Maple Grove Charter School - One Town. One Team. One Dream.

Did you know that the land that Maple Grove Charter School is on was once part of the Ojibwe and Menominee tribes’ ancestral land? This is just one interesting fact that the 4th graders learned during their study of Native Americans and the Fur Trade. The outdoor lab students also learned many fun facts about cranberries when Mrs. Bunkelman came and taught a lab class and made them a special cranberry treat. Whitetail deer was another recent area of study for the 4th graders. They learned about the different ways that deer communicate with each other by using vocal, visual, and chemical communication. They then spent time searching the school property for evidence of deer. They were excited to find deer tracks, evidence of where deer had browsed for food, as well as deer urine and scat!

On Monday, December 11th, Ms.Etten's first grade class was fortunate enough to go to the Merrill School Forest for one of the most memorable days of the school year hosted by the one and only Mr. Noland! Learners experienced birds eating right before their own eyes, about 3 inches in front to be specific. Mr. Noland challenged learners to become "bird whisperers", earning the trust of the birds. The birds had to be trusting enough to land on a twig, attached to a plastic plate, attached to goggles worn by learners😂 quite a sight! I truly do not have a name for the contraption, but know that we had two successful bird whisperers. Black cap chickadees eat birdseed right from the face plate. When over that excitement, the use of binoculars helped us see birds that were not as trusting and remained farther away. Learners then engaged in lessons with experimenting bird features and behaviors. Specifically their habitat when using tools as representation of their beaks. In the afternoon, we were active outdoors exploring more animal adaptations. Thank you to Mr. Noland and Ms. Nancy for their dedication in making the day a memorable and education filled day! Thank you to the chaperones that enjoyed the day of learning and got to experience a first grade bus ride and class lunch filled with much excitement in their voices. I could continue on telling about the excitement, but often times pictures do more justice!

Another Polar Express Day at MGCS is in the books! A huge thank you goes out to community member Cindy Artus & Family for preparing this magical experience for our kindergarten and 5th grade foxes 🚂🎄

Two more events on our YouTube Channel tonight. Maple Groves Christmas Concert 3-5 starts at 6pm. Wrestling also at 6pm. https://www.youtube.com/@schooldistrictofathenswisc604/streams

Two events on our YouTube Channel tonight. Maple Groves Christmas Concert K-2 starts at 6pm. Boys basketball VS Stratford, Varsity at 7pm.

Our kindergarten foxes had a "berry" exciting activity brought to them by the Agriculture team! Mrs. Bunkelman led us through various observations about our state fruit.  Not only did we watch fresh cranberries float in water, but we also discovered four air pockets within each one. After a quick taste test, learners were then challenged to build 2D and 3D shapes.  We are so grateful for these lab experiences!

Maple Grove Charter School has great school spirit and we can't wait for everyone to showcase our new apparel! Please click the link attached for many color, size and style options for you and your family! 🦊 All orders are due December 10th. *Unfortunately, orders will not be ready by Christmas* Link: https://teamsportinggoods.chipply.com/237992/

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas 🎄 at Maple Grove Charter School! A huge thank you to Windy Hill Tree Farm-Brian Latzig for the donation of the beautiful garland that lines our fence and brings a festive look to our little red schoolhouse!

Kindergarten students at MGCS are once again participating in a nation-wide Tulip Test Garden project through Journey North.  Classrooms in the U.S. and Canada virtually document when their emperor tulips are planted, emerge, & bloom.  We look forward to tracking their progress through the seasons and comparing our observations. Follow the link below to take a peek at the current map. https://maps.journeynorth.org/map/?map=tulips-fall&year=2023

Learners at Maple Grove meet with their teacher each month to set a just right reading goal! This month the learners that met their goal celebrated the accomplishment with an apple nacho snack and a movie on the big screen 😀 A huge shout out and thank you to Cindy and Dan Miller who own DanCin' Hills Farm and donated all the apples! They are also MGCS grandparents. We are lucky to have the ongoing support of locals donating to make these events possible. Congratulations to the 80+ learners that met their goal. Keep up the perseverance needed to read to new heights and meet new goals!

