News from Gateway School

8th Grade Washington DC Fundraiser - Pizza Sales - TODAY! Starts today - Wednesday Sept. 23rd and will be every third Wednesday after that (2:45 - 3:30pm). K-3rd in front of school; 4th-8th in the Church parking lot.

Spirit Day - Friday Sept. 25th. The theme is school colors. Make sure your children show their spirit by wearing blue and gold!

Reminder: 6th - 8th Grade Potluck Saturday Sept. 26th 4 - 6pm at Castle (Seabright) Beach.

After School Chess - Gjon Feinstein's chess class began on Tuesday Sept. 22. There is still space available. For more information and to sign up for classes visit: www.gatewaysc.org/news/envelope/Chess%20fall%2009.pdf

Gateway Grandfather's Documentary "A Sea Change" will be shown on TV Saturday Sept. 26th! For those who are interested, the TV show time for the documentary "A Sea Change" is this coming Saturday, September 26th at 8:00 p.m. pacific time on Discovery's Planet Green Network. This family documentary is about ocean acidification, one of the lesser known effects of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. It features Gateway second grader Elias Mathews and his grandfather Sven Huseby (Kaia Huseby's father). For more information and a short trailer of the film, visit: www.aseachange.net.

Student Photos - Watch for your packet from Flip's Photos in your child's Wednesday folder. If you would like your child's photo retaken or if they were absent picture day, retakes will be Sept. 30th after lunch. Paper order forms are due to the Main Office Oct. 7th or you may place your order online at www.flipsphotos.com. Please direct all questions to Flip's Photos (831)430-6145 or info@flipsphotos.com.

Environmental Advisory Panel Meeting - Tuesday Sept. 29th, 3:30-4:30pm in the library. Snacks will be served! Gateway School's Environmental Advisory Panel (EAP) will start meeting again this year on the 4th Tuesday of the month for Sept and Oct., with Nov and Dec meetings to be announced. Our previous meetings focused on ways of expanding communication methods for environmental issues by creating an environmental education presence on the Gateway website. Come to this meeting to give content suggestions for the web site goal. Also give input regarding this year's goal for a Green School certification proposal for Gateway. Come join us! Please contact Life Lab Faculty member Caprice Potter at 479-4769 or caprice@cruzio.com with any questions and to get on our email list.

8th Graders celebrate Banned Books Week next week! 8th graders in Sherri's Banned Books elective are planning events to celebrate Banned Books Week at Gateway. On Tuesday, Sept. 29th and Wednesday, Sept. 30th, there will be lunchtime activities in the eighth-grade Core room to educate our middle-school students about Banned and Challenged Books in U.S. schools and libraries. On Tuesday, students will read a Banned Books Proclamation and read excerpts from banned books; on Wednesday, students can play "Banned Books Trivia." On both days, they'll be able to enjoy book-themed cookies and refreshments.

Look for posters and flyers next week for more information on Banned Books Week, or see the American Library Association's Website at: www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/bannedbooksweek/index.cfm

Bike to School Day Thursday Oct. 1st - Grab those helmets and do your part to reduce your carbon footprint! Bike to School Day is Thursday, October 1st. A healthy breakfast will be available from 7:30 to 8:30 on the blacktop for those who ride (or scooter, or skateboard). Parents are welcome! Please note that this is the same day as our Peace & Plenty Celebration. For more information, visit www.gatewaysc.org/news/index.php and click on the Wednesday flyer.

Peace & Plenty Gathering - Thursday Oct. 1st at 1:10pm. Parents, come celebrate the fall harvest with a music performance and scrumptious bread made by our students. Parent volunteer and local baker Mark Sanchez will lead the bread making and baking process. Volunteers are still needed to help with bread making, baking, and supervising children while they form loaves. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Jeremy at jeremy.king@gatewaysc.org.

