UPCOMING EVENTS TODAY: Last day to order See's Candies and preorder yearbooks! 3/16 Ortega Beautification Work Day, 10AM - noon 3/18 - 3/24 Ortega's Read-A-Thon: Week 3! 3/29 Spirit Day - Sports Madness 4/8 - 4/12 Spring Recess - NO SCHOOL
All Wednesdays are Minimum Days (1:35 PM dismissal time) |
|
|
Hi Ortega Families, If you would like to order some See's Candies or preorder a yearbook, today is the deadline for both! Paper order forms to order See's Candies are due in the main office by 3:00 PM and the See's Candies online store will close at 11:59 PM. If you submitted a paper order form, your order will be ready for pick up in the front office the week of March 25th. Exact date to follow. Today is also the last day to preorder a yearbook for a price of $45. Orders need to be in by 3:00 PM on March 15th to get this pre-order price! Once the deadline passes, yearbooks will be $50. Preorder your yearbooks today! If you find yourself with a little free time tomorrow morning (Saturday, March16th), come help beautify the Ortega campus from 10AM–noon. We'll focus on weeding the front Native Plants circle and spreading millions of coastal wildflower seeds. Imagine what Ortega will look like soon! And now for some immense gratitude to our wonderful Ortega Community for volunteering your time and energy to support the school! THANK YOU to everyone who volunteered to solicit businesses for the auction. Everyone should have received their list via the email they used in the signup genius. Please reach out to fundraising@ortegapto.org if you have not received anything or if you have questions. And finally, a huge round of applause to our Variety Show performers, backstage crew, and announcers. Students were treated to a show during the day last Friday and families were delighted to see the performances that evening. Activities like this aren't possible without the help of volunteers. Huge thanks to: Monika Dresner (coordinator) Bevan & Christine Bell (sound system & music coordination) Erik Schramm (sound and lighting) Christina Redfield (backstage coordinator) Brenda Melton (programs) Larry DeMartini (t-shirts) Amazing show and practice volunteers: Veronica Balistreri, Heather Beutler, Jessica Daughtery, Marian Gallagher, Michelle Gray, Denise Gristi, Jimmy Hart, Amanda Jones, Leah Lepotre, Erin Levardo, Courtney Liu, Laura Murray, Sheila Newsome, Macy Samson, Christina Stewart, and Kate Webb. Special thanks to Ortega Staff: Gina Arguello, Jenny Gadwah, Tiffany Hanna, and Lily Hart.
If you are interested, the Community News section includes flyers on many events/activities including nominating your favorite school teacher/staff for a chance to win Luna Rising services, ThinkBridge Summer Camp 2024, 4-H Family Movie Night, Shake Your Tail, Save a Whale event by Pacifica Beach Coalition, SPARC Poetry's Anarchy Slam (show on 3/29), and SMCOE's Sustainability and Climate Ready Schools Challenge (deadline 3/22). Scroll down to check them out! If there is something you would like to include in the newsletter, please email it to communications@ortegapto.org by Thursday at noon. |
|
|
Your Otter Town News this week: |
|
|
Ortega News Ortega's Read-A-Thon Junior Olympics
Ortega Community On-Site After School Programs |
|
PSD & PEF News Community News SPARC Poetry: Anarchy Slam SMCOE Schools Challenge HIP Housing 4-H Family Movie Night Luna Rising Teacher Appreciation ThinkBridge Summer Camp Pacifica Beach Coalition: Earth Day 2024, "Shake Your Tail, Save a Whale" Kids Active Running Camp Got a fun community event?
|
|
|
For inclusion in OTN, send an email to: communications@ortegapto.org |
|
|
Ortega's Read-A-Thon: Week 2! |
|
|
Congratulations to our Week 1 Read-A-Thon raffle winners! Among the 160 students that submitted minutes in Week 1, there were 15 Golden Poets, 33 Silver Playwrights, and 67 Copper Novelist. Let's keep up the momentum by reading even more in Week 2! There are 2 more chances to win the Reading Minutes Prizes. All students are eligible to participate in the Read-A-Thon raffles by reading the minimum number of minutes every day and submitting their minutes by the following Monday. Week 2 minutes should be submitted here by March 18th! 25% of the funds earned from Read-A-Thon will go towards funding our school library. Did you know that the Ortega library receives zero ($0.00) dollars from the Pacifica School District! The library is funded by the Scholastic Book Fairs and the PTO. If your child has ever come home talking about Ortega's "otter-ific" library, please consider donating or reaching out to your network for donations. You can donate by searching for your student's name here or using the link sent to your personal email. |
|
|
We are off to a great start in our fundraising! Ortega has raised over $11,000. These funds are so important to the funding of our PTO. Next year your PTO will be expected to fund more than ever! Let's see how many students we can get to Ms. Hall's After-School Pizza Party with Delectable Desserts! Keep Reading, Ortega! |
|
|
Join Ortega's Junior Olympics Team! |
|
|
Training for the Junior Olympics started today! Ortega practices are held on Friday mornings from 7:45-8:15 AM starting on March 8th through May 3rd. Practices will take place on the TK-2 yard. |
|
|
All Ortega students born 2010-2017 are invited to join. No running experience is required. This is a great time to try something new and set personal goals! The cost of Junior Olympics is FREE! Because this is a free community event, the coaches are volunteers. We will need to have extra supervision/volunteer coaches so please let us know if you can help out. For more information or to sign up, check out the flyer. Students cannot practice without a signed form. Hard copies will also be available in the main office. Please contact coaches Cortney Liu (cortney.m.liu@gmail.com) or Karen Stevenson (kstevenson@pacificasd.org) with any questions. |
|
|
Volunteer to be a Drop-Off Attendant! |
|
|
We have heard from a number of families that the parking lot at morning drop off is a little bit like the wild, wild West with the car lines extending down Terra Nova Blvd. What seems to make this better is (a) drop-off attendants to help expedite kids exiting from vehicles, (b) having your students and their belongings ready to exit, and (c) following the parking lot rules! We need your help with all of these things to ensure that drop-off goes quickly, safely, and smoothly. Please help us out by doing (b) and (c) above. And if you have a few minutes to spare, we'd love some help with (a) too. Come around 8:15 AM and join us for drop-off duty and open car doors for our Otters! You would be much appreciated! Sign up here. |
|
|
Volunteering Opportunities - Help Needed! |
|
|
We are always looking for volunteers to help with drop-off, popsicle sales, and popcorn Fridays! If we want to keep the drop-off line moving smoothly, and continue to offer popsicles and popcorn sales, we need more volunteers!! Jobs are of various duration. Click the appropriate link below for more detailed information on each job and to sign up! |
|
|
| | Help direct traffic, open car doors, and assist students. We need helpers each morning, 8:10-8:40. | | |
|
| | Popsicles are sold every Wednesday. It's a really cool way to volunteer for about 45 minutes. | | |
|
| | We plan to sell popcorn Friday once a month. Volunteer to be a pop star! | | |
|
|
We have a new stock of t-shirts (with options of v-neck and crew neck for adults) and zip-up sweatshirts in youth and adult sizes. Come get it while supplies last! Items can be purchased through the school office during business hours, or look for our table at school events. Cash, credit/debit, or checks made payable to the Ortega PTO are accepted. Check out our webpage for more information! The sale of Ortega Spirit Wear goes to support PTO-funded programs and various other activities throughout the year. |
|
|
These fundraisers run throughout the year and you can join them at any point. Click on the flyers to link to the website directly. |
|
|
Do you have a small business? If you are interested in partnering with the Ortega PTO email fundraising@ortegapto.org. |
|
|
Summary of Programs Offered We strive to ensure that all of the posted information is accurate, but things sometimes change. Please check with each program to verify the specifics (dates, times, prices, etc), and to see when the class does not meet. Click on title for registration links. **Junior Chef: $390 (2/5 - 5/6; no class 2/19, 3/11, 4/8, 4/29) TK/K: Mondays, 12:30-2:15 PM, Science Room **Start the Art: $250 for TK/K (1/30 - 4/23; no class 2/20, 3/12, 4/9) $200 for Grades 1-3 (1/19 - 4/26; no class: 2/16, 2/23, 3/15, 4/5, 4/12) Grades TK/K: Tuesdays, 12:30-2:00 PM, Art Room Grades 1-3: Thursdays, 2:35-3:35 PM, Art Room Click on Start the Art flyer below to sign up. Links are provided there. **Mad Science: $265 (before 1/30)/ $295 (2/6 - 4/30; no class 2/20, 3/12, 4/9) Grades 1-3; Tuesdays, 2:40-3:40 PM, Art Room **Itty Biggie Kickers Indoor Soccer: $200 (2/13 - 4/23; no class 2/20, 3/12, 4/9) Grades 1-5: Tuesdays, 2:35-3:55 PM, MPR **Spindrift, Hip Hop: $430 (1/10 - 5/29, no class 2/21, 4/10) TK/K: Wednesdays, 12:30-1:30 PM, Portable 40 Grades 1-3: Wednesdays, 1:35-2:35 PM, MPR **Code Fu: $330 (2/7 - 5/1; no class 2/21, 4/10) TK/K: Wednesdays, 12:30-1:30 PM, Art Room Grades 1-5: Wednesdays, 1:35-2:35 PM, Art Room **Poetry Slam: $175 (1/24 - 5/29; no class 2/21, 4/10) Grades 4-5: Wednesdays, 1:35-2:55 PM, Science Room **Chess Wizards: $250 (2/29 - 5/16; no class 3/14, 4/11) Grades 1-5: Thursdays, 2:35-3:55 PM, Library (Grades 1-3 have a 20 minute break as they wait for Grades 4-5 to be dismissed) **PlayWell Legos: $264 (2/8 - 5/23; no class 2/22, 3/14, 4/11) Grades TK/K: Thursdays, 12:30-2:00 PM, Science Room Grades 1-3: Fridays, 2:35-4:00 PM, Science Room **Spindrift, Ukulele: $387 (1/12 - 5/31; no class 2/23, 4/5, 4/12) Grades 4-5: Fridays, 2:55-3:55 PM, Portable 40 |
|
|
Want more information about our ASEP classes at Ortega? Go to our After School Activities page on the Ortega PTO website! |
|
|
School meals are FREE again this year for all students. |
|
|
Pacifica School District Calendar |
|
|
The Pacifica Education Foundation is an organization that supports students and their teachers in every school and every classroom in the Pacifica School District. We fund programs that foster creativity, collaboration and critical thinking. We have implemented 21st Century Learning programs throughout the Pacifica School District. Our current focus is on elementary music programs, middle school band, SPARC Poetry, STEAM programs, and distance learning initiatives. Please consider making a donation so we can continue to provide programs to enrich the lives of our students. (Click flyer below to enlarge.) |
|
|
Click on the flyer to enlarge or link to site. |
|
|
Would you like to contribute to the Otter Town News? Email Chris Stuart, PTO Communications Secretary, at communications@ortegapto.org. |
|
|
|
|