Parent Newsletter
May 2006

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In this month's newsletter:

Parents of Children Born in
2002 & 2003

Developmental screening will take place during the week of May 15 for Barre Town children born in 2002. Another screening for children born in 2003 will occur in the fall. If you are interested in having your child screened, please call the school at 476-6702 for an appointment or for further information.

NO PRESCHOOL THE WEEK OF MAY 15.
 

Green-Up Day Award

This year’s 2006 Green-Up Day Award for the National Statewide Poster Contest went to Barre Town Elementary student Sarah Bellavance. She is the daughter of Danny and Joanne Bellavance. Sarah is a third grader in Mrs. Celley’s class. Sarah was chosen from over a thousand applicants. On March 31, she was honored at a dinner with the other county winners, and was recognized by Governor Douglas. Sarah got her idea for the poster from a moose that she has. She was also a guest on “Across The Fence” show on April 26. Remember that Green-Up Day is a day designated for all Vermonters to get out and get together to clean up our state and make it green and beautiful. Green-Up Day was May 6.


 

 


Second Grade Gym Show
May 31, 1:45 p.m., and June 1, 6:30 p.m.

On May 31 at 1:45 p.m., we will have our school gym show for students in grades K-4. Parents and friends who cannot attend on Thursday night may attend, and those who really want to see both shows.

On June 1, we will hold the evening show. All students need to be here at 6:30. The show will begin with the Double Dutch team at 6:35 p.m.

This year’s theme is “It’s a Small World.” It will feature every second grader, the 7th- and 8th-grade Jazz Band, Barre Town’s Irish Step Dancers, American tennis players, a bagpipe player with a real Scottish dance, our traditional May Pole Dance, and more. Please plan to come and enjoy this special evening with our second graders.

Mrs. Susan Barnard
K-2 Physical Education Teacher

From the Family School Consultant

Upcoming Parenting Opportunities:
May 17, Wednesday, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at New Leaf Child Care Center, Beckley Hill, Barre.
Review of parenting classes held during the year and discussion of upcoming classes for next year. Food and childcare provided. Call Dawn at 476-1480, ext. 308.

May 31, Wednesday, 6:00-8:00 p.m., Community National Bank, 316 N. Main St., Barre.
Communicate with your infants and toddlers through signing. Come learn to sign some songs. Please call Vicki to register at 479-7144.

Free Yard Sale:
Tuesday, May 30, in the Dining Room at Barre Town School. ALL ITEMS ARE FREE. Clothing, toys, books, some household items, baby items...2:30-5:00 p.m. Call Beth Campo or Carolyn Appleton for more information at 476-6617, ext. 192.

Spring Concert CD

The CD recordings of the spring concerts for the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in April should be ready in about two weeks! A sign-up sheet will be going up soon. Like the last concert, your kids may order as many as they like. Call Adam Sawyer at 476-6617 with any questions.

From the Library

Ian Hulbert was thunderstruck after reading The Revealers by Doug Wilhelm. I’m sure each of you have experienced those times in your life when a book seems reflect your views of the world and/or inner thoughts. Ian’s enthusiasm sparked Tim Crowley into contacting me to arrange an author’s visit. Doug Wilhelm, author of The Revealers, visited our school on April 14, the day before spring vacation. The towering 6’ 10” Rutland author met with each sixth grade class for an informal discussion on writing, inspiration, and bullying, the core theme of The Revealers. The highlight of the day was an author’s lunch. Ten sixth-grade students were invited to share and discuss their literary creations with Doug Wilhelm, with an occasional munch of pizza. Thoughtful analysis was exchanged between students and author, as well as profound respect for authorship.

By now, Barre Town School students will have successfully completed the Eleventh Annual TV Turnoff. Fourth grade students promoted the event by making large, decorated couch potatoes and posted them throughout the school as a reminder of the “turnoff” as well as encouraging alternative activities. From our wee kindergarteners to our illustrious eighth graders, students turned off their screens and took a step “outside the box.” Thank you to PTO for helping host the event.

Heather Herzig, Librarian

Annual Community Service Learning Recognition Ceremony

The annual community service learning (CSL) recognition ceremony will be held in the Barre Town School Gym on Thursday, May 25, from 6:00-8:00 p.m.

We will celebrate the contributions made to the school and local community by students, staff, mentors, and others involved in the CSL program. Student projects will be on display and entertainment will be provided by the 7th & 8th grade Jazz Band. Light refreshments will be provided by the Abbey Group.

We welcome all who wish to share in celebrating the achievements of our students. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Revell Allen by Friday, May 12.

Please return your reply to Revell Allen or Beverly Scofield at Barre Town Middle and Elementary School, 70 Websterville Rd., Barre, VT 05641. You may FAX your response to us at 479-5723 or e-mail it to rallebte@u61.net. Be sure to let us know your name and the number of people attending.
 

