Georgetown Elementary School

The Principal of Raey Guang Elementary wrote to share some exciting news.  Read on:

Dear Mrs. Reagan,

I would like to pass a good news to you! Our program of international networking with you has won the first place in Taiwan and I was invited to share the experiences in our ministry of education! Thanks to your help on much ideas-sharing and blog-constructing. This award belongs to you, too.

The new semester is running now. This semester, we are going to have new courses for students and teachers as well. For students, high-achievers and low-achievers of English will both be selected out and given special training. Furthermore, all students will have more courses about e-communication. We hope all children in our school can learn English well and have more communication with your students. All teachers are going to have extra English lesson, too. Learning is not just about the students, right?

Last, I hope children in both of our schools can be educated happily and have better global visions for their future.

Mrs. Chung Wen Yu

I would like share the names and contact information of our Parent Club Board Members for the upcoming school year (2009-10).  This team has been working since late May to plan events for the upcoming year.  They volunteer their time–and spend endless hours behind the the scenes planning events and many hours executing events so that they are JUST perfect for our students and families.

I cannot say enough about our school PTC organization and the board!

Co-Presidents

• Kristi Fellows; 669-1051; ioniagal@att.net
• Jamie Ham; 662-7245; cjham20@comcast.net

Vice President

• Cindy Roerig; 669-1285; cmroerig@yahoo.com

Co-Treasurers

• Krista Lawrence; 662-2097; jkmlawrence2@comcast.net
• Brenda Zuverink; 662-2339; zuvs@att.net

Secretary

• Carrie Clark-Berry; 662-5058; csclarkberry@comcast.net

If you have been following the news since last spring, you are aware that a new virus has been mutating and spreading, world wide. This new virus, H1N1–also called the Swine Flu,  was first detected in people in the United States in April 2009. This virus is spreading from person-to-person in the same way that regular seasonal influenza viruses spread.

As a district, we have been watching the reports predicting the spread of the H1N1 will increase as soon as school resumes.  Mr. Nick Ceglarek, our superintendent, has asked that we share two documents regarding this virus.

The first, H1N1 Parent Letter sept 09, is a letter for parents from our local Ottawa County Health Department.  I encourage you to read this so that you are informed about symptoms, treatment and precautions.

The second document, CDC H1N1 Tips, is similar but has more specific preventative strategies to share with family and friends.

If your child develops a cough or fever, PLEASE be on alert and keep your child home from school.  Children should not return to school until they are SYMPTOM FREE FOR 24 HOURS.  Your help with this protocol will help to prevent others from getting sick.

We will encourage handwashing just as we always do and focus on a healthy learning environment that is clean and safe.  Please know that we are also going to be calm and supportive,  working to not raise children’s anxieties about flu worries.

If you would like to know more about the CDC tips for all health issues, visit the live CDC link on the upper right corner of this blog.

Also, if you would like to help your own children learn how to wash their hands properly, listen to the CDC’s kid friendly podcast below.  Here’s to clean hands and good health!

CDC Kidtastic Podcast:

How To Wash Your Hands

We have received two emails from Raey Guang Elementary following the typhoon disaster of early August.

The principal, Chung Wen Yu, shared the following:

Thanks for your kind care about the typhoon in Taiwan. Places near sea and in mountains were severely destroyed after this typhoon. Our school is located in downtown area, and luckily nothing was really damaged. But, we all really concern the people who are suffering from this disaster. We’ve been trying to provide what we have to people there to help them. We also really appreciate your international rescue team; they worked really hard cleaning the mess and helping people rebuild their house and lives. Thank you again!

And, from Sarah:

Thank for your caring. It’s all fine in Pingtung urban center. The most terrible disaster is in the mountains. So far. there were much mud in some villages, and many soldiers, volunteers help clean the mud. However, there is anthoer potential crisis-infection disease, like H1N1. Anyway, hope everything and everybody are safe and well.

Please continue to keep the thousands of people who are homeless and dealing with the loss of loved ones in your thoughts and prayers.

