November Community Update from NHI

November 2017

Dear Nature Hill Community,

November is a busy month at Nature Hill! This month’s update outlines some important information including:

• Details about Family Night Out for STEM
• A reminder about the winter club sign-up process
• A review of our winter weather guidelines and procedures
• Key dates and events happening at NHI through early December (Whoa! Where is time going?!)

I look forward to seeing many of you at parent-teacher conferences, the Veterans Day celebration, and the concerts happening over the next week. Feel free to stop me in the halls, send an email, or swing by my office if there is anything I can do to help you or your child.

Wolf Pride!

Jason Curtis

Principal

Success at Nature Hill: Family Night Out for STEM

Nature Hill is excited to be the host school for John Deere’s Family Night Out for STEM! The free event is a one-night celebration of math and science education that recognizes our vital role in stimulating your child’s imagination through science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). This one-time event will take place on Thursday, December 14^th from 5:30-8:30pm at Nature Hill. The night will feature four hands-on activities that will be facilitated by engineers from John Deere. These activities include:

·         Index Card Building Towers (Building Trades)

·         Water Filtration Simulation (Natural Science)

·         Robotics Sumo Wrestling (Electrical Engineering)

·         Lava Lamps (Chemical Science) and Magic Math with M&Ms (Math)

Information and registration forms are available by clicking here. Packets are also available in the main office. Hurry, space is limited!

I am incredibly thankful for all of the opportunities our community partners provide our students. Our school is stronger because of our community support. From John Deere’s willingness to host this exciting event to the YMCA’s Habit Heroes Program and the countless number of organizations and individuals who volunteer or have made financial donations to support our school, we have offered our students so many opportunities that are beyond what I could have ever dreamed for our Pack!

Staff Recognition Spotlight: Mrs. Jen Donovan and Ms. Alyssa Reid

This month I would like to take a minute to recognize Mrs. Jen Donovan (8^th Grade ELA) and Ms. Alyssa Reid (5^th Grade Learning Strategist). Together, they advise our National Junior Honor Society (NJHS) and are responsible for organizing and mentoring over 70 students in the program.

NJHS is such an important organization at our school. The students are responsible for planning our annual Veterans Day celebration, organizing our Talent Show, and conducting dozens of other community-wide events throughout the school year. The best thing about NJHS is that it is a student-run organization. However, that means Mrs. Donovan and Ms. Reid have to spend a lot of time coaching our students through the logistics of planning these events. It would be so much easier for them to just plan the events themselves. Instead, they have given up control and invested a great deal of time and energy into supporting our students and advising them on all of the components that come with planning fundraisers, parties, and other events. Thank you to Mrs. Donovan and Ms. Reid for taking the time to help our students learn the important leadership skills necessary to be successful in high school and beyond!

Join the Pack! Winter Club Sign-Up Reminders

Sign-up for winter clubs will be held in the library from November 29-December 5. You can click here to review the club brochure. Make sure you take a look and don’t miss out on your opportunity to join PIYO, Fantasy Basketball or Ski/Snowboarding Club (just to name a few!).

Winter Guidelines from NHI and OASD

 As winter quickly approaches, it is important to take a few minutes to prepare for the change in season. Please take note of the following information as you turn up the heat and dig out those hats, gloves and scarves.

• Beginning November 28, students will have the options to go outside as long as the wind-chill is above 0 degrees or they can stay inside and read a book or talk to friends. You can click here to see our winter recess guidelines.
• Students can play in the snow, but only if they have snow pants and boots.
• With the cold weather, the 200 students that normally walk or ride bikes to school will now receive rides. This means there will be an increase in traffic. Please plan ahead.
• Extreme cold, snow or ice can close school. Please review the district’s inclement weather school closing policy.

PTO News

I want to extend a huge THANK YOU to everyone who helped make our Halloween Dance a success. We had over 400 ghosts and goblins attend the event, and it would not have been possible without the help of the PTO!

The PTO does not meet again until the winter. At that time, we will need your help with Teacher Appreciation Week and with our Annual Fun Run Fundraiser. Please stay tuned!

Veterans Day Reminder

Our annual Veterans Day Celebration will be on Friday, November 10. NJHS has sent out messages to all families inviting our Wolves to bring their relatives and friends who have served our country to Nature Hill for a morning of celebration. Click here to view the invitation. We hope you can join us!

