[CabotCommunity] Jabberlite for Tuesday November 7, 2006

Tue Nov 7 15:04:25 EST 2006

JABBERLITE   Tuesday, November 7, 2006

This Jabberlite contains information about:
Launch of Campaign for Cabot
Cabot Space Crunch Survey
Cabot Math Challenge
Newton Teachers in Contract Negotiations
Understanding our Differences
Directory Update
Blue Zone

Upcoming Dates
A complete & updated calendar for all events for the year can be found at www.cabotpto.org  

November 7, 2006Election Day and Bake Sale
November 7, 2006Child Assault Prevention Meeting for parents at Horace Mann 7PM - 8:30PM
November 7, 2006PTO Meeting, 8:40 AM
November 9, 2006Grade 5 Circus 9:15AM - 10:30AM (Grade 5 Parents/Guardians only please due to limited space)
November 9, 2006Understanding our Differences Grade 4  1:00 - 2:45 PM
November 10, 2006Veterans Day, NO SCHOOL
November 13, 2006School Committee Meeting, 7:30 PM
November 14, 2006Parent to Parent Series, Partnerships Between Parents/Guardians & Teachers
November 15, 2006CASP Open Board Meeting, 7:30PM New Art Center, 61 Washington Park, Newtonville
November 15 – 22, 2006PTO Food Drive for Newton Food Pantry
November 16, 2006Understanding our Differences Grade 3  1:00 - 2:45 PM
November 20, 2006School Council 6-7:30 PM
November 20, 2006METCO Parents' Council Meeting 7 - 9:00 PM Roxbury
November 20, 2006School Committee Caucus 7:00 PM
November 21, 2006Autumn Fest, 11 AM
November 22, 200612:00 Noon Dismissal for Thanksgiving
November 23 – 24, 2006Thanksgiving, NO SCHOOL
November 27, 2006School Committee Meeting, 7:30 PM

Annual Campaign For Cabot 2006- 2007
We have launched the Annual Campaign for Cabot !!  You should be receiving your letter and donation card this week. This Campaign is the single largest source of funding for the PTO ensuring the fulfillment of our mission to enrich the educational experience of all our children, support the school staff and build the community that makes Cabot School such a special place. 

The Campaign for Cabot was initiated several years ago because parents said that they would prefer to support the PTO by making a tax-deductible donation instead of engaging in numerous PTO fundraising events. This year the PTO will spend over $55,000 - which translates to approximately $133 per child - on a range of programs and resources.  Our annual budget and spending plan can be seen at www.cabotpto.org . 

Please feel free to ask us any questions about the Campaign.  We encourage you to be as generous as possible and we thank you in advance for your support. 

CABOT SPACE CRUNCH SURVEY – 
DEADLINE WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 8, 2006 AT MIDNIGHT
As most of you know, the Cabot PTO has constructed a survey to capture our community's views that will enable us to provide guidance to the Newton School Committee and help them make more informed decisions about the solutions they will ultimately recommend regarding the space crunch. Our voices count – make your voice heard!!   

Please complete the survey in full. We assure you that all responses will be kept confidential and no identifying information will be reported. The deadline for completing this survey is midnight November 8th, 2006.  You can complete it online anytime from NOW TO THE DEADLINE by clicking on this link http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=501442808878.  If you do not have a computer then please take a paper copy of the survey from the PTO Notice Board (by the Art room) & return by the deadline date to the Cabot PTO mailbox in the main office.

Not sure what options the School Committee is exploring? 
Go to http://www.newton.k12.ma.us/schoolcommittee/actions/elem_space.html  and see the report for yourself. Remember you can always email your views to the School Committee at schoolcommittee at newton.k12.ma.us .

And of course, THANKS to all 150 of you who have completed the online survey so far!  We will be sending out a summary of the survey and of all your thoughtful comments in the near future.  

