Friday, 1/30 Newsletter Updates

I just typed the date in the Title box and thought, "Is it really the end of January already? Are we really a week into the third quarter already?" Yes, and Yes. Here's some news of note:

Report Cards Coming Home Today
Once again, report cards are in sealed envelopes and should be when they get to you. Grades aren't for comparing, unless you're comparing your own first quarter and second quarter grades. Please send back the signature form as soon as possible.

Trivia Contest - A 125th Anniversary Special Event
You may have heard something about some trivia contest thingy we're doing here at school. It's Friday, February 13, from 6:00-8:30. It'll have questions from all over the place - movies, music, current events, TV, school, Bible, sports. Anything's fair game. There will be a lot of laughs, a lot of great music, and we'll even throw in some prizes. Most of the questions are off-the-head stuff, but some may need some quick research.

Basically, it's a big get together for anybody and everybody from school that promises to be a fun time. Get some kids together. Get some parents together. Have some fun! Registration starts Monday, and forms are coming home today.

Auction Basket
We're officially less than a month from the 3rd Annual Celebration Weekend including the Celebration Auction and Spring FunFest. Anyone have any comments on what needs to be in a beach basket? Let me know. Our suggested donation for the class basket is $3-$5 per family.

Valentine's Day
The upper grades (5th-8th) started a tubing tradition for Valentine's Day last year. They are continuing that this year. The younger grades thought they should get in on the act, so we are planning a skating day. Thursday, February 12 from 1-3 has been reserved for our Kindergartners through 4th graders at Skate City. Students may still hand out Valentines, but we won't have a class party. Instead it's a skating party. Keep an eye out for further information.

It's Reenrollment Time for 2009-2010
Have you been thinking about next school year? We here at school have. Reenrollment has begun. Information was presented at the parent meeting last week. Do you have any questions? Any concerns? Let me know and I'll do what I can to answer them OR I'll find someone who can. I'm looking to talk to all fourth grade families over the next week or two, just to check in, about reenrollment and/or any other questions you may have. Thanks!

There are lot's of papers coming home tonight - graded work, notes, Scrip forms, etc. Be sure your fourth graders empties his/her take-home folder for you. Have a great weekend!

Books, Books, Books!

I love this time of day. It is absolutely silent in the room right now. Seriously. Everyone, except me, unfortunately, is reading. Silently. I think I could announce there was a fire and about half of them wouldn't even hear me.

Anyways, some quick notes, all book related, and then I'm off to do some reading conferences.

The Book Fair

Immanuel's book fair will run through Tuesday. It will close up for the last time at 4:30 on Tuesday. There will be time after school to shop before the Caldecott ceremony, and Tuesday before and after school.

Our Caldecott Activity - TONIGHT!!!

Tonight, tonight, tonight is the night, 4:00 in Kuechle Hall, where we decide what is the best picture book for kids from the past year. All twenty of the books we evaluated will be available for you to look at. Ask you kids what they liked. Ask them what books should make the finals in their opinion (they don't know the final three yet!). Ask them why. You'll be amazed at some of their responses. We hope to see you there.

The Real Caldecott Medal Ceremony
I posted on this earlier in the week, but here's a repeat reminder about Monday's webcast of the ceremony:

Also, on Monday, January 26, the actual Caldecott Award will be announced, along with the Newbery Medal and numerous other awards given by the American Library Association. The press conference can be watched live online at this link. (It is not live yet. This alternate link will get you to the webcast also.)

For more information about the awards from the official website, see the following links:

Newbery Medal: Click Here.

Caldecott Medal: Click Here.

P.S. Didn't believe me about the reading? Check this out! (I have some more I might post later.)

Tuesday Newsletter Updates

Tomorrow's Chapel Service
Chapel will begin at 8:50 tomorrow, led by the fourth graders. Everyone is welcome to come and worship with us. Chapel goes until 9:30.

Geography Bee
The Geography Bee, originally scheduled for after chapel tomorrow, has been moved back one week. It will now be on Wednesday, January 28 after chapel. We have not yet determined our class representatives.

Pancake Supper
Parents volunteering for the pancake supper on Thursday evening may take their children to Cougar Kids for child care if it is needed. Please note, this is for volunteering parents. Also, please contact Miss Dian before noon tomorrow if you wish to use the service.

