March 20, 2018 Enews
Post date: Apr 08, 2018 12:59:31 AM
What's Happening at Walnut Acres - March 20, 2018
Check out Community Announcements at the bottom
Mark Your Calendars!Mar 22: First Walk-A-Thon Fun Run, 7:30-7:50 amMar 23: Walk-A-Thon Fundraising Kick-OffMar 28: Sing Out 8-9 am, MURMar 28: 3rd Grade Performance, "Go Fish", 7 pm
Mar 30: Cesar Chavez Holiday - NO SCHOOL
April 2-6: Spring Break
April 13: Walk-A-Thon
April 16-20: Food Drive
April 17: PFC Meeting, 7 pm, Library
For the PFC Key Dates Calendar 2017-18, click here
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Walnut Acres Walk-A-Thon - Fundraising Begins this FridayFundraise: March 23 to April 13Walk: Friday, April 13, 8:30-12:30pm
Watch for a fundraising form to come home with your students this Friday! You will also receive an email for your student with a link to their fundraising page on 99Pledges. Our goal is to raise money for the Walnut Acres PFC to fund classroom aides, learning labs and technology, art and music instruction, and other elementary essentials for this school year.
Questions? Contact Brooke Giddings and Tracy Pajer at walkathon@walnutacrespfc.net. Be on the lookout for a volunteer sign-up on Konstella next week.
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In March and April, parents are invited to learn more about the Soul Shoppe social emotional learning concepts that we are sharing with our students here at Walnut Acres.
Hear about Walnut Acres’ initiatives to support social emotional learning.
Learn about ”the balloon” as an analogy for holding negative emotions
Learn to support your child in coping with difficult feelings in a healthy way
Help your child learn to stand up for themselves and be a “SuperAlly” to others
Share what’s working for you and hear what other parents are doing at home.
These Parent Workshops will be facilitated by our school counselor, Joanne Finn on Monday, March 26 from 1:45 to 2:30 pm (right before school gets out), and again onWednesday, April 25, 9:30-10:15 am (after the April Sing Out).
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It’s Time to Register for Spring After School Enrichment Classes!
Soul Shoppe Parent Workshop Next Week
“What’s in your balloon? Reinforcing Soul Shoppe Lessons at Home”
Enrichment classes are held after school hours and are available on a first come/first serve basis for Walnut Acres sudents. All registration forms and payments go directly to the class vendors. See the website for details.
Monday: Black Dragon Chess, April 9-June 4, Grades 1-5
Tuesday: Golf Squad, April 17-June 5, Grades 1-5
Wednesday: Kids in the Kitchen, April 18-May 15, Grades 1-5
Wednesday, Basketball, April 18-June 5, Grades 1-5
Thursday: Flag Football, April 19-May 31, Grades 1-5
Friday Sarah's Science, April 13-June 1, Grades 1-4
Go to the Enrichment Page of the PFC website for class schedules and more details.
Questions? Please email Kristen Gray at enrichment@walnutacrespfc.net.
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Noon Supervisor Position Open at Walnut Acres Elementary Hello Walnut Acres Community! Would you be interested in a Noon Supervisor job at school? We are seeking two kind and patient folks who want to help children be successful in the MUR and on both the 1st-5th and kindergarten playgrounds. Training will be included to support peace path and problem solving strategies with our students. The positions are 7.5 hours per week. One position is daily with hours from approximately 11:10-12:45 a.m. daily (less time on Wed.) The other position is M, T, Th, and F from 11:10-1:00 p.m. Salary begins at $13.43 per hour. Please apply on EdJoin if you are interested! If you have questions, give Dr. Dowd a call at 939-1333.
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District Parent Updates from PAC (Parent Advisory Committee)
Dr. Nellie Meyer, MDUSD Superintendent, organized the PAC to hear from representatives at each school. Our District Liaisons are Lila Samady and Cherise Khaund.
At the March 18th meeting, The Assistant Superintendent, Chris Holleran, presented on the current state of safety plans throughout the district. For details, please visit:http://www.walnutacrespfc.net/district-parent-report.
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Yearbook Needs Your Walnut Acres Event Pictures!Please upload them to:
Enter school code: walnutacres
Please note: We DO NOT have access to the photos being uploaded to Konstella. Photos must be uploaded to the yearbook share site in order for us to use them in the book. Thank you for the photos of Ice Cream Social and Halloween. These pages are completed and we no longer need photos for those two events.
Questions? please email yearbook@walnutacrespfc.net.
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Drive Thru Sign Ups by Grade Level- 4th and 3rd Grade Parents!
Thank you to the 5th Grade parents who stepped up to open doors and greet our students at the Drive Thru during the month of February. Each month, a different class level is responsible for helping at the Drive Thru. March is the 4th grade parents turn, and April will be the 3rd grade parents! CLICK HERE for 4th Grade March sign ups.
CLICK HERE for 3rd Grade April sign ups.
We need 4 parents per day, Monday - Thursday. Fridays will continue to be Father Fridays with our awesome dads greeting the kids in the morning. Please sign up now - it's a short commitment - just 20 minutes from 7:40 - 8:00 am, but it makes a huge difference in getting our school days off to a good start!
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Curtains Up Youth Theater Camp, “Summer Magic,” June 18 - July 21
CUYT presents “Summer Magic,” a musical story that connects three great scenes from three great musicals. The production is open to students who have completed 2nd-5th grades at the end of the 2017-18 school year. Camp runs from 6/18-7/21 on Monday-Friday afternoons. (No camp 6/29-7/6.) Performances will be at 7:00 pm on July 20, and 21. Auditions will be held on June 11 and 12. For further information go to the PFC website or click here.
MDUSD's Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) Speaker Series:
Cyber Safety with Above the Fray
Tonight, Tuesday, March 20, 6 - 8 pm
Northgate High School
Join us for an evening with Above the Fray, a non-profit organization dedicate to empowering responsible and safe social media users. The event is open to all MDUSD parents, guardians, and caregivers to look at what’s happening in the digital lives of young people, which may be a surprise for many parents. We will proactively address topics like cyberbullying, social media, internet safety, sexting and gaming. The objective is to give parents tangible tools to use to start meaningful conversations at home before issues arise. Spanish translation will be available. Learn more at:http://www.beabovethefray.org/.
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5th Graders...
Go Fishing with Boy Scout Troop 810
Boy Scouts Troop 810 invites all interested 5th graders to come fishing.
When is the event? Saturday, March 31 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
Where? At Heather Farm pond, 301 N. San Carlos Drive, Walnut Creek. We will be meeting at the building next to the pond. Watch for a bunch of boys with fishing poles.
What to Bring? A fishing pole, tackle hooks, bait - if you don't have any of these, don't worry, we will have extras, just let us know.
What Will We Be Doing? Fishing, learning how to tie knots, cleaning and cooking the fish you catch - don't worry, we will have other food if no fish are caught!
For more information and to RSVP, please contact Dorene Soe at dalouie8@yahoo.com or call 925-932-0733, so that we can make sure we have enough equipment and so we can notify you in case of weather changes. Please RSVP by Saturday, March 24.
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Cub Scouts Pack Meeting
Wednesday, March 21st in the MUR
6:45 - 8:00pm
All Kindergarten thru 5th grade boys and families are welcome to join – sign-ups are still available! Reach out to Pack Membership Chair Sarah Waters at sarahsin70@hotmail.com for additional details.
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Youth Art Contest: Be Featured in Contra Costa Water District's 2019 Calendar!
Children ages 8 to 11 years who value tap water and have a knack for art can combine both interests in the Contra Costa Water District “Water Awareness” art contest. Winning entries will be featured in the District’s 2019 calendar. The contest—which opens March 5, and runs through April 6—is designed to challenge local youths to think about the importance of clean, reliable tap water. Children are encouraged to illustrate the water cycle, ways they use water or ways to use water efficiently. Winning entries will be announced during National Drinking Water Week, May 6-12. In addition to having their artwork featured in the 2019 Contra Costa Water District calendar, children who submit winning entries will receive a $50 gift certificate to an art supply store; framed artwork with a certificate of appreciation; and a copy of the printed calendar. Prizes will be awarded at a Board of Directors meeting in the fall, after the calendars are printed. For complete contest rules, visithttp://ccwater.com/999/Water-Awareness-Youth-Art-Contest
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Join Common Sense Kids Action and their Annual Kid’s Day of Action-
April 23rd in Sacramento
This year we will be teaming up with MomsRising for a fun-filled kiddo centered kickoff on the Capitol steps - followed by legislator visits. If interested in advocating for kids with CSKidsAction please fill out this form.
Also, if you are new to advocacy and would like to learn more in advance of the day - we will be hosting an Advocacy 101 training - open to all:
Common Sense Kids Action works with policymakers, business leaders, and other advocates across the nation to ensure that every child has the opportunity to succeed. Last year, in California we fought to protect immigrant families from being split up by unnecessary deportations, we fought to expand paid-family leave, and to incorporate tests for early childhood trauma into Medi-cal's developmental screenings. California's legislative session is ramping up - and we are excited to share our priority legislation soon - in the meantime we are working to grow our parent army to demand all kids have a chance to thrive.
PLEASE Join with parents, educators and advocates from across California on APRIL 23 and receive the training you need to share your concerns and important voice on behalf of kids and their families!
For more Community Service Announcements, Click HERE to visit the PFC website.