Upcoming Events
Thursday, March 9th, Diversity, Equity, Belonging Presentation by Dion C. Jordan
Tuesday, March 14th, 5:30pm, Parent Council Meeting (Zoom)
Friday, March 17th, Village School Lottery
Monday, March 20th - Monday, April 3rd, Spring Break
Tuesday, March 21st, 5:30pm, Board Meeting
Administrator's Message
Greetings Village Community!
We hope this edition of the Village Voice finds you in good health and contentedness. We had a great week last week with an ADHD training for grades 6-8, a successful evacuation drill, and a fantastic Author’s Night!
Various members of our staff have taken one or more training sessions on understanding ADHD and how it affects our community. ADHD is a disorder that is massively misunderstood and often mishandled in the realm of education. Far from the simple and stigmatized story often told, people with ADHD have so much to offer the world, if they can be understood and given skills toward integrating their unique neurodivergent superpowers into the world. People with ADHD are extra intuitive and creative, are quick to find patterns in chaos, and are adventurous and courageous. They are willing to take risks, are spontaneous, generous, and empathetic, and think outside the box. They have unique perspective and boundless energy. Learning how to understand and advocate for people with ADHD and other types of neurodivergence is high on our list as educators and we are so excited to be able to do this work.
This past week we tried out a new idea for evacuation, in the event that all students need to exit campus immediately. We systematically took all classes up to 37th Avenue where we took roll, then came back down the hill. In the case of a real emergency, 37th is a perfect area to stage a full school pick up. It can be entered from either Donald or Willamette and there is plenty of room for classes to wait. It’s not a very busy street, which reduces the chaos of extra vehicles. Until you hear further information, if there is an evacuation at the Village School, all classes will be waiting on 37th Ave for pick up.
Author’s Night went off without a hitch as well this week! It was so sweet to hear the written words of all the lower grades. So much work went into making this annual event a success! Thank you to Sally Grimsrud, Chrissy Barry, Shannon Powell, and all the lower grades teachers for being such fantastic writing coaches!
Stay warm and dry,
Roz, Shannon, and Andy
Annual Giving Campaign
Improve Theater Facilities at The Village School We are happy to report that the window blinds were installed today. The new lights were ready for the 4th grade play and the middle school dance. Each of these items is improving student and family experience in our Commons. The next major projects we'd like to address: the new screen, projector and sound board, are higher ticket items, but we are also working with vendors to get better deals on each of these items. These have allowed us to lower are target from $20,000 to $16,000. 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
Author's Night
Village School's Title 1 teachers, along with our Main Lesson Teachers put on a wonderful Author's Night. The evening kicked off with a pizza and watermelon dinner, which families enjoyed while listening to guest speaker Merrill Watrous. We're grateful to Toña and our dedicated parent and 8th grade volunteers for helping to make this happen! After dinner, the children and their families went back to the classrooms to listen to excerpts of some fantastic writing!
Counselor's Corner
For the next few months the Counseling Corner will focus on the different strengths that students will explore in the Sources of Strength curriculum. Today’s focus is on Physical Health.
Physical Health includes the way we care for our bodies on a regular basis, as well as when we are hurt or sick and need to seek medical access.
One way we can help care for our children’s physical health is ensuring that they get enough sleep. The CDC recommends children ages 6-12 get 9-12 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period and children 13-18 get 8-10 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period. According to the CDC students who get enough sleep may have fewer attention and behavior problems. Daylight savings is on Sunday, March 12th, this can be a difficult transition for children. One way to help your child adjust is shifting your child’s bedtime earlier by 15 minutes for four days to a week prior to daylight savings. Check this article for more information about helping your child adjust to daylight savings.
Rebecca Macemon
School Counselor
rmacemon@eugenevillageschool.org
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.
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, March14th 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
Evacuation Drill
Last week the Village School held an evacuation drill. It was a perfectly sunny day, and the students did an amazing job of walking quietly with their teachers to the meeting point on 37th Ave and then back to school.
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.
Village Kitchen
Today the middle school students enjoyed having breakfast for lunch. The meal included pancakes with optional maple syrup and blueberry sauce, scrambled eggs, home fries with optional hot sauce and ketchup and even orange juice! We overheard an 8th grade student exclaim: "This is the best day of my life."
Citrus season is still going strong for the VSK. This week we will be serving up sliced navels, cara caras and blood oranges as well as offering mandarins with every breakfast. Bananas, apples and pears are other favorite breakfast fruits for many. We like to offer from a variety of fresh, whole fruits at breakfast since many children take them to eat later for their morning snack.
With grateful hearts we are saying farewell to VSK staff member, Lacie Wilson. Lacie joined our program in 2019 and has become an integral part of our team over the past few years. Lacie is the mother of two Village School students and a student in LCC's Environmental Science and Sustainability Program where she has taken on more leadership roles this school year.
Lacie's spring term school schedule is not leaving room for her to continue regularly in the VSK so we are looking for someone to take over her shifts starting after spring break. Please see the job posting on our school website for more information.
Kitchen Assistant (Starting Rate $15/hr)
Thank you Lacie for all the love and dedication you have given over the past few years!
Toña Aguilar
March Menus
Student Book Recommendation
Written by Ella, sixth grade
Book title: A Night Divided by Jennifer Nielsen
This book is a (genre): historical fiction
Why I liked this book:
It is suspenseful, informative, and has strong characters.
Summary: Gerta is eight years old when she wakes up to find a huge wall separating East and West Berlin. With her father and middle brother in West Berlin and her mother and oldest brother in East Berlin, Gerta's world is torn apart. Four years later, Gerta sees her brother on the other side of the wall and believes that he and her father have a plan of escape for Gerta and her family.
Village School Lunch Diaries
Breakfast for Lunch! Today we got treated to an amazing spread of Pancakes, scrambled eggs, home fries, and Orange Juice!
Parent Council
The next Parent Council Meeting will be on Tuesday, March 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!
Community Bulletin Board
WordCrafters
See upcoming Workshops and Reading groups from WordCrafters. Wordcrafters provides writers and readers opportunities to strengthen their craft, deepen their connection with literature, and share their knowledge with each other and with future generations.
Girls on the Run
Attention Girls in Grades 3 through 5: Girls on the Run wants you! The team at Wayne Morse Family Farm, led by Coach Melissa and Coach Amanda, meets Tuesdays and Thursdays from mid-March to mid-May, 3:30-5 PM. We'll train you to walk, run, or skip a 5K run, and you'll make great friends and do a fun community service project along the way. Plus, there are snacks!
To register, please visit Program Details - 3rd - 5th Grade | GOTR Greater Oregon (gotroregon.org) . For questions, email Coach Melissa at melissahartsmith@gmail.com or call/text her at 541-431-6922.
Ophelia's Place
Ophelia’s Place is a prevention-based nonprofit, serving girls ages 10-18 in Lane and Linn Counties. Their spring calendar of events and activities for youth and parents can be found on their website: https://www.opheliasplace.net/activities-workshops
