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Quick Notes
Wednesday, September 12, 2007 |
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School Calendar
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Wednesday |
Sept. 12 |
12:15-12:45
p.m. |
Pizza Day
(12:05-12:45 for Middle School) - Parents Welcome.
No pizza day
for Seminar students.
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Tuesday |
Sept. 18 |
7:00 p.m.
7:30 p.m. |
Early Learner Gatherings
Lucia/Tulie/Sarah/Ruth
Ann/Katlyn (in art room)
Beth/Katie
(in Beth’s room)
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Wednesday |
Sept. 19 |
12:15-12:45
p.m. |
Lunch-A-Month (12:05-12:45 for middle school) - Parents Welcome
(taquitos, chips & salsa, popsicle, lemonade)
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Thursday |
Sept. 20 |
7:00 p.m.
7:30 p.m. |
Middle & Upper Elementary Gatherings
Autumn/Gretchen (in Gretchen’s room)
Kim/Betsy
(in Kim’s room)
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Friday |
Sept. 21 |
10:00 a.m. |
Class Name
Skits – Basketball Court – Parents Welcome
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Tuesday |
Sept. 25 |
9:00 a.m. |
Student
Pictures for Early Learner/Elementary Students
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Wednesday |
Sept. 26 |
9:00 a.m. |
Student
Pictures for Middle School Students
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Wednesday |
Sept. 26 |
12:15-12:45
p.m. |
Pizza Day
(12:05-12:45 for Middle School) - Parents Welcome
No pizza day for Seminar students.
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Thursday |
Sept. 27 |
7:00 p.m. |
Middle
School Gatherings
(in Emilie’s room)
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Monday |
Oct. 1 |
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No classes.
Staff In-Service Day.
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Caribbean Music Fest a New
Event for Community School
Eleven different steel drum
bands will perform at Shaftman Hall on November 3 at 7:00 p.m.
at the Jefferson Center, presenting a high-energy evening of music, dance and family fun.
Proceeds from this new collaborative event will be shared
between Community
School and Quest
Academy. Quest did this event last year, and it was one of the most successful
during the Jefferson
Center’s fall season. Their partner organization last year received $9,000
after the expenses were paid!
We were approached by Quest over
the summer. Quest Academy is a community music
school specializing in innovative, family-based instruction.
They help all students see themselves as able to achieve and
enjoy making music. Quest Academy’s philosophy is that
everyone can make music a real part of his or her life, and
their focus is on music that can be performed as a family. Most
of the eleven bands are individual family groups.
The philosophies of Quest and
Community School make a wonderfully compatible partnership.
Community
School is the only fully arts-integrated educational institution in the
Roanoke
Valley, and our music program plays a significant role in our day-to-day
curriculum. We have a history of offering in-depth study of
diverse musical styles. For example, last year we received a
Virginia Commission for the Arts grant to implement a Chinese
Music program. Prior to that, we received a similar grant to
study African music. We look forward to this collaboration with
Quest
Academy and plan to offer opportunities to learn about
Caribbean rhythms to our students via Quest instructors.
Our responsibilities
for participation include:
Ø
promoting ticket
sales,
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selling ad space
in the program,
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and marketing the
event.
Tickets are being sold through
the Jefferson Center. Adults are $16; students, $12; children, $6; and children under six may
attend for free. Please buy your own tickets to support
Community
School, and encourage other family members, friends and co-workers to attend as
well. Attached you will find an ad sheet detailing information
about the program. If you own your own business, or know someone
who does, please encourage him or her to purchase an ad. If we
can sell 17 business-card size ads (only $45 each!), we will
have covered the cost of printing the programs. Anything over
that adds to our proceeds.
This is a great opportunity for
Community School, and we need the support of our families to make it successful. Buy
your tickets and join
Quest Academy for a taste of the
tropics in November!
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Parent
Packets
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We will distribute Family
Address Lists and Parent Handbooks this week. Please watch for
your Parent Packet including these items and other important
information. In the interim, you can read the current Parent
Handbook on our website at
www.communityschool.net.
