Compass Family Update
December 14, 2015
Upcoming Important Dates
Please mark your calendar with the following information:
Monday, 12/14: Last Dance Class for Second Grade (Second Grade will begin Visual Arts with Studio in a School in January)
Monday, 12/14, 7:00PM: Compass Board Meeting
Tuesday, 12/15, 8:30AM: School Tour for Prospective Families
Tuesday, 12/15: Maple Class (First Grade) Field Trip to The Whitney Museum and High Line
Wednesday, 12/16: Join us in the gym for Community Gathering
Monday, 12/21: School is OPEN and Studio in a School Exhibition
Tuesday, 12/22-Sunday, 1/3: Winter Recess (We will return to school on 1/4/16.)
FROM THE CO-DIRECTORS
We HAVE school next Monday! Studio in a School Exhibition Day!
We will have our Studio in a School Exhibition with the kindergarten and first grade classes on Monday, December 21st. Classes will share their work with one another and reflect on their process.
Coffee With The Co-Directors
Please join us for our January Coffee with the Co-Directors. Bring your own coffee to the Meeting Room (Room 408) for an hour of conversation about our school.
The purpose of these conversations is to provide a space for parents and the Co-Directors to engage in purposeful dialogue surrounding our progressive, inquiry-based approach to education.
We invite you to submit questions and/or topics ahead of time to help guide our conversations. You may email questions directly to Brooke (brooke@brooklyncompass.org) or fill out a question form and drop it in the Inquiry Box outside the Co-Directors' Office.
We hope you will join us as often as your schedule allows. And, as always, please remember that our doors are always open. If you have immediate questions or concerns, please reach out to set up a meeting.
Here are the Coffee with the Co-Directors dates for the remainder of the school year:
January 12th, 8:30AM
February 24th, 9:00AM
March 18th, 8:30AM
April 21st, 8:30AM
May 24th, 8:30AM
June 23rd, 8:30AM
With gratitude,
Brooke, Michelle, and Todd
January Coffee with the Co-Directors
Tuesday, Jan 12, 2016, 08:30 AM
Compass Meeting Room (Room 408)
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
What We're Reading
Healthy School Fund/Student Activity Fee for December
Thank you to the families who have already contributed to our Healthy School Fund (formerly called the Student Activity Fee). Please see the info below.
The cost of our snack service along with a laundry service for our reusable rags and towels, and biannual lice checks is approximately $15-$20 a month per child. We kindly ask that you contribute to our Healthy School Fund/Student Activity Fund on a monthly or yearly basis. Please contribute what you can. If you are unable to contribute at this time, please let us know and we will support you. Your child will not be excluded. If you are able to sponsor another child for a month or the entire school year, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
How to Contribute to the Healthy School Fund
Electronic Way to Send Money: Thanks to a recommendation from two parents, we have found a free and easy way to transfer money from one account to another. We want to make it easy for you to make monthly payments for snacks, future t-shirt purchases, and whatever other costs that may come up. The application is similar to Paypal, only free and easier to use. It is called Square Cash (click on the left side of the webpage for a short video on how it works and enter your cell phone on the right to get a text giving you $1 and a link to get started). After you get the text, all you need to do is enter your debit card information, download the app and type your email address. You are now ready to make and receive payments. To send Compass money, press "Send", select an amount and send the money to Todd's email address (todd@brooklyncompass.org). "Cash" also allows you to receive money from others as well. It is an easy for you to pay a babysitter or for a friend to pay you back some money they owe you.
If you would like to know how you can set up a recurring, monthly payment from your Citibank or Chase account, email Todd.
Non-electronic way to contribute to our Healthy School Fund: If you are not able to use Square Cash or are not comfortable using an electronic system, please send cash or a check (Made to Compass Charter School) in an envelope with your child's name and Healthy School Fund on the front.
One last note:
When using Square Cash or a check, please write "Healthy School Fund" in the memo for our record keeping purposes.
Thank you!
Breakfast and Lunch Menus
Here is the link to the breakfast and lunch menus:
http://www.schoolfoodnyc.org/schoolfood/menusdailydisplay.aspx
You may choose to send a lunch from home or have your child eat school lunch. School lunch is free for children who qualify for free or reduced price lunch and costs $1.75. You do not need to inform us that your child will be eating school lunch. We charge families on a periodic basis throughout the school year.
Red Rabbit Snack Menu for this Week
Please remember that all children with food allergies receive a special snack each day. It comes separately packaged and labeled and is not listed on the menu.
From the Family School Collaborative (FSC)
Sponsor-A-Family Holiday Gift Drive Ends on Friday 12/18
Our annual Sponsor-A-Family Holiday Gift Drive is here! This is an initiative where all three schools in our building (MS 113, Compass, PS 372) come together to support families in our school communities who are in need during the holiday season.
You can visit the link HERE to sign up to donate an item or gift card. You can also donate money via cash/check (please place in the FSC mailbox outside Amanda's office in the community room) or Square cash (donate online via Squarecash with 'holidaysponsor' in the notes section).
We are grateful for any donations that you are able to make, no matter how small. Donations (gifts should be unwrapped) can be brought to the Compass Main Office (Room 431) on or before Friday, December 18, 2015.
Thank you for helping us to brighten the holiday season for those in need in our school community.
To support the holiday gift drive, please visit:
FSC Amazon Store
Here is the link to our FSC Amazon store where you can view and purchase the recommended books, toys, and games. The suggestions are a combination of parent suggestions and school administration suggestions. Using our Amazon Store is a great way to take care of your holiday shopping and support the FSC at the same time (the FSC will earn up to 7% of purchased items).
Easy ways to help our school raise money for special initiatives
Amazon
We are participating in Amazon Associates as an easy way to raise money for our Family School Collaborative Programming and Initiatives (such as our arts program and afterschool program). We invite you to use the link on our website when making Amazon purchases. We will receive between 6-8% of all purchases made through our link. Thanks!Here's the link to use when shopping on Amazon:
http://brooklyncompass.org/family-school-collaborative/
Box Tops
Please continue to save Box Tops and our Coordinators will send in another shipment on March 1st. We're hoping our next collection can raise even more money for our Family School Collaborative Programming and Initiatives. Each Box Top is worth 10 cents and they quickly add up to real cash for our school! We have a goal of $50 for the next cycle. Can you help?
For more information on the Box Tops for Education program, including our school’s progress, visit www.BTFE.com. Participating products: http://www.boxtops4education.com/participating-products
Compass Charter School
Follow us on Instagram @brooklyn_compass
Feel free to reach out anytime with questions or to catch up. Our contact info is listed below.
Brooke Peters, Co-Director of Curriculum and Instruction
718-310-3588, extension 503
Michelle Healy, Co-Director of Curriculum and Instruction
718-310-3588, extension 504
Todd Sutler, Co-Director of Strategic Development
718-310-3588, extension 501
Email: info@brooklyncompass.org
Website: brooklyncompass.org
Location: 300 Adelphi Street, Brooklyn, NY, United States
Phone: (718) 310-3588
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CompassCharterSchool
Twitter: @compasscharter
We received a Target Field Trip Grant! Yay!
Special thanks to Oak and Beech Mom, Heather Maxson, for helping with the grant writing process!