Newsletter for the Winnequah School Community - January 2017
In This Issue
From Principal Angie Fassl
Happy New Year to all of our Winnequah Families!

It is hard to believe we are almost halfway through the year!  Both the new calendar year and the half-way point of the school year are great times for reflection.  As I look back on the first half of the year, I wanted to share some of my own reflections.

First, what a whirlwind! It feels like it has gone so fast! I am proud of all of the hard work our staff and students have done so far this year. I am also so incredibly thankful for the supportive and wonderful school community we have of staff, students, parents, and other community members.  Winnequah is a special place!

Second, I set a personal goal to know all the names of our 560 students.  I have made progress towards this, even good progress, but am not at 100% yet.  I need to think of new ways of reaching and attaining this goal.  This is a great time for you to talk with your students about their goals for the year and how he/she is doing on these goals.  A perfect time for this will be at the Parent/Teacher conferences coming at the beginning of February.  Please look for a sign-up coming in mid-January from your student's homeroom teacher.  In the mean time, do a check-in with your student on how they are doing with his/her goals for the year.

The weather outside is frightful....  It has been quite cold this week and I am sure we have not seen the last of it.  However, we do want the kids to get fresh air a couple times a day, even when it is cold!  So please remember to send their winter gear with them every day.  I know that hauling all the winter gear gets to be tiresome in January and February, so thank you for your help with this!

I hope 2017 is off to a wonderful start for all!
 
Angie Fassl
Thank you!
Thank you for the gift and food donations for the Holiday Giving Project!  It was a huge success and families were very appreciative. This could not have happened without the generosity and kindness from our wonderful Winnequah community. There are not enough words to convey our pride and gratefulness.

 
Culver's Day - February 14th
  SAVE THE DATE!!  CULVER'S DAY

Tuesday, February 14th, 5-8pm

10% of sales will go to Winnequah PTO!!

Bring your favorite Valentine or Valentines!! 

Tell your neighbors, friends and family !

 
Meet Our New Owl: Kayla Repinski
Name:  Kayla Repinski

Position:  Special Education Teacher

Teaching History: Leopold Elementary - Special Education Teacher and 3rd Grade Teacher.

Family Info: My husbands name is Brad. We have 2 orange kitties named Jordy and Tiny.

Hobbies:  I like to spend time outside, play volleyball and bake cupcakes.

If you could be any animal, what would you be and why: 
I would be a cat so I could take lots of naps in the sun!

Favorite Color: Purple

Favorite Food: Popcorn and pickles.

Who is your least favorite superhero and why?  I'm not really a fan of any superheros.

Who inspires you? My friends, parents and other teachers.
Early Learning Fair - Monday Feb. 6th
On Monday, February 6th, 2017, the Monona Grove School District will hold its annual Early Learning Fair and
Together 4 Kids Registration at Nichols School (MG District Office) in Monona. This event is a free service to families of pre-school children. Parents will have the opportunity to meet with a professional to share information about their child's development and to register for the 2017-2018 T4K program.

Registration information will be sent to families in mid December.  Parents should call the Early Education Office at 839-2113 to schedule an appointment upon receipt of registration materials. 

If you have any new neighbors with young children aged birth to 4 ½, please have them call Gina in the Early Education Office at 839-2113.

2nd Grade - Field Trip Highlights




On December 16th, second graders took an exciting trip to the Wisconsin Historical Museum where we saw many interesting artifacts. We also went to our state capitol to see the Holiday Tree.          
5th Grade - Whats the Matter?
The fifth graders are currently investigating in the science lab and are learning about the states of matter as well as the two basic properties of matter - volume and mass. While working in cooperative groups, they are using different measuring tools and terms like gram balances, graduated cylinders, displacement, graphs, diagrams, and the metric system in order to answer questions and take notes. In addition, students are also practicing some of the steps in the scientific process by making observations, asking questions, recording and analyzing, and drawing conclusions.

We definitely have some scientists in the making!



Monona PTO News

Please "Like" Monona PTO on Facebook.  It is a great way to receive current communication about happenings with the PTO.  Also, if you have not been receiving emails from Monona PTO and would like to, please contact 
Monona.pto@mgschools.net

We do not share your email or flood your inbox with content. 

CULVER'S NIGHT
 
The time-honored tradition of Monona PTO Culver's Night is Tuesday, FEBRUARY 14TH from 5-8 pm at the Cottage Grove Road Culver's.  We receive 10% of all sales.  Come for supper, dessert, or to take home a few pints of custard.  Tell your friends and neighbors!
 
BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION: 
Continue to collect those little pink 10 cent Box Top labels. They seem to appear on lots and lots of products--from baking items to undershirts! Send them in frequently to school--we have plenty of volunteer helpers to trim and count them for submission. Make sure to ask your friends and relatives to snip their box tops as well!  Also, please remember the Tyson A+ Labels from all Tyson products. They are worth $.25 each.  Add them to your box tops and our volunteers will sort them.

