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EAGLE'S NEST PTA NEWS
Volume 19, Issue 2
A FIVE STAR SCHOOL OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE
December 2014
INSIDE
Hughes News
……1
Dress Pass
……2
Cooks Night Out
……2
President’s Message
……3
Super Slice
……4
Counselor’s Corner
……4
Coordinator’s Comments……5
Incentives
……7
Contest Themes
……7
Who to Call
……7
Chocolate Sales
……8
Magnet Apps
……10
2014-2015
EDEN GARDENS PTA
EXECUTIVE BOARD
President
Amy Watts
Vice President
Kristen Parsons
Second VP
Jan Hughes
Recording Secretary
Kristy Payne
Corresponding Secretary
Heather Adcock
Treasurer
Sarah Hamauei
Chaplin
Neely Wright
Teacher Rep
Sydney Allen
EDEN GARDENS PTA
EXECUTIVE BOARD
MEETINGS
Wednesday, January 7th
Wednesday, March 4th
Wednesday, April 22nd
Held in the Eden Gardens Library at Noon
Wednesday, May 6th
East Ridge Country Club at 11:30
Hughes News
__________________________________________________________
Dear Parents,
It’s impossible for me to comprehend that this is the last
newsletter article that I will be writing to you as principal of Eden
Gardens. What a wonderful journey I have been on the last 33
years! As I’ve said many times, I feel very blessed to have been a
part of such an excellent school, working with the best parents and
students anywhere. We have accomplished so many things
together, forging partnerships that will linger long after I have gone.
I have so many memories—from my first day as principal to
my last few days of good-byes. That first year, my prayer was that
we did not end up on the front page of The Times, or the subject of
an in-depth report from one of the news channels! The newness
was quickly forgotten as we began the job of making Eden Gardens a
very special place for children.
We have achieved so many academic accomplishments—
reaching the pinnacle of educational success in 2011, as we were
recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School. We have worked sideby-side in our fund-raising efforts, putting SmartBoards in every
classroom—now our goal is to get iPad labs for each grade level.
You have been there every step of the way, working hours and hours
to support the activities that generated the funds to make our
technology need a reality.
The honors and achievements have been so memorable, but
the memories I most cherish are not found on a plaque, or in a
newspaper article. Those are the memories of you and your
children. The hugs, the special notes, the understanding hearts, and
the joy of simply spending time in the world of children have made
Newsletter 1
DRESS PASS
December 18th (Christmas)
January 29th (Sports or sports colors)
February 12th (Valentine’s Day)
March 31st ( Spring and Easter)
If dressing in a holiday t-shirt doesn’t
appeal to you, then you can wear your
favorite sports team themed shirt. It can be
your own shirt from a team that you play
on or your favorite sports team that you like
to cheer on.
such a difference in my life. I don’t know what I will do when I no
longer start each day greeting and hugging your sweet eagles!
Thank you all for the love, support and generosity you have
shown me. You will always be a part of me, as my heart will
always remember this very special place.
Fondly,
Jan Hughes
COOKS NIGHT OUT
JANUARY 20TH 5PM -10PM
PAPA MURPHY’S LINE AVE.
TH
FEBRUARY 26
5PM -8PM
CHICK-FIL-A YOUREE
__________
I have had the pleasure of working with Mrs. Hughes for
16 ½ years at Eden Gardens. She was the counselor when I was
hired to teach fourth grade and then she became principal. When I
joined the Eagle family, I only had two years of experience under
my belt. I was newly married, and did not have any children of my
own. To say I had a lot to learn is an understatement, and I
couldn’t have asked for a better place to grow as an educator. Mrs.
