

Nighthawk News
Northside Elementary / April 2024
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Principal's Message
Greetings Northside Families,
It’s April, which means we are just about three quarters into the school year. It’s a little hard to believe the end of the school year is so near. Time never seems to slow down, but your kids are stretching their brains and learning so much this year. We are enjoying celebrating that growth with them as we head into the final stretch!
Throughout the month of April, the Northside scholars will be growing their knowledge around a couple different monthly celebrations…
Autism Acceptance Month
Here are some resources to help yourself more deeply understand people with Autism…
What is interoception? Interoception is considered our 8th sense and it is the sense of how our body feels inside including emotions.
Presuming Competence Under the Table tells the story of how our assumptions influence not only how we act, but how we treat others. This story is one of understanding and realization that all students are capable and contributors in their communities.
Theme Days
Friday, April 5 Neurodiversity Day - wear tie-dye, rainbow day, Autism Acceptance shirts
Thursday, April 11 All Together Day - Despite our differences, we are a Northside Community and we support each other! Wear Northside gear or blue and white to show love for your classmates!
Friday, April 19th Sensory Friendly Day - Autistic people often have a variety of sensory sensitivities. Dress up today in your most comfy-clothes (school appropriate sweatpants, pajamas, etc.).
Friday, April 26th Favorite/Expert Day - One characteristic of Autism can be to show incredibly focused passion for topics of interest. What are you passionate about? Dress up to show something you love! What is your favorite thing, group, character, whatever! Share by wearing something to represent it.
Asian American & Hmong Heritage Month
During the month of May we’ll be doing some learning about the diverse countries, cultures and people that make up Asian Americans.
The largest group represented at Northside are our Hmong families. Here are some enlightening resources to check out and build your own capacity to understand Hmong culture and the experience of Hmong youth…
Being a Hmong American (Spoken Word - 4 min)
Also, I don’t know about all of you, but no one handed me the guidebook to parenting when I left St. Mary’s Hospital three different times with a new baby. This gig is hard so here’s my parenting tip of the month.
The core behavior values at Northside are “owning our choices” and “connecting with kindness.” The power in getting students to internalize these behaviors is to create an environment where they get to see this behavior modeled for them in all environments. That means that as adults, we need to be comfortable saying the following…
Thanks for correcting me. I didn’t realize that.
I hadn’t thought of it like that. I understand now.
I was wrong about that, and I’ve changed my mind.
I should do some more research before I argue this point.
Cheers to spring, your hard-working children and each and every one of you for being our supportive village throughout this journey <3
Sincerely,
Mrs. Block & Mrs. Coy-Tchouani
Northside Principals
Hmong Pride and Asian Heritage Month
April is our celebration of Hmong Pride and Asian Heritage! Students will be presenting informational videos during our Friday Nighthawk News programs. Teachers will have opportunities to create Hmong inspired decorations with their classes. On April 26, Ms. Pakue Lee will be directing our first ever Hmong Fashion Show. We encourage Hmong and other Asian groups to wear our traditional clothes on the 26th.
If you are interested in presenting a slide show about your Asian culture to classes and/or are interested in participating in our Fashion Show please contact us by April 3rd at plee1@sunprairieschools.org (Ms. Pakue Lee) or blgrau@sunprairieschools.org (Mr. Bryan Grau). Ua tsaug!
Upcoming Events
- 4/1, Monday, Summer School Registration Opens
- 4/1, Monday, First Day Back from Spring Break
- 4/1 - 4/18, Forward Exam Grades 3-5. See the official testing schedule HERE
- 4/2, Tuesday, End of 3rd Quarter
- 4/5, Friday, Neurodiversity Day, Wear tie-dye, rainbows, Autism Acceptance shirts
- 4/9, Tuesday, 6:30 pm, SCONES Meeting (Family/Caregiver Community Group)
- 4/11, Thursday, 5:00-6:00pm, Combine Dress Rehearsal for All-City Orchestra Concert (PMMS)
- 4/11, Thursday, All Together Day - Wear Northside gear or blue and white
- 4/12, Friday, No School (4k-12)
- 4/18, Thursday, 7:30pm, All-City Orchestra Concert, SP East High School (Students should arrive at 6:45)
- 4/19, Friday, Summer School Registration Closes
- 4/19, Friday, Sensory Friendly Day - Wear your most comfy-clothes (school appropriate sweatpants, pajamas, etc.).
