Friday, December 15, 2017

JFK PTO Update – December 15, 2017



 
JFK PTO Update – December 15, 2017

Important Dates:
December 18 - Annual Open House for Faculty and Staff (Desserts & Sweets Needed!)
December 18-21 - JFK Store Open for Holiday Sales (Lunchtime Shopping for Students)
December 20 - JFK Band Winter Concert
December 22 - No School, Start of Winter Break
January 2 - Back to School
January 9 - JFK PTO Meeting (6-7:30pm)

We Need Desserts for the Annual Open House for Faculty and Staff on Monday, December 18
It’s a great time to say thank you to the staff and teachers of JFK who make a difference in our students’ lives. We need lots of desserts (just desserts!) to be served at the annual open house for around 100 faculty and staff on Monday, December 18. Just drop your dessert item in the office before lunchtime on Monday 12/18. If refrigeration is needed, that’s not a problem. But, no desserts with nuts, thanks!

The JFK Store is Coming to Town! (December 18-21)
The JFK Store will be opening for student shopping every day next week from 10:45am to 12:45pm. JFK sweatshirts and shirts will be on sale, as well as school supplies, locker decorations, and fun items for stocking stuffers. Let your student know about this in-house shopping option. All proceeds will benefit the JFK PTO and help us help students.

Volunteer to make the store a success! If you can help from 10:30am to 12:30pm or so, sign up at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b4eadad23abfa7-jfkstudent

NOTE: If you plan to volunteer, please remember you need to have a current CORI. Ask at the JFK front office if you need to apply. It lasts for 3 years, and is needed for any in-school or field trip volunteering.

The JFK Band Winter Concert (December 20)
The JFK Band Winter Concert is Wednesday, December 20 at 6:30pm in the Northampton High School auditorium. Suggested donation is $3 at the door. Band students should arrive by 6pm to check in at the band room. All JFK families are invited to celebrate our students as they play. Baked goods are needed for the bake sale and volunteer slots are still open. Sign up here to help: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090845a5ac2ba02-jfkconcert2

Box Tops 4 Education Collection in JFK Main Office
Send in your Box Tops for Education by December 21 (last day of school in 2017) and we will redeem them for our school. No collection sheet needed, just send in Box Tops in a baggie or small envelope and leave them in the box in the office. https://www.boxtops4education.com/about

Notice from the Health Office: Annual Health Screenings for All Students
In December, the JFK nursing staff is conducting annual health screenings for 6th and 7th grade students. Letters went home in backpack mail. 8th grade screenings will be held after the first of the new year. A separate mailing will be sent home at that time.

These screenings consist of checking backs for 6th graders and checking backs, height, and weight for 7th graders. If your child has any unusual findings, you will be notified. Otherwise, you will not hear from the Health Office. If your child has had a physical within the last six months and the provider has documented these exams, your student can be excused from the screening. Please provide a copy of this physical as soon as possible.

You also have the right to opt your child out of this screening. If you prefer to do this, contact Karen Schiaffo, JFK School Nurse, phone: 587-1488, fax: 587-1566 or email: kschiaffo@northampton-k12.us

Looking for a new and exciting YA book?
Ms. Mack (grade 7 Social Studies teacher on the Green Rev) recently published a YA novel called The Pirates of Cologne. You can get a copy locally at Broadside Books or on Amazon in paperback or for a Kindle.

The novel is based on real adolescents who were living in Cologne, Germany during WWII. “The Pirates of Cologne is a book for our times: a gripping, inspirational story about youth and resistance that asks all the hard questions about what it means to do the right thing. What would you have done, if you'd been German under Hitler? And what will you do now? You won't be able to finish this book without wondering." --Catherine Newman, author of One Mixed Up Night and Catastrophic Happiness

Make it Count 100% - Last Chance for Your Tax-Deductible Contribution for 2017
Thanks to everyone who participated in our fall fundraising campaign. You can still make a 2017 tax-deductible contribution to the JFK PTO. Donate at the link below, or, checks are always welcome in the office in an envelope addressed to JFK PTO:

And thank you to everyone who helped JFK in 2017! We wish our families a very happy new year. Here are some voices of thanks from our community:

  • Dear PTO Members: I want to thank all of you for the wonderful work you do for our JFK community, including the recent book fair! Many thanks as well for the terrific books that will augment my classroom library and be available to students to borrow for our upcoming nonfiction unit. Students enjoy borrowing books from the classroom shelf and especially appreciate new additions from the book fair.
  • From the Reading Specialists: Thank you so much. The bean bags will encourage students to relax and focus on reading at the same time. We are truly grateful.
  • Grade 8 students went to UMASS for a day of poetry. Students took workshops while at UMASS where they were able to explore different types of poetry, eventually writing their own prose! In the afternoon, there was a poetry slam, where many JFK students shared their work with other middle school students from across the valley. We are grateful to the PTO for this opportunity! http://www.masspoetry.org/studentdayofpoetry/

Join Us at Our Next PTO Meeting on Tuesday, January 9 (6-7:30 pm)
All are welcome at our next JFK PTO meeting on Tuesday, January 9 from 6-7:30 pm in the JFK Library. Be a part of the planning and lend your expertise to special projects at JFK. PTO Meetings are usually the first Tuesday of every month, except in January when we’ve moved to date to January 9. Future dates are February 6 and March 6. The more, the merrier!

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Si desea recibir esta información en español, envíenos un mensaje a jfkmspto@gmail.com.