January 2009 Archives

FEBRUARY

Monday Mixer with Principal Espania

Hierarchy of Discipline will be discussed

Monday, Feb. 2

9:15 am, Library

2 Hour Early Dismissal

Wednesday, Feb. 4

1:05 pm

Scrip Orders Due

Thursday, Feb. 5

4th and 5th Grade Instrumental Music Concert

Tuesday, Feb. 10

6:30 pm, Cafeteria

PTA Board Meeting

Wednesday, Feb. 11

7:00 pm, Library

Please RSVP to Jennifer Bucher at rjmlbucher@comcast.net

Childcare is available

President’s Day

Monday, Feb. 16

NO SCHOOL

Mid-Winter Break -- NO SCHOOL

Tuesday, Feb. 17 to Friday, Feb. 20

MARCH

Open Enrollment

March 2 through March 31

2 Hour Early Dismissal

March 4

Professional Development Day -- NO SCHOOL

March 20

Spring Break -- NO SCHOOL

March 30 to April 3

An Amazing Week at Wedgwood Elementary

Last week was probably my favorite week at school. At the start of the year I spoke about our community embracing a vision of global citizenship. Last week, I witnessed a variety of examples materialize. Through reading, watching the inauguration and discussion our students learned about the presidential branch of government as well as President Obama. We talked about his message of hope and our responsibility to make a difference. Through inquiry and experiential education our 5th graders explored ecosystems and doing our part in sustaining this delicate balance in our environment and communities. Our fifth grade class will be leading our new composting effort at Wedgwood in order to decrease our carbon footprint. Our community is talking about and participating in activities that embrace and enact our understanding of our role as members of a global society.

I know that it is not an easy accomplishment to get home from work, collect your children, and head back out to school by 6pm, especially at the end of a long work week. However, we had a record turn out at our Lunar New Year celebration. When we made the announcement that the food had run out, although, a large number of people had not yet eaten; with grace and understanding we quickly squeezed into our transformed lunchroom to enjoy the Lion Dance, Filipino dances, and Taiko drums. Some families, like my own, may not have enjoyed the tasty dinner, but walked away filled with amazement by the cultural sharing of dance, art and music. Thank you to the many parents who spent hours preparing for this event. To the families who were able to join us, mahalo for your enthusiasm towards making learning a priority and continuing to embrace the value of community.

Here is to many more amazing weeks at Wedgwood!

Denise Espania

Wedgwood's 3rd annual Lunar New Year celebration was incredibly popular!

We had a record attendance enjoying the exciting performances by Mak Fai Lion Dance Troupe, the UW's Filipino dance troupe Sayaw, and Seattle Kokon Taiko.

Thank you to everybody who brought in food to share! Unfortunately, due to the much larger than expected turnout, the food ran out before the night was over. The LNY Planning committee would like to apologize to everyone who did not have enough to eat--next year we will plan accordingly!

The Committee would especially like to call out the efforts of Kendra Fann. Although this is only Kendra's first year as a Wedgwood parent, she joined the committee enthusiastically and proactively coordinated with our parent volunteer art docents to create beautiful artwork for display in our hallways in conjunction with this celebration. Hundreds of pieces of art were hung up!

Thank you too to all our tireless volunteers--this event could not have been a success without your participation! Thanks also go to everybody who donated to ACRS--together, we managed to contribute more than $180 to their food bank. What a great way to start the new year! Happy New Year!!

Interested in the new Hierarchy of Discipline? Come join us at the next Monday Mixer where Principal Espania and Wedgwood Counselor Lily Amar-Strugo will be outlining Wedgwood's new Hierarchy of Discipline.

Have you ever wondered what happens when your child hits a bump in the road on their way to being a model citizen? Join us Monday, February 2nd at 9:15 am in the library and find out.

Seattle School District Nutrition Services Department is using the SchoolMessanger to automatically notify parents of students participating in the school meals program of low balances and negative balance accounts.

