Yearbook orders, submissions due

Years from now, your child may want to show her children the teacher who taught her the times tables or the classmate he traded lunches with in kindergarten.
What better way to relive memories than by flipping through the Brookdale yearbook?
Yearbook orders and pride line message submissions are due Thursday, March 3. Yearbooks are $12 each, and pride lines are $3. Checks payable to Brookdale PTA should be submitted along with an order form, available on the Forms page.
March 3 also is the deadline to submit photo from this year’s school events. E-mail photos to brookdaleyearbook@yahoo.com and send printed pictures to school in an envelope marked “Yearbook Photos.”
Questions? Contact editor Janet LaRocque at janetlarocque@yahoo.com.

Visiting artist helps our students explore history, culture

Some students heard the Native American legend of a woman falling from the sky and creating Turtle Island on the watery Earth.
Others explored their sense of self, creating imagery that explained what makes them unique.
Others looked back at the ancestors who came before them.
All were inspired by Edgar Heap of Birds, a Native American artist who visited Brookdale for two days in late February. His visit was funded by a grant secured by art teacher Deb Gelso and supported by the Brookdale PTA.
Heap of Birds’ lessons for students were equal parts art experience and exploration of Native American culture.
Meeting with two classes at a time, he introduced students to tribal history and words in Tsististas, the language and name of his tribe, known in English as the Cheyenne.
Students learned how his tribe values the number four, with four “big chiefs” just as there are four seasons, as well as the importance of the circle — a lesson that played out in each project he led.
Young students heard the legend of Turtle Island, in which the woman who has fallen from the clouds walks in circles on a turtle’s shell to make it grow into a land where people could live. After listening to the story, the children drew their interpretations. Heap of Birds encouraged the students to add details, like the circles on the turtle’s shell.
Middle students and some younger children learned that teepees are round for practical reasons — to better withstand wind — as well as for cultural reasons. A circle is egalitarian, he said, and every person in a circle has an equal right to be heard regardless of age or rank.
Several classes created teepees, decorated with symbols reflecting their interests. Each was added to a circular village in the gym, facing east in tribute to the nurturing sun, Heap of Birds said.
Fourth– and fifth-grader considered the idea that we are more closely influenced by our family’s past than linear history would indicate. Students wrote names of family members in colorful spirals to show that though generations may have passed, we are shaped by our family’s experiences.
The LMC purchased a copy of Heap of Birds’ book so students can learn more about Native American history and see more examples of his work.

A little recognition

Both the Naperville Jaycees and Naperville's Judd Kendall VFW Post are accepting nominations for annual educator of the year awards, and nominating deadlines are fast approaching.
The VFW's Kendall Honors Awards include an Educator of the Year distinction. The nomination deadline is Friday, Feb. 25. You'll find more information and a nomination form on the VFW website.
Meanwhile, the Naperville Jaycees plan to recognize both and Educator of the Year and a Student of the Year through the group's Distinguished Service Awards. The nomination deadline in both categories is Friday, March 25. Info and a nomination form are available on the Jaycees' website.

Meet the candidates

In just more than a month, we'll be called on to vote for three people to represent us on the Indian Prairie Unit District 204 school board.
Do you know all the candidates? Are you ready to vote?
The Indian Prairie Parents Council, the umbrella group for the district's PTAs, is hosting a candidates forum at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 2, at the district's Crouse Education Center, 780 Shoreline Drive, Aurora. The candidates will speak, and the audience will have the opportunity to pose questions.
The forum, cosponsored by the Naperville League of Women Voters, also will broadcast live on the web at http://media.ipsd.org/ipsd_live.
The field of candidates includes Brookdale's own Curt Bradshaw, who joined the board in 2005 and currently serves as the board's president, and incumbent Alka Tyle, who has served since 2006, as well as challengers Lori Price, Mark Rising and Tricia Tillotson.
Copies of an election guide, with candidates' responses to questions, can be found after March 1 at http://ipsdweb.ipsd.org/IPPC and http://naperville.il.lwv.org/.

Discussion of discipline and rewards

When the Parents Diversity Advisory Council next meets, members and guests will learn more about the district's Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports program.
Most often, we as parents associate the PBIS system with our school's PAWS program in which teachers and staff reward students for their good behavior.
In the meeting, Granger Middle School Assistant Principal Mike Zarco and Metea Valley High School Dean Marchel Rogers will outline issues facing all students and explain how parents can support students and staff.
Those in attendance also will hear from Kevin Gordon, owner and director of Camp Kupugani. The multicultural summer camp aims to empower girls by helping them build relationships through bonds of friendship and trust.
The PDAC meets from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, March 1, at the Crouse Education Center, 780 Shoreline Drive, Aurora.

Issues, discussions and decisions

Thursday's PTA meeting will offer members several opportunities to weigh in on a variety of issues, from purchases to plans for programs.

President Barb Peterson has highlighted two items on the agenda that are likely to be voted on during the meeting:

1. Mr. Korbitz has requested funds from the PTA to purchase a new electric keyboard for the music department.  The school currently owns an upright piano, but it is very old and as a result goes out of tune quickly and has a variety of "sticky" notes. We would like to act on this quickly so the purchase could be made in time for the Variety Show on March 18, if the membership approves the request. His research indicates he could buy a new keyboard, which would be used by all Brookdale students in the music curriculum, for less than $1,000.  Given our budget numbers this year and the cushion of funds we have available, we feel this is an appropriate request to bring to the membership. 
2. We will hear a presentation regarding the Art Awareness program. Theresa Hus will speak about the current program and Beth Siwicki has some ideas about how to support and manage the existing program as we move ahead. We intend to make a final decision on Thursday as to how to move ahead with this program beginning next school year.

Additional agenda items include discussions about the Staff Appreciation effort, the future direction of the Fall Fundraiser and the introduction of a PTA message board. Stay tuned for details :-)

What should we do?

A message from President Barb Peterson: 

I often find myself thinking of the time I will have come January and February to accomplish tasks that get pushed aside as the year comes to an end. Yet I take one look at my calendar and discover that for that very reason, the schedule for these months fills up so quickly!

The same is true with PTA issues. Several things need to be addressed. Three items were discussed briefly at our January PTA meeting that I would like to communicate here for those of you who were unable to attend.

Executive Committee nominations

The time has come for two offices of the Executive Committee to be vacated. Under our bylaws, Executive Committee officers may hold office for up to two consecutive years. For next school year, we will need to elect a new president and treasurer.

We will form a nominating committee in February to search for individuals interested and qualified to serve in these roles. If you are interested in serving on either the nominating committee or in either position, please contact Barb Peterson (andy.peterson@sbcglobal.net) or Judy Nagel-Conley (jln0522@aol.com).

Fall Fundraiser

Second, we're at a bit of a crossroads with the Fall Fundraiser, which has been a very successful product sale for a number of years. The sale coordinators from this year are stepping down, so it seems like a good time to pause and think about what we'd like to do.

In recent memory, students have been asked to sell wrapping paper each September. In 2010, a new vendor gave us the opportunity to sell cookie dough, jewelry and other items in addition to wrapping paper. The sale topped projections, generating about $12,000 in revenue — about half of the PTA's projected income for the current school year.

The sale traditionally comes early in the school year, when parents are hit with a variety of school and activity fees and when students involved in scouts, sports and other activities are asked to sell products as well.

With that in mind, the PTA is discussing the possibility of a change to ease "sales fatigue" but would need to replace the sale with a fundraiser that would generate enough money to continue to support such a large portion of the PTA's operations.

The Executive Committee has suggested considering a fun run, which has been