Weekly Update 3/1

 Dear Wines Families, 

It is certainly nice to (hopefully) be in school for a full week this week. Well, it is technically not a full week with a half day on Friday. Please see the important information about the half day below. There is a lot of information to share this week as we enter March is Reading Month and we are busy preparing for our annual auction. All of that information and more is below. Please take a few minutes to read through this fairly lengthy message today. 

Half Day Friday: Dismissal Time and Lunch

Friday is a half day of school. Please note that a half day dismissal is at 11:28 AM which is different from our Early Release schedule. There will be a “grab and go” lunch available for students. Please note that the lunch is not free and students will need to use their lunch card as they would do on a regular school day. In addition, students will pick up their lunch some time before 11:00 AM and the lunch will be sent home and will not be eaten at school (or on the bus!). Please confirm with your child if they will or will not be grabbing lunch that day—though you do not need to order in advance. 

March is Reading Month 

Happy Reading Month! Tomorrow, March 2, we’ll kick off Read Across America Day with Dress Up Like Your Favorite Book Character Day and a schoolwide read aloud in the hallway. 

And save the date for Literacy Night on Thursday, March 16, 6-8pm: Come meet local author, Makiah Shipp, and illustrators, Hannah Anderson and Ebba Gurney. Join teachers and special guests for read alouds and literacy activities in classrooms. Listen to local legend, professional storyteller, and retired AADL librarian, Laura Pershin Raynor, who will end our evening with a performance. It’s going to be a wonderful night of community, stories, and sharing. More details soon.

For fun ways to engage with Reading Month at home, check out this virtual calendar with links and ideas for every day in March. 

Support Wines at Schuler Books This Month! 

In honor of Reading Month, Wines PTO will be partnering with Schuler Books.  From Sunday, March 19 - Saturday, March 25, 20% of your purchase will be donated to Wines. The 20% donation applies to books, games, toys, art supplies, puzzles, candy, stuffed animals and more!  Just mention "Wines" at checkout, or use web code WINESPTO when checking out online (https://www.schulerbooks.com). Tell your friends and family from out of town, too!  

PTO Meeting Wednesday, March 8

The next PTO meeting is Wednesday, March 8 from 7-8:30p in the Wines Elementary Library. Can't make it in person? Join online via Zoom: 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7303088677

Wines Auction: Looking for Sponsors and Art Project Volunteers

Classroom Project Volunteers Needed!

This year’s Wines Auction is on April 14th and for this event each classroom will create a unique art project that will be live auctioned off that night. This is a fun way to get the kids involved with raising money for the PTO and has produced some amazing pieces of art over the years.  We are looking for a few parent volunteers from each classroom to help plan and create projects. No art experience is needed.  Anyone interested please email Lauren Cunnane at lmbrooks27@gmail.com

Corporate Sponsors/Item Donations/Monetary Donation

Another opportunity to support the Auction is to be a corporate sponsor or donate items for the silent auction, or make a monetary donation to the event. HERE is a link to the Auction donation site on the PTO website.

Other Information About the Auction

The auction will be held Friday, April 14th from 6-10PM at HOMES Campus. Join us for this casual, ADULT ONLY celebration in support of our school. This year we are focusing on raising money for outdoor improvements including new soccer goals for the Upper El playground and playground equipment for the Lower El. Want to help? Have a donation? Contact Jane.lardo@gmail.com

Here's to some thawing temperatures! 

David

Icy Weekly Update 2/22

 Dear Wines Families, 

Well, even in what can only be described as a very mild winter, we find ourselves at home for another snow/ice closure today. Like many kids at Wines, I’m generally pretty happy about the magical snow day. But with last week’s ice closure and the long weekend followed by a just single day of school before another day away, we all get off of our schedules, calendars get out of whack, and the general rhythm of school gets interrupted. I do hope to be back in school tomorrow and Friday so we can salvage this week. More importantly, I hope this ice storm is mild and everyone is able to be safe, keep their power on, etc. Here is the news for the week. 

Science Olympiad Registration - Final Call

Registration for the Wines Washtenaw Elementary Science Olympiad (WESO) team will be wrapping up this week. The competition day involves about 2,000 kids from our county competing across a wide variety of events. It's a great opportunity for kids to learn a ton, and also to feel connected to their larger community. Your family can attend the competition even if not competing (there are other activities on site), and see what the fuss is about.

