Spring Concert May 20 The Charlton Heights Spring Concert will be held on Tuesday, May 20, at 7:30 p.m. in the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School Auditorium.  Performing will be the String Orchestra conducted by Karen Russell, the Grade 4 and 5 Chorus under the direction of Gina Kirsty, and and Band, conducted by Susan Rask.  The awards for music and the arts will be given at the annual spring concert.

Parent Survey

The Charlton Heights Building Council is interested in opinions about the educational process at Charlton Heights.  Please consider taking a moment to answer a few short questions at the following link:

Click Here to take survey.

You may also obtain a copy of the survey in the Main Office.  Please complete the survey by May 29, 2008, so the Building Council can review the results.

Field Day Scheduled for May 28 The annual fourth and fifth grade field day will be held on Wednesday, May 28, at approximately 9:10 a.m. The event typically lasts a couple hours and will be held on the back field at Charlton Heights Elementary School.

The rain date for field day is Friday, May 30.  The decision to cancel or delay the event will be made the morning of field day.  Parents may obtain more information by calling the Main Office if you have questions on the morning of the event.

Spectators are welcome to attend field day.  Families are also invited to attend an awards ceremony at 1:30 p.m. in the gymnasium.  The physical education staff will distribute ribbons from field day as well as the Presidential Physical Fitness Awards and other honors. 

Children who place first, second or third in an individual event, or first place in a team event, qualify for the District Field Day.  The District Field Day is June 3 at Stevens Elementary School at 3:30 p.m.  The rain date is June 4.

PTA Newsletter Now On-line The PTA will now be using an electronic version for our monthly newsletters.  Families who have given the school their e-mail address will be mailed an electronic copy.  Families who would like a hard copy should contact PTA President Mary Beth Frewin or Newsletter Co-Chairs Sue Hanson or Tracy Blowers.  You can also view the May Newsletter on-line by downloading our Newsletter.  Past newsletters can be viewed by clicking the PTA Sidebar on the right side of the web page under the Charlton Heights Quick View.

Charlton Heights Plans 50th Anniversary Celebration Charlton Heights will be celebrating our 50th Anniversary in the fall of 2008.  The school was completed in 1958, and a special committee has been meeting to plan some special events for our community.  The next committee meeting is Tuesday, May 27, at 3:20 p.m. in the Library Media Center.  Please consider joining our committee.

The tentative schedule includes:

Monday, September 29-  50th Celebration Assembly

Tuesday, September 30- Cooperative Learning Day

Wednesday, October 1-  School Spirit Day

Thursday, October 2-  School Mascot Day

Friday, October 3-  50's Day and Sock Hop in the evening

Health Notice for Grade 5 Parents

The following documentation needs to be submitted to the Middle School nurse prior to entering sixth grade based upon current NYS Law.  If you have questions, please contact your school nurse or the Middle School nurse at extension 4035.

Varicella Requirements:  Signed proof from a physician that your child has had the Varicella (Chicken Pox) vaccine, the Chicken Pox Disease, or blood work showing immunity to the disease is required.

Pertussis (Tdap) Requirements:  Students need to immunized for tetanus toxoids, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis (Tdap).  If a student has received a Td, DT, or DTap vaccination within the last two years, the students' vaccination should be deffered (with rare exceptions) until a period of two years has elapsed.  There are two vaccines available: Adacel for ages 11-65 and Boostrix for ages 10-18.  Students who will be 10 years old have two options: vaccinate with Boostrix or wait until the student is 11 years of age and then vaccinate.

Walk About Held May 8

This year’s Walkabout was held on Thursday, May 8^th, at 7:00p.m.  Walkabout is an enjoyable evening packed with energy and excitement for all.  Our teachers and students  worked very hard to prepare for this enjoyable evening when families can took the time to travel throughout the entire building.

The projects and displays took endless hours to prepare.  That’s all part of the learning process; hard work and commitment pay off in the end.  Events such as the Walkabout enhance the partnership between school and home and have always been a highlight for the Charlton Heights community. 

