Upper School Poster Project

How many of these Upper School kids can you recognize?  Get yours right now!

What's happening behind the scenes with Soiree Planning?

With 6 days til the Online Auction goes live, 

and 14 days til our Oz-themed Soiree, things are moving ahead at full steam!

In the realm of Auction parties,

Thanks to Jill & Angie, there are now 20 compelling parent-hosted and teacher-hosted sign-up events ( a new record ) and whose total potential value is $21,000.

 

Parties include Capture the Flag, Nerf-style with Tim Ogburn, and a soccer and pizza-making party with Coach Michael and Aiai Winoto, 

(plus, Aiai made this gorgeous sign to remind parents to bring a bottle of wine for the Wine Raffle.)

Auction

With Elena's leadership, Marta McLeod, Kelly Marston, Michele Eisenberg and Nisha Mody have brought in all sorts of great items for the auction.

Hank (the Not-Tin-eared Man) took a large gift of premium guitar strings and crafted multiple sale-able lots.

Meanwhile, Sarah Clegg and Tracey Rogers put on their writer's caps to craft witty descriptions of more than 15 themed baskets and the parties.

Gate Sales 

will begin this Tuesday, including Principal for the Day Raffle, headed up by Karen Zukor

 

Live Auction

The courageous lion John Chakan is gearing up for his premier auctioneering gig for BPC, and the slate of items includes such past successes as a Behind-the-Scenes Pixar Tour, a Private Vintner Dinner, and 20 hand-selected, faculty-favorite children's books.

Carla Koren & Neal Parish have stepped up to lead the Auction close-out (accompanied by Cary Whitney on Chromebook).

And though it's his first year with the Extended Day Program, Mr. Mack has stepped up to lead the Childcare.

I'm sure I missed many of you... thank you all for all of your work, named and unnamed, thanked and thankless!

- Evan, Auction Team

Will You Drink Champagne on a Boat?

We busted a few moves to bring you this goofy video.  We guarantee you will be amused and/or amazed!

C'mon, give it up.  Reach out and tell us what this inspired you to do...

email Jill Hughes or Evan Specter

Oh the places you'll find BPC parents!

Look no farther than our own community for these many services!

Got Garden?
1st & 8th grade parent Carly Dennett operates Flowerland on Solano!  This is the time to plant bare root trees, people.

Bonus: on-site coffee bar ( Local 123 ).

Got outdoor furniture?
The Wooden Duck, reclaimed and exotic wood furniture, is an Amy Ferber (7th grade parent) production.

Got Mo-Mo's? 

7th grade family Deepak & Lila Singh make the go-to mo-mos near the center of Solano.

Got an itch to dance?


Hank Maninger (3rd) performs with the swing dance band Stompy Jones

Need a fantastic graphic designer or web designer?  I can personally recommend both Polly Lockman (8th)

and Karen Straus (8th),

who also built BPC's snazzy Digital Annual Report.

Need a Contractor?  Consider Mike Pond (8th) of Berkeley Design Build

Or Matthew Hooven (1st, 8th) of Alhorn Hooven Design Build

Or Ian O'Leary (6th), O'Leary Construction

Or Robert Bell (6th), Belcon Construction

Need an Electrician?

Try Ken Robinson (6th) of William D. White Co. 

or Dave Zhu (7th) of Blue Line Electric

And that barely scratches the surface!

Oh, and if you need help with your company's online presence or search engine marketing, ask me!

wish you were here? do something about it

Aspiring Filmmaker at Home? 5th Annual Bay Area International Children's Film Festival is 1/26-1/27

The Fifth Annual Bay Area International Children's Film Festival ("BAICFF"),
organized by BPC 7th grade parents Lisa Fitzgerald & Don Maszle (of son Carver)
 -- a Playdate for the Imagination -- happens on SATURDAY, JANUARY 26
and SUNDAY, JANUARY 27, 2013.  

Come enjoy live, animated short and feature films for, by and about children.
You can also eat delicious international foods and listen to great music!  

Join us at the beautiful art deco theater, Michaan's Auctions, at 2700 Saratoga
Street in Alameda, California. [MAP]

Doors open at 9:00am and show starts at 10:00am both days.To learn more and to sign up for unique animation workshops, visit BAICFF.com!

Worried Thoughts & Brave Thoughts

From The New York Times:

MOTHERLODE BLOG: How Not to Talk With Children About the Sandy Hook Shooting

Sometimes the question isn't just how to talk to your child about tragedy, but how be certain that you're talking with your children for their sake, and not for yours.

http://nyti.ms/SZ0mmw

Notes from November's Parents' Circle Meeting

On Tuesday evening Parents Circle and other groups met to discuss . . . well, everything!  Some of the most animated discussion was about food, & birthday snacks in particular.  So here goes.

There is no BAN of sugary treats!  There is a move toward healthier snacks at BPC.  John Carlstroem emphasized that there is no official ban on sugar, nor is there a specific policy on what snacks are allowed.  The administration is simply requesting that families be thoughtful about the healthfulness of treats their children bring in for birthdays and other celebrations.  B'day treats were not the only snacks discussed.  There was a lot of discussion regarding the snacks served in after-school and how those snacks can be improved.  In the back-to-school packet we all received earlier in the fall there was mention of the move towards healthier snacks from John Carlstoem:

Being Thoughtful About Treats:

At Black Pine Circle we are proud to model healthy, hearty, and eclectic meal options for our students through our "Nourish You" food service. This year, we'd like to take our commitment to "thoughtful eating" a step further.

Students often want to celebrate a birthday or have a fun Advisory by bringing in a special treat for their classmates and teachers. We've been working with our faculty to create special traditions and routines for birthdays and Advisories that we're enthusiastic about sharing with you this fall, at our Back to School Night.

Increasingly, scientific research is describing the important impact diet has on physical, emotional, and intellectual growth and development. As a school that prides itself on being thoughtful and safe, we also have a responsibility to our students and families who are managing food allergies and/or sensitivities. With this in mind, for the 2012-2013 academic year, we ask that families send in a simple, healthy and easy to serve treat, after arranging the date and timing with the sponsoring teacher. Examples of appropriate treats include fruit kabobs, sliced veggies, cheese & crackers, yogurt, sliced apples etc. For more ideas and or
information about general healthful diets for kids see this resource.

I hope this answers some of the questions that were posed regarding snacks.

The topic of picking up students from their classrooms in the Lower School was also discussed.  Many of you have wondered about this new policy.  It is my understanding that this change was due to safety concerns.  Many teachers felt that they could not keep track of who was picking up whom and that there was too much chaos to keep track of all the students' whereabouts.  It was conveyed to the administration that although some parents like the new policy many feel that the courtyard feels somewhat "sad."  We also heard that kids who dreaded standing in the sun in a line are thrilled!

Arrrr... another topic that generated a lot of conversation was Pirate Day!  Pirate Day has been transformed to Hippie Day!  Bill Webb and Diana Warren are adding their own special touches to a few school celebrations.  For the true diehard Matey's  - September 19 (every year)  is International Talk Like a Pirate Day.  That's all I'm going to say . . . 

For the parents that are missing the school staff picture board - There is a poster in the making that will have the staff and their pictures.  I do not know where it will be posted but it is being worked on now!

One takeaway: even small changes can generate big reactions in our (delightfully) diverse community. As always, the Heads of school emphasized their willingness to discuss concerns individually and in forums like these meetings and Javas with John.  Let's remember to assume goodwill!

[kudos to Michelle Grunfelder (mother of 3rd grader Talia), for composing this summary...]