November MGNS Newsletter

President's Corner

Happy Fall MGNS!! I hope your fall days have been filled with cozy moments and fun family time together. I know for me a huge fall highlight was seeing the MGNS family coming together for the Meet Greet and Eat and Roll and Stroll. Your smiles were infectious as I welcomed families at the entrance and saw proud kids (and adults) showing off their medals for a job well done!

We absolutely love showing off our new space and seeing it fill up with laughter and love. Kudos to our fundraising team, Jordan and Sarah, and event coordinator, Bailey, for an amazing event! From our families, alumni, friends to our beloved teachers - Thank you for continuing to choose to be a part of the #MGNSfamily! We are better because of all of you!

As we look ahead this November, we invite you to join us in celebrating and reflecting on all the ways we are thankful and seek ways to generously support our community. Read on for more information about our annual food drive, “Champions of Play” Campaign and classroom feast days!

Happy Fall Y’all, Maria

Announcements from our Staff

As you can see from the above picture, Feast Day has been a tradition at MGNS for a long time! Feast days are coming - one of our favorite times! Remember that all families are invited, but our teachers do need to know who is coming.

Our parking lot is busy both with MGNS traffic and with church traffic. Please be sure to hold hands with your kiddos after they venture past our planter/patio area! We want to keep everyone safe!

Remember to label your kiddo's clothes for school! If you would like, we have a fundraiser with Oliver's Labels – a super durable label company! We also have a basket with tape and sharpies on the window sill if you forget!

Also! From November 5th -November 20 we will be having an MGNS Food Drive to benefit St Stephens food pantry. There will be a collection bin in the cubby room and outside the school side of the Toddler Time Room. This is a great time to talk with your kids about giving to others and sharing what you have! Also below is a resource if your family needs support with food insecurity.

Madison Food Resources

MGNS Events & Announcements

From our Building Partner - Lake Edge Lutheran Church:

Holiday Craft Workshop on Sunday, November 16th!

Join us on Sunday, November 16th for a Holiday Craft Workshop to get ready for the holiday season! We are inviting community members of all ages - from Lake Edge, Christ the Solid Rock, and Monona Grove Nursery School - to join in fellowship with the opportunity to make up to 8 different crafts! Join for as few or as many as you'd like, with no crafting skill required. We'll have help available to assist you in making anything from ornaments for your tree using crayons or fabric, to garland from toilet paper tubes, to a holiday scented gift you can give away (and several other projects!).

Lake Edge Lutheran looks forward to seeing you!

Sunday November 16th at 11:00 (after 9:30 worship) in Good Shepherd Hall, with lunch provided.

This is a Lake Edge Lutheran Church event to which we are invited!

You can sign up here, or on the bulletin board on the church side of the building!

From our Fundraising Team:

Thank You for Making October Fundraisers a Success!

We’re so grateful to everyone who joined us for our first annual Roll and Stroll—it was a fantastic success thanks to you! It was a joy to see so many smiling faces walking through the neighborhood and gathering afterward to share food and celebrate our school.

A special shoutout to everyone who participated in our Butterbraid sale—we raised an incredible $1,547! We appreciate your support and dedication to our community.

Waypoint Public House Dine Out Night

Mark your calendars for a delicious way to support MGNS! Join us on Tuesday, November 4th at Waypoint Public House for our next Dine Out for MGNS event. Whether you stop by for lunch with a coworker or enjoy dinner with family, MGNS will receive a portion of the day’s proceeds—all day long, from open to close!

Got Fundraising Ideas? We’re always looking for new opportunities and creative ways to support our school. If you have suggestions or connections, we’d love to hear from you! Reach out anytime at fundraising@mgns.org.

Thanks for Your Support at the Musky!

Thanks to all who came out to PLAY at the Musky on October 5th! It was a great turn out and a great time! So fun to see alumni, current families, and friends from all around come out to support our capital campaign. Between raffles, our shuffleboard tourney, Plinko, Shake of the Day, straight donations, and our $1000 match from Modern Woodmen, we raised over $5,500! Whoo hoo! Thank you!

P.S. If you were there, we’d love your feedback on the event. If you weren’t there, you can still complete this form to let us know what kind of events you’d like to see in the future!

Event Feedback From - Share Your Thoughts!

Get to know the MGNS Staff!

We would love you to know more about the fantastic women who love your kids! This month? Our favorite early childhood education/parenting books for inspiration!

Sue - The Importance of Being Little

Jodi - How to Get Kids to Say Yes!

Kate - Balanced and Barefoot

Juli - How to Talk So Kids will Listen and Listen so Kids will Talk

Same Heart, New Start!

Giving Tuesday: Become a Champion of Play!

Our “Champions of Play” are those who have signed up to give a recurring monthly gift of $10 or more to MGNS. We currently have 10 “Champions” giving monthly. Our Giving Tuesday goal is to get 30 more Champions signed up by the big day (Tuesday, December 2)!

Committing to a recurring monthly gift, even as low as $10/month, has a powerful long-term impact for our school. It's a consistent source for funds each month that will help us continue to pay off our bridge loan.

Be a part of the team sustaining play-based learning opportunities for generations to come. Giving $10+ per month earns you a purple MGNS t-shirt and, most importantly, it shares the good vibes to our community showing your investment in the kind of learning that boosts all kids up so they can be champions too!

Maggie J., MGNS alumni parent and former board member says:

We love MGNS - still, even five years after my kids went to Kindergarten. The love they felt, the memories they have that last today - all thanks to MGNS. If we can help MGNS for future generations, even just a little every month as "Champions of Play"- we are grateful. MGNS helped my kids develop, learn, and grow with loving and trusted adults. Every child deserves that opportunity!

Become a CHAMPION OF PLAY!

Will you join Maggie and become a Champion of Play? Sign up now, tomorrow, or on Giving Tuesday - any time before December 2nd gets us closer to our 30-MORE-CHAMPIONS goal!

Tell us why YOU became a Champion of Play

As always, thank you for your support. It means the world.

Upcoming MGNS Events

November 4 - Waypoint Public House all day Dine out Day! Support MGNS with great food!

November 7 - Scholastic Book Order Due

November 5-20 - MGNS food drive to benefit St Stephens Food Pantry

November 17 - MGNS Board Meeting -7 pm

November 21- Penguin Feast Day - 11 am

November 24 - Starfish Feast Day - 11 am

November 25 - Dolphin Feast Day - 11 am

November 25 - Sea Otter Feast Day - 3 pm

NO SCHOOL - November 26, 27, and 28

From our Friends at the Cottage Grove Schools and Family Organization

Free Parent Night "Creating a Tech-Healthy Family

6 pm on November 4th at Granite Ridge School

Author and Youth Advocate Andrea Davis will present a program on raising kids in a digital world, reducing screen time, and creating a "Tech-Healthy Family."

The Flyer is here, and Sue can answer any questions! This is important stuff!

MMSD Activities

Our good friends at the Madison School District provide us with some family outreach each month of school. Feel free to print and follow this NovemberCalendar, and the attached activities for some skill building fun with your kids!

November Fun Calendar

Visit our Website

Donate to our Capital Campaign