Longbranch Family Newsletter
Week of April 24th
Girls on the Run Color Run--April 29th
at 9am.
Girls on the Run Penny War to Benefit Mya's Wish
School Supply Kit Preorders for 17.18
Our W.I.G.s (Wildly Important Goals) for 2016-2017
PTA General Meeting and Elections for 17.18 Leadership Positions
SBDM Elections will be held on May 1st from 8:30am to 7pm. If you wish to run for one of the parent seats, please contact Kelly Lusk by April 28th at kellylusk@alumni.vanderbuilt.edu.
To volunteer to lead an action team next year, please complete this form: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/409054caaae22a64-1718
Action Teams include: Mom Events, Grandparent Events, Trunk or Treat, Boosterthon, School Supply Kits, Healthy Kids Week, Ladies Night Out, Family Fun Nights, and so much more. You can co-chair with a spouse or friend.
Spring Events
Little Mermaid Gold: Mondays and Wednesdays
Little Mermaid Maroon: Tuesdays and Thursdays
April 24: Final Club Day
April 26: Administrative Professionals Day
April 28: 1st Grade to the Zoo
May 1: SBDM Parent Elections from 8:30am to 7pm, Grandparent Event postponed until fall.
May 2 and 4: Student Led Conferences
May 5: Spirit Day--Hat Day and Popcorn Friday and 5th Grade Lock In
May 8: Jim Basketball Jones Assembly
May 9: SBDM at 4:30 and Boone County Honor Choir at Florence Baptist on Mt. Zion at 6pm
May 9-15: State Testing Window
May 11, 12, 13: Little Mermaid Performances: https://www.smore.com/sdm6d
May 16, 17, 18, 19: Muffins with Mom and Doughnuts with Dad (more info to come)
May 11: School Board Meeting 7:30pm at Ralph Rush Center
May 12: Kona Ice Day
May 15: Day of Play in May for Incoming K
May 18: Florence Freedom Night
May 19: WIG Celebration Day
May 22 and 23: Field Days
May 22: Kindergarten Celebration of Learning Evening at 6pm
May 24: Last Day for Students and Spirit Day: Sign My Shirt Day and 5th Grade Promotion at 6pm. 5th grade final hallway walk at 3:15pm. 5th grade parents welcome.
SPRING CARNIVAL is APRIL 29TH--YOUR HELP NEEDED
Please sign up for a slot here. You'll have plenty of time to enjoy the event with your family after your shift:
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c054aa9a823a2fd0-spring
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS SIGNED UP SO FAR!!
Spring Carnival Prize Patrol
Kindergarten - Bags of Candy
1st Grade - Bags of DumDum suckers
2nd Grade - Bags of Balloons
3rd Grade - plastic grocery bags
4th Grade - 2 Liters of soda
5th Grade - 2 Liters of sodaThis Week's Events
MONDAY
- Monday Morning Meeting
- Club Day
- Little Mermaid Gold Rehearsal
- Afternoon ESS
TUESDAY
- Strings before school
- Accreditation Audit
- Morning ESS
- Math Content Leadership Team after school
- PTA General Meeting and Elections at 6:30pm
- Girls on the Run after school
- Little Mermaid Maroon after school
WEDNESDAY
- Girls on the Run after school
- Boone County Honor Choir before school
- Science Matters Bristle Bots after school
- Little Mermaid Gold after school
- 4th grade to Camp Ernst Environmental Camp
THURSDAY
- ESS: 2nd grade reading and math, 4th grade math, and 5th grade reading
- Strings before school
- Kindergarten to Florence Elementary
- Little Mermaid Maroon after school
- Faculty Meeting
FRIDAY
- LB Chorale Before School
- Gym in use 5:30-7pm
- 1st Grade to the Zoo
WEEKEND
Parent Leadership Info & Events
Lots of Carnival Volunteers STILL NEEDED
Our Spring Carnival is coming up on Saturday, April 29th from 3:00pm – 8:00pm
(with a Special Needs Families Only Hour from 2:00 – 3:00pm).
We still need LOTS of families to step up to help make our first Carnival a huge success!
To sign up for a shift, please do so at this link!
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c054aa9a823a2fd0-spring
FREE PIZZZA AND DRINKS FOR ALL VOLUNTEERS!
ONE FREE $10 INFLATABLES WRISTBAND FOR ALL VOLUNTEERS WHO HELP US FOR AT LEAST 3 HOURS!
The Carnival has FREE ADMISSION!
There will be over 20 carnival games and a wide range of interactive inflatables.
50¢ per game ticket and games range from 1-3 tickets to play
Carnival Games Range from 1-3 tickets to play
$10 Wristband for
UNLIMITED USE OF INFLATABLES
Beat the lines! Pre-sale tickets & wristbands are going on now!
To order game tickets and/or wristbands, please send money and the bottom of the form coming home with your child this week in a sealed envelope with your child’s name and homeroom teacher by 4/21, marked “Carnival Pre-Sale Tickets.”
(This form can also be found on our PTA website at www.longbranchpta.org)
Make checks payable to: Longbranch PTA
*$50.00 bank fee for returned checks
Questions? Contact amanda.scroggin24@gmail.com
SBDM Elections
Our School-Based Decision Making Council Elections are coming up soon!
