BLUES’ NEWS
Richmond Street School and PTA Newsletter
November 2004			Volume 5, Issue 3
Richmond Street School 615 Richmond St., El Segundo, CA 90245 (310) 606-6831		Dickie Van Breene, Principal http://elsegundousd.com/richmond_school Shari Gulian, Newsletter Editor, ssa@copper.net		Windri Barriga, PTA President PTA El Segundo Council 33^rd District, CCPTS

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Dear Richmond Street Families,

I would like to thank Judy Gilberts and Polly Houston for chairing the Fall Fundraiser and all the parent volunteers who helped them make this fundraiser a huge success. Thank you to all the families who participated in the fundraiser. I would also like thank all the families and teachers who helped to make the Fall Festival a stunning success. We are so fortunate to have such dedicated staff, parents and students.

Monday, November 1 is staff development day. There is no school for students. All teachers, preschool through grade 12, will be participating in a UCLA writing workshop at the high school. Improving student writing will be our primary focus this year. Tuesday, November 9 is minimum day. Grades 1 – 5 attend from 8:30 – 1:30. Teachers will be meeting to hear a presentation from Data Works on data calibration, which is a continuation of an October staff development on how to calibrate assignments to ensure that they are on grade level. Veteran’s Day Holiday -- NO SCHOOL -- is in the middle of the week on Thursday, Nov. 11. There is no school the week of November 22 for the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Wishing you a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving Holiday.

Sincerely,

Dickie Van Breene

Principal

dvanbreene@esusd.k12.ca.us

PTA NOVEMBER MEETING SPEAKER

Dr. Ray Gen, El Segundo High School teacher and PowerSchool specialist, will be speaking at the November 8th PTA meeting. Parents of students in 4th and 5th grades are particularly encouraged to attend this informative meeting. Dr. Gen will inform us of the benefits of PowerSchool, a web based student information system. Learn how you and your child can gain immediate access to current grades, assignment scores and attendance. Please be sure to bring the username and password you received at the beginning of the year. The meeting will be held in the computer lab starting at 7:15 pm, Monday, November 8^th.

Richmond Street would like to welcome Mrs. Janicek as our new Assistant to the Principal on Mondays and Wednesdays. She will be working at Center Street on off days. Mrs. Janicek taught at the elementary level in northern California for seven years. During that time she was also a literacy coach and a technology coordinator. She received her B.A. from Chico State University, a teaching credential, learning handicapped credential, and a Master’s in Education Administration from San Jose State University. She currently resides in El Segundo with her husband and 16-month old daughter.

Student Council will begin this Wednesday. It will be headed by our new Assistant to the Principal, Mrs. Janicek. Our first project will be collecting new or gently used books in conjunction with El Segundo Rotary. Information will be sent home at a later date. We are also making sure that all classes are recycling. Students in grades 3 – 5 are eligible to participate in student council.

5^th Grade Presidential Elections: The 5^th grade will be conducting mock presidential elections for the students. Please discuss civic duty and the importance of voting with your child.

3^rd – 5^th Grade Parents: We are having technical difficulties with SRI, our new reading assessment software. The students have been assessed but we are unable to print out results and book lists. We will send the information home once we work out the technical glitch.

School Site Council Representatives: We are pleased to announce your new School Site Council representatives, Cheri Bonilla and Shari Gulian.

After School Supervision: It is imperative for safety reasons that children be picked up upon dismissal from school. Children are not permitted to play on campus after school. We also recommend that you do not let your children play at Library Park unsupervised.

NOVEMBER CALENDAR OF EVENTS
11/2 Tuesday	Election Day Please Vote!
11/9 Tuesday	MINIMUM DAY – Early Dismissal Grades 1 – 5 attend 8:30 – 1:30
11/11 Thursday	Veteran’s Day School Holiday – No School
11/22 – 11/26 Monday-Friday	Thanksgiving Holiday No School

MESSAGE FROM THE PTA

November is the special month for giving thanks. So, on behalf of the Richmond PTA, let’s take this opportunity to say thanks to all the teachers, staff, parents/guardians, the El Segundo Education Foundation, El Segundo School Boards, El Segundo Unified School Superintendent and his staff and of course, the El Segundo community, for all their support in providing the students at Richmond Elementary with the quality educational environment they enjoy today.

Last month’s Innisbrook gift wrap fundraiser was a great success; many thanks to Judy Gilbert, Polly Houston and everyone who supported the fundraiser through their generous purchases. The PTA’s next event will be the Book Fair in December. (Hint: Books make excellent holiday gifts!)

The El Segundo Rotary Club will be collecting books and donating them to schools east of El Segundo. We encourage Richmond’s families to support the Rotary Club’s literacy project by donating gently used or new books.

And lastly, on behalf of Richmond’s PTA, I would like to wish everyone a happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday.

Windri Barriga

BOOK FAIR

Our annual Scholastic Book Fair is fast approaching.  The dates are December 6^th through 10^th, 2004, before and after school.  There will also be two special family nights, which you won’t want to miss.  Additional information will be coming home with your students next month.   Thank you to all who have volunteered so far, you will be contacted soon.  Any additional volunteers may contact Lynette Marcus, Book Fair Chairperson, at 310-640-9434.

ROTARY CLUB

The Richmond Street PTA is working again this year in conjunction with the Richmond Street student council and the El Segundo Rotary Club to collect gently used children’s books for distribution to neighboring schools and children in need. There will be a collection box available during the upcoming book fair and in the school office during November. This is a great opportunity to find a home for the books you are no longer reading and to do something for those less fortunate than us. During January our student council will accompany the El Segundo Rotarians when they present the books to the student council members of a nearby school.

SCHEDULE OF MINIMUM DAYS

Grades 1 – 5 attend from 8:30 – 1:30

(Kindergarten remains on regular schedule)

November 9 Professional Development

December 6 –10 Parent/Teacher conferences

January 11 Professional Development

February 8 Professional Development

March 8 Professional Development

April 4 & 5 Parent/Teacher conferences

May 26 Open House

June 23 Last Day of School

EL SEGUNDO EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION

The El Segundo Educational Foundation has pledged to Bridge the Gap between state funding for El Segundo schools and the state of excellence we would like to maintain in the El Segundo Unified School District (ESUSD).

The Foundation exists to add value to the curriculum when state funding is insufficient, and provide stability to the ESUSD during uncertain economic times. Our schools have real and immediate needs. Through your support, the Bridge the Gap campaign will provide $250,000 during the 2004-’05 school year for:

§ new language arts textbooks required by the state for our K - 8^th graders,

§ a modernized sound system for the El Segundo High School Auditorium,

§ refurbishment of the Auditorium’s grand piano, and

§ proper equipment for the high school’s new science building and other technology requirements within in the District.

The State of California allocates less money per pupil than most other states. Fortunately for our students, the ESUSD has made resourceful and creative budget cuts to reduce expenses in recent years. These cuts have been made far away from our classrooms, but recent state budget reductions are making it increasingly difficult to keep our schools on the path of excellence. Please send your tax deductible donations to: ESEF , P O Box 591, El Segundo, CA 90245

BOX TOPS AND LABELS FOR EDUCATION

Once again we have started our Box Tops and Labels contest!! Thanks to all who sent in Tops and Labels for September. And now for our September Winners:

Box Tops

Campbell’s Labels

Grade	Teacher	#BoxTops
K	Bryant	85
1^st	Maisonet	276
2^nd	Kuch	243
3^rd	Teitelbaum	190
4^TH	Blaney	303
5^th	Berkes	223

Grade	Teacher	#Labels
K	Morgan	139
1^st	Pickett	344
2^nd	Kuch	195
3^rd	Feinbloom	44
4^TH	MacKenzie	118
5^th	Sleeth	66

Trade Secrets from last year’s big winners!

· Try to save the front 50% of a soup can’s Label

· Labels for Education are not just Soup Labels – Save the UPC codes from your favorite Pepperidge Farm Cookies, Goldfish, Crackers, Stuffing, Breads and Rolls along with other products.

· Look at the bottom of your Ralphs grocery receipt for ways to earn free Box Tops (BTFE) and Labels (LFE) certificates. Right now if you purchase $20 of labels for education products by Nov. 9th, you will earn 500 bonus points!!!

· Buy bonus brands:

o 1- V8 Splash Label = 2 points

o 1- Campbell’s Select Soup or Soup at Hand Label = 5 points

We are also collecting Tyson Labels as well this year. Tyson and Campbell’s labels will be combined into one total! Our collection day is generally the first Wednesday of the new month and counts for the previous month. So keep clipping, cutting and earning money for our school!! Next collection date is November 3^rd!