August 23, 2007

Laurel School Newsletter
Next Week
Monday, 8/27
  • 7 p.m. Head Room Parent Training Meeting

    • Tuesday, 8/28
  • 8:30 or 10:15 a.m. Library Volunteer Training

    • Wednesday, 8/29
  • 8:45 a.m. PTO Executive Board Meeting

    • Thursday, 8/30
  • No Events Scheduled

    • Friday, 8/31
  • School Spirit Day - Wear Blue and White
    • Upcoming Events
    9/3        No School -- Labor Day
    9/5        Carpool Pickup Begins
    9/6        Laurel Back-to-School Night, 7 p.m.
    9/7        PTO District Council Meeting, 8:30 a.m.
    9/11      Kid Chow Lunch Delivery Begins
    9/12      PTO Executive Board Meeting, 8:45 a.m.
    9/14      Quarter Gourmet, 5:30 p.m.
    9/19      Laurel Site Council Meeting, 3 p.m.
    9/26      PTO General Meeting, 7 p.m.
    10/5      PTO District Council Meeting, 8:30 a.m.
    10/8-12  Laurel-Encinal Book Fair
    10/10     PTO Executive Board Meeting 8:45 a.m.
    10/17     Laurel Site Council Meeting, 3 p.m.
    In This Issue
    Upcoming Events
    Join the PTO
    Library Permission Form
    Library Volunteer Training
    Lunch Delivery
    Quarter Gourmet
    School Details
    After-School Programs
    Free Obsolete Textbooks
    Laurel Newsletter
    eScrip
    Community News
    Quick Links
    Join our Mailing List!
    The PTO is Soaring to New Heights
    PTO Membership DriveThe Laurel-Encinal PTO supports Science, Art, Music, Technology, P.E., Field Trips and many other valuable programs at Laurel and Encinal.  In order to soar with the PTO to new heights we need you to participate in this year's membership drive.

    Don't forget that you can double your support with corporate matching funds!

    You can download a membership form and drop it off with your donation at the school office, or join online using a credit card.
    Library Permission Form
    Please print out and complete the Library Permission Form, and return it to your child's teacher the first week of school. Once the form has been received, your child will be able to check books out from our wonderful Laurel Library! Also, parents can sign up at the Back-to-School Coffee to volunteer during their children's library times.
    Library Volunteer Training
    • Tuesday August 28
    • 8:30 OR 10:15 a.m.
    • in the Laurel Library
    If you would like to volunteer in the Laurel Library this year and have not previously been trained, please plan to attend one of the scheduled training sessions.  The sessions should not take more than 30 or 40 minutes.  Library volunteers help check in books, check out books, reshelve, and more during their children's weekly library time.
    Kid Chow Lunch Delivery
    This fall the PTO will launch Kid Chow's healthy brown bag school lunch service for first and second grade students (Kid Chow is not available for kindergarten students).  Lunches will be delivered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and you can select from a wide variety of options for any days and any weeks you wish.  For details and to order, go to the Kid Chow web site at www.kidchow.com.
    Quarter Gourmet
    • Friday, September 14
    • 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
    • Second Grade Field
    The Annual Quarter Gourmet potluck is a Laurel family social tradition. Come meet your teachers, classmates and families. Look at our flyer to see more details. If you would like to volunteer, please contact dbtuchman(at)hotmail.com.
    Details
    Lunch and Snack
    Don't forget to pack a lunch for your child (except AM Kindergarteners) and a separate snack (all grades) each day. The Kid Chow Lunch Program will begin on September 11.

    Information Links
    A number of flyers have been distributed recently. We have posted most of these to the Laurel PTO Web Site for your convenience:

    Additional information is always available on our website at www.laurelpto.org.

    To Unsubscribe
    If your children are no longer at Laurel this year, please scroll to the bottom of this message and use the "Safe Unsubscribe" link (in the small print) to remove yourself from our mailing list.

    After-School Programs
    The PTO offers a variety of after-school programs to provide Laurel students with enrichment opportunities. This fall we are offering Chess, Berlitz Kids Language (French and Spanish), Sports 4 Kids, Basketball, Afterschool Math, Fencing, and Engineering FUNdamentals with LEGOs. Please see the After-School Program Overview for program descriptions and schedules.
    To Register, go to:
    Free Obsolete Textbooks
    • Public Obsolete Textbook Viewing
    • Wednesday, September 26
    • 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
    • in the Laurel Conference Room

    We will be having an obsolete text book viewing during which the public may come and take home text books no longer in use at Laurel.  Bring a bag and help yourself to these old but useful (free!) textbooks!
    Laurel School Newsletter
    The weekly email newsletter is the primary means of communication for the PTO and the school. It includes notices of upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, safety information, schedule changes, and much more.

    After today, the Laurel PTO weekly newsletter will be distributed primarily via email, on Friday afternoons. Paper copies of the newsletter and flyers will be available for pickup in the office, but we will not send newsletters and flyers home with your child each week.

    Please make sure your friends and neighbors subscribe as soon as possible.  Get spouses and caregivers on the list, too!  Forward this email so they can click on the link below:
    eScrip
    eScrip is a fast and easy way to give more money to the Menlo Park-Atherton Education Foundation for our schools. Register your grocery and debit cards, and every time you shop, participating stores automatically give money back to the MPAEF.

    Don't forget to renew: Previously registered members MUST renew their Safeway Club Cards EVERY year between August 1 and November 1.

    Click here for details and easy directions!
    Community News

    Cub Scouts Open Houses
    • September 11, Encinal Multi, 6:30 - 7:45
    • September 12, Laurel Multi, 6:30 - 7:45.
    Scouting has fun activities year round, strengthens the bonds of family, encourages good behavior, builds self-esteem, and teaches lifelong values. Any boy in grades 1 through 5 is invited to join Cub Scouts.  Find out more at our Open Houses. For more information visit www.pack565.org, email info(at)pack565.org or contact Cubmaster Dave at 322-9011.

    Academic Trainers  Aftercare
    • Monday-Friday
    • 12:15pm-6:00pm
    • Tuition $790-$390/month or $15/hour
    • 1075 Curtis St. ~ Downtown Menlo Park, 321-0707
    • www.academictrainers.com
    Academic Trainers announces a new afterschool program for Kindergartners-2nd graders. Academic enrichment complementary to school curriculum, lots of fun playtime, reading and more.  Spanish, music, and craft activities.  Private tutoring services also available.
    Thank You

    Back-to-School Coffee
    Thank you to Starbucks and Hobees for donating coffee and coffee cake for the Back-to-School Coffee. 

    Back-to School Luncheon
    Thank you to all of the volunteers who donated food, prizes, and time to make this annual event a success, and thank you to Jeremy Gundel, PTO VP, for coordinating the luncheon.
    Submit newsletter items by Wednesday at noon or attachments by Tuesday at noon to newsletter(at)laurelpto.org
    or phone: 473-1299