A Note from the Principal

Mark your calendar!  August 30, 2010 is the first day of school.  The calendar is negotiated with our teacher’s union, so this is the only date we have so far.

Community Service at Allendale:  I now have a new skill, palm sanding!  We prepared the entry walls for painting; organized the stage for student productions; shampooed rugs; and prepared an outside wall for a mural. (Allendale teachers have been waiting to install a mural as a part of a school-wide art project for seven years!) We connected with teachers and parents at Allendale who would like help establishing their own PTA.  Thanks to David Ichikawa and Donna Somerville for organizing these events…it’s community service at it’s best! Our team of volunteers included:  Donna Somerville, David Ichikawa, Katrina Saba, Yolanda Davis, Charles Pelton, Sarah Campbell, David Hatfield, Aquacena Lopez, and Janice Jagelski.

Our Art Show last Thursday was spectacular! What incredible work our students have produced under the expert guidance of Alice Armstrong and Elliott Turner. The opening music was also wonderful, and we must thank our two music teachers Michael Carreira and Peter Canton for all their hard work and dedication.  You've heard it so many times before, but it really does take a village, we owe a huge thank you to Jackie Noyes and all her dedicated volunteers who made this evening such a great success:

Use Your Voice Survey is here!  We use this survey to determine how we are doing as a school and as a district.  Please take a moment to complete the attached survey and return it to school.  You’ll find a collection box in the office.  If you would prefer, there is an online version.  Go to http://www.ousd.k12.ca.us/useyourvoice

Save April 13th at 7 pm!  A couple of years ago, my 18 year old daughter recommended a pamphlet called “Safety First, a reality-based approach to teens and drugs.” When a young person says that it speaks the truth, I listen.  We will be distributing this pamphlet and hearing from the author, Dr. Marsha Rosenbaum.  This is a “can’t miss” for all parents.

Stanford Research Study for Grades 3-5:  We've been invited to participate in a study on children's friendships, conducted by researchers at Stanford. Headed up by Professor Carol Dweck, a leading researcher in motivation and learning, this project aims to explore the factors that influence children's interracial friendship. Understanding the type of social information children acquire and when they do so will help us create ways to promote healthy interracial contact and positive expectations about future interactions. This is a great opportunity to be a part of cutting edge research that will have important implications for future educational approaches.  Our teachers have studied Dweck’s work and we look forward to working with her team as we explore interracial relationships with children.

PTA President’s Message

Walkathon
Plans for the Walkathon are in full swing.  See the note from our fearless leader Janice for guidance!

Drugs and Teens – April 13 Program
For you parents of teens, teens-to-be, and future teens, we have a speaker coming to Hillcrest on the evening of April 13 to talk about “… a reality-based approach to teens and drugs” called Safety First.  Dr. Marsha Rosenbaum, Ph.D. has worked in this field for over twenty years as a counselor, advocate and researcher.  The one-hour program will include a short DVD presentation, comments from Marsha and opportunities for questions and dialogue.  The program will be held in the Multipurpose Room from 7:00 – 8:00.

Mike Allison
PTA President

NEWS/ANNOUNCEMENTS

Walkathon & Carnival Update

We're just a month away from the Walkathon & Carnival on Saturday, April 17th. Kids, it's time to tighten up those sneakers and start getting in shape to Walk for the Gold! When you start feeling the burn, remember that it will get you closer to a higher goal. So start training!

Here are the specifics to entice you to gear-up your training:
You earn 1 raffle ticket for every 10 Laps you walk. Kindergarteners and First-Graders get a bonus of 10 laps. Middle Schoolers can earn a raffle ticket for each hour of volunteer service (must check in and out to qualify). All walkers receive a free BBQ lunch, courtesy of the Village Market!

The Grand Prize Get-Away Party is Wednesday May 5th, leaving Hillcrest at noon and returning at 4 p.m.
In order to qualify for the Raffle and Get-Away Party, all your pledges are due by 3 p.m. on April 29th. The Grand Prize Raffle will be held at Opening Circle on Friday, April 30th.

Pledge Sheets are attached to this week's Yellow Pages – bright red – can't miss them. You can also download them from a pdf on the Walkathon Website, www.hillcrestpta.org (look for Walkathon under the Fundraising category). Our goal is for every student to raise $200.

