May 2009 Archives

MAY

PTA General Membership Meeting
Vote for 09/10 board positions
and other year end PTA business
Thursday, May 28, 6:00pm

Science Night
Thursday, May 28, 6:30pm

JUNE

Monday Mixer with Principal Espania
Monday, June 1
9:15 am, Library

4th/5th Grade
Music Concert
Tuesday, June 2
6:45 pm, Cafeteria

Last Scrip Order Due
Thursday, June 4

Wedgwood Carnival
Sunday, June 7
Noon - 3:00 pm

2nd/3rd Grade
Music Concert
Wednesday, June 10
6:45 pm, Cafeteria

5th Grade Promotion
Wednesday, June 17
Cafeteria

Last Day of School
Friday, June 19th
2:05 pm dismissal

Dear Wedgwood Families,

What a beautiful long weekend! Our family played “tourist” this weekend in downtown Seattle. It was a great opportunity to appreciate our city and spend some quality time together. The best part was it only took us 15 minutes from vacation back home!

As I was thinking about next week’s Mixer, I tried to think of as many literacy and math activities that we naturally engage in. So, as an appetizer for next week’s mixer I’ll share a couple of things that we did this weekend.

The boys did some budgeting with a small amount of money at the bookstore. At meals and during shopping they helped to find totals. They used maps to help us find our way around. We caught the Monorail to get to Seattle Center and the boys estimated the time and cost for the family to take a round trip. Adonis is working on time so he helped us to find out how long it was taking us to do different activities and did a count down till the agreed upon swimming time. For this activity I had to keep reminding myself how great it is that he is telling time! It was a great weekend and it kept us all on our toes!

In addition to summer math, at the next mixer we will be discussing class configurations for next year. However, this will not include teacher assignment because of the nature of changes that occur during the summer.

Denise Espania

Science Night is Thursday, May 28 at 6:30! Got any great, creative ideas on how to protect your egg to withstand a thirty-foot fall from a fire trucks tallest ladder? Come show off your creativity and ingenuity (only 1 egg per student can be dropped from the ladder).

3rd grade classes: remember to bring your instruments made as part of your science unit on sound. Label your instrument with your name so we can get it back to you.

Science night is a hands-on event! The Audubon Society will have a booth you won’t want to miss! Presentation boards are still available in the office. Work with your child on any simple home grown experiment. Share your results with us.

PTA GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING at 6 pm, prior to Science Night. Come vote for next year’s board and any other year-end business.

Wedgwood's Annual Spelling Bee was a real C-O-M-P-E-T-I-T-I-O-N!

Congratulations to winner Alison Blodgett (room 8) and runner up Sofia Dudas (room 14) for their outstanding spelling abilities!

It’s not long til Sunday, June 7—From Noon to 3 pm our grounds will be turned into a circus as we are Bustin’ the Big Top! Lots of great carnival favorites like games, the cake-walk, face painting, balloon animals, inflatables, popcorn and sno-cones will join NEW highlights:

• Pony Rides!


• Photo Booth!


• Step right up and survive the Carnie Challenge game series which tests your skill, smarts and stamina!


• Get a sneak peek of the Auction Arcade at https://sites.google.com/site/wwauction2009

BRING YOUR APPETITE! Wedgwood-family-owned Neato Burrito will be serving up Spicy Chicken and Paradise burritos, and Snooze Junction Pizza will transport their pies straight from the oven! Hit the Concession Stand for tasty treats by Top Pot and The Grateful Bread.

FEELING LUCKY? A $5 Raffle Ticket can win you a new Nintendo DSi or an Amazon.com Kindle touch screen library!

TAKE AIM. Help send next year’s 5th graders to camp—our popular Splash For Cash Dunk Tank will have special guests and winners of next week’s Dunk The Principal online auction will get a rare chance to see Mrs. Espania on the plank!

SAVE TIME. Get your Wristband early! Order forms hit Kidmail this week. After school sales are June 2-4.

VOLUNTEER. Help us bust the Big Top! Great need for 2nd and 3rd shifts.

Reminder to Parents of 3rd and 4th Graders - don't forget to turn in your registration by June 19th if your child is interested in our instrumental music program starting next fall!

