Liebe TCGIS Gemeinschaft! / Dear TCGIS community,

I’d like to highlight just a few of the wonderful activities happening around the school lately. 

• Our Martinstag celebration filled the gym with community, music and dramatic gifts.
• Frau Stillwell’s 5th-grade science classes recently enjoyed a visit from the Carpenter Nature Center, during which students learned about the adaptations of a variety of animals through the animal ambassadors that the naturalist brought to the school.

• 7th-grade classes enjoyed a field trip to see the German film Amelie rennt, part of the Twin Cities German Film festival.
• 3rd-grade classes and their families will be celebrating a Winterfest next week, including songs, poems, and treats.
• Kindergarteners are reading every Friday with their 4th-grade reading buddies.

Thank you for sharing your students with us. None of this would be possible without all of you.

Herzlich

Kirsten 

Note: If you don't see the calendar at the end of your Rundbrief, the message has been clipped and you must click "View entire message" to see the full email. Danke!

Looking for an evening of good food and good friends? Then join us TONIGHT for TCGIS Night at the restaurant Iron Ranger from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. The Iron Ranger (located on Grand Ave. & Lexington Ave.) will be donating 20% of all TCGIS sales back to our school, so invite your friends and family to join in this fun--and delicious--opportunity to support our school. No registration required; simply show-up, order, and be sure to tell the staff you are with TCGIS!

Are you on the fence about hosting? We can connect you with current and past host families to answer specific questions, family to family. Email Katharina Schirg to be connected with a family or to learn more.

Basic Requirements to Host:

• Their own bed and bedroom with a door
• A full bathroom to use; they can share with family members
• All meals at home (lunch is provided at school) 
• Transportation to/from school 
• Access to transportation (free time)

Ready to host? Fill out the Host Family Application this weekend. We begin matching interns with families next week. "Meet" the new interns here!

Save the date! Our Scholastic Book Fair will be from 3:30-5:30 December 5-9th, in room 97 (across from the gym). Support your child's love of reading and our school at the same time!

Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming SEAC Meetings! Our Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC) will be meeting on December 5th. Learn strategies to support your child, ask questions about the special education process, find your support system, and share feedback. Our meeting is hybrid and will be in the cafeteria and on Zoom at 5PM. Join here. Passcode 920995. Please contact Dr. Hendrix with any questions.

Are you interested in attending our group meeting once a month, but can not make it on a Tuesday? Please fill out the sign-up form and mark what days work for you. You will be notified if there is a group on your preferred day.

Did you know that when you receive the Rundbrief you need to click "View entire message" at the bottom of the email in order to view the Rundbrief in its entirety? Make sure you're able to see the "School Resources & Calendar" section when you reach the bottom of the Rundbrief so you're not missing out on any important information!

Winter break is approaching and if you would like to test before seeing family and friends or coming back to school: We have free rapid antigen test kits available. Please let us know if you would like to pick up some up in the front office or we can send a kit with your student: Free COVID test kit.

 As winter progresses, we are seeing more non-Covid-related illnesses. If your child is sick with a cough, fever, sore throat, vomiting, or diarrhea, they should stay home from school to avoid spreading germs that can make others sick. Keeping sick children home and encouraging mask-wearing with mild symptoms can help prevent the spread of infectious diseases, such as influenza (flu), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), norovirus, and COVID-19, and support healthy learning and teaching environments for all. More information about when students should not come to school is available in our Family Handbook. Thank you for helping to keep our school community healthy!

TCGIS T-Shirts are now available with the new logo. Please log into your Infinite Campus Parent portal using this link: In the upper left corner, click on the drop down menu and scroll down to "School Store". Select "Spiritwear/Swag" and then your choice of Youth T-Shirt $15 (Sapphire Blue and Sky Blue) or Adult T-Shirt $20 (Orange or Gray).

Select your student's name in the "Recipient" field, select an Option and then "Add to Cart". You will then be asked to set up your preferred payment method to finish the payment.

Questions? Please contact us at ordering@tcgis.org.

The Board of Directors met on Wednesday, November 30th, and recognized some of our amazing volunteers and staff - the presentation summarizing the recognition can be viewed here. The Director of Special Education, Frau Dr. Ro, presented the report about the SpEd assessment progress. Dean of Middle School Frau Zehnpfennig gave a presentation about the bullying survey which went out to MS students. Executive Director Frau Christensen spoke about the strategic plan SY21-22 milestone achievements and progress made this school year. She also provided several administrative updates. Board Chair Alkatout updated the board on the budget challenges with the presentation given to the bondholders. The board voted to acknowledge the combination of the Educational Assistant Union and Teacher Union to one Charter Union. Thank you to everyone who joined us. The recording of the board meeting is available here.

