dV Weekly Newsletter, Dragon Tales

Hello da Vinci Families,

We have one busy week ahead before conferences and the Thanksgiving Holiday break. There will be three more chances to support our actors and technicians on the da Vinci stage; after-school affinity group meetings; a Choir Field Trip, a PTSA meeting and pie order pick up; the Lottery window opens; and to cap it off, a Fun for the Arts dance party on Friday at the end of the day. Please read through the newsletter for more information.

There are still quite a few conference meeting slots available. Now is the time to book your appointments if you feel the need to meet with your student's teachers. See all the information below. On Thursday this week at 5 PM, we will freeze the sign up so that teachers can prepare for the long days and consecutive meeting times. Remember, times on Monday are for meetings in person at da Vinci. Times on Tuesday are for virtual meetings on Zoom. Please call the office or email sbryan@pps.net if you need help with the conference site.

Come support our amazing da Vinci actors and techies. We’re putting on two Shakespeare plays, Richard III and Much Ado About Nothing. Much Ado About Nothing is a romantic comedy full of mischief and trickery. Whereas Richard III is jealous and spoiled. He wants to be king of England and uses manipulation and deceit to get his crown. Richard III is full of suspense, betrayal, and murder!

Tickets are $10 (or pay what you will). The outdoor black top will be open for parking!

Here are the SchoolPay links for each show:

November 17th

November 18th

November 19th

Volunteers Needed! If you can help out for one or more of the shows, please sign up HERE. There are slots for backstage supervision and front of house for each show. If you volunteer for a show, you can get two tickets to see the show on a separate night.

On November 18th, all students will be participating in our Young Audiences fundraiser. Our goal is $10,000, which about $23 per student. We know some can give more and some cannot give at this time, but all students will participate in this fun dance party with multiple options to dance, run laps or play games. The monies raised through Young Audiences are an important part of how we enrich our Arts Education program at da Vinci. This is how we cover guest artists including bringing in directors from Portland Playhouse, musical artists to perform at our recent Latin Heritage Assembly, guest choreographers, and more. Talk with your student and make sure they signed up for the space to join. The invitation was sent to their PPS email.

There are two ways you can help with this fundraiser:

1. Give directly on our team page HERE.

2. Help your student set up their own fundraising platfrom and reach out to friends and family beyond our da Vinci community to help us raise funds. HERE is the page to register and set up your own fundraising page that can be shared.

We could also use some extra adult support to supervise the run/walk outside and different event spaces inside. If you can volunteer, please sign up HERE.

We will be on an assembly schedule and students will be in different spaces so please pre-arrange any early dismissals.

Family (parent/guardian/caregiver and student)/Teacher conferences offer an invaluable opportunity to meet and discuss student progress and needs. These conversations are student-centered and we want students to participate. Because conference times are limited, we hope to prioritize families who need this time to connect with teachers. While teachers always enjoy talking with families, if your student is doing well, especially if you already know the teacher from last year, a conference may not be necessary.

Further, we understand our students come from different family structures and may have two households. If this rings true for your family, please work within your family to determine which adult(s) will attend conferences. Please know, unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to offer separate conference slots to families residing in separate homes. Thank you for your understanding.

When: November 21 and 22 from 8:30 AM to 8:30 PM.

Teachers block off their meal breaks in advance and there may be some variation in availability. There are a couple of teachers with spots on alternate days.

Where:

MONDAY CONFERENCES ARE IN PERSON AT DA VINCI IN CLASSROOMS

TUESDAY CONFERENCES ARE ON ZOOM - NOTE THE LINK ON THE CONFIRMATION EMAIL.

As is typical, each conference slot is 10 minutes. These are scheduled without any transition time so it is imperative to start and end promptly. These slots usually do fill up so if you miss your time for any reason, we will not be able to accommodate schedule changes.

How to Sign up: If you feel a conference would be helpful, please use this site to pick times to meet with your child’s teachers.

• Take only one slot per teacher per child for year-long classes, or semester Art classes. Coordinate with other adults to share the time or divide the meetings.

• Teachers do not offer conferences for quarter-term electives, e.g., term dance/PE fitness, health, or the quarter of art or AVID. These appointments will be removed if you accidentally schedule one.

The conference schedule website is now live. It will be locked at 5 PM on Thursday, November 17th so teachers can prepare.

Sign up on MyConference Time:

https://www.myconferencetime.com/davinci/

> Register for multiple time slots

> Select the number of students you have

> Pick the teachers you need to meet with

> Enter your names and email address

> Pick a day that works best for you

> Select times and sign up

> Look for a confirmation email from Myconferencetime with the link for the Zoom meeting. You will also get a reminder two days in advance. If you need any help, contact sbryan@pps.net.

How to join Zoom, video tips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgBBO-rbZ00&feature=youtu.be

• Download Zoom in advance and become familiar with joining a meeting if you are not already.

• There will be a waiting room for the teacher to let you in when it’s your time. Make sure your Zoom account name is recognizable.

• You can use your student’s PPS Zoom account or a personal one.

• If multiple people plan to join the meeting, make sure to let the teacher know to admit other participants.

Prepare for the meeting:

ASK- How is my student’s participation?

Share- what’s working/not working.

What do we need to know about your student?

How can we help your student to be successful?

• 11/16- All-City Sing Choir Field Trip to Cleveland HS
• 11/16- PTSA Meeting, 6 PM in the cafeteria or on Zoom, more PTSA dates below
• 11/17 & 18- Fall Festival of Shakespeare shows at 6:30 PM
• 11/18- Fun for the Arts, Fundraiser/Dance Party
• 11/19- Fall Festival of Shakespeare, 2:00 PM Matinee
• 11/21 & 22- Conferences, no classes for students, sign up now
• 11/23 - 25- Thanksgiving Holiday Vacation, no school

The lottery to apply for PPS Focus Option schools, middle and high school grades, opens this Tuesday and closes on December 16th. For those with 5th graders, you must apply through the lottery for da Vinci admission.

For our current 8th graders, this is the time to apply if you are interested in a spot at Benson, MLC or the Jefferson High School - Middle College for Advanced Studies.

8th grade families that reside in a dual assignment area will be asked to choose between attending the Jefferson Middle College Program and their neighborhood comprehensive high school.

See the PPS Enrollment and Transfer page for more information and our Counseling website for more information about the high school transition for our 8th graders.

The Poinsettia and Pie sales were a success and the PTSA appreciates all of the support for our students and teachers! We raised $1,168 for the poinsettias and $760 for the pies. Thank you da Vinci Community!

Reminder: Key dates for pie and poinsettias pickups
Pie pick up will be on November 16th and 17th from 3:00-4:00.
Poinsettias can be picked up on November 29th and 30th from 3:00-4:00.

The da Vinci Arts Fair is Saturday, December 3rd from 10am – 2pm!

Arts Fair student applications are open NOW and have been extended until Tuesday, November 15th!

We know there are more da Vinci student Artists in the school that want to participate in the Arts Fair so don’t forget to sign up! The student applications to be a vendor for the Arts Fair is a great opportunity for students to sell their ART or CRAFT, make some money AND give back to the school!

How do students participate?

· Sign up with this link LINK by Nov 15th.
- Think about what you want to sell.
- Make some art or craft!
- Attend an info session at lunch in November. Dates TBD.
- Save the date; Dec 3rd to be at da Vinci from 9:30-2:45.
- Alumni who are still enrolled in high school can also participate (spread the word!).

Student agreements-

· Students must stay for the entire time (9:30-2:45).
- Students will collect and track their own sales. 30% of their sales will go to the da Vinci PTSA and students earn 70% of their sales.
- Each student will be provided a 3 ft by 3 ft table space to display artwork. Please think about how to display your work. You can restock your tabletop throughout the event.
- Students will be paid within 30 days of the event

Student Vendor Questions- Please email Michelle Chachka at mchachka@pps.net.

For general Arts Fair questions, please email davinciartsfairlove@gmail.com. Please note student PPS emails do not send out of network, so emailing from a non PPS email is best. Thanks!

YES – you can volunteer and we NEED you for the da Vinci Arts Fair!

There are lots of volunteer opportunities to help out with the da Vinci Arts Fair so please consider signing up. Even if you only have an hour….we appreciate your time and support for our community! The Arts Fair key needs are setting up on Friday afternoon, set up and breakdown on Saturday, sell Concessions, sell DV swag and day of volunteers to help make the Arts Fair a safe and fun event for everyone involved.

Please click HERE to sign up.

Flower Sales for the Play

Purchase flowers Saturday, November 19th before the performance and during intermission. Cash and Cards will be accepted.

Holiday Give BottleDrop program

Between November 15th and December 1st, BottleDrop will be matching 20% to all our filled blue bags with recyclable cans and bottles during their special Holiday Give program. Get your blue Bottle Drop bags at school or pick some at pie pickup days on November 17th and 18th, fill them with all your returnable cans and bottles and take them to one of the many BottleDrop Centers or bring them to da Vinci on the special dropoff days. See flyer for more information.

Dine for da Vinci

Our next Dine for da Vinci is on Thursday, December 8th for lunch and dinner at Pambiche. 15% of their net sales will go to da Vinci. Support our school and a da Vinci family owned business.

The next da Vinci PTSA meeting is THIS week on Wednesday, November 16th from 6:00 – 7:30 both in person in the da Vinci Cafeteria and on Zoom and you can RSVP HERE. Please join us for the meeting and this year dinner is provided for the in person meeting, so please RSVP TODAY and join us so we can build our community and support our teachers and students. To connect to the PTSA meeting via Zoom, please click HERE.

If you have any feedback or suggestions for our next PTSA meeting on Wednesday, please email davinciptsa.president@gmail.com.

Brrr- it's getting cold. Wondering where your student's coat went? It could be in our lost and found. Here is a sample of the growing collection of jackets, water bottles and lunch boxes, now located in the cafeteria. Encourage your students to go look and bring their items home. Also, parents and guardians are welcome to come in at pickup time and take a look. This would also be a great time to check your students locker and help them take home any unnecessary items. Unclaimed items will be donated before winter break.

Unfortunately, the Fire Marshall does not permit us to have microwaves in the cafeteria for student use. Please do not send lunches that require a microwave to heat food. Thank you.

Please see the following instructions for setting up your own account to track assignments and monitor progress. If you have multiple children in PPS, you can set up one account and then add additional students with a separate code for each student.