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October 2019

Will L. Lee Elementary Principal: Mr. David Kochan

Dean of Students: Mrs. Heidi Mangune

The month of October continues to be busy at Lee. Staff and

students continue to focus on our True Blue expectations and

earning Blue Tickets. We want all students to succeed in and

out of the classroom.

The teachers have been busy with professional development

with the literacy coaches from the Macomb Intermediate

School District. This allows the teachers and literacy coaches

to have professional conversations regarding instruction and

student learning.

Our Title 1 program welcomes teacher, Mrs. Ronda LaGrois,

who previously taught preschool at Lee. The team has been

working very hard to provide individualized and small group

instruction for students.

The extra-curricular clubs are very busy planning activities and

events. This year’s clubs include Science Olympiad, Green

Club, Student Council, Spanish Club, and Lego Club.

Please be sure to check out the lost and found. There are

many items to be claimed.

The newsletters will be located on the Lee Elementary website

and e-mailed to families.

Please check the school website for the most up-to-date

information.

www.richmond.k12.mi.us

Upcoming Events

November 1 – End of the 1st

Marking Period, ½ day

November 5 – Election Day,

Please Vote

November 6 – PTO meeting

3:00

November 8 – Dentists R Us

Reports Cards Sent Home with

Students

November 20 – PTO meeting

3:00

November 27 – Thanksgiving

Holiday Break Begins

December 2 – Classes Resume

Staff of the Week

Oct. 4 - Mrs. Bollini, speech and

language

Oct. 11 - Ms. Radoicic, 3rd grade

Oct. 18 – Mr. Christmas,

technology support staff

Oct. 25 – Mrs. Walters, 3rd grade

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A Message from Superintendent Walmsley

If you own a home, or know someone who owns a home, over time, repairs and improvements are

inevitable. Whether it’s adding a new roof or replacing a boiler or furnace, fixing cracked

sidewalks and crumbling driveways, or replacing lights and plumbing fixtures. Maybe it is replacing

doors, carpet and flooring because of 20-30 years of wear-and -tear. What if your family size

increases? You may need to build an addition to accommodate more people in the family. A

school is no different, and all of these repairs and improvements cost money.

On November 5th, Richmond Community Schools will be asking the residents, our homeowners, to

consider a $38.71 million dollar bonding proposal to finance improvements to “our home,” which

would increase the School District’s debt millage by approximately 1.45 mills in 2020. This Bond

proposal will enhance the operations of the District as well as address needed classroom space

due to increased enrollment. Every classroom will see improvements to the learning environment

and the overall safety in each building will be addressed.

In an effort to provide the community with factual information about the Bond, the Richmond

Board of Education and Administration have hosted multiple community forums, made

presentations to parents, community organizations, civic groups, Township Boards and City

Council, conducted building tours, hosted community luncheons, mailed detailed Bond

information to residents, and posted a comprehensive list of Bond projects and other Bond

information on the District’s website.

We want to ensure resident’s questions are answered before voting. Please take a minute to

complete a short survey about the Bond proposal so we can make sure all your questions have

been answered as well as gain important feedback on the informational campaign. To take the

survey, please go to the District’s website, www.richmond.k12.mi.us, and click on the survey link.

Voters may vote at the polls on Election Day or any time before then by Absentee Ballot, so

remember to vote on November 5th!

Sincerely,

Brian J. Walmsley, Ed.S.

Superintendent

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Morning Arrival

For the safety of all children and family members, please use the marked crosswalks at each

parking lot.

When it is raining or too cold (feel like temperature of 15 degrees), students will be allowed to

enter the building beginning at 7:35 when staff arrive for supervision.

Physical Education News – Mr. Jim Barnes

With the weather tuning colder, we should all be making sure we (parents and kids alike) still have

time for exercise and play. The benefits of exercise are numerous and awesome!

Did you know it’s ok to exercise outside in cold weather? Take a peek at some of these articles:

Stay safe When Exercising Outside

Benefits of Exercising in Cold Weather

Cold-Weather Exercise

This year at Lee we are going to partner with the American Heart Association and participate in

the KIDS’ HEART CHALLENGE. The Kids Heart Challenge is a fun and exciting event where your

student learns about their heart while helping others by raising money for the American Heart

Association. It prepares your child for success through physical and emotional well-being. Through

Kids Heart Challenge, kids learn jump rope skills, how their heart works and raise money to help kids

with special hearts. Have fun, learn how to stay healthy and make a difference in the lives of

others!

To learn more about the Kid’s Herat Challenge, Click this link. Thanks s much and have a great

day!

STEAM – Mrs. Ann Durst

Kindergarten students are learning about spiders and their webs. They made their own spider

webs, spiders, and wrote one fact about spiders. First grade made catapults last week and tried

to knock down a stack of Dixie cups. This week they had to design and create a haunted house

out of Legos. Second grade students are learning about the bones in their hands by blending art

and science together. They are making an "x-ray" of their hands and then they will compare the

bones in their hands to a mystery animal. Third grade students are designing and building 3D tiny

houses. After learning about the concept behind tiny houses, students got into groups of 2 or 3

and began designing their houses. This project will take the next three class periods to complete.

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Technology News – Mrs. Nicole Boettcher

In the Computer Lab upper grade students have been learning how to read and write code using

the website Hour of Code. This website allows students to think and plan out ways to make their

character move about the computer screen. Through their mistakes they process how to write the

correct code to have the outcome they desire. To some students this is very difficult work. So

when they succeed after multiple attempts I see a lot of proud faces. I tell them the only way you

succeed is to make mistakes and learn from them. When coding the students know that when

they make mistakes they are just that much closer to success. Find the “Hour of Code” link in

upper left corner of my Symbaloo Tree called Mrs. Boettcher’s Mix.

MrsBoettcher.weebly.com

Lego Club – Mrs. Ann Durst

Lego club will start in the month of January and last through the end of February. Flyer will go

home about Lego club in the end of November. FLL Jr. (robotics for grades 2 and 3) will start in

February and run until middle of May. Information about applying to join will go home first week in

December.

Green Club – Advisor Mrs. Ronda LaGrois

Green Club held its first meeting on October 17th. We have about 34 students and are so excited

to get the year started. This year they have BIG plans. This is probably one of the most ambitious

groups we have ever had.

A few of our planned projects:

Collecting Caps: We will be collecting caps again this year. This year we will be collecting them to

have a bench made for the middle school playground and two smaller benches for the courtyard

here at Lee. This is a pretty tall order. In addition to the caps we still have to pay for the items, in

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order to help raise money for this project and other projects that are planned we will be starting

our Nature’s Vision fundraiser again on October 24th. This is the same company that we used last

year and we were very successful.

Animal Habitat: We will be developing a habitat for the birds and bats in the woods located

behind the school. We will be hanging bird feeders, bird houses and bat houses on the trees.

Art Show: Another fundraiser that we are going to do is we are going to have an art show in

February. The students will be making art projects out of recycled materials and then we will be

having a silent auction in February to auction off their art projects.

Paper Dumpster: We continue to recycle paper here at Lee and are hoping to add plastic

recycling soon. We have the paper dumpster located in the staff parking lot by the soccer fields.

Please feel free to use that to recycle paper ONLY. This is also a way for Green Club to raise

money.

These are just a few of the awesome projects we have planned here at Lee school, as we once

again work towards becoming a Macomb County Green School. If you have any questions, or

have a cool green project please contact Mrs. LaGrois at rlagrois@richmond.k12.mi.us.

Lee Elementary Science Olympiad – Head Coach Mrs. Ronda LaGrois

This will be our second year here at Lee with a Science Olympiad team. Science Olympiad is

dedicated to inspiring the next generation of scientists, doctors and engineers, through an extra-

curricular education program that emphasizes a hands-on approach and develops problem-

solving and teamwork skills. Students participate with a partner in 2 or 3 events at two different

tournaments. One tournament in March and one in mid-May. Both of these tournaments are on

Saturdays.

This year I am pleased to announce that we will be having two teams. Our main team will be

composed of those students who competed last year and any new students from grades 4th thru

6th. Our second team will be composed of those who are not sure about science Olympiad, but

want to give it a try and those in grades 2nd and 3rd.