Fifth Graders Present Assembly on Canada

The Charlton Heights Fifth Graders learned about Canada through an interdisciplinary partnership with Chris Holder, fifth grade staff, and special area teachers including art, music, physical education and library.  Chris Holder is an actor, singer, storyteller, songwriter and Master Teaching Artist in arts and education settings across the Northeast.  The students were exposed to songs, poems, stories and dances which enhanced their study of Canada.  The students researched specific aspects of Canada and created a project that was presented to students, staff and the community on April 9.  This program was funded in part by the Decentralization Program, a re-grant program of the New York State Council on the Arts, administered by the Saratoga County Arts Council.  Special thanks to PTA Arts in Education Chair Melissa Antonini for her leadership.  Bravo on a job well done by all!   

Bus Safety Drills Held April 10

The Transportation Department held bus safety drills on the morning of Thursday, April 10, at Charlton Heights Elementary School.   Children reviewed safety precautions with their bus driver and practiced an emergency exit.  Children in grades 1 through 5 also reviewed bus safety on March 31 with Transportation Supervisor Richard Hewlett.

PTA Plans Successful Parents As Reading Partners Program The theme for our Parents As Reading Partners Program was "Take the Time...Read to slime!"  Students were given an electronic bookmark that calculated the number of minutes they read.  The goal of the program was to have each student in the school read for 15 minutes for five days during the week of March 10.  The goal was accomplished, and students turned in their completed logs and voted to "slime" two staff members: Principal Tim Sinnenberg and third grade teacher Andy Haluska, pictured above, who were slimed at the Closing Ceremony on March 18.  

Pennies for Patients

The Pennies for Patients fundraiser was a huge success.  After all the pennies were counted, we raised $465 for those who suffer with blood cancers.  The excitement and enthusiasm demonstrated by students and staff was wonderful.  Thanks to Kathy Greco for organizing the fundraiser, and to all those who participated in this worthy endeavor.

Student Reflections Entry sent to New York State Contest

Congratulations to first grader Matthew Sinnenberg, whose photography entry was sent to the New York State Contest for the National PTA Reflections program.  Matthew's photograph was one of three chosen from the Regional Level to represent our area in the state contest. 

The Reflections program was developed in 1969 to interest children, parents, teachers and communities in the arts.  This year's contest theme was "I Can Make A Difference."  Students created a piece of art work, took a photograph, wrote a story or created a musical composition about the theme.  Following is a list of students whose work was judged at the Regional Level, and our Honorable Mention winners:

Literature:  Matthew Sinnenberg and Billy Smith

Musical Composition:  Nick Sinnenberg

Photography:  Rachel Muzio, Matthew Sinnenberg, Nick Sinnenberg, Sophia Swain and Sydney Thomson

Visual Arts: Luke Gobel, Billy Smith, Colin Swain and Jessica Yaroszeufski

Honorable Mention: Lauren Buthfer, Grady Sondgeroth, and Charlie Thomson

Founder's Day Awards Congratulations to Chris Katz, Mark Katz, and Tim Sinnenberg who received the PTA Founder's Day Award.  The Founder's Day Dinner was held on February 7, 2008 at the Edison Country Club.  This special event celebrates the hard work of volunteers in the district. 

Chris Katz has been the PTA Vice-President for two years.  She also serves as the Parents as Reading Partner and Kindergarten Orientation Co-Chair.  Mark Katz is the den leader for his son's Boy Scout troop, and has helped coach the BH-BL Pee Wee wrestlers.  Both Mark and Chris were instrumental in building the Magic Maze Playground, and served as Construction Chairmen for the build.

Tim Sinnenberg is the Charlton Heights Principal and has been active with the PTA through Reflections and as an instructor for After-School Enrichment Clubs.  He has been involved in many community efforts throughout the years. 

Student Council Theme Days

The Students Council sponsored theme days for the 2007-2008 school year are as follows:

May 22             Red, White and Blue Day

June 20             Future Day

During lunch, PTA volunteers will be selling bags of popcorn for $0.50 on the theme days listed above.

Fall Box Tops Results Thank you for your support of the Box Tops program.  So far this year, we have earned over $1,700.   The PTA is sponsoring a Box Tops for Education contest.  The two classrooms that collected the most Box Tops for Education labels received a pizza or ice cream party in early January.  The labels are found on most General Mills, Betty Crocker and Ziploc items, to name a few.  Please continue to clip your Box Tops and send them into the Main Office.  It is also a good idea to ask family members and neighbors to do the same.  Campbell Soup labels can also be sent to the Main Office.