- 4/22, Monday, Earth Day
- 4/25, Thursday, Kinder DLI Application Window Closes
- 4/25, Thursday, Show & Tell: Art and Poetry Night, 5:30-7:00pm
- 4/26, Friday Favorite/Expert Day - Dress up to show something you love! What is your favorite thing, group, character, whatever!
- 4/26, Friday, Hmong Fashion Show (See more information in the paragraph above.)
Parent Portal Account and Summer School
Submitting Summer School Class Requests Via the Parent Portal in Infinite Campus
Parents/caregivers will submit their requests for Summer School classes through Infinite Campus.
All students who are enrolled in the Sun Prairie Area School District have an Infinite Campus account. Parents/caregivers have a parent portal associated with their student’s Infinite Campus account. If you have issues with your parent portal, and your student attends Northside Elementary please contact Dee Sercye via email at dksercy@sunprairieschools.org
You will need to create an Infinite Campus account if:
You have not enrolled your child in the Sun Prairie Area School District
Your child is joining us from a parochial, private, or homeschool site
Your child is an incoming Kindergarten student who did not attend Pre-K through the Sun Prairie Area School District
Please use the Step-by-Step Online Registration Instructions for directions on requesting/registering for summer school courses:
Forward Exam Testing - April 2024
The Forward Exam is administered online in the Spring of each school year at grades 3-8. Northside will be testing between Monday, March 18th through Friday, April 18th. See the official testing schedule HERE. Our scholars will take one of the following tests each day…
3rd
Math - Session 1 (45 min), Session 2 (45 min)
ELA - Session 1: Reading (45 min), Session 2: Language/Writing (45 min), Session 3: Language/Writing (35 min)
4th
Math - Session 1 (45 min), Session 2 (45 min)
ELA - Session 1: Reading (45 min), Session 2: Language/Writing (45 min), Session 3: Language/Writing (35 min)
Science - Session 1 (35 min), Session 2 (35 min), Session 3 (35 min)
Social Studies - Session 1 (35 min), Session 2 (35 min)
5th
Math - Session 1 (45 min), Session 2 (45 min)
ELA - Session 1: Reading (45 min), Session 2: Language/Writing (45 min), Session 3: Language/Writing (35 min)
As you can see from the test sessions above, the assessment is pretty intense. Please help your child be well rested and fed on the days they will test and encourage them to take the test seriously by doing their very best!
The Wisconsin Forward Exam is intended to show how well students are doing in relation to WI Core Academic Standards for their grade level and compare their achievement to other schools in the state. Please note that your scholar’s performance on this assessment will not affect any of their current grades or academic standing. Results from the Forward Exam will be available in the Fall.
If you have any questions about the Forward Exam, please reach out to Mrs. Block at 608-834-7101 or jeblock@sunprairieschools.org.
Community Schools Site Coordinator Update
Hello families,
Gospel Afrobeat Dance Club begins on Monday, April 8th from 2:45-3:45 PM. The Gospel Afrobeat Dance Medicine (GAME) program joined us for Read Your Heart Out and physical education class for a week. Now, we are offering an afterschool program to all students! If you are interested you can sign up below. The program will be two days a week: Mondays from 2:45-3:45 PM and Thursdays 1:30-2:30 PM. The program will start on Monday April 8th-May 23. We will meet in the gym. You can sign them up HERE.
Give Back Sun Prairie is an amazing community-wide day of service that began last year. It will be held on April 27th and more information will be shared out on the Community Schools Facebook page if you want to volunteer. One of the project options will be to help get Northside’s community garden ready for planting!
Sun Prairie Youth Baseball and Softball is offering scholarships for students who want to play. If you are interested in this opportunity please contact Stacey Christenson.
Community Events:
April 8-12 is the week of the Young Child. Kick off event will be April 6th at the SP Public Library from 1-3 PM.
Northside Community Schools Reminders:
Just a reminder that we have a pantry at Northside. If you are in need of food, household items, or clothing please know you can come in and shop anytime. If you are in need of these items or have other questions, please contact Stacey Christenson, Community Schools Site Coordinator.
Our SCONES parent group would love to have YOU a part of the team. This group meets monthly and works hard to put on special events for our school, like our recent Movie Night and they do a lot to support our amazing teachers. This is a lovely chance to be a part of the Northside community and spend time with other parents and help to build community at our school. If you are interested please contact SCONES president: Erin Luehrs: northsidesco@gmail.com.
