Chapman's November Newsletter
November 1st, 2023
Mrs. Stokes' Notes
Happy November!
October was a busy Month! It has been great to see so many families in our building for the various events that were held this month. The Halloween Carnival brought many families into our building from both within our community and in neighboring communities. The team work that was demonstrated by the Chapman parent group, local businesses, and student council resulted in a wonderful opportunity for families to spend time together while raising money for the school. This carnival raised the most funds to date! We so appreciate the Chapman Parent Group! As a group, they are often behind the scenes supporting the events and offerings that are taking place in the school and after school. If you are not a member of this group, but are interested in becoming a member, they meet once a month. More information is available at the office.
Parent-Teacher conferences was another event where staff had the opportunity to see families. We appreciate the chance to meet with families to celebrate students and establish goals. As a staff, we are focused on individualizing student goals and need your help in developing a plan for your kiddos to reach those goals. If you were unable to meet with your child’s teacher but are interested in doing so, please reach out. All teachers welcome the chance to meet with parents and are available upon requesting a meeting. You can reach out to teachers via class dojo, email, or by requesting a returned phone call through the office.
Finally, November is a month where many families reflect on what they are thankful for. Showing gratitude and reflecting on what we hold most dear is a great way to help your child feel connected. I know that this time of year can be stressful with changes in routine, changes in weather, and other things beyond your control, and kids are often impacted by these changes. Many studies have shown that devoting a short amount of time each day to look for positives in life can help minimize the effects of life stressors. As a staff, we will be working to find opportunities for students to reflect on things they are grateful for and I encourage you to also look for these opportunities within your family systems.
As always, you are welcome to stop by the office at any time. We appreciate the chance to educate your child and appreciate all that families do!
With Warm Regards,
Heidi Stokes
November Events
- 3rd: Student of the Quarter Root Beer Float Celebration
- 9th: VFW Assembly at 9:00 am--Early Release, students out at 1:00pm
- 10th: No School
- 13th-17th: Canned Food Drive
- 13th: Ticket Sales begin for Stocking Raffle
- 16th: Site Council Meeting 2:45-Library
- 23rd-24th: No School, Legal Holiday
- 29th: Family Engagement Night 5:30-6:30 pm
December Events
- 2nd: Winter Bazaar at Chapman Gym
- 4th-8th: Polar Shop
- 7th: Winter Band Concert 5th-8th at 7:00 pm
- 8th: Early Release, students out at 1:00pm
- 14th: Winter Concert
- 14th: Last Day for Raffle Ticket Sales for Giant Stocking
- 15th :Family Movie Night
- 15th: Winner of Giant Stocking Raffle Announced
- 18th-2nd: No School, Legal Holiday
November Menu 🍽️
Veterans Day Invite
6th-8th Basketball Schedule 🏀 Let's Go Eagles!!
Basketball 6th-8th Grade
Basketball Starts Oct. 2nd
Girls Coach: Bea Klaich
Boys Coach:
Practices
Girls: 4-5:30 on MWF & 2:30-4 on Tu/Th
Boys: 2:30-4 on MWF & 4-5:30 on Tu/Thu
Game Schedule
Nov. 1st: Chapman Boys vs. Skyview "B" Boys @ Skyview 3:00 pm
Chapman Girls vs. Skyview "B" Girls @ Skyview 4:30 pm
Nov. 2nd: Chapman vs. Aurora Borealis @ Kenai-Girls 3:30 pm/Boys 5:00 pm
Nov. 3rd: Chapman vs. Ninilchik @ Ninilchik-Girls 4:30 pm/Boys 5:15 pm
November 6th: Chapman vs. Kenai @ Kenai Rec Center- Girls 3:30/Boys 4:30
Nov. 7th: Chapman vs. Nanwalek @ Chapman Girls 3:00/Boys 4:30
Nov. 8th: Chapman vs. Homer @ Chapman-"B" Boys 3:00 pm/"B" Girls 4:30 pm
Nov. 13th: Chapman vs. CIA @ Chapman-Girls 3:00 pm/Boys 4:30 pm
Nov. 14th: Chapman Co-ed 6th vs. McNeil Canyon @ Chapman 3:30 pm
Nov 16th: Chapman Co-ed 6th vs. McNeil Canyon @ McNeil C 3:30 pm
Nov. 17th-18th: Small School Basketball Tournament @ Chapman TBA
Site Council Meeting
Family Engagement Night
Winter Bazaar
Thank you Homer Knights of Columbus, Counsel 17517 "Our Lady of the Seas"
The Homer Knights of Columbus, Counsel 17517 "our Lady of the Seas", donated coats to Chapman students using the "Coats for Kids" program. Many students have already benefited from these beautiful new coats. If your child is in need of a coat, or any winter gear, please let the office or Nurse Kat know. We appreciate the work that Nurse Kat did in working with the Homer Knights of Columbus to make these coats available to our students.
