| Mark your Calendar |
January 9 - 13
Science & Engineering Week
January 16
MLK Holiday - No School
January 20
Parent-Principal Coffee
February 11
Witty Winter Wingding |
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| | Happy New Year!
Welcome to 2012, here are some resolution suggestions for the New Year:
- Thank a Volunteer for sharing in Science and Engineering week! Be sure to ask your kids to share their experience! Thank you to the many parents that have volunteered to share their love of science and engineering with our kids, Didn't get a chance to volunteer this year? Email Joanne Kotz and Ted Vahey at BurrScienceWeek to sign up for next year.
- Have Coffee with the Principal: Mark you calendar, and join Ms. Johal on Friday, January 20 at 8:45 a.m. to hear the latest Buzz around the Burr.
- Laugh out loud: Witty Winter WingDing, February 11,
7-10 p.m., The Turtle Lane Playhouse; Burr School's
Comedy Night! Line up your babysitters now! - Give to the GIFT for BURR campaign! In addition to all of the contributions to the "Gift for Burr" we received a donation of 5 iPads for the school. Thank you to all that have contributed. And for those who have not yet, please remember that no gift is too small, and that you can always make a pledge.
See the Gift for Burr web site for more details. https://sites.google.com/site/giftforburr/ - Get even MORE FREE money for Burr: Join OneCause and Target - Take Charge of Education.
- Check out the new modular, thank everyone in our community for making this happen!
- Make us the safest Blue Zone in the city: PLEASE take care to follow Blue Zone rules during the wintery season. Cold weather helps to create more congestion than usual at drop-offs and pick-ups. Please allow extra time in the Blue Zone or consider taking that brisk walk instead.
Wishing you success on all your New Year's Resolutions!
With Warm Regards,
Tracy and Ted
Your PTO Co-Presidents
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| Upcoming CAS Program | | |
 The Golden Lyre
Grades K-2, Friday, January 13th from 10-10:45 a.m. in the Cafetorium.
This one many show will introduce the students to Greek myths and
storytelling at its best. It was a dragon-like monster called the Gorgon who stole the lyre (pronounced "liar") and turned the King's daughter to stone. The only way she can be changed back is by hearing the music of the lyre, but no one knows where the Gorgon's cave is located. It's only when a young man named Alex shows up at the palace that things take a dramatic turn. This engaging presentation uses a combination of poetry, masks, and mime, as well as call-and-response, where students make a host of fantastic sounds to move the story along.
Please join us for this wonderful presentation!
Creative Arts and Sciences Programs are fully funded by the Burr PTO and are made possible by your generous donations. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact:
Felicia Falchuk, felicia.falchuk@gmail.com
Beth Tierney, bethtierney@comcast.net
Pam McVey, s.richard@verizon.net
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November PTO Meeting Follow-Up:
Literacy Tips for Burr Kids | | |
Jill Graboski, Supervisor of the Children's Room at the Newton Free Library, has provided a link to her presentation on how families can "Create a reading culture" for their kids at home. Click on the following link to view Jill's slides and/or visit her in person at the Newton Free Library Children's Room:
http://prezi.com/k09fjmchwo9p/creating-a-reading-culture/
We are so thankful to Jill for her visit to Burr--parents who attended her meeting left with a greater understanding of all the traditional and new technological resources available for kids at the library (even those folks who consider themselves avid library patrons!).
In addition to the terrific resources at the Newton Free Library, don't forget about our own little gem right here in the neighborhood, the Auburndale Community Library (ACL). Over 20 current Burr families volunteer at the library and the wide variety of programming is a great way to motivate your kids to borrow library books on a regular basis. Below is a summary of weekly drop-in FREE programs at the ACL.
Each week at the Auburndale Community Library (375 Auburn St, across from Breadsong Bakery):
StoryTime (Tuesdays at 10:15 a.m.)
Bring your toddlers and preschoolers by for stories, songs, puppets, and simple crafts. Celebrate the cycle of the year (snowflakes! Valentines!) with other caregivers and children.
Lego Club (Tuesdays at 2 p.m.)
Do you have a Lego fiend on your hands? Come by with your kids to play with the most enormous collection of public Legos in Newton. Parents and caregivers--grab a book and sit and read while the kids build...no Lego mess at your house.
Magic the Gathering (Thursdays at 5 p.m.,
Saturdays at 11 a.m.)
For the older kids: this is more of a drop-off gang. Sort of like a cross between baseball cards and Dungeons and Dragons--complete mania for those who love it!
Knitting Club (Saturdays at 10:30 a.m.)
