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Traveling…Google Earth Style

To help our students and staff appreciate the distance our Raey Guang sister school friends are traveling to meet us, I created a screencast video using two great free apps: SCREENR and GOOGLE EARTH.

This video will take you on a virtual tour from the United States to Michigan to Hudsonville and our school to Taiwan then Pingtung County, arriving at No. 86 XingFeng Rd — Raey Guang Elementary School.

If you’d like to brush up on your mandarin and see introductory videos of our friends, visit these two prior posts:

Enjoy your google earth trip!

Mrs. Reagan

 

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Pizza Lunch Stars

Lunch with Seth and his friend, Griffin.
There are many things I love about being the principal of Georgetown Elementary.   Eating lunch with the walkathon winners ranks high on my list of favorite things.  This week, I ate with the top grade level winners.
Because Seth had a field trip on Wednesday, I had two pizza lunches.  Wednesday’s lunch was with Isabelle, Patrick, Ethan, Leah and Sophie.  On Thursday, Seth invited a friend to join him –Griffin Baker.
We ate Jet’s pepperoni pizza, cinnamon sticks, drank pop and juice.    Two days of pizza with Georgetown kids = best part of being a principal!
  • K grade:  Seth Miller  (Mrs. Iwema’s Class)
  • 1st grade:  Isabelle Swiercz  (Miss Taber’s Class)
  • 2nd grade: Patrick Jones  (Mrs. Greenlund’s Class)
  • 3rd grade:  Ethan Impens  (Mrs. Vanderstel’s Class)
  • 4th grade: Sophia Vanderkolk  (Mr. Kooiker’s Class)
  • 5th grade:  Leah Vandenberg (Mr. Gort’s Class)
Patrick, Ethan, Isabelle, Sophie and Leah
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BLOG BITS 10/26/12

BLOG BITS 10/26/12  …………  Happy last Friday of October Georgetown Parents!! 

NEWS FROM THE OFFICE……..  I cannot believe I just said that it was the last Friday of October!  Scary that we are almost in to November!  The first big thing I must tell or remind of all you about is that next FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 2, we have NO SCHOOL!!  Woo-Hoo  : )  We also wanted to remind all of you that next week the Raey Guang students will be here.  It should be a very fun and busy week, especially with Halloween in there too.

PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES……… You will be notified Monday or Tuesday as to which day/time you are scheduled for.  Remember the dates for these are MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7 AND THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8.  Please do your very best to be on time and try your very best to not have to reschedule as this is very hard for the teachers to do with so many students/siblings/families in our building.  Thank you  : )

PICTURE RE-TAKES………. Will be TUESDAY, OCTOBER 30.  Please remember if you are having re-takes done to make sure your student brings their picture booklet back in to hand in to Geskus.  If your child was absent on the first picture day they just need to bring in their envelope with their picture selections and money/check.

NOVEMBER LUNCH MENU ………  is attached, as is a deposit slip if needed.   Nov. 12 Hud. Elem-11 (1)   Deposit Slip (1)

ILLNESSES AT SCHOOL………  We have had quite a few cases of the stomach flu here at Georgetown.  One day this week we had a classroom with 10 students out.  : (  We just wanted to remind you that we need students FEVER FREE FOR 24 HOURS WITHOUT MEDICATION and for students with the stomach flu they need to BE KEPT HOME FOR AT LEAST 24 HOURS SINCE THEY LAST VOMITED.  Thank you for your consideration in this matter.  We need to do our very best to keep these viruses from spreading.

PTC NEWS………  The winning classroom for the Marco’s pizza night is……..  Mrs. Yankee’s kindergarten class!!  Way to go Kindergartners!!  : )  They enjoyed their pizza party yesterday already.   

The PTC Meeting for NOVEMBER has been rescheduled for TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13 at 6:30pm.

BOOK FAIR…….. Feels like reading is in the air, get ready for Book Fair!  The Scholastic Book Fair will be held during the week of Parent Teacher Conferences NOVEMBER 5-9!  The Book Fair will be open three evenings during conferences; Monday, November 5th and Wednesday, November 7th from 5p-8p and Thursday November 8th from 4p-6p. We’ll also have a Parents Only Shopping on Friday, November 9th from 8:30a-12p. We have lots of great things being planned. Make sure to mark the dates on your calendar!  The ONLINE FAIR will be going on October 31st through November 14th and can be accessed at the following link: http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/georgetownelementaryschool.  The Book Fair Committee is also in NEED of MANY volunteers!!  If you are interested please contact Cheryl Havens at 616-481-4164 or havenspc@gmail.com.

COMMUNITY NEWS………..  CITY OF HUDSONVILLE URBAN HAY DAY……….. The orchard experience is coming to the City! Join us for the first ever City of Hudsonville Urban HayDay on October 27, 2012 from 12-5pm.  This unique event will feature a Hayride which will start at Gemmen’s parking lot and travel through the heart of downtown Hudsonville to a marketplace & fall ball which will be bustling with activity.  The hayrides will drop you off at the marketplace & fall ball which will be full of free activities, crafts, and games, vendors & crafters, and delicious food.  The orchard experience won’t stop there though. Hop on a bus to take a tour of Hudsonville, stopping at several event stops throughout town which will feature pumpkin bowling, pumpkin carving demonstrations, live animals, and cookie decorating, among others. The whole family will find something to entertain and excite at this fun event where we will bring the orchard to the city.  For extra excitement, you can take part in a Costume walk & contest hosted by Grand Valley Health Plan which will offer prizes for the best family, adult, and kids costumes. The walk will depart from the Marketplace & Fall Ball at 11:30am, but will bring you back just in time for the start of the Urban HayDay!  For updated event information, including maps and event details, visit http://
business.hudsonvillechamber.com/events/details/urban-hayday-638 or call Michelle Fare at 616-662-0900.

THE HEAVENLY HARVEST PUMPKIN PATCH/FAMILY FESTIVAL……..  Don’t miss the Heavenly Harvest pumpkin patch and family festival coming to Hudsonville Congregational U.C.C.  4950 32nd Ave in Hudsonville.  Choose the perfect pumpkin and other harvest decor from an amazing selection from October 17-31.  The patch is open Monday- Friday from 12-8pm and Saturdays from 9am-5pm.  Special family events on Saturday, October 20 and 27.  Proceeds from the sale will benefit the church’s local mission projects and other church ministries.  Bring the whole family!

THE FOREST GROVE CORN MAZE HAS RETURNED!!…….   Join us Wednesday-Saturday from 4:00 until 11:00pm.  Located at 1904 56th Ave.  This years theme is The United States.Special events and discounts happening every weekend.  For pricing and more information go to www.forestgrovecornmaze.com or find us on Facebook.  Brought to you by Forest Grove Reformed Church Frontline Youth Group.

HALLOWEEN CANDY BUY BACK…………..  Kids can bring in their unwanted Halloween candy the day after Halloween and we will buy it from them for $1 per pound.  (They also get a little goody bag with a toothbrush, paste, etc.)  The candy is then sent to an organization called Operation Gratitude, who then ships the candy to our troops overseas.  Their website is www.operationgratitude.com  We also encourage kids to bring along a note or card for the troops if they want to, thanking them for their service, etc.  The event will be on Tuesday, November 1,  2-7 p.m.  Location: Hudsonville Dental Associates,  3250 Central Blvd., Hudsonville, MI 49426.  It’s a great way for the kids to give something back and support our service members.  The candy goes a long way towards boosting morale.

MEL TROTTER THANKSGIVING MEALS……..  Mel Trotter Ministries will be distributing 500 complete Thanksgiving meals on November 19th—100 from each of the 5 thrift stores (Jenison, Grand Rapids, Sparta, Belding & Middleville).  If you know of needy families in the Jenison/Hudsonville/Grandville area, please have them come into the Jenison Mel Trotter Thrift Store at 7500 Cottonwood Drive anytime between now and November 19th to sign up for a Thanksgiving meal and to receive their voucher (phone calls will not be accepted).  On November 19th, they will return again between 1:00 – 5:00pm with their voucher and a picture ID to pick up their turkey and all the fixings.  Our 100 food boxes will be served on a first come, first served basis.  If you have any questions, please contact the Mel Trotter Thrift Store at 616-667-9820.

HUDSONVILLE HOLIDAY PARADE……….  It is that time of year again! The City of Hudsonville & the Hudsonville Area Chamber of Commerce are excited to present to you the 19th Annual Hudsonville Holiday Parade on November 17 at 10am.  Come celebrate this festive time close to home. The parade route runs along 32nd Ave from Highland Drive to Central Blvd. The parade route ends at the Hudsonville Fire station on Central Blvd., but the fun doesn’t end there. Join us and your neighbors there for hot beverages, snacks, and fun activities immediately following the parade.  A big thank you to the Downtown Development Authority and Hudsonville Family Dentistry, as well as all of the other wonderful sponsors that make the day possible.  Any questions? Contact Michelle Fare at mfare@hudsonville.org or call 669-0200.

HUDSONVILLE COMMUNITY ED…………  Hudsonville Community Education has many offerings for your kids this fall.  For more information or to register, please visit www.hudsonvillepublicschools.org or call Rebecca at 669-7747, ext. #3.

Boys Wrestling ~ Grades K-6

After School Tennis ~ Grades PK-5

Learn to Ice Skate ~ Ages 3 and up

Intro to Hockey ~ Boys/Girls w/skating experience

Home Alone Class ~ Ages 9-13

Learn to Skate ~ Ages 4 and up

Golf Lessons ~ Grades 1-8

UPCOMING EVENTS

10/29-11/1 ~ Raey Guang Visits

10/30 ~ Picture Retakes

10/31 ~ Halloween Parties

11/2 ~ NO SCHOOL  : )

11/5 ~ P/T Conferences

11/5-11/9 ~ Book Fair

11/6 ~ Jet’s Pizza Night

11/7-11/8 ~ P/T Conferences

11/21 ~ 11/23  Thanksgiving Break ~ NO SCHOOL

Have a great weekend!!

Mrs. Nurenberg  : )

 

 

 

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Mrs. Quigley’s Class Rides in Style

Mrs. Quigley’s class STRETCHED out in front of the limo!

Mrs. Quigley’s class had their WINNING WALK-A-THON LIMO ride on Thursday of this past week.

It was SO much fun to watch the second graders get into the limo, explore the limo and celebrate being the winner class.

Thank you PTC for making this prize possible.  It was a very classy way to get to the Pizza Ranch!

Mrs. Reagan

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Sunshine in October…we hope so!

We enter the 8th week of October with a sign of relief–our MEAP testing is completed for grades 3-5.  We want you to know how hard our students (your children) worked to show what they know.    The pressure is tremendous for all involved.

The week ahead brings some sunshine (YAHOO), Turkey Trot and and another walkathon prize:  PIZZA PARTY for some of our top earners.

For those of you who are participating in the TURKEY TROT, please be aware that the track route has changed due to the construction.  Look at the MAP in your child’s Turkey Trot bag.

Have a great week…and enjoy every sliver of sunshine you can find this week!

Mrs. Reagan

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BLOG BITS 10/19/12

BLOG BITS 10/19/12  ………..  Happy Friday Georgetown Parents!  

NEWS FROM THE OFFICE………..  Let’s start with a big HIP HIP HOORAY!!!    The MEAP is finished!!  : ) (unless your student has a make-up day of course, sorry about that!)  The students were amazing and got through the testing very nicely.  Kudos to students AND teachers!!  

ILLNESSES AT SCHOOL………  We have had quite a few cases of the stomach flu here at Georgetown.  One day this week we had a classroom with 10 students out.  : (  We just wanted to remind you that we need students FEVER FREE FOR 24 HOURS WITHOUT MEDICATION and for students with the stomach flu they need to BE KEPT HOME FOR AT LEAST 24 HOURS SINCE THEY LAST VOMITED.  Thank you for your consideration in this matter.  We need to do our very best to keep these viruses from spreading.

PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES……. These are coming up very quickly.  They will be held on MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7 and THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8.  If you are able please go out to the Georgetown Blog and complete the survey from Mrs. Reagan in regards to scheduling conference times.  If you are not able to do this please let us know, and for paper copy families I am attaching the form that you can fill out and return to your student’s teacher ASAP.  Thank you.

PICTURE RE-TAKES……….  These will be on TUESDAY, OCTOBER 30.  Please remember if you are having re-takes done to make sure your student brings their picture booklet back in to hand in to Geskus.  If your child was absent on the first picture day they just need to bring in their envelope with their picture selections and money/check.

PTC NEWS………..  OUR FIRST BOXTOP COMPETITION……….  The deadline for the first BoxTop Competition is FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26!  Please send in your box tops LABELED with the student and teacher’s name.  The winning class from each wing will be announced the first full week in November.