Hughes has always understood the difficulty in balancing a family
and school, and she has done everything she could do to help me
manage both. I have learned so much from her about what it
means to be a leader and an effective teacher. She has never been
afraid to try new things and step out of her comfort zone if it was
in the best interest of children. Embracing technology, she has
brought so many valuable technology tools into our school that
will impact learning for years to come. She has a wonderful talent
for writing and communicating with people. She has seen things
in me that I could not see for myself, and she has always
encouraged me to further my education and develop
professionally. I have not only worked with her, but she has been
the principal of both of my children. She has known them since
they were born, and she has nurtured them and guided them every
step of their education journey. I will miss seeing her in the nest
each day. She leaves behind a building full of teachers, staff, and
children that have learned so much from her. I know we will do
our best to keep striving for excellence and make our fearless
leader proud in the years to come. Thank you Jan, for your
dedication and service to the thousands of students, parents,
faculty, and staff members you have touched along your journey.
May you be blessed as you have been a blessing!
Stacy Erwin
Newsletter 2
GREETINGS FROM YOUR PTA
This holiday season, may we all remember how
truly blessed we are to be part of Eden Gardens- it is so
much fun to be an Eagle! Our teachers, students, and
parents have all worked together so we could have another
wonderful fall at our school. The holiday spirit is taking
over the Eagle nest and our teachers are making sure each
student will soar into 2015!
As you have heard, Mrs. Hughes is retiring at the
end of this month. She has been an enormous blessing to
Eden Gardens for over 30 years, having served as a teacher,
counselor, and principal. She has touched the lives of many
people- students, teachers, and parents. We wish her well in
her retirement- she will certainly be missed!
We have been very busy in the Garden this fall:
Kristy Payne and the Welcoming Committee planned a
very successful Open House, and there are many that are
eager to be Eagles next year! Many thanks to Christy
Griffin and her Carnival Committee for putting on a funfilled Luau in the Garden, and Kelly Stratton and Olivia
Showalter provided fun and prizes at the Silent Auction.
Suzanne Cutty rounded out our Carnival team and
coordinated all the food for our Luau. Helen Wise and the
Book Fair Committee turned the library into the kingdom of
Read-a-lot for a week. All students had an opportunity to be
princes and princesses of Reading! I cannot thank enough
all of the parents who made each of these events so much
fun and successful!
Our PTA Membership Drive finished strong,
thanks to Kristin Parsons.
Many thanks also to
Elizabeth Holtsclaw for the countless hours she spent
getting our school directory up and running ONLINE!
Parissa Zamani headed up the very popular Holiday
Dress Pass. Kendra Meiki has been working with Mrs.
Roach to coordinate Accelerated Reader treat days.
Kristin Parsons has collected and submitted our
Reflections entries- Congratulations to all our winners and
Good Luck in District! Terri Lux has done an
outstanding job maintaining our website. Jennifer Rossi
has been collecting donations for the Eagle Society- it’s
not too late to donate, and all donations are taxdeductible! Sarah Hamauei has spent hours keeping all
of our finances in line on all our projects and events.
Lannie Henderson worked hard to ensure another fun
Blue Ribbon Day. Lindsey Smith and Kelly Stratton are
planning another great EGM Fun Run. And without
Rachel Jacobs, you would not be reading this wonderful
newsletter!
Please remember Eden Gardens in your year-end
giving. We would like to have another iPad lab in place
before the end of the school year so we can be prepared
when testing goes to a computer-based format.
Great schools are always evaluating the changing
needs of their students, and Eden Gardens is no exception.
Thank you so much for your support of our PTA in 2014,
and we look forward to a fabulous 2015!
Eden Gardens Website:
www.edengardensmagnet.com
District PTA Meetings
January 22nd
April 16th
School Board Central Office
9:00 -10:00
Visit PTA Websites
Educational Resources for Parents
pta.org - National PTA
louisiana.org – Louisiana PTA
caddodistrictpat.org – Caddo Parish PTA
Newsletter 3
Merry Christmas and
Happy New Year!
Amy Watts, PTA President
Outstanding Student of the Year Finalists
Congratulations to the following students who were
nominated as finalists for the Eden Gardens Outstanding
Student of the Year:
Neelie Lim
Autumn Moore
Kiley Rourke
Emerson Roberts
Ruhani Sachdeva
Gergely Szarvas
___________________________
As we prepare for the holiday
season, here are some tips to think
about!
Tips For Parents:
Making Holidays Special
by Jan Levinson Gilman, Ph.D.
