Upcoming Community Events

Please note that these events are not sponsored by Parent Council. Multi-Arts Drama and Art Program for 1st through 6th graders. This 12-week program starts on January 7th at Wildwood Elementary School in Amherst. Wednesdays, from 2:00 to 4:30pm, art 2:00-3:00 p.m. $150, Drama 3:00-4:30 p.m. $250. Note: $300 if you register for both workshops (Financial aid available). REGISTER NOW!! For more information, visit www.multi-arts.org. You also can call us at 413-584-7951. Northampton Family Dance. Date: Sunday, December 21, Time: 3:00 - 5:00 PM, Place: First Churches, 129 Main Street, Northampton (Use Center Street entrance across from the Iron Horse). Event: Please come to the Family Dance! Come enjoy a variety of folk and contra dances geared to children and families. All dances are taught and all ages are welcome--no dance experience needed. A healthy snack is served at the break. Live music! Admission is $4 per person for ages 3 and up, $15 maximum per family. This is the second dance in our season of five dances, taking place on the third Sunday of the month from November through March. For more information, please call (413) 549-7808. A note from Parent Council. We will publish information about non-Parent Council sponsored events with the following conditions: 1. The event should be of interest to Fort River families.

2. The information should be sent to Ann McLaughlin at damclaughlin@comcast.net in the form of a short description. 3. Contact information (website or name, telephone and/or email address) must be included. We add new information to the blog every Friday during the school year. Please note that we do not accept announcements of items or services for sale (with the exceptions of children's classes/lessons). Inclusion in this section does not imply any guarantees or endorsements by Fort River Parent Council or Fort River School.

Upcoming School Events

Fort River Book Fair. Extended after school hours today, Friday, December 5 from 3-7pm. Hillside Pizza Fundraiser--Pizza Pick-Up Day. Friday, Dec. 5. Pick up your pizza orders and shop at the Book Fair after school. Amherst Family Outreach Annual Toy Drive organized by Catherine Davies' 6th grade class. Week of Dec. 8-Dec. 12. Send in toy donations to Ms. Davies class (G-4). See below for more information. Fort River Roasters by Dean's Beans Coffee Orders Due. Monday, Dec. 8. Click here for order form. 6th Grade “Art Opening” of Portrait & Self-Portrait Paintings. Tuesday, December 9th anytime from 3:30-6:30 pm. See below for more information. School Vacation. Dec. 24, 2008 through Friday Jan. 2, 2009. School Reopens Jan. 5, 2009. Note: Items in teal are sponsored by Fort River Parent Council.

Easy Passive Fundraisers

Here are two more easy ways to make money for Fort River: BIG Y Education Express. You can earn points for Fort River to acquire much needed equipment and supplies! If you have a Big Y Express Savings Club card, you can just visit the customer service desk to fill out a form that will link Fort River with your card (School ID # 5947). Or go to www.bigy.com/education and sign up from your computer! Then, whenever you use your card to purchase items designated with the “Education Express” logo, you’ll earn points for our school. TARGET Take Charge of Education. If you have a Target REDcard (credit card), you can designate Fort River to receive up to 1% of the value of your purchases on the card. Go to www.Target.com/tcoe to designate Fort River (School ID # 58645). And don't forget: Stop & Shop A+ Bonusbucks. The numbers for November are in and Fort River now has 74 people signed up!!! Awesome! We have now earned $444 for Fort River so far in the first two months of the program ($128 in October, and $316(!) in November). It's still not too late to sign up for the program if you haven't already. If you enroll by December 31st we will receive credit for ALL of your December purchases! Please click here for all the information you need to sign up. Thanks!

Amherstopoly!

Representatives from the four Amherst elementary school parent groups (Crocker Farm, Fort River, Marks Meadow and Wildwood) are working together to create an Amherstopoly Board Game! If you are a business owner or if you know of a civic group that would like to sponsor a property on the board let us know!! Contact Becky Demling (beckydemling@yahoo.com) for more info. We hope to have the game ready for sale in March 09 - just in time for Amherst's 250th Birthday! More info at www.amherstopoly.blogspot.com.

Amherst Family Outreach Toy Drive

Amherst Family Outreach is sponsoring its 16th Annual Toy Drive. Catherine Davies' 6th grade class is organizing the toy drive at Fort River this year. Keep an eye out for their posters and flyers looking for new, unwrapped toys for the children in our community who are looking forward to a happy and healthy holiday season. The toys can be sent in with your children any day next week and they should bring them to Catherine Davies' classroom (G-4). We are hoping to make this the most successful drive ever!! If you have any questions you can contact Lynn Logan at lynnlogan@comcast.net or call 256-0232.

