Pacific Ridge Principal's Update
Week of Monday, January 25th - Friday, January 29th, 2021
Starbase Online
5th Grade Coding Camp
PRES is excited to partner all six 5th grade CDL classes with Camp Rilea’s youth program, STARBASE, (short for Science and Technology Academies Reinforcing Basic Aviation and Space Exploration.) Mr. Electric (Jeremy Hand) and Professor Plankton (Mike Yager) will teach science lessons on coding for each class and their teacher in afternoon groups of 4-8 students at a time.
As exemplified by its motto, “Hands On, Minds On,” the STARBASE Oregon program is founded on the philosophy that young students absorb more knowledge when they are immersed in experiential learning to explore the world around them. STARBASE’s mission is to get fifth-graders interested in technology-based careers.
Coding is computer programming, though this class will be web-based, making it easy to share their projects with family and friends. Each student will design their own game over the four one-hour classes. They can continue to build on it after the class is over. Regular science lessons have been assigned for students to complete during asynchronous learning. These lessons will be live over zoom using their regular class zoom log in. Times are being set up by individual classroom teachers.
In Yager’s experience, the program supports “growth mindset.” It challenges students in a way that’s empowering and allows themselves to excel in subjects that might have felt intimidating before. Often, students begin “to see themselves as technologists or scientists, when they might not have ever done so before.” Yager added.
Once programs can be in person Starbase is planning 5th grade camps at Rilea during school days, STEM summer camps, and afterschool programs for middle schoolers.
Kindergarten Snowmen
Food Drive Reward Party!
Congratulations to all of our kindergarteners for winning the food drive and making a difference in our local community! Way to go Puffins!
Calendar Reminders
Upcoming Important Dates:
- Wednesday, January 27th and Thursday, January 28th ~ Save the dates for Picture Day!
- Friday, January 29th ~ Sports Day! ~ See below for more details!
- Thursday, February 4th ~ Consejo Hispano Parent Meeting ~ See below for more details!
- Saturday, February 13th ~ Share the Love Event ~ Save the date! More information in next weeks newsletter!
- Monday, February 15th ~ President's Day ~ No School Today!
Picture Day HERE!
Picture Day is THIS Week
*If you or someone in your family are feeling ill or symptomatic, please stay home and rest up! We will have picture retakes at a later date! Thank you!
Pictures will be taken on Wednesday, January 27th from 8:00AM-4:00PM and Thursday, January 28th from 12PM-7:00PM.
Please arrive on time for your scheduled appointment. Masks are required while waiting for your turn and please practice physical distancing. You will be asked to wait in your vehicle until your appointment time.
Pictures will be taken in the new Pacific Ridge gym, 2000 Spruce Dr, Seaside. Signs and staff members will direct you to drive through our bus loop and to the back of the school next to the gym. Students will enter the marked gym door with staff to guide them. Parents can choose to wait in their car, or park and walk in with their children. The total time for a student to complete the process is less than 5 minutes.
No purchase is necessary to participate in picture day! But if you would like to order pictures you will be receiving an email from Justin Grafton Studios with your students personal access code and instructions on how to purchase from the website/app. You can receive free shipping by purchasing AdvancePay credit before picture day. If you had already pre purchased a package your credit will be applied to this picture day.
Getting to Know our 2nd Grade Teachers
Mrs. Graetz, 2nd Grade Teacher
Where did you go to school? University of La Verne (La Verne, CA)
How long have you been teaching and what grade levels? Kindergarten, 2nd, and 3rd. This is my 7th year teaching.
What's your favorite subject to teach? Math and Art
What was your favorite subject when you were in school? English
Favorite hobby? Hiking
Favorite color? Mint Green
Favorite book? Harry Potter
Who was your favorite teacher and why? My 9th grade Algebra teacher. He was very positive and passionate about teaching.
