Naomi News 9/21/11

• Naomi Elementary is a Title I School and made AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) for the 2010-2011 school year.  More specific information about Naomi's Title I and AYP status will be shared at Thursday night's PTO meeting.  Hope to see all of our families there! (5:45p.m.) 
• Student Handbook Highlights --To all car rider families:  Thank you for your support of our car rider strip procedure.  This procedure was instituted for the purpose of keeping our Naomi students, your precious children, safe.  NES issues car rider strips to the parents/guardians of all students who are frequent car riders.  Occasional car riders are also welcome to request strips.  Presenting your current car rider strip during afternoon dismissal helps our staff get your children delivered to you safely and quickly.  Persons coming through the line without a current car rider strip are asked to park and check students out through the front office.  We make no exceptions to this procedure to ensure the safety of our students.  Thank you for your continued support of this safety measure. 
• Poll outcomes:  
• 1) What did you think of our pre-registration event as compared to a more traditional open house?  87% responded that they liked it "better than a traditional open house."  6% liked it the "same as a traditional open house." Another 6% would have preferred a more traditional open house. 
• 2) Naomi Moves for the Cure: a non-competitive walking event to raise money for breast cancer research and awareness... 83% responded with "I'm interested" and 16% responded with "I'm not interested."
• Utilize the electronic version of this publication to participate in our polls and surveys.  Your opinion matters to us.    
• We asked; you responded!  Thank you for telling us how you like to volunteer your time and talents for our school.  We have been wonderfully overwhelmed with the response to our request for assistance during Healthy Family Night.  Thank you!      
• Thursday, September 22nd, is our first PTO meeting and Healthy Family Night, presented by the Creative Discovery Museum.  Parents who have already spoken with us about volunteering need to be ready for a quick training session at 5:30.  Our PTO meeting will begin at 5:45 in the cafeteria.  Healthy Family Night will begin immediately following the meeting.  This should prove to be a fun and educational night for our Naomi families.  You can't beat the price for a night of family fun...FREE!  
• Progress reports will be issued on September 30th.  Please contact your child's teacher to schedule a conference at any time during the school year if you have questions or concerns about your child's progress.  Our teachers are eager to partner with you.  When teachers and parents work together, students benefit.
• We are in need of clean, gently used clothing for elementary children. These items are needed for when students have accidents and need a change of clothing. If you have shirts, pants, underwear, shoes or socks you would like to donate for boys or girls, please send them to Miss Johnson. Thank you!
• Naomi students with June birthdays enjoyed a birthday celebration last week, and July birthdays will be celebrated this coming Friday.  We are working quickly to get our summer birthdays caught up, then celebrations will take place monthly throughout the rest of the school year.  Happy Birthday Naomi!
• Naomi stakeholders are encouraged to show their appreciation for our custodial & maintenance staff during the week of October 3rd.  Thank you for keeping our facility operating smoothly!   
• Come and be a part of the upcoming PTO yard sale.  The sale will take place on Saturday, October 8th, and you can purchase a booth to sell your items for only $5.  PTO will also gladly accept donations of items that they can sell through the PTO booth.  With either option, you will be supporting your Naomi PTO.  It's a great way to give to the organization that gives to Naomi.  
• Playground Equipment:  Have you seen Naomi's new playground equipment?  Thanks to our "boxtop clippers," PTO was able to purchase 2 new pieces of playground fun.  Check out the new pea gravel, too.  Keep clipping those boxtops Naomi!   And thank you PTO!    
• Fall Break Oct. 10-14
• Help us SCARE away breast cancer at the Naomi Elementary Breast Cancer Walk on Sunday, October 23^rd from 2-4 pm.  Suggested donations to participate follow:  Adults $5,  Kids  (under 17) $2, Families of 4 or more $10.  Wear your Halloween costume to “scare cancer away” or show your support by wearing pink!  Join us for this dynamic and fun-filled opportunity to give back to a worthy cause.  Mark your calendar, and make plans now to attend. 
• Friday, October 28th -- Fall Festival / Family Movie Night  -- Save the date!  --Volunteers Needed

Welcome to the 2011-2012 School Year!

Welcome to our new school year!  Thursday and Friday were some of the smoothest "first days" I recall in many years.  Thank you parents, teachers, and students for making them such wonderful days.  I will bullet a few items of information below:

• Bookmark This Address:  http://ramblerready.blogspot.com/     This is the new home of Naomi News.  Check often for information pertaining to our school, to participate in quick surveys, and to find important dates. 

• Pre-registration Event:  How did you like our version of "open house" this year?  Please take our survey.
• Welcome to the Team: Naomi has some new faces around this year (and some familiar faces in new places).  We welcome Debbie Ingle to her new role as principal; Tom Langford as our new assistant principal; Autumn Hentz to her new role as Academic Coach; LeeAnn Ballew to our 4th grade; Christy Thompson to our 1st grade; Gayle Smith to her role with RTI; and Betty Hobbs to her new position as kindergarten para-professional.   
• Athletic Shoes:  Parents, we need your help.  Please insist that your children wear athletic shoes on P.E. days.  This will keep our students' feet safe and our students active.  Thank you for your help with this.
• New Bus Procedure:  Elementary students will not be dropped off in the afternoons unless bus drivers can tell that someone is home.  This begins Tuesday, Sept. 6th.  Students that are not taken home will be brought back to NES.  Work with your child's bus driver on communication signals that will help him/her know if someone is home.  We definitely want to support our families AND keep our students safe.
• Summer Reading Celebration:  Mrs. Baker will be celebrating with our summer readers on Friday, September 9th.  In order to participate, students must have their summer reading information turned in to Mrs. Baker.  
• Walker County Website:  Our website is being reconstructed from the ground up.  When it has been rebuilt, it will be better than ever.  Thank you for your continued patience while we work toward this goal. 
• Coming Soon to a Playground Near You:  You asked for it...you're getting it.  Two new pieces of playground equipment will be installed on the NES playground in the near future.  This is in addition to the new pea gravel that has already been put down.   Thank you to all of our "boxtop" collectors and our PTO. 
• Moving Toward Graduation:  During the 2011-2012 school year, teachers will be trying to get your students moving.  They will be incorporating movement into instruction when appropriate, and our overarching theme for the year is moving toward graduation.  
• NES Moves For the Cure:  Would you be interested in participating in a non-competitive walking event in order to raise proceeds and awareness for breast cancer research? Please take our survey.
• Eat Your Veggies: NES has been awarded a fruit and vegetable grant this year.  Every student will have the opportunity to try a different fruit or vegetable every day of the school year.  Ask your little ones about the fruits and vegetables they are trying at school.