The Twain Times
Mark Twain Elementary School 
October 13, 2015 

  

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Dear Mark Twain Families,Mark_twain_pto_logo
 
Let's go Astros! What a tough loss yesterday. Hopefully they can rally and come back in Kansas City.
 
The October PTO meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 14 at 6:00 pm in the cafeteria. All parents are welcome to attend these meetings to learn what the PTO has been working on and to hear a report from our principal, Melissa Patin. A SPARK Park community meeting will follow immediately after at 7:00 pm. This will be an informational meeting led by the SPARK team of Twain parents and community members. I hope to see you all there.
 
The Spooky Spaghetti Fall Carnival and Supper is  Saturday, October 17 from 4:00 - 8:00 pm. We hope you can bring your family and enjoy the carnival! This is my favorite family event of the year, you really don't want to miss it if you have never been. Ticket and t-shirt sales are happening this week and will be available at the event.
  • Individual student pictures will be taken on Wednesday, October 14,  Please return payment to your child's classroom teacher.
  • Return Box Tops to your child's classroom today for a chance to win a popsicle party for your child's class.
  • Save the date for the musical production of Alice in Wonderland, Jr. supporting the Odyssey of the Mind program. Shows are Friday, October 23 at 6:30 pm and Saturday, October 24 at 2:00 pm in the cafeteria.
Go Astros!
Go Twain Tigers!
 
Jennifer Hyman
Mark Twain PTO President
Huckleberry Park  
Limited Time Opportunity!

Please donate $1,000 for a Small logo or $2,000 for a Large logo placed on the back of a Boosterthon Fun Run t-shirt that will be given to ALL students enrolled at Mark Twain.  Approximately 925 students can be part of your small business marketing team.

Sponsorhip funds and logo are due by Monday, October 19. Please send your logo and sponsorship information to huckleberrypark@yahoo.com. Donations for t-shirt sponsorships can go towards underwriting levels that start at just $2,500.  Please visit huckleberrypark.org for more information on underwriting levels.  
 
Community Survey
Give us input on how to make Huckleberry Park YOUR community park.  Please take a moment to complete the brief survey here.  
 
Community Meeting
Plan to attend the community meeting on Wednesday, October 14 at 7:00 pm in the Mark Twain cafeteria.  Kathleen Ownby, Executive Director of SPARK, will speak and playground consultant Halycon Reese-Learned, PhD, will gather feedback for Huckleberry Park. 

If you have any questions, comments, or want to help, please contact Elaina McNulty and Linda Barcot at huckleberrypark@yahoo.com.

Spooky Spaghetti:
Fall Carnival and Supper  
Saturday, October 17
4:00 - 8:00 pm at Mark Twain 
SpookySpaghettiCat
Spooky is the largest fundraiser we have for children. Come help support our great school! Wear a costume, play games, jump and slide on inflatables, sing karaoke, listen to the DJ spin tunes, enjoy a spaghetti dinner from Candelari's and have tons of fun!
 
Ticket and t-shirt sales are this week in the front rotunda before and after school.

We need your sweets! Please bring baked goods for the Sweet Shop and/or a cake for the Cake Walk to the PTO workroom on October 15 or 16.

Event Volunteers
Please sign up here to sell tickets at Spooky. A shift is one hour. Please contact Michelle Young for more information.

Please sign up here to help serve dinner cafeteria style. Shifts are 30 minutes. Siblings who need service hours or grandparents who can help are welcome. Contact Keri Valdes for more information. 
 
Come shop the Spooky Boo-tique/Market. The Boo-tique will include Choloe&Isabel Boutique, Noonday Jewelry, The Porcelain Tea Cup, Tomfoolery Toys, Mary Kay, Arbonne, and Dr. Wong. Cash, check or credit cards accepted. This is part of our fundraiser and every dollar counts. Vendors will give a portion of proceeds to Twain so the more you buy the more they will give. Thank you all for making Spooky a successful fundraiser! If you are an interested vendor, please contact Elecia Wheeler at ewheeler9@att.net or (713) 825-5993.

If we can borrow your large cooler, please label it with your name and phone number and bring it to the PTO workroom on October 15 or 16.

Please contact Spooky Co-Chairs Frankie Sartin at frankiesartin@gmail.com or Annette Rodriguez at annettealonzo@me.com for more information.

Robotics Club 

The Mark Twain Robotics Club will sign up parent coaches and interested students in grades 3-5. The Club can create 7 teams. Each team requires a parent coach (no experience necessary, instructions provided) and 3 students. If you are interested, please download this form and return it to Michele Rawson in the office by Friday, October 16 at 8:00 am.
Mark Twain Parent Enrichment Butterflies
Friday, October 16 at 8:00 am
in the cafeteria

Please join us for a great book discussion:
How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success by Julie Lythcott-Haims

In How to Raise an Adult, Julie Lythcott-Haims draws on research, conversations with admissions officers, educators, employers, and on her own insights as a mother to highlight the ways overparenting harms children, their stressed-out parents, and society at large. While empathizing with the parental hopes fears that lead to overhelping, Lythcott-Haims offers practical alternative strategies that underline the importance of allowing children to make their own mistakes and develop the resilience and inner determination necessary for success.

Looking  ahead: Friday, November 13
Aimee Taylor, Certified Health Coach, will speak about maintaining a healthy lifestyle throughout the chaos of the holidays.


On Monday, October 19, Mark Twain Elementary will join the Barbara Bush Literacy Foundation and others in Read Across the Globe - a special day where volunteers will team up to break the Guinness World Record for the number of children read to within a 24-hour period. The current world record is 238,000 children, and the hope is to smash it by reading to 300,000 children across the globe.
 
We need YOU to serve as a volunteer in this exciting event, which will help inspire the love of reading and promote awareness of the importance of literacy across our city and around the world.

We need volunteers to read to each class in 30 minute shifts from 8:00 - 11:30 am. We will provide the book for you to read. To sign up for a shift, please click here.  Please select the "Reader" option. For more information, please contact Michele Rawson at mrawson1@houstonisd.org.

IB Parent Night
A Day in the Life of an IB Student at Mark Twain
Wednesday, October 21
6:30 - 7:30 pm at Mark Twain  
 
Join us for interactive sessions to experience how we guide students through inquiry based instruction using the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Program (PYP) key concepts and the PYP trans-disciplinary themes.
 
Babysitting is provided for children 3 years old and above. Please let your classroom teacher know if you will attend. Please contact Kathleen Blakeslee, IB coordinator at kblakesl@houstonisd.org for more information. 

Pershing Middle School Coffee 
Friday, October 23 at 8:00 am
At the home of Jennifer Fernandez 
3814 Merrick Street, Houston 77025 

Pershing Middle School's principal and current parents invite you to an informational coffee to learn more about your middle school. This is a wonderful opportunity to have your questions answered and find out why Pershing may be the best choice for your child.

Pershing Middle School: First Look 
Tuesday, October 27 at 6:00 pm
Pershing Middle School 
3838 Blue Bonnet Blvd, Houston 77025 

Pershing Middle School invites parents of zoned 4th and 5th graders to come see why Pershing is the right choice for your child. The principal, counselors, teachers and current parents will be on hand to provide information and answer questions regarding the 6th grade curriculum, electives, the fine arts department, athletics, and much more.  Tours of the campus will be given.  For more information, contact ilserassin@gmail.com.

Mark Twain's
Annual Middle School Forum
Thursday, October 29 from 5:30 - 7:00 pm 
in the cafeteria

Representatives from area middle schools will be on hand to provide information and answer your questions. Students are welcome and encouraged to attend.  For more information,  contact Deanna Sheaffer at deannasheaffer@yahoo.com.

Community Information

Heifer International hosts
Beyond Hunger Houston 2015
Sunday, October 18, 2:00 - 4:00 pm 
Houston Arboretum 
4501 Woodway Drive, Houston 77024 

Sydney Allen, a Pin Oak Middle School 8th grader, is also a Girl Scout Cadette working to earn her Silver Award. She will host a Living Gift Market to benefit Heifer International.
 
From Sydney..... 
"Heifer International works towards ending global hunger and poverty. It provides livestock to struggling villages and trains villagers to care for livestock and grow crops. My Living Gift Market will be at the Houston Arboretum, during Heifer International's Beyond Hunger Houston event. At my Living Gift Market, I'll have information about the animals that Heifer International provides and how to support them."

"Admission to Beyond Hunger Houston is free. All events are family friendly and delicious local food will be provided. It would mean so much if families from Mark Twain Elementary could come out and support Heifer International and my Silver Award project. If you have any questions, please email me at syds.silver.award@gmail.com
 
For more information about Mark Twain Elementary, visit marktwainpto.org or houstonisd.org/Twaines. To receive the Twain Times e-newsletter, please sign-up here. For submission guidelines, visit marktwainpto.org/communications.