Riverside School PTA Newsletter


Friday, March 18th, 2016
CALENDAR

WEEK OF 3/21 - 3/25

Monday, March 21
8:00a Student Council
3:00p Odyssey of the Mind

Tuesday, March 22
Hall of Science - Gr. 4
7:45a Chorus Rehearsal PT. 1
7:50a Riverside Reporters
9:15a Kindergarten Orientation
3:15p Innovation Space Open Lab (Sign-up)
5:00p Community Service Awards - GHS

Wednesday, March 23
Botanical Gardens Trip - Gr. 3
7:40a Advanced Orchestra - Gr. 4 & 5
8:30a Fluoride Rinse
8:45a ROPES Photos
9:00a EDS Coffee

Thursday, March 24
Let Go & Move On - Wear Blue
7:45a  Chorus Rehearsal  PT. 2
3:00p Odyssey of the Mind
3:15p Innovation Space Open Lab (Sign-up)

Friday, March 25
SCHOOL CLOSED - Good Friday

WEEK OF 3/28 - 4/1

Monday, March 28
Stepping Stones Field Trip - Gr. 1
3:00p Odyssey of the Mind

Tuesday, March 29
RED SHIRT DAY
7:45a Chorus Rehearsal PT. 1
3:15p Innovation Space Open Lab (Sign-up)

Wednesday, March 30
7:40a Advanced Orchestra - Gr. 4 & 5
8:30a Fluoride Rinse
12:15p GSO Field Trip - Gr. 4 & 5

Thursday, March 31
7:45a Chorus Rehearsal PT. 2
3:00p Odyssey of the Mind
3:15p Innovation Space Open Lab (Sign-up)

Friday, April 1
7:45a Beginner & Advanced Band

Saturday, April 2
Odyssey of the Mind Competition
QUICK LINKS

Sign up for lunch duty here

Sign up for safety duty here

Join the PTA here

View the Safety First memo here
PEEK AT THE WEEK

MISSED AN ISSUE?
Access our Peek Archive for past issues

SUBMISSIONS
Have something to add? Email us at: [email protected]

Deadline for submissions is 3pm
on Wednesday of the school week
COMMUNITY

Click here for the 2016 Camp & Program Guide for Children in Greenwich

Upcoming Curiosity Concert March 20th at 1pm at Greenwich Library. To make a reservation and for more information, click here.

Greenwich Public Schools Community Service Awards March 22nd 5 - 6:30pm at Greenwich High School Performing Arts Center.  For more information, click here.

Huge Tag Sale at International School at Dundee, Riverside Saturday, April 2nd from 10am to 3pm.  Free entry and easy parking. Gently used sports equipment, bikes, games, toys, baby items, DVDs, books, clothes, housewares, lamps, kitchen items and small items of furniture for sale

Click here for DLE presentations

Click here for information on School Start Time

Click here to view the community calendar
 From the Office
Dear Parents,

I would like to recognize 5th grader Lacey Hartley who has been chosen to represent our school's many community service activities at the 30th Annual GPS Community Service Awards to be held this Tuesday at 5pm at GHS. All are invited. You can learn more here.

Last Wednesday's professional learning afternoon for teachers focused on the goal of Personalized Learning. You can read more about the day here.

It was great to work with students and parents in our Innovation Space this week.  You can sign up for any Tuesday or Thursday from 3:15 to 4:15 to work with your child. Please see below for more information and the link.

Just one more week until the S.T.E.M. Fair entry forms are due.  We hope many students will enter and participate. Please see below for more information.  

Genius Hour continues every other week (usually on a Friday afternoon) in all grades.  For the 3rd marking period, students in grades 4 and 5 have selected an area of focus (coding, circuit design, 3D design, building structures, create/perform a play, create PSA/short film, design/conduct science experiment or create with music) for their Genius Hour exploration.  Teachers will be working with the students to facilitate their exploration within their area of choice.  All research, development and final products remain student directed.  Find more about Genius Hour here.

