Music of the Season

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! Last week, we had an amazing Winter Concert with our 3rd and 4th grade students. If you attended, you know what an incredible job our students did! I would like to thank all our staff that helped, our custodial crew for setting up, and most of all Mr. Turner and Mr. Stromberg who made it such a special event. I'm excited to see what our kindergarten, first, and second grade students do for our spring concert! Our Buchanan students sure have a lot of talent!

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Monday, December 16: Students of the Month Assembly (Empathy)

Friday, December 20: Winter Break begins after school

Monday, January 6: School Resumes!

PTA POINTS

• Thank you to everyone who volunteered at our Holiday Shop! We love being able to provide this opportunity to Buchanan students, and we wouldn't be able to do it without your help.

• We surveyed our amazing staff about some of their favorite things in an effort to make your lives a little easier this holiday season. Please see the Staff Favorites document attached to Mr. Wennstrom's email for their responses. Our staff work hard to enrich our children's lives and deserve to be treated to some of their favorite things!

• Did you know you can support the Buchanan PTA when you shop on Amazon? Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases to the charitable organization of your choice through the AmazonSmile program. To make sure we get credit for your Amazon purchases, follow these steps:

1. Visit smile.amazon.com

2. Search for James Buchanan Elementary PTA.

3. Select James Buchanan Elementary PTA as your charitable organization.

4. Start shopping!

5. For your future Amazon shopping trips, start at smile.amazon.com (it is the SAME as shopping on amazon.com, aside from the charitable contribution!)

• The Livonia PTSA Council is holding its 6th Annual PTA Dads Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, January 18, 2020 at Franklin High School. This cook-off is open to dads, grandpas, uncles, etc. who are PTA members. The winning chili-maker will take home a "dad-centric" prize package as well as a $500 grant for the school they are representing. We would love to have some dads (or grandpas, uncles, older brothers, etc.) representing Buchanan this year! Please see the flyer attached to Mr. Wennstrom's email for more information and an entry form.

PARKING PROCEDURES

For the safety of all, please make sure when you pick up your child at the end of the day that you park in a designated parking spot.  Parking along the side of the drive or in non-designated spots can cause a traffic backup and pose a danger to pedestrians.  Thank you for your cooperation and help in keeping our Buchanan students safe!

#BuchananBears

We will be serving Cheese-stuffed Breadsticks instead of Popcorn Chicken on Friday, Dec. 20

Did you know that we have a VERY special performance from the Stevenson High School Choir? On Friday, they came to Buchanan and performed a concert for our students. It was such a delight and many of our students said they hoped to sing in the choir when they were older. Ask your child about the event! Great things are happening at Buchanan! 

All Hands on Deck

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! For the past several years, I have been very active in the Michigan Elementary & Middle School Principals Association (MEMSPA). After serving four years on the board of directors, I decided to run for the president of the organization. This year, I am serving as the president-elect and will begin my term as president on July 1. It's an honor to serve at the state level and connect with administrators from across Michigan. However, I could not serve in this role without the support of the district and our amazing Buchanan team. Each year, when I attend the annual conference, the staff pulls together and keeps things running smoothly while I am gone. It's such a blessing to have a team that demonstrates such leadership and initiative. Thank you to the Buchanan team and thank you to the Buchanan community for all your support!

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Monday, December 9: Santa Shop Opens! 

                                     iReady Reading & Math Testing begins

Thursday, December 12: 3rd/4th Grade Winter Concert 6:00-8:00 (Santa Shop Open)

Friday, December 13: Santa Shop Closes

                                    Report Cards go home

Friday, December 20: iReady Reading & Math Testing ends

                                    Winter Break starts after school!

The 3rd/4th Grade Winter Concert will be this Thursday, December 12. The 3rd grade concert will be at 6:00 PM and the 4th grade concert will be at 7:00 PM. Each concert will last about 40 minutes and students should be in their classrooms 15 minutes prior to the performance.  After the first performance, the gym will be cleared and families can pick up their child at the classroom and then the 4th grade families will enter the gym for the second performance. The Santa Shop will be open from 6:00-8:00 PM, so families can shop while their child is not performing. 

