Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School
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[1] Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School (HJHS) has been in the core of Davis, California at 1220 Drexel Drive since fall of 1966. During the year of 2006, it had 741 students, grades 7-9[2]. The mascot of the school is the Patriot. Classes not taught on campus are usually taken at Davis Senior High School. This is one of the three Junior High Schools in Davis, California, the others being Frances Ellen Watkins Harper Junior High in East/South Davis, and Ralph Waldo Emerson Junior High in West Davis. Holmes Junior High was brought to regional attention after it was the target of a bomb scare in 2003.
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[edit] The Inspiration of the Name
The school was named after Oliver Wendell Holmes. Even though he was a physician, he was well-known as a famous poet and author. He was born on 29 August 1809 and died 7 October, 1894. His son, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., was a Supreme court justice from 8 December 1902 to 12 January 1932. Holmes was also a relative of one of the first American female authors, Anne Bradstreet. His first most renowned work is "Old Ironsides." One of his most popular works is ‘’The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table’’. He also developed the popular model of the stereoscope
[edit] Courses
There is a variety of courses offered at HJHS varying from ceramics to computer sciences to assorted foreign languages. It also has the basic classes such as Math, English, and Science. The required courses throughout the three years are as shown below:
| Seventh Grade | Eighth Grade | Ninth Grade | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classes | |||
| Math | X | X | X |
| Social Studies | X | X | X |
| Science | X | X | |
| Physical Education | X | X | X |
General elective courses include foreign languages, art, music, being a student assistant to a teacher, the office or the library, and home economic/food making courses.
[edit] Layout
The school is laid out in a fairly simple manner. There are bike racks for the students to put their bikes: one in the front of the school and one near the gym. There are six basketball courts to the west of the gym. The classrooms fit in around the basketball courts, the gym, the lunch eating areas and the quad. On most of the walls, there are banks of lockers.
[edit] Athletics
HJHS offers many sports programs such as cross country, volleyball, soccer, and basketball. Freshman students may take part in the same sports on the DHS teams, which also include field hockey, water polo, football, baseball, football, softball, and ski and snowboard teams.
[edit] Clubs
Like many other schools, Holmes has different clubs around campus.
[edit] Associated Student Body (ASB)
The most universal club is Student Government and the Associated Student Body. The previous year, the students elect students that had choose to run for a specific spot in the student council for the following year. Meetings are common throughout the year.[3]
[edit] Homework Club
After school, a few teachers and student teachers meet for approximately 1 hour in a classroom with students who need motivation to do their school work and homework.[3]
[edit] Builder's Club
The Builder's Club is dedicated to do community service projects and is sponsored by the local Kiwanis Club. There have been various student projects, including making a garden area on campus, tree planting and trimming and a book drive.[3]
[edit] Sudoku Club
The Sudoku club is a place to go at lunch to do the Sudoku puzzles for fun. It is a game that has nine three by three boxes arranged as a square, and you must put in numbers that cannot repeat in a row, column, or in that specific square. It is very challenging, but very entertaining![3]
[edit] Honor Society
The Honor Society is made for students that received at least a 3.4 GPA in the first semester. They require good grades and five hours of community service to remain a member. Students who remain in the program are rewarded at the end of the year.[3]
[edit] Recycling Club
Recycling Club is a small club on campus whose purpose is to organize recycling events and promote recycling and community service on campus.[3]
[edit] International Foreign Language Club
The International Foreign Language Club is about getting together and learning about different cultures around the world. The leaders of the program also strive to promote school service and community service. An annual event on campus is International Day, where foods from different cultures are served and performers from different areas demonstrate their culture's traditions.[3]
[edit] Robot Club
The main purpose of the Robot Club is simply to experiment with computer programming and robotics. At every meeting, students can construct robots to experiment with. Guest robots and speakers are highlights of this club.[3]
