November - Clarion - Goldfield

Clarion-Goldfield-Dows
Community School District
Cowboy Chronicles
NOVEMBER 2015
From the Desk of the Sup erintend ent
D r. Rob er t Olson
Veterans’ Day
November 11th is Veterans’
Day and the day Clarion-Goldfield-Dows hosts an event that
recognizes the work and sacrifices of our veterans. The program
begins at 10:00 am. Following the
program, Wholly Smoke will once
again prepare the meal for Veterans and guests. A free-will offering may be given for the meal.
Anyone wishing to stay for the
meal is asked to RSVP by calling
the district office at 515-532-3423
by noon Friday, November 6th.
Electronic Notifications
Many of us carry a cell phone.
Whether you carry a smart phone
or flip phone, it is hard to imagine
being without it. It is our alarm
clock, calendar, watch, newspaper, Gameboy (do they make
those anymore?), calculator, message center, camera, camcorder,
social media device, and minicomputer. Did I mention cell
phones send and receive phone
calls? How did we ever manage
without them?
The district’s student information system (SIS) is JMC and has
the ability to not only send emails
to parents/guardians, but also
text messages. If parents/guardians are interested in receiving
text messages to their phones
concerning school announcements, the district website will
soon have directions to sign up
for this service.
In addition to this service, other individuals may be interested
in receiving school notifications,
particularly when it involves a
change in school schedule. This
would include grandparents
and other relatives and friends
who provide transportation and
child care.
Weather related announcements are available through the
normal media outlets, but now
anyone can subscribe to a free
notifications service called Remind. It is available by cell phone
or computer and will provide text
messages to all subscribers. The
subscription is free. Directions are
available on the district website
in both English and Spanish. The
directions will identify the class
code as @cgdw (for CGD Weather). Since this is a new attempt to
better communicate with district
patrons, we would appreciate
your feedback and suggestions
for improvement. Dr. Olson’s office number is 515-532-3423 and
email is [email protected].
Chris Norton
The morning of November
20th, Chris Norton will present
his inspirational story of overcoming adversity. Chris, while playing
football for Luther College sustained a spinal cord injury. The attending physician assessed his injury and indicated that he would
have a 3% chance of feeling or
moving any part of his body below his neck. When he shared that
his goal was to walk across the
stage to receive his diploma, the
physician discouraged him and
that walking again was not in his
future. Chris had a nurse who on
the other hand, was very supportive of his goal. Long story short,
he accomplished his dream.
The middle school will hear
Chris first at about 8:45 am. The
high school will follow with a
presentation at about 10:15 am.
Students from CAL were also invited to attend the high school
presentation.
Enrollment
The district was apprehensive
about the possible negative impact of the Avian Flu on the district’s enrollment. Although district enrollment declined, it was
feared it could be much worse.
School districts in Iowa officially count enrollment on the first
day of October. The official enFrom the Desk of the Superintendent
continued on next page
From the Desk of the
Superintendent
Continued from page 1
rollment is then used to establish
school funding for the following
school year. This sets the tone for
establishing the budget and expenditures for the year. With only
1.25% increase in State Supplemental Aid (SSA), the district will
need to look at ways to tighten
its belt and live with less. This is
increasingly becoming more difficult with the average SSA the
past five years of 1.8% and utility, transportation, insurance and
other staff expenses increasing at
a much greater rate.
The certified enrollment decreased 12.6 students compared
to last year. The enrollment count
last year was 953.7. This year was
941.1.
Many ask, “How do you get
a decimal in the official enrollment?” The state provides partial
student counts for homeschooled
students who either dual enroll or
receive homeschool assistance.
Dual enrolled students spend a
portion of the day in school taking classes or participating in
activities in addition to homeschooling. Homeschool Assistance is done by having a district
teacher visit the home to provide
assistance and support of the student and parent.
