Worth 1,000 Words

In November the Central MN Arts Board (CMAB) awarded Teaching Artist Dan Gruhlke of Monticello $2,000 in support of his "1,000 Words Through the Eyes of Kindergartners" residency at Annandale Elementary School. The residency provided the opportunity to engage students in teaching photo composition techniques with point-and-shoot cameras culminating in a student juried photo exhibit displayed in the school hallways.

Dan Gruhlke is a 35-year seasoned educator with a creative soul who encourages others' expressive explorations through photography, audio stories, geometric design, writing, or natural media. He is known as "Mr. G.” or "Doctor Dan" due to his great insight for enmeshing art with science, math, environmental education, and maybe a bit of bicycling.

“Facilitating others' creations is like smoking chicken on a charcoal grill: anticipated, remembered, and enjoyed.” - Dan Gruhlke

Starting on December 9 and continuing over the course of several weeks, Dan worked in four of Annandale’s Kindergarten classrooms; Zuehlke, Bruns, Thielbar, and Fraser. During his residency students learned how to take care of the camera, were introduced to composition, light awareness, the rule of two thirds, storytelling/photographic selection, and more.

”My kindergartners were highly engaged in Dan's lessons about capturing unique, quality photographs. They enjoyed becoming an expert at such a ‘grown up’ activity and earned an appreciation for a new form of art. The kindergartners looked forward to his visits and were excited to see their final product displayed for everyone to see.” - Mrs. Katie Zuelke

Mark Your Calendars

Saturday, February 22 - AHS Snow Week Dance
Monday, February 24 - AHS Conferences
Monday, February 24 - Safe Communities of Wright County
Monday, February 24 - School Board Meeting
Wednesday, February 26 - AES PTO Meeting
Monday, March 3 - AHS Choir Concert
Monday, March 3 - AMS/AHS Night of the Arts
Wednesday, March 5 - AES Unity Day
Mon., Mar. 3 - Fri., Mar. 7 - AES Read Across America Week
Wednesday, March 5 - AES Unity Day
Monday, March 10 - School Board Work Session
Friday, March 14 - Early Childhood Screening
Monday, March 17 - 6th, 7th & 8th Grade Choir Concerts
Monday, March 17 - School Board Meeting
Friday, March 21 - Last Day of 3rd Quarter
Mon., Mar. 24 - Fri., Mar. 28 - No School: Spring Break
Monday, March 31 - No School: Teacher Workshop Day

Annandale Elementary PTO is looking for new members. Join them at their next meeting Wednesday, February 26 at 6:30PM in the Elementary school cafeteria.

AES PTO supports both staff and students at the school. They put on fun activities for the students like the popular Monster Mash in October, back-to-school bingo, Book Bingo, etc! They have lots of big ideas, but need more members to make them happen! Come check it out, no commitment!

Annandale Community Education

Check out our Winter/Spring catalog! This publication is available electronically only. We are excited for the upcoming offerings we have for you through Community Education.

View Catalog

Annandale Preschool

2025-26 Preschool Registration

opened online for all families on Monday, Feb. 3. Priority registration is open through Feb. 28. District residents will be placed into classes first, then out-of-district residents second.

After priority registration ends, we will open registration again on March 17 through the remainder of the school year to fill any remaining spots within our preschool program.

As part of our ongoing commitment to fostering a supportive and nurturing environment for all students, Annandale's Preschool introduced a therapy dog to our school community in December.

The therapy dog Luna and her handler Carmen visit classrooms on a regular basis to work alongside our school staff. You may see Luna participating in circle time, reading with students, supporting students’ emotional well-being, and providing comfort. Luna is professionally trained and certified to work in educational settings. She is a registered therapy dog through Pet Partners and a member of the Central Minnesota Therapy Animal Association.

"We are thrilled about this new initiative and believe that Luna will make a positive impact on our students!" - Tiffany Grube, Community Education Director

Annandale Elementary (AES)

All our K-5 students have been working hard on their individual and long jump rope skills. This year, Mrs. Ergen had the opportunity to give every 5th grade class a chance to be a Phy. Ed. teacher in training. Each class spent time helping teach jump roping to our kindergarten and first grade students. Our fifth graders did an amazing job! We're not sure who enjoyed it more, the big kids or the younger kids!

Annandale Middle School (AMS)

Experience a showcase of visual and performing arts talent! The art department would like to formally invite you to our third annual Night of The Arts on Monday, March 3 from 5-7PM at the Annandale Middle School.

We host this event in March to celebrate Youth Art Month. It is an open house style event. We have artwork on display from our art classes as well as personal artwork students have made outside of school. There are interactive art stations scattered around the building for people to participate in making art, and student performances, which include speech students, the jazz band, and solo or small group band/choir students.

This is a great opportunity for us to showcase the students who thrive in the arts! We hope you will join us!

Other Important Dates:

Monday, March 17 - 6th, 7th & 8th Grade Choir Concerts
Friday, March 21 - Last Day of 3rd Quarter

Annandale High School (AHS)

Mrs. Jerpseth's 12th grade SSR class "won" a free SSR day during Holiday Happenings. At the suggestion of two students the class spent time making Valentine boxes & bags. The seniors fondly shared memories of their elementary Valentine's Day parties and requested to have their own Valentine exchange. Mrs. Jerpseth shared, "It was fun to hear them reminisce about favorite memories from AES knowing that they are only months away from their high school graduation!"

Chinampa is a technique of water gardening that was developed by the Aztecs in Mesoamerica. While learning about Aztec culture and Mesoamerica, the students in Mrs. Grote’s Cultures and Conversations class were tasked with building their own prototypes of a Chinampa.

ACT PREP WORKSHOP

Is your high school student registered to take the ACT test in April? Are they feeling anxious and overwhelmed with how to study? Community Education is offering a virtual ACT Prep class with Dr. Milton. Students can either take the class from the comfort of their own home or with a group at school. Students will be able to replay the recording to practice their skills!

www.annandalece.com

Local Scholarship Opportunities for Seniors

Are you planning to attend college or vocational training next year? Don’t miss out on local scholarship opportunities! Applications are now open. For more details check out the Senior Scholarship page in your Google Classroom.

Deadline: March 7 at 3:15PM

Apply today and take advantage of these opportunities to help fund your future!

Annandale Activities

Congratulations to our Annandale/Maple Lake Lightning wrestling team for finishing as runner-ups in the team section tournament! Individual sections is on Feb. 21 and 22 at Dassel-Cokato. Good luck to our wrestlers!