It’s Scholastic Book Fair time! From Monday Nov. 4 to Friday Nov. 8, come experience the excitement all over again with your kids. Remember, what starts at the Book Fair stays with you forever. Every purchase benefits the Heartland Media Center. Thank you for your support! https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/heartlandmiddleschool1
7th grade artists in Mr. Wilmes's STEAM Art classes considered the importance of Gyotaku (the Japanese printmaking technique) and its role in society. Gyotaku is the traditional Japanese method of printing fish, a practice which dates back to the mid-1800s. This form of nature printing was used by fishermen to record their catches, but has also become an art form of its own.
After their prints dried, students embellished their prints with colored pencils and watercolor paint.
Congratulations to Shane Hohn, Heartland's 2025 Teacher of the Year!
King Hohn, who teaches 7th grade science, is celebrated by all of his loyal subjects.
Visit the Teacher of the Year page at https://heartland.edmondschools.net/o/heartland/page/teacher-of-the-year to learn more about our Teacher of the Year!
(You can also navigate to this page through the Faculty menu in the About our School menu.)
The FatHeads are back!
Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and Spiderman enjoyed reading books in the media center.
SpongeBob was serving Krabby Pattys at the snack bar - yummy!
Betty Boop, Travis Schoot, and Gir thought our vending machines rocked!
STEAM Art students considered the importance of Structural Engineering when designing their FatHeads. Students created large 3D paper mache masks from cardboard, tape, newspaper and paper mache glue. Students considered how to interlock support beams (cardboard) for strength as well as how the interlocking beams can be used to form and shape their designs. Other challenges students explored were layering of the newsprint for strength, functionality of wearable art, constructing a 360 degree portrait of their favorite celebrity, and being able to physically see from under their structures.
Mr. Wilmes's STEAM Art students have been creepin' it real this month. It may be witchful thinking, but this Halloween is going to be absolutely fang-tastic!
Monster Mugs are Alive - they're Alive!
6th Grade STEAM students along with Devon Energy and the Oklahoma City Thunder considered the importance of “Good Hands.” Teacher Mr. Wilmes challenged his students to think outside the box and use the engineering design process to create a robotic hand that could be used for commercial or prosthetic applications. Students were then challenged to test their creations by picking up four different objects.
By simply applying some creativity and their engineering know-how, STEAM Art students made a useful robotic hand.
6th grade STEAM Art students explored the relaxing power of doodling with watercolors. By blowing air through a straw at different velocities, students manipulated the watercolor paint blobs into various abstract shapes. After the paint dried, students analyzed the abstract forms and embellished the shapes into amoebas or invented new species of their own.
Mr. Wilmes's STEAM Art students considered how compression, friction, speed and centrifugal force are used to create pottery on the pottery wheel. Students explored the balance between hand compression and wheel speed in order to create balanced forms such as bowls, cylinders and belly pots.
Mr. Wilmes’s STEAM Art students created a functional 3D ceramic gumball machine. Students considered mechanical physics and explored simple machines, momentum, and gravity. Students explored trial and error as they considered how to successfully make an individual piece of candy fall from the candy jar and roll down the chute. Finally, students considered how the shrinkage rate of clay would factor into the overall function of their gumball machines.
Mr. Wilmes's STEAM Art Students considered Bernoulli's Principle as they created an Egg-O-Copter. Students brainstormed and designed a non-motorized helicopter that would safely transport a raw egg being dropped from 25 feet off the ground. Not only did the egg have to survive the vertical drop, student helicopters had to prove Bernoulli's Principle (airfoil/helicopter blades will rotate due to the air pressure being off balanced above and below each blade). Unfortunately we did have a couple bowls of egg drop soup for lunch.
Most groups created successful Egg-O-Copters and 2 groups were crowned champions and won a bag of Takis.
Results:
1st period: 14 eggs survived, 3 eggs became Egg Drop Soup for Ms. Zigo
2nd period: 8 eggs survived, 8 eggs became Egg Drop Soup for Ms. Zigo
🔔 Parents/guardians will need to complete an Annual Update for the 2024-2025 school year by logging into the Parent Portal (not the Campus Parent app). Upon login, scroll down and select “More” in the lower left corner of your portal screen, then select “Online Registration,” then select “Start” on the “2024-2025 Existing Student Annual Update.” You will verify your existing information and make any needed changes. The Annual Update must be completed for your student(s) to receive their 2024-2025 schedule or homeroom teacher/classroom placement.
