McDonald's Family Night 2/9

Yesterday's PTA/SAF Meeting

Dear Parents, Teachers, Staff, Administration and Community Members,

                Last night’s PTA/SAF meeting was a testament to the power of passion. When we give ourselves to the role of parent, teacher, community member or administrator, we sometimes find ourselves in precarious situations with multiple roles. At times, these roles may present themselves by way of sensitive issues and ignite a passion that not everyone will understand or agree with. Yet, that passion should not be diminished or disregarded due to disagreement, lack of understanding or the level of importance of an issue.  Respect for all opinions, ideas and general discussion is important in the deciding of matters affecting our children. 

                As both organizations are parent based, PTA and SAF work hard to effectively facilitate communication between the school and parents, as well as educate the parent community at Tamarac Elementary on what is happening in their child’s school. Discussions regarding issues concerning our children are not always easy to have, but they are necessary for us as parents to make informed decisions and to be aware of what is going on in our school. It is the correct arena for us to gather together and let our voices be heard. Additionally, PTA and SAF will sometimes look for professional guidance, within the community and with the school district as part of the information gathering process. In doing this, parents who attend these meetings will be informed and better able to take action on a specific issue, thus resulting in a positive impact for our children.

                 By joining efforts, we work together to come up with actionable solutions that will be beneficial to all our children, while still respecting the opinions of all parties involved. Last night’s meeting was a culmination of discussion that ultimately led to a consensus using a democratic process. Again, this does not diminish one voice over another, it simply allows the group as a whole to make decisions and move forward to the next actionable step.  Regardless of which hat we wear and what our specific passion may be, each person, whether they are a parent, community member, teacher, staff member or administrator has a voice and all should be respected, both during the meeting and outside of the meeting. In essence, we must all, even in the heat of passion, maintain a civil tone and keep discouraging comments at bay to enact the most good for our children.

                Also, last night some parents expressed the need to focus on more important issues than the playground. It is no secret that budget cuts to education have earmarked more important needs than a playground and clarification is needed as to WHY this conversation took place.  In December, our District 4 school board representative, Donna Korn, called PTA and stated she had a potential benefactor for the playground, in response to an initiative that was launched by a parent at Tamarac Elementary. The potential benefactor, Coventry Health Care of Florida, requires a grant application be submitted in order to be considered as a potential recipient. Once contacted with this request, PTA became tasked with the responsibility of submitting an application for this grant. To clarify, PTA is not being awarded these funds.  We must apply like all other applicants and wait for an announcement of recipients from the benefactor. Regardless, specific information is required for the submission of the grant and so to move forward, last night’s meeting allowed us to discuss the issue and vote as a collective group so we may take the next step to complete the application by the February 29^th deadline. In addition, when tasked with a specific request on behalf of parents and the school board, PTA is required to provide the General Membership as much information as possible to make an informed decision, especially, as is this circumstance, where there is no cost to the parents or school. To not do so would be a great disservice to our children.

                Finally, we appreciate all of those who give of their time to find solutions and advocate for our children for they are our future.

Sincerely,

Christine Coleman, PTA President

Every child. One voice.

PTA/SAF Meeting

The PTA and SAF Meeting will be tomorrow, Wednesday February 1st, at 6pm in the cafeteria. Special guest will be David Archer from the District to discuss Reconstruction of the Gym. Please join us to learn more about the happenings at Tamarac Elementary.

Revised Spring Photo Schedule and PTA/SAF Meeting Info

On  Wednesday, February 1^st, there will be a PTA and a SAF (School Advisory Forum) meeting at 6pm in the cafeteria. All parents are welcome and encouraged to attend. A Nominating Committee has been established as we are taking nominations for the 2012-13 PTA Board. If you are interested, please attend our meeting, see one of our PTA board members or email us at tamaracelementarypta@hotmail.com.

Also, we will be having our spring photos taken this week on Tuesday, January 31^st, February 1^st and February 3^rd. No money is required for the pictures to be taken. A proof will be sent home in about three weeks with the portrait package pricing. The spring photo class schedule is as follows:

Spring Photo Schedule

Tuesday 1/31                                                                                     

9:20-10:00 Levy/Weiss Larsen Andrade

10:00-10:40 Louis Church Applegate

10:40-11:20 Dixon Weiss/Austin Ciccolini (2)

11:20-12:00 Smith Mitchell Gebbia

12:00-12:40 M. Kaplan Kuhn Ryals

12:40-1:20 Barnard S. Kaplan Boyce

1:20-2:00 Weiner Ciccolini (3) Till/Krongold

Wednesday 2/1

9:20-10:00 DeSanti Bellafiore Fitschen

10:00-10:40 Clark Snider Cohen

10:40-11:20 Levinson D. Judkowitz Baran

11:20-12:00 Goldenholz Parido Diaz

12:00-12:40 Transue Novajosky Samuels

12:40-1:20 Raxenberg Pollack/Teschke Garrett

1:20-2:00 Crockett Laighold Huntley

Friday 2/3

9:20-10:00 Bisson Russell Sebaste

10:00-10:40 Bernard Bernstein/Silver Ridenour

10:40-11:20 Grella Spearow Ross/Collins

11:20-12:00 J. Judkowitz Dias Tully

Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday!!

YEARBOOK SALE $35 Until March 1st

BAT II Score Changes

The following information was taken directly off of the school's website tamaracelementary.com. Also included you will find a link to the State Board of Education's letter which explains the changes in scoring more in depth. Please note that PTA is sharing this information with you, parents, because we feel everyone should be aware. If you have questions, please make sure to address them with the school.

