February Bulletin – 2012

Although slammed by the recent surprise January snowstorm, we boldly stride forward into February and hope for the best!  Events this month include our 5th/6th grades’ amazing, futuristic production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, another Open House for families unable to come because of the snow, and Hillside’s first-ever full-week February winter break.  Please read closely for details; we have changed our calendar significantly to accommodate our recent snow days.

Breaking News:

We are delighted to announce our Summer Discovery Program 2012!

  • Dates:  Four, week-long day camps, from July 9 – August 3, 2012
  • Time: From 9:00 – 4:00 pm daily
  • Open to all youth (not just Hillside students), grades 5 – 9

Hillside’s Summer Discovery Program offers youth, grades 5 – 9, four weeks of opportunities to explore (wilderness near and far), design (theatrical sets), create (sculpture, visual media), cook (delicacies), duel (with sabres), act (on stage), and survive (the outdoors).  Please see our website for details.  Come join the fun!

Come see Hillside’s 5th & 6th Grade Players production of Twelfth Night, set in the 24th Century!

Join us as we travel back to the future for a unique evening celebrating one of Shakespeare’s great comedies.  Our heroine, Viola, finds herself shipwrecked on the planet of Illyria, where her adventures take her, disguised as a man, to the court of the noble Duke Orsino.  Will she ever find her lost twin brother Sebastian?  Will the Duke win the hand of the beauteous Countess Olivia?  Will the Countess’ roguish Uncle Toby amend his drunken ways?  Will Toby con exuberant-but-dim Sir Andrew out of his inheritance? All these questions and more will be answered in our sci-fi version ofTwelfth Night. New February 5th/6th Twelfth Night performance schedule: Sunday, February 12:  Mandatory Dress Rehearsal, 1:00 – 5:30 pm Tuesday, February 14:  Morning Performance, 10:00 am All students arrive at 9:00 am. Wednesday, February 15:  Evening Performance:  $10 ticket 6:30 pm performers’ call 7:30 pm performance Thursday, February 16:  Grades 5-6 only:  NO SCHOOL during school day Evening Performance: $10 ticket 6:30 pm performers’ call 7:30 pm performance Friday, February 17: Grades 5-6 only:NO SCHOOL (Play recovery day)

Out of State Emergency Contact:  Jim Chartier

In the event of an emergency in which cell phone and land lines are down in this region, we ask that parents contact Jim Chartier, Karen’s brother, who lives in Phoenix, Arizona to get messages to us.  His phone numbers are (602) 505-3111 (cell phone) and (602) 953-3856 (landline).  In an emergency or disaster, he will serve as the central hub for communication between Hillside students and staff and our Hillside families.  Please note that between cell phones, texts can often get through when calls cannot; always try both methods on a cell phone if one method does not succeed.

Other February (and March… and April… and May!) Dates:

Monday, February 6: Sign Up Date for Grades 9 – 11, March 5 Conferences

Please contact Leslie Howells at Leslie@hillsidesc.org to make your appointment for the upcoming Monday, March 5, conferences by Monday, February 6.  Conferences begin at 3:30 pm. Every effort is given to accommodate parents’ wishes in scheduling; please contact Leslie early if you need a specific time and she will do her best schedule your conferences accordingly.

Wednesday, February 8:  Animation/Filmmaking Club Make-Up for January 18

With the addition of this Wednesday, February 8, make-up date, Animation Club will run three consecutive Wednesdays2/1, 2/8, and 2/15.

Saturday, February 11:  Open House 1:00 – 3:00 pm

Please help spread the word about our snow make-up Open House to your friends, neighbors and co-workers.  We have our fingers crossed, and are counting on better weather this time!

Saturday, February 11:  Poetry Out Loud

We applaud the performances of all Hillside’s participants in the Poetry Out Loud competition, including Alex Nolan, Matthew Coopersmith, and Paul Pfenning.  Come support Paul Pfenning, Hillside’s representative at the regional poetry recitation competition.  The Puget Sound Regional Finals will be held Saturday, February 11, 2012 at the Tacoma Public Library, 1102 Tacoma Ave S, Tacoma, WA 98402.  Directions to the library can be found here All students, teachers, families, and friends are invited, and there is no charge to attend.  Here is the February 11 schedule for our Regional Final.

Puget Sound Regional Final B

1:00               Students arrive & check in 1:15 – 1:45   Student workshop/ warm up on stage 2:00               Program begins 2:10 – 3:00   Round One 3:00 – 3:10   Short Break 3:10 – 4:00   Second Round 4:00 – 4:30   Presentation of awards, Q&A with participating students Two students will be selected from Puget Sound Regional Final B to participate in the State Final held on Saturday, March 10, 1-5 pm (the National Final is from Sunday to Tuesday, May 13-15, in Washington, D. C.).   For the regional competition, each student must memorize and perform two poems from the Poetry Out Loud anthology.  For more information about this national competition, go to the Poetry Out Loud site .

Monday, February 13: Sign Up Date for Grades 7 – 8, March 13 Conferences

Please contact Leslie Howells at LeslieHowells@hillsidesc.org to make your appointment for the upcoming Monday, March 12, conferences by Monday, February 13.  Conferences begin at 3:30 pm.  Every effort is given to accommodate parents’ wishes in scheduling; please contact Leslie early if you need a specific time and she will do her best to schedule your conferences accordingly.

Thursday, February 16:  Running Start Meeting Cancelled (date change TBA)

Monday, February 20 – Friday, February 24:  Mid-Winter Break

Tuesday, February 28:  Fencing Term II begins: 3:00 – 4:30 pm

Please note:  Extending the date of the drama production two weeks means that Fencing resumes two weeks later.  The new price for Term II is $160 due to the reduced number of classes.

Wednesday, February 29:  Happy Leap Year!

Thursday, March 1:  Informational Meeting for Incoming 7th Grade, 7 – 8:00pm

Monday, March 5:  Grades 9 – 11, Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences

Tuesday, March 6:  Grade 5 & 6 Parent Student Teacher Conferences Cancelled

Please note:  The later date of our Twelfth Night performance, combined with our mid-February week-long winter break, results in our intermediate grade students’ having fewer than two weeks of regular classes before the previously proposed March 6 conference date.  Make-up conferences for the March 6 conference date will be held in early April, TBA.  Parents may contact individual teachers at any time and arrange a meeting if they have specific concerns.

Friday, March 9, Regular School Day

Our Snow Make-Up Days have been changed to regular school days to make             up for the class time lost during our snowstorm.

Monday, March 12:  Grades 7 – 8, Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences

Monday, April 9 – Friday, April 13:  Spring Break

Monday, May 14, Regular School Day

Our Snow Make-Up Days have been changed to regular school days to make-up for the class time lost during our snowstorm.

Monday, May 28:  Memorial Day

Please note additional changes:

Block Calendar Changes:

Thursday, February 2:  Block IIC: 7 – 8 Washington State History 9 – 12 Western Civilization from 1600 Friday, March 2:  Block IIIA: 7 – 8 American Literature and Composition 9 – Art 10 – 11 Biology (Lab) Monday, March 26:  Block IIIB: 7 – 8 General Science 9 – 11 Western Civilization from 1600 Tuesday, April 24:  Block IIIC: 7 – 8 Art 9 – 11 Literary Criticism Wednesday, May 16:  Spring Electives Begin

Happy February!

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