FROM THE PRINCIPAL – Terri Stromfeld
Updates:
1. PJ and Toy Drive. Tomorrow is our last day of our week-long drive. Please encourage your child to bring a new pajama or toy tomorrow for another child in need. This is an opportunity to remind our children of the greater messages of giving and caring for one another in our community.
2. Tomorrow we come to school in our pajamas! This should save us time in the morning . . . and be lots of fun!
3. New crosswalk in progress. We will soon have a new elevated crosswalk, with lights, in front of our school.
4. When visiting campus, please remember to sign in at the office and get a badge.
Be sure to calendar the following:
Our All-School Chorus Concert: Wednesday, December 16 at 7pm. Led by our own vocalist Lisa Call and pianist, Joe Chan, over 90 Almond students will present some delightful holiday songs.
Our 4-6 Grade Winter Concert: Friday, December 18 at 1pm. You’ll be amazed at the musical talents and progress of our children. This program is another example of your generous contributions to LAEF!
Special thanks go to:
· Ann Warmoth, Chair of our PJ and Toy drive, for leading this important “spirit of giving” campaign.
FROM THE PTA – Marcia Chmyz & Jean Limbach
Due to the extraordinary generosity of our Almond parents, the PTA was able to approve an expenditure of up to $8,000 for the purchase of document cameras and projectors at the November meeting. With the addition of this new equipment, every classroom at Almond will soon be outfitted with both a camera and a projector. The equipment has proven to be extremely helpful for the new math curriculum instruction, so our teachers are very excited!
We would like to thank every family who has donated to the Almond PTA this year. As you know, the PTA’s fundraising efforts were limited to three programs this year:
1. Write-a-Check campaign
2. Walkabout
3. Auctions (includes the Silent Auction at the Walkabout and the upcoming “Night at the Oscars” in March)
The response to the new Write-a-Check campaign was extremely positive; over 75% of Almond families participated and 75% of participants donated at least the $125/student ask. The fact that we were able to raise significant funds without a huge number of volunteer hours has been an immense boon to our organization. It is due to the great success of the Write-a-Check campaign that we had sufficient funds to purchase the new equipment for our classrooms.
The Walkabout was a wonderful day for the kids to show their Almond spirit and support their school. The money that the students raised totaled over $35,000! If your student’s donations are still outstanding, please turn them in to the office as soon as possible so that our volunteers can close the books on this tremendous event.
From all of us at the PTA, thank you for supporting Almond and have a wonderful holiday season!
UPCOMING DATES TO REMEMBER
· December 11, Almond’s Holiday Toy and Pajama Drive Ends
· Friday, December 11, Spirit Day. Wear your PJ’s!
· Friday, December 11, Egan Holiday Faire, 7:30am-12:30pm
· Wednesday, December 16, Almond Chorus Concert, 7:00pm
· Friday, December 18, Upper Grade Holiday Concert, 1:00pm
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Almond’s Holiday Toy and Pajama Drive, Ends Tomorrow December 11!
The Almond School Student Council is sponsoring a Holiday Toy and Pajama Drive for the Community Services Agency (CSA) in Mountain View. Please help make the holiday brighter for those in need by bringing new toys and pajamas to school. These items can be placed in the bins in the school office or the classrooms, but the last day is Friday, December 11!
Thank you for caring and sharing!
Egan School Holiday Faire on December 11
The Egan School Holiday Faire will be Friday, December 11th from 7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Come shop for the holidays!
Egan School seventh and eighth grade students sell homemade crafts, gift items and foods. The Faire raises funds for the school library and teaches students entrepreneurism. The Holiday Faire will be held at Egan School, 100 W. Portola Ave, Los Altos. For more information, visit the
Egan website.
Holiday Parents’ Night Out at Almond Kids’ Place
It is time for Kids’ Place’s holiday Parents’ Night Out. The Kids’ Place staff offer child care to provide parents an opportunity to have a night off or to do some holiday shopping while raising money for the site. The first event will be Friday,
December 18 from 7-11pm. Kids’ Place will provide dinner (usually pizza), snacks, games, a G-rated holiday movie, and a fun time for the children. Rates are as follows: 1 Child – $25, 2 – $40, 3 – $60, and $10 for each additional child after three. Children as young as three are welcome. Stop by or call (650) 941-8102 to sign up. For more information, contact Kids’ Place Director
Joshua Harmon.
