Holiday Cookie and Movie Extravaganza

Friday at 6:30 PM, a special showing of The Polar Express will be held at Chestnut Elementary's gym. Everyone is asked to bring one to two dozen cookies to share. Beverages will be provided. A very special guest will make an appearance after the movie and EVERYONE will have a chance to shop at our Holiday Book Store...where every book is FREE!!!! courtesy of Half-Price Books.

Free Budgeting Class Before December 10th PTA Meeting

Lisa Siciliano-Miller of the Ohio State University Extension Office will offer a free class on creating a Family Budget on Wednesday, December 10th at 6:30 PM. It will be held in the Music room at Chestnut. It is open to all Chestnut parents and staff. Immediately following will be our regular PTA meeting. We'll be talking about our Holiday Movie/Cookie Extravaganza, holiday parties, our Artist in Residence/Wizard of Oz play and much more!.

Next PTA Meeting

The next PTA meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 12th at 7:00 PM at Chestnut Elementary School. We'll have a special guest speaker and be talking about the Wizard of Oz Play, Holiday Shop and much more. Please note there will no longer be a 3:30 meeting.

Photos from Dr. Ray event

You're a Better Parent Thank You Think...a free parent/teacher night out with Dr. Ray Guarendi!

Thursday, October 9th
Chestnut Elementary School Gymnasium

Chestnuta PTA is proud to bring you an evening with nationally known child psychologist, author, speaker and radio host Dr. Ray Guarendi. Please note that we are no longer taking reservations for dinner as we are now booked to capacity. However, there is still time to rsvp to see Dr. Guarendi's presentation at 7 PM. If you are interested, please contact Kim at chestnutapta@yahoo.com and let her know how many will be coming. Reservations Are Required!!!

Special Thanks to our Sponsors!

Dinner is provided by Chick Fil-A: Mentor, Willoughby and Great Lakes Mall locations!
Decorations provided by Special Events Floral & Design in Downtown Painesville!
Babysitting provided by LeRoy Community Chapel, Harvey High School Student Community Service Program and Painesville City Schools Preschool! Special thanks to Edith Carmona for providing translation services for the evening!

Can I Borrow $25?

Our former Vice President Amy Kobus sent this to me and I thought it such a wonderful message, I just had to poswt it:

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door. SON: 'Daddy, may I ask you a question?'
DAD: 'Yeah sure, what it is?' replied the man.
SON: 'Daddy, how much do you make an hour?'
DAD: 'That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?' the man said angrily.
SON: 'I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?'
DAD: 'If you must know, I make $50 an hour.'
SON: 'Oh,' the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: 'Daddy, may I please borrow $25?'

The father was furious, 'If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I don't work hard everyday for such childish frivolities.' The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?

After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down , and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and he really didn't ask for money very often The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.

'Are you asleep, son?' He asked. 'No daddy, I'm awake,' replied the boy.. 'I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier' said the man. 'It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here's the $25 you asked for.' The little boy sat straight up, smiling. 'Oh, thank you daddy!' he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again.

The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father. 'Why do you want more money if you already have some?' the father grumbled. 'Because I didn't have enough, but now I do,' the little boy replied. 'Daddy, I have $50 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you.'

The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.

It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of your time with someone you love. If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of hours. But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

Chestnut PTA Wins National Grant Award!!!!

Here's a copy of the press release from the National PTA!!!!!


PTA Awards National Arts Enhancement Grants
CHICAGO (September 15, 2008) – As education budgets tighten, schools may find it tough to keep art programs alive. That’s why PTA is proud to announce the recipients of the national Mary Lou Anderson Reflections Arts Enhancement Grant—a matching grant for student-centered arts education programs.
The objective of the grant program is to enhance arts education for students in the classroom or other learning environments through a community effort to introduce activities, materials, new technologies, techniques, and the introduction of visiting artists programs. This year’s winners are:
Chestnut Elementary School PTA in Painesville, Ohio, will employ an artist in residence to stage a bilingual production of The Wizard of Oz as an after-school program. The artist in residence will direct the production while parent, school, and community volunteers head teams of students in set design, costuming, music, and acting.
Crittenden Middle School PTA in Mountain View, California, will host a “poetry year” featuring a poet in residence who will conduct four weeks of poetry workshops for all 7th-graders and a two-hour professional development seminar for all teachers on integrating poetry into lessons plans. The year will also include VIP poetry readings by members of the community among other poetry reading, writing, and performing activities.
Berwyn Heights Elementary School PTA in Berwyn Heights, Maryland, will connect science and art by engaging the entire school—plus school visitors and community members—in creating a mosaic mural of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. This collaborative “Web of Life” mosaic, to be a permanent fixture on the exterior of the school, will be grounded in students’ classroom learning.
The grant recipients were chosen based on creativity of the program, and the number of at risk students who are reached. Special consideration was given to programs centered on helping children whose environmental, familial, and/or socioeconomic situation may affect their academic success or ability to learn.
The grant program complements PTA’s long-standing commitment to quality arts education in public schools by providing funds to local PTAs to establish or enhance school arts programs in one or more arts areas: visual arts, photography, music (including dance), and literature (including theater). Local PTAs must submit complete applications and provide funds that match the amount they are requesting from the national PTA organization.
About PTA As the nation’s largest volunteer parent organization, PTA comprises more than 5 million members, including parents, students, educators, school administrators, and business and community leaders. With more than 25,000 local units, PTA flourishes in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Department of Defense schools in Europe and the Pacific. PTA is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Membership in PTA is open to anyone who is concerned about the education, health, and welfare of children and youth.

Photos from our First PTA Meeting of 2008-09

Welcome to Chestnut Elementary School PTA!

As we start off the new school year, we'd like to welcome the many new parents and students who are now a part of our Chestnut Elementary family. We've met many parents and students from the former State Street and St. Clair Elementary schools and look forward to welcoming EVERYONE to our PTA! Please mark Wednesday, September 10th on your calendar. It is our first meeting of the year where we'll be discussing plans for the upcoming year and WE NEED YOUR INPUT! You have two meetings from which to choose: 3:30 PM or 7:00 PM. Both are held at the school and we hope one of these will fit into your very busy schedule. We can work together to make sure our new Chestnut Elementary family has a fantastic, successful year!!!

Chestnut PTA Appreciation Dinner

Our first ever Chestnut PTA Appreciation Dinner was held this evening at the Elks Lodge in Painesville. A big thank you to EVERYONE who attended. We really hope you had a great time! A huge congratulations to our last year's officers: Anissa Preston, Amy Kobus and Cheryl Altizer. Anissa and Amy received special gifts as this was their last year as officers. Also receiving a special award for outstanding service were Connie and Eddie Orosz. Every member received a certificate of appreciation for their membership and commitment to our school, students and community through their membership in our PTA. Special pins were awarded to committee chairs: Kim Freeman/Yearbook, Lori Bunch/Print Production, Laura Gonzalez/Membership, Michele Carpenter/Fundraising, Connie Orosz/Market Day, Teresa Detwiller/Science Club, Tamra Stokes/Safety Patrol, Judi Poulter/Membership, Jen Parkinson/Student Council, Michele Kovacik, Holiday Shop. Next year's officers also were installed: Kim Miller/President, Karen Wivell/Vice President, Angela Lett/Secretary, Cheryl Altizer/Treasurer.

New Study Shows Public Schools as Good if not Better than Private Schools

Lifted from Yahoo News:

Students in public schools have math scores that are just as good if not better than those of students in private schools, according to a new national study.
The research focused across several years on 9,791 kindergarten through fifth-grade students.
"These data provide strong, longitudinal evidence that public schools are at least as effective as private schools in boosting student achievement," said researcher Christopher Lubienski of the University of Illinois.
Combined with other, yet-unpublished studies of the same data, which produced similar findings, "we think this effectively ends the debate about whether private schools are more effective than publics," said Lubienski, whose research has dealt with all aspects of alternative education.
This is important, he said, because many current reforms, such as No Child Left Behind, charter schools and vouchers for private schools, are based on the assumption that private schools offer better education than public schools.
The new study, detailed in May issue of the education journal Phi Delta Kappan, also involved doctoral student Corinna Crane and education professor Sarah Theule Lubienski, both of the University of Illinois.
Unlike literacy, math is viewed as being less dependent on a student's home environment and more an indication of a school's effectiveness, Sarah Lubienski said.
A previous study by the Lubienskis heated up controversy over the quality of private school education. It showed that students' math scores are better at public schools than at private schools, when controlling for socioeconomic status, but some critics said that study failed to show the possible effect over time of different types of schooling.
The data for the new study addresses the criticism with data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (or ECLS-K), administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), part of the U.S. Department of Education.
The ECLS-K database includes student achievement and background information drawn from a nationally representative sample of more than 21,000 students, starting with their entry into kindergarten in the fall of 1998.
The most recent data available for the University of Illinois study was gathered in 2004, in the spring of the students' fifth-grade year. The sample used for the study included students in 1,531 schools (1,273 public, 140 Catholic and 118 other private schools).
After controlling for demographic differences among students and schools, the researchers found that public school students began kindergarten with math scores roughly equal to those of their Catholic school peers. By fifth grade, however, they had made significantly greater gains, equal to almost an extra half year of schooling, Sarah Lubienski said.
Part of the explanation, she said, might lie in the fact that Catholic schools have fewer certified teachers and employ fewer reform-oriented mathematics teaching practices.
Public school students also "rivaled the performance of students in other (non-Catholic) private schools," the researchers wrote. After adjusting for demographics and initial kindergarten scores, they found that achievement gains between kindergarten and fifth grade were roughly equal.
"School type alone doesn't explain very much of why these scores vary ... in truth, whether the school is public or private doesn't seem to make that much difference," Sarah Lubienski said.
The researchers go on to write that they "personally see private schools as an integral part of the American system of education" and "there are many valid reasons why parents choose private schools and why policymakers may push for school choice."
Academic achievement, however, may no longer be one of those reasons, they write. "Claims that simply switching students from one type of school to another will result in higher scores appear to be unfounded," they write.

Parent Tips: What you can do as a parent to prevent bullying.

Listen: Encourage your children to talk about school, friends, activities, etc.
Take your children's complaints of bullying seriously: Remember that children are often afraid or ashamed to tell parents that they have been bullied and a simple bullying incident may turn out to be quite significant.
Watch for symptoms of victimization: Social withdrawal, drop in grades, personality changes, etc.
Use children's books to initiate a discussion about bullying: Judy Blume's Blubber is a classic novel about classroom dynamics, shifting alliances, and the bullying that can go on unseen by adults. Trudy Ludwig's Just Kidding emphasizes the distinction between "tattling" (trying to get someone in trouble) and "reporting" (trying to help someone in trouble). Hot Issues, Cool Choices offers specific bullying scenarios which encourage readers to talk about the choices they would make. And for adults, Barbara Coloroso's The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander provides a wealth of valuable information and suggestions.
Student Tips: Pass these tips along to your children.Remember, bullying is all about power and control, so try not to give the bully that power or control):
Ignore the bully when possible: The bully is waiting for you to react, so stay calm and don't react.
There's strength in numbers: Bullies generally don't pick on groups, so hang with your friends.
Don't retaliate in kind: This usually will just escalate the situation. Violence generally leads to more violence.
Tell an adult you trust: If the bullying continues, tell a parent, teacher, or some other adult you trust.
Don't underestimate your role as bystander: Bystanders can unintentionally facilitate a bullying situation through their inaction—or they can choose to help stop it.
Remember, no one deserves to be bullied, so don't suffer in silence. Do something or tell someone.

