Upcoming Events
Wednesday, February 1, No School (Grading Day)
Friday, February 10th, Grandfriends Day
Saturday, February 11th, Heart of the Village Festival
Administrator's Message
Greetings Village School Community!
We’re halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, with a Snow Moon rising on Sunday, and the bitter cold winds are whipping around us! Here at school we are trying to stay warm and (mostly) dry, so we can bring our best forth into the wintery world.
February is Black History Month! Teachers at our school work hard all year to bring awareness to equity and diversity. For February, we will be highlighting African American biographies, challenges, and triumphs throughout history and present day. Check in with your student this month to see what they are talking about!
We would also like to announce that there will not be a Talent Show this year. Due to a VERY busy spring and some changes in the eighth grade fundraising goals, we decided, with Main Lesson teacher’s input, that another school wide event would be difficult to manage. Don’t despair, we hope to revisit the Talent Show next year. Keep practicing those talents!
We hope you’re able to get outside (with lots of layers) and look up at the Snow Moon this weekend! It’s sure to be a beauty. Stay warm,
Sincerely,
Roz, Shannon, and Andy
Annual Giving Campaign
Improve Theater Facilities at The Village School We have begun purchasing items with funds for the Annual Giving Campaign, including the new wireless stage microphones. They made an incredible difference for the 8th grade play last month. You could hear everything the students were saying. We will implement items from the campaign as funding comes in. Soon we will be installing new lights and blinds.
This year’s campaign aims to enhance our theater experience with improved lighting, sound gathering and mixing, video projection, seating and window blinds. The entire goal is to allow everyone to experience our plays and presentations in full view and sound.
We have raised roughly $2,000 towards our campaign of $20,000. In view of our commitment to music and the performing arts, the proposed changes will greatly improve the experience in our theater. We hope you will join us in our efforts to Improve Theater Facilities at The Village School.
Donations may be made in the office or at ANNUALGIVING.US
Morning Drop off
We wanted to remind families that for 4th and 5th grade students who are not eating breakfast in the commons, we prefer that they are dropped off closer to when class starts, as we do not have morning supervision for them.
Kindergarten through 3rd grade students need a parent to accompany them to breakfast, and to walk them to their classrooms (unless they have an older sibling that can accompany them.) Thank you.
Volunteering for Heart of the Village
Heart of the Village is approaching swiftly! Please sign up for your volunteer shifts HERE
The Heart of the Village Festival is Parent Council's biggest fundraiser of the year, which then uses the funds for the betterment of our school. Some examples of what we have in the works, as well as what we have used funds for in the past are: murals for the middle school bathrooms, a water filling station in the elementary wing (this is how we got the water stations in the middle school in the past), guest speakers for parent education, sound mixing boards, musical performers into the classroom, the middle school dance, & books for all classrooms by BIPOC authors.
This event truly showcases and embodies what our school is all about. We are a Village, and this is only possible due to the support of you--our incredible families.
We ask each family to contribute 40 volunteer hours per school year. Heart of the Village can go a long way toward fulfilling those volunteer hours.
Volunteer sign ups by grade are available here. If you see a volunteer job for another grade that interests you, and hasn't been filled yet, you are welcome to sign up for that, too! Thank you for making the Heart if the Village a success!
Bake Sale and Musical Cakes Donations
Please help us make our Heart of the Village Bake Sale and Musical Cakes event a huge success! Sign up sheets can be found outside all of the classrooms. We are asking the entire school community to bake or bring what they can for both of these. We would also love donations of gluten free and/or vegan goodies. Thank you!
Heart of the Village Call for Donations
Dear VS Families,
This year we are excited to be bringing back our annual Heart of the Village festival! This is a hands-on showcase of music, arts, crafts, and food from Village School students and the community. It is the biggest fundraiser of the year that benefits the Parent Council.
We are looking for donations for Heart of the Village. If one of our school families has a vacation home, perhaps a ski cabin or a house at the coast, and you’d be willing to donate a weekend for our silent auction, please let us know! Or if a school family owns a business that would like to donate a gift certificate or other item? If you’ve already donated to the 8th grade fundraiser, please don’t worry about this. Please contact Jenny Jonak (jenny@jonak.com) with any family donation ideas - thanks!
Grandfriends Day
Grandfriends Day is happening this year on Friday, February 10th from 8:30 to 12:30. Please let the Grandfriends (grandparents or nearby grand friends) in your life know that they can RSVP here or on the Village School Website. We look forward to having them join us!
Cheers for Volunteers!
The Village School truly could not do what we do without the wonderful volunteers who give so generously of their time. David Bruckner is one of our weekly volunteers, who helps with our Covid testing collection through the University of Oregon. He is here tirelessly every Tuesday morning to greet families with a big smile.
Thank you David for all that you do for Village School!!