Update: We had four new team spots open for Mystery Architecture in 4th and 5th grades! We have coaches for all events except the Read It / Build It event. 

There are only a few spaces left. As of Tuesday evening, 78 of 98 spaces on the Wines Team are now filled. Please register as soon as possible to ensure your student's opportunity to participate. Practices run weekly from Feb 25 until the competition on May 13.

See this page for more information, and to register your student for the Wines WESO team:

https://sites.google.com/view/wines-weso-2023/register

March is Reading Month - Celebrations Start Next Week!

Reading Month is almost here. See below for plans for students during the day (all month long!) and plans for family Literacy Night on Thursday, March 16, from 6-8pm. For fun ways to engage with Reading Month at home, check out this virtual calendar with links and ideas for every day in March.  

Thursday, March 2 (in school): Celebrate Read Across America Day by dressing up like your favorite book character! We’ll also have a school-wide reading time in the hallway where the whole school will pause to enjoy some quiet reading (in costume, of course). 

Friday, March 10 (in school): All school Zoom read aloud with UM student author, Makiah Shipp, and artists Hannah Anderson and Ebba Gurney. Inspired by Makiah’s childhood, Makiah’s Show and Tell is the story of an elementary-aged Black girl who passionately teaches others about the significance of Black natural hair and Black culture. Makiah Shipp is a civic engagement activist from Detroit. As a 20 year old student at the University of Michigan, she has become a published author of the children's book Makiah’s Show and Tell. The beautiful picture book’s art was created by Hannah Anderson and Wines Elementary alum, Ebba Gurney. 

Makiah will read the book to the whole school via Zoom and then, all three creators will be in person at Wines for Literacy Night activities on Thursday, March 16!

Thursday, March 16, 6-8pm (after school): Literacy Night! Come meet local author, Makiah Shipp, and illustrators, Hannah Anderson and Ebba Gurney. Join teachers and special guests for read alouds and literacy activities in classrooms. Listen to local legend, professional storyteller, and retired AADL librarian, Laura Pershin Raynor, who will end our evening with a performance. It’s going to be a wonderful night of community, stories, and sharing. More details soon.

Thursday, March 23 (in school): We’ll end our Reading Month festivities with an assembly featuring nationally acclaimed and multiple award-winning storyteller, La’Ron Williams. His energetic, music-spiced presentations are always fun, highly participatory, educational and entertaining. Every program is specifically designed to promote diversity, foster community building, encourage peaceful conflict resolution and teach a host of “pro-social” skills, including empathy, self-expression and attentive listening. 

Wines Auction

Save the date for this can’t miss community event. The auction will be held Friday, April 14th from 6-10PM at HOMES Campus. Join us for this casual, ADULT ONLY celebration in support of our school. This year we are focusing on raising money for outdoor improvements including new soccer goals for the Upper El playground and playground equipment for the Lower El. Want to help? Have a donation? Contact Jane.lardo@gmail.com.

Here's to some thawing temperatures! 

David

Weekly Update 2/15

 Dear Wines Families, 

I want to first start by thanking the over 300 parents/grandparents/caregivers who were able to visit our school Monday for NAAPID. We were overwhelmed with how many people came and we thank you for all of your support! I also want to thank everyone who came to the Wines Wahoo last Friday night. That was certainly a fun evening. Big thanks to Robbie Weeks, Jaimie Sussman, and all the volunteers for helping bring this tradition back! 

Kindergarten Round Up Tonight at 6:00 PM

Our annual Young 5’s/Kindergarten Round Up takes place tonight at 6:00 PM. I fear that last week I mistakenly indicated that the event starts at 6:30. Please note the 6:00 start time. This event is for incoming Young 5’s families and students. If you have a child who will be eligible for Young 5’s or Kindergarten next fall, please plan on joining us! If you have friends and neighbors with children eligible for Young 5’s or Kindergarten next year, please let them know! Current Young 5’s Families: You are more than welcome to come to Round Up, but we know you and your children so there is no need to come that evening. 

