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Living in Reston we know all about
associations... home owners associations, sports associations,
parent-teacher associations... and we all make choices about how
involved we want to be with them: fully involved with one;
participating a little in several; or avoiding them all like the
plague. Regardless of your level of participation, you still need to
know what they are up to, because they are going to impact your life
somehow!
Well, in this issue you get to think about
a couple of associations and how they impact you! We have a story on
some of our 5th and 6th grade students who have already decided to be
involved by being willing to accept the responsibility of being SCA
Officers and Homeroom Representatives. You will read that some schools
in Fairfax have opted out of the PTA choosing instead to operate as
PTOs. There is some news about an international organization, the
Scouting Movement, and their activity here at Terraset.
All of this will cause you to stop and
think about your level of involvement-- can you do more? Do you want to
do more? Only you can decide and you will make that choice based on
what is best for you and your family. But, whatever your choice needs
to be, we hope we can at least keep you up-to-date with some of the
things happening in this local unit of the PTA. Read on and let us know
what you think!
If there is information that you would like to see included in this publication, please send us your thoughts.
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| New Student Council Installed |
 The New Terraset ES Student Council Association (SCA) Officers were installed Thursday, October 10!
The new Officers pledged their best
service for the year by each lighting a new candle from a center one --
representing a torch, the emblem of the SCA-- the light from each new
candle scattering and guiding these new leaders to levels of
achievement, their helpfulness being a bright spot in the school year,
with the glow lingering in everyone's memory.
The Officers, with their parents
administering the oath of office, promised loyalty and service to
the students of the school. The new Officers, pictured above with Mrs.
Golden, are from left:
 And,
they are going to be very busy. During this month alone they will be
coordinating Red Ribbon Week during October 23-30. Their theme
will be PAWSitively Drug Free! Then they have
the SLHS Pyramid Homecoming Parade on October 30th. This is a big
event for the High School, but also for Terraset. Last year we had the
best representation of any of the elementary schools in the pyramid. It
is so exciting to see that sea of orange come down the street as our
little "Tigers" approach. Do keep that afternoon free and encourage
your children to participate-- they get a kick out of it too!
November 3rd the SCA will have a
bake sale. They will be out the front of the school during
parent-teacher conferences and elections from 9am to 3pm. Then
there will be a FISH Food Drive on Nov. 9-13.
If you are new to the school, you may not know that Fridays are usually
"Tiger Pride" days at Terraset. Teachers and students (and visiting
parents) are encouraged to wear school spirit wear (which can be as
simple as something orange) to school. This too is an SCA organized
activity.
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| Student Picture Day Volunteers |
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Student Picture Day is
on October 14th. Picture envelopes explaining the different
package options/pricing have been sent home with all students in their
October 6th Tuesday packets. Make sure you return your form and payment
to the school.
Also, the photographers are in need of two
volunteers (one per camera) to help get the children lined up and ready
for the pictures and collect paperwork. Volunteers can help for a
full day or 2 volunteers can help a half day each. A
full-day volunteer will receive $50 voucher and each half day
volunteers $25 voucher. You can volunteer here for the
morning, afternoon or both. Enter your email address when
prompted. You will then receive an email message and should follow the
enclosed link to signup. |
| A New Kindergarten Class for Terraset |
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With over 80 children registered for
kindergarten, Mrs. Cury breathed a sigh of relief when, right at the
beginning of the school year, FCPS allocated additional funds for
new kindergarten faculty. After only three weeks to recruit, interview,
and appoint the new staff members, Patricia Furmanski (Kindergarten
Teacher) and Laura Wineland (Instructional Assistant) began
teaching their kindergarten class last Friday.
Each of the kindergarten classes now have about 20-21
students. There are many changes to be dealt with as children
in all the classes adjust to new friendships, sometimes seeing
recently found friends at lunch and recess time only. But, as the
classes set into their new routines, the children will surely benefit
from being in smaller classes.
