Big smiles, shiny new slides, and a ribbon officially cut! We are so incredibly fortunate to belong to a community that continually shows up for our kids. Today North Elementary celebrated the official opening of our brand new playground at Woodland Park!
Today, Miss Sopocy’s 5th-grade scientists took a deep dive into Earth's major systems: the biosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and atmosphere!
To bring their lessons to life, students participated in an interactive, hands-on lab exploring how human activity impacts our planet.
Through model scenarios, they saw firsthand what happens when litter overtakes the geosphere (dirt) and hydrosphere (water), and they observed the realistic effects of an ocean oil spill.
It was a fantastic team-building activity that sparked critical thinking, engaging discussions, and a deeper awareness of our role in protecting the world around us.
Still thinking about joining us? There’s a seat for you.
Parenting in a digital world brings plenty of questions, and you don’t need to have everything figured out before walking through the door.
Join Tracey Galgoci, MA, LPC for Raising Resilient Kids, a welcoming conversation about screens, social media, boundaries, independence, communication, play, and helping kids build resilience.
Come as you are. Bring your questions. Leave with practical ideas you can try at home.
📅 Tuesday, Oct. 27
⏰ 6:00-7:00 p.m.
📍 North Elementary
This FREE event is for all South and North families. Food, drinks, giveaways, and childcare will be provided.
Register here: https://forms.gle/tDfcpA2usdChtLq96
Parenting in a digital world brings plenty of questions, and you don’t need to have everything figured out before walking through the door.
Join Tracey Galgoci, MA, LPC for Raising Resilient Kids, a welcoming conversation about screens, social media, boundaries, independence, communication, play, and helping kids build resilience.
Come as you are. Bring your questions. Leave with practical ideas you can try at home.
📅 Tuesday, Oct. 27
⏰ 6:00-7:00 p.m.
📍 North Elementary
This FREE event is for all South and North families. Food, drinks, giveaways, and childcare will be provided.
Register here: https://forms.gle/tDfcpA2usdChtLq96
Our 6th graders had a fantastic day exploring Central Michigan University last Friday! Students took a walking tour to experience college life firsthand and got a close-up look at historical artifacts inside the Clarke Historical Library.
This hands-on trip directly connects to what students are currently learning in ELA with Miss Yoder. It was a wonderful opportunity to inspire our future graduates and explore a major university campus!
This hands-on trip directly connects to what students are currently learning in ELA with Miss Yoder. It was a wonderful opportunity to inspire our future graduates and explore a major university campus!
Hoops for Hunger Food Drive & Monetary Donation
We’re collecting donations for Hoops for Hunger through the end of this week (Thursday evening)! Every canned good or dollar donated goes directly to support a local soup kitchen.
How You Can Help:
Canned Goods: Bring in a can or two and drop them on the bookshelf right outside the main office.
Monetary Donations: Drop any cash or spare change in the donation jar located inside the office.
Visiting for parent-teacher conferences this week? You can drop off your cans or monetary donations at the office while you're here!
Thank you for helping us support our community!
Fifth graders created energy transfer totem poles in STEAM lab to demonstrate the fact that the sun provides the energy for all plants and animals. Each team collaborated to construct a totem pole with a sun base holding up a plant and two animals. These science-minded artists did a great job!
After finishing A Strong Right Arm, our 4th graders put their learning into action by creating projects inspired by the book! What a great way to bring reading to life!
Our 4th graders enjoyed a presentation from Consumers Energy to learn about renewable and non-renewable energy! Students also received a take-home kit filled with helpful items to help their families save energy at home. What a great way to learn about energy conservation and how we can all make a difference!
Students in Miss Sopocy's class are stepping out of their seats and diving hands-on into their learning!
In Math, students turned into shoppers and restaurant-goers! By ordering food and picking out groceries, they practiced adding and subtracting decimals through real-world, everyday scenarios.
In Social Studies, students became historical investigators! They analyzed images and key visual cues from their upcoming chapter to predict future topics, ask big questions, and make meaningful connections to their learning.
The students enjoyed learning in an engaging and interactive way.
Our North students are excited for this event!
Screens are part of childhood now. Figuring out how they fit into family life isn’t always simple.
How much is too much? What boundaries are realistic? What do we do when kids push back? How can we help them build independence and resilience both online and offline?
Join Tracey Galgoci, MA, LPC for Raising Resilient Kids, an honest and judgment-free conversation for parents and caregivers.
We’ll talk about practical ways to:
• Set realistic boundaries around phones, gaming, and screens
• Navigate social media and digital habits
• Handle pushback around technology limits
• Build independence and problem-solving skills
• Make more room for connection, play, sleep, and real-world experiences
There are no perfect answers and no expectation to have it all figured out. Come with your questions and hear ideas that can work in real family life.
📅 Tuesday, Oct. 27
⏰ 6:00-7:00 p.m.
📍 North Elementary
This FREE event is for all South and North families. Food, drinks, giveaways, and childcare will be provided.
Register here: https://forms.gle/tDfcpA2usdChtLq96
How much is too much? What boundaries are realistic? What do we do when kids push back? How can we help them build independence and resilience both online and offline?
Join Tracey Galgoci, MA, LPC for Raising Resilient Kids, an honest and judgment-free conversation for parents and caregivers.
We’ll talk about practical ways to:
• Set realistic boundaries around phones, gaming, and screens
• Navigate social media and digital habits
• Handle pushback around technology limits
• Build independence and problem-solving skills
• Make more room for connection, play, sleep, and real-world experiences
There are no perfect answers and no expectation to have it all figured out. Come with your questions and hear ideas that can work in real family life.
📅 Tuesday, Oct. 27
⏰ 6:00-7:00 p.m.
📍 North Elementary
This FREE event is for all South and North families. Food, drinks, giveaways, and childcare will be provided.
Register here: https://forms.gle/tDfcpA2usdChtLq96
Mr. DeRosia's 5th grade class used a creative scientific way to compare the layers of the geosphere to the layers of a delicious cookie!
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Who remembers neighborhood end-of-year parties and having the same best friend in class from Kindergarten through 6th grade?
We’re catching up with a 2014 North Elementary alum who turned a passion for school into a career inspiring the next generation.
Please read the post to find out what special memory they had from North Elementary and what they are currently doing now.
Who remembers neighborhood end-of-year parties and having the same best friend in class from Kindergarten through 6th grade?
We’re catching up with a 2014 North Elementary alum who turned a passion for school into a career inspiring the next generation.
Please read the post to find out what special memory they had from North Elementary and what they are currently doing now.
Our 5th graders in Miss Sopocy’s class had an incredible morning on a walking field trip to the Gratiot County Historical Museum and the Genealogy Museum in downtown Ithaca!
What a privilege it is to have such amazing historical resources within walking distance of our school. The students loved diving into the rich history of Gratiot County, discovering fascinating details about their own local relatives, and engaging with the fantastic volunteers who helped bring the past to life.
A huge THANK YOU to both the Historical Museum and the Genealogy Center for welcoming our students, sharing your wealth of knowledge, and to all the volunteers who made this memorable experience possible!
What a privilege it is to have such amazing historical resources within walking distance of our school. The students loved diving into the rich history of Gratiot County, discovering fascinating details about their own local relatives, and engaging with the fantastic volunteers who helped bring the past to life.
A huge THANK YOU to both the Historical Museum and the Genealogy Center for welcoming our students, sharing your wealth of knowledge, and to all the volunteers who made this memorable experience possible!
🎉 We are thrilled to announce the return of our Jacket Buddy program to North Elementary! Through our partnership with Mentors in the Mitten, high school students will visit our school once a week to connect with, guide, and inspire our elementary students. This weekly mentorship builds strong relationships, fosters leadership, and strengthens connections across our entire school district. We can’t wait to see the positive impact, big smiles, and lasting friendships our Jacket Buddies will create this school year! 💙🐝
🎉 We are thrilled to announce the return of our Jacket Buddy program to North Elementary!
Through our partnership with Mentors in the Mitten, high school students will visit our school once a week to connect with, guide, and inspire our elementary students. This weekly mentorship builds strong relationships, fosters leadership, and strengthens connections across our entire school district.
We can’t wait to see the positive impact, big smiles, and lasting friendships our Jacket Buddies will create this school year! 💙🐝
Pictures are coming home today!
Third graders read Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile in STEAM lab and were challenged to design Botley robots that could replicate the "egg swap" Mrs. Chicken carried out in the story to save her chicks. It was a perfect story to extend their science work on inherited traits and animal life cycles!
During our Homecoming week the incredible 5th graders stepped up as amazing leaders to mentor our youngest learners in Kindergarten.
Together, these buddy pairs headed outside for an outdoor learning adventure to explore living and non-living things. The 5th graders guided the kindergartners through the environment, helping them identify objects, ask great questions, and record their findings.
Seeing our 5th graders shine as patient leaders and watching our kindergartners jump into hands-on science with such excitement was truly inspiring. Everyone had a fantastic time engaging, exploring, and learning together!
Way to swarm together, yellowjackets!
Parenting in a world of phones, gaming, social media, and screens can feel complicated. There are a lot of questions, a lot of opinions, and rarely one perfect answer.
That’s why we’re inviting parents and caregivers to join us for Raising Resilient Kids: Navigating the Pitfalls of a Screen-Based Childhood with Tracey Galgoci, MA, LPC.
This will be a practical, welcoming, and judgment-free conversation about raising kids in today’s digital world. Come as you are, bring your questions, and hear realistic ideas you can use with your own family.
Together, we’ll talk about topics like:
Setting realistic boundaries around screens and technology
Navigating social media, gaming, and phones
Building independence, resilience, and problem-solving skills
Strengthening communication and connection at home
Making room for play, relationships, sleep, and real-world experiences
Responding when limits around technology feel difficult
There is no expectation to have it all figured out. This is a space for honest conversation, questions, and practical strategies that can work in real family life.
When: Tuesday, Oct. 27
Time: 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Place: North Elementary
This FREE event is for all South and North families. Food, drinks, giveaways, and childcare will be provided.
Register here: https://forms.gle/tDfcpA2usdChtLq96
Whether screens are already a challenge in your home or you simply want to think ahead, we hope you’ll join us for the conversation.
That’s why we’re inviting parents and caregivers to join us for Raising Resilient Kids: Navigating the Pitfalls of a Screen-Based Childhood with Tracey Galgoci, MA, LPC.
This will be a practical, welcoming, and judgment-free conversation about raising kids in today’s digital world. Come as you are, bring your questions, and hear realistic ideas you can use with your own family.
Together, we’ll talk about topics like:
Setting realistic boundaries around screens and technology
Navigating social media, gaming, and phones
Building independence, resilience, and problem-solving skills
Strengthening communication and connection at home
Making room for play, relationships, sleep, and real-world experiences
Responding when limits around technology feel difficult
There is no expectation to have it all figured out. This is a space for honest conversation, questions, and practical strategies that can work in real family life.
When: Tuesday, Oct. 27
Time: 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Place: North Elementary
This FREE event is for all South and North families. Food, drinks, giveaways, and childcare will be provided.
Register here: https://forms.gle/tDfcpA2usdChtLq96
Whether screens are already a challenge in your home or you simply want to think ahead, we hope you’ll join us for the conversation.