Sincerely,
Christopher Weiss
Principal
 School News
KEEP CALM AND LET GO AND MOVE ON
Thursday, March 24th, have your child wear blue to celebrate the KEEP CALM-LET GO AND MOVE ON event. This is a common initiative across grade levels to teach students how to recognize, understand and control their feelings and how to calm down and cope with stress. Students will learn how to pay attention to and make sense of their own emotional experiences and how to use mindfulness-based strategies to handle stressful situations. To view the flyer, click here.
INNOVATION SPACE OPEN LABS
Innovation Space Open Labs started this week and will continue throughout the year on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 3:15 to 4:15pm.  These Open Labs allow students to explore the different tools and components in the Innovation Space. Students must be accompanied by their parent or their caregiver, to provide guidance and support. Please see the flyer here for more information. Parents must sign students up in advance. Please use the link here to signup. We are looking for parent volunteers to help support the Open Labs.  If you are interested, please email Julie Dozier at [email protected].
DLE TIPS AND INFORMATION
Check out the Digital Safety and Monitoring presentation here to learn how to set parental controls on Google search and YouTube, place time limits on iPad usage and texting, and configure your home network with security controls.  Please note: While Guided Access
passcodes can be useful on personal iPads, please do not set passcodes on student iPads.
 PTA News
33RD ANNUAL RIVERSIDE RUN - REGISTER NOW!
Race day is Saturday, May 7th at 8:30am for the 3 mile run and 9:30am for the Kids Fun Run.  To view the flyer, click here.

You can now register online here. Registration will be online only.  Registration fee is $20 and Kids Fun Run fee is $10.  If you register before Monday, April 18th, you will have your name printed on your race bib.

New this year will be timing mats at start and finish and jogging strollers are now welcome and will run in a separate heat.  For questions, please contact Lauren Jones at [email protected] or Amy Golden at [email protected].
COLORS OF THE RAINBOW FRUIT & VEGGIE CHALLENGE
We had a successful "Colors of the Rainbow" tasting week! Thank you to all the wonderful parent volunteers and school staff who helped to make this event a success.  Also a big thank you goes out to our ACME, Costco, Kings, Robeks, ShopRite and Whole Foods for their generous donations of food for this event.

Don't forget to complete the Fruit & Veggie Challenge Form which is due back to school Monday, March 21st!  By submitting the form, you will be entered into a raffle.  The Wellness Committee will randomly choose 2 students per grade to win a special prize.  We will also award one class per grade with the most submissions with a prize for the classroom.
CONNECTICUT BALLET VISITED RIVERSIDE
This week during PE the students have received instruction in two styles of dance, modern and hip hop, during a week-long residency from the Connecticut Ballet.  On Friday, the entire school was treated to "A Celebration of Dance" which showcased several styles of dance, including hip hop and modern dance. Hopefully your child(ren) will show you some of the steps they learned this week!

This event was sponsored by the PTA.  Thank you for your continued support.
ARTS IN ED
This Tuesday, the Kindergarten classes were treated to story telling by professional storyteller, Laconia Therrio.  Laconia shared stories from across the globe, believing that stories remind us more of our commonalities than our differences.  His repertoire includes stories from the Americas, the African continent, Europe and Asia.  Laconia's storytelling inspires students to tell their own stories and to find their own voice.  
PENNIES FOR PATIENTS
The 4th and 5th grade Student Council is hard at work again helping others in need. The Student Council is supporting The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's mission to cure blood cancers and improve the lives of patients and their families. Each child received a Student Collection Box box to collect their donations, which they will return to their classroom teacher.  Children can do chores at home to earn money for their collection box! We will be collecting donations until April 7th.  Thank you for your support!
PARENT LECTURE AT EMS - INTERNET SAFETY
Wednesday, April 6th at 7pm in the Eastern Middle School Auditorium, Internet Safety Specialist Katie Greer will be presenting "Keeping Kids Safe in a Technology Driven World - Internet Safety: What is New & Trending." 

Keeping up with the latest trends and dangers can often seem like an impossible task.  Katie will help parents navigate the digital waters and let us know what's new, what's now and what's next when it comes to our children and technology. She will also provide proactive initiatives to keep kids safe on-line.  Ms. Greer is the former Director of Internet Safety for the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office.  The lecture runs approximately 90 minutes and includes a Q&A session. Click here to watch a brief overview of the lecture.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to email us at [email protected].

Sincerely,
Sarah Fugelsang and Dina Murphy
Co-Presidents Riverside School PTA

 Office: 203-637-1440   -   www.greenwichschools.org/rs

Riverside School PTA | 90 Hendrie Avenue | Riverside | CT | 06878