Encinal PTO Newsletter for Week of April 10, 2011

The Encinal Site Council is looking for three parent representatives to serve a two year term on the Encinal Site Council from September 2011-June 2013. Meetings are held once a month during the school year on Wednesdays from 3:15-4:30 PM. New members also will be asked to attend the May 11, 2011 Site Council meeting to meet current members and learn more about initiatives already in process.

The Site Council is a representative group of parents and staff members charged with identifying and implementing curriculum and instructional practices that strengthen the academic program, and ensuring that all students have access to and success in that program.

Responsibilities include:

Developing a school improvement plan and matching budget for using resources to increase learning
Submitting the plan to the School Board for review and approval
Communicating with the school and community regarding the plan
Monitoring and updating the plan

During this time of exciting change and growth, the Encinal Site Council also is actively engaged in the implementation and revision of our site strategic plan to support school improvement.

Three Site Council members will be established by May 9, 2011. If more than three parents express interest, the Council will select members through a school-wide election and/or the appointment of members to ensure that membership includes broad representation of all socioeconomic and ethnic groups within the school attendance area.

Interested parents should contact Pam Larkin, Site Council Chair at pdl@motionio.com by Friday, April 15, 2011 and submit a brief letter of interest describing the reasons why they are interested in joining the Encinal Site Council. If an election occurs, these letters will be used to create a description of candidates on the ballot.

Reminder: Read-a-Thon Donations Due Monday

This is a reminder to help your student submit the completed Pledge Sheet and Reading Log, along with collected contributions, tomorrow, Monday, April 11. The paperwork can be returned in the manila envelope it arrived in and dropped into your student's homework folder.

Happening on Campus

TODAY Chess Tournament at Encinal for Kids & Adults

Registration 9 - 9:30am

Call with questions 408-786-5515.

Click here for children's event. Click here for adults event.

Click here to help organize Encinal after school programs like chess.

Encinal is hosting a chess tournament on Sunday, April 10. This open tournament has an adult division as well as a kids division, and draws players of all levels across the entire bay area. Players in the Menlo Park-Atherton community are encouraged to participate -- no tournament experience required!

If you are new to the chess world and need help "translating" the flyers or have questions about the tournament format, send an email to Encinal chess.

Encinal 5th Grade Band/String Concert April 13th, 7pm
From Mr. Vaughan & Mr. Crabb

Mark your calendars! On Wednesday, April 13, the Encinal Band and Strings classes will present their Spring Concert. Come and enjoy wonderful music presented by our talented 5th graders. Bring your friends and neighbors! The performance will take place at 7PM in the new multi.

All performers should arrive by 6:30. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Vaughan or Mr. Crabb. We look forward to seeing you!

After School Programs for Encinal Students
Click here for information about after school programs.
Click here to offer to help with planning an after school program.

Yoga for Kids (K-2) -- Wednesdays, 2:35-3:20pm in the small multi, April 27 - June 8 ($98 for 7 classes)

These fun and engaging classes explore yoga poses, cooperative games, breathing and relaxation exercises. Come gain confidence, self-awareness, self-control and concentration skills, along with strength and flexibility! The class will be taught by Lauren Gruenstein of stretch.play.yoga, who also teaches afterschool yoga at Oak Knoll. To enroll, please email before April 14, as there is a 12 child maximum per class.

Yoga for Kids (Grades 3-5) -- Mondays 3-4pm in the science room, May 5-23 ($60 for 4 classes)

Introduce your child to the fun and healthy practice of yoga this spring with certified yoga teacher, Rebecca Snowball. Yoga is a whole-Self practice that fosters self-esteem, strengthens and tones the body, increases flexibility, and gives kids tools to focus, reduce stress, and feel great. Rebecca has been teaching yoga for over 10 years. She is a certified Vinyasa teacher and licensed Anusara teacher. In addition to teaching yoga, she is the proud mom of two boys, an Encinal fourth-grader and a Menlo-Atherton high school senior. She is married to Coach Dean and enjoys supporting him teach youth sports. For registration instructions, please visit the Encinal website. Registration is open through April 27, but space is limited so best to register before spring break.

Click here for details about Yoga for Kids and all Encinal After School Programs.

Eagle Pride

Thank You for All the Used Books!

Deadline to submit sponsorship donations is tomorrow, Monday 4/11

Last week the Encinal community generously donated used children's books to the Encinal Library and classrooms. Thank you very much to every family that went through its bookcases and baskets to find wonderful reading treasures in such good condition. Children at Encinal for many years to come will enjoy the adventures and discoveries of these wonderful books.

As a quick reminder, please collect the Read-A-Thon Pledge Sheets, sponsor donations and Reading Logs into the manila envelope they arrived in and drop them into your student's homework folder for collection. We will announce the donation total and the Library gift as soon as we have the donations collected. The deadline is tomorrow, April 11.

Encinal Chess 4th & 7th at CalChess State Championship
Click here for information about Encinal Chess.
Click here to help organize after school programs suc has chess.

Chess team at CalState championship

Encinal's chess team won 4th place in the K-6 Novice division and 7th place in the K-6 Rookie division of the 36th annual CalChess State Scholastic Chess Championship which was held in Santa Clara April 2-3.

