4K Connect
WSD 4K Newsletter - November 18, 2022 - Issue 6
Notes from the 4K Principal
Dear 4K & Early Childhood families:
This time of the year offers the opportunity to express gratitude and appreciation for the many things in which we are thankful. I am extremely thankful for the students, families, and staff in our Wausau School District 4K & EC Programs.
There is so much to see and hear when stepping into our 4K classrooms.
I see....
~ big smiles and happy students greeting each other
~ teachers working tirelessly to ensure student safety while arranging their rooms each week with a whole new set of engaging activities
~ children having so much fun interacting and learning from each other
~ instructional aides engaging in conversations with children on the playground
~ children asking friends and adults if they need help
~ children hardly able to wait their turn to give teachers the answer to a question
~ staff finding creative ways to connect-support-engage with all learners
I hear
~ enthusiastic comments from children
~ giggling children
~ children expressing pride as they share their work and excitement about learning
~ children sharing their ideas
~ children problem solving together to find a solution
I have so much pride for our staff, students, and families and am so grateful to see joyful learning occurring across all of our 4K and EC sites.
Thank you for your partnership in our 4K and EC Programs. During the days to come, I hope you have beautiful days filled with smiles.
With gratitude,
Kara Rakowski
Wausau School District 4K Principal
Mark Your Calendars
November:
November 21 - Parent Connect to School trips to Monk Gardens. Look for details from your child's teacher
November 23-25: No Classes
December:
December 23 - 30: Winter Break
January:
January 2: School resumes
Pictures from our Parents Connect to School trip to Monk Gardens
Curriculum Corner
We started our new unit, La Tortuga on November 14th.
LITERACY I CAN:
- find a friends name
- tell you a character in a story
- draw a line under a picture
- show the title, cover, front and back of the book
- name the color yellow
- name a circle
- show around, in, on
- print the first letter of my name
- repeat the U, C, O (magic C letters)
MATH I CAN:
- place items in a location when given a direction with under, over, across
- identify, name, and describe a circle
- duplicate ABAB patterns
- make a small collection of 4
- verbally count to 10 with some correspondence
- show a number representation for a group of objects to 4
- move objects of different shapes to represent an object
- read numbers to 4.
SOCIAL/EMOTIONAL I CAN:
- I can point to pictures of faces showing six different feelings. (Emotional Literacy 2.1) Emotions 2.1
TARGETED VOCABULARY:
- I can use and say these words: La Tortuga, turtle, flute, dance, wise.
LEADER IN ME:
Our Wausau School District 4K Social Emotional Benchmark Emotional Literacy 2.1 - (I can point to pictures of faces showing six different feelings) links to the following Leader In Me Habits:
- Habit 1 Be Proactive
- Habit 2 Begin with the end in Mind
- Habit 3 Put first things first
- Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw
Tucker's Nursery Rhyme Corner
Humpty Dumpty
Humpty Dumpty
sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty
had a great fall.
All the king's horses
and all the king's men
couldn't put Humpty
together again.
Mary, Mary Quite Contrary
Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
how does your garden grow?
With silver bells
and cockle shells,
and pretty maids all in a row
Little Bo Peep
Little Bo Peep
had lost her sheep,
and can't tell where
to find them;
Leave them alone,
and they'll come home,
bringing their tails
behind them.
Tucker's Friendly Reminders
FYI -
Please remember to have your child bring/wear winter clothes, snow pants, boots, hats and mittens to school everyday! Without proper winter clothing, students will need to stay on the blacktop and not be allowed to play in the snow PLUS they are learning how to put on their own winter clothes!
Thank you!!
Tucker's Helpful Tips
Understanding emotions is a critical part of children’s overall development. It is up to adults to teach children to understand and deal with their emotions in appropriate ways. They are experiencing so many new and exciting things for the first time. It can be overwhelming!
We need to be sure we always validate our children’s emotions and don’t punish them for expressing their feelings. You might want to remind your child that, “it’s ok to tell me how you feel, but it’s not ok to hurt others or things when you feel (name feeling).”
