Kegonsa Family Newsletter

2024 - 2025

December 13, 2024

Hi Families,

This week was a fun but cold week. The frigid temperatures kept us indoors for recess on Thursday, but the students still made the most of it and had fun during their indoor activities. They were excited to return to the outdoors once the temperatures warmed up again!

Our students also had a fantastic time exploring a variety of woodwind, brass, and string instruments as part of our music department's Instrument Petting Zoo. A big thank you to all the volunteers who made this experience possible for our students!

As a reminder, Your Favorite Holiday Dress-Up day is on Friday, 12/20. We have a full week of school this upcoming week before we are off for Winter Break. Winter break is two full weeks this year (12/23 - 1/3). We'll return to school on Monday, January 6th.

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend ahead! 💙Ms. Conrad

Noetic Learning Math Contest

We want to congratulate our Kegonsa mathematicians! They competed in a national competition where they competed against over 30,000 other top math students. Many of our students were winners of the national honorable mention award for placing in the top 50th% of all students who took it. Langston Splitek took home the highest overall score! Amazing job, everyone!!

The Noetic Learning Math Contest is a biannual math competition designed for elementary and middle school students. The contest aims to create and foster students' passion for mathematics, enhance their problem-solving abilities, and ignite a desire for excellence. Each year, over 30,000 students participate in the contest.

Welcome Mrs. Semrow

We wanted to share an important update about our kindergarten classroom. Ms. Casey Reed is currently on medical leave recovering from a broken leg, with an estimated recovery period of 6 to 10 weeks. During her absence, we are pleased to introduce Lauren Semrow, an experienced educator with ten years of classroom and special education experience, who will be leading the classroom. Ms. Reed's teaching partner, Joy Meyer, will provide additional support to ensure a seamless learning experience for our students during this transition. Please read more about Mrs. Semrow below!

Hello Kindergarten Families,

I am Lauren Semrow, and I am excited to spend the next few weeks with your kindergartener! This marks my 10th year in education. Over the years, I have worked in two Wisconsin school districts, supported young learners in the Early Intervention Program in Outagamie and Winnebago Counties, and spent some time at home with my family. I hold a dual degree in Early Childhood Special Education and Elementary Education from UW-Oshkosh.

My husband, Eric, and I live in Stoughton with our three children: Benjamin (Kindergarten), Frankie (4K), and Zoey (1.5 years old). We also share our home with our two dogs, Leo and Lili. As a family, we love the outdoors—camping, fishing, and exploring nature are some of our favorite activities.

Kegonsa Counseling

Kindergarten

Lesson: Calming Tools

We learned about the importance of having tools to help us calm down when we get out of the Green Zone. Breathing is the number one tool to use and practice because our breath is always with us. Our kindergarteners learned and practiced six different animal breaths: bee, snake, bear, whale, rabbit & Elephant. Here’s a link to some helpful breathing cards.

1st Grade

Lesson: Unit 1 Learning Check

We practiced our Unit one skills of following directions, paying attention and ignoring distractions by completing a draw along of Pepito. Pepito is a hamster-like character from our Social Emotional curriculum.

2nd Grade

Lesson: Feeling Proud

We learned about feeling proud during our last lesson. Students learned that Proud is different then Happy. Proud is more specific to the sense of accomplishing something difficult or doing something positive without being told. Ask your kiddo what they are proud of.

3rd Grade

Lesson: Changing your Brain

In this SEL session, third graders learned how neurons fire in our brains when we learn something new and when we do a behavior over and over these neurons create a network in our brains. This is how we learn any new skill. We learned the importance of positive behavior can create positive networks while negative behavior can create negative networks.

4th & 5th Grade

Lesson: Goal Setting

Our students learned about the importance of setting goals. Setting goals helps us stay focused and determined to accomplish tasks. They also allow us to feel a sense of pride once we accomplish our goals. We learned the importance of setting a large goal then breaking it down into smaller steps with specific deadlines and tasks.

Ruby Kleijwegt: NASA Solar System Ambassador

A HUGE thank you to Ruby Kleijwegt, a NASA Solar System Ambassador who spoke to our 3rd grade students at Kegonsa.

Ruby is an Astrophysicist, Pilot, Researcher, and Technical Writer. Her involvement within the Aviation and Aerospace community has strengthened her commitment to supporting the younger generation to explore the deep corners of the Universe as a Solar System Ambassador. Her interests lie in learning to fly different aircraft and inspiring more women to to dive deep into the wonderful world of space exploration. Her main goal is to remind her community that anyone and everyone can get involved within the world of aviation and aerospace.

Ruby even brought little gifts for each student including stickers, postcards, tattoos, and glass jars filled with Mars sand!

Shining Gilly Award Winners!

What is the Shining Gilly Award?

The Shining Gilly Award recognizes students who go above and beyond to show exceptional care for others or our school. These students exemplify the qualities we strive to nurture in all of our little citizens—kindness, responsibility, and a positive impact on their community. Whether it's an individual or a group of students, those who receive this award truly reflect the values we hold dear at our school.

Congratulations to Sammy (3rd) and Evelyn (4th)! 🥳