Winter Break

The holidays are just around the corner! We will be hosting a holiday program on Tuesday, December 13th. The whole community is encouraged to attend. We will have music, food, and good cheer. Diomede school will then have a half day Wednesday, December 14. Students will be released after lunch for winter break. We will resume classes Friday, January 6.

Thanksgiving Feast

We'll be having the usual Thanksgiving feast in the school on Thursday, November 24th from around 4:30 to 6:30. Eskimo dance starts around 7:00 pm. Make sure to bring your own plates and flatware, as we'll only have a limited amount at the school. Looking forward to seeing you there!

Halloween Double Feature

This Friday, October 28, we'll have a special movie night with a double feature. We'll start out the night with Treasure Planet. After the first film we'll have a costume contest. There will be games, face painting, and more! We'll also have special concessions: slushies, caramel corn! We hope to see you there in your best Halloween costume!

Jessie in Diomede

Ms. Jessie from the BSSD office in Unalakleet will be vising Diomede School from Monday to Wednesday. She will be here to test the hearing and vision of all our students.

Spirit Week

This week, Diomede School will be showing some team spirit! The high school and Jr. high will team up against the Kinder-5th graders. Our themes are as follows:
 - Monday: Backwards/Miss Match
 - Tuesday: Crazy Hair
 - Wednesday: Super-Hero
 - Thursday: Pajamas
 - Friday: Anything Goes!

Teacher Inservice

There will be no school on Wednesday, September 28, 2016 as the teachers will be having an inservice on Wednesday , September 28, and Thursday, September 29, and Friday, September 30. There will be no students in school those days. Enjoy your - very - extended weekend!

Extended Weekend

There will be no school on Monday, September 5, 2016 as we will be celebrating Labor Day. Also, the teachers will be having an inservice on Tuesday, September 6, and Wednesday, September 7, so there will be no students in school those days. Enjoy your - very - extended weekend!

International Swimmers

On Tuesday, August 30, a swim team from Canada (Montreal) arrived in Diomede on two small fishing boats. World renowned swimmer, Normand Piché, has come to Diomede to attempt to swim from Little Diomede to Big Diomede. It is the first in many steps of swimming between five continents. Yesterday the team visited Ms. Kristina and Mr. Rob's classes to talk about dreams and goals (and sharks and jellyfish). Today they will be visiting Mr. Frank and Ms. Leah's class. To learn more about these amazing adventures, check out their website at http://en.o5swim.ca/.

Coast Guard Visit

Last night, a United States Coast Guard vessel anchored just north of Diomede. Today they have been very busy removing industrial and technological waste from the island. Several sailors popped into the school for a brief Q&A session. They will be heading south this evening to dispose of the waste.

Welcome Back!

The teachers arrived on Diomede on Tuesday and have been busy putting together classrooms and attending important trainings for the upcoming school year. The first day of school will be Wednesday, August 17, 2016. Doors will open at 8:00 am, breakfast will be served at 8:15 am. Adults can join their students for both breakfast and lunch. Breakfast is $4 per visitor, and lunch is $7. School will conclude at our usual 3:30 pm closing time. We look forward to seeing you all. Please feel free to contact any of our new or returning teachers with questions you may have.

It's great to be back on the island!

Frank Stanek (Principal and High School): fstanek@dio.bssd.org
Leah Stanek (High School): lstanek@dio.bssd.org
Kristina Benitez (Early Elementary): kbenitez@dio.bssd.org
Rob Michaud (Late Elementary): rmichaud@dio.bssd.org
School Phone: (907) 686-3021

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Photo by Kristina Benitez

A Warm Welcome

Please join me in welcoming our two new teachers: Leah Stanek and Kristina Benitez! Frank Stanek has returned as well (he taught ECE here in the spring of 2015). While Frank is our principal, he will also be co-teaching high school with his wife, Leah. Kristina (who taught in Wales for the last two years) will be teaching our younger ones downstairs next to Mr. Rob's room. If you have any questions for our new and returning teachers, please feel free to e-mail, call, or drop in for a chat. I'm really looking forward to this school year!

Jan Whalen in Diomede

On Friday, Jan Whalen (Mr. Rob's mother) stepped off the copper. She's here to teach a week of art to all the Diomede students. She's come with a wide variety of projects involving the school shop, classroom art supplies, and much more. Drop on by to learn about her many projects and watch our students in action learning new and exciting art forms.

Earth Day

On April 22, Diomede School celebrated Earth Day. We had lessons about reducing waste and energy consumption, recycling materials, and reusing things we might normally throw out. Pam's class painted Earth Day posters, Brenda built kuspuqs out of trash bags with Mr. Rob's class, and we had an all-around blast. We hope your Earth Day was as fun and informative as our was!

Basketball Trip

On April 13, the Diomede Dateliners Little Dribblers team took off on the chopper to head to Wales for the week. There they competed with many schools in a large basketball tournament. The kids had a blast, did some art with Mr. Frank, and made some new friends. A very big -thank you- to Mr. Michael and Ms. Vera for chaperoning our kids. What fun!

Graduation and Prom

Diomede Graduation will be held Friday, May 13, 2016 at 7:00 PM in the gym. The next day we will hold our annual Diomede Prom on Saturday, 14, also at 7:00 PM in Michael's room. As always, the community is welcome to join us in celebrating the success of our wonderful students.

High Table for Pam's Class

This month, if you are a parent of one of Pam's students, please join us in the cafeteria on Friday, March 25th from 12:00 pm to 12:30 pm for a free lunch. This is part of the open table program at the school to help promote community and involvement in student learning. We hope to see you there!

Flashback image!

Physical Therapist in Diomede

A Norton Sound physical therapist will be visiting our island from Monday, April 4th to Wednesday, April 6th. Please call or drop by the clinic to schedule an appointment.

Dentist in Diomede

Dr. Miller and his crew of dentists will be coming to Diomede from Monday, March 28 to Monday, April 4. Drop by the gym to schedule an appointment for a teeth cleaning and consultation.

AMP Test

Out students will be taking the Alaska Measures of Progress test from the end of March to mid April. This is a very high stakes standardized test administered to third grade and above. Please make sure your students get lots of rest so they can show just how much they've learned. Testing schedules will be posted at the school.

School Showers

Due to our recent water shortage, the school will now be open to the public for showers on Wednesdays from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm. Come on up to the gym for a free hot shower. This service will continue until the village washeteria is back in working order. Many thanks to our principal, Pam Potter, who sought permission for this service from the district office.

Voting for Movies

Come to the gym this Thursday for a viewing of Big Hero 6 and the opportunity to vote for the next four movie night films. We will have voting ballots complete with write-ins, should you want to view a movie with your friends that we don't currently have. As usual, there will be popcorn for $1 with 25¢ refills. Also, a friendly reminder that all kids below the first grade must have an adult accompanying them. Hope to see you there!

Dr. Seuss Day Read-A-Thon

Wednesday, March 2nd, Diomede School will be honoring the prolific Dr. Seuss by participating in "Read Across America." We will be performing many of his works and offering green eggs and spam as an afternoon snack. Come on over and join in on the fun! To learn more about NEA's Read Across America program and for free projects, books, and programs, look here.

Coast Guard Visit Diomede School

As part of the "Kids Don't Float" program, Sarah and Hamilton from the United States Coast Guard came to Diomede for a brief visit and presentation. Not only did we get a serenade of Shirley Temple's "Good Ship Lolly-Pop" for our morning assembly, but we also got to stick our hands in freezing cold water to demonstrate how one should put on a life jacket before going out on the water. Always remember: "The best life jacket is the one you have."

Ski Club

Ski Club is back, and it's badder than ever! Now that we have Brenda, James, and Andrew helping out, we can take out as many as 20 kids at a time (That's more kids than we even have)! I've also managed to rustle up some more skis buried away in the dark corners of the school and surrounding buildings. There is the issue of us not having any snow, but in the meantime, we'll be heading out for hikes in our snow gear to get our muscles ready for skiing. Please join us Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 3:45 pm to 4:30 pm. Make sure to bring plenty of warm gear.

100th Day and Pennies for Patients

February 1st marks both our 100th day of school this year, as well as our participation in the Pennies for Patients program. There will be a little 100th day celebration in the morning during school assembly from 8:50 A. M. to 9:10 A. M. Pennies for Patients is a fundraising activity to help people with leukemia. Please bring what spare change you can muster to help with a noble cause. Last year, our generous students and staff managed to donate a heart-warming amount. Together we can make a difference!

Art & Science Fair

Please join us in the school cafeteria on Friday, January 22nd after 2:00 p.m. for a double dose of student achievement. Our science fair and art fair will be open to the public, and we're still looking for judges. Swing on by and check out what our kids have been working on! If you are interesting in judging art, science fair projects, or both, please talk to Michael or Rob for details.

Battle of the Books

Both veteran Michael and rookie Rob have been coaching our students in the 2015/2016 Battle of the Books! Official battles will be held for Michael's team on Wednesday, January 20, while Rob's team will go to bat Thursday, January 21. Wish us luck and help our kids read, read, read! For more information about rules, books, and schedules, you can visit Alaska Association of School Libraries website.

New Teachers

As Pam, Michale, Stephanie, Suzy-Q, and Rob return on the chopper, they'll be bringing Brenda and James Dolma with them. Brenda is a veteran teacher and will be here to work one-on-one interventions with our students, while James provides much-need support in the classroom. Please join us in welcoming these brave new travelers to our Diomede School family!