September 1st and three days of the new school year are already hist= ory

To: Parents, Guardians and Students

From: Dr. G.

Re: Report Card Day

Date: November 16, 2007

Students in grades one th= rough six will be receiving their first report card of the year today. It is unbe= lievable that today is the ninth day of the second marking period and the fifty-four= th day of school. Next Thursday = is Thanksgiving and Christmas is only forty days away! It m= ust be age that makes time fly the way it does. I bet if you ask any of the childre= n here, they will say that December 25^th is months away, that they have = been in school forever, and that summer will never come. As adults, things just seem to snea= k up on us!

This morning, the Sunshin= e Club and the staff at Andover Elementary hosted a going away party for Sandy, the bus driver on orange school bus number 4. After eight and a h= alf years of driving students to and from school, she has decided to expand on = some of her other saleable skills as she enters the world of business. In a brief conversation, she said s= he didn’t know anyone when she first came to Andover and, with a year and a half old= child, she needed a job but, as an overprotective mom, she needed her baby with he= r. Driving the bus allowed her to have= the best of both worlds and also have the days off that coincided with her older children. On behalf of the sc= hool family, we wish Sandy well in her new career. Novem= ber 21^st is her last official bus run. That would be about her 3,019^th run, excluding additional field trips= . Sandy will be around the school as usual as she is very active in the PTA. <= /span>As the chair of the Refreshment Committee, she will be preparing supper for the teachers on Monday night during parent conferences and she will also coordi= nate the continental breakfast on Wednesday for Intergenerational Day.

Next week is a busy week = as the school holds parent conferences on Monday and Tuesday, starting at 1:30 p.m. These are early release days for students as is Wednesday, which is Intergenerational Day. Students will end th= eir day at 1:00 p.m. = all next week. The Scholastic Book Fair, sponsored by the PTA, will run Monday through Wednesday of next week. The times for the Book Fair are 1:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Mo= nday, 8:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m. on Tu= esday, and 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday. If, for some r= eason, you are unable to attend a planned conference next week, please call the sc= hool so the teacher can adjust his/her schedule accordingly. School will resume on Monday, Nove= mber 26^th.

Schedule for Intergenerational D= ay

&= nbsp;

9:00 a.m. =        Guests of grades 1-6 begin to arrive through the school cafeteria, sign in/receive a badge, enjoy continental breakfast and light music.

9:30 a.m. =        Announcement made for guests to proceed to the classrooms.

9:45 a.m.        AM Kindergarten and Pre-K guests begin to arrive in the cafeteria.

10= :00 a.m.        <= /span>Kindergarten and Pre-K guests invited down to the classrooms.

10:30 a.m.        <= /span>Announcement made that Intergenerational D= ay for AM Pre-K through grade 6 has concluded.

12:15 p.m.        PM Kindergarten and Pre-K guests arrive through the gym entry doors, sign in/receive a badge, and proceed to classrooms.

1= 2:45 p.m.        = PM Intergenerational Day is concluded.

Guests a= rriving for the morning activities are asked to remain in the café unti= l the announcement is made inviting them to proceed to the classrooms.

Brownie Troop 5596 will be collecting non-perishable food items in the cafeteria near the sign-in table. The food will be donated to the seniors in Andover. The troop will have an additi= onal collection box at Town Hall for anyone wishing to drop off donations there.= The girls are also looking for wint= er clothes, in good condition, that will be shared with families in Andover. The winter clothes can be left at t= he Town Library.

Picture Retakes for students who forgot their order envelopes on picture day, who were absent, or whose parents were not pleased with the fi= rst sitting, have an opportunity on November 27^th, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving break, between 9= :00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., to have their pictures taken. P.M. Kindergarten and Pre-K students who need retakes need to come in during this morning session as there will be no afternoon time.

The Holiday Breakfast and Craft Sale is coming up fast. Be sure to put Saturday, December = 1^st, on your calendar so you don’t miss the fun. The cost is $3.50 in advance for a= dults and $2.50 for children and seniors. Checks should be made payable to the PT= A (the flyer was sent home a while back). Tickets at the door are $.50 cents = more for each age category.

The School Sportswear Sale is still going on and orders will be accepted through November 30^th. Samples are on display, along with = order forms, in the front lobby of the school. Don’t be left out, join in the Andover Elementary spirit!

Speaking of spirit, the <= st1:stockticker w:st=3D"on">PTA is in the final stages of coordinating Spirit Days and will be sending h= ome information shortly. Once the= days and themes are finalized, I will be sure to post them in the Friday memo and also on the school web page.

Let us all take time on Thursday to reflect on the many people, as = well as things, that we have to be grateful for and, during that time, let those special family members and friends know that they are appreciated and loved= . My very best to all of you for a gr= eat Thanksgiving with your family and friends! For those of you who will be travel= ing, have a safe trip going and coming home!

___________= _______

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Please enjoy the following samples of descriptive writ= ing, compliments of the fourth grade: