Liebe TCGIS Gemeinschaft! / Dear TCGIS community,

The middle school is getting ready to embark on two important milestones:

•  Our current 6th grade class is heading to Concordia Language Villages for a week at their Waldsee German language camp. The week is an overnight trip that includes immersive meal times, science experiments and outdoor free time activities.
• Our 8th graders are packing their suitcases and heading to their German exchange families in 10 days. This is the first time since 2019 that our 8th graders have been able to make this trip and we are so happy to be adding this important capstone project back to our school.  

Our school's mission of Innovative education of the whole child through German immersion is easily displayed in these two opportunities that our students get to experience in their middle school years at TCGIS. Thanks to all the staff who are giving their time in both planning and chaperoning these big adventures. Gute Reise! 

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 read the entire Rundbrief. Danke!

We ask for your participation in the school board election this week - cast a vote for the candidates who have stepped up to help lead our school as directors on the school board. Read more about our candidates here! Ballots were sent by email this past Monday morning - Please reach out to Julia Henriksen jhenriksen@tcgis.org if you have not received it or if you need a paper ballot. The voting deadline is Friday at 4:45.

TCGIS has some great job opportunities available for the 2023-2024 school year! If you or someone you know is looking for a job next year within our great community, please take a look at our website! Below are our current openings: 

• Behavior Interventionist
• .8 Literacy Interventionist 
• Special Ed Social Worker
• ​P.E. Teacher (Grades K-4)

• Special Education Teacher (K-8)
• ​​Full-time Educational Assistant
• ​.5 Educational Assistant
• ​Kindergarten Teacher
• Elementary School Teacher (Grades 1-4)

To upload photos -- and find out important graduation schedule and ways to donate, visit  special graduation website. Share photos of your 8th grader (and photos from when they were 1st graders, 4th graders...). Even if your student is unable to attend, we'd love to represent everyone. Deadline to upload photos: Wednesday, May 24.

The TCGIS community is one of the BEST parts of our school! From now until May 30th we are celebrating the people who make our school special. Tribute gifts of any amount directed to the TCGIS Annual Fund will be recognized in our Garden of Gratitude, where flowers with the names of honorees will be “planted!” Give today to help us reach our goal of raising $30K by the 30th of May!

We have added more spots to our Wild about Nature Camp (Week 5 - 07/24/2022 - 07/28/2022). Registration is currently open and closes Friday, 5/12 at 6pm. More info here. Reach out to Michaela Bromenschenkel with any questions.

The end of year concert for the TCGIS band program will be Friday, May 19 at 5 PM in the Sporthalle. It will last approximately 45 minutes, and will be followed by a potluck. All are welcome, and it is free!

We are seeking host families for 10 interns who will join TCGIS in August!

"Meet" our fall interns here!

Have questions? Email Katharina Schirg to set up a phone chat.

Ready to apply? Fill out the Host Family Application (deadline May 19).

Learn more: tcgis.org/host-an-intern

Photo: Intern Anna Schwerdfeger sledding with her hosts, the Nutt family.

Ice Cream Social, Saturday, May 13, 2pm-3pm, Micholandia; 861 45th Ave. NE, Hilltop, MN. Let’s meet at this family-owned paleteria that offers Mexican ice cream and snacks with traditional flavors. Please plan to buy your own treats for this casual family meetup.

Year-end picnic, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 5-7 pm @ Midway Peace Park. Let’s meet up for a potluck picnic and playtime. Please bring a dish to share and favorite yard games.

Grab the family or a friend, put on your seeking hats, and go take a great walk around Como Park for a Scavenger Hunt. Saturday, May 13th from 10-2 and finish up at TCGIS for a prize. Sign up here.

We're working on refreshing the lounge and it really needs new furniture. Please consider donating, in any amount, if you can to help us buy a few new couches for them!

Our last meeting of the year is coming up on Sunday May 21st. Please join us for snacks, a craft and great conversation. Please RSVP here.

Experience an unforgettable week of learning the German language and culture this summer in Minnesota’s beautiful North Woods with a residential family week at Waldsee German Language Village. Bring the kids, grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, best friends or whatever family means to you!

• German Family Week: June 12-17 AND August 14-19
• Swiss (French, German and Italian) Family Week: August 21-26

Sign up today! Questions? Contact clvregister@cord.edu.

May 23 | 5-8PM

Represent TCGIS at the upcoming Lake Como Clean-Up! Organized by our District 10 (D10) Como Community Council, volunteers will be cleaning trash from the lake surface or shoreline. We will meet near the dock on the lower level lake side of the Pavilion to pick up tools and supplies provided by D10. Please register here by May 21 so we know how many people to expect - We are giving a TCGIS T-shirt to our registered volunteers to thank you for demonstrating our school's value of community! (registration on the D10 website is not necessary; we will communicate our participants with them). Board Chair Julie Alktatout will be there to meet our volunteers.