This program is a lot of fun, but does require about 2-3 hours per week of study and preparation

time from January until May. It is also only possible with parental involvement. There are 16 events,

so we need 16 different coaches. It is a fun way to be involved with your child, and help them

develop some great skills.

Our information night will be on November 20th in the Lee School Media Center at 6:30 p.m.

Please be sure to stop by and get more information, talk to some students who did it last year and

also ask any questions you might have. Look forward to seeing you! If you are unable to make the

meeting, please contact Mrs. LaGrois at rlagrois@richmond.k12.mi.us for more information.

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PTO News

The PTO had a successful fundraiser with World’s Finest Chocolate. This is a very important

fundraiser because it supports many events throughout the school year for our students and staff.

Please make sure to turn in any outstanding money due. Thank you to all the families who

participated. Your Support is appreciated!

The fall Arctic Book fair was a lot of fun for the students and teachers to shop around. The PTO

gifted each teacher $50 to spend at the Book fair on books for their classrooms. We were also able

to give Mrs. Rands $500 to supply the library with new books.

Also, in October we celebrated Custodian Day by giving all 5 custodians a $50 gift card. There

are a lot of upcoming events which include:

PTO’s 3rd annual MOM PROM tickets went on sale October 1st.

TRUNK or TREAT - This is a huge gift the PTO gives back to the students with decorated trunks,

candy, games, petting zoo, food, and much more!! We hope your family enjoyed it!

Magic of Science Assembly – was October 24. We heard it was lots of fun.

MSU Farm Lab was during the week of October 28th which is also available for grades

Kindergarten through 5th grade. Remember to ask your children about this.

Canvas Painting will take place at the end of November.

As you can see, the PTO is always busy doing things and we would love for everyone to come join

us at a meeting and help make this a successful school year. The next PTO meeting will be held

Wednesday, November 6th at 3:00 pm in the Lee School Library. Everyone is invited and we would

love to see you there.

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True Blue Assembly

On the last Friday of each month, the PBIS (Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports)

committee has a True Blue assembly. Each teacher picks one boy and one girl who has shown the

PBIS behaviors (Respectful, Responsible, and Safe). Two grade levels meet in the cafeteria and

the teachers recognize the students and explain why the students were chosen. The students

receive a certificate and a bumper sticker. This is another way that Lee Elementary supports the

PBIS program and recognizes student behavior.

School Improvement – Katie VanSledright & Julie Llombart

We went to the ISD for Facilitator's of School Improvement last week. We are working on revising

our School Improvement plan and adding in a goal for PBIS. We're also working on collecting

perception data from staff to guide future PLC's. This year, we'll complete our Program Evaluation

on Balanced Literacy, so we're working to collect more data on the implementation of BL in the

classroom. We meet on November 4th for our next team meeting.

Student Council – Katie VanSledright & Julie Llombart

We met this week for Student Council. We elected our officers for the year. We are starting a

kindness campaign this year and worked to created posters for the hallway as sort of a kick

off. Next month, we'll be working on advertising for our December fundraiser and our Sandy's Kids'

collection. Student Council t-shirts should be in in a week or so.

Spanish Club – Teresa Ranger

We had our first meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 8th. 41 students are officially enrolled in Spanish Club.

We spent time learning "lo me llamo _________", meaning "my name is _________." All students

were given their Spanish name. We also adopted our Club mascot, Juan the puppy (picture

only). We had a mini booklet that explained a variety of Mexican facts and traditions. We had

time to play a game where each team had to find the Spanish phrase that matched the English

phrase.

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

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Will L. Lee is signed up with the

Kroger Community Rewards Program

Please sign up:

Go to www.kroger.com

Go to register if you need to make an account

Or go to sign in if you have an account

Log in, then go to the Community Rewards Tab

Go to the orange tab for the school name

Search for Will L. Lee Elementary #23846

Click that you support us and you are done

Will L. Lee Elementary should show up on the bottom of your

Kroger receipt

Bond Scope for Will L. Lee Elementary

School

New Construction

Pre-K Addition at southeast wing

Four (4) classroom addition at southwest wing

Two (2) classroom addition at northeast wing

Site Work

New parking lot north of building

Remove and replace standard duty asphalt pavement

Remove and replace heavy duty asphalt pavement

New sidewalks at bus drop off

Stormwater - detention

Site work at new additions

Remodeling

Replace roof section 3, 4, 5, and 6

Asbestos abatement

Remove and replace acoustical ceiling tiles and grid

Remove and replace vinyl composite and carpet flooring

In the Community

The Richmond Fire Department

visited Lee Elementary during

Fire Prevention week to talk to

preschool and 2nd grade student

about fire safety and prevention.

