Thornhill Elementary PFC Newsletter
Volume 25, Issue 7, October 13, 2017
Principal's Letter
Dear Thunderbird Families,
I hope everyone is doing well. It has been a tough week hearing about the fires in the North Bay. Hopefully, by the time you get this newsletter, the air quality in the Bay Area will have improved. As you know, due to air quality, we have had all activities such as P.E., outdoor lunches and recess indoors. We kept our doors and windows closed to keep the air free of as much particle matter as possible. I hope you are doing the same at home.
Buddies
Thornhill has a buddy system where older classes are paired with younger classes. This builds strong supportive relationships that help students with academics and more. When I see these buddy classes together, I can't help but notice the authentic relationships our students have with each other. In the photo here, I saw Sofia and Parker hug upon seeing each other before they started their academic work. It's so beautiful how our Thunderbirds are with each other.
Have a great weekend!
Mr. Daubenspeck
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The Walk-a-Thon Is Coming!
It’s Go Time for all Ghosts, Ghouls, & Goblins! The 2017 Walk-a-Thon is full swing and we need your help to make it a "BOOOOOO-tiful" event.
(Get it? "BOOOOOO-tiful?)
Volunteers: We need your help! Yes, you. The very person reading this email. Duties include (but are not limited to) pre-registration, clean up, Otter Pop distribution, decoration, stamp station and the prize table. Got other ways you’d like to help? Let us know! Sign up here.
Green & Clean: We will work with the Sustainability team to ensure we are prepared to dispose of all waste in the best way possible. There is no doubt this will be a fun event, but we must be mindful to care for our school grounds properly.
Dojiggy: The fundraising page is live! Use this site to track our overall progress, build your student’s personal page, and create custom emails to potential donors.
Fundraising Goal: $25,000!
Walkathon Website: Our website is live and will continue to be updated with relevant info. Here you can find the rules & guidance sheet as well as the pledge form.
Please don't hesitate to contact walkathon@thornhillschool.org with any questions or suggestions.
And, along with our Halloween-themed event, here are a couple of Cheesy Halloween Jokes for your enjoyment...
Cheesy Halloween Joke #1...
Q: Why couldn't Dracula’s wife get to sleep?
A: Because of his coffin.
Cheesy Halloween Joke #2...
Q: What do skeletons say before they begin dining?
A: Bone Appetit!
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TK and Kindergarten Tours
The TK and Kindergarten tour dates for 2017-18 have been set and we need volunteers! This is a great way to show our Thunderbird pride to perspective families. We are looking for energetic parents to lead TK/Kinder tours the following dates.
Wednesday, November 8
Tuesday, December 5
Wednesday, December 6
Wednesday, December 13
We need six parents to help each day from 8:45-10:30 a.m. However, if you can't stay for the tour but can help with coffee/goodies set-up, that would be wonderful as it is just 20 to 30 minutes right around morning drop-off. Sign up here!
If you have friends and/or family who would like to tour Thornhill, here is the Eventbrite link to sign-up please pass on.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Angela Engel & Kalkidan Gebreyohannes
TK/Kinder Co-Chairs
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Dads Club Information
Monthly Meeting - Thursday, Oct. 19 at 7pm
We invite you to join us for our monthly meeting to find out what Dads Club is up to and how you can help. We meet every third Thursday at Monaghan's on the Hill at 7pm.
Movie Night: Monsters Inc. - Friday, Oct. 20 at 7pm
All Thornhill students and families are invited to the first Dads Club movie night extravaganza of the year! We will be showing the animated Disney/Pixar movie "Monsters, Inc."
- 6:30pm: Arrive with your kid(s) and drop them off if you like.
- 7:00pm: Movie begins.
- 9:00pm: Pick up your kids!
We will have a Halloween costume contest, so we encourage your little ones and adults to dress up. You can also drop off your children if you like - make it a date night!
Non-Thornhill siblings are allowed, as long as all younger siblings are supervised by a parent/guardian for the entire movie. Feel free to bring a sleeping bag, pillow, blankets, stuffies, etc. to make the movie watching experience more comfortable. Endless popcorn and water will be provided and kids may bring in other food/dinner as well. No nuts, of course!
Walk-a-Thon BBQ - Saturday, Oct. 28 at 9am
The Dads Club will be serving up some tasty burgers, hot dogs, and a veggie option for all in attendance. The event is from 10am-4pm, but we are looking volunteers for before, during, and after the event. Sign up here
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Deep Dish Deliciousness: Dine Out Event on October 24
Thornhill's first Dine Out event of the school year is coming up. And here are some things to know about it.
What: Last year, we successfully raised over $1,000 for Thornhill while having fun family nights out through our “Dine Out” evenings and partnership with BigPie. Mark your calendars for the first “Dine Out” of this year and stay tuned for more to come. Have a great meal, hang with fellow parents, and help support Thornhill at the same time. It's a win for you and Thornhill.