🔗 | Infinite Campus link: https://edmondschools.infinitecampus.org/.../edmond.jsp
7th and 8th grade STEAM Art students considered the importance of architectural engineering as they designed and created birdhouses out of clay. Students considered load bearing walls, balance, stabilization, post and lintel, archways, and flying buttresses. Birdhouses must be able to hang from a tree and be glazed or painted for curb appeal.
6th grade STEAM Art students along with DevonEnergy and the Oklahoma City Thunder considered the importance of “Good Hands”. The hope was to challenge students to think outside the box and use the engineering design process to create a functional robotic hand that could be used for commercial or prosthetic applications. Students were then challenged to test their creations by picking up four different objects.
By simply applying some creativity and their engineering know-how, STEAM Art students made a useful robot hand.
April 5, 2024 Update: Mr. Wilmes's Good Hands STEAM Art project won $500! Congratulations! Stay tuned for their next project - functional gumball machines made from clay.
Mr. Wilmes's 7th and 8th Grade STEAM Art students considered the importance of 3D functional pottery and its role in society. Students gained an understanding of decorative and functional pottery as they emphasized balance, pattern, texture and scale. Students' aesthetically pleasing Monster Mugs were required to be a minimum of 6” tall or 6” wide, hold 12 ounces of liquid, and have a functional handle. Finally, the mug had to be functional for drinking from.
Congratulations to Heartland 7th grader Autumn Guest, who was inducted into the American Association of University Women Girls Hall of Honor yesterday. Teachers nominate 7th grade girls for their leadership qualities, and those girls complete an application that describes their activities and leadership skills. Each year the AAUW selects one 7th grade student from each Edmond Middle School for this award. Edmond Mayor Darrell Davis spoke at the event and provided each girl with a letter of commendation. At the reception, each girl gave a presentation touching on the topics of leadership, interests, activities and future plans. Congratulations to Autumn for this well-deserved recognition.
Heartland students raised $7,038 for Double Pup Dare Week, a part of Santa Fe High School's Double Wolf Dare Week. Teachers and students participated in a variety of fundraisers and events during February to help raise money for Project 66, an organization that provides food and resources to people who are facing food insecurity in Edmond and surrounding areas. From a 3v3 basketball tournament, to a movie night, to a masked singer competition and selling Valentines Grams, takis and other items, Heartland pulled out all the stops to raise as much money as possible, culminating in the Dare Assembly on Thursday. At the Dare Assembly, students paid to pie teachers in the face - don't worry, they were willing volunteers! Students taped teachers to the wall and some brave teachers even waxed their legs or shaved their beard in front of the student body! We are grateful to the Heartland community for going all out to support a great cause!
72 STEAM Art students created stop motion videos outlining a solution to an environmental issue that they’re passionate about. Topics include cleaning the air, restoring the ocean, protecting nature, reducing waste, and addressing climate change.
Representatives from the Oklahoma Alliance for Geographic Education (OKAGE) stopped by Heartland last week to drop off prizes. As a result of participating in the contest, students received either a globe, an atlas, or a pair of eclipse glasses.
Way to go Thunderhawks!
On February 22, Heartland hosted its second annual Black History Month Program - I AM: Celebrating the Beauty and Contributions of Black Artists. Dr. Sandra Thompson, Artistic Director of The Ambassadors’ Concert Choir and Professor Emeritus at the University of Central Oklahoma was the keynote speaker. The program also featured student performances of dance, song, poetry and more. Heartland teacher Mr. Perry even surprised the students with an energetic step performance. As always, the program was an uplifting experience highlighting the important contributions of Black Americans.
Heartland art students have been exercising their creativity and engineering skills as they have crafted paper mache masks. Some of the masks are more decorative and meant to be hung, while the FatHeads are oversized paper mache heads that are a type of self-portrait and are meant to be worn.
At their choir competition yesterday, the Thunderettes (Heartland's Show Choir) received straight superior (a I) from all three judges and scored 555 of 600 possible points!
They won trophies for Best In Class for 6A Junior High as well as Junior High Sweepstakes for scoring the highest among all the Junior High Show Choirs, regardless of class.
They are doing some great things! Choir director Ms. McKinzie will be working with the Thunderettes to add new songs to their competition set over the next month or so before their next competition in April.
