June 2016 - Northfield Public Schools

Greetings Families!
June 2016 Gazette
David Craft,
Principal
507.645.3500
Attendance Line
507.645.3506
Another great year has gone by and Greenvale Park continues to shine. I would like to officially say good-bye to our 5th grade students, and thank their families for all the support they
have given us through the years. Our fifth graders’ legacy will be their understanding of and
having lived out the African saying, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” It strikes me that this year’s fifth graders collaborated well together over the past six
years: helping others to feel like they belong; respecting others; and working hard.
We know that as our fifth graders move into middle school, high school, and beyond our
Geckos will do great things for their families and their country! Once a Gecko! Always a
Gecko!
There will be few changes next year. The following shows our grade level teacher teams at
Greenvale Park to date.
Kindergarten:
1st Grade Contemporary:
1st Grade Compañeros:
2nd Grade Contemporary:
2nd Grade Compañeros:
3rd Grade Contemporary:
3rd Grade Compañeros:
4th Grade Contemporary:
4th Grade Compañeros:
5th Grade Contemporary:
5th Grade Compañeros:
Elizabeth Ziemann, Tiffany Malecha, Stephanie Hagberg,
Kathy Flicek
Mary Beth Youngblut, Sari Zach, Jessica Nivala
Lily Landry
Anne Larson, Kris Johnson/Betsy McLaughlin (team
teaching), Briana Bulfer (Cheryl Dueffert is Mrs. Bulfer’s
long-term substitute and will begin the school year)
Danielle Amundson
Dana Gearing, Bridget Timerson, TBN
TBN
Kimbra Dimick, Alisha Clarey, Sheila Hetzel
Robert Garcia
Michelle Sickler, Jacalyn Harding, Josh Spitzack
Amy Tacheny
Some Changes:
**Bonnie Klamm, Special Education EA, is retiring at the end of this year, and has given 21
years of service to Northfield Public Schools. I wish her well in retirement.
**Kari Thompson, 3rd grade Compañeros teacher, has accepted a position in Eden Prairie to
teach in a full immersion classroom. We wish her success and a long career serving children
and families in Eden Prairie.
**Brenda Kragseth, our Media Center EA, will be leaving Greenvale Park to devote full time
to completing her college degree.
**We are currently seeking two new third grade teachers for the 2016-2017 school year.
**Jamie Moyer, our DCD teacher, has been transferred to Bridgewater.
**Carley Maley, Resource Room teacher, has accepted a position at Prairie Creek Community
School. Best wishes to Carley as she begins this new journey.
Ready, Set, Go Day will take place at Greenvale Park on Wednesday, August 31. Please
make plans to participate. It is my hope that by giving parents this information this far ahead
of time it will be easier for parents to make arrangements to be here. Here are a few things to
know going into it:
(Mr. Craft’s letter continued to page 2)
(Mr. Craft’s letter continued from page 1)
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Your child will be assigned a specific time to visit. This information will be included in the teacher placement letter in midAugust. Plan on staying about an hour. Our hours of operation that day will be 7:30am-3:30pm.
Your child will be scheduled for roughly 30 minutes with his/her classroom teacher.
While your child is with his/her teacher, you will asked to fill out a brief social/emotional inventory, in the hallway, regarding your child. It should only take five minutes.
You will be able to visit the cafeteria and make meal payments (Breakfast/Lunch and Snack Cart) while your child is being
assessed.
Your child will be able to bring his/her school supplies and get those put away that day.
If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Families of Kindergarten age students:
If you have a child who will be starting Kindergarten next fall, please come in and complete the registration forms as soon as
possible. If you have any questions regarding Kindergarten for your child, please call me at 507-645-3501.
Have a Great Summer:
I sincerely appreciate our Greenvale Park families and community at large. I give thanks for the great care and empathy shown
by all to our students, faculty, and staff. On behalf of our faculty and staff, I hope you have a blessed, safe, and fun summer
vacation. I look forward to seeing everyone back in the fall.
GVP YEARBOOKS ARE IN:
Yearbooks have been delivered to classroom teachers for those students who pre-ordered yearbooks. There are a few extra yearbooks now for sale in the Greenvale Park office, while supply lasts for the amount of $14. If your student did not pre-order a
yearbook and would still like to have one, stop in at the Greenvale Park office and pick one up. Checks can be made payable to
the GVP PTO.
Saludos familias:
Otro gran año escolar ha terminado y Greenvale Park sigue brillando. Me gustaría decirles adiós oficialmente a los estudiantes de
5o grado, y gracias a sus familias por todo el apoyo que nos han dado a través de los años. El legado de nuestros estudiantes de
quinto va a ser el que entienden y han vivido siguiendo el proverbio africano que dice, “Si quieres ir deprisa, sigue solo. Si quieres llegar
lejos, sigue unido a los demás”. Me parece a mí que los estudiantes de quinto de este año han colaborado juntos muy bien durante los
pasados seis años: ayudando a los demás para que sientan que pertenecen; respetando a los demás; y trabajando mucho.
Sabemos que nuestros Geckos de quinto grado, a su paso por el middle school, high school y más allá van a hacer grandes cosas
por sus familias y su país. ¡Una vez que uno/a es un/a Gecko! ¡Siempre será un/a Gecko!
Habrá unos cuantos cambios el próximo año. Lo que sigue a continuación muestra nuestros maestros para Greenvale Park.
Kindergarten:
1er Grado Contemporáneo:
1er Grado Compañeros:
2º Grado Contemporáneo:
2º Grado Compañeros:
Elizabeth Ziemann, Tiffany Malecha, Stephanie Hagberg, Kathy Flicek
Mary Beth Youngblut, Sari Zach, Jessica Nivala
Lily Landry
Anne Larson, Kris Johnson/Betsy McLaughlin Briana Bulfer (Cheryl Dueffert, long-term
sub to begin the year for Mrs. Bulfer)
Danielle Amundson
(Mr Craft’s letter continued on page 3)
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(Mr. Craft’s letter continued from page 2)
3er Grado Contemporáneo:
3er Grado Compañeros:
4º Grado Contemporáneo:
4º Grado Compañeros:
5º Grado Contemporáneo:
5º Grado Compañeros:
Dana Gearing, Bridget Timerson TBN(sin determinar)
TBN(sin determinar)
Kimbra Dimick, Alisha Clarey, Sheila Hetzel
Robert Garcia
Michelle Sickler, Jacalyn Harding, Josh Spitzack
Amy Tacheny
Algunos cambios:
**Bonnie Klamm, asistente de educación especial se jubila al final de este año tras una dedicación de 21 años de servicio en las
escuelas públicas de Northfield. Le deseo que le vaya bien en su jubilación.
**Kari Thompson, maestra de 3er grado de Compañeros ha aceptado una posición en Eden Prairie para enseñar en un programa
completo de inmersión. Le deseamos éxito y una larga carrera sirviendo a los niños y familias en Eden Prairie.
**Brenda Kragseth, nuestra ayudante del Media Center, va a dejar Greenvale Park para dedicarse a tiempo completo a terminar
sus estudios universitarios.
**Estamos buscando maestros/as para tercer grado uno/a para el programa Contemporáneo y uno/a para Compañeros para el
año escolar 2016-2017.
**Jamie Moyer, nuestra maestra de DCD, va a estar en Bridgewater.
**Carley Maley, maestra de la sala de recursos ha aceptado una posición en la escuela de Prairie Creek Community School. Le
deseamos a Carley que le vaya muy bien en esta época del comienzo de un nuevo episodio en su carrera profesional.
El día de “Preparados, listos, ya” (Ready, Set, Go) en Greenvale Park será el miércoles 31 de agosto. Por favor, hagan
planes para participar en ese día. Espero que al darles a los padres y madres esta información con tanto tiempo de antelación va a
permitir que sea más fácil para los padres y madres hacer planes para poder estar ese día. Aquí tienen algunas de las cosas que se
encontrarán ese día:
♦ A su hijo/a hará se le asignará una hora concreta para que venga a la visita. Esta información se incluirá en la carta con la
maestra o maestro que tendrá su hijo/a y que recibirán a mediados de agosto. Deberán estar más o menos una hora. La jornada será desde las 7:30 hasta las 3:30.
♦ Su hijo/a estará más o menos 30 minutos con su maestra o maestro.
♦ Mientras que su hija/o está con su maestro o maestra les pedirán que rellenen una breve lista de cuestiones sociales y emocionales sobre su hijo/a, en el pasillo. No debería ser más de 5 minutos.
♦ Podrán visitar la cafetería y hacer pagos para las comidas (desayuno, almuerzo y el carro de las meriendas-Snack Cart) mientras su hijo/a recibe unas evaluaciones.
♦ Su hija/a podrá traer su material escolar y dejarlo en la escuela ese día.
Si tienen preguntas, no duden en ponerse en contacto conmigo.
Familias con estudiantes en edad para entrar en Kindergarten:
Si tienen una niña o niño que va a empezar Kindergarten el próximo otoño, por favor, vengan y rellenen los formularios de inscripción lo antes posible. Si tienen preguntas sobre Kindergarten para su hijo/a, por favor, llámenme al 507-645-3500.
Espero que tengan un verano estupendo:
Agradezco sinceramente el tener a nuestras familias de Greenvale Park y nuestra comunidad. Doy las gracias por el cuidado y
empatía que muestran todos nuestros estudiantes, maestras/os y empleadas/os. De parte de todos los maestros y empleados,
espero que tengan unas estupendas y divertidas vacaciones de verano. Tengo ganas de verlos a todos de vuelta en el otoño.
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Safety Patrol News...Donna Hall
Greenvale Park Safety Patrol members concluded their year with a year end
celebration. All members played Bingo, received congratulatory certificates and
concluded the celebration with ice cream sundaes and the announcement of the
Co-Captains for next school year.
CONGRATULATIONS to the Greenvale Park Elementary Safety Patrol CoCaptains for the school year 2016-2017! The Captains will be attending the
Captains’ Campus Camp on August 18th , being held this year at Greenvale Park
Elementary. These Co-Captains, along with members of the other safety patrol
captains’ teams from St. Dominic’s School and Bridgewater Elementary, will
receive training from the Northfield Police Department School Resources
Officer. Greenvale Park Safety Patrol Co-Captains for 2016-2017 are pictured above, from left to right: Jennifer Salinas, Sophia
Murphy, Elise Hoekstra, Jack Caton, Charlie Rice, and Luis Rosas Gutierrez
PTO Trash-for-Cash Guide
There are many ways you can help the PTO earn money for our school! One of the simplest is to save items that you would
otherwise throw away! Many companies will give GVP money for proof of purchase of their products, do you have any of these
items in your house?
Box Tops for Education (General Mills): For every Box Top turned in, GVP earns money from General
Mills, and by participating in annual promotions we can earn even more!
Labels for Education (Campbells): The Labels for Education Program provides points for all UPCs collected, and those points can be used to purchase a variety of school supplies and equipment through the LFE catalog. In addition,
by meeting certain goals, sending in collections by certain dates, and participating in LFE promotions, GVP
earns bonus points that further grow our LFE “bank balance”! Be sure to clip the whole UPC with the
points!
Loaves for Learning (Country Hearth/Village Hearth): Each Loaves for Learning barcode earns GVP
5¢!
Milk Moola and Donuts to Dough (Kwik Trip): GVP can earn money by saving caps from Kwik Trip milk jugs, orange juice
and flavored waters top strips from bags of Nature’s Touch milk, ice cream UPCs, and price ovals from Glaziers Donuts. Each
cap and UPC you send to school is worth 5¢, while donut price ovals are worth 10¢!
Save Five for Schools (Land O Lakes): By saving caps from Land O Lakes milk jugs, GVP can earn up to $10,000 per year.
Each cap you send to school is worth 5¢!
EconoFoods Receipts (EconoFoods): Bring in your receipts from your shopping at EconoFoods, and for each $150,000 in
receipts, our local EconoFoods will send GVP a check for $1000!
Our Family Labels for Learning (EconoFoods): Clip UPC barcodes from Our Family products, and
watch for Our Family bonus labels at the checkout. GVP earns 5¢ for each barcode/label!
Labels for Learning (Coborn’s): Coborn’s offers points for purchases and provides a coupon for
those points at the register. If you shop at Coburn’s or utilize their delivery service you can earn points
for GVP. Each point is worth 1¢.
Donate 25¢ to GVP (HolyLand Brands): If you buy HolyLand products, such as hummus, each package includes a coupon for
25¢ for donation to your favorite school!
Student Council News...Carrie Rice and Ryan Driscoll
It was a wonderful year for us in Student Council! We did many service projects this year Trick or Treating for UNICEF, Stuff
the Turkey food drive, making ornaments for the residents at Three Links, sending cards for soldiers and honoring our staff here
at Greenvale Park. We celebrated our last day together on May 13th with a sweet treat.
We thank all the parents for bringing their students in early for student council meetings.
Please continue to save pop tabs during the summer months for the Ronald McDonald House. Have a safe and fun summer!
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Tiffany Malecha named Minnesota Agriculture in the
Classroom Teacher of the Month
Congratultions, Tiffany!! Below is an excerpt from the Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom News article
about Tiffany and her passion for teaching and agriculture:
“Where and what level do you currently teach and why did you choose to become an educator?
