Jackson Jottings
May/June 2019, Volume 8
May Calendar at a Glance
- 2nd - Literacy and Beyond Night, 5:00-7:00p
- 3rd - Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast (invite only), 7:30-8:00a
- 13th - First Grade Track and Field Day, 10:00a-2:00p
- 14th - Second Grade Track and Field Day, 10:00a-2:00p
- 15th - Third Grade Track and Field Day, 10:00a-2:00p
- 16th - Fourth Grade Track and Field Day, 10:00a-2:00p
- 17th - Fifth Grade Track and Field Day, 10:00a-2:00p
- 27th - NO SCHOOL, Happy Memorial Day!
June
- 6th - LAST DAY OF SCHOOL, Have a GREAT Summer!
- 17th - Report Cards Sent Home
NOTE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
It is hard to believe that this is the last Jackson Jottings Newsletter for the 2018-2019 school year. Time has flown by, which is so common when enjoying what you do. I just want to thank you for all you do to help us guide our students to success. My first year at Jackson has taught me why Jackson is so special and why families want to stay here. Our dedicated staff show their talent and expertise every day, and it is an outstanding place to send kids for quality learning. I hope you have had as great of a school year as I did. I can’t wait until everyone is back next fall! Thanks for all you do to help make our school great and our students succeed!
Respectfully,
Dr. Kevin Bjerken, Principal
DROPPING OFF KIDS
Please drop off your kids by the lower area stop sign in the upper lot. For the safety of all of our students, please remain in the line of cars and let children out of the right side of the car onto the sidewalk. If you are dropping by upper entrance please stay in line of cars, have your child get out on the sidewalk side, and do no pull any further ahead than the last sign before the entrance (there needs to be enough room for our upper buses and school vehicles to pull in right by entrance). If you park in the lot, please walk your children across the driveway to the sidewalk. Students should not be walking from the parking lot through the crosswalk unaccompanied.
Please do not drop off before 8:10 AM. Thank you!
Would you like to be a volunteer?
Are you willing to donate your time and talents to Jackson? We could use your help. We have immediate needs for volunteers in the classroom, workroom and some take-home work.
Contact Jennifer Klecker at:
Jennifer Klecker
Jackson Volunteer Site Coordinator
952-496-5802
Nurse Notes by Nurse Andrea
Well, it’s amazing that we are talking about the end of the school year already!
But there are some important things to discuss before summer vacation – please take a moment to see if any of these apply to your children.
If your child has ANY MEDICATION here at school in the
health office, I will be sending out a form alerting you
that we have medication here at school and that it will
need to go home. You need to read this form, sign and return
it by Monday, May 20th 2019. This is what it will say:
“No medications will be kept over the summer at school.
All medications must be taken home by June 6th or they
will be disposed of".
Most medications can be sent home with your child with your
permission. However, any medication that is designated as a
“controlled substance” (such as Ritalin, Adderall, Focalin, Cylert,
Dexedrine) must be picked up by a parent or other designated
adult. All over the counter medications must be taken home by
the last day of school, June 6th.
If you have children with
medication here at school, look for this form. If you have any
questions or concerns regarding the last weeks of school,
please feel free to call Nurse Andrea (see below).
Andrea Richards
School Nurse
952-496-5804
Art Lines from Mr. Olson
Greetings from the Art Department!
It is hard to believe but the end of the year is fast approaching. This is always an exciting time of the year in the art room. I hope everyone had a great time at Literacy and Beyond Night! It is so much fun to bring our community together and see all of the smiles on the faces of the children! I am lucky to have such a GREAT STAFF to collaborate with each year! This enables our students to create great writing to go with their beautiful art work. I hope it finds a special place in your home: )!
Also, our third graders took their field trip to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts this past month. They had a great time exploring and seeing famous art work they had studied and hundreds of works that were new to them as well. Thank you to all that volunteers to make the trip a success. We would also like to thank the Jackson PTO for funding our 4 buses and making the trip possible! It is one of the few times the students get to go to an art museum during their years in the Shakopee schools.
