SALMON BAY K-5 WEEKLY BULLETIN

“Building small learning communities – connecting every child”

Main Office phone: 252-1720, Attendance: 252-1728, Fax: 252-1721

Website: www.salmonbay.seattleschools.org

Volunteer Coordinator: 252-1730 Email: mcratcliffe@seattleschools.org

Monday May 5th, 2008

Upcoming Events Calendar:

MAY

5th-9th                                      Teacher Appreciation Week (Schedule Below)

5th        Monday                                    Chris Jordan Assembly 1:15 and 2:15

5th        Monday                         PIE  Book Group Night 7:00 PM Cafeteria

6th            Tuesday                      Math Lab 3:10 – 4:30

6th            Tuesday                      Science Fair 6:30-8:00 Cafeteria (Forms in backpacks)

7th             Wednesday                   Banking Window Open 8:30 – Family Room

8th            Thursday                     Friends of Salmon Bay Parent Board Meeting 7:00 PM Library

9th        Friday                          ROCK for FOSBE – 8:00 Salmon Bay Eagles Hall 5216 20th Ave NW

12th-16th                                   Secret Garden Spring Bookfair Library 8:30-3:30

12th-14th Mon-Wed                 Brian and Nicolette’s 4th/5th Grade to Camp Orkila

13th            Tuesday                      6th Grade Celebration of Learning 7:00-8:30  (Bookfair Open)

16th      Friday                          Aloha Potluck 6:30-8:30 (New families arrive at 6:00 PM. Bookfair open)

17th            Saturday                     Ballard Parade – Mr. G’s Unicyclists perform

21st            Wednesday                   Early Release 1:10

22nd             Thursday                     Bridges Film Festival  (more info to come) 7:00 PM

26th      Monday                                    Memorial Day – No school

27th             Tuesday                      All School Parent Meeting and Board Elections 7:00 PM Cafeteria

28th            Wednesday                   Diversity Committee Meeting 7:00 PM Library

29th- 30th Thurs/Fri                     Dorothy and Carita’s Class to Camp Indianola.

 

Principal’s Note: Dear Salmon Bay Families:

 

This is not only the time of year that we see growth in our plants and gardens, and all around us in our neighborhoods, but in our students, as well.  The culmination of their year’s learning is “bursting out” everywhere.  If you attended the poetry nights last week, you know what I mean---poetry everywhere. This could be a great time to sit down with your student and point out all the new things she /he can do and explain that are new since September—and then just be prepared to listen

 

Thank you, as well, for your support and partnership in completing the days of WASL testing. Students arrived rested and ready, and your contributions for snacks were greatly appreciated. Marcus Arnold, 3rd grader in Dave’s class, said, “The WASL is my favorite subject—it’s not just the candy, I really like the work!”  I know there are challenges and controversies with the length and actual experience of the WASL for students, but I also think the week showed us yet another example of how our incredible teachers encourage confidence and independence in their students.

 

Have a good week!

 

Jodee

 

 

 

Volunteer Coordinator’s Notes: There is something to fit everyone’s fancy this week on the calendar between… the Book Group happening tonight (it starts at 7:00 so it seems to me that you still have almost 5 hours to get your homework done and get that book read) the Science Fair happening tomorrow night-6:30 Cafeteria (over 24 hours minus some sleeping time to craft or create some testimony to the wonder of bubbles or burps or biodiesel fuel).  Wednesday this week is the official day of rest, where you can bring in your pennies and dollars and deposit them into our own Salmon Bay Student Bank Window in the Family Room, starting at 8:30 AM.  And how cool is this…Save For America is the vendor for our Schools Savings program.  Hayden Grow, 2nd Grader,  won a $25 gift certificate in their drawing amongst kids around the country who made at least 10 school savings deposits during the school year.  Congratulations Hayden!  Wednesday also happens to be the Potluck lunch day for the teachers for teacher appreciation week, so skip what I said about it being a rest day.  Bring a lunch dish to offer up to feed our talented troupe of teachers, who in turn teach our tidy, troupe of tots and tottettes.   Thursday is your chance to bring in a sweet treat for the sweet teach.  We had some great comments from the teachers last year that the death by chocolate experience that we brought to them one day, was A LOT of fun to eat, walk around in, be in the presence of , figure out what was what and really get to the point of eating so much that getting sick from eating too much chocolate seemed like a reality.  Well let’s do it again.  Bring in those sweets.  (Drop off in teachers lounge on the 3rd floor or bring to Megan’s office).  Thursday night is the FOSB meeting.  Always entertaining.  See you at 7:00 PM.  Friday is ROCK for FOSBE, which thanks to Jen Busch’s coordinating efforts, you can hear great music from folks you know, in a local venue, hang out with your friends, support the school and have some great food. 