Counselor's Corner
I am excited to share that The Village School is implementing a new social-emotional curriculum; Sources of Strength. This curriculum will help us think about, develop and practice positive social and emotional skills along with identifying and growing the strengths in our lives. The eight strengths that the curriculum focuses on are: Family Support, Positive Friends, Mentors, Healthy Activities, Generosity, Spirituality, Physical Health and Mental Health.
Rebecca Macemon
School Counselor
rmacemon@eugenevillageschool.org
Student Book Recommendation
Written by Serena, 4th grade
Book title: Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon and Dean Hale, illustrated by Nate Hale
This book is a (genre): fantasy
Why I liked this book:
It has strong characters. I also really enjoy this book because I feel like the characters are most like me!
Summary of the book:
Rapunzel's Revenge is about a girl named Rapunzel who has lived in Mother Gothel's palace all her life. But then she finds out that Mother Gothel isn't actually her mother. So when Mother Gothel locks her in a "tower," Rapunzel goes on a big adventure, determined to get rid of Mother Gothel and save her real mom. Will she succeed?
The Office Can No Longer Share OTC Medications
There are some school nursing policies that we are changing. One new rule that goes into effect immediately is regarding the dispensing of over the counter medications in the office. If you would like the office to give your child any kind of over the counter medication (Advil, Tylenol, Benadryl, throat drops, etc), please bring in a bottle of that medication with your child's name clearly marked on it, as well as the dosage to be given. (This may not exceed the dosage for their age range/weight that is printed on the bottle.) It must be in original, unopened packaging. Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you.
Sewing Class
Students show off their recent projects from sewing class with Maestra Sarah!
3rd Grade Canned Food Drive
Please help the 3rd graders with our canned food drive for Food For Lane County!
Bring non-perishable items to the bin by the office. Items especially needed for our friends and neighbors include:
Masa, dried chiles, specialty spices
Pasta, cornmeal, rice
Hearty soups, stews, beans, and broths
Peanut butter and tuna
Applesauce, dried fruit, low sugar canned fruit
We hope to fill up our bin (or maybe make it overflow) by Valentines Day! And please remember that a monetary donation to FFLC (online or at the grocery store checkout) goes a long way, too! Thank you!
3rd Grade Shelter Project
The 3rd graders are working on their volcano-proof shelter engineering project!
Volunteering!
Village School families are asked to contribute and record at least 40 hours of volunteer work at the school each year, and single parent households are asked to contribute 20 hours. It is this support that allows us to offer such strong programs with limited financial resources. We also welcome grandparents and other relatives to volunteer in your place!
More opportunities to volunteer are coming up! Be sure to watch your email, the Village Voice and the Village Vine for messages from Parent Council, your class coordinator, your child's teacher and the Village School Kitchen, to see the volunteer needs that are coming up for you to enjoy. Heart of the Village is still looking for volunteers to fill shifts and to donate cakes and baked goods!
If you haven't filled out your volunteer paperwork yet, please stop by the office to pick up a packet.
Another way to contribute to our school community is by attending Parent Council Meetings! Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, January 10th at 5:30 PM. We are still holding these meetings by Zoom so they are easy to attend (even while making dinner or folding laundry) and every parent and guardian's voice is valued in decisions about what Parent Council funds are used for, events that are held and collaborations with departments and teachers at the Village School!
We adore our volunteers! Village School would not be what it is without you. Thank you so much for making Village School the incredible community it is!
Don't forget to sign in to HelpCounter and report your hours so we can see the amazing contributions from our Village School Families. If you
Health Reminders
It has come to our attention that some children have been coming to school sick. Please take a look at the poster below to see what our current policies are. Thank you.
The Village Kitchen
The Farmers Market is back! This weekend the Saturday Market returns to the Farmers Market Pavilion at 8th and Oak in downtown Eugene. Swing by between 10:00-2:00 pm to pick up some produce from local farmers. I'd love to run into you there!
January's Farm to School highlight is Camas Swale's enchilada sauce. With the help of Sweet Creek Foods, Farmers Jonah and Amber process their excess summer tomato harvest into a mild enchilada sauce which we used in our stacked enchiladas for lunch today. Last week, 7th and 8th grade teacher Justin Boe taught a science lesson to his students on the tongue as a sense organ. After the lesson, students had the chance to smell and then taste the enchilada sauce before writing their reflections. See the prompts and a couple of interesting responses below.
Describe what your nose experienced using at least 2 adjectives.
"It smelled smokey and tangy and reminded me of very crisp tortillas."
"Mild, kinda bland, smelled like produce, beany."
"Flavorful, spiceful, sharp."
Describe what your mouth experiences using at least five different adjectives.
"Just the right salt, at first it was sweet and then all of the flavors and spices popped in and it held the flavor for a long time."
