Fundraisers.
School pictures.
Spirit wear.
Scholastic book orders.
Lunch account.
MONEY! Everybody wants it!
I was a student once. I know I asked my parents for money. I know they remember it. I remember having to sell stuff. I didn't realize at the time how often we had to ask for money for this program, that extracurricular activity, or just to buy lunch. And I honestly believe, even though I went to school a long, long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away), that there weren't fundraisers in kindergarten.
Both Justin AND Tyler came home from school the very first week with these huge packets for the magazine sale fundraiser. Preschool?! Really? Anyway, I get that this is a profitable fundraiser for the school -- they receive 45% of the funds from every subscription. I just wonder how many subscriptions are sold by the kids in the lower grades. I was prepared to ignore it for my kids, but the first turn-in day for orders was last Friday, and darned if Justin didn't come home from school saying, "Mommy, I want to sell magazines. I get PRIZES!" They must really be pushing them to push the almighty subscriptions. Oy.
School pictures were today. The kids get their pictures taken regardless of whether or not you order them, and I wasn't sure I wanted to. As Forrest Gump pointed out, you're just never really sure what you're going to get. With school pictures, you pay upfront. You just have to count on the fact that your kid is going to cooperate and be cute and smile for the camera. But holy shit! (Sorry, I know this is a Catholic school blog but I couldn't help myself) School pictures are OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive. There are 8 different packages, ranging in price from a low (ha ha) $21.00 to $65.00. There are 13 additional "options" to nickel and dime you further, including calendars, magnets, keychains, etc., even teeth whitening! There are five more add-on packages to get additional pictures, or you can purchase a class photo for an extra fifteen dollars. I asked my husband if he thought we should buy the school pictures, and his answer was "Of course!" So we forked over $66.00 for two CDs, no prints. Yipes.
Then there's spirit wear, otherwise known as clothing with the school name or logo on it. Every other Friday is spirit wear day, and kids really look forward to it because it's one of those days they don't have to wear their uniform shirt. Justin was crushed last Friday when he didn't have a school shirt to wear and keeps asking me when he's going to get his. Orders were turned in last Friday and I guess he thought that he'd get his stuff the same day. I will say, the spirit wear is reasonably priced, but there isn't an opportunity to buy this stuff all year long, and you can't buy it in a store like you can with some of the public schools. Because they're not having another sale until the spring, I felt like it was necessary to buy him a couple of tee shirts and a sweatshirt to last him through the winter. I really wanted to get a couple shirts for me and my husband, but it was just going to be too much with all of the other money flowing out, so I restrained myself.
Next on my agenda is to tackle the Scholastic book order. That's due tomorrow. I can't decide whether to share it with Justin or not. He loves books, I mean really, really loves them. His trips to the library are huge highlights in his life. I just think if I show him the order form, his eyes are going to glaze over and he won't be able to limit his list of wants to what I consider reasonable.
It used to drive me nuts when my parents would say things like "I'm not made of money" or "Money doesn't grow on trees". I guess repeating the things your parents did and said once you have kids of your own is pretty much inevitable. I'm sure the day will come when Justin and Tyler get involved in scouting, or sports, or the performing arts, and there will be additional "opportunities" to spend and donate money. I just hope I can keep my "Money doesn't grow on trees" comments to a minimum.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
Necessary details
I'm a little short on words tonight.....the last few days in kindergarten have been rough ones. However, I'm sure people wonder, "What on earth do they do in all day kindergarten? Why, when I went to school, kindergarten was only a half day." One of the things they do is eat lunch! I have found school lunches to be pretty reasonably priced. I think they might even be cheaper than what I paid for lunch when I was in high school many moons ago (back in the 80s). There's been a lot in the press about how school lunches are under a lot of scrutiny, and there have been calls to make them healthier. I thought I'd share what's been on the menu the first month of school.
Justin loves buying his lunch, which is good for me -- packing lunches is one of my least favorite things to do. It's hard enough to decide what I want to eat for lunch, let alone decide for someone else! I'd say the jury is still out on the healthfulness aspect, however.
This week, Justin's teacher sent home a copy of the daily class schedule. Their days are jam packed. It's actually sort of funny, because when we ask Justin what he did at school that day, he invariably says, "I don't remember." Looking at his schedule, I kind of understand. His days are so full, it would be hard to pick one thing out and talk about it. He'd rather talk about Mario. So for your pleasure, here's what his schedule looks like. It's pretty daunting, not at all like the kindergarten of yore in my hazy memories.
