[CabotCommunity] Jabberlite Oct 3 2006

[marykathf at aol.com]

JABBERLITE   TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2006
 Upcoming Dates
A complete & updated calendar for all events for the year can be found at www.cabotpto.org  
October 2, 2006Yom Kippur, NO SCHOOL
October 5, 2006Anti Bullying Workshop 7pm- 8:30pm, Bowen School
October 5, 2006Newton Programs & Services for Students with Special Needs 7:30 PM Newton Education Center, 
October 6, 2006Cabot School Student Pictures (rain date 10/13)
October 9, 2006Columbus Day, NO SCHOOL
October 10, 2006PTO Coffee for all Grades & Meeting, 8:40 AM
October 10, 2006PTO Gift Wrap Orders Due
October 10, 2006School Committee Meeting, 7:30 PM
October 11, 2006Grade 4 Bike Safety 8:45 AM (rain date 10/18)
October 13, 2006Rain date for Cabot School Student Pictures
October 14, 2006Coffee Pond Family Photo Day (rain date 10/15)
October 15, 2006Cabot Connecting Families Play date 2-4pm Larz Anderson Park, Brookline (rain date 10/22)
October 16, 2006School Council, 6-7:30 PM
October 19, 2006Parent to Parent Series, Grade K thru 5, Overview of Open Circle Curriculum. 8:35AM – 9:30AM
October 19, 2006Early Release Day, 12:30 PM Dismissal

 
 
Back to school night 
 
We hope you were able to join us last Tuesday evening at Back to School night.  The faculty prepared presentations to inform you about their expectations and about the curriculum they will cover this year.  Thank you to the teachers for all the effort they put into their presentations to keep us informed.
 
Dr. Quarcoo gave a presentation on the current issues facing our school including the space crunch and other influences that will affect our children’s education through-out elementary school and beyond.   What can we do to help better our children’s education?  Stay informed and be advocates for our children and our schools.  Dr. Quarcoo also emphasized Cabot School’s Core Values; Life-Long Learning, Respect for Self and Others & Commitment to School and Community.  These core values are used as broad statements of purpose that help our school focus its energies in areas of curriculum, programs and policies.  They are belief statements about attitudes, skills and approaches to learning that we want to foster in our children and are intended to permeate and reflect every aspect of school, home and community life.
 
Cabot Political Issues Committee
 
Cabot Parent Meeting  - "The Space Crunch at Cabot"
Friday, Oct. 13th, 8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. 
At Isabelle Thacker's Home 
19 Salisbury Road (from Cabot School, go left on Cabot St., then left on Salisbury to #19) 
617 795 2332 
 
What is going to happen next year? When we're asked "What does Cabot want?" what will we say? 
 -- Can we install a modular (temporary) classroom somewhere at Cabot? 
-- Do we want an entire grade to be relocated to another school building? 
-- Should we combine our art room and our music room? 
-- Do we think redistricting can solve the problem? 
-- Do we want to preserve small class size? 
 
The School Committee is currently examining elementary enrollment and the use of space city-wide. They will vote on a plan to relieve overcrowding on December 11th. They want to hear from parents at a forum on October 30th. What will we say? Which options are feasible? desirable? 
 
Please come to a Cabot parent meeting on Oct.13th for an opportunity to: 
 -- learn about the overcrowding at Cabot and other schools 
-- discuss what changes might be in store for next year 
-- gauge parent opinion about various options 
-- gather suggestions for our principal, superintendent and School Committee 
 
Join us on the 13th, if you can, and stayed tuned for more information as it becomes available. Go to the next School Committee meeting (or watch it on NewTV) -- check www.newtonpublicschools.com for agenda and related reports. 
 
