NOVEMBER 13 - IN THIS ISSUE
DEAR PARENTS
Believe it or not, next Tuesday is the end of our first trimester, and I want to share with you how you can expect to learn about your child's academic progress at this point in the year. Please mark your calendars for the following: 
  • Your child's progress report will be sent home on December 4; this will provide an overview of his/her performance in all subject areas. If you or your child have questions about the report, please be sure to make note of your questions and bring them to your advisory conference.
  • Advisory conferences will take place between Dec 6-12. All parents are encouraged to participate in an advisory conference at this time. Be on the lookout for an email from your child's advisor to sign up for a conference time. Please note that 5th & 6th graders will be leading their own conferences, so stay tuned for additional information coming soon.
  • We will also host a Walk-In Conference Night on December 12 so that you will have the opportunity to meet with more subject-area teachers should you have additional questions about anything provided in the progress report. Parents are invited to meet with teachers in 10 minute blocks. Sign ups will be posted at each campus 15 minutes prior to the start of the event.
    • Walk-in Conference Night - Lower School 4:00-6:00 pm.
    • Walk-in Conference Night - Middle School 5:30-7:30 pm.
Even with everything going on this month, we are already looking ahead to next year. If you have another child in your family that would like to attend Charlotte Lab School, complete the application below.

2018/19 APPLICATION FOR ADMISSIONS PREFERENCE
Please  complete ONE application for any SIBLING of a student currently enrolled at Charlotte Lab School, or any child of a current Charlotte Lab School employee or Board member. The State of NC defines SIBLING as children who share at least 1 parent, children whose parents/legal guardians are legally married, or any children who reside in a family foster home.
  
As stated in our  Enrollment & Admissions Policy, Charlotte Lab School desires to create a school community where whole families learn together. Siblings of currently enrolled students will receive priority for admission if their applications are received by the designated deadline and Lab has seats available. If the number of siblings exceeds the number of available seats in a grade level, a separate sibling preference lottery will be held to determine which students are admitted.

All applications must be submitted by 11:59 pm on Wednesday December 13, 2017 to be eligible for the admissions preference.

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WELLNESS UPDATE FROM MRS. WHELAN
More tips for healthy living from our guest writer.

Nuts, Seeds and Oils: What You Need to Know

Healthy fats are essential to proper body function, the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, and protection against disease. And, since the human brain is approximately 60 percent fat, fats are also essential to brain function, including learning abilities, memory retention and mood stabilization. Fat is important to keeping cells, joints and muscles flexible and cushioned, and is instrumental in keeping skin young and healthy.

Monounsaturated fats, which are found in nuts, seeds and fatty fruits, such as avocados and olives, are some of the healthiest fats you can consume. They reduce bad cholesterol and prevent cardiovascular disease. They also are vital to the development and maintenance of your cells, and promote healthy blood flow. This increases oxygen to the brain and lowers blood pressure, both of which are important to cognitive function. Finally, they are high in vitamin E, an antioxidant instrumental to preventing degenerative diseases.

Get a healthy dose:
  1. Nuts: Almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, peanuts, pecans and pistachios make great snacks, and are a great addition to salads and entrees.
  2. Fatty Fruit: Olives are versatile in pasta dishes, casseroles, and Mediterranean food. Add avocados to Mexican dishes, salads or smoothies.
  3. Seeds: Sprinkle seeds onto salads, or include them in noodle dishes. Also use ground sesame seeds or tahini paste in hummus and other dips.
  4. Oils: Cook with olive, avocado and nut oils for added benefit.
Learn More:

STUDENT PORTRAITS
If you have not received an email from Mandy French Photography with a link to your child's student portrait pictures and directions on ordering, please email Mandy French. Note, all students will receive a free class picture!

If you would like to have your child's picture retaken, please email Mandy French. Be sure to include your child's name, grade, and advisor/homeroom teacher.  Retakes for student portraits will take place on the following days:
  • The Lower School retakes will take place Friday (11/17) morning from 8:00-9:00 am. Please let your child know that it is retake day and have him/her report to the Multipurpose Room upon arrival at school.  
  • The Middle School retakes will take place at  3:15 pm  on Thursday (11/16)Please have your child report to the Blacktop at  3:15 pm  this Thursday! 
PTSO UPDATES
BOX TOPS
Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Please don't forget to check for box tops at home and when you are visiting other family members. You can ask neighbors or friends from church, as well. They are often happy to help. The holiday season is the easiest time of year to collect box tops!

