Below are scenes from the Riverside Elementary Winter Concert on Tuesday, De-cember 2. The program was held at the Riverside Jr.-Sr. High School gym under the

direction of Mrs. Kramer. Photos are courtesy of Ms. Leslie Pilling.

Page 12

Intermediate Winter Concert The 5th grade band played their very first concert at the Intermediate School Winter Pro-

gram. This young group of musicians opened the program with “Merrily We Roll Along.” The band showed off their instruments as each group played a soli in “Good King Wences-las.” They concluded with everyone’s favorite, “Jingle Bells.” WAY TO GO BAND!

The 6th grade band has many talented musicians! These students worked hard to put togeth-

er a program with songs that included a melody, harmony and bass line. At this age, playing three individual parts is very difficult. The band put on a great performance with their songs: “Ode to Joy”, “The Nutcracker March”, and “St. Nick on the Housetop.”

(The photos were submitted to Mrs. Brandon for this article. Thank you)

Also performing at the Intermedi-ate School Winter concert was the choir under the direction of Ms. Kelsey Burns. (photos were submit-

ted via screen shot)

Students at the Intermediate School keep busy with all sorts of activities. The student council helped by getting the Carson lumi-

naries filled. Photos were submitted by Tami Skank.

Reminder: Classes Resume Monday, January 5

The Intermediate School had a Festive Hat Day. Below are the pictures from the 4th Grade. (Photos by Tami Skank)

Left: Paige Long and her Festive

Hat.

The RoadHouse Café Takes Visits the Intermediate School

The FSC’s RoadHouse Café traveled to the Intermediate School on November 25 to prepare a meal for staff there.

Left:

Jana Hensley enjoys a salad prepared by the RoadHouse

Chefs.

Left to Right: Dylan McClain, Warren DeGroat, Tim Brink

Left: Ms. Lauren Wilcox, student teacher, helps 6th grade students with a geography project in Mrs. Plagman's classroom. Ms. Wilcox was Mrs. Plag-

man's student teacher.

Left: Computer Time!!

GO DAWGS! GO DAWGS! GO DAWGS! GO DAWGS! GO DAWGS! GO DAWGS! GO DAWGS!

NOTICE: UPDATED JUNIOR HIGH GIRLS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

NOTICE: UPDATED JUNIOR HIGH WRESTLING SCHEDULE

Gute New from the Junior-Senior High School (Dave Gute)

While reviewing a very successful semester at Riverside Jr.-Sr. High, I wanted to reflect a moment on the junior high part of the building. We decided in the spring of 2013 to move the junior high students to the high school building because our continued growth in en-rollment at the elementary building. Although this move wasn’t the popular choice among all community members or even the staff at Riverside, we did feel it was the best option for the district at that time. When we decided to make the move, I had to ask/tell 6 current teachers in the high school at that time that they were also moving. Some of those were moving from the 3rd level of the high school building to the 1st level. Some oth-ers were moving from one end of the 2nd level of the building to the complete opposite end of the building. When I asked teachers to move from room to room, they did do the majority of moving themselves and they were understanding as to the reason(s) they needed to switch rooms, but not necessarily excited for the extra work. That was just dealing with the teachers we currently had in the high school. We also had 4 teachers that, at the time, needed to box up their things from the Middle School and send them to the High School. Most of those teachers decided to move the majority of their things on

their own time with their own transportation.

Overall, this was a difficult process for the community and several staff members; howev-er, the great part about this is that our students and our school system has benefited from this move. We have had a wonderful 1.5 years in the building and it has helped keep more staff members in one place throughout the school day. This creates more classes for students to choose from when I don’t have to plan travel into the teachers’ day. The junior high students have responded well to the jr.-sr. high school environment and the different opportunities that exist at the jr.-sr. high school building. We have the junior high educational wing of the building on the 3rd floor in the building and the students spend anywhere from 50 to 90% of their school day in that area. This varies from day to day due to different exploratory classes, i.e., music classes, physical education and extra-

curricular activities they are involved in.

Ultimately, the entire process couldn’t have gone any better than it did. After having taught at the Riverside Middle School for 9 years before becoming the high school princi-pal, I knew it was going to be fine. We just needed to get the students moved in. I enjoy working with the junior high students and I’m excited to watch them mature from a 7th grade student into a Senior in high school. Jr. high students can be challenging, but also rewarding for staff members if they can earn their respect and develop positive relation-ships with them. All students need to make connections with adults at school. The stu-

dents become more and more successful once they have made these positive connections.

Above left: Jake Novotny and Tyler Krueger during IKM-Manning game. Left: Jacey Kallsen drives

down the court against an IKM-Manning opponent.