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| Are You Willing to Make a Pledge? |
 Over
60 parents, grandparents, and friends of Terraset have stepped forward
and made their pledge to help the school. Are you willing to do the
same?
The new Three4Me program invites you to commit to volunteering your time and talent for the school. Pledge just three hours of your time over the school year.
MAKE YOUR PLEDGE NOW!
(You will be prompted for your email address. You will receive an email message. Please follow the link to update your profile.)
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| GRACE Art Corner: Piet Mondrian |
This month, the PTA will present the Piet Mondrian GRACE Art portfolio in your child's class.
Piet Mondrian was born in the Netherlands
in 1872. He was influenced by many artistic styles and even helped
found an artistic movement called De Stijl. He died in 1944, having
created about 250 paintings in his lifetime.
 The
paintings that Piet Mondrian is most famous for are rectangles of white
and primary colors, dissected by black lines. He did not always paint
this way, however. Mondrian's first paintings depicted scenes found in
real life. They were done in a style similar to impressionism. As his
style grew and changed, he stopped using any colors besides the three
primaries: red, yellow, and blue. The painting shown to the
right is Avond (1908). This is the first painting in which
Mondrian used only primary colors but you can still see the influence
of impressionism
Mondrian soon became interested in cubism. Cubism, is an artistic
style in which the subject is broken into meaningful pieces and
rearranged in a new order to show the most important parts of the
object. Because of the influence of cubism, Mondrian's paintings became
more and more abstract.
 Mondarin,
along with other Dutch artists, began a new movement, De Stijl (also
known as neoplasticism.) They were searching to paint an even more
honest truth than the cubists. They believed the essence, the
foundation of all things could be found in the simplest form: straight
lines and primary colors. So Mondrian began painting pieces like the
one shown to the left, Composition II by Piet Mondrian (1930).
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| Pack 32 Packing the Garden |
Saturday October 10th from 10:00-12:00 our
cub scouts, pack 32, will be spreading mulch and transplanting
plants in the Butterfly Garden. Terraset families are welcome to
join in! Indeed, if we can get a few extra hands before
10am, we will dig up some plants that need transplanting and have the
kids do that. Please email Faye Codding if you can help.
By the way, if you have a prospective Tiger Cub in your house, there will be a Join Scouting Night on Thursday, October 22,
at 7pm in the Cafeteria. Boys in first through fifth
grades and their parents are invited to come to learn more about
Scouting.
Every year, our Scouts work towards their
badges, volunteer for service projects, build pinewood derby cars, and
go camping. It sounds like fun!
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| Become a Health Room Volunteer |
 The Fairfax County Health Department is offering training opportunities for parent volunteers (note
the convenient training session on November 18). Training is essential
for anyone working in a school health room. Direct care and
administrative opportunities are available.
For more information, contact the school public health nurse, Mary Joan Shea
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| Thursdays in the Garden |
 The last evening session for Thursdays in the Garden will be held this week on October 15th...
after that it will probably be too dark for evening activities. So,
come join other parents, children and neighbors in the butterfly
garden on Thursday at 5:30-7:00 for one last time.
Bring children, garden
gloves,something to drink, bug-spray and tools (hand trowels, shovels,
rakes, brooms, etc.) Come for as little or as long as you can stay.
If you are interested in being in a morning group starting at 9:15 please contact Faye Codding at milcod@comcast.net or 630-306-1190.
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| Is Your Terraset Directory Entry Correct? |
 The
call for information for the Terraset Student Directory was
distributed this week in Tuesday Packs. Check your form and let us know
if you need any of the details to be changed by October 13th.
If you did not get a form, it probably means you opted out of the directory, but you can get a blank form here if for some reason you need one.
If you know any businesses that may be interested in sponsoring the directory, please let us know. Email Liz Falcone or call 703.264.0063.
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| PTA in the News |
On September 28th a report in the Washington Post told of schools in Fairfax that have dropped out of the National PTA. ( full article)
Needless to say, this caught the attention of PTA members at Terraset and caused many to ask "Where do we stand?"