LIVE WEBCAST—A Parent’s Guide to Video Games: Online Video Game Safety Simplified

Wednesday, April 23, 2008Time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
REGISTER NOW!
Video games can be a great source of entertainment and learning for the whole family. But, with the ever-changing world of online gaming, how can a parent keep up? How do you translate game ratings? How do parental controls work? What tools can you use as a parent to ensure safe online gaming for your child? Join our free live webcast featuring PTA National President Jan Harp Domene, ESRB President Patricia Vance, and Andrew S. Bub from GamerDad.com, as they discuss online video game safety.
TOPICS WILL INCLUDE:
An inside look at the ESRB rating system
An expert-guided tour on setting up parental controls
Expert advice on managing online game time with your children
Tips for online video game safety
An interactive Q & A session
PTA has partnered with the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) to produce A Parent’s Guide to Video Games: Parental Controls and Online Safety, a guide full of the information that parents need to know about video games. Copies of the English- and Spanish-language versions of the guide can be downloaded from www.pta.org/mediasafety. This program is presented by ESRB and PTA.
REGISTER TODAY!

PTA Member Discounts for Sharp Electronics

PTA is pleased to announce that Sharp Electronics, a subsidiary of Sharp Corporation, has become a National Member Benefits Provider of PTA.
As a Member Benefits Provider, Sharp is offering PTA members exclusive discounts ranging between 15%–50% on its electronics and business products via a password- protected website. Also, Sharp is offering FREE shipping on select items including their AQUOS® high definition LCD televisions.
The Sharp discount website for PTA is now live and can be accessed by logging onto pta.org/benefits. We hope this exclusive opportunity will help create more value for our members and strengthen your state's ability to retain and recruit new members.

Chestnut Elementary School Time Capsule

A time capsule is going to be a part of the Family Cookout on May 30th. If you have any ideas of items that should be included in this fun project, please contact Anissa Preston at 392-6170.

Teacher Appreciation Week

Teacher Appreciation Week is the first week of May. If you are interested in assisting or chairing this event, call Anissa Preston at 392-6170.

2007-08 Yearbook

Yearbooks will be $15.00 and will be going on sale soon. Please watch for the forms to come home.

Clothing Swap

Do you have uniforms that no longer fit your child? Are you looking for school clothes for next year? PTA is planning a clothing swap for the May 30th Family Cookout. We will be collecting clothing that follows the School Dress code guidelines. A Voucher will be issued to families to swap. If you would like to donate clothing or would like to be on this committee please contact Anissa Preston at 392-6170.

Helping Kids Succeed

This came out in the bi-weekly PTA Parent email newsletter. I am SO guilty of not doing some of these things, at least consistently, but what great advice. I USED to be better at it and it really did help.

10 Ways Parents Can Help Teachers
Teaching academic skills is a tough enough task for teachers. Emotional, social and spiritual development should be focused in the home. You can help teachers and create a better learning environment for your children by following these tips:
Create a smooth takeoff each day. Give your child a hug before she ventures out the door and you head to work. Look her in the eye, and tell her how proud you are of her. Your child's self-confidence and security will help her do well both in school and in life.
Prepare for a happy landing at the end of the day when you reconvene. Create a predictable ritual such as 10 to 20 minutes listening to your child talk about his day—before you check phone messages, read e-mail, or begin dinner. That way you are fully present to listen, and your child has a touchstone he can count on between school and home.
Fill your child's lunchbox with healthy snacks and lunches. Have dinner at a reasonable hour and serve a healthy breakfast. A well-balanced diet maximizes your child's learning potential. Check out www.pta.org for ideas.
Include calm, peaceful times in your children's afternoons and evenings. Maintain a schedule that allows them to go to school rested, and if they are sick, have a system in place so they are able to stay home.
Remember it's your children's homework, not yours. Create a specific homework space that's clutter-free and quiet. Encourage editing and double-checking work, but allow your kids to make mistakes, as it's the only way teachers can gauge if they understand the material. It's also how children learn responsibility for the quality of their work. Get more homework tips online.
To read more, visit PTA's "10 Ways to Help Teachers."

