| Mark your Calendar |
September 1
Teacher Appreciation Luncheon 11:30 am
(Note: Volunteers needed)
September 1
Kindergarten Picnic
September 6
First Day of School
September 9
Welcome Back Coffee
September 12 Back-to-School Picnic September 22 Curriculum Night September 23 School Picture Day September 27 PTO Meeting
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| We want you to give us some feedback! |
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Do you want to be in the know?
What do you want to hear about?
Give us your opinions!
Please take 2 minutes to fill out the following survey so we can improve our PTO community.
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| Welcome Back! |
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Dear Burr School Parents,We hope you are having a fantastic summer!We'd like to introduce ourselves, Ted Vahey and Tracy Carter, as the co-presidents of the Burr PTO. Whether you are new to Burr School or an old timer, we are looking forward to a great year at Burr with you and your kids in '11-'12. Please mark your calendars now with these September events to get us all back into the Burr groove right away:- Incoming Kindergartener Picnic, Thursday, September 1st from 5-7 pm at Burr Elementary School playground.
- The Welcome Back Coffee, Friday, September 9th at 8:30 a.m. in the Cafetorium. Parents are invited to join us after morning drop-off - and if you can, stay a bit longer to help us stuff some packets for the kids.
- Back-to-School Picnic, Monday, September 12th. A great family time to catch up with old friends and meet new ones!
- Curriculum Night, Thursday, September 22nd
- First PTO Meeting of 2011-2012, Tuesday, September 27th at 7:00 p.m. (Newcomers are invited to join us early at 6:30 for an informal orientation session prior to the meeting.)
Through automatic membership in the PTO, our fabulous community of Burr parents and guardians help out and fund many activities that enrich our community - several Creative Arts and Sciences presentations in every classroom; teacher training and enrichment; visiting artists and performers; school pictures; the Halloween Family Fun Night; celebrations of World Cultures; a weekly online newsletter - and lots, lots more! Of course, these programs require the PTO to focus on fundraising and we've got lots of ways for parents to help out in that department, too, from small fundraising activities (registering for online shopping promotions like Target Red Card and OneCause) to big ones (like our Gift For Burr drive that will kick off later this fall). Soon after school begins, you will receive a signup sheet about all the volunteer opportunities through the PTO. Working on PTO programs, activities, and fundraising provides crucial support for our teachers and opens educational opportunities for all our kids-not to mention the fact that you'll meet some great folks by getting involved at Burr School! Whether you have time for only a small commitment or are ready for a larger one; if you prefer something solitary or social, silly or serious; if you have time only during the day, or in the evenings or on the weekends...we could use your energy and talents! It is a great way for all parents, Moms and Dads alike, to get to know other members of the Burr community, perform an important service and have a lot of fun! If you are new to the school, being involved with the PTO is a great way to meet other parents and teachers. If you've been around Burr for a while and feel newly inspired to join in the fun, there is always room for more helpers on anything we've got cooking! We look forward to working with you!Again, we are excited about the upcoming year and we look forward to seeing you soon. If you need to contact us, Ted can be reached at (781) 844-8460/ ted@vahey.org or Tracy at (781) 956-2869 /tgunrud@hotmail.com.
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| Burr Blue Zone Buzz |
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| The Burr Safe Routes to School team wishes everyone a warm welcome to a new year at Burr! A big "thank you" to the many families doing their part to make the trip to and from school safer for everyone by walking whenever possible and by following the Blue Zone regulations when driving.
Please take a minute right now to visit the Burr Safe Routes to School website, it is packed with information on the Safe Routes program, walk to school initiatives, traffic safety and Blue Zone regulations. Be sure to view and download a copy of the Burr School Zone Map, a color-coded map that shows the locations of the No Parking, Live Parking Only, and Blue Zones, along with an explanation of each. This is a great resource for anyone who drives to Burr, so please print one out for yourself and give a copy to grandparents, babysitters, and friends, anyone who drops off or picks up your child.