While students are allowed to charge up to three meals before substitute meals are provided, parents/guardians who do not qualify for free or reduced price meals are expected to pay for all meals your child(ren) have been provided. We hope you appreciate the notification making you aware of the need for payment. Future uses of this telephone message system include meal status information, deadlines for payments and reapplying and information regarding application for free and reduced price meals.

Please feel free to call the lunchroom manager or Nutrition Services Administration Office at 252-0685 with questions or concerns.

PLAYGROUND IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE FORMING NOW!

In previous years, phases I and II successfully laid valuable groundwork for us to be able to move into the next phase of improving the play area for children. There is still a lot of work to do, and it is time to assess the next step and form a committee of dedicated parents to make that happen.

If you are interested in learning about the process, contact Emily Maher at PTAEmily@gmail.com to join the email list to be informed about the upcoming meeting (date TBD).

The 4th and 5th grade instrumental music students have been working hard since the beginning of the year learning how to play their instruments. They will be showing off their talents at the upcoming instrumental music concert that will be held on Tuesday, February 10th at 6:30 pm in the Wedgwood Cafeteria.

Participating students should plan to arrive no later than 6:15 pm.

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Sibicky at kgsibicky@seattleschools.org.

Ms. Becker is offering an after school Music Rhythm Ensemble 5 week program for 3rd  through 5th graders on Mondays from 3:15 pm to 4:15 pm starting on February 23rd. Come play the Drums, Steel Drums and Percussion. Sign up sheets were sent home via kidmail. A performance will be held at the end of the five weeks.

Fairly experienced Bass Players and Pianists are welcome to complete a rhythm section.

Call Ms. Becker at 252-5677 if you have questions or transportation concerns.

KidsPlay is here on Wednesday, February 4th for the early dismissal day. Join us after school in the gym from 1:15 pm to 5:00 pm. We’ll be running, jumping, throwing and catching and having loads of fun. Bring an extra snack, we’ll have bottled water and supply the fun and fitness.

Check kidmail for the flyer or contact Kevin Oyama at 529-1132 or email at kdoyama@comcast.net for more information. KidsPlay will also be offering camp during the mid-winter break. More information to come as we get closer to the break.

Thanks and see you there!

JANUARY
Lunar New Year Celebration
Friday, Jan. 23
6:00 to 8:00 pm

Day between semesters - NO SCHOOL
Monday, Jan. 26

FEBRUARY
2 Hour Early Dismissal
Wednesday, Feb. 4
1:05 pm

Scrip Orders Due
Thursday, Feb. 5

PTA Board Meeting
Wednesday, Feb. 11
7:00 pm, Library
Please RSVP to Jennifer Bucher at rjmlbucher@comcast.net
Childcare is available

President's Day
Monday, Feb. 16
NO SCHOOL

Mid-Winter Break -- NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, Feb. 17 to Friday, Feb. 20

Dear Wedgwood Families,

Thank you to all who came to our celebration and tribute to Dr. King last Friday. It was a beautiful assembly that made evident the amazing learning we are doing at Wedgwood around the importance of freedom, peace, compassion, service, and equity. We also enjoyed celebrating the end of the semester for K/1 last Thursday. This was another special event to showcase transitioning K from art/enrichment to music/PE and 1st from music/PE to art/enrichment. Special thanks to our teachers and students who worked diligently to learn and prepare for these special events.

Tuesday was another important day at Wedgwood. First, we sent our 5th graders off to Islandwood for camp. Then later in the morning we watched Barack Obama take the oath of office and give his inaugural address. Students have been learning about the new president we wanted to be able to share this historical event as a community.

At the end of this week we will be celebrating Lunar New Year. I hope you have the opportunity to take a look at the student art work being displayed through out the halls and join us on Friday evening. Adonis, Apollo, and I can't wait to eat some food and "feed the lion" on Friday!

Events such as Lunar New Year and the transportation for 5th grade camp would not be possible if not for the generous support from the PTA. The pledge drive, mirroring our economy, is not quite as strong as in years past. We are at 35% participation. Your $20 donation will help to continue to provide educationally enriching learning opportunities for all of our students for the rest of the year.

