Contact 13-9 May - Paxtonia Elementary PTA

Paxtonia Elementary SchoolTheCONTACTMay/June 2011PTANewsletterVolume 13, Issue 9Dear Parents,From the Principal’s Desk ...Tom ToonePrincipal… hey, please, slow downT-ball practice/games, baseballpractice/games, travel teampractice/games/tournaments, danceclass, tap class, cheerleading practice/competitions, soccer practice/games,ice hockey practice/games, gymnastics,etc., etc., etc.Does your child have to leave homeworkunfinished or complete it late atnight because there is not enough timein the day? Is your child rushingthrough evening meals to gosomewhere? Parents, are YOU stressedabout getting your child from activity toactivity?Don’t be afraid to give your kidsexactly what they need – more freetime. Dr. D’Arey Lyness shares,“Unstructured free time helps kidslearn to entertain themselves, fosterscreativity, and helps them discover thethings they enjoy doing. Whether it istime spent socializing with peers, readinga book, playing a game, ordaydreaming, downtime helps kidsrecharge their batteries and de-stress.”Be that brave parent who says,“Honey, I love you and I know youenjoy all of these activities…but it is toomuch. You have to make a choice—andI will help you. Choose just one or twoin which to participate. That’s just theway it needs to be for your sake, mysake, and our family’s sake.”As always, thank you for the privilegeof educating your child!Moms & Muffins - May 12th & 13thMoms & Muffins will be held thisyear on Thursday, May 12th(for last names A-M) and Friday, May13th (for last names N-Z). Look foryour children to bring home the invitationssoon. Please reply promptlyto the invitationsand be sure tomark the day youwish to attend andMay Fair - Saturday, May 21stMark your calendars for May 21! The PaxtoniaMay Fair will be held on May 21stfrom 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. There will be plentyof games, food, prizes, raffles, and fun for everyone.This is one of the last PTA events of thethe number of people in your group.There will be coffee, orange juice,milk and muffins offered in the multipurposeroom from 8 to 8:45 AM.Please note, your children must besupervised until 8:45 AM.Any willing and able men, who canvolunteer their time, please contactScott Miller, 608-0236. We are lookingforward to seeing you then.Year EndCalendar of EventsMay 2 PTA Meeting, 7 pmMay 5 Beginners Concert, CDMS, 7 pmMay 12 Moms & Muffins (A-M) 8-8:45 amMay 13 Moms & Muffins (L-Z) 8-8:45 amMay 16 Kindergarten Field Day (rain date 5/20)May 17 NO SCHOOL—Teacher In serviceMay 18 Spring Concert, CDMS, 7 pmMay 21 May Fair and Book Fair, 10-2 PMMay 23 Field Day, Grades 1-5 (rain date 5/24)May 30 NO SCHOOL—Memorial DayJune 5 Fifth Grade Fun DayJune 10 Last Day of School for Studentsschool year and somethingthe students really enjoy.Half Day!We will need plenty of volunteersto help with the games, to bring bakedgoods, to help set up Friday evening and to helpclean up Saturday afternoon. Please considerhelping in some way. To find out how you canvolunteer and make this year's May Fair asuccess, please contact Cindy Gundy at 541-0687. We are looking forward to a great MayFair.