Anything else? You can often find me at the beach whenever the sun is out. :)
Miss Bruncke, 2nd Grade Teacher
Where did you go to school? Ilwaco High School and Linfield College
How long have you been teaching and what grade levels? 1st year
What's your favorite subject to teach? Math
What was your favorite subject when you were in school? Math
Favorite hobby? When I am not teaching I love to spend time with my family, walk on the beach, and cook new meals.
Favorite color? Aqua
Favorite book? Be You by Peter Reynolds
Who was your favorite teacher when you were in school and why? My favorite teacher was my fourth grade teacher, Mr. Fagerstedt, because he pushed us to keep growing beyond were we thought we could and made learning applicable to our daily lives.
Mrs. Downes, 2nd Grade Teacher
Where did you go to school? Clatsop Community College and University of Oregon
How long have you been teaching and what grade levels? This is my 9th year teaching, and I've taught 2nd grade all 9 years.
What's your favorite subject to teach? Math
What was your favorite subject when you were in school? PE, home economics, and math
Favorite hobby? While outside, I like to go bicycling, hiking, camping, fishing, and have beach bonfires. Inside I like to read books by the fireplace, watch movies, and bake.
Favorite color? Purple
Favorite book? I really enjoy the Harry Potter series. It's hard to pick a favorite!
Who was your favorite teacher when you were in school and why? My 5th grade teacher, Mr. Meston, was my favorite because we frequently worked with the other 5th grade class and earned rewards on Fridays like class kickball games, snowball fights, and dance parties. We also went on memorable field trips like going camping and a day trip to Chicago.
Interesting fact? I have a three-year-old daughter named Evelyn, two guinea pigs, a dog, and my husband works at our school too!
Mrs. Mullen, 2nd Grade Teacher
Where did you go to school? Carroll College
How long have you been teaching and what grade levels? I have taught K, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 6th, grade and love them all.
What's your favorite subject to teach? Reading
What was your favorite subject when you were in school? Reading
Favorite hobby? Hiking, kayaking, biking, scrap-booking..
Favorite color? Purple
Favorite book? I love to read...I have way too many favorites.
What made you want to become a teacher? From the first moment that I began working with kids I knew that was what I wanted to do...teach kids
Anything else? Every year I love the classroom community that we build of trust, sharing, laughter, and collaboration.
Mrs. Edwards, 2nd Grade Teacher
Where did you go to school? Seaside High School, Linfield College for undergraduate degree, Western Oregon University for graduate degree and endorsements
How long have you been teaching and what grade levels? This is my 18th year teaching. I spent my first year out of college as a substitute in a variety of schools in this area. Next, I taught for 2 years at Star of the Sea School in Astoria. I then taught at Cannon Beach Elementary, and finally I have been teaching at Seaside Heights Elementary. I have had experience teaching every grade kindergarten through 5th, including a year of Title I Reading and Math. Second grade is my all time favorite!
What's your favorite subject to teach? Reading
What was your favorite subject when you were in school? Math and Science
Favorite hobby? In my spare time, I enjoy family activities like hiking, swimming, watching my boys play sports, and doing art projects. I also love to read whenever I can.
Favorite color? My favorite color is blue.
Favorite book? The Witches by Roald Dahl
What made you decide to become a teacher? I love to learn and wanted to share my enthusiasm with students. I had a number of favorite teachers from the Seaside School District and feel very fortunate to have been able to work with many of them as colleagues once I started my career. Many of my teachers inspired me and I hope that I am carrying on some of their expertise. I love getting to work in the same district where I attended school.
Anything else? I am married to an engineer and have two wonderful sons, Cullan and Julian, who are first graders this year. They are identical twins who are seven years old. I also have a daughter named Aria who just turned three and is now attending preschool.
Miss Beck, 2nd Grade Teacher
Where did you go to school? Eastern Oregon University
How long have you been teaching and what grade levels? 1st year teaching, 2nd grade
What's your favorite subject to teach? Writing (poetry)
What was your favorite subject when you were in school? Math
Favorite hobby? When I am not teaching, I enjoy spending time with my family, church family, friends, playing ping pong, running, hiking, walking the beach and reading.
Favorite color? Turquoise
Favorite book? Favorite children authors: Eric Carle and Jan Brett
What made you decide to become a teacher? My love and passion for spending time with and encouraging kids started at a very young age. When I attended Sunday school as a child, I would always come up with excuses to get out of class and help my parents in the nursery. Ever since I was 8 years old, I held the desire to become an elementary teacher. I am amazed at how quickly children learn and I recognize the importance of nurturing their young minds.
Interesting fact? The baby pictured with me is my sweet nephew :)
Seaside High School Play
This play has some mature content and is most appropriate for students in grades 3rd and up!
Seaside High School Drama is excited to announce its first production of 2021! Game of Tiaras: A Stay-At-Home Play by Don Zolidis will be available to stream at home from February 12 through February 18, 2021.
Combining the gut-wrenching plot twists of Game of Thrones, and the soul-numbing despair of Shakespearean tragedy, this adaptation of King Lear will leave you dying with laughter as the body count mounts. When you play the Game of Tiaras, you win or you die.
Presenting senior Lucas Ethridge as the King; juniors Elizabeth Jesberger as Cinderella, Gracie Klemp as Belle, Kaiya Taylor as the Snow Queen, Sophia Reynolds as the Mermaid, Abigail Sills as Snow White, Lilli Taylor as the French Prince, Riley Wunderlich as Prince Charming; sophomore Parker Davis as Smeagol; and a supporting cast full of eccentric characters played by 6th-12th grade students. The play is directed and produced by Susan Baertlein.
To pre-purchase tickets to this virtual production please visit: https://www.broadwayondemand.com/series/WytXnvznDZYN-game-of-tiaras-a-stay-at-home-play-by-don-zolidis--seaside-high-school?channel=watch-now
The cost is $10 for individuals or $20 for a household, and it will be available to stream from February 12 at 12:01 am until February 18 at 11:59 pm.
Game of Tiaras is presented with permission from Playscripts, Inc.
For further information, contact Seaside High School at 503-738-5586 or email Susan Baertlein at sbaertlein@seasidek12.org.
Job Opportunities
NWRESD is Hiring!
Northwest Regional Educational Service District (NWRESD) is looking for bilingual (Spanish and English) candidates for two school-based positions in our district.
One position is for tutoring Seaside School District students online about 10 hours per week during the pandemic, and the other is a family liaison position to help connect families with the three Seaside schools. This position is about 20 hours per week.
Please see the job descriptions below. If you are interested, information is also included about how to apply. For additional information, please contact Sande Brown, Director of Curriculum and Instruction and the ELD program for Seaside School District, 503-738-5591.
Contract positions - Temporary 02/01/21 - 6/30/21
Migrant Education Program 1:1 Tutor Contract Position
Lunch Buddies with Ms. Jones
An Opportunity for our 3rd, 4th & 5th Grade Students to Connect & Chat about Favorite Things!
Hello 3rd, 4th and 5th grade families!
We are excited to announce a fun, and totally optional opportunity for all 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students! This past Wednesday, January 13th, Ms. Jones offered three social zoom groups for students to have the opportunity to connect with other students whom they have not had the opportunity to meet, due to distance learning. During these groups, various common interests were discussed and shared.
I have decided, beginning this Wednesday, January 20th, to offer three groups focused on topics that your students identified as an interest: Beginning on Wednesday, January 20, any 3rd, 4th or 5th grader is welcome to drop in to one or all three of the virtual social groups.
The focus of these groups will be; Pokemon, Anime, and Minecraft. Come prepared to share about your favorite topics and be ready to teach Ms. Jones a little bit about each. She is definitely not an expert! They are welcome to join at one of the links below at the following times:
“Pokemon”: Wednesday, January 20, 27, and February 3 11:00-11:20
“Pokemon” ZOOM Code: https://zoom.us/my/miss.jones
“Anime”: Wednesday, January 20, 27, and February 3 11:30-11:50
“Anime” ZOOM Code: https://zoom.us/my/miss.jones
“Minecraft”: Wednesday, January 20, 27, and February 3 12:00-12:30
“Minecraft” ZOOM Code: https://zoom.us/my/miss.jones
I will also post a reminder each Wednesday with the codes as an activity on their SeeSaw page, so they can access the link directly from there as well.