Three last notes  Congratulations go to Keith, Melissa, and Hannah MacLaren (Salmon Bay teacher and 3rd grader and super mom) who welcomed their new baby boy, Andrew, into their household this week.  Way to go mom, dad and new big sister.

***Thank you to Nancy Gruber and Linda for another successful Poetry night.  What an explosion of words and talent.  It was great to sit around and listen to each other, wasn’t it?

***After listening to Chris Jordan’s presentation this afternoon on waste and consumerism (ask your student if their class went) I am committed to not using plastic water bottles.  He said he has only used a few plastic bottles in the last year.  I say give it a try,  His performance regarding waste was impactful and impressive.  Perhaps with our eco warrior children’s help, we can kick this plastic bottle habit.  For more info about Chris Jordan, check out this website chrisjordan.com.

Have a great week. 

 

 

TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK:  MAY 5th – 9th  Who loves the teachers at Salmon Bay?  We do and Teacher appreciation week is a fun way to show it.  This year we will be treating them to food and fun.  Would you like to join in the adventure? Below is a schedule of what goes on during the week.  We are encouraging families to participate in any way or any one day, if they can to our Teacher Appreciation week.  Don’t feel that you need to do something everyday, unless you would like to.   Bring some fresh fruit in next Monday.  Bring a potluck lunch item on Wednesday.  Bring a little sweet treat on Thursday if you have a favorite fancy that your Aunt Fanny used to make you and finally, we will treating the staff to a panini sandwich luncheon on Friday.  As you can imagine, cards, letters, poems, pictures, haiku’s are all welcomed during the course of the week.  This week is not just about showering gifts.  It is about showering praise for an incredible group of people who continually go beyond and give our kids an extraordinary experience at Salmon Bay.   I need volunteers for many forms of hospitality that week, so if you have time next week and are okay with the following jobs, let me know.  ( Staff room cleanup,  potluck set up and break down, coffee delivery and general host/hostess duties)

 

Tuesday –Catered Luncheon

Wednesday – Luncheon potluck  -  Bring in your favorite savory dish to share with our super staff

(Please label your actual dish and a sign that describe what tasty treat is in the dish)

Thursday – Coffee and homemade treat day  - 

Friday -  Grilled Panini luncheon. 

If folks who would like to participate, would be so kind to give me a head’s up to what you would like to do, please email me at mcratcliffe@seattleschools.org, thank you so very kindly.

 

**Please note that while all the food will be served in the teachers lounge, we would ask your cooperation in making sure that food items are sent free of peanut and tree nut products. Thanks for you attention to this matter.

 

YEARBOOK:.We’d love to feature the new/improved playground in the yearbook, so ... If you happened to take any photos of the construction parties and/or unveiling after the Halloween parade, please turn them in! Either email to cathy@runcatrun.com or drop off a CD or prints in the yearbook envelope outside of Julie Skoog’s office (near Megan’s). We need to wrap everything up by the middle of May, so quicker is better! Thanks!

 

ROCK FOR FOSBE:  Rock for FOSBE is this Friday, May 9th…. do you have childcare?  Coho Kidstime has graciously agreed to open their doors to your younglings, so you can enjoy the company of other parents, teachers and staff.  Cost is $25, call 297-7764 to reserve your spot. See you at the Eagles, for some fun, some tunes, some friends and some bass.  Doors open at 8:00 with a $10 suggested donation.  There will be a cash bar and great homecookin’ available for $10/plate (country spare ribs, collard greens and corn bread). 

 

Notes from the Library: As a wise Salmon Bay parent once said: “May is the new December.”  I couldn’t agree more, and here in the library our May actually started on April 29th and 30th with Poetry Nights. Many thanks to the efforts of Nancy Gruber and Megan Ratcliffe who helped to make this another memorable event! (It was SRO on Wednesday.) And a special “shout out” to our two middle school Poet Laureates, Sidney Axtell and Jhamante Jefferson, who represented their middle school cohort admirably. If you were there, you know their poetry rocks! I will be putting a bibliography together of some of the more popular poetry books here at Salmon Bay. Look for more information coming soon.

 

I wanted to remind students and parents about the importance of checking in with me regarding any special technical requirements you may have for upcoming presentations. (This applies primarily to middle school families, but if you have an elementary student who is planning to present a project using the presentation station equipment, please make sure to read this!) Students should check in with me at least one day before they are due to present. It is easy to connect your personal laptop to our existing presentation (unless you need a live Internet connection, in which case you’ll need to use one of the computers here at school.) Because I teach a class every morning, I’m not available to help troubleshoot between 9:00 and 9:35, so please plan ahead!

 

I hope that you are planning a visit to the Book Fair during the week of May12-16th. Sheri Feld has done her usual great job of organizing this event. Students will have opportunities to browse the Book Fair through the week. You may not know that our library relies almost exclusively from funds from our parent groups, as well as commissions from book fairs, for our yearly operating budget. Thanks so much for doing your part to ensure that our students have great books to read, as well as access to other important library resources. We really couldn’t do it without your help!

 

Take time to enjoy those May flowers with your families, and I hope that you’re able to carve out a little bit of time to relax with a good book amidst all of the craziness this month seems to bring. Happy Reading!  Linda

 

 

 

 

Spring All School Book Fair    May 12 – May 16

The Spring Book Fair is right around the corner – mark you calendars, start making your reading lists and sign up to volunteer!  The spring book fair takes place in our school library from 8:30AM – 3:30pm Mon – Fri. and also Tuesday and Friday evenings from 6:30PM – 9:00PM.

 

Secret Garden, a fantastic local independently owned bookstore will supply us with a great selection of children’s books for all reading levels. All of the proceeds from the book fair will be used to buy new books for our library.  The Spring and Fall book fairs are the library’s main source of money to buy books.

 

Help! We need lots of volunteers to staff the book fair during the book fair hours.  It’s an easy and fun way to help out our school. You can volunteer by choosing a 1-hour shift on the sign-up board outside the main office, or call or email Sheri Feld – 789-7945, sherifeld@netscape.net with your shift requests.

 

Parent Information Exchange - Book Club Night:  Our much-anticipated book discussion for How Can You Say That, by Amy Lynch, is coming up tonight Monday, May 5th at 7:00 pm.  We'll meet in the cafeteria before breaking-out into smaller groups where moderators will help keep the discussion humming along.  Afterwards, we'll be serving up delicious pie and fresh conversation.  Our school library has a waitlist of people ready to check out the book -- if you're ready to return your copy, please do.  Secret Garden has 5 copies of the book in stock.  COHO Kids Time is available at no cost but please call to reserve your spot (297-7764).  Come meet others in our community and join the fun!  Questions?  Contact Robin Lofstrom at robin@lofstrom.com

NOTE TO READERS -If you checked out one of the resource books from our library and are finished with it, please bring it with you to the Book group and we can check it in for you.  That way others can enjoy it as well.  Thanks, Linda Richards

 

Dear Salmon Bay Families,

If you are looking for summer programs for your child to attend, there is a website that has many summer camps that will be taking place in Seattle.  Some are free, some have a fee.  The website is:

http://www.psctlt.org/techREACH/students_zone/downloads/YouthPrograms-Summer2008.doc

Thanks, Anthony Malaki  Counselor

 

ALL SCHOOL PARENT MEETING Tuesday MAY 27th 2008. 

 Mark your calendar now for the first-annual all-school parent meeting on Tuesday, May 27.  We’ll hear a presentation from Seattle School Board member Peter Maier, elect 2008-09 officers for Friends of Salmon Bay, hear about plans for next year, and enjoy some desserts and coffee.  The meeting will start at 7:00 and the business will be completed by 8:30 with desserts to follow.   More information to follow soon.  We hope to see you there

 

Parent Board Meeting – FOSB The FOSB Board will hold its next meeting on May 8 at 7:00 in the library.  We’ll be planning for next year and getting ready for the May 27 All-Parent meeting, in addition to covering various “usual” items.  We hope you can attend. 

 

OPERATION CHICKEN: 

Thanks so much for your participation in and support of Operation Chicken!We were able to buy the following animals:  1 Heifer, 1 Water Buffalo, 1 Llama, 1 Sheep, 1 Pig, 1 Tree Seedlings, 2 Honeybees, 2 Flocks of Chicks, 1 Flock of Ducks/Geese, 1 Knitting Basket (which is 1 breeding pair of llamas and 1 breeding pair of sheep).  It wouldn’t have been possible without everyone’s help! We appreciate it!

From Melanie's Homeroom, Room 317

 

 COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS 

 

Community Supported Agriculture Opportunity Eat Local, Eat Organic!

Summer session starts Wed., June 18th

Are you interested in supporting local farmers and getting a fantastic box of organic, locally grown produce fresh from the farm each week?  I am a member of a local CSA from Jubilee Farm in Carnation.  CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. This is a relationship between a farmer who grows organic fruits and vegetables, and local members of the public who want to support that farmer in his or her agricultural efforts and who want to enjoy the benefits of eating the freshest, most wholesome farm produce available.  My home (around the corner from Salmon Bay School) is a depot for Jubilee, and each Wednesday, big boxes of fantastic produce are is delivered fresh from the farm for members to pick up.  I have been very pleased with the quality and selection, and they have a goof-proof policy, with everything guaranteed 110%.  The summer session starts mid-June and runs through October.  If you are interested in learning more about this program, check out www.jubileefarm.org  or contact Farmers Wendy and Erick at jubileefarm@hotmail.com < Additionally, you can email me, and I can give you more information as well!  Sharon Muza (muza@serv.net <mailto:muza@serv.net>), I would love to see more Salmon Bay Families join me in supporting this wonderful local farm.

 

Laugh for a Good Cause

FamilyWorks Food Bank and Resource Center presents an interactive puppet show fundraiser.  Come see "Camp Fuzziwana" by Unexpected Productions for lots of family laughs.  Suggested donation: $8/person, $25/family or pay what you can.  Saturday May 17th, 4:30-6pm at Mosaic Coffeehouse (44th & 2nd Ave E. behind Dicks Drive In) in Wallingford.  Your donation helps purchase food supplies for the food bank and supports the free parent education/support programs, after school tutoring, and teen parent programs at the resource center.

CALL KATE BANTA-GREEN (Salmon Bay Parent) (206) 694-6725 FOR MORE INFORMATION  or www.familyworksseattle.org

 

LOCAL INFO:  Attached is the flyer announcing the "Official" Opening of the Burke-Gilman Trial Extension "NW 60th to Golden Gardens" and the Kick-Off Event for Seattle Walks Day! on May 10th at 10:00 a.m.. Please spread the word andjoin us if you are able.
See you May 10th!

 

SUMMER CAMP INFORMATION:

Summer Writing Camp 2008

What: A day camp for young writing enthusiasts.  Campers will choose their own writing topics and genres, play writing games, make books, explore and write outdoors, and more. We will end the week with a writing-in-a-coffee house field trip.

Who: Children entering 4th, 5th and 6th grade in September

Where: Coe Elementary on Queen Anne Hill

When: 9:00- 1:00, M-F  4 Sessions:*June 23-27  * July 21-25  * July 28- August 1 * August 11-15

Cost: $120/session-   partial scholarships available

Leader: Annie Gage works during the school year at Coe Elementary. She is a writer and mom who has facilitated children’s writing groups and camps for 4 years. Her stories have sold to Ladybug, Highlights and elsewhere, and she is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She has a Masters degree in social work and has worked with children for over twenty years.More Info Contact Annie Gage at 632-2618 (h) 851-7089 (cell) anniegage@msn.com.

 

 

 

 

 

****************COHO KIDS TIME SUMMER CAMP 2008**************

 Registration materials are available now!  You can turn them in starting April 7th (when registration starts), but grab your registration packet now to start filling it out.  Demand for summer camp is very very high this year, and space is limited!!!  Make sure you get your packet turned in by April 7th (day we are back from Spring Break).  Registration materials are available at Coho Kids Time, or online starting very soon @ www.ballard-bgc.org (follow the links to Coho Kids Time).  Call 206-297-7764 or email cohokids@aol.com for more information!

 

Space to Create News:   www.spacetocreate.net

Upcoming Classes for Kids:  Open Studio for Kids: Mondays 3:30 – 5

Fun with Yarn: Tuesdays May 6, 13, 20, 27 from 3:30 – 5

Open Studio for Middle Schoolers: Wednesdays 3-5

Early Release Craft Time: Wednesday, May 21st from 1 - 4

Paper Mache Creations: Thursdays May 8,15, and 22

 Upcoming Classes for Adults: Open Studio: Tuesdays from 9:30 – 12 and Thursdays from 7 – 9 pm

Hand-dyed Silk Scarves: Friday, May 30 from 7 – 10

Beadfuddled Jewelry Design Workshop: Saturday, May 31 from 10 -1

 SUMMER CAMPS: see our extensive summer camp schedule on our web site

 

Fayezart day camps with guest musician Stuart Zobel

Elements of Art and Music June 23-27

Percussion Mayhem and Mud Madness July 21-25

Science of Music and Pottery  August 18-22

week long 1/2 day day camps 9:00-1200  Open 5 to 12 year olds  $165 includes snack

location  1806 NW 70th st. - http://fayezart.com or call faye for more information 206-719-4207

 

Summer Classes at Darrah Blanton Dance!  online at www.balletbirthdayparty.com
Maya Whole Health Studio, downtown Fremont
Thursdays June 26-August 28    10 weeks for $130
Pre-ballet 3-3:50 ages 3-5

 Beginning ballet 4-4:50   ages 5-7 

Fridays June 27-August 29 (No class July 4th)    9 weeks for $117
Parent-Toddler  ages 1.5-3  11:05am-11:50am
Description of Parent-Toddler:
A fun and upbeat class where parent and child learn and dance together!  Class includes introduction of basic dance and movement concepts, lots of fun props, parachute play, obstacle course, games and songs.  A great introduction to the joy of dance!

Contact Darrah for registration materials:  darrahblanton@hotmail.com  206.281.9815