Check out our February PTSO newsletter — lots of good stuff to share! Reach out if you have any questions, suggestions, or interest in volunteering!
Happy Lunar New Year and Black History Month!
💡 Join Our PTSO Meeting Tonight at 7pm
Please join us virtually tonight (Tuesday, February 8) for our monthly PTSO meeting! We'll share updates on key initiatives and upcoming plans. Click here for the agenda and click here to join the Zoom meeting at 7:00pm!
🥳 Beacon Spring Festival Celebration
We wanted to spread the word about an exciting event this month: the Beacon Spring Celebration of Light. Organized by Beacon parent Christine Wang and JVF mom Jessica Jelliffe, this event celebrates the coming spring, lunar new year, light, hope, warmth, renewal, and kids! There are two parts:
-Sunday 2/13 from 10am-2pm: Lantern-making at the Beacon Farmers Market
-Saturday 2/19 from 5:30pm on: Lantern parade down Main St. followed by a dance party at the Yard!
Click here for more info and email beaconspringny@gmail.com with any questions.
👩🏾⚖️ Black History Month at JVF & Gallery Walk Event
At JVF, with the support and leadership of our building Equity Team, we will be holding our 4th Annual Black History Month Gallery Walk and school-wide studies! Classes will learn about African American trailblazers from Beacon, Dutchess County and/or New York State. In the past we’ve focused on learning about African American representation in various fields including STEM (20-21), The Arts (19-20), specifically Music, Visual Arts, Theatre Arts, Dance, and Creative Arts, and areas of leadership and innovation (18-19). Our learning will be shared and displayed throughout the school at the end of the month for our Gallery Walk! Our Equity Team is also providing staff with resources and book lists to support their research endeavors! We are planning a Gallery Walk event for families at the school, the evening of Thursday, February 24th. Come see students' work and learning on display! Stay tuned for more details!
📚Spring Literacy Plans
Our Literacy Chair Kristen Holt-Browning is spearheading some great plans for spring, including:
A spring book fair with Split Rock Books in Cold Spring in March
A school-wide read-a-thon in May (like last year)
Installation/building of a Little Free Library on school grounds in the spring
Anyone interested in lending a hand with any of these initiatives can email Kristen!
🌸 Got Programming Ideas?
While we have to be cautious in planning in-person gatherings for spring, we are putting our thinking caps on for fun initiatives. If you have any ideas, please email us! Here are a few things we're considering:
Arts assembly (thanks to Tessa Dean and Cheryl Silvernail for spearheading!)
Literacy events amplification (e.g., story stations in celebration of the Little Free Library launch)
At-home school spirit challenges
Springfest outdoor fun day (à la Fall Fest)
📣 Open Invitation for PTSO Board Candidates!
It may seem early, but we're starting to think about next year's PTSO board, ahead of elections in May! If you'd like to get involved, or just have questions what the board positions entail, please get in touch! We can always create or shape a role to fit your time and interests. Thank you for stepping up to support JVF!
Helpful Reminders
📕 Book Nook
The Book Nook is a free resource for all JVF students. Remind your kids to stop by the Nook, just outside the nurse's office, to check it out! Kids can take as many books as they wish and they don't need to be returned! Special thanks to our Literacy Chair, Kristen Holt-Browning, for spearheading this great program!
Mark the Marker Recycling Program
All year long our students and staff will be collecting used Crayola and Non-Crayola brand markers, Dry-Erase markers and Highlighters. We will ship what we collect to Crayola for free recycling! We encourage families to participate by sending in your used plastic markers from home. Look for MARK the MARKER, our collection box, located at the main entrance! Thank you for helping JVF do our part to protect the environment. Special thanks again to PTSO member extraordinaire Margaux Lange for spearheading this program!
⏰ Upcoming Dates and Programs
Here are some key dates and initiatives coming up:
Monday, February 21 — No School, Presidents' Day
🔖 Helpful Resources
We send out a monthly PTSO newsletter and occasional special announcements to keep everyone updated on news, events, and volunteer opportunities. Sometimes you’ll also get paper flyers sent home with your child(ren). For up-to-the-minute updates, be sure to follow the JV Forrestal PTSO Facebook page (our online bulletin board) and join the JV Forrestal PTSO Facebook discussion group (our closed discussion group.)
Not on Facebook? The JVF PTSO is also on Instagram (@jvforrestalptso) and Twitter (@JVFPTSO). On Twitter, also follow @MsSessoms and @JVFElementary.
For your reference, you'll find the JV Forrestal Student Handbook here and the BCSD Code of Conduct here. Get the latest BCSD Superintendent Blog post here.
Shop and Earn Money for JVF!
Did you know that when you shop at ShopRite or purchase Box Tops products, you can easily earn free money for JVF? Follow the links below (it’ll take 5 minutes!) to set it up and watch the rewards roll in! Thank you so much for helping our school!
ShopRite for My School: Click here to register your ShopRite card and earn money for JVF each time you shop! This program will automatically redeem any Box Tops credits you get from products you buy at ShopRite!
Box Tops for Education: For any Box Tops products you buy outside of ShopRite, you can still earn 10 cents per product for JVF! The Box Tops program has gone fully digital — download the Box Tops app and scan your receipts!
The JVF PTSO:
Fostering community among JVF families and staff
Email: jvfptso@gmail.com
Website: jvfptso.com