Crocker Highlands Weekly BulletinEcometro
525 Midcrest Road, Oakland, CA 94610
Phone: 510-451-5900
crockerschool.org
facebook.com/crockerschool
@crockerschool 
 
Beth Rhine, Principal

Jessica Tagami/Louise Bedsworth,
PTA Co-Presidents
   
Sept 24th, 2012
Calendar
In August and September, Crocker Community Celebrates Respect!
In This Issue
Principals Message
Home Tour
Resilient Girls
SSC
Picture Day
Book Swap
          Message from your Principal

Dear Crocker Families,

We had a wonderful Spaghetti Feed last week.  Many thanks to Matt Town and the Dads' Club for putting on this event.  There was a lot of good food and good company!  And thanks to everyone for purchasing sweets from the Bake Sale.  Proceeds from that go toward paying for the 5th Grade Overnight trip to Alliance Redwood in October.

On a separate note, it's becoming quite a challenge to make sure all the students have been picked up after school with the large groups that remain on the yard after school.   I have recently encountered several instances of students not being where they are supposed to be after school.  I want to keep everyone safe and we can only do that by making it clear to our children where they are supposed to go, and to go directly there after school.  The phone in the office is to be used after school for urgent situations only.  Setting up an after school play date is not an urgent situation.  If you, the parent/guardian, want to set up a play date and parents are on campus, no problem.   But please do not allow them to change plans via the office phone or the phone of a random parent who is on campus. What you can do:

1)    Make it clear to your child where they need to be after school.  Remind them to go directly there and not hang out on the playground.
2)    Set up play dates the night before.
3)    Remind your child that cell phones are for emergencies and not for setting up social events.
4)    If pick-up plans change, contact the office ahead of time so we are aware of what is happening.
5)    Remind your child to go to the office if whoever is supposed to pick them up isn't there.  I do my "sweep" but there are often a lot of people on the yard after school, and it's hard to see who is accounted for and who isn't.

Have a great week, and remember, we have a minimum day this Friday, September 28!

 Beth Rhine
Hello Crocker Parents,

By now you probably have found the envelope that came home in your child's backpack on Friday asking them to sell 2 tickets to the Crocker Home & Garden Tour. Please help your child sell these tickets! If every child sells at least two tickets they will win a pizza party and/or ice cream party for their entire class. We need full participation in order to earn the funds necessary to keep our wonderful enrichment programs available to our kids. If everyone does a little, everyone wins! Instructions on how to sell the tickets are on the envelope. You can also purchase tickets via the Crocker Home Tour website at
http://hometour.crockerschool.org/

We are also looking for 6 more docents to volunteer their time on the day of the Home Tour, Sunday October 7th, anytime between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Your job as a docent is to keep the foot traffic moving throughout the home and to ensure the security and safety of the tourers and the home.
If you are available to volunteer your time or have any questions about the ticket sales, please contact Helene Gryfakis 415.990.7196 or Anna Scott 510.919.2254.

We appreciate everyone's effort!

Helene Gryfakis and Anna Scott
Crocker Home & Garden Tour Co-Chairs
RAISING RESILIENT GIRLS


Please mark your calendars for a Parent Ed Night Simon Marean from the Girls Leadership Institute. Thursday Oct 11th 7pm. Simone will share how to help girls practice assertive self-expression, emotional intelligence and healthy relationships.  Your friends outside Crocker school are welcome to attend as well.  There will be babysitting available for Crocker Families.  This is an excellent presentation.  We hope to see you there.
Simone will cover:


�         How and why girls are aggressive with one another
�         The "Good Girl" phenomenon
�         What girls need to avoid victimization
�         The power of emotional intelligence
�         The importance of mistakes
�         The limitations of blame
�         Seeing conflict as an opportunity for change
Dear Crocker School Community,

We are inviting parents/guardians to participate in Crocker Highlands' School Site Council.  The school site council (SSC) is a group of teachers, parents, and staff who work with the principal to develop the Community Schools Strategic Site Plan (CSSSP). This process includes reviewing student achievement data, evaluating the existing SPSA, and monitoring its implementation. The SSC meets monthly for 1 1/2 hours, usually from 4:15 - 5:30 pm. For more information about the SSCs, go to:  http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=edc&group=52001-53000&file=52850-52863
To find out more about the CSSSP process in OUSD, go to: 
http://www.thrivingstudents.org/?1994Nav=|&NodeID=115


SSC members are elected to be on the committee by the school community.  The committee consists of three teachers, the principal, one school staff member, one community member, and four parents/guardians.  In order to provide continuity, members serve a two-year term. (Anyone is welcome to attend SSC meetings; only elected members will be able to vote.)

