School Funding at Risk Right Now

Dear Jeffco Families and Staff,

I want to let you know of an important opportunity to make your voice heard at the Colorado Capitol.

An ad hoc coalition of school districts from across the state has come together to launch the Kids Matter Too Coalition. This statewide coalition is calling on lawmakers to ensure Colorado’s growth benefits families by increasing funding for schools.

Colorado school districts are coping with a teacher shortage crisis, shrinking funds for special education, and inadequate mental health services. Next week, the state budget projections will be released, and many expect a surplus. Lawmakers will be making decisions about what to do with this additional funding, and the Kids Matter Too Coalition is asking Coloradoans from every corner of the state to call for additional funding to benefit students.

Consider:

• Colorado currently ranks 42nd in the nation in per pupil funding and 50th in the nation in teacher salary competitiveness. Next year, Colorado public schools will need to fill 3,000 vacant positions. This will be difficult with low teacher salaries.

• Funding additional mental health services is more than just a resource to help students succeed; it’s a student safety issue as well. Years of budget cuts have decimated the ranks of school counselors and mental health professionals. Our students and families need more mental health support in our schools.

• Only Oklahoma and Arizona spend less than Colorado on services for students with special needs. The federal and state government together only cover about 30% of the costs of these expensive services, which leaves individual school districts responsible to cover the remaining 70% with the dwindling funding they have.

We often hear in the news about the strength of the state’s economy, but our schools are still reeling from drastic cuts during the recession. Jeffco Public Schools alone has been shortchanged $642 million since 2009. Our students deserve better, and now the Legislature may be in a position to return some of this funding to our public schools.

I urge you to contact your legislators now to tell them how important it is to increase funding for K-12 education in Colorado. Kids Matter Too provides valuable resources to help you connect with elected officials.

The 2018 Legislative Session is moving quickly, so please stay connected to these important issues.

• Visit the Kids Matter Too website
• Like Kids Matter Too on Facebook
• Follow @kids_mattertoo on Twitter

Help us secure critical funding for our students here in Jeffco and across Colorado. Your voice matters! Thank you for your continued partnership and support.

Kind regards,

Dr. Jason E. Glass
Superintendent & Chief Learner
Jeffco Public Schools

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Welcome back to school!  PTA is excited to get started on the rest of the school year.  We are writing to let you know about a variety of ways to get involved in our school this winter and spring.  We know everyone is busy and it is hard to add another commitment to your list of “to-do’s” but we have lots of ways to make a difference– whether you have a minute, an hour, or a day to commit (or even want to help organize a whole initiative or event)!

 

Moms and Muffins (Jan 17 at 7:45 a.m.), Dad’s and Donuts (Jan 31 at 7:45 a.m.) 

An annual student favorite– they get to bring you to school for a quick breakfast before starting the school day.  If you’re coming, would you be willing to bring a dozen muffins or donuts or some juice along with you?  Please sign up here:  http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0b4aaea72ea1f85-moms

 

Meals for Teachers on Conference Nights

Sign up to bring food for teachers working late for Parent/Teacher Conferences on February 13 and 15.  Sign up here:  http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0f45aea622a6ff2-dinner1

 

World’s Finest Chocolate Fundraiser
– If you have one minute– order some chocolate, sales start February 6^th and forms are due back to school by February 20^th.

– If you have one hour– help your student contact neighbors, friends, and family to sell chocolate to benefit student resources and family events at school.

– If you have one hour—we need about 5 adults to help sort chocolate once it arrives at the school on Monday, March 12^th at 2 p.m. in the cafeteria.  Sign up here:  www.SignUpGenius.com/go/10C0B4AAEA72EA1F85-worlds

 

Run For Funds Fundraiser

– If you have one minute– make a financial pledge to support your student’s run, pledges start April 26th.

– If you have one hour– help your student contact neighbors, friends, and family to get pledges to benefit student resources and family events at school.

– If you have one hour– come help out at the event on Thursday, May 3rd and cheer the kids on as they run and run!  Watch for information coming soon about signing up to help.

– If you have one day– help coordinate logistics for the event. One of the most fun days of the year at school!  Contact ptagreengables@gmail.com to help!

 

2^nd Annual Family Science Night, Wednesday, March 14

– We need at least 30 volunteers for one of the most fun evenings at school all year; we have shifts available for everything from setup to cleanup to helping exhibitors and much more.  Sign up here:  www.SignUpGenius.com/go/10C0B4AAEA72EA1F85-family.
After School Clubs

– This year PTA is starting a new program of after-school clubs and our pilot program is starting in January.  If you have a skill that you’d like to teach students you can sign up to lead an after school club in the spring trimester!  Watch for more details and a leader application in Friday Folders in February.

 

Teacher Appreciation Week, May 7-11

– Help show our teachers how much we all appreciate them!  Watch for information coming soon about a Teacher Appreciation Week planning meeting, and in the meantime, contact Jan (janclyde2542@gmail.com) to let her know you’re interested in participating.

