August K-8 Newsletter

Gladbrook – Reinbeck K-8 Newsletter

August 26, 2010

Mr. Parker’s Message:

Wow!  Here we are already a week into the school year and things are going extremely well.  Sure we had a hot day, but in Iowa and our multi-level buildings that is to be expected.  Actually, one of the most difficult things is figuring out what to title my newsletter.  For now, I am going to just leave it as the K-8 newsletter.  Mr. Kuehl and I will both be contributing information into this one newsletter.

I would like to thank the Gladbrook Legion and Auxiliary for giving the Gladbrook campus flags to be raised to start the new school year.  This was the 69^th year they have contributed to getting the school year off to a flying start.  I would also like to thank the many people that came to “Open House.”   I am sorry if I did not get a chance to greet everyone, but we had a great turnout and I know that the time spent with the fifth grade students appears well spent as they are moving through their new building and schedule very well.

There have been many changes as we begin this year.  Let me update you on everything going on.  First and foremost, we have added 10 minutes to the school day.  We have started five minutes earlier (8:30 instead of 8:35) and are staying five minutes later (3:35 instead of 3:30 – 3:25, as opposed to 3:20 for the shuttle bus.)  The shuttle buses also leave at 7:50 am in the morning, five minutes earlier than the 7:55 am they left last year.  This has been one of the few problems we have had to start, getting kids to the buses on time.  Good rule of thumb is if you are there a little early, like 7:45, you will never be late.

I am now in Gladbrook the whole time as both the building administrator and also teaching some classes.  Mr. Kuehl will be the site administrator in the Reinbeck Elementary building along with his position as Superintendent.  We will share some things as far as evaluations, special education meetings, and such.  Generally, if there is a question about what is going on in Gladbrook you would contact me, and daily operation questions about the Reinbeck Elementary building should be directed to Mr. Kuehl.   Of course, you can still call Candi and Carla and get the answer you need.

We live in an age of technology.  We started last year emailing the newsletter out to everyone we had an email address for to save paper costs.  We have put the elementary and middle school handbooks on the school website this year.  If you want a hard copy, let Carla or Candi know and we will send one home with your child.  Mr. Kuehl, Mr. Teckenburg, and myself also have blogs, but we will continue the newsletter as many people still look for that and it will continue to be posted on the website.

For fifth grade parents, your child will now begin with letter grades in their classes.  Through the use of JMC you can follow your child’s progress throughout the quarter.  The password and username for your child is the same as what you use to check your lunch accounts.  If you do not have a username and password contact the middle school and we will get you going.  All middle school teachers post their lesson plans on their Iowa Pages.  Go to the website and building, click on the teacher’s picture, and that will take you to their web page with the assignments on it.

The IMPACT and PTO met on Monday for the first of five meetings this year.  Both groups do excellent things for our students and staff.  They will be kicking off their joint fundraiser on September 10^th.  The next meeting is October 18 in Gladbrook at 7:00 pm.  You can keep up with what’s happening by going to www.grptoimpact.blogspot.com.  Also please remember that both groups collect Box Tops for Education, Hy-Vee receipts, and Soup Labels to bring in extra resources without doing fundraising. 

Mr. Parker

Mr. Kuehl’s Message:

Each year I enjoy the excitement and anticipation of the beginning of the school year.  While a productive time around the office, it starts to get a little too quiet and routine after a number of weeks without students and staff in the buildings.  So, it was enjoyable when teachers all returned on the 16^th and students on the 18^th.

The first few days of school have gone well.  The custodians did a great job this summer in preparing the building for the start of the school year.  The teachers worked to plan and prepare for the beginning of the year, and then….in came the kids!  I guess it makes sense that kids are what really make me love my job as an educator.  The opportunity to work more closely with the students and teachers makes serving as the principal of Reinbeck Elementary appealing this fall.  It will be a challenge to balance the time demands of my superintendent role with those of the principalship, but I’m looking forward to the challenge.

It was great to see so many families at Open House on the 16^th.  We know that parent involvement in their students’ education is critical to student success.  So, please don’t be a stranger to what is going on with your child in school.  We encourage you to visit with your child each evening about school, visit the school if/when possible, and contact myself and the teachers when you have questions about something at school.

You can reach me through the elementary office, or the district office, my email is: tkuehl@g-r.k12.ia.us.  You can find this newsletter, along with other communication from me on my blog, which is linked off the district website:  www.gladbrook-reinbeck.k12.ia.us.

I’m looking forward to a GReat school year.  Go REBELS!

