1. education
2. school

Van Buren Roadrunner News
November 2014
Principal’s Message
1245 N orth Van Bur en
Plac enti a, CA 92870
Hello Van Buren Families,
714-986-7100
www. vanbur enelementar y.or g Fall is in full swing and finally the hot summer weather
that overstayed its welcome has moved aside for the
cooler days of autumn. November brings the end of
Inside this issue:
the first trimester and parent teacher conferences. This
2
is an important time for students, parents and teachers
Reflection Winners
to evaluate grades, discuss progress toward grade
2
Fun Facts
level standards and to set goals for the coming
months. Use this opportunity to hear the feedback of
2
YogurtLand Fundraiser
your child’s teacher as to work habits and school behavior they observe in your child each day. As the
2
Battle of the Books
year progresses, continue to keep communication open
2
with your child and his/her teacher. Ask your child
Upcoming Events
about the details of the school day and interesting
3
Mrs. Fields Cookie Dough
things he/she has learned in class. Communicate also
with your child’s teacher when necessary in order to
3
Van Buren Stars
keep information clear and avoid misunderstandings
or miscommunication.
3
Cookbook Fundraiser
Community Garden
3
PTA Membership Update
3
Jog-A-Thon
4
Box Tops
4
We end this month with the Thanksgiving holiday. It is
a time to express gratitude for the people and things
that enrich our lives so greatly. I’d like to thank our
wonderful PTA and parent volunteers for their endless
hours of work supporting our Van Buren students,
teachers and programs. In the first two months of
school, their dedication and hard work have brought
our students the Reflections Art Program, Meet the
Masters, Walk Through California and The Revolutionary War assemblies. They also coordinated our school
wide Jog-A-Thon and Red Ribbon Week daily events
including an anti-bullying magic show. These same
volunteers decorated our school with signs and posters,
reminding students to be healthy, to love themselves
and to Say No to Drugs! This is but a fraction of the
work our tireless PTA and volunteers provide our
school each day. Thank you all!
As you prepare for your family’s Thanksgiving celebration, I encourage you to model gratitude for your
child. According to Zig Ziglar “Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have
even more to express gratitude for.” What a wonderful idea! This can be a simple thank you for a nice
deed, a quick note of thanks, or a small token to
someone you are grateful to know. Modeling simple
acts of gratitude for your child will assist them in
learning the positive impact we can all have on others.
It’s an ideal way to show your child the value of others
too! Happy Thanksgiving to all of our Van Buren
families!
With gratitude,
Connie Roe
Principal
A Note From Your PTA
November is here and we've made it to the end of our first trimester! It's a
big thanks to Marshall Burke and his Jog-A-Thon committee for organizing
short month too, as there are only 14 school days. Let's make the best of them the event, our emcees, Stephanie Scott (aka DJ Sparkle) and Nancy
as we prepare for the holidays!
Andeel, Chris Thomsen for leading the stretching of our Roadrunners and all
the parents/family members that came out to volunteer and cheer on their
We had a huge turnout for our first Community Lunch back on September
students. Kudos to Principal Roe for walking with every grade level. The kids
26th. It was our most successful Chick-fil-A community lunch to date. A great
loved the opportunity to share the track and walk with her.
big THANKS to Cilla Peters for organizing the event and to those that volunteered to help hand out the orders to parents and students. Our next Commu- Thanks to participating students, we raised just shy of $24,000. Although we
nity Lunch (food offer still TBD) is scheduled for December 12th, during our
didn't reach our goal of $26,000, it was still an increase of almost $1,500
annual holiday book fair.
over last year's Jog-A-Thon. Way to go Roadrunners! If you're still able to
help support VBE, we will always take donations. A $30 donation can still get
October was a super busy month, but very rewarding. Our annual musical
your Roadrunner a 50th Anniversary T-Shirt. It's never too late to help suptheatre program started auditions and rehearsals for our first ever producport our school!
tion of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. Currently we have 95 students
participating. Our greatest number of students ever! Planting of the school's
One last item of interest, the PYLUSD now has it's own mobile App. You can
garden took place this month under the watchful eye of parent Kevin Kwan. go to either the Apple App Store, or Google Play to download the free app
Several VBE families came out and spent their morning digging, planting, and that will give you access to a number of district pages, including VBE's calenwatering and we thank them for all of their hard work. The 2014-15 Reflec- dar, lunch menus, district news, Parent University, and many more. Search for
tions Art Competition was another successful activity with high participation.
"PYLUSD" to find the app.
Parent Karen Christensen took over this year and has done a phenomenal
job. She's a keeper! Next time you're in the MPR, check out the Math Wall of Thanks,
Fame. A new seasonal theme for this year, courtesy of parents Jennifer
Stephanie Carren
P.S. THANK YOU!
