Elternbrief, April 25th, 2013

We are extremely fortunate that the YMCA is once again offering us the opportunity to receive free swimming instruction and water safety. This year, the classes will be available for students in grades 1-8. All Sport sections will be swimming from May 6th- May 31st.

The YMCA is asking that all parents once again sign permission slips. In the next few weeks, the slips will be made available both in hard copy and electronically. Parent volunteers (dads too) would be greatly appreciated to help with hair drying, clothing management, and general supervision. Along with permission slips, I will be sending e-mails to individual teachers with the specific dates and times that each class will be swimming to make it easier to know which day(s) are the Sport days. Swimming in the elementary grades is such a unique opportunity and I am looking forward to sharing the fun with all of our students!!!

Have a good week!

---Coach Rosenthal

Is all the April snow getting you down?

Are you looking for an opportunity to get know some people from the school better?

Are your kids spending Friday night at the school?

You can still join us for the Maskenball TCGIS Cheers night event!
Just show up Friday night with the $10 donation!

Hope to see you there!

"Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name..."

Date & Time: Friday, April 26, 7:30 PM to midnight

Join fellow TCGIS parents for a fun night out at the GAI!
Enjoy music by DJ Ben!!!, Snacks, trivia, and drinks from the bar.
First drink is included -- after that, there is a suggested donation.

***This event is for adults only***

Hosted by the families of Jackson (5A) & Leo (4B) Koempel,

Harry (6) & Claudia (3B) Zimmermann,

Erik (6), Robert (4B) & Lexi (4A) Rauer,

and Sylvia (6), Henry (3A) & Oliver (1B) Elias

MCA Testing Update

We have completed our reading MCA testing with just a few students to complete make-up testing.

You might have heard news about the statewide challenges being faced this year with online testing. While we can't control everything, we want to assure you that we are doing our best at TCGIS to make our upcoming online testing as smooth as possible.

This week's math testing schedule:

Monday: Grade 3

Tuesday: Grade 4

Wednesday: Grades 6 and 7

Thursday: Grades 5 and 8

Again, please make sure that your student gets good sleep, eats a good breakfast and brings a book to read. Also, please make sure your student arrives on time as testing begins promptly at 8:30.

Thank you for your support,

Jane Hall-Dayle

Assistant Director

PTO Spring Strudel Sale

Order your strudel by May 1!

The TCGIS PTO will offer Ruhland's Strudel again this spring. Choose from 3 sweet and 3 savory strudels.

NEW THIS TIME: place your order online at http://tcgis.schoolauction.net/strudel2013/. Orders are due May 1 and can be paid by credit card online or by separate check to the PTO drop-box. Strudel will be available for pick-up at TCGIS on Friday, May 17, between 3:00 and 5:30 pm. Please contact Marilee Tuite at [email protected] with any questions.

Action Requested: Undeposited Check Information for PTO Financial Review

The PTO Executive Committee is in the process of reviewing its financial paperwork. To support this process, if you have written any checks to the PTO between June 2011 and January 2013, the Executive Committee asks that you review your bank account to determine if there are any undeposited checks written to TCGIS PTO. If you find any undeposited checks, please fill out this form. This information is secure
and will not be shared. Checks written after January 2013 have ben deposted and do not need to be checked.

The Executive Committee will follow up with those who report undepositted checks in the near future. Contact PTO President Karin Spencer at [email protected] if you
have any questions.

Mpls-St. Paul International Film Festival

St. Anthony Mail Theatre

There is still one family friendly German language film left to run during this year's film festival:

"Wickie and the Treasure of the Gods"

Saturday 4/27 11:00 am

Sunday 4/28 12:00 pm

And, by all means, do take a look at the over 200 films from 60+ countries that will show during the Fest April 11-28th. Catalogs
will also be available at our front desk.

http://www.mspfilmfest.org/MMXIII/

The PTO Parent Outreach Committee

The PTO Parent Outreach Committee is
meeting Wednesday, May 8, 6:30pm at
Mickey Jurewicz's home. We have many
one-time opportunities to help out throughout
the school year, if you are looking for a
way to be involved that isn't too time
consuming!

We are also in need of someone with design layout experience to help put together the fantastic school calendar!

If interested in attending, or just want to know more, contact Krista Johnson at [email protected].

TCGIS School Board Elections
See attachment for info on each of the six candidates

We are pleased to announce that there will be 6 candidates running for election to the TCGIS School Board on Friday May 17th. Each candidate brings unique qualifications and their submitted statements are below. The candidates are being invited to the May 7th PTO meeting and the May 10th Kaffeeklatsch to create opportunities for you to meet them.

Get Ready: The Plant Sale is Coming

Calling all gardening enthusiasts! Winter snow will surely melt, and spring planting will begin again soon. We are in need of pretty flowers, shrubs, veggies, and herbs for the annual PTO Plant Swap. If you'd like to share from your bounty, please donate plants at the front desk at school, May 15-17. Please bring plants in a small pot or carton and label the variety.

Come back on Friday May 17th before and after school, where we will sell these plants for a small fee ($2-$5). This is a great way to divide your plants, find new plants for your garden that come from another TCGIS home, and easily and generously give to the school at the same time. That's what this Plant Swap is all about! Contact Sara Scholtens (612-310-7630) with questions or to volunteer.

Kaffeeklatsch
This Friday!

Our Next Kaffeeklatsch is this Friday, April 26th! 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!

Library Fundraising Book Sale
May 17th!
As you may have heard, we are moving locations over the summer and the library is eager to only move the best and the brightest of our library to our great new location. Over the years, many families have donated materials to the library and we've had a large number of donations ALREADY this year. In fact, we have so many books that we don't need anymore donations to make our book sale a great success. But we do need YOU to come out and support the library and the school by purchasing some of our books. We have lots of German language books for both kids and adults ready to find their new homes. We are also looking for volunteers to help with the sale, so if books are your thing and you want to help out, contact Blaine Strobe at [email protected] for more information.

German Volunteer Opportunity:

Festival of Nations May 2-5

The Festival of Nations� is the largest and longest running multicultural festival in Minnesota, celebrating cultural diversity with food, music, demonstrations, exhibits and dance. At the Festival of Nations we are able to renew a sense of pride in our respective ethnic heritages. At the same time we have the opportunity to develop an appreciation, rather then just a tolerance of the culture of others as we build for the future together. The festival runs from May 2-5 in downtown Saint Paul at the RiverCentre.

The Germanic-American Institute is proud to represent the German culture every year at the Festival of Nations. We feel it is an important part of our mission and an excellent opportunity to introduce and educate thousands of people about Germany. To do this, we enlist the tremendous help of over 100 volunteers.

We are currently looking for volunteers to work 5 hour shifts.

You will receive a free meal from the German caf� and entrance to the Festival so you can explore before or after your shift.

Please contact Julie Elias for volunteer opportunities at: [email protected].

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.