Despite the cold temperatures, work continues to progress at the new building site. Notice some of the measures taken to keep the progress

going along. The photos were submitted by Dr. Sutton.

Left and Above: Work continues despite the cold weather.

Winterizing the big window Putting on Plastic for Winter

Exploring Teaching Elves Braeton, Sara, Bailey

and Krya are getting ready for Christmas. Our Thanks To Each and Everyone Who Has

Submitted Photos For This Issue.

Enjoy the holidays and remember school re-

sumes on

Monday, January 5, 2015.

The High School Winter Concert was held Monday, December 15 in the auditorium. We have some pictures and information from Mrs. Brandon about each of

the bands that played. We are also including pictures of the choirs as well. The house was packed and we heard some great music.

The junior high band is 18 members strong. This group opened the Winter Concert with “Winter Wonderland”, followed by “Ukrainian Bell Carol” and “Frosty

the Snow Man.” This tight group has a great time playing together and it showed through their concert performance. GREAT PERFORMANCE, JUNIOR HIGH! Thirty three students make up the high school band. This group performed three songs for their winter concert. The band began their portion of the concert with the toe-tapper “Sleigh Ride.” To slow it down, the band played a tough arrangement of “O Holy Night” and concluded (in 1 minute and 57 seconds) with

“20 Carols in 2 Minutes.” GREAT JOB HIGH SCHOOL BAND!

Riverside Bands

Pictures below are from the choir portion of the Jr-Sr High School Winter Concert.

Top Left and Right: JH Choir

Above and Right: HS Choir

On Dec 3, twenty-five of Mrs. Hardy's eighth grade language arts students made their way to Oakland Manor Nursing Home to help residents enjoy the spirit of Christmas. Students transformed the hallways by stringing lights and trimming trees, while another group helped residents pick just the right gifts for their loved ones from the Christmas shop. Others wrapped the gifts beautifully, ready to go under the tree. Yet another group treated residents to a bright holiday manicure--the hot color--Christmas red! These students have been learning all about paying it forward, and it shows. They make Riverside proud. (Photos

supplied by Mrs. Hardy)

Lydia Wede, Alexis Post, Haley Faga, Faith Appley, Micaela Herrera do manicures. Vince Palazzo and crew help decorate the tree.

Far right: Riley Raney helps with the

gift wrapping.

Right: Even Mrs. Hardy gets into the act helping to wrap

some gifts.

Riverside Students Volunteer at Museum By: Mandie Reynolds (photos by Stempel)

On Tuesday, December 2nd, a group of Riverside students were invited to the Nishna Heritage Museum to help make Christmas ornaments to decorate the tall Christmas tree in the window. Jo Kate and Gayle Strickland were at the museum to work with the kids, and they all had a wonderful time! Thanks so very much

to the students who volunteered and to the museum for hosting us.

Above: Paige Osweiler decorates the tree.

Abi Petersen shows off her ornament The Decorating Crew at work with Mrs. Reynolds

8th Graders Learn What It Takes to Pay It Forward (Ruth Hardy)

Ask any teacher and they will tell you that Monday mornings can be tough on stu-dents, but Mrs. Hardy’s 8th grade Language Arts classes got tough last Monday as they presented their community service project proposals to a panel of school and commu-nity judges. Students spent weeks researching needs in the community and potential partnering organizations in order to present detailed, effective volunteer projects and programs. Dr. Sutton, Mr. Gute, Gayle Strickland, Veva Larson, and Mary Stempel heard and offered feedback on a variety of student proposals, including tree planting for the new school, regular nursing home visitation, reading to elementary students, and a benefit run for lymphoma cancer, to name just a few. Students when asked for

their reactions to this judging reflected unanimously, “I was so nervous!”

The judges responded very positively to these fledgling community volunteers. They encouraged them to go the next mile by tracking down more information, networking with community members, and getting the green light from school administration to put their plans into action. Gayle Strickland, representing Riverside Links, proposed a partnership with student council to help these students realize some of their worthy plans. Administration is also looking into the grant proposal process to make the Trees for Kids plan of planting wind breaks to protect and beautify the new school

grounds a reality. Keep an eye on this class. They will do great things.

Proposal: Spend More Time with Nursing Home Residents

Proposal: Neighborhood Beautification

On Wednesday, December 3rd the Junior High Student Council helped

to set up and light luminaries for the Carson Christmas celebration. It was a fun day and a big thank you to Rolling Hills Bank for providing

treats for the students.

JH Student

Council at Work.

