Write a Check Fundraiser

Today, I wanted to take a minute to explain our Write a Check fundraiser.  First let's talk about Robin Hood.  Many of you may know about the Robin Hood act.  Several of you (perhaps most) understand it better than I do.  For our purposes, Robin Hood is BAD!  Robin Hood takes a huge portion of our property taxes and sends it out of Coppell schools to other schools in the DFW area which are not as affluent as Coppell.  Millions of our tax dollars are being sent to DISD and other school districts around the area.  Coppell has to make up this shortage somehow.  One of the ways that Denton Creek is able to continue to be an exemplary school is with the financial support of the PTO.  Each year the PTO gives more than $50k to Denton Creek.  Those funds are used to purchase technology items (Smartboards, laptops, projectors, dvd players, etc), music equipment, tables, recess equipment, educational speakers, books, computer programs, classroom setup, etc.  Anytime there is a need at the school, the teacher or administrator will fill out a gift request which is then reviewed by the Gifts to DCE panel and is prioritized and voted on at the PTO meeting.  Without the PTO, DCE would not have many of the things it uses to function on a daily basis.  Without the HUGE support of Denton Creek parents, the PTO would have no money to help.

As a PTO, we choose not to ask our kids to go door to door selling products.  We don't ask our parents to sell products.  We have 2 huge fundraisers a year.  One is write a check in the fall.  The other is our auction  in the spring.  During the year, we have many passive fundraisers such as; gift cards, box tops, capri sun, recycling projects, socials, spiritwear, etc.  But the way we make the majority of money for our annual budget and gifts is from write a check and the auction.

This year, we have not come close to making our write a check goal.  I find this baffling.  First, we have MANY more students at DCE than we did last year.  Second, we have the most supportive 5th grade parents, we have ever had (thanks guys).  Typically, our 5th grade parents contribute less than any other grade at write a check time.  That is NOT the case this year.  As a PTO, we have worked much harder at communicating and giving people a lot of information about what PTO is doing and how the money is being spent and why these fundraisers are so important.  Knowing all of these things, I would have expected to see a much bigger contribution this year.  Instead we have had a significantly smaller contribution.

Why?  Did you just forget to send in your contribution?  Did it get lost in the mass of paper that comes home everyday?  Were you waiting for payday?  Do you feel like your small contribution of only $20 doesn't count or isn't good enough?  Do you not know how much to contribute?  No problem.  It is not too late.

EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS AND IS APPRECIATED.  Do you care about your child's education?  If the answer is yes, we ask that you help.  It is easy.  It takes less than 2 minutes to write a check (or send cash), stick it in the envelope and send it in your child's folder.  Are you not helping because you don't like where PTO is spending the money?  THEN GET INVOLVED IN PTO.  We need you.  We want you.  We value your input.

Please take a moment today to write your check.  Thank you for all you do to support our school.  Without you, our school would not be the exemplary school that it is.  If we do not meet our write a check goal of $17k (we made over $20k last year with a significantly less number of students), we will not be able to meet the needs of our students and the requests of our teachers this calendar year.  Please help.

Thank you.

Back to School Social - WOW!!!!

Ok, how much fun was Friday night at Denton Creek?  We had 360 people eat food from Fat Daddy's.  There were probably several more families who brought their own food.  We definitely had over 400 people at the school.  WHAT A SUCCESS!  Thank you to Roya Tompkins and Katie Hubbard, as well as the dozen volunteers who checked in people or served those very messy cookies (thank goodness for the gloves).  Our great spirit wear ladies, Bonnie Perkins and Nancy Sullivan, along with our spirit wear provider worked hard selling some great DCE duds (I sure loved mine).  A special thank you to Lizzie Hartman and Sheri Shelton for manning the minibouncers.  At some point, we realized that the "Parents please supervise your children in the bounce houses" sign was not working.  Why, you ask?  Well, we will save that for another blog after you get to know me better......  Just kidding.  Our mistake and going forward, we will ask for volunteers to man the bounce houses, too.  You live and learn, right?

What wonderful teachers and administrators we have at Denton Creek.  I saw so many teachers at the event.  I know many parents mentioned how nice it was to visit with the teachers in a more relaxed setting. I hope the teachers enjoyed it as much as the parents did.  Maybe they can spread the word and we will see even more teachers and their families at our next event.  Since I was manning the big kid's bouncer most of the evening, I didn't get to chat personally with many teachers, but I sincerely appreciate you being there to support our PTO event.

The kids seemed to have a blast.  I saw kids of all ages laughing and playing alongside their families.  This is the kind of spirit that I think makes Denton Creek Elementary different from all the other schools in Coppell.  We are one big HAPPY family.

If you weren't able to attend due to the craziness of life, no fear, we will be having more great events, that will be just as fun.  If volunteering at this event looked like something you could handle, please click the volunteer link in your newsletter and select socials/fundraising.

If I didn't get a chance to say hi on Friday, because I was screaming at the bouncing crazies, I apologize.  I hope you all had a great time and I look forward to seeing you again soon.

