Friday, January 28, 2011

PRESCHOOL FAIR AND CHILDRENʼS FESTVAL

PERFORMANCES, GAMES, ARTS, CRAFTS, FOOD & MORE- JOIN THE FUN!
When: Saturday, January 29, 2011
Where: Student Union Ballroom
Time: 10:00am-1:00pm

Event Schedule:
10:00-1:00 Preschool Resource Fair
Thinking about enrolling your child in a preschool program? Meet with representatives from local preschool programs and have all your questions answered.

10:00-12:30 Art Cycles with Artist Janet Winston
Children will make collages of their favorite winter activities.

10:00-12:30 Indoor Games and Face Painting
A variety of indoor games will be available for you and your child to play together.

11:00-12:30 Yummy Snacks and Lunch Foods

Performances:
10:00-10:30 Family Concert with Debbie Weyl
Debbie Weyl, local director of Music Together and amazing performer, brings her wonderful mix of original and rearranged songs. Regardless of a childʼs musical ability, Debbie will have them romping and stomping to the beat.

11:00-11:30 Childrenʼs Troupe from Shaolin Kung-Fu of
Amherst
Interactive demonstration that includes a balance of fun and excitement with structure and self control. Many styles of Kung Fu are based on the movements and behaviors of animals such as the tiger, eagle, crane, dragon, and praying mantis to name a few.

Noon-12:30 Yuri Prince of Color
The Prince of Color show can be best described as an interactive variety experience for children two to seven, including movement games, music, magic, parades, juggling, parachute time, bubbles, singing and more.

The Preschool and Children’s Festival is a program of the UMass Office of Family Resources featuring elements from the Special Saturday Morning Series and the Amherst Family Center. Want to know more about other programs sponsored by
the Office of Family Resources? Call (413) 545-0865 or browse our new web site: www.umass.edu/ofr

We follow the campus weather closing;
call the hotline for information: 413-545-3630

Monday, January 24, 2011

Friday, January 21, 2011

Movie Night Postponed

The Movie Night originally scheduled for tonight has been postponed due to the snow day.  A new date will be announced soon! 

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Time to Order Coffee

Wednesday February 2 is the next due date for Crocker Java order forms!

Do you drink coffee?
Dean's Beans has created a special blend of fair trade organic coffee just for Crocker Farm! Every bag we sell earns the PGO $3.00! Make your morning coffee even better knowing that you are helping the PGO to fund great things for our kids!

Whole beans or ground regular and decaf coffee, hot cocoa, and dark chocolate covered espresso beans are available.

Order form click HERE

Monday, January 17, 2011

Superintendent finalist meetings

From 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights (18th - 20th) in the Amherst Regional High School library, the public is welcome to come hear from the three superintendent finalists. Each night one of the three will come to speak with the School Committee and general public about their vision for our schools.

Please come out and meet them!

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Movie Night with Snack Drive


CF PGO presents Movie Night
Featuring Ramona and Beezus

Friday, January 21st.
Doors open at 6:00 PM
show begins at 6:30 PM
PJs, sleeping bags, lawn chairs welcome!
Popcorn, juice and water for sale.
Admission is free.
 Please bring a non-perishable snack to donate to CF classrooms.

Questions?  Contact the PGO at crockerfarmpgo@gmail.com or
Becky at 230-3306.

Final reminder for superintendent interviews

Please come hear the candidates talk about their personal experiences and visions for our schools. Note that the 6-8 p.m. interviews in the high school library are open to the public.

John Bayless will visit on Tuesday, January 18.
Gerald Kohn will visit on Wednesday, January 19.
Maria Geryk will visit on Thursday, January 20.

On each day, the schedule will be as follows:

8:00 am to 9:00 am - Coffee with parents/community in the ARMS cafeteria
9:00 am to 9:30 am - Central office welcome and quick tour
9:30 am to 10:30 am - Administrators/Superintendent's Council
10:30 am to noon - Tour of ARMS/ARHS (by principals)
Noon to 1:00 pm - lunch with chairs of Pelham and Amherst School Committees
1:00 pm to 2:30 pm - Tour of elementary schools
2:30 pm to 3:30 pm - Reception with parents/community members at Wildwood
3:45 pm to 4:45 pm - Meeting with teachers at ARMS Library
4:45 pm to 5:45 pm - Dinner
6:00 pm to 8:00 pm - School Committee interview (ARHS Library)

We hope to see you there!

