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A PUBLICATION OF THE NORMANDALE PTO

WHAT A YEAR IT WAS

We are honored to have served as your PTO co-chairs this year. We wish the 5th graders much success at middle school next year. Please take time to watch Principal Holden's video for a glimpse of what's to come at the extended french level. Special thanks to our extremely dedicated and hardworking PTO executive board: Sheri Rosen (Communications committee chair), Sarah Priest (Volunteer committee chair), Joann Russell (Secretary), Allison Olfelt (Room Parent committee chair), Andrea Butz (Treasurer), Erika Eichten (Vice Treasurer), and Tracy Schaefer (Extended French Chair), and Justin & Lindsay Wolocko (La Liaison editors). Our school's events would not be possible without these integral members of our Normandale community. We wish everyone a safe and relaxing summer. We look forward to what lies ahead next year from helping grow our incredible intern program to fostering a sense of belonging within our school community!


Lindsay Melander & Angela Holland 

PTO Co-Chair Presidents

This is the last La Liaison for the school year – thank you everyone for reading along. We hope you enjoy your summer and keep learning, exploring, growing and mowing. See you all in the fall. Au revoir!

MAY CALENDAR DATES

  • 5/22 Deadline for Online Staff Gifts
  • 5/27 No School (Memorial Day)
  • 5/29: Yearbook Distribution
  • 5/30: Last Day for Lost + Found
  • 5/31 Last Day of School (5th Grade Recognition, Field Day grades K-4)

SUMMER CALENDAR DATES

  • 6/11: French Story Time (5-6pm)
  • 6/18: French Story Time (5-6pm)
  • 6/25: French Story Time (5-6pm)
  • 7/09: French Story Time (5-6pm)
  • 7/16: French Story Time (5-6pm)
  • 7/23: French Story Time (5-6pm)


SALUT FROM PRINCIPAL HOLDEN

Au revoir Normandale, bonjour Valley View!


After six years of learning in French at Normandale, 90% of Normandale students continue French immersion at Valley View Middle School. Check out this video update to see and learn more about Extended French at Valley View.


Como agregar subtítulos en español en YouTube

SCHOOL SUBJECTS

FIELD DAY

Friday, May 31st: 12:15pm - 2:45pm

Normandale field day for grades K-4 takes place in the afternoon on the last day of school. It is a fun-filled event for student and parents, held rain or shine! We need many volunteers to make the afternoon run. Please sign up for a volunteer slot!

VOLUNTEER SIGN UP

Field Day Reminders:

  • Students should have a DISPOSABLE bag lunch
  • Everyone needs a water bottle
  • Apply sunscreen before school
  • Wear athletic shoes
  • Wear your grade level color t-shirt:

Kindergarten: Blue

1st Grade: White or Black

2nd Grade: Red

3rd Grade: Yellow

4th Grade: Green

HEALTH OFFICE NOTE

Student Medications

All student medications will be sent home the last few days of school. Health Services will package student medication/supplies in a labeled bag and send home in their backpack unless you make alternative arrangements with the health office. Once at home, please remove all medication and store safely.

 

  • Epinephrine and infrequently used medications: will be sent home with students sometime during the last 5 days of school following any off-campus activities.
  • Daily/frequently used medication and inhalers: will be sent home with students on the last day of school.
  • Scheduled Medications: A notification email will be sent to parent emails on the day the medication is sent home with a “count” of remaining medication. Once at home, please remove all medication and store safely.

 

Contact the health office if:

  • your child will not be in attendance the last day of school
  • you would like to make alternative arrangements for medication pickup

 

Thank you for your help and have a great summer.

 

Normandale Health Office

Phone: 952-848-4140

Email: sasha.rickerd@edinaschools.org

LOST + FOUND

Claim by May 30th

Make sure to visit the lost and found to claim items before the end of the school year! All items will be on display in the front office lobby May 28 - 30th, including special items at the front desk.

YEARBOOKS

Distribution on May 29th

Students who ordered yearbooks will receive them at school on Wednesday, May 29th. Students who do not have a yearbook will receive a Signature Page for students/staff to sign.