Children get angry, sad, frustrated, nervous, happy or embarrassed, but they often do not have the words to talk about how they are feeling. Instead, they sometimes act out these emotions in very physical and inappropriate ways. For example, when Maggie’s son was frustrated, he threw the puzzle piece and the puzzle.
Parents can help their child understand and express their emotions. The following strategies are some of the ways you can help your child express his feelings:
- Help your children understand their emotions by first giving the feelings names and then encouraging them to talk about how they are feeling. For example, you might say to your child, “Daddy left on a trip. I'm wondering if you are sad. You said you want your Daddy.” By giving your child a label for her emotions, you enable your child to develop a vocabulary for talking about feelings.
- Give children lots of opportunities to identify feelings in themselves and others. For example, you might say to your child, “Riding your bike is so much fun. I see you smiling. Are you happy?” Or you might point out a situation and ask your child to reflect on what someone else may be feeling: “Joey bumped his head on the slide. How do you think Joey feels?” Characters in books are great examples for explaining different feelings.
Show children what their face looks like in a mirror or on your face and name the emotion.
- Teach your children the different ways they can respond to specific feelings, conflicts or problems. Talk about your own feelings with your children. “Remember yesterday when the water in the bathtub would not go down the drain? Mommy got so mad.”
IF YOUR 4K or EC CHILD IS GOING TO BE ABSENT FROM SCHOOL, PLEASE CALL THE FOLLOWING NUMBERS!!
Contact Numbers
Please remember to call your 4K office if your child is going to be absent from school due to illness or another reason. When you call in, please give the reason for the absence. Please also call First Student at 715-842-2268 to let them know our child will not be riding the bus that day.
AM classes begin at 8:25am, dismissal is at 11am
PM classes begin at 11:40am, dismissal is at 2:15pm
Kara Rakowski, 4K Principal krakowsk@wausauschools.org
Program office: 714.261.0265
First Student: 715.842.2268
Jones - 4K Administrative Assistant: 715-261-0265
Jess Napiwocki jnapiwoc@wausauschools.org
Hawthorn - 4K Administrative Assistant: 715-261-0055
Kellie Messman kmessman@wausauschools.org
Jefferson - 4K Building Para- 715-261-0185
Jessica Brown jrbrown@wausauschools.org
Riverview - 4K Building Para: 715-261-0040
Jackie Keller jkeller@wausauschools.org
NOTES FROM THE NURSE
WHEN TO KEEP YOUR CHILDREN AT HOME
- Fever (temperature 100 degrees F or greater) child should be fever-free, without medication for 24 hours before returning to school
- Diarrhea (4-5 loose stools within the previous 24 hour period)
- Vomiting (within a 24 hour period before school starts)
- Upper respiratory illness with frequent cough/drainage
- Strep throat (until 24 hours after treatment has begun
- Pink eye (until 24 hours after treatment has begun
- undiagnosed or untreated skin rash or sores that cannot be covered
You can help your child stay healthy by encouraging frequent and thorough hand washing. Hand washing is the single most important defense against disease. Be sure to notify school if your child is going to be absent an the bus company if your child rides the bus.
IMPORTANT REMINDERS
Update Your Information
Thank you for helping us keep our records as accurate as possible!
WSD EMERGENCY SCHOOL CLOSING PLANS FOR 4K STUDENTS AT ACADEMY SITES:
School Closing: All AM & PM classes cancelled. No evening activities.
Yellow Bus Delay: All AM & PM classes cancelled. No evening activities.
District Wide Emergency Closing After Students Are At School: If morning 4K students are already at school, parents will be responsible for picking them up at school. There will not be bus service. No evening activities.
The 4K class times fit in between the pick-up and drop-off times for the rest of the school district. The same buses transport the older students to school before transporting the 4K students and likewise, take the 4K students home before taking the older students home.
In rare occasions, the Wausau School District is forced to cancel classes during the school day, usually due to inclement weather. If classes are cancelled after 4K students are already at school, this creates a problem for the bus company as they don't have enough buses to take the 4K students home as well as the rest of the district's students.
Due to the number of students involved, the bus company will transport the elementary, middle and high school students home on days that school is cancelled. This eliminates the possibility for transportation for the 4K students. Therefore, it will be necessary for parents to have a plan in place for school cancellations. Each family will need to designate a person who will be responsible for picking up their 4K student at school.
Tucker's 4K Spotlight - Our 4K & EC staff
WSD 4K Academy at GD Jones
1915 S. 12th Ave
Wausau, WI 54401
715-261-0265
Jessica Napiwocki - 4K Administrative Assistant
Kara Rakowski - 4K Principal & Early Childhood Coordinator
Andrey Frey - 4K Teacher
Michele Kettner - 4K Teacher
Melissa Willemon - 4K Teacher
Cha Yang - 4K Teacher
Beth Gruber - EC Teacher
Shelly Urmanski - EC Teacher
Jessa Reif - Speech - Language Pathologist
Lori Kurszewski - EC Teacher
Anne Winter - EC Teacher
Cory Durbin - EC Teacher
Stacy Stenz - 4K & EC Program Support Teacher
Sara Boettcher - School Psychologist
Michelle Dahms - Social Worker
Beth Van Dong
Mia Lodahl - Physical Therapist
Jacob Ehlert - Occupational Therapist
Kathleen Kostner-Rass - Occupational Therapist
Support Staff
Chou Thao - Bilingual Paraprofessional
Pa Thao - Bilingual Paraprofessional
KaBao Mua - Bilingual Paraprofessional
Ashley Hafeman - EC Paraprofessional
Chris Mergan - EC Paraprofessional
Ami Serrano - EC Paraprofessional
Danika Decorah - EC Paraprofessional
Diane Leffel - Paraprofessional
WSD 4K Academy at Hawthorn Hills
Wausau, WI 54403
715-261-0055
Lisa Dunahee - 4K Teacher
Marla Harris - 4K Teacher
Jaci McKamey - Speech-Language Pathologist
Anne Winter - EC Teacher
Support Staff
Kellie Messman - 4K Admin Assistant
Julie Her - Bilingual Paraprofessional
Nhia Her - Bilingual Paraprofessional
WSD 4K Academy at Riverview
Wausau, WI 54403
715-261-0040
Danica Szekeress - 4K Teacher
Kristin Hall - 4K Teacher
Ashley Ermeling - EC Teacher
Morgan Persha - Speech-Language Pathologist
Renee Kressel - Speech-Language Pathologist
Donna Husnick - DHH Teacher
Cindy Schuster - DHH Interpreter
Mackenzie Wockenfus - Occupational Therapist
Support Staff
Jackie Keller - 4K Office
Cher Her - Bilingual Paraprofessional
Tammy Davisson - EC Paraprofessional
Emily Walker - Paraprofessional
Kristy Durkes - Paraprofessional
WSD 4K Academy at Thomas Jefferson
Wausau, WI 54401
715-261-0185
Samantha Kniess - 4K Teacher
scorreaobrien@wausauschools.org
Renee Krautkramer - 4K Teacher
BreAnne Wais - 4K Teacher
May Xiong - 4K Teacher
Denise Wonsil-Michlig - Speech-Language Pathologist
Support Staff
Jessica Brown - 4K Office
Bele Vieira Willard - Paraprofessional
Emmalyn Grau - Paraprofessional
Sierra Lane - Paraprofessional
WSD 4K Community Sites
1500 Merrill Ave
Wausau, WI 54401
715-298-3832
Leah Bjerke
615 Stark St.
Wausau, WI 54403
715-848-0206
Alaina Lippert-Olson
707 3rd St.
Wausau, WI 54403
715-845-2177
Corina Ramos:
Sandy Readenour: