Principal Notes April 27, 2007

RUN FOR THE PLAYGROUND - Was a huge success and lots of fun!!! We have already collected $6514.00 out of a projected $14,500.00 (get out there and get those pledges collected!) The kids were fabulous--running and walking their hearts out! Many, many thanks to all the volunteers. This is an event that doesn't happen without you (setting up, tallying laps, cheering, dancing...)! Thanks also to the teachers--who motivated, reminded and some even trained--their kids for this event. We even had a neighborhood couple come in, baby in arms, to donate $100 to the playground. Equally received are the allowances kids have given up to the Run and the $1.77 in beach flower sales! Remember to get those pledges collected. We would love to have them all in by Wednesday, May 2nd!

WRITE ON!! - Maplewood Students Win Writing Awards: Congratulations to Gavin McMinn and Perry Taylor for winning First Place awards in the Tryon Creek State Park "Tall Tale Contest." The topic: "How Skunk Got Its Smell." Gavin won top honors in the Third Grade division, his second straight selection in this annual competition. And Perry won in the Fourth Grade division, the third straight year he's been among the winners.

This is no small deal as more than 300 grade school students from around the region and state submitted story entries. That's more than 50 for each grade level! They read their tall tales last Sunday, Earth Day, April 22, at a Tryon Creek State Park celebration and they’ll read their stories on the air at radio station KBPS 1450 AM. So congratulations to Gavin and Perry -- and of course, to the Maplewood teachers, who have helped them, and all the other students, write clearly, creatively and colorfully!

SUPERINTENDENT LEAVING PORTLAND – I was taken totally by surprise, as were you, by Vicki Phillips’ announcement yesterday that she would be leaving the district July 1^st. I am disappointed that she is leaving so soon, as change like this can make you feel anxious about what happens to the district in the meantime. After reflecting for a day about this, though, I look at this particular school and know that the staff here, with parent and student support, will concentrate our efforts on what we CAN control, which is what and how we interact and teach our wonderful students each day. I am absolutely certain that we will keep our energies keenly focused on our education here at Maplewood, while I work to keep an eye on the larger picture and “the road ahead” so that we will be prepared for any actions that will affect us. To that end, I’ll also specifically suggest that you do two civic-minded things:

1. School Board Election - Pay attention and get information related to the School Board candidates: you can attend Portland Public School Board Candidate Forum, April 26: Candidates for four positions on the Portland Public School Board will appear on Thursday, April 26, at 7 p.m. in the Board Room of the Blanchard Education Service Center, 501 North Dixon Street, Portland, in a forum co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Portland Education Fund, the Portland Council PTA, Community and Parents for Public Schools, and the Portland Schools Foundation. The forum is free, and the public is invited to attend. All six candidates for Portland Public School Board positions have been invited to participate. Portland Public Schools Television Services will record the forum for later broadcast on Channel 28. The broadcast schedule will be posted on the League's web site (www.lwvpdx.org). For more information, call the Portland League office at 503-228-1675. Another forum is set for Voter’s Forum at Multnomah Arts Center on Monday evening, April 30^th. The candidates for School Board from our region will be there to discuss their positions, and a discussion will also be held about the ballot measure on changing the structure of city government.
2. Site Council Nominations Sought– Maplewood’s Site Council is set up by Oregon State Law, that mandates that 3 parents serve on the committee of 10, along with staff and the Principal, to meet monthly. There are two openings for people to serve two terms beginning in the fall. Why is this important? This committee represents our school community in setting the direction for the educational focus of our school, including helping decide and write the annual School Improvement Plan. They also give guidance on what types of Professional Development should happen for staff; they have approved some important decisions in the past such as offering both full- and half-day kindergarten, and scheduling on a Trimester calendar. Simone Frank and Dave Garnand are finishing the end of their second year, so we need two or more nominees to serve next year along with parent Darryn Sikora. Please let John know immediately if you have interest in serving on this monthly Council meeting or want to nominate someone to provide this important input to our learning.

TWO IMPORTANT, FUN EVENTS CLARIFIED - Remember that there are two separate events being sponsored by parents soon: On Friday, May 4^th there is the third Leaf Painting Party. Then two weeks later, come to the May 18^th event below:

Spring Celebration! May 18^th, 2007 Time: 6:00 – 8:00 P.M.

Live Jazz!

Books, Movies, DVDs!

BYOP!! Bring Your Own Picnic and blanket and enjoy a meal with friends.

Activities and games, Tour the Wildwood, Learn about “Green” events in your school and neighborhood.

Used Book Sale!! Donate books, then come and “find your treasure”!

