The Woodland Brag Blog

5/23/13

Happy Thursday!  Many thanks to theTarget volunteers from the downtown offices who participated in the "Hands-on Twin Cities Day of Service"!  Our courtyards look BEAUTIFUL!  Now we just need the weather to cooperate so we can use them! :)

Have a great weekend!

Linda

      

5/22/13

Dear Woodland Families,

We have over 20 Woodland staff members who will not be returning for the 2013-14 school year.  Thus, I would like to share with you the changes that will be implemented for the fall.

Kindergarten:
Mrs. Linda Schulzetenberg, who is currently on a leave of absence, will be retiring.  Mrs. Cuevas will continue to be our full day kindergarten teacher.

First Grade:
Ms. Sharlyn Helms retired in December.  Mrs. Ashley Kalhagen has been our long-term sub since that time.  Our first grade has been reduced from six to five teachers for next year.  Mrs. Kalhagen will be leaving Woodland and will be teaching in another district school.

Second Grade:
Stays the same!

Third Grade:
Mrs. Missy Buckley and Mrs. Sarah Lee will be moving to fourth grade (see below).  Third grade has been reduced from six classrooms to five.  Ms. Jeanne Heer will be returning from a leave of absence and will join the third grade team.

Fourth Grade:
Mr. Rolf Gruber and Ms. Cheryl Ness are retiring at the end of the year.  Mrs. Buckley and Mrs. Lee will teach fourth grade.

Fifth Grade:
Mrs. Shelly Drake and Mrs. Tammi Provart have accepted district level positions as Staff Development/Assessment Specialists.  We have hired two new teachers to join the fifth grade team:  Ms. Parvaneh Golbon and Mr. Nicholas Schreiber.

Sixth Grade:
A fifth section has been added due to our enrollment.  Ms. Katie Leitschuh will be moving from the Rochester school system to join our team.

And the list goes on:
• Mrs. Jennifer Leslie retired in January.  Ms. Shauna Schiebout has been the long-term sub in gifted  education.  Next year, Mrs. Kris Happe will be teaching gifted education and serving as an instructional assistant.  Mrs. Amy Branton will be at Woodland one day per week working in gifted education with grades K-2.  Both Mrs. Happe and Mrs. Branton currently work in our district.

• Mrs. Diane Hasty, our school nurse, will be retiring at the end of the year.  Ms. Shannon Sinkel will be joining us in the fall.

• Mrs. Betty Rogers, currently special education and literacy coach, will be pursuing other positions due to a reduction in our special education allocation.

• Mrs. Lynn Rees has accepted a special education position within the district.  We will welcome Mr. Jeremy Burgard to our school family.

• Mrs. Bethany Grev, speech clinician, will be moving to another position in the district.  Ms. Danielle Turso will be leaving Woodland to pursue further education.  Mrs. Yvette Ward and Ms. Laura Ellos will be moving to Woodland.

• District administration has reduced two Strategies programs, both of them from Woodland.  These wonderful programs serve district students who have significant needs under the emotional and behavioral disability category.  Both Mrs. Bushy and Miss Swanson will be moving to other schools within our district.

• District administration is moving two Skills programs to Woodland (into the rooms vacated by the reduction in Strategies programs).  The Skills programs serve district children who have significant needs under the Mild/Moderate/Severe Mental Handicap category.   Mrs. Hailey Olson and Mrs. Caitlin Wittnebel, along with approximately 12 students will be joining our Woodland family.

• Mrs. Colleen Dwight will be the librarian at Yongsan International School in Seoul, Korea.  Ms. Laurel Cobb will be our new library media specialist; she comes to us from Garden City Elementary.

• Mr. John Olson, band instructor, is retiring and Mr. Eric Bitterman, currently at Maple Grove Senior High, will be taking over. 

• Mrs. Brianna Barhorst, orchestra instructor, will be moving to other district schools.  Mr. Joseph Krueger will be replacing her.

• Mrs. Catie Schlenk, ESP, will be leaving us to pursue other ventures.

