Exploris PTO News

8/26 Monday Minute

  1. Join Exploris friends at Transfer Company next Tuesday!
  2. Back to School- photos online
  3. Spiritwear now on sale
  4. PTO/Directory Signup Form
  5. Teacher Snack Stash
  6. Start Passive Fundraising! VIC card, Boxtops, and more
  7. Get involved with the PTO- open positions
  8. Fall Picnic-  thank you!
  9. Cross Country info
  10. 2019-20 Exploris Calendar link/help
  11. Upcoming Events:  no school next Monday- Labor Day!


transferco1. Exploris Spirit Night at Transfer Co. Food Hall –  next Tuesday! 

The first PTO Dine-In Fundraiser is scheduled for Tuesday, September 3 at Transfer Company Food Hall!  Transfer Co. is at 500 E Davie Street, just a few blocks south of the Elementary Campus. There is parking onsite and an easy walk from many downtown locations.  Exact vendors and times to be shared later, but please plan on supporting the PTO by dining out on September 3!  Look for more info on Exploris PTO social media this week (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram).

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2. Back to School! 

We’ve had a great start to the 2019-20 School Year at Exploris!  Thanks to everyone for sharing photos for our First Day of School photo album on facebook.  It has been so fun to see all of the smiling faces! Here is the album link. It’s not too late to share your photos. Just post in the comments: 
https://www.facebook.com/explorispto/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1318476728312406

If you need the school supply lists, carpool map, lunch order forms and more please visit our Back To School Checklist here. 

tshirt3. Exploris Spiritwear  is now available to order! Items are on sale through SEPTEMBER 12 and will be delivered to students some time in October (date TBD).

We have Tshirts, hats, hoodies, magnets, water bottles, and more! See all of the options and online ordering at: Exploris School PTO.

4. PTO Directory/Information Form

Please fill out this short form to register with the PTO and to participate in the 2019-20 online school directory. To protect the privacy of our families, the online directory will only contain the names and contact information of families who choose to have their information published. If you would like to have your information published in a directorydirectory to be shared with others, you must opt-in on the form.  Fields that you choose to fill will be then be published (as a password protected Google sheet) on the PTO website.

Volunteer Profiles – The PTO is dependent on parent volunteers to do everything we want to support our students, teachers & community – we need help with fundraisers, one-time tasks, and ongoing projects.  If you are interested in volunteering throughout the year, please fill out the volunteer preferences on the PTO form. This does not commit you to anything, only gives us an idea of what you’d be interested in so that requests can be targeted.

PTO FORM https://forms.gle/TQzfjqe3BCvKNQTQA

5. Teacher Snack Stash – This year, crew parents will be responsible for coordinating drink & snack stashes in teacher workrooms – it doesn’t have to be much, but having something to snack on during a long day makes a big difference to our teachers.  While we are getting crew parents set up, lets go ahead and stock the teacher workrooms for the next few weeks! There are signups for each workroom – K-2 Building & 3-5 Building on the elementary campus and the middle school.  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050849AEAF2DA4FA7-k2teacher

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6. Get started with Passive Fundraising!

Please participate in these easy grocery, packaging, and shopping fundraisers for our school!  Information has been updated for the 2019-20 school year: 

https://explorispto.org/fundraising/passivefundraising/

7. Get involved with the PTO! 

cropped-inkedptologo_li.jpgImmediate Volunteer Needs – The PTO Board has a few open positions.  Please contact Allie at Volunteers@ExplorisPTO.org if you are interested in any of these roles or would like to learn more.

  • Office Coverage Coordinator – Coordinate with office staff and volunteers to ensure that the office at each campus is manned while the staff is out of the office or attending to other matters.
  • Dine in Night Coordinator – Organize monthly restaurant fundraisers and promote through PTO newsletter, posters, Facebook posts, etc to ensure high participation
  • Crew Parents – One of the goals for the PTO is to support our teachers as well as possible, and our Crew Parents are our direct connection between Teachers and the PTO.  The crew parent role has changed from past years, so please review the following expectations. Please contact Gineen at gineen.bowman@gmail.com for questions or if you are interested in serving as a crew parent.
    • Organize parent volunteers as needed (SignUp Genius is great!)
      • Ongoing classroom needs
      • PTO Projects (Art By Me, Auction, etc)
      • Field Trips
      • Special Events
    • Assemble Birthday Baskets for your classroom teachers
      • Birthday cards, their favorite treat, a small gift card for coffee or dinner
      • Parents can send in items or you can collect money
    • Teacher Treats
      • Each grade will be responsible for providing teacher treats and coffee once every 3 months.
      • It is up to you how you send in treats, but no pressure – our teachers are so thankful for everything we do!

69376891_1321872497972829_4849816352690536448_o8. The August 25 Fall Picnic was a success!   

Thanks to the many faculty members and families for joining together at Chavis Park as we celebrated the beginning of the school year.  

Special thanks to picnic co-chairs Lisa Glass and Gineen Bowman, and to the rest of the PTO volunteers who made this event possible.

9. Middle School Cross- Country will begin on August 27th with a time trial.  Runners will be expected to run a sub 10-minute mile.  Runners must have completed physical form in order to participate. Please send your child with a water bottle. Runners and parent helpers will meet in the basement at the end of the school day.  Practices take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:15-4:15 from August 27th- October 3rd Cross Country Schedule found here The season is about improvement, being part of a team and a commitment to running. We also rely heavily on parent volunteers in many different capacities. Our first need is for parents to help with the team trial and one parent to set up the Sign Up Genius and help to check in all physicals. Please contact Sharon Cuffe scuffe@exploris.org if you will be able to help on Tuesday.

10. Calendar

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The 2019-20 Exploris and PTO Calendar links are here:

https://explorispto.org/about/calendar/

You can keep up with Exploris events by subscribing to the Google Calendar. First click on the Calendar, then click on the + button in the lower right corner of the calendar. If you don’t already have a Google account, you will need to set one up, which is easy and free.  After subscribing, all Exploris events will also be displayed on your calendar. Questions? Check the Exploris Google Calendar FAQ.

If you need help putting the calendar on your iPhone calendar, here are directions:

10. Upcoming Events

  • August 22 – 29: Shinonome Visit from Hiroshima, Japan
  • August 27: Exploris School Board meeting (public)
  • September 2: School Closed for Labor Day
  • September 3: Exploris Spirit Night at Transfer Company Food Hall
  • September 9:  PTO Meeting, 6:30pm at the ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 
  • September 17: Picture day at Elementary
  • September 18: Picture day at Middle
  • Monday, September 30: – Teacher Workday
  • October 4 (3:15pm) – October 14 (8am) – Fall Break
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We had a great time at the Exploris Fall Picnic on August 25! Thanks to everyone for joining together at Chavis Park!

Thanks for reading the “Monday Minute”!  We publish this Exploris PTO blog post each Monday during the school year.  

If you would like to submit information, please email your text (copy ready), photos, and links to Dana Deaton at explorisptonews@gmail.com .