SES Messenger

Hello Sunnyside Families,

Our Back to School Night is right around the corner, September 19th. We are hoping to see many families there. The schedule is as follows.

5:30-6:00 PM TAG MEETING AUDITORIUM

K - 5

6:00 - 6:45 K5 Overview in Auditorium with Families

6:50 - 7:45 K5 Families join teachers in classrooms

Middle School

6:00 - 6:30: Families in Core classes

6:35 - 7:00: 6th Grade Families to Room 212

6:35 - 7:00: 7th Grade Families to Room 213

6:35 -7:00: 8th Grade Families to Room 206

7:05 - 7:45: ALL MS Families to Auditorium

We know that you are receiving monetary requests from the school office, from your teachers and from the PTSA's Back to School Ask and also understand that it can all become a bit confusing. Together these various funds work to cover all the necessary bases to fulfill Sunnyside's mission and ensure art, music, gardening, and place-based learning is possible year-round. We wish that we never had to ask you for anything, but please know that our programs work because of your generous donations. Thank you a million times over for being dedicated to Sunnyside.

This week Becca and Aaron's class visited the Audubon Society, Sarah and Mary Gage took a tour of the Eastbank Esplanade, and Carrie's class journeyed to OMSI. These trips are only possible with your generous donations and your help. Please continue to sign up to volunteer to chaperone. We need you!

Looking forward to seeing you next week.

Enjoy a late summer weekend of glorious sun.

Eryn & Melodie

• View the full SES calendar here.

• Tues, Sept 19 & Wed, Sept 20 - School Picture Days.

• Tues, Sept 19, 6:00pm - 8:00pm - Back to School Night

• Fri, Sept 29 - Walk/Run/Move Fundraiser. Details to come.

• Oct 1st - Oct 6th - 6th Grade Outdoor School

• Fri, Oct 13th - In Service day. NO SCHOOL

• Sat, Oct 21st - HARVEST FAIR

From the Library

It's OBOB Time! Oregon Battle of the Books registration is now open at Sunnyside for grades 3-5 and 6-8. Not sure what OBOB is? See our quick facts on the SES Library Page! No team yet? No problem, register and mark that you need help finding a team! Ready to register? Click this link!

Upcoming Author Visits!

We are so excited to be welcoming TWO authors to SES this fall!

Jorge Cham will be here on October 11th for 3-7 talking about his new book Oliver's Great Big Universe. Preorder a book for Jorge to sign for your student heret! Preorder cutoff date is October 5th.

Charise Mericle Harper will be visiting with K-3 on October 23rd to talk about her new book I Cannot Draw A Bicycle. Preorder a book for Charise to sign for your student here. Preorder cutoff date is October 10th

Both of these fantastic authors are visiting our school for free so please help support them with a book purchase for your student!

As we are starting off the year I am noticing a few supplies that could use a refresh.

I am doing a fabric collage project and am in need of scissors that can cut fabric. I am happy for pre-loved or new link scissors. If you have any fabric scraps you want to get rid of please send them our way.

For this project tacky glue would work better than the Elmers we already have. link

The kinders used our tempera paint sticks this week and we discovered many were running low. link

Also if you are interested in volunteering in the Art Room please send me an email ccorwin@pps.net.

Sending positivity,

Indigo

Jeremy, Sarah Conley, Mary Gage, and Robin still need Class Family Reps to support them with administrative bits & pieces this year. It’s a great way to get to know your class community, and you’ll have a co-CFR (and a whole community on Konstella) to support you! Please contact Emily Lillywhite, CFR Coordinator (via Konstella or emilylillywhite@gmail.com) to sign up or ask questions. Thank you!

Back To School Asks Checklist ✔
We are now at $11,000 - nearly half way to our goal of $23,500 for our Back to School Ask Campaign! And though that is exciting news, we still have a long way to go to reach our goal by the end of September! If you haven’t yet, please contribute at the best level for your family right HERE. (It’s tax deductible!) These funds are critical to our overall budget for the Garden program, art & music, and the place-based learning field studies that make SES the unique place it is. Where exactly does the money go? Read more here. Without your help, these programs will not exist for our students.

