Your child is in 7th grade and there are health requirements which MUST be completed. You can schedule PHYSICALS at any time and at the same time receive the required TDap VACCINE. A DENTAL EXAM is also required for all 7th graders.

If you do not have a doctor or you do not have insurance, you may contact the Clinic with a Heart at 402-421-2924, the Health Department at 402-441-8065, or Health 360 at 402-441-6642.  

We highly encourage that the Physicals, Immunizations, and Dental Exams be completed as soon as possible and turned in as soon as possible. As soon as these requirements are met, please turn in the forms to Irving Middle School either in person, by mail, Fax : 402-458-3214 or email : cehmke@lps.org.

Students who are not compliant with immunizations by October 15th, 2025 will be excluded from school until they are compliant. If you have any questions regarding these requirements or need help with resources, please contact the Irving Health office 402-436-1214 ext 4. 

As the first quarter ends, I encourage you to pause and reflect with your student on their academic journey so far. This is a perfect time to reinforce positive habits and plan for growth.

Focus on Reflection and Growth

1. Celebrate Successes: Ask your student what they are most proud of accomplishing this quarter and what habits helped them succeed. Highlighting their strengths builds confidence.

2. Identify Growth Areas: Discuss one subject or skill they found challenging. Then, help them set one simple, attainable new goal or strategy for the second quarter (e.g., spending 15 minutes reviewing notes each night, asking the teacher one question a day).

By reflecting now, students can take ownership of their learning and enter the next quarter with clear focus.

Please don't hesitate to contact me if you need support in creating a plan for your student.

Mr. G

We have wrapped up our conversations about the Persian empire and are now shifting into talking about Ancient Greece. We will be spending a bit more time on this unit in part because it will have our very first DCA (district common assessment). This unit will be more focused on the city-states of Athens and Sparta. The students will be learning about how these societies differed when it came to government, military, roles of women, and education. On the DCA the students will be reading several short primary source passages and need to be able to recognize which city-state is being referred to using clues from the reading. It will be challenging, but as long as they take advantage of the build-up work and the practices along the way, they should be well prepared to be successful on this first assessment.

"Our focus in writing has shifted to Personal Narratives, where students are exploring their own lives and experiences to craft compelling true stories. Most students should now have a rough draft of their narrative completed or well underway, focusing on bringing their chosen moment to life on paper. This process encourages them to reflect on their past, develop their unique voice, and structure their ideas effectively.

In reading, we've embarked on our first Class Novels! Our English 7 classes are immersed in Jason Reynolds' fast-paced and inspiring novel, Ghost, while our English 7D classes are beginning Michael Morpurgo's poignant historical fiction, Private Peaceful. As we journey through these captivating stories, students aren't just reading for enjoyment; they're also becoming "language artists." We're actively looking for examples of Author's Craft – paying close attention to techniques like strong beginnings, captivating dialogue, vivid descriptions, and impactful endings.

Our goal is to create a powerful connection between reading and writing: by noticing the "tips and tricks" these skilled authors use, students will begin to understand how being attentive and avid readers can directly inform and strengthen their own writing. We're excited to see them apply these discoveries to polish their personal narratives and become even more confident storytellers.

Thank you for your continued support at home. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

We have finished learning about the processes that are happening deep within our Earth and are ready to explore how those processes are  shaping our Earth’s surface. Students were introduced to the three types of plate boundaries this week and we will be creating hands-on models to demonstrate how our surface changes at each type of boundary! As fall break and the end of the quarter approaches, please help me in reminding students that any  missing work needs to be completed by Friday October 10th! 

Upcoming Assessment: Friday October 10, 2025- Students will be submitting their final model to explain how Mount Everest is growing. We have been working on a draft throughout the unit.

Unit 3 is about working in groups to solve a specific problem related to social responsibility.  Students are learning specific skills and strategies to use when group members talk too much or too little, how to make sure everyone participates and does the work, and how to solve conflicts that may arise during the process.   In each unit, we also talk about and practice looking at a large project and breaking it down into smaller parts in order to reduce stress and still be done on time.   You could ask your student any of the following questions to find out more:   What is the problem your team is trying to solve?  Are you a person who talks a little or a lot in groups?  What’s one specific strategy you were taught to use?   What are some of your ideas for solutions to solve the problem?  

This class ends at the quarter which is next week on Friday, October 10th.   Please have your student check their grades and fix anything that has a low grade or is missing.   Nothing will be accepted after Friday, October 10th at 4:00 p.m.   I can meet your child at HW Hub this week or next if you or they let me know what day. 

We have had a wonderful time exploring all of the languages offered in LPS!!!  I hope your students decide to pursue high school credit Spanish or German in 8th grade:)

• In art class we have been busy going over classroom expectations and procedures. 

• We are learning the classroom space and where materials are stored.

• We also discussed symbolism and wrote down objects that personally     represent us. 

  1. Students chose 1 symbol to create using found objects in a 40 min task party.

  2. Students will use those 5 symbols to decorate their sketchbook covers.

This week we have been working on our clay unit. Students learned the different stages of clay and created their own hand-built mug using clay slabs. Later, once fired, students will get to glaze their mugs using various design elements. 

Students in Business & Technology 7 have recently concluded their computer software applications unit, with a mini-unit exploring Google Sheets.  Students are now learning about infographics and using that knowledge to create infographics in Adobe Express.  Students are creating an internet safety infographic, as well as an infographic about their dream vacation.

Students in Family and Consumer Science are just wrapping up their sewing projects. They did an awesome job working in the sewing lab. The rest of our quarter will be spent on a safety and sanitation unit in the kitchen. We will also work on measuring and working with their group to complete food labs. 

Students in Reading Rewards Secondary are continuing to build reading, vocabulary, writing, fluency, spelling, comprehension and phonics while using a variety of sentence structures and passages.  We are finishing up Unit 1 and will be testing by the end of next week!  Continue to practice spelling words and reading at home!

Students in Reading Rewards Plus are finishing Unit 1 where they have been working on a variety of sentences, vocabulary, writing, fluency, spelling and comprehension tying into a passage about ecosystems.

The orchestra is off to a wonderful start this year and sounds fantastic. With a big group, we start slow to focus on routine and structure in the classroom so that rehearsals can run smoothly. Students have grown on this front each day this week. Thank you for all the effort. 

Practice Cards: 

Students are expected to practice 60 or more minutes each week and record it on their blue practice card. Each week, the card will be due on Tuesday. Ideally, students will turn it in Monday, but it gives them a chance to forget, and bring it the next day if necessary. Practice can be on any music the student wishes to play, as long as they are accomplishing class assignments. That could include the music from class, music from private lessons (the actual lesson time does not count), music from other books/online, playing by ear, or playing along with recordings of music they like.