Tarpey GATE – Open for Business!

The Tarpey GATE students opened their own businesses for one special night on May 15, 2013.  Each student individually or cooperatively filed a business plan with a creative product to sell at the evening event.  Parents, classmates, teachers, and friends showed up and received twenty “funny money” dollars at the door.  Dessert treats, PVC pipe toys, bracelets, tacos, and origami products were just some of the items for sale.  This activity was all part of studying economics, banking, and finance this year in GATE.  Students also participated in an online stock market game.  At the end of the special evening, though, it was the gooey treats from Aspen Emler and Sierra Kinnish that took home the grand prize!  Tarpey GATE students also took a field trip to Old Towne Clovis to visit businesses there and learn about owning your own business.  In addition, a representative from the EECU instructed the student about loans, IRAs, and making smart financial decisions.

Police Chief for the Day

Alexis Copeland, a sixth grader at Tarpey in Mr. Sandoval’s class, wrote the winning essay on what she would do as police officer for a day. Clovis Police Department’s Officer Willow came to school May 9^th to give Alexis a ride to the department in a police cruiser.

Once at the department, Alexis was given a tour of the jail and crime lab, including dispatching officers. Then lunch with the Chief, discussing her essay and ideas. After lunch Alexis was able to try out the robots used for the bomb squad, then return to school in style. Of course Alexis got to flip on the cruiser’s lights at least once!

The Fresno Grizzlies community outreach program, Wild About Reading, has been a Tarpey activity for years. The Grizzlies’ mascot visits for an assembly each January to get the kids pumped up about reading. Their offer of a free baseball game for each student who reads 10 books in a 6 week period is wonderful incentive. They also offer fabulous prizes for “Outstanding” readers, selected by their teachers. This year fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Francine Contreras,  selected Kyle Raymondo as her outstanding reader. His name, along with about 250 other students from 8 schools that were assigned to the April 20^th Wild About Reading game for the Kindle Fire giveaways  was randomly selected! Way to go, Kyle!

Mrs. Pauls loves to make hats! She asked her daughter-in-law Stephanie Pauls, a former teacher at Tarpey, if she knew some students that needed hats. Stephanie Pauls said, “I sure do, and they will really appreciate them”.  That is how Mrs. Pauls became part of Tarpey’s family.

Mrs. Paul's Tarpey's contact is Mrs. Francine Contreras, a 4th grade teacher at Tarpey. The first multitude of hats Mrs. Pauls made came the week before sixth graders went to Sonora, so they were the lucky ones to get a homemade beanie hat each. A few fourth graders also were the lucky recipients of a Mrs. Pauls hat, so the whole class wrote thank you letters to her.  

Thursday, January 17, Mrs. Pauls delivered hats for the rest of the fourth graders in need. She also wanted to meet a particular student, Eric Cha, who’s thank you letter really made Mrs. Pauls smile. Tarpey thanks Mrs. Pauls for her generosity.

PTC gathered and handed out 40 Thanksgiving food baskets this year and an additional 30 turkeys to needy families.

Channel 24 Educator of the Week is Tarpey's own Mr. Chris Hart!

Each week, Channel 24  honors a teacher in the Valley who's making a difference in student's lives. November 12, 2012 they came to Tarpey Elementary school meet a 5^th grade teacher. Congratulations Mr. Chris Hart, KSEE 24’s Educator of the Week. Mr. Hart received a  $124 check from GW School Supply. His name will also be engraved  on a brick on the 'Teacher and Friends of Education Honor Wall', at Fresno State's Kremen School of Education.

Red Ribbon Week at Tarpey

Tarpey Spartans had a Kick Off Rally Monday, October 22, to get pumped up about being “Drug Free” and “Staying Drug Free” in honor of Red Ribbon Week. Spartan pride was shown by wearing red and administration handed out red bracelets to each child that said ”drug free”.  Student Council, led by Mrs. Dee Dee Jett sang a song conveying proud to be drug free to the beat of “The Adams Family” soundtrack. Buchanan Leadership students took turns speaking about being drug free and how their lives are the better for it and Clovis PD and FD had representatives on hand speaking of the dangers of doing drugs and how you can mess up any chance to be a policeman or fireman if ever convicted of drugs.

A campus poster and essay  contest depicting “The choice 4 me is Drug-Free” was held with two winners, a primary student and an upper grade student. The  Primary Poster Contest winner is Ashley Herr in room 24 and upper grade winner was Chakong Yang in room 15. All week Tarpey collected canned foods along with wearing crazy sock, Ts, and mismatched outfits, being proud to be drug free!

Tarpey is again making our local Firefighters day a little “sweeter” in honor of 9/11 and firemen’s  dedication to keeping all of us safe. This is the 10th year Tarpey’s Student Council has collected baked goods, gift cards to local vendors, and a little love to deliver to Clovis’  Firehouse #2.

The walk to the Firehouse after school on 9/11 is an event many student and staff members attend, along with Tarpey’s Student Council members, lead by Mrs. Dee Dee Jett.  Also, Tarpey Spartans come to school proudly decked out in red, white, and blue attire in honor of those directly affected by the tragedy of 9/11.

Earn a Bike Program, sponsored by the organization Off The Front, presented 83 bicycles to Tarpey 4th graders at an assembly June 7th. In order to receive a bike and accompanying gear 4th graders had to meet all the requirements. Students needed to have good attendance and behavior throughout the year. Also required was showing growth academically and receiving points for community service. Almost the whole grade level qualified for a bike!

California Pizza Kitchen chooses one classroom each year to adopt and lavish with lunch and gifts..  Mrs. Varvis’ Kindergarten class at Tarpey Elementary was the lucky one chosen this year!  The manager, Kathy Meyers, surprised the children on May 31, by delivering $250.00 worth of school materials!  The class received reading and math learning games , art supplies and writing materials.

The children also participated in a pizza box art contest.  Each child decorated their own pizza box.  The class then voted for the most creative box.  Robert Romero came in first place and received his own CPK apron.  The runners-up were Ivy Zheng and Shasiti Gonzales.  All of the children’s beautiful boxes are on display during the first week of June at the restaurant. 

The surprise continued with pizza provided by California Pizza Kitchen. The class and Mrs. Varvis are very grateful for the materials and special day!  Thanks California Pizza Kitchen!

Tarpey celebrated the 2011/2012 school year with a back to school night Thursday. Along with a brief orientation by Principal Holtermann and meeting teachers, parents could also purchase an inexpensive pizza dinner. Off The Front, in partnership with Little Caesars Pizza owner Scott Hellam, donated the pizza to Tarpey to sell as a fund raiser.

Off The Front picked Tarpey this school year to target with help. It is a nonprofit organization that partners with local businesses to battle the issues plaguing impoverished areas of Fresno and Clovis, CA.  Their goal is give a bicycle to every 4th grade student in the impoverished areas of Fresno as a reward for excelling in three areas: academics, character, and community service.

According to Mike Slayden, this is their third year in operation, giving a total of 160 bikes away. Two years ago they started their program with Susan B. Anthony School and last year Pinedale Elementary benefited from their generosity. This year Off The Front  picked Tarpey, Lowell, and Calwa Schools to visit and encourage every child in kindergarten through 6th grade to actively commute to school.

Mike Slayden

Tarpey Elementary School Teacher Receives A Day Made Better Surprise from OfficeMax on October 5

On Tuesday, October 5 Tarpey Elementary School Teacher Tacy Kroell was  surprised with $1,000 worth of school supplies as part of the “A Day Made Better” national cause event celebrating teachers for their extraordinary efforts in the classroom.

Winning teachers are nominated for this award by their principals for demonstrating passion, dedication and innovation in the classroom.

Since “A Day Made Better” first began in October 2007, OfficeMax has funded more than 3,500 teachers and their classrooms on behalf of the “A Day Made Better” cause and helped attract donations for 10,000 classrooms through Adopt-A-Classroom. Learn more at adaymadebetter.com or adopt a teacher at adoptaclassroom.org.