November Calendar
Friday, November 6
High School Musical “
Cinderella”
7:30 pm - High School Gym
Sunday, November 8
Music Boosters Meeting
Second Sunday Every Month
5:00 pm – Pizza Ranch
Wednesday, November 11
Veteran’s Day Program & Lunch
10:00 am - High School Gym/
Cafeteria
Wednesday, November 11
1:30 Early Out
Professional Development
Friday, November 13
Middle School Dance
7:00–10:00 pm - MS MPR/Gym
Monday, November 16
Preschool Parent’s Night
5:30–7:00 pm – CGS Elementary
Friday, November 20
1:30 Early Out
Parent/Teacher Conference Prep
Mon./Tues., November 23– 24
1:30 Early Out
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Wed./Th./Fri., November 25–27
No School
Thanksgiving Vacation
Athletic Director
Get to the Weight Room
Patty Sann, Athletic Director
Clarion-Goldfield-Dows athletes putting time in the weight
room are seeing positive gains
and benefits from the specific
programs written for the athletes
by former collegiate strength
coach, and now McFarland physical therapist, Jake Moore.
With the fall sports ending, a
new set of “out of season” athletes
emerge. Parents, weight room
hours are from 6:45 AM to 7:45
AM and 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM on MW-F.
Your support in getting your
son or daughter to the weight
room during these times is crucial, because developing good
technique and habits is essential.
Parents of Middle School athletes
should be aware that from 6:45
AM to 7:45 AM on T-Th is designated for middle school athletes.
Parents are welcome and encouraged to come watch a weight
room workout.
Please take time to read this
article recently printed in the
Iowa City Press Citizen:
http://www.press-citizen.com/story/
sports/high-school/2015/10/22/iowahigh-school-football-strength-trainingevolution-waukee-changes/74420436
School Lunch Reminders
If your financial situation has changed since the beginning of the year, you may still apply for Free
and Reduced Lunches. Applications are available at the high school office. Submit to Tori at the HS
as soon as possible since your new status, if qualified, does not become effective until the school has
received your application. Any charges prior to the date of receipt of the application are still owed to
the school.
Also, do not forget to monitor your child’s lunch money account and make deposits accordingly.
You may now add funds to your child’s lunch account with your credit or debit card through RevTrak
(go to clargold.org for more information).
Special Olympics News
Bowling Fun!
On Thursday October 22, 2015 seven high school
students and two elementary students competed in
the North Central area bowling for Special Olympics.
We are very proud of all of them. Cody Koob, Serenity Vinsand, Karlie Roberts, Brittany Clagett, Kristal
Sanchez, Errick McOllough, and Kelsey Hansch. Out
of the seven from the High School, four will go on and
compete in Des Moines on November 21. Please wish
Serenity, Kelsey, Brittney, and Kristal, “Good Luck!”
Elementary students Ashton Carlson and Porche’
Lilly joined the high school participants in attempting to qualify for the state tournament in November. Both students enjoyed bowling and had awesome scores, however neither earned the trip to Des
Moines. We want to thank the bowling alley in Belmond for allowing our students to use bowling balls
from their alley so Ashton and Porche had appropriate sized equipment to use in Fort Dodge.
High School News
Clothing Drive
“We were tasked by our Business teacher, Mr. EnTin, to complete a service learning project for our Introduction to Business class. After researching many
possibilities we choose a clothing drive to help the
people serviced by Krys Korner here in town,” said
Shelby Engh. The clothing drive was held October
10-16 at the high school. Maxheimer added, “We
made boxes to put the clothes in and hung signs
around the school and had announcements running
every day of the drive.”
“And we offered free popcorn coupons as an incentive to help,” said Keller.
Robert EnTin, Business teacher, said that “the students had fun while learning common core values
such as setting goals, how to communicate effectively with others, manage and resolve problems, learn
how to be an effective team leader and member,
and much more. The students not only learned but
served members of our community in the process.”
