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Nighthawk News
Northside Elementary - May / June 2024
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Principal's Message
Greetings Northside Families,
It’s the month of May and we are staring down the last six weeks in the school year! This will be our last all-school newsletter, which is a little hard to believe.
Between mid-May and the end of the school year, the Northside scholars will be celebrating Pride Month. In Sun Prairie, we have committed to standing by students and families who historically are marginalized in the greater community. The LGBTQIA+ community is specifically mentioned in one of our SPASD Equity Statements…
In an effort to cultivate safer and more inclusive schools for people of all orientations and identities, we will engage our nighthawks in lessons, read alouds and discussion so they can…
acknowledge that families all look different
understand the meaning behind the Pride Flag
articulate the difference between being an ally and a bystander
rid their vocabularies of putdowns related to gender and orientation
increase their understanding that people’s identities may not always fit what you might assume from a physical appearance and to be kind/respectful when people share their identity with you
We’ll also have some dress-up days to celebrate the week of May 20th-24th:
5/20 - MONDAY- We are PROUD of our School Community: Northside Day
5/21 - TUESDAY - Everyone Plays a Role in People Being Comfortable to Be Who They Are: Character Day
5/22 - WEDNESDAY - Colors of the Rainbow: 4K/5K Red, 1 Orange, 2 Yellow, 3 Green, 4 Blue, 5 Violet
5/23 - THURSDAY - Be an Ally and Show Love & Kindness: Tie Dye/Rainbow/Hearts
5/24 - FRIDAY - We Want Everyone to Feel Comfortable Being Themselves: Pajama Day
Our ultimate goal is to help our scholars understand that the differences between people don’t have to be something that divides us. Everyone is worthy and deserving of love, respect and acceptance and we all play a role in allowing people to be their authentic selves. If you want to build your own capacity around the LGBTQIA+ community, I’d recommend you check out some of the parent resources on the Welcoming Schools website. A very basic start is learning the vocabulary used by the LGBTQIA+ community.
Cheers to all of you for raising such amazing kids! We are so proud to be part of this community and truly value the relationships we are building with each and every one of you and your children. May the end of the year leave us all with a brain full of knowledge and a heart bursting with fond memories of the 23-24 school year <3
Sincerely,
Mrs. Block & Mrs. Coy-Tchouani
Northside Principals
Stay Connected with the SPASD App
This app allows students, staff and caregivers to access information quickly and easily. It provides access to school blackboard connect notifications, school menus, calendar, District news, Peachjar flyers and more. Students and caregivers can also access Infinite Campus via the app, which provides information regarding attendance, grades and more. To download the app, visit either the iPhone App Store or the Google Play Store.
Upcoming Events
- 5/2, Thurs., 5th Grade visits Middle School (Central Heights and Patrick Marsh)
- 5/3, Fri., School Lunch Hero Day
- 5/5, Sun., Cinco de Mayo
- 5/5, Sun., Beam Awards, 2-4 pm
- 5/6, Mon. - 5/10, Fri., Educator Appreciation Week
- 5/9, Thurs., ML Family Night and ML Family Night - Spanish
- 5/12, Sun., Mother's Day
- 5/14, Tues., SCONES, 6:30-7:30 pm
- 5/17, Fri., No School
- 5/20-24, Mon.-Fri., Pride Month Dress Up Days (See Above)
- 5/27, Mon., Memorial Day, No School
- 5/31, Fri., All Library books must be Returned
- 5/31, Fri., Northside End of Year Celebration, 5 - 7 pm
- 5/31, Fri., Last Day of 4K
- 6/4, Tues., Popsicles in the Park Field Trip @ Wetmore Splash Pad
- 6/7, Fri., Last Day of School, Dismissal, 11:10am
- 6/16, Sun., Father's Day
- 6/17, Mon., Summer School Begins
- 6/19, Wed., Juneteenth
- 6/19, Wed., No Summer School
- 7/4, Thurs., Independence Day, No Summer School
- 7/18, Thurs., Last Day of Summer School
- 8/14, Wed., Kindergarten Orientation, 8am - 3pm
- 8/19, Mon., Student Classroom Assignments Available on Infinite Campus
- 8/27, Tues., Ready, Set, Go, 4-6 pm
- 9/2, Mon., Labor Day
- 9/3, Tues., First Day of School, K-12
- 9/9, Mon. First Day of School, 4K
You're Invited: ML (Multi - Lingual) Family Night
Thursday, May 9, 2024, 05:00 PM
Northside Elementary School
National School Lunch Hero Day is May 3, 2024!
We are celebrating our Nighthawk Lunch Heros on Friday 5/3/24!
Our Northside kitchen team is thoughtful, caring, fun, and works very hard to feed and serve our students their breakfast and lunch every day!!
Thank you to Gloria Harris and Asma Dahdouh!
