Weekly Update 6/4

 Dear Wines Families, 

Well, here is the final Wednesday Email of the school year. I’ll likely send out another email or two with important items next week and a final end of year message, but this is the final regular weekly email. The kids are still a bit on cloud nine after last Friday’s Wines ROAR which was another smashing success! 

Wines ROAR Thank You

Speaking of the ROAR, below is a message from Sarah Lesch who organized this year’s event. 

On behalf of the ROAR planning committee, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of you who attended and volunteered at our recent event. Your generous support played a huge role in making the day fun for our students and a success for our school.

Whether you helped with setup, volunteered at games, helped us tear down in the rain, donated raffle items, made a cake, brought supplies, or simply showed up to let your kid have a great time, we are truly grateful. A very special thank you for your flexibility and patience with us as we navigated fast approaching rain and needed to change the timing of the raffle.

Your involvement and attendance at events like these strengthens our school community and helps create meaningful experiences for our students.

Thank you once again for your time, energy, and commitment. We couldn’t have done it without you!

With gratitude, 

Sarah Lesch 

Of course, we need to be sure to thank Sarah for all of your incredible work! 

Wines PTO Year in Review

As the 2024-2025 school year comes to a close, the Wines PTO wants to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the parents, caregivers, family, and friends who supported Wines and the Wines PTO through your time, talent, and treasures.  We did a lot of amazing things as a community this year and look forward to another fun year next year. We hope everyone has an enjoyable summer!

Last Day of School Wednesday, June 11th. Half Day

One week from today is the last day of school. It is a traditional half day (not an early release) and dismissal is at 11:30. 

Baby Bunnies Available

A current Wines family who has pet rabbits were just blessed with newborn bunnies. They are looking for a good home sometime in July when the bunnies are ready to be weaned. If you are interested, please contact Jessica Webb at jadelewebb@gmail.com.

David

PTO THRIFT FLYER

Weekly Update 5/28

Dear Wines Families, 

Hello from northern Michigan where the 5th grade teachers and I have accompanied our 5th graders on our annual trip to Camp Tanuga. The weather is perfect and the kids are having a great time (and so are we!!). It’s a big week at Wines with the ROAR Friday night. 

Wines ROAR Friday!!

The Wines ROAR is almost here – happening THIS Friday, May 30th, 5-8pm!  Don’t miss out!

• Don’t forget to buy your wristband, food tickets, and raffle tickets here. Pickup what you ordered during dropoff or pick up at the main entrance (Wednesday or Thursday of this week) or at the ROAR ticket booth.  

• Volunteer for short (30 min) shifts at the event. **We are still in need of volunteers! Please sign-up asap!**

• Don’t forget to bring your decorated cake to school by 9am on Friday morning, 5/31! The theme is “Destinations!”. You can also donate store bought baked goods for prizes!  

• Preview the many amazing raffle prizes here.

Library News

It's time to return your library books. Please check your backpacks, bookshelves, couches, and any other cozy reading spots for misplaced books and bring all Wines books back to school. If you think you've lost a book, please talk to Ms. Goldberg about it at school or via email (goldbergr@aaps.k12.mi.us). 

Field Day Wednesday, June 4th 

Volunteers are needed in the morning (Grades 3- 5).

You can sign up to assist with the following link: SIGN-UP

If you have additional questions, please email Darcy Knoll at thorpekn@aaps.k12.mi.us

Another Great Idea Grant Update!

Thanks to Kaeman Francis, first grader in Ms. Carlin's class and his Great Idea Grant, the Lower El has a newly painted Four-Square Court! Have your kids seen it? A big thanks to Kaeman's mom and grandfather for painting the new court's lines.

A Four-Square Court for the Upper El is being worked on!

David

Weekly Update 5/21

 Dear Wines Families, 

As we approach the Memorial Day holiday weekend and what many people believe is the “official” start of summer, we still have a lot going on here at Wines over the next few weeks! Be sure to read all the way to the end for one of the final ROAR messages as we prepare for the event on May 30th. 

