FUN RUN

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! As a non runner, the only time I would every use Fun and Run in the same sentence is for a PTA function:) This year, we have a lot of "firsts" as we blend school communities and our PTA Fun Run was no exception. For the first time ever, we had our Fun Run in the evening and incorporated glow sticks. It was a wonderful event and our PTA made sure ALL students were included by purchasing a Buchanan t-shirt for every child whether they were able to attend the evening event or not. I was overwhelmed by the participation and support by our Buchanan community and am so grateful for the opportunities this fundraiser provides for our Buchanan students in the form of field trip money, classroom magazines, computer licenses for students and so much more! So many great things happen at our school thanks to our PTA and our supportive community members. Thanks starting our year off on such a positive note!

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Friday, October 6: PTA Skate Night at Riverside Arena 6:00-8:00 PM

Thursday, October 12: PTA General Membership Meeting 7:00 PM (All Buchanan Parents welcome and childcare is provided)

Wednesday, October 18: Students Dismissed at 12:10 PM, Parent Teacher Conferences 1:00-4:00 & 5:00-8:00 PM
Thursday, October 19: Students Dismissed at 12:10 PM, Parent Teacher Conferences 1:00-4:00 & 5:00-8:00 PM

Friday, October 27: PTA Boo Bash 6:00-8:00 PM

MEET THE BUCHANAN STAFF

Mrs. Tanner - Second Grade Teacher

Greetings, Buchanan Families!  I am beyond excited to be a part of Buchanan Elementary this year.  I am teaching 2nd grade and I absolutely love it!  I started my career in Clarenceville in 2000, teaching grades K-6 in a self-contained special education classroom.  I came to Livonia in 2005 and taught in the center program, grades K-6.  

I am married to my husband, Jeff and we have two beautiful children, Ava and Ethan.  Ava is a 1st grader at Hoover and my little guy just started preschool this year.  I love to spend time with my family and friends as often as I can and just enjoy life!  

My goal for this year is to ensure that every child feels loved and appreciated.  I feel strongly about making positive and meaningful relationships with students and parents.  The connection between home and school is so important!

Five words that describe Buchanan:  Welcoming, Enthusiastic, Caring, Fun, and Amazing!

PTA POINTS

• Thank you to everyone who came out to support our Fun Run and thank you to everyone who donated!! It was a huge success.

• We will still be collecting money for the Fun Run through Friday, October 6!! 

• Come join us for Skate Night this Friday night from 6:00-8:00 PM at Riverside Arena.

• Next General Membership meeting will be held on Thursday, October 12 at 7:00 PM

Did you know that all Livonia schools received new student furniture as part of the bond project? All Buchanan classrooms have new student tables, desks and chairs. Classrooms also have an assortment of "flexible seating" like stand up desks for the older students, short tables for working on projects close to the ground, and wiggle stools to help students get movement in while still remaining seated. Every child is unique and our new furniture is one more way we are trying to meet the diverse needs of our learners. Great things are happening at Buchanan! 

PBS

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! By now you have probably heard about our "Three to Be" pledge of being safe, kind, and responsible. You may also have seen a "Top Bear" sticker or heard about classroom celebrations. All these things are part of our Positive Behavior Intervention and Support program or PBS. Each classroom has a color chart where all students start on green and have a visual reminder of how their day is going. The research shows that students should have a 4 to 1 ratio of positive interactions to negative. Our focus is on recognizing positive behavior. You may hear statements such as, "I like the way this classroom walks down the hall" or "Thank you for showing such good manners in the lunch room." The positive statements to one child or class will improve the behavior of those around them. Research also shows that the action word we use with children is what stays in their mind. For example, if I say "Don't run" the word in their mind is run. If I say, "Please walk" the word walk is in their mind and helps them process that into a positive action. PBS is not a new concept and something that has helped students and schools for many years in developing positive and respectful interactions. We also promote our PBS program with a student of the month assembly for each character trait. You'll be hearing and seeing more about that soon. We get what we focus on and at Buchanan, we focus on the positives! 

