

Ocean Avenue Friday Notes
May 24, 2024

NO SCHOOL ~ MEMORIAL DAY ~ MAY 27TH
Mark Your Calendar!
- 5/27: Memorial Day (NO SCHOOL)
- 5/28: Kindergarten Screening Day at OAES, 8 AM-2 PM
- 5/28: Fifth Grade Parent/Guardian Night at King Middle School, 5:30-6:30 PM
- 5/30: Community Meeting in Gym, 8 AM
- 6/1: Ocean Avenue PTO Spring Fair at Ocean Avenue School, 2-4 PM
- 6/4: Fifth Grade Step Up Event to Middle Schools, 11 AM-1:30 PM
- 6/4: Fifth Grade Parent/Guardian Night at Lyman Moore Middle School, 6-7:30 PM
- 6/5: School's Out for Summer PTO Free Community Event at Bunker Brewing, 5-8 PM
- 6/6: Fun Run, 8-9:15 AM, with 6/7 Rain Date
- 6/7: Fifth Grade vs. Staff Basketball Game
- 6/7: Portland Sea Dogs Ocean Avenue Night, 6 PM game start, but arrive by 5 PM to join the pre-game parade around the field starting at 5:15 PM!
- 6/10: Step Up Event for Grades K-4
- 6/11: PTO Meeting in the Library, 5:30 PM
- 6/13: Fifth Grade Celebration, 1 PM
- 6/14: Last Day of School, 11:10 AM Dismissal (Egg Drop Begins at 9 AM!)
CLICK HERE for the complete Calendar of Events through June.
Afterschool Programming End Dates
- LEARNING WORKS: Last Day - May 23rd
- RIPPLEFFECT: Last Day - May 30th
- JEWISH COMMUNITY ALLIANCE: Last Day - June 7th
- BOYS & GIRLS CLUB: Last Day - June 7th (Open for summer programming starting June 24th). PLEASE NOTE: There will be an information and registration night for summer programming for families on Thursday, May 30 at 6 PM. Interpreters will be present to assist!
- CENTERPOINT MARTIAL ARTS: Last Day - June 12th
- MAINE OUTDOOR KIDS: Last Day - June 13th
- BREAKWATER: Last Day - June 13th
- PORTLAND RECREATION: Last Day - June 13th
COME JOIN US FOR OCEAN AVENUE'S ALL SCHOOL FUN RUN!
WHEN: June 6th ~ 8-9:15 AM (Rain Date: June 7th)
WHERE: OAES Campus
Please come and join us for this exciting event where all students will be participating in a fun run.
Students have been practicing running around the school loop during Gym class with Mr. Pedro and are excited to be running with their classmates!
Each grade level will be assigned a specific time to run starting with K and working our way up to 5th grade. We are inviting families and friends to come cheer them on and enjoy a great way to celebrate a wonderful school year. Parents/guardians are also welcome to run with their child(ren).
We hope to see you there!
Growing Our IB School Garden:
We All APPRECIATE a Garden
Where We REFLECT on
Our Beautiful Shared World!
Happy May, Ocean Ave Gardeners and Garden Appreciators!
Our IB school garden is waking up! Making it happen is the loving help of our garden-cherishing students at recess, donations from our community friends, and the expert hands and knowledge of our master gardener parent, Sarah Marshall. Take a look!
THE GARDEN REQUESTS YOUR HELP, PLEASE!
- In the next couple of weeks, you may receive a Summer Garden Volunteers sign up form from the PTO, either in next week’s Friday Newsletter or other means. We are looking for families or individuals who are able and willing to help water and care for the garden over the summer, for one or more weeks of care. Please look out for it and consider helping OAES keep our garden alive and beautiful!
Our garden is being planted for the summer/fall harvest and enjoyment. If anyone has "overextended" with their home garden plantings, WE ARE LOOKING FOR CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE FOLLOWING SEEDLINGS: Marigolds, Sweet Alyssum, and also Cucumber and Peppers.