Families that did not pre-order a yearbook can still purchase them online but will pay for shipping to their house. To order, create a TreeRing account and order using the link here

END OF YEAR GIFTS

For Teachers & Staff

The Normandale PTO wants to provide a helping hand and facilitate end of year gifts for Normandale teachers and staff through our Membership Toolkit platform. You may also send notes without making a monetary gift. Additional details can be found here. Participation is optional.


All gifts and notes must be submitted by 11pm on Wednesday, May 22.

GIFT + NOTE LINK

PICNIC LUNCH

Friday, May 24th

All students will be eating lunch outside on Friday, May 24th. Students can choose the Chartwells picnic lunch or bring a lunch from home.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Mme French Amara & Mme Martinez

Congratulations to Mme French Amara for earning the National 2024 Art Education leadership award! We are so lucky to have her as our art teacher! Read more here!

Congratulations to Mme Martinez for earning the EAAA Educator of the year award! We are grateful to have her as part of our Normandale community!

PARENT PASS

SUMMER SWAG

Didn't have a chance to buy your summer inspired Normandale gear at Carnival? We'll have the towels, hats and bags available for purchase with cash or Venmo on the last day of school! Please see the apparel table near the volunteer check in area during field day.

Visit our summer store and complete your order for home shipping today.

SHOP THE SUMMER GEAR HERE

Shop our full clothing assortments in the online stores below.

SHOP ALL KIDS APPAREL HERE
SHOP ALL ADULT APPAREL HERE

NORMANDALE FAMILY NIGHT + MN LYNX

Sept 19th: Game Tickets Available Now!

The Normandale PTO and Chorale Boréale, the Normandale choir, are partnering together to organize a night out at a MN Lynx Women's Basketball game on Thursday, September 19th, 6pm at the Target Center in Minneapolis. The Chorale Boréale will be performing the National Anthem, and all Normandale families with students K-5 are welcome to attend!


Tickets are on sale now for all families and will remain on sale until the date of the event. You can purchase tickets using the link in the flyer below using code NORMANDALE24.


Sarah Fincham will be sending more information to incoming 3rd-5th graders about joining the choir, but you may also reach out to her with any questions about the event here: Sarah.Fincham@edinaschools.org

EVENT FLYER + TICKET LINK

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Available for '24 - '25 School Year

Interested in getting more involved at Normandale next year? Sign up here to volunteer for our PTO events throughout the year!

VOLUNTEER SIGN UP

FRENCH STORY TIME

Tuesdays at Edina Grandview Library

Join us for French story time with Normandale teachers at the Edina Library (5820 Grandview Square) this summer on Tuesdays in June and July for incoming grades K-5 students. Students will be grouped by Grades K-2 and Grades 3-5 for age appropriate stories. This is a great opportunity for students to keep connections to both the language and to the Normandale Community over break. Please mark your calendar for the following dates:


June 11, 18 & 25 from 5-6pm

July 9, 16 & 23 from 5-6pm


Questions? Please contact Aisha Alexander.

SUMMER LEARNING

Resources to Beat the "Summer Slide"

Motivating children to learn over the summer can be rewarding in the long run, even though you may find it a daunting task. There are myriad reasons children don’t like to do summer work or even read over the summer months. These articles will explain why and what you can do about it. Dig in!

 

Check out these resources for parents through the Reading is Fundamental Website. Also, bookmark the Reading Rockets website as well. This site has great articles and resources for all types of readers.

 

In addition, Laura Hanson and Jennifer Johnson have a couple of articles about summer learning here: Summer Learning Loss: How to Get Kids Reading Over the Summer

 

Still want more? Check out our At-Home Summer Math and Reading Programs (if interested register before midnight on Thursday, May 30th). Don’t forget the Elementary Media Resources site as well for even more learning resources. 

 

Email Jennifer Johnson if you have any questions.

SUMMER BONJOUR CAMP

Are you interested in having your child practice French over the summer? Through the Edina Community Education program, we have Normandale teachers Madame Abdo (K), Madame Thomas (1st), Madame Heffelfinger (2nd), Madame Coldagelli (3rd), and Madame May (4th/5th) teaching our Bonjour Camps! This is a great opportunity for our students to practice their French before the fall. 