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Pizza Day |
The first Pizza Day of the
year is Sept. 12. You may still order pizza for the year or pay
by the slice before 9:00 a.m. each Pizza Day. Family members can
send money for extra slices if they wish to join their child for
lunch on Pizza Day. $1 per slice.
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Middle School Choir Informational Meeting
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On Thursday, September 13, there will be a
meeting for students interested in joining the Middle School
Choir. Come find out about choir, choir activities and group
expectations. The meeting will be in the Music Room at 12:30
p.m. Contact Kim M. if you want more information.
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Gatherings
Don’t miss Gatherings, the
CS version of Back to School Night. These meetings are your
opportunity to learn what your child will be doing in school
this year.
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Gatherings are evenings for
parents to learn more about their child’s level. Team teachers
will conduct the evening discussions and will talk about the
curriculum for the level, schedules, and Fall Festival trips.
They will go over details regarding fruit break, lunch, field
trips, and homework appropriate for the level. Gatherings are
also an opportunity to meet the enrichment (Spanish, art, music,
computer, and drama) teachers and learn about their programs. As
these are informational meetings that involve staff and parents,
they are for adults only and childcare
is not provided. Please check the calendar section of
Quick Notes for dates, times, and locations. |
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Class Name
Skits
Fri., Sept.
21
10:00 a.m.
on the basketball court
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Parents - Join the fun on
Friday, September 21, at 10:00 a.m. as each class performs a
brief skit revealing their class name for the year. The skits
will take place on the basketball court adjoining the new
elementary building. The classes will perform their skits in the
following order: Lucia, Tulie/Sarah, Ruth Ann/Katlyn, Katie,
Beth, Autumn, Gretchen, Kim, Betsy, Katrina, Linda, Emilie, and
Seminar. Class names are a big secret, so please do not ask your
child to reveal anything before the skit! |
School Safety Reminders
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1)
Parents: Please DRIVE SLOWLY on the CS campus. We have
150 students and 30 staff members arriving daily from 8:15 to
8:45. Parking spaces are at a premium, so please park as close
to the next vehicle as possible. The safety of everyone arriving
and departing Community School is VERY important.
2)
For the safety of our students and their siblings, the
playground is closed during dismissal (3:10 until 3:30 p.m.).
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Bulb Sale Fundraiser Organized by the Middle School Garden
Friday Group
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Last year the Middle School Garden Friday Group
raised $1000 for campus landscaping and class gardens. The
fruits of the students’ labor will be visible soon. Please help
our students raise $2000 this year for their landscaping
projects while making your yard or the yard of someone you love
beautiful. We are selling fall planted bulbs that bloom in late
winter and spring. Please order from the Garden Friday Group
students, from the order form on the bulletin board in the main
office, or from Anna Beebe. The deadline for orders is October
5.
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Room Parents
Needed! |
Room parents perform a variety of tasks depending
on the level they serve. We still need room parent volunteers
for the following teachers: Katie, Katrina, Linda, and Emilie.
If you need more information about tasks and time commitment
before you can decide if this is something you could do, please
contact your child's teacher directly.
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Before
School Care
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Before School Care (BSC) for
all children will be in Cherry’s room (old Boxwoods House first
floor, front classroom) from 7:00 to 8:15 a.m. Parents, we ask
that you please walk your students to Before School. No staff
will be on duty outside between 7:00 and 8:15 a.m. Parents will
be billed monthly for Before and After School services.
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Pick-Up and
After School Program
Between 4:00 and 6:00 p.m., you can reach After
School by calling 400-1922. |
1)
Parents, we would like your input
as we plan our after school snacks. Please write suggestions for
healthy snacks and foods that your child likes and place them in
Anna Beebe’s or Lynn Owens’ box in the office. We are striving
to serve two healthy choices from two different food groups each
day. We want them to be healthy and foods the children like!
Thank you.