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Wednesday, September 27: Lifetouch Picture Day (beginning with kindergarten students)

Friday, September 29: PTA FUN RUN 6:30-8:00 PM

Friday, October 6: Skate Night at Riverside Arena 6:00-8:00 PM

Wednesday, October 18: Students Dismissed at 12:10 PM

                                     Parent-Teacher Conferences 1:00-4:00 & 5:00-8:00 PM

Thursday, October 19: Students Dismissed at 12:10 PM

                                     Parent-Teacher Conferences 1:00-4:00 & 5:00-8:00 PM

MEET THE BUCHANAN STAFF

Miss Williams - First Grade Teacher

Hello Buchanan families! I am so excited to be a part of the Buchanan family this year! This is my second year working with Livonia Public Schools. Last year, I was at Cass Elementary School and I also taught first grade there. I absolutely love my job and teaching has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. I am recently engaged and have a cat named Theodore and a dog named Morgan that my students hear about all the time! I love to travel and am a huge Detroit Red Wings fan, Go Wings!

My goal this year is to ensure that all my students feel like they can do anything they set their minds to and that no goal is out of reach for them to achieve. 

Five words that I would use to describe Buchanan are: Loving, Energetic, Safe, Respectful, and Dedicated. 

PTA POINTS

• FUN RUN is this Friday September 29, 6:30-8:30pm!! This is our biggest fundraiser of the year! Join us for our first ever Glow Run- we will have a DJ, Kona Ice, t-shirts for all Buchanan students, glow sticks, bottles of water, photo area- you won't want to miss out on the fun! Our school goal is $15,000 and we still have a ways to go. This money helps fund supplies for classrooms, Raz-kids (Reading A-Z), student magazines used in the classroom, field trips, assemblies, 4th grade celebration,etc. Parents- join in the fun by walking/running with your child- we will have K-2 run from 7:00-7:30 and 3-4 from 7:30-8:00pm. Shirts will be sent home on Thursday- we encourage all kids to wear theirs to the event. 

• Reminder- our PTA membership drive is ending on September 29. Membership is accepted all year long but if you want a chance to win 1 of (4) $25 Target gift cards, please send in your membership form and payment by this date. Please make checks payable to Buchanan PTA for membership and Fun Run donations. 

Did you know that safety is our first job at Buchanan? One of the safety procedures that Buchanan and other LPS schools have in place is visitor check-in at the office. Once the morning bell rings, all adult visitors and volunteers should check in at the office. If a person is volunteering, they simply need to sign-in on our visitor sheet and get a visitor sticker. This allows all our staff and students to know that you have checked in at the office. We love our volunteers at Buchanan and appreciate all they do. By following our safety protocols, we can be welcoming to our visitors and volunteers and still keep all our students safe. Thank you for your continued support. Great things are happening at Buchanan! 

Celebrate Monday!

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! If you haven't heard from your child yet, we start each week at Buchanan with an all-school assembly called "Celebrate Monday". Each Monday after the students come into their classrooms, we enter into the gym for a special meeting. At the meeting, the student announcers lead us in our Pledge of Allegiance and our "3 To Be" Pledge. We talk about ways we can be safe, be kind, and be responsible. Then we talk about our theme for the month. This month we are focusing on respect and how we can be respectful to one another. Finally, we watch a short video about our theme or other fun activity. The entire assembly lasts about 20 minutes, but it kicks our week off on a positive note and sets the stage for positive behavior all week long. So if your child comes home and says TGIM, you'll know it's because we Celebrate Mondays at Buchanan!

Our very first Celebrate Monday assembly at Buchanan! 

