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Important This Week:.
Driscoll Directory Updates - Please Verify Your Information
Over the summer, Driscoll's directory system (MySchoolAnywhere) was purchased by Membership Toolkit. Students who were in the old directory have been moved into the new system, and now include teacher names and grades of students from Brookline Public School records.
In the transition, we noticed several records from BPS that did not include complete student information, or did not match with the records already in our directory.
Action Requested: Please take a moment to log into Membership Toolkit and verify that your information and your children's class information is up to date.
Many room parents use the directory email list to communicate class announcements or requests. If you have questions, please email DriscollDirectory@gmail.com.
Driscoll Talks: "Talking to Kids About Race and Racism"
Tuesday, November 12th from 6 - 7:30 PM, in the Driscoll Theater
One of the challenges facing parents in today's world is the struggle to raise race conscious children. Issues of racism and inequality show up in the news on a daily basis, on both a national and a local level. How can we start a conversation with our children about race and racism?
Please join Dr. Kalise Wornum (Senior Director of Educational Equity, Public Schools of Brookline) and Dr. Suzie Talukdar (Principal of Michael Driscoll School) for a parent discussion in the Driscoll Theater on Tuesday, November 12th from 6-7:30 PM.
Driscoll Talks is a year-long series of parent workshops, sponsored by the Driscoll PTO. This year, we will be hosting three workshops focusing on issues of inequality and discrimination. The workshops are open to all Brookline parents and caregivers.
Early Release Movies: Registration Ends Today!
On four days over the next few weeks, Driscoll will be ending school at 12:40 PM to offer teachers a chance to schedule parent conferences. The Driscoll PTO will be offering our Early Release Movies program on these days to allow parents the convenience of picking up their children at the normal pickup time. We offer two options:
Movie Munchkins are children in Kindergarten and First Grade, and is held in the Music Room across from the Theater (Room 118). This room is geared toward a younger audience with a TV show geared toward a younger audience, and a section set up for drawing, books, and games for those who are not interested in watching.
Movie Masters are children in 1st through 5th grades, who watch a full length movie in the Theater (younger children are allowed to attend with their siblings at their parents’ discretion).
Registration is run through Family ID (similar to DASA), and will end on Monday, November 11th at 12 noon. Children must be pre-registered to attend the movies. The cost is $10 per child, per movie.
https://www.familyid.com/organizations/driscoll-school-pto
We need parent volunteers to make this program happen! Without enough parent volunteers, we would need to cancel the movie. We need at least 2 parents in the Kindergarten Room and between 5 and 7 parents in the Theater. Any parents who volunteers get free admission to the entire set of movies for their child. When registration opens, you will also receive a link to a SignUp Genius for parent volunteers.
The movie schedule is:
November 14: Inside Out
November 20: My Neighbor Totoro
December 5: Finding Nemo
December 11: 101 Dalmatians
From the Amy Neale Library
The Book Fair is coming, and we need your help to staff it! It will be December 9-13th this year, with evening hours featuring storytime with Dr. Talukdar on Thursday December 12. The book fair is a really fun volunteering opportunity. Click here for the Sign Up Genius. And speaking of the book fair, poster entries are due this Friday, November 15. Forms are available on book fair webpage here. Thank you for supporting this important fundraiser for the library!
The Driscoll Student Book Awards program (DSBA) is back! Students in grades four through seven previewed the nominees over the last two weeks, and the books will begin circulating this week. To see this year’s nominees and learn more about the program, visit the DSBA website or take a look at the rating posters outside the library (still a work in progress). A huge thanks to all the volunteers who have helped get the program up and running; it is a ton of work and couldn’t be done without their help. This program is funded by the PTO and the Family Giving Campaign. Thank you for your support!
Have a budding filmmaker in your family? Check out the 90-Second Newbery competition. The challenge is to take a full length Newbery Award winning book and condense it into a 90 second video. Pretty fabulous. The deadline is in January and there will be a screening in March at the Boston Public Library. Visit the website for all the details, including some hilarious and creative examples of past submissions.
Happy Reading!
