Activities

Competitive Math Club:  Open to 7th and 8th grade or invited 6th grade students.  Register on MyPaymentsPlus in September. Meetings 7:15-8:00am Monday Mornings.  Students who join the Competitive Math Club participate in Jr. Math Leagues Competitions.  Select members will form the Math Counts and Math Masters Competitions later in the school year. 

Contact: Ms. Skluzacek

6th Grade Fun Math Club:  Open to 6th grade students. Register on MyPaymentsPlus in September. Meetings will be held after school on Mondays or Tuesdays from 3:20-4:50pm.  This is open to any 6th grade student who enjoys math or wants to improve their math skills, but does not want to compete. 

Contact:  Ms. Vortherms

Cohort Read:  6th Grade only.  A summer reading list is given to GTYS students in the Spring of 5th Grade.  Students who read three or more of the books are encouraged to sign up with Mrs. Back in the GTD Resource Room.  Students are asked to create one book project and bring it to the first meeting in late September or early October.  Additional meetings may follow if the group would like to continue.   

Contact:  Mrs. Back 

 

Maud Hart Lovelace Reading Group:  Open to all grade levels.  The Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award is a children's read and vote book award. Its purpose is to encourage recreational reading among school age children.  Students are challenged to read from the list and then vote for their favorites in April. 

Contact Mr. Otte or Mrs. Back

Battle of the Books:  Open to all grade levels. Teams form in October.  Teams work to divide up 14 books on a reading list and they will take  group quizzes and complete projects to earn points in the year-long contest!  Battle of the Books is both fun and competitive, with an emphasis on fun!  Reading and sharing experiences with books helps all members appreciate and understand literature at a deeper level. Final meeting will be held at the end of May.  This group may include a combination of in-person and Zoom meetings. 

Contact:  Mr. Otte or Mrs. Back

NaNoWriMo: November is National Novel Writing Month. On Mondays and Wednesdays during the month of November join the NaNoWriMo group in the library after school to brainstorm, write and share your ideas.

Contact Mr. Otte with any questions.

 

Promising Young Writers:  8th Grade only.  This national writing contest is sponsored by the NCTE. English teachers will promote this contest in class at the end of December or early January.   Students will compose two writing samples and submit to a panel of SHMS judges.  Four students will be selected to represent SHMS in this national writing contest.

http://www2.ncte.org/awards/promising-young-writers/

Contact:  Mrs. Back

 

Writing Contests:  Open to all students.  Join the Schoology Group to have access to writing contests.  Schoology Code:  2RXS-M5P9-P7B32  Contests are added frequently, so check the Schoology Group often!  Some contests we have entered in the past have been sponsored by Scholastic, Elks Club, Daughters of the American Revolution, and Dakota Public Library. In November students may join Nanowrimo, a free writing group that meets after school for a month and encourages student to set writing goals, share their writing journey and publish their work within out school  https://www.nanowrimo.org/ 

Contact: Mrs. Back

 

Young Authors Conference:  Open to all students.  In early January students submit registration and payment for the March Young Authors Conference held at Bethel University.  Students will miss one day of school when they attend this conference.  Registration will be in MyPaymentsPlus. http://www.successbeyond.org/ 

Contact: Mrs. Back

 

Drama/Musicals: 

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Big news coming to SHMS — we’re seizing the day with our upcoming production of Newsies Jr.!

Do you love to sing, dance, or act? Then you don’t wanna miss this chance to be part of the show that’s all about standing up, speaking out, and making headlines!

Want the scoop? Join the Newsies Jr. Schoology group — the code is posted right here in the announcement and outside the choir room door.

Inside the group, you’ll find everything you need: the Dance Troupe Workshop, Audition Workshop, Audition Dates, and Callback Dates.

Got questions? See Mrs. Egger or Ms. MP — they’ve got the inside story.

So don’t delay — Seize the Day! Join the Schoology group and get ready to make SHMS history on stage.

 

🎬 Calling All Dancers! 🩰🕺

Do you have studio dance experience? Love to perform? Then we want you to be part of Disney’s Newsies Jr.!

We’re looking for talented dancers to audition for the Newsies Dance Troupe! Come show off your moves and help bring the energy and excitement of Newsies to the stage! (No singing required—just great attitude and awesome dance skills!)

💃 Dance Troup Workshop:
📅 Monday, November 17
🕒 3:15–4:45 PM
📍 Cafeteria

At the workshop, you’ll learn the audition routine and get all the details you need to shine.