Seniors (left to right) Shelby Engh , Ashley Keller,
and Noah Maxheimer are shown delivering 234
pounds of clothing to Krys Korner, Clarion on October 19, 2016. The clothing was collected during
the recent clothing drive held at the high school
sponsored by the Masters of Business Club and their
Introduction to Business class at Clarion-GoldfieldDows High School.
High School News
How Media Impacts Our World
Tessa Yackle MA
English Instructor
The Mass Media class has been researching how
media impacts our world. They have looked at how
persuasive advertisements have changed the last
100 years, in the areas of television, movies, and
newspapers. The students had the opportunity to
examine a paper from World War II and compare it
to the newspapers of today. Students then created
posters and advertisements of their own, persuading
viewers to use a product that they use in their everyday lives.
The posters created were for cell phones, ear buds,
wrestling shoes, mascara, Treseme (hair products),
Post-It-notes, and C onverse shoes
Students researching a World War II newspaper.
Back row: Cody Koob, Paxton Etter, Brady Brott, Katie Malloy, Mayra Perez, Adrianna Samora.
Front: Kelsey Broderson, Cailey Nagel, Serenity Vinsand.
High School Band Notes
By Kevin Wesselink
Algona Band Day Parade
Congratulations to the marching band for an
outstanding performance at the Algona Band
Day Parade competition. 30 bands competed
in the parade competition and the CGD band
placed 3rd. This event is a big deal in North Central Iowa and our students performed awesome.
Thanks to the parents and friends who went to
the performance to see us compete!
Middle School Band Notes
By Tom Klaver
NCIBA MIDDLE SCHOOL HONOR BAND
Three students from the CGD Middle School Band have been selected to perform in the 2015-16
North Central Iowa Bandmasters Association (NCIBA) Middle School Honor Band. The Honor Band
Festival will be on Saturday, November 14 in Humboldt. Students from all over North Central Iowa will
gather to rehearse during the day, and will present a concert late Saturday afternoon. More information is available on the CGD MS Band website. http://cgdmsband.weebly.com/
Students representing CGD are: (from left to right)
Katherine Soenen, Clarinet
Daughter of Greg & Liz Soenen of Goldfield.
Kylie Klaver, Trumpet
Daughter of Jay & Julie Klaver of Clarion.
Elissa Dames, Flute
Daughter of Matthew & Mandy Dames of Clarion.
Congratulations!
Notes from the Middle School
and High School Music Department
By David Ackerman
ALL-STATE AUDITIONS
On Saturday, October 24th,
two CGDS high school vocal
students auditioned for the AllState Chorus in Hampton: Amaya Watne (soprano) and Max
Powers (bass). Even though no
student was selected for the
All-State Chorus, the students
had a great time and learned a
bunch about what it takes to be
an All-Stater. One of the most
difficult things is that they audition against schools like Mason
City, Cedar Falls, Marshall town,
Waverly-Shell Rock, and Clear
Lake. Thank you to these music
students for their hard work and
dedication to excellence! (comments from David Ackerman)
NORTH CENTRAL DISTRICT
HONOR CHOIR
On Friday, November 13th,
the North Central District of
Iowa will host a very large honor choir for students in grades
7-12. Approximately 500-600
vocal students from north central Iowa will participate in this
awesome vocal music opportunity. The concert will take place
in the NIACC gym at 7:00 p.m.
on Friday, Nov. 13th. Admission
is charged at the door.
Four choirs will perform on
this concert: 7th/8th grade girls’:
7th/8th grade boys’: 9th/10th
grade mixed, and high school
students who have auditioned
for the All-State Chorus on October 24. Rehearsals for the
7th/8th grade girls,’ 7th/8th
grade boys,’ and 9th/10th grade
mixed choir will run before and
after school from Monday, Oct.
26-Thursday, Nov. 12th.
