ABS Thursday Notes-October 20, 2022

Published for the Arts Based School Community

October 20, 2022

ABS By the Numbers!

With only one week remaining in this year’s Annual Giving campaign, we wanted to share a few big-picture numbers: 

• In a typical year, state, local, and federal funds cover approximately 90% of ABS expenses. The remaining 10% of our budget must be generated annually via fundraising, grants, and other revenue. This is why we hold an Annual Giving campaign. What do we do with your support?
  
  
• We serve approximately 600 students from 21 zip codes across Winston-Salem and the surrounding area. This means paying our outstanding teachers and staff, keeping our buildings safe and secure, and making sure we have what we need to deliver an intentional, arts-based curriculum centered on state standards.
  
  
• For the 2022-23 school year, 22% of our students qualify for Free and Reduced lunch. Part of our budget includes supporting these families throughout the year—and Annual Giving helps us meet this growing need.
  
  
• Through the years, we have hosted more than 150 unique visiting and resident artists, and we annually put on 9 full-scale grade level productions. These enriching experiences are a huge part of what makes our school special… and we rely heavily on fundraising to make these possible.
  
  
• 100% of our students participate daily in the arts—music, dance, drama, and visual art. We are so proud of all of our students and teachers for bringing the idea of an arts-based school to life every day! We believe that what we have together is special and worth sustaining. 

If you have not yet had a chance to contribute to Annual Giving, you can make a gift on our website, or by sending a check or pledge to the school. Thank you!

Fall Fest This Saturday, October 22nd!

Noon - 2pm at ABS North in the middle school courtyard

Face painting! Food trucks! Pumpkin decorating! Photo Booth! Cake Walk! Book Fair! Games, Games, Games! It's going to be AWESOME! Only $5 admission per child (adults are free!). Bring extra dough for the food trucks and book fair! Fall Fest is a Parent Council sponsored fundraiser that helps to support the school's annual operating expenses. 100% of admissions support Arts Based School. Don't miss it – come hungry and ready to play! Need more information or interested in volunteering, please contact your Class Rep or Katherine White at [email protected].

Remember: This event is for ALL ABS North and South students! Students must have an adult present and be supervised during Fall Fest. Book Fairs will be open during Fall Fest if you want to shop!

October Reminders:

• Oct 17-22: Scholastic Book Fair 
• Oct 17-22: African drumming for ABS North K-4 students at Lloyd Presbyterian.
• Oct. 21, 1:50pm: Friday Sing at ABS North - K-4 students only, no parents/visitors
• Oct 22, 12-2pm: ABS Fall Fest, held in the 7th Street Courtyard
• Oct. 27, 1-2:15pm: Substitute teacher training at ABS South
• Oct 31: Our Annual Giving push comes to a close. Please make your gift today!
• Nov. 5, 9am-12pm: Positive Discipline Workshop at ABS North for all interested families

Annual Giving!

There is only one week left in our Annual Giving campaign, and we would love to see our participation percentages tick up in this final week! 

Your support goes well beyond helping to bridge the gap between what it costs to operate the school and what ABS receives in state and federal funding—your support is also a vote of confidence and an act of goodwill. Please make it a priority to participate if your family is able to make a gift to the school—and our heartfelt thanks to everyone who has already answered the call! 

Total School Participation to Date: 24%

Total Gifts to Date: $30,290

To make your gift, send a check or visit https://www.artsbasedschool.com/apps/pages/giving

Thank you! 

Book Fair

The book fair is OPEN! We’ve enjoyed watching the students get excited about books! 

The book fair will also be open during Fall Fest! If you’re unable to make it to the school during the book fair hours, please come on Saturday during Fall Fest! 

Also, as a reminder, we do have an ONLINE book fair as well! Shop online for an expanded selection of exclusives, new releases, value packs, and more. All orders ship home and book-only orders over $25 ship free. So, if that book your reader was really looking forward to is sold out—don’t fret! The online fair has you covered!

K-4: https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/artsbasedschoolk4

5th-8th: https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/artsbasedmiddleschool

The book fair is closed from 2:30-3:00 in the MLK cafe to accommodate dismissal procedures.