Registration links and dates for camps are listed below. Please note that the grade level is the grade they will be entering in the fall.

SUMMER FRENCH TUTORING

Each spring we compile a list of Normandale staff who are interested in tutoring students over the summer. Please contact Anne Anderson if you would like to receive this list.

MERCI BEAUCOUP

Special Thanks & Gratitude

  • Thanks to Jacqui Hartung for leading Discovery Kitchen during lunchtime!
  • Thank you to Julie Lovaas for leading Junior Great books and Mollie Ritter for spearheading Art Adventures this year!
  • Thanks to Aisha Alexander for coordinating French Summer Story Time.
  • Special thanks to the Field Day committee: Elizabeth Fulmer, Greta Livingood, Shalomie Lamphere, Kruti Shukla, and Christopher Larson

INTERN INTROS

ELSA ROHAUT

Fourth Grade

I live in Le Mans, which is a small town in the west of France. I live with my mom or my dad and I have two half brothers and one half sister who are already adults. I have a cat and a turtle. This year I studied French and English literature in Tours. I loved it, so my studies are a big part of what I do, because I find them really interesting. Otherwise, I love to spend time with my friends, doing sports (I dance and I swim), reading or cooking (I love to learn new recipes!). 

Favorite Foods: There are many things I love to eat. If I had to pick a favorite, I am afraid I could only do so with the desserts, where I would give the first place to chocolate fondant, or brownies. But otherwise, I really love a lot of things. I love Indian cuisine, because of the spices and the way they cook vegetables, but I also adore Italian cuisine, for their wonderful pastas, or -of course- French cuisine, for my grandma's delicious meals. 

But really, in case it was not obvious by now, I love about everything when it comes to food. And I enjoy discovering new things, too! 

 

In The US: Mainly, I would like to discover what it is like to live in America for a year, and discover things I don't know. There are specific things that I would like to do, like visiting a National Park, or canoeing on the Great Lakes if I can, or simple things like going to an American supermarket to see the difference with the French ones, or see a movie in a drive-in cinema. But also, I would just like to do whatever I have the opportunity to do during my stay, even if it is things I did not think about. 

NEIGHBOR NOTES

EDINA GIVE + GO

Sports Sampler Aug 19-21

Edina Give and Go has partnered with the Edina High School Athletics Department to offer a series of sports clinics, hosted by EHS coaches and athletes, for our students.


Hornets Sports Sampler is August 19, 20 and 21. Take advantage of structured activities during the last week of summer! Mix and match for what works best for your family. All proceeds benefit EHS teams and Edina Give and Go.


Click the link below to learn more and register! 

REGISTER HERE

ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE

The Alliance Française is the non-profit French cultural center serving the Twin Cities and is a proud partner of French immersion schools and their families. Alliance Française offers a library, summer camps for children of all ages and levels, French classes for adults, cooking classes, and more than 150 cultural events each year. Learn more about Alliance Française Mpls/St Paul by clicking the button below.

AFMSP WEBSITE

EDINA EDUCATION FUND

The Edina Education Fund is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to the continued academic excellence of the Edina Public Schools.


The Ed Fund secures private, supplemental funding to support valuable education experiences and innovative projects in the Edina Public Schools. Funds raised augment school system revenues that are provided by taxes, state aid, and other parent and student led fundraising efforts. The Ed Fund is necessary to help ensure the caliber of educational programs we have come to expect of the Edina Public Schools. Your support means greater academic opportunities for all students, today and into the future.


We are fortunate to be part of the Edina community that has a strong, valued and well-respected school system. However, to protect and enhance the value of our homes and property and the quality of life we enjoy, we must further invest in our public school system. Edina Education Fund contributes to the development and financial support of district-wide programs within Literacy, STEAM and Mental Health/Wellness Services for all students and staff.

CONTRIBUTE HERE

VOILÀ – MERCI BEAUCOUP!

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