Gretchko Newsletter
December 2, 2022
Principal's Update
Hello Team WB!
Monday morning at 9:30 a.m. we will board WB school buses and head to WBHS for our annual "Live Play" performed by our own high school students. This year's presentation is "Fairy Tale Courtroom." If you have not already done so, please return your student's permission slip or email your classroom teacher with your approval, phone number and student's name. We expect the play to be just under 1 hour and will return to Gretchko for lunchtime and to continue our day.
As a reminder, throughout the school year we go outside daily unless there are extreme weather conditions. Please help students remember to bring hats, coats, gloves, boots and snow pants, etc. to school so they can best enjoy their time outside.
Warmly,
Jen Teal, Principal
FEATURED BOOK
Just Ask!: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You by Sonia Sotomayor
Feeling different, especially as a kid, can be tough. But in the same way that different types of plants and flowers make a garden more beautiful and enjoyable, different types of people make our world more vibrant and wonderful. As the kids work together to build a community garden, asking questions of each other along the way, this book encourages readers to do the same: When we come across someone who is different from us but we're not sure why, all we have to do is Just Ask.
Star Slip Update
It is Star Slip day again. Congratulations to all of our Gretchko Stars for working so hard to follow our social contract. So many stars to draw from! Listed below are this week's classroom winners.
Congratulations to -Nolan Hendrix, Lucas Ventimiglia, Jade Anderson, Michael Lekhtman, Remi Compton, Jacob Simms, Gabriel Harnack, Delilah Strain, Kamora Johnson, Blake Kaleniecki, Sage Durham, Dylan Ruskin, Ian Taylor, Asiya Cisic, Brooklyn Mason, Jaina Benjamin.
Also, this is our once a month Super Draw for all star slip students that were not drawn. Congratulations to Sabrina Gallardo, Roman Senawi, and Greyson Kaplan for being our November second chance Star Slip winners. They will enjoy breakfast and games with Mrs. Teal one day next week.
iCenter Update
This week all Gretchko Students previewed the BOOK FAIR and made a wish list. We are all so very excited to shop next week, Dec. 5-9. Everything you need regarding the book fair is available on our BOOK FAIR GOOGLE SLIDE!
If you would like for your child to shop next week during their iCenter class, please add funds to your CHILD'S E-WALLET.
If you would like to add funds to your child's teacher's eWallet or other staff member's eWallet you can do so, as well! Staff is always so appreciative to receive new books for their classroom libraries and read alouds.
Mrs. Hammerick could really use volunteers during book fair shopping! If you would like to help out, it would be greatly appreciated. PLEASE SIGN UP HERE. Interested volunteers must complete a volunteer form and provide a copy of their driver’s license/ID to the school’s office staff for a background check, ICHAT, which is still required for all volunteers.
Gretchko Goes to WBHS for a Student Play
Great news! We have been invited to attend a student play at West Bloomfield High School that is performed especially for our young students by the WBHS Theatre Department. The Play is titled, "Fairy Tale Courtroom." We will leave Gretchko on Monday, December 5 at 9:30 a.m. on school buses. The play will begin at 10:00 a.m. When the play is complete we will ride school buses back to school in time to have school lunch and recess as usual. This is a special "Dress Up" day and we hope the children enjoy the feel of a "live" play. Permission slips will be coming home shortly. Students will be chaperoned by our staff. Families are welcome to join us at the High School to see the play. Seating for families will be directly behind our students.
Here is a brief description of this year's play. This extremely adaptable comedy shows the other side of several familiar fairy tales, when two of their biggest villains, the Big Bad Wolf and the Wicked Witch, are brought to trial. Both the Wolf and the Witch have been frolicking from fairy tale to fairy tale, wreaking havoc as they try to prevent the general public from living happily ever after. Hear the personal accounts of what happened, told in testimonies and flashback sequences, from characters such as Snow White, Dorothy, Sleeping Beauty, the Three Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, and many others, including the Witch and the Wolf themselves, as each trial unfolds. The audience is the jury, so each trial has two endings, depending on the verdict.
Mansour Memorial Foundation
In July of 2013, John and Ann Mansour lost two of their three children, Alexander (11 years old) and Gabrielle (6 years old), in a horrible boating accident. Whether you knew the Mansours or not, this tragedy shook the lives of many West Bloomfield families.
In the months following the tragedy, the Mansour Family desperately wanted to give back to the schools that supported all three of their children, especially their surviving daughter, Adriana. They wanted to turn this horrible event into something positive to commemorate their children's lives, thus the Alexander and Gabrielle Mansour Memorial Fund was founded.
Over the years, fundraising events have been held in their memory to support the foundation. Adult bowling nights, silent auctions at the Gretchko Spooktacular, and the Spring Fling brought the community together to support the Mansour family during this difficult time. Alex and Gabby were gone, but not forgotten by administrators, teachers, parents, and their peers.
Since 2014, the Foundation has made donations each year to Abbott Middle School, Scotch, and Gretchko Elementary Schools. The donations support the children's love of sports and the arts directly at WB Schools. To date, the Mansour Memorial Foundation has donated more than $16,000 to West Bloomfield School District (WBSD). These donations have supported dance, theater, music, yoga, purchased basketball, floor hockey, soccer, and disk golf equipment. Additionally, the Gretchko stage received a beautiful mural that was dedicated to Alex & Gabby. At Scotch, there is a tree that was planted near Alex’s 5th-grade classroom. There are also basketball hoops and beautiful Buddy Benches on the playgrounds at Gretchko that have been donated.
On December 5th, 2022, the Gretchko stars will attend a play at West Bloomfield High School. In memory of Alex and Gabby, we are inviting families to donate to the Mansour Foundation.