This marks the third year in a row that Encinal has ranked in the Top 7 teams in the state. Over 1150 kids competed in the tournament, and trophies were awarded to the Top 10 teams and Top 20 individuals in each division. Encinal students Matthew, Yiren, Bo and James also won individual trophies for their Top 20 finishes.

Next up is a local tournament at Encinal today (Sunday, Apr 10) followed by the Regional Grade Level Championship on Memorial Day (Monday, May 30). All Encinal students are invited to come play for Team Encinal: click here for info.

Pictured above (L to R) are: Matthew, James, Elias, Michael, Bo, Maryam, Yiren. Not pictured are Abdulhakim, Finn, Nicky and Sahar. Congratulations, Eagles!

March Walk/Bike Raffle Winners
Click here to learn more about the Encinal PTO Bike & Safety Committee

March Walk Bike Raffle Winners

The winners of the Walk/Bike Raffle for the month of March were:

Aya from Ms. Strohmaier's 4th grade won 1st place
Hannah from Ms. Jonas' 3rd grade won 2nd place
Naomi from Ms. Strohmaier's 4th grade won 3rd place

Keep on using your feet & wheels to get to and from school!

News from the Eagle's Nest

PTO Fundraiser: Koski Photography through April 15
Click here for information about Koski Photography fundraiser

For a $35 donation to the Laurel / Encinal PTO, you'll have fun at a 30 to 45 minute photography session at your home, local park or at the Koski Photography studio, located at 10601 S. De Anza Blvd. in Cupertino.

Also included is an 8x10 portrait of your choice. Sessions must be completed by December 31, 2011. Please drop forms and checks (written to Laurel-Encinal PTO) in manila folders at the Encinal Office by April 15th. Click here for the flyer and more information.

Encinal Family Fun Night at Stanford Baseball April 15
Click here to buy tickets to the April 15 Stanford Oregon Baseball game

Come join us for a night of fun under the lights, as Encinal parents and students cheer on our local Stanford Cardinal. Meet at the Sunken Diamond at Stanford University as the baseball team takes on Oregon State Beavers on Friday, April 15th. Game start time is 5:30pm. General Admission is $7 per person. You can go online to buy tickets at gostanford.com. Please meet at the grass area as you first get into the stadium. Bring blankets to sit on! Questions? Email Traci Brinton.

The Stadium is located on the Stanford campus at 151 Sam McDonald Mall. Parking is located in the Varsity Parking Lot. It can be accessed via Nelson Road, off of Galvez Street, south of Stanford Stadium. Disabled spaces are available at the south end of the parking lot. A Disabled Placard (from any state) will be necessary to access the disabled parking spaces. The entrance to the baseball field at Sunken Diamond is off the southwest corner of the parking lot.

The Drive Less Challenge Reaches Encinal
Click here for information about the Drive Less Challenge

Drive Less Challenge Logo

Help the environment and win great prizes! Join the Drive Less Challenge, a grass-roots effort to decrease driving in Menlo Park and other towns in the Bay Area! Sign up here to track your progress, join the Encinal Drive Less Team and win great prizes!

The fun starts Earth Day, April 22, and lasts for two weeks, so use your time over Spring Break to practice a bike ride to school or to poll other parents to see if there are any carpool possibilities. Check the school directory to see who lives nearby!

Upcoming Hillview Middle School Transition Events

Information for 5th grade parents: Hillview transition activities are coming soon.

Parent Orientation: Thursday, April 14, 6:30 pm, Hillview Multi
Open House: Thursday, May 19, 6:30 pm, Hillview Campus
Student orientation, Friday, May 27, 10:30 am, Hillview Campus (students only)

Hillview Band & Friends Play Giants Game, Monday, June 6
From Mr. Vaughan

For more information, click here.

SF Giants logo

On Monday, June 6, the Hillview Band will be performing the National Anthem at AT&T Park for the Giants vs. Nationals baseball game. This will be our 13th consecutive performance and in the Spirit of Community, the La Entrada and M-A bands have also been invited to join us on the field.

I hope that many of you have already marked this on your calendar and will make an effort to invite your family, friends and neighbors to come out and hear our wonderful young musicians, as well as take in a great game. The ticket cost is only $10 for the Upper Level View Reserve seats. Performer Tickets cost just $5.

If you know of anyone who plays a band instrument and would like to join us on the field, please feel free to have them contact Mr. Vaughan for more information and sheet music. Encinal & Oak Knoll 5th grade band members can join us based upon the recommendation of Mr. Crabb. After all, the more the merrier! The only stipulation is that they can actually play. No kazoos, please.

There are a number of great raffle prizes, including Owners Box seats right behind home plate, the "Play Ball Kid", batting practice visitation and marching onto the field with the band carrying our nation's flag. To take part in the raffle, make sure that an order/raffle form for each ticket is filled out and turned into the baseball box at the Hillview Office.

The Ticket Order form can also be downloaded from the Hillview PTO Website, just go the Hillview Band page or click here. See you at the game!

