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December 5, 2008 |
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From Joe’s Desk |
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Upcoming
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Every Tuesday
After school Front/Back Lobbies
Ongoing December 10 Horace
Mann Shopping Day at My Pawfect Bear, Newtonville December 11 HM
Shopping Day Learning
Express Newton
Centre Week of December 15 Teachers
Appreciation Holiday Card Fundraiser Wednesday, December
17 Wii Raffle Tuesday, December 23 Last Day of School 12:30 Dismissal December 24 – January 2 Holiday Break – No School Monday, January 5, 2009 Back to
School Thursday, Next Edition: December 19, 2008 |
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Dear
Families, With the
holiday season upon us, I realize that many families wish to express their
gratitude to staff members. At this
time I want to remind you of the Newton School Committee’s policy regarding
gifts. The policy states, “No teacher
in performance of regular duties shall receive presents from pupils under
his/her direction”. I ask for your
cooperation in adhering to this policy.
Teachers feel awkward accepting gifts knowing that it is prohibited by
the system, yet they also feel uncomfortable refusing a gift offered by a
child or parent. This also creates a
confusing situation for students who follow the policy and see teachers
receiving gifts from other students.
If you wish to express your gratitude to a staff member, please
consider donating to the Horace Mann Teacher Appreciation fund through the
PTO’s holiday fundraiser (details below).
Cards or notes are greatly appreciated. We realize how much time and effort goes
into writing a sincere note of thanks and appreciation, drawing a lovely
picture, or writing a poem. Teachers
truly treasure the pictures and notes they receive from families. Other alternatives include purchasing a
book for the library or donations to the Newton Schools Foundation. Each of
these can be dedicated to honor a special staff member. Hey, have
you paid your Horace Mann PTO dues yet?
So far, only 36% of families have actually participated in the dues
drive. The goal of the PTO is $14,000
and so far we are $5,000 away from that goal.
It doesn’t have to be a lot, because every dollar you provide goes
directly back to your children. How,
you ask? Well just last year the PTO
provided funds to our specialists which allowed us to purchase a new
microphone and sound system for the music program, new mats and a boom box
for the PE program, an LCD projector and extra creative materials for the art
program, and two new book carts and a set of books for the library. In addition every Creative Arts program
including the school wide dance program last month and the second grade field
trip to the Thank you to
all the parents who helped support today’s PTO Breakfast in honor of our
staff. Special thanks to Caroline
Morgan for all her planning and coordination of this wonderful event. The care and thought was most appreciated
and the food was more than delicious.
I think I speak for everyone on staff when I say Horace Mann is a
special place to work. Your efforts to
help us feel special and cared for are warmly felt. The breakfast was a welcomed lift to this
hectic time of year. Do you know of some neighbors or friends
with a child who will be entering kindergarten next September? If so, remind them to contact Mrs. Coffey
during school hours regarding the registration process at Horace Mann. We are beginning to compile our list and
want to be sure everyone is included.
Thanks for your help. |
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From School
Council |
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Newton’s Child
Assault Prevention Program (CAP) |
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Newton’s Child Assault Prevention (CAP) program is seeking
volunteers We can’t do it without you. Each year CAP volunteer Prevention Specialists
present 120 workshops to students in Newton’s kindergarten, second and fifth
grade classrooms. Working in teams of 3, we teach Newton children that they
have the right to be Safe, Strong and Free with their friends and peers, with
adult strangers, and with those who are trusted to take care of them. Using
simple and age appropriate language we address bullying, stranger safety, and
sexual assault by known persons. We are looking for parents and other community
members who are interested in becoming volunteer Prevention Specialists.
Please join us. The next training will be held on January 30th, 31st
and February 1st from 9-4 p.m. CAP volunteers include
parents of pre-school and school- aged children, empty nesters, professionals
and retirees who are interested in child safety, and who can contribute 6
hours per month for one school year. For more information about this training, please
call Gail Sommer, CAP Director ((617) 969-5906 x 143 or by email, gsommer@ncscweb.org. CAP is a program of
the Newton Community Service Center. For more information, visit our website
at www.ncscweb.org. |
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From the PTO…. |
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Thank a Teacher while
supporting the Horace Mann
Teacher Appreciation Fund |
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The Horace Mann community of students and parents is fortunate to have
a dedicated team of outstanding teachers, assistants, specialists and staff.
