Dear Robert H. Down School Community,
Many thanks to those of you who volunteered this week to make Kindness Week an engaging and fun one for our students this week. A special shout out to Mrs. Sonda Frudden, our wonderful Counselor, and Ms. Cameryn Shoemaker, our fabulous Counseling Intern, who facilitated the various lunchtime activities for our students this week and helped design the entryway art in celebration of Kindness Week!
Also, one additional thank you goes to Gemma Peterson for also supporting the Book Night last week! My apologies for the inadvertent omission!
Ready, set....the Book Fair is almost here! Check out the Book Fair website for details, get a preview, set up your eWallet, and sign up to volunteer! Help us meet our goal of selling 1000 books!
Order your Robert Down 2024-2025 Yearbooks now! In addition, ads are also available for purchase. For details and the QR code to order, see below or click here.
TK/K Pre-Registration: Do you or does someone you know have a child that is turning 4 by September 1, 2025? Or do you or does someone you know have a child that did not attend TK, but is ready for Kindergarten in the Fall? If so, it’s time to pre-register here.
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A Special Addition to the Otter Times Edition!
Editors’ Note: Robert Down families received the Otter Times newsletter this week, but it was missing a very special article. Second-grader Nadav Helfont submitted his article for the Otter Times before the deadline but, due to an editor’s oversight, it was unintentionally omitted. We will be sure to include it in next year’s edition, but we didn’t want him or his readers to have to wait that long! We sincerely apologize, Nadav! Thank you for understanding and thank you for your article about Chanukkah!
The Meaning of Chanukkah
By Nadav Helfont, 2nd Grade
A long time ago, there were warriors called the Maccabees. They hid from a Greek army and fought a war against a Greek king. His army was big and strong, but the Maccabees won. They had a party to celebrate the victory. They needed to light a candle, but they could only use oil. They only had a little bit of oil left. When they used it, a miracle happened. It lasted for eight days.
Jews celebrate the miracle by lighting a menorah. A menorah is a holder for candles. We light it on Chanukkah, which is the Jewish festival of lights. We eat latkes and sufganiyot, which are Hebrew words for potato pancakes and stuffed doughnuts. We eat them because they are cooked in oil. We also play a game called dreidel.
Chanukkah is fun!
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Culture of “We”- Opportunities for Engagement
Book Fair: Our PTA will be hosting a Book Fair on site the week of February 24-28. We are in need of a few more volunteers! Please sign up here.
RHD Traffic Safety Subcommittee: Are you interested in joining a group of parents to coordinate and develop ideas on how to make the streets around RHD safer for our students and families? If so, please sign up here! Many thanks to those who have already signed up!
Spelling Bee: Are you available to volunteer as a Spelling Bee corrector on Monday, March 3 or Tuesday, March 11 at 3:30PM? If interested, please sign up here. Thank you to those who have signed up already!
Music: Is your family from another country or culture? Do you have a favorite childhood song? If so, our music teacher, Mr. Masar is interested in learning more about it. Take a moment to share the name and background of your favorite childhood song here.
Our community partner BLAAC is hosting a series of black cultural events in celebration of Black History Month. The Gospel Choir performance they hosted last weekend was fun! Feel free to check out their events here!
Safety Updates
Drop Off Zone on Pine Avenue: Please keep in mind that the area in front of our school on Pine Avenue has a 3 minute limit during school drop off. To keep traffic flowing, please consider remaining in the car while your child is dropped off. If you plan to park for a longer period of time, please be sure to park across the street or farther down Pine Avenue. Thank you.
Upcoming Dates
February: Black History Month
February 14-21, 2025: Presidents’ Holiday- NO SCHOOL
February 24-28, 2025: Book Fair
February 25, 2025: ELAC at 2:30PM
February 25, 2025: School Site Council at 3:30PM
Wishing each of you a Happy Valentine’s Day and a wonderful February Break!
Sincerely,
Emily Tsai Brownfield, Principal
Did you know that you can report your child's absence with your ParentVUE app? Simply log into your ParentVUE account to send the office a message about why your child is absent.
* Ways to report a student absent *
a) ParentVUE app
b) 24 Hour Absence Line (831) 646-6663
c) Email Annie Deis at adeis@pgusd.org
If you plan on being a VOLUNTEER on campus or a CHAPERONE for a field trip, please be sure you are fingerprint cleared with our district. To make an appointment at the District Office please contact Bree Nehring by calling 607-8892 or emailing bnehring@pgusd.org
Before coming to campus to volunteer, please check with your child's teacher to schedule a time that works best for them.
This notice is to tell you about our voluntary program designed to build the RHD library and foster your child’s love of reading.
Here is how it works: To join the Robert H. Down Birthday Book Club fill out the information below (scroll way down to the bottom of this message to print the Birthday Book forms) and deposit it in the Drop Box at school along with a check for $20.00 (please make the check payable to the P.G.U.S.D. and write R.H.D. Birthday Book on the memo line).
When your child’s birthday month comes around Ms. Scanlon will present a new book in honor of your child’s birthday. Your child will be the first one to check out and read the book that has been donated to the library to celebrate their birthday. A bookplate with your child’s name will be affixed to the inside cover for all future readers to appreciate.
Robert Down Elementary School
Website: https://robertdown.pgusd.org/
Location: 485 Pine Avenue, Pacific Grove, CA, USA
Phone: (831) 646-6540
Email: RHDOffice@pgusd.org
