November 3, 2006
		Tzvi and his pumpkin Thanksgiving Break is Wed. 11/22 - Fri. 11/24. We will resume school on Mon. 11/27. Lower School fundraiser products have been delivered. Please turn in payment for your order as soon as possible, and make checks payable to Lawrence School. Students will receive prizes when orders have been paid in full. Steve Z. and Viv M. Congratulations to the members of the 2006 Lawrence School Homecoming Court: Doug B. and Holly R (grade 9), Brandy P. and John T. (grade 10), Chris A. and Tiffany C. (grade 11), Laura H. and Mark W. (grade 12) and our Homecoming King and Queen, Steve Z. and Vivian M! Basketball tryouts are next week; if you plan to try out but did not attend the mandatory meeting, please see Mr. Messer. At Fall Parties, students "mummified" Ms. Richardson! The canned food drive will take place Nov. 1-17. Student Council will offer a pizza lunch to the homerooms in lower, middle and high school that bring in the most food/paper products for the Brecksville/ Broadview Heights Food Bank. Yoga class for grades 7-12 starts Wed. 11/8 from 3:15-4 pm. See Ms. Bishop for details. This is a short month for Market Day due to the holiday. All orders are due Nov. 7. Don't forget to order holiday pies! Lesley S. (right) with Brittany T. Congratulations to 7th grader Lesley S. who, as a member of the Cleveland Blues Premier Soccer Club and a member of one of the All-Star teams of the Cleveland Soccer Academy, has been selected to train with the USA National Soccer Team coaches on 11/12. Lesley could be selected for the Regional Team, then the USA National Team, with the ultimate goal of making the USA Women’s National Soccer Team. Go, Lesley!		Welcome to November! Night in Barcelona - next Friday There is still time to RSVP for the "Night in Barcelona" event next Fri. 11/10 from 5:30-8:30 pm. Come see student artwork inspired by the work of Picasso (who was learning disabled). The evening begins at the Cleveland Institute of Art with the student exhibit and Spanish beer, wine and tapas. Then, guests will be transported to the Museum of Art to tour the Barcelona exhibit. Tickets are $125. Please RSVP at your earliest convenience to 440-526-0003 ext. 2301. Head of School Candidate Search Update The Head of School Search Committee is pleased to announce that our search for a new Head of School to replace Mimi Mayer once she retires at the end of June is making great progress. Over the next few weeks, we will welcome two exceptional finalists to our building to meet with staff, students and other members of the Lawrence family. We will keep you posted on further developments! Chalkboard Chats - Upper School Parents of students in grades 7-12 are encouraged to attend the fall session of Chalkboard Chats - our parent education session - next Wed. 11/8 from 7-8 pm in Room 306. This session will address how to get the most out of Classroll, our web-based grading system. Please RSVP to Mr. David Harris at x2114. Lower School Parent/Teacher Conferences Lower School Parent/Teacher Conference Week is Nov. 6-10. If you have not scheduled a conference with your child's homeroom teacher, please contact him/her to arrange a time to meet. Thank you, parents! Thank you to the Lower School parents who hosted Fall Parties last week. Students enjoyed the many activities and treats provided by our parents. Also, many thanks to the Upper School parents who brought dinner for teachers on Wed. Nov. 1. It meant so much to our hard-working teachers and staff! Lower School parent volunteers Thanks to all Lower School parents who have volunteered for various activities this year. Because we have such a high number of volunteers, we may not need to ask you to attend every activity you signed up for. We will, however, try to include you in as many events as possible. Again, a big thank you for such an overwhelming response! Students volunteer for Berea Animal Rescue On Sat. 10/28, Mrs. Colleen Hotz's advisory group volunteered at the Berea Animal Rescue "Howl-O-Ween" event to raise money and awareness. Students handed out doggie treats, sold snacks and beverages, judged costume contests, and overall had a great time donating their time and efforts. Spanish Field Trip On Thurs. 11/2, Ms. Amanda Hedrick's Spanish Club and Spanish IV students attended the Hispanic Flamenco Ballet. Students saw Latin American dances from countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic. The day ended with lunch at Cozumel’s Mexican Restaurant. Ole! Lawrence Deans to give presentation On Thurs. 11/16 at 7 pm, Vanessa Diffenbacher and Joyce Walker will give a presentation at the Madison Public Library, discussing the problems and strengths that face children with learning disabilities. This free seminar is hosted by The Dyslexia Project. For more information contact Karen Austen at 440-428-1674 or aurora777@adelphia.net. Open House for Prospective Students Open House for prospective students takes place on 11/5 at 3 pm for Upper School and 11/8 at 9 am for Lower School. The Upper School event will take place at the new campus in Sagamore Hills; the Lower School event will take place in the Broadview Heights facility. Please RSVP to 440-526-0717. Head Notes Next week, three members of our staff – Joyce Walker, Ryan Masa, and Jeff Petrulis –  will speak at the International Dyslexia Association's 57th Annual Conference in Indianapolis. Their presentation, "AP, College Placement and LD… Defying the Odds" will highlight our experience establishing challenging academic programming for our capable students. It is gratifying to see that the academic program we are developing is receiving national recognition, and we are proud to have these fine educators representing us in the international arena. In addition to our primary mission to serve our students and families, we are always seeking ways to share what we have learned and developed with others. I love it when a colleague is able to take something from Lawrence and adapt it to their school or learning environment; we are always willing and able to share our “secrets” with others who might benefit. I hope that as we continue to refine our programming, we will be able to broaden the reach of  information to impact many students and families - here and elsewhere - who will benefit from our experience. - Mimi Mayer Head of School