The ContactPage 2From the Desk of the PTA President...Gayle StaubPTA PresidentThis issue of the Contact will be thelast one for the school year. Timeflies!I would like to thank Mr. Toone, Ms.Coates, all of the teachers, our schoolsecretaries, and custodians for supportingthe PTA and giving us their endlesstime and energy at many of our PTAevents. We are proud to honor youduring Teacher/Staff appreciation week.To all the Committee Chairs, Co-Chairs and volunteers who make everyevent at Paxtonia a ‘wow’ moment,thank you. There are also manycommittee chairs working behind thescenes. You know who you are – yourresponsibilities and achievements havebeen priceless. A special thanks to KimPTA Meeting Monday, May 2ndYoder for producing and editing thisnewsletter each month. Also, a bigthank you to Ken D’Souza for being thePaxtonia PTA website administrator.Now that the students have returnedfrom their “trip” to Italy, we can lookforward to Moms and Muffins, May Fairand Book Fair and the spring concerts.Enjoy this last month of school andthe many activities it offers, and have asafe, fun, and relaxing summer.Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week - May 2nd-6thSince this is the last Contact of theyear, we wanted to thank everyonewho is participating in this wonderful,week-long luncheon event that honorsour dedicated teachers and staff. Thankyou to our Paxtonia families for theirgenerous donations. We cannot do thisevent without your support.We will have tables set up in thelobby all week for drop off and for pickup of containers that need to beCommittee Chairpersons Needed!The PTA is still looking for committeechairpersons for:-After School Clubs - The currentcommittee can give you all the informationand paperwork. You would nothave to "re-invent the wheel." Justfollow what they did.-International Days - We would liketo start a "Decorations Committee". Ifyou are crafty and imaginative, this isright up your alley!-Legislative - attend a meeting onetime per month and report about it atthe PTA meeting-Membership - Getting people tojoin the PTA-PTA programs - arrange for speakersafter PTA meetings one or twotimes per yearreturned. We’re looking forward to agreat week of delicious food for ourteachers and staff. If you are interestedin helping to setup or serve, or if youwish to donate an item, please contactA n n - M a r i e R i n g , a ttherings4@comcast.net or 540-9899 orS t e p h a n i e O w e n s , a tstefowens@comcast.net or 657-1551. Thank you for making thiswonderful event possible!-Readingincentiveprogram -Runs April andMay. Send outthe paper to thestudents, collectthe papers andmake sure thePTA has enoughbooks to give outto the childrenwho earn them.Also, the Scholastic Book Faircommittee is a wonderful help withgetting the books.Thanks for your consideration!Check out the Menu forTeacher/Staff Appreciation Week:Monday, 5/2Bagels & MuffinsTuesday, 5/3Homemade Soups & SaladsWednesday, 5/4Desserts GaloreThursday, 5/5Cinco de Mayo Mexican FiestaFriday, 5/6Sub Sandwiches & MoreLife Membership AwardsPaxtonia PTA has selected thefollowing individuals to receive theprestigious Pennsylvania PTA HonoraryState Life Membership Award:Mr. Tom TooneKim St. ClairSharon SteinerKaren BloomKim YoderTeresa WilliamsThe above individuals have mademeaningful contributions on behalf of thestudents, staff and families that attendPaxtonia. They have dedicated themselvesto improving the education andlives of our students at Paxtonia and werecognize and appreciate all of the timethat they have given to us! They make us“Paxtonia Proud”!

The ContactPage 3PAXTONIA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL HONOR ROLL –3rd marking period (10-11)Distinguished HonorsAmir, AbdullahAzzato, RosaBailey, LaurenBandyopadhyay,DebanganaBavlish, AnthonyBien, IsabellaBlain, PeytonBowers, AlysshaBrown, TaylorBurkhart, AdamCargas, EliCasey, ArianaCassel, BlakeChappell MakennaCherry, JohhnieCherry, MadelineChimienti, AdriannaChonkar ParthCray, JuliaDempsey, BrandonD'Souza ShawnFleming, AddisonFoltz, EmilyFrankford, JackFrist, RyanFry, MeganHanlon, MeganHenshaw, KentonHo, SidneyHorst, CourtneyHubler, JacobJawed, AhsanJohnson, JillianJones, AbigailKane, HannahKeen, KelseyKegerreis, CaraKing, DannyLauren