per the District’s policy, any medication not picked up by the end of the day will be disposed of; medications cannot be stored in the Health Cen- ter over the summer. Please remember new medication forms are required at the begin- ning of each new school year. New forms can found at http:// www.lakewoodcityschools.org/District/Links-Forms. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Health Center at your child’s school. Seventh-Grade News - Ms. Pollner - April was a busy month. Students worked to use all the writing skills covered during the year to answer writing prompts by reading several articles and producing five-paragraph essays (in a limited amount of time). Students continued to read stories about survival and identify the characteristics that allowed some to survive and caused others to perish. Students also read and analyzed poems and worked with a partner to create an original poem. In May, students will present their self-legacy projects and share how they are making the world a better place. Students will end the year by studying Greek mythology and identifying the many ways that these myths are still relevant today. Please remember to check Progress Book for the specific assignments each week.