[edit] MathCounts
MathCounts is a nationally funded math competition to promote excitement, enthusiasm and strengthen achievement in math. It is composed of any seventh or eighth grader that attends the school. Holmes is the two time defending champion of the Sacramento region, which goes up north as Chico. The team's mantra is "MathCounts is NOT social suicide."[3]
[edit] Drama Club
The Drama Club helps everybody interested to promote theater arts around campus. School plays throughout the year include musicals, dramas and Shakespearean plays.[3]
[edit] Dungeons & Dragons
The Dungeons & Dragons club is pretty self-explanatory: a place to play Dungeons & Dragons at lunch. Students keep track of their own characters as one person tells the story of what happens.[3]
[edit] Gay-Straight Alliance
The Gay-Straight Alliance, usually found in high schools and universities across North America, has a club at Holmes. Their main purpose is for students to decrease discrimination and harassment due to the sexual orientation of those being harmed. They do this by organizing workshops and other activities to raise public awareness. The biggest event around school is the observation of the Day of Silence in which students participating do not speak the entire day.[3]
[edit] REST Club
The REST Club is one of the most popular clubs in the school. It was first started by a group of freshmen girls who had very busy lives and wanted somewhere to relax during lunch on Fridays. Today, the REST club is run on both lunches by two teachers. In each class, students come to eat their lunch, hang out, and watch movies. The main focus of the club is for students to have good mental health and to ease the stress level. The Latin motto is "cesso, otior, laetus sum" which means “I slack off, I take it easy, I'm happy.”[3]
[edit] Annual Events
Around Holmes, there are many events that go on annually. Below are a few of the most prominent ones.
[edit] Magazine Sales
At the end of September, there is a magazine fundraiser that goes on for approximately two weeks. The point of this is for students to sell magazines and other items such as gift wrap to earn money for their school.
[edit] Dances
There are four dances a year at Holmes. The first is usually at the end of September. The second is the most popular Winter Dance. The winter dance is the most formal dance of the year. Though the school doesn't recognize it as a formal most people get dressed up for the Winter Dance. At this dance, pictures can be taken with different backgrounds that usually match the selected theme. Dance attendance has fallen significantly since Holmes split its student body with the new Harper Junior High School, but admission prices to dances have risen 20%.
[edit] International Day
On International Day, dishes are prepared from different countries and cultures and for sale to students. There is usually some entertainment along with the food. The entertainment is from a different culture to match the theme. After lunch there is an assembly with two to three performances from different cultures for the students to enjoy.
[edit] Day on the Green
Day on the Green is usually the second to last Friday of the year that the students love. Students have a half day of work, and during the last three hours of the day they can enjoy themselves at a carnival-like event. The school invites local restaurants to set up booths for the students to patronize. On the main field there are many inflatable objects and other events to have fun, such as a large Slip and Slide and a giant slide. The sprinklers inside the track are turned on so students can play in them. Some classrooms have events such as movies or games that people can play to stay out of the sun.
[edit] References
- ^ "Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School." Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School. 2006. 28 Nov. 2006 <http://www.djusd.k12.ca.us/Holmes/>.
- ^ "Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High-Students." Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High. 2006. 28 Nov. 2006 <http://www.djusd.k12.ca.us/Holmes/students.htm>.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Williams, Bill. "Holmes Junior High Student Activities." Mr. Williams GATE World Geography. 2006. 28 Nov. 2006 <http://www.djusd.k12.ca.us/Holmes/bwilliams/studentact.html>.
- "Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School." Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School. 2006. 28 Nov. 2006 <http://www.djusd.k12.ca.us/Holmes/>.
- "Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High-Students." Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High. 2006. 28 Nov. 2006 <http://www.djusd.k12.ca.us/Holmes/students.htm>.
- Williams, Bill. "Holmes Junior High Student Activities." Mr. Williams GATE World Geography. 2006. 28 Nov. 2006 <http://www.djusd.k12.ca.us/Holmes/bwilliams/studentact.html>.