6th Grade Art Opening

You Are Cordially Invited To the Fort River School 6th Grade “Art Opening” Of Portrait & Self-Portrait Paintings Drop in and view the work on Tuesday, December 9th anytime from 3:30-6:30 pm.

6th grade art students at Fort River Elementary School recently created portraits of themselves based on artist Kehinde Wiley's integration of young African-American hip-hop artists into traditional portraits. Fort River Art Teacher Teri Magner was in Washington, DC over the summer where she received a private showing of Wiley's exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery from her former Fort River student Brooke Steinhauser, then a Smithsonian gallery intern. When Magner saw it, she knew it was something her students would both invest in and relate to. Wiley, a New York based artist, is known for his paintings of contemporary urban African-American men in poses taken from famous historical paintings. He chooses paintings for his subjects that best represent the per formative and personal aspects of their character. In a well known piece, he portrayed Ice T through Napoleon's portrait on the throne for the VH1 Hip Hop Honors. Inspired, Mrs. Magner found 200 portraits from traditional to contemporary, ensuring each of her 82 sixth grade students would find one that was a good fit. The students used themselves in the portraits instead of a contemporary artist, painting on canvas with acrylic. In order to minimize the intimidation of painting one's face and instead keep the focus on recreating the background, they printed photos of themselves from the computer and glued them onto the canvas. The resulting piece reflects each student’s canvas painting with their face integrated, framed with a copy of the original portrait they chose. Drop by, enjoy the art, have a snack, and speak with some of the artists!

Upcoming Community Events

Please note that these events are not sponsored by Parent Council. Merry Maple Celebration of Lights. This evening on the Town Common! December 5, 2008 from 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM. 4:00 pm Children's Parade from Kendrick Park to Amherst Town Hall 4:30 pm Amherst Regional Middle School Chorus directed by Dave Ranen 4:30-5:30 pm Kids Craft Table & Face Painting located on the 2nd floor Town Hall. 5:30 pm UMass Minutemen Marching Band 5:30 pm Santa Claus arrives on a Fire Truck 6:00 pm Join Santa at the Amherst History Museum for hot chocolate Enjoy hot cider, donuts, hot chocolate and coffee provided by Atkins Farms Country Market. Face painting provided by Amherst Community Arts Center. Sponsored by Promoting Downtown Amherst and the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce. ACAC Open House. Saturday December 6th from noon-6pm. Visit ACAC and see what we're all about! Everyone is welcome! • Meet ACAC instructors and board members • Explore our art studios • Make some art • Watch demos • And enjoy great food and drink • Plus: free facepainting, door prizes, music & story-telling SCHEDULE: Noon: wheel throwing demo with Jana Silver, founding Executive Director of ACAC 1pm: singing & music with Jim Henry & Roger Tincknell 2:30pm: paper marbling demo with Hillary Milens, Executive Director of ACAC 4pm: storytelling & music with Brendan Taaffe 5pm: rolling ring demo with Margaret Langdell, ACAC Jewelry & Enameling Instructor All day: free art projects and face painting for all ages www.amherstarts.org Northampton Family Dance. Date: Sunday, December 21, Time: 3:00 - 5:00 PM, Place: First Churches, 129 Main Street, Northampton (Use Center Street entrance across from the Iron Horse). Event: Please come to the Family Dance! Come enjoy a variety of folk and contra dances geared to children and families. All dances are taught and all ages are welcome--no dance experience needed. A healthy snack is served at the break. Live music! Admission is $4 per person for ages 3 and up, $15 maximum per family. This is the second dance in our season of five dances, taking place on the third Sunday of the month from November through March. For more information, please call (413) 549-7808. A note from Parent Council. We will publish information about non-Parent Council sponsored events with the following conditions: 1. The event should be of interest to Fort River families.

2. The information should be sent to Ann McLaughlin at damclaughlin@comcast.net in the form of a short description. 3. Contact information (website or name, telephone and/or email address) must be included. We add new information to the blog every Friday during the school year. Please note that we do not accept announcements of items or services for sale (with the exceptions of children's classes/lessons). Inclusion in this section does not imply any guarantees or endorsements by Fort River Parent Council or Fort River School.