The Tuesday Notice

When the lunch recess bell rings, even on a moody and grey Monday, there is a squeal of joy released from the woodchip area that signals a great exodus from the campus and onto the green grassy expanse of Clay Street Park. Recess!

Dear Siskiyou School Parents,

The 8th grade play was such a huge success; each student was wonderful and the whole production was so delightful: Congratulations, 8th Grade, Eve Smyth, Mr. Beech and Mrs. Archer!

This week are Parent Teacher Conferences and teachers look forward to this first check in conference of the school year. Talking about your children is always a highlight. Thank you for making time in your busy schedule to come to campus and meet with the teachers. Erin and I look forward to meeting with all new families. We will meet in my office in the Glendale House. If you have not yet signed up for a conference, please call Phyllis in the office and she can help you find a good time.

Over the past two weeks I have covered many recess duties for some of our teachers. It’s my favorite time to go see lessons in classrooms, and to see children at recess. It’s so interesting to observe how the kids interact and play. Our teachers often say that “recess is one of the most important moments of the day”. At recess kids from classes mingle, play games, read, run, chat and enjoy each other’s company, but most of all they learn about social skills, how to be inclusive, loving and kind with each other and also how to resolve conflicts. During lunch recess it’s great to see how Mr. Smith has brought back the tradition Mr. McGlone kept up over 13 years: Offering one game at the park for children in grades 3-8. Sometimes this is kickball, soccer, “steal the lemons”, or other games. The children love this and Mr. Smith manages the games in an excellent way! Thank you, Mr. Smith!

We are so blessed with this beautiful fall weather today! Sending you my best greetings and gratitude for all you do for your children and for the school,

Aurilia

One last note, we are looking for a parent with a truck to help move a big plant/tree into the 7th grade classroom. Please let me know if you have a moment to help with this; Aurilia.mcnamara@siskiyouschool.org. Thank you!

This Week

Wed, Oct 18: School board meeting, 6:00 p.m.

Thurs & Fri, Oct 19 & 20: No School - Parent Teacher Conferences (sign-up link closed, call the office)

Next Week

Tues, Oct 24: Parent Enrichment: Navigating the Heart of Childhood, part I, 6:30 p.m.

Fri, Oct 27: Grandparent's Day (arrive and depart with the children, schedule below)

Looking Ahead

Mon, Oct 30: Pumpkin Carving, during school hours (sign up to help below)

Tues, Oct 31: Halloween, half-day

Thurs, Nov 2: Kindergarten Lantern Walk, on campus, 5:30 p.m.

Fri, Nov 3: Class 2 Lantern Walk, on campus, 5:30 p.m.

Please note that we do not have staffing to watch your children BEFORE 8:10. Campus opens at 8:10 and children should not be dropped off before that time. Thank you!

Please use your blinkers (turn indicator lights) on Clay Street to help signal where you're going!! It's so helpful to know if you'll be turning into the parking area and which direction you'd like to go when leaving the lot.

The link for conferences IS CLOSED. Any changes or additions must be made through the office. Either call 541-482-8223 or email Phyllis at phyllis.cooley@siskiyouschool.org

Please take a moment to view your Parent-Teacher Conference time by clicking the link HERE.

• Class 7, please note that students are requested to participate in the last 10 minutes of their conference.
  

• New family conferences will be back at Aurilia's office in the Glendale House. Please come into the Glendale yard from the rainbow gate and head to the left of the building.

We’re excited to be able to offer childcare for conferences! Childcare will be available from 8:00 to 4:00 on Thursday and 8:00 to 2:00 on Friday. Children stay free during your conference time, beyond that time childcare is $10/hour (cash or check only please).

Halloween is made so special here with over a hundred grinning jack-o-lanterns arrayed in Pine Hall. Come help the children carve with their buddies on Monday, October 30th. Different classes will carve at different times, click HERE to sign up and help! Thank you!

Halloween Details: This festival is one of our favorite ones at school. We will celebrate Halloween on Tuesday, 10/31 with our traditional in-house assembly here at school. We will have a half day and dismiss per our half day dismissal schedule. The early dismissal will give families a little time before going to the Ashland Halloween parade. Here at school, the children come dressed in costumes and we celebrate with music, pumpkins and a parade around the campus.

Costume guidelines: When we think of getting dressed up, let’s ensure that we are thoughtful about the costumes we choose to wear to school. We want to be mindful that all students will feel safe and honored.

• Be creative and keep in mind we have young ones on campus.

• Please no scary costumes, blood, or weapons. Just bring fun.

• NO CANDY is to be brought to school on or after Halloween.
• If you’re not sure if your child’s costume will “work”, please check in with their class teacher before Halloween.

Aside from these guidelines, please talk with your student to make sure that the costume that they have selected does not portray a stereotyped image of a culture or group of people. In addition, please help students make sure that their costume is not offensive to any racial, ethnic or religious group, or any people with disabilities or illnesses. While students might choose to dress as a famous person or character who’s identity is different than their own, please reinforce the importance of not darkening skin or using makeup to change a child’s skin color to match the person who they are dressing up to be. Students are often unaware of the long history these traditions have and that it can be hurtful to those people.

Some examples of costumes that can be problematic include: Indigenous American costumes involving head dresses or feathers, dressing as a homeless person, dressing up in a moustache/sombrero, dressing as a geisha, dressing as a person with any physical or mental disability, or dressing in any costume that portrays a narrow or negative stereotype about a specific ethnicity, religion or race.

We look forward to celebrating with all of the students on Halloween and appreciate your help in making sure that it is a fun day for everyone. If you have any questions at all regarding this day, please feel free to reach out.

THE BATTLE IS ON! Oregon Battle of the Books (OBOB) is coming back to The Siskiyou School for the second year! OBOB is a statewide voluntary reading motivation and comprehension program sponsored by the Oregon Association of School Libraries and Library Services and Technology Act grant. Students in 3rd-8th grade regardless of ability, are exposed to quality literature representing a variety of literary styles and viewpoints. OBOB’s mission is to encourage and recognize students who enjoy reading, to broaden reading interests, to increase reading comprehension, promote academic excellence, and to promote cooperative learning and teamwork among students. Students will form teams, read at least 4 books (up to 16) from the OBOB titles, and compete in battles with the support of a parent coach. Reading, team meetings, and battles will occur outside of school hours. The Siskiyou School has again sponsored our enrollment so this is a cost free program.

To learn more about OBOB please view their website at www.oregonbattleofthebooks.org or reach out to Amy Bull at amy.s.bull@gmail.com. Please see attached permission slips for more detailed information, as well as an email that will be sent to each classes’ social email. Parent Coaches are needed! We need awesome adults to help lead the teams, please let Amy know if you'd like to help with this amazing program.

Thank you to Mr. Ross Williams (www.xrats.net) for filming our Michaelmas presentations, including the Class 2 Play. Please note that we're happy for you to share the video below with family and friends. We do caution showing the performance to our younger children as it may make them self-conscious about their participation. Let the children remember their time mostly in the thrilling and happy experience they remember! They will appreciate seeing the video when they're older. Thank you.

At the heart of childhood is the important development of the EQ, the emotional intelligence of the child. A healthy EQ is critical for all further intellectual and relational pursuits as it supports sound decision making, the ability to build collaborative relationships, stress management, and the capacity to deal with change. How can we understand the anatomy of the emotional body and create supportive environments for children to explore the “heart of childhood” at home and in our classrooms? This series is inspired by the work of Kim John Payne, award winning author and parenting specialist. Nina Gallwey will share parenting tools and insights from her trainings with him and her many years of experience as an educator.

Nina Gallwey has 33 years of experience in classroom teaching and special education. She currently is opening Ohana Family Resources in Ashland offering support, education, and trainings on child development to parents and teachers. Nina has been teaching, lecturing, and running workshops for over 20 years.