RousseyLeisher, TylerLelinski, DanielleMaheshwari, SaarthakMarolf, NolanMazza, SophiaMurdoch, McKennaMyers, SydneyPatterson, DerekPekala, SydneyPeters, EdwardPfaff, NicolePipa, LukePoling, DanielleRaezer, GraceRay, ArjunRichwine, MadisonRogers, AmandaRose, RachelRoss, MattieRusso, RanceSaiers, MackenzieSauers, SavannahScheaffer, LindsaySharif, CameronShepherd, ShaneShowalter, LaurenSignore, ClaytonSites, DustinSivaraju, HarshanSnyder, BenjaminSpinosa, NicoleSt. Clair, FaithStaub, LaurenSteiner, CarlyStepp, BrendenStraub, BradyThureson, TaylorTripathi, DhruvValdez, AllasandraWatson, BrooksWelty, MasonWijaya, VincentWilliams, LaurenYoder, AllyYost, JacobZieber, ErinZuvich, MargaretFirst HonorsAaron HublerAbdul-rahman, zeenaAbraham, SarahAdrien, LauraleeAgostino, LoganAlmeida, CodilynArmbruster, LilyBalshy, IsabellaBastiampillai, NaomiBehney, TorenBlack, HaileyBloom, ChristopherBorrell, PaigeBorrell, PaisleyBrennan, MeganBryan, ItayaBrynn, PeperBurns, AutumnCargas, CalebCarter, MasonChapman, SamanthaChimienti, NicholasClaudio, TonyCleaver, NathanColquhoun, AydenCooper, BraydenDecker, EmilyDesh, SamanthaDiehl, GretaDorris, AnthonyDorris, MilenaEck, JaxonEffi, GraceElseaidy, TylerEpps, AsyaFathima, SabriyaFeaser, BrookeFitzpatrick, JennaFoxwell, RyleeFrankford, KatherineFuentes, JoseFuller, TierraFuller, TyreseGalloway, LoganGesford, PhoebeGhosh, NeelGibaldi, StephanieGiblin, AjGivler, AllisonGoodman, TamieaGoodman, TiannaGroom, KevinGundy, BryanGuzy, MikalaHanlon, RyanHicklin, KathrynHohenshelt, RyanHoover, GrantHorst, DaltonInfantino, AlexJones, AidenJones, JaredKane, MichaelKieffer, JosephKrasevic, JoshuaKreiger, ColtinLawson, AlexisLeggett, PaytonLengel, CarsonLesher, RachelLewis, EmmaLingle, TaylorLuckenbill, TaylarMacKenzie, MeganMahmoud, VickreyMartin, LaurenMaryam, SalihahMatte, JaredMatte,, GraceMay, TabithaMcAlpine, TalayjahMcghee, DestineeMellott, JessicaMerlo, ChristopherMiller, AlexandraMiller, ChristiannaMiller, JustinMollah, SofiaMorrett, MadisonMosca, EthanMyers, JacobMyers, ShannonNeboga, MariaOmslaer, SaraOrosz, JacobOrris, ZacharyOwens, NathanielPatel, SarjuPatterson, AidanPhillips, JenaiaPipa, MarkPopp, BritteniPringle, FaithPurdy, AnaliResser, DrewReumann, HelenRicard, MatthewRife, AndrewRife, KatieRing, TristenRizwan, AsnaRoberts, DrewRoberts, RachelRobsock, AriannaSansbury, JoshuaSansoni, CameronSauers, LukeSchooley, KatelinSchrer, MichaelShen, DavidShroyer, EmilySipe, NicholasStoudt, SalinaStrange, AndrewSultzaberger,DominickThureson, DevonVargas, ElijahVargas, RebekahVarner, AmandaVene, LeahWatlington, DanielleWheeler, GavinWhitaker, MorganWick, JoshuaWilson, HannahWoodson, NicholasWright, ChristopherYoder, RachelYost, AndrewZwahlen, Hannelise

The ContactPage 4Second HonorsAlmeida, CodilynBalshy, IsabellaBertoni, A. J.Bertoni, RileyBlanding-Dockens,KerryCabbagestalk,JakasiaChrisemer, AlisonCorradetti, DavidCrowl, JustinDaniels, CoreyDeLany, CadenDemirovic, AriyanahEagle, KyleEbersole, KylieElia, JulianoElseaidy, TylerFrankford, KatherineGillen, HaileyGranitz, AdamGroom, KevinGroom, MichaelHassan, SyedHess, DylanHoang, OliviaJudd, DanielleJuett, OliviaKing, GavynKreiser, BryenLelii, HannaMaisonet, MiaMartinez, GianaMeck, MorganMosey, SamanthaMountsier, JulianMyers, ShannonNeuhard, EmilyNydes, SavonahOmslaer, TrevorPartenheimer,MichellePerez, JohannaPierce, AndrewProctor, ArianaPuryear, NevaehRizwan, AsnaRoden-Reynolds, BenSantiago, NikolasShappell, MarkShaw, AmandaShen, DavidSmith, GrantThomas, NatalieVetrano, LuciaWhite, TylerWilburn, DestiniWolfe, RyleighB.U.G. AwardsBertoni, A. J.Bertoni, RileyColquhoun, AydenDaniels, CoreyEffi, GraceGranitz, AdamKegerreis, CaraKing, GavynMosey, SamanthaOmslaer, TrevorOrris, ZacharyPartenheimer, MichelleSansbury, JoshuaMath 24 Champions!Congratulations to two Paxtonia fifth gradestudents who competed in CentralDauphin School District’s Elementary SchoolMath 24 Championship!We are Paxtonia Proud toannounce that HarshanSivaraju took first place andDanny King took second placein the competition, beating outthe top students from thetwelve other elementaryschools in Central DauphinSchool District!Danny King & Harshan SivarajuGrazie! From International Days 2011!We would like to send out a hugethank you to everyone whohelped with this year’s ItalianInternational Days. We are so proud ofall of our students