PE News
Thank you families that were able to attend the Academic Showcase at NS. We had a great time in the gym playing GaGa ball, playing outdoor leisure games, climbing the wall and catching scarves.
Students and families had the opportunity to participate in a dance unit during the last week of February. The experience and opportunity was amazing! I am so thankful for the UW Madison’s Gospel Afrobeat Dance MEdicine (GAME) program to share their knowledge of dance with our students.
Students participated in outdoor leisure activities, hockey, lacrosse and St. Patrick’s Day activities throughout the month of March.
All students will participate in volleyball after break. 3rd-5th grades will participate in inline skating starting the 2nd week of April. K-2nd grade students will participate in scooter activities and play with the parachute.
Remember to have your student bring their PE shoes. We have some to borrow if needed. This is important for student safety.
This summer Mr. LaFleur will be teaching Rise and Shine Yoga for current 1st and 2nd grade students at Eastside. This will be a fun class! Sign up if you are interested.
As always, please reach out with any questions or concerns.
Mr. LaFleur 1-608-834-7111 or jslafle@sunprairieschools.org
Mr. Headington 1-608-834-7158 or mheadi@sunprairieschools.org
Health Education - 4th Grade
Hello Parents and Caregivers of 4th grade students,
Starting the week of April 22-26 we will be starting our HG&D (Puberty Ed.) unit in our 4th grade Health Education class. This unit will take approximately 6 weeks ending around the last week of May. One lesson is taught each week during health class. A parent/caregiver preview of the unit will be sent in early April. Please feel free to reach out with any questions. This can be a sensitive topic for families. You have the right to opt your child out of the unit. All you need to do is notify Mr. Headington either by email or written request.
Thanks,
Mike Headington
Health & PE teacher - Northside Elementary School
834-7158 - NS
Musical Notes
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
April Artist of the Month is Antonio Carlos Jobin
Kinder-First Grade
We will continue experiencing music by listening, dancing, singing and playing percussion.
Second Grade
We will continue the Percussion unit. In this unit, students will learn how to play Hand percussion instruments including djembes and tubanos and drum stick buckets. The practice includes reading music.
Third Grade
We will continue the Piano unit. In this unit, students learn how to put their hands correctly on the piano and learn how to play and read songs in C position.
Fourth and Fifth grades
We will continue the Flute recorder unit. In this unit, students learn the basic techniques of the flute recorder and learn to play songs with 5-7 notes.
Please reach out to Mr. Edi with any questions.
What's Happening in our Art Studio?
All grades have wrapped up their clay sculpting and are now glazing their amazing creations. We are choosing through artworks from earlier this year to display at our….
SHOW AND TELL: Art and Poetry Gallery Night!
Please join our celebration of the many creative things happening at Northside during our gallery night Thursday, April 25, 2024, 5:30-7:00pm. We will have artworks on display from each scholar at Northside, displays from our Fiber Arts Club, as well as performances from our POETICS club. We hope you can make it for Northside’s first Arts and Poetry night!
Donations welcome!(repeat)
We love to use materials that you may not need or were going to throw away anyway for our art making! Donations we are currently seeking for our art studio:
- toilet paper
- paper towel tubes
- pop tabs
- plastic lids
- corks
- yogurt cups
- fabric scraps
- yarn
- old t-shirts and pants(rips and tears are fine)
- old craft materials
- plastic grocery bags
- cereal boxes(or similar thickness cardboard)
Please reach out to Ms. Henker with any questions.
Library & Makerspace Updates
Hello Northside Families! Please read on for a few updates from Ms. Nieft in the Library and Makerspace:
- Makerspace/Lab Lessons: In April, we will celebrate Poetry Month and continue learning about book awards and reading the 2023-24 award-winning children's books during March Book Madness. Next month, I will share our winners! We will also celebrate Poetry Month!
- Nellie's Network: Don't forget to check out Nellie's Network on the NS Facebook page. In April, we welcome our youngest Anchors from Kindergarten and will premiere commercials by our 5th Grade Nellie's Network Club.
Don't hesitate to reach out with any questions, Kelly Nieft
Social Emotional Learning
Hello families,
At Northside, we want your child to be successful in school and that means supporting and encouraging their whole development. While excelling in academic classes is important, children also need skills to take on learning challenges, make good decisions, manage strong emotions, and get along with others. All students at Northside will be learning these skills through the Second Step curriculum taught by their classroom teacher and Guidance lessons taught by Ms. Feltz, School Counselor.