COKE REWARDS
Coke is having a double points promotion until November 17. If you have any Coke lids, please go on to Coke's website under the "GIVE" tab and enter them to be donated to the school. Right now each one is worth $.10. If everyone does a little, it can add up to a lot!

SAVE THE DATE - HOLIDAY MARKET & MOVIE
The Charlotte Lab School Holiday Market & Movie will take place on Saturday, December 9 from 1:00-3:00 pm at UNCC Uptown (across from the Lower School - and please note the date change). Shop local vendors and bid on auction & raffle items to finish your holiday shopping all while the kids enjoy a movie. Auction items to include: Amazon Echo, American Girl Doll, Signed Panthers Helmets & more! Interested in being a vendor? Contact Kess Clark.

IT'S COLD OUTSIDE...SHARE THE WARMTH
The 3rd Annual Gloves & Socks (and Coats) Drive will begin on Monday, December 2.

CHECKERS NIGHT
Come enjoy a night out with the Charlotte Checkers and CLS families on January 20! Tickets are $16 and $5 from every ticket will go directly back to the school. To purchase tickets, visit GOCHECKERS.COM/CHARLOTTELAB and then an e-ticket will be sent to you. We hope to see you there!
ART BY ME
If your child is taking Art this trimester, you will have a chance to purchase products featuring his/her artwork as part of a special Art By Me fundraiserLast Friday, we sent home a customized brochure in your child's green folder including two free postcards printed with your child's artwork. 

Art By Me can print your child's artwork on any number of products ranging from coffee cups to notecards to ipad covers. By supporting this fundraiser, you will receive a keepsake printed with your child's original art, and your purchase supports LAB, as a portion of all sales benefit the school! 

To place your order, go to:  www.artbyme.com/shop and enter the Artwork ID found on your child's order form. You may also turn in your paper order form to the school via the green folder. If your order is a holiday gift, and you want it delivered before the holiday, the deadline to order is THIS THURSDAY (11/16). Late orders can still  be placed online after the due date but are not  be guaranteed for holiday delivery.

THANKSGIVING PIE EVENT
Calling all thankful bakers AND non-bakers! Help us show the staff at Charlotte Lab School how grateful we are for them this Thanksgiving. Please consider helping the Staff Appreciation Committee express our gratitude for all of their work throughout the year by baking or purchasing a pie for our wonderful staff members to share with their families this Thanksgiving. We'll take care of boxing and delivering pies to staff. Sign up here.

Pies must be delivered to the school (lower or middle) by Tuesday, November 21 by 10:00 am. We will have drop off stations near the student entrances, as well as in the carpool line that morning.

Teachers, administration, bus drivers, and UNCC neighbors were offered a choice of chess, pecan, or pumpkin pie. Please bake the flavor listed with their name. If a flavor is not listed, then we have not received their preference. If a staff member is not listed, they opted not to receive a pie this year. Thank you for your help!
MUSIC SHOWCASES
As we approach the end of the trimester, we want to invite parents of 1st-5th graders to attend a music showcase.

Friday, Nov 17
  • 1st Grade-Doig: 1:50 pm
  • 3rd Grade-Fields: 11:20 am
  • 5th Grade-Team Spiderman* (Advisories: Fernandez and some from Tunick): 12:15 pm
Monday, Nov 20
  • 2nd Grade-Whitelaw: 11:20 am
  • 4th Grade-Team Robin* (Advisories: Baldwin and some from Moore and Wycinsky): 12:15 pm
* 4th & 5th Graders take enrichment by "team"; your child will know which team they are on!

Note: Kindergartners will have a chance to showcase their talents at  an end-of-year event, and 6th graders who continue on with music will have a mini recital in the second trimester.
MY SCHOOL ANYWHERE STUDENT DIRECTORY
Charlotte Lab school uses an online student directory. All family info has been added and/or updated based on the information and permissions you provided in your enrollment paperwork. A confirmation has been sent to all families via email. Please review this information for accuracy. Later this week, when all confirmations have been completed, families will receive an ACCESS email to use the directory in full. For any questions, please email Jenny Greenspon.
THANK YOU!
Thanks to Kelly Bliss Smith for planning our first ever Parents Party on November 5th at Triple C Brewery and to Caroline Chase for designing the event flyer. The group had a great time, and we'll look forward to the next event for Lab Parents!
FIELD TRIP ANNOUNCEMENTS
There are a lot of upcoming field trips! Remember, if you prepaid for field trips, just circle "prepaid" on the permission slip. And even if you prepaid, we still need a signed permission slip for bus trips.   If you have not yet prepaid and wish to do so, you can pay online at K12paymentcenter.com or send in cash or check. You can send in $25, $50, or $75, and you will receive an accounting by trimester of your remaining balance.

Take a look at our upcoming trips:
Nov 14 RunningWorld 6th Grade
Nov 16 Schiele Museum Kindergarten
Nov 17 Historic Rural Hill 3rd Grade
Nov 30 Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden 4th Grade
Dec 1 The Nutcracker (Charlotte Youth Ballet)
1st & 3rd Grades
Dec 5 Schiele Museum 2nd Grade
Dec 16 Children's Theater - Best Christmas Pageant Ever 2nd Grade
2018
Jan tbd Jazz, The American Experience 3rd, 4th & 5th Grades
Feb 6 Children's Theatre - And in This Corner, Cassius Clay 4th Grade
Feb 7 Junior Achievement - JA Biztown 4th Grade
Mar tbd Raptor Center 4th Grade
Mar 13 Children's Theatre - The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe 3rd Grade
Apr 11 Children's Theatre - Madagascar Musical Adventure 1st Grade
Apr 23 Scrap Art Music
4th, 5th & 6th Grades

CALENDAR-AT-A-GLANCE


Tue, Nov 14 Nothing But Noodles Spirit Night 4:30 PM
Wed, Nov 15 MS Open House 6:30 PM
Thurs, Nov 16 Breakfast with Heads of School 8:30 AM
Tue, Nov 21
End of Trimester 1
Wed, Nov 22
Thanksgiving Break- No School
Thu, Nov 23
Thanksgiving Day- Holiday
Thu, Nov 23 Novant Health Thanksgiving Day Parade 7:00 AM
Fri, Nov 24
Thanksgiving Break- No School
Mon, Nov 27
Teacher Workday-No School
Tue, Nov 28
Start of Trimester 2
EXPLORE CLT
We have a new feature in our weekly enewsletter thanks to our Student Recruitment Committee. Each week you will find a list of family-friendly events happening in and around Charlotte and even more reasons to Explore CLT.

