Germantown Elementary School District #60

Today we celebrate first grade Bulldog, Wyatt K. Wyatt is a bright young man who is always willing to help someone. His leadership in the classroom and throughout the school is unbelievable in a way that everyone looks up to Wyatt. He is motivated in his learning and showcases all our FAMILY characteristics each and every day. Wyatt, you are One in a Minion. Bulldog Country stands proud of you.

Mark your calendar for Friday, November 5. We will be hosting our Annual Veterans Day Ceremony in the gym. The ceremony will begin at 8:45 AM and take about 30 minutes. Community members are invited to attend. At this time all visitors to the building will be required to wear a mask. A reception will be held in the cafeteria for the Veterans and their families after the ceremony.

Today we celebrate Aidan and Deidre. Aidan is the September Reader of the Month. He has read 7 books so far this school year and works hard to reach his reading goals. Deidre is the September Writer of the Month. She works hard everyday to improve her writing skills and become the best writer she can be. Bulldog Country stands proud of Aidan and Deidre.

🚨H E L P ! The Red Cross national blood inventory is the lowest it’s been at this time of year since 2015, with less than a day’s supply of certain blood types in recent weeks. They are working around the clock to meet hospital & patient blood needs – but can’t do it alone. You can help by: 1) Signing up to give blood or platelets at rcblood.org/3icbGyF. 2) Inviting a friend. 3) Telling others.

The Student of the Month Program serves to recognize one student in grades PreK-3 and one student in grades 4-8 each month. Members of the faculty and staff nominate students based on the qualities associated with the #FAMILY theme: Flexibility, Acceptance, Motivation, Imagination, Leadership, beYou We are pleased to announce that Haley K. and Connor A. were chosen as the September Students of the Month. "Haley participates 100% of the time, is kind to everyone, and has a personality that makes class fun." "Connor is an all around respectful, kind, and hardworking student. He is always willing to help out when needed. As a student, he is motivated to grow and learn everyday." This morning, Kernel Nut Club representative, Nick Schomaker, presented Haley and Connor with a certificate and a $25 check for their own personal use. The Kernel Nut Club also made a $25 donation to the charity of the recipients' choice. A donation was made to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the Jared Burke Foundation on behalf of our September Students of the month. If you see Haley and/or Connor out and about in the days to come, please let them know that Bulldog Country stands proud of them.

The pairings for the 6GB ASA Tourney have been released. In first round action, our Lady Bulldogs will play Bartelso at 6:35 on Friday, October 8. Go Lady Bulldogs!

After running relays to retrieve letters for the game Scrabble, students collaborated to build words. The students did a little cardio and used a little brain power for this activity!

We are proud to announce that our PreK program once again earned the highest designation of Gold Circle of Quality from Excelerate Illinois. The Gold Circle of Quality recognizes programs which have demonstrated quality on all standards. Gold Circle programs meet or exceed specific quality benchmarks on learning environment, instructional quality, and all administrative standards; group size and ratios; qualifications; and professional development. A BIG thank you goes out to Mrs. Hitpas for leading a phenomenal PreK program and Mrs. Rathmann, Ms. Goestenkors, and Ms. Felts for all their help and support.

Thank you to everyone, including our friends at Jansen Chevrolet, that participated in our 'Do It for Danny' Hat Day fundraiser last week. A total of $3797.50 was raised for Danny. Our Bulldog FAMILY stands strong with Danny as he battles cancer.

Our good friends at Jansen Chevrolet took it upon themselves to participate in our 'Do It for Danny Hat Fundraiser' this week. Their employees donated $692 and Jansen Chevrolet matched it to raise a grand total of $1384 for the family. This is what being a member of the Bulldog #FAMILY is all about. We stand strong together. We thank everyone at Jansen Chevrolet for their generosity.