Kung Hei Fat Choy!
Denise Espania

Lion Dancing …
Taiko Drumming…
Dumpling Making…
Student Art Walk …

Friday, January 23rd from 6:00 – 8:00 pm

Come help Wedgwood welcome the Year of the Ox!

Dinner begins promptly at 6 pm and at 6:30 the Lion Dance will kick off the professional performances. There will be delicious catered Chinese food, professional cultural performances, traditional dumpling making, an art walk and a donation jar for the charity Asian Counseling and Referral Service (ACRS). Bring your spare change and guess how many grains of rice are in the jar – a prize awaits the winner.

Please bring a favorite family recipe to share labeled with main ingredients, including nuts! Non-Asian foods are welcome. Or bring $3/person or $10/ family. For more information or to help, contact Robert Yuan at 362-1961(work), 417-8905 (home) or yfalink@yahoo.com .

School sweatshirts ($22) and T-shirts ($13) will be available for sale for a limited time at the Lunar New Year Celebration on Friday, January 23rd. Please remember to bring your cash or check. Both youth and adult sizes will be available.

School tours are starting next week and volunteers are needed to help act as tour guides. The time commitment is a minimum of 2 to 3 hours (one tour and a brief informational session). Of course, if you can lead multiple tours, that would be great!

The tour dates are:

Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 1:15 pm (critical need), Monday Feb. 23 at 9:15 am, Tuesday, Feb. 24 at 1:15 pm Tuesday, March 3 at 1:15 pm Monday, March 16 at 9:15 am Friday, March 27 at 9:15 am

Please contact Meg Angell at megangell@lessclutter.com and let her know which dates you are available to assist.

Thank you to all the families who donated to the Holiday Giving House. We had enough food and gifts to give holiday cheer to seven families! And thanks to the wonderful Wedgwood families who helped make deliveries through the awful snow! Thank you to everyone who helped with this!

From,
Caroline Malone and all at the Student Council

KidsPlay is here again! Come in for a day of fun and play on Monday, January 26, the day off between semesters. It’s here at Wedgwood in the gym from 8:30 am until 4:30 pm. Registration forms should have already arrived, but you can also sign up in the office.

Pack a hefty lunch and snack, we’ll bring the water. Dress for play! It’s $60 with a 10 percent discount for siblings. For further information, contact Kevin Oyama at 206-529-1132.

Be on the look out to more camps to come. We will be offering them for all early dismissal days, non-holiday days off and the two major breaks.

Northwest Boychoir
The Northwest Boychoir will be holding auditions for new members on Saturday, February 7 at the University Heights Community Center. No previous music training is necessary. Financial aid is available. Auditions are casual and fun. Classes begin in February. To make an audition appointment, call 524-3234 or visit http://www.nwchoirs.org to learn more.

Roosevelt News Father Daughter Dance
The Roosevelt News, a student run newspaper, will hold a fundraiser on Saturday, February 28 from 5:00 to 8:00 pm at Roosevelt High School. The Father Daughter dance is for girls up through Grade 5 and their dads. Tickets are $10 per person. For info, contact therooseveltnews@gmail.com.

PTA Board Meeting
Wednesday, Jan. 14
7:00 pm
Library
Please RSVP to Jennifer Bucher at rjmlbucher@comcast.net
Childcare is available

Scrip Orders Due
Thursday, Jan. 15

Kindergarten and Grade 1
Performing Arts Assembly
Kindergartners will be showing their artistic creations. 1st grade will be singing and dancing. Parents Welcome.
Thursday, Jan. 15
2:00 pm
Cafeteria

All School Martin Luther King Jr Assembly
Friday, Jan. 16
9:30 am
Cafeteria

Martin Luther King Jr. Day - NO SCHOOL
Monday Jan. 19

Lunar New Year Celebration
Friday, Jan. 23
6:00 to 8:00 pm

Day between semesters - NO SCHOOL
Monday, Jan. 26

Dear Wedgwood Families,

On the first day back in the New Year a small group of us met in the library to discuss a variety of topics at our Monday Mixer.