Visiting Days

Are you interested in seeing your child in action in his or her classroom or in learning more about your child's potential classroom for next year?  Come in to Crocker Farm on a Visiting Day!

One day each week is designated as a Visiting Day at Crocker Farm, and this is the day teachers and staff expect visitors to their classrooms.  For example, for the month of January, every Tuesday is Visiting Day.  Check upcoming Crocker Chronicles to see what the day will be for February and following months.

You can get in touch with a teacher in advance to let them know you'd like to visit, and if the particular day of the week doesn't work for you, they may be able to work something out to better fit your schedule.

Make sure you stop in the office to sign in and to receive Visiting Day Guidelines to make your visit as smooth as possible.  This is a great way to get more involved in your child's education and in Crocker Farm in general!

Friday, January 14, 2011

Amherst Survival Center Food Drive

The Amherst Survival Center (ASC) is conducting a food drive at all of the Amherst schools from January 18 - 27.

If you are able to help, please have your child drop off donated food in the large box which will be clearly marked and placed in the lobby of each school. We ask that:
- students at the elementary schools donate rice, pasta, or dry beans
- students at ARMS donate peanut butter, jelly, jam and honey
- students at ARHS donate canned goods.

All the food that is collected will be given through the ASC Food Pantry to families in our area who have food needs. We deeply appreciate your contributions and your caring about others in our community! For further information, contact ASC at 413-549-3968 x204 or Cynthia Brubaker at 253-6679.

No school on Monday

Just a reminder that on Monday there will be no school in honor of Martin Luther King jr. See you Tuesday morning!

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

PGO Meeting Thursday Night

The CF PGO will hold their second of 3 meetings this Thursday, January 13th from 6:30 - 8:00 PM in the CF Library. Come learn about PGO happenings. Childcare is provided.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

MLK all-day activity for your child

School’s out for a day and what to do with the kids?

LSSE offers a day trip to the New England Aquarium where children can greet Myrtle the green sea turtle, one of thousands of marine animals in their habitats. Located on the Boston water front, the aquarium offers more than 50 exhibits including the Amazon Rainforest and Atlantic Harbor Seals.

Children ages six and older can experience the wonder and beauty of aquarium Jan. 17 when the bus leaves from the Wildwood Elementary School at 8:30 and returns at 5:30 p.m. The LSSE Primetime After School staff lead the children on this fun and educational adventure.

To register or for information call LSSE After School Coordinator Stacey Lecuivre at 259-3191 or email:lecuivre@amherstma.gov.

No School Wednesday

Due to the impending snow storm, all Amherst and Amherst Regional Schools are closed on Wednesday, January 11th. See you Thursday morning at the MLK Jr Community Breakfast.

Wed. Club Registration Notices

Wednesday Club registration notices are going out by email on Tuesday afternoon. For those of you who provided an email address on your child's registration form, please check your inbox to see if they got into a club. If you didn't list an email you'll receive a phone call.

Over 100 students registered for the 66 available spaces and we used a random lottery to select participants so not everyone was able to be placed as they wished. But fear not, if your child didn't get in this time they will receive priority treatment in the next session (Mar. 2 - 30)! Our goal is to find at least one opportunity for everyone who wants to participate this spring.

Session 1 Club Dates: Clubs begin on January 19. Clubs will meet Wednesdays January 19, 26, February 2, 9 and16 (excluding snow days), from 1:20 to 2:30 p.m.

Donation: Wednesday Clubs are free, but for families who can make a donation, $25 per child/per session is suggested to help offset our costs (however, the PGO appreciates donations of ANY size!). If you would like to make a donation, please send it in to school before January 19. Checks should be made out to “Crocker Farm PGO”. Thank you!!

