From the Abernethy Office

You may see a few newsletters coming from me this week. There is a lot happening around this time of the year, and I do not want anything to get lost in any of my communication. For today, I am going to attempt to break all the "things" that you need to know into sections, starting with Teacher Appreciation Week.

This is our week to celebrate our teachers!

Abernethy is so very lucky to have such an amazing staff of teachers who are so dedicated to our students!

Abernethy families,

It is that time of year when we want to hear from you in our Successful Schools Survey. This is an opportunity for you to share information regarding Abernethy, your students in Abernethy as well as your family experience in Abernethy. Please know that as a school, we absolutely appreciate all your feedback as we look over our results and build on your feedback. Your feedback is what helps us become better and ensure that there is not anything that we are missing that we can improve on.

If you click on the link below, you will be able to select Abernethy from the drop-down list. Families with more than one student can respond for their eldest student or take the survey more than once!

The staff and can not believe that it is that time of year when we begin looking at student placements for the next school year. I would like to share with you all that our process of student placement is one that we all take very seriously and put a lot of time and thought behind. However, we do not make class lists with next year's teachers in mind. We focus on building a successful classroom of students. We actually do not attach a teacher to a class list until August and teachers do not know who is assigned to what class until all lists are done and loaded into Synergy.

We would like all feedback around your student and their learning needs, strengths and any other information that would be important. However, please do not share individual teacher requests. We do not honor such requests as we do not look at that information when making our lists. The only information we look at is that of which shares your students learning style, their interests, strengths and possible student support that may be needed. This is information that will help us when making our lists.

Bike Bus will be joined by NakedHeartsPDX and Bike Portland (@bikeportland)-- thank you JEDI group for making this happen!

Abernethy Elementary School Blacktop

Saturday, May 11th

10am - 12pm

Come celebrate with us as we promote fun & safe cycling among kids!

- Mechanic stations staffed with volunteers for tune-ups & advice

- Bike swap area for low-cost community bike exchanges (elementary school size bikes only!)

- A bike rodeo traffic garden with painted streets, stops, and cones for practicing bike skills

follow @abernethybikebus for updates

What to bring:

- Kids bikes that have been sitting around and need a new next rider (that you are willing to give away or sell at low cost; middle school and high school families– looking at you!)

- Kids that need a first bike or may have outgrown/lost their old one

- Kids bikes that need a little love or you have a question about

- Kids with their bikes that either love to ride or need more practice or even more motivation to ride (we’ll have a fun course set up on the black top just for this.

- BYO snacks & water

If your family (or a family you know) needs a kids bike or helmet but cannot afford one, please write to us– we’ll keep your request confidential and will work to find you a no-cost option.

A note on repairs: we’re not a full service bike shop so we’ll be able to do things like pump up tires, lube chain, basic safety checks, bike fit and helmet fit. We do not have a bunch of spare parts and inventory on hand so we’ll send you to your local bike shop for more involved things. Questions? Write us at abernethy-bike-day@googlegroups.com

This is a community event run by volunteer parents and community members who love supporting kids who want to ride bikes. Want to volunteer? Write us at abernethy-bike-day@googlegroups.com

Questions? Suggestions? Contact abernethy-bike-day@googlegroups.com

• May 6th - 10th - Teacher Appreciation Week
• May 6th - 31st - Successful School Survey Window
• May 7th - 2nd Grade Field Trip - OCT 11:00 - 2:00
• May 7th - Hutch Field Trip - 9:00am - 1:00
• May 8th - 5th Grade Fly up to Hosford - 9:30am - 11:00am
• May 14th - Shah Field Trip - 9:00am - 1:00pm
• May 15th - Hosford Family Night - 6:30pm - 8:00pm
• May 16th - PTA Meeting - 6:30pm - 8:00pm
• May 17th - 3rd Grade Field Trip - 9:00am - 2:00pm
• May 17th - Abernethy Carnival
• May 24th - Springgate Field Trip - 9:00am - 2:00pm
• May 24th - 1st Grade Float Parade - 2:15pm
• May 27th - No School - Memorial Day
• May 31st - Bielman Field Trip - 9:00am - 2:00pm
• May 31st - PTA Dance Party - 6:00pm - 8:00pm
• June 5th and 6th - Wonka evening show!
• June 6th - 4th Grade Field trip - 9:00am - 1:30pm
• June 7th - Reflective and Risk-Taker Assembly
• June 11th - Kinder Field Trip - 9:00am - 2:30pm
• June 11th - 1st Grade Field Trip - 10:00am - 1:30pm
• June 12th - Field Day
• June 13th - 5th Grade Promotion
• June 14th - Last Day Of School

In an effort to update, organize and replenish school music resources, Ms. Devicq requested a Ukulele stand that can hold 24 ukuleles, a set of 12 mallets that all K-5th graders use and 2 sets of frame drums to replace the old ones.

A big Thank You to Ms Devicq for recognizing our students’ needs and taking the initiative to enable our kiddos to make beautiful music together.

And thanks to you, the parents, and members of the Abernethy PTA, who help make the funding of these kinds of purchases possible.

With much appreciation,

The Abernethy Mini-Grant Committee

Mark Lawson (Ori – 5th – Hutchison)

Stephanie Engelsman (Sydney – 4th – Eichman; Calliope – 4th – Day; Ida – 3rd – Bielman)

Juliet Grey (Julian – 4th)

Want to help advocate for better school funding for our students? Sign up for a postcard packet below.

WE: provide blank postcards, sample messages, addresses, and postcard stamps (optional/while supplies last).

YOU: write your own constituent feedback to our Oregon legislators and drop the postcards in the mail at your convenience.

You do NOT need to be an active PTA member to participate. All Abernethy families are welcome.

https://forms.gle/Rm9K7P3bmsPr9Kjr8

Thank you!

Abernethy PTA Advocacy Committee