Category Archives: From the PTO

Save the Date for Bigelow Skate Night 2019

Bigelow families will have another skate outing this December! Save the date and plan to come with the whole family and friends for a fun night of ice skating at the Warrior Ice Arena on Friday, December 6th from 8pm-10pm! Lots of kids came out last year that had never skated, so bring your friends and come out!

Skate Night at Warrior
Friday, December 6th, from 8pm to 10pm
Warrior Ice Arena
90 Guest Street, Brighton MA 02135
$10 Admission Includes Ice Skate Rental
Say you are from Bigelow and the PTO will receive $5.

Bigelow Fall Play: “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane”

Tickets for the “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane” will be on sale at lunch time all week and also at the door. 5$ for students and 10$ for adults.

Performance dates

Thursday (11/14), Friday (11/15), and Saturday (11/16) at 7pm

Poster designed by the Drama Student Producers. They also created the design for sweatshirts.

More information about the fall play, as well as rehearsal schedule, at the Bigelow Drama website.

Save the date: Blue Ribbon BBQ Dinner

Pre-Thanksgiving dinner. Before you head out of town or start cooking for the holiday, order dinner from Blue Ribbon BBQ or eat at the restaurant to support Bigelow PTO. When you purchase your meal, say you are from Bigelow. The restaurant will donate 20% of your meal’s price back to the Bigelow PTO.

Blue Ribbon BBQ Dinner
Tuesday, November 26
Order In or Take Out

  • 1375 Washington Street, Newton, MA 02465
  • 908 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington, MA 02476
  • 342 Washington Street, Dedham, MA 02026

Bigelow PTO will get 20% of your meal’s price!
http://www.blueribbonbbq.com/west-newton.aspx

Bigelow Celtics Night 2020: Get your Tickets!

The Bigelow PTO has arranged for a Bigelow Celtics Night at TD Garden on January 8th! Join with your family and friends to cheer on the Celtics as they battle the San Antonio Spurs!
25 lucky kids going to the game will be picked randomly for an exciting pre-game court side activity! Before you register and buy tickets online, please download paper form here. 

More information here: Bigelow Celtics Night 2020.

Get Your Tickets Here!

Information about Newton Teachers

Many parents have asked the PTO what the status is of the contract negotiations with the teachers and the city. Please find below some information

As part of their contract negotiation campaign, Newton Teachers are taking additional action. On November 5th Bigelow teacher’s stood out in front of the school to let the community know they are working without a contract. According to the Newton Teachers Association:

  • Beginning in November, teachers will discontinue participating in voluntary committees.
  • Beginning in December, teachers will remain silent during department and citywide meetings. They will continue to remain silent during full faculty meetings.

“We will not work in the normal ways we work, we will not go above and beyond, and, most importantly, we will not contribute to the district’s ability to advance its initiatives until negotiations are completed. Our goal, in escalating from full faculty meetings, to departmental and voluntary meetings, to, eventually, professional development, is to prevent the district from moving forward initiatives–to bring these to a grinding halt.” (Mike Zilles, NTA President)

More at:

Save the date: BIG Night 2020 Kickoff Meeting

Come join the fun and be a part of planning Bigelow’s biggest night of the year!

Hosted by Alexis Giannakopoulos and Cheryl Abramson on December 4th at 7:00pm.

Big Night is the Bigelow PTO’s biggest social and fundraising event of the year. It’s a night where the Bigelow (adult) community gets together to enjoy live music, nice food and drinks, bid on wonderful auction items, meet and catch up with other Bigelow parents and staff. More here.

Time Change: Road Safety Reminders for Drivers and Students

Please pay attention to kids walking and biking, especially now that it gets dark earlier.

Newton Safe Routes to School Time Change Safety Reminders. The end of daylight savings time means more kids will be walking and biking home at dusk and in the dark. Sunset this week is around 4:30 p.m. Newton Safe Routes to School offers the following safety tips.

WHEN YOU DRIVE:

Remember, kids walking at dusk may ASSUME DRIVERS CAN SEE THEM even when they can’t. Keep kids safe and take these steps:

  • Slow down: In dusk/dark, more time is needed to see pedestrians. Increase the recommended safe following distances. The more space, the more time there is to react. Slow down even further during rain.
  • Always stop: for pedestrians crossing the street. Do not pass vehicles stopped at crosswalks.
  • Be extra cautious: Decreased visibility calls for more vigilant driving. Watch for bicyclists and pedestrians in neighborhoods and along school bus routes, at intersections and when backing out of driveways. Watch for pedestrians at every crosswalk. 
  • Be seen: Turn on headlights to be more visible at dawn and dusk.
  • Eliminate distractions: Put away phones, food and drink. Keep your eyes on the road
  • Beware of glare: Clean windshields inside and out. Dirty windshields can magnify glare.

REMIND YOUR WALKING AND BIKING KIDS TO:

  • Cross at well-lit crosswalks, wait for the walk signal at stoplights, and make sure vehicles stop before you start to cross. Continue to look both ways as you cross the street.
  • Watch for cars pulling in and out of driveways on the sidewalk
  • Drivers cannot see well in the dark. Remember that just because you can easily see a driver, that driver may not see you. Drivers have lights from the dashboard, headlights pointed their way, and reflections from the car mirrors that keep them from seeing as well as you do as a pedestrian. 
  • Wear reflective clothing or clip something reflective to your backpack. Even better, add a blinking light. Cyclists turn on your front and back lights on the way to and from school.
  • Avoid distraction: put your phone and headphones in your pocket. Keep your hood off so you can look around. Be predictable.

Check out the Newton Safe Routes to School Facebook page here. 

Bigelow is looking for a Safe Routes to School representative. Please contact us if you are interested in helping to make the streets around the school safer for all.

TEN Tables was a Big Success! Thank you

Thank you all for making Bigelow TEN Tables the best ever!!!!!! 116 people were involved with cooking, hosting & eating their way through Newton! This could only happen with the generosity of hosts who donated all of their time, food & drinks.

We raised over $6000 which will benefit our kids.

Special thanks to Alessandra Di Bacco & Tomasz Grzegorczyk and Shana & Dan Smythe  who started the night off with a dazzling array of appetizers and cheer.

Gracious dinner hosts who opened their homes and cooked dinner.
Rachel & Ron Blankstein
Rachel & Michael Singer
Linda & David Gillespie and Raju & Vijaya Tatituri
Becca Schulman Havemeyer & Will Havemeyer
Gwen & Ben Hautefeuille
Joana Canedo & Jason Dyett
Shital Gandhi & Jay Parekh
Giulia & Andrea Monti Guarnieri
Tian Tian, Li Liang and David & Becca Connors
Beth & Bill Hicks and Alexia & Charlie Giannakopoulos
Meredith & Bill Andrews and Susan & Ron Giunta

And another huge shout out to Una and Ethan Simmons who welcomed everyone back to their home at the end of the night with fabulous assortment of desserts. All that after she organized this delicious community-building event, and incredible fundraiser!

 

 

More pictures here.