Sponsored by: Maplewood PTA Family Resource Committee

Upcoming Events:

Apr 27/28th - Bookbaggers

May 4^th - Legacy Leaf Painting @ 6:00 pm Cafeteria

May 7^th - 11^th Teacher Appreciation Week!

May 10^th - PTA Meeting @6:15 pm

May 13^th - Mother’s Day

May 15^th - “A Musical Tour of the Americas” Bochinche Grades K- 5, 12:45 – 1:45 pm

May 17^th - Kindergarten Open House @ 3:00 pm

May 18^th - Spring Gathering/Used Book Sale

May 28^th - NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day

Principal Notes April 20, 2007

RUN FOR THE PLAYGROUND – This event is Tuesday, April 24^th, with the pledged money going directly to the new playground (did you see the demolition of the old equipment going on this week?) Please bring in pledges as soon as possible; we’re planning on having the Run happen rain or shine (too rainy means we’ll run in the gym).

WANTED: Plumber Help - Do you know a good plumber that likes to work pro-bono or at a reduced rate for a really great cause? The Playground Replacement Committee needs your help in identifying a plumber that would be interested in installing a year round outdoor drinking fountain near the new playground. The fountain has been specified and has been included in the project budget so the work needed would all be related to installation. If you know someone or have someone in mind please contact Jim Battan Jim@battan.com or Joan Stein joan@joanstein.net. Thank you in advance for your help.

STATE REPORT CARD - You will be getting two copies of the official State Report Card – one for Maplewood and one for the District. This report card is mandated by state law, and includes some categories that can be very misleading unless you look closely at the definitions of the categories. Please let me know if you have any questions about them.

CLASS PLACEMENTS PROCESS FOR NEXT FALL - For those of you new to Maplewood, or who may have wondered about the process that we will be following for determining the class rosters for next fall, I want to give you a brief set of information to avoid any confusion you may feel.

This process will be very similar to the one I have used for the last 6 years; I take this sorting process very seriously, and give it a lot of time and thought. This Next Week: I will be sending home, on Monday, a letter to you asking about your plans for returning to Maplewood. Please give your best guess about the information there, to help me know what numbers of students at different grade levels will be. In May: I will be giving you a form that you can fill out that will describe your goals for your child next year, and what types of learning experiences fit your child best. You will not be able to indicate a particular teacher on that form. I will also ask teachers to give me lists of students with their indications of the student’s current academic levels, and special characteristics. June: I will go over all of the above information, and combine it with my updated knowledge of the teaching staff assignments, and make balanced class rosters. The decision for the placements is mine, so please do not ask your current teachers to make that decision. July: At the very beginning of the month, I will send out a letter to the families describing the teacher placement, class list, school supplies, and any other updated information to help you get ready for the fall.

Thanks for your support and cooperation with this process; if you have any questions along the way, please feel free to contact me.

Upcoming Events:

Apr 24th - Run for the PLAYGROUND!

Apr 27/28th - Bookbaggers Overnight

May 4th - Legacy Leaf Painting @ 6:00 pm Cafeteria

May 7 - 11th Teacher Appreciation Week!

May 10^th - PTA Meeting @6:15 pm

May 13^th - Mother’s Day

May 15^th - “A Musical Tour of the Americas” Bochinche Grades K- 5, 12:45 – 1:45 pm

May 17^th - Kindergarten Open House @ 3:00 pm

May 18^th - Spring Gathering

May 28^th - NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day

Principal Notes April 6, 2007

GOOD NEWS ABOUT OUR STAFFING! – You may have read the article in this month’s Multnomah Post, that indicated I was told to plan for a loss of 0.39 FTE - almost a half-time specialist – for next fall. (As you may have heard, the 0.39 drop in FTE was based on a drop in average enrollment of only 9 students from the previous year)! At that point, a collaboration of parents here met with me and we came up with a plan to re-allocate money from the playground to make up for the staffing. HERE’S THE GOOD NEWS – While this was happening, the School District met with me several times on a plan to keep Maplewood strong and to support us, and they agreed to return that additional 0.39 to us! This was based on the rationale that the recent disruptions of closures and boundary changes, as well as the district commitment to provide stability and enrichment support for all schools, all combined to make the support for our staffing vital. When we received that good news, I then brought up several possible courses of action for what to do with this unexpected help. At this point, I urge you to attend an Important PTA Meeting this coming Thursday at 6:15! The PTA will be voting on two motions: to approve the return of the $14,000 back to the PTA, as well as the approval of an exciting design and plan for a new playground! By the way, I noticed that this month’s Lifeskill being taught our students is “Problem-Solving”, which was demonstrated so well by our PTA, Playground Committee, Site Council, and Foundation Campaign volunteers; they should be congratulated on their collaboration and willingness to thoughtfully address problems as they arise.

