The View Ridge Community has an opportunity to give!

The week of February 6-10 please bring new men’s thick white athletic socks. We will be donating them to Urban Rest Stop, a downtown center that provides restrooms, showers and laundry facilities for the homeless. Drop-off containers will be outside the office.

All View Ridge Students will be making Valentine cards with their classroom buddies. These cards will be delivered to the patrons at Urban Rest Stop along with the donated socks. For more information about Urban Rest Stop go to their website at www.urbanreststop.org

Thank you for your generosity.
 

Allergy Alert now applies to THIS FRIDAY, JAN. 27th

We are pleased to announce that our Lunar New Year celebration and assembly that was supposed to happen last Friday (snow day) has been rescheduled for this Friday, January 27th.

As posted last week, please be aware that we will be handing out fortune cookies at the assembly. If your child has allergies that require an alternative treat, please feel free to send one along with him/her this Friday.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

For 5th grade and other interested familes, the following local schools' schedules follow. Additional schools' information can be found on the individual schools' websites. Link here.

Eckstein Middle School: Information Night,  Thursday, February 16th, 6:30 pm. No tours are scheduled.

Hamilton Middle School:  Events for incoming and prospective 5th grade families only. More helpful information! 

Open House:  Thursday, March 1st, 6-7:30pm.

Tours (pre-registration required): Thursday, February 2nd & 9th, 8:15-9:50 am. 

Jane Addams K-8:  Tours:

Tuesday, January 31st  & Thursday, March 8th: 9:30-10:30 am;

Thursday, February 9th & Wednesday, February 29th  6:30-8:30 pm;

Monday, February 13th & Thursday, March 1st 8:30-9:30 am;

This information is subject to change, please check directly with school website to confirm times/dates.

Open enrollment for the 2012-13 school year will take place Feb. 27 through March 9.

All students will receive an assignment letter right before open enrollment begins. This will tell you your student’s initial assignment for next year, and will also provide information on open enrollment if you want to apply for a different attendance area or option school for next year.

Information on assignments for the 2012-12 school year is scheduled to be available on the SPS website and automated phone line (206-252-0212) on April 16. Mailed confirmation letters will be sent out the week of April 23.

Since Seattle Public Schools has shifted to a geographic-based model with the New Student Assignment Plan, most schools will not conduct a daytime school tour. However, most schools will host an evening open house, which is a great opportunity for prospective families and students to visit the school, meet with teachers and the principal and ask questions.

For information on school open houses, please visit the individual school websites at http://bit.ly/SPSschooldirectory

Bring your Grown-up Lunch week! Your child can invite one parent/guardian, grandparent, caregiver, etc. to join him/her for lunch!  Please note the date and time below of your child’s lunch period.  (This is a special day for the students, so please, no siblings.)

      Kindergarten                            Monday                      February 27^th                11:25 – 11:50

      First Grade                               Tuesday                     February 28^th                12:00 – 12:30

      Third Grade*                          Wednesday                February 29^th                  12:00 – 12:30

      Second Grade*                        Thursday                   March 1^st                       12:00 – 12:30

      Fourth and Fifth Grade            Friday                         March 2^nd                      11:30 – 11:55

* change from originally scheduled date

An adult lunch of chili (vegetarian and meat), cornbread, veggies, cookie and a drink is free, however a $6.00 donation will be gladly accepted to help cover the costs.  If you are unable or don’t want to preorder lunch, have the invited grown-up bring a sack lunch on the designated day. 

A sign-up/RSVP form will follow via kid mail closer to the event. Questions?  Call/email Jessica Bradley

In December we had a great addition to our parking lot Greeter service – 5^th Grade Patrol!  

They’ve done a fantastic job managing drop-offs and keeping our drop-zone safe while one parent volunteer supervises each morning. But to keep their help, we need steady parent volunteers to supervise.  Just a few hours over the school year will help greatly!

PLEASE email Anne Sherwood for details.

Happy New Year!  We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and your kids are settled back at school.  Over the next few months, we will be looking forward to many activities.  First, we hope you all had the chance to enjoy the Family Dance on Friday, January 6^th featuring our own Mr. Snyder as DJ.  Thank you to Matt Hinck, JT Monahan, and AaronTurner for organizing this fun event and to Mr. Snyder for the fantastic music.

Next, in February is our annual Pancake Breakfast and Pre-Loved Book Sale on Saturday, February 4^th from 8am to 11am in the Lunchroom.  Remember to drop off book donations in front of the office prior to the event.  The Community Giving Committee will have information coming soon on how the net proceeds from the Pancake Breakfast will support a good cause. 

Also in February is the second PTA General Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, February 7th from 6:15-8:45pm in the Lunchroom.  We are excited to bring Jody McVittie from Sound Discipline as our guest speaker for the evening.  She will be discussing Positive Discipline and cover topics such as how do our children learn, encouragement, winning children over, and what happens when we lose it and how do we make repairs.  We hope you are able to join us.  The last PTA General Meeting will be on May 1^st. 

Over the next few months, you will start hearing more information on our auction on May 5^th and our first ever Move-a-Thon which will be on May 21^st and will be an all school event.  The auction will be at the Mountaineers with a Cinco de Mayo theme.  Sure to be a tremendously fun filled evening, please contact Alyssa Plut or Kimberly Miller if you would like to help.

In addition to upcoming events, we also have a few volunteer opportunities open.  The Nominating Committee is searching for volunteers to serve on the Nominating Committee for 2012-2013 PTA Board positions.  Please let us or Kasey Downing, Volunteer Coordinator, know if you are interested in serving on the PTA Board or as a Committee Chair.  We are always excited to get new people involved and this is a great way to get to know View Ridge and our PTA.

Lastly, we are not able to do all that we do without the support of our community. Thank you to everyone who supported the Annual Appeal. We surpassed our goal and all funds raised from the Annual Appeal go back to the school to help fund teaching staff. Thank you to our Annual Appeal chairs Cecily Maguire and Nabil Istafanous, and grade level representatives Ari Olsen, Wendy Miner, Deborah Sigler, Emily Gonzalez, Stephanie Feldt, Jen Anderson, and Viviana Bompadre. Also a huge thank you to Elizabeth Chenette, Bonnie McIntosh, Brian Saelens, Karen Pickett, and Gordon Schryer for all their help.

Hope to see you at several of the upcoming events at school.  Thanks for all you do for your kids and our school. Looking forward to a fantastic 2012!

Pian Lee and Elizabeth Chenette, PTA Co-Presidents 

Save the Date: the Grown-up to Lunch Event is scheduled for the week of February 27^th – March 2^nd.

Students will have a chance to bring the grown-up of their choice to lunch with them one day that week.

More details to follow.

If you are interested in volunteering, please email Jessica Bradley.

General PTA Meeting - Tuesday, February 7th - Feature Speaker Physician, educator, and life coach, Jody McVittie, MD

• Discipline with kindness and firmness
• Help children become responsible problem solvers
• Reduce power struggles
• Build community of mutual respect and cooperation
• Be effective and enjoy being a childhood educator
• Teach children to do the right thing when no one is looking

Tuesday, February 7^th  6:30 – 8:45 PM, VR cafeteria.  Treats and socializing begin at 6:15 PM