September 27, 2022

Thank you for joining us at the Brooks County Fair this past weekend and congrats to all the winners!

Special big thanks to all the amazing volunteers that made the event possible.

The 2022-2023 theme for this national contest is Show Your Voice!... Each year, students from across the country in pre-K through grade 12 create theme-based artwork in dance choreography, film production, literature, musical composition, photography or visual arts. Last year, Alexandria students even placed at State!

Find inspiration for your Reflections entries with the Reflections Call for Entries video.

Entering takes 5 min online:

Online entry form (In English and Spanish)

Have questions, contact: reflections@brookspta.org

We're thrilled to kickoff our 'Bee Generous' PTA Fall Giving Campaign next Monday at Brooks with a Coffee and Donut sale on Oct. 3. The Brooks PTA will be selling hot coffee & tasty Krispy Kreme donuts in front of the school at drop-off. Stop by for a little pick-me-up to get your week started right!

Help the PTA fund planned programs for the year — including funding field trips for all students, purchasing classroom supplies that teachers would otherwise purchase out of pocket, funding the blessings in a backpack program and restocking classroom libraries.

Every Friday morning, beginning Oct. 7, EVERY BEE GENEROUS donation will automatically be entered into a raffle drawing. Awesome prizes will be awarded every week!

Upcoming Bee Generous Fun:

Monday, October 3

Donut & Coffee Sale

The Brooks PTA will be selling hot coffee & tasty Krispy Kreme donuts in front of Brooks. Stop by for a little pick-me-up to get your week started right!

Thursday, October 6

Los Tios Dine-Out!

Join Brooks families at Los Tios in Del Ray from 5pm-10pm. 10% of proceeds from in-person dining benefit the Brooks PTA and the Bee Generous Fall Giving Campaign.

Thursday, October 17

Bagels & Coffee

The Brooks PTA will be offering hot coffee & bagels for sale in front of Brooks in the morning. Stop by for a schmear!

Tuesday, November 1

Bee Generous at Chadwicks

Our Bee Generous Celebration at Chadwicks in Old Town, to close out our campaign, featuring raffles, dine-out and more!

LEARN MORE

This special event is a time for all of us to come together to share our cultural backgrounds and experiences with other members of the Brooks Community. We are so excited to welcome you back in person. This year, the event will be held outside on the playground.

Anyone can participate! You may want to represent the country your family is from, a country where you've lived, or one that you have a special interest in. Each country will be asked to set up a table and/or tent. We encourage families to work together. Some suggestions for displays and activities are: traditional food, dress, games, artifacts, pictures, stories, and/or music.

If you are not able to host a table, but would like to contribute materials or supplies, please let us know. We are in need of tables and tents. If you need additional information or have questions, please feel free to contact Katie Knowles at kathleen.knowles@acps.k12.va.us

Please fill out the online form ASAP if you are interested in representing a country - if you are only attending, no need to complete the form

https://forms.gle/bxKSTAoP4yJmerbYA

Brooks Spirit Wear, now with the official Naomi L. Brooks Elementary logo is on sale at SquadLocker.

The green beans continue! Each week since school started we have delivered a bag each of green beans, thyme and oregano to the cafeteria. Our first green bean plants planted in July are giving off their final beans and the next round planted in August are just starting to produce. The harvest should continue through October!

The marigolds and other flowers continue to add beautiful color to the garden. Lettuce was planted last week and is starting to emerge!

Would you like to help out on garden projects? Contact Samantha Strauss

Support Brooks just by shopping at Harris Teeter. Link your VIC card to Brooks and a % of your shopping goes to support the school.

You may need to setup an account at Harris Teeter to tie to your VIC card if you haven't already.

The school made nearly $280 with just 12 participants last year. Let's see if we can blow past that amount in the new school year.

Brooks is school number 5238 but still listed under Maury Elementary (changing soon). 

Support Brooks at Harris Teeter and link your VIC card today!

We are compiling the 2022-2023 Brooks Directory to help families connect. This year's edition will be entirely online, password-protected and continuously updated. Interested in being a part of it? Submit your contact information here.

We want you to BEE involved this year! We need your help to bring back your favorite PTA programs and ensure we are able to continue investing in our students and teachers as the PTA has done for many years.

There are many different ways to help -- including by writing grant applications, sign-up geniuses, helping setup evening or weekend events, emailing ACPS and the city, or simply ordering supplies. We will need help coordinating programs and events for students and teachers.

If you are interested in learning more about how you can give back to the school next year, please see our volunteer opportunities page or contact Armita Cohen, PTA President for 2022-2023, or Maya Mahoney, President Elect (PTA President for 2023-2024). 

• October 3: Bee Generous Kickoff: Donuts + Coffee
• October 3: PTA Meeting via Zoom
• October 5: Yom Kippur Observed (NO SCHOOL)
• October 6: Bee Generous: Los Tios Dineout
• October 13: Multicultural Festival
• October 15: Reflections Contest Entries Due
• October 17: Bee Generous: Bagels & Coffee



STAY CONNECTED

• Make sure you’ve subscribed to Ms. Hess' weekly emails and ACPS updates.
• Get PTA announcements on your phone via GroupMe (New for 2022-2023)
• Email brooks-bees+subscribe@googlegroups.com to receive emails. Like our Facebook page and follow Brooks PTA on Twitter.
• Miss an email? Looking for PTA meeting minutes? Catch up on our website at brookspta.org
• Need internet access? Submit an Internet Access request.
• Need to add school closings to your calendar? Import the Brooks PTA calendar!