October 2008 Archives

Enrichment Program – Natalie and Laura are to meet with Brian Schultz of Shoreline Schools to discuss after school facility use fees. More details to come.

We need to let Mrs. Ploudre know if we want her to speak at a General Membership meeting so she can get it on her schedule. She can speak about school goals and WASL scores from last years testing. We did not meet Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) goals last year. Teachers would love to have a focus on math skills.

Mrs. Lundahl spoke about Power Hour. She requested that the school fund a resource staff member to be present for power hour for check-in, snack and a short recreation period on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Teachers are funded through the district. PTA approved $2000 for this year. (We approved $2000 last year but did not use it all.)

October15th is Reading Night. This is a school hosted event.

Anything that is worth posting on the bulletin board or in the newsletter needs to be given to the webmaster. Or they can show board members how to post it themselves.

Embrace Shoreline is September 27th. $75 was approved for providing drinks and snacks.

Pace Fundraiser – As of meeting time 11 families had signed up for a initial value o $110 for fundraising. Escript was discussed. We discussed having a escript table at PTA events to capture more funds from money people are already spending.

Teacher appreciation efforts are continuing. Michelle Manis provided chips and salsa for a back-to-school welcome.

Emergency Kits – Kalyn found premade kits with a 5 year shelf life. Families can purchase the kits once and not have to worry about it again for 5 years. The board agreed to proceed with flier and purchase.

Michelle Manis will poll board members to determine the best time to hold meetings.

Charlene stated the Joe Smith from the state PTA say we need someone to cover legislation for our group.

Next meeting will be as schedule on Oct 13th.

This meeting called to order at 7:00pm.

Secretary Minutes

• Minutes approved as presented

Treasurer Financial Report

• Provided a list of PTA deadlines for the proposed budget and last years standing rules

• Heather to provide details on contents of Secretary binders

• Budget presented and the following should be addressed

1. Grant form for Power Hour

2. Liability Insurance Payment

3. Classroom grants - PTA needs to draft what the grant is for and the criteria for qualification

   1. Storyteller for story night Tuesday Oct 16th needs $150 payment night of event

DRAFT of description $100 grant will be automatically be rewarded to any certified employee at Parkwood that makes a request for materials related to their program. They must submit receipts before receiving check.

School Enrichment and related budget

• Grant needs to be submitted for Power Hour

• Floor Hockey for primary grades. Will the PTA support with $800 (2 teachers). This would start early Jan.

• Scholarship requests for fee based after school programs. Need to determine a general guideline across all programs.

  1. Should there be a student/teacher contract for behavior expectations?
  2. Should the board create a general scholarship fund?
  3. Any class should state the enrollment opportunity.
  4. What % of the enrollment should be reserved for scholarship.

Math Night Request

• November 6th math night. PTA will provide ice cream and coffee.

Emergency Kits Update

• have PTA volunteer booth on teacher conference week reminding parents to provide emergency kits. Dec 16th - 19th.

Reflections Chair questions

• Chair name: Kim Barlow

• Budget for poster, mounting, ribbons, copy: $200 currently allocated

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7:00 Board Meeting Starts Agenda

1. School Enrichment and related budget – Sharleen Lambard
2. Update on Teacher appreciation – Michelle Manis/Heather Petersen
3. Math Team Request – Jill Heiney-Smith
4. Emergency Kits Update – KaLyn Burmeister
5. Reflection Chair questions - Jill Heiney-Smith
6. Treasurer Update
7. New Business

The Board has voted on which night of the month works best for meetings, and the second Wednesday of each month won by a few votes. We will have next week’s meeting at the already scheduled day and time of Monday, 10/13 at 7:00 in the Parents’ Center.

Starting in November, we will meet on the second Wednesday of each month at 7:00, still in the Parents’ Center. The dates are as follows:

11/12

12/10

1/14

2/11

3/11

4/8

5/13

6/10

Thank you to all of the members of the PTA Board who voted.

If you buy a kit now, you will not have to think about it again for five years!

Every student needs to have an emergency kit. Kits contain food, water, emergency blankets and rain ponchos. They are there to support your child incase of an emergency including an earthquake or a school lock-down. You can either supply a kit yourself, or you can purchase a kit through the PTA.

Purchasing from the PTA

This year the PTA is purchasing kits that have a 5 year shelf life. Kits cost $8.00. We will make sure your child has a kit next year. Expired kits will be disposed of at the end of their shelf life. If you would like to prepare a special message for your child please feel free to send it in. Send it to the PTA ­ EHS. Special messages should be clearly marked for with your child’s name and their teacher’s name and can include a note, pictures or information such as phone numbers. Donations for those who cannot afford a kit are always welcome.

Making your own kit

If you choose to make your own kit, please clearly mark it with your child’s name and their teacher’s name. Kits should include an emergency blanket, garbage bag or rain ponchos, 1 liter of water and 2-4 energy or protein bars. You can also include comfort notes, light sticks, or a small flash light.

Chess club and piano lessons are going to be available this year! Watch for notices regarding student activities being held after school. While they will take place at Parkwood they are not district or school sponsored. Rather, they are organized through the PTA.

Both piano lessons and chess club notices will be coming home in your student’s folders. We hope you will join us! If you have a suggestion for an activity or would like to teach an activity please let me know. Thanks!

Natalie Lecher
VP Student Enrichment for Parkwood Elementary
natalielp@earthlink.net

A few years ago I attended a workshop on “A Latte for Charity-Shopping with Charity in Mind.” The basic premise was choosing to purchase for food banks by spending a `latte’ or cup of coffee a paycheck. There are three main times of need for food by families on the Federal Food Program; Winter Break, Spring Break and summer vacation.

Here is how it works. Purposefully plan to get as much as you can with your $2 - $3 each time you do your major shopping. Use coupons, buy-one get-one free offers, shop sale items. Have a box in the garage or floor of your pantry to store these items. Over the approximately 3 months of purchasing you should have a large box full of food to give to the seasonal food drives or just before school’s out.

Money may seem tighter…it is in my house…a dollar a week or a “latte” a paycheck does not feel like too much of a hardship. My family has a large “banana” box from Costco we are working on for the “Holiday Baskets” PTA Council project in December. It is also a great project for kids. Let them scour the ads each week looking for the best way to spend the $2 - $3.

Why not join me? Let’s work together to continue to provide the level of service we have in the past to the increasing number of families needing help this December, one cup of coffee at a time.

Sarah-Ann Woodfield
Shoreline PTA Council, Co-VP Family Services
sarah.woodfield@comcast.net

Help with picture retakes any time from 8:45am to 1:00pm. Contact Natalie Williams at actionjackson14@juno.com with times you are able to help out.

How to volunteer.

We need volunteers at Parkwood on Monday Oct. 20th and Tuesday the 27th to help with health screening. Come help measure the height, weight, and vision of all out students.

How to volunteer.

Download the Parkwood PTA Roar for October 2008 (pdf)

Volume 22, Issue 2, October 2008.