The Mascot Subcommittee as a part of the TCGIS Board’s Communications and Outreach Committee will meet on Thursday, December 8, at 7-8 PM on Zoom.

We will discuss work that has already been done in regards to the school and athletic mascot as well as plans to move this project forward. If you are interested in joining this subcommittee, please email Athletic Coordinator Tabisz.

The Simpls sale is nearly half way through! Have you gotten your soup yet? Simpls is a local company focused on using local, organic, and regenerative ingredients. If that wasn't enough for you, how about placing an order (of $40 or more) and having it delivered to your house within a few days? It's amazing and then you have delicious soup, pizza, or bakes in your freezer for those busy nights. Go to the Simpls website and enter TCGIS at check out!

This year we are combining our always popular Auction with Maskenball! Maskenball is on Saturday March 25th and the auction will be happening online so you will not have to attend the event to take part in the auction but of course we would love it if you did! With that in mind - we want you to start thinking of all of those amazing items and events that you can donate to the Auction! We're talking delicious food, amazing art and crafts, great group events and more. Start brainstorming and more information will be out soon!

Looking for inspiration and wondering how to get involved in volunteerism at TCGIS? Flip through the volunteer recognition slides from the board of directors meetings from last year to see the range of ways our community supports the school through volunteerism!

We are in need of restocking our tape supplies. If you are willing and able to donate tape, we could use scotch tape, masking tape, and painter's tape. Please bring donations to the front office.

We are in search of one or two parent photographers who will take photos of students and staff during the school day to help build our visual library for use on the website and in recruitment efforts. If interested, please email Mary Zimmerman.

Support TCGIS through AmazonSmile

Looking for an easy way to support TCGIS this holiday season? Look no further than AmazonSmile! By using AmazonSmile, you get the same Amazon prices and experience AND have the opportunity to select a nonprofit of your choice to receive a percentage of your eligible purchases. Sign up today!

We are updating our Google spreadsheet of tutors. If you are interested in being listed as a tutor on our list, please email Mary Zimmerman.

Finance Meeting Tues., Dec. 6, 6:30PM; Zoom

Fundraising Meeting Wed., Dec. 7, 8:30AM; Room 97; Zoom

No Board Meeting in December

Saturday, December 3 and Sunday, December 4

11 AM to 4 PM both days

The GAI's annual Open Haus returns with a new name, Christmas in Germany. New this year for kids is an alpaca petting zoo! We'll also have the German model trains and crafts in the ballroom. Meet St. Nikolaus in front of the Haus from noon to 2 p.m. both days. Food and drink will be sold outdoors, Weihnachtsmarkt style. Find all the details here.

Sunday, December 11 | 2–5PM

Learn how to make German Christmas cookies while having fun with your friends and trying your hand at giftable German Advent crafts. The Haus will be decorated to the rafters, cocoa will be served, and those freshly baked cookies will need to be quality controlled…Program fee includes all materials, ingredients, snacks, instruction AND, of course, a big helping of Christmas Gemütlichkeit! Learn more here.

Classes begin Saturday, January 14, 2023

Kids are immersed in the German language while participating in fun activities such games, crafts, singing, and physical motion, along with age-appropriate language lessons. We offer brining to advanced levels for all ages. All classes are in person at the GAI. Learn more here.

November 20-December 15

University of St. Thomas

This exhibition presents the real-life stories of several Jewish academics who resisted the Germans and their collaborators by documenting and, collecting and securing evidence of the crimes committed against the Jewish people during the Holocaust. This exhibition is free and open to the public. Find more information here. 

The board’s Diversity & Belonging committee would like to highlight upcoming events in the Twin Cities as opportunities for intercultural engagement- one our school’s core values. Click here to learn about highlighted events!

TCGIS has built a list of local university/college students interested in virtual private tutoring in German for TCGIS students. We update this Google spreadsheet of tutors regularly. Learn more here.

December 1: TCGIS at Iron Ranger

December 3: Parent's Night Out

December 5: Special Education Advisory Committee Meeting

December 5-9: Scholastic Book Fair (Rm. 97)

December 8: Mascot Subcommittee Meeting



TCGIS Google Calendar