• We will be reducing one 4 Star Express classroom, which will result in staffing changes in that program and our Kidstop program.

• Minnesota Reading Corps members Hangatu Omar and Kevin Angulski will be leaving Woodland.  Mrs. Sammy Long will be joining Mrs. Ann Toenies, both part-time members.  We are currently seeking a full time member to join them in this program.

• We will be adding .3 FTE to our counselor position, which means that Mrs. Laura Larson will be here .7 FTE.

While we are very sad to say good-bye to our very dear friends and colleagues, and we wish them the best, we are also excited to welcome all the new faces to our family.
This is a dynamic and wonderful school family!  I know you will join me in saying good-bye to those leaving and embracing those joining us!

Sincerely,

Linda

 

5/17/13

Greetings!  In this blog entry I would like to tell you about our Four Star Express program.

Four Star Express is a fabulous preschool program for children who turn four by September 1 and are then eligible for kindergarten the following year (children do not need to live in the Woodland attendance area or Osseo School District).  The preschool program is in session every school day from 9:30 to 4:00.  The program focuses on an established preschool curriculum and includes a rest time in the afternoon.  Also included in the program is before and after school childcare from 6:30 AM to 6:00 PM and on many non-school days.

I highly recommend the program to anyone who has a four year old who would benefit from a preschool experience.  The children in the program learn so much, including "how to do school".  They are engaged in learning based activities and play throughout the day to help them develop their social skills and enhance their learning to prepare them for kindergarten and their school life beyond.  They participate in physical education and music classes, have lunch at school, and go to recess, just like "the big kids".

Four Star Express is a wonderful program that serves as a building block for each four year old's future.  Many of our staff members enroll their own children in the program and I would put my grandchildren in it in a minute!  The staff members working in the program are knowledgable, passionate about their work and the children, and committed to doing whatever it takes to insure that the students in the program SOAR (succeed, outshine, achieve, and reach their highest potential).

If you have a four year old or know someone who does, it is a program worth exploring.  If you would like more information you can contact our Woodland Kidstop program (763-315-6412) or the District Community Education Department at CECares@district279.org or 763-391-7120.

Have a great weekend!

Linda

5/10/13

Happy Weekend!  It has been an amazing week at Woodland!

Tuesday our PTA Board developed and approved their budget for next year.  The support they are giving to our school is amazing!  They are supporting teachers and students so that we can insure student achievement and personal growth and they are continuing programming to maintain and strengthen our school community.

Thursday we had three terrific concerts!  The first was presented to our students by the District 279 Sixth Grade Orchestra (which included several WD kids).  This was half of the students (the other half visited other elementary schools) participating in orchestra throughout our district. What a wonderful way for kids from our district schools to get to know each other and make beautiful music together - and that they did at Woodland!  Many thanks to Mrs. Barhorst and the other orchestra teachers, who directed and coordinated the tour.

The second and third "concerts" were performed by our second graders.  They beautifully sang folk songs from around the world. They danced and played instruments while singing the songs, demonstrating their mastery of our state music standards.  They did an amazing job!  Many thanks to the music teachers: Mrs. Bordonaro and Mrs. Burk, the second grade teachers: Ms. Bedford, Mrs. Halvorson, Mrs. Hodsdon, Mrs. Levy, Mr. Lund, and Mrs. Saba, and to each of our students!  You rocked the gym yesterday!

Then, throughout the week, we celebrated National Teacher Appreciation Week.  At Woodland, we take this week to not only recognize our fabulous and multi-talented teachers (licensed staff), but to also recognize all the staff members that contribute to our work.  I truly believe our teachers are the best and brightest and our students are very lucky to be in their classrooms and work with them.  We also have the best ESPs around, the greatest office staff, a fabulous custodial staff, a kitchen staff that amazes me every day, and support staff that rock our world.  Is it clear yet that I love this school and am so very proud of the people with whom I work?? :)

Then to top it off, our FABULOUS PTA honored us all with treats and kind words throughout the week!

It was a great week at Woodland - AGAIN!!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Linda

5/8/13

Happy May!  It is so good to see the grass beginning to get green and buds on the trees instead of snow!

We have very SMART kids at Woodland!  The last Word Masters competition has been completed and our kids did very well.  The following students had top scores.  Way to go!

3rd Grade
Sophia Theis - Perfect Score!!

4th Grade
Kyle Horton
Kaitlyn Thompson

5th Grade
Anika Deshpande
Abbie Whittemore
Keana Raley
Taylor Quan

6th Grade
Jack Irmiter

So proud of all of our kids!

Linda

 

 

 

 

4/24/13

Greetings!  I need to share some very good news!

Greetings!

In 2010, the Woodland staff members established six "Long Range Goals" focused on making a positive impact on student achievement.  Our goal is to accomplish all six goals by Spring of 2015.  It has been a daunting undertaking which has resulted in changes, challenges, victories and celebrations and great teamwork focused on improving student achievement.  Several of the goals have been accomplished and some we continue to work on.  One of these goals is to close the achievement gaps in reading and math.

Yesterday we received news that our work is paying off!  Our district leadership has reviewed data and determined that Woodland students "outperform the rest of the state in being 'On Track' on MCA Reading"!  Our MCA reading results for the past two years show Woodland students outperforming the state averages AND the gap between our White students and our Black students has been virtually eliminated.  While we still have work to do to maintain these trends and have the same results in Math, we have a lot to celebrate!!

It takes a FAMILY working together to do great things!  Each of you is a part of this family and should take pride in our accomplishments!

WE have great teachers (this includes all licensed staff working with kids) who drill down and focus on student needs, WE have terrific ESPs who support the work being done by our teachers, we have a fabulous kitchen crew, office group, and custodial team!  You, our parents rally behind us and support our work!   As a school family, we ROCK!

Thank you for all you do to work with your children's teachers so that your most precious possessions have a team working hard to support learning and social development at school and at home.  Thank you for working with your children at home by: helping them practice and develop their skills, establishing a time for homework and reading, encouraging them to use technology to build their reading and math skills, and positively supporting the work we are doing together.

It truly does take a family and WE have that family!  I am confident that, together, we will accomplish our goal of eliminating the achievement gaps by Spring of 2015.

Remember, no school on Friday, April 26th.

Linda

 

 

4/17/13

Good morning!

We use the Read Naturally program at Woodland as an intervention to help children become more fluent readers and meet the district grade level targets.  This time of year I am often asked about things parents can do at home to support student learning, especially reading.  The following information was just sent to me.  I am unfamiliar with either app; however, since one is free and they focus on the Read Naturally program, I am sharing the information with you.  If you are looking for ideas to build reading fluency for your child, you may want to try the free app.

Here is the information:

The free One Minute Reader iPad app is a great option for parents and teachers who want to try the app at no cost. For those who wish to purchase additional content, the One Minute Reader level apps might be worth checking out.   The link is:  

http://www.readnaturally.com/blog/2013/04/03/new-options-for-the-one-minute-reader-ipad-app/?utm_source=News+%26+Notes+-+April+2013&utm_campaign=April+2013+N%26N&utm_medium=email

Linda

 

4/12/13

Greetings!  I hope you have had a terrific week and are preparing for a relaxing and enjoyable weekend!

I would like to invite you to our school district's Wastebasket Revue.  Opening night was yesterday and Woodland is very proud to have the highest number of staff involved.  This variety show raises funds to provide college scholarships for our graduating seniors.  As of this year, the staff and community volunteers who rehearse and put on the show have raised over $1 million in scholarships for our kids!

These staff members (present and former) and WD friends are in the show this year:
Mrs. Bordonaro
Mrs. Brown
Mrs. Granger
Mrs. Lien
Mrs. Housman
Miss Sanchez
Mrs. Dienslake
Mrs. L. Miller
Miss Goettl (Mrs. Goettl's daughter)
Mrs. Leslie
Mrs. Frisch
Mrs. Vail (sub)

Mrs. B. Miller and Mrs. Gunderson are in charge of makeup.  Mrs. Bass-Aune heads up concessions.

Please consider attending Wastebasket Revue.  You can purchase tickets at the door!  There is a show tonight and tomorrow night at 7:00 at Park Center.  Three more shows will be presented on April 18th, 19th and 20th all at 7:00 PM at Park Center.  Tickets can also be ordered on line through the district website or clicking on the link on our Woodland website.

Consider bringing your kids and joining the fun, while supporting a great cause!

Have a great weekend!

Linda

 

4/8/13

Greetings!  It is great to be back at Woodland after my husband and I took an extended spring break.  We were very lucky to chaperone a wonderful group of band students from Osseo Senior High on a trip to Rome and the Amalfi coast of Italy.  We, then, extended our trip to spend Easter weekend at the Vatican and visit my youngest brother and his family, who are stationed in Sicily with the US Navy.  We had an amazing trip filled with wonderful experiences! 

While I was gone great things continued to happen at Woodland!  Here are some of the highlights:

*  Word Masters:  A student representing Woodland Elementary recently received perfect scores in the second of three meets for this year’s WordMasters Challenge™—a national vocabulary competition involving nearly 150,000 students annually.

Competing in the difficult Blue Division of the WordMasters Challenge™,  fifth grader Nahili Abdulahi earned a perfect score of 20 in the February meet.  Nationally, only 75 fifth graders achieved perfect scores.  Other students at Woodland Elementary who achieved outstanding results in the meet include fourth grader Chau-Mi Phan, and fifth graders Mathhew Seawood, Taylor Quan, and Chase Mathis.  The students were coached in preparation for the WordMasters Challenge™ by their reading teachers Mrs. Nicole Ewing and Mrs. Sandy Otto.

* Future Problem Solving:  Mrs. Otto has been a busy lady!  She led 30 students through the Future Problem Solving process this year.  While no Woodland teams will be moving on to the international competition (there were 37 junior teams- many with more experience than our first year teams), during the state competition last weekend, our students conducted themselves with class and integrity and did their best.  Their knowledge of the six step FPS process and their understanding of the topics assigned to them (especially Megacities and Ocean Soup) will definitely be put to use as they solve other current and future problems. 

* Chess Super Nationals:  Isaac Traynor, a Woodland first grader, is the highest ranked first grader in chess in the state of Minnesota!  He spent his weekend competing in the Chess Super Nationals in Nashville, Tennesee and will return to school tomorrow.

Congratulations to everyone!  We have such smart kids and dedicated staff members at Woodland!

Have a wonderful rest of your day!

Linda

 

3/20/13

Something to ponder:

Woodland has once again qualified (yay!) to receive support from the Minnesota Reading Corps!!  This year, our three tutors (one full-time and two part-time) have truly made a difference in supporting reading skill mastery for many of our kindergarten through third grade children.  We are looking for new tutors for next year!  Please consider joining our Woodland team or encouraging someone you know to join us.

From the Minnesota Reading Corps:

Experience life-changing growth by becoming a tutor with Minnesota Reading Corps!

Minnesota Reading Corps—the nation’s largest state AmeriCorps program—is looking to place three tutors at our school. Literacy Tutors not only change the world of children who are struggling in school, they grow their own professional skills and network.

Literacy Tutors help kids become successful readers by the end of third grade by implementing research-based literacy strategies. As a tutor, you’ll earn a living allowance of about $500 biweekly (for full-time) or $250 biweekly (for part-time) and an education award of $5,550 (for full-time) or $2,775 (for part-time) to further your own education or help pay for your child's college education. Other benefits are available if eligible.

Give a year of service to grow our community and your own career. Apply today to become a tutor! Go to www.MinnesotaReadingCorps.org. Send questions to recruitment@mnedc.org.

One year. This year. Join Minnesota Reading Corps. Serve to grow.

Linda