If you are a current volunteer or would like to become one, please visit our volunteer page, read the instructions and fill out the online application.

Click HERE!

Administrative Information

Welcome Margaret & Erin!

We're happy to introduce our new 3rd grade teacher, Margaret Sims and our new math teacher, Erin Riipi.

Hallo! I'm Margaret Sims, and I'm the new classroom teacher in 3b here at TCGIS. I've been with TCGIS for a little over five years now as a paraprofessional in special education. I'm originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and I earned my Bachelor of Arts in German Studies before deciding to go on to graduate school and get a teaching license. I've worked a little in almost every grade level at TCGIS (from first through eighth), although I've spent most of my time working with the upper elementary and middle school. When I'm not here, I like to spend time outdoors. I also enjoy singing, baking, volunteering with international students, and traveling. I look forward to getting to know our third-graders better as we work together.

I'm Erin Riipi and I will be teaching 5th Grade Math for the remainder of the 2014-2015 academic year at Twin Cities German Immersion School. Having already spent one week in the classroom with my students, I am certain that this will be an exceptionally great year for all of us. My experience at TCGIS marks my third year teaching Mathematics in Minnesota. Previously, I taught Math and French in Michigan, and, as such, am thrilled to be using the Connected Mathematics curriculum, which was developed at Michigan State University. Prior to education, I enjoyed a publishing career in New York. I look forward to working with each of your students to successfully achieve his or her goals.

Are You Ready for Halloween?

Friday, October 31, 2:15-3:00pm at TCGIS

Join us for the end of day parade tomorrow! With good weather, we are hoping for a parade at the end of the day. Please get your cameras ready and come to enjoy the fun and creativity from 2:15-3:00 on Friday, October 31!

2:15pm: Parade around the school K-8
2:30pm: Ghostbusters flashmob

All parents are welcome for the end of the day parade!

Give to the Max Day!

Thursday, November 13

Mark your calendars for this year's Give to the Max Day on Thursday, November 13! The Give to the Max Day on November 13th is a Minnesota-wide drive facilitated by GiveMN and TCGIS' main annual fundraiser. This year's goal is to raise $30,000 in support of our beloved Amity interns. Help us to spread the spark of giving and remind your friends to mark their calendars. Please stay tunes for more information around Give to the Max Day in the coming days. Thank you!

Lost and Found

Please Check the Lost and Found for Your Lost Items

Please check Lost and Found in the foyer behind the stairs. Click here for the excel spreadsheet with found items that are labeled with a name. Items left after the Parent-Teacher Conferences will be given to Goodwill.

A big thank you goes out to Katheryn Mueller for doing an amazing job with Lost & Found and putting together the excel sheet!

Elementary School Parent Q&A

Tuesday, November 11, 5:30-6:30pm

The Administration and Elementary School Coordinator, Elena Heindl invite any parents interested to a Elementary School Q&A Night on Tuesday, November 11, 5:30-6:30pm. The goal is to answer any questions parents and guardians have about Elementary School implementation. We welcome all and look forward to having a positive and collaborative discussion.

Congrats to Alex & Maja!

Our lunch team Alex and Maja measured the serving times in early October. Click here for the incredible results. Maja and Alex are really fast and still always friendly, attentive and helpful.

Thank you, Maja & Alex for doing a wonderful job!

Scholastic Book Fair

Next Week - School Book Fair

The Scholastic Book Fair is around the corner! Come and shop books for all levels.

Our schedule:

Monday, Nov 3: 3:30pm-5:30pm

Tuesday, Nov 4: 3:30pm-5:30pm

Wednesday, Nov 5: 3:30pm-5:30pm

Thursday, Nov 6: 5:00pm-8:00pm

Friday, Nov 7: 8:30am-3:30pm

If you are out of town or can't make it to our Book Fair, you can also help support our school by shopping online.

Send wish lists to family and friends
All orders ship free to the school
Browse an expanded book selection - all ages through adult

Online Scholastic Book Fair is available Oct 29 - Nov 18 only!

Follow our Exchange Students!

Follow the adventures of our exchange students from Borghorst and read their blog: http://rsbusa2014.tumblr.com/.

