THE BURR BUZZ: January 2019

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

YOU can help the Wolf Fund reach its goal!

The Burr Wolf Fund has raised $18,724 so far! Thank you to everyone who has contributed!

Together, we can raise the remaining $5,276 and reach our goal of $24,000 before the Wolf Fund closes on January 31.

You can contribute by sending a check into school in your child’s folder. Checks should be payable to Burr PTO and placed an envelope labeled "Wolf Fund." Or you can donate online using this link: https://www.burrpto.org.

Please help us reach our goal of raising $24,000 to fund these great things that benefit every student at Burr:

4-5 Creative Arts and Sciences curriculum enhancing programs at each grade level;
supplies for Burr's teachers; and
new books for Burr's library.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed and who will contribute. Every contribution matters!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Winter Bertucci's Fundraiser—Feb. 5

Warm up with some warm rolls, pasta, and pizza on Tuesday, February 5 because it's time for another Bertucci's fundraiser!

The fundraiser runs all afternoon and evening so come for lunch or dinner and the Burr PTO gets a portion of the proceeds!

See here for the flyer.

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

The Book Swap is Coming—Feb. 12

The Burr Book Swap is back this year!

Save the date! Mark your calendars for Tuesday, February 12.

The Book Swap is a wonderful opportunity for students to exchange books they have read for ones they don’t yet have and pass on some beloved favorites that they've outgrown. Please do not send preschool, adult, or activity/workbooks. We especially need books for 4th and 5th graders, because those go fast.

Start going through your shelves. We'll be accepting book donations the week prior to the book swap. Kids can bring their books and leave them outside of their classroom for collection.

We will also need volunteers to sort the books and staff the swap. We'll be collecting and sorting on the mornings the week before the book swap which took us about 15-30 minutes after drop-off. We'll be doing setup the night before and we'll also need volunteers for the day of the swap. We had a lot of fun last year!

Signup to volunteer HERE!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Creatives Arts and Sciences: Jackson Homestead—Jan. 22

Tuesday, January 22 in the Cafetorium
Grade 3

8:45-9:45am: Ms. Canning
10-11am: Ms. MacNeill
11:15-12:15pm: Ms. Oh

How would your life be different if you were born in the 1800s? Students will handle and examine 150-year old objects, photographs, textiles, tools, and other primary sources to piece together the story of daily life in 19th-century Newton.

Join us! Parents are encouraged to attend.

This program was fully funded by your generous contributions to the Burr PTO and the Burr Wolf Fund. To donate, please visit www.burrpto.org. Thank you! Parents are welcome to attend, but no younger siblings please.

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

The Burr Auction is LIVE!

The Burr Online Auction is LIVE until Saturday, January 26th at 9pm! Check out all the items and make your bids here: https://www.32auctions.com/burrschool

Don't miss out on some of the great items like tickets to Disney, the VIP parking and front row package for the Burr Talent Show, class self portraits, camps, artwork, birthday parties, gift certificates, fun things donated by Burr families, and so much more!

Join your fellow Burr parents at the Paddy's parents night on the last night of the auction, Saturday, January 26th at 6pm. Details and Sign up by Wednesday, January 3rd here: http://bit.ly/burrparentnight.

Happy bidding!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Burr STEAM Fair—Friday, March 1

Save the Date for the Burr STEAM Fair, happening Friday, March 1! Save your used electronics for the reverse engineering table and get your science, technology, engineering, arts, or math projects ready to show off.

Parents, save the date for the Scratch Coding parent night at Empow studios on Wednesday, February 27. Learn to speak the language that the kids can speak so easily, and create your own video game from scratch.

Details and sign ups coming soon but save the dates!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Creative Arts and Sciences Welcomes Eleanor Roosevelt: The First Lady of The World

Friday, January 25, 9 am
4th & 5th grades, Cafetorium

The longest serving First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt was the first presidential spouse to hold press conferences, write a syndicated newspaper column, and speak at a national convention. She advocated for expanded roles for women in the workplace, the civil rights of African Americans and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees. She became one of the first delegates to The United Nations, and today she remains one of the most admired people of the twentieth century.

Sheryl Faye is a historical performer presenting school assembly productions of historical women, including Helen Keller, Clara Barton, Eleanor Roosevelt, Sally Ride, Abigail Adams, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Amelia Earhart, and Anne Frank, portraying them as strong character role models for students in grades K-8. Her performances give students an engaging and unique perspective of historical role models.

Susan B Anthony Museum – “Sheryl Faye Presents Historical Women” provided a superb experience for the patrons of the Susan B Anthony Birthplace Museum. Sheryl portrayed Eleanor Roosevelt in such a manner that truly brought her and her passions alive to the audience. She was engaging and spectacular. Her professionalism and research was evident through the interpretation. What I loved most about her performance was that she humanized Mrs. Roosevelt, by bringing the viewer through the stages of her life, and was still able to capture the strength and courage of Eleanor, which made her the “First Lady of the World.”

