November 29, 2007

Notes from Jayne Heffron, Cumberland School

November 29, 2007

While we are firmly underway with the 2007-08 school year, we are already planning for next year. A crucial element is enrollment, especially our K4 or Junior Kindergarten numbers as these are the most difficult to predict since the students are not yet at Cumberland. Tomorrow, we will be holding an Open House for incoming Jr. Kindergarteners, those children who will be four on or before September 1, 2008, so that their parents/guardians can see a bit of our program first hand. We take our projected potential students from the census list and this list shows a fairly large pool of students from which we draw. Our current K4 class contains 94 students and it looks likely that next year's will be around this size. While our student population at each of the four district schools has varied over the last years, overall we are holding relatively stable with enrollment. If you know of anyone who is new to Whitefish Bay having a four year old, please mention to them that we would love to show them around the school. Thanks.

I was with my family over Thanksgiving and we were looking at my mother's elementary school report cards. While we have moved far from where education was for my mother, a rural one room school house, several of the items on the report card still have great value for children even though we no longer put them on the report card. Comportment, playing nicely with others and being helpful to the teacher are still foundational skills, even though we call them by different names!

The Winter Festival Concert is coming up on December 14^th at 9:45 and 1:30. To help us all fit into the gym, if last names A-M generally attend the morning concert and N-Z come in the afternoon, it is very helpful. If this does not work for your schedule, please attend when it works for your schedule. Please remember that the gym doors open 45 minutes before the performance. Our building and hallways are so full with students and staff that we really appreciate you arriving no more than 45 minutes ahead of time to avoid over-full hallways as children pass from one class to the next. I will ask the WFB Police Department to lift the parking restrictions around the school on that day.

Notes:

• The Cumberland 5^th grade Community Services Club is holding a hat and mitten drive. They are collecting warm hats/mittens/scarves/socks for the Next Door Foundation as voluntary admission to the winter Festival Concert.
• Dogs are not allowed on school grounds. Many of our students are allergic or afraid of dogs. If you bring your dog when dropping off or picking up your child(ren) please keep the dog on a leash and arrange a meeting place with your child that doesn't require you to come onto the school yard to meet him or her. Thanks.
• Students get excited when they are having a party or hosting an event and we understand that. To avoid any students being excluded and to keep the school out of the middle of any arrangements, though, we do not allow invitations to non-school events to be handed out here at school even if everyone in the class is invited. Please help your child avoid disappointment by not sending invitations to school for distribution.
• 2008 WFB Little League Registration – NOW IN DECEMBER! Registration is in the gym at Lydell on Wed., Dec. 12^th from 6-8 pm and Mon., Dec. 17^th from 6-8 pm
• First Grade Brownies: A new troop is forming. If your first grader is interested, she may attend a meeting Monday, December 3^rd at Cumberland. All girls will meet Alice Egan in the Cumberland foyer and she will take them to Room 4 for the meeting. Parents should pick up their daughters in Room 4 at 4:30. Questions? Call Alice at 967-1763 or Linda at 963-9369.

Reminder: Friday, December 7th is a half day for students. Dismissal is at 11:50