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September 13th, 2017
From Mrs. Rowley   back_2_school.jpg    
  
It is good to see everyone back and settling into the routine. We hope to see you all at Back To School Night tonight. Just a reminder that the schedule is as follows:
  • 6:30-7:30  = Kindergarten-Grade 5 parents (2 sessions)
  • 7:00-7:30 = Preschool
  • 7:30-8:00  = PTO meeting in gym
  • 8:00-8:30  = Grades 6-8 parents in homerooms
  • 8:30-9:00  = MS teachers (including Specials) circulate, introduce themselves & then are available to parents
We will also have some tables set up to promote our soccer and strings programs, and the PTO will have sign-up sheets for various volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Tonight I will also have a list of after-school activities for you to consider for your children.
 
Thank you to all who participated in our dress-down day for victims of the hurricanes.  Our school raised $541.58!  What amazing generosity!  With the money raised we will participate in the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) campaign: Student to Student: A Catholic School response to Hurricane Harvey.  The NCEA will collect donations from Catholic Schools across the country to help Catholic schools affected by the hurricanes.
 
We are excited to welcome author Ray Arroyo to our school for an assembly next week. He will present to the students at 9:00am, and then for parents at 10:00am. We hope you can join us! Thanks to the PTO, especially Lorraine Sloma-Williams for setting this up. Have a great week!
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From the Editor
 
Send in your submissions! Please let me know if something interesting is going on in our community, have updates for a club, or want to give a shout out to someone at the school, I especially enjoy pictures. Please contact Mrs. Rowley to make sure we have permission to publish pictures of the students. The pictures need to be less than 5 MB. Submissions are due by Mondays at 5pm. Please contact me if you have any questions. If you know any parents at the school who did not receive this week's Buzz, please have them contact me so I can put them on the distribution list. Also, let me know if you need me to update your email or remove you for the list. I look forward to hearing from you!    

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Volunteer Opportunities
Oktoberfest Coordinator Needed
 
We are hoping to bring Oktoberfest back this year on 10/21/17, but are still in need of an Oktoberfest Coordinator. This position is responsible for assessing and coordinating volunteer efforts for food, beverages, decorations, ticket sales, and advertising, as well as coordinating setup and clean up for this event. This would be a great opportunity for someone to use their talents and create a wonderful event for our school. Please contact Jen Charest at rugbyratch2@aol.com or Sharon Driscoll at shardriscoll@yahoo.com if you are interested in this position or volunteering for this event. 
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School News 
A Conversation with Ray Arroyo

The St. Ambrose PTO Invites you to join us for A Conversation with Raymond Arroyo on Wednesday, September 20th at 10am in the gymnasium. 
 
Raymond is the renowned author of several books on the life and wisdom of Mother Angelica. He is also a celebrated author of the Will Wilder children's series.
 
Raymond will reflect on some of the lessons he learned from Mother Angelica herself, and he will also give you the opportunity to ask him questions.  
 
Click here for more information. Questions? Ask Lorraine Sloma Williams: 703-459-5501
Ronald McDonald House 
 
For the past two years, our school students have been  collecting pop tabs to benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Washington DC.  In June, Mrs. Kiernan donated our entire collection of more than 19 lbs. of pop tabs to the RMHC office located on the campus of the INOVA Hospital on Gallows Road. 

Let's see if we can top our recent donation in the year to come!  It is a great way to teach our children about philanthropy and the importance of recycling, while raising funds to help sick children and their families.  Help us to help them...

Collection containers will be placed in each classroom and the 6th graders will periodically pick up all pop tabs from each homeroom.  The RMHC sells the metal tabs and all funds support their cause. You can find the pop tabs on soda cans, some soup or vegetable cans, cat food cans, etc.  

Thank you for your help in supporting this worthy cause.
Mrs. Patricia Kiernan & the 6th graders 
Fourth Annual Coat Drive

The winter weather wear collection will begin on Tuesday, October 2nd and end Tuesday, October 31st. We are doing this a month earlier this year.  We accept coats, gloves, hats, scarves, snowsuits and winter wear for all age groups.   We ask that you please donate only clean and in good condition items.  We want to donate what we ourselves would be happy to receive. We have had such wonderful donations in the past, but we want to emphasize the items need to be washed or dry cleaned (Zips is cheap!) before giving to our less fortunate neighbors.  Of course we also love to receive new items! There will be boxes in the entry and hallway of the school, and some of our students will be helping collect the items from each classroom.  Last year we took our fantastic donations to St. James the Greater Catholic Church in West Virginia - they were simply overwhelmed with your generosity.  This year we may team up, as we did 2 years ago, with St. Theresa Catholic Church in Ashburn as part of their very well organized Divine Mercy Outreach Program.  Thank you in advance and may this be a wonderful year for St. Ambrose School.
From the Health Clinic
Mrs. Maureen Earner

Important Habits for Your Child to
Establish at the Start of a New School Year
 
Help Your Child/Children Develop a Sleep Routine
  • Getting enough sleep is critical for a child to be successful in school. Children who do not get enough sleep have difficulty concentrating and learning as well as they can.
  • Set a consistent bedtime for your child and stick with it every night. Having a bedtime routine that is consistent will help your child settle down and fall asleep. Components of a calming pre-bedtime routine may involve a bath/shower, reading with them, and tucking them in and saying good-night to them.
  • Have your child turn off electronic devices well before bedtime.
  • Try to have the home as quiet and calm as possible when younger children are trying to fall asleep.
  • Insufficient sleep is associated with lower academic achievement in middle school, high school and college, as well as higher rates of absenteeism and tardiness. The optimal amount of sleep for young children is 10-12 hours per night and for adolescents (13-18 year of age) is in the range of 8-10 hours per night. 
Continue reading here
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Shout Outs!
A great big PTO shoutout to Margaret Kelty for all of her tireless efforts in organizing a successful Used Uniform Sale. Without the efforts of volunteers like her, field trips, new electronics for use in the classrooms and assemblies like the September 20th one for students AND parents featuring Raymond Arroyo wouldn't be possible! So thank you for leading by example, Margaret!
In This Issue
Ways to Give!

Ana-Maria Cordoba Scholarship Fund 

 

PTO Meeting Dates
Next Meeting:
September 20th at 7pm (school library)
Important Tidbits
Important Dates
(All events and important dates can be found on our website's Google Calendar!)
 
Fri 9/15:   
  -Track Practice 3:15pm
  - Tennis Practice at Audrey Moore 5pm 
 
Sun 9/17:
  - Parish Picnic 1pm
 
Mon 9/18:
  - Soccer begins
 
Tue 9/19:
  - Choir Rehearsal 3:20pm
  - Track Practice 3:15pm

Wed 9/20:
  -
Parent Discussion-Raymond Arroyo 10am   
  - PTO Meeting 7pm 
 
Did you...
- Check out volunteer opportunities at the school?
- Update your information in PowerSchool? 
-Tell a friend about the Amazon Associates Program?
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