Wednesday

Nov. 28

12:15-12:45 p.m.

Pizza Day (12:05-12:45 for Middle School) - Parents Welcome

No pizza day for Seminar students.

Wednesday

Dec. 5

12:15-12:45 p.m.

Pizza Day (12:05-12:45 for Middle School) - Parents Welcome

No pizza day for Seminar students.

Wednesday

Dec. 12

12:15-12:45 p.m.

Lunch-A-Month (12:05-12:45 for Middle School) - Parents Welcome
(hot dog, potato chips, Christmas cookie, lemonade)

Wednesday

Dec. 19

12:15-12:45 p.m.

Pizza Day (12:05-12:45 for Middle School) - Parents Welcome

No pizza day for Seminar students.

Friday

Dec. 21

Skating Party (Watch for details in future Quick Notes.)

1:00 p.m. Dismissal. No ASP.

Monday-

Friday

Dec. 24-

Jan. 4

School Closed for Winter Holiday

Monday

Jan. 7

Classes Resume

C.S. Students to Participate in

Las Posadas Celebration

As part of our Hispanic culture studies, C.S. parent Clara E. (Andres and Sofia’s mom) and teachers Elena and Kim M. are organizing a school-wide Las Posadas celebration on December 10 and 11. The activities will include discussing the traditions of the Las Posadas celebration, making a traditional Mexican piñata ornament (a Christmas Star), and learning a song that the children will sing as they go from class to class seeking shelter. The students will be “turned away” until they reach their own classroom where their teacher will welcome them in and offer them the traditional punch and cookies.

Congratulations

C.S. on a Very Successful Book Fair and an Equally Successful Food Drive!

We recorded over $10,000 in purchases at B & N, and our C.S. and CHS families donated 480 pounds of food to Second Harvest.

1)   Our book fair at Barnes and Noble was a resounding success! A big thank you to everyone who purchased, performed, passed out flyers and vouchers, and promoted the book fair and our school. As a result of our strong community effort – and in spite of the fact that Barnes & Noble reduced the percentages of return for all school book fairs – we recorded over $10,000 in total purchases credited to Community School! And, since we broke $10,000 in sales, Community School will receive 20% of the final amount. As in the past, a portion of the profits will go directly into the teachers’ classroom budgets. Congratulations on a job well done – and happy reading!

2)     Thanks to you, Community School, along with Community High School, donated 480 pounds of food to the Second Harvest Food Bank this past week. The food bank was really surprised by the size of the donation and said they did not think that they had ever had a donation that large from a school, unless it was a college. This was a proud moment for our community! Special thanks to Board of Trustee member and C.S. and CHS parent Debby Martin for coordinating this successful Food Drive.
 

Middle School Students Work to Beautify C.S. Campus and Promote Environmental Awareness

C.S. is now the first school in Virginia to be registered with VASOS as a stream monitoring site.

You can help the students in their efforts: Purchase student-made C.S. house ornaments now or donate your living holiday tree to the student project in January.

Active Learning in Progress

Congratulations to the Garden Design and Land Use Management Friday Group on the recent news that almost all the trees for their native species arboretum and the tree screen along Williamson Road will be donated to C.S. in January and for their recent certification with Virginia Save our Streams and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality as the monitors for Carven’s Creek. The students will survey the creek for macroinvertebrates four times a year and report their findings to VASOS. You will be able to view their findings at www.vasos.org. Community School is the first school in the state to be registered as a monitoring site.

Please see the information below for the group’s continuing projects to raise funds to purchase the remaining trees and plants, build the garden beds for each class, and complete the other projects in their design plan. The planning, implementation and fundraising for these environmental efforts are student generated.
Email   with questions.

1)   Please consider buying a living Christmas tree this year, with the root ball intact. After the holidays, donate the tree to C.S. The students will plant the tree between our campus and the Hollins apartments to create a living, oxygen-producing, evergreen screen. Bring your live tree to the C.S. parking lot on January 11 between 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon or between 1:00 and 2:45 p.m.
 

2)   Purchase student-made Community School house ornaments for your holiday tree or as gifts for family and friends. The students will individualize each ornament with the name(s) of your choice. Each ornament is $5. Purchase your ornaments during morning drop off (8:15-8:45 a.m.), after school (3:15-6:00 p.m.), or use this order form.

Thanksgiving Luncheon Photos Available to C.S. Families

C.S. technology teacher Lelia has uploaded photos from the Thanksgiving Luncheon to her Snapfish account. If you would like to view the photos, please email her with “Thanksgiving Luncheon” in the subject line. She will send you an invitation to view the photos. You will be able to download or order prints of the photos. Thank you to Gretchen for the idea of using Snapfish to share photos.

Safety Alert:

Please Update Your Emergency Contact Information

For your child’s safety, please remember to keep the office promptly informed of any changes in your work, home, or cell phone numbers. We have had several recent cases of sick children whose parents were inaccessible due to disconnected cell phones and outdated work numbers.

Giving a Kroger Gift Card as a Holiday Gift? Get Two Gifts for the Price of One!

Purchase a $5 Kroger Gift Card in the Community School office, add value at the Kroger Customer Service desk or checkout, and give it to someone as a holiday gift. At the same time, you’ll be giving a gift to C.S. for no extra cost! The $5 purchase price is credited on the card, and Kroger sends a percentage of the total back, in cash, to C.S. Now that’s smart shopping.

Needed

Photos from Fall Festival trips. We would love to have copies of your photos from the 2007 Fall Festival trips to put in our school archives and use in school publications. You can drop copies by the office or email photos to  or

Please Check

Lost & Found

Our Lost & Found box is overflowing! Please remember to check for your child’s missing clothing, backpack, lunchbox, etc. The box is located outside, to the right of the office door. All items not claimed before the Winter Holidays will be donated to a local charity.