"Spicy, salty, sharp, tangy, strong, kinda sour (just a little bit) explosive. Bright?"
If this food was an animal, what animal would it be and why?
"Some kind of animal that is like fresh and farm-like, but also earthy. So like a farm cat (plus it was good and cats are good)"
"It would be a red-tailed hawk on a dry drought hot field due to its smoky onion flavor."
We are looking for a prodigious potato dicing dude every other Thursday morning. The students LOVE it when we roast potatoes for lunch. Thoughtfully scrubbing and dicing 65 lbs of potatoes is a serious commitment that we don't also have the capacity to accomplish on a school morning. If you are up for helping with this task every other Thursday morning starting this week, or even just once in a blue moon, please text "HOT POTATO" to 541-510-8604. What's in it for you besides a fun time fulfilling your family's forty school volunteer hours? You get a phenomenal lunch just like Michael did today after his kitchen volunteer shift!
Dreaming of summer heat,
Toña
February Menus
Village School Lunch Diaries
Buried under that pile of greens is delicious Pad Thai. Our salad bar is always overflowing with multiple choices for fresh greens to load your tray with!
Stromboli Day comes once a month, and it is always worth the wait! On this day we also had the freshest of green beans and some comforting chickpeas.
Stacked enchiladas love to be paired with a good drizzle of chimichurri and hot sauce. Kale salad with sweet apples is such a winning combo.
Parent Council
The next Parent Council Meeting will be on Tuesday, February 14th at 5:30pm!
Please join us and send questions and ideas to parentcouncil@eugenevillageschool.org.
The notes from past meetings can be found here.
Every Village School parent and guardian is a part of Parent Council - The Virtual Parent Council Meetings are open to all parents and guardians on the 2nd Wednesday of each month.
You can also engage with Village School families on the Parent Council Facebook page, The Village Vine!
Rules for a Safe Morning Drop Off
Please do not park in either of the parking lots when dropping students off in the morning. These lots are for faculty only.
Parking is available on 35th Ave, Glen Oak Dr, Knob Hill Ln, and Donald St.
*We require students in grades K-3 to be walked to their classroom door by a parent or guardian.
If you’d like to drop off your 4th-8th grade student please follow these guidelines:
1. Approach the school from Donald Street. This reduces two way traffic on 35th Ave.
2. Use Drop-Off zone for Drop off only. (At the curb near the stairs leading to the school)
3. Always park in the correct direction and on the correct side of the street.
4. Do not park on the wrong side of the street. Do not stop cars in the middle of the street.
5. Have children exit on Curb side of car, not the street side
6. Please say your “goodbyes” before you stop and avoid lingering
Help Wanted
Substitute Teacher & Substitute Educational Assistant
Duties: Serve as substitute teacher or substitute classroom assistant.
Qualifications: Experience working with groups of children. Knowledge of Waldorf curriculum a plus.
Teachers require Valid Oregon Teaching License:
[Main lesson (K-8), Movement/PE, Spanish, Music, Handwork]
Instructional Assistant (BA and fingerprint background check required) Willingness to get CPR training Background check required Complete Covid vaccination records Salary Range: $24 per hour for Teachers, $15 - $18 per hour for Assistants
Strong verbal and written communication skills
Benefits include our healthy lunch service, PERS coverage.
CHRYSALIS
Bounce's elite circus performance troupe Zenith Aerial Arts (ZAA) displays amazing strength and grace in this all original, family friendly creation! Proceeds from the show will benefit Friends of the Children.
FEATURING VILLAGE SCHOOL GRADUATES:
Eden Capadona
MiriBess Eiva
Jun Orion
Uma Carrier
With a completely original story and choreography, CHRYSALIS uses aerial arts to take the audience on a whimsical adventure into a world of bugs and forest fairies. Friendships are jeopardized, trust is broken and rebuilt, and help (or hindrance) is found in unexpected places. As our characters transform both on the outside and inside, we learn how things aren’t always what they seem upon first impression.
Zenith Aerial Arts (ZAA) is Eugene’s pre professional aerial circus ensemble at Bounce Gymnastics and Circus Arts Center. These elite young artists are recognized for their strength, dedication, creativity, and desire to perform. With the guidance of their coaches, they train and rehearse together to create their own original aerial arts shows.
Friends of the Children is a national nonprofit organization with an established chapter in Lane County that selects and invites youth – all of whom have unique talents, interests and dreams, and face multiple systemic obstacles – to be paired with a paid, professional mentor called a Friend. They hire and train Friends to support youth from as early as age 4 through high school graduation. Friends create meaningful experiences that empower youth to build life skills and make healthy choices while exploring the child’s diverse talents and interests.
Tickets on sale now! Saturday, February 4th, 7pm at the Hult Center. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.
