The Beating Drum      January 27, 2012 Chester-Andover Elementary School caes.wswsu.org/beatingdrum DATES TO REMEMBER 1/27 – Community Dialogue Night, GMUHS, 6 to 8 p.m., Potluck 2/2 – Winter Sports Day, Early Dismissal 2/2 – Winter Sports Day, Early Dismissal 2/20 – 2/24 – Winter Break, No School ONGOING ACTIVITIES  @ CAES Mondays:        Wilderness Club, 3-4 p.m. Tuesdays:       Tae-Kwon-Do, 3 -4 p.m.                 Homework Club, 3-4 p.m. Wednesdays:     Respect Club, 3-4 p.m. Thursdays:      Homework Club, 3-4 p.m. Everyday:       Aspire PRINCIPAL’S CORNER As I sit down to write this letter Thursday evening I am not sure of several things.  First I am not sure if Friday will be a snow day.  I’m not sure if we will see more rain, ice or snow. Finally I am not sure if  “The Beating Drum” will even be published this week due to the weather!  I do know that with the ice in my driveway, I have perfected my Florida shuffle!  I also know that I wish we had more snow; at least it would fill in some of the potholes I steer around on my way to and from work every day. At the moment we are deep into business as usual at CAES.  Winter Sports are well underway and I am still doing my best to understand the nuances.  This week while the students were away the faculty spent their day reviewing the Scope and Sequence of Math, Reading, and Writing for grades K-8 for clarity.  The Scope and Sequence will then go back to the Supervisory Union so that we can begin to look at how to implement them into the Common Core for States Standards.  This effort represents a lot of work on everyone’s part with the intended outcome of higher achievement for our students. I would like to remind everyone once again that students are not to leave classes early for Winter Sports.  Their day is already shortened and to have them lose sometimes as much as one half an hour on Thursdays cuts deeply into their learning.  I am asking everyone to respect the teacher’s need to have the students for the full half day. There are three weeks to go before February break.  I’m sure many of you have plans for vacation.  At this point I see myself staying close to home and heading into the office some of the time to get caught up on all the details that get pushed aside during the day when everyone is in the building.  It’s a constant challenge to balance each day with “must do, should do, and want to do.”  My focus each day is to assure positive outcomes for the students.  I’m just never quite sure how that will look from day to day. Thursday night’s storm will have an impact on my plans for the weekend, just as I am sure it will for you too.  Snow mean you might find me out clearing the driveway and barn roof, then heading into the woods for a hike.  Ice means I will be at the Town garage shoveling sand into my truck for the driveway.  Rain will mean developing a plan to divert the water flowing through the hen house.  Aunty Helen would always tell me, “There’s no rest for the wicked.” Then she’d ask me, “Now don’t you wish you were good?”  I’ll take the “Fifth” on that one, Your Honor! I guess maybe a little rest might not be a bad idea either, now that I think about it.  What ever your plans may be, include the kids, stay warm and dry, and I will see you in the halls next week.                                                                 Scott TECHNOLOGY AND OUR CHILDREN From time to time it is good to remind parents about some of the problems that can arise between technology and children. Nicole Detore, our school counselor teaches classroom guidance that deals with internet safety and other problems that can arise with electronic media.  Luckily, I have not had to deal with some of the issues that make the news regarding online bullying or harassment, which is a testament to parents being ever vigilant with computer use.  Nonetheless it bears mentioning from time-to-time.  Monitoring your child's computer usage is NOT an invasion of their privacy, even though they may insist that it is.  There is a lot of brain research available that tell us that the ability to recognize cause and effect relationships is not formed in young peoples frontal lobes until age 21. The adults have to act as the frontal lobes for them.  There are a lot of websites that carry questionable content that can be far to easy for children to access.  Instant messaging is also a place where it is so easy to type something that on the surface can seem pretty innocuous or funny when in reality it can be downright hurtful to the reader.  