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Table of Contents Page

Jacque’s Note 2 Community News 3-9 MS & HS News 9-10

*AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM REMINDER*

December ASP begins after we return

from the Thanksgiving Break.

Please make sure to submit your

payment online or directly

to the Business Office.

Thank you.

November 19, 2014

Wednesday Packet

IMPORTANT DATES/INFORMATION Thursday, November 20 1:30pm in RCC MIDDLE SCHOOL PLAY AND CHORUS PERFORMANCE

Friday, November 21 8:00-10:30am in The Cougar Center ‘BREAKFAST FOR CHAMPIONS’ GRANDPARENTS AND GRAND-PALS RECOGNITION DAY

Monday-Friday, November 24-28 No School TCS Offices Closed November 26-28 THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY

Friday-Thursday, November 28-December 4 See Flyer for Details BARNES AND NOBLE BOOK FAIR

Tuesday, December 9 8:00am OR Wednesday, December 10 5:30pm In the Media Center MANDATORY 8TH GRADE TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL MEETING

Monday, December 8 6:00pm in The Cougar Center HIGH SCHOOL PLAY

Tuesday-Thursday, December 16-18 HIGH SCHOOL EXAMS – Noon Dismissal HS

Thursday, December 18-No School for MS Only MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHER WORK DAY

December 19-January 2 No School TCS Offices Closed December 24-January 1 WINTER HOLIDAY

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I love that our nation stops its crazy pace to appreciate our family and friends, our freedoms and our blessings. This should be a routine part of every day and for some, it may be. However, I am one of those folks, although good intentions exist; need the structure of a hard stop to fully express what’s in my heart.

As you and your family prepare for the next week together, pause to notice the young person that your teen is becoming. Plan times together that allow you uninterrupted time to talk or just to work on something together. Sitting across from a parent may not be comfortable for many teens, but working on a project, cooking together, going over old photos, even cleaning out junk drawers and closets can give you an opportunity to stay “busy” and just talk. Ask them if there is a special dish/meal that they would like to help you make. Check the local events to see if there is something going on that they would like to attend with you…I understand the new Avalon theater has Barco lounger seats…that would be a cool outing! Anything that sends an intentional message that you want to spend some down time with them will do the trick! For some of you this idea is a no brainer and already part of your routine. For others, you can expect some push back, as usual, but keep trying. Even if a few of you find your teen is “holding out”, the message that you sought time with them will resonate down the road.

Of course, we also have a few families where time together is a constant and the “new adventure” would be time with others who are significant to them. That takes planning, as well. The same strategy works, however, as you identify the person of interest and run the plan by them. Let them make the approach and encourage the outing. The event does not have to be for an extended period of time or even far from home. But the time with that special someone will pay benefits for years.

My grandparents, maternal and paternal, lived very different lives. My dad’s family were educators in California. They lived most of my life in the city of San Francisco and we rarely visited. On the few occasions they visited us, we took trips to cemeteries and historical sights, and walked through galleries. Grandmother Klingner always wore a hat and gloves when she left the house. She taught us silly songs on the long road trips and made clothes for our dolls out of patterns she cut from a newspaper. I still know how to count to ten in Japanese! They always sent us educational gifts like microscopes and chemistry sets, which I should have appreciated more than I did. Grandfather Klingner wrote me almost every week while I was in college.

My mother’s family lived in a small shack on Bayou Bartholomew in Louisiana. Nanny rose before daylight to cook breakfast for the farmers in the family and worked until the rest of us were long asleep. She wore one of her three housedresses every day and braided her extremely long hair into a braid she wrapped around the crown of her head. Grandaddy Pettiss suffered with emphysema and narcolepsy and died before I was a teenager. I never remember an actual present from them, but the innumerable gifts of love and family traditions still comfort me today. Both their economic status and their health were poor but they met each day with a joyful spirit and a sense of purpose.