The Shakopee Elementary School Art Show will be taking place at the Shakopee Public Library from May 7th until May 17th. I hope you can check it out!
Mr. Olson
Music Department "Notes"
By: Sari Flatness, Julie Lund, and Carrie Beckler
Monday, May 13th is the 5th grade Final Music Program!
TIME: 6:30-7:30 p.m.
ARRIVE: Band students in 5C, 5D and 5E should arrive in the band room by 6:00 to set up instruments. General Music students in 5A and 5B should arrive in Mrs. Flatness’s room by 6:15 to line up.
WHERE: Jackson Gymnasium
WHY: This evening’s performance is a wonderful time to showcase our 5th graders and the music they have been working on this year. We will serve cookies after the concert.
WEAR: We ask students to dress nicely and make every effort to attend this concert as it is part of their 4th quarter grade in music.
Wednesday, June 5th is the Awards Ceremony and Talent Show!
Awards Ceremony -Grade K-2 from 8:45-9:30 and grades 3-5 from 9:45-10:30 in the gymnasium.
The Jackson Talent Show is at 1:30.
During the week of May 6th- 10th we are holding auditions for the Talent Show and the Awards ceremony! Students are invited to take a letter home regarding the details if your child is interested in auditioning for these special and fun events. Please feel free to email Mrs. Flatness with any questions. sflatnes@shakopee.k12.mn.us
Physical Education Fun with Mr. Casey, Mrs. Tanberg, and Mrs. Voigt
It is a busy time of year in the gym for Jackson Elementary students. With spring upon us, we are finishing our units, finishing fitness testing and preparing for our Track & Field Dates. If you are new to Jack-son Elementary School, track and field days are a day that we devote to one particular grade level. Students choose one event to participate in from each of our 3 different categories: Running, Field, and Team Events. Ribbons are awarded to the top 6 finishers. Please check out our web site for additional information.
Below are this year’s Track & Field event dates:
Monday, May 13th - 1st Grade
Tuesday, May 14th - 2nd Grade
Wednesday, May 15th - 3rd Grade
Thursday, May 16th - 4th Grade
Friday, May 17th - 5th Grade
As always, you are always welcome in our classroom.
Mr. Jeff Casy (jcasey@shakopee.k2.mn.us)
Mrs. Susan Tanberg (stanberg@shakopee.k12.mn.us)
Mrs. Kelly Voigt (kvoigt@shakopee.k12.mn.us)
If anyone has some old tennis shoes that they would like to donate to the Physical Education Department it be greatly appreciated. We have students who do not have tennis shoes to wear for physical education and we would like to give them a pair. Please make sure the tennis shoes are clean and free of rips and tears.
NATIONAL BIKE/WALK TO SCHOOL DAY
In honor of PE & Sport Week, we are celebrating National Bike/Walk to School Day on Thursday, May 8th (if this event gets cancelled it will not be rescheduled). It’s time to MOVE in honor of these two events. Please join us and get active as we bike/walk to school. If your child lives in our surrounding neighborhoods they are encouraged to ride their bike/walk from home that morning. If your child does not live close enough to bike/walk, we are hosting a meeting spot so that everyone has the option to participate. Students and bikes may be dropped off at the High School (west parking lot across from the tennis courts) and bike/walk together from there. (Even if you live in the surrounding neighborhoods, feel free to join us from there.) Parents/guardians are welcome to join as well.
Arrive to High School (west parking lot across from the tennis courts) between 7:50-7:55am, Depart from High School in small groups starting at 8:00 am. Bikers will ride their bikes across Koeper Ave., along Caspian Lane, onto the trail through Countryside Park SW, take a right on Danube Ave., another right onto Lusitano St. until they get to Jackson Elementary. Every street crossing will have police/adult supervision as well as adult riders amongst the children. Upon arrival at Jackson, students will store their bikes in the gym where they can enjoy a banana and water.
