Snellville sign waste

Would you ever think about parking in a designated exit/turn lane on Highway 124/Scenic Highway? Do you need about 39 signs to tell you that?

How about duplicate signs - a sign right behind another one that has the same message on it? (I think the duplicates are there because it's one teams' job to install the signs, and another teams' job to uninstall and the uninstall team hasn't been out yet to do their work...well, let's see...



Check out the video, leave a comment...who do we talk to about this issue?

A bit of a rant

Earlier this week, school planning officials made alterations in their original proposal to reflect some of the early input from parents. Those changes include adjustments that would keep the Magill Elementary students in Snellville from transferring to Britt Elementary. But many Britt parents objected Thursday, saying that triggers a chain of events that keeps Britt attendance above the building's capacity, so some children will be forced to remain in trailers on the campus.
http://www.ajc.com/news/gwinnett/parents-appeal-to-school-205762.html

Oh, people so hate those trailers! More on that at the bottom of this post...*

I thought at first it might be possible my child would need to switch schools with the redistricting plan. It turns out my son will not be affected, but my thought on the matter was that if it happened, we would deal with it. Britt, Magill, Norton...they're all good schools.

If kids need to change schools, there is an adjustment, but kids are smart and they can make the change. The AKS (Academic, Knowledge and Skills criteria) is the same, no matter what Gwinnett County School you child attends.

Kids are going to take the cue for how to deal with change from how they see their parents react. When my husband attended public schools in Savannah, he was bussed to different schools 3-4 times within a decade. He was bussed to a downtown Savannah school for "racial balancing," even though there was an elementary school at the end of his street! He dealt with it.

Complain if you feel you must, but realize the Gwinnett County School System is not asking parents and kids for a terrible sacrifice.

We all know Gwinnett County is in a budget crisis. Most of us are in a budget crisis. We think things are really bad. But if you happened to notice Veteran's Day slip by us, and remember what that's all about...we all have to make sacrifices sometimes - we aren't always going to get what we want. Sometimes we have to just accept. We'd all love life to be like it used to be. Hey, this is life during wartime. If this is the worst sacrifice you have to make, you are a blessed person!

Our sacrifices are nothing like our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents had to make. Letting our children see that we can cope with disappointment and roll with the punches is something that can help build their character.

I'm all for people standing up for rights and trying to improve things, however [in my opinion] there's too much whining and complaining because things have gone sour. We're mad that our library's not open anymore on Sundays and Mondays. Libraries are being turned into computer labs. Now kids might have to change schools. (I hate to tell you that we are also probably going to receive another Gwinnett property tax bill!)

Bad stuff happens, and yes it stinks. It shouldn't have happened. But it's not like you are in a convoy in Afghanistan, hoping you don't get killed by an IED. Those are the people making the REAL sacrifices - our military and their families.

PS: *If your child does stay in a trailer, it's actually a good thing - because when viral illnesses run through a school, your child is less likely to become sick. During the day, the trailers are kept locked, and if bad weather is predicted, the kids go inside the main building. I've been inside several "portable classrooms" in trailers and they are quite nice!

Charity fraud

I just heard on Channel 2 news that a woman is going around to businesses claiming to be collecting money for Toys for Tots. She will show a business card with another woman's name on them to give herself credibility, but she is reusing business cards from other women she has approached for donations.

Toys for Tots is a real charity, but obviously this woman is not giving the money to the real charity.
Please use the safest way when you donate, to make sure your donation goes to the real charity, not door-to-door scammers like this one. You can find charity ratings at CharityNavigator.com

Snellville Special Olympian competes in Perry

Eric Ermutlu has been riding for eight years now. He is 16, and his mother Anna Maki, of Snellville, says that he is autistic and has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

“It’s been a wonderful program for him,” Maki said. “His confidence and willingness to be outgoing is wonderful for an autistic kid.”

Maki said that her son takes pride in how his horse looks. The horse he rides is Avatar, a black Percheron.

The pair ride at Parkwood Farms in Gwinnett County.

“He has to work him,” Maki said. “He gets the fact that he sees they are a team.”

She said that the judge reinforces what the therapists emphasize. For showmanship classes, eye contact is important and hard for an autistic child.

The show judges on how well the athlete controls the horse, the rider’s balance, the confidence of the rider and the rider’s balance. Maki said that what is unique about the show is that they get scores and the athletes are able to see what to focus and improve upon for next year.

“It’s a celebration of everything they’ve learned,” Maki said.

Special Olympians compete at horse show in Perry
Macon Telegraph

Snellville Middle School evacuated

Gwinnett middle school evacuated
Atlanta Journal Constitution
By Megan Matteucci A faulty air condition forced firefighters to evacuate Snellville Middle School for about two hours Monday, officials said. ...