Where: The Star on Grand, 3425 Grand Ave, Oakland, CA
When: Tuesday, October 24, from 4-9pm
Who: Date night, family dinner, etc. Coordinate with a few familiar faces or make new friends over cocktails, calamari, and cheesy pizza.
Why: This is a great opportunity to chat with other Thornhill families and get ready for the Walk-a-Thon! Oh yeah, did we mention 20 percent of the sales go back to the Walk-a-Thon fundraising efforts?
How: Take a minute to register your email with BigPie here before you go (no credit cards or fees). When you arrive, please tell your server you are a Thornhill parent. They will bring you a card on which to write your email and receipt total and that’s it! At the end of the night, the purchases will get logged and a 20 percent giveback will be given to Thornhill PFC.
Eat. Drink. And Raise Money.
If your business would like to participate in any of our upcoming Dine Out events, let me know. BigPie’s app allows them to create "Matching Donations" so businesses can match the giveback earned from the Dine Out. All funds raised by matches are given directly to our school and the sponsors will be added to all the marketing materials for the event.
Please email me if you’re interested or want to learn more: escrip@thornhillschool. org.
-Erin Fredrick, eScrip & Merchant Giveback Programs Coordinator
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Thornhill Student Art Featured in MOCHA’s My First Art Show
Please consider attending the Silent Auction Last Call Party on Oct. 21 from 6-8pm at MOCHA, 1625 Clay St in downtown Oakland.
This is your chance to support the arts and purchase original artwork by Oakland artists including our own Thornhill students (Lola H, Edain B, and Maleak W).
Thank you,
Tricia Larsen
Art Teacher
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Library News...
Patricia Polacco Author Visit
What a pleasure it was to host Patricia Polacco at Thornhill. She shared wonderful stories with us, along with her Keeping Quilt and a real meteor! Here are a few photos from a wonderful and memorable day.
Donations!
Thank you for the fabulous donations to the Thornhill Library!
James Yokomizo donated The Way Downtown; Alice and Porter Stone donated All’s Faire in Middle School, Places to Be, and A Different Pond; Keira Bargloski donated a Makey Makey kit; Audrey Oh donated A Letter to My Teacher and No Kimchi for Me!; Giovanni and Luciana Petraglia donated All the Way to Havana, La Princesa and the Pea, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, and A Smart Girl’s Guide Digital World; and Audrey Phillips donatedBlue Sky White Stars and It Takes a Village.
One of our mystery donations, Patina, was from Karydis Johnson and family.
If you want to donate a book to the library, have a look at the Thornhill Library Amazon Wish List. If you donate directly from the Amazon Wish List, make sure to add a gift note with your student’s name included! Thank you to all of our donors!
Happy Reading,
Maura Hennessy
Librarian
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Livescan Fingerprinting For School Volunteers
Redtomatoes LiveScan Fingerprinting will be at Thornhill on Saturday, October 28 during the Walk-a-Thon to provide fingerprint scanning. This is required by the OUSD for parents wanting to volunteer and chaperone/drive on school field trips. Registration is required for the Redtomatoes appointments. Sign up here.
The cost is $36, which is payable by cash, check or credit card. Please contact Lilly Smith (lilly@oaklandedfund.org) if you need help with the fee.
You must first sign up to be an OUSD volunteer here and then they will email you the LiveScan form. Please bring your ID, payment, and LiveScan form to the the Walk-a-Thon. Each appointment is 10 minutes long so you must arrive on time. Please see all the OUSD volunteer clearance requirements here.
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Shoo The Flu Reminder...
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Dates To Remember...
Did you catch all the information earlier in this newsletter about what's going on and what's coming up at Thornhill? Well, if you didn't, or just like reading up on activities on the horizon, you can always get information by visiting the calendar page of the school website.
In the meantime...Keep in mind these upcoming events in October:
Thursday, October 19: Dads Club Meeting at Monaghan's (7pm)
Friday, October 20: Dads Club Movie Night: Monsters Inc. (7-9pm)
Saturday, October 28: Walk-a-Thon (10am-3pm)
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About The PFC Newsletter
The Thornhill Parent-Faculty Club (PFC) eNews team publishes this weekly newsletter each Friday in the school year to communicate school, PFC and OUSD news, events and information.
Email submissions to our Newsletter Chair, Rex Crum, at newsletter@thornhillschool.org by 3 p.m. Wednesday for approval, including Word or Text files, with links and no formatting, and photos preferably as 150 x 150, 72 dpi JPG or GIFs only (not embedded in email or word file). Submissions may be edited for spelling, grammar, brevity and clarity. Advertising and items not related to Thornhill are not accepted.
THANK YOU to everyone who submits articles and to PFC Board Members, Teachers, VPs of Communications Erin Proudfoot and Pamela Schwartz, PFC Co-Presidents Shauna Fithian and Shanyn Lloyd-Gibson and Principal Steve Daubenspeck. Member of Oakland Unified School District (OUSD).
Email: newsletter@thornhillschool.org
Website: thornhillschool.org
Location: 5880 Thornhill Drive, Oakland, CA, United States
Phone: (510) 339-6800