These individuals make possible a wonderful learning environment for our
children. This holiday season you can thank any of these individuals by making a
donation in appreciation of their hard work and dedication. Starting the week
of Dec. 15, the PTO is sponsoring a Teacher Appreciation holiday fundraiser
starting the week of Dec. 15. When you donate to the Teacher Appreciation
Fund, you will receive a holiday greeting card to give to your child's teacher,
saying "A donation was made in your honor to the Horace Mann PTO's
Teacher Appreciation Fund." The Teacher Appreciation Fund enables
teachers to buy materials and supplies for the classroom that are not paid
for through the Newton Public Schools budget. The suggested minimum
donation is $15. We’ll have a booth set up in the lobby before and after
school beginning the week of Dec. 15, or you can donate on line
via the PTO website, www.horacemannpto.org, and we’ll deliver the cards for you.
It's a great way to say "Happy Holidays and thank you!" |
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2nd iPod
Touch Winner Drawn
Have You Supported the PTO this Year?
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Congratulations
to Henry Rolfe, the second winner of an iPod Touch through the Horace Mann
dues donation campaign. So far we’ve raised about $9,500 toward our goal of
$14,000, with just over 1/3 of families participating. We’re aiming for full participation to
support our Creative Arts and Sciences Program as well as our technology
needs, so if you can give, please do. Any amount is welcome. |
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Social Action Committee
says Thank You!
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Thank you and congratulations to everyone who
participated in the Trick or Treat for UNICEF campaign. Horace Mann students raised $1,540.13 to
help children around the world get food, clean water, medicine and
education!! Thank you for your great
work. Fourth and Fifth Grade Social Action Committee |
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Shop Local and Help Our School December
10th
& 11th
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Make
your holiday shopping count twice! Next week, when you shop at local
merchants Learning Express and My Pawfect Bear on specially designated Horace
Mann Shopping Days, the stores will donate 20 percent of the total amount of
your sale to the PTO! Just mention Horace Mann when you bring your
merchandise to the cashier. Please
tell family, friends and fellow shoppers to do the same. It won’t cost them
an extra cent, but it will go a long way toward helping our children’s
school. Horace Mann Shopping Days are
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Local
Landscape Designer Donates Bulbs to Beautify School Grounds
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Horace
Mann received a generous donation of new flower bulbs from local landscape
designer Ann Barker of Ann Barker Design in Newton Highlands (617-969-3065). Horace Mann parent
Chris Banks and his son Michael spent a weekend afternoon prepping the ground
and planting the bulbs around the trees, near the entrance and along the
modular in the front of school. Thank
you, Michael and Chris! If
you would like to donate edging to protect the plants from the city lawn mowing
machines, please contact Marcia Tabenken at mtabenken@rcn.com or 617-965-7322. |
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Thank
You Teachers and Staff!
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This
morning marked Horace Mann’s Annual Staff Appreciation Breakfast, an event
honoring the dozens of teachers and staff members for all they do for our
kids. Thank you to event chair
Caroline Morgan and the many parent volunteers who cooked, baked and
contributed to the event. And
thank you to the staff of Horace Mann for giving our children a great
educational experience! |
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Horace
Mann Loves Books! |
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Thank you to Alison Rolfe and the many volunteers
responsible for this year’s Winter Book Fair. In addition to raising money
for the PTO, the book fair helps fill our classroom bookshelves with new
books and encourages reading within the Horace Mann community. |
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Thank
You! |
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Many families from Horace Mann made generous
donations of clothing and shoes to the Roxbury Community College Clothing
Drive for Haiti. Coordinator for our neighborhood was Lindsay
O'Donovan, former Horace Mann parent. Grateful thanks to all those who
contributed! The college was truly overwhelmed by the amount that was
delivered to them, and it was all sent off to Haiti thanks to a generous Blue
Cross sponsor who paid for shipping. |
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The
Horace Mann PTO Spring Auction March
20, 2008 |
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The
Annual Horace Mann PTO Spring Auction is scheduled for March 20th,
2009 and planning is underway -- but we need your help. Please consider volunteering for this fun
event, our biggest fundraiser for the school and a great way to connect with
other Horace Mann parents. This year’s
theme “A Night for the Stars” is sure to be a blast! Here is a list of the sub-committees that
need your help…
Contact
Lisa DiFelice at ldifelice@rcn.com or (617)630-9009 for
more information and/or to sign up. |
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Understanding
Our Differences |
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The Physical Disabilities unit of the Understanding
Our Differences program has come to a successful conclusion. The 3rd grade
students learned about how barriers can make it difficult for people with
disabilities, universal design, different ways that people with disabilities
can communicate, and how different types of adaptive equipment can assist
people with disabilities. They were enthusiastic to meet a young man with a
physical disability who answered all their thoughtful questions. We would
like to thank our volunteer team of Betty Knight, Heather McCarthy, Christine
Schaefer, & Karen Solari. We would also like to thank
the 3rd grade teachers, Barbara
Coffey, Kathy Dregalla, Patti Karam, Jordan Lund, & David Tynes and our
principal Joe Russo for their support. Understanding Our Differences will
present the blindness and visual impairment unit on March 26th. Please
call/email Mari Young (617-965-2226)/ mariyoung@juno.com if you
are interested in volunteering. |
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Wii Raffle Wednesday, December 17th |
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The 5th grade class will be raffling
off a Wii gaming system on Wednesday, December 17th. Profits will be used to help cover the
costs of graduation activities.
