Thornhill Elementary PFC Newsletter
Volume 27, Issue 21, January 22, 2020
From the PFC President
Believe it or not, we are already three weeks into the year 2020, and there’s a lot going on here at Thornhill. Enrichment classes are underway. The next Dine Out is today, Wednesday January 22, at Chipotle from 5-9pm (we need minimum $300 in sales to get 33%). And the Dads Club Warm Hearts Coat Drive goes until Friday. No matter how much is on the calendar, our community always gets involved and shows the best of itself.
I hope you will keep that in mind with regards to some other notable Thornhill events that are coming up. Our annual auction is now less than two months away and tickets are on sale. We are also looking forward to all those amazing parties you host - find more information about that below.
Also, we are in need of a carnival chair to, well...lead the organizing of our Spring Carnival. It would be great for us to soon get a volunteer or two to take the reins of what is our most popular community event of the year. Please reach out either to me at president@thornhillschool.org, or Becky Urbano, our vice president of support, at vpsupport@thornhillschool.org for more information.
Mahalo,
Rex Crum
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Chipotle Dine Out: TODAY January 22!!!
Get ready to do some good with burritos! Chipotle will give Thornhill PFC a generous 33% of the total revenue we bring in on Wednesday, January 22 at their Lakeshore Ave location. But here is the catch: we need to bring in a minimum total for the night, equal to roughly 40-50 burritos ... so we need a big turnout!! Please come on by tonight!
When: Wednesday, January 22, 5-9pm **TONIGHT!**
Where: Chipotle, 3271 Lakeshore Ave, Oakland, CA 94610
Ground rules:
1. In-store purchases only (online orders do not count)
2. Tell the cashier you are there for Thornhill or show the flyer (on your phone works fine)
3. WE NEED A BIG TURNOUT—if we don't bring in a minimum of $300 total sales for the night, we get $0 so please come one, come all!
4. Handing out flyers in the restaurant or on the sidewalk is considered "cheating"
5. Gift card purchases do not count
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Auction Hosted Parties
Thornhill Parents,
As you know, the 2020 Benefit Auction is around the corner on March 14 and it's time to organize our Hosted Parties.
What is a Hosted Party?
A Hosted Party is an event you (and your closest friends!) host as part of the auction fundraiser, sharing the cost of the expenses. People sign up at the auction by buying a slot to attend your party or event and 100% of the proceeds go directly to Thornhill. They are very popular and a great way to participate in the auction!
The host(s) decides:
The theme of the party
The location (at their home or out in the community)
Who the party is for (adults, children or families)
The number of participants who can come to the party
The date
The cost to attend
Your efforts to organize and host the party is your donation Thornhill.
If you have any interest in hosting a party or have questions, please email hostaparty@thornhillschool.org. The information we would need are the points listed above.
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Upcoming middle school enrollment events!
Montera Middle School Prospective Parent Mixer
When: Wednesday, January 22, 2020, 7-9pm
Where: The Hughes Residence, 6647 Forestland Way, Oakland, CA 94611 (home of Montera's PTO Vice President)
Still unsure which middle school to attend? This is a great opportunity to connect with current Montera Middle School parents and administrators. Come enjoy drinks and appetizers/snacks
while spending the evening talking with current parents and get the scoop about your neighborhood public middle school. This is an adults-only gathering.
Go to Eventbrite and RSVP today!
Equity Allies for OUSD and Integrated Schools Middle School Enrollment Event
What do GreatSchools.org scores and school tours really tell you? How is academic and high
school readiness measured at a school site? How can you make a great choice for your child and be a force for equity in Oakland?
Equity Allies for OUSD and Integrated Schools is co-hosting an event organized by and for parents around these and other common questions. It is designed to help equity-minded parents gain tools and insights as they decide where to send their child to school in Oakland. You'll hear from parents from a number of OUSD middle schools about their day-to-day experiences and have a chance to ask questions and connect to other parents.
When: Saturday, January 25, 11:30-1pm
Where: Westlake Middle School Cafeteria
Kids are welcome, childcare and light refreshments will be provided.
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Update from the Thornhill Library
Before the break students enjoyed building, creating, playing, and of course reading together in the library. 2nd and 3rd graders made snowflakes after reading Snowflake Bentley.
