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SFkids.org Newsletter
May 2011
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 School is out this month for San Francisco public school students. We've got lots of resources to help you prepare for summer - camps, weekend events, and more.
We love to hear from other parents with ideas about
kid-friendly restaurants, activities, and more. We're also always looking for people to write feature articles. If you have something you'd like to submit, we'd love to hear from you.
-Chris, KIm, Nina & Robin |
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SFkids.org Events Calendar Highlights | |
Check out these great events around SF this week:
Thursday, 5/12
Friday, 5/13
Saturday, 5/14
Sunday, 5/15
Check out more events on the SFkids.org Events Page for event highlights for the upcoming week. And see our Events Calendar to search for events on a particular day or category of event.
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Summer Camp! | 
SFkids.org has the most comprehensive list of camps around. See our Camps Page to browse around and find a great camp for your kids.
Also check these great SFkids.org guides:
Special Deals from our Partners!
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Free Vaccines |
SFUSD is coordinating with the Department of Public Health to inform families of a new law (AB 354) requiring the pertussis (whooping cough) booster shot and to offer free booster shot clinics this spring. Vaccination is the best defense against pertussis, but the immunity from vaccines wears off over time and pertussis booster vaccine rates in adolescents and adults are low in California. The new state law requires all children entering grades 7 through 12 next fall to have proof of the booster shot before they can attend school.
When: Saturday, May 14, 1pm-4pm
Where: John O'Connell HS, 2355 Folsom St.
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Maker Faire | 
The Maker Faire is one of our favorite events of the year.
A two-day, family-friendly event to MAKE, create, learn, invent, CRAFT, recycle, think, play, and be inspired by celebrating arts, crafts, engineering, food, music, science, innovation, creativity, ingenuity and technology. Saturday, May 21 10am - 8pm and Sunday, May 22, 10am - 6pm.
Buy tickets before May 12 at participating stores and save $5 per ticket. Participating stores can be found here. Stores include the Exploratorium store, Whole Foods, and Cartoon Art Museum.
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Improve School Food | 
School Meals Improvement Project needs your input. The San Francisco Unified School District, the San Francisco Food Bank and the Department of Public Health (EHS) are taking a close look at the school meals program and identifying opportunities for the school district to feed more kids better food.
How You Can Help: Complete the survey and encourage others to do the same -- the more people participate, the more the study will reflect the interests of the community. Particularly critical are the opinions of parents, whether or not their children currently eat school meals.
Click on this link to complete your survey: http://www.prismaticservices.com/sanfrancisco.html.
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College 101: Survival Mode at California State Schools | 
by Felicia Fahey
The dire state budget crisis has many students wondering how they'll fare this fall at the University of California, the California State Universities and the California Community Colleges. For the most part, the message emanating from every campus is clear: students will have to assume greater responsibility for their education and find their way past obstacles, both big and small. So what does survival mode look like? (read more...)
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First 5 Parent Action Grant |  Got a great idea you'd like to implement in your community? First 5 San Francisco offers a Parent Action Grant which provides funding for parent-led projects that benefit children 0-5 years old. To get a copy of the Request for Proposal (RFP) see the First 5 SF website. Deadline is May 31. |
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Green 15: Tadpole Time | 
by Chris Giorni, founder of Tree Frog Treks
Right now is Tadpole time. Check out neighborhood Pacific Chorus frog ponds from Marin to the East Bay to right here in SF - to hear the wondrous cacophony of calling frogs. Here in SF you can sometimes hear them on 24th and Capp Streets, the North side of Precita Park between Folsom and Alabama, Crissy Field at the freshwater swale North of the Main Parking lot (where all the windsurfers park) as well as at 22nd and Pennsylvania Ave.
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Creating and Enriching Summer and Preventing Summer Learning Loss | |
While summer brings us great relaxation, unfortunately it also leads to learning loss.
San Francisco's New Day for Learning formed a Summer Learning Network to help summer camps encourage reading, physical activity and healthy eating in their programs to help address this issue. Parents can adopt the same great Countdown for Summer guidelines to support kids in these six engaging and healthy ways: 
5 days a week of active play
4 new places to visit
3 fresh fruits & vegetables daily
2 summer projects
1 once a day with a good book
0 soda
SFkids.org is a great place to find resources for all six strategies. |
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Family Volunteer Opportunities | |
 There are many volunteer opportunities for families. We have great resources on our Volunteering Page.
A new opportunity is the Presidio Family Volunteer Sundays. Every Third Sunday of the Month, 10am to 12pm. Children and their families are welcome to join in the habitat restoration efforts, but all children must be accompanied by an adult. Tools, gloves, and kid-friendly projects provided. RSVP to Pete Bidigare, pbidigare@presidiotrust.gov, (415)561-4449.
For more information see: https://sites.google.com/site/ppsemailupdate/current-newsletter.
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Camping | |
 Camping is one of the best activities you can do with your kids. It can also be a very economical vacation and there are many great spots that aren't too far away. Hard core backpacking? RV trip? Car camping? Camp Mather? We even have options for those who would rather find a cabin in the woods or just take a day trip.
Check out our Camping Page for great resources.
Looking for a Family Camp for Memorial Day Weekend? Check our listings of Family Camps. |
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Carnival | 
Festival runs May 28-29
Parade is Sunday, May 29. Starts at 9:30am at the corner of 24th & Bryant Streets and proceeds west to Mission St.
Carnival is one of San Francisco's most colorful and entertaining events and draws hundreds of thousands of people for two days of dancing Salsa, Samba, Reggae, Tango, Hip- Hop, Merengue, Calypso, Cha Cha Cha, Cumbia, and Mambo into the evening. Food vendors offer traditional delicacies, while others sell crafts native to the Carnival countries of their heritage. Giant stages sparkle with continuous entertainment.
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