Tickets are $5 each and will be on sale in the lobby before and after
school from Monday, December 8th thru Wednesday, December 17th. Tickets are also attached to the back of
Newsnotes and can be filled out and placed in the Wii Raffle box in the front
lobby. |
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From Newton
Public Schools |
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Safe
Schools/Healthy Students |
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The Safe Schools/Healthy Students Program Director has developed a
survey to make sure that the education offerings meet the needs of the parent
community. Below is a link to this survey. It should only take
five minutes or less to complete. The survey will be open from Monday,
December 1st through Friday, December 12th. Thanks for your help.
For more info, please contact Nancy Holczer, Safe Schools/Healthy
Students Parent Education and Outreach Specialist, at nancy_holczer@newton.k12.ma.us. |
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From
The Community |
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Newton
Parks and Recreation Upcoming Events |
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Family Trip to Disney On Ice Join Mickey and Minnie Mouse on Saturday December
27,2008 on a journey into the magical worlds of Disney’s The Little Mermaid,
The Lion King, Peter Pan, and Lilo & Stitch. Includes
transportation to and from Boston and great seats in the loge section.
This trip runs from 9:45 am – 1:45 pm. For more information contact
Newton Parks and Recreation at 617-796- 1500 or register online at
www.activityreg.com Family Movie Nights Located at the West Newton Cinema on December 29 and
30, enjoy a family movie and get popcorn and soda all for one low
price. Ticket sales begin at 4:15 pm at the Cinema on the day of the
event. This is a very popular program and tickets may sell out. For
more information contact Newton Parks and Recreation at 617-796-1500. Fun-tastic December Vacation Program It’s like summer camp in the winter. Join us
on December 29, 30, 31 and January 2 for sports, arts and crafts, cooking,
inside games and more at the Lower Falls Community Center 8:15 AM – 3:30 PM.
Extended day is available until 5:15 PM. Sign up by day or for all 4
days. For more information contact Newton Parks and Recreation at 617-796-1500
or register online at www.activityreg.com Newton Parks and Recreation Camp Fair February 3, 2009 from 2:00 – 6:30. Come see
what Newton Parks and Recreation has to offer for the summer. Programs
are available for children ages 3 to 21 and include sports, specialty camps,
general recreation camps, special needs programs, counselor in training
programs, swimming lessons, and more. Job opportunities are available
for those 15 and up. For more information about our summer programs
check out our website at www.ci.newton.ma.us/parks
and click on camps, or call us at 617- 796-1500. |
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PAC Newton Parent’s Advisory Council |
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Newton Parent's Advisory
Council for Special Education invites you to a
discussion with Dr. Jeffrey M. Young, Superintendent of Newton
Public Schools Thursday, December 11,
2008 7:30 to 9:00 pm Education Center, 100
Walnut Street, Room 210 Light refreshments
and networking begin at 7:15pm Jeff Young will be our guest, answering questions
from parents of children receiving special
education services in Newton. Bring your burning questions about special education
and…… the strategic planning effort, the budget, the system-wide goals and
mission statement, and other topics of particular concern to the special
education community and you! If
possible, we would like to share your questions with Dr. Young in
advance to allow him to focus his comments on areas of interest.
Send your questions to Sandy Baird, PAC co-chair by December 5th, at sjsbaird@rcn.com. For
more information about the PAC, go to our website at www.newtonpac.org |
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Do you need help making
your home more energy efficient? |
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Are there repairs to your home you
need to make but can't afford? The City of Newton may be able to help.
Federal funds are available for those who are income-eligible or who are
landlords with income-eligible tenants. Among repairs allowed:
New window. boilers, insulation, roof and gutter repair/replacement, removal
of hazardous materials, structural work and installation of ramps and grab
bars to make a property handicap accessible and more. Contact the City
of Newton Planning and Development Department at 617-796-1150
or 617-796-1120. |
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Newton History Museum |
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Holiday Arts and Crafts Festival |
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The seventh annual CELEBRATE NEWTON!