Almond’s Night at the Oscars
The last fundraiser of the school year, “Almond’s Night at the Oscars” is happening Saturday, March 6
th, 2010 at Los Altos Golf & Country Club. Tickets are available for $65 per person by contacting
Liz Parker. This promises to be a spectacular evening to support Almond!
Do you want to be a STAR?
Do you want to be a STAR? Simply purchase a “Walk of Fame Star” for $20 to support Almond. These stars will be personalized with your family’s name and hung at the auction in March. For your convenience, the “Walk of Fame Stars” will be sold before school on Wednesday, December 16
th, before the 7:00pm Chorus Concert that same evening, and before the 1:00pm Holiday Concert on Friday, December 18
th.
Any Dusty Instruments Out There?
Do you have a musical instrument in your home that is lying idle and collecting dust? Please consider loaning or donating it to an Almond student who would like to learn how to play! If you are interested and would like to learn more, please email
Principal Terri Stromfeld. Our budding musicians thank you!
Register Now for Winter Session of After-School Programs
Registration for the WINTER session of the after-school programs has now begun. Enroll before the holidays to reserve your spot!!! Click
here to view the offerings. Here are two programs that might interest you:
BandWorks School of Rock
Learn tunes from your favorite bands and create original songs! By the end of the week, you’ll get to solo, sing, and rock out for family and friends! Students receive instruction from their professional musician instructor, and experience the thrill of playing in a band. All instruments & vocalists are welcome. Students should bring their instrument, except drum set, keyboard, and PA system, which BandWorks provides.
One on One Basketball
Come join One on One Basketball throughout the winter/spring semester for After School Hoops. This class will focus on individual skills such as dribbling and shooting and will feature team games such as Steal the Bacon and Ultimate Basketball. Come out and play!
ScholarKids Is Back This Summer!
ScholarKids is a high energy, intellectually stimulating, summer enrichment
program for incoming 5
th-8
th graders. ScholarKids will be held at Egan Junior High from June 14th – July 9th. If you have questions, please email
ScholarKids or call 408-203-9946. Please visit our
website for information and a list of classes. Online registration begins February 1st!
Los Altos KidzAdventures Returns This Summer!
Los Altos KidzAdventures (LAKA) is returning to the Los Altos School District at Santa Rita School, June 14 – July 10. Classes are designed and taught by credentialed teachers for incoming 1
st – 4
th graders. This year, a new class for entering Kindergarten students, Skills for Kindergarten, is being offered. Program offerings include some great classes back by popular demand (Outrageous Outdoor Games, Awesome Art, etc.) and several new additions (Drama, Puppetry, Young Chefs, etc.). Registration is open now. Go to the
LAKA website for class selections and information. Questions? Contact
Niki Mitchell.
Key Dates
· Tuesday,
January 12, NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children
· Thursday,
March 25, Building Resilience in Our Youth: Raising Healthy Kids
NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children
Join Po Bronson on Tuesday, January 12th for an interesting talk at Los Altos High School Theater, from 7pm – 9pm.
Building Resilience in Our Youth: Raising Healthy Kids
Ken Ginsburg, M.D. will be presenting this topic on Thursday, March 25th at
Gunn High School’s Spangenberg Theater in Palo Alto, 6:30pm – 8:30pm.
LASD FREQUENT FLYER NEWSLETTER
www.losaltos.k12.ca.us/PDF_Files/2009_2010/School_News_12_10_2009.PDF
WANT TO SUBMIT SOMETHING TO THE THURSDAY WORD?
Send announcements to us at
almond.thursdayword@gmail.com by 1:00pm Monday, for that week’s Word. Keep your announcements brief and, if applicable, send a PDF version of any flyer or additional information to be posted on the website.
For more information about Almond Elementary School visit
www.almondschool.org.
Copyright © 2003-2009 Los Altos School District. All rights reserved.
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