All Categories

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 10

4/13/2017

NOTE FROM PRINCIPAL ABOUT COLONIAL DAY:
Hello All,
As you read through the PTO post, if you have any questions about Colonial Day, please direct those questions to me and I will share them with Dr. Chesson, the Assistant Superintendent of Schools. Emails should not be directed to Denny Conklin as decisions around Colonial Day are being made at the district level. Thank you!

Kristin
-------------------
Hello everyone!
First I wanted to thank Pete Gast, Marga Varea, Michelle Marshall, Margaret Muirhead and all the other wonderful volunteers (special readers, set up and clean up crews, etc) for the amazing Literacy Night. I keep hearing what a great time was had by all.

Another set of mini grants from the PTO have gone out. Kindergarten just received some basketball hoops and real basketballs that will go out on the front yard. Fourth grade was sent on an adventure to the Paul Revere House. Thank you to all the teachers who took advantage of this awesome opportunity to enrich their classrooms and/or curriculum! Thank you, parents, who keep donating to the PTO allowing for all these enrichment opportunities!

The Walk-A-Thon is set to happen on Wednesday, April 26th right after school. Please take a moment to fill out the permission form and register to volunteer. This is such a fun event and we need lots of hands to make it a safe one. Even if you cannot volunteer for one of the positions, walking with the kids is also helping us out. Thank you to Terry Holt and her cohort of First grade parents for leading the effort on this event.

Don't forget that May 1-5th is our annual Teacher Appreciation Week. Please read carefully the note put together by our PTO committee below and support them in any way you can.

As for school news:

We are all set with electricians reserved for this summer to install projectors into the ceilings. I will be ordering the brackets for this project in the coming week. Thank you to all who participated in the Silent Auction to make this happen.
For the Textile Drive, the Green Team fearlessly lead by Manisha Sharma has yet to find out who won for the town wide school drive. However, we all recycled over $1000LBS of textiles. Go Hardy.
I wanted to remind everyone, particularly the Third grade parents, that the PTO financially supports Colonial Day, but we don't run it. If you have concerns about the recent initiative by the Social Science chairperson to eliminate Colonial Day (although Kristin DeFrancisco managed to save it for this year minus the costume wearing opportunity), please contact Denny Conklin (dconklin@arlington.k12.ma.us; (781) 316-3577).
Order your Field Day shirts ASAP. We are trying to get an idea of how many we need to get made. Also you can order your concert DVD or CD at the same time. Thank you.

Happy April Break!

Cédrine Bell, PTO President

Friday April 14-21st   No school. April break
Wed. April 26th Walk-A-Thon! Meet on playground right after school.
Mon-Fri May 1-5th   Teacher Appreciation Week!
Tues. May 2nd   PTO meeting, 6:30-8 p.m. Hardy library, all are welcome!
Wed. May 3rd Walk or Bike to School Day.

COMMUNITY NEWS—Walk-A-Thon, Teacher Appriciation, Green Team, Cheer Clinic
Walk-A-Thon
This year, the Hardy Walk-A-Thon is scheduled for Wednesday, April 26, and it promises to be extra unique! Our theme for 2017 is CELEBRATING YOU! Students are invited to dress in their own individual style, showing off what makes the Hardy community colorful, diverse, and fun!

The walk-a-thon is an event where children collect pledges and then walk laps around the school to raise funds that benefit the Hardy School PTO. Check your student’s backpacks for information regarding this annual fundraiser, or take a look at the Hardy School website.

What do you need to do to make this event a success for your child and all of Hardy?

Each participating child must have a completed permission slip form prior to the walk-a-thon. Please turn this into your child’s teacher before the event.
Have your child collect pledges on the sheet sent home in backpack mail. The money will be collected in the days/weeks following the event, and your child will deliver the sheet & money to the teacher.
CAN YOU VOLUNTEER SOME TIME? There are many great opportunities to volunteer (including things that can be done both the day of the event and prior to it), so please sign up here if you can! It takes many parents to make this event a success.
Please review the following information with your child prior to the walk-a-thon if they are not familiar with the format yet.

The day of the event, each child will receive a punch card in the grade level color of the Hardy rainbow. When a child completes a lap, they will go to their grade level table to receive a punch in their card AND a colored wristband if they have reached the appropriate number of laps. We hope to see lots of rainbows on our students at the end of the walk!
Kindergarten     Red
1st     Orange
2nd     Yellow
3rd     Green
4th     Purple
5th     Blue

There will be a fruit and water table after the children pass through the grade level tables. PLEASE HAVE YOUR CHILD BRING A FILLED WATER BOTTLE TO SCHOOL TO LIMIT THE USE OF PAPER/PLASTIC CUPS.

