Vista Grande Elementary School Newsletter

October 28, 2020

Thanksgiving Baskets for Downer Families

For the last few years, our Alternative classrooms have put together Thanksgiving Feasts for families in need at our sister school, Downer Elementary, in San Pablo. Before the pandemic, 94% of students at Downer were classified as socio-economically disadvantaged, so the need for these families is greater than ever. We are excited to extend this service project school-wide at Vista Grande this year, replacing our normal Fall food drive.

We will be putting together baskets filled with ingredients for a Thanksgiving feast for families in need, and we need your help! Please consider donating items in person at drop off days listed below, or click below to buy items on Amazon that will be shipped to the school to be included in the Thanksgiving baskets. 100% of Thanksgiving Basket Donations go toward providing Thanksgiving meals to families in need. Downer staff tell us that families love these baskets because they are used to getting just canned items from food banks, so our baskets feel like a present.

Please sign up for items here - either to drop off or to have Amazon deliver directly to VG for the baskets.

If you prefer to buy items at another store and drop off in person, you can drop items off on:

Thursday, Nov 5th from 2pm to 4pm (this is the regular drive through day at VG for your child's schoolwork) or, Monday, Nov 9th from 2pm to 4pm.

Mister Softee

Have you heard about the Mister Softee truck?!

No need to track them down on your Mister Softee App - VG PTA has arranged for the Mister Softee truck to come to Hap Magee Park on 11/5 from 2 - 5pm!! A portion of the profits will be donated to VG PTA.

Winter Trivia Night"

Winter Trivia Night: Save the Date!!

Thank you VG families for joining us last week at our first Virtual Trivia Night of the year and congratulations to the Noia Family for winning 1st place! We all had so much fun, let’s do it again!!

Please save the date - Thursday, December 17th @ 6:30. Ticket sales are open - click here.

Pride

Hey Falcons! Show your VG PRIDE by donating a new pair of pajamas to a student at our sister school, Downer Elementary. We are in need of boys size 10-12 and both boys and girls size 12-14. Please drop off your donations at the school supply pick up days November 5 and 19, so we can deliver the pajamas to the students before the holidays. Let’s show them some cozy holiday spirit! Thank you!

Culture in the Community

The 4th Annual Culture in the Community Celebration is virtual this year with the help of our community! We asked our community members to submit videos sharing their culture through music, dance, cooking, or interactive presentation. We received an amazing response and are looking forward to sharing these fantastic videos! Videos will be available at www.SRCultureintheCommunity.com beginning Friday, November 13 at 3pm.

Highlights include:

Video presentations from over 20 different cultures including Dance and Music Performances and Cooking Demonstrations
Kids Craft Workshops
Poetry Workshop
Free Craft Kits (while supplies last)

Free Culture in the Community Craft Kit: Pickup a FREE Culture in the Community Craft Kit on November 10 from 3-5pm at the San Ramon Community Center (12501 Alcosta Blvd.). Crafts are limited to the first 150 kids with a limit of 1 per person.

Exceptional Education Committee

Attention: SDC, IEP, and 504 Families:

Please join the Exceptional Education Committee Meeting on Wednesday, October 28th @ 7pm!

Joining us for this meeting are guest speakers, Julie Burlingame and Kara Solomon from Stress Busters. Julie and Kara will cover executive functioning and social skills for remote and hybrid learning.