June 3 | Como Park Midway Pavilions

Minnesota School Outreach Coalition’s Youth Pride is an annual event for LGBTQ2IA+ school-aged people! Back in February, we signed up to have a booth at this fun event, and now it's time to organize volunteers to help out! Sign-up here for a two-hour slot between the hours of 12:30-6:30PM on June 3. Advisors for our students' GSA group will be there with planned activities. More information about the event can be found here.

Can you help spread the word about TCGIS? We are looking for as many volunteers possible to hang up copies of this flyer around the Twin Cities & surrounding areas. Preschools, daycares, libraries, community centers, shops, cafés, etc.! Flyers are also available to be picked up in the front office, or be sent home with your student. Please email Frau Zimmerman with any questions.

For the 4th year, TCGIS will tend a plot in the D10 community garden near Snelling and Como Avenue. We plant around the end of May and donate produce throughout the summer to the Keystone Food Shelf. Sign up to donate plants and materials here. Stay tuned for info to come on volunteering to plant, weed, harvest, and generally help the garden grow through the summer. Questions? Contact coordinators JJulie Alkatout & Terra Erickson.

Diversity & Belonging Cmte Meeting Tues., May 16 - 4PM; Google Meet

Cmte of the Whole Meeting Wed., May 17 - 6:30PM; Room 100

Board Meeting Thurs., May 31 - 6:30PM, Room 100 & Zoom

Families looking for quality preschool should look no further than the GAI’s German Immersion Preschool! The Kinderstube program focuses on experiential learning in a play-based, German immersion preschool setting modeled after a combination of the German Kita and the American licensed preschool program. Learn more 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!

The last day of school (June 14th) is scheduled as a full school day as part of the calendar changes to make up for snow days in 7th and 8th grades. There will still be a picnic in the park in the morning, and we’re planning many other fun activities for the afternoon.

Hosted by our School Board, Kaffeeklatsch will be held outside on the playground (weather permitting) on Friday, May 19 at 8am. There will be coffee and treats. We encourage attendees to bring their own mug and help keep our environmental impact low. In place of attending Morgenkreis, there will be classroom projects displayed in the school atrium, and a tour of the library will be offered at 8:30.

To prepare for the 2023-2024 school year, all families are required to fill out the Annual Update in Infinite Campus by Wednesday, May 31. You will be asked to verify your contact details and your child(ren)’s health information. If this form is not received, your child(ren) will not be allowed to participate in classroom neighborhood walks in the fall, and your middle school student(s) will not be issued a Chromebook. Click here for instructions to complete the Annual Update. Email info@tcgis.org with any questions.

Sign up for our fall sports on May 15-31 on Infinite Campus (school store). All middle schoolers (current 4th-7th graders) are welcome to join our sports teams. Costs: $200.

• Cross-country 5th-8th grade: practices on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays and meets on varying days of the week
• Soccer 5th & 6th grade: practices on Mondays and games on Wednesdays
• Soccer 7th & 8th grade: practices on Tuesdays and games on Fridays

For more information, please check out our websites for cross-country (calendar) and soccer (calendar). With questions, please contact Athletic Director Tabisz.

Spring universal screening is here! Spring universal screening began Monday, May 8th, and will continue through Friday, May 19th. We use screeners to identify those students who are on-track to meet grade-level standards in reading and math and those students who may need some additional support to keep them on-track to meet grade-level goals by the end of the school year. Meet some of our interventionists who are integral to conducting universal screening! Please also check out our universal screening resource: Screening FAQ. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Jessie Kember (jkember@tcgis.org) with any questions or concerns.

Check out this fast and helpful overview about Mental Health, what it is and how to take care of your child's Mental Health. If you have any questions don't hesitate to reach out to the school social worker. We will collaborate with you and connect you with resources.

Raising Children Using Digital Technology & Social Media in a Healthy Manner:

School social worker Diana Erwin made this presentation for families to view. Danke, Frau Erwin!

May 8-13: Staff Appreciation Week

May 11: Festival of Cultures

May 13: Scavenger Hunt (sponsored by PTO)

May 19: Kaffeeklatsch

May 19: TCGIS Band Concert

May 21: PTO meeting

May 26: 7 & 8th grade school (K-6 no school)

June 9: Middle School Dance

June 11: 8th Grade Graduation

June 14: Last day of school (Full school day)



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