Notes from the Director

Good Evening Families!

As we prepare for our Celebration of Learning this Wednesday, November 2Oth, we reflect on the mission of Gate City and the purpose and power of arts integration to impact education and our students for the better. Arts integration provides a range of benefits for our individual students, our community of learners, and even our school staff. It helps students develop critical thinking skills, foster creativity, and improve problem-solving abilities. It inspires engagement, retention, and deeper understanding. For our community, it establishes a platform for empathy, courage, communication, and respect. And for our teachers, it provides an environment where they collaborate, innovate, and respond to the needs and personalities of their individual classes. We are thrilled to show you all of the amazing things they have been creating!

Items of Interest:

CELEBRATION OF LEARNING: November 20th at 5:30-7pm we will be holding our first-of-the-year, Celebration of Learning! This is an event open to families. Classrooms will be open. Student work will be on display. The Arts will be highlighted. And we will celebrate all that makes Gate City Charter School the unique, wonderful, exceptional learning community that it is! We encourage every family to attend. The event will be “open house” style, so come when you can and stay as long as you're able. There will be a community art piece to contribute to and activities to take part in throughout the school.

THANKSGIVING FOOD AND SUPPLY DRIVE: November 8th-22nd bring your donations of non-perishable food items, or any of the following: cleaning supplies, toilet paper, laundry detergent, and food safe sanitizer wipes, to Gate City’s lobby by November 22nd. Donations will go to the local Beech Street Shelter and Engagement Center.

PHOTO UPDATE: Retakes are being held on THIS Friday, November 22nd. Photos taken on Retake Day are expected for delivery on December 18th. Questions or need further information about retakes, packages, or ordering? Please see the attached letter or contact Amanda at gibbyimages@gmail.com.

PARENT’S NIGHT OUT: December 7th the 8th Grade is hosting a Parent’s Night Out to fundraise for the 8th Grade Trip in the spring. Children 3 and over will be entertained, cared for, and fed at the school between the hours of 4pm and 9pm. Children ages 3 and older who are potty trained are welcome to attend. Adults will be there to guide and support. These fundraisers are crucial to supporting the 8th Grade’s end-of-year experiences. Please consider supporting them and giving yourself a night out! See the attached flier for even more details. Please register your children HERE - https://forms.gle/Jq2aSJaZSU5yLfth9 

Our HOLIDAY SHOP is almost here!!!!  Shopping December 6th and 9th! ITEMS AND VOLUNTEERS STILL NEEDED:

• VOLUNTEER: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A49A5AB22A5FDCF8-52564121-holiday
• DONATE: We are in need of many more items to sell. We often sell out of items and want every child to have the same fun opportunity to shop! Below is the link to an Amazon wishlist for suggestions of items that would sell well. However, we are absolutely open to other donations! Donations should be clearly marked and dropped in the Front Office. https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3D0UVJAU06RRU?ref_=wl_share

Have an extraordinary LIKE YOU week! Hope to see you Wednesday!

Onward and upward ALWAYS!

Jenn Blanchette

Director, GCCSA

Good Evening Gate City!

In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a decree establishing November 11th as Veterans Day, expanding the recognition to include veterans of all wars, and it's been commemorated ever since. James Allen once said, “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.” The power and importance of gratitude is recognized and valued today and every day at Gate City. 

In a month noted for gratitude, we are especially thankful for our school volunteers. A special thank you to everyone who was involved in our Scholastic Book Fair. We met and exceeded our Scholastic Book Fair fundraising goal, and our teachers have already been purchasing books for our classrooms with our proceeds. 

Here are some important details about our upcoming activities and opportunities to get involved in making Gate City magic happen:

THANKSGIVING FOOD AND SUPPLY DRIVE: November 8th-22nd bring your donations of non-perishable food items, or any of the following: cleaning supplies, toilet paper, laundry detergent, and food safe sanitizer wipes, to Gate City’s lobby by November 22nd. Donations will go to the local Beech Street Shelter and Engagement Center.

CELEBRATION OF LEARNING: November 20th at 5:30-7pm we will be holding our first-of-the-year, Celebration of Learning! This is an event open to families. Classrooms will be open. Student work will be on display. The Arts will be highlighted. And we will celebrate all that makes Gate City Charter School the unique, wonderful, exceptional learning community that it is! We encourage every family to attend. The event will be “open house” style, so come when you can and stay as long as you're able. There will be a community art piece to contribute to and activities to take part in throughout the school.

PHOTO UPDATE: September’s school photos are expected on November 15th, with retakes being held on November 22nd. Photos taken on Retake Day are expected for delivery on December 13th. Questions? gibbyimages@gmail.com 

HOLIDAY SHOP DONATIONS:  One of the most successful and exciting fundraisers every year! Families donate a variety of small gifts like mugs, picture frames, toys, household items, homemade crafts and so forth to be used as shop “inventory”. Then, students shop for their families with a budget and the help of volunteers and wrap their gifts! The shoppers are bubbling over with JOY! It’s simply magical! This year shopping will take place on December 6th and 9th.

