The 6th and 7th graders get ready to go to Eagle Bluff

The 6th and 7th graders traveled to Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center in Lanesboro, MN.  We were blessed with great weather, which made the outdoor learning activities that much better.  The students did a great job participating in the educational programs including winter survivial, snowshoeing, and star lab.   At the end, the students did earn the “Eagle Eye” award, which recognized the students’ awareness of their energy use, and the “Golden Plate Award,” which means they had no food waste. If you were to ask many of the students, their proudest accomplishment during our time at Eagle Bluff, was beating the Eagle Bluff staff to knee hockey.

Megan Ryan ’17–”My two favorite activities we did at Eagle Bluff were the Naturalist Program (Star Show), and my second favorite was snowshoeing. The Star Show was one of my favorites because we got to go into a small blown up dome. In the dome we laid down and looked up, we saw a nights sky and got to learn about some stars and constellations. I liked the snowshoeing because it was fun to try new ways to travel. I liked how we went snowshoeing, then we stopped and tried making a fire with flint (It is not as easy as it looks). Then we got to eat a type of bread and tea. I learned that snowshoeing was invented in 4000BC. Also, that people snowshoed everywhere because that was how they traveled back then.  We all were together and participated together so our friendships got stronger as we were there, and now I feel like I have more than just a couple people to trust.

Conan Hayton ’18–”I thought the whole Eagle Bluff trip was really fun. The activites we did were the pond lab where we tested the ponds water. We did winter survival where we had to make a shelter and make a fire. We saw a bird and an owl and a power point of the diffrent types of raptors. We went snowshoeing and made a fire with flint and steel. We went in a big dome called the sky lab and looked at the stars and constellations and then we went outside and actually looked at them. Also we played mini hockey, went sledding, and watched a movie. What I really liked was the star lab and playing mini hockey.  A big accompishment was beating the grown ups at mini hockey and getting the trophy. Something that was funny was that when we went snowshoeing everybody kept falling down. Also when people ate breakfast, lunch, or dinner and couldnt finish their food they would give the food to me so I could eat it.”

Andy Stoneman ’18–”My favorite class was the stars class because it really showed me what kind of stuff stars make and what constellations look like. And the way they provided that showing was really cool. I hope we do that again when we go back. Then when we went outside I thought it was cool that we could see Mars and Jupiter also because I studied Jupiter.”

Amanda Cooper ’18–”I also really liked the Winter Survival. First we were inside to talk about winter survival. Then we got to go outside. We went into the woods and we learned what we had to do. First we had to build a tent. That part was really fun. My group and I built a really cool fort. It was also pretty big. We only had a few things to build with, but we found a great spot to build on. Next we had to build a fire. We had to get dry wood to start our fire. At first it was hard. Then we started blowing on it and it started to get bigger. It was really cool. I had a lot of fun on my trip and I can’t wait to go back to Eagle Bluff.”

Tim Ray '17 demonstrates what it is like to be a raptor.

The Middle School boys' proudest trophey--"The Mini-Stanely Cup"

 

Tim Ray '17, Amanda Cooper '18, and Katie Miller '18 demonstrate their ability to survive in the winter.

Bantam Tier 1:

The Shattuck-St. Mary’s Bantam Tier 1 Team beat number one nationally ranked St. Louis Blues and won the “Minnesota Super Series Presdent’s Day Tournament” hosted by Shattuck-St. Mary’s.  Next up for the Bantam’s, Nationals in Buffalo, NY beginning March 28.  Good Luck!!

Midget AA:

The Midget AA Hockey Team finished their season winning the “The Tournament of Champions” in Brandon, Manitoba.  This is the third year that Shattuck-St. Mary’s has won this particular tournament.  Assistant Coach, Mike Carpentier stated:  “We beat Notre Dame in the finals, and they are a boarding school in Wilcox, Saskatchewan.   They are a big hockey school who recruits and gets kids from all over.  We played dynamite.”  Congratulations to the Midget AA Hockey Team for a great season.

Figure Skating:

Most recently, the Middle School figure skaters competed at the Hiawathaland Figure Skating Competition in Rochester, MN.  The following skaters received medals:

Gold Medal:  Kasie Sundhagul ’15, Renata Lezama ’16, and Emily Moon ’15

Silver Medal: Sophie Liesenfeld-Hahn ’15, Kasie Sundhagul ’15, Ana Hanhausen ’15, Renata Lezama ’16, and Marijose Cavazos ’15

Bronze Medal:  Kaite Miller ’18, Daryn Finkelstein ’15 (2), and Emily Moon ’15

Congratulations skaters!!

Golf:

Nathan Zhao finished 2nd in the 13-15 age group at the Future Collegians World Tour event held at the Classic Club in Palm Desert, CA on February 18th and the 19th.