Fleury and Alissa Sylvester, fits right in with our membership tree.
PTA President
Many thanks to Cilla Peters, Samantha Peters,
Stella Ruvalcaba, Archelle Tovar, Kaylee Doer and
Jog-A-Thon Update: Our MAJOR FUNDRAISER of the year, Jog-A-Thon 2014
Troop 1976 for decorating the school for
-15, took place on October 24th on our VBE field. Students ran, jogged, and
Red Ribbon week!
walked their way for donations, sponsorships, and their health! They also
received credit for every lap around the field to go towards our Racing
Roadrunners incentive program, to walk/run 100 miles in a school year. A
Van Buren Elementary Roadrunner News
2014-2015
Van Buren PTA Reflection Winners
VISUAL ARTS
Primary
1st: Aileen Santiago, Mrs. Carl, Grade 2
2nd: Kirsten Contreras, Mrs. Pang, Grade 2
3rd: Alina Santiago, Mrs. Carl, Grade 2
Special Recognition: Lana Hernandez, Mrs. Laporte, Grade 1
Special Recognition: Timothy Yune, Mrs. Shipe, Grade K
Intermediate
1st: Jennifer Koo, Mrs. Radicelli, Grade 4
2nd: Kailey Amaya, Mrs. Shibata-Ellis, Grade 5
3rd: Jenna Garrow, Mrs. Nguyen, Grade 5
Middle
1st: Alana Viray, Mrs. Vale, Grade 6
2nd: Alana Viray, Mrs. Vale, Grade 6
LITERATURE
Primary
1st: Kirsten Contreras, Mrs. Pang, Grade 2
Intermediate
1st: Amanda Viray, Mrs. Johnson, Grade 4
Middle
1st: Alana Viray, Mrs. Vale, Grade 6
Page 2
As we prepare for our Spring Festivities, each month we'll include some
facts about our school's namesake, Martin Van Buren.
Martin Van Buren was the first president to have been born a US citizen, as all previous presidents were born before the American Revolution. He was also the first president from New York, and not of either
British or Irish decent - his family was Dutch. His native language was
Dutch as well, and to date, he is the only US President who has spoken
English as a second language.
November 1964…….
 US Presidential Election: President Lyndon B. Johnson defeats Republican challenger Barry Goldwater
 NASA launches the Mariner 4 space probe from Cape Kennedy toward Mars to take television pictures of that planet to be broadcast
in July of 1965
 Detroit Red Wings Gordie Howe sets NHL record 627th career goal
FUNDRAISER
The first Wednesday of every month.
November 5th
11:00am - 10:00pm
20% of sales will go back to VBE PTA. Make sure to tell them
your supporting Van Buren or print a flyer available
on the school website.
Upcoming Events: November
PHOTOGRAPHY
Primary
1st: Aileen Santiago, Mrs. Carl, Grade 2
2nd: Keira Howell, Mrs. Gotovac, Grade K
3rd: Keira Howell, Mrs. Gotovac, Grade K
Intermediate
1st: Amanda Viray, Mrs. Johnson, Grade 4
2nd: Ryan Goode, Mrs. O’Rourke, Grade 5
Middle
1st: Alana Viray, Mrs. Vale, Grade 6
2nd: Kane Julian, Mrs. Vale, Grade 6
The Battle of the Books is a reading incentive program for
students in grades 4-12. The Battle of the Books is a singleday event where students will compete by answering questions about the books on the official Battle Booklist.
Sign-up up before Saturday, November 15, 2014 at the
Yorba Linda Public Library.
More information can be found at
www.ylpl.lib.ca.us/battle
October 31
Storybook Parade: Pre-K - 3rd Grade (10:00AM-11:00AM)
Crazy Hat Day: 4th - 6th Grade
Last Popsicle Friday
MINIMUM DAY - Early Release 12:45PM
Chess Masters (MPR 12:50PM-1:50PM)
November 3
Box Tops Drawing
OSS Fundraiser Begins - Mrs. Field Cookie Dough
November 4
Walk Thru CA (MPR Bless & Ukes 8:00AM)
Walk Thru Revolution (MPR O’Rourke & Paradis12:00AM)
PTA Meeting (Staff Lounge 1:00PM-2:15PM)
November 5
Musical Theatre (MPR 1:15PM-3:00PM)
YogurtLand Fundraiser
November 7
Chess Masters (MPR 2:20PM-3:20PM)
November 10-12
NO SCHOOL
November 13-14
MINIMUM DAY - Early Release 12:45PM
November 14
Chess Masters (MPR 12:50PM-1:50PM)
November 15
Battle of the Books Entries Due (YL Library)
November 17
OSS Fundraiser Deadline - Mrs. Field Cookie Dough
November 19
Musical Theatre (MPR 1:15PM-3:00PM)
Staff Appreciation Snack Day (Gabriel, Vale, Shipe &
Gotovac)
November 21
Chess Masters (MPR 2:20PM-3:20PM)
November 26-28
NO SCHOOL
November 28
Cookbook Recipe Entry Deadline
Page 3
Page 3
Van
Van Buren
Buren Elementary
Elementary Roadrunner
Roadrunner News
News
MRS FIELDS COOKIE DOUGH - OSS Fundraiser
November 3 - November 17
A representative will be available to take orders
after school by the front office on Friday Nov. 7th and on
Friday, Nov. 15th. Order forms will also available in the
front office. Make checks payable to Van Buren PTA. Delivery will be the week of December 8th.