Neither the status nor the length of time I spent with either set of grandparents diminished the impact they continue to have on who I am and how I view life and family. I always knew I was loved and that knowledge was the only thing that counted. Celebrate that same knowledge with your families / extended family and friends next week!

WE ARE THANKFUL FOR YOU AND THE TIME WE HAVE TOGETHER!

November 19, 2014

Jacque’s Note

HOLIDAY GIVING AT TCS

“Tis the Season” and all that is expected can get a bit overwhelming! In case you are not

familiar with the TCS culture of giving, this note is to clarify what Holiday Giving means to us.

We appreciate the kind thoughts and generosity of our parents more than we can express.

However, when it comes to holiday gifts, we have a bit of a new approach. We want to

spread good tidings and cheer, but not at the expense of family budgets and stress level.

Your enrollment includes an automatic contribution for membership in the PAC. A portion of

that fee goes to purchase gift cards for the holidays for the entire staff. Additional money can

be sent to PAC to increase the general amount per staff member, if you are so inclined. This

insures that all the adults who contribute to the positive school experience are recognized

equally.

We discourage giving individual gifts to your child’s favorite teacher. We do not want you to

have to spend the money and time. We do not want some staff members to leave for the

holidays overflowing with gifts and others to leave with significantly less. We do not want

this season to be about “things”. We want loving relationships and generosity to be

abundant without the trappings of materialism and blanket expectations.

This is an important aspect of our culture and we hope you will respect it. Know that every

holiday your PAC does very special things to thank the adults who care for your teen every

day. If you want to add to the fund for staff gifts, feel free to do so. Additional notes of

appreciation make the occasions even more special. Share a family recipe or a note of thanks

at any time of the year. Use your time and your money to celebrate the spirit of the season!

Thank you!!

Parents Are Our Best Recruiters!

Remember parents, you receive $1,000 toward tuition when you refer a family

to TCS and the student enrolls.

Don’t miss a chance to cash in on this offer and give another child an opportunity

for success.

EACH ONE SEND ONE!!

Contact the Admissions Office for further details.

678-250-5106

rosettag@cottageschool.org

What are you doing on Black Friday??? Support the TCS Media Center by shopping at Barnes & Noble.

In-store

November 28 – December 4, 2014 Any Barnes & Noble Location Nationwide

Online

November 28 – December 9, 2014

When shopping online or in-store, use the following ID #: 11509866

ALL Barnes & Noble purchases will benefit the library at TCS.

The Holidays are Coming!

When you are doing your online holiday shopping, don’t forget to use the Amazon Smile feature so your purchases benefit TCS. And don’t forget all the other ways you can earn a few dollars for TCS. These dollars support program enhancements. Share this with family and friends; you don’t have to have students at TCS to sign up! Thanks for shopping!

Amazon Smile is a simple and automatic way for you to support your favorite charitable

organization every time you shop, at no cost to you. Go to

www.smile.amazon.com and designate The Cottage School as your

charity of choice.

Does your family buy Ziploc bags, Kleenex or General Mills products? These are just a few of the brands that are part of the BoxTops program. This is easy, just cut out the BoxTops logo and send in to school with your child. Start saving now and watch for October contest information coming out soon.

Switch and become a Georgia Natural Gas customer and help your school earn money!

Georgia Natural Gas will donate $5 every month to your school just

for paying your natural gas bill. If you are not already signed up, please

visit www.onlygng.com/TRUEBLUECHOICE for program details.

Kroger offers support of TCS through their Community Rewards program. You can participate by going to Kroger.com, registering your card and then choosing TCS (school #36692) under ‘Community Rewards’. Every time you use your Kroger number for gas or groceries, TCS gets credit.

If you don’t already have one, get your Publix key-chain sized card in the Central Administration Office. Pick up enough to give to friends and family! Each time you shop, present your card at the checkout counter and Publix will donate a percentage of your purchase to TCS.

Target enables customers to specify TCS as the recipient of a percentage of sales charged to their Target credit card. If you don’t currently have one, inquire the next time you shop at Target. It is simple and easy to sign-up for.