Caldecott Award
Friday night after school is the Caldecott Award ceremony. All families are welcome. We'll start at 4:00 with a last rereading of the finalists. After discussion, students will be asked to vote on a favorite. Then we will have a student-led press conference announcing the winner. More information is coming home today in your child's take-home folder.

Also, on Monday, January 26, the actual Caldecott Award will be announced, along with the Newbery Medal and numerous other awards given by the American Library Association. The press conference can be watched live online at this link. (It is not live yet. This alternate link will get you to the webcast also.)

For more information about the awards from the official website, see the following links:
Newbery Medal: Click Here.
Caldecott Medal: Click Here.

Monday's Back to School Announcements

Tomorrow Night's Parent Meeting
Please plan to attend tomorrow night's parent meeting. The meeting starts at 7:00, but come a few minutes early if you can to sign in and fill out a name tag. Mr. Betts will share information about:

• This school year
• Next school year
• National Lutheran School Accreditation vision for the future plan
• Enrollment
• Programs offered at Immanuel
• Operating Plan
• Technology
• Communtiy Involvement
• Professional Development
• SCRIP
• School Calendar
• And other stuff I'm forgetting...

It will be a sort of State of the School Address, and effort to keep Immanuel families informed about all we do at Immanuel and all it takes to keep our ministry running smoothly. Thanks

Chapel on Thursday

Fourth graders will be leading chapel on Wednesday. We've streamlined our plan a bit so we can be prepared in only two days. I had originally planned to use Thursday and Friday for preparation as well. Nevertheless, it promises to be a memorable worship opportunity.

Friday Night's Caldecott Activity

Grades 4K-4 will gather on Friday night to choose our winner. We've been reading and rereading and discussing and voting and rereading again...all to select the best picture book for kids from the past year. That's big work! And Friday from 4:0o-5:00 is the culmination of all that work. All families and students are invited. Please see the note attached to the school newsletter for more information. Another note will come home this week with more details.

Thursday Night - The Pancake Supper

We may need to take some days off after this busy week. Wow! Thursday night is the annual pancake supper. Hopefully you plan to attend and eat the best pancakes this side of the river. They come from far and wide for these cakes, they do, and you won't want to miss it! Have you decided to volunteer? Come early, eat late. Eat early, stay late. Your help is needed and greatly appreciated. Thanks!

No School on Thursday

Word just came down from the corner office that there is no school tomorrow due to the FREEEEEZING cold temperatures. Stay home, put on an extra pair of fuzzy socks, find your best/worst comfortable sweatshirt, and stay warm. Hopefully - hopefully! - everyone has a silent reading book...or two.

See you on Friday for Pajama and Movie Day. (Hmmm. Maybe we ought to change that to Twice-As-Much-Work-Day to make up for Thursday. Should we put it to a vote?)

Auction Basket and Science Assignment

Two completely unrelated topics to let you know about today.

ILS Celebration Auction
The annual ILS Celebration Auction, part of Celebration Weekend which includes the Fun Fest and the beginning of Lutheran Schools Week, is coming up fast. The auction is on Saturday evening, February 28.

We are continuing our tradition of each class donating a basket to be auctioned off that evening. This year the fourth grade is doing a beach basket. Trying to organize which people should send what item can be difficult, and in this case, could result with our basket having four tubes of SPF50.

A parent has volunteered to do the purchasing for our basket. The suggested donation for the class is $3-5 per family, but please donate whatever you feel is best. Remember, all donations go directly to the school. Last year the weekend earned over $40,000. The fourth grade basket earned (if I remember correctly) $200 by itself, more than doubling the amount donated toward its purchase.

Also, please send your ideas for a beach basket. What needs to go to the beach? What essential item must come along in order to make a trip to beach complete?

Today's Science Assignment
Today we took our science test. It's a take home test, and you'll probably see it tonight. It's a bit...different...from most tests.

I wanted to do something other than multiple choice, fill in the blank, and short answer, so I wrote a test. It's a little silly, and I told the fourth graders to have fun with it. The questions are designed for them to be creative, but also require them to know information from the chapter.

For example, one question asks what kind of volcano they would like to visit on vacation. There are three tour companies listed. Would they want to tour a dormant, active, or violently erupting volcano? I told them there's no correct answer, but their explanations about why they'd like to visit one and not the other two will show me whether or not they understand the different types of volcanoes.

I encouraged them to be creative, but at the same time to be sure their answers were clear and based on good information. They started slowly, but seemed to get more comfortable as they wrote. We'll see tomorrow, I guess.

Newsletter for 1/9/09

Calendar Dates
There are tons of events coming up on the Immanuel Lutheran School calendar. Here's a (hopefully) complete list:

Monday, January 12 -
Tuesday, January 13 -
Wednesday, January 14 - School spelling bee after chapel
Thursday, January 15 -
Friday, January 16 - PJ and Movie Day. Planned by leadership council as a middle-of-winter activity, students may wear comfortable winter pajamas, and we'll watch a movie in the afternoon.

Monday, January 19 -
Tuesday, January 20 - Parent meeting for school families in Kuechle Hall from 7:00-8:00.
Wednesday, January 21 - Fourth Grade leads chapel at 9:00. School geography bee after chapel.
Thursday, January 22 - Pancake Supper
Friday, January 23 - Grades 4K-4 Caldecott Award Ceremony. See the attachment to the school newsletter today and the note coming home with students.

Sunday, January 25 - Consecration Sunday at Immanuel. One worship service at school, followed by lunch.


Congratulations!
Well done, Treighton and Megan, for being the 4th grade representatives to the school spelilng bee. The bee is next Wednesday after chapel with representatives from 3rd-8th grade. A well done also goes out to Zack, Kyra, Katy, and Kaitlyn for doing their best.

Thank You
It seems like a long time since Christmas, but it can't ever be too late to say thank you. I made a special trip to Barnes and Noble to use my gift cards already. To everyone who gave so generously to the class gift and for the well thought-out personal gifts, thank you.

Behold the Lamb of God Documentary

This is a nine-minute behind the scenes video. It has short interviews with the performers, song clips, and explanations of how the album and concert came about. There's a lot of interesting information presented, not only about the album, but the Christmas story itself.

I hope you enjoyed the videos. They will remain on the website, so if you'd like to check them out over Christmas, you can. Have a merry and blessed Christmas.

Behold the Lamb of God

Behold, the Lamb of God
Who takes away our sin.
Behold the Lamb of God
The life and light of men.
Behold the Lamb of God
Who died and rose again.
Behold the Lamb of God who comes
To take away our sin.

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night - Behold the Lamb of God

The Savior has been born! Do we expect the heavens to be silent? This video is from a church that performed the musical last Christmas, and they do a great job.

"Hallelujah! Christ is born! All glory be to God on high, and to the earth be peace. Good will henceforth from God to man, begin and never cease! Hallelujah!"

Tuesday Afternoon, 12/16 Newsletter Announcements

Uninvited Classroom Guest - The Flu
Keep an eye out for the flu. As you may know, I stayed home yesterday with Megan when she got the flu, and by mid-morning it was a good thing I did. After some chicken soup and 12 hours of sleep, I'm feeling back to normal. Other students are missing, and students in other grades as well.

Book Orders
The book orders are in. If you are expecting something, contact me and we'll come up with a plan.

The Christmas Program
The program is coming along nicely. Performances are on Thursday at 1:00 and 6:00. Students are asked to dress in typical, nice Sunday clothes. No special costumes are needed for fourth graders.

The Tale of Despereaux
We have nearly finished our latest read aloud book, The Tale of Despereaux, about a mouse who must save a princess. Throw in some wickedly evil rats and a ban on soup and you've got one interesting tale. The movie, by the way, comes out on Friday. (But it's bound to be not nearly as good as the book, right? We'll see.)

Exercise Your Right to Vote!
We have a class bamboo plant. It's not doing so well - a lot of brown tipped leaves and such - so we thought a name might help it along. (That, and getting it out of my basement.) To the right side of the website is a poll. Vote early, vote often. Winner to be determined Friday.

Labor of Love - Behold the Lamb of God

Sometimes we forget that Jesus was born of a woman, true man while also true God. "Silent Night, Holy Night," we sing, "All is calm, all is bright." Labor of Love describes the night Jesus was born in the most realistic way I have heard.

Here's my favorite line:

So he [Joseph] held her and he prayed
Shafts of moonlight on his face
But the baby in her womb
He was the maker of the moon
He was the Author of the faith
That could make the mountains move

I hope you like it.

It Came to Pass - Behold the Lamb of God

There were some guest singers, so Andrew Peterson isn't singing this one, but the song is still great. It's the beginning of Luke 2. Mary and Joseph are off to Bethlehem to follow Caesar's decree.

Matthew's Begats - Behold the Lamb of God

Just in case there was any doubt that Jesus was part of God's plan, here's his family genealogy, from Abraham, who was promised ancestors outnumbering than the stars in the sky, to King David, to Mary and Joseph and Jesus.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel - Behold the Lamb of God

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel is an instrumental version of the traditional Christmas carol. Knowing the words, even if they aren't sung, continues the prayer of Deliver Us, asking God to come as he promised to save his people.

Deliver Us - Behold the Lamb of God

This video is from the Ryman Auditorium concert and features Derek Webb singing. Derek Webb is part of the Christan band Caedmon's Call. Deliver Us compares the bondage the Israelites faced as slaves in Egypt to the bondage of sin that enslaves us. The song is a prayer that, since there aren't enough lambs for sacrifice to atone for our sins, that God, Yahweh, deliver us from them instead.

Listen closely at the end for God's answer.

Midterms and More

• Midterms are coming home today. They were in sealed envelopes when students received them, and should be in sealed envelopes when they get home. Hopefully we can cut down on the "I got 4 A's and 3 B's, what you get? Huh? Huh? Huh?"
• Midterms have a signature note at the bottom. Please sign and return it as soon as possible. Thanks in advance.
• The Christmas note that was emailed home yesterday didn't get into mailboxes until after school yesterday. If it's not home today, it's in your child's mailbox.

Christmas Party Information

A printed version of this note is coming home today, but I am posting it here too. Mr. W.

Merry Christmas 4th Grade Parents!!

As we all know, Santa is pretty busy this time of year, so we decided to give him a little help! Dec. 19th is the date of the class Christmas party and gift exchange. We are looking for some help from 4th grade parents in order to make this a festive and fun occasion for everyone!!

The party will be Dec. 19 and will start right after the afternoon Christmas concert – so figure about 2/2:15 pm. It will last about an hour.

We will have the gift exchange during the party. Boys should buy for boys, and girls for girls. The limit is $5 – please try to stay within the guidelines, in order to keep all gifts on “even footing”.

Below is a list of the items we will need. If any of you would be willing to provide any of these, we would really appreciate it and of course, we always love to have parents, grandparents, or any other adults come to join in the fun!

Volunteers
1. Michelle and/or Mike C.
2. Nicole T.
3. __________
4. __________
5. __________

Refreshments
1. __________
2. __________

Christmas Cups
1. __________

Treats
1. Nicole T.
2. __________
3. __________

Paper Plates & Napkins
1. __________
2. __________

Also, we are collecting money to buy a class Christmas gift for Mr. Wilhorn. Please donate whatever you feel comfortable with if you would like to go in on the class gift. (If you have any questions on the class gift, please give me a call).

Thanks again for all your help! Please feel free to contact Nicole at 421-9791 with any questions. Please either call or email Nicole with whatever you are able to help out with at ntrickle@yahoo.com. Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and God’s blessings!

Sincerely,
Michelle C. & Nicole T.

So Long, Moses - Behold the Lamb of God

So Long Moses takes listeners from Moses and the Promised land to Joshua and the Canaanites. Then comes King Saul and a description of King David, followed by the Old Testament prophets. Finally, Isaiah tells of the coming Savior.

This video was made for a church that performed the musical in 2007. Again, sorry the video isn't embedded in the email. Click the link at the bottom to see it on the website.

Sorry, Last Message

Apparently you'll have to click on the link at the bottom of the email and go to the website to see the video. I mistakenly thought the video would be embedded into the email.

All of the videos will automatically go to the website, with the newest posted at the top. Which of course means, after several have been posted, you will have to start at the bottom and work up. (Funny how that works...)

The address, if you want to go straight to the site, is http://loudestclass.blogspot.com.