Dear Families,

Color Day was fun, exhilarating, and rewarding for all.  Ms. Michna's organization of the day was incredible; everything flowed beautifully and the stations offered the students creative and varied activities.  Ms. Michna's work to show that cooperation and teamwork make physical activities inclusive and therefore more fun for all, was evident throughout the day.  Thank you, Ms. Michna!....and thank you to the many parents who volunteered to help on Color Day.  Teachers commented on how wonderful the parent volunteers were at running the activities and at organizing the pizza lunch.  Having music outside to dance to and to energize us was fabulous as well.  Thank you, parents; we couldn't have done it without you!

Our 4th and 5th graders impressed us with their wonderful singing and instrument playing at our Spring Concert this week.  Many thanks to Kathryn Denney and Ted DeColo for inspiring our students to work hard and perform challenging, varied and riveting selections so well.  Our students showed great musicianship, enthusiasm and team spirit at our concert.

Our grade organization and teaching assignments for the 2009-2010 school year are below:
K - Nancy Fitch/Julie Kelly        3 - Julie Canning
K - Catalina Frail                     3 - Lynette Lawton
K - Vanessa Mc Mahon              3 - Rhonda Rendulich
1 - Natalia Espinal                    4 - Marcia Cohen
1 - David Gaita                        4 - Sonja Robinson
1-  Nicole Golden                      4 - Melyssa Taylor
2 - Katie Creeden                     5 - Robin Cooley
2 - Sarah Littlejohn                  5 - Elizabeth Moran
2 - Amy Roberts

As you can see, Amy Roberts is returning to Burr after taking a leave of absence this year, and she will teach grade 2.  Because of the budget situation our teacher allocation is one less than we requested, so Michele Evans will not be teaching at Burr next year; we hope that she will be teaching in Newton or a surrounding community next year.  In addition Jessica Minahan will not be the Inclusion Facilitator at Burr next year; she will be taking a citywide position.  Freda Sesnovich, our primary Learning Center Teacher; Christa Czycholl, our Occupational Therapist; and Barbara Fox, one of our ISS staff are all retiring in June.  We will miss their huge contributions to our school, their skill, expertise and wisdom, but we wish them well in their retirement.

Congratulations to Ms. Michna, our PE teacher.  She is going to Prague to umpire in the International Federation of Lacrosse World Cup for women's lacrosse from June 14-27.  There are sixteen countries competing in this year's World Cup.  This is an incredible accomplishment and experience for Ms. Michna.  Her last day teaching at Burr this year will be on Friday, June 12.  A colleague of Ms. Michna, Ms. Terry Riggs will substitute for Ms. Michna for the last 7 days of school this year.

Have you noticed the colorful multilingual labels around the school?  Ms. Lambrechts, our ELL teacher, determined that labeling certain areas of the school (e.g. the office, the gym, the cafeteria, the boys' rooms and girls' rooms) in the 17 languages spoken by Burr families would be both practical for families and acknowledging of the many cultures and languages that are part of the Burr Community.  With invaluable help from 17 Burr families and Ms. Jaquith, Ms Lambrechts has created and posted labels for 19 different areas.  Thank you!  Our students are both proud and fascinated by these great labels.

May and June have been full of activities that bring Burr students, parents and teachers together as we close our 2008-2009 school year.  We thank you for joining us in these celebratory activities and for your vital partnership all throughout the year.  Of utmost importance, however, is that which happens in the classroom between teachers and students on a daily basis.  I want to give special recognition and say thank you to the Burr teachers for providing an excellent education for our students; our skillful and dedicated teachers have made this a very successful school year.

In these, the final days of school, I would like to acknowledge all of the many parents, relatives and grandparents who have given us so much support, time and assistance throughout the school year.  Whether you served as a room parent, coordinated our Creative Arts and Science program, or took part in our World Cultures Potluck - whether you accompanied classes on field trips, worked on our many successful fundraising and community events, or presented to classes during our Science and Engineering Week - whether you helped in the library, took on one of the "coordinator" positions in the PTO, prepared food for Teacher Appreciation Week, or helped with the Burr Bulletin --- we needed you and we appreciate all that you have done.  Your volunteering in both big and small ways not only moves the school forward, but it gives your children the message that school is an important place and that you and the teachers are working together for their benefit.  They love to have you at school, and we do too!    

I would like to extend special thanks to Susan Cassidy and Dana Hanson for doing a great job as PTO co-presidents this year.  What a dynamic duo Susan and Dana have been!  They thought of everything, improved upon many of our processes and procedures, and worked so hard every step of the way.  Susan and Dana have been a thoughtful, resourceful, creative and fun team who oversaw both big and small projects to help the school and PTO move ahead successfully.  I have appreciated their flexibility, their vision for serving students and teachers, and their focus on what is important.  Susan and Dana have been a pleasure to work with; thank you!  An extra special thank you to Susan Cassidy who is graduating from Burr this year.   Whether serving as PTO Co-President, Communications Coordinator, Library Gift Sale Organizer or in one of her many other roles at Burr, Susan has been an invaluable resource for our school community during her time at Burr.  And thank you to Dana Hanson for continuing to
co-lead the PTO next year.   

