East Side PE will host a Movie Night this Friday, March 1^st from 6:00-9:00pm in the gym.  Movie Night is for East Side students only and includes a movie (Chicken Run, rated G), pizza, drinks, cookies and activity time (with a possible demonstration by Pro Martial Arts, this Movie Night’s sponsor).  Space is limited to the first 150 to sign up AND pay.  All participants must pre-register; walk-ups will be turned away.  The cost is $20 per child.  Half ($10 per child) of the proceeds will go towards the participating student’s Jump Rope for Heart donations and the other half will go towards a donation to Fair Oaks Elementary PE Dept.  Register at www.espetigers.org or www.eastsideelementary.com.

Also mark your calendars for Clean Commute Week from March 4^th-8^th with our Georgia Walk to School Day on Wed., March 6^th.  ”Clean commute” also includes riding the bus or biking to school.  So pick what works best for you and your family!

Finally, East Side’s International Festival will be held on Saturday, March 16^th from 5-7pm.  This is a great opportunity for you and your children to share your heritage/culture with fellow East Side families.  Parents interested in becoming Country Representatives, or if you have questions regarding the same, please contact Shruti Maindarkar at InternationalFestival@eastsideelementary.com.

East Side will celebrate National School Counselor’s Week from Feb. 4^th-8^th by having counselor-themed dress up days.  Our theme for this year is “Liberty and Learning for ALL.”  The dress-up days are as follows:

Monday (2/4) – FREEDOM – red, white and blue

Tuesday (2/5) – PRIVILEGE – hat day

Wednesday (2/6) – RIGHT – mix/match clothes

Thursday (2/7) – CHOICE – dress to impress – “fancy” day

Friday (2/8) – OPPORTUNITY – favorite team jersey/t-shirt

Each day 2 students per grade will be randomly selected to come to the counselor’s suite to receive a goody bag and a SQUEEZE for participating in counselor week.  Remember to mark your calendars!

Also, it is time again to show our incredible teachers how much we appreciate them.  In addition to all the activities that will occur during Teacher Appreciation week, the PTA will host a luncheon for the teachers on Friday, February 22nd. We will be giving out door prizes at the luncheon and would appreciate your support in collecting as many as possible.  If you own a business, work at a company that would like to participate, or you would personally like to donate a prize (gift certificates, gift baskets, services, etc.), please contact Teresa Cornell at hospitality@eastsideelementary.com or 770-367-3645. Every donation is greatly appreciated.  Let’s show our amazing teachers how much they mean to all of us!

You heard it right – the ESE Annual Family Sock Hop is just around the corner!  Pre-sale tickets are available Jan. 21 – Feb. 6 for admission: $3.50 each, with a $12-family maximum.  Please note that this is an event for East Side families only and is not a drop-off event.  Go to www.eastsideelementary.com (Resources then PTA forms) for the Sock Hop order form.  We need you to help us make this a fun-filled event for our guys and gals!  Sign up on Volunteer Spot and you’ll receive FREE admission.

Deleted the e-news from your email? Can’t remember what time to be at a school event?  Don’t worry!  Pertinent e-news/blast information can be found: http://www.facebook.com/EastSidePTA  Like us!

There are many upcoming events to look forward to at East Side.  This Thursday, Sept. 20^th is Custodian Appreciation Day.  Make sure to give our custodians a big thank you for all their hard work.  It is not easy keeping up with our new school and we want them to know how much they are appreciated!

The deadline to sign up for Sunshine Math is quickly approaching.  The program runs for 10 weeks beginning Monday, Oct. 1^st.  Please go to the PTA website to download the registration form listed under the section entitled “For Students/Families”.  All forms are due this Friday, Sept. 21^st.

The Box Tops Collection Contest has begun!  Donate your box tops between now and Friday, Oct. 26^th.  East Side will receive 10 cents for every box top collected.  Your student will receive credit for all properly labeled Box Tops contributions.  Just clip the box top, count 50 per baggie, clearly label the baggie with number of box tops, student’s first & last name, teacher and grade, and then have your student put the baggie in the drop off box located in the study room next to Tiger’s Cage.  It’s that easy!  So start collecting today!

Finally, don’t forget to mark your calendars for the annual East Side Fall Festival.  The festivities will begin on Friday, Oct. 19^th from 5:30pm-9:30pm.  There will be games, rides, activities, and tons of great food.  If you would like to volunteer at the festival, please email fallfestival@eastsideelementary.com.  Hope to see you there!

This week is full of great activities and events.  Tuesday night is a great time to take your family out to eat.  The East Side PTA is hosting a family dinner night at Willy’s from 5-8pm.  All proceeds will go directly to the PTA.

East Side’s last Walk to School Day will take place on Wednesday, May 2^nd.  The first 300 walkers/bike riders will receive a FREE 4oz. smoothie from Smoothie King.   Also, Kindergarten orientation will begin on Wednesday morning at 8:30am.

Please remember to also give blood this week.  East Side will be hosting a Blood Drive on Thursday, May 3^rd from 3-8pm.  To schedule a specific time, use the secure link posted on East Side’s homepage.  There you will also find links for additional information about the blood drive and the blood donor benefit program. Sign up today!

Art work from this year’s Adventures in Art program and from Mrs. Kaltrieder’s art classes will be displayed throughout the building on Thursday, May 3rd.  The last general PTA meeting of the school year will begin at 6:30pm in the cafeteria.  After the meeting, parents are encouraged to walk around and look at the displayed art work created by our very own talented student body.

Please don’t forget that Friday, May 4^th will be the last day to return the pre-printed registration forms for the 2012-2013 school year.  If this form is not received, your student’s registration for next year is not complete.  Also, please send in the $2 donation to cover the costs of mailing end of the year report cards and test results.

Finally, remember to place your school supply orders online at www.schooltoolbox.com.  The website will be open until May 25^th.  If you are new to the website, please register yourself and enter the school code: 1ESID30062 to pull up the custom packed boxes for East Side.  Just click on the grades you will need for the 2012-2013 school year.  Please contact Michelle Dobo at schoolsupplies@eastsideelementary.com with any questions.

Have a great week!!

It is time again for the East Side Book Fair.  This year’s theme,  Blast Off Into Reading,  will take place the week of November 14-18^th.  Family Night will be held on Tues, November 15^th.  If you would like to volunteer for the book fair,  please follow this link to sign up: http://www.volunteerspot.com/login/entry/252345633512460099.

Another exciting event at East Side is the annual International Festival.  Help celebrate diversity in our school by representing your native country.  The International Festival will be held on Saturday,  March 24,  2012.  If you wish to participate or have any questions about this event, please contact Shruti Maindarkar by Nov. 30^th at internationalfestival@ eastsideelementary.com.

The Planet Patrol is sponsoring a Green Halloween contest for the week of Oct. 31^st-Nov. 4^th.  Each classroom will be provided with a collection bag for Halloween candy wrappers,  which will be shipped to Terracycle to be repurposed for fashion products.  The East Side classroom that collects the most wrappers will win a boom box made from recycled materials.

Lastly,  East Side’s November Food Drive will begin next week.  Each classroom will put together Thanksgiving baskets to be delivered to families at our sister school,  Fair Oaks Elementary.  The food drive will be from Nov. 9-15^th and the baskets will be delivered to Fair Oaks on Nov. 16^th.  If you would like to help deliver the baskets,  please contact the Community Outreach committee at communityoutreach@ eastsideelementary.com.