What is Second Step? Parent Letter Overview (English) (Spanish) (Hmong)
UNIT 4 - April/May - Problem Solving!
English (Kindergarten) (1st grade) (2nd grade) (3rd grade) (4th grade) (5th grade)
Spanish (Kindergarten) (1st grade) (2nd grade) (3rd grade) (4th grade) (5th grade)
Hmong (Kindergarten) (1st grade) (2nd grade) (3rd grade) (4th grade) (5th grade)
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
We know that the topic of child abuse prevention can be a difficult one for families to share with their children, so Committee for Children (the creators of Second Step) have developed some helpful resources to help you have those important conversations with your child(ren) about personal safety.
The Hot Chocolate Talk how-to guide is a great resource to start and continue those conversations on how we can can prevent child sexual abuse in our community.
Summer Anxiety Intervention Program
The School Psychology Training Clinic at UW-Madison will be offering a four-week long evidence-based anxiety intervention program for kids this summer. There will be three different groups for children entering grades 1-4, 5-8, and 9-12. Sessions will take place on UW's campus on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-5pm from June 18th - July 18th. The registration deadline is May 1st.
Feel free to check out their website for more information about the clinic/program and feel free to reach out to them if you have any questions: https://edpsych.education.wisc.edu/clinics/sptc/.
Click HERE to learn more about Ms. Feltz, your School Counselor
Advanced Learner Program (ALP) Updates
Greater Dane Anthology Project
The regional judging happened on January 31st, and Bennett’s art piece “Little Miss Mask” will be published in the Greater Dane Anthology! Congratulations Bennett!
Math 24
We are having fun exploring the new cards that we will use next year for the Math 24 competition! 4th graders are exploring Math 24 Variables, and 5th graders are exploring Math 24 Integers. Wednesday, April 24th (4th grade) and Friday, April 26 (5th grade) will be the last club meeting for the school year.
Math Meet
Seven Northside 5th graders qualified to compete at the Sun Prairie Math Meet Competition on March 15th! Congratulations to Elliott, Leon, Madison, Ahmed, Alexandra, Izik, and Oren! The last event of the Math Meet was a team event, and Oren’s team won that event! We had a great time competing with other 5th graders in the district!
Contact Jessica Tucci at jstucci@sunprairieschools.org or (608) 834-7138 with any questions.
SCONES (Family/Caregiver Community Group)
Hey hey Nighthawks!
We hope you had an amazing Spring Break! Whatever you did, we hope it brought you lots of happiness and the chance to reset.
In March we had a jam-packed meeting with not one but TWO guest speakers! Shelley Joan Weiss, District Director of Summer School, came by to share how the SPASD summer school program works and how it can benefit the students. She brought along some handouts which can also be found on the Summer School website here. And then Anne Stansilawksi, SPASD Digital Media and Innovation Coordinator, and Curt Mould, Director of Digital Media and Strategy, provided a wealth of information about online safety and digital literacy in our schools. We also discussed the important changes with the Sun Prairie SCOs. You can see the minutes here.
For staff appreciation, in March we got Travelin Tom’s Coffee Truck to come and serve delicious beverages to our staff, while this month we’ll treat them to a yummy breakfast. We love our Northside team!
We want to remind you of a couple of important SCONES-sponsored events:
May 6-10: Staff Appreciation Week
May 31: End of the Year Party
June 7: Last day of school and 5th Grade Recognition
We can do these events and treat our staff because of community support! We’d love your help by donating to our PayPal here.
Our next monthly SCONES meeting is on Tuesday April 9 from 6:30 to 7:30pm in the Northside LGI.
We’ll spend the next two monthly meetings focusing on planning our big events for the rest of the year. If you have the time or resources to contribute, please join us! We welcome any and all help from our wonderful Northside community.
If you have any questions about or for SCONES, learn more about the upcoming events, want to help, or just want to check in and say hi, you can find us at northsidesco@gmail.com or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NorthsideSCONES.
Sincerely,
Erin, Kristen, Marie and Matt of SCONES
SCONES School Community Organization of Northside Elementary School
Important Busing Information
Bus Evacuation Drills: April 23 & 24, 2024
The district is required to practice bus evacuations twice a year per state law. Bus evacuation drills will be held April 23rd at the middle and high schools and April 24th at the elementary schools. Please note that buses could be delayed on these days.
