Dragon's Tale
11/1/19
Keith Purpose
Keith Beliefs
Dragons believe...
...in welcoming and trusting one another;
...in learning beyond the school day and for the future;
...in empowering every member of our community to be helpful, respectful, and kind;
...learning is engaging, purposeful, and fun.
Upcoming Events
November 2
- Conference at a Glance: WOC Parenting Education Fair
- Video with offer: Keynote speaker Brooks Gibbs offers parents a gift
- Form for parents to register for event and childcare: Register for the WOCPEF!!
Additional Info. below
November 4
Picture Re-Take Day!
November 5
Keith Announcements
Media Center Help Needed:
Mr. Hester is looking for volunteers to help in the library on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday Mornings. Volunteers will help shelve and organize the books. Additionally, volunteers may be asked to help repair books and help complete an inventory. If you are interested, please contact Mr. Hester at JohnHester@wlcsd.org
In addition, Mr. Hester also has a STEM activity related to a book he is sharing with our students. He is in need of a ton of plastic bags for the project. We will be up-cycling the plastic bags. Please send in plastic bags for Mr. Hester and have your child put them in the box near the school entrance.
Keith Spirit!!!
Friday’s are Spirit Day here at Keith.
Your child is encouraged to wear a Keith shirt or the color red each and every Friday. The upper elementary and lower elementary classroom with the highest number of participants will win a visit from “Sparky” our Keith Dragon for the week.
This week's winners are:
Upper Elementary Room: Mrs. Dayton
Lower Elementary Room: Mrs. Estes
Second Step Lessons
Parents, this week your children focused on the second step lesson below. Please take a moment to talk with your children about how they took time to show positive behavior at school.
Being Assertive
Learning means doing something new every day at Keith Elementary School. Sometimes when we’re doing something new, we get stuck and don’t know what to do. If we get stuck, we can use a skill for learning - being assertive - to ask for help. Being assertive means asking for what you need or want in a calm, firm, respectful way. Face the person you are talking to, and keep your head up and shoulders back. When you can’t figure out what to do in class, remember to be assertive and ask for help.
Our focus for next week is listed below. We will review the following with your children when they return to school on Monday.
Empathy
Getting along with others helps make Keith Elementary School a happier place. To get along with others, we need to have empathy for each other. Empathy is feeling or understanding what someone else is feeling. This week. Be a feelings detective! Try to notice how your classmates are feeling throughout the week. Watch their faces and bodies for clues.
KC3 For 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Students!
ATTENTION ALL 3RD-5TH GRADERS, The Keith Caring Community Club needs you!
KC3 is a community outreach club that provides opportunities for 3rd-5th graders to help others in our area and beyond. Students will be invited to a variety of events, which could include visiting residents of a local nursing home, making care packages for the homeless, stocking shelves at a food pantry, volunteering at an animal shelter, just to name a few. Our mission is to teach students about generosity, compassion, and empathy through acts of kindness. Rather than doing morning meetings, our emphasis this year will be on optional evening or weekend events, where KC3 members can reach out to help in the community. Students can sign up for events through signupgenius.com as they become available. There is no cost to join the club; however, KC3 t-shirts will be available for purchase to wear to events. We are looking for respectful, responsible students that will represent Keith Elementary and KC3 in a positive way. To join KC3, please fill out the permission slip below and return it to Mrs.Matyus by Monday, November 4th. A follow up email will be sent out shortly after with information about the first event.
Thank you,
The KC3 Team
Keith Spelling Bee - Volunteers Needed!
Awesome Work in PE 5th Graders!
November Lunch Menu
Upcoming Community Events
Parenting Education Fair - Save the Date Nov. 2nd!
The Western Oakland County Parenting Education Fair is coming to Walled Lake Northern High School on Saturday, November 2, 2019. We are very excited to have Brooks Gibbs joining us this year as our keynote speaker! Topics include managing social media with your child, reducing stress and anxiety, strategies to help you with a child with ADHD, nutrition, character building, planning for college, and more. Child care is available for a reasonable cost ($3 for one child, $5 per family) and includes entertainment and lunch. Lunch for conference participants will be available for purchase from local food trucks during the event. Please see this important message (with a free gift for parents) from Brooks Gibbs and register online to attend. Registration is $15 per person or $25 per person at the door the day of the event.
· Parenting Fair registration link
· Parenting Fair Conference at a Glance link
Please email MarciAugenstein@wlcsd.org if you would like a free pass to this event! First come, first serve!
Walled Lake Western Presents: Cinderella!
Walled Lake Western is proud to present Roger and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” on November 15-17 and November 22-24. This 2013 re-write features empowered female characters and the overarching theme of courage and kindness. We would love to invite you and your students to our production!
In addition, we will be having our very own Princess Party on November 17 at 12:30PM. Families can join Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother in a celebration fit for a prince or a princess. This pre-show event includes children’s activities, snack, a special gift for all children, and a photo opportunity with Cinderella. Following our party, join us for the 2PM matinee performance of “Cinderella”.
