Month: November 2014

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May you always have enough…

As we gather together with family and friends to share in thankful celebration, these words of my Granny B. remind me of the blessings in life:

May you always have enough…

  • happiness to keep you sweet,busyhands
  • trials to keep you strong,
  • sorrows to keep you human,
  • hope to keep you JOYful,
  • failure to keep you humble,
  • success to make you eager,
  • friends to give you comfort,
  • wealth to meet your needs,
  • enthusiasm to look for tomorrow,
  • faith to banish worry, and
  • determination to make each day better than before! 

It is important to teach our children to share and embrace the gratitudes of daily life (along with the necessary coping skills to deal with life too).  Allowing their “busy hands” to assist, to explore, and to share in the work builds strong character traits (like trust, respect, responsibility, service and more).

Thanks for walking the journey with us; thanks for sharing your most valuable blessing, your child, with us!  Happy Thanksgiving!

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We are THANKful!

As we wrap up this exciting week of learning at LME in anticipation of our first holiday break, we are truly grateful for the following gifts:

1.  Our Midlothian Education Foundation surprised four IMG_6119of our extraordinary teachers today with a grant award of $3,934.95 for the clever “Telling Stories, One Stop At A Time” animation club.  Under the outstanding direction of Amy Clark, Andrew Morgan, Scott Fiorenza, and Katie Bergvall, students will work with innovative animation stop-motion to create digital stories and more during presentations.  Stop-motion software allows artists to work one frame at a time to create video and moving images using pictures drawn with sound added later.  Think of the big animated movies out today; this is what our learners will use!  Congratulations to our animated team and many thanks, MEF!

2.  The LME learning community gathered and gave 4,939 canned and boxed food items today during LME Rally!  WOW!  Winning classes are Kinder = Mr. Pendley, 1st = Mrs. L. Bergvall, 2nd = Mrs. King, 3rd = Mrs. Milne, 4th  = Mrs. Dickard, and 5th = Mrs. Lassetter.  Thanks for giving time, service, and resources to those most in need this holiday season!

3.  Finally, our KC (Kindness and Compassion) Club designed and implemented The Thankful Tree (like the The Giving Tree) for our campus while sharing ways and ideas for helping others to be thankful for each day.  The response to their video and the idea truly “leaves” us breathless…way to go!

Here’s hoping you enJOY a fun, festive, fall holiday with those you hold dear.  May the blessings of the season remind us all to #LoveServeCare everyday!  🙂

Note:  Students have a holiday from November 24 – 28; we will see everyone back on Monday, December 1st! 

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We CAN do it!

cans3 Our Student Honor Council, their enthusiastic sponsor, Mrs. Stanley, and our families of LME really CAN do it! Drum Roll, please: We collected 4,903 canned and boxed items to donate to our local food bank, Manna House! This is double our collection from last year! cans1 cans5 Thanks for the overwhelming response, for sharing many gifts of thanks, and for giving so generously to ensure others can celebrate the holiday with yummy food! 🙂

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Thanks and Giving…

Thanks1 Thanks3 We celebrated our annual Family Thanksgiving Feast today with great thanks and giving indeed!  From the traditional meal to great conversation during all six lunches, families noshed in fellowship, tradition, and fun.  Special thanks to our cafe ladies and volunteers who fedThanks4 over 1100 LME family members.  Thanks to our learning community for joining us today.

In the process of sharing, several learners and their families Thanks2stopped by the “thankful tree” to post their blessings and drop off canned and boxed food items for our big food drive this week.  Our Student Honor Council reports we have over 2500 products in just two days…WOW!  Please keep them coming through Thursday!  As always, thanks for sharing the love by giving this week…and throughout the year!  🙂

 

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CAN you help this week?

Our 7th Annual LaRue Miller Elementary Thanksgiving Food Drive kicked off last Friday during our rally and will run this week until Thursday, Nov. 20th.  Sponsored by our LME Student Honor Council, our canned-foodshomeroom classes are competing to bring the most food items based on specific needs of Manna House right now:

  • Monday:  canned corn
  • Tuesday:  dried beans
  • Wednesday:  boxed cereal
  • Thursday:  canned beef and chili

Please check expiration dates carefully and send items with your child as possible each day.  The donated cans will go to local families for holiday support in our community.  As one StuCo member noted, “Every can helps; CAN you help please?”  🙂

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Denim and Diamonds 2014!

