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PRINCIPALLY SPEAKING
A Message from Lisa Zimmer
Dear Family,
I hope you all had a wonderful spring break, despite all the families who had to re-arrange their travel plans due to the airlines.
We have a very busy Earth Week planned, with activities starting Monday, April 21st. You can view the full schedule here. Our week will culminate with an all-school garden sing and playground dedication on Friday, April 25th starting at 11:00 a.m. All families are invited to join in all the activities and fun!
Students in grades 2 through 5 will be participating in the California State Tests starting on Monday, April 28. Please make sure that you follow closely the testing schedule for your child’s class. It is important that your child is well rested, eats breakfast, and gets to school on time. We encourage every child to do their personal best on these tests. Parents are also encouraged to bring in healthy snacks for the students during this time. Please ask your child’s teacher if you are willing to help with this.
I know it has been disappointing for families to learn that no dogs are allowed on campus. This is not a new rule but one that has been in place for years! The City and the School District each have an ordinance in place regarding animals on campus. Please abide by the ordinances of the City and District. Please also know that students skateboarding, biking, or riding a scooter to school must be wearing a helmet at all times.
Please abide by the parking and “drop off” zones in the parking lots. The police are starting to ticket cars, since this is an on-going problem. Please use the life skills of courtesy and responsibility when dropping off your child. Every day that I am out there, I find a car that is parked in the drop off zone, blocking other cars and causing near accidents. Please be part of the solution and not the problem! Your cooperation is appreciated.
The state budget cuts have been on the forefront of newspapers and on our minds as we look at our programs and budget necessities at the district and school levels. Please keep up with the District website for updated information. Things will change as more information from the state comes in and the Board finalizes the District budget in June. I am very happy to say that Kiddo! has agreed to pick up the funding for teachers aides, as well as the library aides that have been funded in part by the PTA. Please remember to donate to Kiddo!. May 1st will kick off the fundraising season for Kiddo!, which must raise $1.9 million this year to meet the needs of our District. We are incredibly fortunate to have this foundation, as our children’s school experience in California would be dismal, at best, without Kiddo!.
In conclusion, I was fortunate enough to participate in the 4th grade overnight field trip to Sutter’s Fort last week. It was an awesome experience for our students at Edna Maguire and has been for years. Please look for information on the Marin Schools website to urge the state legislators to keep these types of activities available to our children across the state. This type of “history alive” program is on the cut list for the state budget. I would like to thank the parents for their active participation on the field trip. There were many, many more who helped behind the scenes, whom I can’t possibly name, but the following are the parents who went to the training, spent the night with the students, and led all the stations for candle making, baking, cooking, trapping, woodworking, and the general store: Stirling Somers, Janie Karp, Adrienne Lawrence, Beth Whalen, Catherine Cadloni, Aniko Molnar, Kelley Bloom, Daphne de Marneffe, Lisa Nave, Eileen Immethun, Bill Ryder, Kira Keane, Lisa Orloff, Garrett Lawrence, Steph Ryder, Deb Cole, Cordelia Walsh, Stephan Herrera, Ron Felder, Rik Barr, Andy Levine, Margaret Krivoruchko, Nancy Felder, Valerie Wynn, Jen Levine, Dennis Whalen, Patrick Siu, and Nick Krivoruchko.
And last, but not least, thank you to the dynamic teaching duo of Michael Stachon and Kimba Lackey!
Be well,
Lisa Zimmer
SCHOOL NEWS
PTA Meeting to Elect Board
Please join us for the PTA Association meeting this Friday, April 25th from 10:30 to 11:00 a.m. in the Teachers' Lounge. We will be electing next year's PTA Executive Board (see the nominees). We want your voice and your vote. If you are unable to attend, please feel free to send us your vote by emailing us at allenmari@hotmail.com. Immediately following the meeting is the all-school Garden Sing. We hope to see you there.
Garden News
It’s Earth Week! We have some wonderful events planned, including a book swap all week, a garden work party Wednesday, a ladybug release Thursday, and the fantastic Garden Sing and picnic Friday. You can view a beautiful flyer that details the week’s events.
Thank you to the families who showed up on Sunday and helped us clean up. It had a huge impact on the garden. There’s plenty more work to be done, so please join us with the kids from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Thank you to Mrs. Shern's class and Mr. Frierson for helping move a recycled cement wall and turning it into an incredible little seating circle under the canopy of our apple trees.
The highlights of our Earth Week festivities are the magical ladybug release on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. (bring your scissors to open the ladybug packets) and Friday’s Garden Sing. Friday’s events start at 11:00 a.m. with the students’ singing performance, followed by a special picnic lunch on Alto Field with your child (bring a blanket and a waste-free lunch) and a ribbon cutting ceremony for our new K/1 play structure. Revolution Foods will provide pizza “tastes” for all. Finally there will be Edna’s first ever sale of plants that students have sprouted from seeds in our greenhouse. Proceeds will go to purchasing fruit trees for our sister school, Ziwani Primary in the Tanya Delta, Kenya. Fruit from these trees will nourish children in a community like ours in a far away land. For more information on Ziwani Primary, visit the Fruit Tree Foundation’s website.
REMINDERS
Variety Show Reminders
Tech Rehearsal: Wednesday April 23, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. We will need ALL of the kids, (including announcers and stage hands) there at the agreed upon time slots.
Variety Show Stage Design: Thursday, April 24, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. All of the Variety Show participants are welcome to join us to work on the backdrop and stage props for the Variety Show.
"Show Biz Kidz Fourth Annual Edna Maguire Variety Show" is Wednesday, April 30, at 6:00 p.m. in the multipurpose room (participants should arrive at 5:00). The concession stand will open at 5:00. We need parents of the Variety Show participants to contribute food goods to sell at the Variety Show concession stand. The proceeds will go toward funding the production costs of the show and further upgrades to the stage area. Contributors please notify Janet Fox at jalefo@aol.com.
Frequent Riders Contest
Keep walking and rolling to school! This Friday, April 25th, is the first day to claim prizes in the office for students who’ve walked/rolled/carpooled 20 times. Keep it up!
COMMUNITY CONNECTION
Marin County PTA Campaign to Fight School Budget Cuts
The Mill Valley Middle School PTSA has informed us of a letter-writing campaign and a parent and community rally to support funding our public schools.
We in Mill Valley are fortunate in so many ways that it is easy to become complacent about school funding, but the proposed State budget cuts will remove approximately $270,000 from our district budget. This will affect our district significantly, and other districts stand to loose even more. Children should be recognized as California's greatest resource, to be nurtured and educated to ensure a rich, vibrant future, and it is up to us to speak out, now. Cutting education hurts children and weakens our society. All children need parents to come to their rescue and speak out on their behalf. For information on how the budget crisis affects schools and on how you can make a difference, visit saveourschools.marinschools.org.
Come out to the Parent and Community Rally at the Marin Civic Center, Friday, April 25 at 3:30 p.m. Moms and dads, your kids need you to Go To The Rally!!! Wave your banners and signs, chant "Save Our Schools!" and march to the Civic Center. Download detailed information about schedule, parking, etc. here (pdf).
For information on writing to our Representatives, click here to see examples, contact details, and an email option. There will be a box at the front desk at MVMS to deposit letters to be delivered to the rally. Please spread the word about this campaign by sharing the information with other parents and families in our community.
A few things tips for writing your letter: It's okay to have both mom and dad (and grandma and grandpa, etc.) write separate letters to the Governor and to both of our legislators. Be sure to include your name and mailing address on each letter so that it can be officially counted by the legislators. Letters without return addresses are often not counted. With 29,000 public school children in Marin County we have the potential of delivering well over 100,000 letters next Friday if we all do our part.
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