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Thursday, September 21: PTA Meeting in the Library 7:00 PM (childcare is provided)

Wednesday, September 27: Lifetouch Picture Day
Friday, September 29: PTA Fun Run 6:30-8:00 PM

Wednesday, October 18: Parent Teacher Conferences (Students dismissed at 12:10 PM)
Thursday, October 19: Parent Teacher Conferences (Students dismissed at 12:10 PM)

Meet the Buchanan Staff

Mrs. Stromberg - Kindergarten Teacher

I am one of Buchanan's kindergarten teachers.  I've been working with young kids for as long as I remember.  I can't imagine a doing anything else as a career.   I am a wife, my husband is the principal of Holmes Middle School, we've been married for 30 years.  I am a mom of four, I have 2 daughters and two sons.  My daughter, Annie is an event planner,  she plans parties for a living!  (How great is that.)  My eldest son, Eric is in medical school, he is recently married so our family now has two Anna Strombergs. Benjamin my third, is a scientist at OSU.  My youngest daughter Kate, goes to school with her dad at Holmes she is an eighth grader.    

My personal goal this is year is to drink more water and in my classroom goal is to utilize flexible seating!  

5 words to describe Buchanan: Fun, Friends, Forest, Fantastic, and Family

PTA Points

• Our first General Membership PTA meeting will be Thursday, September 21 at 7:00 PM in the Library. Everyone is welcome and childcare will be provided!

• The first session of Nuts about Science is full. We are pleasantly surprised with the amount of interest due to the company's new format of 7 week sessions. We are looking into the possibility of adding another session in the future. 

• Clipping Box Tops is an easy way to help earn cash for our school. Each one is worth 10¢ for our school! Just look for the pink Box Tops on hundreds of products. All you have to do is clip them and send them to school.

 For more information on Box Tops, including a list of participating products, go to BTFE.com . 

Class that collects the most Box Tops by October 20th will earn a PIZZA PARTY! Thanks for your help!

• The Fun Run is the PTA’s biggest fundraiser of the year.  This year we are inviting the whole family to join in the fun for our first ever family fun GLOW run. The run will take place on the back playground on Friday, September 29th from 6:30-8:00 p.m.

The Fun Run promotes health and fitness to our students while helping us reach our budget goals. Please help us reach our fundraising goal by supporting our Fun Run!

Please help your child reach the individual student goal of $50. That’s just five $10 pledges!

Our total school goal is $15,000.

Register your child for our Fun Run by visiting http://www.thegetmovincrew.com/

Did you know that Buchanan Elementary has a "Buddy Bench"? The bench was purchased by our PTA and intended to help students make friends and learn to be a buddy. If a child is lonely or wants someone to play with, they can simply sit on the bench. This signals to other children that someone is in search of a playmate or a friend during recess time. It's something that really promotes kindness and helps us meet our "3 to Be" of being Safe, Kind, and Responsible. Great things are happening at Buchanan! 

The Wild West

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! The first week of school sure went by quickly. I really enjoyed meeting all the Buchanan students and families and I know our teachers did as well. As much as we prepare and organize the school, the real magic doesn't happen until the students walk in the door. Seeing the excitement on their faces and hearing their positive voices all week long was an amazing experience! This week we learned routines for arrival, dismissal, lunch room and recess. Each day was better than the last. I know next week will be even smoother!

Next week we have two special events going on at Buchanan. We have our Scholastic Book Fair going on all week and we have our annual Curriculum Night and Open House. Our Book Fair theme this year is "The Wild West" and students will have an opportunity to browse the selections and an opportunity to purchase. It will also be accessible during our Curriculum Night and Open House event.  Make sure to check it out when you come!

 Thank you to our fantastic Book Fair volunteers!!

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Monday, September 11 - Friday, September 15: Scholastic Book Fair

Thursday, September 14: Curriculum Night & Open House 6:00-7:30 PM

• 6:00-6:30 PM Curriculum Night for Grades K-2 in the classrooms (older students will be supervised on the playground)
• 6:30-7:00 PM Open House for ALL grades (parents & students invited into classrooms)
• 7:00-7:30 PM Curriculum Night for Grades 3&4 in the classrooms (younger students will be supervised on the playground)
• We ask that only school-aged students attend the event. Thank You!

Thursday, September 21: PTA General Membership Meeting 7:00 PM

Wednesday, September 27: Lifetouch Picture Day
Friday, September 29: PTA FUN RUN 6:30-8:00 PM

Click on the link below to see the Buchanan feature in the Livonia Observer!

Back To School Article

MEET THE BUCHANAN STAFF

Kristen Blazek - Elementary Support Teacher (EST)

Hello Buchanan families!  I am the Elementary Support Teacher.  At Buchanan, I wear many different hats.  I help children with health issues, academic, social emotional and behavioral challenges.  I have been at Buchanan for 22 years.  I started off as a teacher and have taught grades K, 1, 2,4 and 6.  I am married to Jeff and I have 2 children, Ashley and Dalton.  I also have a very energetic dog named Diezel.  I am a huge Michigan State fan.  Go Green!

My goal for this year is to make everyone feel safe and welcome!  I love getting to know and working with the children individually or in a small group setting. 

5 words to describe Buchanan: Caring, dedicated, safe, kind and nurturing.

ONLINE PAYMENT PROCESS AND LUNCH ACCOUNT ACCESS HAS CHANGED 

**PARENT CONNECT CAN NO LONGER BE UTILIZED TO VIEW OR ADD MONEY TO YOUR STUDENT’S ACCOUNT
To do so, please go to: www.mypaymentsplus.com  Use this service to: • Check account balances online • Make payments using a credit card, debit card, or e-check • Auto-pay your student’s account when it reaches a low balance threshold • Monitor cafeteria purchase history and receive low balance alerts

PTA POINTS

Parents- we have many free money programs that will help raise money for our school!

• Kroger- please link your Kroger Plus card to Buchanan. Your community rewards program expires every June, so please renew or sign up for the first time

• Busch's- please link your card to Buchanan

• Amazon Smile- please use this link when shopping with Amazon, http://smile.amazon.com/ch/38-2618912. We will earn money for our school.

• Box Tops- will be collected throughout the year. Please send in Box Tops in a sealed baggie or envelope with student name, teacher name and grade. We will have two contests, the class with the highest amount of Box Tops turned in will win a pizza party from the PTA!

• Looking for help planning your next Disney vacation? One of our parents, Kelly Petit can help! She has kindly offered to give a portion of her commission back to the PTA! Please check out the site and see how we involve the kids in the planning process.

http://www.kellyamouseexpert.com

 or contact us directly

at 1-734-620-3260 or kpetit@themouseexperts.com 

Interested in ordering Buchanan spirit wear? Please click on this link, www.buchananspiritwear.com to order. All orders will be sent directly to your house! There will be free shipping weeks available throughout the year. 

We have many volunteer opportunities still available, please click on the sign up genius link, http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0e44a4ae2ca1f94-volunteer, if you are interested. 

We are looking for volunteers for our Fall Book Fair, September 11-15. We will be open for shopping on September 14 for curriculum night. If you would like to help, please click here http://tinyurl.com/BuchananWildWest

The Fun Run is the PTA’s biggest fundraiser of the year.  This year we are inviting the whole family to join in the fun for our first ever family fun GLOW run. The run will take place on the back playground on Friday, September 29th from 6:30-8:00 p.m.

The Fun Run promotes health and fitness to our students while helping us reach our budget goals. Please help us reach our fundraising goal by supporting our Fun Run!

Please help your child reach the individual student goal of $50. That’s just five $10 pledges!

Our total school goal is $15,000.

Register your child for our Fun Run by visiting http://www.thegetmovincrew.com/

Did you know that Buchanan teachers donate money each Friday when they wear jeans? Teachers pay $1 each week for the opportunity to wear jeans and that money is then collected for a student assistance fund for Buchanan families in times of need or for other service projects. We are currently looking at using our funds for hurricane relief efforts. Friday Jean Day is a way for our staff to have fun while still serving a good cause. Great things are happening at Buchanan!