Geist Gazette
December 14, 2018
GEIST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Website: https://ges.hseschools.org/
Location: 14051 East 104th Street, Fishers, IN 46037
Phone: 317-915-4260
Twitter: @Geistgators
Notes from the Principal
Thank you for all the support you have been providing to your students over the past few weeks. We have one more week until Winter break, however, I must say the energy feels like it could start tomorrow!!!
Thank you to everyone who was able to participate in our 3rd grade wax museum this week. I know next week we will be housing our 4th grade international festival. Our 3rd and 4th grade students have been working very hard over the past two months learning about non-fiction and preparing themselves for their exhibition! Your students have done an excellent job.
Please know your child has started working with their Marketplace buddies. As we discussed in a previous newsletter, classes are paired together with another grade level class forming 19 business within our building. The students decide on a product to create, they ask for a loan from the Geist PTO Savings and Loan, they purchase the materials, create the product, market the product and on March 26th they will be selling their product back to our community! Mark your calendars now for the AM on March 26th. More details will come out closer to the time of the Market.
Have you heard about Curiocity?
Next, I would like our community to know more about Curiocity. Curiocity is partnership between the Town of Fishers and HSE. The goal is to have the City as a Campus where teachers, students, and community partners can all work together to create experiential learning opportunities for students. The program creates opportunities for engagement for these groups to provide real world examples and context for classroom learning with the students, expose students to our amazing community partners, and help our community partners by creating a returning pipeline of talent for Fishers companies. CurioCity is being implemented on an interactive software platform that allows companies and schools/teachers to provide these real time resources.
Here’s how it works:
Fishers businesses submit experiences that they can share with teachers and students. These experiences can include guest speaking, apprenticeships, internships with students, externships with teachers, offsite trips, project-based learning/capstone projects, or volunteering. HSE Teachers submit requests for experiences from businesses on the platform.
Goal Result:
Marketplace of experiences and requests starts a dialogue between community partners and teachers to create a citywide classroom, ultimately providing enriching, educational experiences for HSE Schools' students.
Would you and your staff be willing to commit to any experiences for CurioCity? If so, I will connect you to the CurioCity team – or feel free to reach out to them directly at curiocity@hse.k12.in.us or by using the website: https://portal.curiocityhub.com/organizations/ to directly submit information about your organization. Our goal is to connect with at least 12 community partners through GES families and we have 3 of the 12 so far! Join in the experience and help our children have real life experiences in the Fishers and Indianapolis area!
Thank you for your commitment to your child's education. Have an amazing Winter break and Happy Holidays to all!
Christi Thomas, Principal
Lots of famous faces at our 3rd Grade Wax Museum
Ms. Stinson's Class and Foster Fairies
Check out our Problem Solving, Coding and Robotics Club
Artist of the Week
Artist of the Week for Dec. 3:
K: Caleb C. in Mrs. Powell's class
1: Max M. in Mrs. Beck's class
2: Ava S. in Mrs. Wolf's class
3: Alexis F. in Mrs. Bigg's class
4: Dara B. in Mrs. Scott's class
Global Studies - Spanish
We have been having a great time in Spanish class! Kindergarten students have learned greetings and farewells such as “hello,” “goodbye,” “good morning,” “good afternoon” and “good night.” They have learned how to ask someone his or her name as well as how to answer that question. In addition, they have been dancing and moving to songs which have introduced them to verbs such as march, dance, run, jump and walk.
First grade students are learning about Mexico and the Mexican culture. They have reviewed greetings and farewells in Spanish. They are working on identifying numbers 1-10 and holding conversations which include asking someone his or her name, how he or she is feeling and responses to those questions.
Second, third and fourth grade students are learning about Costa Rica and the Costa Rican culture. They have been practicing numbers to 20 in Spanish. They have learned how to ask someone where he or she lives and how to respond to that question. They are currently learning words for various shapes in Spanish including square, triangle, rectangle, oval, rhombus and circle.
Please see the collage below depicting a few of our activities and games as well as teamwork!
Friends of the Library
Enchanted Book Fair Starts Tomorrow!
We are excited to invite you to our Scholastic Book Fair December 17-21st. Money earned from the fair goes specifically to the library budget for purchasing news books and resources each year.
