Bear Facts

Email: billingsm@usd231.com
Website: https://www.usd231.com/o/madison
Location: 800 W Madison St, Gardner, KS, United States
Phone: (913) 856-0400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MadisonElementaryBears/
Twitter: @MDEBears

Monday, September 5 - No School, Labor Day

Tuesday, September 6 - Spirit Store Sales Close

Tuesday, September 6 - PTA Meeting, 7 pm - Madison Cafeteria

Friday, September 9 - PTA Fundraiser Ends

Madison Elementary Lunch Menu

Just a reminder... Weekly balance reminders are sent to families whose students' account balances fall below zero due to purchases.

In an effort to avoid classes missing the same special on days of the week due to not being in session, we will continue to utilize a specials schedule that is on a 5-day rotation versus a day of the week rotation. Having this rotation, we will avoid the same specials always being on the same day of the week and avoid not having specials due to days off or snow days.

For a specific class schedule, please refer to the classroom information provided by the classroom teacher.

Monday - No School

Tuesday - Specials Day #2

Wednesday - Specials Day #3

Thursday - Specials Day #4

Friday - Specials Day #5

This year, students will have the opportunity to earn Bear Points for a variety of reasons - being ready to learn, taking care of others, taking care of themselves, taking care of this place, demonstrating great effort... Students can then redeem these Bear Points for a variety of individual rewards. We are also tracking these Bear Points as a school and the entire school will earn a reward for every 10,000 Bear Points earned. After 2 weeks of keeping track of Bear Points, we have earned 15,884 Bear Points. So the first school-wide reward is an extra recess next week!

These Bear Points are a way for students to be recognized and it allows us to track the positive interactions between students and staff members. We view these Bear Points as over 15,884 positive interactions with our students in the first two weeks!

Additionally, we recognized students who have demonstrated outstanding attendance (missing zero or one day in August. A partial absence is considered an absence and factors into this calculation). The students who met this criterion all signed their names on our ROAR (Recognizing Outstanding Attendance Recipients) Board. These students also received a certificate for outstanding regular attendance. Each month, we will recognize students who miss one or fewer days of school in these manners. We thank you for your support in getting our Bears to school when they are feeling well enough to come and learn.

Each month, students are recognized for displaying our three building-wide expectations: take care of yourself, take care of others, and take care of this place. Congratulations to the August recipients!

Wrennyn, Madison, Carter, Amiya, Lake, Avery, Izaih, Cash, Syphax, and Wyatt.

The doors officially open at 8:00 am. Please do not arrive prior to 8:00 as there are no staff members on duty until that time. Thank you for your assistance so we can work to keep all of our students safe.

This week, several students received positive office referrals for taking care of themselves, taking care of others, and taking care of this place. We are proud of these outstanding Bears!

Tuesday, September 6 is our first PTA meeting of the school year. The meeting will be held at 7 pm in the cafeteria and childcare will be provided. We hope to see you there!

Kansas statute has required every school seeking accreditation have a building site council (BSC). Our site council meets quarterly in a virtual format via zoom for about 30 minutes to discuss school events, the school improvement plans, and provide a lens in our pursuit of continual improvement. If you are interested in being a member of the Madison Site Council, please email Dr. Wachel, wachelm@usd231.com. If we have a large number of parents interested in being a part of the site council, a random drawing will occur to select our members. The Site Council will meet virtually on the following days:

Monday, October 10 @ 4:00 pm

Monday, December 5 @ 4:00 pm

Monday, February 6 @ 4:00 pm

Monday, April 3 @ 4:00 pm

If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Wachel.

Last Friday was the official kickoff of our annual PTA fundraiser! Your child should have come home with a packet of information and catalogs.

A few reminders:

• All fundraiser packets are due Friday, September 9th!
• Fundraising ordering is available online (with FREE shipping for orders over $75)
• All perishable items will be delivered to the school and NOT to the buyer’s home address.
• Pickup date and times will be announced soon!

With that being said, we realize that buying and selling items isn’t for every family, so the PTA is offering a fundraising opt-out option for those families who want to support the vital programs and events that the PTA provides, without having to solicit friends and family members. In order to meet our budget commitments, we are suggesting a minimum $20 donation for each student who chooses to not participate in the fundraiser, though any amount is greatly appreciated! Donation checks can be made payable to “Madison Elementary PTA”, marked with “donation” on the memo line and sent to school with your child.

Thank you all for being such an integral part of Madison Elementary! We cannot achieve our goals without the help of our amazing MDE Families.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

-Madison PTA

Students can also earn prizes by completing the following steps.

It's as simple as 1, 2, 3!

1. Register TONIGHT at www.ShopFund.com
2. Share custom support links with family & friends via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Email, Text and more.
3. Student Goal: 5 Online Supporters.

REGISTER-SHARE-WIN: Sharing gets you tickets for chances to win over $100,000 in instant prizes.

Fundraiser Links:

• Kick-Off Videos - (https://vimeo.com/showcase/9642599)
• Parent Letter - (https://bit.ly/3Qo42jj )
• Prize Program - (https://bit.ly/3PDuDbR )

On behalf of myself, the staff at Madison Elementary School, and our Madison PTA, we thank you for doing your part to make our fundraiser a success.

Each year, our students take assessments as part of their educational experience this school year. This list includes district or state assessments in which your student may be asked to participate; however, standard classroom assessments are not listed. Additionally, administration of these assessments may vary by student based on individual needs. For a list of the assessments as well as the description, please see the link below.

State and District Assessments

We know many families are experiencing financial challenges so we wanted to make sure everyone is aware of some of the awesome resources in our community! Please contact Mrs. Hodson, school social worker, if you would like additional resources, more information or to utilize any of these resources.