• We discussed conditions around the school on snow/ice days. Mr. Ngo salted the sidewalks and cross walks. If he has time after completing his responsibilities in preparing for student arrival, he will try to shovel the walk. We also recommend that parents park and walk their children to school to avoid the ice.


• There were questions about making up the snow days. The school year will be extended three days, so the last day of school will be June 19th.


• We will be enhancing our school wide efforts to support recess and lunch supervision through increased teacher presence as well as parent volunteers. We will be sending home communication about our discipline policy as well as explaining our anti-bullying curriculum and school policy at the next Monday Mixer. Lily Amar-Strugo, our counselor, will be joining us so I hope that those who are able to make it will join us on February 2nd.


• There are a couple of projects that we would like parent input. Please be on the look out for emails on Homework Club and parent volunteers for recess support.


• We discussed what next years class configurations will look like. I explained that a great deal depends upon district enrollment and programming. The superintendent announced her final recommendation for the board this week. For more information, you can go to: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/capacity/index.dxml

We have an exciting line up of events over the next couple of weeks. Friday will be our Dr. King assembly, next Tuesday, the 20th will be the presidential inauguration and next Friday, the 23rd we will be celebrating Lunar New Year here at Wedgwood. I look forward to spending these events with our community.

Family, staff and community members are invited to attend a series of meetings to discuss updates on the Seattle Public School Districts Strategic Plan, the implementation of Excellence for All, budget planning for the 2009-10 school year and further discussion of the new Student Assignment Plan. Interpreters will be available.

Dates, times and locations are:

Tuesday, January 13, 2009, 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Nathan Hale High School Library, 10750 30th Avenue N.E.
Saturday, January 24, 2009, 10:00 am – noon
John Stanford Center Auditorium, 2445 3rd Avenue S.

The Fifth Grade class would like to thank Claudia Clemente, Barbara Goff, Patty Hagen-Kerr, Michelle Matin, Laura McCorkle, Margie Rose and Julie Wilcox for baking delicious treats for our January Bake Sale. We would also like to thank Sarah Kaestle, Margaret Roe, Caroline Malone and Julie Goff for taking time out of the morning to sell the goodies. The class raised $91 towards this months’ trip to Islandwood camp on Bainbridge Island. Thank you for your support.

School tours are starting later this month and volunteers are needed to help act as tour guides. The time commitment is a minimum of 2 to 3 hours (one tour and a brief informational session). Of course, if you can lead multiple tours, that would be great! The tour dates are:

Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 1:15 pm,
Monday Feb. 23 at 9:15 am,
Tuesday, Feb. 24 at 1:15 pm
Tuesday, March 3 at 1:15 pm
Monday, March 16 at 9:15 am
Friday, March 27 at 9:15 am

Please contact Meg Angell at megangell@lessclutter.com and let her know which dates you are available to assist.

Fifth grade families, please note that middle tour dates are as follows:

Hamilton International Middle School Tour Dates:
Wednesday, January 21, 2009, 8:30 – 10:00 am
Wednesday, January 28, 2008, 8:30 – 10:00 am
Tuesday, February 3, 2009, 8:30 – 10:00 am
Thursday, February 5, 2009, 8:30 – 10:00 am
Thursday, February 5, 2009, 12:30 – 2:00pm Spanish/Japanese Immersion Tour

Eckstein Middle School Tour Dates:
Thursday, January 29, 2009, 9:00 – 10:45 am
Thursday, February 5, 2009, 9:00 – 10:45 am
Thursday, February 5, 2009, 6:30 – 7:30 pm
Thursday, February 12, 2009, 9:00 – 10:45 am

No reservations needed; report to the cafeteria.