We appreciate you!
Infinite Campus Parent Portal
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
Have you heard the term "FURRY"?
We have seen an increase in students name-calling one another with the term “furry” as a putdown so we wanted to share a bit of information about this with families.
Forever and ever when kids engage in imaginative play, they have pretended to be cats, dogs, etc. We support this type of play at Northside and have no concerns about it as long as it stops at the end of recess.
There seems to be some style additions right now where kids are donning headbands with animal ears and tails as part of their preferred look. As long as these pieces are not a distraction to the learning environment, they will be permitted. If they become a distraction, then we will ask the children to put them in their backpacks or not bring them to school at all.
Our hope is that students cease the use of “furry” as a putdown to other students. One of our core agreements is to always connect with kindness and using any form of putdown is in direct contradiction to who we are at Northside.
If you have any additional questions about this, please reach out to Mrs. Block at jeblock@sunprairieschools.org or call 608-834-7101.
Community Schools Site Coordinator Update
Northside Events/Programs
Gospel Afrobeat Dance Club started on Monday, April 8th and is after school on both Mondays and Thursdays. Caregivers, please know you are welcome to join with your child any time; it is such a fun program; you can not participate without smiling! You can sign them up HERE if you are interested!
May 31 from 5-7 pm, Northside will have its End of Year Celebration. Mark your calendars this will be an event you won’t want to miss!
Community Events
May 4th from 10am-1 pm there is a Mental Health Bazaar held at Prairie Phoenix Academy.
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
Hello Families!
This upcoming month, we will participate in various activities related to implements. We will work on striking with golf, rackets and hitting with baseball bats.
4th grade will be going swimming as part of the 4th grade PE curriculum. Students will participate in 2 days of skills and fun. We will be going on May 29 & 31. Look for more information coming home soon! Check out swimming from last year!
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
Musical Notes
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
May Artist of the Month is Coco Lee
Coming up in May :
- Kinder - 1st Grade will play drums and experience music by listening, dancing, singing, and playing hand percussion instruments (including buckets and djembes).
- 2nd Grade will start the piano-keyboard unit. In this unit, we are going to learn C positions on right & left hands, and grand staff. We will play songs by reading a piano book.
- 3rd & 5th Grade will start the drums unit, learning the basic drum techniques on djembes, tubanos, and drum stick techniques with buckets.
- 4th Grade will start the flute recorders unit. In this unit, we will learn the basic flute-recorder techniques, sound, and fingering. We will also learn how to sing and play songs with the first octave of the flute.
Please reach out to Mr. Edi with any questions.
What's Happening in our Art Studio?
As we round out this year of art making, we are exploring some new materials and techniques in our studio!
- Kinder, and 1st- Will explore stamping printmaking, our big friendly weaving loom, and puppet making.
- 2nd, 3rd, and 4th- Will explore gelli plate printing and cardboard weaving.
- 5th- Will get to paint studio stools to leave their mark at Northside and shrinky-dinks.
All grades will get to do some outside art making with splatter painting and found object nature photography.
All artwork is headed home. Please keep an eye out for the amazing clay artworks coming home.
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)
Library & Makerspace Updates
Please read on for a few updates from Ms. Nieft in the Library and Makerspace:
- Last Check Outs: The last week of checkout is the week of May 20 and all books will be due back the week of May 27. I will send out notes and emails about missing books, as the dates get closer.
- Makerspace/Lab Lessons: During the month of May and June, Northside Makers will celebrate Teacher Appreciation, Pride, and Summer!
- Nellie's Network: Don't forget to check out Nellie's Network on the NS Facebook page. In May and June, our hosts will be our 3rd-5th graders.
Don't hesitate to reach out with any questions, Kelly Nieft
Social Emotional Learning
Ms. Feltz is teaching Careers and Summer Safety in Guidance!
People often ask what I teach for careers in my guidance classes at the elementary ages. At this level, we are all about the exploration of jobs in our community and thinking about how people choose their careers (interests, talents, job availability, etc.). Our goal is to have students think about how post-secondary education/training and lifelong learning are important to future career success. We want them to understand the relationship between their learning (their job now) and work (their job in the future).
Preparing for Summer Break
All kids do better with structure. That’s even more true for kids with emotional or developmental issues. Structure makes kids with anxiety, ADHD or autism feel safe and comfortable. So summer vacation is a challenge for these kids and their parents. But following some basic rules can make summer easier to handle and more fun for everyone.
Here is a great article on some strategies for a successful summer break!
Click HERE to learn more about Ms. Feltz, your School Counselor
Advanced Learner Program (ALP) Updates
All of the Advanced Learner Program extra curricular events and clubs have concluded for the school year! Congratulations to all of the 5th graders who participated in The Greater Dane Anthology Project, The Math Meet, and the Math 24 Competition. Congratulations to the 4th graders who also attended the Math 24 Competition. I hope everyone has a wonderful summer, and I am looking forward to starting the ALP activities again in fall!
