During the Advent Season, we prepare a wreath that is made of evergreen boughs and symbolizes everlasting life. The circle represents the continuous love of God, with no beginning and no end. Each week a candle is lit to represent the promise of the season. Today is the Third Sunday of Lent and so we light the rose candle on the advent wreath - the candle of Joy.

As we reflect on the past week, we wonder how can we rejoice? The answer lies in the faces of the children. Each morning I greet the students as they arrive on campus - I am so fortunate to start my day seeing the joy on the students' faces, the delight in their voices, and their friendships with each other. I have been blessed to spend my career in education and the past five years at The Presentation School. Not all days are easy, and as a parent I'm sure you would agree, but it always is and has to be about the children.

How can we continue the joy of the season and overcome the sadness of recent events? The answer is to share the joy! We can do this by sharing the good things in our life, being content with what we have, and treating others as we would like to be treated. These are values we hope we teach our children. These are the lessons we will share with the children this week. These are the joys I will take with me.

Thank you for the opportunity to be part of this wonderful community. My wish for you is to hold close the joy of the children, guide them as they grow, and remember that God's love for us never ends.

Merry Christmas and Peace for all in the New Year! 

Children's book author Dashka Slater's four books have won widespread praise for their inventive language and vivid imagery. Her first book, Baby Shoes, was named one of the best children's books of 2006 by both Booklist and Nick Jr. magazines. Her third book, The Sea Serpent and Me, was a Junior Library Guild Selection and was named to the 2008 Librarians' Choices List of the best books for children and young adults. A recipient of a Creative Writing Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, Slater is also an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in such publications as Newsweek, Salon, The New York Times Magazine and Mother Jones. She is also the author of a novel, The Wishing Box, which the Los Angeles Times named to its list of the year's best fiction in 2000.

Dashka will be at Presentation speaking with our students and reading to them from one of her books at 9:30am on January 30.

We are pleased to announce an exciting roster of after-school classes for grades K-8 starting in January.  Some of the offerings will include:

and more!!

Classes will run Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 34:30-4:30pm starting January 22 and most run for 8 weeks.  

All of our students had a chance to cycle through the 7th and 8th grade Science Fair last week and to learn about a wide range of topics.  Our students worked hard on their research, their reports and their tri-fold display boards and were excited to share their knowledge with their peers.  Faculty and parents served as judges and the results will be announced in the weeks ahead.

Our 6th grade students last week made plaster masks of their faces, just as the Pharoahs did in Ancient Egypt.  Our students coated their faces in petroleum jelly, applied layers of plaster, worked in teams to smooth out the surface and waited patiently for the masks to dry completely on their faces.  This hands-on experience is part of a project learning curriculum unit on ancient civilizations.

Correction:  

6th grade Julia Little was left off of last week's reporting of Honor Roll recipients.  Sorry Julia!  And congratulations!

Thank you to the dozens and dozens of volunteers who worked the Holiday Home Tour last Friday. We couldn't have done it without you!! 

Babysitting:  We have in the office a list of Presentation grads who are now in high school (some of whom drive) who are eager to babysit.  Please do your own vetting as to experience though.  Stop by the office for a copy of the list (just in time for the holidays!) 

 

Shop & Support:  Remember to stop by the school office to pick up a sheet to order gift cards through out scrip program.  Also available are sign up sheets for the Sonoma Market school donation program.  Remember to register or renew your Safeway card at www.escrip.com. Group ID - 137107396.  Club card members must 

renew EVERY November. 

 

Help Needed!:  We are still in need of help in after-care on Friday afternoons and substitute (fill-in) lunch helpers on occasional week days. Please let Laura Wallace in the office know if you can help out!