Rules for the Grand Prize Get-Away Party:
Those who raise $500 or more in pledges will automatically qualify to attend the Grand Prize Get-Away Party. Didn't raise $500? You may still win passage to the Get-Away Party.  Those who walk 50 laps or more will qualify for a special drawing for one of ten additional spots to attend the Party.  Good luck!
Contact: Janice Jagelski

Walkathon T-Shirt Contest Winners!

Congratulations to all 72 students who submitted entries for the 2010 Walkathon T-Shirt Contest.  Our Olympic theme, "Walk for the Gold," was well depicted on all entries and everyone drew ideas that exhibited good sportsmanship, peace, and the spirit of trying your hardest. For such wonderful work, all 72 students who submitted an entry are awarded one raffle ticket! One raffle ticket is the equivalent of walking 10 laps at the Walkathon, and your ticket could be the lucky one drawn for the grand prize!

The winners are:
2nd Runner Up: Nathan Karchmer (4th Grade, Ms. Wilson's Class). Nathan wins 2 more raffle tickets!
1st Runner Up: Cameron Graham (8th Grade, Ms. Massey's Class). Cameron wins 3 more raffle tickets! 
Winners: Ryan Hunt, Jack Hanson and Kian Nouri (all 4th Graders in Ms. Weinberg's Class). Each of these winners receives 5 more raffle tickets!

Hillcrest Carnival Book Swap

It’s time to start going through your shelves to find books for swapping at the Hillcrest Carnival Book Swap! You can trade books you no longer want for different books you’d like to read. You can select one book for each book you bring in. 

The trading will take place at the Book Swap table at the Carnival on Saturday, April 17 from 11am-3pm, though you are welcome to drop off your books at the table anytime from 9am-3pm.   

Beginning Monday, March 15, you can bring books for swapping to the library during regular library hours. Library staff will keep track of the number of books you bring. If no one is in the library when you bring your books in, please leave the books behind the librarian’s desk with your name, teacher’s name, and the number of books you brought. The more books we have before the swap, the better the selection will be! 

We welcome books for all ages, from preschool through adult. We encourage all family members to bring books for swapping. We especially encourage middle schoolers to check their shelves – we always need books for upper elementary kids. No damaged, soiled, or torn books please. Books that are not in good condition will not be accepted for swapping. Any books remaining when the Carnival ends at 3 pm will be donated to the East Bay Children’s Book Project and the Oakland Public Library.   

The Book Swap is always a Carnival favorite with kids and adults alike. What better way to go green and recycle your books?  
Contact:  Cindy Pierson or Sharon Murphy

8th Grade Graduation

The 8th Grade Commencement Ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday, June 16. If you are willing to open your home for the post-graduation "pot luck," please contact me as soon as possible. Thank you!
Contact: Vanessa Graham

Going on Vacation?

In the fall it was the H1N1 virus, but now Spring fever has hit Hillcrest! I just want to remind parents that students who miss school for any reason other than Illness will be marked Unexcused. Three Unexcused absences will result in a Notification of Truancy letter from the District Offices. In past years I marked vacation days as Personal days but I can no longer use that code.

Please reconsider taking your children out of school for vacation days. However, if you will be gone for 5 or more school days please contact me and I will set up an Independent Study contract. It's easy to do and Hillcrest will receive the ADA (Average Daily Attendance) money while your student is gone. The contract must be done in the office not just with your teacher. Thanks!
Name: Joan Cannon
Phone: 510-879-1270
Email: joan.cannon@ousd.k12.ca.us

Lost and Found

Are your kids shivering?  Are they wet?  Are they forced to carry their lunches to school in their hands?  If so, then you need to check the Hillcrest Lost and Found area on the upper patio. 

The Lost and Found racks are overflowing with items! A huge assortment of lovely jackets, raincoats, sweatshirts, sweaters, shirts, belts, bags, hats, lunch boxes, tupperware, and water bottles are just waiting to be claimed by their rightful and forgetful owners (or their parents). Some of the items do have names labeled on them, so you are likely to find those things belonging to your kids and that you thought were lost forever. Prior to spring break, we will be donating all leftover items to charity.

