Touchet School District

Happy Thanksgiving Touchet Community! We had incredible success with our Thanksgiving Food Drive! ~The students collected over 500 items! ~The school purchased 8 turkeys and 5 hams, with a kind donation from Grocery Outlet (thank you for organizing that, Mrs. Nolan!). ~Thank you to Nancy Gutierrez, who helped bring all the food over to the library and count it! ~ASB sorted all the food into 10 boxes overflowing with Thanksgiving meal items. ~All food, turkeys, and hams were distributed to needy community members by the end of school today, ensuring they felt loved and fed for the holidays. Thank you for all your help in making this happen Touchet Community! As our superintendent, Mr. Elizondo said it best... "Thank you!!!! What a great gift to support our families. Touchet is special because of our students and great role models!" We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving break and enjoy time with friends and family celebrating togetherness. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Congratulations to our Fall Sports Academic Athletes! So many this year it was hard to fit them all in one picture! And to our First and Second team all conference recipients! Thank you to all the Coaches, Parents Athletes, and Booster Club for making this a successful Fall Sports Season!

Redhawk Happenings Thanksgiving Week!

This Week's Touchet Teacher Spotlight is Mr. Nick Genereux! Mr. Genereux has recently started our STEAM Lego Robotics club taking place after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with competition in December! Interested in more information about the Lego Robotics club, or have questions, Mr. Genereux would love to chat with you! We asked Mr. Genereux a few questions about himself! Enjoy learning more about our excellent teacher! How long have you been teaching? "I am in my 16th year of teaching. Before coming to Touchet, I taught at Walla Walla Community College and in the Walla Walla school district. This is my ninth year in Touchet." Where did you go to college? "I completed the Walla Walla Hat Trick, an undergrad at Whitman College in physics, classes at Walla Walla Community College, and a master's from Walla Walla University." How did you get into the Lego robotics, and what is your favorite part about it? "Back in my day, Legos were Minecraft IRL. Bills and battles were just something you did every afternoon, and all summer long. During teacher training, there was a summer workshop to be certified in Running a Lego Robotics Program; it was like a reset button for my imagination. My favorite part about Lego robotics used to be making something from science fiction accessible for everyone. But now, I love the moments of discovery, and the thrill that is in the room as students solve problems and imagine even more ways to use the technology. I get to learn from the ingenuity of the kids. Oh, and it's really good for careers and making the world a better place." Where is your favorite place to vacation? "Anywhere with my wife and two kids is perfect. We enjoy traveling to cities and exploring the little nooks and crannies. The kids love traveling to the island of Kauai for the beaches and the food. It's like Touchet, but with amazing fruit, fish, and swimming." What hobbies do you enjoy outside of teaching? "I play piano and guitar, sometimes writing my music. I do some wood projects, some electronics projects, and some 3-D printing. I took up coding a while back and put together useful little apps. Whenever possible, I play video games. And I love to cook, especially with my wife." Thank you, Mr. Genereux, for all you do for Touchet School District!

COMMUNITY SERVICE OPPORTUNITY Saturday, November 18 at 10:00 am Join a group of people at the top of Touchet Gardena Road at the intersection of Riggs Road to pick up litter. Bring gloves, and trash bags, and wear a bright-colored shirt or vest.

Here is another great holiday gift idea while supporting the Touchet FFA kids! Sock Fundraiser! Scan the QR code and place the order directly while helping out the Touchet FFA! Or Contact Mr. Maiden with additional questions!

Did you know you can get a box of See's Candy delivered right to your doorstep just in time for the holidays? FBLA is selling See's candy to raise money for their club! Contact Mrs. Short or Mrs. Crenshaw for more information on how to order your holiday chocolates from an FBLA member. Orders will be turned in on November 27th! So, get your chocolates ordered today! Also are you curious what FBLA is and what they raise funds for? Come to the informational meeting on November 21st @ 5 pm, in the school library. Mrs. Crenshaw will be available to answer any questions!

Middle School Fall Sports Awards! Tuesday the 21st, 2:05 pm during 7th period in the commons!

IMPORTANT DATE CHANGE! The Fall Sports Awards banquet has been moved to Tuesday, November 21st, at 7 pm!

Who's ready for a little donkey basketball action! FFA presents an evening of fun and entertainment this Sunday night at 6pm in the RedHawk gym! Get your tickets in advance and save $1 on admission!

Redhawk Happenings with a full week of activities! The start of high school basketball, Lego robotics is in full swing, middle school boys' basketball action, and Donkey Basketball Sunday evening presented by the FFA!

