Academic learning setting next year -- A lot of effort goes into making balanced class lists for the following school year. Teachers spend time collaborating, looking at academic ability, personalities, learning styles, special circumstances, as well as boy/girl ratios. It is our goal to create classes that will work and learn well together.

If you have an academic learning request to share regarding your child, please contact the office and a form will be sent home for you to fill out. These forms will then be given to the teachers after I look at them as part of the process of creating class lists.

There will be staffing adjustments going into next year that we have not made yet which is why, I ask that you don't request a teacher but offer your thoughts on what your child will need to make their learning year a success. This is not something you have to do but you can do if you feel there is more you'd like us to know about your child that you don't feel we know already.

To receive a form, contact the teacher or the office. Please contact your child's teacher or Mrs. Michalski if you have questions.

DUE -- April 22, 2022

School Dress Up Days:

April 22nd: Earth Day - Blue/Green/Camoflage

April 29th: Crazy Hair Day

There will be one concert at 9:30 AM. All families are invited to watch the morning concert to see the learning their child has been involved in this school year. Thank you for supporting the student's at Abrams Elementary.

Some classes are already full, however there are some classes with availability. If you need assistance please call Abrams Elementary Office at 920-826-5819.

This is for Abrams Elementary School for next school year!

Our Scholastic Buy 1, Get 1 FREE Book Fair will be held on Tuesday, April 26th. Not only will you get one free book for every book you buy, we will also be having our poster raffle and book raffle, and the first 100 families that make a purchase will receive a free reusable tote bag! The Fair will take place from 3:00 PM to 6:30 PM in the Abrams Elementary Gymnasium.

We are also bringing back the Class Coin Challenge! From April 19thto April 22nd, we will be having a school wide Coin Challenge! During that week, Tuesday will be Penny Day, Wednesday will be Nickel Day, Thursday will be Dime Day and Friday will be Quarter/All Coin Day. We will take the average amount raised per student in each grade and every student in the grade with the highest average will receive 1 free book to take home! In addition to purchasing one free book for each child in the winning grade, the proceeds from this fundraiser will be used to purchase books for the Reading Room and the Library.

As always, we cannot put on this event without the help of volunteers. We are looking for help in the following areas:

Set up: Sunday, April 24th: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Fair Workers: Tuesday, April 26th: 2:45 pm – 4:00 pm; 4:00 pm – 5:15 pm; 5:15 pm – 6:30 pm

Fair Take Down: Tuesday April 26th: 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Fair Take Down: Wednesday April 27th: 7:30 am – 9:00 am (if needed)

To sign up, please call, text or email Lynn Franzmeier at 920-676-1923 or lynn.franzmeier@gmail.com

The Safety Squad

Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Welcome to the April edition! Thanks for coming back. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month so I’d like to spend some time talking about sexual assaults in Oconto County.

As uncomfortable as the subject can be to discuss, it's something we NEED to talk about with our children and youth. The reality is that 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be victims of sexual assault by their 18th birthday. I have worked child sex crimes and sexual assault cases with victims of all ages for the past 18 years in Oconto County. In my experience, those national statistics are consistent with what we see in our local communities. Unfortunately, the vast majority of sexual assaults go unreported - something we need to change if we aim to deter future assaults and protect the public from violent offenders.

My prayer is that NONE of our students ever get sexually assaulted. My goal as an investigator and School Resource Officer, however, is to teach our youth to recognize potentially abusive behavior, provide them with the knowledge and courage to respond to threatening situations, and encourage/support them in reporting abuse to a trusted adult. If someone reports to you, always listen without asking a lot of questions. Questioning victims of abuse is a delicate task. Victims often tell me when I’m taking delayed reports that they tried disclosing to a trusted adult once before and they didn’t follow through with their disclosure because they felt like the questions they faced were judgments. It’s natural as adults to want to know everything about a situation as soon as possible, but it can be detrimental to the investigative/prosecutorial process.

Oconto County uses a Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) approach to investigating reports of sexual or physical abuse with child victims. The team is composed of Law Enforcement, Child Protective Services, and Prosecuting Attorneys. The primary goal of the group approach is to limit the number of times the victim has to tell their story. Having to repeat the facts about a traumatic experience over and over again tends to retraumatize people. As adults receiving an initial disclosure, we have to fight the urge to ask a million questions and only learn enough minimal facts to be sure you should alert the authorities. ‘Minimal facts interviewing’ is the standard initial responding officers go by before they pass the case to investigators. Minimal facts = who, what, when, where or any combination of those. You don’t need all of the details to report a crime to the authorities. In most cases, your child doesn’t really want you to know all the details because it’s embarrassing and they don’t want you to hurt along with them. You can listen to everything the child voluntarily discusses and you can reassure them that you believe them and you are sorry that happened to them. I implore you to leave the rest up to the MDT that handles the investigation. Doing so protects the integrity of the disclosure and the dignity of your child.

Protecting your child from sexual and physical abuse is more possible with open communication and education about what to do in uncomfortable or unsafe situations. Don’t know where to start? Oconto County has a Sexual Assault Center Coordinator dedicated solely to Oconto County who collaborates with Family Services of Northeastern Wisconsin in providing services to Door, Brown, Oconto and Marinette counties. There is always someone available to assist you or your child 24/7 through the Sexual Assault Center Hotline at 920-846-2111. You can always reach out with questions or concerns to our local Coordinator, Christi Groll, directly via email at cgroll@familyservicesnew.org. You can also reach out to me if you have any questions that may involve one of our students.

Parent Resources

Here are a few additional developmentally appropriate resources to help you have on-going conversations with your kids about body safety, consent, healthy relationships, etc:

AMAZE

• Informative videos for youth with additional information for parents/caregivers

FIGHT CHILD ABUSE

• Videos to educate children ages 4+ about body safety and navigating difficult scenarios

KIDS HEALTH

• Information for parents to learn about many issues children face today and how to help their children feel comfortable talking about those with trusted adults.

COMMON SENSE MEDIA

• Recommended site for parents to learn about the technology/apps, and how to adjust privacy and protective settings. Additional information on parental monitoring technology.

INTERNET MATTERS

• Helpful resources to empower families against pornography and sexual exploitation

THE MAMA BEAR EFFECT

• Resources to help families and communities raise awareness and protect children from the threat of sexual abuse.

END SEXUAL EXPLOITATION

• teaching children about the dangers of pornography and sexual exploitation

THORN FOR PARENTS

• guidance for parents to navigate the relationship between technology and normal sexual development

May spring bring us all a sense of renewal so we can end the school year strong! Thank you for being the very first line of defense against sexual and physical abuse for your kids.

Jamie Kuhn

Jamie Kuhn

School Resource Officer

Annual Town of Abrams 2022 rummage sales will be June 3-4.

Contact Kayla @ 920-604-1998 to save your spot on the map. If you are interested in getting on the map and supporting the Friends of Abrams, please send the following to Kayla Kocken 6052 County Road E Abrams, WI 54101: Your name and address, phone number, email address, description of sale, and sale hours. Only the address and description will be printed on the map. Cost of being on the map is $7. Maps, food, and restrooms will be available at the Abrams Town Hall (5877 Main Street) from 8 AM-4:30 PM Friday and Saturday. Map deadline is Friday, May 27, 2022.

A random drawing will be held after we reach 50 sales on the map for two people to be on the map for free and will have the $7 map fee returned. Happy shopping!