SJCL Donates Books To Tarpey & Sierra Vista - 3/3/11

"Elizabeth O'Neill's Short Stacks for a Tall Cause" pancake breakfast/book drive was held in February, hosted by San Joaquin College of Law. The Elizabeth O’Neill’s scholarship fund-raiser is an annual event that includes SJCL’s Race Judicata. The money the event raises is for the Elizabeth O’Neill Memorial Scholarship, set up by family to help female head of household students who demonstrate a high level of civility and integrity, as she herself did throughout her life and career.

Because of Elizabeth O’Neill’s love for children and passion for reading, SJCL  combined a book drive with their fund-raiser. The book drive starts a few weeks prior to the breakfast.  Cart is put out at the law college and people start filling up the cart. Then, as the cart becomes full, the books are boxed and placed in Ms. Cartier’s office.

SJCL generously donates the books they collect to Clovis Unified elementary school’s libraries.  Missy Cartier, SJCL’s Public Information Officer, presented 358 books to Librarians Shannon Raiskup and Georgi Leonardo. Last year Pinedale and Temperance Kutner received 200 books between the two schools. SJCL’s goal is to double the amount of books they collect each year and help in placing much needed books in the hands of  children. The books will touch many children and provide entertainment that expands the mind. 

    Kirsten Olmos & Sharon Rutherford

Butterfly Science

Mrs. Aragon’s first graders and Mrs. Scholefiend’s fifth graders from Tarpey Elementary school have been science buddy classrooms since the start of the 2009-2010 school year. Science buddies meet every Friday and work on science projects throughout the school year. The latest science topic was on butterflies. The students helped each other learn the life cycle of butterflies through art, writing, reading, and math. The goal of both teachers was to create an environment where students would have hands-on experience while learning science topics. The students were able to create the life cycle of the butterflies using a variety of dry pasta shells. Then the class ordered caterpillars on-line and experienced the real thing in class! On the last Friday of the lesson the students had an opportunity to release the butterflies out into the school garden. This was a great springboard opportunity to jump into the next science topic of… plants! 

Luis H. Garcia (1st grade)                                Ezara Bajorquez (1st grade)

Clovis Sierra Rotary Club Donates Dictionaries to 3rd Graders

All Tarpey third graders received a dictionary of their very own Tuesday, October 5, 2010. This generous gift came from the Clovis Rotary Club, who have been benefactors of Tarpey in years past, donating dictionaries to students and books to the Library. Today's presentation was made by Mr. Ed Flores, Mr. Jim Johnson, Mr. Gary Reagan, And Mr. Stanley Simonian.

My American Hero

By Faith Yang

            Boom!  Hear the sounds of bombs exploding in the middle of the night, fall onto the ground crawling out trying not to get shot.  Run into the mountains trying not to make a peep.  Bam!  Just got hit and screamed in pain yelling for help.  Wake up panting really hard remembering the Vietnam War thirty years ago and what it was like.  Now, living in the United States having a good life but a hard time speaking English is my dad.

            My dad might have a hard time speaking English but will sacrifice himself for his family to get to Thailand.  A long time ago when the Vietnam War was still going on my grandpa was in the war.  He helped the United States to defeat Vietnam but when the United States lost the war, they retreated and left the Hmong people behind.  The new communist government killed the Hmong people who helped the United States.  My dad knew if he didn’t leave and go to Thailand then his parents wouldn’t go because his brother lost his leg during the war.

            My dad is the oldest one in his family.  He was so brave to go through hardship in the jungle to save his family.  When he got to Thailand he suffered so much and was homesick.  He had no money, was very sick, and no one to take care of him.  He finally got to reunite with his family after three years.  He now lives in a terrific house with lots of space for his children.  He has six kids and a beautiful wife.  Now he is a professor at Fresno State and teaches Social Work.  Now you know why he is my American hero.

Faith Yang won 3rd place in

the "American Legion Essay

Contest.She will be honored

at the CUSD Governing Board

meeting on Wednesday

April 28, 2010. Way to go Faith!

My American Hero

By James Galvan

            That was the day.  US Marshalls were by her side.  They were blocking the view of the horrible things people were doing.  When she got inside, her teacher, Mrs. Henry, said, “Hello Ruby.”

            That was the day that a girl named Ruby Bridges was going to go to William Frantz Public School, a school where no African American children had ever gone.  When Ruby got there, there were no other kids there because their parents thought that just because Ruby’s skin was a different color that she was not clean.  They thought she was nasty, different, rude, and wrong but those people didn’t know anything.  Ruby was a smart little African American girl with a positive attitude.  She had straight A’s.

            That day the government was trying something called integration.

            Later in that school year people got tired of trying to scare Ruby back to her old school so they just went home and other kids came to school but they did not play with her.  One of the kids said, “My mom said I can’t play with you because you’re a Negro.”  But then after time things got better and kids started playing with her and she started making friends and that’s how the rest of the year went until it was over.  The year had ended and Ruby was sad.  “No more Mrs. Henry,” she thought.

            Ruby is my hero because she was brave, forgiving, caring, and strong for a little six year old girl making history.  “Please, God, try to forgive those people.  Because even if they say those bad things, they don’t know what they’re doing.  So You could forgive them, just like You did those folks a long time ago when they said terrible things about You.”

The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles and Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges

Tarpey Celebrates Red Ribbon Week 2009

Tarpey Kicked off the week with an 8 am rally to get students excited about being "Drug Free"! The them is "Drug Free is the Key" for success. Tarpey's Student Council challenged all Staff & Student Body to be Drug Free, entertaining the audience with a song about drug awareness to the tune of the Addams Family theme sang. All on campus were wearing red to show their support of a Drug Free lifestyle on Monday. Tuesday saw staff & students wearing pajamas to "Follow your dream...don't do drugs". Clovis Police Department was on hand to give out red ribbons to students and showing a positive influence in the community.

H1N1 Prevention at Tarpey

Nurses Brinkley & Bavin, along with Principal Holtermann went from class to class  administering the H1N1 Flu Vacination.

Tarpey Celebrates Red Ribbon Week

Tarpey Elementary kicked off Red Ribbon Week with a host of themes in celebration of being 'Drug Free". Monday students and staff wore red and were entertained with an assembly featuring Official DARE Safety Buddy, Retro Bill. Tuesday's theme, "Drugs and I don't Mix", had everyone sporting the craziest attire of mismatched clothing our closets could spit out. Wednesday showed our coolness wearing sunglasses to "Shade Out Drugs". We ended the week with "Sock it to Drugs", wearing the silliest socks ever!

Play It Safe Winners

Play It Safe Poster winners from Tarpey Elementary School were: front row Skyler Hill, Monse Gonzales Ruiz, Hannah Williamson, Desiree Buono, Haley Olmos, and Sierra Bevan. Back row Johanna Castillo, Max Spohn, Abby Helmers, and Jeremiah Lopez. Winners not pictured were Danielle Ramirez, Issac Montalvo Chacon, Samantha Larios, Heaven Robinson, and Alexis Garza.

Clovis Sierra Rotary Club Donates Dictionaries to 3rd Graders

Excited Tarpey third graders were again the recipients of Clovis Sierra Rotary Club's Generosity. Members Ed Flores, Ron Greilich, and James Johnson handed out dictionaries to all 100 of Tarpey's third grade classes on Friday, October 3, 2008. The Rotary realizes what a big transition it is from third grade to fourth and how much children need to master before getting to fourth grade. That is why they target third grade for their gift of words. The children get to keep the dictionary as their own, forever. Pictured are Dominique Sandoval and Sierra Beven as they get their hot little hands on a personal copy of the dictionary they get to keep! Tarpey Thanks you, Clovis Sierra Rotary Club!

Tarpey’s Higgins Library Wins "Created Equal" Bookshelf Grant

Tarpey Elementary School is one of 3,000 Libraries selected to receive the grant for the We the People Bookshelf, a collection of classic books for young readers.We the People Bookshelf is a project of the National Endowment for the Humanities’ (NEH) and is conducted in cooperation with the American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office. Mrs. Georgi Leonardo, Tarpey's Librarian, proudly displays the We the People Bookshelf of 21 hard-cover books, 4 of the titles which are translated into Spanish.

Tarpey Elementary sixth grade teacher Pamela Daw was honored by the California Association for the Gifted (CAG) for receiving the association’s Distinguished Service Award for the San Joaquin Region. She received the award at CAG’s 45th Annual Conference March 2-4 at the Santa Clara Convention Center.

