El Sistema Performs at UM Stamps Auditorium

The final El Sistema concert of the year occurred the evening of April 23, 2014 at the Stamps Auditorium on the north campus of the University of Michigan.  Please check out the video where your can hear the students performing while being accompanied by Mitchell teacher Dan Tolly and UM teacher Horacio Contreras Espinoza.

CONGRATULATIONS, MR. KARR!

On Monday, April 21st, Mitchell's principal, Kevin Karr, participated in (and finished!) the 118th Boston Marathon!  We are so proud of you, Mr. Karr!  You are an inspiration to what can be accomplished with hard work and dedication!  Click HERE for an article about Mr. Karr's experience and how Mitchell students recognized his triumph on the AAPS News site.

2nd School of Choice Window for Students Living in Washtenaw County

AAPS will also be opening a final Schools of Choice window for students who live outside the AAPS boundary but in Washtenaw County. The window will open May 5 through June 2. More information will be posted soon on the AAPS website – a2schools.org! Please let your family and friends who have always wanted to go to AAPS know!!

Mary D. Mitchell Recognized As Most Diverse School In Michigan

Mitchell School was recognized this week as the most diverse school in Michigan by publicschoolreview.com!

While we've always known Mitchell has extraordinary rich ethnic and cultural diversity, I didn't know the school would qualify as the most diverse in the state.  This is great news!  Diversity at Mitchell School is one of our great strengths.  This is a moment celebrate and embrace as we continue our work to achieve ongoing excellence at Mitchell.

Note: The way in which this designation was achieved is explained in the following text from publicschoolreview.com which refers to how their "diversity score" was determined:  "The chance that two students selected at random would be members of a different ethnic group. Scored from 0 to 1, a diversity score closer to 1 indicates a more diverse student body."

More at:

http://www.publicschoolreview.com/diversity-rankings/national-data#!states

Fifth Grade Exercise Club

Thanks to the initiative of several fifth graders and to the willingness of Mrs. Lindemann to supervise after school hours, fifth graders have an opportunity to exercise after school on Mondays starting April 21 from 3:45 to 5:15.

To participate, students must be in fifth grade and return the permission slip distributed on Wednesday, April 16. Students who participate must be picked up by an authorized adult at 5:15.

Students who have previously committed to El Sistema should not attend the fist exercise club session.

Questions can be directed to Mrs. Lindemann or Mr. Karr. :-)

In-District Transfer Period Open - Enroll In Future International Baccalaureate School

Families who live within the AAPS can apply to come to Mitchell School for the 2014-15 school year from April 14 to May 2, 2014. More information can be found by CLICKING HERE.

This is an excellent opportunity for families who are interested in the upcoming International Baccalaureate program to get in on the ground floor.

If you have questions, Mr. Karr is available to help. Please call (997-1216), email (karrk@aaps.k12.mi.us) or stop by.

A System, a Symphony: El Sistema Makes Music and More at Mitchell |

Dear Mitchell Families,
Please read over this feature article from the AAPS News about the Mitchell El Sistema program!

http://news.a2schools.org/a-system-a-symphony-el-sistema-makes-music-and-more-at-mitchell/

Enjoy!

End Of Year Learning

As we move into the end of the school year, I'm always excited to see the culminating success of the work students, teachers and parents have done.  The next two months are when we see the greatest gains! Keep up the great work!

Enrollment for 2014-15

In the school office, we are in planning mode for 2014-15.  This is why we have been asking about your plans for next school year.  We know families have choices on where to send their kids to school.  I want you to know Mitchell is an excellent choice for your child's education.  Kids at Mitchell grow at a rate of at least one year for each year of school.  This is significant and is not something a standardized test will measure . . . but it is something the other assessments we give at school do show.  It is essential that Mitchell parents understand that the excellence of a school is not defined by the MEAP test (even though we are making good progress there too) . . . rather we have to look at the growth that occurs for children.  We do that by looking at where a child started (in reading, for example) and where they ended in a given year.

If you have questions or concerns about your child's experience at Mitchell, Mr. Karr would like to know.  Please call school (997-1216) or email (karrk@aaps.k12.mi.us). 

Extended Day Classes Ending

Please note that several extended day classes will be ending in the next two weeks – El Sistema, Michigan Makers, Mighty Mustangs Math.  Chess club will end on May 8.

Science Olympiad – Thanks to all of our coaches!

I'm impressed by the parent coaches for Science Olympiad this year.  Thank you for your time and commitment. You are a valuable resource that will make a difference this year at Science Olympiad. Great job!

Disability Awareness Day – One more thank you!

Thank you to the girl scouts for their help during our recent Disability Awareness Day.