March 2017

Notes from the Principal......

Happy March!

Mother Nature sure was kind to us for a few days in February.  I hope you were all able to enjoy the short taste of Spring we were gifted.  And now...back to reality!  The kids certainly love to play in the snow during recess, so for the sake of the students, the recent weather has been working in their favor.

This month we will be finishing up third-quarter (March 24) and continuing our work towards our end of the year building goal:

• 80% of all Tanner students will demonstrate grade level proficiency in both Math and Reading.

To assist with achieving this goal, the staff meets on a regular basis in Collaborative Learning Teams.  During these meetings, they analyze current data which helps them guide their instruction. They work hard to create differentiated lessons and discuss intervention strategies to meet student needs. As you may have noticed, the academic rigor continues to get trickier as the year progresses. The staff is working hard to incorporate Growth Mindset into their daily routines and they encourage students to persevere throughout all of the rigorous content presented.  Our students are engaged and working super hard.  You should be very proud!

I want to thank everyone for the positive response to our changes with the PM 4K drop-off and parking lots. Thank you for continuing to keep the designated handicap parking stalls accessible for those with appropriate permits.  I appreciate your willingness to follow procedures as we strive to ensure students/parents/visitors are safe both inside and outside of our school.

Do you know any incoming 4K eligible kiddos??  If so, please direct them our way.  Tanner is a great place to start the educational journey.  Thank you for promoting us within the community and the surrounding Fox Valley area!

As always, thank you so much for your continued support for Tanner School and your child's education.  Have a great month!

NEW STUDENT REGISTRATION INFORMATION

4K & 5K registration for the upcoming school year has started. Here is some important information to help in the process:

4K and new to Kaukauna 5K registration - Registration packets were mailed on Tuesday, January 3, 2017. Letters were sent home to eligible 4K (those who will be 4 on or before September 1, 2017) and new to Kaukauna Kindergarten (those who will be 5 on or before September 1, 2017) students.  Forms will need to be returned to the Tanner Early Learning Center office as soon as possible. In order to plan for classroom and staffing needs, it is crucial that we receive this information now.  If you know of anyone with a child turning four or five and did not receive a packet, please encourage the parent to call Tanner Early Learning Center at 766-6150.

4K SCREENING

This spring, the Kaukauna Area School District will again initiate a voluntary 4K screening on June 2nd, June 5th, June 6th and June 7th.  Registration packets have been sent home to eligible 4K (those who will be 4 on or before September 1, 2017) students. In order to plan for classroom and staffing needs, it is crucial that we receive this information as soon as possible.  Children not yet school age that may have delays or other difficulties are also eligible to be screened at this time to help determine if development testing/special services might be needed.  Parents with specific developmental concerns may contact Lisa Sheppard anytime at 766-6150.

PARENTS—PLEASE PASS INFORMATION ON

If you know anyone who has children age 0 to 18 who are not currently enrolled in the Kaukauna Area School District but live within the district’s boundaries, please direct them to our website to fill out a Census Update form.  They can get a copy by visiting our website at www.kaukauna.k12.wi.us.  Click on ”Prospective Family & Staff” and then click “How to Enroll”.

SUMMER SCHOOL

Believe it or not, it’s almost time to register for Summer School!  We’ve just finalized the 2017 Summer Course Catalog.  Please visit our Summer School page on the Kaukauna Area School District Website at http://www.kaukauna.k12.wi.us/district/summerschool.cfm to learn more about Summer School, course offerings and when to register.

LATE ARRIVALS/ABSENCES/PICK UP CHANGES

Please call the office promptly when you know your child will be late to school.  This will help us with the hot lunch count as it needs to be called into the central kitchen by 8:30 am for lunch that day.  When your student arrives late, please bring them into the office.  We will check the student “in” for attendance and give them a hall pass to take to their teacher.

We request that parents/guardians call the automated absence line at 759-6159 before 8:00 am each day your child is unable to attend school.  This voice mail service is available for your use before and after school hours.

If you are changing how your child will be getting home after school, you can send a note to the

eacher of call the office with the information.  If it is a last minute decision, it is important that you let the office know that you will be taking your child.  Please do not take them out of the bus line.  We need to know that your child is safe with you so stop in the office to notify us!

IN OR OUT FOR RECESS

The guideline that we use for inside recess is as follows:  If the temperature is 0 or below, with or without wind chill, students WILL NOT go outside for recess.  We feel this practice better addresses the potential safety concerns of our students and Educational Assistants during the coldest part of the school year.  Additionally, thank youp for sending your child(ren) to school with hats, gloves, snow pants and boots each day as these items make recess much more enjoyable. Please realize that the students are outside

several times a day and the thin knit mittens tend to get wet quickly. If you can, please send waterproof mittens/gloves or a few pairs of mittens so your child does not need to wear wet ones.  Also, please help us by putting your child’s initials on their winter apparel.  It becomes difficult for the children to identify their items when there are numerous items that are the same color and size.

2-HOUR DELAY SCHEDULE

In the event of a 2-hour school delay—please use the

following time schedule:

              9:35—Playground supervision begins—students begin arriving

              9:45—Students enter building

              9:50—School begins

PM 4K follows normal PM schedule.

Contact from Automated Messenger System

Infinite Campus has the ability to use the system to make emergency contacts with parents regarding school closing or other information during the school day. If the superintendent would determine that district schools would be closing early for some reason parents will receive an automated message giving them details. It is very important that your contact information in Infinite Campus is up to date. If you have questions regarding your contact information please call the Tanner School Office.

News from Mrs. Sundelius, School Nurse

Please be mindful when you are sending in snacks, birthday and special occasion treats.
How much sugar is healthy for your child?  The new recommendations from the American Heart Association (AHA) suggest children should consume less than six teaspoons of added sugars per day. What are added sugars? Added sugars are sugars and syrups that are added to foods or beverages when they are processed or prepared.  This does not include naturally occurring sugars such as those found in low fat dairy items and fruit.  Some common names for added sugars are: dextrose, sugar, sucrose, brown sugar, glucose, corn syrup, honey, nectar, molasses….
You will be able to tell what the total sugar content of a product is by reading the nutrition label.  However, it is difficult to calculate how much of the total sugar in a product is a natural sugar and how much is added.  One way to estimate how much added sugar is in a food item is to see how far up on the ingredient list of that food a sugar (see names above) appears.  If a sugar ingredient name is listed in the number one or two spot on the ingredient list the food item will have more added sugar than a food item that has a sugar listed down further on the ingredient list.Eating foods high in added sugar throughout childhood is linked to future risk for heart disease, high blood pressure and obesity.  Additionally children who consume a lot of high sugar foods tend to not eat as much healthy foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy items.  Children need these healthy foods for good body and brain growth. How can you help your child and all children meet the AHA recommendation for daily added sugar intake?  Please be mindful when sending in snacks and special occasion treat.  Try to send in healthy foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables, string cheese, low fat dairy treats, whole grain crackers…  There are many healthy pre-packages treats available.  Remember to pick one that does not have a sugar listed in the number one or two spot in the ingredient list.  Some high added sugar items to avoid are: regular soda, sport drinks, cupcakes, cookies, doughnuts and of course candy.  Also remember that children learn from example.  So try to make an effort to eat healthy yourself. 

Art News from Mrs. Siegel

First grade artists have been architects as they completed a shape project.  After looking at the shapes and white lines in Paul Klee’s, “Castle and Sun” painting, students cut out shapes for buildings and stamped black and white lines and textures with black and white paint and cardboard edges.  Textures and more details were added with black Sharpies and white charcoal pencils. An artist statement was also written about their work, they were able to color their own version of Paul Klee’s painting, and some had time to draw their own house. (Pictured from the left, Bennett’s example, Paul Klee’s painting, Cyena’s example.)
                                   

Art News from Mrs. Sheth

Students in Kindergarten having been working very hard designing their robots! We worked on fine motor skills by cutting shapes from construction paper and gluing them down with just the right amount of glue. Students overlapped various shapes to create their personalized robots. We then used construction paper crayons to create an environment for our robots to live in. This environment related to our artist statements that includes our robots special job, where the robot is in the picture, and if there are any other special details students wanted to include. Lastly, students used their counting skills to count the shapes included on their robots!

Tanner Library Media Center News

From Miss Brown

Makerspace:

Thank you to all families who donated or considered to donate to our Makerspace! We are  working hard to get  the Makerspace up and running, your donations are greatly appreciated! At this time we no longer are in need of donations. Thank you again!  

Tanner Library:

A friendly reminder to return your student’s books to school by their library day!

4K on Mondays

Mrs. Vanderloop on Tuesdays

Mrs. Nelson on Wednesday

Mrs. Geiger on Wednesday

Mrs. Rinne on Wednesday

Mrs. Conger on Thursday

Mrs. Gloudeman on Thursday

Mrs. B on Thursday

Mrs. Neumann on Thursday

Mrs. Justice on Thursday

Mrs. Heim on Thursday

Mrs. Torrey on Friday

Mrs. Fitzgerald on Friday

Mrs. Lake on Friday

Mrs. Bartel on Friday

Mrs. Bowen on Friday  

Library Skills:

First grade students at Dr. H. B. Tanner learned about what makes an Award Winning Book! They have discussed why people receive awards and what receiving and award means. Then students have listened to the 5 Golden Archer Nominees read aloud.

Next, students rank the book using a 5 Star System on their official critique card. The five books students critiqued are: Wolfie by Ame Dyckman, The Night World by Mordicai Gerstein, The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt, What do you do with an Idea by Kobi Yamada, and Winnie: The True Story of the Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh by Sally M. Walters. Students then voted for their favorite book on the Chromebooks!

The winner from Dr. H. B. Tanner Early Learning Center is…

The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt

Below are a few pictures of students in Mrs. B’s class casting their vote and filling out their critique sheets.