2014-15 Riverside Dance Team (Bonni Hering)

Members of the 2014-15 Riverside Dance Team are Amanda Applegate, Taylor Applegate, Brittnee Chase, Morgan Gentile-Turner, Hannah Hen-derson (captain), McKenzie Moore, Allison Reicks, and Jordyn Winget (captain). Amanda, Taylor, Hannah, and Jordyn attended Just For Kix dance camp in July. The team attended a dance workshop at Lewis Cen-tral on November 24th. A big thank you to all the family and friends that traveled to Des Moines on Thursday, December 4th to cheer on the dance team as they competed in the 2015 ISDTA State contest! This is a large competition (example: in the Pom division there are 14 classes, with 12 teams in each class) and a big deal for these girls. Each year, our goal is to earn a Division I rating (60-70 points). Places are then awarded to the top 5 teams who have earned Division I. This year we received a 59.875. Oh so close!!! These ladies worked very hard the last month & especially the week leading up to State, trying to "clean" the Pom rou-tine. The team earned a Division II rating in Class IV Pom. We are al-ways learning & improving! Thank you for watching us at home games & for supporting us in our fundraising efforts. Keep watching for more information about our annual Kid’s Camp and Dance Team Show, set for

Saturday, March 7th , 2015. (Photo by Jenni Reicks)

January/enero Breakfast/ desayuno

Sunday/domingo Monday/lunes Tuesday/martes Wednesday/

miercoles Thursday/jueves Friday/viernes Saturday/sabado

January/enero Lunch/almuerzo

Sunday/domingo Monday/lunes Tuesday/martes Wednesday/miercoles

Thursday/jueves Friday/viernes Saturday/sabado

1

NO

SCHOOL

2

NO

SCHOOL

3

4

5 Pizza

Green beans

Fruit choice

Fruit crisp

6 Mr. Rib on wg bun

Bar B Q sauce

Potato wedges

Fruit choices

7 Chili/crackers

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choices

Cinnamon twist

8 Orange Chicken

Calf. Blend veggies

Rice

Veggie bar & fruit

Romaine salad mix

9 Hamburger on bun

French fries

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choices

10

11 12 Chicken noodle or

Tomato soup/crackers

Grilled cheese

Fruit choices

Veggie bar & lettuce

13 Chicken fried steak

Mashed potatoes

Gravy-fruit choices

Veggie bar & lettuce

Wg dinner roll

14 Macho Nacho

Romaine salad mix

Shred cheese– salsa

Refried beans &fruit

Spanish rice

15 Corn dog on stick

Corn

Fruit choices

Veggie bar & lettuce

cookie

16 Tenderloin on bun

Cooked broccoli

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choices

17

18

19 Chicken Tetrazzini

Peas

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choice & muffin

20 Meatball sub

Shredded cheese

Green beans

Veggie bar & lettuce

Fruit choices

21 Soft shelled taco

Refried beans-salsa

Romaine salad mix

Veggie bar &cookie

Fruit choices

22 Chicken & noodles

Mashed potatoes

Veggie bar & lettuce

Fruit choices

WG dinner roll

23Fish sandwich

Ranch potato wedges

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choices

24

25 26 Chicken sandwich

Cooked cauliflower

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choices

27 Walking tacos

Romaine salad mix

Salsa-shred cheese

Veggie bar-refried

beans– fruit choices

28 Hot dog on wg bun

Macaroni & cheese

Veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Fruit choices

29 Chicken Strips

Mashed potatoes

Gravy-veggie bar

Romaine salad mix

Wg dinner roll

30 Pizza

Green beans & fruit

Romaine salad mix

Veggie bar & Yellow

Cake w/strawberries

31

Cereal offered daily 1

2

3

4 5 Cereal

One slice toast

Fruit choices

Milk

6 Waffles/ syrup

Fruit choices

Milk

7 Long John

Yogurt

Juice

Fruit choices

8 Sausage & cheese

Breakfast sandwich

Juice

Fruit choices

9 Breakfast Pita

Fruit choices

Milk

10

11 12 Breakfast bites

Syrup

Fruit choices

Milk

13 Cheese omelet

One slice toast

Juice

Fruit choices

14 Cereal

Muffin

Fruit choices

Juice

15 Pancakes

Syrup

Fruit choices

Juice

16 Breakfast burrito

Fruit choices

Milk

17

18

19 Breakfast pizza

Fruit choices

Milk

20 Homemade

Granola bar

Yogurt

Juice

21 Pancake sausage on

a stick /syrup

Juice

Fruit choices

22 Western Omelet

Quesadilla

Fruit choices

Juice

23 Cereal

1/2 bagel

Fruit choices

Milk

24

25 26 Grilled cheese

Fruit choices

Milk

27 Scrumptious

Coffee cake

Fruit choices

Milk

28 French toast

Syrup

Juice

Fruit choices

Milk

29 Cereal

One slice toast

Juice

Fruit choices

Milk

30 Egg & Cheese

Breakfast sandwich

Fruit choices

Milk

31