for their hard work increating the wonderful Italian-themeddecorations that are displayed in thehallways of Paxtonia. Also thank you toMs. Bedard for all of her time andeffort in working with the children tocreate that artwork—it was greatlyappreciated!Many of our students put extra timein at home creating a mosaic piece aswell. There were so many creative andbeautiful mosaics! Thank you!Jen Wick created an Italian landscapefor the library lobby that is magnificent.Thank you so very much, Jen, forputting such time, effort and detail intothe project!We also appreciate all of the parentvolunteers and Mrs. Davis and her son,Steve, for taking time out of their busyschedules to decorate the school. Also,thank you to the parents who helpedwith the food tasting as well as thosewho provided Italian items for thedisplay cases.F i n a l l y ,thank you toMr. Deitrick forhis help withthe technologyfor the assemblies, and to Mr. Toone,Ms. Coates and all of the teachers foryour support with this event! The childrenreally seemed to enjoy the festivities!Grazie! Amy Gabriele and JackieBentlage-Brown

The ContactPage 5Hershey Park Volunteers NeededThe Paxtonia PTA is looking forvolunteers to work a couple shifts atHershey Park. When a person volunteers,the PTA makes $5.85 per hour and thevolunteer will then be provided with a freevoucher for a day pass to Hershey Park for2011 season, Springtime in the Park, HersheyPark in the Dark, Candy Lane or theSweet Lights! The shifts are about 4 hourseach and in the Games department.If you would like to do this, pleasecontact Deb Rose at: dr@cpitech.com, assoon as possible. Information neededincludes your name, phone number, email,shirt size and the shifts you are available towork. Shifts start this month.Giant A+ Rewards Program5th Grade Fun Day!Reading Incentive CalendarsThe PTA would like to continue toencourage our children toread during the month of May. If yourchild has read in April through May27th she/he will receive a free book.Children in grades K-2, who read200 minutes, and children in grades3-5 who read 400 minutes will eachThank you to the 237 families thatparticipated in the Giant A+ RewardsProgram and helped Paxtoniaearn a grand total of $3,020 for theIt’s hard to believe the end of the schoolyear is fast approaching. For the fifthgraders, it is the end of their time atPaxtonia and a new beginning into middleschool.The 5 th Grade Fun Day Committee hasplanned an evening of fun-filled games,swimming and music to help celebrate theirreceive a free book during the firstweek of June.Please remember to sign thebottom of the calendar before it isreturned if your child has completedtheir minutes. The calendars shouldbe returned to your child's teacher byJune 1st.2010-2011 schoolyear. Your generoussupport helps us fund valuableprograms for all of our students!Karn’s 1 for the Schools ProgramGreat news! We were informed byour contact at Karn’s thatPaxtonia earned MORE cash and hadMORE participating families than ANYof the other 150 organizations thatparticipated in the “1 For the Schools”program this school year! We had 121families and individuals designate theirFresh Rewards cards toPaxtonia which helped usto earn a grand total of $990 for the2010-2011 school year.Thank you to everyone whoparticipated in this program. Way togo Mustangs!last days at Paxtonia. The event will be heldSunday, June 5 th from 6:15-8:15pm at theFriendship Center. Details about the eventwill be coming home soon with your child.Chaperones are needed for the event. Ifinterested, please contact LaDonna Martin@dlclmartin@gmail.com or 717-443-6269.Thank you.Book Fair BOGO!Don’t forget to stop at thebook fair that will beopen during May Fair. Stockup on great summer readingbooks!As a thank you to our Paxtonia familiesfor all their support, we offer a buy one –get one free. See you at the Fair!It’s Field Day!It’s time for Field Day atPaxtonia! On Monday,May 16th Kindergarten willparticipate in Field Day. On Monday, May23rd, grades 1 through 5 will participate inField Day. Both will be great days ofgames and competition. Please have yourchildren wear sneakers and be dressed foroutdoor play - and don’t forget thesunscreen!The rain date for KindergartenField Day is May 20th, and forgrades 1 though 5, the rain date isMay 24th.