So lace up your dance shoes, grab your friends, and get ready to seize the day! ✨

 

Speech Team: 

All 6th-8th grade students are invited to participate in the SHMS Speech Team!  Speech Team involves writing or choosing a 5-8 minute public speaking piece to practice and perform in front of judges. Here are the important things to know:

 

• If you are interested, have your student join the new Schoology Group for more detailed information: ZNGV-Z4QM-2N985
• Sign up on EduTrak by January 6, 2026
  • Students only need to come to practice one day per week. 
  • Practices will be on either Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday.
• We will have 4 meets
• Meets for the 2025-2026 Season
• Saturday, January 10 @ Dakota Hills Middle School at 9:00 am
• Saturday January 17 @ Rosemount Middle School 9:00 am
• Saturday January 24 @ Black Hawk Middle School 9:00 am
• Saturday January 31 @ Cottage Grove Middle School in Cotttage Grove 9:00 am (Transportation Provided)

 

• Transportation: Students who regularly ride the bus can take the Activity Bus home, OR you can pick up your child at 4:45pm. 

 

There will be a student informational meeting to go over details on Dec. 3 in FACS Kitchen Room 6 from 3:15 - 4:45.   Please contact Coach Walton (kim.walton@district196.org) or Coach Toutge (danell.toutge@district196.org) if you have any questions.

Future City Competition: All students may participate.  Registrations are in MyPaymentsPlus  in September and the competition is in mid-January. There is a limited number of spots open for this competition, and it will fill quickly.  This competition is a  time-intensive team project.  Dream it, Design it, Build it and Present it.  The FCC Team meets after school with a coach at SHMS one day a week AND competition teams meet an additional day at a location outside of school.  Students are given a national topic for this competition and they research solutions to the problems their future cities would face 100 years in the  future.  

https://futurecity.org/

Contact: Mrs. Back

The Band and Music Departments have various band auditions throughout the year.  Most of the groups meet during the mid-day.  Contact any band director.

Geography Bee:  All students participate at the classroom level.  Based on classroom performances, the highest scores will participate in the SHMS Geo. Bee.  The Geo Bee is  NO LONGER a National Competition. Students can join a Schoology Group to access practice material. Contest will be in early Spring. 

Code:  GSK2-Q3WG-HT5PC

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/geobee/study-corner/

 

Spelling Bee:  All students can participate.  If there is a State Sponsor, we will join the SCRIPPS National Spelling Bee.  If there is no sponsor, we will have a School-wide Bee. Top spellers from each grade will advance to a grade level bee and then the next level of top performers will qualify for the SHMS Spelling Bee in January.

Join the Schoology Group to access study material: 4FPH-WQ7R-GBHHH    

http://spellingbee.com/

 

Chess Team:  All students can participate.  Begins in January and runs a couple of months.  Practices and meets will be after school.  Register in MyPayments Plus.

Contact:  Ms. Hansen for information.

Scholastic Scrimmage:  Open to all grade levels.  Sign up with Mrs. Back for the meets that work for your schedule!  SHMS hosts after school trivia contests against the other District 196 Middle Schools. (think team based Jeopardy!)  The SHMS teams will practice during the mid-day.  After school meets are held at SHMS, and students can ride the Activity Bus home at 5:00. 

Service Projects:  The GTYS Program plans, organizes and sponsors one service project per trimester.  Any student can participate in the event.  Events include:  Food Drives, Feed My Starving Children, etc.

Contact:  Mrs. Back

 

WEB: WEB, which stands for "Where Everybody Belongs" is a middle school orientation and transition program that welcomes 6th graders and makes them feel comfortable throughout the first year of their middle school experience. Built on the belief that students can help students succeed, the program trains mentors from our 8th grade class to be WEB Leaders. As positive role models, WEB Leaders are mentors and student leaders who guide the 6th graders to discover what it takes to be successful during the transition to middle school and help facilitate 6th grade success. (Boomerang Project)

7^th Grade Students may apply to be WEB leaders every March/April. Once accepted, WEB Leaders are trained in August for our annual 6^th Grade Orientation. In addition to mentorship, WEB leaders at SHMS are also responsible for:

• School Fundraisers
• Student Event Planning
• Volunteer Opportunities
• Connecting with 6^th graders throughout the year

WEB Coordinator Team:

Ms. Hasek – carolyn.hasek@district196.org

Mr. McGrath – Daniel.mcgrath@district196.org

Mr. Otte – brandon.otte@district196.org

Ms. Saxen – Rachel.saxen@district196.org

Ms. Cecchettini-Gangi – melissa.cecchettini@district196.org

Mr. Doherty – ryan.doherty@district196.org