Liebe TCGIS Gemeinschaft! / Dear TCGIS community,

In case you missed it, TCGIS held its annual Halloween parade on Monday. Parents, grandparents, and neighbors lined the block around the school as students in all classes marched in colorful, creative costumes. It was a very happy way to connect with our community and neighborhood. 

This week is also Dia de los muertos / Day of the Dead, a vibrant, colorful celebration honoring loved ones who have gone on. Students in Lara Hammer’s Spanish classes built small-scale traditional ofrenda, or altars to honor family, historical figures, celebrities or even pets who have died. These thoughtful creations are on display in the middle school. 

Herzlich

Kirsten

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!

Please join us for our St. Martin’s Day celebration and traditional lantern parade starting at 5:30 on Thursday, November 10th! Here are the details:

• We will gather at 5:30 in the gym for a short performance of St. Martin’s Day music.
• Afterwards students and family members can parade singing through the neighborhood around the school with lanterns! Grades K-3 are making lanterns in art class. If students in other grades want to carry lanterns, they will need to bring / make their own. (Just singing and walking is also fine. Lanterns are not a requirement - just fun!)  
• Frau Lenburg will have small lights for sale in the gym for anyone needing a light for their lantern. 
• After the lantern parade, enjoy treats from the Capstone Bake Sale in the cafeteria. Please note that all food must stay in the cafeteria or outside.

We would love to have parents / guardians / grandparents / siblings etc. join in the singing! Here are links to slide presentations for the 2 songs we will be singing during the parade. On the first slide of each are links to videos of each song (one with voices and one with just accompaniment). Your student can help you learn the songs.

• Laterne, Laterne (text mit Musik)
• Ich geh’ mit meiner Laterne

Please note: All students must be accompanied by (and must stay with) a responsible adult throughout the event.

We are in need of 5-6 parent volunteers for our Lantern Parade next week. We need around four crossing guards and 1-2 volunteers to help Frau Lenburg with selling lights for the lanterns. Please contact Frau Hall if you would like to help.

The November Bus Donation window is now open. Please log on to our online IC School Store. Please log into your Infinite Campus Parent portal using this link: In the upper left corner, click on the drop down menu and scroll down to "School Store". Select "Bus Donations" and then the menu "November ‘22 Bus Donations". Select your student's name in the "Recipient" field, select an Option and then "Add to Cart". You will then be asked to set up your preferred payment method to finish the payment. Questions? Please contact us at ordering@tcgis.org.

Fall Conferences Sign-Up Reminder

Sign-up for conferences closes on Wednesday, Nov 9 at 8pm.

Fall Conference Dates:

• Monday, Nov 21: 4-7:30 (MS: virtual, ES: in-person)
• Tuesday, Nov 22: 8:10-3:30 (MS & ES: virtual)

If you did not receive the Constant Contact email with sign-up information please email info@tcgis.org.

Did you know: TCGIS receives approximately $7000 per pupil less than traditional public schools because we do not benefit from local property taxes or levies. 

We fundraise together to ensure that our students benefit from native-German-speaking interns in their classrooms, a robust German-language library and curricular materials from Germany. We fundraise to support all of our teachers in their classrooms and in their professional development. 

Throughout November there will be many opportunities to support TCGIS through the Annual Fund and the PTO. Learn more here about how your support makes a difference at TCGIS. Vielen Dank!

A quick reminder from Kinderclub and the Front Office: Students who are not picked up by 3:45 will be added as drop-ins to Kinderclub for the afternoon at the standard drop-in fee of $20.

We are still seeking families for 5 interns!

Curious about hosting? We can connect you with current and past host families who can answer your specific questions, family to family. Email Katharina Schirg to learn more.

Ready to host? Fill out the Host Family Application by Nov. 7. We begin matching interns with families this month. See who is coming here!

Will you have a NEW student in 2023-24?

Enrollment for the 2023-2024 school year is now open! If you have a NEW student who will attend TCGIS in the 2023-2024 school year, please submit an application for admission online or by sending a paper application. The enrollment window is open until the deadline on February 15, 2023. Siblings of currently-attending TCGIS students receive sibling preference for enrollment; for more information about TCGIS' enrollment process, please visit our enrollment webpage. Please direct any questions to enrollment@tcgis.org. Currently-enrolled students do not need to reapply.

Thank you so much for your generous number of shoe donations! We have a huge number of tennis shoes for our students to use and I am so thankful! 

There are a few sizes that I do not have yet, so I will continue to take donations when you have them. The sizes that are most needed are: children's 10 & 13, youth 5, and sizes that range between 6-10 for middle school students. This is where sizing starts going by Men's & Women's, but I will take any donations you may have. Make sure they are appropriate indoor tennis shoes. 

And as always, remind your kids to remember to bring their own athletic shoes to sport class. Thanks again!

Join us this Friday (11/4) at 6pm in the Cafeteria for a meeting and movie. We'll have a quick meeting - talking about upcoming events - like Maskenball, and then grab some pizza and snuggle in for a movie. Bring a blanket, chair, or pillow to hang out and watch The Bad Guys!  The event is free, but please RSVP here so we make sure we have enough pizza to go around.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Trick or Treat event last Saturday. It was a beautiful day to share with our fantastic community.

