Family Art Night

May 11th 6:30-8:00 pm in the Multi-Purpose room.

Come and join us for a great night creating masterpieces. Plus, enjoy delicious ice cream sundaes!

There will be 3 different projects - something for everyone:
*Sumi-e painting with a modern twist in watercolor
*Art-in-Motion-create a kinetic sculpture
*Monet in clay

This event would not be possible without the help of lots of volunteers. CLICK HERE to sign-up on the website Volunteer Page. You can also email art night chair Katie Yanak at righton411@hotmail.com.

This Just In....

Check out the April edition of the PTA newsletter, Briarwood Bear Facts.

SPRING BOOK FAIR

Buy One - Get One!

The BOGO Scholastic Spring Book Fair will be in the library Tuesday, April 24 through Friday, April 27. What could be better than a free book? Buy one book and get a second book (of equal or lesser value) FREE!

Our hours are:

Tuesday 4/24 Lunch and Recess, after school until 4p
Wednesday 4/25 Lunch and Recess, after school until 2p
Thursday 4/26 Lunch and Recess, after school until 7p
Friday 4/27 Lunch and Recess, after school until 4p

We need volunteers to make this a success! For available opportunities or questions please contact Tonya Kezele or Darla Vaughan.

Briarwood Variety Show

Calling all kids and their unique talents for the Briarwood Variety Show!! This is a great family friendly event where the kids get to show off their skills outside of the classroom! Start practicing now so you can be ready to shine on show night!

Auditions will be held on Tuesday, April 17 after school. Dress rehearsal will be held at Apollo Elementary on Thursday, April 19 from 5-7:00pm. The big show will be on Friday, April 20 at 6:30p on the stage at Apollo.

Registration for this event is now closed. CLICK HERE for more information and to volunteer. We need lots of help to make this event possible.
Questions? Please contact Louisa Pardo 425-922-4244 or louisampardo@hotmail.com.

Science Fair Winners

Congratulations to the winners of this year's Science Fair:
Button Contest:
Mehar van Singh - 1st grade - Mrs. Capen
Amira Turner - 2nd grade - Mrs. Thoresen
Mallory Hicks - 4th grade - Science Tech
Annabele Smith - 5th grade - Science Tech

Models/Displays:
Kindergarten:
1st Place: Max Strukov
2nd: No entry
3rd: No entry

1st grade:
1st place: Caitlyn McKinzie
2nd Merharvan Singh
3rd: Mason Rye

2nd grade:
1st place: RS Padma Priya
2nd place: Penelope Fiorito
3rd: Morrigan Goforth

Scientific Inquiry

Kindergarten:
1st Place: Jaxson Thoresen
2nd: Jenna Collins
3rd: Lea Arnold

1st grade:
1st place: Evan Arnold
2nd place: Jack Nelson
3rd: James Wilson

2nd grade:
1st place: Amira Turner
2nd Amanda Gardner
3rd Conner Schild

3rd grade
1st place Mackenzie White
2nd Lauren Collins
3rd Rebecca Breuel

4th grade
1st place Dathan Le
2nd Sydney Croasdell
3rd Cameron Gardner

5th grade
1st place: Elmer Turner IV
2nd Kai Alberghini
3rd Lillian Moore

Science Fair 2012

Briarwood's annual Science Fair is coming up on THURSDAY, MARCH 29, 6:00-7:00PM. This year there are new rules for grades K-2, expanded categories and lots more prizes! Everything you need to know is online - at this special website:

www.briarwoodelementary.oursciencefair.com

The registration deadline is MARCH 15. If you wish to purchase a display board through the website for just $5.00(and delivered directly to the school!) you must order by MARCH 1ST.

Participation in Science Fair is required for all Science Tech Students. Check with your child's teacher for more details on their class requirements.

This Just In - Briarwood Bear Facts

Click here to check out the March issue of the PTA newsletter

GOLDEN ACORN AWARDS - Deadline Extended!

NOMINATION DEADLINE: MARCH 8th

Briarwood PTA honors outstanding volunteer service for children by awarding the Golden Acorn Award annually. The winners of this award are people who volunteer in ways that meet the mission of PTA: promoting the health, welfare, safety and education of ALL children and youth in our schools and community.

To nominate a deserving volunteer, click here to download an application. You may save the form to your computer and email it as an attachment to lesliekahler@comcast.net or print it, fill it out and send it back to school in an envelope marked: Attention Leslie Kahler/PTA Awards. Extra forms are also available in the office. Questions? Please contact Leslie at 425-226-134 or lesliekahler@comcast.net.

2012-2013 PTA ELECTIONS

As required by PTA guidelines, we are announcing the slate of candidates for the 2012-2013 school year. Elections will take place at the March 19 general meeting. Nominations will be accepted from the floor with prior approval of the nominee. You must be present at the meeting to cast your vote. Here are the nominees:

President: Laila Collins
Secretary: Teresa Fitzpatrick
Treasurer: Roneida Griffith
VP of Communications: Karen Nelson
VP of Fundraising: Tracy Kennedy
VP of Family Events: Leslie Kahler
Co-VP of Programs: Karin Manning
Co-VP of Programs: Katie Breuel
VP of Volunteers: Reanu Ranna

Spring Spirit Wear

Briarwood's Spring spirit wear is now available - and it's guaranteed to brighten up your wardrobe! Just CLICK HERE to check out the new tie-dye styles. You can download an order form, print it and fill it out, then return to school with a check made payable to "Cloud9 Sports".

GREAT SKATE NIGHT!

The Briarwood PTA invites you to a night of skating at Castle Ice Arena on Friday, March 2 6:30-8:15pm. Tickets for admission and skate rental are $7 per person. You must now buy them at the door. Advance tickets and pre-orders for pizza are no longer available. Payment for pre-orders already placed is due February 27th.

For questions or to volunteer, please email Susanna Stratford. Remember to dress warmly! New to ice skating? There are many "ice walkers" for assistance! We will also have a party room designated for Briarwood for eating and storage. This is not a drop off event. Students should have adult supervision. Let's pack the rink!! You may skate longer than 8:15 but Teen Night begins at 8:30.

Science Fair Button Contest!

Prefer paintbrushes to petri dishes? Maybe you can design this year's Science Fair Button. Four designs (two from primary, two from intermediate grades) will be chosen and made into buttons four our teachers and scientists to wear on the day of the fair.

Here are the rules:
• Artwork must be original—no clipart, internet downloads, etc.
• The design must fit in the circle provided on the special form sent home with students. CLICK HERE to download an extra form.
• The words “Briarwood Science Fair 2012” must be part of your design.
• Art work is due by March 15. You can turn it in to your teacher.
• Be sure to include your name, grade & teacher on the entry form.
• Additional entry forms can be found on the Science Fair website or office.
Hint: Use bright colors—markers or colored pencils work best. Avoid Crayons.

This Just In - Briarwood Bear Facts.

The February edition of the PTA newsletter is now available. Click here to check out the latest "Briarwood Bear Facts."

Book Swap is Back!

Our annual Book Swap is coming up this Tuesday, January 24th during lunch recesses (AM/PM Kindergartners will have their own time set aside). You can get new, exciting books - without spending any money!

On the day of the book swap, each student can bring ‘gently used’ books from home (books they no longer read or want) and "swap" them for books brought in by other students. If your child brings 6 books, he will choose 6 books to bring home. It’s a great way to clean out your bookshelves and replenish with new and interesting titles! We are in greater need of titles that are appropriate for 3rd grade reading level and up. Also, no board books please!

There will be prizes awarded to the primary and intermediate classes with the most participation and students that bring in 10 books will get their name put in to a drawing for a special prize!

Book donations are greatly appreciated. If you have any books or know anyone interested in donating to the book swap, please contact Jenna Thoresen a.thoresen@comcast.net or 206-930-4993 for any questions or to set up a time to drop off donated books.

This Just In...Briarwood Bear Facts!

Check out the December issue of the PTA newsletter by CLICKING HERE!

Briarwood Book Fair

You are all invited to Briarwood’s Scholastic Bookfair!
Briarwood's Scholastic Book Fair begins Tuesday, December 6 and runs thru Friday, December 9. The fair will be open during both lunch and recess - and after school (until 4:00 pm on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, until 2:00 pm on Wednesday).

You will also be able to order online this year! Please use this link to view the selection and place orders:
bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/briarwood
Order online starting DEC. 5th.

We need volunteers to make this a success! For available opportunities or questions please contact Tonya Kezele (kezeleboss@yahoo.com) or Darla Vaughan (pinkvaughan@yahoo.com) .

Giving Tree and Food Drive

It's that time of year again! Briarwood, in conjunction with the Issaquah Food Bank, has "adopted" six family for the Holiday season. We will have the Giving Tree in the office from now through December 9th. The tree will be filled with star tags. If you would like to help provide these families with a gift, simply select a star tag. Log the number along with your information in the "log-out" notebook in the office. Please return the gift back to school UNWRAPPED with the tag securely attached to it. If you are unable to come to the school, you may also complete a permission slip for your student to select a tag. Donations of wrapping paper and tape are also appreciated.