I hope to see your students there!
Ms. Jones 3-5 PRES School Counselor
Lunch Buddies with Mrs. McDowell
An Opportunity for our 1st & 2nd Grade Students to Connect & Chat about Favorite Things!
Hello, Everyone!
We had a great response to our first social sharing groups last week!
We have one small change for this week and the coming sessions as well. Due to the size of our group of Pokemon enthusiasts, we are going to have two Pokemon sessions; one will be for first graders and one will be for second graders. This will help to give students more time to share.
The additional ZOOM code is below. It will also be posted as a SeeSaw assignment next Wednesday, January 20.
The focus of the other group is still Stuffies. (It will still be grades one and two combined.)
If your child is interested in sharing their common interest with other students and talking about it with them, they are welcome to join the group at one of the links below at the following times:
GRADE ONE “Pokemon”: Wednesday January 20, 27, and February 3 10:30-10:50
Grade One “Pokemon” ZOOM Code: https://zoom.us/j/97331959475
GRADE TWO “Pokemon”: Wednesday, January 20, 27, and February 3 11:00-11:20
Grade Two “Pokemon” ZOOM Code: https://zoom.us/j/96842334301
GRADES ONE AND TWO: “Stuffies”: Wednesday, January 13, 20, 27, and February 3 11:30-11:50
“Stuffies” ZOOM Code: https://zoom.us/j/93348773397
These groups are totally optional, and are for any interested first and second graders.
I hope to see your children there!
Mrs. McDowell, PRES K-2nd School Counselor
Consejo Hispano
Pacific Ridge Consejo Hispano Parent Meeting
Padres, nos gustaría invitarlos a nuestra reunión del Consejo Hispano y Pacific Ridge Elementary School el jueves 4 de febrero de 5:00 a 6:00pm. Esta reunión se llevará a cabo mediante un Zoom. Esta reunión se llevará a cabo en español con la ayuda del Consejo Hispano. Compartiremos los resultados mediante una presentación de powerpoint de nuestra reunión más reciente del consejo escolar. En la agenda incluiremos puntos adicionales; métricas actualizadas para regresar a la escuela, sesiones adicionales de tutoría mediante zoom y un resumen breve de nuestro plan para regresar a la escuela. Si tiene preguntas adicionales que le gustaría que abordemos durante la reunión, favor de enviar un correo electrónico al Sr. Catt o la Srta. Quezada con su pregunta y las agregaremos a la agenda. Gracias por todas sus excelentes preguntas y su apoyo. ¡Esperamos verlos!
Enlace de Zoom se proporciona aquí:
Wednesday Tutoring Help
Our Educational Assistants are now Tutoring via Zoom on Wednesdays!
Timeslots are every Wednesday between 8:30-10:30AM & 11:30-1:00PM. You're welcome to sign up for more than one timeslot as well!
Parent Sign-Up Info: Go to www.schoolbookings.net (code is: swug9)
Parents will receive an email with the time and Zoom link. Teachers have also added the assistant Zoom links to their Clever pages for easier access for students and families.
Transportation Planning for Hybrid onsite instruction
Arrival and Dismissal
Even if you plan to drop off and pick up your child daily, we need this form completed so that we can take your child off of that bus route. This will make room for another child to ride the bus. We are restricted to a small amount of students who can ride the bus at one time.
Thank you!
Pacific Ridge Elementary School
Email: jwozniak@seasidek12.org
Website: https://pre.seaside.k12.or.us/
Location: 2000 Spruce Drive, Seaside, OR, USA
Phone: 503-738-5161
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Pacific-Ridge-Elementary-School-104961557933403