ISSUE 476 / November 11, 2021 |
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Greetings from the Executive Director |
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Liebe TCGIS Gemeinschaft! Dear TCGIS community,
It was such a delight to see so many of our families last week at the Martinstag celebration. It was clear that we are eager for opportunities to be together again.
Teacher conferences provide another opportunity for connecting this week. We trust that these will be meaningful conversations that will give you a glimpse into your child’s progress and into the vibrant bilingual learning that fills our classrooms each day.
Please also make note of the upcoming pediatric Covid vaccine clinics we will be hosting at the school. (Details below.) We are honored and grateful to be able to provide this vital service to the community and welcome all TCGIS families to take advantage.
herzlich,
Kirsten Christensen
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Incident Response Team (IRT) |
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The IRT tracks COVID cases in this dashboard which will be shared weekly. |
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Pediatric COVID-19 Vaccination Opportunity |
We are excited that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized by the FDA and CDC for children ages 5-11. Many of us in education have been waiting for this opportunity for our students and their families to have this additional level of protection for themselves and our communities. People who are fully vaccinated and have close contact with someone who has COVID-19 do not need to be quarantined if they do not have any symptoms and meet other conditions.
TCGIS Vaccine Clinics for Ages 5-11
Thursday, November 18 from 4pm - 8pm (Dose #1)
Appointments are required. Register here using TCGIS’ zip code 55103.
The second dose clinic is scheduled for Thursday, December 9, from 4 - 8pm.
What to Expect
Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian when receiving a vaccine.
Vaccines will be administered individually, with privacy. There is no cost for the vaccine.
Other Vaccine Resources
If you have any questions, please contact Dani Nicholson at dnicholson@tcgis.org or at 651-492-7106.
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COVID-19 Updates Available on IRT Webpage |
In order to shorten the Rundbrief, we will prioritize new items for this newsletter and link to our Incident Response Team Updates webpage so you can reference past updates more efficiently:
- Updated Quarantine Procedures
- Updated MDH Decision Tree
- Weekly COVID-Testing at TCGIS
- Keep Sick Kids Home this School Year
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Note: If you don't see the calendar at the end of your Rundbrief, the message has been clipped and you must click "View entire message" to see the full email. Danke!
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Parent Teacher Conferences: this Afternoon/Evening and Tomorrow |
Thursday, Nov 11th, 4-7:30pm
Friday, Nov 12th, 8:10am-3:30pm
(Conferences held via Zoom)
To access your conference schedule, please login to the conference scheduler here and use the master password: Blatt 2021, along with your password.
Here is the ZOOM Directory for your student/s conferences. Please click on the Zoom Link at your designated conference time.
Tips & Best Practices for Online Conferencing:
- Make sure the device you are planning to use for conferences is plugged in and/or charged.
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Change your Zoom Name: Label yourself "Parent of (insert student names)" so that teachers will know who you belong with when you join your conferences.
- Minimize interference by keeping your phone or other computer devices away from the area where you are conferencing.
- Teachers are on a tight schedule for conferences. Please do your best to join your conference on time and to stick to your scheduled time frame.
- Find a quiet place so that background noise is not disruptive to your conference.
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Notification of Late Buses |
Buses are expected to leave TCGIS by 3:30 PM but are not officially late until 3:40 PM. Currently, TCGIS’s practice is to notify families when a bus leaves the school after 3:40. After receiving feedback from parents, we will now begin notifying families both at 3:40, if the bus has not yet arrived, and at the time when the bus leaves. Notifications will come either through the PikMyKid app or from info@tcgis.org.
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Give to the Max is next week! |
Your gifts help our school to offset the funding shortfall experienced by public charter schools while simultaneously supporting the unique things that make our school great. Make your gift today.
Herzlichen Dank for supporting TCGIS!
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Online Scholastic Book Fair starts Monday! |
The TCGIS online book fair starts on Monday, November 15 and will run until November 28th. Order your books online here!
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Fall Universal Screening Update |
We have just finished our fall school-wide screening. Students completed assessments specific to their grade level in reading, math, or both of these areas. With our recent switch from PowerSchool to Infinite Campus, we are in the process of navigating an entirely new system and process for communicating these important screening results to our families. This means that the letter and information may look a bit different than how it has looked in the past. We are learning about this new system, and doing our best to identify the best way to communicate information to all families. In the next week, please keep a close eye on your email for your child's fall screening assessment scores.
If you still have questions or concerns after reviewing the results, we encourage you to review this resource. As always, thank you for all that you do. TCGIS Screening Team
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Seeking Intern Host Families |
In just two months these 10 Interns will join our community and we can't wait! We are seeking host families for these enthusiastic young educators who add so much to our school and our community. We begin matching interns with families this month. Questions? Learn more here: |
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Now Accepting Class Submissions for Winter Enrichment Classes |
It is time for another round of Enrichment Classes! The winter session starts Monday, January 3rd and ends March 25th. I am looking for instructors who are interested in leading an activity. For this session, we are especially seeking to add classes for Kindergarten aged students and classes that are taught in German.
