Weekly Blog 3/27

Dear Wines Families,

The Wines Times was attached to today's email so all the important news can be found there! I do want to remind everyone that there is no school on Friday or next week for Spring Break. Also, our lost and found items are on display outside of the library. We will be donating any remaining items to charity over the break.

Thanks, and please take a moment to read the Wines Times.

David

Weekly Blog 3/20

Dear Wines Families,

Well, this is a busy time of year, so again this week the weekly communication is a bit lengthy. There are a couple of repeat messages here, but they are important.

Surveys

Last week I sent links to two surveys and I’ve included them below again. The first is a parent input survey for class placement for next year. While we don’t consider requests for specific teachers, if you have input about your child that you believe will help us as we make decisions, please fill out the survey. In addition, if your family is not returning to Wines next year, this survey gives you the opportunity to let us know.

Parent Input Survey

The second survey is a district created survey about your experiences at Wines this year. This survey will help us as we plan for the future and work to meet the needs of our community.

Family School Improvement Survey

Please complete the surveys by next Thursday, March 28th.

Yearbook Photos

If you have photos that you would like to contribute to the yearbook, please email the photos to Debbie Tirico at debbietirico@me.com.  Please indicate what grade level for each child photographed.  Child names do not need to be included.  Please submit by March 31.

Raffle Help

The Country Fair and Raffle is right around the corner! We need your help!  Planning for the Wines Raffle has already started.  If you are interested in lending a hand please contact Kerianne Tupac  - kmtupac@umich.edu, or Margaret Compton - bagladycompton@yahoo.com.  You can help leading up to the raffle and/or the evening of the raffle. Both Kerianne and Margaret can also answer any questions you have about the raffle.

Art Room Newsletter

Attached to today's email was Janice Hendrick’s newsletter from the Art Room. There is a lot going on in Art (including our Art Night coming up April 26th), so please take a look!

Spring Break Coming

Just a reminder that there is no school next Friday, March 29th and no school the following week (April 1st-5th). Despite the winter weather, believe it or not, it is spring!

Thanks,

David

Weekly Blog 3/13

Dear Wines Families.

This is one of those weeks where we have a lot of important information. I apologize in advance for this long message!

Surveys

Below are links to two important surveys. The first is a survey about next year. We are already looking ahead to the fall and as always, your input is helpful as we move ahead. The parent input form allows parents to give us information about your child that we can use to help with class placement. As always, we do not accept requests for individual teachers. The survey is optional. However, if your child is not returning to Wines next year, please fill out the survey so we have that important information.

Parent Input Survey

The second survey is a survey being sent to all Ann Arbor Public Schools parents. This is an opportunity to provide feedback about your experiences at Wines this year and will be very helpful as we continually strive to meet the needs of our kids and families at Wines. You will be receiving a district email tomorrow with a link to the same survey. I’m hopeful that all of our families fill out this survey.

Family School Improvement Survey

PTO Meeting

Our next PTO meeting is next Tuesday evening, March 19th at 7:00 PM. As always, free childcare is available. At the meeting we will have a speaker from Champions for Charity (proceeds from Ann Arbor Marathon go to Ann Arbor Public School Foundation). In addition, the PTO will be discussing the upcoming PTO Executive Board elections. The PTO is still looking for new members for the Executive Board.

Food Drive

Yesterday we began our annual Rotary/Food Gatherers Food Drive. Bins are located at our main entrance, our Kindergarten entrance, and the student bus entrance. Let’s fill up all of our bins!

Report Cards

School was not in session this past Monday as it was a day for teachers to finish writing report cards. Report cards will be sent home in backpacks on Monday, March 18th.

March is Reading Month

By now I hope everyone knows about our March is Reading Month activities. Your child should be filling out a reading log nightly and returning it to school each Wednesday. Last week we just missed our weekly goal. Hopefully this week we will exceed it and get on track!

Raffle Help

The Country Fair and Raffle is right around the corner! We need your help!  Planning for the Wines Raffle has already started.  If you are interested in lending a hand please contact Kerianne Tupac  - kmtupac@umich.edu, or Margaret Compton - bagladycompton@yahoo.com.  You can help leading up to the raffle and/or the evening of the raffle.

Thanks!

David

Weekly Blog 2/13

Dear Wines Families,
As we know, the snow day on Monday caused us to postpone Parent Involvement Day. While we will host the event this year, trying to schedule a new day is a bit tricky as it seems every day for the rest of the school year has something that will need to be rescheduled. However, we are looking at a couple different days in March and April that seem workable. I will let you know when we have a new date and we will again send out invitations and a new RSVP.

Wines Wahoo - Friday, March 8th, 2013 from 6:30 - 8:30 @ Forsythe Middle School
Are you tired of the grey and cold?  Ready for a tropical escape?  The Wines Wahoo is the perfect opportunity to shake off the winter blues! The Wines Wahoo is a luau-themed, fun, family event for all Wines students, their parents and younger siblings. The Wahoo includes music provided by a kid friendly DJ, fun activities in the gym, face painting, and tattoos. There will be pizza, snacks and beverages for sale.  A parent or other adult over the age of 18 must accompany each Wines student. Children over 5th grade will not be admitted to the event but can volunteer. Younger siblings are invited to participate. There is a suggested donation of $5 per family that helps to cover the cost of the DJ and decorations. There is also a nominal fee for the food. In order to make the Wahoo a success, we need volunteers to help with set-up, admissions, refreshments, gym monitoring and clean-up.  There will be several shifts, so you will have time to socialize and have fun with your kids.
 Please sign up for Wines Wahoo - it's easy:
 1. Click this link to go to our invitation page: http://vols.pt/uMRxLu
 2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on VolunteerSpot)

Questions? Contact Denise Duffy (dduffy@isr.umich.edu) or Bobbi Coluni (bobbi.coluni@gmail.com)

Girls on the Run
Girls on the Run at Wines has spaces for 3rd-5th grade girls interested in running and fun!  Registration closes this Friday, February 15th.  The Wines team meets Tuesdays and Thursdays after school until 5:30pm.  Season starts March 12.  Sign up here: www.girlsontherunsemi.org/signup

And just a reminder, there is no school next week.

David

Weekly Blog 2/6

Dear Wines Families, 

I just have a couple of messages today. First, I want to remind everyone that we are inviting all Wines parents to our annual Parent Involvement Day next Monday, February 11th. You can spend any part of the day with your child or even the entire day! We would like to have a good estimate of how many folks we are expecting and how many parents are staying for lunch with us (complimentary pizza lunch will be provided for adults). If you are coming on Monday and have not RSVP'd yet, please click on the link below and let us know you are coming and if you are eating. 

RSVP

I also want to send out one final reminder about Kindergarten Round Up. Round Up is tomorrow night (Feb. 7th) from 6:30-7:30. If you have a child entering Kindergarten next year (or if you have friends or neighbors who do), please come to Round Up along with your child tomorrow evening. 

Finally, for parents in Mrs. Rodriguez and Mrs. Caruso's class, just a reminder that to save on paper costs and do our small part for the environment, we are only printing limited copies of programs for tonight's performance. I sent out an email attachment with the program to you today as well as last week. 

Thanks!

David

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