Also, watch for a flyer for the WIM "Instrument Petting Zoo" coming soon! Wedgwood offers an excellent introductory instrumental music program to all interested 4th and 5th graders. Information with a registration form went home by Kid mail. Lost the form? No problem. Just deliver a note with your child’s name, next year’s grade level, parent’s name and address, and the $225 registration fee (Checks payable to the Wedgwood PTA) to the WIM box in the school’s front office. Full and partial scholarships are provided for families who cannot afford the registration fee.

Questions? Contact Maria Hunt-Escobedo via e-mail at mhunt31@comcast.net.

Come join us on Monday, June 1st at 9:15 am in the Library for our monthly Monday Mixer with Principal Espania. It is an excellent way to get any questions or concerns you may have addressed or just meet other parents. Resources for keeping children engaged with math during the summer break will be one of the topics discussed. Hope to see you there!

Parents - the LOST & FOUND is out of control!! If your child is missing ANYTHING, or you even think they might be, check out the lunchroom lost and found bins. Items are not limited to coats and jackets. Check it out! It all gets donated at the end of the year. Don’t let that favorite get away …

MAY

Two Hour Early Dismissal
Wednesday, May 20, 1:05pm

Wedgwood Walkathon
Friday, May 22

Memorial Day
NO SCHOOL
Monday, May 25

PTA General Membership Meeting
Vote for 09/10 board positions
and other year end PTA business
Thursday, May 28, 6:00pm

Science Night
Thursday, May 28, 6:30pm

JUNE

Monday Mixer with Principal Espania
Monday, June 1
9:15 am, Library

4th/5th Grade
Music Concert
Tuesday, June 2
6:45 pm, Cafeteria

Last Scrip Order Due
Thursday, June 4

Wedgwood Carnival
Sunday, June 7
Noon - 3:00 pm

2nd/3rd Grade
Music Concert
Wednesday, June 10
6:45 pm, Cafeteria

5th Grade Promotion
Wednesday, June 17
Cafeteria

Last Day of School
Friday, June 19th
2:05 pm dismissal

Dear Wedgwood Families,

Our Wedgwood community had an eventful week. We started the week with our annual spelling bee. All of the participants did an amazing job and our students were so impressive. They were poised and handled themselves with such maturity while the rest of our student community was so respectful and supportive, it was such a proud moment. Congratulations to all those who participated, great work! On Tuesday we had our Volunteer tea to thank all who take time to enhance and enrich our community and our children’s school experience. That same afternoon “Team Marmot” witnessed the signing of the Marmot bill into law. This would not have been possible if not for the hard work of the 4th and 5th grade classes, Ms. Clark and Ms. Jacobsen, Senator Jacobsen and Representative White. It was a community effort and accomplishment! Later that evening was a PTA meeting to discuss the school and PTA budgets. It was appropriately timed, in light of the district’s RIF and current budget challenges. During the meeting we discussed how PTA can support Wedgwood’s continued success during these tough economic times.

Our weeks at school will continue to be event filled. For example, this Friday we will be having our first Wedgwood walk-a-thon. All students will receive a shirt and will have the opportunity to walk to raise money for our school. I look forward to sharing with our community all of the exciting upcoming events.

Denise Espania

Please remember to submit yearbook orders no later than this Thursday May 21! More order forms are available in the office. Thank you to all students who submitted artwork for the yearbook; we had a record number of submissions this year! The winner of the participant raffle was Rory Cannon (Rm. 4). And the winner of the cover contest—chosen by anonymous committee vote—was Alder Strange (Rm. 14). Congratulations to both of you! -Dana Nelson, wwyb0809@gmail.com

The Wedgwood Walkathon is FRIDAY!

Remember to get pledges before May 22. Every $ raised goes to support Wedgwood students. There are lots of great prizes for the students who raise the most money. Walkathon t-shirts and goodie bags for ALL participants. Volunteers still needed!! Contact deborahsigler@gmail.com

Mark your calendars for Science Night on Thursday May 28 at 6:30!

Got any great, creative ideas on how to protect your egg to withstand a thirty-foot fall from a fire trucks tallest ladder? Come show off your creativity and ingenuity. 3rd grade classes: remember to bring your instruments made as part of your science unit on sound. Please label your instrument with your name so we can get in back to you.

Science night is a hands-on event! The Audubon Society will have a booth you won’t want to miss! Presentation boards are still available in the office. Work with your child on any simple home grown experiment. Share your results with us. Work together...science is about collaboration!

PTA GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING at 6 pm, prior to Science Night. Come vote for next year’s board and any other year-end business

It’s that time of year again - the Wedgwood Carnival is Sunday, June 7!

“Bust’n the Big Top!” will turn our grounds into a circus from Noon - 3 pm. We have a lot of new activities planned for the carnival including pony rides, Survivor Game Challenges, live entertainment and much more. Come for lunch, bid at the Silent Auction, dunk a friend in the dunk tank and get lucky in the raffles to win a new Amazon.com Kindle or Nintendo DS.

This is the biggest event of the year and we can’t do it with your support - This year each class is being asked to supply the carnival committee with 13 volunteers, each working 1 shift.

The shifts are:
Setup: 10:30 - 12:00
Shift 1: 11:50-12:55
Shift 2: 12:50 - 1:55
Shift 3: 1:50-3:00
Cleanup: 3:00-4:30

If a volunteer wants to work more than one shift, each shift counts as a volunteer. So, if you want to help out for the entire day from 10:30 am - 4:30 pm, that would count toward 5 volunteers from your class.

The carnival is going “green” this year - No paper forms will be coming home and volunteer sigh up will be done electronically. Respond to the entire class so we know where we are with our volunteer count. Room Parents will forward the Carnival Volunteer Coordinator the names, emails and shift request of each volunteer. Setup and Cleanup shifts only require about 10 volunteers total per shift and fill up fast. If these are the shifts you’re interested in, volunteer quickly!

Look for the Room Parent carnival volunteer email and respond. Don’t wait for others to volunteer first; every parent in the school will need to help out in a shift for this event to come together! Middle and High School students can earn volunteer credit hours by helping out at the carnival, so talk to your friends and neighbors! Thanks for being involved and for Bust’n the Big Top!

Attention Parents of 3rd and 4th Graders: Now is the time for you to think about instrumental music for your child next year. Wedgwood Elementary offers an excellent introductory instrumental music program to all interested 4th and 5th graders. Information with a registration form went home a few days ago by Kid mail.

Lost the form? No problem. Just deliver a note with your child’s name, next year’s grade level, parent’s name and address, and the $225 registration fee (Checks payable to the Wedgwood PTA) to the WIM box in the school’s front office. Full and partial scholarships are provided for families who cannot afford the registration fee.

Flyers to nominate Wedgwood’s Outstanding Volunteers of the year went out last week. Take a few moments to nominate someone that you think has gone the extra mile this year to help Wedgwood!

Lost the flyer? Send an email with a few short sentences on who you’d like to nominate and why to sylvialago@comcast.net or rjmlbucher@comcast.net

All nominations will be kept anonymous. All volunteers nominated will be published in The Weekly in June. Don’t be shy, show your thanks; nominate a special volunteer! Nominations are due by June 10th.

KidsPlay, which has held fitness camps at school during breaks, has their own space! It’s located at 3238 NE 45th St near the”5 corners”. Come by after school to visit and see what we look like, what types of classes we’ll be offering and what’s in store for summer, or just to run around for a few minutes. We’ll have an end of school special coming up soon too. Call us at 524-PLAY or check out our new website at www.kidsplayfitness.com .

MAY

Scrip Orders Due
Thursday, May 14

Two Hour Early Dismissal
Wednesday, May 20, 1:05pm

Wedgwood Walkathon
Friday, May 22

Memorial Day
NO SCHOOL
Monday, May 25

PTA General Membership Meeting
Vote for 09/10 board positions
and other year end PTA business
Thursday, May 28, 6:00pm

Science Night
Thursday, May 28, 6:30pm

JUNE

Monday Mixer with Principal Espania
Monday, June 1
9:15 am, Library

4th/5th Grade
Music Concert
Tuesday, June 2
6:45 pm, Cafeteria

Last Scrip Order Due
Thursday, June 4

Wedgwood Carnival
Sunday, June 7
Noon - 3:00 pm

2nd/3rd Grade
Music Concert
Wednesday, June 10
6:45 pm, Cafeteria

5th Grade Promotion
Wednesday, June 17
Cafeteria

May Monday Mixer Minutes

• Nurse Anita came to talk about the flu and tips for keeping our community healthy. For updated information check it out on line. http://kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/preparedness/pandemicflu/swineflu.aspx


• Mrs. Miller, our librarian, did a presentation on resources for summer literacy and the importance of keeping children engaged with reading, writing and math. A summer reading list will be forthcoming, but she shared a couple of helpful resources. She suggested checking out the public library. She offered to help parents find books their children may like and wanted everyone to know that she loves parent volunteers in the library. She also shared two websites. The first was from Seattle Public Schools. http://www.seattleschools.org/area/library/stuindex.xml. She also talked about checking out sites with your child that can track and rate the books you and your child are reading.


