Guest blog from Phil

Dear LREI Community,

Greetings. This month, four brief notes and reminders.

1. There are many special events this month, from concerts to Afterschool shares to a variety of grade and class presentations. I hope that you are able to participate in some number of these wonderful occasions. One event that will involve all LREI students is next week’s Book Week. (You will find more information about the specifics of Book Week after my letter.) A central component of Book Week is that each student will have the opportunity to spend time with an author, illustrator, editor or publisher—someone who makes her or his living in a manner that uses skills and talents that your children are asked to practice and develop on a daily basis. For LREI’s students, these visits validate the hard work put into honing their literary skills. Thank you to the Literary Committee for making these experiences possible as well as for the energy and thought that goes into the creation of the book fair and the annual Literary Evening. Tickets for this event are on sale now in the Sixth Avenue lobby. One final literary note. All four of our librarians are now members of American Library Association committees. This is quite an honor. Congratulations to these dedicated professionals.

• Lower School Librarian Stacy Dillon is serving on the 2009 Association for Library Service to Children’s (ALSC) Maureen Hayes Author/Illustrator Award.
• Early Childhood and Interdivisional Librarian Jesse Karp (LREI ’87) has just been invited to serve on the 2009-2010 Young Adult Library Services Association’s Great Graphic Novels for Teens selection committee.
• High School Librarian Karyn Silverman is currently serving on the 2009 Young Adult Library Services Association’s Michael L. Printz Award. The Michael L. Printz Award is an award for a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature.
• Middle School Librarian and Library Department Chair Jennifer Hubert Swan is currently serving on the 2009 Young Adult Library Services Association’s Alex Award. The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18.

2. A reminder and an update. While I am always happy to have people stop by to see me in my office at anytime, I am not always there. In order to make it easier to find me, I will be available for drop-in conversations in my Sixth Avenue office from 8:45AM-9:30AM on December 9th (NEW DATE), December 12th and December 17th. NO drop in hours on Friday December 5th.

3. We will be distributing an updated LREI Directory after Winter Break. Please contact Mary Shea (mshea@lrei.org) if you would like to revise your family’s information. Remember that you can print individual pages from the electronic version of the directory if you wish. Also, the most up-to-date school calendar is the one of the web site. On this page you can download LREI’s calendar to you iCal. You can choose which events are displayed on your version of our calendar by clicking on the “filter events” button on the left hand side of the calendar page.

4. Important Reminders
• Deadline for applying for Tuition Remission is December 15, 2008.
• Re-enrollment contracts will be mailed to all families no later than January 15, 2009.
• Re-enrollment contracts are due on February 1, 2009

We recognize that given current economic conditions, many families’ circumstances may have changed. If you are not currently receiving Tuition Remission and feel that changes in your family’s particular situation may now qualify you for Tuition Remission, we encourage you to apply now. Contact the Business Office to do so.

Warmly,

Phil

 

 

LOWER SCHOOL NOTES & ATTACHMENTS
(click on the links below to view and print information from teachers and specialists.)

  • Kindergarten: Crystal & Samson’s class (1204-K-CSletter)
  • 3rd & 4th grade Chorus: Please click here (1204-Chorus) for a letter from Ledell
  • All grades: Please click here for the ‘at a glance’ calendar for the 2008-09 school year.

 

UPCOMING PARENT MEETINGS & EVENTS

  • 12/8 – 12: Book Week. Click here (Book Week) for events.
  • 12/8, 8:45AM: LS POCOC Meeting
  • 12/10, 6PM: Parent SEED Meeting
  • 12/11, 8:45AM: Adoption Committee Meeting
  • 12/16, 6:30PM: Winter Concert
  • 12/19: School Closes at 12Noon for Winter Break (Fours through First grade dismissal at 11:45AM). No Afterschool.
  • 1/6/09, Tuesday: School re-opens
  • For an up-to-date, searchable all school calendar, please visit www.lrei.org/calendar

 

 

 

WEEKLY ANNOUNCEMENTS

* * *

Children of Color Book Club: Sponsored by the Lower School and Middle School Parents of Children of Color Committees (POCOCs)
The POCOC Winter Book Club for Kids is here! We look forward to another fun evening of books, camaraderie, community building and of course, food!

Date: Friday December 5th, 6-8pm. Please click here (1204-POCOCBooks) for more details and click here (1204-POCOCBookQuestions) for questions being discussed at the Book Club.

A few reminders: Refreshments: POTLUCK family-style dinner. POCOCs please sign up to bring something. The sign-up sheet is posted in the lobby.
Reading Resource Corner: Please bring in 3-5 books representing people of color for our Literature Resource Table.