PTA MEETING THIS THURSDAY, APRIL 12^TH AT 6:15 – Come to this meeting to participate in a vote for the playground design, as described above!

2007 READ-ALOUD-ATHON SUMMARY - The totals are in for this year's Read-Aloud-Athon; our readers read 4,134 pages and in so doing raised $4,959.55 for the Maplewood PTA. Congratulations to the Maplewood Community for a very successful fund raising effort. All of the students received a participation prize. In addition, Mrs. McClenaghan's students -- with 70% of the class returning paid pledge forms -- will enjoy a pizza party with Mr. Blanck. Individual prizes were awarded as well. Thank you to Stephanie Coren, Susan Barimo, Joan Wallace, Renae Conkle, Glen Wallace, Jim Battan, Cindy Collins-Taylor, Theresa Fowler, Shannon Riley and Kaari Misclevitz for assisting in the classrooms on the day of the event. Thank you especially to the students, their sponsors and the classroom teachers for participating in this fund raising effort and making it a success.

REMINDER! - MAPLEWOOD IS IN SESSION THIS COMING THURSDAY, BUT NOT ON FRIDAY – This coming Thursday, April 12, is one of the two days this year when quarterly schools are not in session, but Trimester schools such as Maplewood ARE open. But Friday, April 13 is a Professional Development Day, and all PPS schools will be closed.

GRAB YOUR BIKE, SKATES (DON’T FORGET THAT HELMET!) OR JUST PUT ON YOUR WALKING SHOES AND JOIN US WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11^TH FOR OUR FIRST MAPLEWOOD WALK TO SCHOOL DAY

For those who would like to walk from Multnomah Village, gather outside the Multnomah Arts Center at 7:00 am rain or shine. We will be leaving from there at 7:10 am and walking through Gabriel Park. For those who would like to walk from the west, gather with Mr. Blanck at the corner of 60^th and Miles St at 7:30 rain or shine, and we’ll walk through April Hill Park to school. Parents, please join your kids on these walks. All the students that participate will be entered in a raffle for helmets, blinker lights and other safety equipment. Raffle prizes donated by; Doernbecher Children’s Safety Center, ThinkFirst Oregon and Foot Traffic. Hope to see you all out and about. Please contact Julie Luisi Harp with any questions luisihar@ohsu.edu or 503-332-1014.

BOOKBAGGERS - COMING YOUR WAY APRIL 27 - Love books? Have a hobby, craft idea or skill you'd like to share? The Bookbaggers Committee is looking for Bookbagger Station Leaders! If you are interested in hosting a literacy-based session on this Friday overnight, please contact Lori Matlock at lmatlock@ltk.com or 503-246-7151 for more information, or even better, to say "of course I'll do it!"

MAPLEWOOD ALUMNI IN PLAY! - I am writing on behalf of Robert Gray Middle School to tell you about an exciting production in the works. R.G.M.S. presents the play, "You're A Good Man Charlie Brown." This is a family friendly event for all ages. Performance dates are May 17 (6:30pm), May 18 & 19 (7pm). Four Maplewood alumni have parts in the production, and a variety of others are helping out in the stage crew. Watch 7th grader Nora Helfand as Snoopy, 7th grader Nate Hansen as Woodstock, 7th grader Karly Heirendt in the ensemble, and 6th grader Austin Mahar as good ol’ Charlie Brown. Adult tickets are $7, and student tickets are $5, or you can get a family pack of 5 tickets for just $20! Christy Caton will be at school next Thursday, April 12th selling tickets after school right near the scrip table. After that, tickets can be purchased in a variety of ways. You can contact Rosemary Schwimmer via email at rjschwimmer@comcast.net and she will place tickets in “Will Call” for you, or simply look for ticket order forms in the Maplewood office. Complete the order form, attach a check, or cash, and your tickets will be delivered to your child’s teacher within a few days! If you have any questions, contact Christy Caton at christycaton@msn.com or by calling 503-246-0891. We hope to see you there!

Upcoming Events:

Apr 11 - Walk/Bike to School Day

Apr 12 - “Mask Works” Imago Theatre @ 1:00 pm

Apr 12 - PTA Meeting @ 6:15 pm

Apr 13 - NO SCHOOL – Professional Development Day

Apr 14 - Plant Sale

Apr 16 - “Windows to the World” Will Hornyak @ 9:00 am

Apr 24 - Run for the PLAYGROUND!

Apr 27/28 - Bookbaggers

May 4 - Legacy Leaf Painting @6:00 pm Cafeteria