EVENTS/PROGRAMS

Hillcrest Talent Show

What:  Hillcrest Talent Show
When:  Thursday, March 25 at 1 pm for students only; 7 pm for parents
Important to Know:  To participate, be sure to meet the following deadlines:
Talent Show Rehearsals:  MUST BE PRESENT BOTH DAYS IN ENTIRETY
Tuesday, March 23:  3-6 pm
Wednesday, March 24:  1-4 pm

Hillcrest Garden Day

Spring is almost here and it's a perfect time to get out in the garden. On the last Sunday in March, we are having an official Hillcrest Garden Work Party to weed, plant, mulch and generally tidy up the hillside.  We hope you will join in this community effort to beautify our school! 
When: Sunday, March 28, 1-4 pm
Where: Meet on the play yard
Important: Bring gloves, shovels, buckets
Contact: Cara Brockbank

Pennies for Peace

We are delighted to share with you that our 4th grade students will participate in a Pennies for Peace campaign from (February 8 - April 17) as part of Hillcrest's Community Outreach Program. The 4th grade students have been busy reading Three Cups of Tea in book group and the discussions have been amazing!! The students are really excited about the program and have taken on  a variety of additional volunteer roles to support the success of the program.

About Pennies For Peace:  Pennies for Peace is a service-learning program designed to broaden our students’ cultural horizons while teaching them about their capacities as philanthropists one penny at a time. Pennies for Peace is a program of Central Asia Institute (CAI), founded by Greg Mortenson, author of the #1 New York Times best seller, Three Cups of Tea.  CAI promotes and provides community-based education and literacy programs, especially for girls, in remote mountain regions of Central Asia. Founded in 1996, CAI has built, to date, nearly 100 schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which serve more than 28,000 students over 14,000 of whom are girls.

How can a penny bring peace? It doesn’t buy much in our community. However, in the villages of
Pakistan and Afghanistan, a penny can buy a pencil, start an education, and transform a life. In a region
where terrorist organizations recruit uneducated, illiterate children, that pencil can empower a child
to read, write, and learn.

The Pennies for Peace program goal is to encourage our students, who are ultimately our future leaders, to learn the value of philanthropy by collecting pennies for global peace. Our students will join tens of thousands of students around the world who are participating in the Pennies for Peace program and who are working together to become members of a global family dedicated to peace.

What can you do?  We will have Pennies For Peace collection containers in the classrooms and the main hallway entrance.  Please consider collecting your spare change and making regular donations in one of the marked containers around campus.   We love nickels, dimes, and quarters too.
When: February 8- April 17
Where: Hillcrest
Contact: Donna Hanson or Michelle Meyers

HELP WANTED

Lemonade for Lockwood School

Do you have under-utilized lemon trees or bushes in your yard, or do you have a friendly neighbor with extra lemons on their hands? Then you can help raise funds for Lockwood School's 4th & 5th Grade Camps! 

Please bring bags of lemons to Hillcrest and place them in the front hallway in or next to the buckets marked: "Lemonade for Lockwood School." We will then squeeze and freeze lemon juice to use in refreshing lemonade for Middle School Volunteers to sell at the Hillcrest Walkathon and Carnival on April 17th. The Middle Schoolers will also be selling hot nacho chips at the same booth, with all proceeds benefiting Lockwood School. Remember Middle Schoolers, for every hour you volunteer at the Walkathon/Carnival, you earn a Raffle Ticket!
When: Bring your extra lemons to school daily!
Where: Place lemons in the buckets labeled "Lemonade for Lockwood School" in the front hallway.
Contact: Janice Jagelski

2009-10 Calendar Highlights

Some dates are tentative. Watch for updates!
March 23:  3-6 pm Talent Show Rehearsal – must be present for entirety
March 24:  1-4 pm Talent Show Rehearsal – must be present for entirety
March 25:  Talent Show 1 pm students only; 7 pm for parents
March 29:  Cesar Chavez Day
April 3-11:  Spring Break
April 15: 6 pm PTA Bd; 7 pm Night Performance
April 13:  7 pm Parent Education:  Teens and Drugs
Apr 15: 7:30 a.m. School Site Council
April 17:  Walkathon
April 19 – May 14:  STAR Testing Window
April 21:  Volunteer Appreciation
April 22: 7 pm Environ Ed Steve Greenberg
May 3:  Submit Science Fair Projects
May 6:  7 pm Science Fair
May 13: 7:30 a.m. School Site Council
May 19: Day of Teacher
May 20: 6 pm PTA Bd; 7 pm LHS Math Night
May 28-31:  Memorial Day
June 9:  School Play @ 10:30 for students
June 10:  School Play @ 10:30 for students
June 11:  School Play @ 7 pm for parents
June 14:  6-7:30 pm All School Picnic
June 15-17: K-8 12:40 Dismissal
June 16:  8th Grade Promotion
June 17:  Last Day

Submit an item to the Yellow Pages at www.hillcrestpta.org.
Yellow Pages compiled by Julie Fleming