We will mail next year's class lists to you on August 28.  We look forward to seeing many of you during the remaining days of school in the next twelve days.  If we don't see you, we look forward to seeing students on Tuesday morning, September 8, 2009.  Until then, best wishes for a fun, enriching, healthy, safe, glorious summer!

Sincerely,
Cindy Bencal

As we wind down this school year, please submit all receipts for PTO reimbursement before the last day of school (June 23rd) so we can close out the year and hand over the reigns to our  new Treasurer Weiqun Shi.  If you have receipts that cannot be submitted by June 23rd, please e-mail Margaret Crook to arrange for drop off.

The fun has only just begun...we have an entire growing season ahead of us and we need help to keep our beloved garden growing all summer long.  We are looking for our annual team of Burr Garden Club Members to help us keep an eye on the garden and make sure it gets plenty of WATER.

Burr Garden Club (the Watering Team--no green thumb necessary!)


· Email Jessica Avery to let her know which weeks you are available during the summer. 

· Once we have enough volunteers to make a schedule, Jessica will get back in touch with you with your assignment

It's fun to splash around with the hose on those hot summer days/evenings, we hope to have lots of signups for our Watering Team!  Even if you can't commit to help maintain the garden, do stop by now and then with your children to watch the garden grow! 

 
Use a bug repellent. Different products work against different bugs. It's important to look at the "active ingredient" on the label. Products with DEET or permethrin are recommended for protection against both ticks and mosquitoes. Some repellents, such as picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus, have been found to provide protection against mosquitoes, but have not been shown to work against ticks. DEET products may be applied to skin or clothing. Read label directions carefully and use as directed. Permethrin products are intended for use on clothing, shoes and outdoor gear and should not be applied directly to skin.

 
Take action. Remove standing water around your house. Mosquitoes can breed in puddles and standing water that lasts more than four days. Check yourself and your pets carefully for ticks after you have been outside. Remove ticks promptly by pulling the head with tweezers.

 
Know the signs and symptoms. Ticks can cause Lyme disease, among other tick-borne diseases. Lyme disease results in a bull's-eye rash in some people. Others have flu-like symptoms without the rash, sore muscles and joints, and swollen glands. If left untreated, the joints, nervous system and heart can be affected, resulting in serious complications. Early treatment is important to prevent chronic disease.  Ticks can also cause Babesiosis and Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (also known as Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis. Mosquitoes can cause West Nile Virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE). The first symptoms of EEE are fever (often 103º to106ºF), stiff neck, headache, and lack of energy. These symptoms show up three to ten days after a bite from an infected mosquito. Inflammation and swelling of the brain, called encephalitis, is the most dangerous and frequent serious complication. EEE is a rare disease, but it does occur in Massachusetts. West Nile Virus (WNV) is more common than EEE in this state. The majority of people who are infected with WNV (approximately 80%) will have no symptoms. A smaller number of people who become infected (~ 20%) will have symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands. They may also develop a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Less than 1% of people infected with WNV will develop severe illness, including encephalitis or meningitis. Seek medical treatment if you are concerned about exposure to or symptoms of any of these diseases.

For more information about ticks, mosquitoes, and the diseases they cause, visit the Massachusetts Department of Public Health website at www.mass.gov/dph Click on "Public Health Fact Sheets" on the right side of the page and choose the topic you are interested in learning more about.

To all community members:  Please join us to say good-bye and thank you to Superintendent Jeff Young as he completes his 11th year in Newton and heads off to Cambridge.  This event is on Wednesday, June 17th,  from 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm at the Education Center Room 210,  100 Walnut Street, Newtonville, MA.

If you haven't had a chance to stop by the school store on Tuesday morning, now is the time. The school store will officially close on Tuesday, June 16. Until then we'll have great stuff for sale at fabulous prices. The store is open before school from 8:20 to 8:35.

Only a few more weeks to purchase the biggest, softest, saltiest pretzel this side of Pine Street! Friday, June 19 is the last day for pretzel sales. Pretzels are just $1 each. Look for them by the flagpole on Friday afternoons after school.

Join the Newton Schools Foundation in our 12th annual "Honor Thy Teacher" celebration as we honor the inspirational teachers, administrators and educators of the Newton Public Schools.

The Auburndale Community Association is hosting the 3rd annual Rove the Cove 5K road/trail race on June 13. The race starts and finishes in the picnic area of The Cove in Auburndale. Cotton t-shirt to the first 100 registrants. Prizes raffled at the end. All fitness levels welcome! You can walk or run. All finishers 14 and under receive official finishers medal. Start location: "The Cove" Auburndale Park, West Pine St, Auburndale, MA (Commonwealth Ave to Melrose St. Left on to W.Pine). Start time 9:00. Check in 8:45. Registration forms available at www.auburndalecommunity.org