Monday, January 10, 2011

Help Needed for MLK Day

Due to the impending snow storm, he PGO is looking for volunteers to assist in setting up the cafeteria for the all school MLK Celebration tomorrow from 5:30 - 6:30 PM. Please RSVP to beckydemling@yahoo.com so we can keep you in the loop as plans adjust with the weather,

2nd PGO meeting of the school year

Come join us for the second of only three PGO meetings this Thursday night (Jan. 13th) from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. in the library. Free childcare is provided in the cafeteria.

See you there!

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Schedule for Finalists

Finalists for the position of Superintendent of Schools will visit the district on January 18, 19, and 20. On those days, the schedule will be as follows:

8:00 am to 9:00 am - Coffee with parents/community in the ARMS cafeteria

9:00 am to 9:30 am - Central office welcome and quick tour

9:30 am to 10:30 am - Administrators/Superintendent's Council

10:30 am to noon - Tour of ARMS/ARHS (by principals)

Noon to 1:00 pm - lunch with chairs of Pelham and Amherst School Committees

1:00 pm to 2:30 pm - Tour of elementary schools

2:30 pm to 3:30 pm - Reception with parents/community members at Wildwood

3:45 pm to 4:45 pm - Meeting with teachers at ARMS Library

4:45 pm to 5:45 pm - Dinner

6:00 pm to 8:00 pm - School Committee interview (ARHS Library)

Friday, January 7, 2011

LSSE winter fun


(go get your magnifying glass & please click to enlarge it as best we could.)

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

ETTA Art Studio class offerings

Weekdays AT ETTA ART STUDIO
534 Main Street
Amherst, MA 01002
413-230-3272 or etta.arts@yahoo.com


WINTER SESSION 3: Begins - Jan 10, 2011 - 6 weeks
*******************************************
* Mon:
4-5:30 pm - Clay, Clay + More! 5-8yrs
4-5:30pm - Comic Book Illustration Ages 9+

*TUES:
10-11 am - ALL ABOUT ME ! 4-6yrs w/an adult
4-5:30pm – MULTI-MEDIA ART MAKING 5-7yrs new class!
4-5:30 pm - Theater IMPROV & ACTING for the STAGE!!!! Ages 6-10 NEW!!!!

TWEENS + TEENS
4-5:30 pm - Creating and Publishing Webcomics 11+ NEW !!!!

*WED: TIMES: (1) 2-3:30pm (2) 4-530pm

(1) Clay ,Clay + More! (2) Clay , Clay and More! OPEN TO ALL AGES + ABILITIES 5+
(1) Painting + Drawing Basics w/a Twist of Cartooning Techniques Ages 9+
(2) Comic Book Illustration Age 9+

Sign up for any 2 Wed. classes w/a 10% Discount + bring your own snack - 3:30-4pm break time/no charge in between classes.

*THURS:

4-5:30 pm - Cartooning and Movement 5-7yrs NEW CLASS !!
4-5:30pm – MULTI-MEDIA FINE ART MAKING 8-10 yrs New!
4-530 pm- TEEN -ART And Theater 11+ NEW !!

Look for more discounts thru the Valley Quarterly for first time enrollments!!
Each class: $98 + $12 materials = $110

FULL Description of Classes- Feb. 21-26-Winter Recess Vacation Program
‘ART FROM THE HEART’+ Adult + Homeschool Programs see www.ETTAartstudio.com .

Monday, January 3, 2011

Reminder!

Wednesday Clubs registration forms are due back to the school by Wednesday January 5. Due to limited space and a tight schedule, late forms cannot be accepted so be sure to fill yours out and send it back to school!

If you need an extra copy of the registration packet, contact Erika at studiozed@comcast.net & we'll email one right out to you.

Time to Order Coffee

Wednesday January 5 is the next due date for Crocker Java order forms!

What a delicious deal - just $9.00 per pound of Dean's Beans' organic, Fair Trade, caffeinated goodness! The PGO offers this service to you Every Month so you can order from us just once or keep coming back each month. We sell regular, decaf, hot cocoa & dark chocolate covered espresso beans - YUM!

Click HERE to download an order form.