Along with the Giving Tree, we're also holding our annual food drive. The food will be given to the Issaquah Food Bank. Please send non-perishable items to school with your child. There are collection boxes in each of the classrooms. We'll coordinate with the Student Council to empty the boxes when needed.

Thank you for supporting tis wonderful program. It's a great opportunity to experience the true holiday spirit!

This Just In...Briarwood Bear Facts!

The November issue of the PTA newsletter is now available. Find out the results of Jog-a-thon, a new way to recognize people going above and beyond for PTA - plus support our school and your favorite sports teams with the Spirit Cup sale!
Click here to check out the newsletter!

Multicultural Night - POSTPONED

Unfortunately, due to lack of participation, we have decided to postpone Multicultural Night until the spring. Stay tuned for more information later in the year!

Science-to-Go Kits!

Attention all Briarwood Students and Parents!
The Briarwood PTA is proud to once again sponsor “Science-To-Go-Kits”!
Starting Monday, October 17, 2011 The Briarwood School Library will have a “Science-To-Go Center” with 50 shoe box science kits available and ready for check out! Kits include experiments in electricity, magnetism, astronomy, weather, the senses, etc.
The kits are available to all students in grades 1 thru 5 and are checked out just like a book to be taken home for one week. Each kit contains instructions and supplies for one experiment, except for items commonly found in the home. Also included in each kit is a lab sheet for students to document their findings and/or experience then return with the kit. Please take a moment to read the following regarding the use and return of the kits.

1. Students can only check out one Science Kit at a time.
2. Student that checks out a Science Kit is responsible for the kit at home as well as to and from school.
3. ADULT SUPERVISION is required while a student is using a kit.
4. Items in the kit must be rinsed and dried before returning to school.
5. Any items that required assembly must be disassembled before returning to school.
6. Please dispose of any straw, paper, tissue or other items you may have used.

We hope that all Briarwood families have a chance to enjoy these experiments together at home throughout the school year! If you have any questions or suggestions please contact: Peg Garcia-Bergin, berginfamily@comcast.net

Multicultural Night - Friday, November 18th

Our brand new Multicultural Night event is coming up Friday, November 18th from 6pm-8pm. If your child is interested in celebrating their culture or country of origin with other Briarwood families, we urge them to participate! They may also choose to highlight any country or culture that interests them. They may work in groups or with siblings. Each participating student/group is asked to create a poster board or display representing their heritage to display that night. Children are also invited to wear clothing representing their culture.
Some ideas for your poster include:

*Flag and its meaning
*Language spoken
*Climate
*Foods
*Historical places
*Famous people
*Holidays and celebrations
*Current events
*Important history
*Myths or stories
*Maps
*Photos

We are also looking for entertainment for the evening so if your child is part of a cultural performing group (dance, music, etc.) that would be interested in performing at the event, please let us know. We will be having a sample of foods available for purchase that evening that highlight various cultures represented at our school. More information will be provided as the event gets closer.
If your child is interested in participating, please register by Friday, October 28th. Since this is a brand new event, we need an accurate count of how many students are participating for planning purposes. If you have any questions, please contact Laila Collins at laila.collins@comcast.net or 425-793-7898.
REGISTER NOW!

PIZZA BINGO - This Friday!

It's back! Apple Cup Pizza Bingo Night at Briarwood! Wear your Husky purple or Cougar red - or sport your own favorite team colors (everything goes!) Join us Friday, October 14 in the Multi-Purpose room for dinner from 6:00-6:45pm.

The Bingo game goes from 6:45-8:00pm in the gym. There are lots of great prizes again this year. The Bingo game is FREE to play.

We also encourage you to bring one item (or more) per person to donate to the Issaquah Food Bank.

Unfortunately, the deadline to pre-order pizza has passed. There will be no food sales the night of the event.
If you have questions, please contact Susanna Stratford at snuzanna@gmail.com .

If you haven't joined already PTA - please consider supporting our school and help make PTA events like Pizza Bingo possible! JOIN PTA

This Just In...Briarwood Bear Facts

The latest issue of the Briarwood Bear Facts is now available. Click here to check out the October newsletter.

Jog-a-thon "30 on the 30th"

THANK YOU to all the fabulous Jog-a-Thon Volunteers, Teachers, and especially the KIDS who participated in this year’s Jog-A-Thon on September 30! We had a huge turn-out and perfect running weather, helping make it a FANTASTIC DAY! We are tallying the results for “most laps run” as well as “most money earned” and will get the much anticipated prize assembly scheduled ASAP. If we make our $30,000 goal, EVERY classroom will get an extra special art class, and Mr. Terry will dress up like a COUGAR (and we don’t just mean WSU colors!).

At first glance, however, we are coming in under goal, so do what you can to “round up” and get your kids’ donors to do the same. If every family raised just $100, we would make goal easily. If every student raised $100, we’d CRUSH it. We know money is tight, but if you can help make this $100 a reality, please do so. Money is officially “due” by October 17, but of course we will accept it long after that date! If your company matches donations - be sure to get those forms in soon as well!

Jog-a-thon donations are tax deductible.
To print extra tax receipts - click here

Thanks again for supporting our school!

This just in....Briarwood Bear Facts

The latest issue of the Briarwood Bear Facts is now available! Check it out here on the website. For this month only - students will also be coming home with a paper copy of the newsletter. Beginning in October - the newsletter will be exclusively online. Be sure to check back - so you can keep up on all the latest PTA news!

SPIRIT SALES - Order Deadline is September 16!

Show Your Briarwood Spirit!
Time is running out to order new t-shirts and sweatshirts for kids and adults.

Click here to check out the styles. To order - just print and fill out the form - and send a check to school made payable to "CLOUD 9 SPORTS".

You can also order online and pay by credit card by going to the Cloud 9 website c9sports.com/briarwood.
For questions or more information (including help with sizing), please contact Leslie Kahler at lesliekahler@comcast.net or 425-226-1314.

The order deadline is Friday, September 16th.

Jog-a-thon "30 on the 30th!"

Our annual fun-run is back and bigger than ever.
On Friday, September 30, students will run, walk, stroll and skip their way into the record books, all in the name of fun, school spirit, and raising money for PTA’s fabulous programs.

Being the primary fundraiser of this construction-crazy year, our goal this year is a whopping $30,000! That's the "30 on the 30th!"

The kick-off assembly for Jog-a-thon is this Friday, September 2nd. Students will be coming home with their pledge packets.

There are many volunteer opportunities for Jog-a-thon - some as simple as donating a case of water. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP. You'll also find information for kids on how to ask for pledges, extra tax receipts and pledge sheets.

Let's make Jog-a-thon a huge success!

Box Tops and Labels for Education

Don't forget to save your General Mills Box Tops and Campbell's Labels for Education! You can send them to school at anytime in a plastic sandwich bag with your child's name and teacher on the outside of the bag. Briarwood PTA receives 10¢ for every Box Top collected and accumulates points for the Labels submitted which are used for Jog A Thon prizes, etc.
Please click here for more information.

Tea & Tissues

Congratulations Kindergarten Parents! You've reached a big milestone in life - sending your child off to elementary school. We hope you can join us for our annual Tea & Tissues event. We'll have cookies, coffee and plenty of tissues - if you're feeling a little emotional. It's also a great opportunity to meet other parents - and learn more about PTA. Look for us outside the Kindergarten classrooms - on Tuesday, August 30 at 10:00am - right after Kindergarten Orientation.

Save the Date! JOG-A-THON

Briarwood's biggest fundraiser - Jog-a-thon - is on Friday, September 30th. Students will be coming home with their pledge packets this Friday, September 2nd - after a kick-off assembly at school!

Back to School BBQ/Meet the Teacher/School Picture Day

Join us Monday, August 29th for our annual Back to School BBQ and Meet the Teacher Day. Individual school pictures will also be taken. Below is the schedule of events for the day:

10:30am – 2:00pm School Pictures
11:00am - 1:00pm BBQ (or until supplies last)
11:30am – 12:00pm K-2 Classrooms Open
12:00pm – 12:30pm 3-5 Classrooms Open

Click here to see school picture package choices.

Briarwood website

Click here to check out Briarwood's website.

Website Under Construction!

Briarwood PTA is currently updating its website. This new site will be available in the fall - please return then to sign in and check out all the exciting new features. In the meantime, continue to use the current website briarwoodelementarypta.org. Thanks!

Welcome to your new website!

Your brand new website has lots of amazing capabilities! Feel free to begin by exploring the menu system, adding an announcement, or adding an event to the calendar. Most aspects of the website are completely customizable. You can organize the menu system (blue bar to the left) however you want. You can upload your own banner photo, and even change the background imagery to reflect your school's unique spirit. Make sure you click the Admin button at the top of the page to get access to all of the settings and configuration tools.

We have given you a head start by adding some example events, announcements, articles, programs, products, volunteer positions, and packets to your website. You can use these examples to help you get familiar with the features. But feel free to delete them whenever you are ready!.