| Nov. 15 |
PiE Donation Days start! |
| Nov. 17 |
Principal's coffee 8:45 am |
| Nov. 19 |
Author reading |
| Nov. 20 |
PiE Donation Days end! |
| Nov. 25 - 27 |
No school - Thanksgiving
|
|
|
(click through to the website)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hi everyone! This week, we're all about PiE -- Palo Alto Partners in Education. Give to PiE, find out more about PiE, wear blue for PiE, and even win a pie! As always, more detail on each of these items can be found as you scroll through the newsletter. Enjoy!
- PiE Donation Days are here! This is your last chance to give to PiE and have your donation matched. All the information and links are below -- please give generously. And take note of Mr. Althouse's challenge in his letter below -- let's get those pies!
- Wondering what PiE does for our children? Click here to watch our very short video celebrating all that PiE does for Fairmeadow.
- This Friday is Fairmeadow PiE spirit day -- wear blue to show your support for PiE and everything it supports in our school!
- Reminder! Mr. Althouse is hosting coffee this Tuesday at 8:45 in the MP Room, and he'll be talking about Partners In Education. All welcome.
- We'd love to have everyone in Fairmeadow join our Facebook page. Please click here to join our online community.
|
| From the Principal's Desk |
|
Dear Fairmeadow Community,
Last Friday morning we welcomed the Duniya Dance and Drum Company to Fairmeadow for an engaging assembly with students that showcased music, movement, and sound from traditional and contemporary India. The performers showed our firebirds how the people of India communicate through dance and music, including a celebratory harvest dance and an energetic sample of Bollywood dance. A musician introduced many traditional percussion instruments and mesmerized the audience with amazing synchronized rhythms and the variety of tones he produced on the drums. This assembly concluded with a dance-along that had every member of the audience moving and singing. Friday's assembly provided a wonderful opportunity to explore movement, instrumentation, rhythm, melody, and culture. Thank you to our Fairmeadow Parent Teacher Association for supporting these enriching experiences for our students and to our teacher assembly committee for bringing such dynamic and talented performers to our school.
The enrichment continues
this Thursday when we welcome world-renowned children's author Patricia Polacco to Fairmeadow for a K-2nd and 3rd -5th grade author visit assembly with our students. For our young writers, this presentation will give written words life, as the person responsible for composing many texts our students have experienced reflects about her own successes and struggles as a writer. Thank you to Sara Gilman, our school librarian, for coordinating this unique opportunity for our students and staff.
Please join me for a Principal's Coffee this Tuesday, November 17th at 8:45 am in the Fairmeadow MP Room for a discussion of the incredible impact that Partners in Education (PiE) has on teaching and learning at our school. This Thursday, November 19th and Friday, November 20th are the PiE 2015 Double Your Donation Days! As many of you know, Fairmeadow depends on your generous donations to PiE for daily support of our comprehensive educational program. PiE donations fund many highly skilled educators on our campus including our science teacher, our spectra art teacher, all of our classroom aides, our reading specialist, our Intervention Teacher, Living Classroom Science staff, and much, much more! I look forward to seeing you at this Tuesday's Principal's Coffee to share more about the incredible value of PiE-supported educators at our school and to answer any questions you may have about PiE at Fairmeadow and in PAUSD.
If you have already donated to PiE, thank you for supporting Fairmeadow in this way! If not, please consider giving or pledging by this Friday, November 20th, and your donation can be doubled through a generous PiE Challenge Grant. This Friday will be a Fairmeadow PiE Spirit Day: Wear Blue for School Day, which is an opportunity for students, staff, and parents to show their support of PiE by wearing the color blue, PiE's theme color. To help 'sweeten the pie' I propose a challenge for our community. This year we hope to have 55% or more of our families donate to PiE. As of today, November 16th, we are approximately 100 families short of this goal. If Fairmeadow meets our goal of 55% participation, I will bake a pie for each classroom to enjoy, one pie a week for the remaining weeks of school. 55% is a challenging goal, and to keep us going, when we reach 45% every student will receive a red Fairmeadow wrist band! These goals are about participation, not a total dollar amount, so please consider donating whatever amount is meaningful for your family. Thank you to all of you that support our community in this way, and thanks in advance to those who choose to join the effort this week.
