October 2005

Calendar

October 6 – Parents Club Board Meeting 6:30-8:00pm

October 7 - School closed – Professional development day

October 10 – School Closed – Columbus Day

October 21 – Pumpkin Patch 8:40-3:30 pm

October 22 – Carnival 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

October 26 – Picture Makeup Day

October 28 – Halloween Parade

October 31- November 4 - Parent Teacher Conference Week (Early Dismissal)

November 3 - Parents Club Board Meeting 6:30-8:00pm

Volunteers Needed:

We need your help during the day to run the pumpkin patch.  Additionally, items are needed for the bake sale.  For more information call Jannice McDonald at 664-6875, or Dawn Shaw at 244-8277.  The Pumpkin Patch will be on Friday, October 21, from 8:40 am to 3:30 pm on the parking lot on the Claremont Street side of the school.

The Wizard of Oz Halloween carnival needs help during the event, and donations of prizes.  For information call Justine at 587-2100.  Tell friends and family.  The carnival will be on Saturday, October 22nd.  What a great way to spend your Saturday afternoon.  It will be a lot of fun for parents and kids alike.

The reading program needs volunteers to read to the children.  Training is available on how to help students increase their vocabularies and improve their reading skills.  For information call Erika at 566-7009 or Carolyn at 731-0841.

Spring Festival:

We need a coordinator.  This is the 2nd biggest fundraiser for our school.  The goal this year is $40,000.   We need one or more people to be the coordinators for this event.   Please consider giving your time to make this event a success; it benefits not only your child but also the school as a whole.

Get the Whole Family Ready for Kindergarten

Pre-Kindergarten music and story-telling mornings are back at West Portal Elementary.  Join us for rhythm and movement, and interactive story-telling. Parents learn strategies to encourage love  of reading in their children.  Saturday, Oct. 8th and Nov. 5th, 10am-12am, 5 Lenox Way (corner of Taraval, above the West Portal MUNI tunnel). Call Colleen Kanaley at 504-0014 or Karen Wu Leung at 415-682-8669 (Chinese-speaking) to register or for more information.  Sponsored by West Portal Parents Club and First Five.

Heart Time, Fun Time

Parents, students and teachers welcome back to school.  This is my 3rd year teaching Physical Education at West Portal Elementary School.  I am excited to be back and ready to make this school year an amazing one.  The P.E. program has been such a success that we have decided to add on to the program.  The first addition is Heart Time Fun Time.  This section of the newsletter will inform everyone of the upcoming Physical Education events and issues.  The second addition is lessons in dance and movement.  The third addition is game time during lunch for 4th and 5th graders.  The last addition is the Parents Club P.E. Committee.

As the P.E. teacher, it is my goal to make sure all students get healthier by moving and having fun.  In order for this to occur, I need the children to be safe.  Find out what days your child or children have P.E. class.  On those days have them wear tennis shoes that fit properly and comfortable clothes that allow for movement.  Any questions or concerns, email [email-masked].

West Portal Elementary Parents Club Bulletin

Published: Monthly during the school year

Editors: Tony and Phyllis Moir

Parents Club Meetings:

At Parents Club meetings parents, staff and administration discuss school-related topics, decide how Parents Club funds will be spent, and plan student and family enrichment events and fundraisers.  All parents and staff are invited. Child care and refreshments provided. Interpretation in languages other than English upon request.  To get on the meeting agenda, email Ramona or Todd Anderson at: [email-masked], or [email-masked]. Minutes and agendas are posted outside the auditorium and main office, sent to our parent email list and filed in the Parents Club binder in the main office.  Hope to see you at our next Parent Club monthly meeting. Please send your suggestions and ideas to Linda at [email-masked] or Jennie at [email-masked].

Board Corner:

Last month at the WPPC monthly meeting we had an informative presentation about the SFUSD and West Portal School Budget by Will Lucey, our principal.  Thank you for attending.  We meet the first Thursday of the month in the teacher’s lounge (2nd floor) from 6:30-8 p.m.  Our next meeting is on October 6.  We will have a presentation on School testing and curriculum standards and our regular business meeting.

Thank You

·         Thank you Jennie Lee, for organizing Kinder Fun Day.  It was a fun filled event.

·         Thank you Mary Li, Wells Fargo Stonestown Branch Manager, for adopting our school.  We received $1000.00.

·         Thank you Brewster Fong and his team for all the grant research and writing done this month to help West Portal.

·         Welcome to Anna Hu, our new office manager.  We look forward to a great working relationship with you.

·         Thanks to Chevy’s and all the families who participated in the fundraiser.

Education Fund:

Our children and teachers need our time and money.  The Education Fund letter will arrive at your home within the next week.  Please read it and contribute what you can.  You can contribute the suggested amount to cover our current needs or give more if you like.  Please feel free to call us if you have any questions on what happens to the money you donate.  The school district does not provide P.E., music or library services to our children, parents’ contributions do.  Please check with your employer to see if they have a matching fund.  This year’s  budget is $100,000.  Help us reach that goal so our school can continue to provide a great experience for our children.

Thank You Volunteers!

Have you seen them in the hall way or in the classroom helping our children with math or reading skills?  The bulletin board near the cafeteria is looking good.  We have two soccer teams and two basketball teams.  How about the upcoming homework centers, the knitting club, the pumpkin patch, the carnival and the spring festival.  The grant writing team, Chinese Performing Arts Group, the treasurer’s team and this newsletter?  All of these are done by volunteers.  Sound interesting?  Want to help?  Volunteering in the classroom is also a great way to participate in your child’s education and is a big help to the teachers.  Please email Mayra Chang, our volunteer coordinator at [email-masked] or leave a message in the school office.

Bulletin Submissions

We are actively seeking items for the monthly newsletter.  Please submit items of interest to the West Portal Elementary community.  Email submissions are preferred, submit before the end of each month.  Send to Tony or Phyllis Moir, at [email-masked], or [email-masked].  Handwritten submissions can be placed in the West Portal Parents Club committee mailbox in the “Newsletter” folder before the end of each month for the next issue.