Harvest Festival Sunday Oct. 25th, 1- 4pm. We still need volunteers to help with the event. If you are interested, please contact Laura Lucas at laura.lucas@gatewaysc.org or Kim Carlton at zygnkimba@sbcglobal.net or attend the Information Meeting Friday Oct. 2nd @ 8:45am at the picnic tables. We hope that all families will come and join the fun. Invite your friends!

Gateway Book Fair - The annual book fair is coming up on October 8th and 9th during parent teacher conference days. It is a great time to stock up on gifts for family and friends, as well as to help fulfill wish lists from the teachers. All purchases support our students by accruing credit that Gateway School uses to grow its library. For more information, visit http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/gatewaysc.

At the book fair parents can continue helping our Laos school friends. You can donate money towards more books to help with their literacy and enjoyment of reading. In November, Merle will be a presenter on the Leadership for Diversity panel, a committee of the California School Library Association. The topic is "Diversity in Action." She will be discussing Gateway School 's third grade Laos project and her experience visiting the Hat Sang School and community.

The library program will have special contests before the book fair. Grades K-2, 3-5 and 6-8 can enter the contest. The three winners will each receive a $5.00 gift certificate that can be used during the book fair. More information to come.

After-School Mountain Biking Club - Gateway School would like to offer an 8-week Mountain Biking activity on Wednesdays after school (3:15 - 5:30) for Middle School students beginning the week of October 12th. The excursions would be led by UCSC students who will teach our students bicycle safety and explore some of the most scenic mountain biking trails in the area. If your child is interested, please e-mail Percy at dr.a@gatewaysc.org. Our ability to offer the activity will depend on student interest.

Gateway Football Schedule - Come show your support for our middle school football team! Go Sharks!

5-6th Grade:
Sept. 23 Wed. vs. Holy Cross 4:00 @ Holy Cross
Sept. 28 Mon. vs. Good Shepherd 4:00 @ Good Shepherd
Sept. 30 Wed. vs. Salisian 4:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 7 Wed. vs. Holy Cross 5:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 19 Mon. vs. Good Shepherd 4:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 28 Wed. vs. Salisian 4:00 @ San Lorenzo Park

7-8th Grade:
Sept. 23 Wed. vs. Holy Cross 5:00 @ Holy Cross
Sept. 28 Mon. vs. Good Shepherd 5:00 @ Good Shepherd
Sept. 30 Wed. vs. Salisian 5:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 5 Mon. vs. Pacific C. 4:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 6 Tues. vs. Kirby 4:15 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 7 Wed. vs. Holy Cross 4:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 21 Wed. vs. Green Valley 4:15 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 26 Mon. vs. Kirby 4:00 @ San Lorenzo Park
Oct. 28 Wed. vs. Salisian 5:00 @ San Lorenzo Park

Other News:

Dine Out for Life Lab - Help support our life lab school garden and others with something you do everyday - eating dinner! The following restaurants will be donating proceeds from the following nights to gardens participating in the open house.
Tuesday, Sept. 29, 5:00-9:00pm - Tony & Albas, Santa Cruz. Good for takeout and dining in, no deliveries. Mention you are dining out for school gardens when you order.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Oct. 6-7, 6:00-9:00pm - Hawgs Seafood, Santa Cruz. Mention you are dining out for school gardens when you order.
Tuesday, Oct. 13, Center Street Grill, Santa Cruz. Mention you are dining out for school gardens when you order.
We've got a few more lined up - info coming soon!

PARENTS EDUCATION NETWORK - Thursday Oct. 29 - Book reading by author Joan Ryan, author of The Water Giver: The Story of a Mother, A Son and their Second Chance. On Thursday evening, October 29, Parent Education Network is presenting a book reading with Joan Ryan, a former San Francisco Chronicle sportswriter. She will be discussing her latest book, which chronicles her experiences caring for her learning-disabled teen after a serious skateboard accident. Joan is a terrific speaker, and her book has received excellent reviews. Time and location to be determined. See this San Francisco Chronicle article www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/08/DDME19BFT5.DTL for more information about Joan and her book.