 

Attend a PTA Meeting the 2nd Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. Free pizza and free childcare provided at all meetings!

• February 12
• March 12
• April 9
• May 14

 

Other Ideas!

– Do you have other ideas– things you’ve seen at other schools, things you remember from when you were in school, things you’ve always looked forward to doing when you had kids in elementary school– please come to a PTA meeting and let us know!!! We are open to your new ideas and we are always looking for ways to enrich our students’ experiences at Green Gables.  Join us in making a difference!

 

Become a Member

– You can join the PTA or give a gift membership anytime!  Contact our Membership Coordinator, Tiffany Cuneo (tiffanycuneo@gmail.com) for membership information!

 

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Green Gables PTA

 

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We are pleased to announce the second annual Science Fair happening on March 14th from 5:30- 7:00pm We are looking for exhibitors interested in hosting hands-on experiments or informational booths to highlight during this extremely fun and well attended event. Applications accepted until Feb 21, 2018. Complete the form below to be a part of exposing our leprechauns to the excitement of science! https://drive.google.com/…/1A-xYTMOyXC_LVohpAyO2hweS9…/view…

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Did you know that Lucky Tweets?

He does! Under the handle of @teamGGES.  Do you  know who else tweets?  Our superintendent and a  whole bunch of educational resources tweet! Stay up to date on what’s happening right now in under 140 characters. Yes, 140 characters. It’s like a busy person’s oasis!

It’s not all bad out there on twitter! You get to build your own Personal Learning network filled with twitters and tweets that you care about.  October is twitter month and the Jeffco Ed Tech has engaged in a three week challenge to help people get tweeting.

Here are some resources we gathered for you about tweeting.

http://edtechjeffco.weebly.com/jeffco-ed-tech-blog/jeffco-ed-tech-twitter-challenge –

https://support.twitter.com/articles/215585#

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Is it worth it to Clip and Click your Box Tops?

The answer is YES! Last week a couple of Parents came together to gather up all of the Box Tops you have been clipping and saving and submitted $500.00 worth of Box Tops for the Fall Submission. Our goal for the year is to submit $1,000.00 !

How can you help?

• Keep Clipping and saving those Box Tops for the Spring
• Take advantage of the Box Top App to double our and your earnings
• Check the Box Tops for expired ones and only submit those that are still valid
• Turn in your Box Tops to the school front desk or containers through out the school
• Ask your family and friends to save them up for our kiddos
• Volunteer in the spring to help us prepare the Spring submission.

Did you know the Box Top App has coupons?

They have both digital coupons and printed coupons. See more information here https://www.boxtops4education.com/coupons

Have you used the Box Top App?

Here is how it works:

• You download the app from the apple store or google play.
• You review the items on the list and go shopping.
• Once you have received your receipt you select the items from the app -> scan your receipt -> select process

What did I think:

• It’s pretty easy once you understand what they need to see in the scan of your receipt.  It took me three tries to get my receipt accepted, but it was pretty painless. Make sure that your date of sale, line items, receipt total and store are clearly identified in the picture you took  of your receipt.
• The app provides clear feedback on why your receipt was not processed. For example: Items not found or total missing. It also sends you an email to your Box Top account.
• I purchased three items  on the app (35 items were eligible). Green Gables earned $1.00 on three items my family purchased.  I can quickly see that  money in the school account.  That was probably easier then cutting, saving, and gluing.

Why Box Tops:

Green Gables has been participating in the Box Top program since 2013. We have earned $7,257.13 over the last 4 years. That’s ALOT of box tops!  Now, some would say it’s not worth the effort. I say I eat the products anyhow I might as well help out the school.

During our experiment I only purchased 3 out of the 35 eligible app products on the list. It took me three tries to get the receipt to process ….but we have a dollar in our Green Gables account. Noone had to clip.. and I have 3 box tops to turn in on a collection sheet in January . So my vote is give it a try.

 

Here is some more info on the program:

• Participating Products
• Collection Sheets
  • Turn Clipping into a Math or Art exercise:
    • Estimate the number that you have stored.
    • Organize in 10’s
    • Use a chart or graph
    • Guess how much we will collect this year.  (When was our highest year, what is our average, how can we improve)
    • Calculate your savings when you combine the app, coupons, and store coupons.
    • Design your own collection sheet
• Coupons

 

Keep on Clipping Leprechauns! Keep on Clipping and Clicking!

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Did you know you can explore our Green Gables library from your Jeffco Connect site?

You can! Let’s take a look at how you can earn those extra raffle tickets for exploring new genres, reading a new book, an ebook or simply picking out the right level book for your kiddo!