Sandra Wright Shannon, age 63 of Snellville

SNELLVILLE — Sandra Wright Shannon, 63, of Snellville went to be with her Lord and Savior on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009. The service celebrating the life of Mrs. Shannon will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at Snellville First Baptist Church with the Rev. Joel Thomas and the Rev. Steve Foster officiating. Burial will follow at Snellville Historical Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday at Tom M. Wages Funeral Service in Snellville.

Mrs. Shannon was born Nov. 20, 1945. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and friend. When the Lord said to serve, she took it literally, spending her life serving the needs of others.

She is survived by her husband of 44 years, Charles “Darwyn” Shannon; sons and daughters-in-law, Charles Braxton and Jeannie Elizabeth Shannon and Clifton Wright and Jennifer Anne Shannon; daughter and son-in-law, Rachel Shannon and Nicholas Robert Dahm; grandchildren, Alexandra Elizabeth Shannon, Abigail Leigh Shannon, William Wright Shannon, Nathan Gifford Shannon and Elijah Dean Shannon; brother and sister-in-law, Stanley and Cynthia Wright, and other relatives and a host of friends.

Mrs. Shannon requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made toward serving those in need through Streetwise Ministries; P.O. Box 657 Dacula, GA 30019. Condolences may be sent or viewed at www.wagesfuneralhome.com. Tom M. Wages Funeral Service in Snellville is in charge of arrangements.

Sandra W. Shannon
Tifton Gazette
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Flood warning Snellville GA

A flood warning has been issued as of 9:21 pm November 10, 2009 for Snellville GA, per The Weather Channel. Residents should be extra careful, especially when driving.

The Flood Warning mentions Suwanee, but I received an alert which includes Snellville and Gwinnett County area.

"Flood Warning: Issued at: 9:19 PM EST 11/10/09, expires at: 11:18 AM EST 11/11/09The NWS in peachtree city has issued a flood warning for the suwanee creek near suwanee. From this evening until late Wednesday night. At 8 pm Tuesday the stage was 6.9 feet, and rising. Minor flooding is forecast. Flood stage is 8.0 feet. Forecast to rise above flood stage by tonight and continue to rise to near 9.1 feet by Wednesday morning. The river will fall below flood stage by Wednesday evening. At 9.0 feet, suwanee creek greenway floods."

Science is all around you

I thought this was great, wanted to share this with you.

By Tom McNeill
Tom McNeill is a Science Coach/Teacher at W.C. Britt Elementary School in Snellville.

I’ve been teaching Science Specials for three years now. And believe me, in this short amount of time, I’ve been asked just about every imaginable question from the students here at Britt: “Can we make a potion?”, “Are we going to mix chemicals?”, “Why does the moon follow me when I’m riding in a car?”, “What will happen if I drop a cement block on to a balloon full of shaving cream?”.

Students’ fascination and curiosity with science is natural and abundant, and they are always eager to get their hands on any lab activity that comes their way. However, one thing that I have noticed among the students is a general misconception that “science” is performed by
“scientists”, usually in a laboratory setting. This generalized belief is actually quite common among all children. When I ask, “What scientific things have you done lately?”, the common responses usually have to do with what they did in class with their teachers. Students are very
skeptical when I inform them that they “do science” every day of their lives!

If science means making observations and then acting on those observations, then every time you put on a jacket, you’re doing science. As parents, we have unique opportunities to turn what is academic into real-world learning. Children learn about the moon and stars in class, but only we can look up into the night sky with them.

Perhaps the easiest and most natural setting for science is in the kitchen. Many children are not aware of the similarities between chemists in a lab and cooks in a kitchen. Allow your children to help make breakfast. Talk about chemistry in the kitchen! Just making pancakes involves measuring solids and liquids, mixing substances, using heat energy, and manipulating and observing physical and chemical changes.

So, start at home and try not to let these little “teachable” opportunities pass you by. The more science children are exposed to at home, the more likely they will succeed here at school. Go make something delicious! Hey, sometimes you have to crack a few eggs to do good SCIENCE!

School make-up days schedule changed due to flood

From school newsletter:

Due to the two flood days which occurred in September, students and staff will be in session on February 12 & March 15.

As winter has not even begun and there is the chance that inclement weather may force additional school closings, Gwinnett County Public Schools has amended its 2009-2010 school calendar to include two more snow make-up days. Both of these days were originally scheduled as student/staff holidays.

The two new make-up snow days are:

• Monday, February 15 (snow make-up day # 1)

• Friday, April 2 (snow make-up day # 2)

• May 27 will remain as snow make-up day # 3. If the district does not

need to use these days as make-up days, they will be holidays for students and staff.

My Snellville Blog is now on Facebook

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