7th/8th Grade Girls’ Choir
Jaidyn Lockwood, Arianna Summers, Jocelyn Hernandez, Kylie
Klaver, Alexis Barnes, Hannah Jo
Gustafson, Katherine Soenen,
Mia Toomsen
7th/8th Grade Boys’ Choir
Mario de Jesus Acat
Middle School Select
Choir Auditions
On Monday, Nov. 16, Mr. Ackerman will hold auditions for the
middle school select choir. Any
middle school student who is
currently enrolled in choir may
audition for this group.
The middle school select
choir will rehearse EVERY Monday and Wednesday morning
from 7:30-8:15 a.m. Students
must arrange transportation
to the school on Monday and
Wednesday mornings.
This
group will perform at the March
and May middle school concerts.
9th/10th Grade Mixed Choir
High School Select
Choir Auditions
Alondra Aragon, Sidney Cross,
Meghan
Geary,
MaKenzie
Goodell, Cheyenne Harle, Meleah Johnson, Lizbeth Antonio,
Erica Boeset, Angela Castro,
Cyndi Fregoso, Mariah Frye, Angela Garcia, Abby Kraft, Cassandra Mendoza, Haley Nerem, Gracie Olson, Madison Pate, Emily
Rasmussen, Sarah Seaba, Connor Johnson, Brennon Wiezorek,
Zach Fields, Carter Diet, Max
Powers, Ryan Watne
On Tuesday, Nov. 17, Mr. Ackerman will hold auditions for
the high school select choir.
Any high school student who is
currently enrolled in choir may
audition for this group. The
high school select choir will
rehearse EVERY Tuesday and
Friday morning from 7:30-8:15
a.m. This group will perform at
the March and May high school
concerts.
Mixed Choir (consisting of
students who auditioned for
All-State)
Amaya Watne
CLARION-GOLDFIELD-DOWS HIGH SCHOOL VOCAL MUSIC DEPARTMENT
proudly presents:
“CINDERELLA”
Friday, Nov. 6 & Saturday, Nov. 7 - CGDHS Gym
7:00 p.m. (Doors open at 6:30 p.m.)
$7 for Adults, $5 for Students (Passes cannot be honored at this event.)
Cast
Kennedy Goodell...........................Cinderella
Lucas Lienemann..............................Herald, Lord, Political Figure, Knight
Max Powers.....................................Topher
Zach Fields...........................................Sam, Knight
Eveie Sherman................................Madame
Cierra Milner.......................................Pageboy
Noah Maxheimer...........................Sebastian
Megan Zwiefel....................................Knight
Emma Konvalinka.........................Marie, Fairy Godmother
Cheyenne Harle..............................Gabrielle Sydney Terhark..................................Knight
Gracie Olson........................................Knight
Jordan Hennigar............................Charlotte
Connor Johnson.................................Knight
Carter Dietz.....................................Jean-Michel
Emily Rasmussen..............................Courier
Nick Haechler.................................Lord Pinkleton
Abby Kraft............................................Fox, Footman
Dylan Pate........................................Duke of Cheshire, Herald, Knight
Sidney Cross........................................Raccoon, Driver
Zach Frye .........................................Earl of Cavendish, Herald, Knight
Ladies at the Ball
Alondra Aragon, Meghan Geary, Josie Nelson, Chelsie Dow, Sydney Terhark, Lilian Swanson, Mekenzie Alberts, Claire Davis,
Cassie Hanson, Taylor Hagie, Mayra Perez, Amaya Watne, Megan Zwiefel, Emily Rasmussen, Gracey Olson, Kaylie Bricker, Shelby Engh,
Paeten Schultz, Samantha Nerem
Townspeople
Meleah Johnson, Alejandra Delacruz, Kayleen Johnson, Angela Castro, Brenna Harklau, Cassandra Mendoza, Cyndi Fregoso, Angela Garcia,
Karoline Moegeivang
Ballroom Partners
Jacob O’Connor
Zach Leist
Bryce Tegtmeyer
Salavador Fregoso
Jarrod Littlejohn
MUSICAL DIRECTOR
Bryce Hamilton
Eryn Ulven
Brady Brott
Zach Martin
Brandon Schultz
David Ackerman
Kamren Jergenson
Calen Rosenbaum
Logan Robertson
Alex Harrah
DRAMA DIRECTOR
Tessa Yackle
ACCOMPANISTSCHOREOGRAPHER
David Ackerman, Tom Klaver, Trey Jackson, Mariah Frye
Shelby Engh
_____________________________________________________________Production Staff__________________________________________________________
Stage Managers..................................................................................................................................................Brittany Boeset, Bailey DeVries, Erica Boeset
Spotlights.......................................................................................................................................................................................... Hannah Kapka, Kaylee Smith
Special Effects...........................................................................................................................................................................................................Jon Ahrendsen