All nominations are due by this Wednesday, April 26th at 4pm.
Please send any nominations/bios or questions to Kelly Lusk at kelly.lusk@alumni.vanderbilt.edu or call her at 615-305-7835.
The slate of candidates and bios will be sent out by Thursday April 27th.
Elections will take place on Monday, May 1st from 8:15am-7pm at Longbranch.
Please make sure you bring ID to vote.
PTA Elections and General Meeting
PTA Executive Board Elections will take place this Tuesday evening at Longbranch during our April 2017 General Meeting at 6:30pm.
The current slate of candidates is as follows:
President - Amanda Scroggin
1st VP - Monica Day
Treasurer - Elisa Winterman
VP of Volunteers - Heather Franzen
VP of Programs - Rachel Salsberry
VP of Communications - Rachel Pearson
VP of Membership - Kim Tharp
Please contact Kelly Lusk at kelly.lusk@alumni.vanderbilt.edu or call her at 615-305-7835 if you are interested in running for a PTA Executive Board Position.
5TH Grade Lock In Volunteers
We need volunteers for our 5th Grade Lock in coming up on May 5th-May 6th! If you can help out, please sign up at the following link:
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b4fa4af23a3fc1-volunteers
All volunteers must have a background check on file. Please check with the office to see if we have one on file for you.
Yearbook Photos
WE NEED YOUR PHOTOS!
If you’d like to make sure your child and his/her activities at Longbranch make it in the yearbook for this year, then please send your photos to us!
Our yearbook coordinator cannot be at all the awesome events that go on with our students throughout the year and needs your help in making sure we get a large variety of kids and activities included in the book!
Please email photos that you would like to submit for possible inclusion in the yearbook, along with the names and grade of the students in each picture, to longbranchyearbook@gmail.com. If you would rather send them in another format that is fine too!
Any questions, contact the VP of Communications, Rachel Pearson, at communications.longbranchpta@gmail.com.
Support Longbranch when you Shop on Amazon!
Support Longbranch while you shop by shopping at AmazonSmile!
Go to smile.amazon.com to create your account,
search for "Longbranch Elementary PTA" as your
organization, and .5% of your purchase goes back to the school!
Amazon will donate 0.5% of your purchase
to Longbranch Elementary PTA.
Support us every time you shop!
AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know!
Same products, same prices, same service
Questions? Need help logging in?
Contact: waysandmeans.longbranchpta@gmail.com
Kroger Cards Help Generate BIG MONEY for Our School
Kroger donates 4% of all money you spend after you scan your Kroger Plus card as long as you connect the Plus card to our Longbranch PTA account.
If 400 families connected their cards and spent $100 a week at Kroger, each family would make $4 per week. That's $1600 a week. That's $19,000 a quarter. That's unreal. That's plain and simple easy money.
We encourage you to visit Kroger.com and create an account. Click Community Rewards. Search for Longbranch and connect your plus card with Longbranch PTA. It's the EASIEST fundraiser you'll ever participate in, period.
7 Habits 101
Be Proactive
LOOKS LIKE: Getting ready for school on their own without adult prompting, doing their homework without being asked, performing tasks around the house that need to be done without being asked.
Begin With the End in Mind
LOOKS LIKE: Determining that there's something they want to buy and setting up a system to make sure they save weekly to be able to buy it or knowing they have a project due in 3 weeks and keeping up with the work that needs to be done throughout the 3 weeks so the goal is accomplished.
Put First Things First
LOOKS LIKE: Putting work before play. Being able to prioritize the tasks that MUST be done vs. the tasks that are optional. They do household chores before they play x-box or they practice piano before they go to a friend's house.
Think Win-Win
LOOKS LIKE: Students are in a small group working on a science experiment. Katie wants to create a test with one set of materials. Braden wants to create a test with a different set of materials. They decide to try both and see which one is the best set of materials rather than Braden getting his way or Katie getting her way. Students who think win-win are working on a broader habit of recognizing that everyone's voice matters and acknowledging that there can be another perspective or vantage point other than their own.
Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood
LOOKS LIKE: When in a group, a student demonstrating this habit will be actively listening to other students' input to a conversation and then will take time to assert their viewpoint. A student who demonstrates this habit is not a student who never asserts him or herself. Rather, they wait respectfully to hear others' perspectives before asserting himself or herself. This allows the individual to really create a stronger understanding of their own opinion through the eyes and minds of others.
Synergize
LOOKS LIKE: 5 students working on a group project all inputting equally into a conversation about how to complete a task, dividing up the task based on their strengths, allowing one another to contribute to all parts of the task, and having an outcome that is superior to what would have been accomplished had they all 5 completed the task alone.
Sharpen the Saw!
LOOKS LIKE: From an adult perspective, you take time daily to mediate, walk the dog, read for enjoyment, attend a painting class, play an instrument, run with a friend, etc. Daily you or your child participate in something that brings you joy and balance to your life. Did you just say, "I don't have time for that"? You don't NOT have time for that. There's very solid research that would tell you that if you do this daily, your productivity will skyrocket.