As a reminder, the agenda for the day is as follows:

• 8:00am                 Veteran Appreciation Breakfast
• 9:00am                 All School Assembly
• 10:15am               Veterans are invited to visit classrooms

This is also an early release day, with school being dismissed at 11:55am.

Lost & Found

There are about 300 items in our Lost & Found. Please take a look to see if your child’s belongings may be there. All items left in Lost & Found after November 15^th will be donated.

30-Day Outlook (November and Early December)

Please mark your calendars for the following school-wide events that will be occurring between now and early December.

Date	Time	Event
Through November 7	Various Hours	Fall Book Fair: NHI Stage Check out the Book Fair on the stage in the cafeteria. Extended hours are available during parent-teacher conferences.
Thursday, November 2 & Tuesday, November 7	3:15-7:30pm	Parent-Teacher Conferences Teachers have communicated their schedules for parent-teacher conferences. The building will be open for conferences, drop-in visits with Explore teachers, and anything else you may need to do (pay fees in the office, check Lost & Found, or clean out your child’s locker J).
Wednesday, November 8	6:30pm	6th and 7th Grade Fall Band Concert Please join us for our first concert of the year! We look forward to hearing our musicians after all of the hard work they put in during the first trimester.
Thursday, November 9	6:30pm	7th and 8th Grade Choir and 8th Grade Band Concert Join us for a patriotic event as we prepare for Friday’s Veterans Day celebration!
Friday, November 10	8:00-11:00am	Veterans Day at NHI Put on your red, white and blue and let’s get ready to thank our veterans and honor our country with this year’s Veterans Day celebration!
Friday, November 10	11:55am	Early Release School will end at 11:55am. Buses will depart NHI at 12:02pm.
Friday, November 10	12:30-3:15pm	Parent-Teacher Conferences Again, Nature Hill will be open for your conferences with teachers.
Monday, November 20  or Tuesday, November 21	Morning	All-School Field Trip to See Wonder We look forward to celebrating the close of the first trimester by traveling as a Pack to see the movie Wonder. In the weeks leading up to the film, we will be discussing the themes of including others, and acceptance and empathy among our peers and others in the community.
Wednesday, November 22- Friday, November 24	All day	No School: Thanksgiving Break Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at NHI! The school and office will be closed during this period for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Monday, November 27	All day	No School: Professional Development Day Enjoy an extra day of Thanksgiving break! Staff will be working in grade-level and curriculum teams to help build on our school and district goals. The Nature Hill office will be closed for the day.
Wednesday, November 29-Tuesday, December 5	All day	Winter Club Sign-Up: NHI Library Swing by the library to sign up for winter clubs!
Friday, December 1	All day	Trimester 1 Ends We are 33% of the way through the school year! We anticipate publishing report cards on Thursday, December 7.

Veterans Day at NHI on November 10

Hey Wolves!

The Veterans Day celebration at Nature Hill is one of my favorite events of the year. If you know a Veteran, please invite them to join us for an appreciate breakfast and our assembly. Details are available in the link below.

Thank you NJHS for organizing this very special event!

Veterans Day Invitation

Wolf Pride!
Jason

Wonder T-Shirts

Hey Wolves!

The staff and students here at Nature Hill are very excited for the upcoming all-school field trip to see the movie Wonder in November. Students will engage in CPR lessons that incorporate essential themes from the movie and book and will read a picture book based on the novel. Students will participate in meaningful conversations and activities about making choices that promote and spread kindness to others. All students have the opportunity to purchase a t-shirt designed by a student here at NHI to go along with this important message. Below is a link to a google form that needs to be completed for anyone who would like to purchase a shirt for $6.00. The shirts will be light blue with white print and all orders are due no later than Wednesday, November 1^st. Thank you for your support and have a WONDERful day!

https://goo.gl/forms/uhBK7pHaAe6rl8D83

Wolf Pride!
Jason

Fall Book Fair: October 31-November 7

Reading for pleasure inside and outside of school has real and long-lasting benefits.  It unlocks the power of information and imagination and helps children discover who they are.  It will even help them get into college!  Here’s what you can do to help children develop stronger reading skills and a love for reading:

·         Set the example.  Let children see you read.

