real link - Brooker Elementary

April\May
2015
School Principal
Julie Kelly
Brooker Elementary ● 812 Dewolf Road, Brandon, FL ● (813) 744-8184 ● http://brooker.mysdhc.org
Assistant Principal
Donna CassellaBarker
THE PRINCIPAL’S CORNER
The safety of our students is the greatest priority. Whether your child rides on a school bus, walks to and from school, rides a
bike, or travels to school in your car, I hope that you will set aside some time this week to review safety practices.
It is important for the parents of our car riders to remember to drive slowly and carefully through the car line. I can only imagine
the frustration of experiencing a long car line when trying to drop my child off at school and get to work. As you know, some days
the car line moves smoother than other days. The car line moves more efficient when cars pull all the way up to the furthest drop
off location and students are ready to get out of the car as soon as the car stops. When a parent has to sign an agenda, give a goodbye kiss, or a
student finishes their breakfast before getting out of the car, it slows down the car line. Parents, please drive cautiously as we have had several
incidents where a car almost ran into the back of another car or hit someone crossing at the crosswalk. Sometimes the vehicle was driving slowly,
but the driver was watching their child after they had exited the car.
It is a privilege for students who live more than two miles from the school to ride a district school bus. Students are expected to be at the bus stop
ten minutes before the scheduled pick-up time. Students are expected to adhere to a standard of conduct that provides a safe environment on the
bus and at the bus stop.
Occasionally, the office receives phone calls about students darting across DeWolf or running near the road. When we are able to determine who
the students are, we speak to the students and notify the parents. Florida law requires all bicycle riders and passengers less than 16 years of
age to wear a bicycle helmet.
Administration appreciates the sharing of ideas and suggestions from our parents and community members. In this issue of the Brooker Banner we
have included an article from a parent about her concerns for traffic and student safety. Thank you for caring about all our Brooker Braves and
helping to keep them all safe.
►Important Dates
May 6
May 7
May 8
May 12
May 15
May 19
May 20 & 21
May 22
May 25
May 26
May 29
June 3
June 5
Chick-fil-A Night
Battle of the Books
Burns Orientation for Incoming 6th Graders – 6:00 PM at Burns
Volunteer Breakfast
PTA General Meeting
Fifth Grade Transition Meeting - Media Center
Dining with Dads
Drama Performance
Living History Museum
Patrol Picnic
All Library Books Due
Memorial Day – No School
Faculty v. 5th Grade Soccer Game
BOGO Book Fair (26th & 27th)
5th Grade Bash
5th Grade Field Trip
2nd Grade Fairy Tale Bowl
Last Day of School – 11:45 AM Dismissal
►Safety Concerns: A Parent’s Perspective
Good morning. I just want to start by saying we have been with Brooker
for many years. We have always walked to school, as we live on the
next block. This year has been the absolute worst as far as cars
disregarding stop signs, crossing guards, and general traffic laws. I
frequently see cars driving on the wrong side of the road on DeWolf,
sometimes in route to the school, others just neighborhood traffic. This
poses a safety concern for us, the pedestrian, as well as everyone else
out there. When cars play chicken in the road, they end up on the grass
and/or sidewalk to avoid each other. Early on I reached out to several
agencies to try and get some sheriff presence to wake people up or slow
them down. I spoke with the security officer here at the school, I called
two county departments and the sheriff department, and basically what it
boils down to is that nothing happens unless SOMETHING happens. I'm
reaching out to you now hoping that you might be able to do something
about this situation before that something happens. When you walk you
see everything and boy it's scary.
►Volunteer Breakfast
►The Brooker Mint
Our students and staff cordially invite our amazing
volunteers to a breakfast celebration on Friday,
May 8th. The breakfast will begin at 8:15 am in the
cafeteria. The students and staff of Brooker
Elementary appreciate everything that our parents,
grandparents, and community volunteers do to help make
Brooker Elementary a great school.
We are very excited to announce that Suncoast Credit Union and
Brooker Elementary are teaming up to provide students with Brooker
Mint, a savings program that will allow students to build their own
savings account. Students may open an account with a minimum of
$5.00, to which the credit union will match with a $5.00 deposit. Students
with accounts may make deposits of any amount throughout the year.
The Brooker Mint will be open every Monday from 7:30-8:00 a.m.
Students are also eligible for special rewards and prizes. We hope that
all our Brooker Braves will take advantage of this opportunity.
►Meet the new school counselor: Dalene Kosobucki
►Spring Fling
I am a wife to a wonderful husband, a mother of five beautiful children, and a
United States Air Force retiree. I have a Master of Education in School
Counseling from Liberty University, VA and a Master of Human Relations
from University of Oklahoma. While my experience in the educational field is
limited to the roles of student and parent, I am enthusiastic about starting off
my second career as the school counselor at Brooker Elementary. I have a
strong passion for helping our children see their potential in the world,
knowing one day they will be the future leaders and caretakers of our
country and the people. Over these next couple months, I look forward to
teaming up with students, parents, school staff and community to ensure our
students are on the path to SUCCESS!
On March 28 Brooker Elementary enjoyed a successful Spring Fling. It was a
beautiful day filled with families enjoying themselves. Students enjoyed having
their hair painted, jumping in bouncy houses, playing games, and getting their
face painted. Former students came to volunteer their time or just to participate
in the fun. Parents volunteered, spent special time with their children, and
chatted with staff or other parents. The talent of our students always leaves a
bright smile on our faces. How brave they are to walk up on stage and perform
a song, dance, karate routine or drum solo? I don’t know about you, but I found
just a few items to bid on during the Silent Auction. THANK YOU, PTA! A few
of you worked countless hours to make Saturday a fantastic day for so many
others. Some parents were able to donate a few hours, an item for the Silent
Auction, candy for a game, or a cake for the Cake Walk. So whether you gave a
little time or donated countless hours, we thank you. You are a key ingredient to
what makes Brooker Elementary a great school!
►Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay
►PTA General Meeting
Attention Parents/Guardians: Big Brothers Big
Sisters is looking for Littles!
Community Based Program:
Our goal is to help children build their self-esteem, improve
their behavior and succeed academically to create a promising future. Big
Brothers Big Sisters has been helping children reach their potential by
providing them with screened, trained, and supportive mentors; with the
knowledge that a one-to-one mentoring friendship between a child and adult
would provide reliable support for the child during their formative years.
For more information or an application, please call Juanita Colleton,
Social Worker at (813) 744-8184 ext. 230
Parent/Guardian requests for sing subject acceleration or whole grade
acceleration are due in writing to the principal by May 11, 2015, for the 20152016 school year.
Las peticiones de los padres o de los representates, para que al estudiante
se le suba de grado, ya sea en una sola asignatura, o en todas las
asignaturas; se le tienen que entregar por escrito al Director de la escuela, a
mas tardar el 11 de mayo de 2015, para el ano escolar 2015-2016.
We would like to congratulate Kayla Moriarty for being one of
the top winning finalists in the fractured SMATH fairy tales
sponsored by Hillsborough County and the Rotary Club. Friday
May 1, she received a reward of $300 for her story during an
awards ceremony. Students participating in the Gifted
curriculum in Hillsborough County were challenged to rewrite a
fairy tale and incorporate math and science in the story rather
than mystics and magic. Kayla “fractured” the fairy tale “The
Princess and the Pea”. Her princess had to feel a large diamond
under the 15 mattresses to prove that she was a worthy bride
for the prince. Too bad she didn’t check under the mattresses
before everybody awoke!
YOUR OPINION
MATTERS
Please join us Tuesday evening, May 12 at 6 PM in the Cafeteria for the final PTA
general meeting of the year. We will talk about the successful fundraising activities
we had throughout the year and update everyone on where we are in our technology
goal. As you know, raising money for new computers for our students has been a
major goal. How much have we raised? Did we meet the goal? Come join us and find
out.
At this meeting we will also:
•
Finalize the budget
•
Vote on a new board for the 2015-2016 school year
•
Have a meet-and-greet with current PTA Board Members, find out
exactly what they do
•
Discuss what is means to be a PTA member
We have had a great year thanks to all the wonderful Brooker parents, teachers,
families, and friends. The PTA could not do what they do without all of you.
Hillsborough County Public Schools is offering a FREE educational VPK
program for children entering Kindergarten in the fall of 2015!
Plan now to take advantage of the FREE 30-Day summer program at a
Hillsborough County Public School near you. Give your child a jump
start into kindergarten!
Program Locations: Bailey, Bellamy, Bing, Bryan, Buckhorn, Chiles,
Crestwood, Cypress Creek, Gorrie, Graham, Just, Mitchell, Mort, Oak
Grove, Oak Park, Potter, Schmidt, Sheehy, Sulphur Springs,
Summerfield, Thonotosassa, BT Washington, Witter
Program Dates: June 15, 2015—August 4, 2015
Program Times: Monday—Thursday, 7:30 AM - 6:00 PM (flexible)
Child must be 5 years old or turn 5 on or before September 1, 2015.
Child must have been born between September 2, 2009 and
September 1, 2010. Child may not have previously attended a VPK
Program during the school year. VPK Hotline 813-272-4840
At Brooker Elementary we value the thoughts and opinions of our parents and the community. What do you think about how our school is doing? We would love
to know what we are doing well. We would also like to know your ideas and suggestions for improvement. Just provide your thoughts below and send this
portion of the newsletter to school. You may provide your name and phone number if you would like for someone from the school to contact you.
Acting Superintendent of Schools: Jeff Eakins - County School Board: Susan L. Valdes (Chair), Doretha W. Edgecomb
(Vice Chair), April Griffin, Sally A. Harris, Carol W. Kurdell, Melissa Snively, CindyStuart