Date Event
11/16-11/19 UNCC Department of Dance Fall Concert
11/17 Holiday On Ice opens (NASCAR Hall of Fame Plaza)
11/17-12/31 Holidays at the Garden at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden
11/18 Harvest Day at the Schiele Museum
11/18 National Farm City Week at the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market
11/22 Carolina Panthers Tree Lighting at Bank of America Stadium
11/23-12/24 Charlotte Christmas Village at Romare Bearden Park
11/24- 12/30 Carowinds Winterfest
11/24-11/26 Sound of Music (Belk Theater)
11/24-12/23 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever: The Musical (Children's Theatre of Charlotte)
11/30 Lights on the Square: Uptown Tree Lighting
11/30-12/3 Charlotte Symphony Pops: Magic of Christmas (Belk Theater)
NEWS WORTH REPEATING
Freestyle Pictures! Don't forget to keep loading those great Lab School photos to ReplayIt. Please tag the name of the student(s) and grade. It saves time in the long run! 
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Want your kids' candid picture in the yearbook? Have great photos from a school related activity? PLEASE upload it on the ReplayIt app. Download the app once (you will need it as long as your child is registered at LAB School) and upload your photos as you take them. Please tag the children in the photos and their grades. And, don't worry! There is still time to order your yearbook here.
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COKE PRODUCT UPDATE
Lab is no longer accepting Coke product bottle tops at the school, and we are no longer collecting caps for the school art project; however, we would love for you to create a Coke account, enter the codes from drinks you consume, and donate them to the school. This will help us earn valuable supplies for our school. Email Zoe Balsamo at [email protected] for more information. 
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This November, Charlotte Lab School is partnering with Minted on a special fundraiser. Shop www.minted.com using our promo code: FUNDRAISECHARLOTTE to earn 15% back to the school. Plus, you also receive 15% OFF your Minted order-all month long! Note: this offer cannot be combined with Black Friday or CyberMonday specials.
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We have posted our November and December Lunch menus. Please note the change to Pizza Friday. While the new pizza lunch has been a hit, it is also a little more work than we had hoped, so we are going to scale back to once a month. Our caterer will still be providing pizza on Fridays; however, the Pizza Fundraiser (with pizza from Domino's or Papa John's) will now be the last Friday that we are in school each month. 
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We are so grateful to everyone who has donated items from our wish list. Teachers are still updating the list with current needs. Check out the items we still hope to receive, and see if there is anything that you are able to donate.
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It is that time of year again. Come and check out the lost and found items waiting to be claimed near the front office. Don't forget to label all outerwear and water bottles. Please also take a look at the clothes that you have and make sure you don't have another student's clothes by accident. A few parents have mentioned missing clothing that is labeled; those blue hoodies tend to all look the same! All unclaimed items will be donated on December 20.
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If you would like to help the middles school chickens, sign up here and follow the links to the website where you can pay online and Mr Luft will pick up the supplies for our feathery ladies (since the site does not deliver). 
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Lunch payments can be made at  K12PaymentCenter.com . I t is not necessary to order your lunch in advance; however, if your child requires a special meal (gluten free or vegetarian) please let Mrs. Malone know in advance.
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If you are making a change to your child's afternoon dismissal, please make sure to complete the online transportation form NO LATER THAN 2:00 pm. After 2:00 pm, you must call the school and let Ms. Fulcher (LS) or Ms. Clinch (MS) know.  And don't forget, e arly dismissal ends at 3:00 pm. If you arrive after 3:00 pm, you will be asked to wait to pick up your child until regular dismissal at 3:30 (LS) or 3:45 (MS). 
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Don't forget to like Charlotte Lab School on Facebook. There is also a Charlotte Lab School Parents Page. This page is managed by parents and not visible on Facebook for security reasons, so if you want to join the group, please email the page administrator Nicole Bowen, and she will invite you to join.
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Please note that on days that your child is sick or absent, we ask that you email his/her homeroom teacher and our Front Office Managers  Stefanny Fulcher   (Lower School) or Lauri Clinch (Middle School) before 8:30 am. A note from parents (and a doctor's note, if applicable) is necessary and should be sent immediately and no longer than 3 days after the absence. Don't forget that our funding depends on our attendance the first 20 days of school, so please make every effort to ensure your child is at school.
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Be sure to sign up for Remind 101 and receive last minute reminder texts from Lab. Just text the correct code (below) to 81010. Be sure to sign up for the Entire School messages, plus the relevant grade levels and after school if applicable. Standard text rates do apply. 

  • Entire School - @Fk2c2
  • Kindergarten - @bea6h
  • First Grade - @2a34d
  • 2nd Grade - @8g9ccd
  • 3rd Grade - @48h447
  • 4th Grade - @hea66
  • 5th Grade - @43gf3d
  • 6th Grade - @4dha6
  • After School - @labschoola
  • ____________________________________

    Parents are invited to celebrate their children's birthdays at school, and we ask that you follow these policies:
    • Parents may join their child for lunch and bring a small treat to share with advisory to celebrate their child's special day.
    • Birthday celebrations must be arranged IN ADVANCE with the child's advisor so that he/she knows when to expect you and can plan an alternative treat for those children who might not be able to enjoy what you bring.
    • All treats must be NUT-FREE
    Charlotte Lab School
    301 E. 9th Street
    Charlotte, NC 28202

    [email protected]

    General Info: 704-464-3830

     

    Teaching and Learning for the Next Generation