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Lafayette Elementary School
Tuesday Bulletin
Dec. 15, 2015 Sophie Hanrahan, Editor
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Mark Your Calendar
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Dec 18 Winter Holiday Parties Dec 21-Jan 1 Winter Break Jan 7 HSA General Meeeting, 7pm
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Dear Lafayette Families -
As many of you have already heard, we have recently learned that DGS is analyzing the possibility of utilizing the Lafayette trailer complex as swing space for Murch in the next two school years. We have been assured by Dr. Beers, Chief Operating Officer at DCPS, that this option is not ideal nor is it the first choice in the swing
space options for Murch.
We still need to be sure that our voice is heard as a community. Currently, we are capturing community feedback via a survey. The link is listed below. If you have not already done so, please take the time to fill out the survey AND consider attending the Lafayette Community Meeting on Tuesday, 12/15 at 7 pm.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/YQYBVMBAlso, I appreciate everyone's thoughtful feedback and patience as we work through this process. Your empathy and respectful feedback is duly noted and appreciated by all who are involved - the Lafayette community, the Murch community, and everyone impacted. We all want the best educational environment possible for our students. Both Lafayette and Murch families are in the same (figurative) boat - we share similar concerns, have been thrust into uncertainty with very short notice right before a holiday break, and are seeking clear information. While we are in different phases of the modernization process, both communities face similar worries and challenges. We need to be mindful that this scenario does not become an "us vs. them" mentality - we are all in this together! Please continue to keep your thoughts and comments focused toward the decision makers, not necessarily other public forums that are not monitored by decision makers.As we close out our last week in 2015, please join us for the Winter Concert on Wednesday night at 6:30 in the Big Top. We will also be celebrating our Holiday Parties on Friday, 12/18 from 1 pm - 3 pm. May the holiday season bring you peace, rest, family, and safe travels. We look forward to seeing everyone back at school on Monday, January 4th. Thank you as always for all that you do to support our students, staff, and school. I am deeply grateful to be your Principal. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year,Dr. B
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It's Not Too Late to Take Part in the Lafayette Holiday Book Sale and Book Drive! 
Books Available for Sale at School On December 16 & at the Winter Holiday Concert in the Big Top
We've teamed up with the great book department at Barstons Child's Play to help you shop for your kids this holiday season and to help children in need in our community. Lafayette families get the chance to buy the hottest books, and the Lafayette HSA will get to keep 20% of the sales. We will even wrap the books for you! The books for sale include everything from the new, illustrated Harry Potter to the 2016 Guinness World Records Book, Scholastic Year in Sports to the latest Elephant and Piggie and Princess in Black Adventure. There is even a Force Awakens sticker book.
Look for the yellow flyer that should have come home in your child's backpack last week or click here for an order form and a list of available books. Stop by school on Wednesday, December 16th and purchase your books. Extra books will be on sale at the Winter Concert on Dec. 16.
As part of our Lafayette Gives Back program, we are also encouraging families to purchase a book for our friends at the Episcopal Center for Children on Utah Avenue. We are trying to secure 50 new books for this neighborhood school, which helps emotionally troubled children.
Thank you for your support of the HSA and thanks to Child's Play for all its support of Lafayette.
Questions? Email Jenny Backus or Chris Lisi.
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Lafayette Enrichment Program  The Winter Session of LEP starts the week of January 25, 2016, and registration opens tomorrow, December 17th, at 6AM. Visit our registration site to enroll. The LEP Winter Session brochure and calendar can be found here, and also on the school website in two navigation areas: " For Parents" and " Student Life." A paper copy will come home tomorrow via back pack express. Something New!Due to the overwhelming popularity of a couple of classes, this session we are going to try an enrollment lottery for certain classes. C3 Cyberclub classes, Lego Robotics, Drama Club, and Mad Science will all participate. Enrollment will open Wednesday morning, and these popular classes will register straight to the waitlist. The enrollment system will execute a lottery for each of the 4 classes, and students who get a place in the lottery will be notified the morning of December 18 (after 9AM). These recipients are allocated at least 48 hours to remit payment as confirmation of whether they can take the place, after which time the space may be offered to the next student in the lottery wait list. It is our hope that this new lottery system will alleviate a bit of the enrollment chaos some of you may have experienced when our registration website opens. All other classes will offer the standard enrollment process and have the same waitlist policy as in sessions past. Questions? Email Hope Scheller at [email protected]
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Lafayette Basketball Season Tips Off
Girls and Boys Teams Play First Games; Next up - Eaton for the boys & Janney for the Girls
The Lafayette Bears Basketball season tipped off this past week with games for the girls last Tuesday against powerhouse John Eaton and a game for the boys against Brightwood Elementary. While it is a rebuilding year for the girls after their championship run last year, the team played very well against a much bigger and more experienced Eaton team and had a nice rally in the second half to put some needed points on the board.  The boys team was very strong in their opener against Brightwood last Thursday, demonstrating a lot of depth and strength across the roster with a great group of 5th graders and some impressive fourth graders as well. Lots of good passing, defense and breakaways led to a final score of 45-16 for Lafayette.
