Attendance Line Number - 490-3062

April 8, 2005

Shepardson's Home Page: http://schoolweb.psdschools.org/she/

In this issue...

(Table of Contents)   (Top) PRINCIPAL REFLECTIONS

Volunteer Appreciation Week is coming soon when we'd love to recognize and personally thank each of you for all you do for Shepardson! Becky Haberecht had taken on the position of VIPS Coordinator this year and has found efficient ways to collect and distribute information. This year all volunteers have been asked to sign up on-line. We thank all of you who have accomplished this request. We are looking for better ways to help parents become registered. Please share your thought with either Becky or myself.

PTO is the most incredible, dedicated and fun group of people who devote many extra hours that benefit the entire school for both fund raising and social events for our school community. Reach Week, for example, is in its final stages and Coordinator Maria Smailes will be plotting on a map the sending location of all of the responses. Be sure and take a peek at the North wall by the Media Center. McTeacher Night is new and is coming as a fun way to have dinner and have a staff member serve you and your family. These events involve both staff and parents on behalf of the students we serve.

We are in the process of determining how best to use the staffing we have been allocated for next year. PTO's fund raising enables us to keep our Media Para 6 hours and to provide the Letters at Lunch and Homework Hotel programs for students. We recognize the value of PTO's efforts that result in our having more staffing and learning opportunities for our students. Thank you!

This is that time of year when we need to be reminded, due to the increase in workload, that we value the extra efforts made by both parents and staff. Shepardson is so fortunate to have such dedicated people who are willing and anxious to serve its students...your children... as best we can. Thanks for working together with us! We are truly reaching for the stars!

-	Mary Kay Sommers
	email: msommers@psd.k12.co.us

(Table of Contents)   (Top)

CALENDAR

April 08, 2005

APRIL 2005			MAY 2005
8	Fri	Sixth Grade Lock-In	3	Tue	Final PTO Meeting
20-22	Wed-Fri	Scholastic Bookfair	6	Fri	Sock Hop
25	Mon	McTeachers Night 5:00 -8:00 pm	2-6	Mon-Fri	Teacher Appreciation Week
			24	Wed	Sixth Grade Graduation

(Table of Contents)   (Top) CONGRATULATIONS, COLLINS WANG!

We are so proud of our sixth grader Collins Wang for becoming one of the top finalists in Poudre School District, enabling him to compete at the state level on March 19th. Collins reached the "oral bee level" by being in the top 30 students out of the 250 students invited to take the state written test. He was one of only 4 students from Fort Collins to compete in the State Oral Spelling Bee and he was the last one from Fort Collins to remain in the state competition, reaching the final 15 students. Congratulations, Collins! We are so very proud of your hard work and outstanding performance!

(Table of Contents)   (Top) GIFTS FOR OUR VOLUNTEERS!

The week of April 18 - 22 is National Volunteer appreciation Week. Shepardson staff along with VIPS Coordinator Becky Haberecht has created our own Honor Wall for our Volunteers! Please look for it hanging in the school this week. We also have a small gift of appreciation for you in the main office and cookies will be available in the Workroom for you! Please drop by and enjoy our small token of appreciation and know we can't thank you enough for everything you do for the kids and staff at Shepardson!!!!

School volunteers are critical players on our outstanding educational team in our school providing assistance in a variety of ways. Whether working one-on-one with a student, assisting with small student groups, providing extra hands in the media center or computer lab, serving as judges for the science fair, or helping comb a student's unruly hair on picture day, our volunteers bring their talents, skills, time and attention to our students. Thank you to our outstanding volunteers! You are appreciated for your contributions to our school and students.

(Table of Contents)   (Top)

SECOND GRADERS BECOME BUGS! Yes, it's true! While studying about insects in science and learning music related to bugs, our second graders became "real bugs" as they performed the musical "Goin' Buggy"! Music Director Caren Everett, with hours way beyond the school day, and the students who gave up lunch recess produced a delightful, highly entertaining and fun show. Their "buggieness" came alive by their incredible bug costumes created by their parents or through Mrs. Jody Gloor's costume crew of parents! Watching students learn music and about insects in ways that are fun makes an unforgettable evening! Thank you, Mrs. Everett and Second Graders!

       

(Table of Contents)   (Top) SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR IS COMING!!!!!

Mark your calendars and come read a great tale!! The fair is scheduled for 4/19 through 4/22. Previews for students will be available Tuesday, 4/19. If you wish to bring your preschooler, please do. We have plenty of books for this age group. The hours are 8:00am to 6:00 pm daily.

Family night is Thursday 4/21. The fair will be open from 8:00 am - 8:00 pm. We are planning lots of fun events for family night. Come have your face painted like an animal! We will have a contest to see if you can match teachers to their pets. We will be giving away gift certificates for free books too!

Keep your eyes open for Clifford!

Volunteers for Book Fair

I would like to thank all the people who have already volunteered to work the book fair, but I still have lots of openings. It is a great chance to review the books and help kids choose good books. I also would like to have a few more people to help set up and tear down. If you have at least two hours you can donate to the cause, please contact Leigh Ann Dilley at 377-3913. Thanks!

(Table of Contents)   (Top) REACH WEEK UPDATE!

Thank you to everyone who participated in Reach Week. Many sponsor letters have come into the school so far and many more will continue to arrive this next month. We had a great response this year. 140 students participated in the letter-writing portion and everyone participated in the reading. We logged thousands of hours of reading. And, so far, those who wrote their letters have brought in $7,300 dollars to Shepardson. Way to go everyone! Monies will continue to come in this month and I will update the final figure in May.

Over the next few weeks, as the sponsorship letters continue to come back to the school, the children will have an opportunity to see where all the letters came from. There is a U.S. map posted by the library for this purpose. Pins will be posted on the appropriate state for each letter mailed back to Shepardson. Check it out! Also, pizza parties were awarded last week to the following classes for writing the most sponsor letters in their grades:

• Mrs. Aust's class
• Mrs. Hanford's class
• Ms. Harkins' class
• Mrs. DelMonte's class
• Mrs. Bonertz's class
• Mrs. Brown's class
• Mrs. Eberhardt's class

Thank you teachers for your support. Lastly, Reach Week prizes were handed out to each child who wrote 10 letters. If there are any questions or concerns about the prizes you can contact me, Maria Smailes, at 223-3756. Thanks again Shepardson Families!

(Table of Contents)   (Top) SHEPARDSON 4K FUN RUN/WALK IS THE PLACE TO BE

The date has been announced for the Cindy Mueller Memorial Run/Walk. It will be Sunday, May 1st. The start time will be 2:00 p.m.

This is a great event!!!! Each year we have grown in the number of participants, so get a group together and come run or walk with us!

The Shepardson Run Committee is also looking for volunteers. If you don't feel like running, walking, skipping, we have a variety of spots that we will need help with. If you would like to volunteer, please call Mrs. Swets in the Office.

We are also looking for businesses that would like to sponsor this event. With your financial contribution, your business name and logo will appear in our race day brochure and on the back of our race day t-shirts. If you are interested, please contact Mr. Neal, Mr. Kreider or Mrs. Swets.

Keep watching for information coming home with your children. Race day registration forms will be sent home on April 14th. Additional forms will also be available in the office.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mr. Neil, Mrs. Kreider or Mrs. Swets at 226-6370.

(Table of Contents)   (Top) CSU'S ENVIRONMENTAL LEARNING CENTERS SUMMER CAMPS.

A visitor from CSU shared this information with us at PTO this month. We thought you'd appreciate knowing about it too. Information about summer camps through CSU's Environmental Learning Center is available at www.cnr.colostate.edu/elc or 970-491-1661.

(Table of Contents)   (Top)

ODYSSEY OF THE MIND 2004 - 2005 UPDATE Shepardson's Odyssey of the Mind teams had a very successful Tournament Day on Saturday, April 2, at Rocky Mountain High School. Shepardson had four teams this year, three in the competitive divisions and one primary one. The primary team consisted of first and second graders. Camryn Berry, Catherine Maguire, Deja Mullenix, Lauren Caddoo, Kira Gregory, Tanner Hinton, Tess Hubbeling, Elisabeth Maguire, Kiri Mitchell, and Trisha Ngo worked on the "Fable-Us!" problem. Their task was to create a fable that taught a moral and included an inanimate object which exhibited human characteristics. Their moral was "All Animals are Equal" and their inanimate object was a talking seashell. A team of third and fourth graders, with Autumn Dern, Kelsey Hartmann, Jasmine Smith, Michelle Zhu and Evelyn Von Nieda participating, worked on the "Crazy Columns" problem. They had to build a structure made of three columns of varying heights, made of only balsa wood and glue, weighing only 15 grams, and able to support weight. In addition, they had to create a dramatic skit. Their skit involved building a pyramid in ancient Egypt. They placed fourth in their division and received the Ranatra Fusca award for outstanding creativity. A team of third, fourth and fifth graders, with Stephanie Livingston, Brandi Demmer, Taylor Hinton, Bethany Ireland, Keilani McConnell, Linsday Morris, and Maisie Iven participating, worked on a dramatic problem called "in Your Dreams". Their task was to write a play that took place in a dream having three parts - cheerful, nightmarish, and nonsensical. It also had to have a monster character that was manipulated by a team member to perform five tasks. Their skit involved a penguin monster, a pizza parlor, and evil opera house, Puppy and Kitty Land, and a cloud bus with deceased passengers. If puzzled, ask one of the team members. It really did fit together! They placed third in their division. The fourth Shepardson team, composed of fourth and fifth graders Nicole Perry, Arun Chandra, Michael Hurley, Randall McConnell, Lizette Van Zyl and Ry Weber worked on the "Stunt Mobile" problem. They had to build two vehicles, which ran on five obstacles courses. At the end of each was a balloon target for the vehicle to break. Their vehicles did extremely well and they placed second in their division. It was a very creative and rewarding day for these Shepardson students. Congratulations to all the students who participated and performed so well. We are proud of each of them! A huge special thanks to OM Coordinator and Coach Nancy McConnell! Without all of her hard work and dedication for so many students, these children would not have been able to participate and do so well! Thank you, Nancy! (We hope to have more coaches next year!)

         

(Table of Contents)   (Top) GO WACKY!!!!!!

Thursday, April 14 will be "Wacky Hair Day" at Shepardson!!

(Table of Contents)   (Top) PTO CORNER

The next PTO Meeting will be held Tuesday, May 3, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. (committee work) followed by the 7:15 p.m. Board Meeting in the Shepardson Library. NEW FACES AND INPUT ARE WELCOME SO PLEASE JOIN US AND LEARN ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING AT SHEPARDSON! THANK YOU! Many thanks to everyone who participated in REACH WEEK. Not only was it a successful fundraiser for our school, but teamed with Dr. Suess Day and Read Across America, Shepardson students read and reached for the stars! Special thanks to Maria Smailes who again, stepped up to the plate and organized this event. You and all your work is VERY MUCH APPRECIATED! Thank you! SOCK HOP VOLUNTEERS NEEDED PTO Soc Hop is May 6th and I need volunteers for decorating, food and security. If interested, please call Amy Lopez at 282-0177 McTeacher's Night!! Bring your family and friends to McDonald's (Horsetooth & Timberline) and enjoy a very "Happy Meal" during McTeacher's Night! On Monday, April 25th from 5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. the staff members of Shepardson Elementary School have signed up to serve you dinner. Your teacher could be making you a hamburger, fixing French fries or working the front counter. Tell your neighbors and bring your friends because Shepardson will receive 20% of the total sales for three hours. Mark it on your calendar today! UPCOMING PTO EVENTS It's hard to believe we're in the final months of school. We all know what a busy time of year it is with school events and the many extracurricular activities our families enjoy! Look to the school calendar for a complete list of activities... PTO's Calendar includes: Friday, April 8      6th Grade Lock In Friday, April 15 No School April 18 - 22 Volunteer Appreciation Week April 19-22 Scholastic Book Fair Thursday, April 21 SIT Meeting - 4:00-6:00pm Thursday, April 21 Read On Jr : The Old Woman Who Named Things. Monday, April 25 McTeacher Night at McDonalds 5:00- 8:00 pm Tuesday, April 26 Class Picture Day Tuesday, April 26 6th Grade Music Program 6:00 - Gym Thursday, April 28 5th grade Human Growth & Development Parent Meeting 7:00 pm Sunday, May 1 Cindy Mueller Memorial 4K Run/Walk - 2:00 pm Thursday, April 14 Wacky Hair Day!!! PTO COMMITTEE COORDINATOR SIGN-UP We would like to start the 2005-2006 school year running with Committee Coordinators in place. Here is a listing of committees needing coordinators. If you are interested in more information or wish to volunteer, please contact me at Burkys@aol.com, or at 225-1873. Thank you, Jennifer Burkhart *    Pod Reps for K, 3-6          *    6th Grade Graduation and Gift * School Directory * Access Computer Cartridges * Cool Cuts, Albertsons, Target * Teacher Appreciation * Odyssey of the Mind * Classified Breakfast * Gingerbread Social * Scholastic Bookfair * Barnes and Noble Bookfair * Sally Foster Wrapping Paper * REACH Week

(Table of Contents)   (Top) READ ON! FT. COLLINS, JR.

A Shared Community Experience
To develop community unity through a shared picture-book experience

During the month of April, families with young children in the Ft. Collins community are encouraged to read, discuss, and have fun with the same book:

The Old woman Who Named Things By Cynthia Rylant Illustrated by Kathryn Brown

There will be four community events where families can come together to listen to the story, discuss it's themes, and do fun activities together!

Thursday, April 14,		Tavelli Elementary 7 p.m.
Tuesday, April 19,		Johnson Elementary, 6 p.m.
Thursday, April 21,		Shepardson Elementary, 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, April 26,		O'Dea Elementary, 5:30 p.m.

Refreshments! Projects! Drawings for free copies of the book!

(Additional copies available for purchase at family events & at local bookstores - or check it out at your school or public library)

Join the fun!

Get Ft. Collins families on the same page!

(Back to table of contents)