If you would like your name to be on the ballot, please notify Beth Rhine by Friday, September 28th.  You will need to submit a short paragraph about your experience and interest in participating in the SSC via email (elizabeth.rhine@ousd.k12.ca.us). Voting will be done by paper ballot with a ballot box in the office, if we have more than the required number of people interested in serving on the SSC.  Announcements regarding the Committee will be made in the school bulletin.  Elected members will be announced via the School Bulletin.

We are having our first meeting (with last year's members) this Thursday, 9/27 at 4:15 at school (room to be determined).  Feel free to join us if you want to see what the SSC is about!
If you have any questions, contact me at Elizabeth.rhine@ousd.k12.ca.us.

Thank you!
Beth Rhine
 Important Picture Day Update


The method for ordering photos has changed -PLEASE READ BELOW.
 
It's time to place your Picture Day order!  Don't miss out on reduced Early Bird pricing and our new Photo Selection service. Order your photo package and choose your favorite image from your child's gallery for production. The deadline to place your order is Monday, October 1 at 9 p.m


You have three easy options when ordering photos:
 
1.    Order your package online!
To receive a full gallery of photos to choose from and take advantage of Early Bird pricing:
*         Go to www.shootingstarsphoto.com
*         Select ORDER BEFORE PHOTO DAY
*         Sign up or Log in
*         Enter your school's Access Code: ALSK2412
*         Order your photo package(s)
*          You will receive an email with your personal Access Code by Tuesday,      
            October 16. Use this code to view your gallery and select your photo!
*          The deadline for Photo Selection is Friday, October 19. If you haven't        
            received your Access Code by Tuesday, October 16, please check your  
            spam folder.
 
2.    Register for Photo Selection
To receive a full gallery of photos to choose from, but select your package later:
*          Go to www.shootingstarsphoto.com
*          Select ORDER BEFORE PHOTO DAY
*          Sign up or Log in
*           Enter your school's Access Code:  ALSK2412
*           Select the $7 sitting fee from the order options menu
*           You will receive an email with your personal Access Code by Tuesday,   
             October 16. Use this code to view your gallery and select your photo!
*           The deadline for Photo Selection is Friday, October 19. If you haven't
             received your Access Code by Tuesday, October 16, please check your
             spam folder.
*           Order your photo package(s)

3.    Order your package on the paper order form
To take advantage of Early Bird pricing without going online:
*          Enclose check or cash in order envelope; bring on Picture Day
*          Tax must be included (please see provided tax table) and change is not
            available
*          Photo Selection is not available with paper orders
 
Please note that pricing has been reduced to make photos more affordable for all families. After Picture Day, those not registered for Photo Selection will have a single image chosen for them and will not have the option to view a gallery of multiple images. Also, re-order pricing and shipping costs will apply.
 
If you have any questions about the ordering process, please contact Shooting Stars at (415) 695-1010 or info@shootingstarsphoto.com. Please do NOT call the school office.
Book Swap This Week!

The annual Crocker Book Swap will be Friday, 9/28. Here are the details:

Drop off gently used children's books this Wednesday, Thursday, Friday morning before school. We'll have a drop off table on the playground. No coloring or sticker books.

Come by the multipurpose room this Friday between 1:40-2:40 pm to pick out a few "new" books. All Crocker kids can take home at least one book. Students who contribute books to the swap can select more (e.g., bring 5, take 5).

Questions? Available to help? Contact Crocker Librarian, Lisa Hobbs at lisa_a_hobbs@yahoo.com