PTA POINTS

• The Buchanan Holiday Shop will be open this week (from December 9th through 13th). Packets including classroom shopping dates and times, as well as envelopes for sending in money, were sent home last week. VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED to run the Holiday Shop!!! Please visit the following link to sign up for a time slot: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f054aa8af23a7f94-holiday1

• The Holiday Shop will also be open on Thursday, December 12 from 6:00 to 8:00pm during and in between the 3rd and 4th grade concerts. All are welcome to attend this opportunity to visit our Holiday Shop after school hours! 

• Our next Riverside Skating Night is Friday, December 13 from 6:00 to 8:00pm. Admission is $6.50 and includes a regular skate rental (premium rental or inline skate rental is an additional $3.00). We hope to see you there!

• We surveyed our amazing staff about some of their favorite things in an effort to make your lives a little easier this holiday season. Please see the Staff Favorites document attached to Mr. Wennstrom's email for their responses. Our staff work hard to enrich our children's lives and deserve to be treated to some of their favorite things!

• Did you know you can support the Buchanan PTA when you shop on Amazon? Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases to the charitable organization of your choice through the AmazonSmile program. To make sure we get credit for your Amazon purchases, follow these steps:

1. Visit smile.amazon.com

2. Search for James Buchanan Elementary PTA.

3. Select James Buchanan Elementary PTA as your charitable organization.

4. Start shopping!

5. For your future Amazon shopping trips, start at smile.amazon.com (it is the SAME as shopping on amazon.com, aside from the charitable contribution!)

• The Livonia PTSA Council is holding its 6th Annual PTA Dads Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, January 18, 2020 at Franklin High School. This cook-off is open to dads, grandpas, uncles, etc. who are PTA members. The winning chili-maker will take home a "dad-centric" prize package as well as a $500 grant for the school they are representing. We would love to have some dads (or grandpas, uncles, older brothers, etc.) representing Buchanan this year! Please see the flyer attached to Mr. Wennstrom's email for more information and an entry form.

#BuchananBears #MEMSPA19

Did you know that MEMSPA has over 1200 members across the state and nearly half of them attend the annual conference each December? It's an opportunity for educational leaders to share ideas, solve problems, and help one another grow to help schools and students throughout Michigan. Many of us attend a summer learning institute as well. Great things are happening at Buchanan and across Michigan! 

Empathy

Hi folks, Jon Wennstrom here! It's hard to believe that December is already here. With a new month, we have a new character trait focus. This month, we will be focusing on the theme of Empathy. Our goal is to help students learn how to see things from the perspective of others and "put themselves in someone else's shoes". This is an important skill and we thought that the holiday seaso: n was a good time to practice it. We hope you and your family enjoy this short week as students have the day off on Friday, due to records day!

UPCOMING EVENTS AT BUCHANAN

Friday, December 6: No School for Elementary Students (Records day for teachers)

Thursday, December 12: Winter Concert for Grade 3 at 6:00 PM & Grade 4 at 7:00 PM

Friday, December 13: Report Cards go Home with Students, Skate Night at Riverside 6:00-8:00

PTA POINTS

• The Buchanan Holiday Shop will be open from December 9th through 13th, with evening shopping available on Thursday, December 12 from 6:00 to 8:00pm. 

• VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED to run the Holiday Shop!!! Please visit the following link to sign up for a time slot: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f054aa8af23a7f94-holiday1

• Did you know you can support the Buchanan PTA when you shop on Amazon? Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases to the charitable organization of your choice through the AmazonSmile program. To make sure we get credit for your Amazon purchases, follow these steps:

1. Visit smile.amazon.com

2. Search for James Buchanan Elementary PTA.

3. Select James Buchanan Elementary PTA as your charitable organization.

4. Start shopping!

5. For your future Amazon shopping trips, start at smile.amazon.com (it is the SAME as shopping on amazon.com, aside from the charitable contribution!)

• The Livonia PTSA Council is holding its 6th Annual PTA Dads Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, January 18, 2020 at Franklin High School. This cook-off is open to dads, grandpas, uncles, etc. who are PTA members. The winning chili-maker will take home a "dad-centric" prize package as well as a $500 grant for the school they are representing. We would love to have some dads representing Buchanan this year! Please see the flyer attached to Mr. Wennstrom's email for more information and an entry form.

Did you know that our Santa Shop will be running all week from Monday, December 9 through Friday, December 13? We will have evening hours during the 3/4 Winter Concert as well on Thursday, December 12 from 6:00-8:00 PM. If you can help out, we would really appreciate your time as a volunteer! Great things are happening at Buchanan!