Baxter Bugle News from the Principal’S Office December 4, 2018
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Baxter Bugle News from the Principal’s Office December 4, 2018 Happy Holidays: A message from the Principal Dear Families, Here we are again with December in full swing and all of the excitement that the holiday season brings. It’s a wonderful time of year to get together with family and friends to celebrate whatever beliefs and traditions we hold near and dear to our hearts. I hope all of you have an excellent holiday season filled with rest, relaxation, and wonderful moments for next year’s memories. The New Year is a great time to make some resolutions and develop a plan to achieve these new chal- lenges. Take time to ask your children how they feel they could improve in specific areas at home and in school. Please remember that students should continue to read, write, and practice math facts over the vacation. The interest you show in your children and their schoolwork will demonstrate to them the importance that you place on education. It is hard to believe that we are already one third of the way through this school year. We look forward to continuing to provide an educational experience that is rewarding, challenging and fun for our students. I wish you Peace, Joy, Hope and Happiness during this holiday and throughout the new year. Thank you for your continued support and the opportunity to work with you and your children. I am always and forever grateful to serve as principal at Baxter Elementary School. Dr. Tammy Stellmach Student of the Trimester Congratulations to the following students for being selected for the Student of the Trimester award for trimester one. Staff can select only one student per each trimester so this award is truly an honor to receive. Our school wide theme for trimester one was Unity, so students who work hard to cooperate, be kind, and include others were considered for this award. In addition, our three “Rs” Respect, Responsibility and Relationship building were qualities considered for this award, along with academic improvement or achievement, citizenship in the classroom, and integrity. Kindergarten: Zachary Drees, Reed VanWyngeeren, Arianna McDonald, Kaylin Vesely, Ireland Heap First: Lauren Bendson, Oliver Novitzki, Claire Cosert, Sophia Charron, Logan Steele, Romel Schuety, Jakob Bird Second: Tenley Andrew, Parker Ellis, Hope Doty, Payton Smith Third: Cora Starns, Aydan Dobis, Cole Hames, Mason Juaire, Annabelle Larson, Henry Collins, Harper Hahn Fourth: Gavin Andersen, Olivia Tanner, Camryn Anderson, Molly Flaten, Alanah Swenson, Claire Nybeck, Margeaux Czech, Emma Walkowiak, Colter Forland, Devon Catlin Baxter K-4 Report cards The first trimester report cards will be sent home on Thursday, December 6th. Please sign and return after you have had an opportunity to review the report card with your child. Baxter Student Council Activities Helping Our Community - Student Council members are collecting non perishable food items for the Salvation Army community Food Shelf. We are collecting all types of non perishable items. Please send in your donations by Friday, December 7th. Thank you! Student Council members, family members and Baxter Staff volunteered for the Salvation Army helping Red Kettle donations by ringing the bell for four 1-hour shifts. We raised over $250. School Christmas Program The Second Grade classes will present “Share Bears” on Thursday, December 6 at 6:00 p.m. Bailey is a very generous bear who gives honey to all the bears before they hibernate for the winter. An unex- pected guest arrives and Bailey gives away his last pot of honey and his bed. When the bears hurry to help Bailey, he is reluctant. The bears finally convince him to allow them to be generous too! After all, they had learned it from him. And so, the bears became known all over the mountain as....The Share Bears. The rest of the student body will see the performance on Thursday, Dec 6 at 1:30 Program and Event Parking We ask all our parents and other visitors to use designated parking spots when attending our programs. Guests should park in the North parking lot near the Baxter park. Brainerd High School Orchestra The Brainerd High School Orchestra, under the direction of Spencer Frie, will be per- forming at Baxter School on Thursday, Dec. 20 at 8:50 a.m. Members of the orchestra will play holiday favorites and discuss their instruments and sounds made from each, making this an interesting and enjoyable opportunity for all Pre-K—4th grade students. Holiday Fridays Students and staff are encouraged to wear a holiday hat, sweatshirt, T-shirt, socks, necklace, etc. that shows some holiday spirit. We will do this every Friday in the month of December. Join the fun! Lost & found We have a huge problem with lost and found