Each month, the Battle Lake School celebrates staff and students that exhibit characteristics of the "Battler Proud" way. Students and staff have the opportunity to nominate anybody within the school they feel have exhibited specific character traits for that month.

For the month of December the character focus was " Tolerance." Congratulations to the following staff/students that were recognized for December:

Students

1st Grade - Hunter Bladow

1st Grade - Herbie Swanson

5th Grade - Hannah Johnson

Staff

2nd Grade Teacher - Eric Olson (Committed to Excellence)

5th Grade Teacer - Abby Moxness (Committed to Excellence)

Paraprofessional - Anne Humbert (Committed to Excellence)

For the month of January the character focus was "Accountability." Congratulations to the following staff/students that were recognized for January:

Students

4th Grade - Eli Osland

6th Grade - Audrey Durbin

8th Grade - Logan Poplin

9th Grade - Talyn Setterholm

Staff

2nd Grade Teacher - Eric Olson (Student Centered)

Title 1 Aide - Amy Toenjes (Student Centered)

Business Teacher - Janell Kraemer (Student Centered)

The Battle Lake 542 Education Foundation granted a record amount of funds to Battle Lake teachers this year, totaling $31,381.79. The goal of the foundation is to support strategic learning programs in the Battle Lake School, which enrich the skills of students. The foundation augments public funds to support learning beyond the basics. Teachers can apply for these additional funds every fall. These funds are raised by the foundation and serves as “over and above” the normal school budget.

You can find out more about the Battle Lake 542 Education Foundation by visiting:

Web Site: https://542foundation.com/

FaceBook: Battle Lake 542 Education Foundation

Take a look at our students using items purchased by teachers/staff with the grant money they were awarded!

The senior high knowledge bowl season is well under way, take a look at some of this year's competitors!

The K-3 Music Program was on February 6th. 3rd Grade students read the poem "White Eyes" by Mary Oliver to begin. All the songs, poems and movements were based on this poem and included trees, snow, winter, and/or birds. In music class we sing, say, dance and play to learn how to be more musical, how to read, think, and write music, how to appreciate all types of music, how to work as a group, problem solve, work hard, and have fun. These elementary students got to share what they worked on during their music classes. Students not only showed their vocal and instrumental skills, but made artistic choices in what types of movement we shared including using stretchy bands, scarves, and folk dancing. The favorite song was Polar Bear, which was sung by all grades about a polar bear who visited the Northern Lights.

During "I Love to Read Month," students were able to take part in themed dress up days - take a look at some of the fun they had!

FFA Week took place February 21st-24th. The dress-up days were blaze orange or camo starting on Monday, USA, Carhartt, Flannel, and FFA colors (blue and gold) ending on Friday. Ag Olympics ended FFA Week and was kicked off with a cheese-eating contest. Each contestant was served the same cheese for the round and they had a limited time to guess the correct cheese. If they guessed it right they got a point. If they didn't guess right they didn't get a point. The next activity was egg toss. Two people from each grade came down to toss an egg. After each toss, one person from each team had to take a step back. The last person to break the egg wins. The Seniors and Juniors tied for first. Next was the five-person relay. Each person had to run down the court holding two five-gallon pails full of grain. When they get to the end of the court, they have to hammer a nail into a piece of wood and then run back. The last team to hammer all of the nails wins. The Senior team won. The next activity was tug-of-war. The championship was 8th-grade versus 9th-grade and the 8th graders won. The last activity was smashing an egg over either Mr. Ukkelberg's or Mr. DeMar's head. When everyone entered the gym they were given a ticket and during this activity, multiple people were drawn to egg either Mr. Ukkelberg or Mr. DeMars. Even though FFA week was cut short due to Presidents Day and the weather, it was still a successful week!

We sat down with Mr. Bradsteen to talk about the Kids Heart Challenge and this is what he had to say!

• The school has been participating in this program for over 20 years.

• It's available to students in K-6 for those who sign up.

• The money fundraised goes to the American Heart Association for patients or reasearch.

• During the fundraiser, students do activities like jump roping, basketball, or anything that raises the cardio vascular system.

• This year they raised over $3,000!

We celebrated our 100th day of school on Friday, February 10. Celebrating the 100th day has been a Kindergarten tradition for several years, as we begin our countdown on the 1st day of school. Counting to 100 is a goal in Kindergarten (counting by 1s, 10s, 5s), so this is just another fun way to help kids in learning the different ways to count up to 100.

The 100th day overlapped with "I Love to Read" month this year, so the kids wore their pajamas that day. The kids also made special crowns to wear that morning.

We started the day playing, "100 Bingo" using Fruit Loops and the kids were able to snack on the Fruit Loops while they played. We also drew self-portraits of what we look like after 100 days of school, we completed many counting sheets and participated in 100th Day stations (putting together 100-piece puzzles, making creations out of 100 pattern blocks, 100 craft sticks, 100 cups, 100 cubes, etc.).

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFdr3eSXyo/dseBn1z3jQc8T-NxnSgU0g/watch?utm_content=DAFdr3eSXyo&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=publishsharelink

We wanted to learn more about the Book Fair and how it works, so we connected with Tanya Maethner to get the scoop!

• We've had the book fair for at least 14 years!

• The profits from the book fair go to buying new books.

• The best selling book was Diary of a Wimpy Kid Diaper Overlode.

• There were 16 teachers who received donation bags and there was a 4-way tie for who got the most books donated.

• They do not have a high school book fair because there is not enough interest.

• Mrs. Maethner is grateful for those who volunteered their time, especially Karen Wagner and Kay Lukken, as it wouldn't be a success without them!

For the last two years, Mr. Mollberg held a winter Olympics with the 4th graders. During the week the students focus on unity and what the Olympic rings mean. The coming together of 5 rings that symbolize 5 continents. Multiple activities are held within the classroom and at the end of the week, the group gathers outside for the winter Olympic events, which include: sled relay races, snow races, the largest snowball, and tug of war. The day is finished with rewards, hot coco, popcorn and the movie Cool Runnings, which is based on the true story of the Jamaican bobsled team.

As we approach the 2023 MCAs, let's take a moment to celebrate our success last year!

Click on a link below to get the athletic schedule for that week!

March 26 - April 1

April 2 - 8

April 9 - 15

April 16 - 22

April 23 - 29

April 30 - May 6

March 30

Driver's Ed Parent Meeting

Auditorium

6:30 - 8:30 pm

April 7-10

No School

April 10

School Board Meeting

Battle Lake School Media Center

6:30 - 8:30 pm

Catch up on school updates - download the BL Schools' app today! With the app, you can access sports scores, cafeteria menus, news updates and even emergency notifications. Download the app on Android: http://bit.ly/2noE8Ec or iPhone: https://apple.co/30W2O4A.

Website: www.battlelakeschool.k12.mn.us
Location: 402 Summit Street West, Battle Lake, MN, USA
Phone: 218-864-5215
Facebook: facebook.com/BLSchools
Twitter: @BLSchools