If you have any questions, please drop one of us an email: tlholt@gmail.com or patsy@avalon-ventures.com
See you all there! Terry & Patsy, and all of Hardy PTO!

Teacher Appreciation Week is coming to Hardy May 1-5!
Each day during the week the teachers and staff will be treated to special surprises as a way to thank them for all of their hard work with our children! The schedule of events is as follows: Monday - teachers will enjoy a delicious cupcake donated by Facebook! Tuesday - the teachers and staff will be greeted with a special "thank you” and small gift as they arrive to school. Wednesday - the teachers and staff enjoy a delicious catered lunch! Thursday - a celebratory Ice Cream Social after school! Friday - a delicious breakfast sponsored by Principal, Kristin DeFrancisco!

A sign up genius has been posted to the hardy website with some needed supplies/extras for the week. Also, you should be hearing from your class' room parents with more information regarding honoring your specific teachers. Don't forget to say "thank you" or "I appreciate you" to ANY staff members you see during that week!

Any questions, please contact Annie (ajoclarke@gmail.com), Sarah (sarah.boulet@gmail.com) or Patsy (patsy@avalon-ventures.com).

We have a GREEN TEAM!
The Green Team is an environmental club for Massachusetts schools sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. Green Teams are students, teachers and the school community working together to help the environment by participating in activities that promote waste reduction and recycling, composting, energy conservation, and pollution prevention. Participating classes receive certificates of recognition and are eligible to win awards.

Being a part of the Hardy Green Team is easy! Sign up to help lead or run Green activities throughout the year: Please check us out here.

CHEER CLINIC
Cheer Clinic! Boys & girls ages 5 to 15 welcome!
Friday, April 14th 1 to 3pm, $20
Gibbs Gym 41 Foster St
Hosted by Arlington Pop Warner with help from the Medford High School cheerleaders
apwcheer@gmail.com for more info

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 9

3/13/2017

Hello everyone!

As we get ready to be hit by the biggest snow storm of this winter, I wanted to send out a huge thank you to Patsy O'Brien for the amazing auction. We raised over $8000 for the overhead technology.

The evening was wonderful; Joe Marshall was such an entertaining M.C. and DJ—thank you, Joe! Thank you to all parents who contributed with donations, bidding and helping out in many other ways. Thank you, teachers for the amazing experiences for the kids that you donated.

Thank you to all who keep giving to the Alternative Fundraiser--$15,000 has been raised so far! Remember to check if your workplace will match your donation. More mini-grants have gone out.

Second grade is getting bulletin boards to show off their work. A new laminator has arrived. First grade got a Carnival enrichment program as well as a new set of level reading books for each classroom. The library got new books. For enrichment this month, all the children were treated to an assembly on anti-bullying. The presenter used laser lights and songs that the kids knew to emphasize the message about the RIGHT thing to do. Please ask your child what each letter stands for. Thank you, parents, for all your support!

Next up is Literacy Night on Thursday, March 23rd from 6-8 p.m. This is a wonderful event for the younger and older kids. The younger kids enjoy listening to books read by special guests in rooms especially decorated for the evening. Older kids (4th and 5th grade) can help lead groups of children between the different rooms. Please help out if you can. The organizers, Pete Gast and Marga Varea, need some materials, baked goods and help setting up and cleaning up afterwards. Check out the Signup Genius.

Class field trips and Field Day will soon be here. Over the next 3 weeks, you can submit your orders for Field Day shirts (on the Hardy website). We have some shirts right now, but will need to order more. The order for shirts will be submitted onFriday, April 7th. Make sure to submit yours by then.

Lastly, if your child is missing clothing items, make sure to visit the cafeteria “Lost and Found Alley” this week. Next Monday, March 20th, clothing is being gathered and donated to Good Will.

Happy shoveling tomorrow! And don't miss the Community Announcements   below.
Cedrine Bell, PTO President

Thursday March 23rd, 6-8 p.m. Literacy Night
Friday March 31st, 9-10 a.m. Hardy School Spring Concert
Tuesday April 11th, 6:30-8 p.m. PTO meeting in the library. All are welcome!
Friday April 7th, 2:30 p.m. Deadline to order Field Day t-shirts.
Wednesday April 26th Walkathon after school!

Community Announcements—Green Team, Teosinte, Baseball/Softball
Hardy Green Team
We have a GREEN TEAM!