items. The pile of items continues to grow. Please discuss the importance of keeping track of personal items with your child. Please la- bel sweatshirts and all winter gear with first and last name. Please stop by and check the lost and found bins when you are in the building. Third and Fourth grade students can leave items on their hooks and shelves during the week but are expected to take all items home on Fridays. Lunch Visitors Families are ALWAYS welcome to join their student in the cafeteria for lunch. Lunchroom space is lim- ited so plan on sitting close to your child and the other students if you choose to eat lunch with them. When utilizing our picnic tables to have lunch with your student, please remind your child that students eating at the picnic tables must follow the same rules they have in the cafeteria, and should clean the picnic table off when they are done eating. Smile Safe Kids Program Identification cards will be provided to students who had their school picture taken in October as part of the Smile Safe Kids Program, offered by Lifetouch and designed to help you keep your child safer and respond quickly if he or she is missing. Here’s how the Lifetouch Smile Safe Kids program helps: 1) They provide you with two safety ID cards featuring your child’s portrait and other essential infor- mation. 2) With your permission, if your child is missing, their 24/7 Rapid Response System can provide law en- forcement with your child’s recent Lifetouch portrait to assist in search efforts. All this is provided free of charge by Lifetouch in partnership with your Baxter School and the Nation- al Center for Missing & Exploited Children and is administered with stringent safeguards to protect your family’s privacy. Sick or Absent Students Along with the colder weather comes the cold and flu season. If your child is going to be absent from school (for any reason!!), please remember to call the teacher or the of- fice. If you are leaving a message on the voice mail system, we need your child’s first and last name, their teacher’s name, and the reason for the absence. Personal Belongings We’d like to remind our students that they should not be bringing personal items such as toys, electron- ics, etc. to school unless it is for a classroom project. Toys are not allowed on the playground (the ex- ceptions are footballs, basketballs & soccer balls). Thank you!! PTO NEWS Scholastic Book Fair Tricia Wikoff & Tara McAllister, Coordinators of the Scholastic Book Fair, reported terrific sales! Thanks to the many volunteers who offered valuable time and energy to run the book fair in the library the week of Nov. 5-8, to all customers for their ample purchases, and especially to Tricia & Tara for coordinating this wonderful opportunity for Baxter School! This year the profits from the Book Fair were sufficient to put $100 worth of new books into all 21 classrooms! Club’s Choice Fundraiser A HUGE thanks goes out to students and their families who participated in this year’s fundraising events. Our building had over $12,500 in profit to fund Baxter P.T.O. projects. Thanks goes out to Ashley Pietig, Jeanne King and Katie Haakonson who coordinated this fundraiser, and to all the won- derful volunteers who helped with the fundraiser kick-off, distribution of materials, collection of orders, totaling of sales, and food pick-up. Profits earned from the fundraiser will be used for field trips, special PTO nights, building technology and other student focused projects. Top selling class- rooms will receive a pizza party! Author Visit Erin Twamley is an educator and author currently living in Germany. She is a former Baxter Bucca- neer and BHS graduate. She is dedicated to engaging the next generation of learners in protecting and creating a sustainable planet through hands-on STEAM learning. She is an author of numerous publications on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM). This includes two books for kids (Amazon #1 Hot New Release books), Climate Change: Discover How it Impacts Spaceship Earth and Renewable Energy: Discover the Fuel of the Future. She has a new book com- ing out in January with an emphasis of girls working in STEAM. We are lucky to have her visit December 18 and 19. This is ANOTHER opportunity provided by THE Baxter Elementary PTO. Important PTO Dates: Dec. 12, PTO Meeting at 11:30 in the Office Conference Room Jan. 9, PTO Meeting at 11:30 in the Office Conference Room ANOTHER WAY TO EARN MONEY FOR OUR SCHOOL! WE COLLECT BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION “LABELS” AND UPC’S FROM “LOAVES 4 LEARN- ING”. SAVE THESE ITEMS AND SEND IN TO SCHOOL. THE MONEY RAISED FROM THESE SUPPORTS A LARGE VARIETY OF STUDENT ACTIVITIES! Christmas Break Elementary school will not be in session Saturday, December 22nd through Tuesday, January 1st.