Monday, December 18, 2006

January Newsletter - 2007

Dear Franklin Parent(s)/Guardian(s),

You are receiving this newsletter right before we break for our Christmas vacation. On behalf of all the staff at Franklin we wish you a Merry Christmas and a joyous holiday season! Remember, we begin our Christmas vacation with an early dismissal at 1:30 p.m. on this coming Wednesday, December 20th.
Calendar of Events
Below are some dates to put on your January school calendar.
January 3 School resumes at 8:00 a.m. for all students and staff
10 Delphos City Schools Spelling Bee @ Delphos Jefferson Middle
School, 7:00 p.m.
15 Martin Luther King Day - NO SCHOOL
19 1st semester ends
5th grade D.A.R.E. Graduation, 1:00 p.m.
22 Quiz Bowl @ Shawnee Middle School, 4:30 p.m.
26 Report cards sent home with students
29 Winter In-service Day - NO SCHOOL
Quiz Bowl @ Shawnee Middle School, 4:30 p.m.
31 Franklin God, Flag and Country Contest, 8:45 a.m.
Franklin Spelling Bee Winners
Congratulations to Desteni Lear, Ross Thompson, and Rachel Mahlie! They were the winners of the Franklin Spelling Bee held on December 13th. Desteni is a fourth grader in Mrs. Amanda Smith's class. She is the daughter of Shane and Barb Lear. Ross is a fifth grader in Mrs. Elaine Sommers' class. Ross's parents are Rusty and Patti Thompson. Rachel is a fifth grader in Mr. Chris Sommers' class. She is the daughter of Jason and Christine Mahlie. Desteni, Ross and Rachel will compete in the Delphos City Schools Spelling Bee on January 10th at the Middle School. The top Franklin speller at that spelling bee will move on to the Van Wert County Spelling Bee on February 8th. The first runner-up will represent our school at the Allen County Spelling Bee on February 3rd. The second runner-up will be the alternate to the two county spelling bees. We invite you to come to the Middle School on January 10 and watch Desteni, Ross and Rachel compete to see who will be the Franklin Spelling Bee Champion
Franklin Quiz Bowl Team
Our 5th grade quiz bowl team begins its season on Monday, January 22nd. Members of this year's team are Tyler Rice, Hanna Sensibaugh, Brooke Teman, Jordan Wiseman, Ross Thompson, Victoria Suever, Kenidi Ulm and Zachary Johnson. The team is coached by fifth grade teacher, Mr. Whitney Harper. The team will compete against teams from other Allen County schools in a round robin format with a season ending tournament. All the matches are on Monday nights at Shawnee Middle School beginning at 4:30 p.m. Below is the team's schedule.

Monday January 22, 2007 4:30 p.m. Shawnee M.S.
Monday January 29, 2007 4:30 p.m. Shawnee M.S.
Monday February 5, 2007 4:30 p.m. Shawnee M.S. Tournament
Monday February 12, 2007 4:30 p.m. Shawnee M.S. Tournament
Monday February 26, 2007 4:30 p.m. Shawnee M.S. Tournament
Monday March 5, 2007 4:30 p.m. Shawnee M.S. SNOW DATE

We wish our quiz bowl team good luck as they start their season and we encourage all of you to come out to the matches and cheer them on!
D.A.R.E. Graduation
Our fifth grade students will have their D.A.R.E. graduation on Friday, January 19th. It will take place in the Robert Arnzen Gymnasium at Delphos St. John's High School. Every year the public and parochial schools of Delphos hold a combined D.A.R.E. graduation ceremony for their 5th and 6th grade students. D.A.R.E. is an acronym for Drug and Alcohol Resistance Education. The program is taught by Deputy Greg Bailey from the Allen County Sheriff's Department. The program teaches positive self-esteem and strategies for saying "no" to drugs and alcohol. Graduation ceremonies will begin at 1:00 p.m. Fifth grade parents will get a letter of invitation to this event. Please return the bottom portion of the letter to school with your child.
Staff In-service Day
On Monday, January 29, there will be no school for Franklin students. This day has been designated as an in-service day for the entire staff of the Delphos City Schools. The Franklin staff will be involved in professional development activities throughout the day. School will resume for students on Tuesday, January 30, at 8:00 a.m.
God, Flag and Country Contest
All Franklin fifth graders are required to participate in the God, Flag and Country Contest. They research and write a three minute speech on the topic of God, flag and/or country. The top three speeches are chosen from each homeroom and these students compete for the honor of representing Franklin Elementary at the local God, Flag and Country Contest sponsored by the Delphos Eagles on February 18th. Our school competition will be held on Wednesday, January 31st. I will publish the names of the finalists and winners in the February newsletter.
Elks Hoop Shoot Winner!
Franklin student, Emily Marks, won 1st place in her age division in the local Lima Elks #54 Hoop Shoot competition held in Lima in early December. She made 13 out of 25 free throws. Emily is a third grade student in Mr. Rick Dienstberger's class. She is the daughter of Philip and Joyce Marks. Emily competes again on January 14th in Findlay. Good luck Emily!

Thank you!
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the fifth grade parents who donated cookies for the reception after the Christmas program on December 7th. We would also like to extend a big thank-you to those mothers who helped serve at the reception and who helped with costumes and make-up for our actors. Our program would not have been the success it was without your donations, help and support.

Thought for the Month
LOVING YOUR KIDS

Take time with your children.

Set your children a good example.

Give your children ideals for living.

Have lots of activities planned.

Discipline your children.

Teach them about God.

-Billy Graham
From "God's Little Instruction Book
For Dad"

Tim Larimore
Principal