Tickets are currently available at www.wlcstickets.com for all of the performance dates as well as the Princess Party. We hope to see you and your students there!
Growing Up 2020 - Partnership with Kids Empowered
WLC Ski Swap - November 9
Announcements From our Keith PTA:
The Next Keith PTA Meeting is Wednesday, November 6th at 6pm in the Keith Media Center
Spotlight on PTA
Meet Ashleigh Sonnenberg Okkerse!! (Interview by: Kate Tomasik)
If there was anyone on the PTA Board who I thought would answer in the affirmative about sky diving, I would have bet it all on Ashleigh Sonnenberg Okkerse, Kindergartner mom extraordinaire and our new Reflections Chair. This lady seems to fearlessly drive her life hard core, golfing and traveling, raising money for non profits…in her free time, pondering the expanse of the universe....
So, surprise to me. As to skydiving, she says “no”? But, as to “Cliff diving,” says YES. What a wuss. SNORE! Of course I’m kidding, this lady is amazing. Choosing to plummet off a high precipice into a deep body of water is a great metaphor for parenting. Clearly, so is Ashleigh’s decision to accept a PTA Board position and take over the role as Chair of the Reflections Art contest. As a brand new Keith parent? Respect.
Rewind. Back at Kindergarten roundup, I invited all of the parents to approach me and say hello as the new school year unfolded. I said I would be happy to engage in friendly conversation, if it helped them assimilate, but I also promised that I would likely not recognize anyone who actually did this (yet I would pretend that I did).
I’m happy to report that Ashleigh took me up on my invitation later that summer, finding me in Kroger and calling out to me with an enthusiastic hello and broad, friendly grin—while I likewise made good on my promise to not recognize her whatsoever. Instead, I stood there dumbly and self consciously, clutching a brick of string cheese, and a bag of blue corn nacho chips. We had a delightful exchange, and it was obvious that Ashleigh was totally rad, fun, bright and someone I was looking forward to seeing at Keith…and Kroger, too, I suppose.
Onward to the survey portion:
Name & Position: Ashleigh Sonnenberg Okkerse—Reflections Chair (runs the Keith portion of the PTA Reflections Art contest—entry forms for this year’s “Look Within” are due 11/8/19) .
Day Job: Director of Philanthropy at Leader Dogs for the Blind
Alma maters: Bedford High School; University of Michigan
Brief description of position: All things PTA Reflections Contest, with the help from Kate, Monique, and all of their awesome documents and organization!
Children: Payton Sonnenberg, Kindergarten
Number of Years at Keith: 1st year at Keith; 5 years to go
Participation in other capacity at the school: Volunteering for classroom and other PTA events. Recently getting involved with the Foundation for Excellence as well.
Are you new to the Board/Chair Position?: Yes.
Why did you decide to join the PTA?: The PTA offers a great deal of clubs, extra support, and financial resources for our children and the school and I am grateful to live in a community with such a strong PTA.
Best part of being on the PTA: Tie- making an impact for our kids and making new mom friends. As a rookie elementary mom and our family being new to the community, the board and active PTA members have been wonderful to get to know and volunteer with!
Favorite superhero: Batman. He’s a huge philanthropist, invents the best gadgets, AND keeps Gotham City safe. Michael Keaton is my fav live action Batman, but I’d be remiss not to give a huge nod to Will Arnett as Lego Batman. We’ve watched that movie about 578 times in our house. "Batman doesn't do 'ships'" LOL
Favorite movies/music/high school bands:
Movie: Drama- Hope Floats; Comedy- Planes, Trains, and Automobiles; Holiday movie: Home Alone
TV Show: Mad Men; The Office
Music: John Mayer, Dierks Bentley, Jason Mraz
High School fav: *NSYNC
Favorite holiday: 4th of July. Summer, Sunshine, boating, BBQs, and Pure Michigan Lake Life fun!
Dream vacation: Golfing and Architecture Touring my way through Europe.
Where would you love to retire?: In a Southwest, Lake Michigan beach town
Interests: Sports Momming, Golfing, Boating, Sightseeing, and Reading.
What is one thing everyone should do at least once in their lives?: SEE THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE! The grandeur of its size and gorgeous color in the middle of the San Francisco bay is truly breathtaking.
Favorite foods: Pizza, Tacos, and Chocolate.
Would you ever skydive? No. I went cliff jumping once and that was plenty :).
What bends your mind every time you think about it? The vastness of the universe. I really need to stop watching physics TED Talks on my lunch breaks. LOL.
If you could make one rule that everyone had to follow, what rule would you make? Have empathy for others.
What makes you laugh? TGIF 90’s shows (Full House, Home Improvement, Family Matters, The Dinosaurs, etc.), John Crist, The Holderness Family, John Candy movies.