• Deborah (Mateo’s mom) shared a typing site for children to practice key boarding. http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/


• A question about the changes to special education and services being provided to Wedgwood to address the movement toward services in neighborhood schools was asked. Until we know who will be attending Wedgwood in the fall I would not be able to address the exact services provided at the school. As we get a clearer picture as to our enrollment we will be able to address questions about services as well as class size and grade configurations.


• We will be examining resources for math during the June Monday Mixer.

I also wanted to thank all of you for the wonderful treats in the staff room, the amazing PTA sponsored lunch on Friday, and most importantly the beautiful books and gifts that you showered the teachers with this past week. So many of our teachers came up to share how special and appreciated they felt. Thank you for making this past week such a special one for our teachers and staff.

Denise Espania

Yearbook order forms went home last week. If you didn't receive one, there are plenty of extras available in the office. Yearbooks are $18 for color and $9 for black-and-white. Please get your order in soon...no later than Thursday, May 21. - Dana Nelson (wwyb0809@gmail.com or 729-7484)

FIRED UP AND READY TO GO!
Mark your calendars! Friday, May 22. The 1st Wedgwood Walkathon is just around the corner. Remember to get pledges before May 22. Every $ goes to support Wedgwood students. There are lots of great prizes for the students who raise the most money. Walkathon t-shirts and goodie bags for ALL participants. Volunteers still needed!! Contact deborahsigler@gmail.com

4th/5th Grade Music Concert Changes
Date: Tuesday, June 2nd
Time: 6:45 pm, Performers, please arrive no later than 6:30 pm
A student assembly will be held at 1:50 pm on June 2nd.

2nd/3rd Grade Music Concert
Date: Wednesday, June 10
Time: 6:45 pm, Performers, please arrive no later than 6:30 pm

Parent Volunteers are still needed. Please email or call if available.
---- Ms. Becker
cmbecker@seattleschools.org or 252-5677

The chess team traveled to Spokane for the state tournament this year. Improving on last year's 7th place finish, we were the highest scoring K-3 team in the state this year (out of over 140 schools)!! Roland Feng repeated as state champion for the 3rd time while Andrew Osborn won for the first time as a 3rd grader. Oliver Windes and Grayson Spangenberg each had breakout performances, with Grayson scoring three big upsets! It was an impressive performance all the way around, with all 14 kids winning at least 40% of their games and as a team winning 70%! Also participating: Matthew Bennani, Miles Cake, Mason McVey, Issy Kurdi, Zhemin Shao, Mason McCafferty, Vedrana Ivezic, Ravi Smith, Nolan McCafferty, and Nate Osborn.

As a special honor, Roland and Zhemin represented Washington state in the annual BC vs. WA International K-12 Match this past weekend and helped our state score an impressive 32-20 victory over our neighbors to the north. Combine the above results with winning the team championship in March and it has definitely been a successful tournament season for the Wedgwood chess team.

Thank you to the wonderful parents and PTA for the great week of delicious treats, gifts and salad luncheon for Staff Appreciation Week. We certainly felt appreciated!! We have the best parents in the Seattle School District!!!

King County Health Department:

When to Keep You Child at Home (PDF)

Facts for families of school-age children

Information about H1N1 virus for the general public

CDC:

Resources for Parents and Caregivers

General Information

MAY

Living Voices Assembly
Friday, May 8, Cafeteria
1st-3rd Grades: 9:15 - 10:15 am
4th-5th Grades: 10:30 - 11:30am

Volunteer Reception
Tuesday, May 12,
2:00 pm, Cafeteria

PTA Board Meeting
Tuesday, May 12
7:00 pm, Library
Please RSVP to Jennifer Bucher at rjmlbucher@comcast.net
Childcare is available

Scrip Orders Due
Thursday, May 14

Two Hour Early Dismissal
Wednesday, May 20, 1:05pm

Wedgwood Walkathon
Friday, May 22

Memorial Day
NO SCHOOL
Monday, May 25

Science Night
Thursday, May 28, 6:30pm

Dear Wedgwood Families,

The other week I shared with a first grade class my “reading life”. I brought in a copy of The Reading Teacher, a publication from the International Reading Association. In light of May’s Monday Mixer and ideas for continued learning during the summer months, I wanted to share with you an article by Dr. Timothy Rasinski and Nancy Padak out of Kent State University.

