Brackett PTO
October Newsletter
Brackett Family Math Night for Grades K & 1 will be from 6:00-7:30 p.m. on Monday, January 12 in the Brackett Cafeteria! Kindergarteners and first graders and their parents/guardians are invited to a free, hands-on evening of mathematical exploration! Enjoy dozens of engaging, logic-based puzzles, games, and activities designed to be fun for everyone, no matter their math background. No sign-up is required—just come and enjoy! More info and "appetizers" can be found here for K and here for 1st.
A few key details:
- Friday, February 6, 6:30-8:30pm
- Entry is FREE and open to all students, their families and Brackett faculty
- Everyone will get one free glow bracelet - more items, plus food and drinks (bring a reusable water bottle!) will be available for purchase
- Please note that this is NOT a drop off event - all students must be supervised by an adult and no students will be allowed to leave the building without an adult
Lots of help is needed to bring this event to life - there are multiple ways to volunteer and every bit helps (sign up here):
- Donate food and drinks
- Help with setup and cleanup
- Sell food and drinks or glow items at the dance (shifts are split so you can volunteer AND enjoy the dance)
- 5th Graders - there are lots of opportunities to help out and you can sign up for multiple slots!
The PTO STEM Committee is excited to continue our tradition of bringing the Hour of Code program into Brackett classrooms during the week of February 9-13.
Hour of Code is a national education initiative – the goal is to give millions of students across the country their first taste of computer programming. Brackett has participated in the Hour of Code for several years. The tutorials, arranged as a series of games, are easy to explain to the students and work well to expose them to coding fundamentals.
Hour of Code helps prepare Brackett students to handle technology classes at Gibbs/Ottoson and beyond and hopefully introduces programming to a few students who wouldn’t have tried it otherwise.
We will be looking for parent volunteers to go into classrooms to run a 40-minute coding activity during school hours. This is a great opportunity to see your child in action and meet their classmates! Absolutely no coding experience is necessary — all materials and instructions will be provided. Volunteer information will be posted to www.brackettpto.org the week of January 19.
Questions? Email Tammy Kalt at tkalt@brackettpto.org. More information at www.brackettpto.org/stem.
5th Grade Families- keep an eye out for a very important Yearbook email coming this month! We will need photos and survey info for each student.
We’re at 48% of our fundraising goal—thank you to all the families who have already contributed! Our hope is to reach at least 70% before month end so we can confidently plan the special traditions that make our students’ final year at Brackett so meaningful. We still need $1,685 to reach our January goal. If you’re able, please consider making a contribution today and help us create a joyful and memorable year for the Class of 2026. DONATE HERE
- Mark your Calendars!
- Tuesday, January 27 (11am-9pm, mention "Brackett" and 20% will be donated to the Brackett Baracudas 5th Grade Fund) - Blue Ribbon BBQ Fundraiser
- Bake Sale Sign-ups
- Sign-up here to contribute baked items and/or have your student volunteer at the Glow Dance.
Jerry Pallotta
Jerry Pallotta, author of the popular “Who Would Win” series is coming to Brackett for an author’s visit assembly on Tuesday, February 10!
Students have the opportunity to order books signed by Jerry; order forms were sent home in December. A digital/printable order form is available here.
Orders must be placed in advance and are due by Friday, January 16. Return the completed order form with payment to your student’s classroom teacher. Book orders will be distributed the day of the assembly for students to bring home in backpacks.
The presentation will be during the school day and attended by all grades.
Judd Winick
We are excited to have New York Times bestselling author Judd Winick at Brackett on February 6 to present Hilo Presents: The Mighty! He will be discussing his new book with 3-5 graders. He will also be signing personalized copies of his book. If you would like to order one for your child, use this link (orders due by February 4):
https://jwinickbrackett.eventbrite.com
Green Team - Looking for Translucent Milk/Water Jugs
Book Fair Highlights
Thanks to the incredible support of our volunteers, teachers, librarians, and families, this year’s Book Fair was a wonderful success! Students purchased 900 books, adding to their home libraries and excitement for reading. Favorites included Pokémon, Dog Man: Big Jim Believes, Wings of Fire, and How to Draw Cute Animals. Best of all, the Book Fair helped generate an estimated 162,000 reading minutes, supporting joyful, meaningful reading for our students. Thank you to everyone who helped make reading such a celebration in our community! 📚✨
Lego Expo
The Brackett PTO is considering having a LEGO exhibition one night in the spring and we are trying to gauge interest. Please respond to this poll to let us know your interest level and preferences.
What is a LEGO exhibition? A LEGO exhibition is an opportunity for Brackett students to display their custom LEGO builds, to participate in LEGO building individual & collaborative builds, and play LEGO-based games. Children would register in advance for the games and to reserve a table spot to display their build.
Thank You Varallo Orthodontics!
At Varallo Orthodontics, we love giving back to our community! Through our Partners in Education Program (P.I.E.), we donate $25 to the PTO of every K–8 student who begins treatment with us.
To schedule a free consultation or learn more, visit varalloortho.com.