Enrichment classes meet once a week for an hour after school (3:30-4:30). Classes can be anything from arts and crafts, playing a sport, dancing, etc. The possibilities are endless! If you would like to lead an Enrichment Class, please fill out this form and submit it no later than November 24th at 12:00 pm. Reach out to nkaplan@tcgis.org with any questions. |
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Carpooling Map Opt-in Form is Open Again |
There are now 50 families who have opted in to using this Google form to participate in the 2021 Carpooling Map.
to / from school? Fill out this Google form. From now until our bus service returns to 4 bus routes, we will share the link to the unlisted Google map with those who have opted in (through the form).
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The Simpls Soups fundraiser is coming back! The Minneapolis restaurant makes amazing scratch-made soup using local, organic and sustainable ingredients - and you can help fundraise for our school by placing an order from November 20-December 18! It's so easy and delicious. More info coming soon.
Our next meeting will be held virtually on Thursday, December 2nd at 6:30pm. Join us as the Deans of Elementary, Middle School, and Academic Support give an overview talk about testing and assessments.
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The Parent Council (PC) met on Monday November 11th via Zoom. On the agenda were updates from the School Board and Dr. Christensen, as well as improving the readability of the Rundbrief. For a complete overview of the meeting, click here.
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Managing Screen Time as a Parent/Caregiver with our Children |
The Pandemic has shifted us more into a digital world. We were grateful children had access to online learning during the time schools were closed. We also were happy to see them connect with friends through social media and gaming. But what now? Now the children are back at in-person school and many after school activities are running again. It’s hard for a parent/caregiver to keep up with everything and figure out with our children how to use screen time in a healthy way. Here is some helpful information from https://childmind.org on screen time, age appropriate media-guidelines and phone possession, and internet addiction.
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Reminder: Submit Application for Educational Benefits for 21/22 School Year by 12/01/21
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Please email your completed Application for Educational Benefits to aweeding@tcgis.org or return to the office: TCGIS, Attn: Alex Weeding, Food Service Coordinator, 1031 Como Ave, St. Paul, MN 55103
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School Board Announcements |
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LGBTQ2S+ Affinity Group Survey |
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The diversity and belonging committee is working to organize an in-person gathering of the LGBTQ2S+ group at TCGIS. This group is open to families which have family members with a LGBTQ2S identity, parents/guardians who want to connect with other families around this identity, and allies. Please fill out this survey to help us gauge interest and determine the best date.
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BIPOC Family Affinity Group Meeting |
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The next meeting of the BIPOC family affinity group will be Saturday, November 20th, 9:30-11:00 AM at TCGIS. We will have donuts, coffee and juice in the cafeteria. We plan to discuss and define the charter of the affinity group while the kids have the opportunity to play in the Sporthalle, with supervision. Please RSVP so we can plan accordingly. If you have questions, please contact parent volunteers Christine Chitambar or Julie Alkatout.
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Modern Families Affinity Group |
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The diversity and belonging committee is working to organize an in-person gathering of the affinity group for TCGIS modern families, including step-families, single-parent and co-parenting families. Please fill out this survey to help us gauge interest and determine the best date.
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School Board Information & Meetings on the TCGIS website |
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The next Committee of the Whole meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 23rd at 6:30 pm and the next monthly school board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 30th at 6:30 pm. Please see the Board’s website for information about how to volunteer on committees, attend monthly board meetings or watch recordings, and be engaged and informed regarding the governance of our public charter school and independent school district. All board meetings and committee meetings are on the online school calendar. |
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Short Film 2020: Masel Tov Cocktail |
The award winning short film "Masel Tov Cocktail" will be screened at St. Thomas (MHC 202) on Wed., November 17th at 7PM. The film (in German with English subtitles) explores stereotypes about young Jews in Germany. The darkly comical short-film by director Arkadij Khaet pokes fun at several layers of a society still not fully at ease with its Jewish population. A Q&A will take place with director Khaet on Friday, November 19, at 11am. Contact wagn9302@stthomas.edu for Zoom link. |
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Exhibition: 1700 Years of German-Jewish Life |
The poster exhibition 1,700 Years of Jewish Life in Germany is on display November 8-22, 2021 in the Iversen Center For Faith lobby at the University of St. Thomas. The exhibition is based on the Shared History Project, which tells the story of Jews in Central Europe through 58 objects displayed in a virtual museum. This exhibition is free and open to the public during regular building hours. Find out more here. |
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Kinderstube German@home Winter Semester
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Kinderstube German@home is an online, self-paced German language program offering fun activities for kids and caregivers to do together. We are enrolling new students for the winter semester starting January 17.
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German Tutors for TCGIS Students |
TCGIS has built a list of local university/college students interested in virtual private tutoring in German for TCGIS students. We update this Google spreadsheet of tutors regularly. Learn more here. |
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November 11, 12: Fall Conferences
November 12: No School - Conferences
November 15-28: Online Scholastic Book Fair
November 17: Early Release Day
November 18: Give to the Max Day
November 20: BIPOC family affinity group meeting
November 24-26: No School, Thankgiving Holiday
December 2: Virtual PTO Meeting
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