Shopping Days and Times:
Monday the 17th - 4th grade
Tuesday the 18th - 3rd grade
Wednesday the 19th - 2nd grade
Thursday the 20th - 1st grade
Friday the 21st - Kindergarten
Family Night: Tuesday the 18th from 4:30-6:30 PM.
Online shopping is also available. Online orders will be sent to the school after the book fair closes. http://www.scholastic.com/bf/geistelementaryschool
Last spring the total in sales for our fair was $10,524.00, which allowed us to purchase BookFlix and new books for our school. In addition, we earned a cash profit of $1,881.00.
Thank you to all of our shoppers. We are looking forward to another successful book fair.
Payment options for the book fair are cash, checks made out to GES PTO, and all major credit cards.
Keller’s Clips: Mindful vs. Mind Full
We continue to practice being mindful at GESJ To be aware of our feelings and the situation and to focus on calming ourselves in the midst of chaos, worry or heightened emotions.
A Student Description of Mindfulness:
Taken from Mindset Matters: A Curriculum to Help Students Understand how to Help Themselves Succeed with a GROWTH MINDSET by Lisa King, Ed.S, LPC
What does it mean to be mindful? Being mindful, also call ‘Mindfulness’ means being aware of your surroundings and trying to focus on the here and now. When you are paying attention to your actions and feelings in a very ‘on purpose’ way, you are being mindful. Some people think that to practice mindfulness you should try not to think about the future or the past, but you should concentrate on the present….the here and now. For example, you might think about the things you see and hear around you. This can be difficult if you are having a problem or having strong feelings. When you are having strong feelings, our brains go a mile a minute, so focusing on the present can be extremely difficult. This is one reason it is important to practice mindfulness not only during tough times, but at times when everything is going OK so that when things get rough you are in the habit of staying mindful. Practicing mindfulness means deep breathing, focusing on the moment we are in and attempting to be OK with whatever feelings we are having in the present moment.
Parent Resources: Bibliotherapy
What Does It Mean to Be Present? By Rana DiOrio
A Handful of Quiet: Happiness in Four Pebbles by Thich Nhat Nanh
Mindful Monkey Happy Panda by Lauren Alderfer
Moody Cow Mediates by Kerryi Lee MacLean
Peaceful Piggy Meditation by Kerryi Lee MacLean and Kerry MacLean
Silence by Lemniscates
Sitting Still Like a Frog by Eline Snel
You are a Lion by Taeeun Yoo
Do you have broken Crayons?
Stuffed Animal Day for a Cause
Stuffed Animal Day
December 20
Cost $1.00
Donations will go to purchase books for schools affected by California wild fires.
Stuffed Animal must fit inside your backpack
Students creating art with Gelli Plates purchased with a PTO Grant
Lost and Found Items to be Donated
GES Science and Engineering Fair
The GES Science and Engineering Fair promotes interest in science and technology. Entry forms with project outline are due on December 19th. The Science and Engineering Fair will take place on January 15th during school hours. The Science Fair is open to all GES students in grades 1-4. Science Fair projects may be submitted individually or in pairs. All projects will be judged for awards and displayed in the gym after school for parent viewing. Information will posted on the website or you may request a packet from your teacher. For more information, please visit the GES website at www.hse.k12.in.us/ges.
Winter Celebration
Winter Celebration
12:30 - 1:15 CFL and Lifeskills, Kindergarten
1:30 - 2:15 1st & 3rd grades
2:30 - 3:15 2nd & 4th grades
In order to attend your student(s) winter celebration please follow the link below to sign up. Please note the DEADLINE TO RSVP is DECEMBER 19, 2018!
Your GES PTO is hosting the annual winter celebration for each class on December 21, 2018. Volunteers are called upon to help us make this a special time for our students. Please note that this is not a spectator event, volunteers will be asked to assist with the celebration. All volunteers are required to have a valid background check with HSE Schools and be prepared to show a Safe Visitor Badge. If you cannot locate your Safe Visitor Badge please contact the school office prior to your visit. Please note that the school requests that younger siblings are not to attend the event. Thank you for all that you do!
December Classroom Activities & Special Events
When you come to school for an event please have your Safe Visitor Badge ready. This will help the office staff check visitors in more efficiently.
CHANGE IN CAFETERIA VISITOR POLICY - December 17-21
HSE Schools Community Insider
Check out opportunities and activities on the HSE Community Insider on the HSE Schools webpage. You can find it here: hseschools.org/happenings/community-insider