• VOLUNTEER: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A49A5AB22A5FDCF8-52564121-holiday
• DONATE: We are in need of many more items to sell. We often sell out of items and want every child to have the same fun opportunity to shop! Our biggest inventory needs are things geared to male relatives, pet items, candles, hobby themed items (sports, gardening, reading, cooking). We also need tissue paper, gift tags, and gift bags of all sizes to make it easier for the volunteers helping to wrap the purchases. Below is the link to an Amazon wishlist for suggestions of items that would sell well. However, we are absolutely open to other donations! Donations should be clearly marked and dropped in the Front Office. https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3D0UVJAU06RRU?ref_=wl_share

We are grateful for all of you! Have a joyful week!

Onward and Upward!

Jenn Blanchette

Good Morning Gate City!

I hope you all had just a little bit of extra sleep this weekend with the changing of the clocks. Firstly, I just want to say thank you for all of the hard work that went into last week’s Fall Festival. Fun was had by all, including me! Our community is the BEST!

You will often hear me praise our community. However, a community like ours requires a lot of hard work. Sometimes that work comes in the form of donations of your time or items, but in the upcoming days and months it will require a large portion of GRACE extended to one another. That grace, or “unearned” kindness, love, and understanding, cannot be purchased from an Amazon wish list. It is a gift that comes from inside, one that demands that we are compassionate and gentle, even when we may want to respond with judgment and sharpness. As a community, we celebrate and encourage differences, and grace is an essential factor in our strength. In the face of the upcoming presidential election this week, much is uncertain. However, we do know that one candidate will win, and another will lose. Inevitably, this will ignite a vast array of other emotions. Despite the wave of feelings sure to crash over us, I know that, if we model the same courtesy, kindness and compassion that we want to see in our students, it will be a powerful and unifying moment rather than a bitter and divisive one.

Additionally, with Halloween behind us and the holiday season approaching, I know that the next few months bring with them JOY and also a seemingly endless schedule of events. The hectic and wonderful nature of this season is magical and inevitably stressful for staff, families, and even for students. Like the political season, navigating this season will likewise require a good deal of grace.

So as we enter this period of tumult and busyness, let us all take a deep breath and step into it with a renewed commitment to extend grace to those in our communities and families and perhaps especially to ourselves.

WARM CLOTHING: As we layer on the grace, we also need to layer on the warm clothes. At this point in the year all students should have a jacket and, ideally, be wearing warm layers. Of course we know that when it comes to some students and their passion for year-round shorts, the struggle is real. 

ILLNESS: All over the country schools are facing an increase in illness this year. Please continue to do your part by keeping ill children home, especially those with fevers and vomiting, for at least 24 hours post fever or intestinal episode. 

WE HAVE SCHOOL: We have school Tuesday, November 5th. NO MERRIMACK BUS!

THERE IS NO SCHOOL: There is NO SCHOOL Monday, November 11th

UPCOMING EVENTS:

BOOK FAIR: Our Book Fair starts today and will continue through Friday the 8th! Cash and e-wallet accepted!

Info and e-wallet payment option HERE: https://www.scholastic.com/bf/gatecitycharterschool

Please sign up to help volunteer!!! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A054AA9A929A0FA7-52820367-gate#/

Schedule:

Wishlist Days: Monday, Nov. 4th & Tuesday, Nov. 5th Students will visit the book fair with their classes and create their own wishlists to be brought home.

Shopping Days: Wednesday. Nov. 6th & Thursday, Nov. 7th Students will have time to shop at the book fair with their classes during the school day at scheduled time slots.

Make Up Shopping Day: Friday, Nov. 8th Any student that missed their scheduled shopping time can shop from 9am-12pm on Friday.

Parent & Guardian Shopping Times: Parents and guardians will be able to shop before and after school on Wednesday 8am-8:45am and 1pm-2pm, Thursday 8am-8:45am and 3pm-4pm, and Friday 8am-8:45am and 3pm-4pm.

DONUTS WITH THE DIRECTOR: Thursday, November 7th at 8:45am come learn more about our school and bring your questions and ideas. Meet community members and learn about ways to get involved in our Community-Staff Organization. This year Gate City is reorganizing its PTO. We have renamed it the CSO or Community Staff Organization. We are eager to have you be a part of making it the best it can be. We need your help! Please join us this Thursday.

CELEBRATION OF LEARNING: Save the date! November 20th at 5:30-7pm we will be holding our first-of-the-year, Celebration of Learning! This is an event open to families. Classrooms will be open. Student work will be on display. The Arts will be highlighted. And we will celebrate all that makes Gate City Charter School the unique, wonderful, exceptional learning community that it is! We encourage every family to attend. 

Wishing everyone a week of health, hope, and grace!

Onward and upward,

Jenn Blanchette

Director, GCCSA