Reed Newsletter • December 10, 2025

Last day to bring Adopt A Family gifts to school (wishlists below)
Monday, December 15

Adopt a Family gift delivery (sign up below)
Tuesday, December 16

Last call for lost & found...
...before it's all donated to charity

Friday, December 19

Winter Break
December 22 - January 2

Staff Development/Teacher Work Day (NO SCHOOL)
Monday, January 5

Students Return to School
Tuesday, January 6

Reed PTA Meeting (no December meeting)
Wednesday, January 14 at 9:00am in Room 10

MLK Holiday (NO SCHOOL)
Monday, January 19

2025-2026 Reed School Calendar

Dear Reed Families,

I hope this newsletter finds you cozying up to your loved ones and your heaters! It has been chilly out there, but the hustle and bustle of learning, playing and all that glitters during this season has kept our spirits on high!

This week, our Kindergarten Raccoons took their annual trip on the San Francisco/Tiburon ferry to decorate and spread some wintery joy for the passengers. Never has a ferry looked so festive! Our paws have also been busy this week as classrooms around campus participated in the Global Hour of Code. Students experimented with a variety of coding skills and practiced the 4 C’s of Tech Ed: Communication, Creativity, Critical Thinking and Collaboration.

Food Drive and Adopt a Family

The spirit of giving has also been on display in our front office these past few weeks. Raccoons dropped off boxes worth of food and gift cards throughout our annual Food Drive and gifts for our district wide Adopt-a-Family program are piling up! Thank you to our Reed PTA for spearheading this heartwarming event and to our families for their incredible kindness and generosity.

After School Pick Up Safety Reminder

If you pick up your child in person after school, please do not wait at the tables near the library. Please meet your child on the playground at their classroom # spot (alongside the field). The breezeway area is very crowded with students heading to carline and Ranch classes, so it’s helpful if the blacktop reunions happen further outside on the blacktop. Just a reminder the school grounds are closed for public play until 3:00pm.

Warmly,

Aubrey O'Connor & Staff

Note From Abby O’Leary, District Visual/Perf. Arts TOSA:

There will be an opening reception at Waypoint Pizza on Wednesday December 10, 5-6pm to celebrate our first district wide community art show of the school year. Individual invitations have been sent to the families of the student artists, and all community members are welcome to attend and enjoy the talents of our young artists from PK-8th grade!

Note From Amy Smith, District Curriculum TOSA :

Students are experiencing math in new and exciting ways through our newly adopted Amplify Desmos Math. This robust curriculum includes Learning Centers. These Learning Centers offer a mix of hands-on activities, games, puzzles, partner work, and digital tools that give students meaningful opportunities to practice and apply the ideas they’re learning in class. By working in different formats, students develop strong conceptual understanding, build fluency, and engage in valuable math conversations with their peers.

While students rotate through centers, teachers use this time to meet with small groups and personalize instruction - whether that means reteaching a concept, challenging students with new problems, or supporting different learning styles. Learning Centers also help students develop independence, collaboration skills, and a positive mindset about math. Overall, they bring energy, engagement, and deeper learning into the classroom.

Note from Meredith Quin-Harkin, District Inclusion Specialist:

This week, we are proud to celebrate Inclusive Schools Week, a time to highlight what it means to make sure every child feels welcomed, valued, and included at school. While we take this special week to shine a light on inclusion, we want to emphasize that belonging, kindness, and acceptance are values we practice every single day in our school community. In our PK–2 classrooms, inclusion looks like:

• inviting others to play
• helping a friend who is struggling
• celebrating our differences
• using kind words
• making sure everyone feels safe and part of the group

Throughout the week, students may listen to stories, have simple classroom conversations, and participate in activities focused on friendship, empathy, and belonging. Here are a few simple ways to continue the conversation with your child.

Thank you for working alongside us to nurture kind, caring, and inclusive students. Your support at home helps our school community feel welcoming and connected for all.

Reed School’s Bowling Alley

Our Multi-Purpose Room has transformed into a bowling alley! For two weeks, 8 lanes of glory, guard rails, and genius homemade ball returns (that operate on gravity and student elbow grease) have turned our Reed Raccoons into bona fide pin-smashers. The disco ball hasn't stopped spinning.

Thanks a million to the volunteer caregivers—you kept the balls rolling and the spirits high. And a big “STRIKE” shout-out to our PE team, Mr. Kaiser and Ms. Sanjeev, for turning our MPR into the most happening spot in town!

Thank you to everyone who has already signed up to purchase a gift for Adopt A Family of Marin! For those who haven’t had a chance to sign up yet, there are still wishes left to be filled:

• Doughnut Family (Herman, Geiger)
• Chewbacca Family (Devoto/Lopez, Fargo, Leinbach)
• Shooting Star Family (Ryan, Ford)
• Frosty Family (Jawor, Hoover)
• Minnie Mouse Family (Morphy, Fafette)
• Polar Bear Family (Swagerty, Vattuone)
• Chocolate Family (Shahan, Easterday, Casey)
• Tinkerbell Family (Ritola, Ott)
• Kangaroo Family (Z. Welch, Davis)

Here’s what you need to do to participate:

- Review the list and purchase the items you wish to contribute.

- Add your child’s name, teacher’s name and your email in columns D, E and F in the wish list.

- Wrap the gifts and label each one with the first name of the parent or child, along with the “family” name (for example: Jane, Hot Chocolate Family)

- Please leave the ‘From’ portion of the label blank.

- Your child can bring the wrapped present to their classroom from Dec 8th - 15th. Larger/heavier items can be dropped off at the front office by a parent, if needed.

- The last day to bring gifts is DECEMBER 15th. We will not be able to deliver any gifts received after that day, so please remember to bring them in on time.

If you have any questions, please contact Liana Johnson (lmrjohnson18@gmail.com) and Leigh Nile (nile.leigh@ gmail.com).

We still need THREE more volunteers to help us deliver the gifts to the Adopt A Family offices in San Rafael on Tuesday December 16th, between 10am and noon. Please sign-up HERE to deliver gifts and help us make this an extra special holiday season!

Tiburon Police Department Holiday Giving Drive

The PTA partners with the Tiburon Police Department every year to fulfill wish lists of local children whose families could use extra help making this holiday season special. Gifts are distributed in our own community, and to preserve the anonymity of the children who receive them, the TPD is asking for cash donations. Contributions go directly to the purchase of gifts on these wish lists. If you’d like to donate, you can send a contribution to the Giving Tree’s Venmo account, created and managed by TPD, at @The-Giving-Tree-TPD.

Did you see RUSD PTA’s Fall 2025 PTA Happenings & Highlights in your inbox?

If you missed it, check it out HERE .

Support Adopt A Family! Check PTA Happenings or your school’s Newsflash for more information and tag @rusdpta when you post photos of your student shopping and/or dropping off presents for Adopt A Family!

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

Appointments
If you need to pick your child up for an appointment, come to the front office and we will call the classroom. We do not pull children ahead of time, so allow extra time for us to find them. As a courtesy to the teacher, please email them so they know your child will be leaving early that day.

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.