Steps to complete:

1. Log into Jeffco Connect
2. From the left side menu select District Library
   
3. Select Elementary schools
4. Select Green Gables Elementary from the dropdown
5. Enter any word in the search criteria to open up our library page
6. Logging in will open up more options for you to explore
   1. User ID: Your student ID (located on the Jeffco Connect home page in the student information window  or on any report card)
   2. Password: The last four digits of your student ID
7. You then can start to explore from the menu : Ebooks, book by level, book by genre
   

NOTE: On your mClass report your kiddo had a TRC Reading level. Here is a helpful link to convert that reading level to an AR or lexile level .   Using our library search you can search by Lexile level or AR Level  for reading level appropriate books for your kiddo. Research has shown that having a child read at their level improves confidence. Let’s be honest though as long as they reading… whatever they are reading ….that is a good thing.. Right? If you don’t want to be so technical about reading  levels the IPICK method also helps kiddo select a book from the library.

 

READ ON LEPRECHAUNS… READ ON #ROLRO

 

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For the next 13 days we will be participating in our Fall Read-A-Thon fundraiser.

To earn more raffle tickets for chances to win weekly and daily prizes complete the raffle tickets on the blue sheet sent home in Friday 9/22 folder. Bring  the raffle tickets to the school and place them in the jar at the front desk in the morning.

Here are some resources to help you achieve those extra raffle tickets:

• Set up online fund raising page: http://ptagreengables.com/2017/09/18/read-a-thon-2017/
• I raised $xx dollars:
  • Utilize the online tools to help market your child’s Read-A-Thon personal page.
• Read XX minutes:
  • Use the online tracker to enter flat amount times or use the interactive tracker.
• I read outside of school
  • To encourage readers see our 2016/2017 Read-A- Thon resource
• I read a new book
  • Want to trade books?
    • There are three little free libraries in our neighborhood the closest to the school is 2004 S Cape Way
    • Find the ones closest to you here https://littlefreelibrary.org/ourmap/
    • Trade books with your classmates
• I read a library book
  • Did you know you can search the GG library online prior to your scheduled visit?
    • http://library1.jeffco.k12.co.us:8080/kids?config=1830ysm#/categories
• I listened to an audio book
  • With your Jefferson County Library card you can access Tumble Books and Book Flix for free audio books
• I read a new Genre
  • Explore lists of books for your grade level. Some of our favorites are listed below:
    • http://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/books-for-kids-grades-k-5/
    • https://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews
• I read a newspaper or magazine
  • http://magazines.scholastic.com/
  • https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/kidspost/?utm_term=.4f3da642e61c

Let us know your tips and tricks for enjoying reading in your comments

Read on Little Leprechauns Read on!

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Have you set up your Read-A-Thon account up yet? Everybody is a winner just for setting up an account!

Drop Everything and read will happen September 25th.

Get those kids ready to read! 

Did you know? 

• Every student at Green Gables will receive a  bookmark! Every child is also entered into the daily raffle.
•  The top readers and top fundraisers will be entered into weekly drawings for large prizes.
• Raffle Prizes: Week 1
  
  • 9/25 –  Movie Theater Pass
  • 9/25 – Drop Everything and read bonus drawing – Target gift card $10
  • 9/26-  2 rounds of putter pride
  • 9/27-  $10 Magills Gift Card
  • 9/28 – $15 Tattered Cover Gift Card
  • 9/29- Cozy Shamrock Blanket
• Week 1 drawing – The Top 2 Readers and Fundraisers from each grade will be entered into a drawing for an E-reader tablet. The top 2 readers from each grade will receive a clip on book light.
• Raffle Prizes: Week 2
  
  • 10/2- Movie Theater Pass
  • 10/3 – 2 rounds of golf at putter pride
  • 10/4- $10.00 Magill’s gift card
  • 10/5- $15.00 Tattered Cover Gift card
  • 10/6 – Reading Bean Bag Chair
• Week 2 Drawing- The Top 2 Readers  and fund raisers from each grade will be entered into a drawing for an Ereader. The top 2 readers and fundraisers from each grade will receive a book fair gift card..

Top Class: Oct 12th PJ Popcorn Party and Teacher receives a gift card bundle

Top Fund Raisers ($300+) – Limo Ride to Pizza 10/20 and photos on the PTA board

Top Readers – 2 per grade – Photos in the library

Top Readers- Over 1000 min  10/20 Evening Carnival movie party with family

Rat Bucks- All participants who create a page get to pick a prize from the RAT online store.

School wide– If the school reaches their goal of reading 150,000 minutes all teachers will dye their hair green.

LET’S GET READY TO READ! 

 

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Our Fall Fund Raiser will kick off with our second annual Read-A-Thon on September 25th!

 

 

If you did not receive your personal code please contact greengablesptaco@yahoo.com with your child’s name and teacher.

Set up is as easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Go to www.read-a-thon.com/readers – From your tablet, computer, or phone
2. Create your profile with your secure secret code provided in your September 15th Friday Folder
3. Start tracking your reading minutes and sessions

Stay tuned for daily raffle prizes, resources, and awards for the top readers and top fundraisers!

Tips for Getting Started:

1. If you have more then one child at the school:
   • Set up both children under the same email account
   • You will be able to switch between the accounts by using the
     
2.  If you want to add minutes to your child’s account from  your phone:
   • From child’s main page select
   • Send yourself a text and have your code handy
   • Enter your code
   • Click on the Start a Reading Session

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