Contact Jessica Tucci at jstucci@sunprairieschools.org or (608) 834-7138 with any questions.
SCONES (Family/Caregiver Community Group)
Hello Nighthawk Families!
We are quickly approaching some of the most fun events of the school year and we need your help to make them a success!
EDUCATOR APPRECIATION WEEK is May 6th - May10th
The SCONES Board has a whole week of appreciation planned for our educators including a Fruit & Yogurt Bar, a Snack Cart, an afternoon visit from Travelin Tom’s Coffee Truck, Lunch, and so much more! We need your help to make this all happen. If you would like to contribute to Educator Appreciation Week you can via our treasurer Marie’s Venmo or send cash or check to the office attention SCONES. You can also send treats to stock the snack cart or lounge! Drop them in the office, attention SCONES.
Northside Year End Celebration Friday May 31st 5pm-7pm
Join SCONES and Nellie as we celebrate the coming summer, with an Olympics themed evening of games and fun! More details to come! Interested in helping us plan, reach out at northsidesco@gmail.com
Popsicles in the Park Tuesday June 4th
The Nighthawk Scholars will be taking a walking field trip to the splash pad! SCONES will be there handing out popsicles to help celebrate! Interested in helping? We could use volunteers to help hand out and open popsicles! Or maybe you’d like to help us fund the popsicles? You can contribute by sending money to our treasurer Marie’s Venmo.
Last Day of School/Fifth Grade Recognition Friday June 7th
SCONES will be volunteering and providing treats for the Fifth Grade families while they enjoy their last moments. Join us as we Clap Out this year's great group of Nighthawks as we watch them take Flight! The celebration starts at 11:00 am in the Third Grade Playground to the Fifth Grade Playground.
As always, if you want to know more about SCONES and how you can help, email us at northsidesco@gmail.com or follow us on Facebook here.
Sincerely,
The SCONES board
SCONES School Community Organization of Northside Elementary School
Bus Lost & Found
Bus Lost & Found
Kobussen has a Lost & Found for items left on the bus. The driver keeps the lost item on the
bus for a few days, then turns it in at the Kobussen terminal. If your child has a lost item don’t
forget to check with Kobussen. Feel free to stop by the terminal at 1500 Forward Drive, Sun
Prairie or call (608) 825-8700.
Thank you!
Student Nutrition Department Cook's Corner
National School Lunch Hero Day is May 3, 2024!
April and May have been busy months. Our great team is introducing May Heritage Days themed meals at all grade levels. Several times this month we will be serving meals featuring the different cultures here at SPASD. In May we focus on Hispanic, Indian, Asian and Hmong cuisines.
Our new recipes were created by many of the staff on the Nutrition Team. Staff members attended a Cook’s Camp in April to test the menu items we will feature. The recipes and tastings resulted in changing roasted corn to steamed corn for a fresher look and taste of Mexican Street Corn. Our Hmong Beef Larb was very salty. Reducing the salt resulted in a better product. The color of this dish with radishes, green onions, shredded carrots and cilantro is very appealing as well.
The following days we will proudly serve our new heritage day menus:
May 6: Mexican in celebration for Cinco De Mayo - Beef Tacos on Corn Tortillas, Cheesy
Mexican Rice, Street Corn, Tropical Fruit, Spanish Cookies
May 14: Latino - Burrito Bowls, Fiesta Beans, Fruit Choice
May 16: Indian - Chicken Vindaloo, White Rice, Roasted Green Beans, Tropical Fruit
May 23: Asian - Chicken Egg Rolls, Asian Rice, Roasted Broccoli, Pineapple Orange Salad
May 30: Hmong - Beef Larb, White Rice, Roasted Broccoli, Banana
Our goal is to serve more menus featuring our rich heritage. Help us promote these days with your students.
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.
End of the year information:
If your student is not attending summer school, please make arrangements to stop by the health office and pick up any medications they have. Any medications left at the end of the school year will be disposed of.
Are your students up to date on immunizations? Summer is a good time to get caught up on immunizations and physicals. There is a free immunization clinic on Saturday, May 11 at the Holtzman Learning Center in Madison from 10. To schedule an appointment or learn more: publichealthmdc.com/schoolclinics
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/
Are you Moving this Summer?
If you are moving this summer? Please take a moment to email your student’s name, grade, and new address to Dee Sercye or call 608-834-7103. This will help us to maintain current and accurate records as we begin the process of putting together our class lists for the next school year. If you are moving within the Sun Prairie Area School District, you will need to show proof of residency with the new address.
If you are not returning to Northside Elementary School for the 2024-25 school year, please let us know as soon as possible. Thank you!