Important News*
Teachers and parents alike have questioned WHY the BAT II score results indicated changes in Reading or Math scores to “Not Proficient” for some of our students and/or a drop in their child’s percentile (%) scores.  To better understand “Proficient” to “Not Proficient” or % changes, you may find the following information helpful:
1.  The FCAT 2011 Reading & Math scores were reported on the then existing FCAT scale using the “equipercentile linking method”.  This method linked prior FCAT scoring rubrics with the new, and more rigorous, FCAT 2.0 New Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS).
2.  The September 2011 BAT I scores were calibrated using the older FCAT 2011 Scoring Rubric.
3.  **After the September 2011 BAT I administration, the Florida Department of Education (DOE) convened two committees composed of up to 300 teachers, administrators, superintendents, and business/community leaders on September 20 – 23, and again on September 29 – 30, 2011 to devise a more rigorous FCAT 2.0 Scoring Rubric affecting Gr. 3 – 10 in Reading and Gr. 3 – 8 in Mathematics.
4. BAT II scores were aligned to the new and more rigorous FCAT 2.0 Scoring Rubric.
5.  The BAT II scoring method is reflective of the newly adopted and more rigorous FCAT 2.0 Score Rubric.  Teachers, parents, guardians and students have the opportunity to review areas of strength or weakness to better prepare for FCAT 2.0, April 16- April 27, 2012.  **Parents and Guardians are encouraged to visit Virtual Counselor to see your child’s BAT II scores.  Click on the purple link in each subject area to pull up a complete diagnostic review of each standard and benchmark tested.  **Remember:  You can access Virtual Counselor via the district website at browardschools.com OR BEEP.  Please login as “student” and use your child’s date-of-birth (DOB) as the password.  Remember:  Birth date is written as month/day/year.  The “/” marks must be included!  An example would be a March 3, 2001 entered as 03/03/2001.
**Final Note:  DOE provided the reasoning behind the REVISED FCAT 2.0 Scoring Rubric:  It was widely perceived that the prior FCAT scoring rubric indicated “proficiency” within the Reading & Math Standards and Benchmarks for Elementary level students.  HOWEVER, as students entered into Middle School (MS) and High School (HS) curriculums, students were not achieving the required proficiency at each grade level.  To address this discrepancy, DOE recalibrated ALL of the scoring rubrics to ensure that Elementary level proficiency requirements aligned with MS and HS proficiency requirements, better ensuring that High School students would graduate “college and career ready.”

Click here to read the letter from the State Board of Education.

January PTA Meeting 1/11/2012

Happy New Year!!!!!

Please join us for our January PTA Meeting on Wednesday January 11, 2012 at 6:00 pm in the cafeteria. There will be a SAF Meeting immediately following.

Thanks and we look forward to seeing you there!!!!!

Menchie's Family Night Thursday, January 5th

Hey Tamarac Family!! PTA will be having a family night at Menchie's Frozen Yogurt, located on University Drive in the Publix/Midway Shopping Plaza on THURSDAY, January 5th from 5-8pm. Please bring your family and friends and join us for some frozen yogurt. See you there!

PTA Social Media Contest

December 2011 Newsletter!

Happy Holidays!

SAF Meeting Date Rescheduled

SAF Members, Community, Parents, Administration, 

Please be informed that the Tamarac Elementary School Advisory Forum (SAF) meeting originally set for this week Tuesday, December 13th at Tamarac Media Center following this month’s SAC meeting, has been cancelled due to scheduling conflicts.

A Steering Committee meeting with the SAF Board members will be held on Monday, December 12, 2011 at 6PM ET – Tamarac Elementary School Cafeteria to prepare for the upcoming January SAF meetings and consolidate the parent input received to date.  This will be a non-voting meeting, parents who wish to provide additional feedback are welcome to join us and or send feedback to the tamaracelementarySAF@hotmail.com e-mail account.

Tamarac Elementary SAF will reconvene on Monday, January 3rd at Tamarac Media Center. 

We apologize for any inconvenience.

Thank you and Happy Holidays!

 Tamarac Elementary SAF

Family Movie Night

Family Movie Night scheduled for Friday, December 9th has been rescheduled for Friday, January 27th. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and we look forward to seeing you in January for some movie-watching fun! 

-The PTA Board

 

Uniforms Are Here!!!!

Uniforms are in and orders have been filled.  They will be placed in the teacher's boxes on Monday, so please be on the lookout for them either Monday or Tuesday. We do currently have 4 uniform orders of Adult medium and large sizes that are still on backorder. We are working to resolve this as quickly as possible. We apologize for the delay in receiving your orders, however, we do appreciate your patience while we worked to resolve this issue. Thank you for supporting PTA, together we are making a difference!

Sincerely,

The PTA Board

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our Tamarac Family!! 

We are so thankful for all you do.

-The PTA Board

Puccini's Family Tonight Thursday 9/17

November Newsletter

Crystal Lake Middle Magnet Showcase

Thanksgiving Kickoff: Turkey Bowl 11/20. RSVP Today for Your Spot!

Cookie Dough, Pretzel and Frozen Food Pick Up

Tuesday, November 8th, will be the last opportunity to pick up all frozen cookie dough, pretzels and frozen foods. Pick up will be ONLY from 4-6pm on that day, no exceptions, so please plan accordingly. Any unclaimed frozen items will be donated and NO REFUNDS will be issued. The fundraising company, school and PTA will not be responsible for any unclaimed frozen items as this is now the second notice and multiple notifications via the parent link, written notices and postings on the PTA website have been made. Thank you for your support.