Sincerely,
Lisa Johnson

Let's talk about the Grandparent/Special Friend Tea

Well, it is about that time.  Some of you have seen the invitations in your child's folders for the Grandparent/Special Friend Tea (if you haven't, you will soon).  The tea is scheduled for Friday, October 1st.  This is the day that the students invite their grandparent(s) to the school to spend lunch and another half an hour of party time with them.  If your child's grandparent(s) live too far away to travel, please think of someone to invite for your child.  This could be a neighbor, close friend, Aunt or Uncle.  I have been at the school and the children who do not have a "special friend" in attendance really feel left out.  If you can't come up with anyone for your child to invite, please make plans to attend yourself.  Having someone there will make a huge difference to your child.

Here are a few helpful hints for this day:
1.  If you are your child's special friend, because you couldn't think of anyone else and your parents live too far to travel, DO NOT BRING YOUNGER SIBLINGS.  We don't have the space on this day.  This is strictly for adults and students of DCE.
2.  If your child is lucky enough to have a grandparent(s)/special friend who can attend, then you are off the hook.  PLEASE DO NOT COME.  I cannot stress enough how crowded this day is and we cannot hold extra parents.  Each class room parent will ask for a few volunteers to work as greeters or waitstaff.  If you sign up for one of those jobs, you are welcome and appreciated.  If you do not sign up for one of those jobs and are not on our official volunteer list, please stay home and let your kids enjoy their grandparent(s)/special friends on their own.
3.  Parking.... Wow, it is horrible.  Here is my personal suggestion.  You will find out from your class room parent what time your grandparent(s)/special friend needs to arrive at the school and what time they are free to leave.  If you could act as a chauffeur on this day and drop them off and then schedule to pick them up at the car loop (don't leave your car, just have them meet you out front), you will both be MUCH HAPPIER. I promise.  They will write tickets this day and it is not pleasant to see 70 year olds hiking 2 miles to the school because there is no parking.
4.  Book Fair.  The book fair will be going on during grandparent/special friend day.  We, in the PTO, are not stupid and there is no one more willing to buy books for kids than their grandparents.  You might warn your parents of this little shopping excursion and remind them to bring their wallet.  Checks, cash and credit cards are all accepted.  Proceeds benefit the DCE library.
5.  Dress.  Most everyone looks pretty nice on this day.  The kids seem to make a special effort to dress up a bit.  The grandparent(s)/special friends always look very nice.  I would call it business casual for the most part.  ANYTHING IS FINE!  I am just letting you know how the average group dresses on this day.

A sample schedule for the day might be:

For 1st Grade:
     10:30     Grandparent(s)/Special Friends arrive at school (I would drop them off 5 minutes early giving them ample time to get in the door and be directed to the right classroom).
     10:30-11:00     Party in the classroom
     11:00-11:30     Go to lunch with child (you will pack your child's lunch as well as the lunch for your grandparent(s)/special friend).
     11:30-12:00     Your child may either take their grandparent to the book fair or the grandparent may leave and the child may to go recess with his/her class.


Ok, I think that about covers it.  You will be receiving all the pertinent info from your child's room parent soon.  If you have any specific questions, I advise you to contact them.  They will be happy to help you with anything.  If your child's grandparent(s) live far away and cannot attend, many choose to send in a letter to their grandchild.  These will be posted and the kids love reading them.

This will be the last year for Macy's grandparents to come for Grandparent Tea with her.  They don't do this in middle school.  They have come every year since she was in kindergarten.  It will be a very bittersweet moment.

Hope you have a fabulous week and that I get to see you at the PTO meeting on Tuesday.

All my best,
Lisa Johnson

Curriculum Night Notes

Are you new to Denton Creek?  If so, you might be wondering about Curriculum Night.  Let me tell you a bit about it from a parent's perspective, so you know what to expect.  First I must remind you that these are only MY THOUGHTS and impressions,  so take them or leave them as you will....


Curriculum Night is for parents only.  Assuming you only have one child in k-2 and perhaps another in 3-5, then you have it easy.  You can leave the little guys at home with the other parent (your choice here on which parent gets stuck at home) and you get to go to school.  If you have more than one kiddo in either of the 2 grade sections, then you might want to find a sitter and each of you take a classroom.  If you can't get a sitter, I advise you to spend half the time in one classroom and the rest in the other.  Ok, logistics are over.


You will go to your child's homeroom classroom unless you have been told otherwise.  First grade is meeting in the library.  You will sit at their seat and you will receive a packet from the teacher.  The teacher will most likely show you a video and will speak to you about what you can expect from your child's education experience this year.  The meeting will last about an hour and you are then free to go (GO VOTE in the gym!).


I always find this evening fun.  It is a great chance to get to see what life is like sitting in those little chairs.  You also get to meet the parents of the kiddos who will be influencing your child's behavior and choices for the next year.  WOW!  It is my experience that kids are usually a lot like their parents, so I find this extra interesting (by the way, if my children are bad, assume they learned it from their father).  I also love listening to the teachers and hearing what fun things your kids have to look forward to during the year.


Sometimes at the end of the night, the teacher might let you know of a few items they need in their classroom.  These are usually ziplock bags, glue sticks, paper sacks, popsicle sticks and other small similarly related items.  You do not have to sign up to bring in any of those, but my kids usually like showing up with a "gift" for the teacher.


I think that about sums it up.  I hope to see and meet many of you tomorrow night. 

Don't forget only 7 more days until the first PTO meeting!  Tuesday, September 14th at 9am