If you have any questions or concerns about the Blue Zone, traffic safety, or walking to school, or if you would like to join the Burr Safe Routes Committee to help increase the number of families who walk to school and improve the traffic safety around Burr, please email us at burrsaferoutes@gmail.com
QUICK REMINDERS
Always use the crosswalk, especially with children! Adults need to model safe behavior so children will know what to do when you're not with them.
Never park along the yellow curb on Pine St. Vehicles parked (or stopped) here create gridlock which leads to frustration and unsafe conditions. This is a No Parking zone from 8am to 4pm on school days and the Newton Police will ticket cars in this area.
If you need to get out of your car at drop-off or pick-up, please leave yourself enough time to find a legal parking space. Drivers cannot leave cars in the Blue Zone, No Parking, or Live Parking Only areas.
These may seem like little things ("It's OK, I'm holding his hand" or "I'll only be a few minutes") and they may be - when only ONE person does them. But imagine what Pine Street would look like if EVERYONE did them. YOU are EVERYONE.
Safe Travels! |
| Modular Update |
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Dear Burr parents,
We hope everyone's summer is going well.
We wanted to provide a quick update on the modular for Burr. As you may have noticed in the Newton Tab, our modular occupancy date has been pushed back to mid December (from Nov 1 to Dec 18). The article is here.
As we all know, Ms. Johal is working with her staff to make provisions for space usage this fall prior to the installation of the new classroom. Because the city must follow certain procedures for the bidding process, we as Burr parents are not in a position at the moment to influence the timeline.
As always, we'll keep you posted as we receive more information on the modular. Please feel free to forward this along to your contacts.
Enjoy your final week of the summer!
Tracy Carter, Ted Vahey, James Loftus, Amanda Loftus, Nancy Caulfield, Tricia Bombara, Steve DeJesus, Diana Fisher Gomberg, and Dana Hanson
Burr Space Squad
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| Kindergarten Open House and Picnic |
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Incoming Kindergarten Families:
Thursday morning, from 9-10 am, there is an open house where you and your child may meet your teacher and see your classroom.
Then Thursday evening, from 5-7 pm, come celebrate the start of school at the Burr School Playground. Bring a picnic dinner and meet your fellow classmates! Ice cream treats will be provided for all!
So you can find your friends on the playground:
Ms. Fitch's class wear RED
Ms Frail's class wear BLUE
Ms. McMahon's class wear WHITE
Don't have those colors? No worries, we have stickers!
Contact Tracy Carter tgunrud@hotmail.com with any questions. |
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Help Request for Sept. 1st Teacher's Luncheon
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The Hospitality Committee is busy preparing for the Beginning of the Year Teacher's Luncheon to be held on Thursday September 1st at 11:30am. We thank you for your monetary donations so that we can hold these special events for the Burr Staff. We are in great shape for food and supplies but could use a few people for set-up (10:30am) or clean-up (1:30pm) if you are around on Thursday.
Please contact Andrea Flint at 617-559-0128 or flintandrea@aol.com if you can help out.
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| Burr School Directory updates go Electronic | | |
In the last year, have you...
- Moved?
- Gotten a new email address?
- Changed phone numbers?
If so, we need your updated information for next year's Burr School Directory. We are now completely electronic, so rather than send you a form via your child's backpack, please click on the link to the Burr PTO website directory form:
http://www.burrpto.org/BurrPTODirForm.html and either....
check NO CHANGES
check PLEASE CONTACT ME AGAIN IN SEPTEMBER
or, enter your modifications and hit SUBMIT.
Families leaving Burr school, please send me an email so I can remove your family from the database.
We strive to get contact from each and every family (even if there are no changes), and so a simple email to me will do as well if you prefer. Thanks for your support in helping to make our school directory as accurate as possible!
Thanks,
Cecelia Kwartler
Burr PTO Directory Editor
cecelia.kwartler@gmail.com
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Clip those Box Tops!
| |  Just a reminder to please keep saving your Box Tops so we'll be in great shape for our fall submission deadline. Just store them in a little baggie and we'll collect them from you later in September!
Remember - please check the date to be sure your Box Top coupon has not expired and clip only the actual coupon, rather than the entire package top.
Visit Box Tops for Education for a complete list of participating products.
Questions? Email Sherri Sonia at jimjack123@hotmail.com. |
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| 2011-2012 PTO Calendar |
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To whet your appetite for all the excitement, the here is a hot-off-the-press tentative calendar of some of what we have planned for the year, check the PTO website periodically for updates.
SEPTEMBER
1 Kindergarten Picnic/Classroom visit
1 Welcome Back Lunch for Teachers
6 School Begins
9 Welcome Back Coffee & Mailing Help-Out
12 Back to School Picnic
12 All School Meeting
22 Curriculum Night
23 School Picture Day
27 PTO Meeting 7:00 pm
29 No School: Rosh Hashanah
OCTOBER
5 International Walk to School Day
6 Early Release Thursday
7 All School Meeting
10 No School: Columbus Day
14 Parent-Principal Coffee
19 Book Discussion: NurtureShock
22 Halloween Family Fun Night
NOVEMBER
1 All School Meeting
3 Early Release Thursday
11 No School: Veterans' Day
22 Parent-Principal Coffee
23 School out 12:00/Thanksgiving Holiday
Nov/Dec PTO Meeting w/Bookfair (TBD)
DECEMBER
Bookfair (TBD)
1 Early Release Thursday
5 All School Meeting
24 December Vacation begins (12/24-1/2)
JANUARY
6 All School Meeting
9 Science & Engineering Week begins
16 No School: Martin Luther King Day
20 Parent-Principal Coffee
School Concert (TBD)
FEBRUARY
2 Early Release Thursday
PTO Meeting (TBD)
7 All School Meeting
20 February Vacation begins
MARCH
5 All School Meeting
6 Parent-Principal Coffee
Art Show (TBD)
4 Ice Skating Event
World Cultures Festival (TBD)
15 Early Release Thursday
20 MCAS March 22-April 2
APRIL
2 MCAS March 22-April 2
3 All School Meeting
6 No School: Good Friday
PTO Meeting in Boston (TBD)
13 Book Swap
5th Grade Musical (TBD)
Chateau Night (TBD)
Green Team -Zero Waste Day (TBD)
16 April Vacation begins
MAY
3 Early Release Thursday
4 Parent-Principal Coffee
4 All School Meeting
Red Sox Game (TBD)
6 Teacher Appreciation Week
May Fair (TBD)
MCAS May 7-22
Newton Serves
PTO Meeting/Board Elections (TBD)
28 No School: Memorial Day
Garden Classroom Planting (TBD)
JUNE
4 All School Meeting
5 Color Day
Parents night out (TBD)
Spring Concert (evening-TBD)
Spring Concert (day-TBD)
Grade 5 Moving on Celebration (TBD)
22 Last Day (5 snow days included)
23 End-of-Year Teacher Luncheon
MCAS Dates:
March 20nd-April 2nd, May 7th-22nd
Ongoing:
*Creative Arts and Sciences classroom programming (announced periodically)
*METCO/Newton Burr Buddies/Friend Trips (generally once per month, details forthcoming)
*Social Action Committee initatives (Food drives, Newton Serves, etc.)
Books & Literature (dates To Be Determined):
*Burr Bookfair and PTO Meeting with evening shopping hours for parents-Nov/Dec
*Teacher Literature Fund (pooling and dividing donations for classroom book gift certificates)-Dec
*Kids Book Swap (trade in your used books for new ones)-March
*Library Gift Book Sale (purchase and dedicate books to the school library)-May
More information about all of these events will be provided during the year.
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