Have you or your child always wanted to learn how to knit? A group of knitters assembles each week at the library to work on personal projects of varying levels. Twice a month, local knitting expert Judy Castaldi is on hand to teach folks how to start from scratch or help them over the hump with a challenging maneuver. (If you want to know if Judy is there on any given Saturday, call right before you come over 617-552-7158 and the ACL staff will let you know if she's there.)
If you would like to be added to the ACL email list for regular announcements about programming and events at the library, contact Dana Hanson.
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| Save the Date! Burr World Cultures Festival -- Saturday, March 24 | | |
 A beloved Burr school tradition! Please mark your calendars now for the annual Burr World Cultures Festival on the afternoon of Saturday, March 24 (exact time TBD). Burr school families will work together to transform our school into a bustling international festival. If you are from another country or your family continues to celebrate a tradition of your ancestors, we'll look forward to working with you in the upcoming months to make this year's festival a success!
We will set a meeting time to begin planning the World Cultures Festival in the upcoming weeks, but anyone who has availability to join us at tomorrow's Respect For Human Differences meeting in the library from 5 to 6:15 p.m. can start to learn more.
If you would like to be involved in the planning of this year's World Cultures Festival, please contact Dana Hanson, Ann Langenfeld, or Jackie Gelb.
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| BOOYA Meetings This Thursday | | |
This Thursday BOOYA will be meeting in Mr. Gaita's new classroom. The meeting will start at 7:45 a.m. for adults and 8 a.m. for AMBASSADORS. The meeting will focus on the February Pajama Drive, creating a school mural to hang above Mrs. A's desk, establishing a new AMBASSADOR reading program, and jumping into the ocean in March to help the Special Olympics. This is an important meeting so all AMBASSADORS are encouraged to attend. GO BOOYA!!!
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| GUYS READ This Thursday | | |
 Thursday night the GUYS READ book group will meet from 6-6:45pm in Mr. Gaita's new classroom. They will be discussing the book Treasure Island. Come prepared to talk about the book with other guys. Pizza and snacks will be provided by the PTO. We hope to see many guys there on Thursday.
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| PAC Event - Reading Disabilities Support | | On Thursday, January 12 at 7 p.m. Dr. Elaine Holden will discuss the significance of delays in the acquisition of basic reading skills and how to use current research to advocate for instruction that will be effective for children of all ages with reading challenges. She will also discuss the importance of reading fluency as a necessary skill for reading comprehension. She will discuss the higher-level language skills (vocabulary, sentence structure, and inferential thinking) that contribute to a deep understanding of text. Participants will learn about current research in fluency and reading comprehension as a means of better understanding the needs of competent readers.
Dr. Holden has worked in New England as a specialist, consultant, college professor, and supervisor in the area of reading for over thirty years. As the author of numerous articles, contributor to language texts and evaluation tools, as well as a noted speaker at educational conferences for over twenty years, Dr. Holden brings a wealth of professional knowledge to us.
This free presentation will be held in Room 210 at 100 Walnut Street, Newtonville. Light refreshments and networking begin at 6:45 PM. The presentation will begin at 7 p.m. and end at 9 p.m.
Please RSVP to info@newtonpac.org so that we will have enough handouts.
Newton Parent Advisory Council (NewtonPAC) for Special Education meetings are free and open to all people interested in learning more about special education in Newton.
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English Language Learners Resource Fair
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There will be a Resource Fair for families of English Language Learners or former ELLs on Thursday, January 19, from 6-8 p.m. in the Newton North cafeteria. Families are invited to learn about some of the different school and community resources in Newton.
There will be information available on the following topics:
* understanding the college process with high school guidance
counselors
* supporting your child in school, understanding the schools -
conferences, report cards, testing etc.
* adult English classes
* summer camp and after school programs
* food and nutrition
The city social worker will answer questions and free flu shots from the Health Department will be available.
Childcare, dinner and interpreters will be provided in Chinese, Russian, Spanish and Korean.
Transportation available upon request. Please RSVP to your child's ESL teacher or to Dianna Kobayashi at 617-559-6045 or Dianna_Kobayashi@newton.k12.ma.us. Let us know if you need an interpreter in another language.
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Using Executive-Level Knowledge to Help Struggling Students
| | Join NESCA Director Dr. Ann Helmus, Bonnie Singer, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, CEO of Architects for Learning in Needham, and Pamela Ely, CCC-SLP, founder of The Ely Center in Newton for this informative evening. These nationally-recognized authorities will discuss executive function and share their perspectives, followed by discussion guided by audience questions. $20 per person.
Location: The Weston Hotel Waltham, 70 Third Avenue, Waltham.
Date/Time: January 26, 7-9 p.m.
Open to the public; limited seating. RSVP to Ty Curran at 617-658-9800, ext.0 or by email to tcurran@nesca-newton.com. |
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