2)
School dismissal is from 3:15 -3:45
p.m. There are about 120 students who are picked up at that
time. Any students here from 3:45 p.m. on will be counted in our
After School Program. To avoid an unwanted ASP charge, you must
arrive during the dismissal time. Students MUST be supervised at
all times, either by their classroom teachers or by our After
School Program staff.
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Needed for
CHS Science Lab |
Community High School needs the following items for their new
science lab: a large aquarium tank, beakers, thermometers,
scales, and graduated cylinders. If you can help, please contact
roni@mail.communityhigh.net.
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Recycling Laser
Cartridges, Ink jet Cartridges and Cell Phones for our
Technology Program
Thank you so much for your support!
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Thanks to everyone who has
supported us in the past and thank you for your continued
support. Collection boxes for phones and ink jet cartridges will
be just inside the office door and there will be a plastic bin
outside the office for laser cartridges. If your company has
high volume, you may request a postage-paid box from Lelia. When
it is full, all you have to do is call for pick-up. No hauling
the cartridges around!
Please be aware that only
specific items are accepted for recycling. We cannot
use re-manufactured laser cartridges and only certain phones and
ink jet cartridges. Please take a moment to check the list to
make sure that your items can be recycled. If your items are not
on the list we ask that you help us out by properly disposing of
them yourself. The list is available at
http://www.fundingfactory.com at the bottom of the page
(Qualifying Lists).
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CS Families
in the News |
We are proud that so many of our families are
active in the local community. Please let Carissa know of
articles about our community members! Recent CS families "In the
News": CS parent Andy Frank celebrating completion of Beth
Israel Synagogue (RT Virginia section, Aug 27); CS alums
Lucas S. and Rain Y. recognized for National Latin Exam Awards (RT
Class Notes, Aug 17); bridal announcements for new teacher Sarah Van
Dyke and CS alum Emily E. (RT Aug 5); the Rapoport/Anderson
family enjoying dinner together, (RT Extra, July 23).
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Handouts
Coming Next Week |
Handouts from Carissa next week will include
information about the Boxtops program, Labels for Education,
Kroger Bucks, and other ways we can raise money for Community
School just by going about our daily business. Last year we:
1)
Banked 6,272 points toward a 27"
laminator from Labels for Education,
2)
Received $3,013.75 from Kroger /
Kroger Bucks program,
3)
Received $331.58 from Boxtops,
4)
Received $220.98 from Target "Take
Charge" program,
5)
Received $165.20 from Amazon.com.
These programs REALLY pay off with little effort!
Please: buy groceries at Kroger with a dedicated gift card; send
us Campbell's product labels (UPC codes!); clip Boxtop coupons;
dedicate your Target Charge card to benefit CS; let us recycle
your ink cartridges, toner cartridges and cell phones; and last
(but not least!) do all your online shopping by following the
link to Amazon.com on the CS website.
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Annual Fund
Update |
Our annual giving program is off to a great start
this year--thank you to all those families who have already
contributed or given a pledge of participation. I will be
sending a letter home in a few weeks asking that everyone
participate with some gift or pledge. We keep tuition low by
supplementing the costs of educating our students with
fundraisers like the Strawberry Festival and by asking for
annual gifts. Participation in annual giving is a way to show
your belief in our program by making a contribution that feels
comfortable to you. Because we extend the request to contribute
at a comfortable level to grandparents, friends of the school,
alumni, and others, we have a better chance of making up the
difference between what tuition covers and what a Community
School education actually costs from a variety of sources.
As current CS families, we see examples every day
of what a Community School education is worth. Please make your
gift or pledge today.
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Quick Notes
Last paper copy for families
that indicated they preferred to read Quick Notes on our
website!
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Starting next week, Quick
Notes will be sent home with the youngest child to each
family that requested a paper copy. Families that indicated they
preferred to read Quick Notes on our website will not
receive paper copies after this week. Save paper and time!
Request an e-mail copy of Quick Notes by e-mailing
Quick Notes will be
posted on our school website by 5:00 pm. each Tuesday. |
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