On October 12, Fremont Elementary School had a very special honor in receiving a visit from the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. The reason for her visit was to share programs at our school which encourage and promote healthy living. The nutritional programs initially came to the attention of our government guests through information submitted by our own Michelle Anderson, our PTA president. The Days of Taste program which has educated hundreds of fourth grade students in making the right choices for foods they eat, the organic garden which provides students with hands-on lessons in taking care of the earth while taking care of themselves, and the opening of our cafeteria salad bar are examples of the wonderful and healthful opportunities students have at Fremont. And then our annual Jog-A-Thon which supports our school while students individually practice physical fitness has just taken place. These programs have come about and exist from the expressed interest and efforts of many people in the school community. These programs would not be available without the work and funding support of the Fremont PTA. Many people in PTA through the years have been instrumental in the inception and continuation of these valuable experiences in which our students are the beneficiaries.

A big thank you is extended out to those who helped to make the Jog-A-Thon a fun and successful event. Thanks also to the many parents and family members who came out to cheer on the joggers.

If you are volunteering in the classroom and with student activities, you need to become a VIPS (Volunteer in Public Schools). Simply come to the school office, complete an application form, and have a current TB test verification. Once a VIPS, you are ready to work with students in the classroom and assist with the many varied activities that go on at Fremont Elementary School. You will receive a VIPS badge that is displayed in the office awaiting the next time you come to sign in and volunteer. We love our VIPS.

And lastly, here are a couple of safety reminders. We have a valet service for dropping off students in the morning on Vermont Street by the cafeteria. Please pull up next to the yellow curb at the cone area and receive a warm greeting and assistance in letting your child out at the sidewalk. The traffic flow for entering Vermont Street is east to west in the mornings and in the afternoon from 1:30-3:00pm.  Please use this drop off area so our students are safely getting to school and not going across the street or between vehicles. Also, if your child needs to ride a bicycle school, review the rules of the road with your child to have a safe route and to be visible and not going between vehicles.

Thank you and have a safe and productive year.

Jog-A-Thon mania continues...

We had a GREAT DAY!...

What a wonderful Fremont community!

Congratulations and a big THANK YOU you to all the Fremont Falcons for their hard work! Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to the over 100 volunteers who organized, watered, lap counted and cheered our children on. Also, a special thank you to Jamba Juice for setting up their smoothie booth and donating 20% of thesales dollars to our school.

Which teacher or student jogged the most laps? Who will be our top money collectors? Who signed up the most sponsors? Who will win the Grand Prize drawing? Find out on Thursday, November 19th at the awards assembly.

There is much to win. The more money and/or sponsors you collected, the better your opportunity to win in the grand prize raffle: an electric guitar, a Jones bicycle, an IPOD shuffle, Disneyland tickets, Big Red Bus Rides, Paper Jamz, camping gear, skateboards, and much much more. Good luck!

Don't forget your donors can contribute

on-line at fremont-pta.org!  You'll get the credit and they'll get the ease of

contributing through Paypal! 

Days of Taste

On Thursday, October 21^st,  the entire 4^th grade participated in the Days of Taste Program.  This is the class that actually started the program last school year when we had the opportunity to be part of The Food Revolution with Jamie Oliver.  Last spring, we were followed by Jamie's camera and crew as we toured the Downtown Farmers Market, made our salads for lunch and dined together while learning all about healthy eating and the history of food, farmers and markets. 

This year the scholars began the day in the auditorium where Chef Paul Buchanan, assisted by Chef Michael Poompan, taught them all about "good and bad" foods.  They learned how to read labels and identify good ingredients and not so good  ingredients such as high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, trans-fats, etc.  The students were especially intrigued to learn about how food corporations market to them in an effort to "make" them buy their product using colorful and sometimes miss-leading labels.  They learned to be cautious about foods labels that make claims like "healthy", "lite", "no-fat" and "diet", as that is not always the case.  Ask your child to tell you about "Sunny Delight".   The students then moved into the cafeteria where some parent volunteers (Thank You!) had set up the room for tasting.  Chef Paul had them taste salt, sugar, citric acid and cocoa powder followed by capers, golden raisins, lime, fresh and crystalized ginger, cherry tomato, unsweetened bitter chocolate and finally a Days of Taste Cookie.  While tasting this variety of foods, they learned about how different parts of the tongue taste different things and what chocolate really tastes like before all the sugar is added.  They learned about dining vs. eating, taking the time to enjoy their food and even some table manners. 

After lunch we walked to the Wild Oats Community Garden for a tour and lessons in plant identification, composting, gardening and seasonal fruits and vegetables.   A favorite part of the tour was the pumpkin pie with whip cream they got to enjoy as a treat.  Chef Paul told them, "now that you have a salad bar at your own school, it's okay to have a little treat for Days of Taste...everything in moderation...plus, pumpkins are so good for you". 

This is the 11^th year of our Days of Taste program.  We want to thank the PTA, Mr. Hammond, Ms. Hanley and Ms. Durazzo and all the parents for their support in helping make this program a continued success!

Fremont Holiday Market

 Saturday, December 11th, 2010

Market Updates:

**Vendor reservations are pouring in, the best booth spaces are going, and from next week we will start to feature some of the paid vendors in our weekly newsletter.

**We are working with the City of Long Beach's "Mobility Coordinator" to set up a bicycle valet service to enable market goers ride their bikes to the market and then - like a hat check booth - pick them up afterwards

**We are soliciting ideas and suggestions for a "Kids Zone" for kids of all ages to play while the market is in progress, and "serious business" is being done  Please feel free to contribute!

**We are working with the Long Beach board of health on getting some food trucks to the event; if anyone knows any Long Beach based food vendors please refer them to:

Priscilla: prism.sanders@verizon.net or,

Reggie: reggie@armels.com

Fresh & Easy Fundraiser

Shop at Fresh & Easy and earn cash for Fremont!

Remember to keep all receipts from Fresh and Easy that are $20 and higher.

Look for the Fresh and Easy box located next to the Box Tops box in the main entrance, or give them to your teacher. 

Fremont will earn $1.00 for every $20.00!

Receipts must total at least $20 to qualify.

We only have until December 31^st so SHOP SHOP SHOP!

SAVE THE DATE!

THURSDAY DECEMBER 9^th

"Fremont Shop for School Night"

4pm till 8pm at Fresh and Easy:  2745 Cherry Ave (across from Home Depot)

Fremont will earn 5% of the total sales for that 4 hour period!  (even non Fremont customers)!

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:

At least 5 Adult Volunteers will be needed for this fundraiser.

Dec 9^th 4 to 8pm at Fresh And Easy.

Contact Dana Stewart at (562) 335-5917 if you can help out.