Joy Closet-

975 E. Lincoln Lane, Gardner

Hours: Mon 10-7, Tues 10-7, Wed 10-4, Thurs 10-7, Sat 10-2

This is a low cost thrift store in Gardner and they have generously provided us with vouchers for FREE clothing, shoes, linens, books, and small household items. Each voucher is good for 20 items of clothes, shoes, and bedding PLUS 10 books per household! If you would like a voucher, please email Mrs. Hodson at hodsonj@usd21.com.

Sleep in Heavenly Peace-

This is an organization of amazing volunteers in Gardner who build, assemble, and deliver top-notch bunk beds and new bedding to children and families in need.

BackSnacks-

Harvesters’ BackSnack program provides a weekly sack filled with nutritious, child-friendly food for school children to take home over the weekend throughout the school year. Mrs. Hodson will deliver these to students at the end of the day on Fridays, putting them straight in their backpacks. We will start this in October so please sign up your children by emailing Mrs. Hodson at hodsonj@usd21.com.

Hope Market-

This is an awesome food pantry in Gardner!

233 E Main St., Gardner

Hours: Tuesdays 5pm-8pm; Saturdays 9am-12pm

They don’t have any requirements other than to have a need for food.

Internet Aid-

Information for eligible KS families to receive internet aid.

See additional USD 231 Family Resources

Thanks to our PTA, every student will receive a t-shirt on Meet the Teacher Night. If families want to purchase a matching shirt or sweatshirt, they can use this link through September 6.

Our year-round spirit store will be running a special on all purchases. To visit this store, please visit this link.

• Sale Dates: August 8th - September 6th
• Savings: 30% savings sitewide. Free shipping over $60. No coupon code necessary.

The Madison Elementary health room is available if your child becomes ill or injured while at school. Please familiarize yourself with the USD 231 Parent Handbook with details of our Health Services guidelines and procedures. Kansas law requires all students to have on file evidence of required immunizations prior to attending school. The Medication Authorization Form must be completed and signed by the parent or guardian for all medications given at school. It is recommended that medication NOT be sent to school with children. Parents should bring the medication to the health room (8:15 am to 3:45 pm).

A student will be sent home from school with any of the following:

• Temperature 100 degrees or greater, or with incidents of vomiting and/or diarrhea.
• Symptoms related to a possible communicable disease.
• Excessive drainage from eyes, ears, persistent earache, constant cough, or painful sore throat with enlarged lymph nodes.
• Students with acute infectious disease or parasite

Mrs. Angie Serrano, Madison Elementary’s Health Room Nurse, is available to answer any additional questions you might have and you may contact her directly at 856-0450.

Birthday treats can still be brought to school and we encourage them to be store-bought or pre-packaged items (think Little Debbie type snacks) to help our students celebrate in a safe and healthy way. In addition, the USD 231 Nutrition Services department offers birthday catering options. Please see the image above or this link for more information about these services.

Did you know your Amazon purchases can benefit the PTA? AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon with the same products, prices, and shopping features as Amazon.com. The difference is that when you shop on AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price of eligible products to the charitable organization of your choice. Simply go to smile.amazon.com and select Madison Elementary Gardner to find our school!

Hello MDE families! We’re looking forward to the return of our Bears for the 2022-23 school year!

Madison Elementary PTA Executive Board Officers

President: Leah Bates

Vice-President: Jessica Grimes

Treasurer: Heather Musselman

Secretary: Andrea Satterfield

Membership Chair: Diane Owen

Madison Elementary PTA Meeting Dates 9/6, 10/3, 11/14, 12/12, 1/9, 2/13, 3/20, 4/10, and 5/1. All meetings will occur in the Madison cafeteria at 7 pm

Email us at: Madisonbearpta@gmail.com Like us on Facebook "Madison Elementary PTA Gardner, KS"

Interested in the Madison PTA Happenings? Stay in the know!

We invite everyone to join the Madison PTA Facebook page. By searching Madison Elementary PTA Gardner, KS under Pages, you will be able to join the group and receive updated PTA information.

If you are interested in joining the PTA, please see the membership form.

Nominate a Deserving Student or Employee Today!!!

The GESD recognition program has been established to recognize students and employees who exceed expectations.

"Gardner Edgerton Students of Distinction" (GESD) nominees can be any current student in the Gardner Edgerton School District who exemplifies traits of outstanding character and serves as a positive influence on their peers and the community-at-large.

"Great Employees Serving the District" (GESD) nominees can be any certified or classified employee in the Gardner Edgerton School District who exemplifies traits of outstanding customer service and is a positive influence on students, parents, co-workers or members of the community. The award will be presented on a weekly basis.

Answers to a few questions you may have:

• Nominations from previous years have been removed from the database.

• Even if a student or staff member has been selected as a GESD in previous years, they are again eligible.

  
  

We will recognize our first student and staff member sometime in September. This will allow time for nominations to be submitted.

Nominate a deserving STUDENT by clicking HERE.

Nominate a deserving EMPLOYEE by clicking HERE.

Little Blazer Cheer Clinic -- Students in Grades K - 6 grade

GEYCP Theater Academy Presents: High School Musical Jr -- Students in Grades 5-8 grade

Youth Experience: Volleyball with the GEHS Blazers -- Students in Pre-K-2nd grade

Youth Experience: Basketball with the GEHS Blazers -- Students in Pre-K-2nd grade

GEHS Boys Fall Basketball Academy -- Students in 3-8th grade

GEHS Girls Fall Basketball Academy -- Students in 3-8th grade

Fall 2022 USD 231 Driver Education – Students must be 14 years of age on or before September 17.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter - @MDEBears and on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/MadisonElementaryBears. We will use our twitter and facebook accounts to share information, pictures, and classroom happenings throughout the school year so you can have a window into the classrooms and experience the learning with your bear.