The first full week of school is upon us, and as such there's a lot of news and information to share with you. We hope you find these newsletters useful. If you have any questions or information you wish to share with us, please contact PTA President Donna Abernathy at dlfcomm@bellsouth.net. Thanks!

Boo Hoo/Yahoo! Breakfast
Wednesday, July 29, 8:30-10 a.m., school cafeteria
The Annual Boo Hoo/Yahoo! Breakfast for new Kindergarten parents will be held immediately after morning drop-off on the first day of Kindergarten in the school cafeteria.
 
Tiffany Pippin and the Hospitality Committee are hosting this event. The committee is still looking for donations of Kleenex and food, so if you can help, please let Tiffany know by calling her at 896-3641 or 653-7150 or by e-mailing her at tiffanypippin@comcast.net.
 
Everyone is invited to attend. You can meet the new parents and share your experiences of being a Discovery School parent with them. If you are a PTA committee chair or board member, you are welcome to come and share information with parents and have sign-up lists for your committee. Siblings of new students are welcome to join their parents.

Order Discovery T-shirts
Deadline July 31
We are using the same T-shirts as last year in an effort to economize. However, if you need a new shirt, you can order one by July 31. T-shirts are $10 for regular sizes and $11 for 2XL and 3XL.
 
If you would like to order a shirt, please send the money to your child's teacher. With the payment, include a piece of paper with the following information:

• Parent's name and phone number
• Student's name and teacher
• T-shirt size (Youth S, M or L or Adult S, M, L, XL, 2XL or 3XL
• The total amount paid

Please make checks payable to Discovery School PTA.
 
T-shirts are used on field trips for safety purposes. They allow the teacher to identify all students quickly and easily. If you need financial assistance, please let your teacher know.  All
information is confidential and only the teacher will know the child's name.

PTA Board Meeting
Tuesday, Aug. 4, at 6:30 p.m.
The PTA Board will hold its first meeting of the new school year on Tuesday, Aug. 4, at 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria. All parents are welcome to attend. There is a committee chair (board position) still unfilled as well as some co-chair jobs. If you are interested in serving, please contact Donna Abernathy at dlfcomm@bellsouth.net.

'Discover D.C. with Discovery' Informational Meeting
Thursday, Aug. 20, at 6:30 p.m.
Have you made your plans for spring break 2010? At the request of parents answering a May survey, the PTA is organizing an optional tour of Washington, D.C., April 10-15. The group trip is open to all Discovery School students, their parents or guardians and siblings. Teachers and administrative staff are welcome, too. An informational meeting about the trip, which is funded solely by those participating, is set for Thursday, Aug. 20, at 6:30 p.m. in the school cafeteria. This meeting precedes the PTA general membership meeting at 7 p.m. PTA representatives are distributing fliers giving a few trip details during classroom parent meetings.
 
PTA General Membership Meeting and Volunteer Fair
Thursday, Aug. 20, at 7 p.m.
The PTA General Membership Meeting will feature Dr. John Ash, principal of the new Central Academic Magnet School, as its guest speaker. The meeting will be preceded by the 'Discover D.C. with Discovery' Information Meeting. The Volunteer Fair will take just before and after the main general membership meeting at 7 p.m.

Smart Cards
Smart Card sales are under way. Cards are $12 each, and The Discovery School will receive $7 for each card sold! Our goal this year is to raise $13,000 for the school. This is our ONLY active fundraiser for the year. Some of the new businesses on the cards this year include Newk's, O'Charley's, Otter's Chicken Tenders and Cheeseburger Charley's.
 
Collection dates for the cards are:
Monday, July 27
Wednesday, July 29
Friday, July 31
Monday, Aug. 3
Wednesday, Aug. 5 (final collection date)
 
If you have any questions, please contact Stacie Berard, chair of this committee. Her e-mail address is oh.brothers@gmail.com.

CAMS update
All Discovery School parents and friends are encouraged to familiarize yourself with the CAMS admissions policy proposal for the Central Academic Magnet School ASAP. We urge you to contact your county school board member to register an opinion on the proposal. You should have received several e-mails concerning this from our Legislation & Advocacy Committee, which has done an excellent job of staying on top of this issue throughout the summer.  A vote on this issue is coming in August though the school board has not yet posted a date for their August meeting. 
 
Also, you might want to read the editorial that ran in the Daily News Journal on July 20, which was very supportive of our position on admissions standards for the new school.

Please call your county school board member and all county school board members on this very important issue. We request you call rather than send e-mails so that members are sure to get the message on time.
 
Car Magnets
Car magnets are available for $5 in the school office, or you can buy them at the first PTA meeting on Aug. 20. Please try to bring correct change or pay by check.
 
Box Tops
The Discovery School will again be collecting Box Tops for Education this year. The school earns 10 cents for each box top collected, and the school can earn up to $20,000 over the course of the year.

This year's Box Tops coordinator is Jennifer Kropog, and she can be reached at jckropog@comcast.net if you have any questions.
 
You can maximize our earnings by registering at http://boxtops4education.com. It's easy, free, and you'll learn about new ways to help our school earn the extra cash it needs.
 
Exclusive online benefits include:

• Tracking our school's Box Tops earnings.
• Printing money-saving coupons for your favorite Box Tops brands.
• Entering to win Bonus Box Tops for our school.
• Making meal time easier with family-pleasing recipes.

Plus, you can sign up for regular e-mail updates on our school's progress!

Don't forget to keep an eye out for fliers on upcoming Box Tops collection contests. The Spring 2009 contest alone raised approximately $500!
 
Thanks for choosing to make a difference for our school with Box Tops.

Supplies Lists
Though you should have already received this, just in case you've lost it, here's a link to your child's supplies list for this year.
Kindergarten Supplies List
First Grade Supplies List
Second Grade Supplies List
Third Grade Supplies List
Fourth Grade Supplies List
Fifth Grade Supplies List
Sixth Grade Supplies List

Remember road construction
Please remember that Greenland Drive from just in front of The Discovery School all the way to Rutherford Boulevard is being rebuilt, which means the entire surface is being removed and replaced. This construction will continue at least through the end of September. During this time, much of this stretch of Greenland will be one lane. Keep this in mind and plan your drop offs and pick ups accordingly so your children will not be late to school.