Dental Screening

When children have dental problems, their overall health and ability to learn can be seriously compromised. As part of our regular school preventive dental health program, the NC Oral Health Section, Division of Public Health, and Mashica Jefferson-Tobias, BSDH, RDH, Public Health Dental Hygienist for Forsyth County, will conduct dental screenings for children in grades K, 3rd, 5th on November 14th (ABS-North) and November 17th (ABS-South). She will use gloves, mask, flashlight, and will use a new tongue depressor for each child. The screening serves as an educational, positive dental experience and also collects information to help improve the Children’s Dental Health programs. Children who see a dentist regularly will also benefit from the screening for the educational opportunity. A form letter will be sent home to show your child’s results. If you do not want your child included in this dental screening, please send a note to your child’s teacher. If you have any questions, please call Mashica Jefferson-Tobias, BSDH, RDH, at the Forsyth County Health Department at (336) 391-4822.

Volunteer Opportunity! 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0a4cafa92daa8-dental

Friday Sing Change

Our 21-year tradition of Friday Sing is a beloved one, and we enjoy sharing it with our community. We are concerned, though, that our numbers of combined students and audiences have become too large. To resolve this problem, we are shifting to a new plan.

For our next Friday Sing on October 21 at ABS-North, we will invite only K-4 students, no parents or visitors.

After the October 21st Sing, parents will again be welcome at Friday Sing, but:

We will alternate between K-2 classes one month, and 3-4 classes the next. 

This will significantly reduce the number of students, staff, and parents in the room, and will ease parking and dismissal issues. 

ABS-South campus Friday Sings will remain as currently scheduled.

Some parents have asked us why we don't have more of our Friday Sings in the courtyard at the 7th Street building of our ABS-North campus. Our tradition has been to have one large, K-8 Friday Sing at the end of the year, at the 7th Street courtyard, allowing our graduating 8th graders to choose their favorite songs from their K-4 years. We broke that tradition once or twice during Covid so that we could have some way to sing together. However, large outdoor gatherings of this sort in the courtyard are fraught with many complications, and we have experienced them all. We make it look like a breeze, but it's extremely labor-intensive, and easily disrupted or ruined by weather or expectations of weather. We are not able to regularly sing in the courtyard. 

Thank you for your understanding, as we work to keep our traditions flowing and our students safe. 

Staffing Updates

Stephanie LeFever, ABS operations manager, has resigned effective October 21. Stephanie has been with ABS for 17 years starting in the front office receptionist position. She has been a vital part of the school, managing the lottery, registration, and facilities. Her role has evolved over the years, developing with the school’s growth. She is helping us through the transition as we re-assign her responsibilities. We will all miss her and wish her the best!

Jennifer Lewis, advanced middle school math teacher, has resigned effective October 19. Ms. Lewis has been out of the classroom on medical leave since the beginning of the school year. Mr. Woosley has been serving as a long term sub and will continue in that position.

Substitute Teachers Needed!

ABS relies on many great substitute teachers to support our students when our teachers are absent from school. Our current substitutes are wonderful, but we just don’t have enough people to meet our needs. If you are interested in learning more about subbing at ABS and/or attending a training session, please complete this form. Principal Hollis will be conducting the training session covering the basics and expectations for subbing at ABS. The pay rate for substitute teachers is $15 per hour. Training date-October 27, 1:00-2:15 pm at South Campus.

Prospective Parent Tours

School tours for prospective parents are scheduled weekly on Thursdays at 9:30am. Each tour is limited to 10 adults in an effort to limit the disruption to our students and teachers in the classrooms. Parents interested in learning more about ABS and how to enroll their child, should contact the front office to sign up for a tour. 748-4116 ext 1023. Applications will be accepted beginning January 1. The lottery will be held the second Tuesday of February. An Open House Tour of South Campus will be held Nov. 15, 5-6pm.

Halloween is Coming

Please do not send students to school in costumes. We all enjoy the fun and excitement of Halloween but find that costumes and accessories make it very difficult to concentrate. Also we do not want students to bring candy in their lunch bags for snacks. Although it can be delicious, high sugar snacks should not replace a healthy snack. Thanks for your help!

Around Town

Green Eggs and Ham w/Winston-Salem Symphony (and Mrs. B!)