zsj@tcaexpress.net May 20, 2002 (712) 448-3915 Fax (712) 448-3657 Vol. 2 No. 36

Classroom News...
Kindergarten
Our Spring Tea was a huge success! The children did a fantastic job and we were so happy to have so many of our special people here to see us perform. A big THANK YOU to the committee for the pretty decorations, the beautiful plants for the children and myself, and the delicious lunch. This helped make the day very special. We would also like to thank Mr. Boehne for coming to our Tea and for joining us and helping out with other activities throughout the year. It's very special to have your interest and support and the children wanted me to tell you that we really don't eat all the time! Next week we plan to visit the Mark Goosen farm and also have another fun time at the lake with our Naturalist, Charlene Elyea. Friday is our picnic and the last day this year. We hope it is a nice day as we are looking forward to playing in the park and walking around the lake. It's such an exciting time at the end of the school year. Friday evening we will receive Kindergarten diplomas and also join in singing a special song with the other students. Thank you to all the volunteers for the help you have given both the children and myself this year. The children and I appreciated the time you spent with us very much. Also a SPECIAL THANKS TO MR. BROCKMANN for supervising the children in the gym and on the playground. This gave me preparation time and was greatly appreciated. Thanks again for sharing your time with us! It will also be hard to say good-by to Tagawa Sensei, our Japanese teacher. We thank her for coming and will miss her and keep her in our prayers. I would also like to thank all of my kindergarten parents for the opportunity of teaching your child this year. The children and I have worked and played together and with the love of Jesus in our hearts have grown intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. I pray that His great love will fill all our hearts and give us a happy, blessed summer.
First and Second It is hard to believe that this school year in winding down. We thank the time God gave us as a class together?the time of learning and grow together with each other. May God be with us this summer as we go our separate ways. To end out the year, we will celebrate our reading by having a banana split party on Thursday. Everyone worked hard on their AR testing at the end of the year. On Tuesday, we hope to travel to visit two farms to end our unit on farms and pigs. We even made "piggy" snouts this last week. We enjoyed eating lunch with our mothers, grandmothers, and special friends. Thanks for coming in. 1st graders are reading about fish. We read a story about "Enzo". He was a special pet. 2nd graders are reading about cowboys and owls. HOOOO!!! They made some great owl posters. Students finished up posters also for Paullina Ambulance group and their special week. On Friday, we will end with a class picnic at the Paullina Lake. Have a wonderful summer.
Third and Fourth
Only a few days of school left and we're discovering we are doing many things for the last time. We wrote to our Pen Pals for the last time and also taking tests for the last time. We thank Kathleen Rook for coming in and visiting with us and helping to make Jon our special student for the week. We enjoyed hearing about your many interests and fun things you do as a family. Thanks! Everyone is reminded of our auction this Tuesday. Students are to bring 2-3 items no longer useful to them to auction off. In art, we made colorful time capsules, remembering all the fun activities and trips that we have done during the past year. Years from now we can look back at these memories fondly. We thank Tagawa Sensei for helping us learn how to dance and write our names in Japanese. We will miss you! This Wednesday we are planning a trip to the lake with our naturalist to explore, discover, and make prints of animal tracks. Our end of the year picnic will also be fun, hopefully the weather will cooperate. Thanks to our parents for all your support this past year and to our students for being so "special". We wish all of you a great and safe summer and we'll see you next fall. God's blessings!
Fifth and Sixth
We had a nice time with our mothers at lunch; we appreciate all they do for us each and every day. Thanks to Jo, Lori, and Deb for driving us to Cherokee for our field trip. We learned how to classify rocks/minerals and spent some time as a pioneer. We also enjoyed a picnic and walk around Spring Lake. Tagawa Sensei taught us a Japanese folk dance. We are also planning on doing a small talent show on Wednesday for the younger grades. We have been busy wrapping up our subjects with our final tests. Thanks for the great year with your children. Have a great summer.
Seventh and Eighth
The last week of school you will not see much of the seventh and eighth graders around here. Today is a field trip arranged by Pastor Eckhoff of the County Jail in Primghar. Tuesday (bright and early at 6:30 am) we leave for our class trip to Minneapolis. We will be checking out the Science Museum, checking in to the Embassy Suites, checking out the pool, checking in to the Twins game that night, then checking out in the morning and checking into shopping on the way home (arriving 6:30-7:00 pm Wednesday). We thank the PTL for subsidizing most of our costs on this trip. Thursday we would like to do something for the school and we will be painting the flagpole. Friday we will be golfing and picnicking at the Lake. That night we will wish our graduates well: Danielle Ebel, Danielle Kruse, Cassandra Eckhoff, Ross Frank, Ryan Goosen, Clint Puhrmann, Jay Magnussen, Ryan Paulsen, and Adam Roth. We wish them God's blessings in high school and in their lives.

Textbook Request Affidavit Cards Sent Home...
Please fill out these cards and return them by Friday. They serve two purposes: they let us know who will be returning next year, and they give us access to state textbook monies. Thanks.

TURN-IN SPORTS UNIFORMS...

Last Falcon Flier of the Year...
Well the year is coming to a close and looking back we can see some triumphs and look ahead to some challenges. This year saw:
- Our first Student Council of elected student representative, The Falcon's Nest, doughnuts in the morning, advising the administration about student concerns, and sponsoring our very first school dance.
- The most successful fundraisers ever. Building for the Future, raised almost $10,000 and our Spring Operetta was not only very well staged but also better attended than last year.
- A PTL decision to build a new outdoor basketball / recreation court south of the existing playground as a way to improve the playground for our students.
- More Outstanding Church Attendance awards given to our students than last year, even though we raised the standard from 50+% to 66+%.
- Very successful boys and girls sports teams.
- A great partnership with South O'Brien Schools that made for good coordination of activities that benefit all our students. In fact, band and chorus will be offered by SOS in the afternoons next year to accommodate our seventh and eighth graders.
Challenges include:
- Keeping our enrollment up in the face of declining demographics. Take an opportunity this summer to tell people about Zion-St. John.
- Providing for a smoother flow of all paperwork through our office. We need a better handle on all our information so that parents will know exactly what is going on and where they stand.
- Balancing tradition with new ideas.
This summer gives us all a time to think back on our triumphs and to plan to overcome our challenges. Working together in Christ we can do ALL things! Have a blessed summer!

The Time Ahead