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June 3, 2016
Volume 4 / Issue 37
 
IN THIS ISSUE:
- Note from Dr. Beekley
- Memorial Day Ceremony
- CES Annual BBQ
- June Fitness Calendars
- CES Lunch Accounts
- Social Development News
- PTO News
- Community News 


Friday, June 3rd
- Grade 6 Camp Hazen Day Program & Overnight

Tuesday, June 7th
- Grade 3 Field Trip to British Art Museum & Yale Art Gallery
- Grade 6 Field Trip to Puerto Vallarta Restaurant
- PTO Meeting
(7:00 pm - CES Library)

Wednesday, June 8th
- Kindergarten Field Trip to Imagine Nation
- Grade 4 Field Trip to State Capitol
- Grade 2 (McKenna) Field Trip to Chester Historical Society & Public Library

Thursday, June 9th
- Grade 1 Field Trip to The Children's Museum
- Talent Show
(2:00 pm & 6:30 pm - Gym)

Friday, June 10th
- Grade 2 Hobby Show
(8:45-10:00 am - Gym)
- Grade 5 Walking Field Trip to Chester Historical Society & Public Library
- Grade 3 Parent Art Museum
(2:00 pm)

Monday, June 13th
- Field Day (Camp Hazen)

Tuesday, June 14th
- Sixth Grade Night
(5:45 pm - JW Middle School)

Wednesday, June 15th
- Early Dismissal (Last Day of School)
A NOTE FROM DR. BEEKLEY     
 
We are now coming full circle in the academic year. However, the days in June are no less important than those first days in September. As I walk around the building, it is evident that there is still meaningful, important instruction taking place. Classrooms are humming with the buzz of learning. Students are completing projects and mastering new skills. This is the time when all of the learning comes together to make a whole.  
It is also a time when we try to maintain the routines that our students have experienced all year. Routines affect life positively. In terms of behavior, they help improve efficiency and daily functioning. It may not always be obvious, but children want and need routines. A predictable schedule offers structure that helps kids feel safe and secure.

As we move through the last days of the school year, we will continue to create an environment that supports students as they begin to think about the next school year, while maintaining a normal day, as much as possible, in the midst of all of the happy end of the year events.  

Joanne D. Beekley, Ed.D. 
Principal        
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS
 
CHESTER MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONY       
 
Chester Elementary students braved the elements to participate in the Memorial Day ceremony at the War Memorial.
 
CES ANNUAL BARBECUE  
 
JUNE FITNESS CALENDARS 
 
At Chester Elementary School, we encourage our students to be physically active both inside and outside of the school setting.

Our June Fitness Calendars offer you and your child simple ideas for how to integrate physical activities throughout a busy day. Check them out for ways to get your whole family moving! 

Please click here for the June Fitness Calendars.
 
 
CES LUNCH ACCOUNTS
 
Many cafeteria accounts are not up-to-date, and we ask that all accounts be brought current. If you receive a letter with a lunch deficit, please be sure to include all of the information on the check or the front of the envelope if payment is sent to school. You may also pay on-line at any time. Your assistance with this is greatly appreciated by all of us.
 
 
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT NEWS 
 
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT UPDATE

Spring Service Learning Project 
Thanks for sending in your change for our Change for Change project. Our student leaders will be counting the money within the next week, and then we will send the money off to India. Vasante Venkatraman, a teacher at the Yadalam Government School, and also a relative of the Gopalakrishnan family, came into our classrooms on Friday, May 20 to talk to our students about her school. It was very informative, pairing her discussion with a slideshow of her school and the students that go there. Our students learned a lot about how different schools can be in other parts of the world. Many thanks to Vasante and the Gopalakrishnan family for devoting their time to help us promote this project. Shown below are three of our CES Student Leaders, Eileen Russell, Madeline Rice and Jack Bryan, collecting change at morning drop-off. Thanks to the student leaders for all your efforts with this project. 


CCMC Coloring Books and Crayons Project Update
Four students from our CES Student Leaders Committee delivered our completed coloring books and crayons to Connecticut Children's Medical Center on Monday, May 23rd. The students shown in the picture below are Austin Sypher, Eileen Russell, Madeline Rice and Ben Costanzo. Thanks to mom, Ellen Russell, for volunteering to take the items to the hospital for us.
  
 
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT THEMES

The Social Development Theme for the month of May/June is Friendship. The Social Development Book of the Month is Enemy Pie by Derek Munson. Please enjoy a description of the book below.

It was the perfect summer. That is, until Jeremy Ross moved into the house down the street and became neighborhood enemy number one. Luckily Dad had a surefire way to get rid of enemies: Enemy Pie. But part of the secret recipe is spending an entire day playing with the enemy! In this funny yet endearing story, one little boy learns an effective recipe for turning your best enemy into your best friend. Accompanied by charming illustrations, Enemy Pie serves up a sweet lesson in the difficulties and ultimate rewards of making new friends.                                                

The goal of our Social Development Book-of-the-Month is to integrate literature and concomitant language arts objectives with themes and ideas that support our social development program. 
 
