How I currently use JavaScript with no reliance on jQuery.
Being a big fan of classList, sometimes you'll need a polyfill. I like this one:
<!--[if lte IE 9]>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/polyfills/polyfill.js+clsls"></script>
<![endif]-->N.B. you may hate all of this but it is more of a reference for myself than anything.