And finally, I decided to throw in a copy of the school calendar for the year. I'd heard over the years that Catholic/parochial schools got more days off, because of the religious days that they take. I've found that to not really be the case. I'll admit, I don't know what the calendar looks like for the public school, but the only date that jumps out at me is November 1, All Saints Day, that public school students do not get. That being said, who can blame school administrators for not wanting to have school with a bunch of kids hopped up on sugar from Trick or Treat the night before? ;)
Justin loves buying his lunch, which is good for me -- packing lunches is one of my least favorite things to do. It's hard enough to decide what I want to eat for lunch, let alone decide for someone else! I'd say the jury is still out on the healthfulness aspect, however.
This week, Justin's teacher sent home a copy of the daily class schedule. Their days are jam packed. It's actually sort of funny, because when we ask Justin what he did at school that day, he invariably says, "I don't remember." Looking at his schedule, I kind of understand. His days are so full, it would be hard to pick one thing out and talk about it. He'd rather talk about Mario. So for your pleasure, here's what his schedule looks like. It's pretty daunting, not at all like the kindergarten of yore in my hazy memories.
And finally, I decided to throw in a copy of the school calendar for the year. I'd heard over the years that Catholic/parochial schools got more days off, because of the religious days that they take. I've found that to not really be the case. I'll admit, I don't know what the calendar looks like for the public school, but the only date that jumps out at me is November 1, All Saints Day, that public school students do not get. That being said, who can blame school administrators for not wanting to have school with a bunch of kids hopped up on sugar from Trick or Treat the night before? ;)
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
To PTO or not to PTO
When I was growing up, my parents were not terribly involved in things that my siblings and I did in school, other than to chauffeur us around and write checks. They were certainly never involved in the PTA/PTO (otherwise known as the Parent-Teacher Association or Organization). I always kind of wished they'd done more to get us involved, so despite the fact that I'm not much of a joiner, I decided to check out the PTO at Justin's new school.
The first PTO meeting of the year was last week. I thought there was a rather large crowd of people there, as there were at least 50+ in attendance. As the meeting was called to order, the PTO president said that there normally is a much larger group, but there was a sporting event also taking place that night, so their numbers were much less than usual. The meeting covered a lot of topics and lasted almost 90 minutes, although I think some of the lengthiness was probably because it was the first meeting of the year. All of the officers were introduced. Then, the assistant principal gave an update. The time allotted for that was 5 minutes, but at least 15 minutes were spent discussing all of the things the school was able to purchase and/or accomplish with money raised by the PTO last year. That was an interesting topic and provided good information on the priorities of the PTO and the school administrators.
Following the principal's report, several other members gave updates on the various fundraising efforts that the PTO undertakes each year. There were signup sheets available for parents wishing to volunteer their time to the different activities. A financial update was given, and then finally a discussion of the upcoming important dates and events.
I really didn't know what to expect when I decided to attend the PTO meeting. I'm not sure yet how involved I will be, or what I might volunteer for this year or next since my kids are so young. But, it's clear to me that the parent-teacher organization at this particular school is a thriving, integral part of the school and its ability to sponsor fun events for students and their families, as well as provide funds for important things like technology. The meetings are a great way to meet other parents and administrators and know what's going on in the school since the PTO is so connected. I'm thinking it might be a good idea to attend at least every other month, just to stay abreast of what's happening.
The first PTO meeting of the year was last week. I thought there was a rather large crowd of people there, as there were at least 50+ in attendance. As the meeting was called to order, the PTO president said that there normally is a much larger group, but there was a sporting event also taking place that night, so their numbers were much less than usual. The meeting covered a lot of topics and lasted almost 90 minutes, although I think some of the lengthiness was probably because it was the first meeting of the year. All of the officers were introduced. Then, the assistant principal gave an update. The time allotted for that was 5 minutes, but at least 15 minutes were spent discussing all of the things the school was able to purchase and/or accomplish with money raised by the PTO last year. That was an interesting topic and provided good information on the priorities of the PTO and the school administrators.
Following the principal's report, several other members gave updates on the various fundraising efforts that the PTO undertakes each year. There were signup sheets available for parents wishing to volunteer their time to the different activities. A financial update was given, and then finally a discussion of the upcoming important dates and events.
I really didn't know what to expect when I decided to attend the PTO meeting. I'm not sure yet how involved I will be, or what I might volunteer for this year or next since my kids are so young. But, it's clear to me that the parent-teacher organization at this particular school is a thriving, integral part of the school and its ability to sponsor fun events for students and their families, as well as provide funds for important things like technology. The meetings are a great way to meet other parents and administrators and know what's going on in the school since the PTO is so connected. I'm thinking it might be a good idea to attend at least every other month, just to stay abreast of what's happening.
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