Tesoro del Valle Newsletter

 

DATES TO REMEMBER

 

Get the Tesoro Tiger Times at:
http://teacherweb.com/CA/TesorodelvalleElementary/TesorodelVallePTA/apt9.aspx - A GREEN FLYER WAS SENT HOME LAST WEEK

Message from Mrs. Post….

TESORO DEL VALLE HAS GONE GREEN!  Our newsletter can now be accessed through email. Thank you to Mrs. Tyrrell, Mrs. Acosta, Mrs. Smith and so many other parents who have encouraged and supported our efforts to go green. We know that it is not always easy to make changes, so please be patient as we strive to help our environment and be sure that our information reaches you!

January 23^rd marked the beginning of the Chinese New Year! This is the year of the dragon. Students were sharing some of their traditions with me, and I hope to share those at a future broadcast. Happy New Year!

I recently attended a Parent Advisory Council meeting and some information regarding Transitional Kindergarten was shared for the upcoming year. New state law has changed the enrollment date for Kindergarten in California. This coming school year, students must turn five by November 1^st. (Each year it will be moved back by one month until the September 1^st date is reached.) Those children who turn five between November 1 and December 2, 2012 would be eligible for Transitional Kindergarten. Transitional Kindergarten (TK) would be funded by the state and is dependent on the Governor’s budget. If it is not funded, there will be no TK. We will continue to enroll students while we wait to see what the budget will include and that may not be decided until later in July or August. (We all know that traditionally the budget is not in place as of July 1^st each year.) As you can imagine this delay makes our jobs planning that much more of a challenge. We will give you updates as we have more information.

We extend a big thank you to PTA and to our Programs Chairperson, Mrs. Maria Fenelon, for the TNT Dunk Squad Anti-Bullying assembly. The assembly was fun for our students and provided a very positive message in regards to our anti-bullying policy.

Our word of character this month is Fairness. Each week I provide examples of how students can show fairness here at school and at home. Teachers also include words of character within their classroom meetings. I hope that you will take the time to discuss this word/concept with your child perhaps during family dinnertime discussions.

We send get-well wishes to Mrs. Janet Squires, Tesoro’s librarian, who recently had surgery, and to Mrs. Marianne Smith, Speech Pathologist, who will be having surgery in the near future. If you or your child would like to send a card/note to either one, just drop it off in the office, and we’ll make sure that they receive your get-well wishes. In the meantime, Mrs. Gail Joubert will fill in for Mrs. Squires in the library and Mrs. Linda Luger, Speech Pathologist, will fill in for Mrs. Smith. Mrs. Luger will be here two days a week to provide services for our students receiving speech.

We extend special thanks to all our parent volunteers and those who have made donations to the classrooms and school. During these difficult financial times in education, your time and donations mean so much to all of us. Thank you! We appreciate your generosity. We would like to extend thanks this past week to Mrs. Sushinsky and Mrs. Park who were here for two days assisting with our Hearing Screening for K, 2^nd, and 5^th graders. Thank you for your help!

Please see the back page; I have included an article on how to help children understand autism. Research is now saying that autism is occurring in every one in every 110 children. I hope you find the article informative and helpful!

SIX FLAGS - READ TO SUCCEED

Our school is participating in the “Read to Succeed” program sponsored by Six Flags and Discovery Education.  This program encourages children to read for fun and gives them an opportunity to earn a FREE admission ticket to Magic Mountain!  Students must read a total of 6 hours (360 minutes) of recreational reading.  Parents must initial each entry and sign the completed reading log to verify that the six hours of reading has been completed.  Reading logs are due on or before February 16, 2012.  Late entries will not be accepted.  Tickets will be distributed in May and are valid for admission on select dates during the 2012 season.  Happy Reading!

ATTENDANCE

Please remember to call the office before 9:00 a.m. the morning that your student will be absent from school.  The State of California requires a specific reason, "not feeling well" or "sick" are not acceptable.  Please let us know if your child has a cold, is vomiting, is out of town, etc. 

SPECIAL EDUCATION COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE (CAC)

The Santa Clarita Valley CAC is composed of volunteer parents, educators, and other interested community members who want to make a difference in the education of all children.

Your CAC seeks to join together parents, educators, lawmakers, service providers and others in our community with the goal of improving and protecting the education of our children with special needs.  Your CAC is here to inform, empower, and support you.

We invite you to join us in our quest to help others in our community.  The following workshop will be held at Bridgeport Elementary, 23670 Newhall Ranch Road, Santa Clarita, CA  91355

Monday, February 6, 2012 at 7:00 p.m.

Help Your Child Learn Social Skills

There is Child Care and Interpreter Services at the meetings.

PTA NEWS

FATHER/DAUGHTER DANCE

We are so excited about the Winter Wonderland Father/Daughter dance on Friday, February 10^th, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the MPR.  The flyers for both the dance and pictures were sent home last week.

The Father/Daughter Committee would like to remind everyone that the RSVP date for the Winter Wonderland dance is Friday, February 3^rd.  Please tear off the slip, attach your payment and submit it to the PTA.  A flyer for the photographer was included in the packet, if you will be purchasing pictures; please pay the photographer in full the day of the dance.  PLEASE DO NOT combine the amount for the dance and pictures. We are looking forward to this event, it will be a night to remember………………

ASSEMBLIES AND MORE!

This year, the PTA has prepared a couple of very fun and educational assemblies for January and April.  Also we worked with the COC PAC K-12 Arts outreach program and are able to present our students with a series of Art Workshops for every grade level.

Second grade will be making musical instruments with Martin Espino on January 31^st.

Kindergarten will explore color formations with The Crayon Court on February 16^th.

First grade will be able to create shadow puppets along with The Crayon Court on February 23^rd.

Third grade will be playing Theatre Games with Aimee Hopkins on March 1^st.

Exposure to the arts does wonders to the development of our children in school and out!

Parents, feel free to stop by on the day of your child’s workshop.

YEARBOOK UPDATES

The yearbook committee’s goal is to involve as many Tesoro families to share the wonderful pictures captured during school events.  Every picture shared will contribute to the creation of a diverse representation of the children in the yearbook.  Not to mention the excitement from the kids and parents alike looking for pictures they took in the yearbook.

If you have pictures to share, please leave them in the PTA Yearbook mailbox and email us at Tesoro.yearbook@yahoo.com  If you have questions, or are interested in joining the committee and participate at events as time allows, we have CDs for you to transfer files.   

Thank you and looking forward to a fun year,

Christina & Louis Polio

FOOD DRIVE

For the month of January, we will be collecting canned fruit, canned meat and canned vegetables.  Thank you for your participation.  All items can be dropped off in the food bins in the MPR.  Thank you for your participation. 

Susan Daymude

Food Drive Coordinator

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS BINS

The PTA could use a little help from you to prepare your kids for an emergency.  We are gathering supplies for our disaster bin and could use notepads and colored pencils.  Many stores currently have these items on clearance for as low as 25 cents.  These supplies will be used to give your children something to do as they face a potentially lengthy wait for parents or others you may have designated to pick them up from school.  If you are able to help, please send the items in with your children clearly marked for the PTA Disaster Bin.

Thank you,

TaShera Jenkins

Our Website is updated!  Please visit – http://www.teacherweb.com/CA/Tesorodelvalle

Elementary/TesorodelVallePTA/apt9.aspx.  You’ll find our school calendar, PTA updates, forms, flyers, and more!        

Keywords: Tesoro Newsletter