Montera Middle School eBulletin
October 8, 2023
Important Dates
This Week's Block Schedule: __B - A* - AB
*NOTE: This Wednesday is an A Day again because of the Monday holiday.
Monday October 9: Indigenous Peoples Day (No School)
Tuesday October 11: Donations Matched on DONORS CHOOSE!
Thursday October 12, 6:00 - 7:00pm: (Board Only - Join the Board Here)
Friday October 13, 4:30 - 7:30pm: Life After High School Workshop
Thursday October 19, 6:00 - 7:00pm: PTO Community Meeting - All Are Invited! JOIN via Zoom
Friday October 20 - Monday October 23: Cazadero Jumpstart Weekend (Band)
Sunday October 22:
- 10am - 1:30pm: Montera Volunteer Workday
- 11am - 4pm: Oakland Museum Dia de los Muertos celebration
Monday October 23: OAL Golf Tournament Fundraiser
Tuesday October 24: Chipotle (Lakeshore) Dine Out Fundraiser
Thursday October 26: Picture Day
Friday October 27: Picture Day
Saturday October 28, 2-5pm: Fall Fest
Sunday October 29: 11am - 2pm: Zero Waste Party with PlanetMC
Friday November 3: End of 2nd Marking Period
Action Items
- Donate to TEACHER PROJECTS on OCT 11
- Volunteer at Fall Fest
- Volunteer at Montera Volunteer Workday
- Contribute to Montera Annual Fund 100% Participation Drive
- Donate to 8th Grade Trip Scholarship Fund
- Sign up for 8th grade DC Trip
Let's get these projects FUNDED!
DONORS CHOOSE MATCHING DAY IS OCTOBER 11
Donations are welcome any day, but on OCTOBER 11 your donation will be MATCHED! Mark your calendar and check out some of the projects listed by our fabulous Montera teachers. Let's get these projects funded!
- Electronic Tuners for Musicians Mr. Worrall: Playing IN TUNE is a critical part of playing instrumental music. Please help my classes learn to tune their instruments by funding a class set of electronic tuners. These tuners will benefit hundreds of students in both guitar classes as well as in band class for use with wind instruments to check intonation.
- Artistic Supplies Ms. Mabel: Our classroom will needs some basic supplies so that we can do every activity that my assistant teachers and I would like to do with the 80 students we support from the start of the school day to 3 hours after school ends. We spend a lot of time with these scholars who need both academic and emotional support.
- Outdoor Education Sun Protection Mr. Ford: My students possess remarkable qualities of creativity, curiosity, and diligence. However, they face additional challenges due to climate change and lack necessary resources to thrive in this unprecedented moment. The canopies requested will counter hardships such as overexposure to the heat and sun due to the effects of climate change. My students require access to crucial resources to succeed during this unprecedented time.
- Scroll Saws for Marquetry Boxes and Spoons Mr. Runge: Please help me get four new scroll saws for my classroom so that my students can make great projects without having to worry about the old scroll saws we have breaking down on them. I have amazing students in my woodshop classes. They make projects you wouldn't think middle school students--with no experience using tools of any kind--could make. The projects require a good-quality scroll saw to cut intricate shapes. Ours are getting old, blowing internal fuses, and not working well.
Montera Annual Fund
We've reached 35% of our goal! Thank you for helping us raise $35,000 so far. Let's keep it up!
Here are a few of the many programs that the Montera PTO supports.
- $500 per teacher to spend on classroom materials.
- Funding to purchase clay and maintain the kiln for the ceramics program.
- Stipends for teacher-led lunchtime activities, such as Climate Justice and Cooking Clubs.
Invest in Your Children — Invest in Montera
We are asking families to give what they can. Suggested donation is $450 per student. Donations range from $10-$2,000.
- Make a one-time or monthly donation online via PayPal
- To donate offline, download this form and submit to Montera by mail or drop it off in the school office.
Upcoming Events
Montera Volunteer Work Day
Our next Montera Volunteer Workday is coming up! Add this to your calendar and come on out to beautify our school's garden and ground. Bonus - make connections with Montera teachers, parents, and students! We welcome and encourage all members of the Toro community to join us on our volunteer work days.
2023 Remaining Volunteer Work Days:
Sunday, October 22, 10 - 1:30 pm
Sunday, November 12, 10 - 1:30 pm
Questions, comments, and RSVP to gardens@monterapto.com
Montera Art at Oakland Museum Dia de los Muertos Celebration
Tickets for the Oakland Museum's Dia de los Muertos celebration are now open!
DATE: October 22nd 11am - 4pm.
Come see Montera student artworks, along with the Black Girls Brilliance / Bret Harte Middle School collaborative ofrenda. Children 12 and under are FREE with advance reservations: https://museumca.org/event/dia-de-los-muertos-2023/
Dine Out Fundraiser: Chipotle
Tuesday October 24
Fall Fest - Volunteers Needed!
We need volunteers! Fall Fest is happening soon, it's a little more than a month away! Planning is well underway. Assistance is needed with event planning and preparation. There are still several spots available to help. Sign up here to volunteer.
Mark your calendars! Fall Fest is on October 28 from 2-5 pm. Questions or suggestions can be sent to fallfest@monterapto.com.
School Information
Report Cards Available on Aeries!
PTO Community Meeting - Save the Date
All Montera community members are invited to the PTO Community Meeting hosted on Zoom.
DATE: Thursday October 19
TIME: 6-7pm
LOCATION: Zoom
Agenda items:
8th Grade Activities Kick-Off
Update from Dr. Williams
Q&A
MORE TBD!
Seeking: Your Trash to Recycle (for Art!)
Ms. Recco's art students would love to recycle some of your trash!
Here are some things we are always in need of:
- newspapers
- magazines (especially sports, cars, boy-leaning interests)
- used bubble mailers and padded envelopes
- bubble wrap
We are also in search of:
- an old hair dryer
- an old blender
- an old iron!
8th Grade Activities
8th Grade DC Trip Scholarship Fund
Help us meet our goal! We’re raising money for 8th grade student DC trip scholarships. We have a goal of $20,000 so that we can assist several students participate in this life changing opportunity.
Please help if you can. Every donation makes a difference! DONATE TODAY.
Montera Sports
TORO SPORTS NEWS:
- Football: Toros win again Edna Brewer! Check out photos below.
- Volleyball: The girls JV volleyball team is undefeated. They are really beginning to bump-set-spike! Their serving is fierce! Check out photos below.
Come out and cheer on our Toro Athletes: OUSD MIDDLE SCHOOL GAME SCHEDULE
DONATE: Step up to the plate and help make Montera Sports a whopping success! DONATE NOW!
Meet Montera
Mr. Leo Knudtson (he/him)
Position: Science Teacher
What do the students call you?
Mr. Knudtson
What do you like best about the Montera Community?
Incredible teachers and admin. Coming into public school teaching for the first time last year I felt taken care of and like I always had a resource to go to when I was struggling or confused. I grew more last year in my teaching practice than I had the last 7 years of teaching.
What is one memory you have from when YOU were in middle school?
I went on a school trip to Yosemite and it was an eye opening experience in terms of experiencing awe in nature and autonomy in my community of friends and teachers.
What is something you do for fun outside of school?
Right now, I am really enjoying to "first" things with my 4 year old son and partner. The cable cars and Chinatown in SF, we went on a plane for the first time over the summer. It's amazing to see him experience things for the first time, and the awe and excitement he has is contagious. I love camping, basketball, electronic/ambient and folk/country music, all books by Ursula Le Guin, and eating/making really yummy food like Egg Tarts, a good cheeseburger, pizza, pastries, pho noodle soup and making fruit smoothies as a family.
What are you looking forward to this school year?
I am looking forward to, fingers crossed, clearing my credential. I am also looking forward to building relationships with students and families, going to Montera sports events and events through the Nature Journaling course I am teaching and the new Climate Justice club.
Toro Pics
Did you take photos at a Montera event or just when walking on campus? Are you a teacher who got some great shots of your students at work? Send them to ebulletin@monterapto.com and we'll feature them in the eBulletin and on the Montera website! Click here to see photos of our amazing Toros.
These and many more opportunities are available to our Montera community, OUSD, and beyond. Items appear in the eBulletin for 2 weeks. Please click here for the full list of current programs.
Let's Help Mr. Cooper Run a 250 Mile Footrace for BORP!
Help me in supporting Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program (BORP) for the 2024 Cocodona 250!
Hey folks! Anyone who knows me knows what a huge role sports and fitness play in my life. Sports are a powerful way to connect with others, to challenge and learn about ourselves and to feel accomplished in addition to all the health benefits they provide. I’m a firm believer that everyone deserves the opportunity to access these pursuits!
Donating to BORP helps provides adaptive sports for “disabled” youth and veterans who may otherwise not have those same opportunities for self discovery.
Please consider donating because every little bit helps!
Oakland Promise Life After High School Workshop
Oakland Promise is excited to host our first in person Life After High School Workshop. This workshop is intended for students from 8th-12 grade and is meant to give students a look at what options exist after high school and how those options will affect them in the future.
We will focus on post secondary options, career pathways, and financial literacy. This is all meant to give students a deeper understanding of the responsibilities of being an adult so that they may be more motivated to prepare for their future. This workshop will be on October 13, 2023 from 4:30pm-7:30pm in person at our office 484 9th St Oakland, Ca 94607. There will be food, engaging activities and a raffle with prizes (one of those prizes is a 32 inch smart TV).
Sign up using this link or the QR code on the flyer.
In Community,
The College Access Team
Zero Waste Party at Chabot Space and Science Center w/School of Rap
Join our very own Planet MC (aka Mr. D) at Chabot Science Center for the Zero Waste Party!
DATE: Sunday October 29
TIME: 11am - 2pm
LOCATION: Chabot Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland
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Thanks to Our Sponsors
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Montera Middle School
eBulletin is produced on a weekly basis by the Montera Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) except on holidays. It sometimes contains ads from our sponsors and/or services from the community. These advertisements do not imply endorsement of any product or service by OUSD or Montera Middle School.
If you have news you'd like to include, please send it to communications@monterapto.com by 5pm on Friday. Submissions may be edited for spelling, grammar, brevity and clarity. In addition, while we strive for accuracy, being human sometimes gets in the way. If you spot something so off the mark we should hang our heads in embarrassment, please bring it to our attention. Thanks!
We Are Montera. We Are One.
Email: communications@monterapto.com
Website: https://www.ousd.org/montera
Location: 5555 Ascot Drive, Oakland, CA, USA
Phone: (510) 531-6070
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/monterapto
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monteratoros/