As a parent of young children, you
These students were selected using Caddo Parish
SOTY Procedures. They will participate in essay writing
and interviews during the month of December and one of
them will be chosen as Eden Gardens Outstanding Student
of the Year. They will represent Eden Gardens at the parish
competition. What a fine group of boys and girls!!!!! We
are so proud of you.
probably share an almost universal desire to
make holidays special for your children. You
also may have to overcome certain obstacles in
creating your own special experiences with
your children such as finances, distance from
family members, and the special circumstances
created by divorce, step-parenting, and blended
__________________________
families. Many parents work overtime during
the holidays only to find themselves frustrated
by the experience and doubtful that the end
"result" was particularly meaningful to their
children.
While
it's
difficult
to
determine
exactly what special means to any one child,
here are some guide lines which are most likely
applicable to your family.
1. Develop traditions. Create activities which are
special to your family. They need not be elaborate or
costly, but they need to be enjoyable and reflective
of your family. Traditions can be as simple as a
special recipe that everyone associates with the
family holiday to an elaborate vacation or special
event in which everybody participates. Some family
holiday meals consist of recipes that the parents
enjoyed when they were children or foods that are
reflective of their culture. The opportunity for
everyone to participate in the preparation of the
meal may become part of a tradition. Traditions may
NEWS 4
naturally develop around certain activities such as
finding a Christmas tree or they may be deliberately
planned in order to make the holiday special. Once
formed, these traditional activities contribute to a
sense of identity and uniqueness for your children
about their family holiday.
Season’s Greetings, Eagles!!
Time sure does fly when we are having fun!
As we prepare to end the first semester, it is a great
time to reflect on student progress and attendance. If
you have not already done so, please sign up via our
district website (www.caddoschools.org) to gain
access to the JCampus parent portal. Through the
parent portal, you may keep up with your child’s
grades and academic standing from your home or
smartphone. If you need directions for signing up,
please let me know, and I will send the directions
home with your child.
ATTENDANCE
Please continue to make every effort to get
your child(ren) to school on time. The tardy bell rings
at 7:55 daily. If your child arrives at school after 7:55,
please plan to walk him/her to the office and sign
them in. The first few minutes of instruction are just
as pivotal as the lesson closure, so it is very important
that children arrive early enough to be seated and
ready to begin each day.
UPCOMING UNIVERSAL SCREENERS
SUBJECT
Reading
Math
SCREENER
DIBELS
(Dynamic
Indicators of
Basic Early
Literacy Skills)
Aimsweb
Writing
Aimsweb
DATE(S)
January 26,
2015
January 20
– 30, 2015
January 20
– 30, 2015
GRADE(S)
K-5
K–5
2-5
EUREKA MATH HOMEWORK HELP
For Eureka Math tips and homework help,
please visit our district website:
www.caddoschools.org. Click on the link,
STUDENT/PARENTS, and select “Eureka Math
Homework Help.” Here, you will find resources for
each grade level separated according to each module.
2. Keep the scope of your plans within the scope of
your resources. Holidays are double duty for most
parents. What parent hasn't wondered where the
extra time will come from to shop, wrap presents,
cook, and plan and attend special events? What
parent hasn't wished for that mythical homemaker of
the 1950 sitcoms to be dropped on their doorstep to
complete all the family's holiday preparation in a
timely manner? Short of granting that wish, be
realistic about the scope of your plans. If you are
hurried and stressed your personal contribution to
your children's holiday may be your short temper
and irritability rather than your patience and
enthusiasm.
3. Be sensitive to your children's wishes. This is the
time of year when it's difficult to avoid the many
conflicting issues between parents and children. This
is often true when children become teen-agers and
the value of family time changes. Blended and
divorced families pose special challenges for the
holidays. Children often lose the delight and
excitement of the holidays and instead feel the
demands of making all their parents happy. If you
anticipate any of these circumstances, plan ahead.
Discuss with your children how they and you will
spend their time.
4. Help your children understand the value and the
meaning of the holidays. Don't rely upon others to
convey the meaning to your children; do it yourself.