CABOT MATH CHALLENGE – NEW INITIATIVE
The Cabot Math Challenge is an excited new initiative from the Cabot School Council and Dr. Quarcoo.  This month’s problem, Stairway to the Roof, can be found at http://www.cabotpto.org/math/ .  We are hoping that all Cabot students will try the problem.  Download a solution sheet at http://www.cabotpto.org/math/solutionsheet.doc and hand in your answer to one of the 3 Math Challenge boxes -- one on every floor. Students can work in teams and get assistance from parents and other sources.  Answers should be submitted by November 16, 2006. Thanks to Robin Moriarty and Matthew Tirrell for their help putting the project together.

This is a new program that we plan to continue throughout the year. Any comments, or suggestions will be greatly appreciated and should be directed to Emily Hess at politicalresources at hotmail.com  or to Shara Lewis at shara.lewis at comcast.net  Also, please let us know if you are interested in helping with the challenge. 

NEWTON TEACHERS IN CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS
You may be aware that all teaching professionals in Newton are currently without a contract & are at this time in negotiations with the City. According to Newton Teachers Association Union President, Cheryl Turgel, members of the NTA have agreed not to volunteer for committees or other events that meet outside of the school day & are not part of their professional responsibilities. They are however completely fulfilling their professional obligations.  We hope for all partied involved that this matter is resolved in the near future. 

UNDERSTANDING OUR DIFFERENCES, 4TH GRADE
This program will be running a segment on Thursday, November 9th from 1pm to 2:45pm on “Understanding Our Differences”. 
To be able to run this segment 3 volunteer parents are needed from each 4th grade to run various work stations: (1) writing looking through a mirror (2) a memory game (3) listening and following instructions while noise is occurring.  If you could help out please contact Rick Reilly 617-332-3006. This is an opportunity for you to be involved with the school in a meaningful way. The more participation, the better the learning experience will be for your child and all the children in the 4th grade classes.

CABOT PTO DIRECTORY QUESTIONS AND CHANGES
By now, all families who have paid their $25 PTO dues should have received their lovely, turquoise copy of the 2006-2007 Cabot Directory.  If you feel an error has been made with your order (ie: you didn’t get one), please email Jenny Gamson (jenny at seckler.com), Jo Doherty (jcdoherty11 at comcast.net) or Mary Kathryn Fallon (marykathf at aol.com) and we’d be happy to straighten things out.

We realize that in spite of best intentions to get all the information correct, there are bound to be some errors.  We will be distributing an addendum in January, as well as listing changes every so often in the E-Jabber, so please email Jenny with any edits that you’d like included.

Thank you to all who helped with the editing and distribution of the Directory!

BLUE ZONE PLEA
As we said last week, we are very concerned about the safety of our children at pick-up…… 
Take a moment to read this & let’s prevent an accident from happening to one of our children.  Please also remember to inform caretakers, (grandparents, babysitters, nannies, friends) who help with drop off and pick up and are not on our distribution list.  We need EVERYONE who participates in the safe arrival and departure of our students to be aware of the rules so that we can work together to have a safe environment.

ALL OF US need to take a moment to re-evaluate how we drive and behave outside Cabot at drop-off and particularly at pick-up. PLEASE:

-         DO NOT use/block any of the neighbor driveways – that’s just courtesy & common sense;
-         Drive slowly down Parkview Street outside school – it is a SCHOOL ZONE!
-         Do you know there is a crosswalk opposite the lobby entrance – don’t park on it!
-         During school hours Parkview is a ONE-WAY street!!!
-         Observe NO PARKING zones on Bridges Ave (behind school by the faculty parking lots)
-         Don’t use the Blue Zone as a parking space – cars are NOT TO BE LEFT UNATTENDED!!!!

We are ALL part of the Cabot community – so let’s model behaviors we want our children to emulate. Do you have ideas as to how things can work better? Do you grumble about the rules for the Blue Zone? Then help devise a better system. We NEED a team of parents who can brainstorm how to make the streets safe around CABOT.  Interested? Contact Daphne Potter  dfpotter at rcn.com or your PTO Presidents.

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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