8th Grade Trip Updates
Thank you to Virl "Pa" Haga VFW, Post 10221 for supporting the 8th grade trip
November Highlights
3rd Grade Anchor River Field Trip
Written By: Ms. Friendshuh
Chapman Mind of Mazes
TLDR: Chapman, huge underdogs, wins district wide science competition.
Every year, the Kenai Borough School District, hosts a STEM competition called Mind-A-Mazes. It's a competition for teams of 4-6 graders and teams of 7-8 graders from all the schools in the district. This competition is the only one of its kind offered in the state and has taken place for the past 40 years.
This year the task was for each team to build a pendulum that could perform 5 tasks. It needed to draw a picture, pop an inflated surgical glove, knock something over, pick something up, and ring a bell. It would only count as points if each task was completed on separate swings of the pendulum. There would also be a "surprise problem" presented to the teams when the competition started.
Due to adjustments in staffing, the teacher that would be coaching the Chapman kids was transferred to another school.
Luckily a team of parents teamed up with Chapman Administration. They went to work to find a solution. Staff gathered all the information and packets needed and ensured that Chapman got the paperwork to get entered. Casey Eberle, Jamie Eberle, Jeanette Shafer, Heather VanOstrand, Danielle Poindexter, and Dustin Poindexter volunteered their time to coach the teams.
Now is a good time to mention that the other schools have been diligently working on this competition for 2 months. Chapman started on Monday of this week. 2 Chapman teams were formed, a team of five in the 4-6th grader classes and a team of 3 in the 7-8 grade class. The kids, voluntarily gave up their elective class to instead work in the school shop on their Mind A-Mazes entry. They entered the competition as huge underdogs.
On Saturday, the teams traveled to Sky View middle school for the big day. With only 4 days of preparation, the goal was to represent Chapman and Anchor Point to the best of their abilities.
After being given 3 mins to set up their device and explain to the judges the order of events that were expected to happen, they triggered the pendulum. Except for a couple of mishaps, everything worked as planned for both teams.
After the event was finished it was time to announce the scores. To everyone's surprise and overwhelming joy, the Chapman 7-8 grade team were announced as the winners of the 2023 Mind-A-Mazes competition with an overall score of 91 points! The 4-6 grade team represented themselves very well and their hard work definitely showed.
Chapman is incredibly proud of the students who prepared and participated in this event and are so appreciative of the parents who went above and beyond to make this happen. Way to go!
Chapman's 7th-8th Grade Team
Chapman's 4th-6th Grade Team
2023 Mind-A-Maze Winners
6th and 7th Grade Build a Boat
Chapman 6th and 7th graders have been working with Coastal Studies and our Science teacher, Trent Herbst to build a mini-boat designed to collect data in the ocean. This process was completed over first quarter and students were involved in each step in building this boat including the design of the mast and bow decoration.
While Coastal Studies and Mr. Herbst oversaw the building and design of the vessel, Coast guard representative was invited to do a preliminary assessment and the boat was cleared for a trial launch. Students went on a field trip to Kachemak Bay where the boat was launched to see if their data collecting instruments functioned as designed. The boat functioned as it should so was collected from the water and is now awaiting final clearance from Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington DC. Once the boat is provided with this clearance, it will be launched into the Cook Inlet where it will hopefully collect data over a period of time regarding temperatures, water salinity, currents, and wave height. The students will then monitor this data and watch for patterns. The hope is that this boat will stay afloat for at least a year in the Cook Inlet.
Chapman is proud of the work that 6th and 7th graders, and Mr. Herbst devoted to this project. We are also appreciative of Coastal Studies, The US Coast Guard, Makos Water Taxi, and Cold Water Taxi Service. The partnership with these entities made this project possible.
Chapman School’s Mission
Empowering
All students to have
Great
Lives through
Educational
Success