February 2015

PTA Newsletter
February 2015
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STEVENS STAR
Francis L. Stevens Elementary School | Lakehill Road, Ballston Lake, NY | Northeastern District PTA
Calendar of Events
Principal’s Message
2/3 — Finance Committee
High School Library 7:00 pm
Dear Parents,
2/4 — Faculty Inservice
Half Day, 12:00 Dismissal
2/10 — Board of Ed Meeting
High School Library 7:30 pm
2/16 — 2/20 - No School
Winter Break
2/24 — Board of Ed Meeting
High School Library 7:30 pm
Coming in March
3/3, 3/4 — Enrichment Clubs
After school at Stevens
3/4 — PTA Meeting
Stevens Library, 7:00 pm
I would like to thank all the families who attended Family Fun Night. To
begin the evening, we saw a rendering of our proposed new playground!
We are excited to provide our students with an updated, high quality
playground. Various fundraising initiatives will be taking place during the
next year. Our featured performer, Peter Nestler, 9-time Guinness World
Record holder for jump roping, offered a tremendous show. His message
was simple: Find your element (what you love to do and what you’re good
at), work toward a goal, and success will follow.
Our Project Thrive featured attribute for February is wellness. We’ll be
learning about the importance of nutrition, exercise and relaxation. Look
for a brief at-home activity to come home in your child’s backpack. Please
take time as a family to eat healthy food, exercise and relax together!
Together we thrive.
Rick Evans
3/9-3/10 — Kindergarten
Registration, Stevens
3/12 — Parent Conferences
Half Day, 12:00 Dismissal
3/16 — PTA Council Meeting
High School, 7:00 pm
3/16-3/20 — Book Fair
3/20 — Pajama Party
Stevens, 6:00 pm
3/24 — Board of Ed Meeting
High School Library 7:30 pm
3/31 — Finance Committee
High School Library 7:00 pm
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Congratulations to our
Kindergarten Superstars
for celebrating their 100th Day of School!
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PTA Newsletter
Stevens PTA Officers &
Executive Committee
President
Heather Powell, 309-3234
[email protected]
VP
Sharlene Gillan, 399-4155
[email protected]
VP — Fundraising
Open
VP — Homeroom Reps
Rebecca Harrell, 772-9690
[email protected]
VP — Programs
Christine Goss, 630-6896
[email protected]
Secretary
Linda Laferriere, 250-0242
[email protected]
Treasurer
Tracy Huggins-Morris,337-9170
[email protected]
PTA Council Rep
Joan LaBuff, 779-2505
[email protected]
Building Council
Christine Goss, 630-6896
[email protected]
Joseph Commisso, 399-4886
[email protected]
Heather Powell, 309-3234
[email protected]
February 2015
PTA President’s Message
Congratulations to this years Founder’s Day recipients, Christine Goss and
Nancy Ingersoll! This award could not have gone to two more deserving
people. We are so fortunate to have such a great parent volunteer as
Christine and an outstanding teacher as Mrs. Ingersoll here at Stevens. I
appreciate everything they do to make Stevens such a great place. If you
have not had a chance to congratulate and thank them, please do so when
you have a chance.
Don’t forget to email if you have completed your PARP reading week
requirements at [email protected]. Give yourselves a pat on the
back, and feel free to keep up all that fun cozy reading while the snow falls
outside!
I hope those of you who were able to attend this year’s Family Fun Night in
January had a wonderful time and enjoyed the brilliant show. Thanks go
out to Joanne Lorenc, Christine Goss and Dacey Bonney for putting the
event together. Also thanks to all those that helped to support the new
playground. Look for additional opportunities to help support the new
playground in the coming months.
A Big thanks to the Stevens Student Council for their generous donation
towards the purchase of the new popcorn machine for Popcorn Friday’s.
Your donation was greatly appreciated.
Coming in March we will have our Enrichment Clubs on Tuesday’s and
Wednesday’s immediately after school. Also the week of March 16th is the
Scholastic Book Fair followed by the Pajama Party on Friday, March 20th.
Volunteers are always not just welcome, but needed; if everyone were able
to contribute just an hour of their time, or to help out with one event or
program, it would be immensely appreciated. Remember, the PTA is held
together and kept running by families like you!
Don’t forget to take some time out to spend with your children. There are
so many opportunities to do this, especially during the cold winter months.
Our next PTA meeting is on March 4th at 7:00 pm in the Stevens library.
Hope to see you there!
Heather Powell
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
For more information on issues
and advocacy efforts of the New
York State PTA, visit online at
!
“While we try to teach our
children all about life, our
children teach us what life
is all about.”
— Angela Schwindt
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PTA Newsletter
February 2015
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Box Tops
The Book Fair & Pajama Party are Coming in March!
Remember to send in those
Box Tops. Ask family and
friends to do the same!