 This past weekend, the SSM Girls U-16 team hosted their home jamboree, boasting a record of 4-1. The games started on Friday, with the girls facing their most fierce rival, the Chicago Mission. Previously, their record has been tied against the Mission, so they came out ready to battle. Although they led 1-0 through the first two periods, they ended up losing 2-1. Throughout the weekend they defeated the Chicago Fury twice and the St. Louis Lady Blues once. On Sunday morning, these girls were vengeful and grateful for the chance to play the Mission once more before Nationals. Dominating the whole game, they pulled out a 4-1 victory for their last home game of the season.

Although the team’s season got off to a rocky start, inundated with injuries and frequent changes, the second half of the season they are undefeated (besides Friday night’s Mission game).  So what’s the next big challenge for these girls? Nationals, which this year are being held close to home for many of them, are in Marlboro, Massachusetts from March 28^th to April 1^st. When asked about what he thinks their biggest challenge will be, Coach Peter Johnson responds, “The biggest challenge for the girls U16 team for the rest of the season is to stay in shape over spring break and come back ready to prepare for two weeks before we go to nationals…” Good luck to these girls in their efforts to bring back the second National Championship title for the Girls U-16 team!

-by Megan DuBois ’15

Orchestra:

Vivian Weng ’16 participated in the Minnesota String Orchestra Teachers’ Associations (MNSOTA) Annual Mid-Level Honors (7th-9th grade) Orchestra; this is the 11th year of the event.  After auditioning, Vivian secured the 7th seat in a section of 12 cellos.  The Orchestra then played to an audience of about 350 guests at the Minnesota Music Educator Association’s annual convention at the Minneapolis Convention Center.  According to our own orchestra teacher, Kevin Berdine, “Their peformance was wonderful and the audeince was very appreciative of the fine music being made by Vivian and 62 other musicians from around the great state of Minnesota.”

Vocal Performance Program:

Congratulations to Sarah Shoaf ’15 placed in the first round at the University of Minnesota for the “Classical Singer Competition.”  This is a national competition with thousands of applicants that is sponsered by Classical Singer Magazine, an international singing publicantion.  Sarah will be competing in the semi-finals for the high school division this May in Chicago.  Good luck Sarah!!

Middle School Drama:

Coming in May… presented by the Shattuck-St. Mary’s middle school students and students from the Cannon River STEM school:

Narrator #1—Cheyney Cornish ’16                    Narrator # 2—Linley Brown ’15

Juliet—Sienna Leone ’15                                     Romeo—Katherine Hughes ’16

Mercutio—Andy Stoneman ’18                          Benvolio—Ashley Gross ’15

Tybalt—Brandon Zajicek  ’15                              Balthazar—Ryan Little ’15

Monk Larry—Megan Dubois ’15                        Nurse—Taylor Schwalbe ’15

Lord Capitulate—Josefine Hansen ’15              Lady Capitulate—Amanda Cooper ’18

Paris & Sampson—Howard Wang ’15               Prince & “Voice”—Santiago Gonzalez ’16

Lord Monotone—John Kennedy ’17                  Lady Monotone—Kaylee O’Connor ’18

Prologue—Aubrey Stafford ’17                            Lady Em (Capitulates’ Servant)—Emily Walker ’18

Abram—Sadie Roehrick  (STEM)                       Gregory—Mya Paquette (STEM)

Middle school students warming up by the fire at Buck Hill

Minnesnowta Days 2012 took place  January 19th-20th. The event started out at the ice arena beginning at 8:00pm on Thursday night.  The students skated, ate pizza, drank hot chocolate, and participated in a “figure skating competition.”  The event then moved to the upper school student lounge, where many of the students danced and played games.  The evening ended with a movie, “Kung Fu Panda, and more snacks.  In years past, the Friday of Minnesnowta Days took place at the sledding hill by Faribault High School, however due to the lack of snow this year, the students were brought to Buck Hill, in Burnsville, for a day of tubing.  The students seemed to have a great time:

Luke Haakenson ’16–”Personally I think Minnesnowta was a success. The teachers found ways to integrate us into meeting new friends and having fun at the same time. It was very enjoyable. First we got to go ice skating where I personally learned how to skate. Others were very swift out on the ice (me not so swift). We even had dancing out on the ice and had competitions. It was funny to see some of the routines.  After ice skating we went back to the lounge and had a dance and treats and played games. The dance was fun. People actually danced instead of standing there all awkward. We then watched a movie and went to bed. The next day we got up and went to Buck Hill where we tubed. It was a blast but too cold for me. If there was anything to improve on it would be to have this a little later in the year so we could not be as cold at Buck Hill. Other than that everything was a blast.”

Katherine Hughes ’16–”Minnesnowta Days were very fun. We started off the event with a skating party for the whole middle school. While we were skating, we also had the option of pizza, and hot chocolate. Once we finished skating at around 10:30, we went to the Upper School student lounge for a dance. Everyone got really into it, especially Tony Zhou ’16! We took a snooze from 1 a.m.- 8:45 a.m. At about 9:30 we left for some tubing at Buck Hill. Everyone tubed until about 12:30 when we left for Shattuck again.  Everything about the Minnestowta Days were fun. I really enjoyed the tubing. I went down with Linley (Brown ’15) every single time, and it was really fun. I also liked the dance because everyone was just having a good time.  I personally enjoyed the entire Minnesnowta Day and can’t wait for next year!”

Amelie Alvarez ’16–”The next day the teachers woke up us very early to take breakfast. We went to our dorms to change and we depart at 9:00 am to go tubing. That was my favorite! I live in Mexico, and of course we don’t have snow there, so that was something I had never done before. I had a really good time with all my friends in the snow. We were there for a long time and we came back around 1:00 pm.”

Koy Payne ’16–”I thought the skating party on Thursday night was pretty fun. I also enjoyed tubing and just hanging out in the cafe area of Buck Hill. I participated in a friendly game of Scrabble while sipping a Sprite in the cafe. This was a great, relaxing place to be.”

Sophie Liesenfeld-Hahn '15, Megan DuBois '15, and Kasie Sundhagul '15 take a break from skating to pose for a quick picture

Renata Lezama '16 and Amelie Alvarez '16

Tubing at Buck HIll

The tests are taken, the grades are in, and another term has come to a close. It seems
just yesterday that we were camping out at Singing Hills, as part of our opening school
orientation activities, and what an important activity that was! It gave each of us,
faculty and students, the opportunity to learn new faces, play together in fun and
collaboration and begin the growth of our community. Students were put in mixed
grade level teams for the Marzetti Cup challenge. This challenge continued throughout
the term and will continue throughout the year. Points are awarded for a multitude of
opportunities including games,   quiz bowl contest, highest team grade point average,
community service, articles written for the newsletter, etc. The Marzetti Cup has
provided the opportunity for students to work together, i.e. a 6^th grader with a
9^th grader, who would not ordinarily do so. In other words, they get to work with
their MS families!

In addition to building a respectful community, we focused on providing leadership
opportunities for students at each of the grade levels. Some of those opportunities
included acting as the welcome team for our 6^th graders, captaining teams for one
of our FADs (Fridays are Different), representing the Middle School on the student
council, organizing our fall weekend activities, and planning a Fall Fun night for the
Middle School. It is our plan to have each of our students take a leadership role
during the year.

As part of our Health and Wellness curriculum this term, our health service staff
provided valuable information to our students. The 6^th-7^th grades focused on
basic healthcare and hygiene, as well as nutrition and peer pressure. The 8^th grade
focused on keeping healthy, nutrition and portion control. The 9^th grade took a
health assessment and discussed the importance of sleep.

On behalf of the entire Middle School faculty, I would like to wish each of you a
Happy Thanksgiving!

Beth Trout
Director of the Middle School

Team – Points

Pig Jaws – 99
Spy Goats – 98
Llama Kings – 91
Superbad Spiders – 86
Wild Hogs – 85
Step Bunnies – 83
Rambo Cats – 81
Superstar Stallions – 77
Chicken Almighty – 66
Cow Hot Tub Time Machine – 64

Nov. 28- Students return to campus
Nov. 29- Winter term classes begin
Dec. 6- 9^th grade to “Of Mice and Men” at the Park Square Theatre- depart 8:45 a.m.
Dec. 7- 8^th grade to “A Christmas Carol” at the Guthrie Theatre- depart 8:45 a.m.
Dec. 15- No regular MS classes- MS Holiday party- 6-8^th grade students may leave
campus after 1:00 p.m., 9^th grade to serve at US dinner in the evening.
Jan. 2- Students return to campus
Jan. 3- Winter term classes resume
Jan. 19-20- Minnesnowta Days- Begins 8 p.m. on Thursday, ends Friday at noon
(an overnight!)
Jan. 25-27- 6^th-7^th graders go to Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center.
They will need warm clothes!
Feb. 3-5- Winter Family Weekend
May 7-9- 9^th grade to Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center
May 10-11- 8^th grade to Camp Ihduhapi- Loretto, MN

Written by Ms. Bailey

On Thursday, November 10, the middle school students were able to get a break from
studying and have some end-of-the-term fun.  Mr. Carey and Mr. Groess, along with
many of our 9^thgrade leaders, put on a spectacular night of fun that included activities
such as, “Pin the White Card on Ms. Trout,” “Musical Chairs,” “Darts,” and “Are You
Smarter Than a Hockey Coach?”.  The students were able to earn “money” at the
various activities, which then could be used to purchase items at the raffle, which
concluded the night.  The students had a great time and the night ended with a splash.
Literally, I fell into the kiddy pool while cleaning up!

Middle School Students Playing "Musical Chairs"

Emily Walker '18 plays "Pin the White Card on Ms. Trout"