·        Have a collection of books in the home.  Update this collection routinely to keep pace with changing tastes and reading skills.  Talk about books and what your child is reading.

·         Support our school’s Book Fair.  Allow your children to choose their own books to read.

Our Scholastic Book Fair is a reading event that brings the books kids want to read to our school.  It’s a wonderful selection of engaging and affordable books for every reading level.  Please make plans to visit our Book Fair and be involved in shaping your child’s reading habits.

Book Fair dates/times:          Tuesday, October 31^st ~ 7am – 4pm

                                                Wednesday, November 1^st ~ 7am – 4pm

                                                Thursday, November 2^nd ~ 3pm – 7:30pm

                                                Friday, November 3^rd ~ 7am – 4pm

                                                Monday, November 6^th ~ 7am – 4pm

                                                Tuesday, November 7^th ~ 3pm – 7:30pm

Special activities:                  Please note special hours during Parent/Teacher Conferences

Before you visit the Book Fair, be sure to download the Book Fairs app to help you find the right books for your child.  For more information, visit scholastic.com/apps/bookfairs.

We look forward to seeing you and your family at our Book Fair!  Remember, all purchases benefit our school.

Jason

NHI Drug Prevention Procedures

Friday, October 20, 2017

Dear Nature Hill Families,

As a community, we have the important task of working together to ensure the safety of our students. One of the threats students may face is the exposure to drugs and alcohol. In recent years, Nature Hill, in coordination with our district and community advocacy groups, has taken some steps to ensure we do our part to help educate our students on the dangers of drug and alcohol use and take proactive measures to prevent students from using them.

One such preventative measure is that we have partnered with the Waukesha County Sheriff’s K-9 team. A few times throughout the year, we invite the team to complete a search for illegal drugs around our entire campus and building. This is a tool we use to ensure everyone knows we are serious about Nature Hill being a drug-free community. Today, we conducted an unannounced search of our entire campus. In total, the search lasted about 15 minutes and caused minimal disruption to our school day. In order to allow the search to be as efficient as possible, the building was placed in a non-emergency lockdown, which means that teachers were asked to continue with their lessons and students were asked to stay in their classrooms for the duration of the search. Often times, parents want to know the results of these searches. However, in order to protect the confidentiality of the members of our community, we do not publicly share the results of these searches. 

In addition to these searches, there are other preventative measures we take as a community. Starting last year, we instituted a random drug testing procedure. All 7^th and 8^th graders who participate in a club or athletic team at Nature Hill are eligible to be tested. Again, this policy is simply meant to give students an excuse to say “no” to any pressure they may face when confronted with the opportunity to use an illegal drug.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at CurtisJ@oasd.org.

Thank you for your support,

Jason Curtis

Principal

Dances with Wolves! Dances at NHI...

On Friday, October 27 the PTO will be hosting our annual Halloween Dance. Doors open at 6:30pm and we ask that parents pick their children up at 9pm. Tickets are $5 each and are available through the Web Store or at the door. It is extremely helpful if you order your tickets ahead of time. This helps us plan ahead and makes the check-in process move quickly.

Parents often have lots of questions about our dances. Hopefully most of them are answered below. If not, please feel free to send me an email (CurtisJ@oasd.org) or reply to this post and we will get your questions answered.

What should my child wear?

It’s the Halloween Dance, so this means our annual costume contest will be going on. If they aren’t into costumes then they are welcome to wear whatever casual clothes (school dress code will be in effect).

What should my child bring?

They should bring extra money. Snacks, drinks and other spooky experiences will be available for purchase.

Where do we pick them up at the end of the night?

If you thought traffic was crazy during the school day, just wait until you see it after the dance! Please be patient and watch for pedestrians. Consider picking your child up in the bus lane or park and wait in the staff lot. Regardless of what you decide, make a plan with your child and their friends before they go to the dance.

Do kids actually go to the dances? How many chaperones are there?

Typically we have about 400-500 students attend the dances, so YES, kids come! We try to have about 30 chaperones. This is the PTO-sponsored dance, so Ms. Hedrick and I will be the only two NHI staff members there, however, our PTO has this system down pat. Our goal is to ensure everyone is safe and give you a few hours of freedom!

How can I help?

You are welcome to volunteer (please watch for communication from our PTO). However, the best thing you can do is remind your student that school rules will be in effect at the dance and they should show that Wolf Pride by including others to participate in their dance circles and follow through on our respectful, responsible and safe commitments to the community.

Don’t forget to save the date for the other two dances of the year—the staff-sponsored dance will be on February 2 and the student council-sponsored dance will be on April 20.

Wolf Pride!

Jason

Health and Wellness Opportunity at NHI: Free Y Membership Included

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Over the last year, we have been working with the YMCA and Aurora Healthcare to design a health and wellness program for our students. As an organization, the Y is committed to helping kids and their families make healthier decisions that will positively impact their well-being, help prevent health risks associated with inactivity and poor nutrition, and empower and educate our community by building character and supporting healthy habits. At Nature Hill, we share these same values and we are excited to introduce a new and innovative program for our students called Habit Heroes.

Habit Heroes is an 8-week program that will meet every Friday from 3:15-4:15pm in the Multi-Purpose Room at Nature Hill starting on October 20 and running through December 15 (with no meeting on November 24). Each session will focus on a mix of topics including honesty, the physical body, caring, importance of water, respect, food preparation and cooking, responsibility, and stress management. During each session, students will spend 30 minutes in group discussion and/or smaller group work based on the week’s focus and 30 minutes exercising.

More importantly, our goal is to encourage them to stick to these new habits beyond the 8-week session. Students will be asked to set and monitor goals around each habit, and will be recognized for making healthy life choices and following through on the program’s goals. These goals include:

• Spending less than 2 hours of screen time daily
• Eating 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day
• Accumulating at least 1 hour of physical activity every day
• Eating a healthy breakfast every day
• Eliminating soda or sugar-based drinks from their diet

To support their success in the program, your family will be given a free 3-month membership to the YMCA. This is an amazing incentive valued at $279! If you are already a member at the Y, they will simply stop your auto-draft for 3- months.

To sign your child up, please fill out the attached registration information and participant expectations and return them to Nature Hill as soon as possible. Hard copies are also available in the office and at the YMCA. Please note that there are only 25 spots available, so we encourage you to sign up today. We hope you consider enrolling your Wolf in this unique and amazing opportunity!

Click here to access the brochure

Wolf Pride!
Jason

October Community Update

Monday, October 2, 2017

Dear Nature Hill Community,

Thank you to everyone who made Homecoming week an extremely fun time at Nature Hill! Our Leaders of the Pack did a great job assembling our float, and we had so many of our students show off their Wolf Pride by marching with us in the parade! I want to say a very special THANK YOU to Mrs. Kelly Boldt (5^th grade), Mrs. Molly Kielma (physical education), and Mrs. Cassie Schuh (8^th grade) for their help in coordinating this year’s float! They are amazing teachers and advisors, and I am grateful for the hours of extra time they put in to support our students during this annual event!

This month’s update gives you a quick glimpse at everything going on in October and early November. However, if you are interested in receiving more frequent communication from Nature Hill, please follow or check the Notes from Nature Hill Blog, which is updated as needed.

Wolf Pride!

Jason Curtis

Principal

Success at Nature Hill: Feedback on Your Child’s Learning

Every year the Oconomowoc Area School District offers parents the opportunity to complete a satisfaction survey. For the past several years, we have received low scores on how often we provide feedback on your child’s learning. In order to address parent concerns related to feedback, we are asking parents to complete this survey. In the coming months, we will analyze the data and examine our feedback structures and systems to ensure we are meeting your expectations.

At Nature Hill, our teachers are constantly providing feedback to our students. This often happens during everyday moments in the classroom, such as one-on-one conversations between child and their teacher. Here are some ideas that other parents have had in order to stay connected to their child’s learning experience:    

1.  Ask students to share writing projects with you through Google Docs.
2.  Follow, join or ask your child’s teacher(s) to become a member of their Google Classroom, Classroom Dojo, Seesaw account or other virtual tools they may use to help students and families stay connected to the classroom experience.
3.  Feel free to reach out to your child’s teacher in between the formal reporting periods of report cards and parent-teacher conferences.
4.  7^th and 8^th grade families are reminded to check their child’s grades a couple of times a week.

