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Oak Knoll PTO
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Welcome back, and welcome to all our new Oak Knoll families! We hope you all had an amazing summer. We can't wait to see you at school on August 20.
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- Kindergarten Welcome: 9:00-11:00am
- New Family Ice Cream Social: 1:30-3:00pm
- First Day of School! Morning bell at 8:10am
- Back to School Coffee: 8:15am, Gym
Thursday, August 21
- Room Parent Training Meeting: 8:15am, Gym
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- Back to School Night (Murphy's 4th grade ONLY): 6:15pm, Room 29
- Back to School Night (K-2): 6:00-7:30pm (UPDATED)
- Back to School Night (3-5): 7:00-8:30pm (UPDATED)
- Volleyball Registration Deadline
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Get organized for the 2014-15 school year with the Back To School Checklist! Please review the list thoroughly as it contains very important information about back-to-school activities, programs and events. In this newsletter you will find a brief snapshot of the following checklist items:
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Also, please review the Parking & Pick-Up/Drop Off Line Procedures before the first day of school and check the SamTrans schedule.
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This past June, you should have received an email from the Menlo Park City School District (MPCSD) with instructions for re-enrollment. This MUST be completed before school starts! If you did NOT receive the District Re-Enrollment information, please contact registrar@mpcsd.org (preferred) or 650-321-7140 x5600 with your name and your child's name, school and grade.
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New Family Ice Cream Social
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Monday, August 18, 1:30-3:00pm Upper Playground at school - All "new" incoming 1st through 5th grade families are invited to attend a family informational meeting, meet other Oak Knoll families, and have some ice cream!
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Our theme for the 2014-2015 school year is COMPASSION. We will be focusing on empathy, optimism and listening, and generosity across the three trimesters. Students will have an opportunity to reflect upon and practice how people respond to the suffering of others, and are motivated by a desire to help. We are looking forward to all of the great books, assemblies, classroom and school-wide activities planned to support our focus on compassion this year!
At Oak Knoll, our expectations ensure student safety and provide an environment that promotes kindness. This handbook provides clear expectations that support and encourage Oak Knoll students to make compassionate decisions.
School discipline is a cooperative effort between the students, faculty, parents and administrators. Every attempt is made to enforce the rules consistently. We believe in a restorative model: building student's confidence, providing opportunities for students to get involved, resolving conflict through discussion, and having the student take ownership. Thoughtful and logical consequences will be determined based on the child's needs and the severity of the incident. Consequences are meant to teach students about taking responsibility for his or her actions. Parents may or may not be notified depending on the severity of the incident.
This handbook was designed for Oak Knoll students and parents. Teachers will be spending time in class reading and discussing these expectations together. We encourage you to do the same at home. Questions regarding the expectations defined in this handbook are welcomed.
Thank you for your support,
The Oak Knoll Staff
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Transportation To & From Oak Knoll
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Fewer cars make Oak Knoll feel welcoming, safe and easy to approach on foot. Please consider alternatives to single-family car rides for your family's school commute.
Click here for the Oak Knoll information about walk, bike, carpool and safety. Click here for Oak Knoll's car line procedures. Click here for parking info. Click here for MPCSD's transportation web site.
Registration for seats on the yellow bus serving Tinsley Transfer students is done through the Oak Knoll office at 650-854-4433.
Mobile App
MPCSD has an Oak Knoll group on KangaDo that is private and registrations are restricted to MPCSD families only. Use iPhone or Android to schedule school trips or send reminders with fellow parents for car pools or groups walks. Click here for more.
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Parent Coordinator Needed for The Wild Zone
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Everyone loves The Wild Zone... please help keep it open! A parent coordinator is needed this year to help organize, schedule parent volunteers and send reminders. Easy volunteer opportunity with minimal time commitment. Responsible for signing up 1st-5th grade parents during the Back to School Coffee and creating a WZ schedule. Two parents are needed per day to supervise the kids, 11:45am - 1:00pm during upper recess lunch. Don't hesitate! Volunteer to ensure our children have the opportunity to interact with trees, branches, leaves, dirt and all the "natural toys" within The Wild Zone. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Jill Wurster.