Volunteer: Please contact Shindy by email shindy-at-kenduuwa.com to volunteer to make this event a success. We need help with set-up, arts and crafts, reading resource table, clean-up. Thank You!

* * *

Holiday Helpers, from the Class of 2010:
Dear Parents, Do you need to get your holiday shopping done without the stress of dragging your children along with you? Send them to Holiday Helpers sponsored by the class of 2010!

On Saturday, December 6th between 9:00AM-3:00PM, the eleventh grade will be hosting a Day of Holiday Fun for your children. Activities will include holiday card making, movies, games, and much, much more! We will provide lunch to those children who are with us between 12:00PM and 1:30PM and healthy snacks for all. The high school students participating in this event all have babysitting experience and there will be three faculty members present, including the high school nurse, Joanne. We believe this day of holiday cheer will be beneficial for parents and enjoyable for the kids. The hourly fee is $8.50 and 50% off for families of two or more.

For more information or to reserve a spot contact:

You can also sign up at the Sixth Avenue reception desk.

Note: This event is a fundraiser for the class of 2010 and your support is greatly appreciated.
We hope to see you and your child on December 6th!

Sincerely,
The Class of 2010

 

* * *

Book Week is back! December 8 – 12, 2008
Children’s and Young Adult authors and illustrators will be visiting classrooms throughout the school, from the Fours to twelfth grade. Please check the bulletin board in the Sixth Avenue Lobby for the day’s schedule.

Tuesday, December 9, is this year’s Literary Evening, called “LAUGH LINES.” Five talented humor writers – David Rakoff, Patty Marx, Jenny Allen, Isabel Rose and Marisa Marchetto – will read from their work at the Charlton Street Performing Arts center from 7:00PM – 9:00PM We hope you’ll be there to enjoy these witty writers, whose work has produced novels, graphic memoirs, SNL skits, New Yorker stories and children’s books. Tickets are being sold in the Sixth Avenue Lobby and the Library. Childcare is available so please sign up.

The Book Fair begins on Wednesday, December 10, at 2:00 PM in the Sixth Avenue Auditorium and ends on Friday, December 12, at 6:00 PM. Stop by and buy! Browsers welcome too! Books for all ages, librarian recommendations, perennial favorites, adult reading, gift ideas, cookbooks and gift vouchers for teachers and specialists are available.

All proceeds go towards the LREI Literary Initiative, which helps the school’s library and librarians better serve our community.

There are many ways to volunteer during Book Week – Book Fair set up or clean up, sell Literary Evening tickets, be an author buddy – so please check the sign-up sheet in the Sixth Avenue Lobby and help Book Week be another great success.

Please click here (Book Week) to see more information about Book Week.

* * *

Red is Green Monthly Recycle Drives: Thanks to all the families who participated in the first LREI Recycle Month – we collected over 1000 plastic bags to be recycled! We’ll be keeping the box in the Sixth Avenue lobby for a while longer, so please continue to drop off plastic bags. Also, you can always bring your bags to Whole Foods, Staples, Barnes & Nobles and other chain stores to be recycled.

This month, Red is Green is collecting used sneakers! Through December 19 you can bring your old athletic shoes (no shoes containing metal please) to school and drop them off in the boxes located in the lobby of either building. Sneakers will be ground up and recycled into outdoor basketball courts, volleyball courts, tennis courts, soccer fields, and playgrounds through the NIKE grind program. For more information please check out their website at www.nikereuseashoe.com.

Still to come… January is recycle your greeting cards month! Save all your cards this holiday season and we’ll be collecting them in January. St. Jude’s Ranch accepts recycled cards which they use to make “green” holiday cards. The proceeds go towards helping abused, abandoned and neglected children.

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Toys for Tots:
Dear LREI families, During the holiday season, it is a tradition in many cultures to give children gifts. Unfortunately, while lots of families can afford to give gifts, some families cannot. We are asking you to donate new un-wrapped toys to Toys for Tots. Toys for Tots is a non-profit organization whos mission is to distribute toys to these less fortunate families. You can drop off new toys in the Toys for Tots box located by the front desk in the Sixth-Avenue lobby until December 16th. These toys must be non-violent and non-projectile, and appropriate for children ages 0-16. Some ideas for toys are: sports equipment, art supplies, books and stuffed animals. Please bear in mind that there are children who will be very glad once they receive the toy that you have donated.
Thank You,
Margaret, Sharyn and Sherezada’s 5th and 6th Grade Advisory

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