The PTC Meeting for NOVEMBER has been rescheduled for TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13 at 6:30pm.

BOOK FAIR…….. Feels like reading is in the air, get ready for Book Fair!  The Scholastic Book Fair will be held during the week of Parent Teacher Conferences NOVEMBER 5-9!  The Book Fair will be open three evenings during conferences; Monday, November 5th and Wednesday, November 7th from 5p-8p and Thursday November 8th from 4p-6p. We’ll also have a Parents Only Shopping on Friday, November 9th from 8:30a-12p. We have lots of great things being planned. Make sure to mark the dates on your calendar!  The ONLINE FAIR will be going on October 31st through November 14th and can be accessed at the following link: http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/georgetownelementaryschool.  The Book Fair Committee is also in NEED of MANY volunteers!!  If you are interested please contact Cheryl Havens at 616-481-4164 or havenspc@gmail.com.

COMMUNITY NEWS………….  THE FOREST GROVE CORN MAZE HAS RETURNED!!…….   Join us Wednesday-Saturday from 4:00 until 11:00pm.  Located at 1904 56th Ave.  This years theme is The United States.Special events and discounts happening every weekend.  For pricing and more information go to www.forestgrovecornmaze.com or find us on Facebook.  Brought to you by Forest Grove Reformed Church Frontline Youth Group.

PANCAKE BREAKFAST FUNDRAISER……….. 7:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.  Saturday, November 3, 2012,  South Blendon Reformed Church, 4817 Port Sheldon Road, 669-9872.  Please join us for a pancake breakfast benefit for Deb Fowler.  Deb needs to have surgery and does not have health insurance to cover the cost.  Their out-of-pocket expenses will be around $16,000.  We are hoping to help ease the burden of some of this expense through this pancake breakfast.  We look forward to seeing you!

THE HEAVENLY HARVEST PUMPKIN PATCH/FAMILY FESTIVAL……..  Don’t miss the Heavenly Harvest pumpkin patch and family festival coming to Hudsonville Congregational U.C.C.  4950 32nd Ave in Hudsonville.  Choose the perfect pumpkin and other harvest decor from an amazing selection from October 17-31.  The patch is open Monday- Friday from 12-8pm and Saturdays from 9am-5pm.  Special family events on Saturday, October 20 and 27.  Proceeds from the sale will benefit the church’s local mission projects and other church ministries.  Bring the whole family!

CITY OF HUDSONVILLE URBAN HAY DAY……….. The orchard experience is coming to the City! Join us for the first ever City of Hudsonville Urban HayDay on October 27, 2012 from 12-5pm.  This unique event will feature a Hayride which will start at Gemmen’s parking lot and travel through the
heart of downtown Hudsonville to a marketplace & fall ball which will be bustling with activity.  The hayrides will drop you off at the marketplace & fall ball which will be full of free activities, crafts, and games, vendors & crafters, and delicious food.  The orchard experience won’t stop there though. Hop on a bus to take a tour of Hudsonville, stopping at several event stops throughout town which will feature pumpkin bowling, pumpkin carving demonstrations, live animals, and cookie decorating, among others. The whole family will find something to entertain and excite at this fun event where we will bring the orchard to the city.  For extra excitement, you can take part in a Costume walk & contest hosted by Grand Valley Health Plan which will offer prizes for the best family, adult, and kids costumes. The walk will depart from the Marketplace & Fall Ball at 11:30am, but will bring you back just in time for the start of the Urban HayDay!  For updated event information, including maps and event details, visit http://
business.hudsonvillechamber.com/events/details/urban-hayday-638 or call Michelle Fare at 616-662-0900.

MEL TROTTER THANKSGIVING MEALS……..  Mel Trotter Ministries will be distributing 500 complete Thanksgiving meals on November 19th—100 from each of the 5 thrift stores (Jenison, Grand Rapids, Sparta, Belding & Middleville).  If you know of needy families in the Jenison/Hudsonville/Grandville area, please have them come into the Jenison Mel Trotter Thrift Store at 7500 Cottonwood Drive anytime between now and November 19th to sign up for a Thanksgiving meal and to receive their voucher (phone calls will not be accepted).  On November 19th, they will return again between 1:00 – 5:00pm with their voucher and a picture ID to pick up their turkey and all the fixings.  Our 100 food boxes will be served on a first come, first served basis.  If you have any questions, please contact the Mel Trotter Thrift Store at 616-667-9820.