You can help prospective families find and learn more about our excellent school and welcoming community when you leave a brief review on sites like Google or GreatSchools.org. Sharing what you love about TCGIS online is a great way to help more families find our wonderful school, especially now as the application window has opened for 2023/24!

Use this link to buy a yearbook or a grad ad for your 8th grader! You can get the yearbook now for $22. Prices will go up soon!

Bowling outing - mark your calendars

The next BIPOC affinity group gathering is scheduled for November 12, 1pm-3pm. Join us for bowling at the Goldy’s Gameroom at the U of M. Each game is $3 and shoe rental is $2.

The Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC) meets the first Monday of each month - our next one is coming up! Learn strategies to support your child, ask questions about the special education process, find your support system, and share feedback. Our meeting is hybrid and will be in the cafeteria and on Zoom at 5PM. Join here. Passcode 920995. Please contact Dr. Hendrix with any questions.

Curriculum Advisory Committee: Public Input Session

TCGIS's Curriculum Advisory Committee (CAC) is hosting a public input session on the TCGIS's progress toward Minnesota's statewide achievement goals:

• All children are ready for school.

• All third-graders can read at grade level.

• All racial and economic achievement gaps between students are closed.

• All students are ready for career and college.

Please join the CAC to review progress over the past year and plans for the current school year and beyond to drive student achievement and readiness for the next steps in their educational journeys. The meeting will be held via Zoom on Monday, November 7 at 7 pm. As this is a public input session, questions and discussion are welcome and encouraged.

Governance: Thur., Nov. 3, 4:30PM

Fundraising: Wed., Nov. 9, 8:30AM

Communication & Outreach Committee: Wed., Nov. 9, 12PM (remote)

Diversity & Belonging: Tues., Nov. 15, 4PM

Board Meeting: Thurs., Nov. 30, 6:30PM; Room 100

The GAI is launching the Twin Cities first German Film Festival from Nov 3-6! This year's inaugural festival theme, ""Reel Women,"" highlights German films with women at the center of the narrative—women who use their passions and skills to instigate changes in their own lives and in the lives of those around them.

As part of that theme, we've also included three family-friendly films that include films for kids and teens! Amelie Rennt (2017) for ages 12-17, Mission Ulya Funk (2021) for ages 7-17, and Sputnik! (2013) ages 7-17. Learn more about the film festival and purchase tickets here.

November 16

University of St. Thomas

Honor Hannah Arendt's response to the Eichmann Trial by watching von Trotta's 2012 biographical drama, directed by Margarethe von Trotta and starring Barbara Sukowa as Hannah Arendt. It centers on Arendt's response to the 1961 trial of Adolf Eichmann, which she covered for The New Yorker. The movie will be introduced by Dr. Christensen. Click here more information.

November 20-December 15

University of St. Thomas

Between 1939 and 1945, the Germans and their accomplices murdered six million Jews, intent on destroying Jewish life and culture. The perpetrators of the Holocaust sought to erase all traces of their genocidal crime. This exhibition presents the real-life stories of several Jewish academics who resisted the Germans and their collaborators by documenting and, collecting and securing evidence of the crimes committed against the Jewish people during the Holocaust. This exhibition is free and open to the public. Find more information here. 

Join the Twin Cities Jewish Community for a special Kristallnacht commemoration at Beth El Synagogue on November 9th, featuring Nick Winton. Nick will travel from England to share the story of his father, Sir Nicholas George Winton, a British humanitarian credited with organizing a Kindertransport of 669 mostly Jewish children from Czechoslovakia on the eve of World War II.

What made 29-year-old Nicholas give up his skiing holiday to rescue these children from the Nazis and how did he do it? Winton’s son Nick will tell his father’s inspiring story about the life-changing events that transformed the destiny of so many. Find out more here. This event is free to attend.

The board’s Diversity & Belonging committee would like to highlight some upcoming events in the Twin Cities as opportunities for intercultural engagement- one our school’s core values.

• “We Are Still Here: Stepping into our Power” Indigenous Art Show. Fri, November 4, 2022, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM CDT at Friedli Gallery and Studio 943 7th Street West Saint Paul. Read more here.
• UKRAINIAN VILLAGE BAND: 15th Anniversary Party! Saturday, November 5, 2022 / Doors: 7:00 PM CT / Show: 8:00 PM at The Cedar Cultural Center 416 Cedar Avenue South Minneapolis. Read more here.
• Feast of Nations, Sat, Nov 5, 2022, 6:00 PM at Coffman Memorial Union, Great Hall 300 Washington Ave SE Minneapolis. Read more here.

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.

November 4: PTO Meeting & Pizza/Movie Night

November 3-6: German Film Fest

November 7: Curriculum Advisory Cmte: Public Input Session

November 10: St. Martinstag Lantern Parade

November 12: BIPOC Affinity Gathering

November 21 & 22: Fall conferences



TCGIS Google Calendar