If you cannot attend on the 13th, but would be interested in an evening meeting for Cabot parents, please let us know.  
Prepared by - Sarah Ecker sarahecker at comcast.net, Sue Covitz suecovitz at rcn.com and Isabelle Thacker isabelle at thackers.net  - Cabot PTO Political Issues Committee 
 
Cabot Connecting Families
 
Please join Cabot Connecting Families at co-chair Mary Heney’s house on Saturday, October 7, 2006 at 10:00 a.m. to help plan our first social event of the year, a “play date” at Larz Andersen Park.  CCF is a great way for Newton and Boston families to get together and to get to know each other.  Please RSVP to Mary Heney (mheney at rcn.com) (617) 323-9336 or Sara Goldberg (salgoldberg at comcast.net) (617) 527-0095.
 
Parent Volunteers Needed for Reading Partners Program
 
Would you like to help in a primary classroom?  Cabot School is recruiting volunteers to help support readers in the first and second grades as they develop and strengthen literacy skills. If we have enough support, we will extend the program to the third grade classrooms also.  No prior teaching or tutoring experience is required.
The Reading Partners Program will begin its fourth year in December 2006. We are asking for a commitment of two days per week for 45 minutes each day.  The time slots vary but are in the morning for grades one and two.  Grade three time slots are not yet determined.  Each time slot is during the literacy block in the individual classrooms.  Volunteers pick which two days they would like to work.   
Parent volunteers will work one-on-one with students, listening to them read.  Cari Nelson, Literacy Specialist, will provide training on how to support readers.  The training will teach parents how to prompt students to support the use of reading strategies.  Cari will be available to coach and support parent volunteers throughout the program. 
For more information, or to sign up, please contact Cari Nelson at Carolyn_Nelson at newton.k12.ma.us  or Liz Haas at haas.joffe at rcn.com
 
CABOT DIRECTORY – We are sending it off to Print Soon – Make sure you get your copy and that your entry is correct!!
 
NEW FAMILIES: If you are a family new to Cabot this year, you should have received in your child’s backpack the entry that will appear in the Directory based on your registration information. Upon receipt, please check your entry & send the form back ONLY IF THERE ARE CHANGES,  by October 4, 2006.  You may return the form either in your child’s backpack or put them in the PTO Mailbox in the office. We hope to have the Directories back from the printers ready for distribution in mid-October.
ALL FAMILIES: Thank you to everyone who has returned your Dues and Volunteer Form.  This form is the only way we know you would like to receive a directory.  Please double check to ensure that you have returned the form if you would like a directory as we order only a certain amount from the printer.  Can’t find the form? Don’t worry, you can get a copy online at www.cabotpto.orgJabberwock/News  Welcome Packet - Dues & Volunteer Form (Word doc) If you have not yet turned in your form, please return it by October 4, 2006.  
Also, like last year we are selling advertising space in the Directory to local businesses. As a Cabot parent if you have a business that you would like to advertise in our Directory contact Rick Reilly, our parent volunteer Advertising Manager -  rmreilly at rcn.com  617-332-3006. Be aware that copies of the Directory are ONLY distributed to Cabot families.
 
Anti-Bullying Workshop for Parents
 
Project INTERFACE presents an Anti-Bullying Workshop for Parents October 5th from 7pm- 8:30pm at Bowen School, 280 Cypress Street, Newton Centre. This is a free program open to parents at all schools. The workshop will provide practical tips & tactics for standing up to bullying behavior as a victim or bystander, enable parents to understand the active role that they must take in making their children’s environment safe & secure, role playing actual case scenarios, review methods for incorporating this learning into ongoing family discussions & practice parent-child conversations. Suzanne Gilfix & Dave Shannon, Diverse Solutions Consulting, are the creators of “The Anti-Bullying Solution (TABS)”, a program designed around a whole-school approach to preventing bullying behavior.
 