Despite the fact that Lafayette has no gym and we started our season a little later, the teams are looking strong and have been practicing hard outside at Lafayette and over at Deal twice a week. Kudos to Coach Hover and Coach Johnson for getting the players in shape so fast and to team moms Laura Polvinale and Kim Ford for keeping the parents organized. Team parents are extremely grateful to Principal Broquard, who worked with DCPS and the coaches to secure a bus to take the players to Deal practice each week in style.
Since Lafayette has NO home games this year, fans, family and friends are encouraged to attend the away games for both teams. We saw lots of Eaton red and white pom-poms out there for the girls game last week. We have ordered Lafayette Blue and Gold pompoms and will have them available at future games for any fans who want to come by so we can show our Lafayette Bears spirit.
The girls team plays Janney on Tuesday December 15 at 4PM at Janney and the boys team plays Eaton at 4:00 PM at Eaton on Tuesday as well. Please come out and support our awesome student athletes!
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Galley Family Meals arrive on Dec. 21st!
Use invite code FAMILY to get $10 off on MONDAY, DECEMBER 21st. Dinner for four includes: main course, healthy sides and a special treat. Meals are prepared locally from scratch with the best ingredients. Choose a 30-minute delivery window or order during dinner-time and have dinner delivered conveniently to your door in under 30-minutes. Look for Lafayette's next Galley Giveback night coming this winter and order a family meal!
www.galleyfoods.com
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Seeking Short-Term Rental
We are a family of four (our son is a Fifth Grader at Lafayette) seeking temporary housing while our home (in the Hawthorne/Chevy Chase DC neighborhood) is being renovated January 15-March 31. We'd be happy with an English Basement or In-Law Suite. We anticipate being out of the house about 2 � to 3 months. If you have such a rental or know of one, please contact me (Reyn Anderson) at 571-243-7086 or [email protected]. Fabulous Parent Encouragement Program (PEP) classes are forming now.
Parenting Preschoolers (8 weeks) Understand your child's development and personality and get positive parenting tools to set firm and kind boundaries, solve problem behaviors, and foster cooperation and capability. PEP I: Parenting 5 to 12 Year Olds (8 weeks)Are you struggling with your child's behavior? Tired of yelling, threatening or bribing, or just looking for some new strategies? Learn how to use positive, encouraging methods with your children to gain cooperation, promote respect and responsibility, set and uphold limits, and bring out the best in each child. Thriving with Teens (10 weeks)Wishing for a better relationship with your teen? You're not alone. Learn proven, positive strategies to parent teenagers effectively in the midst of their peers, media, the Internet, and their own adolescent development. Free Parenting Workshop: "Why Don't My Kids Listen to Me?"For parents of children age 2�-18 who have never taken a PEP class. Sat, Jan 9, 3-4:30 pm at PEP in Kensington. FREE - space is limited and preregistration required. 301-929-8824. http://pepparent.org/ Visit http://pepparent.org or call 301-929-8824 for more information.
Reminder! The Farmer's Market Is open Throughout the Winter!
This is a reminder that the Broad Branch - Chevy Chase Farmer's Market (temporarily moved during the school construction) will continue to be held throughout the winter season. Whitmore Farms will continue to sell their humanely raised pork, lamb and chicken. Fresh Belgian waffles and paella will continue to be made on site for your enjoyment throughout the winter season. Bonaparte Bakery from Baltimore, as always, will have fresh European breads and pastries. Take home fresh roasted, fair trade coffee from Father-Daughter Roasters to start your day on these crisp winter mornings. Our newest vendor, Toby Island Bay Oysters has been a great hit. Come and get fresh oysters and clams from Chincoteague Island, VA. The Fiber Ladies will return for one day this Saturday with their handcrafted woolen goods. These make great Holiday gifts. The Farmers Market is held every Saturday, from 9:00 am - 1:00 pm, at the Chevy Chase Community Center, 5601 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC.
Thank You Lafayette Sponsors!
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our very generous Annual Sponsors for 2015-2016, your continued support is amazing!
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