Mr. Kuehl

Calendar of Events

Aug. 26            School Pictures

Aug, 31            JH Volleyball/Football Pictures @ 3:30 in GB

Sept.   1            JH/HS Cross Country Pictures @ 4:00 in RB

Sept.   6            Labor Day – No School

Sept.   7            School Picture Retake Day

                        First JH VB Game @ Home vs. East Marshall

Sept.   9            First JH FB Game @ Home vs. Grundy Center

Sept. 13            District Advisory Committee Mtg. in RB @ 7:00 pm

Sept. 15            MAP Testing starts grades 3-8

Sept. 16            School Board Mtg. @ RB at 6:30 pm

Sept. 30            Homecoming Happenings: 6:00 Powder Puff; 7:30 Coronation           

Oct.    1            Homecoming FB Game vs. BCLUW

Box Tops For Education

Welcome to the start of a new year.  PTO/IMPACT would like to take this time to remind you that we collect Box Tops.  Box tops can be found on hundreds of products that you probably already buy.  We would like to encourage you to clip them and send them to school with your child.  Each box top you clip is worth 10 cents for our school.  The money we raise through box top collections helps us to provide things for our teachers and students.  Throughout the year we will be having some friendly competitions between classes to help us collect box tops.  For more information on what products contain box tops and to register for a chance to win our schools additional box tops go to www.btfe.com

First Day of School!

Today was a GReat first day of school for the Rebels.  It was good to see lots of smiling faces in the morning and then again at 3:35 when the kids were heading home.  The following photos were taken at the flag raising ceremonies at Reinbeck Elementary and at the Gladbrook Campus.  A special thank you to the Auxiliary in Gladbrook for the new flag they provided.

 Students during the flag raising ceremony at Reinbeck Elementary.

Mr. Anderson raising the flag at Reinbeck Elementary.

Colorguard in Gladbrook

 Middle school students preparing the flags.

The Gladbrook Elementary Kindergarten Class

Ms. Wheeler signing the National Anthem, with Trudi at the podium.

 

August 16 Inservice

Today staff are learning more about utilizing technology in the G-R classrooms.  K-8 staff met in Gladbrook and the 9-12 staff met in Reinbeck.  It's not about the technology, it's about  how kids  think and apply the content of our courses.  Technology can provide opportunities for students to research, collaborate, analyze, evaluate, and synthesize more frequently and effectively than ever before.

July G-R Happenings

G-R Happenings

The 2010-2011 School year:

It’s hard to believe that the beginning of another school year is just around the corner. We are currently taking registration materials at the district office. Forms can be found on the district website, www.gladbrook-reinbeck.k12.ia.us, and fees can be paid on-line using PaySchools, for no additional fee. We hope this format will make registration as simple and convenient as possible for the families of G-R. On August 10th the offices will be open for walk-in registration from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., if that is the most convenient for some families. Families that receive assistance in the form of Free/Reduced lunches need to pay their fees in the office in order to receive the appropriate discount.

Registration is critical in our preparation for the upcoming school year. Please make sure that you have completed the process by August 10.

The schools will be hosting an open house on Monday, August 16^th from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The Reinbeck Daycare Center will be open that evening to give tours and distribute enrollment information. Whether you are a parent or community member we encourage you to stop in to visit with our staff and view the facilities.

Summer Projects:

It has been another busy summer in our buildings and on our grounds preparing for the upcoming school year. Our custodial staff has done an excellent job of cleaning, painting, and generally having our buildings in tip-top shape for the return of students and staff.

Some of the projects that will be completed by the beginning of the school year include:

• Renovation of middle school locker rooms, including painting, new plumbing fixtures, new lockers, and restroom partitions has been completed. It had been a long time since these facilities had received much attention and they look Great!
• The middle school family and consumer science room, Home Ec. to many of us, was also renovated over the summer. Students will benefit from the addition of another kitchen in the room, as well as the new cupboards, appliances, and utensils.
• There is concrete work at the Reinbeck Campus that will, hopefully, be completed by the beginning of the school year. It includes repair to the elementary parking lot, replacing crumbling curb at the elementary, and expanding the concrete portion of the parking area to the west of the high school. All the rain has not been very helpful in getting this work completed this summer.

High School Offerings:

This fall marks the beginning of our utilization of the Western Outreach Center. Our students have the opportunity to take courses in a number of areas that interest them, as well as gain college credits while earning high school credits. Courses offered for our students at the Western Outreach Center this year include: Introduction to Psychology, Math for the Liberal Arts, Composition I, Composition II, Introduction to Literature, Introduction to Statistics, Art Appreciation, and Project Lead the Way-Principals of Engineering. In addition to the Pre-Engineering courses of Project Lead the Way we anticipate courses in health care being offered in the future.

These courses offer a tremendous opportunity for our students to get upper level and technical courses that G-R would struggle to offer without collaborating with our neighbors. A side benefit to families is the chance to earn college credits at minimal cost to the student/family. The school is able to offer this opportunity by having local teachers teach the courses and receiving supplemental weighting dollars from the State. Essentially, the supplemental weighting off sets the cost to the district for the courses.

Technology:

The high school and middle school campuses now have complete wireless internet coverage! The district is working to incorporate the use of technology more comprehensively into our instructional practices. Teachers have received and will continue to receive training on how Web 2.0 tools can improve instruction for our students. We are excited to continually explore and develop ways that technology can improve the learning of our students.

2010-2011 promises to be another GReat school year! I’m excited for the return of staff and students after a busy, but refreshing summer break. I look forward to seeing you at the Open House, as well as the many activities that will be beginning soon.

Go Rebels!

Tim Kuehl, Superintendent