• Save the Dates
• Brackett PTO Spring Annual Appeal is Here!
• Brackett June Fair - Saturday, June 11 from 10am - 2pm
• Teacher Appreciation Lunch: Volunteers Needed to Cover Classrooms!
• Help the Brackett Full Circle Garden Grow!
• New Committee Forming â€“ Help Create a New Book Nook for the Brackett Library!
• Brackett Ice Cream Scooperbowl 2016, Thursday, June 2, 6-7:30 P.M.
• Tell your Teachers they are STARS!  Deadline - June 3
• 5^th Grade Parents: Join the PTO at Ottoson Middle School!
• You are invited to Wednesday Night Live “The Musical” Presented by the 5^th Grade!
• WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE – The Musical! Rehearsal Schedule (for 5^th Graders) 

Brackett PTO Spring Annual Appeal is Here!
 
The Brackett PTO’s Spring Annual Appeal is in full swing! To date, roughly 20% of Brackett Families have donated just over $11,000 (including employer matches) to the Brackett PTO. Our goal is to double our family participation rate – to reach 40% donor participation - and to raise $4,000 from now until the last day of school on June 24. Many thanks to those families who have already contributed!   The PTO spends $75 annually on each student.

Making a gift TODAY is as easy as making an online purchase. Click https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=HGZL7TXDWUVSG  or visit www.brackettelementary.org and donate via paypal button. We hope you will donate today to help us continue to provide excellent enrichment programs for your child(ren)! Your donation to your Brackett PTO is tax-deductible and can be matched by your employer. 
 
Warmly,
Your PTO

Brackett June Fair - Saturday, June 11 from 10am - 2pm
 
Please join the Brackett Community for this great family tradition!
See the Brackett Grounds transformed with Games, Music, Bounce House, Face Painting, Arts and Crafts Booths, Yard Sale, Silent Auction, Raffle, Plant Sale, and all the great Food, Drinks, Slush and Cotton Candy to make your Saturday awesome! New this year - a Cake Walk!!
All proceeds benefit the Brackett School PTO, which strives to enrich our children's educational experience while also building community spirit.
 
June Fair Meeting this Friday, May 27th at 8:15 in the cafeteria
 
Please Volunteer for the June Fair on Saturday, June 11 
The Brackett June Fair is a huge event for the entire Brackett Community and would not be possible without many, many parent volunteers. The Brackett PTO kindly asks all parents to give one hour at the Brackett Fair. Sign up here: Brackett June Fair Volunteers
 
The Cake Walk is Back!
We need 60 single layer cakes to make this fun tradition possible, please sign up here: Brackett June Fair Cake Walk
 
Raffle Donations Needed!
We're soliciting donations (for example Red Sox tickets, gift baskets, piece of artwork ...) to be raffled off at the fair. Please contact Karianne Noble, June Fair Raffle Coordinator, (karipapantones@yahoo.com or 617-233-9968) for more information.
 
Spring Cleaning??? June Fair Yard Sale Needs Your Donations!
The June Fair Yard Sale is back and we need your used sporting equipment, children’s toys and books! While doing your Spring cleaning please consider putting these items aside for the June Fair Yard Sale on June 11th. We are scaling back the yard sale a bit and focusing on some of the suggested items below:

Sporting Goods: Bicycles, Ride On Toys, Balls, Bats, Baseball Gloves, Ski Equipment, Golf Clubs, Tennis Rackets, Hockey and Lacrosse Equipment, Roller Blades, Skates, Cleats and much more!

Toys and Books: We will be accepting all toys and children’s books as long as they have all of the pieces and are in good/great condition. No stuffed animals please.

We will not be accepting clothing or housewares this year. 

If you have any questions about this year’s yard sale or are unsure of whether or not we will accept something you would like to donate please contact Molly Sanford at mollyshsanford@hotmail.com Drop off time and date is TBD.

Teacher Appreciation Lunch: Volunteers Needed to Cover Classrooms!
 
Thank you to all who so quickly filled the sign-up to donate to the upcoming Spring Teacher Appreciation Luncheon on Thursday June 9th. 
 
However, we still need to cover ALL the classrooms so that all teachers can be at the lunch. Please be sure that your child’s classroom is covered and if not, sign up today:  http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0a45abad2caa8-teacher

Thank you!
Alyssa and Joanna
Brackett PTO

Help the Brackett Full Circle Garden Grow!
 
The Full Circle Garden outside the kindergarten classrooms is intended to be a welcoming place of growth, learning, and sensory enjoyment for our kindergarten students as well as for everyone in the Brackett community.
 
Last year, Mrs. Perry and the Brackett Green Initiatives Group applied for and received a grant from the Arlington Education Foundation for three garden areas: one for flowering plants, one for an edible garden, and one for a sensory garden (with river stones, sand, a fountain, and aromatic herbs).
 
