To: Parents, Guardians and Students

From: Dr. G.

Re: Thanksgiving

Date: November 17, 2006

Next week is a short week with three half days. Students in grades 1-6 will be dismissed at 1:00 p.m. each day. Kindergarten will run from 8:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for the AM and PM sessions respectively. Parents will be meeting with teachers for fall conferences on Monday and Tuesday. Please be sure you have made your appointments. Also, if you feel you need more time to discuss your child’s progress, please make a second appointment so that teachers can keep on schedule as some parents need to return to work. Report cards are being sent home today. The Scholastic Book Fair, sponsored by the PTA, will be in operation on these three days. Hours of operation will be Monday, 1:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Tuesday, 8:30 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., and Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Intergenerational Day is Wednesday, November 22^nd. A continental breakfast will be served from 9:00 a.m. until 9:30 a.m., compliments of the PTA. From 9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m., grandparents/ parents will be invited to visit their children’s classrooms. A PA announcement will be made at the conclusion of Intergenerational Day. The student day runs until 1:00 p.m. Students and staff are looking forward to the visit.

Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on the many people and things in our lives that have made a difference. Children write about how thankful they are for their parents, siblings, grandparents, teachers, and a country that allows for freedoms that are not found in every government. Last Saturday, we as a Nation gave thanks for the men and women who have served or who presently serve in the armed services.

Brownie Troop 5596 will be doing a community service to benefit the seniors of Andover who have given so much over time and now find that fixed incomes and prices of gas and commodities sometimes make it difficult to stretch their food budget. The troop will be collecting non-perishable food items specifically to benefit the Andover senior citizens. Donation boxes will be set up at the library and Town Hall from November 18^th through April 7^th. A special collection at Andover Elementary School will be held on November 22^nd during Intergenerational Day. Thank you for your generosity.

The sixth grade is planning their first bake sale on November 29^th as part of their fundraisers to cut the cost of their end of the year activities. At a meeting earlier in the year, parents voted to have the sixth graders work at some fundraisers to cover at least a portion of the total cost of the activities. Cost for the “healthy snacks” will run about $.25 each.

Next week, when you are in the building, take some time to look at some of the art work and writing displayed on the walls and bulletin boards throughout the school. The hallway that runs from the café to the art room has a wonderful display of work. Mr. Ames asked students to paint a picture of something they did during the summer and then to write about what was depicted in the drawing. You will see and read about one student standing in awe in front of the Washington Monument, the sadness and starkness of a hospital room, the thrill of watching a cousin race his Honda, the bubbles from a bubble machine that greeted the visitor at a birthday party, and much more. Mrs. Caron’s class shows an illustrated story about Tom Turkey. Mrs. Caron and Mr. Schardt also had each of their students collect and press 10 different leaves. They then used the leaves as the medium to create a picture. “Class Pictures”, a cooperative painting venture, gave each student in each class a chance to add their personal dimension to what appears to be a study in abstract painting. It all started with three dots placed on the paper by the art teacher who began a discussion about which way the dot was facing and what it was expressing. These are some of the things we’ll miss if we don’t stop to enjoy the creative genius of our students so prominently displayed around the building.

Please check out the flyer that went home today regarding the annual “Stuff the Cruiser” event. The date and time for the event is December 15^th at 1:30 p.m. Last year, we collected over 820 toys that were distributed to children who otherwise would not receive a toy during this season of giving.

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