Set Design............................................................................................................................................................................................. Bianca Baker, Tessa Yackle
Set Painters........................................................................................................................................................................................ Tessa Yackle & Musical Cast
Set Construction.............................................................................................................................................. Lucas Lienemann, Zach Frye, and Carter Dietz
Program Cover/Poster Design.................................................................................................................................................................................. Brady Brott
Program Layout...........................................................................................................................................................................................................Deb Coldiron
T-Shirt Design.............................................................................................................................................................................................................Kaylie Bricker
Costumes............................................................................................................................................................................................Cassie Hanson, Shelby Engh
Make-up/Hair..................................................................................................................................................... Tori Etter, Berta Alberts, Tess Roseburrough
Special Thanks to …………
The Clarion-Goldfield-Dows School Board, Administration and Faculty & The Custodial Staff; Clarion-Goldfield-Dows
Music Boosters; The Wright County Monitor; Hardware Hank and Steve Sebby; Paddle Wheel Players and Eagle
Grove Schools for allowing us to use many costumes and set pieces; The cast of “CINDERELLA” for their long hours of
rehearsal and commitment to do their very best; The students who are not in chorus, who galantly stepped in to fill
out our ballroom scenes; The parents of the cast and crew for their patience and understanding; And finally, to you,
the audience, for your attendance tonight and your support of the Fine Arts at Clarion-Goldfield-Dows High School.
Due to contractual obligations, there is no photography or video during the performance. You may take pictures at the
end of the show. Please turn of all watch alarms, cellular phones, and pagers. Thank you!
Middle School News
STAR WARS
Free Reading Competition
Mrs. Denise Ulven
Every year in 7th and 8th grade Reading Literature
classes, I try to develop a theme to help motivate our
students to practice their reading skills. This year our
theme is “stAR WARS”. Many students are familiar
with this classic movie and since Disney’s new movie
is coming out this December, I had to take advantage
and connect it with the kids passing their AR quizzes. Each of the six class periods are “at AR war” against
the other class periods. Each student reads one or
more books of his/her own choosing within a threefour week time period and passes each AR quiz. The class with the most pages read and most AR
stars wins the competition! The first competition,
held during the month of October, has concluded. The winning class periods were 7th period for 7th
grade and 2nd period for 8th grade. It is meant to be
friendly competition and a way to be proud of all of
us as active readers!
Overall, every student who reads, wins. The amazing total number of pages read by all 7th and 8th
graders was 62,245! Every year, I am impressed with how much the
majority of kids really do like to read! All they need
is encouragement, continual support, and someone
to listen when they want to talk about their “really
good book”! May the force be strong within them
as they continue to have fun with our reading theme
this year!
Picture of just three of the top 8th grade readers
during the month of October: Nolan Anderson, Katherine Soenen, and Kylie Klaver. Also pictured is Max
Smith, 7th grader, who helped develop the 3D Star
War figures for the bulletin board design. Credit also
given to designer Deb Coldiron for creating the Star
Wars “opening crawl” on the bulletin board.
Picture of 7th graders from 7th period, putting up
the stars they earned by passing their AR quizzes.
Zero Late Assignments Ice Cream Celebration
A BIG thank you to the Dows Methodist Church who sponsored our homework incentive celebration. 166
students built their own sundaes on Friday, October 9th. Middle School News
Road Less Traveled Conference
Guest Speaker
Eighth grade girls recently had the opportunity to attend the Taking
the Road Less Traveled Conference at Iowa State University in Ames. The
conference provides girls the chance to learn about opportunities available in science, technology, engineering and math fields by interacting
with professionals and engaging in experiential activities. Participants
spent the day on the Iowa State University campus and had the chance
to meet current ISU students pursuing STEM degrees. Students attending from CGD Middle School were: Mia Sandoval, Monic Fonseca, Alexa
Krukow, Kylie Klaver, Arianna Summers, Perla Padilla, Katherine Lopez,
Hannahjo Gustafson, Jocelyn Hernandez, Paige Willey, Alicia Fankhauser, Lacy Buchanan, Courtney Harle, Emma Schluttenhofer,Quinn Hansch,
Camryn Reece, Jennifer Lorenzo, Hannah Tew and Katherine Soenen.
Middle School students had
guest speaker and motivator
Bill Cordes spend the morning with them on Tuesday, October 13th. His message of
“YOGOWYPI” (You Only Get Out
What You Put In) was well received by all in attendance.
North Central Conference
Make A Difference Project
Congratulations to Cole Lindaman, Billy & Nathan Stuck, Natalie Kirstein, Alaina Friesleben, Kendall Lienemann, Courtney Harle, and Reed
Abbas for being selected to join 56 other students from the North Central Conference. Guest speaker Craig Hillier spent the entire day with
the group working on leadership and communication skills. The event
took place at Lake Cornelia on October 7th.
Raking leaves for Homebase!
Middle School News
Make A Difference Project
Mrs. Ulven
Mrs. Ulven’s Homebase, known as Ulven’s Jedi this year, held a bake
sale on October 16, 2015 to raise money for Meals from the Heartland. The 7th and 8th grade students met two times after school to make and
bake a variety of items such as berry muffins, Scotcharoo bars, Coco
Pebble bars, and Whipper Snapper cookies. The bake sale was scheduled to run on both Friday morning and Friday after school, however,
all items were sold out in the morning! Many thanks to Mr. Holmes and
Mrs. Askelsen as well, as they worked along with these fine students who
donated time, ingredients, and work to raise $56.00 for this good cause.
Maya LaRue, Quinn Hansch, Paige Willey,
and Alaina Friesleben pictured baking.
Credit to Ashely Sorio, photography.
Annual Pickle Making Contest in Apps
Mr. Jay Klaver
The 8th grade Apps class held its annual pickle making contest. 1st Place: Blaire Rasmussen, Courtney Harle, Kylie Klaver
2nd Place: Emily Hagmeier, Chloe Hanson, Perla Padilla
3rd Place (tied): Cassidy Bradburn, Lacy Buchanan, Sherice Gates and
Caden Sisson, Kaden Bricker, Diego Yepez
New Pads in the Multi-Purpose Room.
Mr. Steve Haberman
A BIG thank you to Sports Graphics for making this happen as new pads were installed around the
gym. Your support is greatly appreciated!
Middle School Peer Helpers
Peer Helpers Annual Glow Run
Mrs. Margaret Askelsen
The Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Peer Helpers sponsored a 5.06 KM Glow Run on October 10 to raise
money for Meals from the Heartland, Salvation
Army (local), Feed My Starving Children, and Mary’s
Place and Sharing and Caring Hands (for the homeless). Over 225 people registered for the event and a
total of $2350.00 was raised. The Glow Run committee consisting of Cole Lineman, chairman, Hannah Gustafson, Alexa Krukow,
Quinn Hansch, Katherine Soenen, Katherine Lopez,
Hannah Tew, Jennifer Lopez, Paige Willey, Emma
Schluttnehofer, Billy Stuck, Monic Fonseca, Maya
LaRue, Camryn Reece and Arianna Summers.
