Birchtree

Friday Update

Birchtree Charter School 7107 E. Palmer Wasilla Hwy. Palmer, AK

March 3, 2017 T. 907-745-1831 F. 907-745-1843 Save The Date

March 3, 2017 Ms. Fol-

som’s class play 6 pm PHS

little theater

March 3, 2017 Ms. Albina’s

class play 7 pm

March 3, 2017 Pastries

for Parents 8:30 - 9:30 AM

March 7, 2017 picture day

in the Birchtree Gym

March 8, 2017 3rd grade

dioramas in the gym from

8:45-11AM

March 8, 2017 German

Karneval 2-3:30 at Birch-

tree

March 13, 2017 to March

17th 2017 is spring break

March 22, 2017 last day for

Intent to Return forms to be

submitted to the front of-

fice.

April 7-14th 8th grade trip

to Washington DC.

April 7, 2017 Pastries for

Parents 8:30-10:00am

April 29, 2017 May Faire at

Birchtree Charter School

May 4, 2017 5th grade

pentathlon

Important Information

Next Monday a online climate survey will be sent to you via email. The survey

is to see what areas Birchtree is doing well in and which areas need improve-

ment. You will have from March 6th to March13th to complete this. It is very

important that each of our families fill this out.

Karneval - Fasching –Fastnacht

It is the 5th season in Germany- the carnival season. Also here at Birtchtree in

German class we are preparing to share this tradition

Carnival in Germany has a long tradition. The first documented Carnival took

place in 1341 in the city of Cologne (Köln). The tradition stems from many pre-

Christian believes which were later influenced by Christianity. Many historic

events have influenced and molded traditions in specific regions. We will cele-

brate a few specific days such as “Weiberfastnacht” and “Rosenmontag Parade”

and focus on Cologne.

Carnival is a calorie heavy time. The traditional dish is “Krapfen” which a yam

filled donut with sugar would come closest too. The end of Carnival marks the

beginning of the fasting time before Easter.

This year our Birchtree Carneval parade will take place on Wednesday March 8

at the end of the day from 2:15 - 3pm. The costume themes for the different

grades are:

1st grade gnomes and fairies

2nd grade Saints and animals

3rd grade gardeners, builders, cooks or characters from stories they read in class

4th grade Vikings, North myth

5th grade Egyptians and Greeks

6th grade Romans and Germanic tribe’s people

7th grade Circus

8th grade Circus

Reminder Items Intent to Return forms will be provided at Parent/Teacher Conferences. There will be no online Intent to Return forms this year. Please be sure to sign and return the Intent to Return Form to each child(ren's) teacher at your scheduled conference. (one per child)

Existing Families with siblings entering Birchtree must complete an Intent to Enroll for the new child entering to be given Sibling Preference. The Intent to Enroll form is up on the website at: www.birchtreecharterschoo.org

Picture day is Tuesday March 7th. At this time Life-touch will be doing individual pictures along with class pictures. Order forms are being sent home today with your students.

Lost and Found will be put out at the front office dur-ing Parent Conferences. Please check the lost and found as all items will be donated to good will on Fri-day March 9 at the end of the conferences.

Hot Lunches and Pizza Days: If you are ordering Hot Lunches or Pizza for your child(ren) please remember to provide a snack for them on those days.

Second Semester Supply Fees are due.

Upper grades Honors Orchestra will be rehearsing Tuesdays at recess this month starting next week and are mandatory for participation in Honors Festi-val. District-wide rehearsals are March 30th and 31st during school. Students will be bused to/from Colony High for these rehearsals. The concert is the evening of March 31st at Colony High School. Information and permission slips will be coming home with your child soon.

Elementary Track

Elementary Track starts April 12, 2017. all 4th and 5th grade students are welcome to participate. Practices will be held on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 3:15 until 4:45PM. All students must be picked up by 4:50 . Thursday Practices will be help from 1:30 until 2:45 PM. The 2017 Track meet will be held May 13, 2017 at Houston High School. Permission slips will be available at the front office the week after spring break.

Thanks,

Coach Andrist and Coach Niekamp

Gratitude's and Expressions

Thank you to Ronnie Blas for coming to the school

early in the morning this week and making sure

that our drive way was “drift free”. We really ap-

preciate you!!

Ms. Phillips would like to thank Norm Straub for coming to our class as a guest chemist and teaching us about Thermodynamics as well as Stephanie Bowen for teaching us how to make soap for our Chemistry block.

Great Job to all the students that participated in class plays this week. You all did an amazing Job.

Parents if you took pictures of any of the class plays please share your pictures for this years yearbook. Please send those to Vanessa.becker@matsuk12.us

German Corner

Carnival 101

The German word for Carnival is “Karneval”. The core of the carnival tradition leads us back into the Middle Ages. In time many different aspects have made it into what Carnival represents to-day. People used to dress up in masks and walk loudly through the streets to hush away the de-mons of winter, which had brought sickness and starvation. The masks were artfully hand carved and handed down for generations. Christianization influenced the tradition. After a long struggle by the church to outlaw Car-nival a compromise was reached. Carnival finally became the last big feast before the 40 days of fasting leading up to Easter. Thus, the local name “Fastnacht” meaning fasting night (the start of fasting) came about. The word Carnival stems from “carne” – meat and “vale” – without (such as vale parking) thus “without meat”.

The city of Cologne made the Carnival into a peace march as soldiers fighting in the 30-year war finally refused to fight and placed red roses into their gun barrels in protest. Still today the strongest Carnival traditions are found around the area of Cologne.

During the Carnival all barriers of status fell (and still fall). Commoners could dress as nobility and mock their lords and kings with no fear of punishment. Today the German Carnival embraces all the different ways of celebrating. Mocking politicians without recourse is one of their favorites.

I need volunteers for:

Handyman project s around the portable, detaching strips of hocks from wall, mounting pencil sharpener etc. Sewing project. I also need donations: Working vacuum cleaner, Bookshelf, 3 yards of blue felt, 2 yards of green felt

Middle School Track

All 6th, 7th and 8th grade students are welcome to join the Birchtree Middle School Track and Field team. The season details are as follows:

Track season begins Monday, April 10th

Practice daily as follows:

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday = 3:30-5:00

Thursday = 1:45-3:15

Meets scheduled for April 25, May 4, May 9 or 11; meet dates are subject to change.

Participants must have a current school physical, a signed participation waiver and pay the district-mandated $60 activity fee BEFORE starting practice on Monday, April 10.

For those who wish to do pre-season conditioning, there will be optional practice starting after Spring Break on Tuesdays (3/27 and 3/3) from 3:30-4:30 and Thursdays (3/23, 3/30, 4/6) from 1:45-2:45. Athletes are strongly encouraged to participate in these pre-season sessions as they will help in-crease fitness and reduce the likelihood of energy during the very brief track season.

I look forward to another great Birchtree Track & Field season!

If you have any questions, contact Heather Lee at 907-232-0660 or hacski@mtaonline.net.

Birchtree Charter t. 907– 745-1831 Friday Update March 3, 2017

March/April 2017

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

5 6 7

School pictures

Birchtree Gym

8

German Karneval

2 pm

9

Parent Teacher

Conferences

No School for

students

10

Parent Teacher

Conferences No

School for students

11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22

Due Date for In-

tent to Return

Forms for current

students

APC meeting 6

PM

23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30

Middle School

Honors Festival

31

Middle School Hon-

ors Festival

1

2 3 4 5 6 7

8th grade leave for

Washington DC

8

*Early Release days are every Thursday at 1:30*

Spring Break