Grades 1-5 are all participating in a Mock Caldecott, examining the illustrations in a collection of picture books. We are discussing how the art helps to tell the story, what techniques are used, and whether it appeals to kids. We will compare our school's nominees with the Caldecott committee announcement which takes place on January 27.
We have also started a library aide program with interested 5th grade students who come in once a week for their morning recess. These students are learning more about managing the library, through activities such as shelving and labeling books, and providing feedback about developing a collection that supports student interest.
The library also gets support from so many families! Much appreciation to the following families for their generous support of the library through their book donations:
Manu and Rafa Novak-Hartsock
CJ Lopez
Fred and Emme Pullman
Audrey and Gemma Oh
James Yokomizo
Amina Morris
Sai and Saniyah Patel
Dakota Marble
Isabella Rocha
Magnolia Stoll
Julia McCarthy
Carson and Darlene Proudfoot
If you are able to support the library, please see our wishlist here: Our Thornhill students are amazing readers and are always on the lookout for new and exciting reads! Feel free to reach out to me at marie.fox@ousd.org with any questions.
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OUSD volunteer clearance event
Are you interested in becoming an unsupervised volunteer for your child’s class, field trips, or other events? To do so, CA state law requires live scan fingerprint clearance. The Oakland Public Education Fund is hosting an event to complete the fingerprinting requirement with ease and fun. The event will feature snacks, games, and a fingerprinting technician available to roll your live scan prints.
When: Tuesday, January 28 from 5:30 - 7:00 pm [30-minute slot]. RSVP here.
(Please only register if you are certain because there are a limited number of spaces available.)
For your convenience, here is a reminder of the unsupervised volunteer onboarding steps.
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Your PFC still needs you!
Yes, we still have a few critical positions where we would very truly love your help. Would you please consider jumping in? We would be so appreciative!
- Spring Carnival Chair(s): Lead our annual spring community event
Secretary: Attend all PFC meetings and take minutes - only 4 more meetings
Vice President, Fundraising: Lead the strategy of our fundraising efforts
Parliamentarian: Take a close look at our bylaws and lead the charge to get them updated
Co-President: Yes, someone will have to take over from Rex next year, and we hope they could start now and learn the ropes from Rex
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Calendar
The website always has the latest calendar information, and here's what's coming up:
- Wednesday, January 22: Dine Out at Chipotle (5-9pm, 3271 Lakeshore Ave.)
- Thursday, January 30: Martin Luther King, Jr. Oratorical Festival and Black History Celebration (8:45am, MPR)
- Friday, January 31: NO SCHOOL (Professional Development Day)
- Monday, February 10: PFC Meeting (6-7pm library + optional Taps & Takeout mixer)
- Monday, February 17: NO SCHOOL (Presidents Day)
- Wednesday, February 26: Engineering Night (5:30-7pm, MPR)
- Saturday, March 14: Thornhill Auction (Fratellanza Club)
- Friday, March 27: NO SCHOOL (In lieu of Cesar Chavez Day)
- Monday, March 30 - Friday, April 3: NO SCHOOL - Spring Recess
Be sure also to subscribe to the Thornhill Google Calendar here, and download the OUSD District calendar here.
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About the Thornhill Newsletter
The Thornhill Parent-Faculty Club (PFC) eNews team publishes this weekly newsletter each Tuesday in the school year to communicate school, PFC and OUSD news, events and information.
Email submissions to our Newsletter Chair, Evie Nagy, at newsletter@thornhillschool.org by 8 p.m. Thursday for approval—nothing sent after this will be included in the following week’s newsletter unless there are extremely compelling extenuating circumstances. It’s fine to include text in the body of the email with links and no formatting, and attach 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, as we need to keep the newsletter focused on need-to-know info for the community.
THANK YOU to everyone who submits articles and to PFC Board Members, Teachers, VP of Communications Erin Proudfoot, PFC President Rex Crum, and Principal Steve Daubenspeck. Member of Oakland Unified School District (OUSD).
Email: webmaster@thornhillschool.org
Website: thornhillschool.org
Location: 5880 Thornhill Drive, Oakland, CA, USA
Phone: 510-339-6800