Our district has one of the most talented and creative and efficient secretaries on this side of the equator.  Her name is Jan Mullennix.  She has been the secretary to the Ass’t Superintendent of Curriculum for many years–and without her, we would be lost!

Jan takes all the thinking that teams of teachers do and shapes it into wonderful curriculum tools that look smart and attractive.  She just completed full revisions of our grade level brochures.  These will be available at the open houses and you can also view them online.

PreK

Kindergarten

1st Grade

2nd Grade

3rd Grade

4th Grade

5th Grade

Mrs. Walters, a third grade parent in our building, has been leading a Girl Scout Troop for the past two years.  She would like to continue this project and welcome more girls into the troop.  In order to do so, she would need a co-leader to join her.

If you are interested in being a co-leader, please contact Mrs. Jennifer Walters at: jenwalter76@hotmail.com

She will be happy to answer any questions about time commitments and responsibilities.

Make sure to mark your calendars for our kick off to the 2009-10 school year.  The all school open house will be held on September 2 from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm.

This is an opportunity for parents and children to meet tour the building, meet teachers and collect important information about the new year.

Come at anytime between 6:30 and 7:30 pm.  There is no set agenda.  It is an informal time to meet, greet and get acclimated before school begins on September 8 at 8:50 am (first bell rings at 8:45 am).

*NOTE:  PK AND K Open Houses will be held on September 1.

• Mrs. Estefan and Mrs. Weiss  and Mrs. Bohl’s MW will hold their open houses from 5:30 to 6:15 pm.
• Mrs. Bohl’s TTH and Mrs. Nederveld will hold their open houses from 6:30 to 7:15 pm.

First day of school for PK/K:  Check this link.

We are looking forward to meeting our new families and welcoming back familiar faces.    If you would like to get a start on supply shopping, viisit the teacher’s blogs for guidance on specific needs per grade.

If you have been following the international news, you are aware that a typhoon slammed into Taiwan this past weekend.  Our sister school, Raey Guang Elementary is located in Pingtung Taiwan, and I have been trying to determine if they are near any of the destruction.

Today, I ran across a CNN International web article referencing a rescue helicopter crash in Pingtung County.   The heavy rains (39 inches) have created dangerous mudslides.

I have emailed the staff to inquire about their safety, however, I am fully aware that schools are likely closed and that everyone is focusing on the health and well-being of family and friends.

Relief Helicopter

Please keep the people in Taiwan in your thoughts as they struggle to overcome this weather disaster — and in many cases deal with the loss of loved ones.

In April of 2009, Mrs. DeWeerd invited our school to enter an international art exhibition in China.   Our  sister school  Raey Guang is in Pingtung, Taiwan, and  she felt this would be a natural connection for our students.

Mrs. Brouwer, our art teacher, selected five works of student art and submitted them to the 40th Annual World School Children’s Art Exhibition. This exhibition is held each August at the National Taiwan Arts Education Center in Taipei, Republic of China, and features children’s artwork from all over the world.

TWO of our student pieces were selected for display in the exhibition – Aubrey’s “Happy Robot” and Shari’s “Winter Pine”.

Selection for the Taiwan exhibition is a great honor and our Georgetown artists deserve congratulations for their hard work!  Their pieces were selected from over 30,000 submissions (yes, thirty thousand!) from 53 countries. Aubrey and Shari will be given a “Certificate of Merit” sent to me from the Republic of China for their participation in the Exhibition. Congratulations, Georgetown Artists!

We received a beautiful catalog that contains color images of the World School pieces that were awarded Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals in the competition. It will be on display in the art room….stop in for a look at the award winning artwork created by children living in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Bolivia, Brunei….and 47 other countries!

Both pieces of art will now be added to our permanent collection so that they can be appreciated and honored for years to come.

Many thanks to Mrs. DeWeerd for encouraging us to submit work, to Mrs. Brouwer for taking the time to safety pack and ship this work to China, and to our artists (Shari & Aubrey) for creating the work that showcased our wonderful school and country!