Did you know the PTA presented the school district a check for $14,700 over the summer from last year's raffle?! This was made possible because of our amazing Bulldog #FAMILY. The donations the PTA makes are imperative to the upkeep of our current technology and helps fund new technology upgrades as needed. So, keep selling those PTA raffle tickets! If you need more tickets, please let the office know, and we will send them home with a child. Remember, the first raffle will be held on October 22. Even though raffle tickets can be sold throughout the entire school year, it would be best to have your tickets sold before the first raffle drawing so ticket buyers have a chance to win every week. We are still looking for businesses, and/or individuals that are interested in serving as a weekly sponsor for the $100 weekly drawings. We have 19 weeks left to sponsor! If interested in serving as a raffle sponsor, email Trisha Weekley at tweekley@ges60.org, call the school office at 523-4253, or send the sponsorship money to school in a sealed envelope. Checks should be made payable to the Germantown PTA. Thank you for considering.

Today in honor of Constitution Day, the second grade students watched a read aloud of “We the Kids”. They talked about what the preamble stands for and created their own preamble in words that better helped them understand the meaning.

One of our 8th grade students was recently diagnosed with Leukemia.  He is currently undergoing extensive treatment in the hospital.  Because as a Bulldog family we stand strong with those in our school community, we are holding a fundraiser next Wednesday for the family.  All students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to participate in the Do It for Danny Hat Day fundraiser.  Make a donation and wear a hat to school in support of Danny and his fight against cancer. 

At GES, our students are 'One in a Minion'. This special chair will be used to highlight the great things our students are doing at GES. Who will be the first to be crowned on the Minion 'throne'? Stay tuned to find out.

Logan spent his summer tending to the carrots he planted in the spring. On July 20, his carrot seeds were spreading their roots in a bucket. Today, he decided to harvest his carrot crop. Logan is all smiles as he sees his hard work has paid off. Way to go, Logan! Enjoy your carrots.

We are THRILLED to announce that we will be starting a Transitional Kindergarten Program at GES in August of 2022. What exactly is a Transitional Kindergarten Program? We envision the GES Transitional Kindergarten Program being a bridge between PreK and kindergarten with the focus remaining on play-based learning while also incorporating a little more in the way of structured activities. This program will be tuition-based and serve 4 year olds that are not part of our morning PreK program and 5 year olds whose parents opted to wait a year to send their child to kindergarten. What makes this announcement even more exciting is that we have hired a ROCK STAR teacher to lead the program. We are proud to introduce Katie Mense as the newest member of our Bulldog family. Katie comes to GES with 15 years of classroom teaching experience. She is a published author, a national presenter, and a business owner. More importantly, she is passionate about early childhood education. Over the course of the weeks and months to come, Mrs. Mense will be working diligently behind the scenes to develop the program. Stay tuned for updates as they become available. At GES we are #FAMILY, and we are excited to be able to expand our educational offerings for the community of Germantown. The future looks bright at GES.

GES Is looking for a dynamic educator to take on the exciting challenge of music teacher and band director for the 2022-23 school year. This lucky individual will inherit a phenomenal program led by the 'legendary' Pat Henrichs for the past 29 years. Candidates must be certified to teach K-8 music and band. If you or someone you know are properly certified, have a strong desire to share a passion for music with children, and are yearning to work in a school district that embraces creativity and outside the box thinking, this is the ideal job. Interested candidates are asked to send a cover letter, resume, and letters of recommendation to Robin Becker at rbecker@ges60.org or 401 Walnut Street, PO Box 400, Germantown, IL, 62245. Interviews will begin in September and continue until the position is filled.

At GES, our teachers strive to teach to the standards. The 6th grade ELA class is practicing the two literature standards they’ve been learning. They are working with a partner on an activity that involves citing text evidence and determining the meaning of words and phrases.

The Marching Bulldogs took to the streets of Germantown this morning in preparation for their upcoming parades. What a beautiful morning for some marching practice.

Eighth grade is playing Bocce Ball in PE.  They are putting their throwing skills and teamwork skills to the test, and they are doing an outstanding job!