The Chester Public Library is graciously partnering with us on our social development Book-of-the-Month initiative. Our Book-of-the-Month is displayed at the library and there are multiple copies available for families to borrow, so that the discussion begun at school can be shared and extended at home.

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PTO NEWS
 
IMPORTANT:  CHANGES TO PTO'S JUNE MEETING
 
The PTO's June meeting was moved due to conflicts with the original date. Our next PTO meeting will be Tuesday, June 7th. This will be our last meeting for 2015/2016. Please join us to vote on next year's budget and new officers. We hope to see you there!

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PTO OFFICERS FOR 2016/2017
 
Co-officer positions are open! Interested or have questions? Please speak with any PTO Officer, email us at cespto@reg4.k12.ct.us or call Co-President Kim Stack at (860) 526-9260. There are openings for committee chair & co-chair positions, too!

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COMMUNITY NEWS 
 
MAY TOWN WIDE LITTER CLEAN UP
 
Dear CES Community,

Thanks to those of you who participated in our town wide litter clean up this month!  Eight families participated on our group clean up day which was a lot of fun and very productive...Our collective top finds were cigarette butts, glass bottles/pieces and foam pieces. We even found two tires, a huge pipe, and an engine part at the river. Carefully documenting what we find can help DEEP and the EPA address the sources of this unfortunate habit. We'll do it again soon!      

Thanks,
The CES Green Team

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SUMMER CAMP OFFERINGS

Summer Camps at the Arts Center in Killingworth and Spectrum Art Gallery in Centerbrook

Register early to save your child's spot for our popular Summer Camps on the grounds of the Arts Center Killingworth, 276 North Parker Hill Road, Killingworth, CT. Please call (860)663-5593 or email artscenterkillingworth@gmail.com to check availability in Summer Camps prior to sending in your registration.

Fashion Design Summer Camps. Week One July 11 to 15, 2016 and Week Two July 18 to 22, 2016. Mornings focus on fashion and illustration, afternoons on sewing and clothing design. On the last day, participants put on a runway fashion show for parents and relatives with professional styling and a photo shoot. Week Two focuses on the different styles of two fashion designers: Gianni Versace and Jeanne Paquin. Advance registration is recommended. (9am-5:30pm) For ages 11-15 $360 with Deposit of $180. Download Registration Form & Brochure Here:  <http://www.artscenterkillingworth.org/Camps/2016-Fashion-Weeks-Brochure.pdf>

Nature Art Camp. July 25 to 29, 2016 for ages 7-10 in the morning (9am-12:30pm) and afternoon (1:30-5pm) and ages 11-14 in the afternoon (1:30-5pm), will take place on the beautiful grounds of the Arts Center and include one day at the Spectrum Gallery, which showcases emerging and established, regional, and national artists and artisans. For Ages 7-10 is $185 with a $95 Deposit; Ages 11-14 $200 with a $100 Deposit. Download Registration Form & Brochure Here:  <http://www.artscenterkillingworth.org/Camps/2016-Nature-Art-Week-Brochure.pdf>

http://www.artscenterkillingworth.org/summer-camps/

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CHESTER PARKS AND RECREATION
 
Chester Parks and Recreation
Celebrating Community through People, Parks and Programs! 

Please call 860-526-0013, x223 or email parkrec@chesterct.org for availability before submitting registration.

MAKE A SPLASH THIS SUMMER!   

We are an outdoor program specializing in waterfront activities! Our Camp Counselors are Certified Lifeguards.  

Our SUMMER CAMP rivals any camp in the area!
We offer swimming, sports, science & nature, arts & crafts, team building, and more, but unlike many camps, children choose most of what they wish to participate in throughout the day from a variety of programmed activities. It is open to children entering grades 1 through 7, and the hours are from 8:15am until 3:45pm, the weeks of June 27, July 5, July 11, July 18, July 25, August 1, August 8, and August 15, at Chester Elementary School on Mondays, Fridays and severe weather days, and Cedar Lake on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The children take field trips on Fridays. The fee is $115 per child, per week, and payable at the time of registration. The weeks of July 5 (SEE INTRODUCTION TO CAMP BELOW) and August 15 are 4-day weeks without a field trip, for $80 each. The weeks of July 5, July 25, August 1 and August 15 are open to children entering Kindergarten, too!

INTRODUCTION TO CAMP for children ages 4 and 5 meets from 8:15am until 3:45pm, Tuesday and Friday at Chester Elementary School and Wednesday and Thursday at Cedar Lake, July 5th through 8th with staff and programming designed specifically to meet the needs of younger children. Activities include games, sports, crafts, nature, teacher led swimming and story time. The children have their own teachers, lunch time, and activities in their group of 8 to 12 campers, running concurrently with our grades 1 through 7 camp, at the same location. The cost is $80 for the 4-day week.

SWIMMING LESSONS are included in the Introduction to Camp program and by request, for all ages, the weeks of July 25 and August 1.

 
YMCA SUMMER CAMP

For information on the Valley Shore YMCA Summer Camp, please see the Chalk Talk Digital Backpack, or click here.

 
 
Chester Elementary School
"It Takes a World of Differences to Make a Difference in this World"
23 Ridge Road / Chester, CT  06412 / 860-526-5797
www.ces.reg4.k12.ct.us