Nighthawk News
Northside Elementary / October 2026
Greetings Northside Families,
We have had a great launch to the 2026-27 school year! We spend the start of the school year getting back into our Nighthawk Way habits and are so excited to see our Nighthawks showing up each and every day as community builders and scholars
Community Building Habits
I am kind
I behave with integrity
I am a problem solver
Scholar Habits
I am prepared
I set goals and reflect on my progress
I persevere
I produce quality
I collaborate
Finding ways to reinforce those habits at home would be a great way to link home and school.
Are you kids “prepared” for bedtime with teeth brushed and pajamas on?
Are they showing “kindness” to siblings and the neighborhood kids they play with after school?
Are they attempting to “solve their own problems” by getting their own drinks of water or looking for that library book that needs to be returned to school?
There’s lots of opportunities to incorporate this language at home!
You also may be asking yourself, “How can I support my child’s learning at home?” Well, here are some suggestions…
Nightly Reading - all methods of reading count - have your child read independently, read to a sibling, be read to by a grown-up, etc. You will see books and maybe even sight word cards coming home from school following conferences. Please use those just right materials to help push your child’s skills forward. We ask for 10-15 minutes of practice for our youngest scholars and 30 minutes for our oldest!
Math Practice Pages - teachers will be sending home math pages you can do with your children at home. This extra practice helps with problem-solving and fact fluency skills. Please check your child’s take-home folder/backpack to find them.
Summative Assessment Review - you will be receiving literacy and math unit assessments coming home in backpacks. Reading through them to see how your child did on the assessment is a great way to stay in the loop on what learning they are locking in and what they need to continue practicing.
Some exciting opportunities your children/family will get to experience this month include…
From Sept. 15th to October 15th, we are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. We will be engaging in learning about Hispanic/Latinx cultures through visual displays, community building circles, information shared on Nellie’s Network, exposure to Latin music and more. Join us at Meadow View Elementary, 200 N. Grand Avenue, Sun Prairie, for the SPASD Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration on Oct. 1 from 5-7pm. It’s going to be a ‘gran fiesta!’ - Bilingual Flyer
October is also Bullying Prevention Month and our school counselor, Mrs. Feltz, will lead our scholars through a series of lessons around what bullying is, how to be an “upstander” and the process to inform an adult if you see bullying at Northside. Lots of mean behavior and conflict gets named as bullying, but the true definition of bullying is “unwanted behavior with the premeditated intent to harm someone else that involves a real or perceived power imbalance.” Bullying is very rare in elementary school. Conflict and mean behavior are more what we expect from children who are still developing their emotional regulation and social competence skills.
We thank you for your partnership and firmly believe that we can’t do this work well without each and every one of you. After all, you are their first and most important teacher…
“Children and teens are great anthropologists. Your kids have a Ph.D. in you. They are watching everything you do. My kids are watching my face in the grocery line. They are watching how I greet the woman in a hijab in front of us and the man in a wheelchair behind us. They are watching how I greet their friends on the playground and how I interact with a stranger who stops to ask for directions in halting English. They watch my comfort -- or discomfort -- in interacting with children with disabilities, visible and invisible. They are looking for clues.” -Phyllis Fagell
Cheers to Fall,
Mrs. Jillian Block - Principal
Mrs. Brooke Coy-Tchouani - Associate Principal
- We had a great start of the year. All students learned the routines & expectations of the gym. Kindergarten-2nd grade focused on locomotor activities and being safe. 3rd-5th grades did more cooperative activities. All students learned tagged games and how to be safe in PE class.
- In October, students will be in the throwing & catching unit. 4th & 5th grades will have a bike safety unit (more information will come through email) and then we will end the month with bowling.
- Please remember athletic shoes for PE class. This is important for everyone’s safety. If you forget, we have shoes and socks you can borrow from us. Here is a picture to know what shoes are appropriate for PE.
- We highly recommend and encourage students to bring water bottles to PE class. We are very active in PE class!
- Here is the gym schedule this year at NS. Each class has 3 PE classes each week. K-2nd grades will have a single PE class and 2 double PE classes.
- Check out our Kindergarten students rocking it in PE!
- Feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns.
- Get to know Mr. Falk if you haven’t had a chance yet!
Mr. LaFleur, 1-608-834-7100 ext. 3511 or jslafle@sunprairieschools.org
Mr. Falk, 1-608-834-7100 ext. 3230 or mcfalk@sunprairieschools.org
Coming up this month in Music:
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
This is what we will working in October:
October Artist of the month is Juanes
K & 1st Grades Music Theory Unit
- Singing songs and playing percussion instruments with the beat
- Dancing to the beat, rhythm games
- Reading quarter and rest notes rhythmically and melodically
2nd Grade Drums/ Xylophone Unit
- Hand drums basic techniques
- First rhythms patterns on hand drums
- Melodies and songs on xylophone
- Drums ensembles
3th Grade Flute Recorder Unit
- Learning the basic blowing techniques
- Learning to play G, A, and B notes
- Learning the first songs by reading music
- Group/Individual dancing and rhythm movement games
4th Grade Ukulele Unit
- Ukulele basic right hand techniques
- Left hand chords of C, F, G, A
- Playing training songs
- Singing and playing songs
5th Grade Drums/ Xylophone Unit
- Hand drums basic techniques
- First rhythms patterns on hand drums
- Melodies and songs on xylophone
- Drums ensembles
Please reach out to Mr. Edi with any questions.
At Northside we use the app Artsonia to document artwork for digital portfolios for grown-ups to see their scholars artwork anywhere! These artworks are only available for the teacher(Mrs. Schwartz) and caregivers to see. You may sign up to see your scholars artworks through this link. Our school's code is 4SWPZ9YM.
Please reach out if you have any problems signing up. Thank you! Ms. Schwartz
Hello Northside Families! I have the pleasure of seeing your scholars two times a week - once for a 15 minute checkout and once for a 30 minute specials class, called Lab. During Lab we enjoy great books, learn how to be digital citizens, explore technology and coding, collaborate with materials like Legos and K'nex, and film our daily news show (starting October 5th)! Please read on for a few updates from Ms. Nieft in the Library and Lab:
- Lab Lessons: To begin our year, we reviewed our Lab agreements to be safe, kind, and calm with each other and our materials. In October, we will dive into digital citizenship and research.
- LMC Updates: In September, our displays focused on new books and books celebrating America 250. As we transition into October, we will center books focused on Hispanic Heritage month!
- Nellie's Network: Nellie's Network is Northside's daily news show hosted by Northside Scholars, and posted on our Facebook page. Our 5th graders will host in October, but soon all of our students will get their chance to be the star!
- Community Connections: Our Public Library has amazing Clubs and Programs running all year for all ages! Be sure to check out their calendar for more events. A few highlights for this month are the Mario Galaxy Flicks & Bricks (October 8), storytimes for all ages, and puzzle club!
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to email me.
Thanks much, Kelly Nieft
At Northside, we want your child to be successful in school and that means supporting and encouraging their whole development. While excelling in academic classes is important, children also need skills to take on learning challenges, make good decisions, manage strong emotions, and get along with others. All students at Northside will be learning these skills from their classroom teacher through the Second Step curriculum.
What is Second Step? Parent Letter Overview (English) (Spanish) (Hmong)
What is my child learning in Unit 1 - Growth Mindset & Goal Setting of Second Step?
English (Kindergarten) (1st grade) (2nd grade) (3rd grade) (4th grade) (5th grade)
Spanish (Kindergarten) (1st grade) (2nd grade) (3rd grade) (4th grade) (5th grade)
Hmong (Kindergarten) (1st grade) (2nd grade) (3rd grade) (4th grade) (5th grade)
BULLYING PREVENTION UNIT: Ms. Feltz, School Counselor, will be visiting all classrooms (Guidance, K-5) in October and November to deliver lessons from the Bullying Prevention Unit from the creators of Second Step.
What is my student learning in the Bullying Prevention Unit?
Family Letter Overview English I Spanish
Units 1 & 2
Recognizing Bullying & Reporting Bullying (Grades K-3)
Recognize, Report, and Refuse Bullying & Bystander Power (Grades 4-5)
Kindergarten English Unit 1 Unit 2 I Spanish Unit 1 Unit 2
1st Grade English Unit 1 Unit 2 I Spanish Unit 1 Unit 2
2nd Grade English Unit 1 Unit 2 I Spanish Unit 1 Unit 2
3rd Grade English Unit 1 Unit 2 I Spanish Unit 1 Unit 2
Welcome Back to the 2026-2027 School Year
The Advanced Learner Program (ALP) is excited to be back and involved in the education of our Northside students. My name is Jessica Valdes, and I am the ALP Specialist here at Northside Elementary. I can be reached at jsvalde@sunprairieschools.org or 608-834-7100 ext 3538 with any questions about the ALP program here at Northside.
Math 24 Club
Math 24 Club will be offered to 4th and 5th grade students again this school year. Scholars that choose to participate, will have the opportunity to compete at our local Math 24 meet and the Dane County Regional Math 24 tournament in the Spring. The club will start in October and end in April. The club will occur once a week for 15 minutes during recess. If your child expresses interest, families will be emailed a notification in October that your child signed up.
Greater Dane Anthology Project
This is an opportunity for 5th grade students to enter a writing and/or drawing competition. Students can select from creative writing/narratives, persuasive writing, poetry, cartoons, or artwork. The theme this year is “Growing.” I will be going into 5th grade classrooms in October to introduce this opportunity. If interested, students will submit a rough draft in late November, and final drafts are due in December. The local pieces are judged in December, and the selected pieces continue on to the regional competition judging in January.
Northside Events/Programs
Hispanic and Latin Heritage Celebration: This will take place at Meadow View Elementary on October 1st from 5:00-7:00 pm. Join us in celebrating this amazing culture! There will be food, music and fun!
Volunteer Coffee and Donuts: This will take place on Thursday, October 15th from 8:00-8:45 am. We can’t wait to share all of the incredible volunteer opportunities that we have at Northside Elementary School this year! Join us for a quick coffee and donut and learn about the ways you can get involved at your child’s school. Hope to see you there!
Northside’s Fall Fest: This will take place on October 16th from 5:30-7:30 pm at Northside. Come join us for music, free food and so much fun; costumes are optional! We will have community partners offering activities and free clothing for your children and family.
Community Events/Programs
Holiday Assistance Programs: Friendly reminder to be on the look out for information about Holiday Assistance programs. There are programs offered at Boys and Girls Club and that will do out around the first week of October, The Spirit of Giving is run by Sunshine Place and will run November 1-15 with the gift pick up on December 12th. This program is offered to all families who receive free and reduced lunch. Northside Elementary will do a holiday gift pick up on December 17-18th for any families who do not get thing from any of these assistance programs.
Sun Prairie Library: There are several story times for children that you can take a look at!
Explore Sun Prairie Children’s Museum: October 15th, 2025 from 9am-7pm. This is a FREE admission day of play for all visitors!
Fun Food Friday Snack Bag Distribution: During the school year, Community Schools partner with the Food Pantry to deliver meals to kids on Fridays in our community. Meals start September 18th! Here are the details of this program:
- 2:50 - 3:10pm Vandenburg Park
- 3:20-3:50pm Rolling Prairie
- 4-4:30pm The Element
- 4:40-5pm Wildwood Apartments
FREE for anyone 18 or younger
Check out a book from the Library on Wheels at Rolling Prairie and The Element
Northside Community Schools Reminders
If you have a 3 or 4 year old and are looking for a great playgroup, check this one out! Community Schools playgroups are free and are great in preparation for 4K. Sign up here: https://forms.gle/PGLnV2dyrECEDX2i9
Just a reminder that we have a pantry at Northside. If you are in need of food, household items, or clothing please know you can come in and shop anytime. If you are in need of these items or have other questions, please contact Stacey Christenson, Community Schools Site Coordinator.
Our SCONES parent group would love to have YOU a part of the team. This group meets monthly and works hard to put on special events for our school, like our recent Movie Night and they do a lot to support our amazing teachers. This is a lovely chance to be a part of the Northside community and spend time with other parents and help to build community at our school. If you are interested please contact SCONES president: Amanda Gartzke: northsidesco@gmail.com.
Hello Nighthawk Families! And Happy October!
Thank you for another successful Northside STRIDE event! It was so nice to see everyone and enjoy being outside and celebrating the start of a new school year! We are already over halfway to our goals! Thank you to everyone that volunteered, cheered, and donated! You all make this event possible!
- The next SCONES meeting is Tuesday, October 13th from 6:30pm to 7:30pm. We'll wrap up STRIDE and discuss Fall Fest. We hope to see you there! Childcare is available during meetings or join virtually.
- Northside Stride Fundraiser: We will be wrapping up our Northside Stride fundraiser on October 2nd. Please make sure that all Pledge Envelopes are returned by Oct 2nd. We are so close to hitting our goals! There is still time to donate: Northside Stride Donations As a reminder this campaign helps our organization raise funds to support Northside initiatives--specifically to enrich the student experience at Northside, facilitate community and caregiver engagement, and celebrate our staff.
-Fall Fest Friday, October 16th: Join us at Northside as SCONES Presents Fall Fest! We will have music, games, Pizza, and a Haunted Hallway! Enter if you Dare! Wear your costume if you like and come prepared for some fun! Fall Fest is Free and open to all Nighthawk Families! Please note, this is not a drop off event! We will also be accepting stock the lounge donations at Fall Fest, in advance of conferences the following week.
If you would like to help the day of, you can sign up HERE.
- Northside School Directory: These directories are great if you want to connect with other caregivers in the Northside Family. Click HERE to add your contact details. Directories will be distributed in early November.
- October Staff Appreciation: We will be stocking the staff lounge with all the fuel our Educators will need to get through conferences the week of October 19th-23rd. Please use this link: Educator Appreciation Fall Conferences Stock the Lounge or Donate and let us do the shopping for you, so that we can show our educators some Nighthawk Love!
SCONES - School Community Organization of Northside Elementary School