Terraset PTA is a very active group, but
its focus is strongly on its immediate community. Occassionaly,
activities at the National or State level will catch our attention, but
primarily we find ourselves fully occuppied with our immediate needs--
teachers that need more resources in their classrooms, students that
need financial assistance to sign-up for after school programs,
families that need direction in assisting their kids to optimize their
time at school.
But there are times when our affiliation
with the National PTA definitely helps. We have access to the
Reflections program, resources for parent education, and of course,
guidelines on how to run an organization like ours. Of the $12
membership fee we each pay, $2.50 goes to Fairfax County Council of
PTAs, then a portion of that filters up to Virginia PTA, and
finally another portion filters up to National PTA. We pay pennies for
access to these nation wide resources.
Melissa Nehrbass, president of the
Virginia PTA said that declining PTA membership means fewer people who
will fight for children who don't have a parent speaking out for them.
This is food for thought!
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| Budget Discussion Meetings |
 You
should have received an invitation from FCPS to provide your input
to help meet a significant projected budget deficit for FY 2011 by
attending an upcoming community dialogue meeting.
These meetings are sponsored by
Fairfax County Government and Fairfax County Public Schools. The
County is in the midst of a multiyear cyclical downturn requiring that
county and school decision-makers continue to make expenditure and
revenue adjustments. The school systems ongoing challenge is to develop
a budget with an appropriate level of services that is both sustainable
and acceptable to the community.
FCPS has prepared a FY 2011 fiscal
forecast that provides information on potential revenue shortfalls and
deficits for the next budget year. This information was presented
at a joint work session of the Fairfax County School Board and the
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on September 29. The full
presentation can be viewed online and includes a list of possible outcomes for FY 2011
- Eliminate Needs-Based Staffing
- Implement New Student Fees
- Stop Offering Summer School
- Further Increases in Class Size
- Discontinue Full-day Kindergarten
- Eliminate ES Foreign Language (both FLES and FLEX)
- Cut School-Based Technology Specialists
- Close Schools
Community dialogue meetings will consist of facilitated small group discussions.
Registration is required. Visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/budget or call 703-324-2391, TTY 711.
The closest meetings for the Terraset community are:
- Saturday, October 24, from 10 a.m. to noon at the Reston Regional Library
- Thursday, October 29, from 7 to 9 p.m. in the South Lakes High School cafeteria
If you are unable to attend the community
dialogues pass along your comments and suggestions by calling
703-324-9400 or completing a budget feedback form at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/budget. |
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Register Your Grocery Cards Today!
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The PTA is coordinating the grocery card
program for the school this year. The three local grocery chains--
Harris Teeter, Safeway and Giant-- will give money to our school based
on a percentage of purchases. All you have to do is register your
card(s) via their web sites. It's free and easy and a great way to
support the school. Last year, the school earned over $3,000!
This year, we have very few cards
registered but we know we can do better. Please take a few
minutes and register your cards.
 Click this image for Safeway
- If renewing, click on "Renew your Commitment Today" (bottom left of web page).
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If registering for the first time, click on "Sign Up - It's Free" (right side of web page)
- Choose "Group Name" and type in "Terraset" or use our Group ID# 6576909.
- Click on the "Terraset Elementary School" link and follow the instructions to complete the form.
 Click this image for Harris Teeter
- at the bottom of the page, click "Link your VIC Card to your school NOW!"
- complete the form and enter Terraset's code -- 5086
 Click this image for Giant
- click on "Designate School"
- enter the last three letters of your last name and your complete 12-digit card number, then continue to school listings
- enter Terraset's school code -- 01987
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| The Eggs are In the Tank! |
 Have
you heard about the big, new fish tank at school? It has arrived as
part of this session's Nature Club. The kids will be growing trout!
Indeed, the trout eggs arrived yesterday at 7:30 am.
At the first meeting of the Nature
Club, the kids will be checking the eggs for status, doing a water
test, and learning about the life of a Brook Trout.
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