The Glow Run committee as well as the other
80 Peer Helpers would like to thank our sponsors.
Thank you: Monsanto, First State Bank, First Citizens
Bank and Iowa Specialty Clinic. Donations from the
Ruritans, Holmes Christmas Club, Rotary and First
Citizens Bank and the First State Bank also helped
us provide a Glow Run store for people to purchase
“glow” items. A special thanks to the parents who contributed
their time to this event: Erica Lineman, Jenny Askelsen, and Nikki Conlon.
Peer Helpers Make Nike Hike a Big Success
The Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Peer Helpers volunteered for the recent Annual Night Hike at Lake Cornelia.
Several students worked as guides, others performed a skit to entertain visitors.
Middle School/Elementary Art News
What’s Up in the Art Room?
by Kaira Downing
First, peeking into the 8th grade classroom, the students
were introduced to Optical Illusion Art! My students first
took a look at the works of Julian Beever. He is an amazing
Optical Illusion artist that works with chalk in Giant Scales.
We then talked about how to create the illusion of space
using line, shape, and value. This is a great starter lesson because it covers a lot of elements of art. Students started by
creating their own template for their cube! Because drawing an optical Illusion can be just as confusing as looking at
one, we did each square step by step together. When they
were done, students had to choose 3 different squares to
represent complementary colors. They then added value to
make the space seem more extreme. I am very pleased and
impressed with how these turned out.
Also pictured here is 2nd grade’s Mondrian Spider Webs.
This was a fun, quick lesson to review the Primary colors and
connect with an artist they were introduced to last year. We
talked about how we did not have to copy the artist exactly.
We were using his art as inspiration! It was a great way to
review and add some fun color in the halls! Great job second grade.
Elementary
Enlightener
By Tricia Rosendahl
It is hard to believe it is already
November and our first quarter
of school has already come and
gone. Elementary parents probably noticed that first quarter
report cards might have looked
a little different this year. This
is our first year of being able to
partner with JMC (student information system) to generate our
report cards. It has been a work
in progress with the support staff
at JMC. Please bear with us as we
learn this new process and make
changes to the format throughout the year.
In November we will have another opportunity to meet with
parents and families for our second set of Parent-Teacher conferences. We will be scheduling
conferences for Monday, November 23rd and Tuesday, November
24th. Watch for a note to inquire
which day you prefer and then
soon after another note for when
your actual time is scheduled. Remember, our goal for conferences
is always 100% attendance. We
appreciate your help in reaching
this goal.
Thank you for your part in making your child’s year a great one!
Don’t forget to take time to read
with your child each day, set aside
time for homework, and communicate with your child’s teacher
on a regular basis. Feel free to
contact me at any time with questions or concerns.
See you at Conferences and
have a very Happy Thanksgiving
everyone!
Elementary School News
ELL News
Hannah McLaughlin
Totem Poles
Mrs. Jensen, 5th gr. Social Studies
The 5th grade social studies
students started the year out
learning about Native Americans.
As part of the unit we learned
about totem poles and their
significance to the families. The
students then created their own
totem poles that represented important parts and people in their
family. Take a look at these creative projects.
We have been working hard in the ELL classrooms. There is a ton of
vocabulary building that is done in ELL. This year Mrs. Smith and I are
working hard with the elementary classroom teachers to build vocabulary and concept lessons off of the reading units that are being taught
in the regular classroom. We work hard to create pictures, video clips,
images, and movement to help student learn English.
One of our classrooms was reading a story about a wig. A wig was
brought in to show the students what a wig is and how it can look, and
of course we had to touch it and have a good laugh. You can see one
class having fun with the wig in the photo. Other topics we have been
covering are; rainbows, how animals help people, how history affects
us. There are many topics to cover. All the students have great thoughts
that they add to enhance our classroom conversations.
APPLES, APPLES, APPLES!