DD1Thanks to the extraordinary work of our highly involved PTO membership here at LME, we enJOYed a most memorable evening event!  From bronco riding and  roping for the children to a highly competitive live and silent auction of exquisite opportunities, the festivities, food (catered by Babe’s), fun, live music, DD2dancing, and fellowship flowed!  Special thanks to guest auctioneer, Mr. Massey, for keeping the bidding lively!  Our sponsors and those who donated items are commended once again for the superb selection of items and choices.  More thanks to DD3our incredible PTO Board of ladies who dream big and make it happen every year—outstanding work by all!  Thanks to our families, our staff members, and our learning community who come out to participate and support the work and programs of our growing campus each year…blessings abound!   🙂

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Veteran’s Day 2014

“Honor to the soldier and the sailor everywhere, who bravely bears the country’s cause.  Honor also to the citizen who cares for the brother of the field, and serves, as he best can, the same cause.”  These words spoken by President Abraham Lincoln pledged support and heartfelt thanks for the service and work of our nation’s veterans.

VetDay5thOur campus and learning community gathered today to honor and offer support, love, and thanks to our brave men and women who valiantly serve our country.  Led by our extraordinary music teacher, Mrs. Perez (with the Specials Team and 5th Grade Team), our students talked, sang, rang bells, and shared stories in various ways.  From the historical part of Veteran’s Day to the celebration of each branch of the military, they “covered all the bases.”  🙂  Special thanks to our LME families who participated in our traditional Wall of Honor this year; it will remain on display through the month of November.

Generation after generation, Americans have stepped WallofHonorforward to defend our freedom and preserve the founding principles of our great Nation.  From Valley Forge to Vietnam, from Kuwait to Kandahar, from Berlin to Baghdad, and beyond, these patriots stood watch over America’s peace, and when necessary, carried the costs of our Nation’s wars.  These brave men and women have cleared the seas, charged the hills, and covered the skies; we pledge to uphold each veteran’s legacy by teaching our younger generations, our learners, about the role in securing the blessings of liberty.  In teaching others, we teach ourselves.  May we always take the opportunity to remember, reflect, and revisit the service and sacrifices of our Nation’s Veterans.  Here’s hoping you thank a Veteran today and every day!  🙂

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Fear vs. Love

A special friend and I had an interesting conversation today about fear versus love.  This child is struggling and asked for some “advice” on how to conquer fear of failure.  We talked about the “cure” to fear being love.  Instead of fearing failure, learn to love the process and success will naturally come.  When we learn to focus on love, we cast the fear aside.  candy heart

As parents and educators, teaching the idea of love conquering fear sets the tone for overall success in extraordinary ways each day.  For example, teachers model and demonstrate love daily to their learners; they understand what they build with love will become so much more for each child.  Loving the child is the focus rather than fearing new state standards or testing.  Only through love and loving the process of learning will they help each child create something special, magnificent, and compelling…a personal masterpiece.

Jon Gordon in his book, The Carpenter, says it best:  “That which is built on love will endure, so love all of it; when you love all of it, you will fear none of it…this a success strategy and secret to a life of great meaning…”  He further explains:

  1. Love the struggle…because it makes you appreciate your accomplishment.
  2. Love challenges…because they make you stronger.
  3. Love competition…because it makes you better.
  4. Love negative people (they need love most of all)…because they make you more positive.
  5. Love those who have hurt you…because they teach you forgiveness.
  6. Love fear…because it makes you courageous.

Here’s hoping we remember to love all of it and fear none of it!  🙂

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Denim and Diamonds Event!

D&DOur exceptional PTO is once again sponsoring their big fundraising event for the year:  Denim and Diamonds Dinner and Auction.  Join us next Friday, November 14th for this evening of family fun.  The doors open at 6:00 p.m. with supper served at 6:15.  Peruse the silent auction, dance to the music of the live band, enjoy the petting zoo outside, and try your hand at roping and bronco riding before the live auction starts at 7:15.  Everything from a Big Green Egg to golfing trips and more are being donated to raise money for additional playground equipment and technology carts for our students.  You do not have to eat supper to attend the auction and participate in the evening (dinner reservations are due by Nov. 11th to the front office).  Come for fun, food, fellowship, and festive holiday shopping; we hope to see you here!  🙂

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Asking the big ?s…

“Take out your iPad for a reader response to the character’s idea of finding gratitude and meaning in each day…”  Thus started a most reflective few moments for this small group of writers discussing character point–of-view during their literature group time; indeed, it sparked a personal interest in each learner to reflect on his or her own attitude of gratitude.gratitude

As one learner noted, “Gratitude is the surest way to heal a hurt and help you focus on what is good.”  Another commented, “I’ve found it’s a great way to make a difference in my day.”  A third child shared, “I find more reasons to be grateful for all I have even when we really have very little in our life now.”  Finally, another chimes in, “So the way you see it, gratitude turns what you have into enough.”  BINGO!  🙂

The group challenged one another to list the things they are each thankful for today and to then pick one to write about by describing how it came to be in their life.  They asked big questions like, “What did you learn from it?” – and – “What meaning does this hold for you?”  Finally, they summed up the message by challenging each other to have an attitude of gratitude every day to make them aware of the blessings coming their way.   So, the BIG question to you today:  How will you choose to have an attitude of gratitude so you appreciate the blessings coming your way?