If your child decides to participate, you are responsible for either their ride home or for picking them up from school at the end of the day. Please park over in the Cul-du-sac or up top when picking them up as we need the bottom lot open for the busses. Also, PLEASE HAVE YOUR CHILD’S BIKE TAGGED with their first/last name and homeroom teacher. To participate, please complete the permission slip that was sent home with your student and return to the child's teacher.
Greetings from the Learning Commons!
Hello Jackson families!
As the school year begins to wind down and we all look forward to summer, I wanted to give you some resources that could help your child avoid the dreaded “summer slide”.
Research shows that reading just six books over the course of the summer can help a child avoid the regression of their reading skills. Research also shows that reading every day (even for as little as 10 minutes) can help avoid that regression as well.
Free summer reading programs:
Barnes and Noble:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/b/summer-reading-for-kids/_/N-2mp6Z2mir
Half-Price Books:
https://www.halfpricebooks.com/fyb/
Scott County:
https://www.scottcountymn.gov/887/Summer-Reading
Scholastic:
https://www.scholastic.com/summer/home/
In addition to reading over the summer, it would also be very beneficial for students in third, fourth, and fifth grade to do some keyboarding practice. I have told my classes that spending ten to fifteen minutes a day practicing keyboarding would give them a big advantage as they move toward middle school. Below are some free typing programs students can access at home.
Free typing programs:
https://www.todaysparent.com/family/fun-typing-games-for-kids/
It has been a pleasure teaching your child in Media this year. Have a safe and happy summer!
The last day to check out books is May 17th. All books are due back by May 24th. Please help your students get their books returned. Thank you!
By: Dianne Kersteter (Media Specialist)
Learning Commons: Digital Learning Highlight
Students are engaged in meaningful projects throughout our school. Many involve technology and hands-on learning.
This month I would like to highlight work done by 4th and 5th grade students in Young Scholars with Mrs. Rachael Schweigert. Students worked through a creative process called SCAMPER to invent a brand new candy. The students then spent time a 3D design software (Tinkercad) to create their designs. After their designs were finished and edited, students creations were brought to life in the school's 3D printer. Students loved the project and were able to fully participate in the design process.
Natalie Weatherman (Digital Learning Coach)
PTO NEWS
Hello Jackson Families!
Wow, another year has just flown by! I hope you have all had a successful year. I know the
PTO has and most definitely a busy one. We couldn't do all we do without our many parent
volunteers. If you are interested in learning more about the PTO and all the good we do for
our school while having fun we would love to see you a meeting.
Next week, May the 6th -11th, we will celebrate all Jackson Staff and bus drivers during Staff
Appreciation week. It would be so great if we all could make an effort to show the Jackson
Staff how much we appreciate them. Check the Jackson Parents Facebook page daily for
more details.
From all of us on the PTO board, We hope you have a great summer and don't forget to
utilize the little free library in front of Jackson.
Lastly, I want to thank the amazing teachers and staff at Jackson, all PTO board members
and committee chairs I have had the pleasure of working with but most importantly all of
you in this awesome Jackson Community for allowing me to represent you by being your
PTO President for the past 2 years. I have met so many wonderful people, made some new
friends, had a ton of fun and learned a crazy amount about myself along the way. I am
forever grateful for the support I have received and feel blessed to have had the opportunity.
Don't hesitate to get involved in your child's school you most definitely will not regret it and
will most certainly meet some great people.
As always thank you for supporting our Jackson Community and Happy Summer everyone,
Nicole Peters
PTO President
BUS DRIVERS WANTED
$18-$23+ PER HOUR WORKING PART TIME
NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY!
Palmer Bus Service - Shakopee is hiring Bus Drivers. If you have a Minnesota driver's license, a good driving record, a clean criminal background, and can pass the written exams for a school bus permit, please apply. We provide paid training and flexible hours. Our drivers may bring their children to work while earning an average of $18-$23+ per hour working part time. We pay our drivers an attendance bonus and daily route bonuses as well. If interested, please apply in person at:
Palmer Bus Service
730 W. 3rd Avenue, Shakopee
952-445-1166