This weeks Touchet Staff Spotlight is Mrs. Julie Frenzel! Touchet school is so lucky to have Mrs. Frenzel offering assistance in both the elementary and secondary buildings but more importantly she does a wonderful job capturing amazing memories for our yearbook and teaching our students how to do the same! Here are a few fun facts about Mrs. Frenzel you may not have known! "I've been at Touchet for about 5 years. Before, in another life, I worked in Health Insurance, a cupcake shop, a video post-production facility, Au Pair in France, Missionary in Chile, and I got to wear a MuMu every day when I worked at the Polynesian Cultural Center while I was a student at BYU-Hawaii. I love Recess! and I really enjoy taking photos of everything going on at Touchet! "It's for Yearbook" I love growing and arranging flowers. I love music, art, cultural studies, and I enjoying listening to NPR." And her favorite place to vacation is, The Beach! Thank you Mrs. Frenzel! We sure appreciate you!

Who doesn't love a good game of Jeopardy! Especially if it's all about Washington State Geography AND you get to win CHOCOLATE! Awesome Job 4th grade students! Keep up the hard work while mixing in a little fun!

Fall Sports are officially over, but we want to recognize our fall sports athletes! Save the date: Friday, November 17th, @ 7 pm, in the school cafeteria, the Booster Club will be providing pizza and treats as we celebrate all of our High School Volleyball and Football players! And mark your calendars as the Lady Redhawk Basketball team starts practice on Monday, November 13th @ 3 p.m., with the locker room being open at @2:45, (because there is no school). The first Boy's Basketball practice is Tuesday, November 14th @ 5 pm!

Dear Touchet School District Parents and Guardians, In our ongoing efforts to reach our community members effectively, we are sending this notice out via email, text, Facebook, and Voice Call. If you do not receive an email, phone call, and text message, please contact the school to update your information. Thank You

Redhawk Happenings this week! Please check the News Feed for an important communications update! Conferences with early release this week!

We are excited to announce that Touchet ASB is hosting a Thanksgiving Food Drive, benefiting local families. It will run from Nov 6th -Nov 21st. Prizes will be awarded to the classes that collect the most donations, one winner in Elementary, one in Middle School, and one in High School. Middle School and High School students can drop off their donations to their advisory teachers. Let's make this a special Thanksgiving for our students and our amazing community!

This week's Touchet Teacher Spotlight is Mrs. Kimberly Garcia! Mrs. Garcia is just a couple of weeks away from welcoming her new baby girl! Here are a few fun facts about Mrs. Garcia! Mrs. Garcia has been teaching for 5 years now! When asked what intrigues her most about teaching science she said, "I love how hands-on it is, and how science incorporates other subjects. I always tell the students that "Science is the baby of math and English". You need to be able to do both to do science. Learning science also gives you such an appreciation for how complex the world is around us. The students also really enjoy the labs, so that is a bonus!" Her favorite experiment to teach in the lab is the contaminated well lab. Each "well" is a solution with a different chemical in it. You dip a cotton swab in the solution and then burn it with a Bunsen burner. The flame will be different colors, depending on the chemical in it! You can get lavender, red, and even blue-green flames! As a new mom, she is looking forward to seeing baby Rose grow and learn about the world around her. She can't wait to see her start reaching milestones. She's very excited about the toddler stage and can ask "why" about everything. She is most nervous about the future lack of sleep! We asked Mrs. Garcia if she had any fun science facts, she shared with her students about being pregnant, and this is what she taught them! "I asked the students about how they thought babies breathe, even though they are surrounded by liquid. The answer is this: why do we breathe? We do it to get oxygen into our blood, and to keep our cells alive. Babies share a blood supply with their mom. I breathe and move the oxygen into my blood, and then that blood travels to her and helps her cells stay alive. It's pretty cool!" Thank you, Mrs. Garcia, for your commitment to your science students. Wishing you a smooth delivery of your baby girl!

BASKETBALL IS HERE! Interviews Next Week! Ready to join the Redhawk Coaching Staff? Get your application in today! https://www.touchetsd.org/page/employment

Check out what our Plant/Ag/Food and Natural Resource science students started in our greenhouse! It may be chilly and wet outside, but our greenhouse is warm and cozy and ready to start growing! The kids planted cucumbers, cilantro, and dill using the hydroponic tower gardens! The middle school WIN class will supply produce to the cafeteria as a collaborative project. Stay tuned for updates as we get to watch these veggies and herbs grow!