The Twain Times

Mark Twain Elementary School

September 30, 2014

Thank You To Our

2014-2015

Corporate Sponsors

Gold Level

EBANKS, HORNE, ROTA, MOOS

Silver Level

Texas Citizens Bank logo

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Community Partners Level

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The Lice Place

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Candelaris

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Dear Mark Twain Families,

Last night we had the International Potluck Dinner. It was a great success. A huge thanks to Shahid Iqbal and his team. It is always a great way to show pride for your heritage, experience the wonderful diversity of the Twain community, and enjoy some fabulous food!

I want to invite you all to attend the PTO meeting at 6:00 pm and All Parent meeting at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, October 8. Mrs. Patin will be presenting information on the School Improvement Plan, IB program, and a general overview of school data. I will give a brief overview of the PTO, a financial report from last year and our fundraising and community initiatives planned for the 2014-15 school year.

Class Funds - I would like to make a clarification regarding the "Class Funds". The idea of creating a fund is to facilitate and simplify the request, collection, and allocation of monetary funds for each individual classroom throughout the year. These upfront contributions are completely voluntary and by no means mandatory. In circumstances like the purchasing of class t-shirts and funding of class parties where everyone needs to contribute if feasible, those who have not contributed to the fund can simply cover the cost of those items as they arise.
Reserved Parking- Please do not park in the reserved parking spots in front of the school. Every year at the Huckleberry Bash, members of our community generously donate money for the use of these spots. This money is used to support our school in many important ways including PYP training, additional curriculum materials, educational supplies, campus safety, technology support, library books, and more. If we do not respect these reserved spots, they will no longer be able to raise such a significant amount of money for our school. Parental observation of these reserved spaces demonstrates PYP consistent attitudes of respect, gratitude, and consideration. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
Spooky Spaghetti- T-shirts go on sale next week in the rotunda. Don't forget to pre-order your wristbands, dinner tickets, and carnival tickets. Tickets sales begin the week of October 13 in the rotunda.
Fall Holiday- Friday, October 3. Three day weekend. Yay!

Mark Twain is a wonderful school --- a true collaborative effort among Mrs. Patin, school administration, our amazing teachers and staff, students, parents, and the entire community. I am grateful for each of you as we work together to make a difference in our children's education.

Have a great week!

Tony Houck

Mark Twain PTO President

tvhouck@msn.com

Dear Mark Twain Supporter,

"Play" is the work of school aged children and Mark Twain Elementary's playground is in critical need of our attention. Now is the time to enhance and improve our beloved playground and the Mark Twain PTO hopes you agree this is a worthy investment.

The current play structure can no longer be repaired by HISD and has reached the end of its useable life. The maintenance bills for the aging equipment are high and our students are incurring more frequent injuries. Mark Twain teachers, administrators, parents and students are requesting help from the Mark Twain PTO to build a dynamic, new play facility.

The Mark Twain PTO Board is kicking off a playground renovation campaign- "PONY Up for the PLAYGROUND". With your help, we hope to make these improvements:

Install a new play structure
Add dynamic play centers
Improve drainage
Install artificial turf with the proper underlay of safety padding in "fall zone" areas

The costs associated with making these improvements to our playground are approximately $200,000. Mark Twain PTO is designating funds to pay for roughly half of these costs. This is in addition to the annual $100,000 gift the PTO gives the school this year. We are asking our community to match the PTO's gift to the "PONY Up for the PLAYGROUND" campaign by raising the other half through personal and/or corporate contributions.

Over the next few weeks, we hope you will consider "ponying up" a little, or a lot, to make our new playground a reality. Look for information on an upcoming playground check-writing party, playground updates, FAQ's, and plans/renderings to be found in the rotunda and on our website marktwainpto.org.

Sincerely,

Tony Houck

Mark Twain PTO President

Mark Twain PTO is a 501(c)(3) and all donations are tax deductible, within the limits of the law. Donations of more than $250.00 will receive a tax letter, please keep a copy of this form for other donation amounts.

Today is the last day! Shop now for a great cause. Mixed Bag Designs is helping Mark Twain reach its fundraising goals - 40 percent of your purchase through September 30 supports the school.

Anyone can shop at Mixed Bag Designs and help support Mark Twain. Use the Mark Twain ID #279514. Mixed Bag Designs has products for everyone in the family including reusable bags, travel totes, shopping bags and more. Visit MixedBagDesigns.com today!

Box Tops for Education

Today, September 30, is the last day to earn 100 bonus Box Tops when you purchase 15 participating products at HEB.

Did you know that each year, we raise more than $3,000 for our school just by clipping Box Tops? Please click here to learn more. Return Box Tops to the collection box in the PTO Workroom or directly to your child's teacher.

Register now for the 4th Annual TriMATHlon - a fun-filled math event for 2nd-5th graders where they will compete in three exciting math challenges to support local schools and earn great prizes!

