Seattle Canoe & Kayak Open House

Is your 5th grader looking for a great sport that offers individual achievement as well as the benefits of participating on a team?

The Seattle Canoe and Kayak Club is holding an “Open House” on Saturday, May 3 from 11 am – 1 pm. Come join us at the Small Craft Center on Green Lake. Get to see the competitive Junior Team do time trials, see an introductory video about the sport, meet the coaches, and then climb into the boats with our team members to get a feel for what it is like to be in an Olympic style Sprint Kayak or Canoe.

You need to bring a parent/guardian to sign the waiver and bring a change of clothes in case you get wet! Questions? Contact Tami Oki (at Tamaraoki@wonderanimal.com or phone 524-1116) or the Green Lake Small Craft Center at 684-4074 for more information.

http://www.scn.org/rec/sckc/open.htm for more information.

Bake Sale at the Rummage Sale

The bake sale is gearing up! The 5th grade class is going to run a "concession" at the May 17th JSIS Rummage Sale. We would like to sell from 9am to 1pm. Money we earn from food sales will go toward our graduation festivities. (The JSIS PTSA does not provide substantial funds for graduation, so this is the primary source of cash to support any fun we want to plan.)

Three ways you can help:
1. Bake your favorite cookies, muffins, cake, etc… for us to sell,
2. Contact a local vendor, family or friend who will donate sweets to us, or
3. Have your child sign up to help during the sale.

Contact Judy Shoji (jnshoji@hotmail.com) and let her know how you will help.

Curriculum Nights, Way Ahead of Time

Since we all schedule so far in advance these days --- I just received this message from the JSIS PTSA room rep machine:

Washington Middle School's Curriculum Night for the 2008-09 school year will be held on Thursday, October 9, 2008.

Madison Middle School's (West Seattle) Curriculum Night for 2008-09 will be held on Thursday, September 25, 2008.

Whitman Middle School's will be Tuesday, October 14, 2008.

Denny M.S. will be Wednesday, September 17, 2008.

Medication Form for Camp - ASAP Please!

If your child may need to take medication during their stay at camp, you need to send in a medication form as soon as possible. This includes any prescription OR over-the-counter medication such as tylenol, ibuprofen or allergy medications.

Thanks,
Brent H.

Please Send Photos for the 5th Grade Memory Book by May 9

Perhaps you know that we're putting together a Memory Book so you and your kids can remember the JSIS years. This tradition has been in place for several years.

This year we are planning on a page for each child including their informal portrait (thank you Barry W.!), a writing sample that your kids have already been working on in English and in their second language, and a candid photo. This letter is a request for one candid photograph for your child's page.

The photo will be formated to fit in no more than a 3x5 inch space, and printed in Black and White. Color originals are fine, either digital or hardcopy prints. We'll scan them and convert them if needed.

The book will also contain photos and letters from the staff, and a number of miscellaneous color photographs from our 6 years at JSIS. You are welcome to contribute to the pool of general pictures. We'll try to fit as many in as we can.

- Photos are welcome from now until May 9th. (We do plan to include some from camp.)
- Email digital pictures to Michael's dad: Peter Kaczkowski <pkaczkowski@comcast.net>
- Please place print originals in an envelope with your kid's name on it, and deliver to the collection box in Ms. Nani's room; prints will be returned to you as soon as they are scanned.

Thanks everyone!

The 5th Grade Yearbook Committee
Amy C. (Eric's mom), Barry W. (Melia's dad from J), Peter K. (Michael's dad from J), Sal C. (Rafa's dad) and Isabel D. (Joe's mom)

Hamilton T-Shirts

Hi JSIS 5th Grade,

Attached is a t-shirt order form for "Hamilton wear". (Isabel's note -- the form is attached to the April 23 class email.)

Incoming 6th graders might like the chance to order a sweatshirt or t-shirt for the fall. If anyone's are interested they can send me their form and check.

The deadline for orders is next Friday, May 2.

Thanks,
Jennifer Veninga
PTSA President
Hamilton International Middle School

WASL Testing -- Bring Snacks

The 5th grade WASL starts Monday, April 21 and wraps up the following Wednesday, April 30. (Make-up days in case of illness are May 1 and 2.)

Nani and Brent are requesting that families bring in snacks. The WASL is very liberal about eating during the test. It's encouraged. Crackers and dry snacks are great. Fruit is wonderful, but be sure to cut it up into student-sized portions before you bring it in. Nani says no candy please.

Narritive Final Due 5/14

Students are working on their 5-page "narrative", or story project. The due date for the final, typed, edited copy is Wednesday, May 14.

Bake Sale at the Rummage Sale

The 5th grade class is going to run a "concession" at the May 17 JSIS Rummage Sale. Money we earn from food sales will go toward our graduation festivities. (The JSIS PTSA does not provide substantial funds for graduation, so this is the primary source of cash to support any fun we want to plan.)

Emily's mom Judy (from J-5) is interested in working on the sale, and she will need other volunteers as well. Email her at jnshoji@hotmail.com.

Testing for 6th Grade Honors Math at Hamilton

Even though Eckstein is holding a spring-of-5th-grade placement test for 6th grade Honors Math, it doesn't look like Hamilton will. I emailed Katie Cryan, the Hamilton principal to ask about it. She reports that the middle school principals have been discussing doing a district-wide spring-of-5th grade test, but Hamilton does not plan to do one this year. She promises to keep us posted if there are any developments.

Also -- if you're heading to Whitman, Washington, etc, consider calling these schools to find out if they're requiring a spring-of-5th grade test to gain entrance into 6th grade Honors Math.

6th Grade Honors Math Testing at Eckstein

I saw this notice in another elementary school's family newsletter about Honors math testing for Eckstein M.S. I imagine that if your child is signed up for Eckstein, they will notify you by mail. But here's the notice:

Students will be placed in Math 6 or Math 6 Honors based on results of the Eckstein Honors Placement Exam. Students in 6th grade Honors Math will follow the 7th grade curriculum. The purpose of this exam is to provide initial evidence of how many students are ready for the advanced course and allow us to prepare our schedule with the appropriate number of classes. The exam will cover the essential learnings for grade 6 math. Though we will gather other information from grade 5 teachers and district assessments later this school year and summer for final placements, a student MUST HAVE TAKEN our exam to be considered for the opportunity. All of our incoming 6th graders are welcome and encouraged to participate. No reservations are needed. Meet in the Eckstein cafeteria.

Tesing Dates:
Saturday, April 26 from 10am until 11:30am
Tuesday, April 29 from 4:00pm to 5:30pm.

You also might consider calling Eckstein for more information.

Meeting for Parents Going to Camp

Ms. Nani and Sr. Hester have called a meeting for parents who are going to camp with our class on May 5-7. They would like to meet with you this Thursday evening, April 17 at 6:00pm in Nani’s classroom (402). Kids who are busy with a quiet activity are welcome.

Request from Mr. Holmes

A request for help from Mr. Charles Holmes, our instrumental music teacher:

We need a parent volunteer with a van who could take and bring back JSIS music stands from Brighton elementary school (6725 45th Ave. S.) for the Spring Concert (which is Wednesday, May 21 at 7:15pm). The stands need to be delivered by 1:00 PM on May 20th and picked up and returned to JSIS on the morning of May 22nd. Volunteers can reach me at my district Email address ceholmes@seattleschools.org

Here’s a map to Brighton: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/main/map/southeast.xml