Last Thursday, November 12th marked the end of the first trimester, one third of the way through this school year. We have two thirds of the year left with your children and we have many important goals for their learning and our teaching to accomplish in this time! One way that your child's teacher will be providing feedback to you about your child's growth this first trimester is through the elementary school progress report. The purpose of this progress report is to communicate students' social-emotional learning and academic progress based on Palo Alto Unified School District expectations and informed by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The progress report highlights current performance levels, student strengths, and areas of concern in all subjects, as well as in areas of social and emotional development. For more information about the elementary progress report, including links to sample reports and standards maps please see visit the pausd website, linked here. Progress reports will be sent home in hard copy form between now and November 24th.
In early November individual classrooms in 2nd through 5th grades worked to select students to represent their class on the Fairmeadow student council. Fifth grade students held a formal election to select 5th graders to the student council's leadership team, the Presidential Cabinet. I'd like to congratulate 5th graders Aditi Jain, Samantha Lesner, Zara Wang, and Beanie Jose for their election into this important group. I'm confident that this strong team will do a fantastic job of leading our student council and designing important school wide efforts like spirit days and service projects.
With many exciting winter traditions to look forward to in the weeks ahead, it's a great time to appreciate those that we love, and to celebrate the many ways that we've all grown in 2015.
Grant Althouse
Principal
|
| Palo Alto Partners In Education: Last Chance to Double your Donation! |
|
LAST CHANCE to Double Your Donation and Help Our Schools!
Nov 16-20
Right NOW - double the impact of your donation during PiE's Donation Days and make a difference for all our kids. Your donation to PiE can be matched dollar-for-dollar, up to $200,000 in total, thanks to the "Donation Days Challenge" offered by generous PiE supporters. If you have already given or pledged, THANK YOU. If not, please support us by donating or pledging TODAY.
Please click here to donate now.
At Fairmeadow your PiE dollars fund:
- 100% of Spectra Art from teacher Karen Lenke
- 100% of the science lab instructor, Kendra Hornbostel
- Living Classroom for all Kindergarten through 3rd grade students
- Support for teachers in the classroom with teacher technology specialists
- Reading specialist, Anh Quan, to support the literacy needs of all students
- An intervention specialist to ensure all students receive the most effective instruction possible through outreach and co-teaching
- Support for the traveling music program at all elementary schools
|
|
Join us for Fairmeadow Spirit Day on Friday, November 20th!
|
|
Across PAUSD will be waves of blue in support of PiE -- why not join the excitement? We are hoping everyone at Fairmeadow will wear blue on Friday. Show off your blue in whatever creative way you'd like. Whether that be blue hair, blue shirt, blue clothing, blue shoes -- you decide!
Can't wait to see everyone in BLUE!!
|
|
Fall and Winter Safety Tips
|
|
With colder weather and the rainy season upon us, we are seeing an increase in car traffic during drop off and pickup. No matter how we come to school, we need to work together to keep all of our students safe.
We all know traffic on East Meadow backs up on bad weather days. Consider avoiding East Meadow altogether by entering through the library parking lot on Middlefield and dropping off in Mitchell Park.
Slow down and use extra caution when driving in school zones and along commute routes including the library and park parking lots.
Bicyclists need to make an extra effort to make themselves visible with lights and reflective clothing. Remember that the hours of darkness are continuing to increase until Winter Break.
|
|
Is your child struggling at school? Help is available!
|
|
Is your child struggling in school? There is still one
information session organized by PAUSD on IEP (Individual Education Plan) and 504 on
January 27th, 6:30- 7:30 pm.