Do you have a favorite family recipe
that you would like to share?
Van Buren PTA will be publishing a cookbook that will
feature recipes from VB students, teachers and staff. Please
start looking for a recipe to submit…only one recipe per
family will be accepted. We will start accepting recipes
November 1st. Entry deadline will be November 28th.
A flyer will be sent home with your student with more details.
Instructions will also be posted on the school website.
If you have any questions, please contact
Lori Nakashima: lorinishino@aol.com or
Matti Garrow: jmgarrrow@pacbell.net
Van Buren STARS!
Emma Do - 2nd Grade
Mario Cornejo - 2nd Grade
Leonardo Davinci - 2nd Grade
Lilliana Rizo - 2nd Grade
Mason Camarata - 4th Grade
COMMUNITY GARDEN
On Saturday, October 4th the community garden was planted
with the help of Principal Roe, Mrs. San Roman, Mrs. Gomez,
and Roadrunner parents. Students planted different varieties
of vegetables including snow peas, snap peas, garlic, beets,
radishes, carrots, and fava beans. In addition to planting the
seeds the young gardeners had the opportunity to discover
what else lived in the garden - they found Japanese beetle
grubs, earthworms, roly polies, and spiders. The garden will
be expanded this year to include the east and west ends of the
planter. These areas were previously planted with shrubs, but
will be home to more vegetables this year. In late October,
early November seedling plants (lettuce, cabbage, broccoli,
cauliflower, celery etc.) will be planted and the Roadrunner
gardeners can explorer the world of root plants.
Specials thanks to the Kwan family for all
their hard work in keeping the community
garden looking great each week!
PTA MEMBERSHIP UPDATE
There is still plenty of time to get your 2014-15 PTA Memberships turned in. If you were at BTSN and
came into the MPR, you should have seen our AMAZING MEMBERSHIP TREE. For every parent,
guardian, or family member that joins, your student will get a leaf (with their name and
grade) attached to the tree. The fun will be in searching for their leaf.
By October 24th, 2014, we had 319 PTA Memberships. We’ve broken last years
record of 315 in just two short months! Our goal for the 2014-15 school year is to reach 350
memberships! If we reach our goal, all students will be rewarded with a popsicle party, so keep those
memberships coming in!
Memberships are only $7 per individual. That's a deal! And if you join, you'll be
added to the (mostly) weekly email blast that keeps you updated on current activities happening at
VBE. Extra membership forms can be found in the school office or printed through our
school website, vanburenelementary.org
PTA Membership
Membership questions? Contact Lori Nakashima at lorinishino@aol.com
Page 4
Page 4
Van
Van Buren
Buren Elementary
Elementary Roadrunner
Roadrunner News
News
VBE PTA JOG-A-THON 2014
Thank you to all the following sponsors in making this years Jog-a-thon a great success:
Silver Sponsors
Massage Eden
Republic Services
The Burke Family
The Flores Family
The Thomsen Family
The Wiley Family
TRC Garage Doors
Gold Sponsors
Jie Zhao
Kelsey Boner
Ryan & Loan O’Conner
The Peters Family
The Yam Family
Western Mill Fabricators, Inc.
Prizes and Other Donations:
Cinema City
Concourse Bowling
Knott’s Berry Farm
Starbucks Coffee – Yorba Linda
Westcoast Shirtworks
Yorba Linda Water District
Box Tops for Education
Platinum Sponsors
Family of Diego Flores
Icon Vehicle Dynamics, LLC
Incredibleblanket.com
Service Champions
The Carren Family
The Ju Family
Top Fundraisers
1st: Dean Evans (Kindergarten) with $505
2nd: Diego Flores (Kindergarten) with $480
3rd: Autumn Treister (1st Grade) with $400
4th: Aaron Burke (3rd Grade) with $350
Box Tops can be turned into the office or Mrs. Laporte. Just glue or tape
10 Box Tops to the half sheet below with the student name and teacher.
Each sheet is entered into a drawing for $10 Target Gift Card!