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Monday, September 14
- After School Programs Begin
Tuesday, September 15
- Parent Coffee Talk, 8:15-9:15am, Gym
- Last Day to Order Otterwear
Wednesday, September 16
- New Parent Welcome Social hosted by the MPAEF, 6:30-8:00pm
- Picture Day
- Balclutha Field Trip (Tom), 11:30am-10:00am (next day)
Thursday, September 17
Friday, September 18
Saturday, September 19
- 31st Annual California Coastal Cleanup Day, 9:00am-12:00pm
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Monday, September 28
- Safe Moves Assembly on Traffic Safety
Wednesday, September 30
- Site Council, 3:30-4:30pm, Teacher's Lounge
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Improvements at Oak Knoll
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Here are some improvements worth mentioning which are being made at Oak Knoll in direct response to parent feedback in the site survey from last school year: - All field trips will now involve buses with seat belts.
- The Kindergarten playground will be getting shade structures to cover the sandbox and part of the cement play area.
- We have moved away from using the class thermometer to measure PTO participation and are now tracking by grade levels instead.
Thank you for your feedback as we continuously work to improve our school!
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MPAEF & PTO Joint Campaign - Oak Knoll News
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WE'RE OFF TO A GOOD START! Oak Knoll students, parents and teachers all showed their school spirit at the Joint Campaign kick-off last Tuesday morning!
The Porter family was announced on Friday as the winner of the Oak Knoll Spirit Package giveaway including reserved VIP parking for three school events, "Associate Principal for a Day", and Otterwear for their family! The Porters are new to Oak Knoll this year and have a daughter, Shayne, in 2nd grade. Congratulations!
PTO donations are coming in every day and 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades reached 50% participation on Friday, unlocking this year's giveaway! When a grade reaches 50% participation, each student in that grade will receive this year's giveaway that Friday. When a grade reaches 75% participation, they will get an extra 10 minutes of recess one day. The students in the grade with the highest % participation at the end of the campaign will receive a special prize.
The PTO and the MPAEF continue their joint efforts to make Oak Knoll the best it can be for our kids. When you support the PTO at $250 per child and the MPAEF at $1500 per child, this is the real difference you make in their education:
Together, we INSPIRE in our children a love of learning
Together, we INVOLVE ourselves in their learning journey
Together, we INVEST in their future
PTO donations are due by September 30. Please make your gift or pledge to the MPAEF by November 6. For more information, you can reach out to our PTO Membership Co-Chairs (Kathy Motamedi, Tamara Russel, Tracy Watt) at ptomembership@oakknollschool.com or our MPAEF ambassador for Oak Knoll, Ashley Honerkamp at oakknollmpaef@mpaef.org.
Thank you for your support!
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Parent Coffee Talk with Principal Gracia - This Tuesday
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The first coffee talk of the 2015-2016 school year will be held this Tuesday, September 15 at 8:15am in the Gym when school Counselor Nicole Scott will join Kristen Gracia to talk about this year's school theme of "Connected". While you sip your morning coffee, you can hear all about the theme, why it is important, and what our kids will learn and do. Throughout the year there will be activities and books that support the theme - check out Counselor Nicole's webpage which outlines current reading and lessons she is covering with students across the school.
Mrs. Gracia and other members of the Oak Knoll Staff are looking forward to holding regular informational meetings for parents on various topics of interest throughout the year. Further Parent Coffee Talks will be held on the following dates: 9/15, 11/10, 12/8, 1/12, 2/9, 3/8. All meetings are right after drop-off in the Gym, from 8:15-9:15am.
Mark your calendars and come join Mrs. Gracia and her team for some good discussions. Come connect!
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Order Otterwear by Tuesday, September 15 - Last Chance
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 It's time to place your final Otterwear order! You have just three days to order Otterwear for the 2015-2016 school year. Give your kids a fall boost with bright new Otterwear in fashionable colors ranging from neon yellow to neon pink to classic Oak Knoll blue. All styles are also available in adult sizes. Don't miss out on the always dry short sleeve Dry Fit Athletic T-Shirt (4 colors), always supportive long sleeve Dry Fit Athletic T-Shirt (2 colors - great for adults!), always cozy Ollie Zip Hoodie (4 colors) and ever-popular Ollie Tye Die T-Shirt (3 colors). Shop now!
 Be sure to add a special edition Ollie Car Magnet and Ollie Flashlight Keychain to your order. These make great gifts!
Questions about size or color? See color and size samples in the office or online.
