Discovery School PTA                                                                  December 5, 2016

 MCS Calendar

 
Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday Balloons
December

1 ~ Maria Martinez

(Custodian)
 

12 ~ Teresa McCarthy

(2nd grade)
 

31 ~ Lori Turnbow

(PE)
 

31 ~ Charlotte Young

(5th grade) 

 

 

  What's for Lunch?

Cafeteria
 

  Free breakfast and lunch for all students


Manage your child's lunch account 

Join Our Mailing List


 
Discovery School

Website!


New DS PTA

Website!


PTA Board of Managers
Officers*/Executive 
Committee

President*
Kathie Elfersy
 
President-Elect*
Margaret Bramlett
 
Vice President*
Jennifer Smith
 
Secretary*
Steph Olsen
 
Treasurer*
Beata Abbott

Parliamentarian
 Jennifer Stacey


Committee Chairs

Adventure Activities
 Leslie Kekelis
 
Communications/
Newsletter Editor
Amy Swicord

  Fundraising
Amy Roeder
 
Hospitality
Jennifer Allen
 
Membership
Susan Gaither
Holly Holton

Programs
VACANT
 
Volunteers
Amanda Moore
 
Members-at-Large
 
 K-2
Darla Sampson
 

3-6
Kristi Crass

UPCOMING EVENTS


December:

      5: Katie Holmes   ( Parent University on Dyslexia) 
@ 6:00
      6: Perfect Attendance Day
       6: Spring play auditions @ 3:45 - 6:00
      8: PTA General Membership Meeting, followed by 3rd Grade How to Train Your Reindeer and Band Concert starting @ 5:30
      9: Spirit Night (Barnes and Noble) all day with events from 5:00 - 8:00)
     15: New Application Informational Meeting @ 6:00
     16: Half Day (noon dismissal)  
     19 - January 3: Winter Break

January:
 
      4: Students return to school
     16: MLK Day (no school)

President's Corner 
PTA's Second General Membership Meeting
Thursday, December 8th @ 5:30
all parents, families and community members are invited.

Band and 3rd grade performances to follow.
MEET THE PTA 
 BEATA ABBOTT - TREASURER
Born and raised in Budapest, Hungary, Beata is currently a stay at home mother. She holds a Bachelor's degree in finance from Sacred Heart University of Connecticut and she has 12 years of retail banking experience. Beata and her husband, John, moved from Connecticut to Tennessee in 2010 when their twins, Allie and Jenna, were one year old. Beata most enjoys spending time with her family, hiking and photography.
SPIRIT NIGHT (BARNES AND NOBLE)
  
CONGRATULATIONS!!
 
Dr. Kristy Mall was a City Schools Foundation Grant Winner!  She wrote a grant, Engineering our Future - The Future is Here!,  to purchase $3635.85 worth of Advanced LEGO Robotics and is looking forward to starting an advanced LEGO Robotics Class in the ESP program this winter!
 
Dr. Mall was appointed to the Parent Editorial and Content Advisory Board for the National Association for Gifted Children.  This 3 year appointment will allow her to work on the Parenting for High Potential Magazine and create programs for parents of gifted children.  She was also able to represent the state of Tennessee and the Tennessee Association for the Gifted as a board member at the national breakfast for all 50 states and territories to discuss gifted policy and advocacy routes and needs to present  the national level in congress.  
 
Congratulations to the Beta Club!  For the first time, the Beta Club was able to compete at the state convention at the Opryland Hotel and every competitor did well.  We had several groups recognized for their outstanding performance!  We  placed 5th in the Visual Arts Sweepstakes (outstanding visual arts entries over all of the schools represented), Addison Melton won 4th place in Language Arts, Stefan Scarvell placed 2nd in Math,  Kynnedy Tillage placed 3rd place in poetry, Book Battle Team placed 5th, and Advertising Design team placed 1st overall.  Our Division 1 Quiz Bowl team placed 2nd, only losing to the national champions, who are also from Tennessee. Cannon Murphree placed third in woodworking, Ada Vance placed 4th in painting, and Samuel Gravley placed 2nd in color photography.  Several of the categories qualify for nationals if they place in the top two or top 3, depending on the category.  That means that we have teams that will qualify for the national competition in Walt Disney World June 25-28!  We are so proud of our Beta Club members!  There were more than 6700 competitors entered, and they all did an absolutely fabulous job! We can hardly wait to see what we do next year wit some experience under our belt!
 
