News You Can Use
April 06, 2020
April PTA Meeting Details
3rd & 4th Grade Families -- Joe Amodio will give an overview of the Smarter Balanced Assessments coming up in May.
● Grade 3 & 4 ELA- Tuesday, May 4 – Friday, May 7
● Grade 3 & 4 Math- Tuesday, May 11 – Friday, May 14
● Grade 3 & 4 Make ups or Additional Time- Monday, May 17 – Friday, May 21
Meeting ID: 836 3796 9924
Passcode: 06896
Presidents' Note
Spring awakening is happening all around us as flowers peek out of the earth, families enjoy more time outdoors and our students enjoy continuous learning in-school or remotely from home. We are all beginning to hope, look out a little further into the future and embrace new ways to engage together. Here's a sneak peak of the months to come as we have a little more than 9 weeks left in the 2020-2021 school year.
April
We break for a week to enjoy the outdoors, the company of family and extracurricular activities. Upon return, we look forward to launching new partner programs and getting into the school spirit.
- April 22 will welcome a celebration of Earth Day with support from our community partner, New Pond Farm
- On the shorter days for teacher conferences (April 28-30), the PTA will launch after school programs -- decorating cookies like a master with Becky O'Dowd (Little Birdie Cookies) virtually and outdoor art classes for 3rd and 4th grade students (details to come).
- We'll round out the month with a full Spirit Week (have your kids been reminding you they missed PJ day due to inclement weather too?).
May
- Spirit Week culminates with our PTA Member Drive-in Movie on Sunday, May 2nd
- Smarter Balanced Assessments will launch on May 4th for all students in grades 3 and 4. Interested in the details? Check out the PTA Meeting tomorrow @ 7PM!
- Equally important, the town-wide vote to approve the 2021-2022 School and Town Budgets will happen on May 4th -- May The Fourth Be With You!
- Teacher Appreciation and Cinco de Mayo fall on the same day this year so stay tuned for the committee plans to share love with our staff members at RES
- In-school programs such as award-winning author Doreen Cronin and theatrical environmental science performer Billy B will be stretching kids minds and offering in-school enrichment, sponsored by your fundraised dollars
- Former PTA President, Susan Green, will offer an Expert Garden Talk with The Redding Garden Club focused on the opportunity to maintain beautiful small sites
...and that's just the beginning of exciting opportunities to get involved
June
The mad dash of May ushers in the rewards of summertime June breezes. We will launch more programs with New Pond Farm for our pre-school learners with a focus on Pollinator Gardens. While our oldest learners will receive a complimentary RES Yearbook, a chance to hear the finished 4th grade song and time to celebrate their last few weeks of school together before "Stepping Up" to 5th Grade. June is also the time to elect officers to your PTA Executive Board; don't hesitate to raise your hand if you have any interest in getting involved!
No matter how you PTA, we hope you will join us for one or many of the activities happening in the next few months. Volunteers are the heart and soul of all activities so don't hesitate to share a great idea or an hour of helpful time.
Angela and Meredith
New to Town? Email us at RESPTA4KIDS@GMAIL.COM for a Welcome Bag!
Outdoor Classroom
Thanks to Dani Garavito, Jay Patts, Jeff Verses and Tanggol Caes, we moved the outdoor classroom to its new location inside the fenced grounds this weekend!
4th Grade Yearbook
Many parents have sent photos so we have been sorting through, tagging, and "filing". We are currently making sure we have photos of each child! Next step is for our yearbook rep to lay out the pages with our photos.
We will need your help with proofreading once the page layouts are completed in late March/early April! Final due date is April 23rd!
*If you would like to help "tag" photos or proofread the book and review pages, please let us know!
Contact: Jen Lyons jenlyons0@gmail.com for more information
Author Visit in School
Doreen Cronin, author of a loved series "Click, Clack Moo, Cows that Type", is coming to RES! There will be 3 in-school sessions on May 19th for students, coordinated by teachers and grade level. Signed books will be available for purchase, more information coming soon!
Diverse book ideas for home
How to Build A Hug by Amy Guglielmo
The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
Kaya's Heart Song by Diwa Tharan Sanders
Say Something by Peter Reynolds
Volunteer Opportunities
Contact: respta4kids@gmail.com if interested!
Flowerbeds and gardening: Do you love gardening and planting? We're looking for volunteers to help spruce up the flowerbeds around RES.
Sarah Goguen, Real Estate Agent
Email: sarah.goguen@cbrealty.com
Website: https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/ct/ridgefield/agent/sarah-goguen/aid_233041/
Location: 398 Main St Ste 1, Ridgefield, CT 06877-4610
Phone: (203) 438-9000
Mental Health Moment
Pathways to Empower
....every time you struggle and overcome a challenge, you are creating important pathways that help you become more resilient.
Read Aloud Book -- How Your Brain Responds to Challenges (Length: 2:12)
Dr. D. Volpitta -- RES PTA Partner and Mental Health Educator
Click here for more free resources to help your kids thrive.
ER9 School Community COVID-19 Information
Grab-and-Go Meals
Reminder: Grab-and-Go meals are available for pick up to all students this year, regardless of financial need. We urge families to take advantage of the opportunity for healthy meals on the go to support students learning from home. Regular meal pick up at Joel Barlow High School will provide a nutritional boost to hard-working students with little to no preparation needed.
Please feel free to contact David Kennedy at David.Kennedy@compass-usa.com or Deena Robushi at drobushi@er9.org with any questions or concerns.
In case you missed it -- March PTA meeting
Easton, Redding, Region 9 Special Education Committee
The tri-district special education committee works to support students and families who rely on additional support services in kindergarten to 12th grade.
Learn more about the committee's efforts and events at its website here.
Employer Donation Matching
As we approach the end of the year, you may be thinking about charitable donations. The RES PTA is a 501(c)(3) organization, and if our work is valuable to you, you can consider making an angel donation right here, or by mailing it to the RES PTA at 33 Lonetown Rd., Redding, CT 06896.
We'd also like to remind you that your employer might be like Thomson Reuters -- a company that generously matches employee gifts to local nonprofits doing the work communities rely on. If that's the case, please let us know, and we'll help you complete all the paperwork you need to make it happen!
Contact Us
Email: respta4kids@gmail.com
Phone: (203) 938-2519
Join the PTA!
As a PTA, our main goals will remain what they have always been:
- To provide academic, cultural and social programs for our children to enhance their learning and
- To support our teachers and staff and to act to unify our school community.
To fulfill our mission for a unified parent/ teacher community, we strive for 100% PTA membership. Dues are $25 per family this year. For more information on how to join, go to:
RESCTPTA.MEMBERSHIPTOOLKIT.COM
We are planning lots of safe and exciting virtual events this year that will be available to PTA members only, so sign up today!