There is also info on IEP and 504 on the Palo Alto CAC website:
http://cacpaloalto.org/iep-section-504-and-rti/
|
Superintendent's Weekly Updates
|
|
Each week Superintendent Max McGee provides written information for all interested parents and community members. These communications include updates on important topics, insights into upcoming agenda items, and other useful pieces of information regarding PAUSD. Questions regarding these publications can be sent to Kathleen Ruegsegger at [email protected]. Please share this opportunity with your neighbors and fellow parents!
|
| Be Safe. Be Seen. Bike lights are required by law for riding after dusk. |
|
|
With shorter days, students are commuting at dusk or in the dark. Bicycle lights and reflectors are required by law at this time of day. Visibility begins to decline at dusk before the sun is completely down, so bicyclists are required to turn on their lights when light begins to fade. A handlebar headlight makes a bicycle visible to others and illuminates the road so the rider can see. Tail lights and reflectors should be mounted on something stable where they won't be obscured by bags, panniers or other gear on the bike. Lights are vastly superior to reflectors, so a red light on the rear is recommended for maximum visibility.
Outfitting student bikes for a safe (and legal) ride is a smart investment. For safe school commute information, visit
|
|
Silicon Valley Boychoir Auditions
|
|
The Silicon Valley Boychoir (based in Palo Alto) is holding auditions on November 16-17) for the January semester at the choir's rehearsal location near downtown Palo Alto. Beginning levels are open to boys second grade and older. High school and middle school boys with experience may audition for upper levels. SVB provides a personalized approach to teaching singing, music theory, and sight-singing, and provides flexible scheduling for busy families. For an appointment e-mail [email protected] or call 650-424-1242.
|
| Family Holiday Volunteering |
|
If you're looking for a way to get your family into the holiday spirit by helping others, check out http://familyholidayhelpers.org, a non-profit web site created by a mom of two PAUSD students to help parents find volunteering opportunities during the holiday season with their children in the San Francisco Bay Area. There are a variety of local opportunities for families, such as prepping/serving food for Thanksgiving, working a shift at a food bank or holiday warehouse, or assembling a shoebox of small gifts for women in shelters. Happy volunteering!
|
Fri, Nov 20, 6 - 10pm, Lou Henry Hoover (Girl Scout) House, 1120 Hopkins
Hosted by Palo Alto 9th grade Girl Scout Troop 61420 on Friday, November 20,
6:00 pm -
10:00 pm at the Lou Henry Hoover (Girl Scout) House, 1120 Hopkins Dr. (next to Palo Alto Jr. Museum on Middlefield Rd). The cost is $30.00 for 1st child, $10.00 for each additional sibling (children must be 3 yrs. Old and potty-trained). Pizza dinner & healthy snacks PLUS lots of fun games and activities you keep your little ones entertained!! Our troop is saving for a Service trip so appreciate your support.
|
|
The 20th Annual Juana Run 8k/5k Run & Walk RACES!
|
|
Early online registration discount! Get $5 off any race registration with promo code EARLY2016 now until December 1. Go to
www.juanarun.org
and click the 'register' button. The race is
Saturday February 27, 2016
. You can choose from 8K run, a 5K fun run & walk (costumes encouraged!), 1-mile race, and kids races: all the races are through the streets of the Barron Park neighborhood. Pancake breakfast and cool t-shirts! Proceeds donated to Gunn High Sports Boosters; Juana Briones, Barron Park, and Terman PTAs.
|
Kiwanis Club Run/Walk to Support the Pediatric Trauma Program
|
|
|
Sat, Nov 21, 2 - 4 PM. Mitchell Park
The Kiwanis Club of Palo Alto is hosting a Fun Run (walk) to benefit the Pediatric Trauma Program and to provide an opportunity for sponsored high school Key Clubs to learn event planning skills. The Palo Alto High School Key Club will be the lead planning group while the Gunn High School Key Club will provide additional support. The Kiwanis Club will be providing the adult volunteers while the Key Clubs will be providing the student volunteers. The event is open to all ages. Participants will register and pay at the event. Participants will also be able to purchase raffle tickets for $5 each at any time prior to the raffle. Participants can also earn raffle tickets by completing a given number of laps.