Parent Checklist
We know there are so many requests, so we made this handy checklist! Please complete all that apply to you by the end of the month:

__ PTSA Back To School Campaign Donation GIVE HERE

__ Join the Parent Community on Konstella REGISTER HERE
__ MS Field Study Chaperones (Open to ALL, not just MS Parents) SIGN UP HERE

__ School Supply & Snack Fund for Classrooms:

• Kindergarten PAY HERE

• 1st and 2nd grade PAY HERE

• 3rd grade PAY HERE

• 4th grade PAY HERE

• 5th grade PAY HERE

• Middle School PAY HERE

Lastly, if you missed our PTSA meeting, you can check out the Meeting Minutes here to stay informed. Next meeting is Wednesday, October 18.

Steph & Heather

Co-Presidents PTSA

Presented by SES Foundation x NW Dance Project

Let’s move!! After taking a year off, it’s time we sprint, shuffle, shimmy, stretch and sweat our way around this school to raise some serious funds. We will walk, run, or dance to earn “move points” in this peer-to-peer fundraiser. And: adults can participate, too. This event seeks to raise $20,000 for SES - so get ready to share this far and wide!

PLEASE VOLUNTEER - IT’S FUN! Claim a job HERE (50+ JOBS STILL OPEN).

SCHEDULE
Fundraising Begins - Thursday, September 21
Brochures come home with students and fundraising begins!

Walk Run Move Event - Friday, September 29
K-2 at 9:00 a.m., 3-5 at 9:45 a.m., 6-8 at 10:30 a.m.

Fundraising Ends - Thursday, October 5
Last day to turn in the $$$ and brochures for chances to win prizes!

Do you know a company that wants to sponsor our event? Or donate post-race snacks to the kids or prizes? Contact Sara Nielsen (sara@skywolfmamawellness.com) or Steph Barnhart (stephbarnhart1@gmail.com)

School Pictures are next week! Tuesday the 19th and Wednesday the 20th. Students should wear whatever makes them feel true to themselves and totally comfortable. A link to Mugsy Clicks (our photo partner) is sent home after photo days to place orders. We still need a few more adult helpers - volunteer here.

Schedule -

Tuesday, September 19th - Michael, Aaron, Mary Gage, Sarah, Monica, Carrie, Levia, Robin and Asa

Wednesday, September 20th - Allye, Logan, Eric, Frances, Michelle, Tiffany, Jeremy, Becca, Heather (2nd) and Heather (5th).

Do you have extra legos to spare? We are hoping for a donation of legos for our sensory space. Please reach out to our school secretary, Jenny Thomas to arrange.

Registration opens Sept 20th for SES Original Fall Musical

It’s haaaaaapening!!!! You’ve heard about it in past emails. But, now the time to register is almost here. 60 spots are available for the cast (grades 1 - 5) and 15 spots are available for the middle school crew (see note on middle school crew below). All of the available spots are first-come-first-serve (students beyond the max will be placed on a waitlist).

NOTE ON MIDDLE SCHOOL CREW: In order to be part of the official crew you must be able to attend both regular practice days each week. There will be an opportunity for those who can’t commit to both days but still want to help at a later date. If you are not available for all practices, but want to help with sets & costumes when you can we will email those who filled out the interest form when needed.

If your kid is interested please review the cast and crew information document where you can check out the costs, schedule, adult staff/lead volunteer info, student expectations, and current rehearsal plans. In order to participate as a cast member your student should be able to commit to the rules and expectations listed here.

To receive an email and/or text message notification a few minutes BEFORE registration opens (6pm on Wednesday, September 20th) please add your info HERE. Otherwise, at 6pm on September 20th, you may navigate to THIS Registration Form (bookmark it now) when it opens for entries. In order to fully complete the registration process, look-out for an email from fundraising@sesptsa.org with a payment link or scholarship information.

