News from your North Beach PTA
January 21, 2022
Dates to Remember
- Wednesday, January 26: deadline to purchase school spiritwear
- Thursday, January 27: School in session
- Thursday, January 27: 7pm Virtual Open House for new and incoming families
- Monday, January 31: 7pm Levy presentation by Ast. Supt. & Principal McLane
- Tuesday, February 1: 7pm Virtual Open House for new and incoming families
- Saturday, March 12: North Beach Auction, 6-11pm @ The Nordic Heritage Museum
North Beach Multicultural calendar - January
During January the North Beach community celebrates the following multicultural groups. We will highlight resources and opportunities to learn more about these groups during the month.
- January 1: New Years Day
- January 17: Martin Luther King Jr Day
- January 18: Buddhist New Year (dates vary)
A Note From our Principal
January 21, 2022
Dear North Beach Families:
Teachers will be reaching out to families this week to let you know we plan to keep most student devices on campus. We hope to have enough advance knowledge of a possible switch to remote learning that we will be able to have students bring devices home with them in the event this is necessary.
We have used almost all the rapid antigen tests from our initial supply. We’ve requested additional tests and are hoping to receive more soon. If we run out of rapid tests, we still have access to PCR tests for students who are exhibiting COVID symptoms. We appreciate how conscientious families have been about monitoring student health. If you learn your student has been a close contact of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 outside of school, please notify the school office as well as your child’s teacher. It’s important for office staff to be aware of all close contacts. Repeating last week’s Beachcomber information: here are updated guides for how to respond to positive cases of COVID or if you are identified as a close contact that may be helpful for families to keep handy.
Finally, last weekend our old emergency storage container was removed after many years of sitting on the north side of the covered play court. There was a pile of garbage and debris underneath the container left behind when the movers hauled the container away late Saturday night. Someone from the community came in and cleaned up before Ray had a chance to come in to do it. We would like to say a big THANK YOU to whoever came in and did this. We appreciate it!
Have a wonderful weekend,
Kristine McLane, Principal
206-252-1510
Keep the auction donations coming!
We’ve received some awesome donations for the auction—thank you! The auction is less than two months away, so please keep them coming.
Great donations are truly the foundation of our fundraising success, and they also make a fun party that much more exciting. (Hmm, like, say…7 nights in Steamboat Springs? No big deal.)
We’re still collecting donations in all categories but can particularly use cool kids’ stuff: camps, classes, gear, toys. Can you dust off your rolodex and flex some connections for our kids?
Donate right here or send questions to auction@northbeachpta.org. And thanks!
From the Office
This week we had to close the office to cover morning arrival of students. I had the opportunity to be at the north gate greeting students and witness a few safety concerns with morning drop off.
Morning drop off safety reminders when dropping off on 24th Ave:
- Driving southbound, do not drop off students so that they have to run across 24th
- Driving northbound, please pull over to drop off students in the designated areas
- Driving northbound, do not stop in the middle of the road to drop off students
Jan. 26th - Last day to purchase North Beach Spiritwear
Show your North Beach Seal Spirit with apparel! The North Beach Community can purchase apparel from SpiritHero.com by January 26th with delivery in about 4-6 weeks.
1. Go to Spirithero.com
2. Click on "Find your school" and select North Beach Elementary
3. Select your items.
See attached flyer or Konstella for more information!
Vote Today to Support Public Schools!
Ballots for the February special election are in the mail and dropboxes are open! The North Beach PTA voted at the recent general meeting to support a "YES" vote on proposition 1 and 2.
The district uses the money from the levies to supplement state funding. For example, the state funds 9 nurses, but thanks to the levy the district can fund 68 nurses. From athletics to STEM the district depends on the levies to provide equitable opportunities to kids across the district.
Learn more about the levies on the district website. And join Assistant Superintendent JoLynn Berge for a North Beach Zoom to discuss the levy.
Monday, January 31
7-8pm
Free Covid Resources
US Government - 4 tests available per home - Covidtests.gov
Coming soon - Free government issued N95 adult masks at local pharmacies such as Walgreens.
Martin Luther King Jr.
This week students learned about Martin Luther King Jr. in various ways. Here are more resources to help you continue the learning at home.
Musical & Video resources to learn about MLK
MLK rap song (for kids) by Numberock
Gracie's Corner - I believe in the Dream
Children's Books about MLK Jr.
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down by Andrea Davis Pinkney
If You Were a Kid During the Civil Rights Movement by Gwendolyn Hooks
Be a King: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream and You by Carole Boston Weatherford
A Sweet Smell of Roses by Angela Johnson
Books by MLK Jr.
Strength to Love by Martin Luther King Jr.
Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? by Martin Luther King Jr.
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Support North Beach Elementary When You Shop!
Amazon Smile: 0.5% of eligible purchases back to North Beach!
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Community News & Events (The programs below are not endorsed by either North Beach PTA or SPS, and are posted for informational purposes only.)
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Parent Education Opportunities
- Seattle Children's seminar series: Conversations about Autism
- January 22: FREE Special Education & Advocacy Conference
- January 26: Webinar: Explorations of Language in Autism
- January 29 Illuminating Autism: Celebrating Artists
- Toys Tech & Training support to children and adults with learning difficulties, disabilities or more significant needs
- National PTA has developed a fantastic series of podcasts on a variety of topics to share information with parents.
- Don't limit the STEM fun to school—bring the STEM excitement home and get the whole family involved in the fun. National PTA and Bayer have developed a series of hands-on activities families can do.Learn at Home Activities require common household items that you likely already have available within your home.
Northwest Boychoir Auditions
We are scheduling online auditions for new enrollment. Boys 6-8 years old who enjoy music and singing are welcome to tryout! No prior musical training is required – just musical aptitude and obvious enjoyment of music.
We are located at the University Heights Center in Seattle but are currently holding classes for our younger choirs online. For more than 45 years we have helped young people discover the joy of singing, self discipline and teamwork!
Join the Stroum Jewish Community Center’s Mitzvah Corps
Join for a new year of making a difference with our Volunteer Challenge. From January through April, we’ll offer a variety of in-person and at-home volunteer opportunities for the whole family across the Puget Sound! Each time you volunteer through Mitzvah Corps, submit a photo of your family in action. We’ll track participation and the family with the most volunteer activities will be our honored guests at the Community Seder on April 22. The challenge kicks off on January 17, when we celebrate a double holiday: Tu B’Shevat (Jewish Earth Day) and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, two holidays that focus on giving back to our community and our planet.
How to Participate:
· Register your family/team here >>
· Choose your in-person or at-home volunteer opportunities from our lists below.
· Take a photo of your family at each volunteer activity
· Email your photos to us at community@sjcc.org.
· The family with the most volunteer activities will be our honored guests at the Community Seder on April 22.
In-Person activities include: Dinner at our House for YouthCare, Rainier Valley Food Bank, Mary’s Place, Food Lifeline, Earth Corps, Washington Trails Association, Friends of the Burke Gilman Trail, BloodWorks NW, Friends of Lincoln Park, Lambert House, SJCC Kesher Garden, and many more!
To register for any In-Person activity, sign up here >>
For at-home activities and more info on the Volunteer Challenge, click here >>
Questions? Email community@sjcc.org