All orders are due by Tuesday, September 15 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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New Parent Welcome Social
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The MPAEF in partnership with Oak Knoll's PTO, would like to welcome all new parents and those with incoming kindergartners to a casual Welcome Social on Wednesday, September 16 from 6:30-8:00pm at a fellow Oak Knoll family's home. You will meet our principal, Kristen Gracia, our Superintendent, Maurice Ghysels, and our MPAEF and Oak Knoll PTO leaders; they'll be talking about our amazing school and our community-funded school district. Our goal is to make this a fun and educational evening for you to meet other parents and to hear about what is happening at Oak Knoll and in our District. Many thanks to our generous community donors -- Mama Coco for providing Lite Bites and Cannonball Wine Company for providing refreshments.
Parents only please. RSVP here.
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School Picture Days This Week
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Get those smiles ready! School Picture Days are this week on September 16-17. Your child's teacher will let you know the specific day/time when your child's class will have their photo taken.
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31st Annual California Coastal Cleanup Day
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Saturday, September 19, 9:00am-12:00pm
For the second year in a row we would like to invite Oak Knoll Families to participate in the California Coastal Clean up. This is a great way to do community service for our community. You can connect with neighbors and make a difference.
Location: Bedwell Bayfront Park
Meet Up Location: Meet in first parking lot with restrooms
Directions & Other Information: The park is located on the edge of the San Francisco Bay at Bayfront Expressway and Marsh Rd, East of Hwy 101. Bring gloves and refillable water bottle.
Contact/Register: Davena Gentry, (650) 814-3412.
Location: San Francisquito Creek
Meet Up Location: Corner of Alma St. and East Creek Drive, Menlo Park.
Directions & Other Information: N/A
Contact/Register: Junko Bryant (Acterra).
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The Fall Family Picnic will be held on Friday, October 2 from 5:00-7:00pm. We will have games, bouncy houses, karaoke, and delicious burritos catered by Mama Coco. Don't miss out on the fun! Click here for more information and to order tickets.
Please remember that the Fall Family Picnic is a community event after-hours on school grounds. There will be parent volunteers monitoring the organized activities (bouncy houses, etc.), but there will be no adult supervision of the playgrounds and other play areas. We ask that parents please be responsible for supervising their own child(ren). There is also no alcohol or dogs permitted on school grounds.
Here's to a fun fall community-building event!
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Noteworthy Art Drawing Begins This Week
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Noteworthy Art is a wonderful and important PTO Fundraiser. Your child will be drawing his or her individual artwork in class for Noteworthy Art some time in the next two weeks. Your child's drawing will be reproduced on high quality notecards and packaged with envelopes in sets of 12. Now is the perfect time to help your child come up with creative ideas for their artwork. A great design leads to nice gift opportunities and a special keepsake that you and your child will love! A proof and order form will come home in October and the Noteworthy Art cards will be delivered before the holidays. If you have questions about this exciting Oak Knoll PTO fundraiser, please contact Tiffany Wolf, Jackie Ward, Erin Dolinko, and Sora Choe.
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Hot Lunch Volunteers - Thanks & More Needed
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Thank you to those of you who use Hot Lunch regularly and have volunteered their time to fill many open volunteering slots this year!
The Hot Lunch program is entirely dependent on volunteers being there each day to serve the food, so this positive response from parents signing up to help is essential to keep the program running.
If you are a regular Hot Lunch user and received an email asking for a volunteer commitment but have not yet signed up yet, we still have open slots and need more help. No experience needed, no cooking, no washing dishes - simply help distribute pre-ordered packaged hot and cold lunches from Choicelunch and earn credits towards free lunches for your child(ren) for each shift worked.
Thank you!
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Ollie Salutes the Back-to-School Teacher Luncheon team!
Please join Ollie in a huge round applause for the Back-to-School Teacher Luncheon Co-Chairs Page Curtin and Julie Pietrantoni-Cline as well as their team of parent volunteers who provided a "Best of the Farmer's Market" themed luncheon for all of the teachers and staff of Oak Knoll on Friday. It was a lovely event with delicious food and the perfect way to celebrate our teachers as we head into the new school year. Thank you!
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4th/5th Grade Boys Volleyball Clinics - Last Chance to Register
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There is a NEW boys-only Volleyball program starting this Fall at Arrillaga Gym sponsored by the Oak Knoll PTO and the Menlo Park & Recreation Dept. There will be a series of six (6) clinics on Wednesday evenings from September 23 through October 28 from 3:45-5:15pm for 4th & 5th grade boys. The clinics will include boys from Encinal and La Entrada in addition to any boys who want to register from other schools. In the spring, the Menlo Park Recreation Dept hopes to start a boys volleyball league similar to the Girls' league in the Fall. Hillview is also offering similar clinics with the hope of starting a boys league in the spring when the high school league plays. Registration for Oak Knoll 4th & 5th grade boys is available at TeamSnap Boys Volleyball. Registration closes Monday, September 14.
Any questions, please contact the Oak Knoll Afterschool Sports Team - Allison Chao, Julie Gosler, or Sharon Schick.
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Girls Leadership Institute Workshops at Oak Knoll
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Girls Leadership Institute Workshops at Oak Knoll - Grades K/1, 2/3, and 4/5
GLI EVENTS FILL UP FAST - DON'T WAIT TO REGISTER!
The Oak Knoll PTO has arranged to bring the Girls Leadership Institute to Oak Knoll again this year, so don't miss your opportunity to priority register for one of the FOUR parent-daughter workshops on emotional intelligence offered by GLI. Parents and daughters will learn about identifying healthy relationships, finding their voices, and communicating more effectively. Girls will also develop resilient responses to conflict, challenges, and mistakes. Also new this year is the second part to the 4/5th grade workshop series.
Cost: $180 for K/1, $210 for 2/3 and 4/5
Priority registration for Oak Knoll expires on September 14, so reserve your spot now!
Visit the links for more information on each program (please note that the registrations requires a password, so please make sure to use the correct password for your preferred age group) K/1: Password: OakKnollK1 2/3: Password: OakKnoll23
Please note that the Oak Knoll PTO has facilitated GLI offering these workshops at Oak Knoll following several years of positive feedback from parents, but like other After School Programs, parents will register and contract with GLI as a private vendor.
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With every back-to-school purchase you make via MPAEF's shopping portal, you earn money for smaller classrooms, credentialed arts and science specialists, and our teachers'professional development. Simply start at Shop.MPAEF.org and then:
CLICK on your favorite merchant to activate our referral bonus. We have more than 80 great merchants including Amazon, Target, Nordstrom, and many more.
SHOP and pay for items as you normally would.
EARN up to 10% of your purchase total for our schools. It's that EASY!
We don't collect any personally identifiable information, so no new IDs or passwords to remember. Just start at Shop.MPAEF.org, click, shop, and earn for all our schools every time.
We've got scads of participating merchants, but start by getting your pens and pencils at Target, your new togs at Gap/Old Navy, and fall sports equipment at Sports Authority.
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Kinder Yard Volunteers Needed
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Want to see your Kindergartener in action on the playground? Volunteer for playground/yard duty! We need your help with short 45 minute shifts supervising the kindergarten yard from 10:20am to 11:05am daily. If you can help out once a week or even once a month, please contact Tara Carranza for more information.
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Library Volunteers Needed
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Parents, come help out in our wonderful library! Volunteers are needed for a variety of tasks such as helping check books in and out, shelving books, helping students find books, pulling books on topics for teachers. Training is quick and easy. Volunteer as often as you like and you will be scheduled for the time slot corresponding to your child's library class. If you are interested, please look out for sign up sheets at the Back to School Coffee and the Back to School Night or contact Noelle Carpenter.
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Nature Zone Volunteers Needed
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Come help keep the Oak Knoll Nature Zone open! The Nature Zone is the fenced off area at the side of school (towards the back field/playground) where kids have the opportunity to explore nature and interact with trees, branches, leaves, dirt and all the "natural toys" within The Nature Zone. In order to have this resource open to our students at lunchtime, we must have parent volunteers to supervise the area. Please stop by our table at the Back-to-School Coffee to learn more about the fun! Contact Becky Bullard for more information.
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NJB Winter Basketball
Registration is now open. Our focus is on skills-based instruction, personal growth, and positive competition for kids from 1st through 8th grades in MP, Atherton, PV, Woodside, or EPA. The season runs from November through February. Deadline for early registration with reduced fees is 9/28!
Frozen Sing-Along Saturday, October 3, 1-3 pm, M-A PAC
Dress up as your favorite character and watch and sing along to Frozen! Win fun prizes! Limited seating; special "Fun Pack" for advance ticket buyers ($5 General Admission). Free for children 3 years old and under. Sponsored by the City of Menlo Park. Click here for more information and tickets.
Cub Scouts Wednesday, September 16, 6:15 pm, Laurel School Multipurpose Room
Calling all 1st-5th grade boys: Do you like camping, hiking, building, and learning new skills? Pack 565 in Menlo Park would love to introduce you to the world of scouting. If you have questions, please email Pack Leader Tyson Clark.
Stanford Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research
Seeking children ages 6-10 who have never had anesthesia or who have had anesthesia before the age of 3 to participate in a brain imaging study. You will receive a research report of the cognitive testing, a picture of your child's brain, and a $100 honorarium for participation after completion of the study. Email Glorilee Harper, MD for more information.
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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.
To read past Oak Knoll PTO newsletters, please visit our archives.
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