Health Matters

Health Safety Alert: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Consumer Product Safety Commission have alerted the public about the dangerous lead levels in metallic charms distributed as free gifts with the purchase of shoes manufactured by Reebok. A recall has been issued for the 300,000 heart-shaped charm bracelets due to deaths connected to children swallowing these charms. Additional recalls have been issued for metal-type vending machine toys. Stay on the alert, read labels, and caution your children about the dangers of swallowing items not meant to be eaten!

ASTHMA CAMP Information: The Vermont Lung Association of Vermont is recruiting Vermont children with asthma to attend their Champ Camp for Kids with Asthma program. All campers will be offered FULL scholarships this year. Champ Camp is a week-long, August 6-12, residential camp program for children ages 8-12 who suffer from moderate to severe asthma. For more information or to request an application, please choose one of the following:

● Contact Martha Ide, RN, School Nurse at 476-6617, ext. 196.
● Use online site, www.lungusa.org/vermont.
● Call the American Lung Association of Vermont, 1-800-586-4872.

Immunization Alerts: All entering 7th graders need to start the Hepatitis booster series of three injections spaced over six months. All 8th graders should have completed their Hepatitis B series. PLEASE arrange your summer medical appointments NOW! If your child receives a summer “booster” immunization, PLEASE be sure to contact the school health office with the type and date.

 

Bingo Night for Hunger

There will be a bingo night on Friday, May 12, for fifth and sixth graders only.
The event will be from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. in the Barre Town School gym.
Ben Duff, Craig Wells, and Connor McDermott will team up with the PTO to host this event. The admission fee will be $2.00, and $1.00 for every extra bingo card.
There will be a concession stand and plenty of prizes.
All proceeds will be donated to the Vermont Food Bank.

Drama Club Presents “Curse of the Cobra’s Kiss”

Barre Town Drama Club will present a two-act play, “Curse of the Cobra’s Kiss,” on June 5 in our school gymnasium. Come and help us solve one of the most hilarious mysteries of the 1920’s. Participate in piecing together the threads of the mystery while you’re entertained by twenty-five talented cast members. Curtains open at 6:30 p.m. and close two hours later. Hope to see you at our show.

Mrs. Gola and Ms. Deuso
 

Antique Appraisal Evening
Tuesday, May 23, 6:00-9:00 p.m. – Barre Town School Dining Room

Do you wonder what those old pieces of furniture, lamps, paintings, and artifacts might be worth??? Renowned antiques appraiser James Marquis will bring his expertise to the Barre Town School. Mr. Marquis has been actively involved in the antiques appraisal business for 32 years and participates in many antiques shows every year.

The meeting is free and open to the public. Everyone attending may bring up to three articles which Mr. Marquis will appraise in front of the audience. Everything except jewelry is fair game. The cost for an appraisal is $5.00 per item or 3 items for $10.00. Mr. Marquis’ presentations will be both amusing and educational as he often explains how an object was made, how it was used, as well as how much it is worth today. He also advises owners on how to care for all kinds of antiques.

All proceeds will go to the Crops by Kids children’s garden across from the school.

Fourth Annual U-61 Language Arts Festival
Thursday, May 11, 6:30-8:30 p.m

This upcoming, family-oriented literacy event recognizes and celebrates outstanding effort in school-year writing pieces from fifth and sixth graders nominated by their respective language arts teachers. Everyone is welcome to attend and support our fifth and sixth grade writers.

Barre City, Barre Town, Berlin, and Worcester elementary schools will be participating this year.
After consideration of, and conferencing about, the key elements of Vermont’s writing standards with students, teachers submit exemplary pieces for display and discussion.

Visitors will enjoy reading exemplary pieces, which have been completed gradually during the school year within various categories or genres, including poetry, narratives, reports, directions/instructions, personal essays, persuasive essays, responses to literature (book responses).

The evening will also feature student-writer interviews with visiting authors, readings by student authors, the Barre Town Jazz Band under the direction of Adam Sawyer, Irish step dancing instructed by Meaghan Kane, refreshments by the Abbey Group, and door prizes. Visiting authors are:

  1. Mr. Gary Dulabaum - nationally-recognized musician, songwriter, and author.
  2. Mrs. Lynn White - accomplished, long-time area dramatist/director, costumer, avocational writer, and substitute teacher at Barre Town School.
  3. Mr. Steve Clark - distinguished veteran Barre Town language arts teacher (retired), homebound tutor, school-based tutor, and avocational writer/poet.