Being a parent is hard work and monitoring these additional things can be a challenge, but talking to your child about safe computer usage should reduce the number of things you have to worry about rather add one more thing to an already busy world.  If you have questions about the internet, feel free to contact myself or Ms. DeTore.  We're happy to help. DO YOU SEW? Could you help some students with a very easy sewing project.  The Respect Club is making very simple dresses for students in Africa.  The dress has no zipper, elastic or sleeves and is some basic, straight sewing.  If you could help one afternoon, please contact Becky Plunkard at bplunkard@wswsu  or call 875 210 ext 138. WHAT IS YOUR JOB? This spring we are planning a "job fair" and are hoping that parents and community members would like to come in to talk about their profession. If this is something that you might be interested in please give Becky Plunkard a call at 875-2108 ext 138 or email bplunkard@wswsu.org DO YOU LIKE TO PLAY CHECKERS OR CHESS? Looking for a volunteer to head up a chess/checkers club during the lunch hour.  If you might be interested in talking about how you can help, contact Becky Plunkard at 875-2108 ext 138. DID YOU KNOW? The CAES Parent Teacher Organization sponsors a great beginning to our school year through the School Years Eve Celebration.  The group meets on the second Monday of each month, at 6:30 PM and would like to invite you to come any time to check things out.  We are always looking for new members, and new ideas. The current members understand how busy everyone is,  so we try to keep our meetings short and also choose only the projects that each member is interested in working on.  If you are not able to come, but would like to be involved, send us your email address and we will make sure that you get our meeting minutes.  You can send us ideas, comments or let us know if you are interested in helping as you can.  Contact us at bplunkard@wswsu.org or call at 875-2108 ext. 138. THE LATEST DIRT ON THE GRATEFUL GARDEN The 2012 Grateful Garden Seed Sale is starting February 1st! Purchase your garden seeds from The Grateful Garden and help raise money to repair damage to our garden by Tropical Storm Irene. The UVM Agricultural & Environmental Testing Lab declared the school garden soil safe and ready for planting again. But we still need to repair our fencing, replenish our soils, and buy new seeds. You can help! Choose your seeds from two lists of available varieties: 25 GMO-free seeds for $1.60 a pack or select from 25 organic vegetable, herb and flower seeds for $2.20 a packet. Students will bring home seed sale forms plus you can download seed sale forms at the Grateful Garden blog starting February 1. Link to The Grateful Garden blog (http://chesterandover.shutterfly.com/gratefulgardenblog) or access it from the Garden link at the top of the CAES web site http://caes.wswsu.org/ for Seed Sale order forms and more information. The seed order forms will contain the informative plant descriptions.  Seed Sale Order Forms and a check or cash can be returned to your child’s teacher or mailed to The Grateful Garden at CAES , 72 Main Street, Chester, VT 05143.   This 3rd annual seed sale will run from February 1st through March 3rd with seeds being distributed to buyers by late March.  Please contact Carrie King, (nigeldenali@gmail.com) or Jana Bryan Wunderle (jlbwunderle@gmail.com) for more information. Pass on the seed sale scoop to your friends and neighbors. Thank you for helping more gardens grow! ZEENALINI Students, Grades K-6: It is not too late to be a part of this year's student magazine, Zeenalini. We will be collecting work up until February 17th. Bring your original writings and art to the "Zine Box" in the CAES library. Your work will be copied and returned to you. (Remember to put your full name on the back.) Extra permission forms also are in the library. Go to the school website to see last year's issue for inspiration. (Need an additional spark? This year is leap year in which the world gets the gift of one extra day. Draw or write about what you would do--if you could do anything at all--with an extra day.) Thanks! The Zeenalini Editors at zeenalini@gmail.com. TALENT SHOW CAES is having a Talent Show on March 16th.  Start practicing your act now!  More information to come at a later date. CAES SWEATSHIRT SALE CAES is offering sweatshirts for $25 each.  The sweatshirts are black hoodies (pull-over) with white embroidered logo on left front.  If you would like to order a sweatshirt please fill out the order form below and have it to the office no later than February 3rd.  