The Green Team is an environmental club for Massachusetts schools sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. Green Teams are students, teachers and the school community working together to help the environment by participating in activities that promote waste reduction and recycling, composting, energy conservation, and pollution prevention. Participating classes receive certificates of recognition and are eligible to win awards.

Being a part of the Hardy Green Team is easy! Sign up to help lead or run Green activities throughout the year: Please check us out here.

Hear great, local music and support a great, local non profit at the same time!
Imagine: the Beatles in the 70s
Family Folk Chorale
Ticket sales to benefit the Arlington Teosinte Sister City Project

Sunday, March 19, 3:00pm
Arlington Town Hall, 739 Mass. Ave.
Tickets $15, child/senior $12
www.familyfolkchorale.brownpapertickets.com (password: teosinte)

The Arlington-Teosinte Sister City Project and the Arlington Public Schools have been working together since 2009 to advance global awareness and promote social justice in our youth. ATSCP is pleased to be partnering again with the talented Family Folk Chorale, who has generously offered to donate a portion of ticket sales to our non-profit.

Enjoy a fabulous Sunday afternoon concert featuring the music of the Beatles in the 70s and support Arlington Teosinte Sister City Project at the same time! Buy tickets with the password "teosinte" at www.familyfolkchorale.brownpapertickets.com and 20% of ticket proceeds ($3 per ticket) will be donated to Arlington Teosinte. Don't forget to use the password to access the Arlington Teosinte Friends tickets.

Baseball and Softball for Boys and Girls

To be eligible, children must live in the town of Arlington.
The baseball program includes boys and girls ages 4 through 12 years old on April 30.
Go to the AYBSA website www.aybsaonline.org to register.

Please visit our website www.aybsaonline.org and if there are any questions send emails to aybsa.info@gmail.com.

Baseball        Tee Ball         Age 4 thru 6 (Age of child on April 30)
This Instructional League is intended to teach basic skills (throw, hit, catch flies, field grounders, and run bases) to small groups of boys and girls. The first half of each session is devoted to instruction. The second half of each session is used for game playing using a batting tee. Tee ball team’s practice/play on Saturday and Sunday afternoons from 3:00PM to 4:30PM at various fields throughout the town. Rosters will be set around mid April and the first session will be the first weekend of May and ends on Father's Day weekend in June. Rosters are generally based on school districts. Registration fee is $160.00
Baseball        Double A (AA)   Ages 6 & 7 (Age of child on April 30)
This Instructional League further teaches basic skills (throw, hit, catch flies, field grounders, and run bases) to small groups of boys and girls. Rosters will be set in the middle of April and practices will be scheduled soon after. The season will start the first weekend of May and end late June. Generally, there will be 2 games a week with one of them on the weekend. Games start at 5:30pm during the week and various times on the weekend. Registration fee is $190.00
Baseball      Eights League ages 8 (Age of child on April 30)
This league is for Eight year olds. The purpose of the league is to be slightly more competitive than AA with more of the rules of the Major division. This age group will participate in a try-out/evaluation late March. After the try-out there will be a selection process to construct rosters base on talent and school district. The rosters will be finished by the early April and practices will begin soon after. Game will start after the April school vacation and end late June. There will be 2 to 3 games a week with one being on the weekend. Start times during the week will be 5:30 PM. Registration fee $225.00
Baseball        Niners Age 9 (Age of child on April 30)
This age group will participate in a try-out in late February/early March After the will be drafted on to Niners League teams. The number of teams Niner's league will be determined by the number of children who sign-up. The rosters will be finished by the middle to end of March and practices will begin late March, early April. Game will start during the April school vacation and end late June. There will be 2 to 3 games a week with one being on the weekend. Start times during the week will be 5:30PM, 5:45PM, or 7:30PM. Registration fee is $250.00.
Baseball Triple A (AAA)/Majors    Ages 10 thru 12 (Age of child on April 30)
This age group will participate in a try-out in late February unless they were on a Major league team last year then they are only required to register. After the try-out there will be a draft to fill the 10 Major league rosters. After the Major draft the remaining 10 to 12 year olds will be drafted on to the AAA teams. The number of teams in the AAA will be determined by the number of children who sign-up. The rosters will be finished by the middle to end of March and practices will begin late March, early April. Game will start during the April school vacation and end late June. There will be 2 to 3 games a week with one being on the weekend. Start times during the week will be 5:30PM, 5:45PM, or 7:30PM. Registration fee is $250.00.

SOFTBALL
Girls Fast Pitch Softball, U15 Age Group
Open to girls ages 13-15. The 2017 goal is to have in-town program. League is competitive, playing by full fast pitch rules. Teams will be selected by draft.
Space could be limited to maintain roster size - don't miss out register early.
Girls Fast Pitch Softball, U12 Age Group
Registration for girls ages 11 and 12 (as of 12/31/16). This is a competitive league, while still instructional. Players pitch, play six innings with patched umps and some modified rules.
Girls Fast Pitch Softball, U10 Age Group
Registration for girls ages 9 and 10. Focus continues to be on building skills but adds the game components. Teams may be selected by draft
Go to the AYBSA website www.aybsaonline.org to register AND GET ALL OF OUR INFORMATION

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 8

2/2/2017

Hello everyone!
I hope you are all enjoying the mild winter. Getting kids to school is so much easier without piles of snow everywhere. Please read the post carefully as we have some important events coming up for our school.

Thanks to all your contributions to the Alternative Fundraiser, the PTO has ALREADY funded 3 mini-grants to Mr. Ham (ukuleles), Mrs. Muirhead (book series) and the Kindergarten classes (sand tables). We already have a couple more grants due to come in for review. Way to go, teachers, for improving your classroom and/or curricula! Lets keep the positive momentum going!

Help Hardy Now!! Alternative Fundraiser Donate Here

Movie night was a success. Thank you, Bonnie Walsh and all the parents who helped her. The kids appeared to have a lot of fun. Hardy t-shirts for field trips and field day as well as Hardy sweatshirts will be available again for purchase at the Talent Show.

Thank you to Tara Ahmed for the wonderful assemblies that she did for the entire school. Tara is a dancer trained in classic Indian dance. She explained to the children where the dance came from, showed them pictures of different Indian gods and goddesses, told the children stories, and danced. The children even got to dance with her. Please thank Tara for her amazing gift to our school and ask your children about this assembly if you already haven't. Check out the pictures at then end of the post too.

The Talent Show is around the corner, next Friday February 10th at 6:30 p.m. It is not too late to have your child(ren) share their talent with their peers. It is sure to be lots of fun. There might be some celebrity appearances... So sign up here and please join us for a fun evening on the 10th.

The Silent Auction takes place March 4th at 7 p.m. At the Sons of Italy. Please join us for this adult only event. Not only will we be raising funds to get overhead technology for the classrooms, but it's a great way to get to know other parents better. We are also hoping to have teachers attend. So please visit the website, buy tickets and if you can help, please do so here.

Lastly, check out the community news. We would love to have an amazing representation of Hardy at the Cause & Event run.

Hope to see you at the Talent Show,

Cédrine Bell

Tuesday Feb. 7, 6:30 p.m.    PTO meeting in the library. All are welcome.
Friday Feb. 10, 6:30 p.m.      Talent Show at the Arlington Town Hall!
Saturday March 4, 7p.m.       Silent Auction at the Sons of Italy!
Tuesday March 7, 6:30 p.m.   PTO meeting in the library. All are welcome.

Community Events
Silent Auction
Join us for a fun parents night out at the Hardy Silent Auction on March 4!
Let’s raise money for our school while we enjoy food, drinks, music, a 50/50 raffle, a wine pull and lots of unique items to bid on including:
Special Hardy Teacher Experiences
Unique Local Business Items
Sports Memorabilia &Summer Camps!
All proceeds will go towards funding overhead classroom technology.

Visit our website for auction item sneak peeks, event details and to purchase tickets.
You can also receive updates through our Facebook page.

Hardy Students in Play
Aladdin Jr Performances coming soon! February 3-5th at Belmont Town Hall.
Don't miss talented Hardy students in an upcoming musical production of Aladdin Jr, a fantastic tale of the street rat who became a prince! All of your favorite characters from the hit Disney film - Aladdin, Jasmine, Iago, Jafar, the Genie, and more - are here in a musical adventure filled with magic, mayhem, and flying carpet rides.
Based on the iconic animated film, with an Academy Award-winning score by Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice,Disney’s Aladdin Jr. is a beautiful show with a powerful message: that the nature of one's soul is more important than physical or material appearances.
Performances are February 3-5 at Belmont Town Hall Auditorium. You can purchase tickets on line.
Cause& Event Run

Hurry up and register for the Cause & Event Run. You can be both part of the Hardy Team as well as make Hardy School the recipient part of the registration fee. The race is on Sunday May 21st at 8 a.m. Register now. Go Hardy runners!