|
| Navigating School Services for Children With Special Needs:Two Sessions |
|
|
Wed, Nov 18, 7 - 9 PM, Covington Elementary School MP Room, 205 Covington, Los Altos
High school students with unusual learning, social, or emotional needs often need "customized" high school programs in order to succeed. Come and hear about some options in our community. For more information, see
www.selpa1cac.org
.
|
The Mask You Live In - Film Screening
|
|
|
Wed, Nov 18, 7 - 9 PM, Parents Place, 200 Channing Av. Palo Alto 94301
Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School and Parents Place invite you to attend a screening of The Mask You Live In, which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. This film explores boys' struggle to stay true to themselves while negotiating America's narrow definition of modern masculinity, repressed emotions, and gender stereotypes. Experts in neuroscience, psychology, sociology, sports, education, and media weigh in, presenting empirical evidence of what some are calling the "boy crisis" and offering tactics to combat it. Following the screening there will be a community conversation with experts from Parent Place. This is the youth version of this film and it is appropriate for middle school age students and up. $10. Click here to register.
|
| Mitchell Park Library November/December Events |
|
|
International Games Days
Tue, Nov 17, and Thu Nov 19, 4-6 PM Mitchell Park Library, 3700 Middlefield Rd.
Mitchell Park Library and Community Center have teamed up together to give teens two days to celebrate International Games Day. Play or compete for prizes on console gaming systems, online gaming, air hockey, card games, board games, and more. Refreshments provided.
Finals Cram Slam
Mon, Dec 14, and Tue, Dec 15, 6-10 PM Mitchell Park Library
Mitchell Park Library will be extending its hours for finals week. You can study in the teen room or just drop in for snacks and emotional support. There will be a calming therapy dog you can pet to help you decompress before the chaos begins. Open to high school students who are studying for finals. Refreshments provided.
|
Adopt A Teacher Who Needs Your Support
|
|
Make a real difference for a teacher and his/her students by "adopting" a K-8 teacher in East Palo Alto or east Menlo Park for a school year. Provide the teacher with encouraging notes and/or small gifts of appreciation, school supplies and support for two class parties. Financial commitment $500-600, time commitment very flexible. It's easy and fun to adopt a teacher with friends. Learn more or sign up at http://ravenswoodef.org/adopt-a-teacher/ or by contacting Jennifer Wythes Vettel at [email protected].
|
The 2015-2016 Children's Theatre Ten Minute Playwriting Contest
|
|
Palo Alto CAC Discussion List
|
|
This on-line group is a place where PAUSD parents can learn about Special Education events and resources in our community. It's also a forum for discussing issues with other PAUSD parents that arise in our children's schooling and life in general. To keep informed and/or to ask questions, sign up at: Palo Alto CAC Discussion Group: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/PaloAltoCAC_discuss/info.
|
|
| eNews Publication Guidelines and Archive |
| For old versions of eNews, go to the eNews archive . Fairmeadow eNews Publication Guidelines:
- Fairmeadow eNews is a publication of the Fairmeadow PTA. It is sent out each Monday morning, with special editions sent out as required.
- If you want to publish an announcement relevant to Fairmeadow, send an email to [email protected]. Include the following information: title, date, time and location of the event, a brief description and who to contact. Information submitted by Sunday 2 pm will appear in the Monday Edition.
- Announcements relevant to other schools in the PAUSD district can be send to [email protected]
- Our PTA has a noncommercial policy, which states that we do not associate with any commercial activities of other organizations including, but not limited to, the promotion of their goods and services. Only information from non profit organizations will be considered for placement, if submitted to eNews.
- Announcements will generally be published in two consecutive issues. To have further announcements made after that, please submit your announcement again.
If you have any questions or suggestions, e-mail Susan Leech, Fairmeadow's eNews editor.
|
|
|