HOLIDAY ARTS AND CRAFTS FESTIVAL will take place on Sunday,
December 7th from 10 am until 4 pm at Newton South High School. This
Citywide PTO-sponsored fair raises money for ALL Newton schools. For the
past five years, Celebrate Newton! has attracted shoppers and spirit
from across the city, and this year's fair promises to be even better. The
day will feature 60+ artisans with ties to Newton: crafters and
artists in the show are Newton residents, teachers, parents,
students, employees, alums and more. Shoppers can also enjoy onsite
craft projects, live music from community and school groups, a
raffle, bake sale and lunch cafe. ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT THE NEWTON PUBLIC
SCHOOLS. Please see www.perugi.com/newton
for more details. Questions? Please contact Sara Coen at 617-558-3695 or
at saracoen3@aol.com. |
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Newton Community Education Classes at
Horace Mann |
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Registration is now underway for winter classes through Newton
Community Education. Coming up at Horace Mann we have Chess
on Tuesdays, Girls Science Club 2 on Wednesdays, Chinese
Painting & Calligraphy on Thursdays, and Mad
Science on Fridays. We have many exciting Saturday classes for adult-child
pairs, such as Colorful Chemistry, Dino
Days, Knitting, Graham Cracker Village and the ever-popular Chocolate
Connection. We have lots of Saturday sports options for kids ages 2 and up, and
many more weekday classes at schools throughout Newton, including Lego
Robotics, Fencing, and private Violin lessons. You can also
sign up now for one of our February or April vacation programs—there are lots
to choose from. For more information or to register, call our office at 617-559-6999 or visit our website at
www.newtoncommunityed.org. |
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Classifieds
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PIANO INSTRUCTION:
Berklee & New England Conservatory graduate with 25+ years teaching experience has several openings in studio. Beginners Welcome. Learn Jazz/Blues/Classical, theory, sightreading from a patient, caring teacher. Gloria Jasinski, phone: 617.566.9704, email: piano566@comcast.net PIANO LESSONS - Highly
Experienced Piano Teacher. All Levels. Specialized in Teaching
Young Children. Excellent References Available. Currently
teaching Horace Mann students. Will come to your home.
Contact Nehama: (home) 617.969.9177, (mobile) 617.640.1030. PRIVATE PIANO LESSONS – Learn how
to play the piano! Private lessons available for
students in Kindergarten through 12th grade.
Half hour, forty-five minute, or hour lessons available.
Skill level – beginners to intermediates.
Located in Newton Center, near City Hall.
Piano instructor Kathy Raiz has 25 years of piano experience, and 5
years of teaching experience. Sign up now for lessons in
January! Call Kathy at 617-584-2153, or e-mail at kraiz@raizlabs.com to find
out more. Call Y3K TUTOR IN YOUR HOME today, When schoolwork goes the wrong way! Our many years of experience in teaching
and educational consulting has developed the right way to motivate, the right
way to teach, be understood, and be remembered. We tutor special ed.
such as ADD, ADHD, Asperger’s, Autism, Emotional/Behavioral, and
gifted. We also tutor regular ed. and test preparation. All
subjects and ages are taught. Parents can now receive 25% off the
first lesson. Call 781-492-8700 or log on to Y3KTutorInYourHome.com Warmlines is
running an information and support group for parents of young children (2-5
yrs) recently diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders, including Autism,
PDD-NOS, and Asperger's Syndrome. For more information, please call
617-332-3666 ext123 or see www.warmlines.org ActiveMinds Tutoring, LLC: Your source for
in-home tutoring. Effective, Personalized and
Convenient. All grades/all subjects, including test preparation
(MCAS, SAT, SSAT...). Sign your child up for academic success
and receive 1 free lesson by December 19th. Call:
(617) 663-5700 during business hours, or (617) 227-2225 Eve/Wknds. Please
visit our web site at Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.. |
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Newsnotes
Information
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Editors:
Michelle Curran, Kathy Baron, Lauren Paton, Gina Mulvaney, Susanti Sugianto, Millicent
Lawton, Barbara Huggins Newsnotes are the main vehicle of communication at Horace Mann School. Newsnotes are published by the PTO bi-weekly. Please email items of interest to hmnewsnotes@lists.neighborhood.net. Deadline for submissions is 11:00am on Tuesday the week you want the items to appear. Classifieds from the Horace Mann community are free. Classifieds from non-community members may be charged a nominal fee. |
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Horace Mann School 687 Watertown Street,
Newton, MA 02460 www.newton.k12.ma.us/horacemann/ |
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Main Office
(617) 559-9510 Call-Back Line
(617)
559-9530
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Joe’s Email
Joseph_russo@newton.k12.ma.us Newsnotes Submission Email
hmnewsnotes@lists.neighborhood.net
Announcement List hm-parents-announce@lists.neighborhood.net
Discussion List hm-parents@lists.neighborhood.net |
We’re
on the Web! www.horacemannpto.com www.horacemannpto.org |
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