The logo was a competition for a few of our students and the winning logo design was submitted by Emily Picz.   Carissa Bailey and Chase Ordway-Smith submitted the runner-up designs. To see the logo, please stop by the office. _______________________________________________________________________________________ Name:  __________________________  Grade ______ Classroom Teacher _______________________ 1. Sweatshirt           S       M       L       XL      2XL (add $2.50 to purchase price) 2. Sweatshirt           S       M       L       XL      2XL (add $2.50 to purchase price) 3. Sweatshirt           S       M       L       XL      2XL (add $2.50 to purchase price) Total: ______________________________ Please make checks payable to Nancy Martin THE RESPECT CLUB WILL BE SELLING VALENTINES AGAIN THIS YEAR * Valentine Two Sided Stamper  $.30 * Valentine Pencil - $.50 * Valentine Polar Bear Sucker - $.75 * Valentine Teddy Bear Shaped Sucker Ring $.75 * Valentine Metallic Mini (1") Yo Yo - $1.00 * Plush Valentine Dragon Holding a Heart (4 1/2") - $3.00 These items will be in a decorated bag with a card and will be delivered on Valentines Day.  Fill out the form below with clearly printed information and return it along with payment NO LATER THAN February 1st. Your Name _________________________________ Class _________________  Phone __________________ Send to: ____________________________________ Class _________________ Item _____________________ Send to: ____________________________________ Class _________________ Item _____________________ Send to: ____________________________________ Class _________________ Item _____________________ Total (Cash or your can write a check to "CAES") _______ LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEER We are looking for a volunteer that would be interested in helping to chaperon kids with the Books for Breakfast program.  This is a reading program where kids read books to other kids during the breakfast hour from 7:30 - 8:00 AM.  If interested, please contact Becky Plunkard at 875-2108 ext 138 or email at bplunkard@wswsu.org MO’S FUDGE FUNDRAISER Recently, a fundraiser packet for Mo’s Fudge went home with our students.  This is a fundraiser to benefit the PTO as well as the Keewaydin Camp program for 5/6 grade students. The packets are due back to school by February 6th.  The fudge order will be returned to school the week of February 27th.  Also, please note that the checks need to made out to Mo’s Fudge Factor. If you would like to order fudge in time for Valentines Day you can order online at mosfudgefactor.com.  Go to the left side of the page and click on Fundraising Programs.  Click on the drop box in the middle of the page and click CAES Keewaydin. On line orders need to be received no later than February 9th to be delivered by Valentines Day. COMMUNITY NEWS VALENTINE DINNER DANCE, A SPECIAL EVENING FOR ADULTS AT MACLAOMAINN’S SCOTTISH PUB Trying to plan a special dinner for your special someone? Think no further! On Saturday, February 11, 2012, MacLaomainn's Scottish Pub is hosting a benefit Valentine's Dinner Dance to benefit Keewaydin. Please join us for a fun night of dancing to the DJ of "Rhythm National" while enjoying a special evening with your friends. There will be a four course dinner including soup, salad, entree, and assorted desserts. The main entree will be a choice of Prime Rib, Roasted Pork Tenderloin, or Stuffed Shrimp. Cocktail hour will be from 6-7pm with the dinner to follow at 7pm. The cost per person for your dinner, dancing, and complimentary remembrance photo is $30 per person. Tickets are for sale at CAES and MacLaomainn's. We hope that many parents and friends will turn out to celebrate Valentine's Day while helping to send our students to Keewaydin in May! Our sincere thanks to Deb and Alan Brown for sponsoring this fundraiser for Keewaydin! TWIN STATE BLACK BELT ACADEMY The Twin State Black Belt Academy in Springfield is offering a winter special for Tae Kwon Do classes. Sign up before March 1st and received your first month free. Week night classes are available for children and adults of all ages. Please call 885-2020 for more information. WINTER CARNIVAL 2012 Beginning Friday, February 17th at 6 p.m. with a Winter Carnival Dinner and ending on Sunday, February 19th at 10 a.m. with a Broom Hockey Tournament at Cobleigh Field, there is something for everyone.  This event was named one of the Top 10 2012 Winter Events by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce.  For more information please call 875-2693 or visit chester.govoffice.com and yourplaceinvermont.com.