Bus Passes
We are seeing many bus passes that are not filled out properly. It is very important that bus passes are filled out correctly and completely. It is very time consuming to track down students and interrupt classes to get bus pass information. You must speak to a person in the case of an emergency. We will not accept voice messages for bus passes. Your help would be greatly appreciated.  Click here to print and fill out a bus pass for your student  (this is a PDF document and requires your computer to have a PDF reader, such as Adobe Acrobat Reader, available as a free download from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html)

If you have any questions, call 476-6617: Steve Murray, ext. 304, or Terrie Salvador, ext. 331.
 

Cultural Event – Men in Plaid

To help celebrate
“Vermont Drinking Water Week” (May 8-12), The National Theater for Children will be
performing at Barre Town School on Tuesday, May 9.
The performance, called “Men in Plaid,” will teach the importance of water
and ways to conserve it.
Grades K-6 will attend.


 

Barre Town Staff Appreciation Week
Staff Appreciation Week is May 8-12. We encourage you and your child to create a special poem, card of thanks or draw a picture for that special teacher or staff member to show how much you appreciate them.
If your child would like to purchase a flower for his/her teacher there will be carnations for sale on Friday, May 12, in the lobby for $1.00 each. Sale hours will be 1:00-3:30 p.m.

Mother’s Day Flower Sale
Orders have been placed for the Mother’s Day flower sale and carnations will be delivered to students directly in their classrooms on Friday, May 12. We ordered over 2,400 carnations! Thank you to everyone for supporting this sale and purchasing flowers! We hope everyone enjoys their flowers.

THE PTO NEEDS YOU!! We are looking for individuals to help with the following committees for the 2006-2007 school year. If you are interested, please contact the current chair of the committee for further information.

  1. Cultural Committee - Contact Teresa MacAdams at 476-9707 for further information.
  2. Box Tops for Education and/or Campbells Labels – Collecting labels at school, clipping and sending them in. There are two deadlines for mailing in box tops and labels per school year. Contact Kerry Chaffee at kerry@vdmlaw.com or 476-0406 for further information.
  3. Scholarship Committee – Helping to select recipients for scholarships. Consists of meeting once or twice in May. Contact Kerry Chaffee at 476-0406 for further information.
  4. School Logo Wear – Handling orders for school apparel. Contact Cindy Roy at 479-5580 for further information.
  5. Fun Night – Fun night is held one evening in February or March. Students play bingo and win prizes. Contact Teresa MacAdams at 476-9707 for further information.
  6. Request Committee – We are looking for individuals to be a part of the Request Committee. Teachers/staff request money from the PTO and we need members to consider these requests. Need to be present at most PTO meetings. Contact Teresa MacAdams at 476-9707 for further information.
  7. Popcorn Volunteers – We need volunteers to help out one Thursday per month with popcorn orders from 8:00-11:00 a.m. Contact Teresa MacAdams at 476-9707 for further information.


The PTO Bookstore will be held on May 16 in the lobby.

The next PTO meeting will take place in the school library on Tuesday, May 16, at 7:00. We hope to see you there!

Other

Barre Gets Walking
Walking programs are being promoted in grades 3-5 physical education classes. Click here for information on The Barre Partnership’s promotion of walking in the City of Barre.

Lady Tide Basketball Clinic
The Lady Tide's 4th annual summer basketball clinic for girls will be held this summer at two sites. Girls entering grades 1-4 will be at Barre City Elementary and Middle School, June 26-30, from 8:00-10:00 a.m. Girls entering grades 5-9 will be at Spaulding High School. Grades 5-7 dates will be June 26, 28, and 30, July 5, 7, 10, 12, 14, 17, 19, 21, and 24 from 8:00-10:00 a.m. Grades 8-9 dates will be June 27, 29, and 30, July 6, 7, 11, 13, 14, 18, 20, 21, and 25 from 8:00-10:00 a.m. on Tuesday & Thursday, and from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 noon on Fridays. Included with the registration are a t-shirt, basketball, jump rope, and instructional handouts. Family rates are available. To register or for more information, please contact Tom Roberge at 223-5181.

Summer Camp
Six one-week sessions for children ages 9-12 in Barre Town beginning June 26. Activities include outdoor cooperative games, hiking, water games, art projects, and some field trips. Call Tina Grant for more details at 476-5259

Spaulding High School Track and Field Clinics
The Spaulding High School track and field team will run a series of track clinics to introduce students in grades five through eight to the sport of track and field. The clinics will be held on Wednesday, May 10, Thursday, May 18, Wednesday, May 24, and Friday, May 26. The time will be 3:15-4:30 p.m. Parental permission is required. Parental forms are available in the middle school office. In early June, a track meet will be held at Spaulding for 5-8 graders from Barre Town, Barre City, and St. Monica’s schools. You must attend at least one clinic in order to participate in the track meet. If you need more information, please call Shawn Woods at 476-6334.