HONEY CREEK
COMMUNITY SCHOOL
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Events at Honey Creek bring families together to celebrate and extend the students’ learning experience throughout the school year. Some events emphasize fun activities, others include opportunities to raise funds to enhance and increase accessibility to various aspects of the school and its programs. All of the events help to knit the community together through shared appreciation of everyone’s diverse talents and creativity.
Community involvement begins with the High Point School and Gretchen’s House with which we share space. Honey Creek students regularly interact with the High Point students through classroom visits, field trips, and lunch invitations. These interactions help Honey Creek students to learn about the different ways in which children develop, communicate and interact. Honey Creek students learn compassion and an awareness of diversity which further fosters a sense of community.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Community Picnic
We come together at Mill Pond Park in Saline each summer before the start of school to see old friends, meet new friends, and get information about classes. It’s always a great way to kick off the school year!
Bagel Fridays
Every Friday the community comes together before school to enjoy bagels, juice, coffee and camaraderie. This is a weekly PTO sponsored event.
Fall Festival
At the end of October, an evening is set aside for activities evoking the spirit of the season. This event is sponsored by the PTO STEM Committee. There is a “haunted house” organized by the middle school students, games and crafts at stations throughout the gym and families have the option of attending wearing costumes.
Harvest Dinner
HCCS's annual Harvest Dinner Fundraiser runs in conjunction with Fall Festival. This part of the evening is sponsored by the PTO Wellness Committee. The fabulous buffet style meal is prepared by local, guest chef's. Wellness Committee strives to be a community advocate for sustainable food sourcing and believe that there are experts of all ages in our community who contribute to student learning.
Grade-Level Potlucks
Each grade level organizes a potluck at the beginning of the year which gives families a chance to meet and get to know each other and their teachers in a fun, friendly setting.
High Point/Honey Creek Craft Fair
A fun-filled fundraiser! With the guidance of crafty volunteers, kids and parents alike are treated to a craft bizarre where they can purchase hand made crafts and baked goods to benefit the PTO.
Talent Night
Begun in 2006, the Honey Creek Talent Night was immediately embraced as an annual springtime tradition. The event serves as a life-skills learning experience for middle school students who are responsible for all aspects of its organization and production. Honey Creek students of all ages and abilities may perform. The range of expression, confidence and joy on stage captivates the audience of families and classmates who provide enthusiastic applause. Talent Night also features an Art Showcase and STEM Fair. STEM Fair is an opportunity for Honey Creek students to pursue their interests in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math through an individual project they share with the entire community.
Earth Day Celebration
Every April, the Honey Creek community observes Earth Day through a variety of learning and volunteer activities designed to celebrate our planet. Students have planted trees, created composting and recycling programs, listened to indigenous folk tales and deepened their understanding of our environment and the responsibility that humans share for the care and maintenance of it.
PE Play Day
The warm weather and end of the school year make PE (Physical Education) Play Day a fun, annual rite of summer. Students and faculty are sorted into mixed-age groups for an afternoon of fun fitness games. Activities range from tug-of-war, to water balloon toss, to hula-hoop, to a wet sponge relay and on and on…. The culminating event is a one-mile, cross-country run around the school’s campus.
Curriculum Night
Twice a year, the Honey Creek community bears witness to the accomplishments of the students. Projects and art works of all kinds are on display. Students extend their learning as they lead their families through the school and explain what they discovered in working to complete various assignments throughout each semester. The project work may culminate with a functional bartering economy, a Native American dance, a Civil War “museum” or an engineering challenge involving simple machines.
Winter/Spring Performances (December & May)
A musical extravaganza with performances from the 4/5 and Middle School band, the Middle School Choir, and the entire Elementary School.
HCCS Athletics
Field Hockey
Middle School Field Hockey started at Honey Creek 15 years ago and continues to flourish with new players each year. This sport is open to any 6-8 grade student, male or female. During the fall season the team practices twice a week and plays games after school. We play games with Ann Arbor, Dexter and Saline middle schools and 2 private schools in Ohio. The team worked together to raise funds for brand new uniforms and goalie equipment. Honey Creek also organizes field hockey teams through the Ann Arbor Recreation Department for students in elementary grades 3 and up and teams may play in the fall and spring.
Cross Country
The cross country program at Honey Creek is committed to fostering a love of running in each young athlete. Through activities and team building, through endurance running practice, cross country runners develop an understanding of proper running form, how food and oxygen contribute to muscle endurance/fatigue, and how to work together as a team to achieve goals. Athletes compete in cross country meets throughout the Ann Arbor region during the months of September and October.
Girls on the Run
Girls on the Run (GOTR) is a program to educate and prepare girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living. Volunteer coaches lead 3rd-5th grade girls through a ten week program of “fun running games and experiential activities to help girls learn about expressing themselves, making good choices, creating healthy habits and serving their community.” The capstone event of the GOTR program is a non-competitive 5K run in which the girls show what they can accomplish as individuals and as part of a team.
Soccer
The Honey Creek Phoenix soccer teams play through Rec and Ed. The coaches are parent volunteers who strive to create a love of the game, through a supportive and nurturing environment. The fall and spring seasons 8-10 weeks long and include weekly practice and games.
Additional events and sports opportunities are offered through the After School Clubs program.