Participate in Literacy Movement

PTA is proud to encourage an appreciation for books and cultures. This February, join more than a million readers in making literacy a significant part of Black History Month activities by participating in the 19th National African American Read-In. A Read-In is a gathering of people—family, friends, school members, and everyone in the community—to read books authored by African Americans. On Sunday, February 3, plan to read with your family—during halftime of the Super Bowl if necessary—or to participate in an event hosted by a local library, bookstore, or other community organization. Talk to your PTA and school about Read-In plans for Monday, February 4.For more information about this event, or for suggested reading lists, can be found online.The African American Read-In is sponsored by the Black Caucus of the National Council of Teachers of English and by the National Council of Teachers of English.

Nominating Committee

The Time is Now! If you would like to serve on the committee that selects next year's PTA officers, speak up!! Post your comment here or email Anissa Preston at ChestnutPTA@oh.rr.com.

Painesville City Schools to All-Year Calendar?

It was brought up in the January PTA meeting that the Painesville City Schools have been discussing the possibility of going to a year-round school program. You'll see the poll in the right-hand column. Let us know if you are for or against. If you have other thoughts you'd like to share, please post them here by adding a comment to this post. It can be anonymous. Anissa Preston would also like you to email her your thoughts to: ChestnutPTA@oh.rr.com.

Unapproved December Meeting Minutes

Attendees: AM meeting Anissa Preston, Sharon Miller, Tamra Stokes, and Mrs. Dey
PM meeting Anissa Preston, Amy Kobus, Cheryl Altizer, Michele Carpenter, Kim Miller, Robert Rea, and Karen Wivell.

The meeting was called to order by Anissa Preston at 7:10 PM.
The minutes from the previous meeting were approved.
Treasurer report:
See info sheet for balance
Polo’s: no money made yet. will make about $800.00 if all of the polos are sold. Cheryl to set up a stand at the basketball games.
Healthy Heart Program: for all 3rd graders through Lake Hospital System $250.00
Autism Speaks Fundraiser: we raised $595.00 for the Autism.
Principal report: none given
Committee reports:
Membership: 68 members?
Marketday: next pick up is 12/20/07
Fundraisers: Spaghetti dinner and a show—Steven Night to come to the school April 4th for dinner and a show. Mrs. Minder to help with this. More details at a later meeting. Possible Big Yummy sale in Feb. also Original Artworks for Mother’s Day—Ms. Stokes? To help with this?
Holiday shop: Voted to increase the budget for the Holiday shop $300.00. Need $200.00 for Santa. To arrive at the front door at 5:40pm—children will be able to get picture with Santa and while waiting in line will be able to write Santa a letter, all letters and pictures to be sent home on Monday. set up for the Holiday shop to be done after school--.25 per ticket. All crafts to be 2 tickets. 5 crafts available to make in the art room. Old crafts put together and to be sold as is. To have a meal deal for food—hot dog, pizza, chips, drink and cookies to be offered. Chinese auction to be done with donated baked goods. Holiday music to be played throughout school. Holiday shop available in the music room.
Book fair: $3200.00 in books were sold, $1800.00 for the library—next book fair to be in February at the conferences.
Reflections: Mrs. Sextella is unable to do it this year. Ms. Stokes? To be done by individual classrooms? But needs to be submitted by 1/4/08. Decision made to not do reflections this year. Karen Wivell suggested submitting a grant to have an Artist in Residence – all agreed and more information to be gotten later, but Karen will work on the paperwork.
Yearbook: no report
Giant Eagle: no report
Homeroom parent/ holiday party: Teachers to send out a letter to the parents on what they need/want for their individual classrooms for the parties.
Old business: Futher discussions on the Holiday shop
New business: Parent teacher out reach committee needs parents to attend meetings on Fridays? More information to be sent out later. Teacher/staff/student committee submitted guidelines developed for a “Bullyfree School” information read and suggestions made for changes. Nominating committee needed for 3/2008 for new officers. Target has a community outreach program—go to Target. Com to sign up our number is 126101.

Next meeting: not discussed

PTA Meeting Announced

From President Anissa Preston...

Hi everyone and Happy New year.
RESOLVE TO BE INVOLVED!
Our first meeting of the 2008 will be on Wednesday Jan 9th at 7:30 am and 7:00 pm.
IF you would like minutes form the Dec. Meeting please respond to this email. I will be happy to forward them to you.
See you on Wednesday.