When: Saturday, October 18

Where: Mathnasium Learning Center in Memorial City

9778 Katy Freeway

Who: Students of all math skill levels in 2nd-5th grades

Registration/participation is FREE!

Register by Tuesday, September 30 to receive a FREE downloadable Math Plinko game from Lakeshore Learning. All participants will also receive a goody bag! Learn more.

Parent Enrichment Presentation

Home Safety and Security

Wednesday, October 1

8:00 am in the cafeteria

Join Pct 1 Constable Alan Rosen and Ms. Djuna Prater, Mark Twain's school counselor, to learn about home safety and security and how to talk with your children about staying safe. For more information, contact Moya Varner or Kahla Malinky.

Start Reading and Save the Date: We will discuss the book Crazy Busy by Dr. Edward Hallowell on Friday, November 14 at 8:00 am in the cafeteria.

Art a la Carte (AALC) Tutorial

Thursday, October 2
Cafeteria after drop-off

Calling Art a la Carte volunteers! If you signed up for the October lesson, please join the AALC coordinators to receive your prepared lesson plan and brief tutorial on next month's art topic. Click here to lean more.

To become truly immortal, a work of art must escape all human limits: logic and common sense will only interfere. But once these barriers are broken, it will enter the realms of childhood visions and dreams. -Giorgio DeChirico

Contact Sonal Patel at sonalpatel628@gmail.com for more information.

Odyssey of the Mind

Odyssey of the Mind provides problem-solving opportunities for students in all grades. If your child wants to participate in Odyssey of the Mind this year, please submit this form by Friday, October 3.

Pin Oak Middle School Cheer Squad

proudly presents the

Junior Cheer Clinic 2014

Saturday, October 11

9:00 am - 12:00 pm

Girls and Boys: K - 5th Grade

Cheer, Dance, Fun, and Games!

Registration is limited to 200 participants and is first come, first serve. The $25.00 registration fee includes a t-shirt and snack. Please complete and return the registration form with payment before October 8.

For more information, contact Cindy Cook at
(713) 295-6500 ext. 327 or ccook1@houstonisd.org.

Health Update

from Andrea Hill, RN, Mark Twain School Nurse

Recently, you may have heard or seen news reports about a respiratory virus afflicting children across the United States. Though we do not believe this virus has spread to the Houston area, I wanted to take this opportunity to provide you with some additional information and tips for keeping your students healthy.

This virus - more commonly referred to as Enterovirous D68 - is not new. Rather, it's part of a larger family of viruses that likely has changed slightly, causing more serious symptoms in children who are not yet immune.

There is no particular vaccine or treatment for this virus. It simply must run its course. Mild symptoms include fever, runny nose, sneezing, coughing and body and muscle aches. Severe symptoms include difficulty breathing and wheezing and are often experienced by children who have asthma or a history of wheezing.

Please click here to learn more about what you can do to protect your children. Para mas informacion en Espanol, haga clic aqui por favor.

Fuel Up to Play 60!

We come to school to learn important lessons every day. One of the most important lessons we can learn is how to choose nutritious foods and get at least 60 minutes of daily physical activity for our long term success. That's what Fuel Up to Play 60 is all about.

Fuel Up to Play 60 is a free, student-powered, in-school nutrition and physical activity program. It includesfun Healthy Eating and Physical Activity "Plays" - strategies that encourage students to "get up and play" for 60 minutes a day and to "fuel up" with the nutrient-rich foods such as low-fat and fat-free dairy foods, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

Go to FuelUpToPlay60.com to sign up and be a part of the program. Let's help everyone Fuel Up to Play 60 with nutrient-rich foods and daily activity - and learn lessons we'll use every season of our lives. For more information contact Coach Jody at jbourque@houstonisd.org.

I was just following her

A woman approached the corner of the busy, urban intersection. As she waited for the "walk" sign, a second woman walked up, leaned into the street and boldly crossed despite the "don't walk" sign.

A few seconds later, another woman approached the same corner and -- without looking both ways -- blindly followed the second woman into the street, completely unaware of a speeding car approaching the intersection from the left.

"Stop - you can't go!" yelled the first woman, grabbing her shoulder. "There's a car coming!"

"Oh, thank you!" said the grateful but shaken woman. She pointed at the second woman who'd made it across despite her risky decision and said, "I was just following her."
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Even as adults, it can be easy and tempting to follow bold, provocative people into risky situations. If we sometimes find it difficult to stop and reflect as adults, imagine how challenging it is for our children, in particular our teens and tweens, whose young brains are not fully formed. In these uber-busy, hyper competitive times, let's remind each other to slow down, to take the long view in the short term, and to reflect on the choices we are making on a daily basis for ourselves and for our kids.

JOIN THE +MOVEMENT:
http://www.positivethinkingworks.org

For more information about Mark Twain Elementary, visit marktwainpto.org or houstonisd.org/Twaines.

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For the 2014-15 Twain Times submission guidelines, visit marktwainpto.org/communications