You can make your donation in one of two ways:
1. Please make a check payable to “Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan” and note on the memo line “Alexander and Gabrielle Mansour Memorial Fund.” Mail your check to:
Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan
333 West Fort Street, Suite 2010
Detroit, MI 48226
2. Donate via credit card by visiting https://cfsem.org/mansour.
The West Bloomfield School District would like to thank the Mansour family for turning the most difficult time in their lives into something so beautiful and amazing. Thank you for supporting our students and families. We are grateful for you!
Math Rocks! Check out the December/January Home Connections for Math
Kindergarten Round-Up
PowerSchool App. Update
As you may have read, some of our families are currently experiencing issues with the PowerSchool App. WBSD is working with PowerSchool to remedy the issue. PowerSchool made some changes to the App and hopefully, the issue has been resolved. If you are still experiencing issues, please try logging out, shutting the app down, and try using it again. If that does not remedy the issue, please delete the app and reinstall it. If neither of these solutions work, please contact Sylvia Mcoy at (248) 865-6464 or sylvia.mcoy@wbsd.org.
Kendra Montante
Public Relations & Marketing Coordinator
Family Portal Online Payment System
WBSD is experiencing some issues with our Family Portal Online Payment System. The third-party credit card, echeck, and debit card processing system is experiencing issues processing payments. Payments are currently not posting or not posting in real-time. Family Portal has a process called Duplicate Logic in place so that duplicate payments are not processed. Family Portal is working on resolving the issue. In the meantime, you may send in cash or a check to fund your student accounts. Until the problem is resolved, students will not be turned away for lunch.
Additionally, there is a new minimum deposit required for online payments. The minimum amount has increased to $20 per deposit, due to increased fees incurred by the District. Currently, the credit card processing company recognizes each student as an individual item, thus making it necessary to deposit $20 into each child’s account. Since this can add up quickly for our parents, we have discovered a workaround. Families can make a deposit to one student's account and transfer funds between students. WBSD is currently working with the processing company to see if this can be changed to a total deposit minimum. WBSD was forced to raise the minimum deposit amount to avoid passing the fees off to our families.
We are very sorry for this inconvenience. If you have further questions, please contact the Nutrition Services Department at (248) 865-6732 or anne.stevens@wbsd.org.
Kendra Montante
Public Relations & Marketing Coordinator
Great Start Readiness Program
Great Start Readiness Program - space available
West Bloomfield Preschool Academy is very excited to share great news with our families. Oakland County has changed eligibility guidelines for our free preschool program to include more students. The program is called Great Start to Readiness Program or GSRP. We have space available for kiddos who will turn 4 before December 1, 2022. For more information please contact Collette Goestenkors at 248-865-6466. The classes will be held at Scotch Elementary!
Art Fundraiser
BOE Approves Moving Forward with Bond
On November 21, the Board of Education voted to move forward with the application process of a May 2023 Bond Initiative in a 7 to 0 vote. The presentation that was given to the BOE can be viewed by clicking this link.
The recommendation was to seek preliminary qualification status with the Michigan Department of Treasury for $148 million, NO millage increase bond issue. The proposition will be placed on the May 2, 2023 ballot. More information to come!
Gretchko Spirit Wear Now Available Online!
Does your child (or you) need some more Gretchko spirit wear? Now you can order online at https://gretchko-pto.square.site/ or see the QR code here:
Communications Survey
WBSD Parents: We Need Your Feedback!
As we embark on our Strategic Plan, please take a few minutes to provide your input regarding WBSD Communications. Click here to complete the 2022 Strategic Planning Communication Survey. Thank you in advance for your time!
First Lego League Explore for 1st-3rd Graders
West Bloomfield School District Community Education
Registration is OPEN for FIRST Lego League EXPLORE
FIRST Lego League EXPLORE makes learning STEM and coding skills fun! All skill levels welcome! 1st, 2nd & 3rd Grade Only
This season, students will explore where energy comes from and how it is distributed, stored, and used to work to innovate for a better energy future.For more information and to register visit WBSD Community Education, click here.
Sunset Theatre Visits Gretchko Preschool - families are welcome! December 21st
United We Walk
UNITED WE WALK BUTTON CONTEST
Do you have students that like to draw? Well, do we have an opportunity for you! Our school district’s United We Walk Committee has an event each year celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The students have the opportunity to create a design that will be the inspiration for our 2023 United We Walk Button. I would like to personally invite you to encourage your students to participate in the United We Walk Button Contest. Students can draw a piece of art about what Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life and legacy means to them focusing on Dr. King's message: "I Have A Dream. . .1963-2023. We know that our students are awesome!! Let's give them a chance to share their amazing skills. The attached information will provide more details. Please submit any contest entries to me at Jennifer.Graham@wbsd.org no later than Friday, December 9. Thank you for your help, time, and support.
Gretchko Calendar
- December - NO PTO MEETING THIS MONTH
- December 5 - Gretchko Trip to WBHS - to see - "Fairy Tale Courtroom"
- December 5 - 9 - Gretchko Book Fair
- December 7 - Marco's Fundraiser Day
- December 16 - Bagel Day $1.00 each
- December 22 - Global Equity Team Meeting in the iCenter at 8:00am
- December 23 - Spirit day (Mismatch Day)
- December 26 - January 6 - NO SCHOOL - Winter Break
- January 9 - Welcome Back - Return to school
Gretchko Contact Information
Location: 5300 Greer Road, West Bloomfield Township, MI, USA
Phone:
- Main Office Phone: (248)865-6570
- SAFELINE to report absences: (248) 865-6572. This is a 24 hour answering machine.