TRIVIA NIGHT IS BACK!  - Saturday, February 25 
Join friends and neighbors for this fun adult only team trivia event at 7 pm on February 25th at the Monona Community Center! Reserve your tickets now. You can come as a single, couple, small group, or team of 10. Invite friends, neighbors, or relatives! More details and how to sign up can be found at  http://www.mononagrove.org/Winnequah/PTO/TeamTrivia.pdf  
 
PTO Extra Credit
Monona PTO has a goal to raise $35 per child per year.  In order to meet this goal, the PTO asks that families contribute in the form of fundraisers and events. We understand that some would rather bypass the fundraisers and events and donate directly. And some would like to give a little extra. We want to offer the opportunity to donate any amount directly to the PTO via cash, check , or online. Every dollar helps us reach our goal - no amount is too small.  Download the paper donation form or Donate now online at:  https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/e11fv9*. Please share the  online donation page with friends and family who might want to participate and help raise funds for our kids.  *Please note that a small service fee is deducted from online donations.

REPORT FROM THE TREASURER OF MONONA PTO
Below is listed our income and expenditures for the 2016-17 School Year.  Thank you for all your support.  Many exciting items are yet to be purchased for this school year.  Stay tuned in future newsletters for more updates.

Income 
  • Bucky Books $768
  • Sock Hop $976.69
  • Hoot Hoot Hustle  $4180.40
  • Spirit Wear $1529.01
  • REAP Natural Foods Sale $615.28
  • Enrichment Classes Program $1362.90
  • Noodles and Company Fundraiser $500
  • Easter Seals Clothing Drive $253.20

Expenditures  (as of 12/15)

4K
  • Storage Bins $75.96
  • Activity Materials $300

Kindergarten
  • Reading Materials  $50

2nd Grade
  • Ornaments $97.40

3rd Grade
  • Spelling City $168
  • Overture Center Bus $232.72

4th Grade
  • Old World Wisconsin  $370

5th Grade
  • Time for Kids $111.50
  • Wonders Program $90

Physical Education
  • Equipment for all students $1750

Library
  • Author Jim May $200
  • Scanner $306.66

Building Wide Budget
  • PBIS Posters $42.30
  • Safety Glasses  $91.60

  • Kindergarten Ice Cream Social $50.77
  • Walk To School Day $141.02
 
 
 
TerraCycle Update
Hello Winnequah Families, here is a quick TerraCycle Update!

*New* Instrument Strings Brigade

Do you or members of your family played stringed instruments?  If so, when it is time to change out those instrument strings, please consider collecting them and bringing them to our TerraCycle collection spot at the Monona Public Library.  TerraCycle is partnering with D'Addario to collect ALL brands of used instrument strings as well as the packaging for D'Addario brand strings.  Any questions about the new collection?  Please contact Kathryn Christopherson (kechristo@gmail.com) or Mr. Ferris (
Benjamin.Ferris@mgschools.net ) for more information.

Thanks to the volunteers that helped with our November box and ship (see photo).  Although not a huge group, they successfully boxed up over 110 lbs of collected items. Thank you!!!

Calling all Volunteers!

January box and ship at Monona Public Library:
Sunday, January 29th at 2:30pm (please note the different time)

Link to signup: SignUpGenius.com/go/10C0D4BAAA92CA0FF2-terracycle2

Team Meeting at Waypoint Public House:
Monday, February 6th at 7:30pm

TerraCycle is currently in need of a communications person .
The TerraCycle communications person will help to manage the Facebook page posts, communications sent out through the library and/or school, communications through the radio, newspaper, etc.
If this is something that interests you, please contact us by phone or email.
 
Questions?  Contact Kathryn Christopherson at 608.279.7568 or kechristo@gmail.com.

Need a list of all the items you can TerraCycle?  Check out the TerraCycle page of the Winnequah School website, and/or like TerraCycle Winnequah on Facebook.



School Lunch Menus and Info

January Menus 
When available, menus will be posted at:

http://www.mononagrove.org/district/menus.cfm

Making Payments
Payments to a Food Service account can be made from within Infinite Campus by clicking on the payment link (on the left). You may also pay with a check or cash in the school office. Please place the payment in an envelope clearly marked food service with your student's name.

Account Balances
Clicking on the Food Service tab in Infinite Campus will allow you to access account information including current account balances, transactions, and account history.

Additional Info:

datebook-header-purple.jpg


Important Dates
 
January 9
No School - 4K ONLY

January 16
No School 4K-5

January 19 

Hat Day

January 20

No School 4K-5

February 7
Parent/Teacher Conferences

February 9 

Parent/Teacher Conferences

February 14
Culver's Day
5 - 8pm

February 25
Team Trivia Night

March 3
No School 4K-5

March 27-31
Spring Vacation  
 
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Planning a Vacation?

Just a reminder that if your student(s) will be gone for 2 or more days please complete the Pre-Arranged Extended Absence form at least 2 weeks prior to your trip and return to the school office.

Extended Absence Form

 En Espanol