The students interacted with the

fire department and learned

what to do in case of a fire. The

students also were able to go in

a fire truck and pictures. Thank

you to the Fire Department for

coming to Lee.

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Replace select pieces of food service equipment

Mechanical Work

Replace office roof top unit with DX cooling

Replace Media Center roof top unit with DX cooling

Replace Computer Room roof top unit with DX cooling

Replace Gym roof top unit with DX cooling

Replace Cafeteria roof top unit with DX cooling

Replace cabinet heaters at entrances

Replace duct mounted coil units

Replace boilers

Provide split system for Classroom 103 and 105

Replace exhaust fans

Rework energy management controls

Electrical

Remove and replace lighting with LED

Remove and replace Gym lighting with LED

Replace clock system

Replace fire alarm system

Replace PA system

Install electric hand dryers

Upgrade service for DX cooling

Install emergency generators for kitchen

Fixtures Furnishings & Equipment

Budget: $107,500

2019 October True Blue Students

1st Grade Annabelle Haas (Constance) Ava-Lynn Hogsett (Kania) Mae Morgan (Ranger) Stella Peitz (Ranger) Palmer Ptach (Dorsey) Ella Reitzloff (Constance) Jacob Rutkofske (Kania) Madelyn Sabens (VanSledright) Blake Schuster (VanSledright) Kaylee Sparby (Dorsey) 2nd Grade Bianca Bole (Hunter) Emma Fradeneck (Goddard) Cody Monte (Goddard) Eden Montufar (Schroeder) Layton Turner (Coenen) Brooke Teschler (Coenen) Juan Vazquez Avila (Hunter) Joseph Zagacki (Schroeder)

3rd Grade Noah Bayle (Walters) Katherine Eovaldi (Barrett) Kenneth Hartono (Studer) Zeena Lowary (Radoicic) Alison Perez-Mendez (Studer) Mark Pringle (Barrett) Michael Stefforia (Radoicic) Isabella Sypniewski (Walters)

Pre School Elena Battani (Ottenbacher/Labish) Taylor Borkowski (Machowski) Kamden Cadreau (English/Ottenbacher) Winter Casey (Ottenbacher/Cella) Elenora Gardner (English/Ottenbacher) Nicholas Lipscomb (Ottenbacher/Cella) Grayson Miron (Thurman) Evelyn Oehmke (Thurman) Jensen Pierce (Spratke) Austin Potter (Machowski) Carter Swartz (Ottenbacher/Labish) Stella Szafranski (Spratke) Kindergarten Grace Allen (Llombart) Logan Hebel (McCoy) Madelyn Hendricks (Gibson) Alondra Huante-Arce (Charlebois) Aiden Kinney (Charlebois) Elliana MacMartin (Stevenson) Justin Pate (Llombart) Caden Rewalt (Stevenson) Chloe Schemanski (McCoy) Tobias Tobin-Ader (Gibson)

#MacombReads

FESTIVAL

November 9, 2019 11am-3pm 11am Opening Kickoff Stephen Clark, WOMC Radio Mark Hackel, Macomb County Executive Macomb Intermediate School District 44001 Garfield Road, Clinton Township

www.misd.net/MacombReadsWith generous support from our partners:Macomb County School Districts, Macomb County, Anton Art Center, Detroit Public TV,Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), United Shore Professional Baseball League (Jimmy John’s Field)

FREE ACTIVITIES! • Celebrity Readers• FREE Children’s Books • Guest Authors• Book Fair• Games and Prizes• Costumed Characters• Art Activities & Face Painting• FREE Cider and Donuts • Food Trucks

1 st Annual

Featuring Stephen Clark WOMC Radio

104.3 FM

Pre-K thru Elementary Students & Families