Anyone with leftover seedlings that you would like to donate to the Ocean Ave Garden, we can collect them Weds 5/29 and Fri 6/1. Please contact Patty Sprague at spragp@portlandschools.org to confirm your contribution, and we will have a cart outside the front office for your seedlings.
Thank you so much, and see you in the Garden!!
Principal's Notes
What Are the Important End of Year Rituals at Ocean Avenue Elementary School?
We have some fun end of year activities and rituals at Ocean Avenue to wrap up another successful school year. Here is what you can expect for the end of the year for our students.
June 6th Brings This Year’s Fun Run (Rain Date: June 7th). Each year our students run up to a mile during this activity. We start in the playground, and students run around the school. Parents are able to come to this event, if they wish. We do need volunteers to be stationed around the school to support. The kindergarten students start at 8 AM, followed by the first graders, and so on to fifth grade.
June 10th, Starting at 1:15 PM, is Our Step-Up Day for Grades K-4. Students get to visit the next grade teachers. For example, first grade students get to meet the second grade teachers, who will share some of what they have to look forward to next year. Students also have a chance to ask questions.
June 13th is our Fifth Grade Promotion Celebration at 1 PM. This is a student run event, and a very special time.
Families coming to the event may dismiss any younger siblings at OAES to attend. This usually lasts 45 minutes.
At the end, we ask that our audience exits towards the playground. Our dismissal starts at 2 PM, which means many students will be walking with their teachers out front to buses or parent pick up. If there are about 150 people added to the energy out front, then it is a lot harder for teachers to keep track of their 20+ students. Thanks for your help with this!
We do not use tickets, nor is there a limit on numbers of guests for each student for this event.
The morning of June 14th is not only the last day of school -- it is also our annual Egg Drop! If you have recycling that students can use to build the container for the egg, please send/bring it into school. All students are making their contraptions here at school. There are some rules, which will be enforced this year for the safety of the staff on the roof, and the group below. Here are the rules:
All parts of the egg container (including fasteners, tape, any parachute, etc.), must be no larger than 12 inches high, 12 inches deep and 12 inches wide. Please do NOT send in balloons to build the contraptions. It gets too unsafe on the rooftop.
Your egg container can be any shape or design that you want, so long as it is within the size and weight limitations. It must be designed in such a way that it can be dropped in any orientation – upside down, right side up or sideways.
Containers can be created by an individual student or a team of up to three (3) students.
Have fun, and celebrate with classmates. If your egg cracks, please celebrate this as well, because you learned something for next year!
Assistant Principal's Notes
Helping Your Child Build Social Skills and Friendships
Building and maintaining friendships is an important part of every child's life. However, understanding how to be a good friend and managing the inevitable problems that may arise are skills that need to be developed. It takes time, guidance, and practice.
Below are a few things you can do to support your child as they navigate friendships and build their skills.
- Talk about what it means to be a friend.
- Read books about friendship.
- Practice friendly character traits (taking turns, being considerate, sharing, etc.)
- Try not to overreact to age-appropriate behavior. For example, it's not unusual for young children to struggle to take turns with their favorite toys. Disagreements will happen, try to use them as teaching opportunities.
Finally, it's always helpful to remember that kids learn a lot by watching others in their lives so try to model the qualities of being a good friend and enjoy time with your friends!
Library Notes
Our Students Love to READ!
Nothing warms a librarian's heart more than catching kids reading in beautiful places. On these gorgeous days, bring the book love outside (carefully), find a cozy spot and stay cool reading in the shade.
Keep an eye out for more information on summer reading coming soon!
Maine Mariners' Summer Reading Program
The Maine Mariners’ Summer Reading Program, Read with ME, is back for the 2024 summer! This is a free reading program for kids 12 and under to participate in. Upon completion, the participants of the Read with ME program will receive 1 ticket to the Mariners Reading Day game (date TBD), 1 child ticket voucher to be used at any home game during the 24-25 season, a Read with ME bookmark, and 1 drink coupon from Aroma Joes. The registration form is live now for parents to sign their children up and the tracking form will be live on May 27. Registration link.
