Tashua Family Weekly Update

Dear Tashua Families,

We had an amazing first few days of school! Thank you to all of you for taking the time to make sure your children were so prepared. As soon as the children entered the building, they quickly filled the hallways with laughter, cheer and excitement for a new year of learning. Shortly after morning announcements, we all gathered in the gymnasium for a school-wide assembly to help our students to learn all about what it means to be positive, motivated and contributing Tashua T.I.G.E.R.S.!

Thank you to all of the parents who volunteered to help us over the summer and this week. This extra support will help us to start the year successfully!

• Dani Romano, Laura Arena and Chris Solustri for meeting with me to discuss PTA and Fathers' Club plans for the 2024-25 school year to support our students and our staff.
• Silvana Bateni and Josh Howard who organized and facilitated all the New Family and Kindergarten Playdates on the Playground. Thank you also for organizing a delicious welcome back breakfast for our staff.
• Amanda Wagner for the "Welcome Back" Kits generously donated by the PTA for Tashua staff members.
• Vanessa Vargas and Alva McKee for taking pictures of the students as they arrived at school on the first day.
• All of the parent volunteers who helped our kindergarten students and new students to Tashua find their way to their classrooms in the morning and back to the buses in the afternoon.

In addition, our entire Tashua staff community would like to thank the PTA especially, Dani Romano and Laura Arena for giving our Tashua Staff Lounge a much needed face lift! This project was truly a labor of love with fresh paint, custom cabinets, new furniture, appliances and more. We are truly grateful for all who have supported the PTA through donations, events and fundraising - this could not be possible without all of you!

Next Thursday evening, September 5th, will be our Back to School Night. On this special evening, we request that children not attend so all parents and caregivers can fully focus on the the important details of for the school year. We look forward to seeing you and sharing more about the exciting plans we have for our year supporting our students in their learning.

Further, as you are attending Back to School Night, you will have the opportunity to sign up for the PTA and Fathers’ Club and to learn more about the programs they sponsor for our students during the year. Further, you will also have the opportunity to sign your child up for Cub Scouts or Girl Scouts.

I thank you for your continued support and I look forward to working with you during the

2024-2025 school year to continue to build on the safe and positive school community that we have created for our students. I look forward to seeing you at Back to School Night on September 5th.

Please be reminded, there will be no school on Monday in honor of Labor Day. As always, thank you for your time, commitment and partnership in ensuring your child's success!

Kind regards,
Mrs. Neumeyer

Monday, September 2

No School; Labor Day

Thursday, September 5

Back to School Night

• Grades K - 2; 6:00 - 6:45 PM
• Grades 3 - 5; 7:00 - 7:45 PM *Please note, Grade 5 parents will gather in the gym.

Friday, September 6

International Literacy Day

Sunday, September 8

Grandparents' Day

Tuesday, September 10

Board of Education Meeting; 7:00 PM

Wednesday, September 11

Patriot Day and National Day of Service Remembrance

Friday, September 13

Back to School Family Picnic 5:00 - 6:30 PM - Hosted by our Tashua's Fathers Club

Sunday, September 15

Hispanic Heritage Month Begins - 10/15

Tuesday, September 17

Citizenship Day/Constitution Day

Wednesday, September 18

Picture Day

Saturday, September 21

International Day of Peace

World Gratitude Day

Sunday, September 22

First day of Autumn

Tuesday, September 24

Board of Education Meeting; 7:00 PM

Wednesday, September 25

PTA Meeting; 7:30 PM

Thursday September 26

Districtwide ML Parent/Guardian Info Night; 6:00 PM

Tashua's Picture Day is scheduled for Wednesday, September 18th. Robert Taylor Photography Studio will take individual and classroom photos and ordering will be done online. More information about purchasing photos will be in next week's Weekly Update.

Please remember to return the following forms to your child's teacher:

• Parent Handbook Receipt
• Student Network Agreement
• Photo/Video Permission Form

All three forms can be found as the last pages of the 2024-2025 Tashua Parent Handbook

All individuals seeking to volunteer in the Trumbull Public Schools must complete a “School Volunteer Security Check” form prior to volunteering and forms must be completed annually.

Please use the form: Volunteer Form Tier 1. If you will be volunteering UNSUPERVISED, please complete a Tier II form which includes a DCF Background Check. Please use this form: Volunteer Form Tier II

The Tashua Strings Program (directed by Mr. McGrath) is open to students in grades 3,4 and 5 and the Band Program (directed by Mr. Turechek) is open to students in grades 4 and 5. Please use the link below to access information and enrollment instructions Band & Strings Information and Registration

All students that participated in the TPS Summer Olympics Math Program have 2 items due:

1. Please be sure you have done the Paper Summer Math Exit Ticket and send the corrected packet back to school to be handed to classroom teacher. (Downloadable Packet and Answer Key can be found here for your entering grade level) Due by Friday 9/15/24 Summer Math Exit Ticket

1. Please be sure to fill out this google form to be included in both the CT Commissioners Summer Math Challenge and the TPS Summer Math Olympics. Due by Friday, 9/15/24 CT Commissioner's Summer Math Challenge 2024 Form

Please use this link to Access the information online: Elementary Summer Math Website

If your child read over the summer, there is still time to complete the summer reading log survey. Entries must be submitted by September 13th. The Governor's Challenge is for all students in grades K-5 while the First Selectman's Challenge is for students entering grades 4 & 5. All you need to do is keep track of all the books you have read this summer and how often you read. Then, you will click on the letter below towards the end of the summer and complete the survey ONE time. The survey link will enter you in both the Governor's Challenge and the First Selectman's Challenge. Please track your summer reading by using the link: https://forms.gle/7J8bTcQNGinqxWz8A

If you child participated in the Tashua Summer Reading Bingo Project, please submit your complete "BINGO" card by September 25th. Cards with instructions were sent home last school year to be completed over the summer. Please contact Mrs. McKenna at smckenna@trumbullps.org if you should have any questions.

We encourage families to label items such as water bottles, lunch boxes and outerwear with a name so that if they are misplaced they can be returned quickly to students.

Dear Tashua Parent/Guardian:

Below are links to the Medication Authorization Forms for the upcoming 2024-25 school year.

Medication and Health forms link: https://www.trumbullps.org/departments/school-health-services/student-health-forms

Back to school information link:

https://www.trumbullps.org/departments/school-health-services/back-to-school-information

Forms and Information

• Medication Authorization Form
• Asthma care plan
• Emergency Care Plan for Food and or Insect Allergy

Brenda Chamale RN BSN

Tashua Elementary School Nurse

P: 203 452-4434

F: 203 452-4432

bchamale@trumbullps.org

PTA Updates

Welcome back!! We have completed our staff lounge renovation, it was revealed to our staff as a surprise meeting! As you can imagine they were all THRILLED! A huge thank you to those of you who donated supplies to help us bring this all together.

PTA Meeting

Please join us for our very first PTA meeting Thursday, September 25th at 7:30PM in the Library. We strongly encourage this year’s chairs to attend we would love to hear all of your ideas!

Membership

It’s that time of year again! Please take a moment to log onto membership toolkit to register or renew your membership. Please remember that being a member is not about a commitment of time or money but to show our amazing Tashua community support and allow us do all of the amazing activities, events, and fun to our school!

After School Enrichment

Registration begins September 12th (Space is Limited)!

Beginning September 30th we will be offering After School Enrichment programs for grades K-5. Enrollment will open to members of the PTA first, then non members after. Please use the following link for more information Tashua Fall ASE

PTA Committee Interest Form

HELP! We are in a real need of some help for some of our committees, especially Adult Night Out! Please fill out the link below for express your interest in joining a committee, or even helping us chair these committees! Current chairs and co chairs are all set for this upcoming year, this interest form is to fill in the gaps or find chairs for next year PTA Committee Interest Form

Library Volunteers Needed: Opportunity at the Tashua Learning Commons

Mrs. McKenna is looking for volunteers to help out in the Learning Commons on Thursdays when she is not teaching classes. While volunteering, you will have the opportunity to assist her with checking in books, sorting and shelving books and helping out with other tasks and special projects. Volunteering can be a fun and rewarding experience! Please note, this is a recurring volunteer role and you will need to commit to coming every week or every other week for the full year. For more info or to sign up, click https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090E48ABA623A5F49-50473684-media or email Emily at emily.t.jamison@gmail.com

Fifth Grade Committee Meeting

The 5th grade committee is having their first meeting on September 9th at 7:00 PM in the school cafeteria. All 5th grade parents are welcome. We hope to see you there!

PTA Contact

Dani Romano, PTA president: dani-romano2224@gmail.com

K-12 students in Connecticut have the opportunity to enter the Competition and be awarded a scholarship of up to $20,000 to help pay for their future education! This competition is brought to you by the Connecticut State Treasurer’s Office as Trustee of the Connecticut Higher Education Trust (CHET).

This year, they will be awarding almost $350,000 in CHET 529 College Savings Plan – Direct Plan (“CHET 529 Direct Plan”) account contributions to students in grades K-12 and technology prizes to schools. For the winning students, we will be awarding:

• Three prizes of $20,000
• 24 prizes of $5,000
• 239 prizes of $500

To enter, students are asked to answer a question by submitting a drawing or painting, essay, or video. Younger students will be asked to answer a question focusing on lessons they’ve learned and their dreams for the future, and older students will be asked about an experience or person that has impacted them and how that will influence their future goals. Submissions must be uploaded by 11:59 p.m. on November 4. There is no cost to enter. For program details, rules and the entry process, visit: www.chetdreambig.com

Downloadable entry forms and flyers are available on the website as well.

A school in your district could be a winner too! Each school that is represented by at least one student’s entry will be eligible for a random drawing for a technology prize worth $5,000 (a total of 10 schools will win a technology prize). Please see the 2024 Competition Official Rules for more information on prize structure and awards.

If you have any questions, please email asavio@mintz-hoke.com. And thank you for your support!

Amanda Savio
The CHET Dream Big! Competition Team

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void outside CT and where prohibited. Open to legal U.S. residents residing in Connecticut who are at least 18 years old and are the parents or legal guardians of a student currently enrolled in a Connecticut school, grades K-12 as of 8/15/24. Begins 9:00 a.m. ET on 8/15/24; ends 11:59 p.m. ET on 11/04/24. Prizes will be a contribution to an eligible CHET 529 Direct Plan Account established for the benefit of the child whose parent or legal guardian submitted a winning entry. CHET Advisor 529 Accounts are not permitted for receipt of a prize. For Official Rules and eligibility, visit chetdreambig.com Sponsor: Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Member NYSE, SIPC, 900 Salem Street, Smithfield, RI 02917.

Tashua Elementary School

401 Stonehouse Road Trumbull, CT 06611

203-452-4433

TPS School Calendar

2024-2025 School Calendar

Tashua School Hours

Doors open at 8:20 AM

Regular School Hours: 8:35 AM - 3:20 PM

Early Dismissal Hours: 8:35 AM - 1:00 PM

Delayed Opening Hours

2 ½ hour Delay – 11:05 AM – 3:20 PM

Infinite Campus

Parent Portal

Tashua Parent Handbook

2024-2025 Tashua Parent Handbook

Volunteer Forms

Volunteer Form Tier 1

Volunteer Form Tier II If you will be volunteering UNSUPERVISED, please complete a Tier II form which includes a DCF Background Check. Please use this form: