OYSTER-ADAMS BILINGUAL SCHOOL
WEEKLY BULLETIN
May 14, 2009
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Oyster-Adams Bilingual School is an inclusive community of learners dedicated to academic excellence and creativity that develops globally responsible leaders who are bilingual and bi-literate in
Spanish and English.

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MAY

JUNE

NEWS & REMINDERS

AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM NEWS

OYSTER-ADAMS CONTACT INFORMATION

MAY
2009

May is Pan-Asian Heritage Month!

May 2nd
Oyster-Adams Fiesta/Raffle

May 4th-8th
Elementary Science Fair (PreK - 5th Grades); Oyster Campus

May 5th
Cinco de Mayo

May 4th-8th

Teacher Appreciation Week

May 8th
Principal's Coffee

May 10th
Mother's Day

May 13th-14th
OCC & LSRT Elections

May 14th
Class Picture Day

May 15th
No School
Parent-Teacher Conferences; Teacher Appreciation
Pot Luck Lunch

May 18-24
Screen-Free Week

        May 19th
OCC Board Meeting

May 20th
LSRT Meeting

May 21st
Move Up Day!

May 25th
Memorial Day; SCHOOL HOLIDAY

May 27th
OCC Community Meeting

May 29
Oyster/Adams Celebracion "Alma Flor Ada" de la Poesia en Espanol
Oyster campus 10:00 am Adams campus 1:00 pm

JUNE 2009
June 2 Alma Flor Ada visits Oyster/Adams June 3 DCPS Celebracion "Alma Flor Ada" de la Poesia in Spanish June 8-10 Summer Reading Book Fair: Oyster Campus June 10th LSRT Meeting June 11th 8th Grade Promotion Ceremony June 15th Last Day of School!

MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL LIANG AGUIRRE

May 14, 2009

Dear Parents:

As you have hopefully heard by now, elections for the parent positions on both the OCC and the Local School Restructuring Team (LSRT) have been postponed to Wednesday, May 27th, at the last Community Meeting of the school year.

The nomination period has been extended to next Wednesday, May 20th to allow for more people to get involved. Please see the OCC and LSRT sections below in this Bulletin for details on how to nominate yourself or someone else.

For many parents, these two organizations -- especially the LSRT -- might be somewhat of a mystery. Allow me to give you brief overview of the roles and functions of each group from the principal's perspective and hopefully inspire some more of you to throw your names in the hat for the upcoming elections.

The LSRT is comprised of parents, teachers, administrators and community members and is charged with providing the principal with guidance on the overall direction of the school. This year, key activities were the revision of the school mission and the completion of the Comprehensive School Plan (a two-year student achievement plan).

The OCC is comprised mostly of parents (with some teacher representation) and works to support the mission of the school by providing additional resources to our program and support to our school staff. They are engaged in a variety of fundraisers that bolster our local school budget and manage and direct a variety of programs and activities that foster student achievement and teacher support, and that build community among all of our stakeholders.

Clearly, Oyster-Adams parents are very involved in all facets of the school. Many of you provide critical support in the classrooms, run special projects (i.e. the science fair or playground project) and, of course, work at home with your children on a daily basis. The OCC and the LSRT are another means to contribute to the school on a more formal basis.

I am very thankful for the team of dedicated parents that have served on both entities for their guidance and support during my first year at Oyster-Adams. Your commitment and fervent passion for the school is always inspiring. I look forward to working closely with a new team of parents this upcoming year.

-Monica Liang Aguirre

NEWS & REMINDERS

New friends in the Kinder classrooms!

May 15, 2009

"Move Up Day" is May 21: What will it be like at the Intermediate Campus? What will I learn in 1st grade? What is the middle school like? All students in PK-6th grade will be visiting the next grade level for the morning to learn about a day in the life of that grade. 7th and 8th graders will be participating in a special activity with Mr. Matt Walters.

We ask that, if possible, all 3rd graders please get dropped off at the Intermediate Campus (Adams) in the morning. Students will be walked back to the primary campus by Oyster-Adams staff before lunch time. If you need assistance getting your 3rd grader to Adams in the morning, please notify your child's teacher.