Mrs. Carpenter and Mrs. Voigts
The 4-year old preschool students have been studying apples
in the classroom. In October, we
went on a field trip to the Community Orchard at Fort Dodge.
The students learned about apple
orchards, colors of apples, how
apples are sorted, and how apple
cider is made. The students each
picked an apple from a tree and
they tasted apple cider. Our visit
to the apple orchard was a culminating activity for our study
on apples.
Elementary School News
3-Year-Old Preschool and 3rd Grade
Mrs. Stundahl
The third grade students are working with Mrs. Stundahl this year
to come up with activities to do with the 3-year-old preschoolers. Each
month the 3rd graders will be invited to come into the room and work
with the preschoolers. This month they made scarecrows; I am excited
to see what they will think of next!
1st Quarter Science!
Mrs. Jensen, 5th grade science
The 5th grade science students
had the opportunity to play scientist for a day. They chose a partner, an experiment, and created a
hypothesis based on their experiment. They then followed the scientific method and showed the
class how to do their experiment,
and shared what they learned.
Solar Cars
By Mrs. Jensen, 5th Grade Science
“GET A GRIP “
By Mrs. Jensen, 5th grade science
The 5th grade students recently worked on a group experiment
on friction. They were to set up a
slope to test with popsicle sticks,
changing the friction to see if they
were an inexperienced skier what
they would want for a slope and
what they want for friction.
The 5th grade science classes recently had the opportunity to build
solar cars and then take them outdoors and try them out. The solar car
kits were on loan from the Center for Energy Education Development at
UNI College.
The students were given a bag with all parts, directions, and then
given a class period to work with a group and build these cars. Next
they took them outside and tested them to see how they ran. After returning indoors the students were to write two paragraphs
about their cars and how they would modify them if needed.
Another great day using solar energy!
Elementary School News
Clarion Fire Department Poster Contest Winners
Fire Station Field Trip
Mrs. Carpenter
Contest winners—1st ROW (L to R): Ashlynn Smith, Nazaria Matul, Cooper Reiland, Jozie Salazar, Jillian Mewes, Marlee Thompson; 2nd: Tristan Kakacek, Ethan Hasty, Lizeth Zenon, Gizelle Perez, Jesus Lomeli, Morgan
Goodell; 3rd: Mackenna Hasty, Jacob Schermer, Karlee Lehman, Aysa Lyons, Gabrielle Egland, Ellie Mewes
The Clarion Fire Department recently partnered with the ClarionGoldfield-Dows Elementary to host a Poster Contest in conjunction
with Fire Safety Week. Students in grades Kindergarten – 5th grade
had the opportunity to share their ideas fitting with the 2015 theme,
“Hear the Beep Where You Sleep” The firefighters then had the grueling
task of selecting 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners for every grade level.
Congratulations to the winners!
Fire Station Field Trip
Mrs. Stundahl
The first full week of October is
fire safety week and Prep-K went
on their annual first station field
trip. We had lots of fun spraying
the hose and sitting in the truck.
We also learned about some first
safety rules and what to do if we
have a fire in our house. Thank
you to Pete, Bryce, and Travis for
taking the time to teach us this
important information!
Students in 4-year old preschool visited the Clarion Fire Station during Fire Prevention Week
to learn about fire safety. The
firefighters talked to the students
about STOP, DROP, & ROLL, crawl
low under the smoke, and dial
9-1-1. A firefighter put on all of
his firefighter clothes so the students could see what he looked
like dressed as a firefighter. The
students took turns squirting the
water hose and climbing in and
looking at the fire truck. The students were given a sticker, a firefighter’s hat, and a bag of goodies. Thank you to the Clarion firefighters for welcoming us to the
fire station. It was a fun learning
experience.
Early School Dismissals and No School Days
Wednesday, November 11 - 1:30 Early Out
Mon./Tues., November 23– 24 - 1:30 Early Out/Conferences
Friday, November 20 - 1:30 Early Out
Wed./Th./Fri., November 25–27 - Thanksgiving Vacation