The ContactFrom the Desk of the School Counselor...Wendy MerrymanSchool CounselorThere are still valuable learningopportunities during the finalmonths of the school year. Although itis tempting to start to wind down, it isimportant to persevere and maintainstrong school habits, including studying,paying attention, and doing your bestwork.Some people think smart is somethingyou are born with. Others believeyou can “get smart.” Do those beliefsmatter? Studies show they do! Peoplewho believe they can “get smart” arebetter able to face a challenge.Box TopsWe would like to thank everyonewho submitted, trimmed, andbundled box tops during the 2010-2011school year. It truly helps generatefunds for our PTA. This year our schoolearned $1518 through General Mill’sBox Tops for Education program. Wewill strive to earn more next year.Please continue to collect your boxtops over the summer. If you can trimthe box tops to the dashed line andbundle them in groups of fifty, it helpsmove the process along even further.Julie Marolf and Karen BloomRemember toKeep CollectingOver the Summer!Sunny Delight LabelsCapri Sun PouchesInk Jet CartridgesCampbell’s LabelsCell PhonesTyson’s LabelsAluminum CanTabsIf these people come up against aproblem they can not solve, they do notgive up. They don’t make the excuse bysaying, “I was never any good at mathanyway.” Instead, they decide that theymay just need to work a little longer, ortry a different approach.In contrast, people who do not valuehard work are more likely to give up. Ifthey run into trouble, they give themselvesall sorts of reasons why it isn’ttheir fault. “I was never very smart inmath anyway.”How can parents give children “getsmart”messages? Try these:I know you can do it if you keeptrying. You’ve worked really hard on yourCoke RewardsYou can refresh yourself this summerand still make great things happenfor Paxtonia. By drinking Coca-Colaproducts over the summer, you can earnMy Coke Rewards points and donatethem to Paxtonia. Your point donationswill go towards rewards like physicaleducation equipment, art supplies,and educational resources that help ourstudents learn, play and have fun.Contact - Over & OutMy second tenure, and total of sixyears, as Contact Editor, is coming toan end. I want to thank everyone who hasmade this a great experience both times.Thank you to the PTA Presidents, beginningwith our current President, GayleStaub, who has been a phenomenal supportand made the hard calls on edits; and to thevery supportive past presidents, Kim St.Clair - my “editor to the editor,” Suzi Heter,and Rosanne Pogash.A huge thank you to Mr. Toone whoalways provided a speedy review, and theoffice staff, Mrs. Gehret, Mrs. Cassel andMs Lescanec, for all their help & support.Thank you to all the committee chairsspelling. Before you know it, you’lllearn all those words.Page 6Contact Editor—Kim YoderYou’re not going to give up untilyou get it, are you? I am impressedwith your hard work.If you work on your science fair projectevery day this week, you’re sure to beproud of the result.When you talk about the things youhave done, make sure you send thesame “get smart” messages. Tell yourchild you’re good at a task because youhave been practicing since you weretheir age. Or point out how proud youwere when you finished a project athome or work.-Adapted from Motivated Minds: Raising Childrento Love Learning, by Deborah Stipek and KathySealMy Coke Rewards codes can be foundon hundreds of different packages,including Dasani, Sprite, Minute Maid,Powerade ION4 and more. Over thesummer, you can donate points throughyour Coke Rewards account. If you haveany questions, feel free to contact theCoke Rewards Chair, Pam Sultzaberger,at psultzaberger@cdschools.org or learnmore at mycokerewards.com/schools.who submitted articles promptly and especiallyto those who understood the editingprocess!Special thanks to the Assistant Editorswho, every month, picked up, sorted anddelivered: Kim St. Clair, Belinda Lowe, EmilyPeterson, Ruth Kimball, and Michelle Schooley.And finally, a special thank you to KenD’Souza for his patience and understandingwith my technical difficulties! I know you’lldo a great job next year!For those who remember - Mrs. Krause,Mrs. Albright, Mrs. Swartz, Miss Shirdon(sorry, she’ll always be that to us!), Mrs.Bedard & Ms Shepler— the Yoder twins aregraduating!