JFK PTO Update – December 8, 2017
Important Dates:
December 12 - Last Day of Scholastic Book Fair Online
December 18 - Annual Open House for Faculty and Staff (Dessert Donations Needed!)
December 18-21 - JFK Store Open for Holiday Sales
December 20 - JFK Band Winter Concert
December 22 - No School, Start of Winter Break
January 2 - Back to School
Scholastic Book Fair Online through Tuesday
Thanks to everyone who donated their time to make the book fair a success. Profits from the book fair come back to the school library to buy books from Scholastic for the library and classrooms. Wait, you didn’t make it to the book fair? You can still shop online through December 12 using this link: https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/jfknorthampton
We Need Desserts: Annual Open House for Faculty and Staff is 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 desserts (just desserts!) to be served at the annual open house for faculty and staff on December 18. Packaged desserts that can be left for the weekend can be brought to the office on Friday 12/15. Day-of desserts can be left in the office on Monday 12/18. If refrigeration is needed, that’s not a problem! But, no nuts. About 100 faculty and staff will be attending, so please help us make them feel appreciated.
The JFK Mall Craft and Vendor Fair had over 40 vendors this year. Thanks to all bakers, volunteers, and community sponsors who helped. This event raises funds for our after school program and we couldn’t do it without you!
The JFK Store is Coming to Town! (December 18-21)
After the amazing success of our Book Fair and Mall, the JFK Store (a lunchtime tradition) will be reopening for student shopping the week of December 18 through December 21 from 10:30am to 12:30pm. JFK sweatshirts and shirts will be on sale, as well as school supplies, locker decorations, and fun items for stocking stuffers. All proceeds benefit the JFK PTO and help us help students.
Can you volunteer to work the register at the JFK Store, Monday to Thursday between 10:30am and 12:30pm? Sign up for a shift at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b4eadad23abfa7-jfkstudent
Looking for a new and exciting YA book for your young reader?
Ms. Mack (grade 7 Social Studies teacher on the Green Rev) recently published a YA novel called The Pirates of Cologne. The novel is based on real adolescents who were living in Cologne, Germany during WWII. The year is 1942, and thirteen-year-old Sebastian Jaeger has escaped from a Hitler Youth camp and returned to the city of Cologne. Five years earlier, his father, a Communist leader, was imprisoned, leaving Sebastian alone to care for his grandmother. Attracted by the possibility of true friendship, Sebastian joins a group of street kids called the Edelweiss Pirates who make a game out of their rebellion against the Hitler Youth and the Nazis. But their childish antics soon take a more serious and dangerous turn as they begin to work with the organized resistance.
"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 You can get a copy locally at Broadside Books or on Amazon in paperback or for a Kindle.
The JFK Band Winter Concert (December 20)
The JFK Band Winter Concert is on Wednesday, December 20 at 6:30pm at 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.
Yes, We Want Your Box Tops
Cleaning house for winter break? Send in your Box Tops for Education by December 21 (last day of school in 2017!) and we will redeem them for our school. The box for Box Tops is located in the JFK office. No collection sheet needed, just send in your Box Tops in a baggie or small envelope. And visit the website for handy coupons for household items: https://www.boxtops4education.com/about
Notice from the Health Office: Annual Health Screenings
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
Join Us at Our Next PTO Meeting on Tuesday, January 9 (6-7:30 pm)
We welcome you to attend our next JFK PTO meeting on Tuesday, January 9 from 6-7:30 pm in the JFK Library (back to our usual location). Be a part of the planning for upcoming school events like the 6th & 7th grade dances 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. Come ring in 2018 with us!
Upcoming Community Events
The Northampton Special Education Parent Advisory Council (12/12)
Tuesday, December 12, 2017, 6:30-7:30pm in the Leeds Elementary School Cafeteria. Second Step and Zones of Regulation are two programs utilized by Northampton Public Schools to address social and emotional development. In-district presenters are offering to share their expertise in these curricula and how they are implemented in Northampton Public Schools. Second Step Curriculum will be explained by Susannah Bastek, Counselor at Leeds. Zones of Regulation Presented by TBD. Childcare can be available if arranged in advance. Call Evie at (413) 695-7445 or email her at polyevelene@gmail.com to make arrangements for your child/children’s care during the training. If you leave a message, include child/children’s age/s, your name, and phone number. Get Connected! Learn! Advocate! Support!
Special Free Screening of “Screenagers, Growing Up in the Digital Age” (1/4)
January 4, 2018 at 7:00pm in the Northampton High School Auditorium, 380 Elm Street, Northampton, MA. Free and open to the public. Sponsored by the Northampton Prevention Coalition. NPC notes: “Screenagers” is appropriate for really any age. We'd love to see parents attend with their kids. For more information: https://www.screenagersmovie.com/
The Teen Brain and Risk Taking (1/19)
Join he Northampton Prevention Coalition on January 19, 2018 from 6:30 to 8:30pm at the Northampton High School Auditorium for a talk by Dr. Ruth Potee with a special presentation by Officer Adam Van Buskirk of the NPD on Dabbing. Dr. Potee will discuss teen brain development, its impact on risk-taking behavior, including the use of drugs and alcohol, and what this means for parents of teens. Come learn more about what parents and the community can do to keep our teens safer, healthier and addiction-free through the middle and high school years. Dr. Potee practices family medicine in Greenfield and was honored by the Franklin District Medical Society as the 2015 Community Clinician of the Year. She is Chair of the Healthcare Solutions Opioid Task Force of Franklin County and has addressed professional and community audiences on related topics throughout the state. This event is FREE and open to the public. All are invited to attend.
Our fall fundraiser is winding down. Together we have raised a current total of $11,150! With these donations, we will be able to fund a variety of exciting programs, trips, technology, clubs, events, activities, and more. Also… it’s never too late to get in your 2017 tax-deductible contribution to the JFK PTO. You can donate anytime online at the link below.
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