The Horseshoe Review
The Copeland PTO Newsletter
President's Corner by Cree Sanford
Welcome back to another exciting school year for 2017-2018! First and foremost, I am thankful that you all are safe and that we now have a sense of normalcy since Hurricane Harvey came through Houston. Thanks to all the volunteers who helped out on the first day of school. Your time and help was greatly appreciated. I would like to welcome all of our returning and new Copeland families as well as our wonderful teachers/staff and administrators. This is the first edition of the PTO newsletter, “The Horseshoe Review” for 2017-2018. This newsletter is published every other Thursday. Please be sure to read through the newsletter to find out important news and information regarding upcoming events, programs and volunteer opportunities. We will also utilize our PTO website(www.copelandpto.org), our Facebook page (@copelandelementarypto), and PTO Manager to communicate with everyone in our volunteer database.
I want to give a big thank you to all of the volunteers who stepped forward to fill committee chairman positions and homeroom coordinator/grade level liaison positions. The families, teachers and staff of Copeland appreciate all your energy and efforts. The programs offered at Copeland would not be possible without your contribution. Thank you so very much!
We held our annual Volunteer Fair Brunch on Friday, September 22nd and had a great turnout! It was so good to see all of you. The brunch provided an opportunity to learn more about our volunteer programs and the different committees at Copeland. If you missed it, don’t worry, just contact one of the board members and we will find you a place at Copeland where your talents can shine through!
Reminders when visiting the school:
· Please do not park along a red curb, even if running in for a few minutes.
· Observe the ‘no parking’ signs along Forest Heights Drive.
· Please do not park behind other vehicles in the parking lot.
· Always sign in at the front desk and obtain a raptor visitors’ badge.
· Children are not allowed in the workroom at any time.
· Siblings are not allowed in the instructional areas; however, they are welcome in the cafeteria.
· Please dress appropriately when volunteering at the school. We must adhere to the same dress code as the students.
If anyone has any comments, suggestions or questions about the Copeland PTO, or volunteering at the school, please feel free to contact anyone on the PTO Executive Board. Their phone numbers and email addresses are included below. We all look forward to working with you, and I am looking forward to a fabulous new year at Copeland.
Thank you! by VP Karen Thomas
We would like to give a special thank you to Girl Scout Troop #110132 for chalking the side walk with encouraging words to greet our students on their first day of school. You ladies did a fantastic job.
Aubrey Goode, Campbell King, Natalia and Isabella Say, Madison and Kaitlynn Augerinos
PTO Executive Board
President Cree Sanford 713-304-7016 cree410@yahoo.com
Vice President Karen Thomas 832-594-3720 kdean0923@sbcglobal.net
VIPS Coordinator Molli Murray 713-829-0638 mmcgah@gmail.com
Cultural Arts Amanda Ball 713-557-0316 balla1103@hotmail.com
Socialmedia Coordinator LaKishiaEdward 09-338-7667xaviervaughnedwards@gmail.com
Fundraising Miranda Daniells 713-261-7297 mirandadaniells@outlook.com
Secretary Cynthia Miller 832-326-1545 cynthia@themillerhome.net
Treasurer Hollie Tanguay 734-308-3119 hdtanguay@hotmail.com
VIPS News by Molli Murray
After a rocky start (ie Hurricane Harvey), we are off and running finally!! Welcome to Copeland! Or back to Copeland if that is the case!
My name is Molli Murray and I am the VIPS (Volunteers in Public Schools) Coordinator this year. There are so many ways to volunteer at Copeland, even working parents. This can include submitting pictures to yearbook.Here is a message from our yearbook Chair, Cheri Villarreal:
Parents! Have a photo for the yearbook?
Get the ReplayIt app and download your pics!
Or email them to cheripatten@yahoo.com
Please give a description with grade, function and names.
Photos must be school related.
Thank you. Cheri Villarreal, yearbook chairman
If you do have ability to volunteer on a more regular basis, there are plenty of opportunities.
You can learn about SRC (Science Resource Center), which is an excellent resource not only for the students, but for parents too. If you are able to volunteer for this, I promise you will learn something too! See Selina's article below for more information.
The library always needs volunteers, as do art and music. Please let me know if you want more information.
Love ART? Love to help kids experience art first hand? Ms. Krengel is asking for assistance during the 1st & 2nd grade art classes. Click the links to sign up and help kids grow their love of art; 1st grade Sign Up and 2nd grade Sign Up.
The Art Department is in need of your glass baby food jars. If you have any please have your student bring them to Ms. Krengel in the art room. Thanks!
We also have spirit cart once a month. See below from our Spirit Cart Chair, Crystal Beard.
Thank you to ALL the HRCs, and volunteers who helped on the First Day of School. We provided a HUGE amount of valuable help to our teachers!
If you have any questions or comments regarding our VIPS program or would like to volunteer, please contact me at 713-829-0638 or mmcgah@gmail.com.
Classroom News
Due to the late start this year, we are going to be moving fast!! Please make sure your homeroom coordinator (HRC), has your email and information. Also, make sure you have entered their email into your contacts so you don’t miss out on anything! If you don’t know who your HRC is, please check with your teacher.
Pre-K—The start of their Copeland career!
Kinder--Learning the ropes and becoming familiar with their surroundings.
1st--Putting all their kinder knowledge into effect.
2nd--Growing up and becoming more independent.
Kinder through 2nd ask for parent readers. Please check with your HRC if you can volunteer. The kids love to have you read to them
3rd—How does our garden grow?