Ms. Reid, Librarian
anne_reid@psbma.org
Driscoll Book Fair
The Driscoll Book Fair will be happening December 9-13, 2019. Our theme this year is "One World, Many Stories." This fundraiser celebrates reading and gives parents and guardians a chance to connect as volunteers and/or to shop the book fair before winter break and holidays. Please sign up to volunteer here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0f4eadae28a0fe3-driscoll2
Enter the poster contest to help Driscoll students and families excited about the book fair too!
Poster contest info:
● Pick up the entry form at the library, in the front office, or print it at home (go to https://sites.google.com/a/psbma.org/library/book-fair)
● The words “Book Fair 2019” and the theme “One World, Many Stories” must be incorporated into the design.
● Only one entry per student. Group entries will be accepted.
● Design must be original work, hand drawn, using this form (8.5x11 inch paper).
● Posters are photocopied, so black and white only please.
● Deadline: submit posters to the Main Office or Library by November 15.
● Prize: winners will get to pick one book to keep and one to be added to the library in
their honor. All who submit an entry will be entered into a drawing for a gift card.
● One design will be chosen from each of the two judging categories: K-4 and 5-8.
Driscoll School Council Election: The Results Are In!
We want to thank everyone who voted in our Driscoll School Council election. A total of 108 ballots were submitted, and the new parent representatives on the Driscoll School Council have been chosen. They are:
Rich Day
Dan Deutsch
Patricia Salic
Amandeep Singh
We want to give our sincere thanks to all six of the candidates, and extend our best wishes to C. Scott Ananian and Jonathan Golden. It was an overwhelmingly strong field, and any of the candidates would have made outstanding contributions to the School Council. We also want to thank all the members of the Driscoll community who voted, with a turnout that far surpassed our expectations! It is truly a sign of the strength of our community, and it is so wonderful to see the enthusiasm on display for our children's school experience.
November is National Epilepsy Awareness Month and Driscoll School is learning all about it!
According to the World Health Organization, epilepsy is the most common serious brain disorder worldwide with no age, racial, social class, national or geographic boundaries.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) estimates that 3.4 million people in the United States are affected by epilepsy.
Epilepsy is the underlying tendency of the brain to produce seizures which are sudden abnormal bursts of electrical energy that disrupt brain functions.
Epilepsy can affect anyone with a brain. Each year 150,000 more people are diagnosed with epilepsy. Over a lifetime, one in 10 people will have a seizure, and one in 26 will develop epilepsy.
To learn more please visit the Epilepsy Foundation online at https://www.epilepsy.com/
Community News:
INFORM YOURSELF and VOTE: the Town of Brookline has called a special election for Tuesday, December 10, 2019. The purpose of this election is to ask Brookline voters to approve borrowing to fund the construction of a new, larger, fossil-fuel-free building for the Driscoll School in Washington Square, which many are calling Driscoll-4 (because it would rebuild Driscoll as a 4-section school--i.e., 4 classrooms per grade level). For more information, please visit https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/Page/2353 If you need to register to vote, please consult: https://www.brooklinema.gov/139/Voter-Registration. Note that the deadline to register is November 20, 2019--20 days before the election.)
Select Board & School Committee: There will be a Joint Meeting of the School Committee and Select Board on Tuesday, November 12, 2019, at 6:30 PM, in the Select Board Hearing Room, Town Hall, 333 Washington Street, Brookline, Massachusetts. (Note: the Joint Meeting will take place during the Select Board's regular meeting.)
The agenda is as follows:
6:30 PM Select Board and School Committee Joint Meeting
1) Newbury Project Test Fits Presentation
Pip Lewis of HMFH will appear to present Test Fits for the Newbury school project and Patricia Rizzo of ICON will present the municipal Test Fits.
2) Driscoll School Project Update
Update on the plans for the Driscoll School Project.
School Committee Meeting: The School Committee will be meeting on Thursday, November 14, 2019 at 6:00 PM in the Walsh School Committee Room, Brookline Town Hall, 333 Washington Street, Brookline, Massachusetts.
The agenda can be found at this link.
DRISCOLL PARENT WALKING GROUP
Would you like to walk together after drop-off?
KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM "THE TRUTH ABOUT VAPING"
On October 28, the PSB Guidance Department hosted a presentation by Caron Treatment Center’s Education Alliance that offered parents, community, and PSB staff a wealth of information and strategies regarding the troubling epidemic of vaping among Brookline youth. Even with decreased access due to Gov. Baker’s ban, vaping is still problematic, and many kids who had already begun vaping are now struggling to quit. Read B-PEN’s The Bottom Line on “The Truth About Vaping” for key takeaways from the evening: https://www.b-pen.org/uploads/2/9/2/9/2929884/2019_bottom_line.pdf
HOPE FOR KIDS: My name is Nikky Agba, a former Driscoll parent. I am working with Hope For Kids, a project whose mission is geared towards helping to provide clothing to Kids and their families in villages in Nigeria, Africa. We are having a clothing drive until Dec. 15 and we ask that you consider donating your used (infants/children/adults) clothing, shoes, bags etc. We have a collection box in the hallway across from the "Lost and Found area". For further information please contact me at 617-566-4725 or email me at agbanikky@gmail.com
November 19: How To Talk To Your Kids About Racism
The Lawrence DICE (Diversity, Inclusion, Community, and Equity) group invites all Brookline parents and caregivers to participate in a community dialogue on "How To Talk To Your Kids About Racism," facilitated by experts from the Anti-Defamation League.
Danika Manso-Brown (Associate Education Director) and Karen Schwartz (Assistant Education Director) will lead a discussion of concepts and strategies for engaging young people of all ages in conversations around race and racism. Brookline teachers/staff are also welcome to attend.
Date: Tuesday, November 19th
Place: Lawrence Auditorium
BHS Innovation Fund Hosts Annual Gala-Rama Party 11/21/19
You’re invited to celebrate and support curriculum innovation at the BHS Innovation Fund’s annual Gala-Rama fundraiser on Thursday 11/21/19 from 7-10pm at the Cheeky Monkey Brewing Co. in Boston (Fenway). Festivities include: open bar featuring craft beers, cocktails & fun food; ping-pong, billiards, and shuffleboard; and a silent auction. Your participation helps the Innovation Fund invest in new academic programs at BHS. Come celebrate BHS with parents, faculty and leadership. Adults 21+ only, casual dress. Tickets & More Info: https://bhsinnovationfund.org/event-2019-gala-rama/ Questions? Contact bhsinnovationfund@psbma.org.
Brookline Fall Brawl Youth Wrestling Tournament
DATE/TIME: Sunday November 17, 2019 – 7:30AM to 3:30PM
GRADES: 3-9
WEIGH-INS: 7:30AM to 9:00AM. Brackets will be determined by Madison Weight system. Wrestlers will be checked for skin conditions: Doctors note required if applicable. Medals awarded to the 3 top placers in each bracket
DETAILS: More Info
• FREE T-Shirt for the first 40 kids
LOCATION: Brookline HS - Tappan Gym - 66 Tappan Street
REGISTER: Online - $25.00 and Onsite $30.00
Brookline's 2019 First Light Holiday Celebration. Nov. 21 5-8PM
This is a free, festive, family-friendly, fun Brookline tradition. tinyurl.com/FirstLightProgram
Classifieds:
Responsible Driscoll 7th Graders Available to Babysit and/or walk with kids any day of the week
Call or text 857-361-2531 for more information and to set up dates. On Thursdays please contact 617-390-6988. If you prefer email contact sarahlimejuice@gmail.com any day.
Hello! If you want to know more about us here is some information. Our names are Adelle, Sarah, Sophie, Janie and Zoe. We are experienced 7th grade students from Driscoll school. We love helping others and babysitting. We are aged 12-13. If you want to know more, please feel free to contact us at any time and we will answer as soon as we can.
Hours:
Monday - Thursday after 2:30pm
Friday after 1:40pm
Saturday - Sunday most times
Other info: Not all of us come to each date. We help with any ages! Some of us are CPR Certified!
Pet Care Available
Responsible and reliable BHS 10th grader and Driscoll graduate available for pet care over thanksgiving or other times. I love animals and have experience with dogs, cats, and rabbits. Reasonable rates. Please contact Rebecca Hazen at rmshazen@gmail.com or 857-225-5820.
The Driscoll PTO Bulletin will only publish classified ads from our students, parents/guardians and educators.
SUBMISSION INFO
**All Submissions for the Bulletin are due each Thursday for the following weeks bulletin. Email driscollbulletin@gmail.com.
**The Bulletin is generally published on Monday mornings except in the case of school holidays and vacations.
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