CAN YOU TAKE THE SCREEN-FREE CHALLENGE? The Oyster/Adams Annual Screen-Free Week is May 18-24. During this week we challenge ourselves to not watch TV, movies or play video games. Homework and electronic communication is fine. Spring is here and there are so many other family activities waiting to be experienced. Try it. You might like it. PK-5th grade students will be give pledge sheets by Ms. Kleinmann during their library classes and Ms. Kauffman will distribute them to 6th-8th graders. We know this is a challenge for all of us: children and adults alike. Let's all join the O/A Screen-Free Team!

Summer School: Summer is quickly approaching. It's time to start thinking about your child's summer plans. Oyster-Adams is a summer school site, meaning that students who are currently in kindergarten through 8th grade can attend summer school at the Intermediate (Adams) Campus (located at 2020 19th Street, NW).

There are two programs (based on a student's current school grade) running from June 29 - August 5. Both are free for all students who will receive breakfast, lunch and a snack (for the elementary students who stay for the afterschool enrichment program):

The elementary summer school program (kindergarten through 6th) will have two parts: a morning academic program (8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m.) followed by an afterschool enrichment program (until 6 p.m.). You may enroll your child in either of the sessions as well as both.
The middle schools (7th and 8th only) will have a morning summer school program but not an afternoon session.

Stop by the main office at either campus to pick up a form.

Safe Cars Means Safe Children: Please remember to return your Pace Car "Driver's Pledge" form by May 18. Pace Car is a program sponsored by the Washington Area Bicyclist Association to encourage drivers to adhere to the posted speed limits and treat pedestrians and bicyclists with respect by sharing the road safely. Oyster-Adams is competing against other schools to see which one can get the highest percentage of parents to sign and return the Pace Car "Driver Pledge." For more information, visit http://www.waba.org/pacecar/about.php <https://outlook.dcps.dc.gov/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.waba.org/pacecar/about.php>

Monarch School Update. On Saturday, May 2nd, members of the Monarch Sister Schools Project Team at Oyster-Adams sponsored a booth at the Fiesta. Our goal was to raise awareness of this new project at the school and plant the milkweed and perennials that will (in time) attract Monarch butterflies to our school garden. Parents Kathy Vincent and Sandra Marin helped teachers Rick Qui�ons and Pam Ross educate families about building the garden and developing an international partnership with students who live near the Oyamel Fir Forests in Mexico. Students of many ages enjoyed planting in the garden. Families made $180 in donations to support purchasing additional plants for the garden. In addition, Lazarlo Cardenas-Batel Oyster parent and former governor of the state of State of Michoacan, Mexico, donated wonderful curriculum resources in Spanish to support our work to educate children about how improving Monarch butterfly habitats here can enhance the survival of the species worldwide.

Next steps for the Monarch team include: purchasing additional edging (fence) so that classes can also plant edible plants in the raised beds and working with Oyster-campus classes to raise flowering annuals for the Monarch garden. Kathy Vincent is still looking for a few more families to sign up for watering the garden. If you are interested, please contact her.

UPDATES

The middle school Green Team

Update from Assistant Principal Ibis Villegas

May 15, 2009

Because parents often come to the school and ask for advice about tutoring, I am sharing the following information from the online website LD online. These suggestions are applicable to ALL families who are looking for a tutor:

Getting the Most Out of Tutoring
By: Anne Hoover (2009)

There are more tutors than ever before and parents are left with many choices that are often difficult to evaluate. One of the keys to making a good decision for your student is to determine exactly what you expect the tutor to accomplish. There are many different kinds of tutoring: helping a child progress to the current grade level in a subject, supporting current homework, teaching strategies for studying and organizing, assisting the student in using technology efficiently, and tutoring specific subject matter. The tutor's background and experience should match the need. Personal recommendations are also important and the list that follows suggests additional things to consider:

Tip #1: It is essential that a student with learning disabilities work with a tutor who has been trained to use the appropriate multisensory techniques. Be sure to ask about training, experience, and references.

Tip #2: There must be a good rapport between the tutor and student. Give the relationship a chance to develop (about 8 lessons) but if it doesn't, look for another tutor.

Tip #3: The best time of day for tutoring is when the student is fresh and ready to learn. Tutoring is an intense learning experience and you want to take every advantage of it. Many younger students are at their best before school and many schools will facilitate tutoring during the school day.

Tip #4: Set the goals of tutoring with the tutor. Be sure you are both clear about whether you are focusing on remedial work, content subjects, or study skills. Resist the temptation to try to accomplish too much.

Tip #5: Schedule a minimum of two lessons a week. Students with learning disabilities need practice and repetition to master their lessons and it takes time to see improvement.

Tip #6: It is better to have more frequent lessons over a short period of time than to spread the same number of lessons over a longer period because the student will make slow progress and become more discouraged.

Tip #7:If you do not know a skilled tutor, an organization dedicated to working with the learning disabled will be able to find a tutor with the right background and will have the resources necessary to support the tutor's work.

Tip #8: Arrange to talk with the tutor periodically to monitor progress, when the child is not present.

Tip #9: Ask the student's teacher to talk with the tutor. Teachers feel reassured to know that someone is helping a student and they are working toward common goals.

Tip #10: Tell your child why she/he is receiving tutoring and what you hope to accomplish so that she/he will feel hopeful rather than inadequate.

MIDDLE SCHOOL/INTERMEDIATE CAMPUS UPDATES

May 15, 2009

Girls on the Run: Congratulations to all of the girls who completed the 5K this past weekend:

4th & 5th Grade Team: Madison Reeve, Mariana Encinas, Caroline Shea, Jordan Wimbish, Marguerite Harris, Sofia Yasin, Ariana Markowitz, Linda Catalan, Natalia Greene, Allie Littleton, Anna Karpowicz, Cameron Boucher-Kahn and Enma Frias.
Middle School Team: Margaret Bass, Sarah Bass, Suzanna Carnevali-Doan, Michelle Metcalf, America Paola Perez, Brenda Perez and Kayce Wilson.

Thank you to Coaches Jodi and Julia (4th & 5th) and Andrea, Dora and Angela (Middle School) for all of your work with the girls.

Greening Oyster-Adams: The 7th and 8th grade "Greening Oyster-Adams" project group earned second place in the overall energy audit category in the "Saving Energy in DC Schools" program sponsored by the Alliance to Save Energy and the District Department of the Environment.

The students discovered that the excess heat being given off by the school's un-insulated heating pipes were causing teachers to run air conditioning units in the winter. Once pipes were insulated, temperatures returned to comfortable levels without wasting energy. They did a complete intermediate campus energy audit, including offices, common areas, and most classrooms. Their audit report analyzed historical energy and price trends, calculated the cost of common appliances throughout the school, and assessed light-levels and costs.

Congratulations to Mr. Hoeksema and Ms. Ross, as well as all of the students: Charity Aschenbrener, Elena Beeley, Elizabeth Caspari, Karl Euller, Oscar Fuentes, Rebecca Garcia-Moreno, Zoe Gatti, Stephanie Guzm�n, Nathan Merino, Veljan Mitrovski, Brian Herrera-Morales, Rom�n Moretta, Sohrab Pasikhani, Aren Sahakyan, Ronit Schorr, Sam Schwarzwalder, Marcelle Snead, Michael Song, and Rodrigo Umanzor.

7th & 8th Grade School Pictures: Parent Ralph Alswang will take the class pictures for the 7th and 8th grades on Tuesday, May 19, so that the students who traveled to Spain are able to participate.

Fillmore Guitar Presentation: All guitar students in grades 5th - 8th will be featured at the Fillmore Spring Concert, Monday, May 18, at 7 p.m., at the Fillmore/Hardy auditorium, 1819 35th Street, NW.

Talent Show: The Intermediate Campus student council has been busily working to prepare for the Talent Show, scheduled for Friday, June 5, at 6 p.m. Students in grades 4 through 8 will show off their many talents, ranging from dancing and singing to comedy routines and martial arts.

Students who want to participate in the talent show must rehearse on Thursday, May 21, from 3:30 - 4:30 p.m. in the gymnasium at the Intermediate Campus. Participating students should bring a note from a parent giving them permission to stay after school on May 21 for the rehearsal.

This Week in Shine (6th Grade Only): Students will learn about HIV/AIDs and STDs, including how those diseases are contracted, how they affect a person's health, and how they can be prevented.

OCC UPDATES

By now we hope you all have learned that the elections for OCC board that were scheduled for this week, May 13-14, have been rescheduled, and will take place instead at our last OCC community meeting of the year, May 27th, from 6:15-8:00 at the primary campus. Since this is an uncontested election (no two candidates are vying for one seat), it can easily be settled by voice vote. Not only do we save time and paper, but there are two additional benefits to doing the elections at this time, this way. First, you, the community, get to meet the parents who have volunteered to represent you and run the OCC next year. Second, holding the election for the OCC board by voice vote at the last community meeting of the year is actually what is called for in our bylaws.

Since we have more time before the elections are held, the nominations period has been extended until the end of the day, May 20th.

You can nominate yourself for a seat on the board by emailing your name, contact information and the seat for which you intend to run to OCC Nominations Committee Chair Claire Taylor at claire_elin_taylor@yahoo.com.

If you wish to submit a paper nomination form, pick one up under the OCC mailboxes outside Ibis Villegas' office at the primary campus, fill it out, and place it in the mailbox slot marked "Nominations Committee". You also may get a form and submit it to Ana Rodriguez in the office at the intermediate campus.

Here are the nominations we have received so far for the OCC board, 2009-2010:

(English-speaking) Co-Chair: Jackie Alvarado (Stephen Kendrick, 3A)
(Spanish-speaking) Co-Chair:
(E) Vice Co-Chair:
(S) Vice Co-Chair: Noemi Eversley, (Elijah Eversley, 5C)
(E) Co-Secretary: Phoebe Schlanger (Henry Logan-Schlanger, 1A)
(S) Co-Secretary: Cristina Faz (Jimena Faz, 1A)
(E) Co-Treasurer: Deon Woods Bell (Moorea Bell, 1B)
(S) Co-Treasurer: Robert Osley (Melanie Osley, KA)

At-Large:

1. David Snead (Marcelle Snead, 7A)
2. Kathryn Vincent (Ariana Paredes-Vincent, 7A; Andres Paredes-Vincent, 3B; Mateo Paredes-Vincent, PK)
3. Frank Johnston (Isabelle Johnston, 3C)
4. Bill Bass (Margaret Bass, 6D; Sarah Bass, 6A; William Bass, 6C)
5. Denise Senecal (Reese Hinkle, 2C)

As you can see, we currently have no nominations yet for Spanish-speaking co-chair, English-speaking vice co-chair, and one of the At-Large seats. Co-chairs serve a two-year term; the rest serve for one year. Please consider serving on the OCC board! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Claire via email, or phone 202/319-0290.

LSRT UPDATES

LSRT Nominations and Elections have been postponed in response to concerns that there was insufficeint communication. We are hopeful that all interested parents will submit a nomination form by May 20th.

Elections will be held on May 27 at both campuses, in the morning and afternoon and during the OCC Community Meeting. For more background information and the nomination form click here. The forms are also available in the front office at each campus.

The LSRT would like to thank the following parents who submitted their nomination forms before the original deadline. Their timely response demonstrates both a commitment to this body and a respect for the school's processes. Their names will be included on the ballot with all new nominees.

Igone Arteagotia:     Spanish/Adams
Leticia Naranjo:      Spansih/Adams
Tatum Byfield:          Spanish/Adams
Jeanette Frett:          English/Adams
Claudia Martin          Spanish/Oyster
Ann-Marie Bairstow English/Oyster

COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD
Postings on this bulletin board are limited to items of interest to the Oyster-Adams community, about free or low-cost products, services or events that support the mission of our school. Please send your notice IN ENGLISH AND IN SPANISH to ana.rodriguez@dc.gov by 4:00 p.m. on Wednesdays.