Encinal PTO Listing of Summer Camps

The Encinal PTO has assembled information from summer camps that sent announcements for our newsletter. It is on the Encinal web site and you can visit it by clicking here.

Encinal PTO Listing of Volunteer Opportunities

The Encinal PTO maintains a listing of volunteer openings for parents. Please take a look online and you may find something meaningful to you.

From the Foundation

Thank You for Making Rock the Foundation A Big Success!

Rock the Foudnation 2011

Rock the Foundation is now "Signed, Sealed and Delivered." Thank you to everyone who helped make the event such an amazing success. We danced and bid with more than 800 ticket holders and exceeded our revenue target! Numerous parties sold out, with many raising more than $8000! And there was great support for Fund-A-Teacher.

Party-goers: You certainly showed us you know how to have a good time "In the Heat of the Night!" Thank you for coming to the event, supporting the auction, and donating so generously to Fund-A-Teacher to support a strong and broad curriculum at all four district schools.

Donors and Sponsors: We appreciate your many generous contributions. Now, let the fun begin as we start enjoying all the fantastic parties, getaways, sports, wine, teacher adventures, and raffle prizes that were part of this year's auction!

Volunteers: As always, we couldn't have done it without you. You overwhelmed us with your efforts and we know that all event attendees "Second That Emotion.

More information about total revenue will be shared in the coming weeks. In the meantime, thank you again for helping make sure our schools continue to ROCK!

Community Corner

Young Innovators Day April 10 The Tech Museum of San Jose is participating in the second annual National Robotics Week, organized by the Robotics Caucus of the U.S. Congress and leading robotics companies, schools and organizations. To help celebrate, the Museum is holding Young Innovators Day on Sunday, April 10 -- which includes our own Encinal Wizbots program participants! This event is free and open to the public as part of ScholarShare Free Days at The Tech Museum. For a list of all robotics events in the Bay Area and nationwide, please click here. The Tech Museum will also be at Stanford's Robot Block Party Thursday, April 14, 1-7p.m.

Kepler's Youth Event April 14 Maryrose Wood, author of The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book 2 - The Hidden Gallery. Thursday, April 14, 7pm. Click here for more information.

Spring Break at Camp Kennolyn Kennolyn Camps are offering a 3-day Spring Break Camp, Tuesday, 4/19 to Thursday, 4/21. Campers will enjoy swimming, crafts, hiking, ropes course, climbing, basketball & more. For first time campers, it's also a great way to try out camp. For more information click here or email us or call 831-479-6714.

Menlo Park Library Celebrates National Library Week Calling all kids ages 6-11!!! Help the Menlo Park Library celebrate National Library Week (April 10th-16th) and you could win a $25 gift certificate to Kepler's Books. Simply answer the question: In what way is the library important to you? Complete this form with your answer in 50 words or less. Make sure to use the words "library", "favorite", and "discover" in your response. Bring the form into the Children's Department by Friday, April 22nd and we will post it (we will not post your contact information). The winner will be chosen by random drawing on Monday, April 25th and will be notified by phone or e-mail. We can't wait to hear what you have to tell us!

Magic Tree House Live Reading Tour Wednesday, April 27 at 6:30PM. Passport to Adventure! A Magic Tree House Live Reading Tour. Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma Street, Menlo Park. Mary Pope Osborne's beloved Magic Tree House series comes to life in its first-ever live character tour. Brother-sister duo Jack and Annie will arrive in a Magic Tree House-decorated bus to bring their time traveling adventures to life. A tribute to the magic of reading, this includes a captivating performance by the two cast members, lively audience participation, and original songs. Come and be inspired to read and travel the world just like Jack and Annie. This event is made possible by Kepler's Books. Click here for more information.

La Entrada 50th Anniversary Celebration! Friday May 6, 2011 from 5:00-8:00 pm at La Entrada Are you a La Entrada alum? Join in the fun with other alumni and current and past teachers. Reconnect with old friends and teachers and reminisce about your middle school days with videos, memorabilia, musical performances, and campus tours. For more information click here. Spread the word to your La Entrada friends!

Miss Suzannah, a visitor from the 1850s, is coming to the Menlo Park Library! Monday, May 16 at 7:00PM. Calling all 3rd & 4th graders - Listen to her stories as she recounts her journey by covered wagon from Missouri to California. You'll be amazed by these funny, frightening, and sometimes revolting tales of life on the Overland Trail, in San Francisco in the 1850s, and in the rowdy mining camps of the Gold Rush. Be on Time for the 7:00 pm surprise! The Menlo Park Library is located at 800 Alma Street in Menlo Park. This event is FREE and is made possible by the Friends of the Menlo Park Library. Click here for info.

Quick Links

Encinal PTO Newsletter archive

Encinal School web site

Upcoming Events at Encinal

Menlo Park City School District web site

Menlo Park Atherton Education Foundation web site

Got news?

Submissions for the Encinal PTO newsletter are due Wednesday at noon. Please send submissions to newsletter@encinalschool.com. Please note: the newsletter does not publish during the first weekend of vacation. Submissions are due the Wednesday of the preceding school week.

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