Thanks to the Maple Grove Foundation for the donation of ornaments for all learners at Maple Grove to design. Learners were able to answer Governor Evers' call to decorate, Wisconsin themed ornaments for the holiday tree in the Madison state capitol building. The following ornaments are from Ms. Barrick's 3rd grade classroom:

Kindergarten students at MCGS recently wrapped up their first EL Module unit titled "Toys and Play".  To acknowledge this accomplishment, we held a Celebration of Learning where learners prepared a presentation for their families.  Throughout this unit, we pacticed using playing commitments, described toys using their attributes, and compared toys from long ago to toys today.  Homemade toys were showcased and fun was had by all!

Thank you to the families and community members that came out to enjoy some great food and great people! We are truly grateful for such amazing families, staff, learners, and community! A big thank you to all of the people that participated in our mystery contestants chili contest! Congratulations to our very own cook at MGCS, Tari Williams, for being the 23-24 Golden Ladle winner this year with her delicious chili!

Thank you to the families and community members that came out to enjoy some great food and great people! We are truly grateful for such amazing families, staff, learners, and community! A big thank you to all of the people that participated in our mystery contestants chili contest! Congratulations to our very own cook at MGCS, Tari Williams, for being the 23-24 Golden Ladle winner this year with her delicious chili!

Hungry??? We have supper for you! Come join us at Maple Grove Charter School from 5-7 tonight! ALL are WELCOME!

Not feeling like cooking tomorrow night? Just looking for something to do? Come to our annual Chili Supper at Maple Grove Charter School tomorrow night,Nov 16, from 5-7. Delicious chili, hot dogs, cheese curds, and desserts from Polka Dotted Pie! No charge, free will donations accepted. What more could you ask for?!!! See you there!

The Brook Trout have arrived at Maple Grove Charter School! We have been awaiting the delivery from the St. Croix Fish Hatchery since late August; lo and behold 250 eggs came today. They are now safely stored within a fish net breeder inside the tank until they hatch into alevins which is their 2nd life cycle stage. Water temperature, chemical levels and life cycle stages will continue to be monitored on a daily basis. Ongoing education will continue to be shared with others during this exciting opportunity that we "get" to do because of the following: Trout Unlimited Chapter Members (Allen, Perry & Kirk), St. Croix Fish Hatchery (Dave), Field Edventures (Miss Sandy), Maple Grove's Grandparent (Bob) and Ms. Barrick's 3rd graders.

We were honored to have our Veterans with us at MGCS on Friday 🇺🇸 Learners prepared poems, essays, artwork, thank-yous, and music to show their appreciation to our past and present men and women who have and are serving our country. We learned about what everything on the "Missing Man's Table" represented and witnessed the Three Volleys and playing of Taps. Thank you to all who made this possible!

We are streaming all of the Veteran's Day programs today. Maple Grove at 9 am, Athens Elementary at 9:30, and Athens Middle/High School at 10. You can watch us honor our Veterans on our YouTube Channel https://youtube.com/@schooldistrictofathenswisc604?si=s2BF4TRAPgMrwJEJ

Fat Bear Week was a favorite topic during the month of October for Mrs. Zamzow's 4th grade Outdoor Labs class. Fat Bear Week is an annual tournament celebrating the success of brown bears in preparing for winter in Katmai National Park in Alaska. We were excited to vote for our favorites and were excited when Grazer was declared the winner! Students also learned about salmon and their importance to both bears and humans in Alaska. October also found the 4th graders marking their maple trees for spring tapping, learning about the importance of beavers in Wisconsin, and making beautiful leaf mobiles. On our Fridays with Mrs. Benton we checked out where our future pollinator garden will be and then with Mrs. Bunkelman we explored pumpkins and their seeds. We can't wait to see what November brings!