HUDSONVILLE COMMUNITY ED…………  Hudsonville Community Education has many offerings for your kids this fall.  For more information or to register, please visit www.hudsonvillepublicschools.org or call Rebecca at 669-7747, ext. #3.

Boys Wrestling ~ Grades K-6

After School Tennis ~ Grades PK-5

Learn to Ice Skate ~ Ages 3 and up

Intro to Hockey ~ Boys/Girls w/skating experience

Home Alone Class ~ Ages 9-13

Learn to Skate ~ Ages 4 and up

Golf Lessons ~ Grades 1-8

UPCOMING EVENTS

10/23 ~ Turkey  Trot

10/24 ~ Kindergarten Field Trip  Iwema/Yankee

10/25 ~ Kindergarten Field Trip   Bohl/Estefan

10/29-11/1 ~ Raey Guang Visits

10/30 ~ Picture Retakes

10/31 ~ Halloween Parties

11/5 ~ P/T Conferences

11/5-11/9 ~ Book Fair

11/6 ~ Jet’s Pizza Night

11/7-11/8 ~ P/T Conferences

Have a great weekend!!

Mrs. Nurenberg  : )

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Mandarin: Words to Practice

Mr. Brain Kleinsmith, the Mandarin teacher at BMS and RMS, created some tutorials to help us prepare for our visitors from Pingtung, Taiwan.   They will arrive on October 29 and stay through November 1.

As Mr. Kleinsmith shares in his introduction, our visitors are so very honored when we use these simple greetings.   Speaking in their native language is a wonderful way to say, “We are so glad you are here!”

You can practice some simple phrases by listening to them here.

Introduction: Introduction

Hello:   Nihao 

Welcome:  Huanying 

My Name is:  Wo jiao 

Please:  Qing 

Thank You:  Xie xie 

Yes and No:  Shr – Bu shr

Goodbye:  Zaijian 

 

 

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Sister School Visit!

Georgetown Host Students with Raey Guang Students

Our sister school, Raey Guang Elementary (Pingtung, Taiwan) will be visiting us October 29 through November 1.  This will be their third visit to our school and we are thrilled to host them again.

Making the trip are 20 children (ages 8-12) and four teachers.  There are twelve Georgetown families that are hosting our guests. The host family stays are the most memorable part of the visit–our Raey Guang friends never forget the kindness that is shown to them.

We have posted the photos of our visitors paired with their host students on a board in our lobby.  You can also see a display in our rotunda highlighting features of the Taiwanese culture.  Mr. Chen, one of the teachers, created a special blog to introduce each student.

The purpose of the trip is to expose the Taiwanese children to American culture, education, language, food and traditions.  They are very excited to spend time with us during the holiday of Halloween.

Did you know that you can see the school of Raey Guang in the town of Pingtung by using Google Earth?  If you have this application downloaded, paste this address into the site:  No.86, Xingfeng Rd., Pingtung City, Pingtung County 900, Taiwan.  Here is a photo of the school entrance using Google Earth.  Isn’t technology amazing?!

RaeyGuang Elementary School: Google Earth Street View

During the visit, we will share photos on our blog.  We are counting down the days to their arrival.

Mrs. Reagan

 

 

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And the rain rain rain…

came down down down in rushing wild riv’lets!   This past weekend reminded me of this classic Winnie the Pooh song..and once I thought of it, I could not get it out of my head.

I hope you were able to make the most of the rainy weekend and use this as an opportunity to relax and watch a movie or two.

During the upcoming school week, we will be finishing up MEAP tests in grades 3-5.  Our students (your children) have been working exceptionally hard on this test.  In spite of what you may hear on the news, we want you to know that the test is challenging and our teachers and students work hard to both prepare for and complete the assessments.  The results of the tests will be back in early January and we will use these to adjust our instruction for the second half of the year.

We also have another PTC sponsored pizza night this week. Save your pizza appetite for Wednesday, October 17.  Order from Marcos and give them the name of your child’s teacher and credit will be applied to this class.  The class with the most pizza’s ordered receives a pizza lunch on Marcos (and the PTC)!

Have a great week…and stay dry and grounded.  Sounds like we have both rain and wind in our forecast.

Mrs. Reagan

 

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