Simply clip them neatly
from the package and send
to school with your child in
a sealed envelope marked
“Box Tops.” A portion of
the money earned will go
towards the new Stevens
playground!
Don’t miss this exciting event! Students will have time to preview the book
fair at school during the week of March 16th. The Pajama Party will be the
evening of March 20th and will include many books for sale as well as fun
activities! More information to come as the event gets closer.
______________________________________________
“Our greatest
natural resource is
the minds of our
children.”
— Walt Disney
______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Price Chopper Tools for Schools
Enroll today, we earn points through March 28th!
Francis L. Stevens Elementary School Code: 15698
For many years, the Price Chopper Tools for Schools program has helped
shoppers like you support the school of your choice just by shopping with
your AdvantEdge card. By enrolling your Price Chopper AdvantEdge card
in the program with our school code and shopping at Price Chopper, you
will help our school earn much needed free equipment and supplies!
Enrolling your card to support our school for the 2014-2015 school year is
simple and takes just minutes. To enroll your AdvantEdge card: Go to
www.priceshopper.com.
You can help us earn even more points by purchasing Price Chopper store
brands. Each time you purchase a store brand product, our school will earn
double points.
______________________________________________
Dress for Recess
Students have outdoor
recess each day in the
morning and at lunch time
unless the temperature or
wind chill is below 15º F.
Please make sure your child
dresses to enjoy this time.
______________________________________________
We want to thank all of you who have supported our school through
“Tools for Schools” and encourage anyone who is new to the program to
join today by registering your AdvantEdge card with our school code.
Enroll today, we earn points through March 28th!
— Gretchen Belanger
Price Chopper Tools for School Coordinator
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
School Closings & Delays
Remember to check www.bhbl.org or www.facebook.com/BHBLSchools
for school closings and delays. This information is also posted on local TV
and radio stations, as well as sent by email or text message to those who
have signed up to receive the district’s School News Notifier (SNN).
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PTA Newsletter
Popcorn Day
Popcorn Friday on February
6th was a wonderful success! We sold a total of 258 bags
of popcorn. Thank you to
Tara Mazzotte and Patti
Demarle who volunteered for
BOTH January and February
events! We are in need of
volunteers for April 2nd and
May 29th if you are looking
for something fun to do! The
next Popcorn Friday will be
on March 6th. The students
really enjoy the opportunity
to purchase popcorn with
their lunch! Please contact
Jackie DiPasquale
([email protected]) if
you would like to volunteer
or have any questions.
________________________________________________
“Children are apt to
live up to what you
believe of them.”
— Lady Bird Johnson
________________________________________________
Next PTA Meeting
Wednesday, 3/4
Please join us at 7:00 pm in
the Stevens library. We look
forward to seeing you there!
________________________________________________
Newsletter
Submissions
Stevens Star PTA Newsletter
submissions should be sent
to Michelle Kubasiak by the
21st of each month at
[email protected].
February 2015
Parents as Reading Partners Tips 10 Non-Book Ways to Get Your
Child Reading
Inspire your reluctant reader with these creative
approaches from Scholastic.
1. Play board games. Scrabble or Boggle are specifically good for building
vocabulary and spelling.
2. Collect trading cards. There are card series to appeal to most interests,
from sports to space travel. Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh! remain popular choices.
3. Learn “how to.” Is there something your child would really like to do, such
as perform magic tricks or add sequins to her jeans? Encourage her to find
out how by reading about it.
4. Get cooking. Invite your child to help you bake a cake or a special meal
together. If necessary, simplify and rewrite a recipe's instructions so he can
read it to you.
5. Make cards. Have your child make her own cards for Valentine’s Day,
birthdays, party invitations, and thank-yous. Help her write a personal
message to each recipient.
6. Create signs and labels. Help your early reader build his vocabulary by
creating stickers or signs for his room that identify toys or furniture: "bike,"
"desk," etc.
7. Take a road trip. Write down travel directions and have your child serve as
navigator when you drive. Give your co-pilot a map before you go, and ask
her to mark the route according to the directions.
8. Put on a play. You can perform the play for a special celebration or family
party. Help your child find an appealing script or create one together based
on a favorite movie. Remind your child that he must memorize his lines by
reading them over and over.
9. Write messages for your child. Even if you spend hours together in the
same room, there are many reasons to write to your child. Drop a letter in her
backpack or email her a joke she can forward to her friends. Post a list of
chores on the refrigerator, and write family news or appointments on a wall
calendar.
10. Host a scavenger hunt. Make a list of items that your child and his friends
need to find inside your house or around the neighborhood. Provide written
clues that lead to the treasures.
Also, a reminder to read to your superstar all month long with the PTA
Blizzard BINGO program. Email [email protected] to record your
reading and earn a fun prize!
Sonja Olson
PARP Chairperson
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