A little fresh snow and some cold weather reminded us this week that it is still winter in MN! Friday's Friendship Parties warmed Normandale students up for the start of a long weekend. During part of your student's long weekend (February 17), Normandale teachers will be engaged in professional learning. That morning Superintendent Dressen will address all Edina teachers. Much of this message will focus on Edina's efforts to create "Next Generation" schools. A key component of this Next Generation effort are facilities changes linked to Edina's upcoming building referendum in May. I am working with the District Office to schedule an informational session about this referendum for parents in March...stay tuned.

The remainder of the morning on February 17 will be spent with Dr. J. Richard Dewey as he helps Edina teachers shift their focus from teaching to learning. Normandale's teachers are well prepared for this shift as they work weekly in teams to meet the learning needs of students. During the afternoon of February 17, Normandale teachers will meet with their colleagues at other elementary buildings to plan for language arts instruction. Stay warm and enjoy the long weekend!

Chris Holden, Principal

Rally Month - Sign up to Host an Intern

Normandale Elementary loves our interns!

February is RALLY MONTH! We will need 54 host families to bring over 24 interns for the next school year. Each Friday in February, we will be doing something fun at school to remind everyone how important our intern program is!

February 20th is Edina Spirit Day
February 27th is is Pajama Day with a special treat of Madelines at lunch

Visit the Edina Interns web site to learn more about being a host family and/or to sign up. If you already know you want to host an intern, you can sign up now.

Box Tops for Education

It's time to send in your Box Tops for Education!

Normandale will be sorting and submitting our next round of Box Tops for Education within the next couple of weeks.

Please send any collected Box Tops to school with your child by Wednesday, February 18th!

Normandale Imagination Fair

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

6:00-7:30pm, Normandale Auditorium

Our annual Imagination Fair is an opportunity for Normandale students to showcase their experiments, inventions, or creations. All Normandale students, from kindergarten to fifth grade, are invited to participate. Students may work alone, with another student, or in a group.

Online Project Registration: February 20th (Friday) - March 1st (Sunday)

Don't know where to start? Projects don't have to be complicated! Let your imagination, creativity, and inventiveness guide you. Explore whatever interests you at this moment...nature, mechanics, art, technology, fashion, chemistry, photography, animals, weather, crafts, or any other hobbies.

For project ideas and guidelines, please check the Normandale PTO website, or contact Cheche Lacsamana with questions.

Free Tax Preparation

FREE TAX PREPARATION!

Tax preparation assistance is available for income qualifying households.

Call the Edina Resource Center at 952-848-3936 for:

Local tax clinic locations
Dates and times
What to bring to the tax clinic

* Remember the Earned Income Tax Credit & MN K-12 Education Subtraction.

Happening in the Community

Chinese New Year Celebration

Valley Middle School

February 15, 1:30 pm

The Minnesota International Chinese School (MICS) and Edina Chinese Association (ECA) invite you to join their 2015 "Year of the Goat" Spring Festival Celebration. Come celebrate the achievements of the large Chinese community in the city and the region and also the profound beauty of this yearly Chinese tradition. Admission is FREE.

A sample of some of the events that are happening include: Free red packets for all kids, Lion Dance Competition, Folk songs & dances, Tea sampling, learning to make dumplings/Chinese Lanterns/Chinese knots, tasting authentic Chinese food/snacks, and many popular carnival games!

Growing Up Workshop: Mothers and Daughters Connecting

Edina Community Center, Room 165

March 7, 9:00 - noon

A workshop for girls ages 9-12 and their trusted female adult. Growing up can be exciting, exhilarating, confusing and scary - all at the same time! Join educators from MyHealth for Teens and Young Adults for a fun and informative three hour workshop that will take some of the mystery out of puberty and the questions out of adolescence. Come prepared to laugh, create, question, learn and grow - TOGETHER! $40.00 per pair. Please register online or call (952) 848-3908 for more information.

Edina Lacrosse Association

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR THE 2015 SEASON!!

Registration closes March 1, 2015.
Boys grade 2-8 information and registration is on the Edina Boys Lacrosse website.
Girls grade 3-8 information and registration is on the Edina Girls Lacrosse website.
Boys K-1 registration coming soon!

Youth Girls Lacrosse Clinic

For Girls Grades 3-8

Come join the Edina High School Girls JV and Varsity lacrosse teams as they hold the second in a series of ELA Youth Clinics.

Saturday, March 7

12:45 - 2:00 pm

Champions Hall (indoor turf field)

7000 Washington Ave. S

Eden Prairie/Edina border

Come join the sport that's sweeping across MN! The cost is $20.00 per girl. No experience is necessary. For more information or to register, please visit the Edina Girls Lacrosse website or contact Lorene Magne or Sarah Knapp.

Capturing the Excitement of Edina Public Schools!

Follow us on Flickr to see what's happening at our Edina Public Schools.
Stay connected with Normandale and the rest of Edina Public Schools (EPS) by visiting the EPS website, the Normandale Facebook page , and the EPS Facebook Page.

Last Week's News

Previously included La Liaison articles are listed below in case you missed them.

Vide-Grenier - Fundraiser for Haiti
Rally Month
Authors to Visit Normandale
2015 Imagination Fair
Language Immersion Festival
Sixth Grade Registration Information Evening for Parents
Box Tops for Education
Free Tax Preparation
Happening in the Community
Last Week's News

You can always view last week's newsletter on Normandale's PTO website or on the Newsletters page of the Normandale Website.

La Liaison is published every Friday. Submit articles to LaLiaisonMN@gmail.com by noon Wednesday prior to your desired publication date. Articles pertaining to the following week's issues will take precedence.

Previous editions of this newsletter are saved in the La Liaison Archives.

Editors: Kate Frederick and Erica Amevo