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 7

1/11/2017

Happy New Year!

I wanted to thank you on behalf of the PTO for supporting the Hardy School Alternative Fundraiser. Just recently Mr. Ham was awarded the first Hardy PTO mini grant to purchase 26 new ukuleles!

Mr. Ham benefited from the new PTO Mini Grant process that offers monies to Hardy School Teachers to benefit our children.  These new grants fund projects that are not or will not be funded through traditional funding channels.  Teachers can apply for these grants if their need falls in the areas of curriculum enhancement, technology and infrastructure or community building. Mr. Ham is the first teacher who has benefited from your support. Making a donation to the Hardy School Alternative Fundraiser allows the PTO to offer these Mini Grants.

Click here to make an Alternative Fundraiser Donation!

As we start this new year, please check our school calendar on the website. There are many activities planned for the winter. Let's just hope winter storms decide to happen on other days!

This Friday, January 13th, all children will be treated to a special enrichment on Indian Dance. A Hardy parent, Tara Ahmed, will be presenting. Thank you, Terry Holt, for bringing this enrichment experience to our children. Make sure to ask your children about the assembly on Friday.

Coming up next Friday, January 20th is our movie night. This is a fun event where everyone is welcome. Cost to enter the “movie theater”, our school gym, is $1 (unless you're a benefactor—it's not too late to get your check in!). There will be water bottles and popcorn also available for $1 each. Please bring blankets to sit on and feel free to come in pjs. Check the poster below for all the details. And thank you Bonnie Walsh for organizing this event.

Friday February 10th will be our first ever Talent Show at the Arlington Town Hall. Thank you Moya and Chris Charig for putting this event together. Please carefully read the details posted on the signup genius as to how your child can participate. If your child wants to participate, sign them up.

On March 4th will be our first ever Silent Auction and Evening Out for Parents at the Sons of Italy. Patsy O'Brien is organizing this event. Please reach out to her to lend her a hand in the different remaining details for this event. Patsy has gathered an amazing assortment of cool items to bid on. Please join us for this fun event and get to know better your fellow school parents. Details are below and the money raised will allow us to buy the hardware necessary and install teacher projectors to the ceiling, giving our teachers more room in their classrooms and better visibility to our children.

I hope to see you at our upcoming events. Make sure to check the listings below for all upcoming community events.

Cédrine Bell, PTO President
--------

Friday Jan. 20th     Movie Night

Tuesday Feb. 7th     PTO meeting, 6:30 p.m., Hardy Library. All are welcome!

Friday Feb. 10th    Talent Show, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall.

Saturday March 4th     Silent Auction, 7 p.m., Sons of Italy.

Community Events
Movie Night
Silent Auction
Join us for a fun parents night out at the Hardy Silent Auction on March 4!
Let’s raise money for our school while we enjoy food, drinks, music, a 50/50 raffle, a wine pull and lots of unique items to bid on including:
Special Hardy Teacher Experiences
Unique Local Business Items
Sports Memorabilia & Summer Camps!

All proceeds will go towards funding overhead classroom technology.

Visit our website for auction item sneak peeks, event details and to purchase tickets.
https://hardyschoolsilentauction.com
You can also receive updates through our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/HardySchoolArlingtonSilentAuction/

Girl Scout Family Event
Please see attachment

Hardy Students in Play

Aladdin Jr Performances coming soon! February 3-5th at Belmont Town Hall.
Don't miss talented Hardy students in an upcoming musical production of Aladdin Jr, a fantastic tale of the street rat who became a prince! All of your favorite characters from the hit Disney film - Aladdin, Jasmine, Iago, Jafar, the Genie, and more - are here in a musical adventure filled with magic, mayhem, and flying carpet rides.

Based on the iconic animated film, with an Academy Award-winning score by Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, Disney’s Aladdin Jr. is a beautiful show with a powerful message: that the nature of one's soul is more important than physical or material appearances.
Performances are February 3-5 at Belmont Town Hall Auditorium. You can purchase tickets on line at www.menotomymusicaltheater.com

Cause & Event Run

Hurry up and register for the Cause & Event Run. You can be both part of the Hardy Team as well as make Hardy School the recipient part of the registration fee. The race is on Sunday May 21st at 8 a.m. Go Hardy runners!

Gymnastics Clinic at AHS

Please see attachment.

Click here to make an Alternative Fundraiser Donation!

<<Previous

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 10

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 9

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 8

PTO President Post - Vol. 9 / Issue 7

Read the PTO president's newsletter!

Archives

Categories