January 2020 
In This Issue
Message from Principal Langer
Office Hours
Future Freshman Night
Cold Weather and Chromebooks
Scrip
Box Tops
PBIS Calendar
GDS Students Travel to Milwaukee
Courage Retreat
Student ID Required for Athletic Events
School Nutrition
Attendance
GDS Visitors & Volunteers
After School Classes/Clubs
Early Learning Fair
Message from Principal Langer
Happy New Year!

As the New Year rolls in, life at GDS becomes extremely busy!  We are working towards finishing first semester strong with the last day of the semester being January 23rd. We will post Honor Roll after 1st semester and again after 2nd semester. Our eighth grade students will start learning more about high school and transition plans will start quickly!  Future Freshman Night is on Monday, January 13th! Shortly after that event, 8th graders will start signing up for high school classes. Sixth and seventh grade students will start registering for next year soon after!  

The weather has been extremely cooperative for our students during recess.  We have a large area of lost and found. Please check it out if your student is missing something!  In the winter it really fills up with hats and mittens and boots and shoes! 

We have some exciting plans this spring as our cafeteria remodeling begins in early May, and we hope to add a new swing set on the playground!  More to come on these topics.  

We hope that the weather holds out for us the rest of this winter.  Thank you for doing your best with picking up students at the end of the day.  We realize it is frustrating to have to park and wait, but we just do not have the room to keep everything moving if we allow people to park on the curb.  If we allow parking on the curb, we then have two rows of moving traffic as well as people pulling out from stalls. We can not have a long line of cars, because that will interfere with the buses.  Please park and patiently wait for your son/daughter. Thank you!


Office Hours
Monday through Thursday:  7:30 am - 4:00 pm
Friday:  7:30 am - 3:45 pm
Future Freshman Night - Monday, Jan 13
Future Freshman Night, for this year's eighth grade students, will begin at 6:00 p.m. on January 13 in the high school commons with an Activities and Athletics Fair followed by a general presentation in the auditorium beginning promptly at 6:30 p.m.  The purpose of the orientation is to acquaint students and parents with the MGHS curriculum and the facility.

After the large group presentation in the auditorium, time will be allotted for visiting the various elective departments in the school.

Cold weather and Chromebooks
With frigid winter temperatures, please remember that liquid crystal display on your Chromebook can freeze and become fragile.  To help prevent cracks:  power it all the way down before heading outside, don't leave it in a cold car, and let it warm up to room temperature before turning it on.  
 
Scrip
Don't forget the GDS PTO sells an amazing variety of gift cards through it's Scrip program.  You buy the gift cards at face value and the school profits 2-25% depending on the card!! Click HERE for an order form.   

New participants are BB Jacks, Food Fight Restaurants and Jimmy Johns.  
Box Tops Time 
Box Top collection January 2-16

Turn in Box Tops to your Advisory Teacher

1st Place;  Pizza Party
2nd Place:  Ice Cream Sandwiches
3rd Place;  Popcorn  

Box Tops are going digital. Any paper box tops should be turned into the school office by Friday, May 15th. Parents can stop by the Student Council booth in the cafeteria/commons during conferences on February 5th or 13th for more information and to receive help signing up/downloading the app.
 
PBIS Calendar
Click HERE for calendar
 
GDS Students Travel to Milwaukee
GDS students participated in 
The Young Authors and Writers Conference at the Milwaukee Art Museum on Monday, December 2, 2019.  They collaborated on a book entitled Art of Writing that will be published in May of 2020.

 
Courage Retreat
On December 5th, 2019, the entire 7th grade class participated in a successful day of character building during a retreat at Glacial Drumlin School.  




Student Admittance to School Sponsored Athletic Events
Students must have their picture ID to be able to attend any home athletic events at the HS or GDS.
 
School Nutrition Department
Breakfast and lunch menus are available HERE.
Click HERE for Free and Reduced application and FAQ.
 
Attendance
If your student will be absent from school for any reason, call the attendance line 24/7 at 608.839.8437 press 2.

If your child has a fever (>100 degrees), is vomiting, has diarrhea, has a rash you do not know the cause of, or has a communicable disease do not send them to school -  keep them home until they are 24 hours vomit/diarrhea/fever free without medication.  
 
GDS Visitors & Volunteers
If you are planning to help in the classroom or accompany your child on a field trip, you must complete the Online Volunteer Form.  
 
If you are visiting GDS during regular school hours, please be prepared with your driver's license or state issued ID.  For more information on the district's Raptor Visitor Management System click HERE.  
After School Classes/Clubs
Click HERE for Cottage Grove information/offerings.

Click HERE for Monona information/offerings.
Early Learning Fair - Monday, Feb 3, 2020
On Monday, February 3rd, 2020, the Monona Grove School District will hold its annual Early Learning Fair and  Together 4 Kids registration at Nichols School (MG District Office) in Monona. This event is a free service to families of pre-school children. Parents will have the opportunity to meet with a professional to share information about their child's development and to register for the 2020-2021 T4K program. Registration information will be sent to families in mid-December.  Parents will need to schedule an appointment upon receipt of registration materials.  If you have any new neighbors with young children aged birth to 4 ½, please have them call Gina in the Early Education Office at 839-2113.
 



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2019-20


January 7
Grade 5 Strings Concert
7 pm at GDS

January 8
MGSD Board Meeting
7 pm at DO

GDS PTO Meeting
5:30 pm Main Office


January 13
Future Ninth Grade Night
at MGHS

January 20
No School

January 24
No School

February 5
Parent Teacher Conferences

February 6
GDS PTO Meeting
5:30 pm Main Office


February 9
8th Grade & MGHS Pops Concert @ 11 am & 2 pm at MGHS

February 12
MGSD Board Meeting
7 pm at DO

February 13
Parent Teacher Conferences

February 17
Grade 6/7 Band Concert
7 pm at GDS

February 21
No School

February 24
No School

February 28
Student Council Dance
6:30-8:30 pm at GDS

March 2
Solo & Ensemble Festival 4:30 - 8:30 pm  at GDS

March 5
GDS PTO Meeting
5:30 pm Main Office

March 6
No School

March 11
MGSD Board Meeting
7 pm at DO

March 16
Strings Festival Grades 4-12
7 pm at MGHS

March 24
6-8 Grade Choir Concert
6th grade at 6:45 pm
7th-8th grade at 7:30 pm
at GDS

March 27
End of Quarter 3

No School

March 30-April 3
Spring Break

April 6
Classes Resume

April 8
MGSD Board Meeting
7 pm at DO