April 27, 2017

May 18: School Board Meeting

May 19: K-8 Morning Circle & Kaffeeklatsch

May 26-29: No School

June 2: After School Activities End

June 4: Graduation Day

June 6: PTO Meeting

June 8: End of Year Picnic

Administrative Information

Admin & Coordinators Visit Milwaukee

Last week, a group of TCGIS administrators and coordinators made the trip to Milwaukee to visit other German immersion Schools. The coordinators are excited to share their observations with interested staff and with the board over the next few months. It is an exciting first step to building a partnership with the schools. We hope to host some staff from Milwaukee next year for a visit to our school.

Van Slyke Carpool Lane

We need your help. The city bus Rout #3A travels on Van Slyke several times a day. One of the times is at 3:13 every day . This time coincides with our carpool line in idle mode. So we ask that all Van Slyke carpool vehicles to:

Be aware not to idle/park on the Northside of the Van Slyke Triangle.
Observe other vehicles around you & please do not jump in front of another car that is idling (in line) on Horton (off Lexington) or on Churchill (southeast side of the Van Slyke Triangle)

Please click here to read the full message!

Book Fair Next Week

The book fair is next week! It will take place May 1-5, 3:30 to 5:30 in room 115 (staff lounge). We are looking for parent volunteers to help out with the book fair. Please sign up here if you are able to volunteer.

Strategic Plan: We need your feedback

The Strategic Planning Committee made up of parents, teachers and community members have drafted 5 statements that will guide our decision making, along with the Vision, Mission and Values, at TCGIS for the next 3 years.

Provide your feedback at one of the following sessions:

Thursday, May 4, 3:00-4:00 PM Room 100
Friday, May 5, 7:45-8:30 AM Rom 100

Can't attend one of the above sessions? Watch for an electronic form to provide input coming this next week.

Board Elections

Board elections will take place May 15-19. Ballots will be distributed at pick-up and drop-off starting Friday, May 12. If you do not participate in pick-up and drop-off, we will be providing an electronic form for you to print and drop off. Ballots will also be available in the main office. Unfortunately, we cannot provide ballots to students to bring home.

Ballots will be collected in the pick-up and drop-off lanes between May 15-19, and can be dropped off in the main office during business hours till Friday, May 19 at 4:45, or mailed (postmarked by Friday).

The board is a nine-person oversight body, and we are electing three positions. Our four candidates are:

Dianne Bell (parent)
Stephanie Forsland (parent)
Wolfgang Koch (teacher)
Nic Ludwig (Parent

Please read their full biographies here. For more information about board elections, click here for the FAQ!

Help Beautify Our Neighborhood!

When: this Saturday, April 29, anytime after 9:00 a.m. for as long as you want

Where: the triangular island at the intersection of Van Slyke Ave. and Churchill St.

What: plant flowers

Why: be neighborly, get out in the fresh air, learn planting skills, and help make the world a more beautiful place!

This will be a whole neighborhood activity, and we'd love the help of our students and parents! You can just let Frau Dye know you will be coming at sdye@tcgis.org. Thanks!

Sign Up to Volunteer at the End of Year Picnic!

Our last day of school is coming up fast! Mark your calendars for June 8 to celebrate our End of the Year Picnic! The picnic will be held at the Como Park Pavilions and will be from 11:30am-2:00pm. To help make this event a success, we need help from parent volunteers. Please click here to see what volunteer opportunities are available and to sign up today! Please email Lauren Kalish at lkalish@tcgis.org if you have any questions.

Musical "Zirkus Morio"

The 3rd grade circus is in town! Come in and enjoy a fabulous show with lions, clowns, magicians, ballerinas, dancers and a lot of music.

The 3rd grade classes, together with their drama teacher Frau Hall and their interns Frau Rödlach and Herr Pichler, are excited to announce the date for their musical performance on May 11th at 5 pm in the Aula. The whole TCGIS community is welcome!

Announcing the Second Annual TCGIS Field Day

We need your help to make it happen!

Field Day: Friday, May 19

Rain date: Thursday, May 25

Location: The park to the east of the school between Como Ave and Nagasaki Road

Who: TCGIS K - 4 grades

Each class will be divided into two groups. We need volunteers to run the stations, do set up and clean up, and be with the group that the teacher is not with. Teachers will be responsible for their classes. We also need a person with a truck or van to help transport the materials. Sign up here to help!

Help Distribute Plants from the Plant Sale

Thanks to everyone who ordered plants and supported the TCGIS All School Plant Sale. Now we need your help to distribute them! Plants from the Plant Sale arrive on May 9th for distribution on May 9 and 10.

We need help with unloading the truck & distributing them. Please consider signing up for a shift (or 2!) and spending some quality time with plants and parents! Click here to sign up today!

Bake Sale on May 5!

Service Learning is having a Bake Sale for Syrian Refugees in Germany. The money will be going with the 8th graders to Germany on May 5, 2017 where it will be handed over to the German School which supports Syrian Refugees. Please come on 2nd and 3rd of May from 3:30to 5:30 to the lobby (it is also Book Fair!). Our goal is $500, we already collected around $300.We can do it with your help! Thank You!

GAI

GAI Announcements

Film Screening: Krabat

Saturday, May 6 at 10am - Free and Open to the Public

Screening is in German with English Subtitles

Estimated equivalent to PG-13 rating

Enjoy a spring movie outing with the whole family! On May 6 during Kaffeestube European Breakfast Cafe we will be screening the popular German fantasy-adventure film, Krabat. Adapted from the novel by German author Otfried Preußler, Krabat depicts the journey of a young man taken in as an apprentice to an old Mill Keeper, who teaches the boys who work for him sorcery at night. It is an action-packed tale of magic, good and evil, and the power of love.

Space is filling up for German Language Summer Camps

From June 19 through August 18, our weekly day-camps provide fun, interactive German language education for children grades 1-3. Two camps will also be offered for incoming Kindergarteners in the middle of August. Each camp has a theme, such as Das macht Sinn! (That makes Sense!) exploring the science of the five senses and Die heisse Spur - Junge Detektive (Young Detectives) for young puzzle solvers and mystery writers. Click here to register and learn more!

Send your suggestions - Summer Class Survey

During recent meetings and discussions with TCGIS staff and parents, we heard that some of you may be interested in Summer Classes to help your children maintain their German skills during summer break. The GAI can certainly offer a program, but we need your input and suggestions to ensure we meet your needs and can accommodate schedules.

Here is a short survey - Please take a couple of minutes to respond and stay tuned for further information & updates. DANKE!

PTO

PTO Announcements

How can you help the PTO next year? Please fill out this short survey to let us know your interests. You can get started now by volunteering to welcome new Kindergarten families to TCGIS at a potluck on May 10. Email Kristi Johnson at kristirjohnson@gmail.com for details.

Click here to find out more about these upcoming events:

PTO meeting, May 11, featuring a presentation by TCGIS librarian Sarah Dye on German literature for kids