Calendar

December 7 School Site Council meeting 4:30 pm

December 7 Parent Club Meeting 6:30 pm

December 11-15 Scholastic Book Fair

December 12 5:30 Kindergarten Social

December 12 6:30 Holiday Sing

December 18-January 2, 2007 Winter Break

Happy Holidays and see you all in 2007

Thank You

• Thank you to all who helped with the craft fair: Allison Eaint, Anna Hu, Jennie Lee, Jennie's Mom, Karen Robbins, Linda Jung, Nikole Gorin, Petra Nygard, Sasha Dimov, and anybody else we may have missed. It couldn't have been done without you!

• To Bertha Smith for organizing the food drive and to everyone who donated food.
• To Dawn Silberstein and to all the volunteers at the Halloween Carnival. What fun it was and we appreciate everyones time and creativity and donations.

West Portal Pumpkin Patch a Success

The West Portal School annual pumpkin patch was held on October 20th. Due to the construction, we moved further down the Claremont path in back of the GLOW bungalow. The weather cooperated and it was a fun-filled, rather warm day. We made $765.25 from the Craft Fair. All the children enjoyed picking the family Jack 'O Lantern as well as other scary trinkets. The craft fair as well as the book sale were also successful. The pumpkin patch committee would like to thank all the parent volunteers who came out to lend a hand. We could not hold this event without the support of the West Portal Community.

Parent Club Meetings

Are open to all parents. Meetings are held the first Thursday of every month on the top floor of the main building, and childcare is provided. It is a great way to be involved in the school. Hope to see you there. Next meeting is December 7, 6:30 pm, top floor in the main building.

Education Fund News

Thanks to all those of you who have already contributed to the Ed Fund. We are off to a great start in our Ed Fund effort; $29,686.98 to date!  However, we still have a long way to go.  Our Ed Fund goal for this school year is $60,000.00.  If you haven't already done so, please make your contribution as soon as possible.  The money is used to pay for our major enrichment programs for the kids; for example: P.E., Music, and our Librarian, in addition to miscellaneous school and classroom expenses. We really need 100% participation from all our families, as well as from employers who offer matching funds.  If you are able, contribute the suggested donation amount of $250 for one child or $350 for more than one child, or give more if your family budget allows it.  If the suggested donation is too much for your budget, we gladly accept contributions of any amount or you may want to consider making your contribution in installments.  Thank you all for getting your contributions in as soon as possible. It is this wonderful commitment shown by all the West Portal families that makes West Portal Elementary continue to shine from year to year.

Basketball Congrats

Congratulations to all the West Portal players in the 2006 PAL tournament. Great job and great hustle. Thank you to all the coaches and parents for their support. The 5^th grade Green will be playing their last game Friday, December 1 at 8:00 pm at the Glen Park Gym. Come support the team.  

Mardi Gras Ball New Date
February 24^th, 2007 is the new confirmed date for the Mardi Gras Ball. Our annual silent and live auction will be at this ball instead of at the Spring Festival like years past. The Children's Arts Festival in March will have a raffle, but no auction. Among auction items collected so far: 2 nights at the Miyako Hotel, 4 all-day passes for the Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area, 10 tickets to the Punchline Comedy Club, and donations are still coming in. Questions, comments, want to donate or help out? Please contact Rose Lacy at rose@webrosedesign.com or Annette Litle at orisonfoto@yahoo.com.

Scholastic Book Fair

The book fair will be December 11 through December 15. Just in time for the holidays. Books make great gifts, make sure to check out your classrooms wish list.

Artistic Help Wanted

The West Portal Parents Club needs classroom help with coordinating and producing class art work to be auctioned at the Mardi Gras ball coming up in February. Each year classrooms have produced art items for auction and has helped West Portal school raise a lot of money. Parents might need to find or donate their own art supplies if they are not available in the classroom.  Alternatively, limited funds are available for art supplies.  A proposal form must be filled out.  The form is located in the West Portal Parents Club mailbox in the school office. Please contact Karen Robbins at kdwr@sbcglobal.net or (415)759-7795 if you can help or are already helping with a classroom.