Important Dates

• This Friday, February 19th there will be NO SCHOOL for mid-winter break

• Wednesday, March 2nd is a CONFERENCE DAY.  Early Release will be at 11:30 AM instead of the regular 2:00 pm dismissal time

• DC is looking for Lunch/Recess Supervisors and Substitute Lunch/Recess Supervisors - Contact Mr. Powell at 414-482-8410 if you are interested

February News and Notes

In case you missed the newsletter in this week's take home:

February News and Notes

For Your Calendar:

FEBRUARY

1          6:30 PM School Board Meeting (HS Library)

1          Open Enrollment Registration Begins 

8          6:00-7:30 PM Special Education Parent Advisory Council (DC Library)

15        6:30 PM School Board Meeting (HS Library)

16        5:30 PM Parent Advisory Council (DC Library)

19        NO SCHOOL MID-WINTER BREAK (Can Be Utilized as a School Make-Up Day)

Parking and Left Hand Turns:

Please note the No Parking signs on the DC campus-they are posted to ensure that traffic can flow as clearly as possible in the circle in front of the school.  Additionally, please take a moment to note the NO LEFT TURN sign on KK when exiting after school.  The Saint Francis PD will be monitoring and enforcing regarding these matters.

School Closing Information:

Should the district decide to close schools and district buildings due to weather conditions the information can be found on the district website www.stfrancisschools.org as well  as:

ü  Channel 4 (TMJ4), Fox 6 (WITI), Channel 12 (WISN) and Channel 58 (CBS), or:

ü  Radio: WTMJ 620, 94.5 WKTI, 1130 WISN AM, FM106 WMIL, V100 WKKV FM, AM 920 WOKY, and 95.7 FM WRIT.

Lunch/Recess Supervision:

Deer Creek is currently seeking candidates for part-time lunch/recess supervision and substitute lunch/recess supervision.  If interested, please contact Mr. Powell via email at: gpowell@sfsd.k12.wi.us.  You will be given information on how to apply for the position utilizing the WECAN support staff website found at: https://services.education.wisc.edu/wecan/staff/login/form2.cfm

Enjoy the beginning of semester 2!  It's a great time to get a fresh start on grades and attendance or continue to build on already awesome school accomplishments!

In the News...

DC ROBOTICS RECOGNIZED IN FIRST LEGO LEAGUE NEWSLETTER!

CHECK OUT THE ARTICLE AT:

: http://www.firstinspires.org/community/nljan16/first-students-offer-helping-hands-literally-to-those-in-need

FIRST Students Offer Helping Hands – Literally – to Those in Need

Most eighth grade students spend their lunch break eating a sandwich or snacking on a burrito. However, FIRST Tech Challenge Team 6914 “Charging Chaos” and FIRST Tech Challenge Team 8823 “Mariner Mayhem” from St. Francis, Wis., decided to do something a bit more altruistic with their time off: build prosthetic hands for several youngsters around the country.

As part of a FIRST robotics program at Deer Creek Intermediate School, a group of middle-school students — along with their science teacher and FIRST Mentor, Peter Graven — have been using 3D printing technology to create prosthetic hands at a cost significantly less than ones currently on the market. The going rate for a prosthetic hand can be as much as $50,000. However, after two months of working together for 15 minutes a day during their lunch break designing, printing, and assembling a prototype, team members were able to create a similar prosthetic hand using just $20 worth of materials.

Reaching Out Across the Country

Today, 8 year-old Ariah is able to perform everyday activities such as riding a bike, throwing a ball, or just giving her dad a “high five,” thanks to the “helping hand” from Teams 6914 and 8823. Although the 3D hand is certainly special enough on its own, the members of Charging Chaos and Mariner Mayhem gave it extra flare by customizing the design with cosmetic flourishes from Ariah’s favorite movie, “Frozen” — adding blue snowflakes and the name “Queen Ariah” on the wrist. The teams worked with E-Nable, an organization that connects volunteers who have 3D printers with people who need prosthetic hands, and a designer from the UK to perfect the “Frozen” details.

Since their success with Ariah’s hand, the teams have been working on several other projects that involve hand prostheses: a Spiderman-themed one for a boy in Mission, Texas; another with a Milwaukee Bucks theme for a girl from Neenah, Wis.; one for a boy from the state of Washington with a Seattle Seahawks theme; and still another for a young girl in St. Francis, Wis., that incorporates a dance theme. Coach Graven says the teams are currently printing the various components on their MakerBot Replicator 2.0, which they were able to get through a crowd sourcing campaign on DonorsChoose.org.

Other Projects in the Works

The two teams are also working on several other projects, including a partnership with the St. Francis Historical Society to develop a system to archive items from the town’s history using 3D scanning techniques. In addition, the teams are creating an Autonomous Water Sampling Kayak, where they use arduino, GPS, cellular networks, and sensor suite to collect real-time data as well as samples for further evaluation. A third project, called an Augmented Reality Sandbox, combines a real sandbox, virtual topography, a Microsoft Kinect 3D camera, data projector, and powerful simulation/visualization software that allows users to create topographic models by shaping sand.

Graven, who has been involved with FIRST since 2007, says he’s amazed at what the students have accomplished, and adds that FIRST benefits go well beyond the classroom. “FIRST provides our students with more than just the skills to build robots. Our students learn about teamwork, prototype and design, maintaining a budget, programming, and research, as well as working and communicating with organizations, universities, and businesses outside the four walls of our school district.” Graven adds that the FIRST activities also help his students build confidence in their thinking and open their minds to creative solutions.

Suffice it to say one special hand and a lot of hearts have helped to make these projects a resounding success.
 

CONGRATULATIONS POMS

Our DC POM Squad Placed First at the State Competition last weekend in Sheboygan. Congrats Girls!  Way to represent DC!!

January 15th

CHESS CLUB

A reminder that Deer Creek hosts a chess club on Mondays after school in our library (lower computer lab if the library is in use).  All our welcome!  Learn the game of chess and prepare for the opportunity of competing in chess tournaments as the club grows!



POMS TEAM PREPARES FOR STATE

If you see a member of our DC Poms Team wish them good luck on their upcoming state competition!



NO SCHOOL FRIDAY

There is NO SCHOOL on FRIDAY, JANUARY 22nd (SEMESTER BREAK).  Gear up for a 3 day weekend.  Semester 2 begins when we return to school.  We are half way there!

January Welcome Back!

For Your Calendar:

January

·         21 End of Quarter 2 / Semester 1 - Grades 4-12

·         22 NO SCHOOL NO STUDENTS/STAFF (K4-12) - Semester Break

·         25 SECOND SEMESTER BEGINS (Grades 4-12)

Chess Club:

The first meeting of the Deer Creek Chess Club will be MONDAY, JANUARY 11TH after school in the LOWER COMPUTER LAB.  Chess Club will meet weekly on Mondays.  After January 11th, Chess Club will be held in the library.

Hour of Code:

Mr. Graven's Science Students have been participating in HOUR OF CODE; a a global movement reaching tens of millions of students in 180+ countries. The Hour of Code is a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anybody can learn the basics.  To learn more about the Hour of Code check out: https://hourofcode.com/us

Winter Weather:

Winter is REALLY here.  Kids will be outside before and after school and during recess when the temperature is 10 degrees Fahrenheit and above.  Please be sure your student has appropriate winter gear including coats, boots, hats, gloves etc.

WELCOME BACK!  LOOKING FORWARD TO A NEW YEAR AND NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN!