Friday
December 4
Spirit/Pizza Day
Admissions Tour
9:15am
Wednesday
December 9
3rd Grade Assembly
9:30am
Thursday
December 10
Winterfest
6:30pm
Friday
December 11
Admissions Tour
9:15am
Thursday
December 17
Admissions Tour
9:15am
Friday
December 18
Early Dismissal
11:45am - PS/PK/K
Noon - Grades 1-5
No Aftercare
December 3, 2009
Annual Giving Update
Bookfair Starts Today
From Jo Ann - Digital Literacy
Did you know...?
3rd Grade Update
Snow Closure Info
Community Giving at Westisde - toy drive, food drive and Westside Baby drive
Annual Giving Update
Three classes have reached 100% participation. Congratulations to Nancy’s, Margie’s and Jill’s classes (PS/PK, 1st and 2nd). Most of you have already donated - thank you! And we’re getting closer to our goal of 100% participation. Remember, any donation counts and helps us reach the $1000 classroom match! Donations can be made online, mailed in, or you can email a pledge to janar@westsideschool.org.
Bookfair Starts Today!
On December 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th, you and your family can support the Fourth and Fifth grades’ 4 day trip to Islandwood by doing some holiday shopping at ANY Barnes & Noble in the country! Please give your friends and relatives the number 584235 to use any time on those days and 10% or more of the sales will come back to Westside School. Locally, the 4th and 5th graders will be running activities tables and reading to kids in the children’s section of the Westwood Village store so that parents can shop unimpeded. They will also man a “wrap for tips” table at the entrance of the Westwood village store. Vouchers have been distributed.
From Jo Ann
Bringing the World Up-Close through Digital Literacy
Thanks to the WPO, Westside School purchased two LCD projectors and document cameras for the kindergarten classrooms. Teachers have at their disposal a tool that can instantly project, magnify or enlarge any three-dimensional object. A page from a book or a worksheet can instantly be put up for all to see. In addition, since it is hooked up to the computer, anything can be projected for the children.
The third, fourth and fifth grades have LCD projectors already in their rooms which allow them to bring the internet into the classroom. Stuart’s third graders used Google Earth to view the mountain ranges they were learning; Judith’s 4th graders use the internet weekly during Earth Watch to”visit” the actual locations of the sites of the their studies. History lessons and videos are instantly at the teachers’ fingertips.
At Westside, technology is part of the curriculum, enhancing the lessons being taught in the classroom. Students see technology as a part of learning where it is used in problem-solving, productivity, and communication. Students, who have technology as part of their life, love learning with it. This integration of technology promotes digital literacy. Students learn to communicate and work more efficiently through understanding of computer hardware and software and being able to use technology as a part of learning and life.
The Board of Trustees is donating additional funds to bring more LCDs and document cameras to our classrooms! The costs per room are about $1200. If you would like to add classroom technology to your holiday gift list, give me a call.
Thank you and may your holiday season be joyous.
Did You Know…..
From 4th Grader Grant Comick
Photographer Lynette Huffman Johnson has asked me to be one of 24 artists at this year’s Artist Sale, where proceeds from this event benefit the families of her foundation “Soulumination.” Lynette started this foundation to celebrate the lives of children and parents facing life-threatening conditions by providing professional photographs, free of charge, of these special individuals and their families. Read more.
I would appreciate it if you could stop by Lynette’s studio this weekend in Ballard at 5201 11th Avenue NW, Seattle, WA 98107. Map it and support me. You can also visit their website at http://soulumination.org/artists2009.html to preview the fine arts and crafts offered for sale, and comments from all the artists, including me!
Third Grade Update
By Joe Tutch, 3rd Grade Teacher
Third graders are almost finished with their first unit of the year …Pioneer Times! They recently built their very own covered wagon out of hula hoops, two tables, pizza boxes, a bed sheet, wood scraps, and zip ties. Some of the other pioneer items built already by third graders include corn husk dolls, quilt squares, buzz saws, and thaumotropes. Just last month, all third graders got a chance to personify a real pioneer during third grade’s pioneer biography interviews. Each student dressed up as their chosen pioneer and went through a 10 minute interview with me so that I (and my third grade audience) could learn all about that pioneer’s life. The expectation was for each third grader to answer each of my interview questions from the pioneer’s point of view.
Third grade also has been reading The Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. We have only two more chapters to read of this 26 chapter novel. Students have been so inspired by this book that they have decided to create their own plays based on certain chapters. There will be four total plays with eight students performing in each. These Little House plays will be seen during 3rd grade’s upcoming assembly on Wednesday, December 9th at 9:30 a.m.
Every Friday, third grade has had 1 ½ hour Pioneer Experience Days. There are only two of these experience days left before the unit is over. During their final pioneer experience day, third graders will cook gingerbread and participate in kick-the-can & three-legged games. This third grade pioneer unit will end the week before winter break. Third graders will be studying the Aztecs when they come back to school in early January, 2010.
Westside School’s Policy for Snow and Other Emergency Closures
It is the time of year where we may have to close the school due to snow or power outages. Westside School’s policy is that we follow the Seattle Public Schools’ decision to close. The public schools have resources to determine road conditions around the area, so we rely on their judgment. Also, our teachers and staff reside throughout the Seattle area, not just in West Seattle. If the Seattle School System closes, we close. They post closure and delay information on the front page of the Seattle Public Schools’ website (www.seattleschools.org), the TV and radio stations, and also on the station websites. Going to websites is usually faster than trying to wait for the information to scroll by on the T.V. We differ from Seattle Schools only with the 2 hour late start. If they have a 2 hour late start, we start at 9:30. In that case, before care is cancelled but the 1/2 day program will meet.
If time and technology allows, we will post our information on the front page of our website and on King 5 TV(www.king5.org). We will also try to send out an email, if we have enough advance notice. Because of time constraints or possibly technology issues, please do not expect that we will always be able to do these extra steps. So, the bottom line is: Seattle Public Schools close, we close; Seattle Public Schools have a 2 hour delay, we open at 9:30am.
Community Giving at Westside
Collecting Toys
The kindergarten children in Marsha’s and Sarah’s class have been busy decorating Holiday Houses (appliance boxes) for new toy donations for Toys For Tots. Every year we collect more and more. This year has an even greater need than usual due to the high unemployment rate and economy. We are so fortunate to be part of such a generous community. Just drop a new, unwrapped toy into one of the boxes in the hallway. We will collect toys starting on Monday December 7th and conclude the drive on Friday the 11th.
Collecting for the Food Bank and West Seattle Baby
By Sam and Katie, Fifth Grade
December 7th-17th, the 5th Grade will collect canned and non-perishable food for the West Seattle Food Bank. We will deliver the food after the first of January when the shelves are bare. We have been learning about people and the big need for food because of the economy. We will also be collecting things for Westside Baby. Westside Baby is an organization that allows families with young infants and babies to get the supplies.
Each classroom will have a box for each organization in the hall in front of their room. We will collect the items every morning from the boxes. The boxes will have posters to show where to put the items. We thank you for taking part in this act of kindness.