Archie T. Morrison School

PTO News

March 2006

www.gpvillage.com/morrison

This is an eventful month! From Jim Plunkett night, Uno’s night, the Sock Hop, Candy Bar Bingo; it’s lots of fun to be a kid and to be a parent at Morrison School!

Marie-Anne, Amy and Kerrie

Dates to Remember:

ÞFebruary 28 – May 30 (Tuesdays) – 3rd Grade MCAS Tutoring

ÞMarch 3 (Friday) – Jim Plunkett Fundraiser

ÞMarch 6, 13, 20, 27 (Mondays) – Media Madness

ÞMarch 8 (Wednesday) – Uno’s Lunch & Dinner

ÞMarch 10 (Friday) – Fourth and Fifth Grade Candy Bar Bingo

ÞMarch 10 - March 24 – Spring Fundraiser

ÞMarch 14 (Tuesday) – PTO Meeting

ÞMarch 28 (Tuesday) – 5th Grade Yearbook Meeting

ÞMarch 29 (Wednesday) – PIP Supermarket Math

ÞMarch 31 (Friday) – Crazy Sock Hop

ÞApril 4 (Tuesday) - Election Day Bake sale

ÞApril 7 (Friday) – PIP Event: Racing for Robotics

MCAS Tutoring - PIP is funding our 3rd grade MCAS Parent Math Tutoring Program that begins February 28th for 10 Tuesdays 3-4pm after school. There isnotransportation provided this year. PIP is also funding take home booklets for all Braintree Public School 4th and 5th graders not currently in a MCAS preparation program. We hope parents will work with their children to complete the booklets (answer keys are available).

Media Madness - All are invited to come for fun evenings to blitz the Morrison Library every Monday during March beginning the 7th from 6:00- 8:00pm. If necessary, bring the children; their time will be occupied wisely. No time commitment is too small.

Come be a part of revitalizing our Media Center. Let's give our children the opportunity to fully enjoy the benefits of an organized library. Regardless of budget cuts, we can move forward and make a difference in enhancing our children's education. Hope to see you there!

Uno’s Lunch & Dinner - Please join us at Pizzeria Uno at the South Shore Plaza on Wednesday, March 8th from 5-9 pm for a Family Fun Night. Fifteen percent of your entire purchase will be donated to our school. Please visit our website to print out a coupon that must accompany your dine in or take out order. Hope to see everyone there!!

Candy Bar Bingo - B4 - G47 - BINGO! Hey 4th and 5th graders! Friday, March 10th, 6:30 - 8pm in the cafeteria is Candy Bar Bingo night. Since space is limited we ask that only 4th and 5th graders attend. We also remind you that this is not a "drop off" event; please bring a parent or guardian with you to join in on the fun. The grand-prize winner will take home a 5lb chocolate bar. Look for a reminder flyer in the backpacks the week of the event. As always, 5th graders, we'll be capturing your fun on film for the yearbook. During this event, we will be collecting donations of gently worn season appropriate clothing for children (infant - high school) for Sunny Shaw’s Kids Closet

Spring Fundraiser – The Spring Fundraiser will begin Friday March 10 and conclude on March 24th. Each child will receive a Yankee Candle catalogue and a David's Cookie Doughcatalogue to bring home through the backpacks. The PTO will earn a 40% profit through each program. Please make checks payable to the Morrison PTO. Our goal is to raise $5,300 to fund various school programs. As always, in lieu of participation, donations to the PTO are always appreciated. Delivery will be in time for Mother's Day! Thank you for your continued support.

Cookies & Candles . . . Tastes Good, Smells Good!!!

PTO Meeting – will be held on Tuesday, March 14th at 7:00 pm

PIP Supermarket Math - March 29th, Wednesday 4-7pm at Stop & Shop: Math activities for all K-5th graders. Take our treasure hunt and find out how fun math can really be! We are looking for parent and teacher volunteers! Call us.

CRAZY SOCK HOP - Argyles or striped, Knee high or ankle height, the crazier the sock the better for this year's Crazy Sock Hop scheduled for Friday, March 31st in the Morrison cafeteria. It’s a fifties theme, so here’s a chance to wear your poodle skirts! There will be a grade split (K-2 and 3-5). The first session will be 6:30 to 7:45 and the second session 8:15 to 9:30. Families with children attending both sessions are welcome to stay for both sessions. Students in 1st and 4th grades, please bring snack-sized desserts to share. Children in 2nd and 5th grades, please bring a gallon of water. Again, Mr. Wyatt will be our DJ for the evening – he remembers the fifties music! We are gathering wonderful raffle items to add to the excitement of the evening so bring some pocket change for a chance to go home a winner. As always, photos will be taken for the 5th grade yearbook. Parents are asked to chaperone their children so we can ensure everyone’s safety and enjoyment of the evening. If you'd like to help with this event please contact Nancy Ceriani at (781) 843-6740 or . If you want to donate a raffle item, please contact Michelle Loring at 617-851-6167 or .

Election Day Bakesale - An Election Day bake sale and raffle will be held Tuesday, April 4th from 8:00am to 3:00pm in the school lobby. Volunteers are needed to bake, work the sale table and welcome voters (hours are flexible). Anyone interested in volunteering, donating a baked good or paper products please contact Geraldine Gardner at (781) 843-4130 or . Items may be dropped off at school on Monday evening, April 4th from 6:00pm - 8:00pm or early Tuesday morning. Any time or talent you are able to donate will be greatly appreciated.

PIP Event – Racing for Robotics - April 7th, Friday 7-11pm at F1 Boston, Wood Rd in Braintree. An adult indoor car racing event withTad Bonvie of Mix 98.5 radio to bring the music, fun trivia contests, and host our live auction from the race track! Food includes a carving station, hors'doevres, our famous Chocolate Fountain, a Red Sox Opening Day tickets raffle where the winner is announced! Come join the Morrison race team to see if they can bring home the PIP Cup Grand Prix Trophy for the school! Tickets are $55 individual or $100 couple (at the door $60/$110). For more info call 781-843-2454 or visit www.parentinvolvementprogram.org .

Boston Marathon Team PIP- PIP has put together a 5 person race team to run the Boston Marathon on April 17th to help support our math, science and technology programs.The team is headed by our very own - Principal Mr. Riordan. Stay tuned for more details and keep an eye on Morrison's Marathon Man's running routine!

Staples, Tyson, Campbells & Boxtops . . .THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for your continued support of these programs. As you read below, you will see that it truly makes a difference!!!

ÞStaples Recycle for Education: In 2005 Morrison was credited $582 for returned cartridges. This year we have already submitted another 155 in just two months!

ÞTyson Project A+: Already this year 101 labels were collected. Please remember that the whole panel (front and back if appropriate) must be submitted for it to be counted.

ÞCampbell’s Labels for Education: About 50 families currently participate in this program and we would love to see this number increase! So far this year Morrison earned 1,800 points and we are 86 percent on our way to earning a new overhead projector. If we collect another 500 by June, Morrison will receive a 20 percent discount on our Weekly Reader order for the next school year. Please remember that the entire front portion of soup labels must be intact for the label to be counted. Soon we will announce the prize winner for the student who sent in the most Campbells labels in January and February.

ÞBoxtops for Education: The next Boxtop deadline is March 31, 2006. Congratulations to Kelly Flaherty of Mrs. Alpert’s class for sending in 170 Boxtops from November 1 through January 31. Thanks to Kelly her class received ice cream! The student who sends in the most Boxtops for the whole school year will receive a gift certificate in June. Approximately 20 percent of Morrison families have submitted Boxtops for this year totaling almost $1,000 for Morrison!

5th Grade Week -

5th Grade Week - The Yearbook Committee met on February 28th. Planning is well under way. The student profile questionnaire, request for baby photos and T-shirt sizes went home before February vacation. Parents need to sign the bottom of the Student Profile acknowledging the information filled in by their child. The packets are due back to homeroom teachers by Friday, March 3rd. Our next yearbook committee meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 28th at 7:00 p.m. in the Media Center. A 5th Grade Week Committee meeting will be scheduled in early April. Please contact Lisa Heger at 781-356-4349 or with any questions.

Teacher Appreciation Week - Plans for “Teacher Appreciation Week” are in the making! This is a wonderful opportunity to show gratitude to all the various teachers and support staff who work together to enrich our children's learning experience. Some of the ways that we will show our appreciation include a breakfast buffet, a luncheon, Wish-List baskets, which provide our teachers with classroom necessities, and some special tokens of gratitude. Our goal is to support our teachers and staff and say thank you for all they do for our children. More information on how to become involved will be coming home soon through a backpack notice and via your Classroom Communicator.

Internet Safety – A presentation by the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office was held to help parent awareness of the dangers children can encounter with some internet sites. The threats range from peer bullying to child predators. For more information on internet safety, check out the following sites:

www.netparents.org This site includes a great article entitled,"The Real Dangers to Kids Online and How to Avoid Them";

www.childrenspartnership.org This site includes a powerpoint presentation, "A Parents Guide to Online Kids";

www.missingkids.com OR www.ncmec.org (both take you to the same web page) This is the web site for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and is loaded with good information regarding kids and the internet.

22806 Page 1