“Write Soon” is an article that is intended for teachers to support parents increasing the number of experiences for their children to engage in authentic writing experiences. It is important that our children see us as their models for reading and writing and that these are activities that occur naturally in our every day lives. It is helpful to have writing materials readily available (paper, pencils, crayons, etc.) and that during these experiences we are not critiquing for spelling or conventions, but appreciating the child’s ideas.

Some authentic writing experiences that we can do with our children are:

• Writing lists (shopping, things to do, invitation lists, etc.)


• Writing notes (to family, jotting down memories, feelings or descriptions)


• Keeping a journal (this is more than just notes, but a daily summary of the day)


• Letters and emails


• Dialog journals (exchange a note book taking turns asking or answering questions, giving or getting advice)


• Write a birthday or special event book


• Write parodies (re-write the words to a favorite song)

Have fun writing!

Denise Espania

Spring has sprung, and we have several great community and fundraising events in the works. Last Friday's Multicultural Night celebrated the wrap-up of our 6-week Read Around the World-athon and Science Night is ramping up. This month will see the first-ever Walkathon, which will give students ownership in helping to raise needed funds for their school, and June will bring our annual community Carnival & FUNdraiser.

Join the PTA Board at our May 12, 7 pm, meeting for an open forum on the latest on the Wedgwood budget, a General Membership discussion and vote on how funds raised above the current PTA budget should be used, and a vote on the 2009-10 Board positions. Childcare is available, but very limited. Please RSVP to rjmlbucher@comcast.net if you are interested in childcare.

Wedgwood students and families had such a fun time at Husky Stadium on Sunday, April 26th, during the Boardwalk 5K event. All students did the one-mile Walk of Champions and several students completed the three-mile run! Thank you to all the families who donated to our PE program and participated in the event! A BIG thanks to Room 16 participants Milo Gerhard, Nick Tran, Max Stearns, Olivia Glick, Mateo Pena, Gargya Sekar, and Kurt Gundlach; Mai Schrock-Manabe from room 6;and Jett Yasuda and Talia Glick from room 4!

Ms. Jansen

Wedgwood’s 4th annual Multicultural Night was another amazing event! Many thanks to our entertainers - storyteller Kibibi Monie; Irish step dancers from All That Dance, owned by Wedgwood parents Maygan and Wayne Wurzer; Ms. Becker and room 14; and Wedgwood students Trishala Jain and Josephine Athappily - for putting on a great show. And thanks to the people who brought food for the bake sale, which raised about $200 for your PTA.

This year’s event was a little different than previous years in that it was the culmination of the Read Around the World program. Students have been reading books about other countries and cultures since early April, reading more than 3,200 books in 6 weeks!

Special thanks to parent John Jansen who heard about this program and made it happen at Wedgwood, and to the teachers and staff who embraced the program and worked hard to make it a success. Thanks also to the 50+ volunteers who helped out with RAW and/or MCN. This was truly a community event, and we could not have done it without all of your help!

We need volunteers when school starts in again the fall to support Wedgwood students as they train for the Seattle Kids Marathon. Over the course of about two months, the kids will run 25 miles during morning recesses and we need parent volunteers to supervise them. Even if you can commit to just a few days, we need you help to make this happen. If interested, please contact Sarah Yasuda at Sarah@sarahyasuda.com.

The poster boards for Science Night presentations are available in the front office. Supplies are limited, so please only take a board if you are sure you will be presenting. Research posters can be on any subject. These projects are done at home with the assistance of parents. Teachers will not be working on these during class time.

The posters are typically divided into three sections that correspond to the three sections of the board: the prediction, the test, and the results/conclusion. It is nice if a child’s test can be recreated at school so that other students can watch and learn, too. Work on the poster with your child.

You don’t have to be a “real” scientist to create an easy, fun experiment. Encourage you child to try to make a prediction on something they are interested in. For example: What will decompose faster in my compost bin: a whole apple or apple slices? Do organic foods decompose faster than non-organic foods? Have fun!