Annual AAPS Family Survey

By now you should have received a couple emails asking you to participate in our school district’s annual family survey. If you have not had a chance to take the survey, please consider clicking on the link below. 

https://survey.k12insight.com/r/2025-SchoolClimateSurvey-Families

Bike Bus - Wednesday, May 28

Meet-up points at Garden Homes Park (8:05 a.m.), Creal Park (8:15 a.m.), and Hunt Park (8:15 a.m.)

What’s a bike bus?

A bike bus is a group of kids and caretakers who meet up and ride bikes (or skate or scoot, etc) together to school. It’s fun and festive and encourages kids and adults to stay active and use more sustainable transportation whenever possible.

Wines Art Night 2025: Tomorrow

Beginning at 6:30 tomorrow evening, Mr. Wyse will host our annual Art Night. The event is informal and families are welcome to come any time between 6:30 and 7:30 to explore all of the amazing art our students have created this year. We hope to see you there!

Field Day Wednesday, June 4th 

Volunteers are needed in both the morning (Grades 3- 5) and the afternoon (Grades Y5-2).

You can sign up to assist with the following link: SIGN-UP

If you have additional questions, please email Darcy Knoll at thorpekn@aaps.k12.mi.us

Final TRAILS Newsletter

Did You Know?! 

Wines Elementary is named for Levi D. Wines who would be celebrating his 173rd birthday this Saturday.  Levi Wines spent his lifetime serving the Ann Arbor community as a mathematics faculty member at the high school for 50 years, a founding member of the University Musical Society, and serving as the Park Commissioner for 33 years.  As someone who strongly believed in serving his community and supporting students, Wines Elementary was named after him when it opened in 1957.

To read more about Levi Wines's legacy, visit AADL here.

Wines ROAR May 30th

The Wines ROAR is almost here – happening Friday, May 30th, 5-8pm on the Wines Upper El playground! We sent an email about the raffle and all the fun planned for the end of year celebration. This is a great chance to see other families and have fun welcoming in summer!  

To make this an exceptional event for everyone we do need your help! Three easy ways to do so are:

• Volunteer for short (30 min) shifts at the event. **We are in need of volunteers!!! Please consider signing up for one or two shifts per family!

• Donate to classroom baskets or contribute other items for the raffle by this Friday (May 23). Proceeds from the Raffle are not only to help support teachers' needs in the classrooms but also supplement our specials, as well as improvements on the playground, field trips and more!

• Start planning with your child now to prepare for the cake for the decoration contest – the theme is ‘Destinations,” Kids bring their entries to school the day of the Roar (Friday, May 30th) by 9 AM to be eligible. [5th graders - while you need to decorate the cake, your parents are welcome to bake the cake for you!] Your child doesn't want to make a cake? No worries! You can also just send in store bought cookies, cupcakes, cakes or donuts to be given out as prizes for the musical cakes event. 

We can’t wait to have a ROARing good time with you and your family! 

David

PTO THRIFT FLYER

Weekly Update 5/7

Dear Wines Families, 

The end of the year is fast approaching and we have LOTS of great things going on at Wines and in the Wines community. As always, I appreciate everyone for taking a few minutes to read through this week’s announcements. 

Join us next week for our last PTO meeting of the school year next Wednesday, May 14th at 7pm.  The meeting will include elections for the 2025-26 PTO Board.

The WESO Science Olympiad tournament is taking place this Saturday May 10th at Pioneer High School. There will be several open events filled with fun STEM activities sponsored by local companies. These events will run from 8am to 7pm. All children are welcome.

If you are curious about Science Olympiad and planning to have your child participate in the future, this will be a great opportunity to show your child what the event is like. If you would like to become a future coach, volunteering at WESO on the 10th for a couple hours would definitely be beneficial. Please sign up at WESO 2025 Volunteer Sign Up

Staff Appreciation Sidewalk Art: Rescheduled to Tonight!

Due to the weather yesterday, the sidewalk chalk for Staff Appreciation has been rescheduled for tonight, May 7th at 6:30pm. Meet us at Wines to write messages to our teachers and staff!

Wines Art Night 2025

Mark your calendars Art Night will be happening at Wines

Thursday May 22, 6:30 - 7:30 PM

Come see the amazing work of all of the artists of Wines Elementary!

We are also looking for a few volunteers to help hang the art work. Anyone interested can sign up here.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/904054CAEAF22A64-56727583-artnight

Wines ROAR May 30th

The Wines ROAR is almost here – happening Friday, May 30th, 5-8pm! There was a lengthy email sent on Monday with everything you need to know for the end of year event. HERE is a copy of that email. It’s a great way to celebrate the year, meet other families, and just have some fun. To make this an exceptional event for everyone we do need your help! Three easy ways to do so are:

• Donate to Classroom Baskets or contribute other items for the raffle

• Have your child decorate a cake for the decoration contest the day of the ROAR (to be used for Musical Cakes). Theme is ‘Destinations," students decorate cakes to show a destination they love or would love to go to.

• Volunteering: We need a dedicated lead for the musical Cakes Game. To learn more and jump in to help with the day of coordination of Musical Cakes-  Contact sarahrhenry@gmail.com 

AAPS PLTW and CTE Expo

The AAPS PLTW and CTE Expo is Tuesday, May 13th, from 6 to 7:30 PM at Skyline. The expo will include a showcase of student work from Young 5s to 12th grade, hands-on interactive STEAM demonstrations, district robotics team and CTE Programs. More information HERE.

Great Idea Grant Update!

Thanks to Wines parent, Patricia Laskowsky and her Great Idea Grant, the Lower El sandbox has been replenished with new toys including sand castle building kits and dump trucks. Have your kids check these toys out! 

David

Weekly Update 4/30

 Dear Wines Families, 

As we end the month of April today and move into our final weeks of the school year, we have lots of news and I hope you can take some time to read through today’s message and those during the rest of the year. Thanks in advance!

PTO Officer Elections Will Take Place on May 14th

Want to help make Wines even better? Are you interested in taking on a leadership role within the PTO next year? Join the PTO Board! 

Currently, there is an open spot for next year's PTO President.  The role can also be co-chaired - so find a friend who could serve in the role with you!  Commitment is on average 1-3 hours per week.  

We are also looking for 1-2 people who are interested in shadowing the Treasurers to learn the position before the current treasurers' kids complete 5th grade next year.  Commitment is on average 1-2 hours per week.

Members-at-Large are also a great way to be more involved in the decision making and taking on tasks throughout the year.  Commitment is <1 hour per week.

If you would like to learn more, please contact Jaimie Sussman, PTO Vice President @ winesptovicepresident@gmail.com

Staff Appreciation Week

Teacher and Staff Appreciation week starts next week! The PTO has lots of treats planned for our amazing staff and we would love for you to help us! 

On Sunday, May 4 we will gather at Wines to sidewalk chalk the walkways! We would love if you could come help draw pictures and write messages to greet our staff when they walk in! This will be canceled if it is rainy. Join us at Wines at 4pm on Sunday! 

On Monday, May 5 we would love for students to bring their teachers a thank you note or drawing. This will set the week of to a great start! 

Wines ROAR May 30th!

It’s hard to believe it's almost the end of the school year! Come join us for our annual end-of-the-year celebration, the Wines ROAR Friday, May 31st, 5-8pm! The event includes food, games, raffle, prizes, musical cakes, and more! Details to follow in ROAR specific emails on Mondays leading up to the event. Like any event, our community’s contribution helps make it a success! Consider helping out by: 

● Volunteering: We need a dedicated lead for the musical Cakes Game. To learn more and jump in to help with the day of coordination of Musical Cakes- Contact Sarah Lesch at: sarahrhenry@gmail.com 

● Donating to the WISH LIST! Sign up to donate popular items (or cash) for the raffle. (Other ways to contribute to the Raffle coming in Monday’s email). 

● Baking & Decorating a baked cake (or cupcakes!) for our Musical Cakes game and contest.  Students will bring in their decorated cakes on the day of the ROAR and teachers will vote and judge. The theme this year is "Destinations, students can decorate their cake to show a destination they love or would love to go to. The decorated cakes will be later used as prizes for the Musical Cakes game at the ROAR. We also welcome donated baked goods for the Musical Cakes game.

We look forward to seeing you there to celebrate a great end to the school year! 

Decorate Your Bike Station, Friday, May 2nd, 8:00 a.m.

Dust off your wheels and ride to school to kick off the biking season. On Friday, May 2nd we wil have a bike-decorating station with supplies and inspiration to add style to your ride. We’ll also have an air pump and some tools to help you get rolling. 

Curious about family cycling? Parents can stay after drop off for coffee, donuts, and conversation about family biking. Come if you’re curious to start family biking or share knowledge if you’re already an experienced biking family.  

Disability Awareness Workshop: Friday and Monday

We could still use a few more volunteers for our 5th grade Disability Awareness Workshop on Friday and the 4th grade workshop on Monday. You do not need to be a 4th or 5th grade parent. Sign up at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0D4EAEAC2EA7F85-56184120-disability#/

No School Tuesday, May 6

There is no school next Tuesday.

David

PTO THRIFT FLYER

Weekly Update 4/9

 Dear Wines Families, 

Before we get into the news for the week, I want to extend a giant thank you to the Wines community for the incredible “Parents Night Out” and Wines Auction last Friday evening. It was so great to see so many parents at the event and it was a fantastic time. Special thanks to Jane Lardo who once again organized an amazing event for our school. Jane has spearheaded the Auction for a number of years and she really out did herself this time (and that’s saying a lot!). There are lots of others who need thanking and I fear I will miss someone and I apologize in advance for those I will miss. But big thanks to PTO President Kate Galvin who was working all night long to make sure everything went perfectly. Kate’s husband Luke has been working behind the scenes for weeks and on Friday evening, Luke was all over the place working to make the event so special. Thank you to Marti Clark and Lori Shirilla for all your help before, during, and after the event. Thanks to Jaimie Sussman who is such a huge supporter of the Auction and has been part of the planning for many years. Thanks to Lauren Cunnane for all the organization of the student art projects and your help with the live auction. Thanks to Dan Papajcik and Alex Tokatlian for again being our live auctioneers. Thanks to all of our parents who helped with classroom art projects, especially Angie Wolney who once again helped make numerous incredible projects. I know there were also many parents who helped with set up, clean up, bead sales, 50/50 raffle ticket sales, and so much more. We could not have done it without you. And another final thanks to everyone who was able to make it out that evening. We really hope you enjoyed yourselves. 

Join us next week for our second to last PTO meeting of the school year.  We will have special guests from the Forsythe PTO to inform current and future Forsythe parents about ways to get involved at Forsythe. PLUS! We will have architects and design experts from the AAPS Capital Program team to talk about the new Wines!

Parent Input for Class Placement 2025-2026

With just over 40 days left in this school year (can you believe it?!), we are actively preparing for the fall of 2025 while keeping our eyes on finishing this year strong. Over the coming days and weeks, the staff and I will be making initial class placements for the 2025-2026 school year. If you are interested in providing information about your child that you believe will be useful as we make our decisions, below is a link to an optional survey. Please be reminded that we do not take any requests for a child to be assigned or not be assigned to a specific teacher’s classroom. Such requests will be deleted from our responses. However, we do value your input and this is an opportunity for you to share. If you are interested, please fill out the form below. We are asking that you respond by April 18. 

https://forms.gle/AXygEZjweLqmyrxV9

Disability Awareness Workshop

On Friday, May 2nd our 5th graders will participate in the Disability Awareness Workshop that we organize in conjunction with the Washtenaw County Disability Network. This is a wonderful opportunity that traditionally was part of the 4th grade experience. The program did not run last year, but it is back this year and we are able to offer it to both 4th and 5th graders and we will be able to have all 4th graders participate each year moving forward. This is a big event and we need lots of volunteers. You do not need to be a 4th or 5th grade family to volunteer! Below is a link to a volunteer sign up form. 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0D4EAEAC2EA7F85-56184120-disability#/

Wines Equity Team Interest Survey

The Wines Equity Committee is a group of staff and parents that meet monthly to further our school's efforts to create an inclusive and welcoming school community. Our projects have included, but are not limited to: 

• creating the annual Student Belonging Survey

• developing annual school-wide programming to celebrate Dr. King's life and legacy (school-wide read aloud, activities, and assembly)

• leading teacher workshops on identity-related topics

At our annual NAAPID celebration, parents were given the opportunity to fill out a survey regarding your interest in serving on or otherwise contributing to our Equity Team here at school. If you expressed interest, we will be in touch with you very soon about next steps. If you were not able to fill out the survey,  I’ve linked it below. 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ytqQL4zCpcWkcaXZiM94jldG_oTJKx-sP6V1RPJG-2o/edit

Advertising in our Take-Home Folders Next Fall

If you are interested in having your business advertise in our school folders next year, our vendor offers a 33% discount for any business that is affiliated with our school. Parents can also do a personal sponsorship for $75. If you are interested or have any questions about the program, please contact Bob Lundwall at 586-405-1144 or email Bob at lundwallbob@gmail.com.

David

Weekly Update 4/2

Dear Wines Families, 

As I write this, we are in the middle of some terrible “spring” weather! My sons are hockey players and we spend a lot of time in hockey rinks. At this time of year, they play lacrosse. Trish and I always say during the spring lacrosse season that we REALLY miss the cold ice rinks—no rain, no wind, no snow! 

Wines Parents Night Out and Auction!

Join us at Circ in downtown Ann Arbor April 4th from 6-10PM!  This is a fantastic opportunity to connect with parents and teachers outside of school in a low key, casual, adult-only environment and support our school!

Tickets are available now! $40/person or consider purchasing a VIP sponsorship at $100 for 2 people.  Learn more at ptowines.org.

Please note: We are having some technical issues with Square, Tickets will not sell out, please try to reload the page if having any trouble.

Volunteer: We need your help to make the event great. Please consider volunteering and sign up here.

We have some amazing art projects created by each classroom that will be part of the Live Auction.  You must be present to bid on the Live Auction, so be sure to get your tickets! A link to view the projects was in today's email.

Silent Auction will open this Thursday (you do not need to be present to win).

MSTEP Testing Information for 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Families

MSTEP testing begins next week for our 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. Please click HERE for important information about MSTEP. 

Friday is National School Librarian Day!

Our amazing School Librarian, Rachel Goldberg helps to make Wines an inclusive, educational, and fun place for our kids to be. If you are able to, please consider showing your appreciation on Friday, April 4th - National school Librarian Day - for Ms. Goldberg by wishing her a happy appreciation day, sending a card or flower, or having your kid read an extra book that day!

Reminder: Upcoming Construction on Miller

As you have likely noticed, construction has begun on Miller. You may have also noticed that the intersection of Miller and Newport is still open. I contacted the city yesterday and they indicated that later this month, that intersection will close. I do not know when this will take place. So please keep in mind the various options to avoid that intersection including exiting Wines north on Newport or arriving to Wines from the north. Or, using Pinetree/Westport on the south end of Newport to arrive from Miller or exit to Miller. 

David