PTA Summer Update

July 29th, 2010

Hello fellow JM parents!

At our July JMPTA Board meeting, we transitioned our amazing outgoing members and welcomed our 2010-11 team. We are all excited and eager to make this year great for all of our families and students at JM. We wanted to be sure to communicate a few key messages to you. Please read through the messages below. The JM website is a great place to get updates on upcoming events. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Best,
The PTA Board
Principal Smith

DON’T MISS TLC DAY!
JM TLC Day, when we spend time preparing the school and building community, is coming up! Please join us AUGUST 21, 11 A.M. TO 3 P.M., ready to work. We’ll provide lunch and drinks; all you need to bring is yourselves and your kids, ready to make the school look (even) better! We’ll send out a list of projects and needed tools in advance of the day; for now, please just save the date!

REGISTRATION DAY
This year our big push to register all our students will happen on SATURDAY, AUGUST 28. Here’s how this will work:

-School registration packets and PTA Membership Forms will be available for pickup in the main office starting Monday, August 16, 2010.
-On Saturday the 28th, staff and parent volunteers will be at school to collect your forms and answer your questions. At the end of the registration process you will receive your child’s class (teacher) placement.
-New kindergarten families may register during the week of August 23 or on Saturday the 28th, 9:00 and 10:30 a.m. Your child’s class placement has been sent to you in the mail.
-Parents with 1st-5th graders should come to school Saturday the 28th between 10:30 and 2:30 pm.
-If you are not able to drop your packet off that day, we ask that you send it with a friend; if that doesn’t work; you can always bring it to the office the first week of school.

NEW THIS YEAR: MINIMUM DAYS THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL
The first five days of school will be minimum (short) days, ending at 12:55 for kindergartners and 1:25 for everyone else. Joaquin Miller’s annual minutes of instruction far exceed the district and state minimums, and we’ll thus spend the first week getting back into the daily swing of things at a pace everyone will appreciate, while providing teachers time to collaborate and plan. Adventure Time is aware of this change, and they are prepared to provide additional child care to families every day that week.

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JM night at Woodminster’s Music Man – August 12

July 18th, 2010

This is a Joaquin Miller Elementary School group fundraiser. You get a discount and the PTA gets the profits, and you can see the show with your JM friends, and your family, or your neighbors, or other friends! Plus it’s a Thursday night (no homework-summertime!), so it won’t interfere with your weekend getaway plans.

$30 for section 3 tickets, the center section, in rows G & H, front & center ($40 value) on Thursday, August 12 performance of “The Music Man.”

Contact me for tickets. As usual, first come, first served (i.e., the first to bring me money are the first to get tickets!)

Janet Parrish
531-3946

Show info »

Seating and general ticket information »

Kid Come Free info »

Kids can come free with two regular tickets, although those tickets are assigned at 5:30 pm on the day of the performance, and seats are located as close as possible to the parents’ tickets, but not necessarily adjacent to them. Order a regular $30 ticket for your child if you want to ensure adjacent seating.

(Please note that because these are group tickets, there must be two regular tickets for a free child’s ticket. Contact me to inquire if we have enough regular tickets to accommodate more free child tickets.)

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Mark Your Calendars (If you haven’t already): JM TLC Day – August 21

July 16th, 2010

Hello everyone,

Well — we won’t have to paint the school! I’m looking out at our GREEN school (all too apropos) — but there’s still plenty of work to be done.

For those of you who are new to our community: Last summer we spent a summer day getting Joaquin Miller ready for another year of learning and growth. It was hard work, and fun, and community-building — and we’re thus going to do it again this year.

For now, please mark your calendars: we’ll spend a good part AUGUST 21 — likely 10-2 — weeding, painting, organizing, cleaning — and meeting new friends and fellow school community members.

Also, please contact me at mike@teamfee.com if you’re interested in serving as a project leader. This would require you to gather tools ahead of time, show up a bit early and be on-site to coordinate volunteers. We’ll need 5-7 leaders.

Finally, let me know if you have recommendations for projects to take on! For now the Dads’ Club will be renovating the teachers’ kitchen, librarian Cindy Gullikson has requested some work in the library — and there’s always work in the garden to be done!

I look forward to meeting all of you on the 21st.

Best,
Mike Fee
Joaquin Miller PTA President
mike@teamfee.com

Posted in Events, JMPTA, Library, Volunteering | No Comments »

Incoming Kindergartener play date

July 7th, 2010

Welcome, new families! The first of two summer play dates for incoming kindergarteners will be at Joaquin Miller Park playground, Thursday July 15th, from 3 to 6pm. One of the new moms is organizing this event; sign up for the JM Community email list to ask questions and find out more.

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JM Radio LIVING Color – the final 2009-2010 podcast

June 25th, 2010

Please listen to the final 2009-2010 podcast, our personal reflections upon color. This year’s talented team was inspiring, fun-loving and chip dipping! Thanks to Mack for filling in, Google Images for the photos and the FAB 4! We will really miss David, Gabriel and Sam, our FAB 3, who contributed for two years and are now moving forward!

Have a great summer everybody!
The Podcast Team

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School’s out for summer!

June 17th, 2010

See you on Registration Day, August 28th. The first day of the 2010-2011 school year is August 30th. For those of you in the Summer Learning Program, class begins on June 29th.

Check back here and the School Calendar for reminders of upcoming events, such as the Kindergarten Tea on August 24th.

Congratulations to our Fifth Graders, and to everyone for a great year! Have a terrific summer.

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Principal Smith’s End-of-the-Year Message

June 16th, 2010

Please visit the Principal’s Blog for a message from Mrs. Smith. Topics include: Community Building, Year-end Transitions, Star Testing Information, Summer Learning Program, Kindergarten Registration, Graduation Promotion Ceremony, Counseling Services, and a special story from Mrs. Green’s class.

Posted in Enrollment, Events, Green Team, OUSD, Principal's Blog | No Comments »

June 16th Walkie Talkie Available

June 16th, 2010

The June 16th issue of the Walkie Talkie newsletter is available for download on the Walkie Talkie page.

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JM Yard Sale Wrap-Up and Thank You

June 16th, 2010

WOW! Thanks so much to the JM community!! This year’s Yard Sale was a huge success! The Yard Sale and Spring Fair shared the day, the weather was beautiful, and the JM community showed up in force! Our wonderful Dad’s Club provided delicious food, and the Spring Fair Coordinators and volunteers created a memory-filled day for the kids.

Thank you to Ms. Smith for making the MPR available, thank you to Mel Evans for relocating all the Enrichment classes, thank you to Mr. Jackson for set-up and takedown. Thank you to the JM Dad’s Club for arriving early to make sure our shoppers and volunteers had quality sustenance! Thank you to the Spring Fair Coordinators for working so easily with us, this was such fun, we hope to do it together next year!

And finally, a huge shout out to our wonderful volunteers. You were not only immensely helpful, but such fun to work with! Big Thanks to Patty Scanlon, Nancy Caton, Jackie Oberly, Mika Max, Karen Bloom, Natalie Potter, Karen Loughran, Paul Boitano, Christine So, Ruth Soderback, Chris Christ, Meri Soll, Lynn Mladjov, Jo Ann Cooper-Campbell, Jodie Ruland, Nancy Schneidinger, Tony and Kelly Jonick, Keith Bizzack, Louisa Waldner, Rebecca Petty, Kristen Nicholas, Sujata Neurgaonker, and Michele Tiernan.

Last but not least, a big thank you to JM Alumni Julia Gullikson, Emma Bizzack, and Anya Ku as well as current JM students Blythe Rinehart-Pimentel, Georgie Pease, Ryan Christ, Rudy Byles, and Margarita Ku.

All your hard work helped raise $4300 for your school! Congratulations!

Big thanks from the whole yard sale team!
Anna Bizzack, Arlene Pimentel, and Liz Wardman

Posted in Events, Fundraising, JMPTA, Volunteering | No Comments »

JM Safety Patrol Earns Rookie of the Year Award

June 16th, 2010

Congratulations to the members of JM’s new safety patrol! On May 26th, members of our safety patrol joined hundreds of kids from safety patrols all across Oakland for the 82nd Annual Oakland Police Department Safety Patrol Ceremony. Each squad was recognized by officers from the Oakland Police Department for their commitment to safety on their school campus. Joaquin Miller was also recognized for being the best new / rookie squad in Oakland. It was a great ceremony and a privilege for our kids to participate. Ms. Smith and several families were in attendance. Our school’s safety patrol trophies are now proudly on display in the office. Thank you to Ms. Smith, John Campbell and the parent volunteers who have helped to establish our safety patrol program, and a special shout out to the kids on the safety patrol who showed up each week to ensure that our new drop off program was safe and efficient.

Posted in Volunteering, info | No Comments »

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