Weekly Blog 1/30

Dear Wines Families, 

Sorry there was no blog message last week due to our internet outage. The January Wines Times was  attached to today's email with lots of important information so I'll keep my message brief. I do want to bring your attention to three important items that are also in the Wines Times. 

First, just a final reminder that International Night is tomorrow night (Jan. 31st) beginning at 6:30. It is shaping up to be a great evening. 

Second, today every family will be receiving a yellow invitation to our annual Parent Involvement Day celebration on Monday, Feb. 11th. We hope to see you for some or part of the day on the 11th. I will be sending out an electronic RSVP either Thursday or Friday. If you are coming that day, please fill out the RSVP--particularly if you are staying for lunch so we are sure to order enough food. 

Finally, a reminder that Kindergarten Round Up is next Thursday, Feb. 7th from 6:30-7:30. If you have a child coming to Kindergarten in the fall (or if you have friends or neighbors how do), please bring your child to Round-Up next week. If you can't make Round-Up, please call Robin in the office so we have your child's information and Robin can arrange with you when to pick up your registration and information packet. 

Thanks and please read the WInes Times! 

David

Weekly Blog 1/16

Dear Wines Families,

There are a number of important pieces of information this week. Sorry for the long message!

Mark Your Calendars
• January 21st: No school in honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King holiday.
• January 22nd: We will have our annual MLK celebration at 1:30. Every student will participate. All are welcome (please note that parent seating will be extremely limited).
• January 29th: No school for students. (This is a professional development day for staff. This date was not on the original PTO calendar sent home earlier this year).
• January 31st: International Night (More information later in this message).
• February 11th: Parent Involvement Day (More information and an invitation coming soon. We hope to see all parents for at least part of the day).

School Security
At the PTO meeting last night, I discussed the current safety procedures in place at Wines in the wake of the tragedy in Connecticut. While we have not made any large changes, we have made some small changes and we have reviewed and “tightened” our existing procedures. You have likely noticed that only one front door is open during the day. That door can be locked from the office with the push of a button. In addition, all interior doors are now kept locked so they can be easily closed and secured in the event of a lock down. Please be sure to ALWAYS have a visitor badge on when you are in the building—even if you are a regular volunteer. I have been asked many times about the possibility of installing a camera at the front door and keeping the door locked at all times. This is something the school district is looking into.

International Night
International Night is coming!  On Thursday, January 31, Wines will host a fun and informative event showcasing the many cultures of the Wines community. We need students to create and present projects, parents to assist with cultural crafts and activities, young performers to entertain with multi-cultural acts, and everyone involved to contribute their favorite ethnic dishes for an international buffet! Please sign up online at www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0C4FAFAA2EAA8-volunteers. Please contact Shireen Syed (shisy786@yahoo.com) or Annemarie Dolan (akilburndolan@comcast.net) with any questions.

Girls on the Run-Spring 2013
Registration is now open for Girls on the Run for Spring 2013. Our Wines site is almost full, unless we can get more coaches. If you want to sign your daughter up, please add her to the waitlist at Rec and Ed and complete the registration on the GOTR website. If we can find two more full-time coaches (parents, grandparents, family friends, high school or college students), we can accommodate more girls at our site. Please contact Jennifer Hall at a2halls@gmail.com or (734) 213-6037 if you are interested. Registration fees for daughters of coaches are waived by GOTR. Spring session starts March 12. The Wines team meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school until 5:30. Open to girls in grades 3-5. Come join the fun!

Thanks!

David

Weekly Blog 1/9

Dear Wines Families,

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a nice winter break and were able to relax and have some family time. It was great to see all of the kids arrive back to school on Monday. Students and staff are “back to business” and it seems like we never left.

There are a number of important announcements this week.

Lunchtime Extra Specials start January 15th!
The Lunchtime Extra Specials activities start next Tuesday and we still need volunteers!! We only need a commitment of one lunchtime per week for 7 weeks (skipping mid-Winter Break) and younger siblings are more than welcome!

We are in need of volunteers to lead Board Games and Speed Stacking (Tuesdays). We also need additional help with: Free Dance (Wednesdays), Sewing & Crafts (Wednesdays), Knitting—Beginning & Experienced (Thursdays), Paper Airplanes (Thursdays), and Origami (Fridays)

If you have time to help us with this fun and much-loved activity, please visit VolunteerSpot at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0B4DA9A629A13-parent and sign up today. You can also email shisy786@yahoo.com with your activity preference and availability. We look forward to seeing you at lunch next week!

REGISTER NOW FOR GIRLS ON THE RUN - SPRING 2013
Registration is now open for Girls on the Run for Spring 2013.  Session starts March 12. Wines team meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school until 5:30. Open to girls in grades 3-5. Come join the fun! For more information, contact Jennifer Hall at a2halls@gmail.com or (734) 213-6037.

Kindergarten Round Up
Our annual Kindergarten Round Up will take place on Thursday, February 7th from 6:30-7:30 PM. If you have a child who will be 5 years old by Nov. 1, 2013, please come to Round Up with your child! You can begin registering your child at any time beginning now. Please help spread the word to your friends and neighbors as well.

PTO Meeting
Our next PTO meeting will be taking place next Tuesday, January 15th at 7:00 PM. Heather Herrick, our School Social Worker, will be at the meeting and will speak briefly about talking to kids about violence in the wake of the tragedy in Connecticut. I will also be speaking about current security measures in place. As always, free childcare will be available.

Thanks for Giving!!
Our four simultaneous giving opportunities in December were incredibly successful. Thank you to everyone for participating in our Food Drive with Food Gatherers, our Coat Drive, the Wish List items for the Ann Arbor Preschool, and/or our Puzzle Collection for Peer Pals. I’m happy to report that we donated 542 pounds of food to Food Gatherers, collected 95 coats or other winter garments, nearly filled all of the wish list items for the preschool, and we have more puzzles than our Peer Pals know what to do with!! Thank you Wines!

David