During the month of February, our students are having fun learning about and practicing inclusiveness, kindness, friendship, and integrity.

KINDNESS

This week, students will reflect on ways to show kindness toward others. Classes will review the first three kindness concepts that we have studied this year - respect, caring, and inclusiveness. Students will then remember an act of kindness they have done for someone else and draw and/or write about it for our Kindness Hearts Project. Look for a string of kindness hearts to line the main hallway soon!

FRIENDSHIP

Our students will celebrate friendship throughout the month. On Friday, February 10th there will be class friendship parties. On Tuesday, February 14th students are invited to wear shirts with kindness messages, hearts, smiley faces or their otter jogathon shirts for our Kind Otter Spirit Day. Classes will also meet to do activities with their big/little buddy classes.

How to Offer Reading Support in the Classroom & at Home

Ms. Fisher did an amazing job last week presenting to Oak Hills volunteers about how to work with our early readers. If you are interested in reading with our K-2 readers, are a parent or family member reading with a younger student, please watch Ms. Fisher’s presentation.

Reading with K-2 Early Readers Presentation

Current Reading Times by Grade Level

Kindergarten - 8:45 to 9:15

1st Grade - 9:55 to 10:35

2nd Grade - 8:35 to 9:15 (not all 2nd grade teachers are accepting reading volunteers)

Get to school before Pick Up:

3rd Grade - 1:55 to 2:30

Tips for Reading Volunteers

• You do not need to know a student in a classroom to volunteer in that classroom.

• You do need to be a registered volunteer.

• MyImpact is being updated to provide more details and logistics about EXACTLY HOW to show up and get in a classroom.

• Be brave, go with a friend. Reading Help has been expanded to allow more than one volunteer per class on any given day. Show up with a friend; teachers will welcome any and all reading volunteers.

• Folks with accents and multi-language speakers, you are welcome and encouraged to come and read with our students! We would love to have you!

• Oak Hills is special, otherwise why would so many families choose to live so close to their parents?! Get Granddad and his pals to register to volunteer and send them to school to read with our students.

COMING SOON- We are in the process of setting up some days where PTO and Volunteer Committee members will welcome new Reading Volunteers in and show you where to go. No need to wait for us, if you are eager to get started, log in to MyImpact and get reading!

Next PTO Meeting, Wednesday, 2/15

Our next PTO meeting will be Feb 15th at 7pm both in-person and zoom. All are welcome! If you have agenda items to discuss, please email pto@oakhillspto.org.

Family Bingo Night, 3/10

Save the date for Family Bingo Night March 10th from 6-8pm! If you would like to be involved in the planning of this event, please sign up on our 2023 Volunteer Spreadsheet.

Attention 5th Grade Families: We need photos for the memory book!

We are collecting photos for our 5th graders' memory book that they will get at the end of the school year.

Please add photos of this year's 5th graders to this Google Photos album (https://photos.app.goo.gl/jjeFh5NnBuVovo1EA) or email them to 5thgradeotters2023@gmail.com.

Please share photos in high resolution of school events, first day of school photos, field trips, OBOB, DI, Girls on the Run, etc.

More pictures of kids at home participating in distance learning are needed!

Last call for pictures taken before 2023 is February 15. Please send in photos from other 5th grade activities in 2023 as soon as possible.

We are in the process of cleaning up our website www.oakhillspto.org. If you are not yet on the PTO distribution list, you can add your email at the side bar there or contact pto@oakhillspto.org.

Sign up for the second session of PTO Chess Club!

Next session of chess club starts on February 27th! It will run Mondays for six weeks, 2:35pm - 3:15pm, with the last session on Monday, April 3rd. This session is open to grades 2-5, with some caveats:

- Kids must already know how to play the game

- 2nd and 3rd graders must be released to a designated parent, sibling, friend, etc. They can't walk home alone.

We have room for 24 kids, IF we have another parent volunteer. Otherwise, we have to cap enrollment at 20 kids. If we get more signups than spots available, we'll use a lottery system to determine who gets a place. Please enroll via physical form (available in the office - please return there as well), or this signup link. Signups will be open through next Friday, February 17th.

5th Grade Fly-Ups - March 1st

Tumwater will host 5th grade fly-ups during the school day on Wednesday, March 1st for incoming students. Students will attend this event with teachers and students from their elementary school. Bus transportation to and from Tumwater is provided. Students will learn all about Tumwater and what it has to offer as they tour the school with our 8th grade Web Leaders! Following their visit, parents/guardians will receive a ParentSquare message from Tumwater Middle School with a link to a course request form. We ask that parents support their children in filling out these forms online by Monday, March 6th.

We invite families to visit the Tumwater Middle School Website for more information about events at Tumwater Middle School. In addition, please follow us on social media - Instagram and Facebook.

We also encourage our families to follow our Tumwater PTO on Instagram and Facebook. You can learn more about the Parent Teacher Organization by visiting their website.

Parent/Guardian Information Night - Wednesday, March 1st 6:30 - 8:00 pm

We invite parents and guardians of current 5th graders, living in the Tumwater attendance area, to attend our Tumwater Information Night on Wednesday, March 1st from 6:30 – 8:00pm. To accommodate our available space and your family schedule, please select a session that works best for you:

• Session 1: 6:30 presentation followed by self-guided tour

• Session 2: Self-guided tour followed by 7:15 presentation

Please see the flyer below about the Family Night!