                   




        

In March students will be working on alphabetical order, call numbers, and digital citizenship!


Gym Update from Mrs. Otto

The first part of February was all about jumping and our hearts!  All kiddos in all grades really focused on a big variety of jumping skills, activities and games.  We celebrated getting our bodies moving and those hearts pumping!  We also talked about focusing on having kind hearts and what that meant and how it looks in the gym! Polite pair work for the kindies, groups and partner challenges for the 1st graders!

Our Jump Rope for Heart event for our kindies and 1st grade kiddos was awesome!!  They really showed up the hard work, best effort and great manners during the jump!  

Thank you families that also did the fundraising for the American Heart Association!  Your generosity is quite amazing!  The final total was $9088!!

We finished off the month with our gymnastics unit.  This includes tumbling tricks and partner stunts, apparatus such as the spring board, vaulting box, balance beam, bridges, cheese wedge, barrel,  parallel bars, chin up bar  and the rings.  We focused a lot on balance w/ balance card challenges, balance turtles and extra beam challenges using the space walkers and hoops. Upper body challenges are always a big hit, they love to show off their muscles!

Music notes from Mrs. Stangel

During the month of February, our Kindergarteners sang songs about being a Bucket Filler, Groundhog’s Day, and Valentine’s Day. We did some listening activities and acted out songs about grizzly bears and sleeping chicks. We continue to work on reading rhythms using ta, ti-ti and rest.

We did a little sneak peek into some 1^st grade learning as we began to learn about the music staff, the treble clef, and line and space notes. We also learned the song Charlie Over the Ocean and the circle game that goes with that song. Each student gets the chance to be the leader and the class echoes his or her voice.

The 1st graders have been learning about the musical opposites of Presto/Largo (fast/slow), and Forte/Piano (loud, soft). We continue to sing and practice reading rhythms using ta, ti-ti, rest, and tika-tika.

In 1^st grade, our composer of the month was John Williams. Mr. Williams celebrated his 85th birthday on February 8^th. He has been recognized as a conductor, pianist, and composer. He is best known for all the music he has written for films such as Star Wars, ET, Indiana Jones, Home Alone, Harry Potter and Jaws. He has the most Oscar nominations of any living person. He’s been nominated 50 times. He has also won 22 Grammy Awards, 4 Golden Globes, and 3 Emmy Awards.  The only person with more Oscar nominations was Walt Disney, with 59 nominations.  Mr. Williams continues to write music each and every day, either for films, television or the concert hall.

Classroom Guidance from MRS. CHARNESKI

During the month of March, I will be visiting all of the K-1 classrooms and talking with students about Communication Skills! In each grade level we will discuss the definition and importance of effective communication.  With our increased use of technology, it is more important than ever that students’ personal communication skills are practiced and taught.  Grades K and 1 will be emphasizing good listening skills (using EYES, EARS and BRAINS) and understanding that there are many types of communication (verbal, non-verbal, written, etc.). 

In addition, I will be visiting the 4K kiddos and sharing a story and activity about “Tattling vs. Telling”….also an important communication skill!  J  

As always, if you have any questions or concerns about our lessons, small group offerings, your child’s development, etc., please feel free to call or e-mail:

Kristin Charneski  920-766-6150 ext. 3817

charneskik@kaukaunasd.org

PAC UPDATE

Wow, we have some amazing families at Tanner. Because of all of you we were able to provide 2 meals for our teachers and staff during conferences. The little things we do really show our staff that we appreciate all they are doing for our children. Also, a big Thank you to everyone who help make our Book Fair a huge success again this year. The money we earn from our fairs gets help us to support literacy at Tanner. 

We have a few things coming up soon so please be on the look out for information about our upcoming events and fundraisers. 

I know many of you are wondering what exactly the PAC is or what we do so please join us at our next meeting on March  7, at 6pm in the Library. See you all then!!  

PBIS UPDATE

We will kick off our March character trait of trustworthiness on March 8 . For the month of March Tanner students will be learning and practicing the character trait of trustworthiness in multiple ways. We will be creating a classroom poster that reminds us of ways that we can be a trustworthy friend! We will be talking about thinking about other’s feelings, keeping your promises, having a kind heart, always speaking the truth and remembering that everyone makes mistakes; we need to be able to forgive our friends.

Mark your calendars; Tom Pease and Stuart Stotts will be at Tanner School for our residency program on April 10, 20 and 24th.  We will have a song celebration on May 11 at Kaukauna High School at 6 p.m.

HEAD START

Always accepting applications

WHAT IS HEAD START?

UW Oshkosh Head Start is a preschool program serving children and families in Outagamie, Winnebago, Calumet and Shawano counties at NO COST TO YOU.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

Low-income families with children who are 3 or 4 years old by September 1st of enrolling year.  Families with children with disabilities are also encouraged to apply.

OPTIONS INCLUDE:

Half day programs

Extended day programs

Child Care Collaboration

HOW DO I APPLY?

For more information, call 1-800-624-4436