Ready to supervise Wedgwood’s first lunch/recess? Have you ever wondered whether your kids are able to open their sandwich containers? Or why they seem to come home with as much food in the lunch boxes as what you packed? Wondering if they actually eat their hot lunch? How about whether they are having a hard time on the playground or are able to find friends to play with? Having more adults around to assist the kindergartners and 1st graders makes a big difference in a core part our kids’ days – whether they’re getting enough food to be able to learn in the afternoon and whether they thrive in the biggest social opportunity (and challenge) of the day – lunch and recess!

If you have interest in helping out on a regular basis (the same day each week or every other week) from 11:25 am to 12:10 pm, let us know. Our goal is to have two helpers for the first lunch/recess period. We ask that you sign up to be part of a regular schedule. It’s a great chance to get to know a lot of the children who will be your child’s peers throughout their Wedgwood years and to make a big difference to a lot of little bodies and their learning. If you would like to help, please contact Kristin (hillgriswold@comcast.net) or Laura (laurahitchcock@seanet.com).

PTA Board Meeting
Wednesday, Jan. 14
7:00 pm
Library
Please RSVP to Jennifer Bucher at rjmlbucher@comcast.net
Childcare is available

Scrip Orders Due
Thursday, Jan. 15

Kindergarten and Grade 1
Performing Arts Assembly
Thursday, Jan. 15
2:00 pm
Cafeteria

All School Martin Luther King Jr Assembly
Friday, Jan. 16
Cafeteria

Martin Luther King Jr. Day - NO SCHOOL
Monday Jan. 19

Lunar New Year Celebration
Friday, Jan. 23
6:00 to 8:00 pm

Day between semesters - NO SCHOOL
Monday, Jan. 26

Hello Wedgwood Families,

Hau’oli Makahiki Hou! (Happy New Year!) Welcome back to school. I hope that your family enjoyed time with each other over the break. Sledding at Dahl Field and down our street were great opportunities for our family to reconnect as well as meet families in our neighborhood. It reminded me of how fortunate we are to raise our boys in a neighborhood that has fun together as well as cares for each other.

Another example of our wonderful community was the success of the Wedgwood giving house. Although our last week of school was shortened by the weather, thanks to Mrs. Kelly and the generous donation by Wedgwood families who made the snowy journey to school, we were able to provide four families with dinner and gifts!

I am excited to be spending 2009 with Wedgwood. We are an amazing community and have so many wonderful learning opportunities coming up over the next months. Thank you to all who have given so generously to the Wedgwood Giving Tree Pledge Drive and supported our school. For those who are able to, but have not yet made your donation, you still have time to help support our community. Every donation helps to provide all our students with enriching learning opportunities.

Thank you for your support in 2008 and I look forward to a spectacular 2009 as we continue developing our learning community of global citizens.

Denise Espania

Lion Dancing...
Taiko Drumming...
Dumpling Making...

Mark your calendars for a fun-filled cultural event at 6:00pm on Friday, January 23rd! Wedgwood will be holding our 3rd annual Lunar New Year Celebration, and there will be lots of delicious food and professional cultural performances to enjoy throughout the night. To help out at this popular event, please contact coordinator Robert Yuan at yfalink@yahoo.com.

Only 4 Weeks Remain in Our Pledge Drive!! $15,000 to go!!

Help us continue to help provide a well-rounded curriculum and educational experience, the Wedgwood PTA relies on the funds raised by this annual Pledge Drive to support our school and sponsor programs. Our beautiful Giving Tree outside the Library has many apples, and there is room for many more.

Currently, more than 36 percent of our families have participated and we have raised $45,000; only $15,000 left to meet our goal! Our Giving Tree Pledge Drive ends Friday, January 30.

Our aim is for 100 percent of our families to participate by submitting a pledge, regardless of amount, and every pledge counts.

Thank you so much for considering a gift to our great school.

Building our Community!
Wedgwood Elementary Giving Tree Suggested donation levels:

$25 - $75 Red Apple
$76 - $250 Gala Apple
$251 - $500 Fuji Apple
$501-$1,000 Honey Crisp
$1,000 & up Golden Delicious

Wedgwood PTA is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.