Newton Parent Advisory Council for Special Education Meetings
 
Please be aware of these upcoming meetings:
Thursday, October 5th  - Newton Programs and Services for Students with Special Needs by Margie Daniels, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Services. Meeting is in Room 210  
Thursday, November 2nd - “Making Peace with Autism”   Susan Senator, author and parent of a son with autism, will speak on her family’s experiences and on her book, “Making Peace with Autism; One Family’s Story of Struggle, Discovery and Unexpected Gifts”.  Margaret L. Bauman, Pediatric Neurologist, Mass General Hospital  says “I LOVE THIS BOOK!! This is a book that every parent and professional working with autistic children should own, read and reread… These children have such enormous potential in their own way. It is so refreshing to know that someone else sees it too.” 
Sue will discuss her experiences, her book and her ongoing work to build the best life possible for her son.  She says on her website, “Throw away expectation and you may be pleasantly surprised.”  You can buy signed books at the meeting or order on Amazon.  Sue is a Brookline resident and her website is www.susansenator.com. Meeting is in Room 318.
All meetings are at 7:30 PM at the Education Center, 100 Walnut St, Newton 02460. Please contact Leslie Lockhart if you need additional information: 617-527-5046 or newtonspedpac at yahoo.com
 
Cabot Student Picture Day  - This Friday - October 6th!
 
You should have received an order form with instructions on how to order school pictures. For those of you new to school, Coffee Pond takes an individual student photo & a class photo. If you would like to place an order, the order form must be filled out completely & sent into school on or before picture day. Any orders placed after picture day will require a $5 late fee to be processed. Extra order forms should be available from the office.
 
Coffee Pond Family Picture Day  
 
Time is running out to sign up for Family Picture Day. If you want a high quality family picture which will be ready in time for the holiday season, ACT NOW! For further information contact our parent volunteer coordinator, Sharon Dwyer at 617 641 2342 or jsordwyer at rcn.com.  Cabot School will receive the sitting fees charged by Coffee Pond as part of this fundraiser.  All proceeds received will benefit the outdoor Cabot Community Park to be used for recreational & educational purposes. Help support this initiative & worthy cause! 
 
GIFT WRAP FUNDRAISER
 
Time is running out for the Gift Wrap Fundraiser so get busy peddling gift wrap to neighbors and co-workers.  Every year the Gift Wrap Fundraiser is one of the biggest money makers for the PTO.  Questions, please contact Kate Johnson at kate at textreviews.com.  ALSO, don't forget to include out-of-town friends and family by going to SallyFoster.com and giving them the e-mails of all your favorite out-of-towners.  In addition to raising important funds for Cabot School, the more gift wrap you sell, the more prizes your children can win.
 
 
LIBRARY VOLUNTEERS
 
Thank you to all of you who have agreed to volunteer in the Cabot Library.  We are still looking for volunteers to come in and help with the following classes:
 
Mr. Adams
Mrs. Forseter
Mrs. Mann
Mr. Springer
 
Interested, contact Kate Johnson at kate at textreviews.com.
 
The School Store is Open
 
Great news – the Cabot School Store will now be open every Tuesday morning from 8:10am – 8:30am beginning on September 26, 2006.  Stop by and stock up on school supplies.  Proceeds benefit 5th Grade Activities.
 
Register your email to receive PTO emails 
 
Our webmaster Mie-Yun Lee has been hard at work updating our website & email distribution system. If you are a new family to Cabot & need to register, or if your email changes or you want to add another email to our distribution system, please go to stinfo/cabotcommunity_cabotpto.org href="http://cabotpto.org/mailman/listinfo/cabotcommunity_cabotpto.org" target=_blankhttp://cabotpto.org/mailman/listinfo/cabotcommunity_cabotpto.org. You will be guided through the steps & will receive a confirmation email to indicate you have been successfully added to the Cabot PTO email distribution list. In the event you have any questions please contact our webmaster, Mie-Yun Lee at  mylcabot at gmail.com 
 
PTO Meetings
 
The minutes of the first PTO meeting of the year are now posted online at www.cabotpto.org Take a few minutes to read up on what your PTO is doing to benefit your child’s experience at Cabot. 
Don’t forget to join us at our next PTO meeting on Tuesday October 10 at 8:35am in the Library.
 
Compiled for you by the Cabot PTO 
 
Mary Kathryn Fallon
Cabot PTO Co-President
10 Worth Circle,
Newton, MA 02458
617-244-1821
MaryKathF at aol.com
 
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