We are now gearing up for the final phase of the garden design and planting for this school year and we have two requests:
 
 1. We are calling all those with gardening/landscaping interest, experience, or expertise to help us out the weekend of June 4th to set up the final garden beds. You can sign up here (for just a half hour of your time!):
 
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0a4dacac2fa64-full
 
2. We are looking for those who can advise on or contribute to the creation of the sensory garden, helping us obtain the materials (stones, sand, herbs) and the fountain (potentially a stone basin with bamboo spigot).
 
Thank you in advance for signing up or emailing me directly (rachelboliveri@gmail.com) with your interest and ideas!
 
 Best,
 Rachel and the Brackett Green Initiatives Group
 

New Committee Forming â€“ Help Create a New Book Nook for the Brackett Library!

Do you like to read? Write? Paint? Organize things? Organize people? Plan events? Fundraise? Move furniture? Make furniture?

Friends of Brackett Library is forming a new committee to help develop a K-2 Book Nook in the library. Over the next year, we will be fundraising, ordering shelves, reorganizing books, painting, decorating, and many other tasks we haven’t even thought of yet.

The Book Nook will be dedicated to the memory of Roly Chaput, a tireless volunteer in the Brackett community who, along with serving on the School Council, also ran the kindergarten reading program at Brackett.

We have a huge opportunity to make Roly’s Book Nook a really special place for Brackett students. Together, and with the skills, expertise and commitment of the Brackett parent community, we can make it happen! 
 
If you have an interest in helping with the Book Nook committee in any way, big or small, we have two upcoming meetings where you can find out more.

In the morning on May 31, come by the library from 7:45-8:15 (either before or after drop off) to see the space and hear more about the project.

We will also have an evening meeting on the evening of June 6, exact time and location TBD.

If you can come to either meeting, or are interested in finding out more, please email:
Carrie Finison (carriefinison@mac.com)
Luchy Roa (luchyroa@yahoo.com)
Erin Hajduk (erin_hajduk@mac.com)
 

Brackett Ice Cream Scooperbowl 2016, Thursday, June 2, 6-7:30 P.M.
 
Your very own Brackett teachers will be scooping up delicious Chilly Cow ice cream
sundaes at the Brackett playground. This is a great family event and this year
we will be selling June Fair raffle tickets with many exciting items!  
 
---The PTO is proud to sponsor this event in conjunction with our teachers and Brian LeClair, Chilly Cow owner---

Tell your Teachers they are STARS!  
Deadline June 3 (for delivery by the end of the school year)
 
The Arlington Education Foundation STARS (School Teachers are Really Special) program is a way to say, “Thank you for all you do!”   
For a donation of $15 or more, the teacher of your choice will receive a certificate that honors him or her with a gift in his or her name.  
 
STARS certificates make great end-of-the-year teacher gifts!  
You can donate to STARS at any time during the year, but the deadline is June 3 to ensure delivery 
before the end of the school year.  
 
New this year – give your STARS online! 
http://www.arlingtoneducationfoundationma.org/wp/stars/donate-now-to-stars

5^th Grade Parents: Join the PTO at Ottoson Middle School!
 
OPAC, the PTO at Ottoson Middle School, is looking for new board members to serve in the 2016/17 school year; in particular, they are looking for a new fundraising coordinator and an events coordinator.  Incoming 6^th grade parents are welcome; no previous PTO experience is necessary.  The board generally meets once a month; there are also other volunteer opportunities for non-board members.  Anyone who is interested should contact OPAC via e-mail at dearOPAC@gmail.com.  The OPAC website is here:  https://sites.google.com/a/arlington.k12.ma.us/ottoson-opac/.
 

You are invited to Wednesday Night Live “The Musical” Presented by the 5^th Grade!

The Brackett School 5^th Grade Class of 2016
Cordially invites the Brackett Community and Friends to
Wednesday Night Live “The Musical”  on Wednesday June 1^st, 7 P.M.
Arlington High School ~ Lowe Auditorium

 ~ ~ ~ WNL Tickets on Sale  At Brackett School Thursday and Friday of next week during drop off and pick up. Tickets are $10.00 per person. 

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you all! 
The WNL committee and  Brackett 5^th Grade Student Body

WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE – The Musical! Rehearsal Schedule

Dear 5^th Grade Parents,

Please mark your calendars with these important rehearsal dates for WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE – The Musical, the upcoming 5^th grade performance. 

Rehearsals: After school rehearsals are also going on from April 29 until Showtime, please ask your kids if this includes them!

Dress Rehearsal:

·              Tuesday, May 31, 4:00pm – 6:30pm  (At Arlington High School Auditorium)  
*please mark your calendars for this ‘kids only’ dress rehearsal, it is imperative we have ALL the kids at the dress rehearsal!

Showtime:

·              Wednesday June 1, doors open at 6:30, Curtain at 7:00,  Kids arrive by 5:30 please.

Thank you for your support! Please contact Nicole Antonakas (nicole1014@gmail.com) with any questions. 

For daily updated calendar and event information, please check the Brackett Website at http://brackettelementary.org/