Update from the Leopold PFO for the Week of January 12, 2015

I hope everyone had an enjoyable winter break. It was a harsh awakening last week with getting back into the routine and the extreme cold! The PFO has some fun events ahead to help us get through winter and into spring.Tito's Readathlon Finish Line Event
Tito's Readathlon challenge is coming to a close!  Please join us at the Finish Line event on Tuesday, January 13th at 6:00 pm.  Bring your completed training logs to pick a prize and take home another new book.  Students will have one more opportunity to listen to local community leaders reading books and to participate in literacy games.  Warm up with some hot chocolate, popcorn and healthy snacks.  If you would like to inquire about transportation, please contact our Family and Community Engagement Liaison, Jeremy Thornton.

Remember to keep up those good reading habits even after this event!
Keep Clipping and Saving Box Tops
The next Box Tops deadline is January 23 so keep clipping! Collection sheets should be coming home this week, but if your student's doesn't make it home or you need more, click here for a printable sheet. The winning class will get a cookie decorating party!!

Check out the Box Tops for Education (BTFE) website atwww.boxtops4education.com to find coupons and new recipes using Box Tops products. Join BTFE to support Leopold, and participate in contests that could earn hundreds of bonus Box Tops for our school. Keep an eye out for non-food products that have Box Tops such as Hanes clothing and Avery office products. Also look for bonus Box Tops coupons at the grocery store checkout and on or inside product packages. Expired Box Tops cannot be submitted so please check the expiration date before sending to school. We can submit Box Tops at any time of the year so if the expiration date is within 60 days please send them to school immediately so we can submit them before they expire. Sadly we often have to recycle dozens of expired box tops. That felt like throwing dimes down the drain. Let's plug the drain and keep the cash! 



Leopold Giving Tree
Many thanks to those of you who made a classroom donation from our Giving Tree. A special thank you to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, an adopt-a-school partner, who made a delivery of Giving Tree goodies before the holidays. The PFO will also be delivering some items from the list tomorrow! I know our staff really appreciates this support for their classrooms and students.


Although we had a holiday push, we still invite staff to use this resource for classroom needs, and families to see if there is something you might want to contribute to help our school. Click HERE to see the full list of requests (also available through the PFO website). If you see one or more that you would like to fulfill, please email Kim Holdener at [email protected] that you will be purchasing or donating the item, and let Kim know when and where you will deliver the item (office, classroom, etc.). If you would like a receipt, please let Kim know and we will email one to you.

Take a look at the list and see if you might already have these items in your home. If you're not using them, they can be put to good use at school!

Please note that donations are tax deductible if given through the Giving Tree program to the PFO, which is a 501(3)(c) organization. All gifts become the property of Leopold Elementary and should stay at the school, even if a teacher does not.
What is the PFO?
As a follow up to the information in the last email, where we shared the things our parents and faculty (PFO) have been involved with over the past couple of years, we also want to share how easy it is to get involved if you haven't yet! As we plan our spring events, we will have many volunteer opportunities. These activities we host cannot happen without parent and family involvement. We look forward to parent help at our Readathlon tomorrow night (contact Sara Dawkins at [email protected] if you'd still like to volunteer), our spring staff appreciation lunch, the Timber Wolf Trample - our annual fun run and fundraiser, our spring Spirit Week (with a competition between classes), spring grounds cleanup volunteers, and we will need engaged parents to join our PFO Board in the coming months.

Many of these opportunities require a small time commitment, but also allow you to get involved in your child's educational experience, and meet new families and staff through the PFO. Some roles have a bigger commitment, but also develop great friendships, leadership skills and more.

If you would like to come meet other parents, learn more about what the PFO is doing, and find out about getting involved, you can join us for our next PFO family meeting on Tuesday, February 10 at 7 pm in the Leopold library.

4-year-old and 5-year-old Kindergarten Registration

Registration for 4-year-old kindergarten (4K) and 5-year-old kindergarten wilMonday, February 2, 2015 from 2:00 - 6:00 PM at all Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) elementary schools except Lincoln, Randall and Marquette. Lincoln, Randall and Marquette parents should register at their partnering schools of Midvale, Franklin and Lapham, respectively. Children are welcome to accompany parents, but they are not required to attend registration.

All families will need to provide the student's proof of age (birth certificate or official medical record) and proof of residency (utility bill, lease or mortgage). 

Pre-register online beginning January 26 and print off a verification form to bring along.

Information for 4-year-old children:

All children who are four years old on or before September 1, 2015 and live in the Madison Metropolitan School District are eligible to participate in the 4K program. 4K is not required. 4K Registration is only for families that have a child who has not been in a MMSD early education program or for families who are new to MMSD.

The half-day 4-year old kindergarten program is held at several MMSD elementary schools and participating early care and education centers throughout the Madison community. The program is offered free of charge.* (*There is a $40 consumable materials fee)

Find out more at mmsd.org/4K or (608) 442-2933.

Information for 5-year-old children:

A child must be 5 years old on or before September 1, 2015 to register for Kindergarten. 

Kindergarten registration is only for families that have a child who has not been in a MMSD 4-year-old kindergarten (4K) or early education program or for families who are new to MMSD. Parents of children who currently attend a MMSD 4K or early education program do not need to register again and will only need to attend the enrollment date at their child's school in August. 

Find out more at mmsd.org/kinder or contact your school.

Families that have an incoming Kindergarten student who would like to be considered for the 2015 MMSD Summer School program must fill out enrollment and parent questionnaire by March 16. For additional information regarding the 5K MMSD Summer School program, please contact the Summer School Office at 663-1914.

Mark your calendar for August 

You will still need to attend the enrollment session in August at your child's school to verify their information. Stay tuned for more information about this important step.


Girl Scouts
Girl Scouting is where today's girls can become tomorrow's leaders. 

Membership in Girl Scouts is open to girls in grades K- 12; women and men over 18 can join as adult members.Most girls join for fun and friendship, but they also find out about building character and self-esteem and serving their communities-the core qualities of Girl Scouting. In Girl Scouts, girls find a safe place to grow and share new experiences, learn to relate to others, develop values, and contribute to society.

Learn more about Girl Scouts at our informational sign-up nights: 
January 13th at 6pm at Lakeview Public Library 
January 26th at 6pm at Pinney Public Library 
January 28th at 6:30pm at Sequoya Public Library 

For more information contact Ellen Weiler at 608-237-1168 or [email protected]

Communication
This weekly email is prepared in English and will be posted in both English and Spanish on our blog each week (http://www.leopoldpfo.org/ leopold-pfo-blog ).

Este correo electrónico semanal se prepara en Inglés y será publicada en Inglés y Español en nuestro blog cada semana (http://www.leopoldpfo. org/leopold-pfo-blog ).
Have a great week! 


 

 Kris
 

--

Kris Aman, President

Leopold Parent Faculty Organization

Encouraging Kids. Connecting Families. Serving Leopold.