Parent Teacher Conferences

Thursday, November 6 from 4:00pm to 7:30pm

Friday, November 7 from 8:10am to 3:30pm

Please sign up for parent teacher conferences! The parent portal will be open from 5:00pm today, Thursday, October 23, and remain open until Thursday, October 30 at 7:00am. Go to the following website to sign up for conferences: http://www.virtualparagon.com/tcgis/conference

For privacy and legal reasons, we are not allowed to publish the master password. An email was sent out earlier this week containing this information.

Before you log in, we suggest that you have the following information:

A list of all the teachers you would like to see. The online conference system will not tell you the names of your children's teachers. Use the PowerSchool Parent Portal to see a list of all teachers your child sees throughout the week. It is located here: https://twincitiesgerman.powerschool.com/public
The times you would like to have conferences. The system will tell you the available slots for all teachers. If the teachers you wish to see are not available, contact them to schedule an alternative time for a conference.

If you used this system in previous years, you may have opted to keep your account and password. If you opted out of this, or if you are new to the school, you will be prompted to create an account.

If you have any questions, please call the office at 651-492-7106 or send an email to Lauren Kalish at lkalish@tcgis.org.

Recap and Impressions

Middle School Parliament Elections

In the past two weeks at TCGIS we have seen lots of excitment regarding the 2014-2015 Middle School Parliament elections. The 8th graders did an amazing job organizing everything for the election. They had to elect two candidates for the election, who had to prepare a speech to convince the electors of each class. Furthermore the students had to advertise and inform the 5th graders about the electoral system. It was a week full of fun, which ended last week with a great Inauguration Party, also organized by the 8 graders with the assistance of their teachers Thomas Wegener, Julia Rentschler and Michael Lux. At the Inauguration Party the election team announced Olivia Bruhn as the new elected Middle School Parliament President for this school year. The party was also an opportunity to celebrate the arrival of our German exchange students. All students did an incredible job and learned a lot about basic democratic principles and particularly the US-election system. This year's parliament team looks very promising and we are sure we can further improve the Middle School Students Parliament.

Performances and Events

St. Martin's Day at the Landmark Center

November 9th, 4pm - 6pm

As it's getting colder and darker day by day we yearn for more coziness & warm candle lights. It is also time to make little cute lanterns and to gather for singing, dancing and parading after a horseman with a red cape. Yes, it's time to commemorate St. Martin's Day at the Landmark Center!

TCGIS students, families and any extended relatives are cordially invited to this celebration of light, charity & kindness.

It is a wonderful opportunity to showcase many of the school's talents and to get closer to our vision of global world citizenship. In addition to the already traditional performance by 2nd grade you may see some surprises this year.

Mark your calendars - Sunday, November 9, from 4pm to 6pm at the Landmark Center in St. Paul. This event is open to the public.

More information and song texts can be found at https://sites.google.com/a/germanschool-mn.org/music/stage/st-martin.

St. Martinstag Band

Our Band instructor, Krista Johnson, is looking for parents who would be interested in playing with our students on two songs for the St. Martinstag performance at Landmark Center on November 9, 2014. We would have a short run-through of the music before the performance. If interested, please contact Krista Johnson at monk2miles@comcast.net for more information and copies of the music.

PTO

PTO Announcement

Find out what's going on in the PTO. Click here to read more about:

Craft and Bake Sale - November 12 & 13

Be sure to like the TCGIS PTO page on Facebook!

GAI

GAI Announcement

Deutschlandspiel film screening: Saturday, November 1, 10am-1:30pm: Join us for a political thriller and brunch at a specially extended Kaffeestube this Saturday. Deutschlandspiel combines historical footage and reenactments into a political thriller on the fall of the Berlin Wall. The film will be screened in two 90 minute periods with a 30 minute intermission.

Junior und der Schwan: American Agents for East Germany: Friday, November 14, 6:30pm: German journalist Konrad Ege will discuss his coverage of the last Cold War spy trial, in conjunction with the screening of a documentary. The film features interviews with the spies themselves -- Americans who were agents for East Germany.

Volunteering

Volunteer Opportunities!

Every week, TCGIS offers divers opportunities to volunteer. Right now we have the following openings:

Performing Arts Volunteers
Library Volunteers
Green Team Volunteers
Lantern Volunteers for St. Martinstag

Please check out our Volunteer Opportunity Directory here.

If you are a current volunteer or would like to become one, please visit our volunteer page on the website, read the instructions and fill out the online application.

If you need assistance with the application or have any questions, please contact Isabel at ivollenweider@tcgis.org. Thank you!