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| Elternbrief |
Weekly Newsletter for TCGIS Families January 12, 2012 | |
 | | Annika Fjelstad, TCGIS Director |
Dear Families,
We're proud to release a new copy of our school magazine Schultüte that features articles about some great projects happening here at the school. The magazine is available here--please share with interested friends and relatives. It's a nice view of some of the successes of the 2011-2012 school year. Thanks to Cindy Miller and Kelly Huxmann for putting it together.
Soon our middle schoolers will embark on interdisciplinary research-based projects on the theme of sustainability that they have the opportunity to present at the World Savvy Forum on March 3rd. Their projects will focus on global solutions to environmental problems such as energy, water, climate change, transportation, pollution, consumption and waste, toxicity and food systems. We are looking for volunteers to work with students--if you are interested, please see below for more information.
We're in the height of the season for finding new Kindergarten families. A group of us had a great weekend at the St. Paul School Fair where we talked to over 30 families. It's very empowering to talk about the school and share our enthusiasm for so many successes. Thanks to Chris Weimholt, Molly Illes and Julie Elias for their work. We'll be staffing a booth again on January 21st at the Charter School Fair in downtown Minneapolis. We'd love some parent volunteers. Your voices and stories are so important to prospective parents. Please contact me at afjelstad@tcgis.org if you have few hours between 9:00AM and 2:00 PM on January 21st to volunteer.
Please remember there will be no school on Friday (1/13) or Monday (1/16). Friday is recordkeeping day for teachers. They will be working on report cards. We should have report cards to you in the mail by Saturday, February 4th at the latest. Monday is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. There is no school on this day to allow families to participate in celebrations of the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. There are many events in the community. Another appropriate way to acknowledge this day may be through community service projects. We wish your family a day of time to be together and appreciation for the hard-fought journey to equal rights in our country.
Thank you for all you do for our school,
Annika Fjelstad
Director, TCGIS
651-492-7106, ext. 103
afjelstad@tcgis.org
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 Upcoming Dates
Save the Date  JANUARY 13 - NO SCHOOL- Teacher work day 16 - NO SCHOOL- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day 17 - Spring Semester Amity Interns Arrive 18 - 5 PM, Info session for prospective families 26 - 6:30 PM, School Board meeting 27 - 8 AM, Kaffeklatsch 29 - 2 PM, Info session for prospective families FEBRUARY 4 - 7 PM, Maskenball 6-10 - Scholastic Book Fair 6 - 6:30 PM, PTO Meeting 7- 6:30 PM, Info session for prospective families 10 - 8 AM, Kaffeeklatsch 17 - NO SCHOOL - Teacher work day 20 - NO SCHOOL - Presidents' Day 23 - 6:30 PM, Board Meeting 24 - 8 AM, Kaffeklatsch For the complete school calendar, click here. |
PTO Meeting Date Change
Update your calendars!
The PTO meeting scheduled for Tuesday, February 7 has been changed to Monday, February 6. Because Tuesday is a state caucus night, we are legally prohibited from holding the meeting at school. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
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TCGIS Photo Contest
Ends January 15
Don't miss your chance to win a pair of tickets to the Children's Theater! TCGIS is looking for images to represent the school on our website, in marketing materials and even in the yearbook. The six most suitable pictures will be used in the banner headings on our new website, which is currently in development. We are offering a prize for the best overall photo: tickets to a production by the Children's Theater Company this Spring! Please submit your photos by January 15 to photocontest@tcgis.org. See flyer for more info.
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Once Upon a Time
Maskenball 2012
This year's Maskenball Gala takes us long ago and far far away to the land of fairy tales, where we promise an enchanted evening of charm and delight. Please join us! Tickets are on sale now. Watch your email for updates or like the PTO Facebook page for the most up-to-date information.
Timelines and deadlines
Maskenball has many dates to keep track of. Here are a few to help you plan: - January 13, Deadline for auction donations
- January 24, Online auction opens
- January 28, Ticket price goes to $55
- January 31, Online auction closes
- February 2, Deadline to order tickets
- February 2 & 3, Auction check-out at TCGIS (more details to follow)
- February 4, Maskenball Gala
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Thank You Fourth Grade Students!
Fourth Graders participate in Read to Feed
For the last six weeks of 2011, fourth grade students read books for fun and pleasure and at the same time helped end world hunger and improve the environment through Heifer International's Read to Feed® program. The sponsored program helps students raise money for Heifer to provide livestock, seeds, trees and training to families in need around the world. TCGIS's 40 fourth grade students raised $2,527.97--enough to purchase 3 heifers, 4 goats, 2 water buffalo, and a flock of chicks!! We celebrated our success on December 16th, 2011 with a fourth grade pancake breakfast, and each student received a certificate of recognition.The goal was for students to recognize and create a desire to help other cultures around the world, find out about the value of self-reliance, and, maybe most importantly, learn that they can make a difference in the world! Thanks to all who supported the 4th graders. And thank you 4th grade students! Congratulations for a job well done!
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TCGIS Lunches
Update on changes in the lunchroom
TCGIS is working with the student council to improve our lunch service. Some changes that we are implementing include providing salads that are not pre-dressed and increasing the number of salad dressing options, and more changes are in the works! The student council will be surveying their peers about the things they like and do not like about lunch, and we are working together to make lunch better for everyone. Please contact Leigh York, lyork@tcgis.org, if you have any questions or concerns about the lunch program. |
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Scholastic Book Fair Coming Soon
Volunteers needed!
February is I Love to Read Month and with that brings our first-ever scholastic book fair LUAU! The fair will take from February 6th-10th. Keep your eyes peeled for more information to follow!
At this time, I am looking for parent or grandparent volunteers to help work the fair and to help with set-up the week before the fair. If you are able or interested, please contact me at mwallace@tcgis.org, or stop by the English room and sign up!! Thank you!
-Michelle Wallace
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Looking for Volunteers Interested in Sustainability
Sustainability Council Needs
Recently TCGIS became an officially registered eco-school. The newly formed Sustainability Council is looking for volunteers to help lead or contribute to our efforts. We will be focusing on 10 main topics: water, energy, waste & consumption, transportation, global dimensions, toxicity, nutrition, green hour, climate change and school grounds. Please email Amy Eian ( amyeian@gmail.com) or Elise Amel ( elamel@stthomas.edu) if you're interested in helping shape a sustainable future for our students, staff and school. Middle School Needs:This year's World Savvy Challenge topic is Sustainable Communities. During January middle school students will be studying global solutions to environmental problems such as energy, water, climate change, transportation, pollution, consumption and waste, toxicity and food systems. Their challenge is to create a local action plan that's ready to execute. They need the following help: Field trips- Do you have any ideas/connections that would help with field trips related to these topics? Would you be willing to chaperone on a bus tour of several sites? Speakers- Do you have ideas/connections for speakers who could explain their jobs or provide a mini-lesson on one of these environmental issues? Presenting in German would be great, but is not mandatory. Resources- We also need books, websites and films, especially in German, that students could reference. They could be local, regional, national or international! Especially good would be ideas of concrete actions/projects they could do. Hands-on Help- From January 17 - February 3 the middle school groups will need assistance creating their projects for the Challenge! It helps if you speak German but don't let that stop you if you would like to facilitate project development. At least 6 adults are needed each day for 10 days! Please let Katie Stephens ( kstephens@germanschool-mn.org) know what you can do! For more information about the World Savvy Challenge click here. |
Introducing Our New Amity Interns!
Introducing Ruthy Hanson, Veronika Schimanko and Maria Hoffman
Thank you to all of the host families for our spring interns! It is already time to start finding hosts for next fall--please email Amy Davis at adavis@tcgis.org if you are able to host one of our fall 2012 interns.
 Ruthy Hanson is a teacher trainee student at RWTH Aachen University studying English and History. She has been a scout since she was seven and has now been a scout leader for five years. She is a big fan of her hometown's soccer club. Ruthy spent a year in West Virginia in high school and is excited to get a new perspective of the USA.
Veronika Schimanko  studied English and Geography at the University of Passau. She did her final exam this fall. Veronika is currently working on her master thesis to get a master's degree in education. In her free time she loves to play sports (skiing, biking, climbing, badminton), play the flute, read and spend time with friends and family.
 Maria Hoffman is currently studying at the University of Munich to become a teacher in German and Mathematics. She enjoys being outdoors and playing sports such as skiing and ski touring, hiking, and climbing. She is also interested in literature, philosophy and other cultures. Rock climbing is one of her greatest passions; she teaches climbing classes to children from 6 to 16. Maria spent the first semester as an Amity intern at a high school in Ohio. |
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Educating Children for Informed and Active World Citizenship
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The Elternbrief is published electronically Thursdays throughout the school-year and on an as needed basis at other times. Submissions are due by 3 PM on Tuesdays. Content printed at the discretion of the TCGIS administration.
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