We will gladly accept your lightly used and like new items to stock our Gingerbread House store at this year's Winter Faire. There is a labelled bin in the front entryway, outside of the office for you to leave your items. Please leave anything that is in great condition that would make a nice gift. Giving our students an independent shopping experience is such a sweet part of Winter Faire. We appreciate your help. Please contact Erin Dickinson with any questions. erin.dickinson@siskiyouschool.org

Grandparents Day is on Friday, October 27, this year. We have lots of grandparents and grandfriends coming to see us and we’d love your help. We need volunteers to bring food items (ideas and suggestions can be found on the signup sheet) and to be onsite during the event, handling traffic flow, logistics, and hospitality. Please sign up with the link below.

Please note that we will be offering times for photos with grandparents and student throughout the day, but we do hope that grandparents will take the first moments on campus getting a photo. If you can help remind our older friends to get a photo first thing, that would be most helpful! Thank you!

The Third Grade is completely immersed in the world of farming and fascinated with everything from draft horses to hundred-year-old tractors. This block is so interesting as it takes us from the rice paddies of Vietnam to the cool, damp fields of Scotland and Norway. We made butter by hand last week. I think I've never seen such delight and astonishment when the cream turned from a whipped mass to a ball of butter. It was hard work but worth every second. Next, we'll look at crop rotation and do a little cooking.

~Ms. Whitridge

Greetings from the 8th Grade classroom!

The Dragonfly Class would like to extend a special thank you to everyone that attended our play, The Wizard of Oz. Each audience was wonderfully supportive of our class and we thoroughly enjoyed performing for you. We want to also thank and acknowledge our awesome director, Eve Smyth, and our musical director, Ms. Archer. They were tremendous!

As we reflect on our school year so far, the highlights include our epic backpacking trip to the coast, presenting “Lessons from Geese” at Michaelmas, and of course, staging our play. We’ve studied the early years of U.S. History and the founding of the republic, and now we move into Meteorology. This is an especially enjoyable science block with a lot of very practical information. Here we go!

We are looking forward to Grandparent’s Day and Halloween, especially carving pumpkins with our buddies! All is well in 8th Grade.

~ Mr. Beech

The most powerful way to change the world is to live in front of our children the way we would like the world to be. -G. White

We continue to add opportunities for you to nourish yourself. Take a moment, join us for a coffee circle, a Mini Morn, or an evening gathering to step back and gather perspective, step in and connect with other parents, and step forward with renewed resolve (and some new tools) to meet the many demands that parenting asks of us.

We are the change we wish to see, so let’s come together to co-create peace in ourselves, our homes, and our community.

COFFEE CIRCLES:

NOVEMBER ROOTS CIRCLE ADDED TO THE CALENDAR: for parents of children ages 4-8 years. Wednesdays, November 1, 8, and 15 9:30-11:00.

NOVEMBER TWEEN CIRCLE ADDED TO THE CALENDAR: for parents of children ages 8-12 years. Tuesdays, November 7, 14, and 21. 9:00-10:30

MOMS OF BOYS CIRCLE with Janet Allison November 3, 10, and 17. 9:00-10:30.

MINI MORN: Crossing the Bridge: Guiding the child through the heart of childhood for parents of children ages 7-12 years. November 11, 9:00-12:00.

EVENING GATHERINGS: Parenting from the Pulse: For parents of teen children (See schedule online).

TO LEARN MORE OR TO REGISTER: email ohanafamilyresources@gmail.com or go on-line to the website: ohanafamilyresources.com

Aurilia is looking for a parent with a truck to help move a big plant/tree into the 7th grade classroom. Please contact her if you have a moment to help with this; Aurilia.mcnamara@siskiyouschool.org. Thank you!

Aurilia McNamara

Email: office@siskiyouschool.org
Website: www.siskiyouschool.org
Location: 631 Clay Street, Ashland, OR, USA
Phone: 541-482-8223
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/siskiyouschool/