Daw will also be recognized locally for winning the award. On Wednesday, March 28, Tarpey staff will hold a reception in her honor in the school’s Library Media Center from 2:45-3:45 p.m. Later that evening the CUSD Governing Board will recognize her achievement at their regularly scheduled Board meeting beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the Professional Development Building, 1680 David E. Cook Way in Clovis. The community is invited to attend both events.

The Distinguished Service Award was developed by CAG in 2003 to honor one member of the GATE community in each region for outstanding contributions to the interests of gifted and talented children. These honorees are recognized and celebrated within their region and receive a complimentary CAG membership. Parents, teachers, administrators, counselors, psychologists and community members can be nominated provided they are a California resident.

Each year, award selections have been based upon the following criteria:

· Demonstrated excellence that benefits gifted and talented students

· Proven commitment to gifted children

· Advocacy for the gifted and talented

· Service to CAG and other organizations for gifted learners

          Students in Mrs. Marie Sanchez’s first and second grade combo class at Tarpey have been learning how to write friendly letters.  When they found out that one of their classmates has an older brother serving for  the U.S. Army in Iraq, the children  knew they wanted to write to him.  Second grader Sierra Watts’ older brother Ryan Watts is serving with the construction battalion stationed outside Baghdad.  The students wrote letters to him in December and he received the packet of letters about three weeks later.

        Pvt. Watts came home to Clovis on a two-week leave in February and wanted to meet the students.  He visited Mrs. Sanchez’s class on February 13, which happened to be his birthday.  He wore his uniform and explained to the students what his life was like as a soldier in Iraq, answered all of their questions, and told them how much receiving their letters had meant to him.  He also treated the class to a pizza party. 

          The students thoroughly enjoyed his visit and will be writing thank you letters to him.  After his two-week leave, Pvt. Watts ships off for another six-month tour of duty in Iraq.  To Pvt. Watts and every soldier serving our country, Room 8 at Tarpey says “THANK YOU.”

Thanks go out to  Mr. Jim O'Neal and the Clovis Kiwanas Club for their kind donation of books to Tarpey Library!

January 9, 2007 the Grizzles "Wild About Reading" assembly will be held in the MPR at 2:00PM. Wild About Reading Students from participating schools who read 10 books in 5 weeks receive TWO FREE TICKET VOUCHERS to a Grizzlies game!

Additionally, two schools will receive $500 to use for their library! The school with the best turnout percentage (percentage of school students who use their vouchers) and the school with the highest volume turnout (largest raw number of students) will receive this reward. Let's win this contest!

Thanksgiving 2006: Thank you National Wild Turkey Federation for making this happen.

Even though Tarpey is economically challenged, our school, parents and staff, managed to make sure families that normally wouldn't have a feast on Thanksgiving did. Tarpey Parent Club handed out over 35 baskets, with the turkeys donated by Lee Emler and the National Wild Turkey Federation. Eastside Church donated a basket to one family also. The rest of the food came from the families at Tarpey. The Tarpey PTC gave out $15 gift cards to Winco for families to purchase pies for their holiday. I think it is amazing, the spirit of family that is shown here in our neighborhood.

Friday, November 17th, Tarpey Elementary officially made it "Officer Salcido Day". There was a special assembly in the morning for the students and staff in his honor. Tarpey's Principal, Mrs. Robyn Castillo, presented a beautiful plaque on behalf of the school and declared November 17th "Officer Salcido Day"! All the "Character Counts" pillars were mentioned, each in conjecture with a special memory of Officer Salcido and his work around campus. A child representative from different classrooms came up to present Officer Salcido with cards, posters, and letters the children wrote.

After twenty-seven years as a California Highway Patrolman, Officer Salcido is retiring. He went above and beyond his duties trying to keep Tarpey safe. Beware the speeding motorist going past while children were crossing the street to get to school, they would receive a stern warning or a ticket! Officer Salcido was even given his own parking space at Tarpey. Whether he was here working or just joining the staff for lunch, Officer Salcido was always welcome. The children knew they could always talk to him. The playground shook with applause when Officer Salcido announced he'd be back... as a substitute teacher!