Musical Info:

Join Mo & company for a brand new musical about Intergalactic Extravaganzas and Space Things (actual content yet to be determined). Mo will lead students (2nd-5th) in script and song writing activities to create a fully original, collaboratively developed musical. 1st-5th graders will be cast and practice together culminating in 3 performances the first week of December. SES Middle schoolers will run tech, help with design, set and costume creation, and even do some scene direction.

Practice days will be Mondays and Thursdays from 3pm-5pm, October 2nd - December 2nd, with a tech week Nov 27th - Dec 1st. Cost on a sliding scale, $100-$250. If your student wants to participate, but cost is a barrier, scholarships of up to 100% will be available.

This process is magic, creatively inspirational and SO MUCH FUN. Join us!

Attention SES Volunteers! Please ensure you have followed all required steps for PPS Volunteers, including a training video, safety protocols and background check (good for 3 years) before your volunteer service begins. Info at: www.pps.net/volunteer

Our middle school classes travel every Thursday. These trips cannot happen without the support of chaperones. Please sign up to help!

• Aaron Long's core class [Year of the Forest]
• Becca Hawk's core class [Year of the Forest]
• Carrie McCoy's core class [Year of the Ocean]
• Mary Gage Davis's core class [Year of the River]
• Michael Jansa's core class [Year of the Mountain]
• Robin Godoy's core class [Year of the Mountin]
• Sarah Conley's core class [Year of the River]

In addition to the above, we maintain an emergency chaperone list for middle school teachers. As an emergency chaperone volunteer, you’ll get to know other students, adults and teachers, all while saving the day for a Middle School teacher—you don’t even need to have a middle school student to volunteer. If you’re willing to join the ranks of chaperone superheroes, please complete this form.

Looking for help with carpooling to and from Sunnyside? We’ve got the place for you! Join the Carpool Connection social group on Konstella, or contact Kindergarten parent Cara Zeisloft at carazeisloft@gmail.com.

With the new school year around the corner, it's a great time to enroll in or renew your family’s health coverage.

Enrolling in Health Insurance

• PPS families who need help in getting health insurance can get free help in many languages to apply for Oregon Health Plan (OHP) or other coverage.

• You may now qualify for OHP, even if you didn’t previously. As of July 1, 2023, Healthier Oregon allows people of any age or immigration status who meet income and other criteria to qualify for full OHP benefits.

Renewing Oregon Health Plan (OHP) Coverage

• Keep your address up-to-date.

• Keep checking the mail for your renewal letters.

• Get free help in many languages.

Join your classmates and walk, run, scooter, or bike to school every Wednesday! Walk or roll on your own, with your friends and neighbors, or by joining a Bike Bus.

Bike Buses meet at 8:20, roll out at 8:25, every Wednesday morning from these meeting spots (you can join in anywhere along the way to school).

SE 26th and Pine

SE 23rd and Salmon

SE 41st & Lincoln, continuing to 41st & Taylor (meet at either spot)

Kids should have a safe working bike and a helmet. Each route will be led by an experienced parent. Kids can join on their own, or parents can join too. There is space to lock up bikes at school- BYO lock.

If you'd like to get involved or get updates on Bike Bus/ Walk and Roll Wednesdays, please email 2nd grade parent Alida Cantor alidacantor@gmail.com.

• PPS: Pre-Kindergarten [NEW]
  

• Multnomah County Free Community Vaccination Clinic: English | Spanish [NEW]
  

• Kaiser Permanente CASCADIA COVID-19 screening study: English | Spanish | Russian | Somali | Chinese | Vietnamese [NEW]

• Sign up to chaperone Middle School field study [NEW]

• Apply for Free/Reduced Meals - NEW Oregon expanded income guidelines

• Sign up to support Christina at lunch

• SES current volunteer needs

• Konstella - One stop shop for parent information (PTSA)

• 2023-2024 Back to School Ask

• SES attendance form: English | Español

• Sunnyside School Page

• SES PTSA website | After school activities at SES

• SchoolPay | SchoolCafé

• Communicable disease protocol - aka when should I keep my child home from school?

• MESD head lice resources and information