Thursday, February 9 2nd Grade Field Trip

Friday, February 10 Friendship Day

Friday, February 10 Progress Reports will be available on ParentVUE

Tuesday, February 14 Spirit Day: Kind Otters (Wear Otter apparel, kindness shirts, hearts, rainbows, etc)

Wednesday, February 15 PTO 7pm

Monday, February 20 No School for Students and Staff--In observance of President's Day

Tuesday, February 21 No School for Students--Staff Development Work Day

Wednesday, March 1 5th Grade Flyups/Field Trip to Tumwater and Five Oaks Middle School

Wednesday, March 1 Kick off to Read Across America

Friday, March 3 Author Visit

Friday, March 10 Virtual Author Visit

Friday, March 10 PTO Family Bingo Night

Wednesday, March 15 PTO 7pm

March 27-March 31 Spring Break

Thursday, April 6 STEM Family Night

Thursday, April 13 No School for Students--Staff Development Work Day

Friday, April 14 No School for Students--Grading Day

Wednesday, April 19 PTO 7pm

Wednesday, April 26 Music Showcase (Kindergarten and 2nd grade)

Thursday, April 27 5th Grade Field Trip

Spring Parent Teacher Conferences

Wednesday, May 3 School in session for students--Parent Teacher Conferences (PM)

Thursday, May 4 No School for Students-Parent Teacher Conferences (AM and PM)
Friday, May 5 No School for Students and Staff

Thursday, May 11 Kinder Orientation Evening event

Wednesday, May 17 PTO 7pm

Friday, May 19 PTO Otterfest

Tuesday, May 23 3rd Grade Field Trip

PARTIES, FIELD TRIPS, AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES

Reminder that you MUST be registered in the MyImpact page through the school district to be able to volunteer or participate in any school event. Head to the BSD website for instructions.

NOT GETTING VOLUNTEER EMAILS?

Many volunteer opportunities are coming up in 2023, including Friendship Day Parties, workroom tours, Art Lit, staff appreciation, Reading Support, Read Across America, Field Trips and more. If you aren't currently receiving emails from Laura Hoffmann, and the Volunteer Committee, then you are NOT a part of the Oak Hills’ volunteer database. Head to the BSD website for instructions.

Friendship Parties

The requests and details for volunteers are going up on MyImpact. They are scheduled for Friday, February 10. Please sign up to spend time with your kiddo and their friends.

Seeking Crafty Paper Cricut Types

Ms. Larsen, our librarian, needs help making some bulletin board decor for Read Across America. If you are interested, please log in to MyImpact or contact Laura Hoffmann at OakHillsVC@gmail.com.

Keep an Eye Out

We are working on having some upcoming trainings for Workroom and and setting up some zoom workshops with Ms. Fischer the reading specialist to talk about the how and why you want to volunteer to help with reading in the classrooms. We will share more when we have the details.

NEW Volunteer Team (REPEAT)

We are getting reorganized post-pandemic! Action needed: if you’re not already, PLEASE take 4 minutes to register in MyImpact so you can stay up-to-date on happenings at school (even if you work during the day!). This will help a lot with communication. Totally new to volunteering? Check out our FAQs including how to register, where to go, etc. Have ideas or want to get involved?

Contact our school coordinator, Laura Hoffmann: oakhillsvc@gmail.com

Have questions about volunteering? Contact any of us:

· Kinder: Jennifer.Thornton307@gmail.com

· 1st Grade: morganjlaw@gmail.com

· 2nd Grade: cristo765@hotmail.com

· 3rd Grade: jfwuest@gmail.com

· 4th Grade: alpsting@yahoo.com

· 5th Grade: ashleerichards2@yahoo.com

Upcoming fun: Friendship Day parties on Friday, February 10th! Make sure you’re a registered volunteer now to join your child’s party.

Parents or guardians will receive a letter in early February if their child’s immunization record shows that he or she hasn't received the required vaccinations. Children won’t be able to attend school or child care starting February 15, if their records on file show missing immunizations.

The Beaverton School-Based Health Center and the Merlo School-Based Health Center are both resources for families in the Beaverton School District to get immunizations.

Beaverton School District Inclement Weather Information

When we have inclement weather, school schedules could be affected. School closure or delayed start decisions will typically be communicated to media outlets and posted on the district website, ParentSquare and social media by 5:30 a.m. The District makes decisions based on the ability to operate school buses safely, the ability of parents and students to drive safely, and the ability of students to walk safely. Decisions are made for the entire District. However, we encourage families to make transportation and attendance decisions for their children based on their own assessment of travel conditions at their locations.

For the latest inclement weather information:

• Check the district website. A page pop-up will be posted if there’s a change in school
• operations.
• The BSD Public Safety webpage has information about inclement weather procedures and snow routes.
• Follow us on: Twitter @BeavertonSD, Facebook @BeavertonSchoolDistrict or Instagram @beavertonsd
• Tune into media outlets for updates.

Absences and dismissal changes can be reported to us via the Oak Hills website. There are buttons where you can click and report an absence or changes to how your child will be going home. For dismissal, please report the changes before 1:30 PM since this is when we will be delivering the information to our teachers and students. Thank you in advance for utilizing this communication tool. It will free up our phone lines for families, staff, and community members who urgently need to get in touch with the office.

Oak Hills website: