February 5, 2025

#ReedKindness Valentine's Craft Project

February 3 - 14

Safe Routes to School Have a Heart Challenge

February 3 - 14

1st Grade Music Performance
Wednesday, February 12 at 8:30am

Reed PTA Meeting in Room 17 at 9:15am
Wednesday, February 12

Mid-Winter Break (NO SCHOOL)
February 17 - 21

Staff Development Day (NO SCHOOL)
Monday, March 17

Reed School Book Fair
March 24 - 27

Book Fair Family Night
Wednesday, March 26 from 4:00 - 6:30pm

2024-2025 Reed School Calendar

Dear Reed Families and Caregivers,

Last week’s Great Kindness Challenge was a HUGE success! Acts of kindness in all forms were shared and expressed throughout the campus. Students shared friendly signals with one another, created beautiful cards and letters for classmates and staff, and Ms. Fargo & Ms. López’s classes shared a recording of themselves reading a beautiful book about kindness to the entire student body during Community Time. Reed Raccoons really know that Kindness Matters!

Today we celebrated the 100th Day of School and on Friday we will celebrate Global School Playday (read below for more information) . Next week we look forward to our 1st Grade Music performance and Valentine’s Day. To share a bit of extra kindness on Valentine’s Day, our Reed PTA is sponsoring our #REEDKINDNESS Valentine Activity. Be sure to read below. Lots of events happening at Reed to share and express kindness! More information on each of these events will be coming home to you from your child’s teacher.   

Our next school newsletter will be sent after the winter break, so on behalf of the entire Reed Team, I wish everyone a wonderful Presidents’ Day holiday and Mid-Winter break. 

Warmly,
Mary Niesyn & Staff

100th Day of School
Hard to believe, but today we celebrated the 100th day of school. Throughout the day, students participated in a variety of classroom lessons and activities exploring the theme of 100. 

Reed School Global Play Day • February 7
On Friday, Reed School will participate in Global School Play Day. Throughout the day, students and staff will engage in various hands-on, interactive activities that provide opportunities for students to practice the 4 Cs in Learning: communication, creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking in the context of interactive play.

#ReedKindness Valentine Project
Thanks to the support of our thoughtful PTA, Reed Raccoons have been busy creating beautiful Valentine cards for the residents of Aegis Living in Corte Madera. These beautiful handmade cards will be delivered on Friday, February 14th.. Way to go Reed Raccoons—what a great way to spread kindness with others! 

Specialist Corner: Music Note from Ms. Balfe

In music class, students have been exploring winter themes like cold and snowy weather through singing, instruments, and dance, and stories. We have been celebrating the Lunar New Year with the song "Gong Xi, Gong Xi," learning how to bow while saying or singing "Gong Xi Ni" and playing cymbals and gongs. 

In other news, 1st graders have been preparing for their upcoming performance, "A Friend Like You" featuring a variety of songs, dances, recorded student voices and art. This special 1st grade performance takes place on Feb. 12th in Reed's MPR at 8:30 and all 1st grade families are invited. The students and I are looking forward to seeing you then! 

Warm Coat Drive - Thank You!
Thanks to this generous community, we donated 95 warm coats (50 adult coats and 45 kids coats) to Holy Family Day in San Francisco!

A special thank you to Shannon Everley and Summer Singh for leading our first Warm Coat Drive and dropping off all of our donations!

Book Fair Volunteers Needed

The Reed Book Fair is coming up March 24th-27th with Family Night on Wednesday, March 26th from 4:00-6:30pm. We're looking for volunteers to serve as cashiers throughout the week and food servers on Family Night. Shifts have been shortened this year to make it easier for parents to get involved. It's a ton of fun to work at the book fair! Please sign up here .

Reed Staff Appreciation Valentine’s Treat Bar

We will show Reed staff our appreciation this Valentine’s Day by hosting a Valentine's Treat Bar! Please sign up to contribute a Valentine's Day treat for our wonderful Reed teachers, specialists, and staff!

#ReedKindness Valentine’s Craft Project

Reed PTA is spreading #reedkindness by sponsoring a special Valentine’s craft project for all Reed students to work on in class over the next few weeks. Reed Students will make Valentines for the residents of Aegis Living, a local senior assisted living community.

If you have any questions about this project or have other suggestions on how to spread #reedkindness, please contact Rachel Berman ( rachelberman13@gmail.com)

Safe Routes to School

February 3-14 will be our Have a Heart Challenge. Teachers will count the number of students who walk, ride, bus, or carpool each day during those two weeks. The classroom with the most walkers or riders will win a popsicle party!

We need volunteers to help hand out materials and prizes - please sign up here!

New Year Volunteer Opportunities

Recess Coordinator - partner with Mr. Kaiser to recruit parent volunteers for recess on Fridays. This volunteer role requires that you are at Reed each Friday to organize games for the students. If you're interested or want to learn more, please contact Michelle Thomsen, PTA Site Chair, at mmsmith8@yahoo.com.

Reed's Staff Appreciation Team is looking for a few more volunteers! This is a great opportunity to meet other Reed parents and show appreciation for our wonderful Reed teachers, specialists, aides and staff. If you're interested or want to learn more, please contact Michelle Thomsen, PTA Site Chair, at mmsmith8@yahoo.com

2024-2025 Yearbooks

Yearbooks just went on sale in the New Year! Reserve your child’s yearbook today!

Note: if you received an email from Dorian last week with a link to purchase yearbooks, please ignore it – all Reed School yearbook sales are through the SchoolPay link above. Please contact Jennifer Schmidt (jenniferjschmidt@gmail.com) or Bobbi Kezirian Kleinbrodt (bobbi.kezirian@gmail.com) with any questions or concerns.

New Reed Spirit Wear!

Stay warm with our adorable Reed Beanie and rock bedtime in style with Raccoon PJs! Show off your school spirit while supporting the PTA—proceeds go towards student enrichment.

On sale at the front gate on Tuesday 2/11 after dropoff and Friday 2/14 after dropoff and before pickup!

Lost & Found

If you are missing a favorite jacket, sweatshirt or water bottle, please check the lost and found today or contact Alina Zyakun (alinazyakun.tca@gmail.com) before these items are donated at the end of the month.

A big PTYay to our Reed Adopt-A-Family Co-Chairs, Leigh Nile and Liana Johnson. Liana and Leigh did an amazing job bringing the Reed School community together during the winter holidays. They coordinated the family wishlists, communication with room parents, and recruitment of gift drop-off volunteers. In total, 347 gifts were purchased for 9 families in Marin. Thanks to generous parents like Liana, Leigh, and all of our PTA volunteers, the RUSD PTA can continue its mission to enrich the lives of our children and the school community.

✨ Your School Needs You! PTA Positions Open ✨

Looking for a meaningful way to support your child’s school? Consider stepping into a PTA leadership role! These positions are 2-year terms, giving you time to make a real impact. No special skills needed—just a passion for helping our schools and students thrive!  More details to follow.

Reporting a Reed School Absence 

All students are expected to attend school on a consistent and on-time basis. If your child is going to be tardy, absent, or leave school early for any reason, please be sure to email OR call and notify the office:

reedattendance@reedschools.org

(415) 435-7840  extension #1

Please Provide the Following Information:

• First and last name of your child
• Your relationship to the child
• Teacher's name
• The reason for the absence or tardy

RUSD Mission & Vision: Each student will be challenged and inspired to reach their fullest intellectual, social-emotional and creative potential to positively impact the world.