Ryan Elementary



Ryan Elementary

Room Parent Handbook

2011-2012

PTA Room Parent Coordinator

JoAnn Geier

303-428-2703

ryanroomparent@

Dear Room Parents,

Thank you so much for accepting the position as room parent for you child’s classroom. I do hope the parties will be enjoyable for you and your child. Children seem to enjoy the refreshments as well as the down time the party gives them, so keep in mind that the classroom parties do not need to be costly or elaborate.

This handbook is intended to provide Ryan Elementary Room Parent volunteers with party guidelines and suggestions. Your main responsibility as a Room Parent is to plan and participate in the three classroom parties that occur during the school year. The parties are Fall Harvest, Winterfest and Valentine’s Day. This year the party dates are as follows: Monday, October 31; Friday, December 16; and Wednesday, February 14.

The room party guidelines have been established by the Ryan PTA members and the Ryan staff as a result of past experience and suggestions. This document is meant to be updated as things change. Suggestions are always welcome to help us improve this handbook. The purpose of the guidelines is to ensure that the kids have parties that they will enjoy participating in and that everyone involved understands what to expect for successful parties.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

* Anything NOT in this packet must be approved by Mrs. Techmanski before being used.

PARTY GUIDELINES:

COMMUNICATION: Teachers: Please contact your teacher and let him/her know who you are

as soon as possible. They are also great resources for coordinating room parties, so please enlist their aid and ask if there are any additional guidelines that they have in their classroom. Remember to discuss your ideas with them as they may have some valuable input to give you, as well as helping to set timelines for activates and games.

Parent Helpers: Coordinating class helpers who have volunteered to

assist with the parties is very important. A list of others wanting to help in your classroom will be given to each person who has contacted the Room Parent Coordinator to help for that classroom. The party letter that is to go home prior to each party also asks for helpers. If you don’t get enough help, please contact the Room Parent Coordinator, as he/she is here to help you. Based on personal experience, 2 to 4 adult helpers is good. There is the possibility of enlisting classroom student helpers with passing out certain things like plates, napkins and cups.

VOLUNTEERS: Room parent volunteers should have an appropriate familial and/or legal relationship with a child in the classroom. Please ensure that disputes outside of the school are not brought into the classroom or made part of the school experience. As a room parent, it is imperative that you share party information with all classroom parents. Remember, we’re doing this for the kiddos!

PARTY MONEY: There may be limited reimbursements available for parties this year.

If necessary, you can only be reimbursed up to $1.00 per party/per student. So, if there are 20 children in the class, the most you will be reimbursed is $20.00 per party. * If you are combining funds from the three parties, that is fine too. Your classroom, with 20 children, may not exceed $60.00 in reimbursements for the school year. * Please complete the voucher within this packet and attach your receipt, one for each party. You can then place this in the treasurer’s box in the PTA cabinet, which is located just inside the Computer Lab in the Library. With this money it is suggested that you purchase items like plates, cups, bowls, napkins, utensils, crafts, paper/Ziploc bags etc. Please do not purchase any food items with this money. We are asking that the food items be donated by families in the classroom. It is up to you (and the committee of room parents if there is more than one volunteer) to decide what you would like to have donated.

Most neighborhood stores (e.g. King Soopers, Target, K-Mart, Hobby Lobby, Fun Services, etc.) are more than willing to forego the sales tax if you make them aware and provide the tax exempt number (98-03264) prior to the purchase. Some merchants are even willing to donate items or give price breaks, if asked. Keep in mind that most merchants require cash payment if using the tax exempt number, which means no checks, debit cards or credit cards.

PARENT LETTERS: Attached are three different letter templates, one for each of the parties. Please customize them and have your teacher email them to the class, or if necessary make copies for distribution. If you want you can write in your name, phone and email under the “Thank you” line. I do this in case parents have questions. It has never been abused. Please see the ‘COPIES’ section for guidelines on distributing to the class.

SIGNING UP ONLINE: You can create an account at . This is the fastest and easiest option. You can also use the on-line spreadsheet to manage party donations and volunteers. Simply customize your teacher’s tab then have your teacher email the link to the class. The spreadsheet contains more detailed instructions. If you choose not to use the spreadsheet, please indicate how parents should sign up within the spreadsheet since parents may access it from another classroom’s link. The website is: ryanroomparent..

FOOD: No colored drinks can be served to avoid stains on the school carpet.

The letters that go home state this as well so that we do not have to return drinks such as Hawaiian Punch or Sunny D. Please also consider the possibility of food allergies/sensitivities when asking for donations.

A popular suggestion that has come up concerning food is to provide only 2 or 3 items at the party and then send the rest home in paper or Ziploc bags. It doesn’t need to be anything fancy. You can even make a craft out of it by letting them decorate their own paper bags.

ACTIVITIES: Please limit your parties to one or two activities or games.

Remember, you have one hour and that includes treats. A good rule of thumb would be to allow at least 15 to 20 minutes for treats and 40 to 45 minutes for activities. Keep in mind the ages of the children when planning. For example, Kindergarteners may take 20 minutes to complete a single craft that may take older students only 5 minutes.

PARTY IDEAS: Within this packet is a list of party ideas by grade. Additional

ideas for the list are always welcome.

** Diversity can be an issue for class parties. Please make every effort to include all of the children in the classroom. If religion concerns arise, simple changes can include all of the children. For example, use winter holiday icons such as stockings, candy canes, etc., instead of Santa Claus.

COSTUMES: No bloody, gory, scary, provocative or revealing costumes may be worn

during parties. No weapons or toy weapons of any kind are allowed. Candles are not to be used. Parent costumes must also follow these rules. No part of the costume may be worn during the regular school day.

COPIES: If you need to have copies made by the school, fill out a copy form located in the white wire basket by the door of the Media Room and then return to the basket for copying. Request that the copies be delivered to the teacher for distribution in Friday Folders. Copies will be paid for by the PTA only if done in the Media Room at the school. No reimbursements will be made if copies are done somewhere else. Information for Friday folders needs to be to the classrooms by Wednesday of that week.

EXTRAS: If you have extra food, drinks or supplies see if you can send them home

with the child/children who brought them. If it is something that can be saved for the next party, see if you, or someone else in the class, can hold onto them.

CO-ROOM PARENTING: Here are a few ideas to help get you started in working together to have great parties: 1) Remember, we’re doing this for the kiddos! 2) Keep it fun. 3) Get together with your teacher and co-room parents to discover your teacher’s vision for the parties and to determine how each parent can best support that vision.

There are several ways to share the party responsibilities. A few ideas are: 1) Each parent can take certain jobs for each party: (letter, coordinating donations, running party stations, creating goodie bags, etc). 2) Each parent can take one party to manage on their own. 3) If everyone agrees, one parent can be elected the ‘team leader’.

REMEMBER TO KEEP THE PARTIES SIMPLE AND FUN!

COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR TEACHERS AND HELPERS TOO!

THESE ARE KEY TO A SUCCESSFUL PARTY!

Additional Duties: As a Room Parent, your primary job is to plan and conduct the three annual classroom parties in cooperation with your teacher and co-room parents. However, you may want to do more than that. You can coordinate any additional responsibilities with your teacher. For example, if you desire, you may organize providing a classroom gift for the teacher (or in the teacher’s name) such as during the Winterfest party or at the end of the year. This is entirely optional and is not expected!

Timeline for Planning Classroom Parties

Fall Harvest Party: Monday, October 31, 2011 2:15pm – 3:20pm

Morning Kindergarten: Check with your teacher for party times!

Special Considerations:

The student body participates in an all school parade which consumes approximately 30 minutes of the one hour allowed for the classroom party. You will have 30 minutes of party time in the classroom, so please keep this party simple. Refreshments and simple games work well, otherwise you will run out of time. Please make note that NO bloody, gory, or provocative costumes may be worn by either students or parents during the party.

Monday, October 3, 2011 Turn in letters for approval by Mrs. Techmanski, if applicable. Turn in letter to Media Room for copies.

Monday, October 10, 2011 Verify with the teacher this week that the letters have gone

home or will be going home by Friday, October 14, 2011.

Monday, October 24, 2011 Have reminder notices sent home this week if you have not

received enough back from parents in your classroom.

Winterfest Party: Friday, December 16, 2011 2:20pm – 3:20pm

Special Considerations:

Please remember to use winter icons such as stockings, candy canes, snowmen, etc, instead of Santa Claus.

Monday, November 14, 2011 Turn in letters for approval by Mrs. Techmanski, if applicable. Turn in letter to Media Room for copies.

Monday, November 28, 2011 Verify with the teacher this week that the letters have gone

home or will be going home by Friday, December 2, 2011.

Monday, December 5, 2011 Have reminder notices sent home this week if you have not

received enough back from parents in your classroom.

Valentine’s Day Party: Wednesday, February 14, 2012 2:20pm – 3:20pm

Special Considerations:

Please remember that the children will be exchanging Valentines that may take up time.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012 Turn in letters for approval by Mrs. Techmanski, if applicable. Turn in letter to Media Room for copies.

Monday, January 16, 2012 Verify with the teacher this week that the letters have gone

home or will be going home by Friday, January 20, 2012.

Monday, January 23, 2012 Have reminder notices sent home this week if you have not

received enough back from parents in your classroom.

Party Ideas

Kindergarten, Crafts: simple self adhesive projects

First & Second Relay games

Grades Ring toss

Bean bag toss

Bowling

Decorate cookies

Pin the tail on the donkey, or a similar game

Decorate paper lunch bags with die cuts for a goodie bag

The fishing game (where the child fishes for prizes)

Musical Chairs

Door knob decorations

Jar guessing games – winner gets to keep

Decorate blank cards

Third Grade Cupcake walk

Bingo

Pictionary

Charades

Pine cone bird feeder

Fourth, Fifth & Limbo

Sixth Grade Brownie mix in a jar

Fill or decorate glass ornaments

Make your own ice cream sundaes

Shrinky dinks

Book exchange with Tommy Wright story (in this packet)

Donut on a stick

Special Considerations:

Once an activity has been listed for a particular grade level it can work for any older grade level. Example: the jar guessing game is listed in Kindergarten, but can also be used as a game in fourth grade. Activities listed for sixth grade will work best for the older kids and may not work as well for a kindergartener.

Kindergarten thru second grade: Activities work very well in centers. There can be one craft activity per table, with an adult to supervise. After ten to fifteen minutes the kids rotate to a new center. When possible, use self adhesive craft projects. Glue can get very messy and take a long time to dry.

If you have a lot of candy or other individually wrapped items, you can always save some for the teacher to use in the classroom throughout the year as special treats.

PTA Treasurer - Room Party Reimbursement Form

Date: _____________________ For: Valentines Day Party

Teacher: __________________________ Number of Students: __________________

Room Parent Name: _____________________________________________________________

Contact information in case there are questions about the attached receipt from our treasurer.

Phone number: _________________________________________________________________

Email: ________________________________________________________________________

* Don’t forget to attach your receipt (s). Reimbursement Amount: _______________

PTA Treasurer - Room Party Reimbursement Form

Date: _____________________ For: Winterfest

Teacher: __________________________ Number of Students: __________________

Room Parent Name: _____________________________________________________________

Contact information in case there are questions about the attached receipt from our treasurer.

Phone number: _________________________________________________________________

Email: ________________________________________________________________________

* Don’t forget to attach your receipt (s). Reimbursement Amount: _______________

PTA Treasurer - Room Party Reimbursement Form

Date: _____________________ For: Fall Harvest

Teacher: __________________________ Number of Students: __________________

Room Parent Name: _____________________________________________________________

Contact information in case there are questions about the attached receipt from our treasurer.

Phone number: _________________________________________________________________

Email: ________________________________________________________________________

* Don’t forget to attach your receipt (s). Reimbursement Amount: _______________

Dear Parents of _______________________ class,

The Valentine’s Party will be held on Wednesday, February 14, 2012 from 2:20 pm to 3:20 pm. There are ____________ children in the class and there are _____________________________ food allergies.