PAC PICKS THIS WEEK

What do these items have in common?

These are just a few of the things that you

might find in the TCS Lost and Found! Please

have your student check the Lost and Found

bins that are located in the ‘I’ building, RCC and the

Middle School front office. Please remind your student

to check and see if their missing belongings are there.

Thanks for your help in this matter.

And don’t forget to label all personal items.

Thanks to everyone who sent in Box Tops. Together we

collected 2,267! The winner for the high school is 9th

grader Carter Hall with 268 and the middle school

winner is 8th grader Eric Vogel with 138. Honorable

mention goes to TCS graduate Jake Daunt with 233.

Please keep clipping; every one helps our school!

Toy and Winter Coat

Drive

When: December 1

st, 2014-December 12

th, 2014

Who: To benefit North Fulton Community Charities

What: GENTLY USED or NEW WINTER COATS in all sizes

and NEW, UNWRAPPED TOYS for all ages.

*Each toy and/or coat a student brings puts them into

a drawing for a special prize!! Drawing will be held on

December 12

**Sponsored by Interact Club **

LEGO ROBOTICS Is COMING to THE COTTAGE SCHOOL

The Cottage School is proud to offer Elementary Engineering I (LEGO Robotics) to its students beginning on Monday,

January 5, 2015, continuing through the remainder of the school year, May 2015. The instructor will be a staff member

from Youth Technology Learning Center (YTLC), www.youthtechnologylc.com. YTLC is a creative after-school Center

with a core focus on S.T.E.M. Technology Classes. S.T.E.M. education focuses on science, technology, engineering, and

mathematics concepts taught through problem-solving, discovery, exploratory learning, and critical thinking. Students are

active participants as they build, investigate, problem-solve, discuss, and evaluate scientific and design principles in

action. We must have a minimum of six students before we can offer this opportunity. Questions? Contact Nancy,

678.250-5111 or by email NancyW@cottageschool.org.

Day/time: Mondays, 3:15 PM-4:45 PM Location: Cougar Center (I Building)

Pick-up: no later than 5:00 PM or $1/minute charges apply (unless student is enrolled in ASP)

Instructor: Staff member from Youth Technology Learning Center Additional Supervision: ASP staff member

Fee (non-refundable) must be paid in advance for two-month segments: $20/week

Fee total for January/February 2015: $120-(1/5/2015, 1/12/2015, 1/26/2015, 2/2/2015, 2/9/2015, 2/23/2015)

Non-refundable deposit: $35 (applied toward January/February) If there are not enough students for the class, the

deposit will be refunded.

__________________________________________________________________________________

Name of student: _______________________________________ Age of student: __________

Parent/Guardian name: ________________________________ Cell phone contact information: ___________

DEADLINE to register for January/February is Friday, December 12, 2014.

Registration is not considered complete until application and waiver are completed/returned

with fees to The Cottage School. Thank you!

On-line forms! We have gone paperless with Elective Classes selection. Please

go to the Parent Portal on the TCS website to review the elective classes, their

descriptions and then make selections using the drop down boxes. Please select

the classes your student would like for choices one through four on both the

Monday/Wednesday and the Tuesday/Thursday afternoons. Classes will be

assigned on a first-come first-serve basis. The deadline is December 12, 2014. If

you have any questions about how to complete these forms, please contact Molly

Switzer.

Please bring all donations to Donnaire and mark with “ASP”. We appreciate your support! Thank you!

Mandatory TCS Transition

Meetings for 8th Grade

Students and Parents From the small pond to the big sea!

In order to assist your student and you to transition from the middle

school to high school, we will be holding very informative

mandatory transition meetings.

You can select one of the two following meetings to attend. Please

notify Donna (donnab@cottageschool.org) of the meeting

you and your child will be attending.

Tuesday, December 9, 2014 at 8:00am in the Media Center

OR

Wednesday, December 10, 2014 at 5:30pm in the Media Center

You will learn about all of the events and plans that are in place for

the 8th grade transition to TCS High School.