Elternbrief, January 10th, 2013

Welcome back and Happy New Year! In case you haven't heard, TCGIS is very excited to announce we will move into a permanent new home beginning in the 2013-2014 school year! Our new address is 1030 Van Slyke Ave. in the Como Park area, blocks from Como Lake, playing fields, the new swimming pool, and the Como Park Conservatory and Zoo. For more information, please check the website here.

***OPEN ENROLLMENT 2013-2014***

TCGIS is now taking applications for the 2013-2014 school year. We have made an appeal to all parents planning to enroll a kindergartener to please fill out an application form as soon as possible so we may save a seat for your incoming son or daughter. You can find the application here and bring it into Molly at the front desk. Your timely efforts to do this help TCGIS plan our recruitment goals. Also, please spread the word about our school and our new home.

Security Update

You may have noticed the new pink signs in the front foyer as well as adding the door that locks going down to the basement area. In addition, we are asking that parents refrain from escorting students to the second floor in the morning. Parents of kindergarten through second grade may continue to assist children during drop off/pick up.

Early Release, Grading Day and Martin Luther King Day

Wednesday, January 16th is an early release at 12:45pm. Please plan accordingly and if you are not able to pick up your child by 1pm, you may incur a late pick up fee.

Friday, January 18th there is no school as teachers are preparing semester grades. Monday, January 21st is Martin Luther King Holiday.

We are all excited in this time of new beginnings and future dreams for TCGIS and thank you all for your part in our wonderful community!

Ann Jurewicz

Director

TCGIS

Maskenball 2013 News

Hello TCGIS parents and staff...

It's payback time, and this time, it's personal.

We, the 2013 Maskenball committee, are totally asking you for an eighties picture of yourself, showing you: strutting your stuff, doing your thing, and looking the part.

Yes, the pictures will be seen at the event, and be used to entertain the crowds and no, we won't be responsible for the consequences.

You can drop off your picture at the front desk, or e-mail it to Kordula Coleman at [email protected]

Do you dare???

After School pick-up
Deadline is 3:30 on regular days,
1:00 on early release days

This is a friendly reminder to parents that we require all students to be picked up or placed in Kinderclub by 3:30 in the afternoon on regular release days, and by 1:00 on early dismissal days. Teachers and office staff are no longer responsible for students after this time, and a you will be charged a late pick up fine if you fail to pick up your child on time. If you feel that you may be late sometimes, it is best to sign up for kinderclub, so that on those occasions your child can be supervised by the after school staff there. You must be signed up for Kinderclub in advance to exercise this option. Thanks for working with us to ensure a safe and happy environment for your children before and after school.

Start planning your Maskenball
Great Gathering today!

Have a special talent? Like to socialize?

Help make this year's Maskenball auction the most successful ever by offering your own Great Gathering!

Not sure what a Great Gathering is? It's an event hosted by one or more members of the TCGIS community, to be bid on during the online auction leading up to Maskenball, the PTO's biggest fundraiser of the year. Past events have been as varied as group camping trips, fireworks viewing parties, outdoor movie nights, progressive dinners, crafting sessions, theme dinners, and more. The possibilities are endless!

Dream up your own great idea for a Great Gathering -- it's a fantastic way to get to know other members of the TCGIS community while also helping the PTO raise precious funds to support our school!

Click here to submit your idea.

Need more information? Contact Great Gatherings Coordinator, Kelly Huxmann, at [email protected] or612-669-9747.

TCGIS Wins Eco Award

We are proud to announce that we have recently received the honor of becoming an Eco School by obtaining the Bronze Award for energy efficiency. The "Green Team" consisting of parents and students at TCGIS in conjunction with the Kinderclub after-school care program and a group of students from the University of Minnesota performed an audit of the school's energy use. They discovered how much energy and electricity we were using and found ways to drastically cut down those numbers to help protect the environment.

TCGIS is committed to environmental education and informing our youth that lowering our carbon footprint and consuming less energy are important and viable options for the future. By becoming an Eco School, TCGIS hopes to raise community awareness of the importance energy has on our daily lives. By making small changes in our routines at work, school and home, together we can make a bigl difference.

With strong focuses in science and math, our curriculum works to include lessons about energy and the environment with hands-on activities and projects. By getting kids to participate they are becoming naturally more aware of their surroundings and are active promoters of energy efficiency.

The Twin Cities German Immersion School welcomes any feedback, comments or questions about our newly started program as we look to continue to grow as an Eco School.

Together, we can make a difference.

Kaffeeklatsch

This Friday!

Our next Kaffeeklatsch is this

Friday, January 11th! We usually

start serving coffee

by 8:05am in the Front Lobby entrance. A suggested donation for a cup of coffee is $1.00 if you bring your own cup, or $1.25 if we provide you with a cup. We are also serving tea! Now also selling Coffee Cards for your convenience: $8 (with cup), $10 (w/o cup)!! No more searching for dollar bills necessary!

Carnival of Cultures 2013

Cafe International

When: Feb. 7 (THU) at 6:00 pm
Where: the O'Shaughnessy Education Center Auditorium (University of St. Thomas)

No cultural tradition exists in isolation. We are constantly collaborating with one another. We share and receive influence from our neighbors. This holds true more. It constantly collaborates with other traditions: it learns from others and gives impulses to others. It is even more true in our global world. The Cafe International will showcase not only the cultural variety of our world, but also its networking. Our special guests this year
SPIELMANNSZUG MN!

Fourth Graders Read to Feed

Help them raise money for Heifer International

The Fourth Grade English class is participating in the second annual Read to Feed program and we'd like to invite you to help us! Read to Feed is a program of Heifer International that encourages children to be a part of Heifer's mission to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth. Last year our fourth graders raised over $2500!!

Since 1944, Heifer International has provided livestock and environmentally sound agricultural training to improve the lives of those who struggle daily for reliable sources of food and income. Heifer is currently working in 40 countries, including the United States, to help families and communities, become more self-reliant.

The Read to Feed program encourages reading skills while teaching students how they can empower families around the world with the gift of livestock. Children are recruiting sponsors for their reading goals from January 7th to March 2nd. At the end of the program, the fourth graders will pool, calculate, and donate the funds to Heifer International to assist families around the world.

If you wish to help us in our efforts, please visit our "Team" page to donate with a credit card or leave a check with Molly at the front desk! Thank you for making a difference in the lives of our students and the lives of countless others!!

Organizer: Michelle Wallace, 3/4 English Teacher

Kindergarten Applications

We here at TCGIS are very excited about next years incoming Kindergarten class. If you have a current student enrolled in the school, and plan to enroll another child in the school for next year, we want to know about it. Please fill out the survey you received earlier this month to help us better plan for next year. Though applications of students with siblings already at the school are given priority, families are still required to fill out the application paperwork. The application can be found at the school's Front Desk.

Educating Children for Informed and Active World Citizenship

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.