Save the Date: Literacy Night March 16

We will be hosting a new Wines tradition on the evening of March 16. Literacy night is shaping up to be a fantastic family evening with story tellers, authors, and various literacy activities for kids of all ages and families. Look for more information over the coming weeks, but please mark your calendars! 

Wines Auction

Save the date for this can’t miss community event. The auction will be held Friday, April 14th from 6-10PM at HOMES Campus. Join us for this casual, ADULT ONLY celebration in support of our school. This year we are focusing on raising money for outdoor improvements including new soccer goals for the Upper El playground and playground equipment for the Lower El. Want to help? Have a donation? Contact Jane.lardo@gmail.com

David

Weekly Update 2/8

 Dear Wines Families, 

I hope this message finds you well as we are quickly moving through the month of February.  As I said last week, this is a busy and exciting time of year. Thanks in advance for reading about what is coming up! 

Parent Involvement Day

We are looking forward to welcoming our parents to spend part or all of the day with us on Monday. If you have not RSVP’d for the day yet, please click on the link below. The most important part of the RSVP is to let us know if you are joining us for lunch. RSVP’s are due by the end of the day tomorrow, Thursday. 

Parent Involvement Day RSVP:  https://forms.gle/AjYz3ZrnD7LacMTPA

Please note, we will not be supplying beverages for adult lunch. We encourage adults to bring a water bottle to fill in our many bottle filling stations around the building. 

Wines Wahoo Friday Night! 

The Wahoo is almost here! Please join us Friday evening at Forsythe for the Wines Wahoo. This is always a favorite of our kids and we are thrilled to have this tradition restored! Join your friends for music, pizza, open gym, crafts and more. Younger siblings and parents are welcome. This event will need lots of volunteers so we need your help! Suggested $5 donation per family at the door with pizza, drink, and snack tickets available for purchase (cash only). We could still use a few more volunteers. If you are able, please go to:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44AEAA22A2F8CE9-wines

As with Parent Involvement Day, we are encouraging folks to bring refillable water bottles for water. 

Kindergarten Round Up

Our annual Young 5’s/Kindergarten Round Up takes place next Wednesday, February 15th at 6:30 PM. This event is for incoming Young 5’s families and students. If you have a child who will be eligible for Young 5’s or Kindergarten next fall, please plan on joining us! If you have friends and neighbors with children eligible for Young 5’s or Kindergarten next year, please let them know! Current Young 5’s Families: You are more than welcome to come to Round Up, but we know you and your children so there is no need to come that evening. 

Save the Date: Literacy Night March 16

We will be hosting a new Wines tradition on the evening of March 16. Literacy night is shaping up to be a fantastic family evening with story tellers, authors, and various literacy activities for kids of all ages and families. Look for more information over the coming weeks, but please mark your calendars! 

Wines Auction

Save the date for this can’t miss community event. The auction will be held Friday, April 14th from 6-10PM at HOMES Campus. Join us for this casual, ADULT ONLY celebration in support of our school. This year we are focusing on raising money for outdoor improvements including new soccer goals for the Upper El playground and playground equipment for the Lower El. Want to help? Have a donation? Contact Jane.lardo@gmail.com

David

Weekly Update 2/1

 Dear Wines Families, 

Well, it may be cold but the sun is out so to me, that is a win! Speaking of cold, just a reminder that students go outside daily as long as the temperature of wind chill is Zero degrees or above. In other words, we go out most days. Please be sure you send your kids to school with winter clothing. 

On to this week’s news. February is here and it is one of the busiest months on our school calendar. Please take some time to read the information below about what is coming up at Wines! 

Parent Involvement Day

Our annual Parent Involvement Day is back! We are looking forward to hosting our families for some or all of the day on Feb. 13! In today’s Wednesday Folder, you will see a trifold invitation and information. In addition, below is a link to an electronic RSVP. This will help us have a sense of how many people we will be expecting. More importantly, we are serving lunch to adult guests and so your RSVP is crucially important if you are staying for lunch so we can have an accurate count of how much food (NYPD Pizza, Garlic Knots, and Salad) to order. 

Parent Involvement Day RSVP 

Wines Wahoo and Spirit Week

Next Friday, Feb. 10th is the Wines Wahoo at Forsythe. This is always a favorite of our kids and we are thrilled to have this tradition restored! Join your friends for music, pizza, open gym, crafts and more. Younger siblings and parents are welcome. This event will need lots of volunteers so we need your help! Suggested $5 donation per family at the door with pizza, drink, and snack tickets available for purchase (cash only). https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44AEAA22A2F8CE9-wines

In preparation for the Wahoo, we will hold our annual Wahoo Spirit Week. Here are the days: 

Monday: Pajama Day

Tuesday: Twin Day

Wednesday: Favorite Team Day

Thursday: Favorite Decades Day

Friday: Hawaiian Day

Extra Specials Sign Up Due Friday

Extra Specials run from February 6 - March 17. One day a week, students may stay inside during lunch recess for an enrichment activity. Options include:

- Paper Airplane Making

- Young 5s/Kindergarten Arts & Crafts

- Perla Beads Projects

- Magic Tricks

- Math Games

- Board Games

- Drawing

- Origami

- Lego Projects

- Read-Aloud Storytime

There are two sessions, each three weeks long. You can sign up for one activity for each session, using the Google Form here: https://forms.gle/C5uQV8RLhctrYawXA

Kindergarten Round Up

Our annual Young 5’s/Kindergarten Round Up takes place on Wednesday, February 15th at 6:30 PM. This event is for incoming Young 5’s families and students. If you have a child who will be eligible for Young 5’s or Kindergarten next fall, please plan on joining us! If you have friends and neighbors with children eligible for Young 5’s or Kindergarten next year, please let them know! Current Young 5’s Families: You are more than welcome to come to Round Up, but we know you and your children so there is no need to come that evening. 

Library Update

Library update: In Library, we have been focusing on the importance of having a healthy media balance and encouraging students to look for opportunities where they can take breaks from their devices.  We brainstormed activities that are fun to do individually, with friends, and as a family that are device-free. Y5-K students are learning how to regulate their emotions when asked to transition from an online activity to an offline one with the Pause, Breathe, and Finish Up strategy, 1st-2nd graders will sing along to the Balance is Important song, and 3rd-5th graders are thoughtfully considering what their media balance looks like.  Here are a few family resources to help continue these important conversations of media balance as a family:  Y5-2 Family Conversation Starter , 3-5 Family Conversation Starter, and Ways to Help Kids Balance Their Media Lives.

David

Snow Day Weekly Update 1/26

 Dear Wines Families, 

Well, this has turned out to be a strange week with back to back snow days. In all honesty, yesterday was a welcome “day off” for our family. Today, however, I think we are a bit bored around the house! Looking forward to seeing everyone on Friday! 

International Night Thank You!

Before we get into the news for the week, I want to express my sincere thank you for a GREAT International Night last week. I’m so appreciative of the many families who represented their cultures. It was so nice to highlight the amazing international community we have at Wines. I want to extend a sincere thank you to Celeste Kanpurwala for organizing this amazing event. Celeste has been such an important part of International Night for many years. She organized the event prior to COVID and stuck with it through these past years. She organized a “drive through” International Night in 2021 and then linked the event with the ROAR last spring. It was so nice to have the traditional stand alone event last week and it could not have been done without Celeste’s tireless work! 

Early Release Next Tuesday, Jan. 31st 

Next Tuesday, January 31st is an Early Release. Dismissal is at 1:18. There is no PM childcare. 

Floor Hockey Continues Every Friday

Friday floor hockey has been quite a success! We will continue each Friday through the winter. Speaking of winter, now that we have snow on the ground, it is important to remind players that they must have dry shoes in the gym. 

Science Olympiad: Meeting Tonight!

Calling all parents interested in Washtenaw Elementary Science Olympiad (WESO). WESO is a county-wide competition for students in grades 2-5. Students learn an event of their choosing over about 10 weeks, then compete against their peers from other schools. It's great fun, and a really positive experience for everyone involved. We also need coaches for many events; you don't need to be a specialist to coach events (!).

Please join us to discuss the Wines team for WESO 2023. This year, the competition returns in-person at Huron High School on Saturday, May 13th. There are a few important changes to discuss. So, if your child is interested in participating, or you are interested in volunteering with the event or being a WESO coach; please come to the following virtual meeting:

Wines WESO Meeting

Thursday, Jan 26 • 6:00 – 7:00 PM

Google Meet joining link: https://meet.google.com/fqw-vnum-oqr

Or dial: +1 314-325-0438 PIN: 994 842 122#

Girls On the Run is Back this Spring!

We are still working on the final plans (practice schedule, etc.), but are excited to be able to offer this activity for kids in grades 3-5 at Wines. We have two coaches currently, but last year we had so much interest that we needed more coaches! Parents, if you're interested in supporting this activity, it will allow more students to participate. Please reach out to Sara Platte or Maureen Schafer-Klerkx if you're interested in helping out. Unless we get extra coaches, we will be limited to 18 students in the program. 

Girls on the Run Registration information:

Program Registration fee: $215 per participant (financial support from GOTR is often available if needed)

Monday, February 6th - Friday, March 24th

Season starts: the week of 3/12

Season ends:  the week of May 22. 

Regional 5K event (yes it's back!): the weekend of May 20/21

We're so excited for GOTR to start again and to have a fabulous time this spring with your girls!

Sara Platte (sara.platte@gmail.com)

Maureen Schafer-Klerkx (m.schafer.klerkx@gmail.com)

Wines Wahoo is Back!

The Wines Wahoo is back! Join us Friday, February 10 at Forsythe Middle School from 6-8pm. This is a Wines favorite and we are so excited it's back! Join your friends for music, pizza, open gym, crafts and more. Younger siblings and parents are welcome. This event will need lots of volunteers so we need your help! Suggested $5 donation per family at the door with pizza, drink, and snack tickets available for purchase. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44AEAA22A2F8CE9-wines

David

Weekly Update 1/18

 Dear Wines Families, 

Yesterday we honored and celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with an all-school assembly. The theme of the assembly was about how students can change the world and be leaders in our world. Prior to winter break, I hosted a school wide read aloud of the book Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea, which was written by Vice President Kamala Harris’s niece Meena Harris. The story follows Kamala and her sister Maya’s work to have a playground installed in their apartment complex when they were children. The important messages from the book were that everyone can be a leader and have big ideas and while no one can do everything, everyone can do something. Over the past two weeks, each student at Wines has completed one of two sentence starters, “I be a leader by...” or “I change the world by...” The student sentences are displayed in our hallways and at our assembly yesterday, we highlighted the answers from a number of students across all grade levels. We concluded the assembly with everyone at school (adults included) singing "We Shall Overcome." It was a wonderful assembly and the student answers will remain displayed in our hallways so please have a look if you are at school!

International Night Tomorrow!  

We are looking forward to bringing back our in-person International Night tomorrow, January 19 from 6-7:30 PM! Thanks to all who signed up to table and/or participate in our Parade of Nations, we will have countries represented from around the world! Please stop by the event and try tasty foods and check out displays that our students worked hard on to showcase their represented countries. 

While the event registration is closed, we STILL are in need of more volunteers to help, mostly with event set-up. We only have two hours to decorate and set up tables on Thursday after school, so please consider volunteering even if it's for a short time! You can sign up to help here, and let Celeste Kanpurwala know if you have any questions at celesteLsmith@gmail.com. 

Looking For Volunteers for Lunchtime Extra Specials

We're still looking for additional volunteers for our Winter Extra Specials. Starting February 6, students can sign up for one day a week to stay inside during recess for enrichment activities like Paper Airplanes, Magic Tricks, Legos, Puzzles, and more. We're looking for volunteers to spend about 90 minutes once per week at lunch to lead activities. You can lead a project that you develop, or we have ready-to-go activities that require no prep on your part. Email Michael Newberry at mnewberry88@gmail.com to learn more.

Wines Wahoo is Back!

The Wines Wahoo is back! Join us Friday, February 10 at Forsythe Middle School from 6-8pm. This is a Wines favorite and we are so excited it's back! Join your friends for music, pizza, open gym, crafts and more. Younger siblings and parents are welcome. This event will need lots of volunteers so we need your help! Suggested $5 donation per family at the door with pizza, drink, and snack tickets available for purchase. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44AEAA22A2F8CE9-wines

David