We look forward to examining data from this survey in order to ensure we strengthen our partnership in your child’s education!

Staff Recognition Spotlight: Mrs. Kris Chadwick (Technology Education)

This month I would like to recognize Mrs. Kris Chadwick for all of her efforts to support the teachers and students at Nature Hill. As the technology teacher, Mrs. Chadwick has used her expertise to be extremely helpful in assisting teachers in setting up Google Classroom accounts. Along with her technology partner in crime, Ms. Tracy Garon, she has led summer professional development sessions, worked to create our 7^th and 8^th grade digital citizenship lessons, and advises our student Tech Ninja program. As if that didn’t keep her busy enough, outside of her role as a technology teacher and coach, she co-advises our Robotics team and teaches a reading intervention during our All School Read period. It is safe to say we would be lost without Kris’ expertise and her willingness to support her students and colleagues! Thank you, Mrs. Chadwick!

Wolf Pride: Include Others

At Nature Hill, each homeroom takes time for our class meeting structure known as Circle of Power and Respect (CPR). This time allows for students to get to know their classmates and to celebrate and discuss topics that are important to their community and our school. From time to time, we conduct theme weeks, in which our entire school focuses on a single topic.

During the week of September 18^th, our community focused on our Wolf Pride norm of including others. Thanks to the leadership of Mrs. Allie Tasche, one of our 7^th grade learning strategists, lessons were designed to help our students understand the importance of including others. You can view the lessons and videos used for discussion by clicking here.

In continuing with that theme, we are currently planning to celebrate the close of the first trimester by taking an all-school field trip to see the movie Wonder, which will be coming out in mid-November. Wonder is an extremely popular book and one of the first ones your child read at Nature Hill, and it highlights the importance of including others. Please watch for more details on this celebration!

PTO-Sponsored Halloween Dance: Friday, October 27 (6:30-9:00pm)

One of the biggest events of the year is our PTO-sponsored Halloween Dance. In the coming weeks, tickets will be available for $5 on the Web Store. It is helpful if you order your tickets in advance, but your child can certainly pay at the door. Please have your student save up some money for snacks, drinks, trinkets, and spooky experiences such as the Panic Room!

Join the Pack!

I am excited to share that 53% of our students have participated in at least one club, sport or activity this fall! We will be offering even more exciting opportunities to Join the Pack this winter. Sign-ups will occur after Thanksgiving break.

Save the Date: Fall Parent-Teacher Conferences

Be on the lookout for communication from your child’s teacher(s) regarding details for our fall parent-teacher conferences. The schedule for this fall’s conferences is listed below:

•  Thursday, November 2 from 3:15-7:30pm
•  Tuesday, November 7 from 3:15-7:30pm
•  Friday, November 10 from 12:30-3:15pm (students will be dismissed at 11:55am)

Veterans Day at Nature Hill: Friday, November 10

Our annual Veterans Day Celebration will be on Friday, November 10. Please be watching for an invitation from the National Junior Honor Society to invite your friends and family who have served in the United States military to join us at Nature Hill for a morning of celebration as we express our gratitude for their service.

Important Dates

Please mark your calendars for the following school-wide events that will be occurring within the next month.

Date	Time	Event
Friday, October 6	All day	No School: District Professional Learning Day There will be no school on Friday, October 6. NHI staff will be examining student data collected in September and participating in district curriculum committee meetings.
Monday, October 9	6:30-7:30pm	PTO Meeting: NHI Room 152A Please join us as we make final plans for the Book Fair and Halloween Dance.
Monday, October 9	6:30pm	“Into the Woods” Musical Information Night: Cafeteria Students and families interested in trying out for this year’s musical are invited to meet with Mrs. Jappinen, Mr. Darnell and Ms. Garon to learn more about the expectations and tryout process.
Tuesday, October 18	Morning	Picture Retake Day Picture retakes will happen throughout the morning.
Friday, October 27	6:30-9:00pm	PTO-Sponsored Halloween Dance: NHI Gym We hope to see all of our wolves at the first dance of the year. Join us for a night of spooky fun! Please bring a few extra dollars for tricks and treats.