Talking about your own personal meaning is
important. If the holidays are a religious experience
for you, impart that by your religious practice; if it's
a sharing experience, provide your child an
opportunity to share; if it's a predominant family
reunion experience, provide a reunion for your child.
5. Finally, have fun yourself. Don't expect perfection.
Remember just as your child doesn't need or want a
perfect parent, neither do they need a perfect
holiday... just a good enough day will do.
Children Helping Children
Sharing the spirit of the holidays with other
children has become a tradition at Eden Gardens. “Children
Helping Children” allows our students to focus on giving
rather than receiving. Our project this year will focus on
sharing our love with the students at J S Clark Elementary
School. We will be collecting new clothing items to give to
the students. What a wonderful way to really share “The
Reason for the Season.” Thank you for supporting this
project.
NEWS 5
Incentives
Congratulations to our
Reflections Contest
Winners:
Literature Category:
Primary Division
Elizabeth Watts
Intermediate Division
Hadley Bailey
Jack Parsons
Photography Category
Primary Division
Aubrey Strong
Intermediate Division
Emma Grace Strong
Visual Arts Category
Primary Division
Anna Slaughter
It’s time to turn your trash in to cash for our
amazing school. Every year, Eden Gardens collects Box
Tops, Labels for Education, Coke Caps, Community Coffee,
Tyson A+, and Prang Power UPCs. UPCs are turned in
during both our fall and spring contests. The fall contest
runs from Sept 2nd until Oct 25th. Anything submitted past
this date should be saved for the spring contest. Please send
all items inside a baggie that includes your both child and
teachers name.
Awards will go to the top earning
classes/grade and to the three top earning students school
wide!!
Please trim collections prior to submitting without
removing the expiration date. Please do not send expired
Box Tops. Any Box Tops with an expiration date of July
2014 or older, cannot be accepted. All other collection
UPCs, e.g. Labels for Education, etc., do not expire!
Don’t Forget:
Target Red Card visit:
www.Target.com/tcoe to link your card to EGM.
Our Target ID is: 55280
Kroger visit:
www.krogercommunityrewards.com to designate your
Kroger Plus card points to EGM.
The Incentives Committee:
Susan Easley, Jamie Wilhelm, Shannon Wicklund, Molly
Fouts, Christy Walford, Jodi Guthikonda, Alex Sanders,
Kayla Patrick, Lacey Whited, and Marissa Still.
Congratulations to our schoolwide winners! Their entries will
represent Eden Gardens at the
Parish level! Way to go Eagles!!
The Saftey Drawing Contest theme this year
“Stranger Danger”
Deadline: December 19th
We would love to know about your Super Student.
Please email Rachel Jacobs at rachel@acjlaw.com with
awards and accomplishments.
_______________________________________________
____________________________________________
Class Pictures in uniforms
8:30am (3rd - 5th Grades)
January 20th
9:30am (1st & 2nd Grades)
NEWS 6
Jan.
21
Magnet school testing for Kindergarten at EGM
Jan.
Magnet school testing for Kindergarten & CMM at
23
EGM
Jan.
26
Who to Call???
Who Will Help???
Jan Hughes, Principal
Any Schoolwide suggestions, ideas concerns
Sydney Allen, Principal
Any concerns related to your child, such as:
Enrollment/Registration questions
Contract/contract renewal
Questions about standardized testing
Gateway questions/referral information
Counseling for a child
Moving - Need copy of school records
Questions about health card, social security card, or fees
Social Studies Fair projects to school
Jan.
29
Chocolate distributed to students
Jan.
30
Social Studies Fair Judging
Feb. 2
World's Finest Chocolate Sale begins
Felecia Gipson, Coordinator
Any curriculum related questions required for each student.
Lost textbook or workbook information
Parent Resource Center information
Homework questions
Common Core State Standards (CCSS)
Transportation concerns
DIBELS Next testing for K-3rd students
DSC Testing for K students
Substitute Information
All Schoolwide professional development
After School Tutoring
Educational resources for parents
School Wide Positive Behavior Intervention Plan
Mrs. Hughes has been my co-worker for 32
years. She has been my friend for even longer. I love
my job and to have a boss to love as well is icing on
the cupcake! Jan has worked hard to make Eden
Gardens the school we all love. Mrs. Hughes is the
reason we are a Blue Ribbon School. In November
2011, I had the honor of accompanying her to
Washington D.C. to receive this award for our
school.The children thought I was chosen because I
was the oldest teacher. There was some truth to that
but I had the honor because I have been at Eden
Gardens the longest.
Mrs. Hughes is passionate
about the children and what is best for them. The
children are her first consideration in every decision
made. Jan's sweet smile warms our hearts daily. You
can always count on her to understand any situation
that occurs in the classroom because she has been
there and she somehow makes you feel better! It
may have something to do with that sweet smile.
I will miss popping my head in her door to chat and
ask about her family. I will miss her friendship and her
leadership. Jan Hughes will always be a part of our
Eden Gardens family. We love you, Mrs. Hughes!
Lana Gilliam
Susan Foley, Secretary/Bookkeeper
SchoolPay- Online payment system for parents
Another copy of school letter or communication
Money related questions
(T-shirts, yearbooks, pictures, directories, etc.)
Message to teachers
Questions about monthly calendar events
Lisa Calhoun, Office Clerk
Absences, attendance, tardy
Any EGM website information, concerns, advertising
Change of address
Homework for an ill child
WebPAMS questions
Transportation information
Change in transportation plans
Your Child’s Teacher
Academic progress or concerns
Playground or peer concerns
Report card questions or corrections
AR reading updates/testing/goals/ ZPD Levels
Cafeteria - Ms. Phillips (318) 861-6848
Questions about individual accounts
Special dietary requirements
NEWS 7
Dear Mrs. Hughes,
I am speaking for faculty, parents, fellow
students, and myself when I say you are the best
principal in the entire world! I appreciate everything
you put into Eden Gardens to make us #1. Also,
you’re always doing whatever possible to make
everybody happy. I want to thank you for organizing
all of our events like our pep rallies and Blue Ribbon
celebrations. Everyone knows how hard your job is,
but I want to tell you how awesome you are doing by
making it look easy.
If you have any questions contact, Angela Green
dnagreen65@yahoo.com
I remember my first day at Eden Gardens in
second grade when you greeted me with open arms
and told me I was going to be fine at a time when I
was very nervous. Most of all, you should know how
much you contribute to our education. You make
sure we are surrounded with the best teachers,
counselors, coordinators and everyone else. Don’t get
me wrong, you make it look easy when it is a pretty
hard thing to do, especially with how many teachers
and students we have. Eventually, it is worth it
because we students are going to end up with
amazing jobs someday.
__________________
I just want you to know that everything you
have done and every choice you have made
contributes to our school, Eden Gardens. Remember,
you are so amazing and have done a great job being
our principal. Lastly, you should know you set us off
on the best foot you possibly could and you are
leaving us in the warmest hands imaginable! You are
sweet, caring, loving, and wise, and just a wonderful
person all around!
Love,
Emerson Roberts
5th Grade
NEWS 8
Mrs. Hughes loves the
children at Eden
Gardens!
NEWS 9
Dear Mrs. Hughes,
Thank you so much for your support of the PTA
over the years. We have worked together to accomplish
many goals that most would consider unattainable. Our
collaborative efforts have placed SmartBoards in every
classroom, purchased 2 iPad labs, made numerous upgrades
to the computer lab, made security improvements, and
countless other endeavors. It takes a group effort to be
successful, and you have fostered positive relationships
between school personnel and the PTA to maximize the
educational experiences for ALL students. I am forever
grateful for the opportunities my children have had at EGM
and the foundation you laid for them to be successful in the
future. You have equipped us well for what lies ahead in the
garden.
Much Love,
Amy Watts
Magnet Applications will be available at Eden
Gardens and Caddo Parish websites October 13,
2014 -January 9, 2015. Applications will be
accepted at Eden Gardens in that same time
period, until 3:00PM on January 9, 2015. Testing
will be held at Eden Gardens January 21, 23, and
27.
NEWS 10