This program was fully funded by your generous contributions to the Burr PTO and the Burr Wolf Fund. To donate, go to Burrpto.org and click on “Donate.” Thank you! Parents are welcome to attend, but no younger siblings please.

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Winter Bertucci's Fundraiser—Feb. 5

Warm up with some warm rolls, pasta, and pizza on Tuesday, February 5.

The fundraiser runs all afternoon and evening so come for lunch or dinner and the PTO gets a portion of the proceeds!

See here for the flyer.

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

The Book Swap is Coming—Feb. 12

The Burr Book Swap is back this year!

Save the date! Mark your calendars for Tuesday, February 12.

The Book Swap is a wonderful opportunity for students to exchange books they have read for ones they don’t yet have and pass on some beloved favorites that they've outgrown. Please do not send preschool, adult, or activity/workbooks. We especially need books for 4th and 5th graders, because we run out quickly!

Start going through your shelves. We'll be accepting book donations the week prior to the book swap. Kids can bring the books and leave them outside of their classroom for collection.

We will also need volunteers to sort the books and staff the swap. We'll be collecting and sorting on the mornings the week before the book swap which took us about 15-30 minutes after drop-off. We'll be doing setup the night before and we'll also need volunteers for the day of the swap. We had a lot of fun last year!

Once the teachers are finished signing up for their time slots, the SignupGenius will be updated with that info.

Signup to volunteer HERE!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

The Burr Auction is coming soon!

Here are the details:

Saturday, January 19th: Auction bidding begins online at 9pm. Register at https://www.32auctions.com/ to be able to bid right away. Auction preview will be up a few days before, and a "cheat sheet" list will be in your child's folder on the 18th.

January 22-25th: Class self portraits will be on display in the lobby as the auction bidding is open. See auction details on how to purchase copies of the portraits!

Saturday, January 26th: Burr Parent Night at Paddy's, Auction Ends at 9pm! Why should you attend the parent night?

Mingle with Burr Parents and actually be able to talk to them - No Kids Allowed! You can get more than three words in with other parents!
Take a shot at the wine bottle raffle ($20 per ticket, gets you a surprise wine valued between $10 and $80, donated by Bay State Wine and Liquors, Judith's Kitchen, Dion's, and local Newton moms!)
See all the physical auction items and the class portraits and browse the details of all of the auction items.
See which items have no bids for the best deals.
Bring your smartphone or tablet and bid as the auction ends!

Last call for anyone who owns their own business - if you're interested in getting your name out to the Burr and surrounding Newton communities, please contact Laura Sexton at laurasexton1@hotmail.com to donate to the auction.

Thank You!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Understanding Our Differences

*Volunteers Needed*

Hi Parents!

On Friday, January 18 from 9-11 am the 5th Grade students will have their Understanding Our Differences Unit on Autism.

We would love it if you could join us to participate and even lead the kids in the activities from the unit. We need a few more volunteers to make this a great day for them. Volunteers only need to be there for 1.5 hours. Staying for the speaker is optional. Please let the coordinators, Sharon Reilly & Christine Dutt, know if you can lend a hand on Friday. slreillyfamily@gmail.com

You can find information about the Unit here.

Understand Our Differences Unit

Hope to see you there!

Burr School Technology Drive!

The Burr Student Council will be collecting used and unwanted devices such as laptops and iPads for the next two weeks. These devices will be professionally wiped clean, updated, and sent to Ecuador, where needy students will have the opportunity to use them.

Collection boxes will be upstairs near the 4th grade classrooms.

Collection will continue through Friday, January 25th.

Thank You!

New England Camp Fair – February 10th

The New England Camp Fair will hold its 4th annual event on Sunday, February 10, 2019 at Underwood School from 11:30am – 2:30pm. The Camp Fair is FREE and open to the public, and brings together camps serving kids ages 5-14.

Bring your camper(s) and engage with staff from 20+ premier day and sleepaway camps from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Connecticut. Participating camps run the gamut, including traditional day and overnight camps, sports camps, theater camps, computer camps, fencing camps, arts camps, as well as many other themed camps.

Visit www.newenglandcampfair.org for a complete list of camps attending.

Parking and refreshments are also free!

If you have any questions, feel free contacting the Underwood PTO at underwoodpto@gmail.com.

Save the Date—MLK Celebration 1/21

The 51st Annual Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Celebration will take place on Monday, January 21 at 9:30am at First Baptist Church in Newton Centre.

All are invited to join in the celebration, which will include several voices from this year’s Monologue Project. New this year is the Community Coffee—Engagement & Activism resource fair, which follows immediately after the celebration.

Families Organizing for Racial Justice (FORJ) and a number of other civic organizations in Newton will be on hand to explain the steps you can take to carry forward the message of engagement and activism.

Please see the flyer here.