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Newton Center After School Care
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Newton Center provides academic after school care to students enrolled in Kindergarten through 8th grade. Newton operates school's sites each school day from dismissal until 6:00pm and according to the school's yearly schedule.
For more information about this program, click here.
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4th/5th Girls Volleyball Registration
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Registration Deadline: Thursday, August 28
Calling all 4th and 5th grade girls! We are offering volleyball to girls entering 4th and 5th grade for the 2014-15 school year. Your daughter will learn the basic skills of the game in a fun and encouraging environment on teams coached by parent volunteers. Each team will be made up of a mix of 4th and 5th graders. Practices will be held twice a week at Oak Knoll. Games will be held once a week at Arrillaga Gym in Menlo Park. Games start mid-September and end mid-November. For more information, visit Oak Knoll Volleyball.
No late registrations will be accepted. A waitlist will be started at the close of registration to fill in spots if registered players drop out. To sign up, register online at TeamSnap.
Volunteers are needed! Please email if you would like to coach. All coaches and assistant coaches are required to submit fingerprints to the School District.
Questions? Contact Stefano Baldassi, Patty Buck, Melissa Engelkemier, Julie McEvilly, or Nancy Witeck.
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Come join Oak Knoll's After School Program!
Classes are held right at Oak Knoll. Details and the complete schedule are posted here.
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Hot Lunch Program - Choicelunch
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Choicelunch provides nutritious and delicious lunch choices, Monday through Friday, for all children who wish to enjoy a hot lunch.
Click here to register using the code "otters." Choicelunch is ready to accept online orders now. Hot lunch service begins the first day of school, August, 20.
Earn credits towards free lunches! Volunteer!
In order to offer hot lunch to our students, we rely on parent volunteers to serve the lunches. Volunteers as frequently as you'd like throughout the year, no experience necessary, no cooking, simply help distribute pre-ordered hot and cold lunches from Choicelunch and earn credits toward free lunches for your child(ren) for each shift worked. The more you volunteer, the more free lunches you get!
To join the hot lunch team, please email Patti Buck, Melissa Coleman, or Emily Record Buck.
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Finish your back-to-school shopping with our best ever selection of Oak Knoll t-shirts, dry fit, shorts, hoodies, hats and more. Choose from new colors and styles - from sparkly heart t-shirts to neon dry fit. This year we also have great pullovers and lightweight jackets for parents, teachers and staff. To help your Otter show his or her school spirit every day, add a classic baseball hat and water bottle too. Samples of these new items can be viewed in the office, online, or at the following events: Kindergarten Welcome, New Family Welcome and Back to School Coffee.
All orders are due by Friday, September 19, so don't delay! You can order online with Paypal or fill out an order form and place it, along with a check, in the Otterwear folder in the office. For all questions, please contact Jenny Buddin.
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El Camino Real Corridor Study and Survey
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The City of Menlo Park is studying traffic on El Camino Real and wants your input! Please let us know how you feel about conditions on El Camino for cars, pedestrians, and bicyclists and improvements you would like to see. Click here for more information and a link to our survey! Thank you!
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PTO and Menlo Park-Atherton Education Foundation
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Together, we INSPIRE in our children a love of learning
Together, we INVOLVE ourselves in their learning journey
Together, we INVEST in their future
The Oak Knoll PTO and the Foundation are two vital organizations that make Oak Knoll such a special place for our kids. When you support the PTO at $250 per child and the MPAEF at $1500 per child this is the difference you make in their education:
Donate online to support these organizations today. Thank you for your support!
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Please Save the Date for the 5th Annual MPAEF Gift Boutique at Allied Arts in Menlo Park.
Mark your calendars to join us for this annual affair that benefits our schools.
Thursday, November 13, 6:00-9:00pm: Preview Event and Shopping
Friday, November 14, 8:30am02:00pm: Shopping
20% of all proceeds benefit the MPAEF!
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Please submit announcements and flyers to newsletter@oakknollschool.com for Oak Knoll events. For the Community Corner, send submissions to communitynews@mpcsd.org.
The deadline for both email addresses is by noon on the Wednesday prior to publication date. Guidelines for submission are available online.
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To read past Oak Knoll PTO newsletters, please visit our archives.
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