Sometimes it could become necessary to exit the school bus by the back door. Please talk with you children about doing these steps safely:
Keep calm
Listen to the driver’s instructions
Beginning with the last seats, move to the back door
Do not push or shove
When you get to the back door, sit on your bottom and scoot to the edge
Slide off the edge slightly pushing yourself out away from the bus
Keep your knees bent
Walk quickly away to the safe spot designated by your driver
Wait for further instructions from your driver
Parents, please remember that if your child’s bus is evacuated for any reason (bus breakdown, emergency, etc.) students are not allowed to leave the scene. Students must stay with the driver and wait for further instructions. If another bus is dispatched, students are to ride that bus and only get off at their assigned stop.
Thank you!
Health Office Reminders
With spring comes mud and wet clothes. Please make sure to have an extra set of clothes for your student in their locker, classroom, or backpack. If you have clothes you'd like to donate to our nurse's closet (especially Kinder - 2nd grade size), we would appreciate the extra items.
Is your contact information on file current? It is important to have accurate phone numbers on file with the school in case we need to reach you during the day.
If your child needs any medication during the school day, please click on and complete this medication form. Forms are also available in the Health Office. Students are not to carry medications with them in their pockets or lockers. Medications need to be kept in the health office and be labeled with the student name.
If they are experiencing any of the following symptoms, please keep them at home:
- Fever of 100.4 or higher Your student's temperature should be below 100.4 without the assistance of medication for at least 24 hours before returning to school.
- Active vomiting and/or diarrhea
- Rashes along with fever and redness
- A positive Covid test within the last five days. See PHMDC or call the Health Office at 608-834-7106 for more information.
- Students with communicable diseases requiring antibiotic treatment (pink eye, strep throat, etc) may return after 24 hours of antibiotic treatment or 24 hours symptom-free.
Please call Nurse Joy in the school health office at 608-834-7106 or email jmfoust@sunprairieschools.org, if you need assistance.
Measles Cases in the United States
This spring there have been measles cases in several states. Measles is a very contagious virus. It spreads easily and quickly when people cough and sneeze. If you haven’t had the measles vaccine, just being in a room with someone who has measles can make you sick.
Measles can be a serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and even death. It can be prevented by the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine.
The vaccine is safe and effective. The best protection against measles is measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine.
Most people are vaccinated as young children because two doses are required to go to school. One dose is usually given at 12-15 months of age, and a second dose is given before the start of kindergarten at 4-6 years of age.
Most people who get measles are unvaccinated. When the measles finds a group of unvaccinated people, it can spread very quickly.
Check your immunization records
You can check your child’s immunization record on the Wisconsin Immunization Registry or with your healthcare provider.
If our school records do not show that your child has received two doses of the MMR vaccine you will receive additional communication from the school.
Get Vaccinated
If you have health insurance: reach out to your healthcare provider to make an appointment.
If you don’t have health insurance or if your child is on BadgerCare: You can make an appointment with Public Health on their website or by calling (608) 266-4821.
Watch for Measles Symptoms
Measles symptoms begin with a fever, cough, runny nose, and watery eyes, followed by a rash that usually spreads from the head to the rest of the body. If you or your child has these symptoms, call your healthcare provider. Do not go to a clinic, urgent care, or emergency room without calling first.
For more information on measles, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/measles/
Making Changes to your Child's Going Home Routine
We know it is sometimes necessary to change your child's normal going-home routine. Here are some tips to help get the message to your student's teacher (s):
- When possible, call or email the office and teacher(s) in the morning before the day begins. It is often difficult for teachers to check their email or phone messages during the school day.
- If you are changing your plans after 12pm noon, please call the school office directly. (608-834-7103 or 7102).
- When possible, please remind your child before school of any changes.
Please call us at 608-834-7100 and press 1, to report a student absence. If you email your student's teacher, please include ckrusch@sunprairieschools.org. It is important to keep your contact numbers up to date in case of an emergency and for safe arrival calls.
2023-24 Elementary School Hours
Mornings: 7:30am (Drop Off / First Bell) 7:40am (Attendance Taken)
Dismissal: 2:40pm (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday)
Thursday Early Dismissal: 1:30pm