Unfortunately due to spammers abusing our volunteer list it has been taken down. Until we can come up with a better solution you will need to request the list and verify that you are a parent of a child at Emerson.

To request a volunteer list please send an email to joebrod@hotmail.com and include the following information.

Your name
child’s name
child’s teacher
child’s grade

Once I receive the information and it is confirmed a volunteer directory will be emailed to you.

Here are 2 clips from the Promotion of the Class of 2008. Double click on the video below to visit YouTube and select “watch in high quality” at bottom right of video.

Stand By Me

The 5th grade choir girls

TALENT SHOW DVD’S NOW AVAILABLE! Your amazing children captured on video. Get yours before the school year is over!

The discs will be ready by Thursday so if you want one print out this letter with your name, your child’s name and teacher’s name and include $10.00 in cash or a check to PTA and send it in to school.

We will also be selling them at the lower San Jose gate this Thursday from 2:25 - 3:30 at the Palm Tree Wall event.

Bring cash or a check to PTA for $10.00!

Name: _________________________________________

phone # or e-mail ______________________________________

Number of DVD’s wanted : ___________ x $10.00 = __________

Child’s name ___________________________________________

Teacher’s name_________________________________________

Did you miss getting your child’s handprint on the wall at the Spring
Fair? We doing it again after school on Thursday from 2:25 - 3:30
down by the lower San Jose Gate. It’s still $5.00 donation for a
print - or we’ll take Spring Fair tickets if you still have them. Get
your child’s handprint on the wall while those hands are still little!
Also - last chance for you graduating 5th graders!

Also - We will have the Talent Show DVD’s there for $10.00 each so
plan to pick up your copy Thursday!

The Green Bags and Canvas bags we have left from the fair will also be
out there so if you missed the chance to get one of these great
reusable grocery bags here is your chance. Proceeds from all of these
items go directly to programs for your children via the PTA.

Dear Emerson families, Spring 2008

The staff and I are beginning our planning for next school year, and soon we will be sitting down to make up classes, based upon our best estimate of the enrollment projections for next year. About this time of the year, we begin to hear from some parents who want to request a specific teacher for their child for next year. They want “the best teacher” for their child and they believe they know who that is based on what they’ve seen or heard.

As the principal, I visit classrooms frequently for the purpose of observing teachers teaching and students learning. I know the instructional skills of every teacher better than anyone else in the school or the community, simply because I see them everyday teaching and interacting with children. I could not, in all honesty, tell you who the very best teacher on the faculty is, because there is no one teacher who is the best in everything. In talking about the “best teacher” one must specify, “Best in what area?” Teaching is made up of hundreds of sub skills, and no one is the best at all of them. Also, I have seen the instructional level of teachers vary significantly depending upon the character make-up of the class, the amount of parent involvement at home and the academic needs of the students.

When we assemble classes we consider these major factors and criteria:

• Equal class size in relation to other classes (K-3 are 20 :1)
• Well balanced ration of girls to boys
• Heterogeneous –balance of individual achievement levels
• Workable blend of student personalities
• Appropriate match between student and teacher
• Fair distribution of students with special needs
• Fair distribution of behavior ‘challenges’
• Effective clustering of English Language learners
• Consideration of student’s social needs
• Recommendation for teacher and student assignment
• Previous placement in a combination class

You can see this is a complicated process, and is based upon our first-hand assessment of each child. I do know that parents sometimes have preferences for teachers, however I cannot place children in classes only on the basis of the parent’s preferences or the teacher’s reputation in the community. Rather, we group children for instructional purposes, and placing them in a class based on any other factors would defeat that purpose.

However, a parent concerned about their child’s placement next year may make a written request based upon the needs of their child. The child may work best in a particular environment or with a certain style of teaching. If this is the case and you feel it necessary, you may submit a request, in writing by May 23, 2008 and then trust us to do the best grouping we can. The key ingredient in this process is trust. Please, trust teachers to make the best placement possible with all the information at their disposal. It is through the arduous process described above that we make a concerted effort to ensure each student’s success. We appreciate your trust and support and look towards next year with great anticipation.

Fondly,

Linda Acuff
LindaAcuff@burbankusd.org

The Emerson PTA “Just Give Cash” campaign to raise funds for student body enrichment activities was a great success! With this “100% profit fundraiser” we avoid labor intensive candy, wrapping paper, cookie dough, and magazine sales that yield only 10-50% of the money spent by families. Did you know that the PTA contributes over $40,000 for the many activities we support such as assemblies, classroom workshops, family fun nights, field trips, and parent education seminars?

This year, 120 families representing 149 students, plus 2 grandparents, 2 teachers, and our principal donated a total of $12,241 to support these activities. Twenty-nine percent of the student body raised an average of $24 per student ($82 per student participating) with donations ranging from $5 to $730! As we surpassed our $12,000 fundraising goal, Ms. Acuff will dress in costume on May 16! Keep your eyes open for a fun surprise

The winners of the extra art or music lesson for each grade are listed in BOLD below. Congratulations to the students of Mrs. Chung, Miss Iffrig, Mrs. Andrews, Ms. D’Andrea, and Mrs. Carr/ Mrs. McNutt!!!

April 2008

Welcome back; hope you all enjoyed your Spring Break! I don’t know about you but I am ready for summer. Before that spring fever hits us all, we need to gear up for some upcoming big events.

We started our first week back running with our ever-popular Emerson Talent Show. A great big THANK YOU to Laurel Lucas and Company for once again putting on another fabulous show.

To give you an idea how many volunteers it takes to put on an event, we had well over 20 parent volunteers just on the day of show, about that many student volunteers, and families who donated items for the treat sale. That does not take into consideration all the volunteers who worked from home to make signs or programs or costumes, etc.

Sooo… with that in mind this May is a very busy month!! Right at the beginning of May we have Spirit week, Teacher Appreciation week, DARE Graduation for 5th graders, PAT PAL Reveal Luncheon and to end the week we have the Walk-a-thon and PTA meeting, yes this is all in one week. May 16 is our Spring Fair which anyone who has ever attended knows is a fairly big event.

So when the call comes to help out, please try and make yourself available to volunteer in some way. Or, why wait for the call? Volunteer today, either by physically being there and helping out or taking something home to work on, or donating an item or items. There are many ways to help.

The last PTA meeting of the year is May 8th @ 1pm following the PAT PAL Reveal luncheon. Hope to see you there.

As always if you have questions and/or concerns regarding PTA you can contact me at home 846.0283 or email roby520@pacbell.net.

Michele Harris
PTA President

Kindergarten
Mrs. Adkins – Tannaz Akhyari, Joana Tapia Sanchez
Mrs. Chung – Elijah Claxton, Tiffany Papazian
Mrs. Pearson – Yara Hernandez, Christoper Moreno
Mrs. Vosper - Evelyn Aghajani, Maximus Roth

Grade One
Mrs. Hanson – Nina Agaronian, Hana Garcia
Ms. O’Brien – Brandon Castillo, Catherine Park
Mr. Swartz – Shaan Kauffman, Vahagn Tovmasian
Mrs. Vosper – Areesha Arshad, Sona Abrahamyan

Grade Two
Mrs. Andrews – Taylor Paterra, Benecke Snyder
Mrs. Byrd – Mikaela Lacsa, Daniel Youssef
Miss Cotrel – Damon Housholder, Carol Shaya
Ms. Iffrig - Richard Chilingirian, Reace Rushing
Mrs. Keim – Savannah Haist, Andrew Petrella
Mrs. Mehta – Logan Marr, Ben Urlik

Grade Three
Mrs. Andrews – Myles Caldwell
Mrs. Blalock – Mariah Gagliardi, Chad Hall
Mrs. Dobbin – Madison Baker, Sera Jermakyan
Mrs. Engel – Haleigh Cusumano, Steven Tovmassian
Mrs. Hartman – Not Available at Presstime

Grade Four
Ms. D’Andrea – Christian Shahnazarian, Annie Tagvoryan
Mrs. Jankiewicz – Maya Bellow, David Gharibian
Mrs. Fox – Mitchell Aslo, Nicole Bieker

Grade Five
Mr. Bravo – Matthew Eskandri, Natalia Vignali
Mrs. McNutt/Mrs. Carr –Noreen Bolden, Alexa Schnaid

At last months PTA meeting an election was held for next years PTA officers. Congratulations for the incredible people listed who have so graciously accepted the positions of the 2008-2009 Executive Board of the Emerson PTA!
Thank you!!!

Michele Harris President
Cheyenne Dragomer 1st V.P. (Assemblies)
Open 2nd V.P. (Fundraising)
Pam Paterra 3rd V.P. (Volunteers)
Denise Goodwin Recording Secretary
Julie Tebbe Financial Secretary
Cheri Simmons Treasurer
Jodi Gross Auditor
Gina Quintanar Historian

The 2008 Emerson Idol Talent Show was a great success! The kids worked hard, the parents donated time and treats, Ms. Acuff, and a special performance by teachers made the day just perfect. Gina Quintanar, in the role of MC, did a wonderful job. I couldn’t have asked for a better day of great memories. Everyone asks me why I do the Talent Show year after year and I have to tell you it’s because of the shining faces I see back stage after the kids finish their performances. The look of joy, pride, excitement, and accomplishment on their faces is priceless. YOU ROCK KIDS!!! You did a great job!!! Until next year, keep on shining!

Laurel Lucas, Talent Show Coordinator

Keep an eye out for notice on the Talent Show DVD.