Edison Newsletter
September 2017
Sally Whitelock, Principal
Joan Wieser, Principal Resident
Secretaries: Michelle Miller, Barbara Schrant
Office: 720-424-7780 Attendance: 720-424-7784
A message from the Principal…
What a fantastic beginning of the school year! Edison students and teachers are already working hard to set the stage for rigorous instruction, project based learning, creative problem solving and lots of learning! We are challenging students to have a growth mindset and set personal goals as they are moving into this new year of school. Please ask your children what their goals for this school year are.
We would like to invite parents to continue to partner with us in the education of their children. We know you do this daily through conversations about school, reading with your students and helping your students with homework. We hope that you also get involved by volunteering at the school and joining the PTA. Please join us at a Volunteer Training. Please support your children with setting goals for the Eagle Run and getting pledges for the laps they run.
We are excited for the year ahead.
Sally Whitelock, Principal
Mark Your Calendars:August 30 PTA Social at Local 46 at 5:00 PM
August 31 Volunteer training at 9-10:00 AM or 4-5:00 PM
September 1 Volunteer training at 8-9:00 AM
September 4 No School
September 5 No School for ECE
September 7 CSC meeting at 4:30-5:30 PM in the conference room downstairs
September 7 PTA meeting a 6:00 – 7:00 PM in the auditorium
September 14 Parent Information night for Highly Gifted and Talented Program at 5:00 PM in the auditorium
September 15 ELA (English Language Acquisition) Parent Advisor Meeting at 8:00 AM
September 16 School yard spruce up day
September 21 Farm Stand at 3:30 on the playground
September 22 Eagle Run during the school day
September 29 Picture day
October 5 CSC meeting at 4:30-5:30 PM in the conference room
October 5 PTA meeting at 6:00-7:00 PM in the auditorium
October 13 Coffee Talk with the Principal and AP in the library at 8-8:30 AM
October 13 School Tour at 9:30-10:30 AM
October 20 Fall Festival and Dia de Los Muertos Celebration at 3:45 PM on the blacktop
October 20 Farm Stand at 3:30
October 20 Box Tops collection
October 26 & 27 No school for students
Volunteer Training for Parents
Please join us for one of our Parent Volunteer trainings on August 31 at 9:00 AM or 4:00 PM or on September 1 at 8:00 AM. We will provide parents with information on how to complete volunteer applications, how to sign up for volunteering opportunities, and best practices for volunteers related to confidentiality, working with students, and communication with teachers.
All parents who wish to volunteer at the school in any capacity (field trips, in the classroom, on the playground, Thursday folders, etc) will need to complete a Volunteer Application. New this year, parents can complete the Volunteer Application on line. Please use the link below to complete the application. Please note that you will need to upload your government issued ID before submitting your application.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdLwbfV7LeVsGQY5MPmS9o9njUpf731U6uRdj1mZ_fBaPFuQ/viewform
Eagle RunThis year’s Eagle Run is Edison’s second annual run-a-thon team builder and fundraiser, which will take place during the school day on Friday, September 22nd. This exciting fundraiser will focus on teambuilding, health, fitness and reaching personal goals. All Edison students are encouraged to participate, set goals, cheer on their classmates and run as many 1/8 mile laps as possible during the run. Students are also encouraged to get as many pledges as possible to help us reach our fundraising goals! The Eagle Run has a goal to raise $20,000 through lap pledges and lump sum donations. Please watch
Thursday folders for participation information.
Students will begin running at the following times:
- 5th grade at 8:55
- 4th grade at 9:40
- ECE at 10:25
- 3rd grade at 11:05
- 1st grade at 1:25
- Kindergarten at 2:10
- 2nd grade at 2:45
How do we participate? Your student’s pledge sheet will be sent home in Thursday folders. ECE and Kinder students’ pledge sheets ask for lump sum donations only. Pledge sheets for grades 1-5 have both a per-lap and lump sum option. Students are encouraged to collect pledges from family, neighbors, friends, co-workers, etc.
On September 22nd, all students will wear their Edison T-shirt, bring a water bottle and join their classmates to run as many 1/8 mile laps as they can in 30 minutes (ECE and kinder will run for 20). Their laps will be tallied after the run and the rest of their day will resume as usual.
Students will be sent home with their lap number and can then put it on their pledge sheets and collect pledges in cash, check or online. Help Edison raise money to benefit classroom needs, Enrichment Day, Edison Earnings and more! Encourage your student to collect pledges, set a goal, run…and HAVE FUN!
Recess 2.0Edison staff is SO EXCITED for our new and improved recess structure! We have hired a half-time Positive Behavior Supports coordinator, Cindie Tomcho, who is coordinating structured games and teaching students proactive problem solving at recess. Cindie and our recess monitors all received training from Playworks this summer and are super excited to share games, rules, and problem solving strategies with Edison’s students. During the first two weeks of recess, the recess monitors will teach students routines, rules, problem solving strategies and new recess games. They will teach students the rules – Be safe, Be kind, Be respectful, Have fun. They will teach students to use Rock-Paper-Scissors to solve low-level disagreements. There will be lots of high fives and encouragement and laughter and fun. Coming soon opportunities for parents to volunteer to play games with students on the playground at recess.
Farm StandEdison is excited to collaborate with Denver Urban Gardens to provide two Farm Stands this school year. Edison’s Parent and Student Green Team will pick food from our community garden and sell it at Edison on September 21 and October 20 at 3:30 PM. Please come buy some fresh vegetables from Edison’s Green Team!
Opportunities to GIVE to EdisonThere are a variety of VERY easy ways that you can donate to the Edison PTA and school, without spending a penny! Please support us any way you can!
- Box Tops: Please check your pantries and cut off all “ Box Tops” that you find. Send them to school with your children. Box Tops are then sent in to “Box Tops for Education” two times per year. All the money donated from participating companies goes directly to teachers for use in classrooms.
- King Soopers or Safeway cards: Please purchase a King Soopers or Safeway card from Edison’s PTA. Cards can be purchased at PTA meetings or from the secretaries in Edison’s office. Each card is $10 and comes with $10 on it. Then, each time you shop, load additional money on to the card prior to the clerk ringing up your groceries. Then, pay with the King Soopers/Safeway card. Edison PTA will receive $5 from King Soopers/Safeway for each $100 you spend.
- Amazon Smile: Sign up for “Amazon Smile” on Amazon (there is a link from Edison’s home page) and choose Edison Elementary PTA as your choice for donations. Each time you purchase from Amazon, make sure you sign in with Amazon Smile. Amazon will then donate a percent of purchase to Edison.
- Make a direct donation: Go to Edison’s website at http://edison.dpsk12.org/ and click on the “Donate” button.You can donate any amount you choose directly to our PTA.
- Donors Choose: Check out the many Donors Choose projects that teachers have posted on Donorschoose.org and donate to any cause that you think will benefit your child and our community. You can find all current projects through the link on Edison’s home page at http://edison.dpsk12.org/.
Parent Information Night – Highly Gifted and Talented ProgramPlease join us at 5:00 on September 14 in Edison’s auditorium to learn more about the Highly Gifted and Talented program at Edison.
DPS’s Gifted and Talented Magnet Program was developed in 1985 for students in grades one through eight who may have several gifted characteristics and extraordinary abilities, potential or academic needs. It is a full-day program in magnet sites that is designed for students who need the support and challenge provided by specifically trained teachers and by other students with advanced or unique abilities and academic needs. DPS Gifted and Talented Magnet Sites are Carson, Edison, Morey MS, Teller, Gust, Polaris at Ebert, Southmoor, Cory and Archuleta.
Edison Field Closed – New Grass If you have driven by Edison, surely you have noticed that the field is fenced off and new grass is growing. DPS and Edison’s facility staff have been working hard this summer to improve Edison’s field. Currently, the field is fenced off in order to allow the grass to grow. The field will remain closed throughout the Fall. Though we wish our students could play on the field during recess, this will not be possible for several months. We will work with our students to support them in playing appropriate structured games on the black top and equipment until the field is re-opened. We appreciate the efforts DPS grounds department and Edison’s facility staff have made to improve our campus.
Coffee Talk with the Principal and APEdison’s Principal and Assistant Principal hold monthly coffee talks in the library. Please join us for informal conversations about anything on your mind. Our first coffee talk is scheduled for October 13 at 8:00 in the school library.
Traffic and ParkingSafety is our first priority at Edison and this starts with drop off and pick up of students. In order to make sure that all students are safe and accounted for at all times, please keep the following in mind:
- ECE students are to be dropped off and signed-in in the classroom each morning and then picked up and signed-out at the kindergarten playground each afternoon;
- Kindergarten students are to be dropped off/picked up on the southeast side of Quitman Street and enter/exit the building with their teachers by the kindergarten playground on the South side of the school;
- 1st-5th grade students are dropped off/picked up on the playground on the east side of the school or on the northwest side of Perry Street in the Kiss and Go/Greet and Get lane (polka-dotted);
- School buses park on the east side of the school on the southwest side of Perry Street. Please do not park or even pull over in this area;
- The parking lot is for DPS staff ONLY, please do NOT park, drop off or pick up students in the parking lot.
- All parents/community members must enter the building through the front doors,\ check-in at the office and get a visitor/volunteer badge.
Kiss and Go Lane: Parents who do not want to park and stay with their 1st-5th grade students on the playground in the morning may drop off their students in the student drop off lane between 8:30 and 8:40 AM. We ask parents to NOT park in the Kiss and Go /Greet and Get lane on the northwest side of Perry Street, outside the fence by the playground/community garden.
Greet and Get Lane: In order to help with afternoon traffic, parents who have 1st-5th grade students can sign up to have their child/ren ready and waiting at the pickup area between 3:30 and 3:40 PM on the northwest side of Perry Street, by the playground/community garden. Registration
forms will be available at Back to School night in classrooms and throughout the year in the office. The following guidelines apply:
- This is only for cars. Walkers and students of parents who park will be picked up on the playground.
- Parents should pull over on Perry Street, stay in their car, and move forward as space allows.
- Cars may only stop long enough for their child/ren to get into the car.
- Cars must continue to move and leave the parking lane immediately after picking up their children.
- Parents must pick up children at 3:30 PM. If children are not picked up by 3:40, the teacher will bring them to the office and parents will need to find parking and come in to the office to pick the students up and sign them out.
- Only adults listed on the permission slip will be able to pick students up.
- Cell phones must not be used in the Greet and Get lane and all Colorado Motor Vehicle laws (seat belts, car seats) must be observed.
- Parents wishing to use the Greet and Get lane will need to fill out a permission form and return it to their student’s teacher so that the teacher will know to send the child to the Greet and Get pick up area at 3:30 PM.
A Message from our PTA…On behalf of the Edison PTA, welcome everyone! We are excited for a new school year and we have lots of great activities and events planned for the year. In fact, one of them is less than a month away - the Eagle Run on September 22. This 1-year old event takes place during the school day, and all Edison students are invited to participate, have fun, and help raise funds for the school.
Are you curious what the Edison PTA is all about? What we do for the school? The teachers? The kids? Then please come and join us at our first PTA meeting of the year on September 7! It takes place in the Edison Auditorium
at 6PM, FREE childcare is provided, and we'll have light refreshments. We will vote on the 2017-18 budget, so if you want to participate, please consider joining!
Top 5 reasons to join the Edison PTA:
- It is awesome, and you become instantly cool. Seriously, though, children love it when their parents get involved.
- You become "in the know." Gain some insight into your child's school and get networked!
- Share your skills. Everyone has something to offer, and our kids benefit every time we lend a hand. Even just an hour of your time can have a huge impact.
- It is a bargain — just $10 bucks a year for an individual, $15 per year for a family. Don't miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime offer!
- It is a chance to get your voice heard — share your concerns, and your victories!
You can register for membership online, in person at PTA events (including our
Sept. 7 meeting), or by emailing PTA Membership Chair Lynda Lastowka at [email protected] or clicking on this link to join online https://edisonpt.ejoinme.org/PTADues17-18
Green Team: Are you eco-minded? Have a green thumb? Do you care about fitness, movement and nutrition and have ideas about supporting health initiatives for our kids and community? If the answer is "yes" or even "maybe,"
then Edison’s Green Team may be for you! Green Team is recruiting volunteers and committee chairs for fundraising opportunities and events throughout the
school year, all supporting health, nutrition, fitness, and the environment. To get involved email PTA Green Team Chair Sara Peternell ([email protected]).
Edison communications: Please stay informed on Edison news, activities, and events by reading papers sent home in Thursday folders, watching your email inbox for newsletter and other important communications, following Edison on Facebook, and checking out the Edison website.
PTA Leadership:
President - Quintin Galt
Secretary – Katie Malarkey
VP - Kurt Wolff
Treasurer - Chris Campbell