Dear Families of Deerfield,

Happy Friday Deerfield! I know all of our students are looking forward to Spring Break at the end of the month. We will have a half day of school on Friday, March 24 to end our 3rd Quarter and begin our Spring Break. Classes will resume on Monday, April 3rd. We hope everyone enjoys their time off.

The deadline to preorder eggs for our PTO's Egg Surprise was today, Friday March 17th. Do not worry if you did not preorder, students will be able to purchase eggs on April 5th and 6th. Students who did preorder will select their eggs on April 4th. The PTO is looking for egg surprise helpers! If you are interested, you can find a link below.

We have had so much fun this month celebrating March is Reading Month! Our spirit days have been so much fun. Our Read A Thon has been so successful that it has been extended! Thank you to all those who have donated. It is amazing to see how many minutes our Deerfield friends dedicate to reading. Keep on reading and logging those minutes!

Have a great weekend,

Mr. Goetz

March 24- Half Day dismissal at 11:45, end of 3rd Quarter

March 27-31 -No School for Spring Break

April 4-6- Egg Surprise PTO Fundraiser

From Avondale Superintendent Dr. James Schwarz:

The following is an update to information that I previously shared about our plans to install weapons detection gates at each of our schools’ main entrances, within the vestibules before entering into the offices.

OPENGATE Weapons Detection Overview
- Provides an additional layer of security.
- Used by other school districts in Oakland County who report that the gates are minimally intrusive and cause few delays at the start of the school day when the entrances experience the most traffic.
- Also used at Ford Field, Little Caesar’s Arena, and concert venues (capable of quickly checking large crowds).
- The units do not use x-ray or technology that would provide harmful exposure to any form of rays.
- The units are portable so they can be used at other entry points both inside and outside as needed.
- Signs near the gates will provide instructions for passing through the gates.
- It will not be necessary to remove coats, backpacks, purses etc. except if the gate signals that it has detected something that should be examined more closely. In that case, the person will be led to a separate area so that their belongings can be examined.
- ALL visitors to ALL Avondale schools will be required to pass through the gates before allowance into any school office.
- We are expecting to complete the installation of the weapons detection gates in the main entryways of all of our schools by the time our staff and students return from Spring Break on Monday, April 3rd.

The decision to install the gates was not an easy one as we were concerned (as you may be) about the impact the presence of the gates will have upon our students and staff and the overall environment of teaching and learning in our buildings, attempting to balance comfortability and security. It is a painful reality that we are in a time that necessitates that schools – places that should be considered safe havens – are compelled to add layers of security in order to keep students and staff who walk through their doors free from harm.

Let us know if you have any questions and please look for your building administrator’s protocols specific to your child’s school coming soon.

If you didn't pre-order eggs, your student may still purchase them during lunches on April 5th and 6th. Eggs cost $0.50 each, and are first come first serve until we sell out. Those who-pre ordered will select their eggs on Tuesday, April 4th. Thank you in advance for supporting Deerfield and your PTO!

We are looking for some parents/guardians to help sell eggs during lunches. Please visit the Signup link to volunteer. Thank you!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0E4BAAA728A7FF2-eggsurprise

Thank you for raising funds for Deerfield, and to all of the readers for logging minutes online! We have extended our Read-a-thon until March 31st in order to let students continue entering reading minutes online. During this time, we are able to continue receiving donations. If you haven't yet, please share your student's individual link with friends and family to donate. Also, continue encouraging your student to read and enter their minutes online. At the conclusion of the fundraiser, Deerfield will receive 75% of the funds raised. We have already reached our goal to help pay for our Science Alive assembly on March 20 & 21, but we would like to use any additional funds to purchase new picnic tables for the back playground. Your student will also receive 15% of their individual raised donations to shop in the Read-a-thon store for prizes! With the extension of the Read-a-thon, prizes must be selected by April 10th. All prizes will be delivered to Deerfield later this year.

We would love to have all students participate. Please register your student online by visiting the following website: www.read-a-thon.com/readers. When asked, enter the code: 3150678 to continue.

Thank you in advance for your help with raising funds for our school to bring in such educational and fun presentations! Happy Reading!

We have 19 boxes of chocolate bars that still need to be sold. We are offering a chance to win one of three great prizes to the students who help us sell the boxes. Please visit the following link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0E4BAAA728A7FF2-chocolate1 to register and prepay the $60. No need to send anything into school. Boxes will be delivered to students during school hours. You may sign up to sell more than 1 box in order to be entered into the raffle more than once.

After all boxes have been signed up for, Mr. Goetz will conduct a raffle for 3 prizes during the morning announcements. The raffle is limited to the first 31 people to sign up. Thank you in advance for your help and support!

The prizes are:

First raffle ticket pulled: a pizza party with 3 friends

Second raffle ticket pulled: a Smencils bundle

Third raffle ticket pulled: a Deerfield swag bag

Oakland University is hosting several writing camps for students this summer!

• Their unique camp draws in students from all over the US every summer. Students entering grades K-12 have the opportunity to explore their own voice and creativity while also exploring Meadow Brook Hall mansion and grounds. This is an experience every young writer will cherish.
• These week long camps are offered July 10th-August 11th for all age groups. We also have a virtual camp and a full day camp.
• To register or for more information, visit https://www.oakland.edu/mbwp/youthwritingcamps/ or contact Rebecca Vornberger.

https://parentguidance.org/

Parent E-Safety Resource

https://nationalonlinesafety.com/guides

The Avondale Family Resource and Support Package has been created to support families, students, and staff during times of need. This is a document that continues to be updated based on resources available. Please review supports and use as needed. Families in need of any of our Avondale Support Team members may also connect with us by email or phone.