Kristy Mall, Ed.D.
Educator
Gifted Education Specialist
Tennessee SENG Liaison
Tennessee Association for the Gifted Board

PTA NEWS
The winner of the Publix and Kroger reciept contest was Trisha Ambrose. Thank you to everyone who participated and uses their Discovery School rewards when they shop.

PTA NEWS
PTA is collecting Holiday Cards for our crossing guards, Tina and Shirley this December. As a way to say thank you for standing thier post regardless of weather and keeping us safe, we will be collecting the holiday cards at the front office. Please send your notes or cards in by Wednesday, December 14 and we will make sure they get them before the winter break. 
NURSE NEWS
 
Dear Parents and students,
        As the cold and flu season arrives, I would like to share some information and a few tips to keep your family healthy and avoid the spread of the flu virus to others. While the common cold and flu can be very similar, the flu symptoms are typically more severe and have a sudden onset. People who have the flu often feel some or all of the following symptoms:
* Fever or feeling feverish "chills"
* Cough
* Sore throat
* Runny or stuffy nose
* Muscle or body aches
* Headache
* Fatigue (very tired)
* Vomiting or diarrhea (more common in children than adults)
*It is important to note that not everyone with the flu will have a fever.
Some of our best defenses are:
* Boost your immune system with plenty of exercise, sleep, fluids, and healthy foods.
* Routinely wash your hands with soap and water (use hand sanitizer when soap and water is not available)
* Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with your hands.
* Cover your sneeze/coughs with a tissue, throw away the tissue, and wash hands...every time
* Consult with your doctor about getting an annual flu shot.
 
If your child shows signs and symptoms of the flu or any other illness, please adhere to the MSC illness/medication policy and your doctors recommendation of when to return to school. Coming back too soon only prolongs the illness and infects others.
 
Keeping children healthy and in school,
Nurse Jennifer

VOLUNTEERS
Volunteer
 
Volunteer News
 
Thank you to the volunteers who helped make the holiday lunches a success!
 
Beata Abbott, Ayat Abu, Sally Brainard, Poliala Dickson, Sharon Dieringer, Kathie Elfersy, Lindsey Fournier, Leslie Kekelis, Monica Lindquist, Meg McKee, Angela Morrell, Jennifer Stacey, Anna Stewart, Amy Swicord, Shannon Turner
 
And of course, big thanks to the PTA Hospitality Chair, Jennifer Allen, who organized the lunches.
PERFECT ATTENDANCE DAY
Murfreesboro City Schools has named Tuesday, December 6th "Perfect Attendance Day". The hope is to draw attention to the need for good attendance everyday.  Barring illness, MCS would like parents to commit to making sure their students are at school on time and all day on Tuesday. 

GUIDENCE NEWS
 
Calling all Dads, Uncles, Grandpas, and other Father Figures!!!

   





We're using SignUp.com to organize our Spring semester WatchD.O.G.S. volunteer opportunities so you can manage your volunteer time efficiently and privately.
 
Here's how it works in 3 steps:
 
1) Go to this link to access our "Discovery School WatchDOGS" SignUp:
 
 
2) Review the options listed and choose the date(s) that work best for you.
3) Sign up!
 
Note : SignUp.com does not share your email address with me. If you prefer to contact me directly, please email me at: [email protected]
 
Requirements to be a WatchD.O.G.S. Volunteer
  •     Complete and submit a volunteer application (You can get that from Mrs. Baltimore) This must be completed before you can volunteer.
  •     Order your uniform T-shirt! Send in $20 (cash, or check made out to Discovery School) with a note of your t-shirt size to Mrs. Baltimore. This uniform is a required part of being a WatchDOG.
  •    Claim your volunteer date(s) at SignUp.com.
 
THANK YOU for your participation and involvement at Discovery School!  
    Watch the PTA newsletter for WatchD.O.G.S. pictures, updates, and announcements. 

 
Please cPTA Logoontact us  with your questions, comments and/or suggestions. The Compass is distributed during the first full week of each month.  The deadline for newsletter submissions is the previous Wednesday. We would love to hear from you!