Celebrity crushes: Chris Hemsworth, Justin Timberlake, Ryan Reynolds
COME SAY HI TO ASHLEIGH and email her with Reflections Entries and Questions about Reflections Entries (ashleigh.sonnenberg@gmail.com)
PTA Book Fair
The time has almost come for our Fall 2019 Arctic Adventure Book Fair! The book fair is a wonderful week long event that the students always look forward to! In order to give the students the best book fair we can, we would love some help from all of you! Below are the links to help us with set up, working shifts during the fair or just donating some food items for our wonderful Teacher Preview Lunch! Any and all help is greatly appreciated!
To help Set Up BEFORE the fair:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080d48aeab22a7fc1-fall1
To help with shifts DURING the fair:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080d48aeab22a7fc1-fall3
To donate to the Teacher Preview Lunch:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080d48aeab22a7fc1-arctic
Thank you!
The Book Fair Committee
PTA Reflections Competition - Look Within!
What a great year for Reflections we had last year! We had several entries from Walled Lake Schools that made it to the state and national levels from our various buildings, including a state level representative from our own Keith Elementary (Go Dragons!).
The theme for 2019-20 is “ Look Within ”. Just like this year, you can enter an entry in dance
choreography, film production, literature, music composition, photography, visual arts (2D &
3D), and special artist. If you are new to Reflections, the first thing to know is that entering Reflections is free – all your student needs to do is provide their creativity! Students are welcome to enter multiple pieces into the competition (up to 1 entry per category). Reflections is a national competition.
Students who submit their entry will be judged at the school level. We are allowed to submit
2 entries per category to the district level. The district will then complete the same process to
move entries to the state level for judging, and some may be entered into the national
competition. Walled Lake Schools typically have entries in the national judging pool.
How Can I Participate?
If you are interested in participating in Reflections, please keep in mind some of these
important information:
● Students can only submit 1 entry per category.
● Only one student may be the entrant.
● To keep the judging blind, no full names can be included on the entry.
● Each entry must be accompanied with a completed entry form .
● Any individual’s face or voice that is included in the entry must have a Consent Form
accompanied with the entry form.
While we know you are proud of your child and want to show off their work, please do not
post entries online or social media as they may compromise the blind judging process. It can
result in immediate disqualification.
Entries will be due on November 8, 2019 to your school building. Entry forms can be found in
your main office, the Keith PTA website, or by emailing
KeithElemtaryPTAReflections@gmail.com
If you have any questions about the Reflections process, please contact your building
Reflections chair(s): Ashleigh Sonnenberg Okkerse
Name: Ashleigh Sonnenberg Okkerse
Keith Boo Bash
BOO BASH 2019
• Family Dance Party with DJ Brad Kallen, pizza, snacks, and fun!
• Boo Bash is November 1 at 6:30pm - 8:30pm in the Clifford Smart Middle School cafeteria.
• Costumes are encouraged, but not required.
• Bring your unopened halloween candy to donate to our Troops/Veterans!
• Admission to the dance is free for PTA Members and Family and $5 per family for non-PTA Members.
• Resister online and pre-order your whole cheese pizza for $10. There will be a limited amount of individual slices available for purchase at the dance as well as other goodies at our concession stand: https://form.jotform.com/bellancats/keith-boo-bash
• WE NEED YOUR HELP TO MAKE THIS EVENT A SUCCESS!! Please sign up to help:
https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10c084ba8a82cab9-keith8
Thank you,
Keith PTA
November PTA Events
November 1 - Boo Bash at Clifford Smart Middle School 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
• November 2 - Western Oakland County Parenting Fair at Walled Lake Northern High School
• November 5 - NO SCHOOL
• November 6 - PTA Meeting at 6:00pm
• November 15-22 - Keith Fall Book Fair
• November 22 - HALF DAY
• November 28-29 - NO SCHOOL (Happy Thanksgiving!)
Keith Beautification Project:
Do you like the idea of enriching your child's life with outdoor experiential learning. Get ready for a riot of vibrant colorful flowers next spring at school!
We are planting flower bulbs. To make this happen, we need strong hands for tough tasks including weeding, bush trimming, dirt and mulch donation and more . Sign up online or email steam4hc@gmail.com. Too busy to get involved ? Get your child involved during school hours or during prime time.
Sign up your child to get involved during prime time or school hours(recess, etc).
Benefits include enriching your child's life to understand the systems of the natural world,hands-on and field experiential learning, natural resource stewardship and much more.
WLCSD 2019-2020 Calendar
For the Walled Lake District Calendar, please click HERE
For a Yearly List of Major Religious and Other Holidays, please click HERE
For the 2019-20 Marking Period Dates please click HERE
For the 2019-20 School Bell Times please click HERE
Keith Elementary School
Diana Tyrrell - Principal's Secretary
Kelly Smith - Head Teacher
Marci Augenstein, Ph.D. - Principal, Keith Elementary
Email: DianaTyrrell@wlcsd.org
Website: http://wlcsd.org/schools/elementary/keith/
Location: 2800 Keith Road, West Bloomfield Township, MI, United States
Phone: (248)956-3700
Twitter: @KeithElementary