Other Notes
In Memoriam
The Portland Public Schools family extends deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of James (Jimmy) Neales IV, 59, who passed away unexpectedly on April 29. Mr. Neales, who attended the Portland Public Schools and graduated from Portland High School in 1983, was passionate about working with children and teaching them arts and crafts. He expressed that passion in his work with many PPS students in his job as a recreation programmer with the Portland Parks and Recreation Department, where he was employed for the past 26 years, most recently at Ocean Avenue School, where he worked in the afterschool program and was a lunch/recess aide. The James Neales Scholarship Fund has been established in his honor, for which donations are being accepted. Read Mr. Neales' obituary.
🍓 SAVE THE DATE: Scooping for Community ~ Wednesday, June 5th!
All day on Wednesday, June 5th, the Locker Project will be the beneficiary of Scooping for Community at Gelato Fiasco in the Old Port. When customers tell the cashier they are there to support our child hunger programs, 75% of their purchases will be donated!
📚 Book Bash in Back Cove ~ Saturday, June 15th!
On Saturday, June 15th, at 11 am, Back Cove Books at 651 Forest Avenue in Portland, will be hosting a book launch with local art teacher Dorson Plourde, author of Garbage Gulls. A portion of sales from the event will support the Locker Project summer programs.
June is Pride Month ~ Join PPS in the Pride Portland! Parade on Saturday, June 15th at 1 PM
Pride month is a time to recognize and celebrate the contributions of LGBTQIA+ people. It is also an opportunity for the Portland Public Schools to reiterate that PPS supports people for all of the awesome aspects of their identity. One opportunity is by joining PPS colleagues, students and families in participating in the Pride Portland! parade on Saturday, June 15th, 2024 starting at 1 PM at Monument Square in Portland. The parade line-up is at 12 PM. Look for the yellow school bus. All staff and students are invited to ride or march alongside and represent their schools in the parade!
Learn more at the Pride Portland! website.
Ocean Avenue Spring Fair! Saturday, June 1
Saturday, June 1 from 2 PM to 4 PM
FREE FOR ALL! Bring family and friends! Lots of fun activities including Bouncy House - Glitter Tattoo Artists - Martial Arts Demo - Hot Dogs - Shave Ice + MORE!
School's Out For Summer Celebration! Free OAES event! Wednesday, June 5
Wednesday, June 5 @ Bunker Brewing, 5 PM to 8 PM
You're invited to celebrate the end of the 2023-2024 school year! This event is open to all OAES families. Have you ever played Musingo? Where bingo meets all your favorite music? It's music, it's a game, it's FUN!
Amato's Pizza - Music Bingo Games - Prizes!
Portland Sea Dogs Ocean Ave Night! Friday, June 7
Experience an evening of excitement with the Ocean Avenue Elementary School on Friday, June 7th at Hadlock Field! Cheer on the home team as the Portland Sea Dogs transform into the Maine Whoopie Pies and battle against the Akron RubberDucks. The game kicks off at 6:00 PM, but make sure to arrive by 5:00 PM to join the special pre-game parade around the field starting at 5:15 PM. It's the perfect outing for families, friends, and baseball enthusiasts alike. Don't miss out on this thrilling community event. Get your tickets today!
Buy tickets here by May 31: https://fevo-enterprise.com/event/Oceanave7
PTO Monthly Meeting: Tuesday, June 11 at 5:30 PM
You're invited to join other parents, guardians, teachers and staff for the next monthly meeting of Ocean Avenue's Parent Teacher Organization! Each meeting takes place in the school library on the second Tuesday of the month at 5:30 PM. Come for an update from our principal and stay for as long as you'd like.
We are looking for parents who are interested in filling a vacant role on our PTO board for the next school year so please attend or email board@oapto.org if you are interested!