The competition has been fierce, and the top ten classroom totals are listed below for the fall final results.  A new contest will begin in January.

1.  Mrs. Mindel               884

2.  Mr. Bold                    615

3.  Mrs. Jackson             488

4.  Mr. Moore                  468

5.  Mrs. Buff                    426

6.  Mrs. O’Rourke            398

7.  Mrs. Douglas              365

8.  Mrs. Long                   349

9.  Mrs. DiLallo                311

10. Mr. Haluska               239

PTA After-School Enrichment Clubs

After School Enrichment Clubs were held in January. Staff, parents and community enterprises combined resources to bring our children a range of special interest clubs after school. By attending the same club once a week for four weeks, students had the opportunity to explore interests in depth with their peers.

Thank you very much to our wonderful volunteers for assisting with the After-School Enrichment Clubs. 

Fire Safety Poster Winners Announced

Charlton Heights students participated in our fire safety program and competed in the annual poster contest.  The following students are the winners and honorable mention honorees for their grade level.

Kindergarten:  1st Place: Aven Presseisen and Michelle Stoudt      Honorable Mention: Tucker Bold, Andrew Poirier, Kieran Rhodes, Logan Williams

Grade 1:  1st Place: Isabelle Cataldo     Honorable Mention: Emily Crawford, Dora Law, Lindsey DeBonis

Grade 2:  1st Place: Nathan Katz     Honorable Mention: Nathan Morrill, Benjamin Brousseau, Crystal LaRue

Grade 3:  1st Place: Connor Hotaling     Honorable Mention: Madison Ayers, Emma Billings, Alicia Esposito

Grade 4:  1st Place: Sierra Bach     Honorable Mention: Tyler Jessee, Emily de la Rocha, Jenny Bievenue

Grade 5:  1st Place: Ryan Yattaw      Honorable Mention: Sarah Killeen, Gabby Rao

Children’s Garden Harvest  Students planted fall bulbs (tulips and daffodils) on October 24 and 25 with volunteers from the PTA.  The students then enjoyed a harvest meal prepared by parent helpers.  The feast included butternut squash soup, popcorn, vegetable soup, oatmeal cookies, and carrot cake.

Thank you to Rose Angerosa and Charles Rao for coordinating the effort, and all of our parent volunteers.

Spooky Time at the Monster Mash  Over 600 students and family members enjoyed the PTA Monster Mash on Friday, October 26.  The evening included dancing, a costume parade, games, food and even a jack-o-lantern pumpkin contest.

Thank you to Renee Turnbull and Barb Becker for coordinating the effort!

2007-08 info for parents  Info on this website includes our Student & Parent Handbook that describes Charlton Heights School programs, services and "rules of the road." It has been updated for 2007-08. Click on Student Handbook on the right for a copy of this pdf file. (Requires Acrobat Reader.)

School Report Card posted:  On May 18, the NY State Education Department finally made the 2005-06 Report Cards for all NY schools public on its website. You can view or download this compilation of 2005-06 test scores, graduation results, class size, attendance and other data for the Charlton Height Elementary School here (pdf format). More information and the report cards for all the schools in our district can also be viewed on the State Ed. website at New York State Report Cards.

1,001 Books begins at Charlton Heights! 

Thanks to great support by Charlton Heights families, community members and staff, the "1001 Book Kid" program has begun. 

The ultimate goal of the program is that by the time a child enters first grade, he/she will have heard 1001 stories and have formed a bond with books and reading that will last a lifetime.  Research concludes that “there is no more important activity for preparing your child to succeed as a reader than reading aloud together.”  The “1001 Book Kids” program is one way we can help our busy families access good books to read to their children in a quick and easy way. 

The program works in the following manner.  We will provide 100 bags, each of which contains ten high quality, age appropriate children’s books.  The bags will be located in the Charlton  Heights Main Office Lobby where they are easily accessible before, during and after school hours.  Families who participate can borrow a bag for a week and share the books with their children.  Upon return of the bag, they perform some simple record keeping, and then borrow a new bag.  After reading 100 bags of books, the child will then listen to their 1,001^st story from the principal.  There will be incentives offered along the way as families reach the milestones of 25, 50, 75, and finally, 100 bags. 

You can view more information about the program by going to 1001 Book Kid.