The following items are needed to make the party a success:

← Apple Juice Boxes

← Cupcakes

← Fruit

← Veggies

← Cheese & Crackers

← Cookies

← Candy

← Napkins

← ‘Single serve’ drinks

← Plates

← Bags or boxes (suitable

for Valentine exchange)

← Decorations for Valentine bags/boxes

← $5 to use as needed for the party

If you would like to donate any of the above items, please complete the portion below and send it to your child’s teacher no later than Monday, January 30, 2012. This will help to avoid duplication and will ensure that we have what we need on the day of the party. All nonperishable items can be delivered to the classroom starting Wednesday, February 8, 2012.

Parents are also needed as volunteers in the classroom the day of the party. Interested parents should plan to be at the school by 2:00 pm and stay until 3:30 pm to help set up, assist during the party and clean up at the end.

Teacher’s name will also be emailing a link where you can sign up if you prefer. The link is: ______________.

Thank you in advance for your help!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Teacher: ___________________________________________________

________Yes, I can bring ______________________________________

________Yes, I can be there by 2:00 to help (come to the back door).

Parent name(s): ___________________________________________________

Student name(s): __________________________________________________

Day Phone: __________________ Evening Phone: __________________________

Email (optional): ________________________________________________________

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Dear Parents of _______________________________ class,

The Winterfest Party will be held on Friday, December 16, 2011 from 2:20 pm to 3:20 pm. There are ______________ children in the class and there are __________________________ food allergies.

The following items are needed to make the party a success:

← Apple Juice Boxes

← ‘Single serve’ drinks

← Cupcakes

← Fruit

← Veggies

← Cheese & Crackers

← Goodie bags

← Cookies

← Candy

← Napkins

← Plates

← Party Favors

← $5 wrapped book for gift exchange

← $5 to use as needed for the party

If you would like to donate any of the above items, please complete the portion below and send it to your child’s teacher no later than Monday, December 5, 2011. This will help to avoid duplication and will ensure that we have what we need on the day of the party. All nonperishable items can be delivered to the classroom starting Monday, December12, 2011.

Parents are also needed as volunteers in the classroom the day of the party. Interested parents should plan to be at the school by 2:00 pm and stay until 3:30 pm to help set up, assist during the party and clean up at the end.

Teacher’s name will also be emailing a link where you can sign up if you prefer. The link is: ______________.

Thank you in advance for your help!

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Teacher: ___________________________________________________

________Yes, I can bring ______________________________________

________Yes, I can be there by 2:00 to help (come to the back door).

Parent name(s): ___________________________________________________

Student name(s): __________________________________________________

Day Phone: __________________ Evening Phone: __________________________

Email (optional): ________________________________________________________

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Dear Parents of _________________ class,

The Fall Harvest Party will be held on Monday, October 31, 2011 from 2:15 pm to 3:20 pm. There are ______ children in the class and there are________________________ food allergies.

The following items are needed to make the party a success:

← Apple Juice Boxes

← Cupcakes

← Fruit

← Veggies

← Cheese & Crackers

← Cookies

← Candy

← Napkins

← Plates

← Party Favors

← Goodie Bags

← $5 to use as needed for the party .

← ‘Single serve’ drinks

If you would like to donate any of the above items, please complete the portion below and send it to your child’s teacher no later than Monday, October 17, 2011. This will help to avoid duplication and will ensure that we have what we need on the day of the party. All nonperishable items can be delivered to the classroom starting Monday, October 24, 2011.

Parents are also needed as volunteers in the classroom the day of the party. Interested parents should plan to be at the school by 2:00 pm and stay until 3:30 pm to help set up, assist during the party and clean up at the end.

Teacher’s name will also be emailing a link where you can sign up if you prefer. The link is: ______________.

Thank you in advance for your help!

[pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic]

Teacher: ___________________________________________________

________Yes, I can bring ______________________________________

________Yes, I can be there by 2:00 to help (come to the back door).

Parent name(s): ___________________________________________________

Student name(s): __________________________________________________

Day Phone: __________________ Evening Phone: __________________________

Email (optional): ________________________________________________________

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