The 4th annual LME C.A.T.C.H. Committee Chili Cook-Off and Dinner is set for next Thursday, February 20 in the cafe from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Enter your award-winning chili for 
our panel of expert judges to taste (judging starts @ 6:15) with prizes awarded for People’s Favorite, 2nd Runner-up, 1st Runner-up, and Grand Prize. Participate in the PTO Meeting from 6:30 – 7:00 and then buy a bowl of chili to eat for only $1.00. No reservations are needed and we always have a huge turnout and LOTS of family fun! Just like our reminder posters say, “Get Ready for Spicy” because it’s “Hot! Hot! Hot!” Can YOU take the heat? 🙂
Author: Van Am Gram
Out and about…
Daily walkabouts yield great results on any given day…the conversations with learners, the engaging work, the hugs, the reminders of why and how we do what we do everyday…what a blessing to have this opportunity to serve daily! During my morning stroll, several items caught my eye:
Heartprints are those special ways you help and touch the lives of those around you in unique, heartfelt ways. A great group of writers captured the spirit of giving heartprints by reflecting on ways to share with others…certainly a great way to fill your soul in heartwarming style!
Likewise, our 5th grade Social Studies classes are 
tracking the hearty events of the Winter Olympics with daily medal counts in a fabulous visual graph worthy of special notice. Forget the NBC count; these learners have created a medal masterpiece, all while sharing fun facts and statistics for the entire school to enJOY!
We have a large group of book buddies who “chews” to work weekly in reading, writing, and learning with younger friends (it’s a LME tradition). These younger friends shared a special display of thanks; you can tell they definitely “have a ball” together!
. . . and we can’t allow the big 
100th day of school to go unnoticed! Our Kinder friends shared their love for all things 100 by completing over 100 reasons why they love our school…so impressive!
Yes, out and about are the best ways to get a feel for the action across LME these days. We hope you’ll stop by soon to visit and share your adventure while you’re out and about in our building…
A pink princess party…
As you know I affectionately share how we have a complete “buffet of services” on our campus everyday—lots of academic and instructional 
setting choices to meet any need. There is one unique PreK program we especially enJOY though; these young friends come for early intervention work in speech. These 3-and-4-year-olds work in a language-enriched educational environment through unique sensory, hands-on activities in meaningful and engaging ways; today was certainly no exception.
A particular group of little girls working on the “p” sound this week celebrated the day with a pretty pink princess party! From talking and coloring giant princess pictures to sharing a snack together, these little princesses partied in real royal style. “We made a wand and a crown ’cause all princesses have wands and crowns, you know.” Ahhh . . . to be a pretty pink princess once again . . . 🙂
Principal Luncheon
It’s always a great day when we can celebrate and break bread together during the honored tradition of our LME Principal Luncheon. LME friends traveled to Red Robin with Mrs. Bass and me to enJOY a scrumptious meal topped off with
a deluxe ice cream sundae and lots of sprinkles. Special congratulations to these learners for reaching personal success and excellence by having all A’s in academics and conduct, and absolutely perfect attendance (not one tardy or early leave mark). We are proud of your accomplishments and look forward to more great meals with you! 🙂
Hiberbation Sensation!
Our Head Start friends have been studying hibernation and the special animals who hibernate. As a culminating activity today, they enJOYed a hibernation experience themselves by wearing their pajamas to school, cooking and eating special snacks, and then doing their own version of hibernation 
with a “long winter’s nap” (shared one little friend). 🙂 They also shared their special knowledge about a little hibernating friend in Pennsylvania who plans to make an appearance on Sunday to check out the weather for everyone…here’s hoping we get some good news that spring is on its way soon! Have a safe, relaxing weekend!
Watt’s up?
There is a vital group of learners (under the watchful leadership of a special teacher, Mrs. Garippa), who take time everyday to check 
on our campus’ initiative to save energy in MISD. Known on campus as the WattWatchers, they have broken the campus down into zones and go about the building issuing green tickets (good) and red tickets (not-so-good) for remembering the WW Rules.
We have a unique, highly-effective geothermal HVAC system here at LME and we’ve been in existence long enough now for the system to really save us thousands of taxpayer dollars annually. With the WattWatchers, they ensure everyone does his or her part throughout the day in the following ways (as shared by some WattWatcher friends):
- Turn off lights when the room is not in use.
- Use the natural lighting throughout the building when you can.
- Watch thermostat settings and dress in layers to stay comfortable in class.
- Have custodians turn off main area lights (like the gym and cafe) when not in use and other places (like hallways) right after dismissal.
While these are just a few ideas, the list grows longer each year. WattWatchers take their work and their message seriously, but they also have great fun throughout the building helping others to conserve costs. In fact, they were most excited today to be interviewed by the MISD Communications Director on their important role in campus conservation efforts (she even filmed them!). Conserving and maximizing our natural resources are critical to future generations; our WattWatchers are making certain we do our part everyday for tomorrow! As one friend noted, “Watt’s up? Hopefully NOT your electric bill but ways to conserve that energy!” 🙂
We’ve got talent!
We’ve got talent; have you? Entry forms are now available for MISD’s Got Talent Show. High school, middle school, and elementary school students are encouraged to showcase their talent as singers, musicians, dancers, comedians, videographers, artists, and more. Auditions will be held February 10-14. The talent show will be Friday, February 28 for elementary students and Saturday, March 1 for secondary students. A special performance will be given by guest judge, Brandon Chase, from “The Voice” on March 1. For more talent show details email for information at midlotalentshow@gmail.com and check out the flyer [PDF]. We’ll see you there!
HEARTy Conversations
During walkabout this morning, a small group of learners were working in a writing station. The directions were to make a shape from the conversation hearts in a bucket and then use the words in the shape to form a concrete poem. While this may sound easy enough, problem solving was involved since some words or phrases did not exactly lend themselves to the final product. You can bet it made for some HEARTy conversations indeed!
I’m melting…
A special birthday treat and note landed on my desk first thing this morning. No, it’s not my birthday, but I’m blessed to be the frequent recipient of little
treats on others’ birthdays…it’s a perk of the work! Here’s the treat and the contents of the note:
A special birthday wish I share
Because you really always care
About our work and stuff we do
So here’s a melting snow princiPAL for you!
Fun, huh?! It’s a Friday after a short but intense school week and I fear we’re all on the verge of melting. Here’s hoping you and your child find a fun way to enJOY the weekend ahead! 🙂
Grant Award
It’s a special day when you’re presented a check for $1,000 
for math and science education materials! Thanks to the forethought of the ExxonMobil Educational Alliance Program, Mr. Walid Alameddine, VP and COO of Victron Energy, presented us with a check today to purchase math and science resource materials to further expand and enhance our math and science learning opportunities. The Alliance is designed to provide all ExxonMobil retailers an opportunity to invest into the future of their communities through educational grants to neighborhood schools. Stringent requirements and special criteria must be met before grant awards are distributed; Mr. Alameddine ensures he secures grants for our area on an annual basis.
As always, we are so excited to put these funds to great use in our math and science classes. STEM (Science/Technology/Engineering/Math) education is an essential component in 21 Century learning. This continued support from our community partners is most appreciated. As one young learner noted today once the announcement was made, “Yeah, Mrs. Van, everyone knows that math and science ROCK!” Thanks and “rock on,” Mr. Alameddine, Victron Energy, and the ExxonMobil Educational Alliance Program.
Van Am Gram 