4th—Getting ready to take over next year. Prepping for STAAR and growing up.
5th—BM/WOC. Last year of elementary school and there is so much in store for them this year.
3rd and 5th have Nature trails coming up soon. And all grades have Field Days coming up at the end of October.
Please keep your eyes open for news and volunteer activities.
We are all looking forward to an exciting year!
Logging in as a Voluteer
Working for our kids as a volunteer is both rewarding and important. Below is information on logging your hours in our Raptor Portal and a few reasons why documenting your hours is so important.
To Log Volunteer Hours:
https://apps.raptortech.com/Volunteer/Login/MzYxOlZvbHVudGVlcjplbi1VUw==
This free program will allow you to track your volunteer hours, sign up for events, and communicate with the district Volunteer Coordinator and fellow volunteers. Your Volunteer Portal user account information will be emailed to you.
If you are new to the Volunteer Portal, you can download a Help Sheet by clicking the link below.
http://storage.raptortech.com/helpcontent/VolunteerPortalHelpSheet.pdf
If this is your first time to use the Volunteer Portal, select the link below to create a new password.
https://apps.raptortech.com//Portal/PasswordReset/Confirm?portalKey=MzYxOlZvbHVudGVlcjplbi1VUw==&uid=01cc3ede-82af-4338-be64-e2811c55e236&clientId=361
Returning Volunteer Portal users can select the link below and sign in.
https://apps.raptortech.com/Volunteer/Login/MzYxOlZvbHVudGVlcjplbi1VUw==
Volunteer of the month
Fundraising by Miranda Daniells
Hey Copeland Families!
Our fall fundraiser has wrapped up and we can’t thank you enough for all your participation and support! Because of your generous donations and charitable contributions we are able to accomplish so many things and provide our growing Colts with opportunities that wouldn’t otherwise be possible. Last year we were able to send our students on field trips, keep our third grade garden in tip top shape, renovate our beloved Copeland library, bless our hard working teachers and staff, and so much more. This year our goal is to refresh the learning materials in our school resources and provide our teachers with some fun and innovative hands on learning manipulatives for our students.
Each purchase counts towards a prize. The kids were super excited to collect those Coups! They’ve become quite the commodity! And of course, we always accept a flat donation. Thank you so much for all your continued support.
Field Day by Amanda Ball
Field Day shirts are on sale NOW online through school cash, go to copeland.cfisd.net/en/parents-students/s/ to order. Deadline to order is today
October 6th! The system will automatically know what color shirt your child needs.
We are in need of pop up tents so each class can have shade while running and playing the exciting games. Please click on this link, Field Day Items Needed, to sign up to get field day off to a great start. We will have volunteers putting up & taking down the tents each day and will store them in the school if you would like to offer your tent for all three days. If you have any questions please ask Krista Vicklund, krisvick@comcast.netor Amanda Ball, balla1103@hotmail.com. Thanks for your help!
FIELD DAY DATES & TIMES
October 24th = 2nd Grade @ 8:30am-10:30am / 4th Grade @ 12:15pm-2:15pm
October 25th = 1st Grade @ 8:30am-10:30am / 5th Grade @ 12:15pm-2:15pm
October 26th = KG @ 8:30am-10:30am / 3rd Grade @ 12:15pm-2:15pm
KISS Lunch (Kids Invite Someone Special)
There will be a KISS Lunch for the groups on their scheduled Field Day. Classes will enjoy a picnic style lunch outside on the hardtop area near the playground, so parents are encouraged to bring a blanket or towel. It would be great for students to pack a sack lunch or parents may bring a picnic lunch on their day.
KISS DATES & TIMES
October 24th = 2nd Grade @ 10:45am-11:15am / 4th Grade @ 11:30am-12:00pm
October 25th = 1st Grade @ 10:45am-11:15am / 5th Grade @ 11:30am-12:00pm
October 26th = KG @ 10:45am-11:15am / 3rd Grade @ 11:30am-12:00pm
Be on the lookout for class specific field day sign up's coming from your HRC!
Want to guarantee you have spirit gear!? Last day to turn in your order form will be tomorrow, October 6th. Please click on the link, copelandpto.org/spirit-wear, to print your order form and get it turned in.
Science Resource Center by Selina Sauceda
Hello Copeland Parents!
I am excited for another great year at the SRC! Please
read
the information below to see how you can help!
What is the SRC: The Science Resource Center (SRC) is a CFISD center that brings curriculum and live animals, meant to extend on the science lessons done in class, to the schools. All materials and live animals needed for lessons are provided by the SRC staff.
Who is needed: The SRC demonstrations (demos) are done by campus volunteers. The SRC will train you in any grade level demo you are interested in presenting. Demo dates are then set by the SRC Liaison at each campus, and the trained volunteer presents the demo to the students on the assigned date.
How to volunteer: See the
Fall demo dates below and RSVP to Selina Sauceda with the grade level and demo dates you wish to be trained for: Selina.sauceda@gmail.com
Spirit Cart by Crystal Beard
***Attention Volunteers***
It’s that time of year again! We have Spirit Cart once a month, and we need your help! We just need a couple hours of your time, to help our kiddos buy items from our cart! Super easy and fun! I love watching their excitement when they see all the cool stuff!
Thank you for volunteering your time, our students enjoy the opportunity to shop and they wouldn't be able to do it without volunteers like YOU!
If the signup is full, but you still want to come, please do!! We always need extra hands!
If you would like to volunteer your time, just click the link down below!
If you have any questions you can reach me cbeard351@gmail.com.