I am a Kindergarten teacher at Greenvale Park Elementary School in Northfield, Minnesota. I chose to
become a teacher because I have a passion for children and to help all students reach their fullest potential.
“How has agriculture and the Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom Program and resources impacted your students
and instruction?
The Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom Program has previously provided all the Kindergarten students experience on a diary
farm first hand along with providing age appropriate resources for my students in the classroom. I love that we have partnered
with a local farm, which provides the opportunity for us to watch videos about a local farm, have a farmer come into the classroom, and use the farmer as another reliable resource.
“I was blessed to have been raised on a dairy farm in Rice County so the students have also had the opportunity to watch a video
about our family farm. During the video one of my students kept asking about why the horse was getting milked, and in fact it
was a cow. This child has never had the opportunity to see a cow before. Exposure at a young age is important, and it helped the
children realize milk comes from a cow not from the grocery store. The resources provided by MAITC lead to strong educational
discussions, which is another reason why I use these resources.
“Describe any agriculture based projects you have been involved in lately.
In our classroom we just finished up our Farm Theme, but that does not mean it will not be incorporated into other subject areas
throughout the school year. During farm week one of the exciting things we did was make butter. This was a very simple science
activity we did, but we incorporated many standards - we made predictions about what the heavy whipping cream would do if we
shook it, we graphed the number of students who liked and disliked the butter, and we wrote about the texture of the butter. “
News from our Nurse, Julie Ochs, RN
Spring has arrived, and along with it is allergies. Some are affected more than others and allergens can trigger Asthma. Below is
an article on basic information on allergies and there is more in the article if further information is desired.
More information can be found on
http://www.webmd.com/allergies/guide/allergy-basics?print=true#
Strep has also been going through some of the classrooms, some possible symptoms of strep are fever, sore
throat, nausea and possible rash. Any combination of these symptoms can appear. Some of the ways to prevent strep is good
hand washing, not sharing things like water bottles, glasses/cups, toothbrushes. Strep is a bacteria that can be transmitted
by contact with droplets from an infected. person's cough, sneeze or breath.
http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/tc/strep-throat-topic-overview?page=2
If concerned or unsure consult or physician. Strep can be serious if left untreated.
Information has been sent out to the fifth graders regarding immunizations and health information needed for middle school.
Always remember the key to staying healthy is a healthy diet, exercise and getting plenty of rest. This will help not getting worn
down and more susceptible to illness.
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Community Services Summer 2016
Summer registration for 2016 is now open! For more information or to register for
any Community Services programs, please visit us online at www.nfld.k12.mn.us (follow
the Community Services link), call 507-664-3649, or at our office on the first floor of the
Northfield Community Resource Center at 1651 Jefferson Parkway, Northfield. Scholarships are available for all programs
Summer is right around the corner and we have some great youth recreation programs
and camps including youth baseball and softball, tennis, soccer, volleyball, summer track,
lacrosse and beginner and advanced skateboarding at the new Northfield Skate Park.
Favorites such as Superkids, Skyhawks Mini-Hawk Camp and USTA (QuickStart) Tennis will
be offered again this summer. Various outdoor activity programs are also available including an introduction to archery, trap shooting, fishing, as well as ultimate frisbee, disc
golf, fencing and the always popular Safety Camp, for rising 4th – 7th graders.
Community Services also has many youth enrichment camps and programs this summer
including American Red Cross Babysitter’s Certification Courses, Project Runway Sewing and Design
Camp, LEGO® Robotics, Destination Mars Model Rocketry and Grandmasters of Chess Camp. New this year are some S.T.E.M.-themed
camps offered through Mad Science® including Geology Rocks!, Forensic Lab and Eureka!The Inventor’s Camp. Watch Me Draw art
camps are also always a favorite including themes such as: STAR WARS, Pirates and Shipwrecks, Sea Quest, Artsy Girl Posh Art and
Sparkle and Bling on Everything! Watch Me Draw is also offering a one-day sneak peak workshop for all week-long camps this year,
to enable students to sample two projects before signing up.
Our Aquatics program will also run American Red Cross Swim lessons, levels 1 through 6; as well as the Aqua Babies, Aqua Tots
and Starfish swim programs for younger children.
This year’s 5th grade class, class of 2023, commissioned a beautiful Gecko sculpture carved out of a
block of wood with a chainsaw by local artist Curtis
and presented it to Greenvale Park at the final
Building Wide Meeting on June 8th. This newest
Gecko will have a very special place at Greenvale
Park for many years to come. Thank you Class of
2023!!
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