Class Parents

Class Parents 2011 - 2012 School Year

K AM - Susan Prebola, Linda Pongetti

K PM - Carollyn Finegold, Tracy Morin

1C - Vivian Leung Naranjo, Karyn Stephenson

1M - Nicole Redmond, Donna Famularo

2R - Stephanie Cece, Joyce Silva

2S - Alison Pappalardo, Trish du Rivage

3K - Sara Cowlan, Erin Leonard

3M - Angela Vila, Angela Crawford

4B - Noreen Petraitis, Maureen Jeffries

4M - Elizabeth Gifford, Julie Weber

5Ci - Carmela Calbi, Denise Schwendeman

5Cr - Kelly Verkem, Karin Speizer

Nutrition Guidelines for Celebrations

Birthday Parties

Birthday parties will be celebrated the last Monday of each month for all children whose birthdays fall within that month. If the last Monday is an early dismissal day or a school closure, the birthday party will be celebrated on the prior Monday.

Class Parents will send a list with all students’ birthday information at the start of the year. Parents of all children who are celebrating that month will coordinate the treats with each other. One treat can be cupcakes, brownies, or cookies, etc. and additional treats, if any, should be healthy. Games, crafts, read-alouds, or an extra recess in honor of the birthday children are also options for celebrations. The final decision on the type of celebration must be cleared with the teacher prior to the celebration.

Parents of students with food allergies are responsible for calling birthday parents to find out what food will be served, and for sending the permission slip to their child’s teacher giving permission for the student to participate. Without the permission letter, students with allergies will not be served. Bringing in a snack from home for classroom celebrations, is also an option for students with allergies.

Other Celebrations:

There will be five other celebrations in our school during which healthy snacks are still encouraged over an abundance of sweets -- although sweets will be allowed. Allergy parents must follow the same procedures as with birthdays. Without the permission slip, students with allergies will not be able to participate. These celebrations are:

Halloween - December Holidays

Valentine's Day - Field Day - End-of-the-Year

If you have any questions about these guidelines, please feel free to contact the Principal, Mrs. Irene Pierides.

The allergy permission slip can be found on the Hamilton School website.

CLASS PARENT RESPONSIBILITIES

Volunteering for class parent has many responsibilities but it is a very rewarding position, and your child will love to see you in the classroom. Class parents are chosen as fairly as possible. You will not be eligible to volunteer for the same child two years in a row, unless no other volunteers come forward.

Attend orientation meeting at beginning of school year

· Attend all classroom parties (excluding birthday parties) *or find replacement

Attend all field trips (*if you cannot attend, the Teacher will find a replacement)
Attend all H.S.A. meetings *or find replacement
Email parents of birthday children with reminders only

Collect money for teacher’s holiday/year end class gifts

($18 teacher/$2 Hamilton class aide gifts – for year)

Bake/buy for Back-to-School Night
Phone chain when needed
Collect class numbers & email addresses and submit to H.S.A.
Arrange a class basket for Comedy Night
Assist H.S.A. and recruit volunteers as needed

Class Parents need to meet with their teacher prior to Back-to-School Night to discuss his/her specific needs for the year. Please ask what your teacher would like you to do to help out during the year.

On Back-to-School Night, please have sign-up sheets posted so parents can volunteer to help out. The following is a list of sign up sheets to have, however your teacher may request some others based on the needs of your class.

School Parties - (such as Halloween/Holiday/Valentine’s Day & Year End). Ask your teacher for a list of all parties he/she will be having. Volunteers will be needed for paper goods, snacks & drinks and maybe a craft. All activities and food must be approved by teacher in advance.

Field Day – Volunteers will be needed to assist with certain stations and/or lunch duties.

Art Docent – Please make sure this form includes the months of the year (October – June)

Email Addresses/Cell Phones – Parents should submit their email addresses and cell phone numbers so that you and/or the Teacher can communicate with them. This will be used for birthday reminders as well. Class contact list is confidential and should be used for school related activities ONLY.

One class parent from each class is required to attend all H.S.A. meetings. If both class parents are unable to attend, please find another parent to represent your class. The meetings alternate between mornings and evenings.

Each month one class parent will send an email reminder of the calendar of birthday celebrations for that month. It will list children celebrating, day of party, and instruct the parents to contact each other (not you) regarding who is bringing what. Once the treats have been decided upon, the birthday parents should email the class parents to report the food being brought to the party. Several days before the birthday celebration, one class parent will email the entire class to inform them what food will be present at the party. This will provide allergy families an opportunity to send in a permission slip for their child to eat the snack or to plan for an alternate snack from home, if need be. Class parents do not attend birthday parties.

The Spring Fundraiser is our biggest fundraiser of the year. All classes must submit a basket for our auction. The money to prepare the basket is given to you from the H.S.A. to prepare the class basket.

There will be one occasion during the year where you will be asked to bake. Class parents may bake (or buy) a treat for Back to School Night. If you are unable to help out, please find another parent from your class to supply a baked good.

No Individual class fundraising will be permitted. We can not solicit parents for additional classroom needs or for support in personal charity work . If your teacher has a request for materials, please contact the principal or H.S.A. Executive Board, as certain funds are set aside for such purposes.

Monetary collections beyond the holiday and end-of-year gifts must be discussed with the Class Parent Coordinator BEFORE families are asked to contribute. Examples of this might be collections for a baby shower, bridal shower or get well gift.

Your time in the classroom is for assistance to the teacher. Please use discretion at all times. Your access to the classroom is a privilege and you need to be sensitive and respectful to issues of the confidentiality of the students.