IN THIS ISSUE
PTA Nominating Committee | Wish-Cycling | Girls on the Run | MI Parent Edge | International Night | Talent Show
Volunteer Opportunities | From the Librarian | Counselor's Corner | Thank You |
MISD News | Community Events | MI Activities for Kids |
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| December
23-31 | Winter Break - School closed
January 1-3 | Winter Break - School closed
8 | New Family Coffee
9 | Deadline for nominations to PTA Nominating Committee
14 | MI Parent Edge: Who We Are
17 | Eagle Hop
View Full Calendar |
| PTA Nominating Committee  Do you want to make a big contribution to Island Park? The PTA is seeking 3 candidates for the Nominating Committee responsible for identifying and recruiting the most qualified candidates for the elected PTA positions of President, Treasurer, and Secretary for the 2020-2021 school year.
The members of the Nominating Committee will be voted in at the February 6 General PTA meeting. The Committee will then begin the nominations process of confidential meetings, review of nominations, candidate interviews, and, ultimately, presentation of the slate of candidates to be voted in at the April 23 General PTA meeting.
The Nominating Committee has a tremendous influence on the future of our PTA as they are responsible for identifying and recruiting the best qualified people to step into leadership positions at Island Park. If you are interested in the committee, or would like to nominate someone to serve on this committee, please e-mail Pam Hinnen and Andrea Simpson at president@islandparkpta.org by January 9.
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Don't Wish-Cycle Your Happy Holidays!  The holidays involve family celebration, festive foods, and gift giving. It’s also the time of year where our trash and recycling bins become overflowing. Many of us well-intentioned recyclers put items in our Recycle bins that are not recyclable and instead contaminate recyclable materials. This is called “wish-cycling.†Contamination of recyclable materials is the number one reason China and other countries won’t take our recycling shipments anymore. Wish-cycling also can damage sorting machinery. Watch this helpful video to demonstrate the problems of wish-cycling. Read more on recycling or composting. Here is a list of items that CANNOT go into our curbside recycle bins: - Wrapping paper with shiny FOIL, GLITTER, or TEXTURE.
- Bottle cap and jar lids smaller than 3†diameter. Empty plastic bottles can have plastic caps screwed on tightly (but not soap pump tops). Metal caps and lids smaller than 3†must be tossed in the trash or collected and taken to a metal scrap recycler.
- Plastic bags, plastic film, sandwich baggies, frozen food bags, plastic Amazon packaging. Don’t bag your recyclables. Plastic bags jam the machines. You can collect these single source materials (cut labels off) and take them to the Recology Store or try a service such as Ridwell.
- Styrofoam - take this to the Recology store! We see people putting styrofoam packing in their recycling bins a lot - don’t do it.
- Dirty, food-soiled plastics or paper. Plastic should be empty, clean, and as dry as possible. Food-soiled paper should go in the Yard Waste bin as compost.
Need gift ideas for the student or adult who "already has everything"? Indulge your love of gifts and show our Earth some love in the process. Brought to you by Action Committee for Environmental Sustainability (ACES) and MISD Green Schools Program. |
Girls on the Run Registration opens Friday, January 10  Girls on the Run is back at Island Park this Spring! Girls on the Run is a girl empowerment program that teaches girls important life skills while creatively integrating running and walking. This program is 10 weeks long and is for 3rd-5th grade students who identify as female. The program culminates in a celebratory, non-competitive 5K (3.1 miles) on Sunday, May 17.
Here are details for our Island Park Eagle GOTR team: - SEASON DATES: March 3 - May 19
- DAYS/TIMES: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3:45-5:15 pm
- SITE LIAISON CONTACT INFORMATION: Elizabeth Ohvall, Room 2
- END OF SEASON 5K EVENT: Sunday, May 17 at Renton Memorial Stadium
The team size is 8-15 girls, and a random lottery will be used to select the 15 girls for the team if more than 15 girls apply between January 10 and 24. The last day to sign up, if spots are still available, is March 9. Please learn more about the program on Girls on the Run's website or by e-mailing Elizabeth Ohvall. We hope that your girl will participate! |
Who We Are: Identity, Inclusion, and Allyship Tuesday, January 14 | 7-9 pm | Islander M.S. 
How do we learn about our various group identities? From whom do we learn the meaning of these terms? What messages have we internalized about ourselves and others? Learn how we co-author peers’ identity as well as our own, how the cycle of oppression and cycle of bullying pressure us to reinforce stereotypes, and what we can do as allies to break these cycles and work toward inclusion of all. |
International Night Friday, January 31 | 6-8 pm | IP MPR 
Join us for a trip around the world right here at Island Park! Upon entry, you'll receive a passport for your educational trip across the globe. Be sure to have your passport stamped at each destination to receive a prize. You'll learn about different cultures and traditions while getting to sample delicious international cuisine.
Don't miss this awesome event! Come celebrate our community's rich culture and diversity with your friends and neighbors.
Volunteers needed! Click below to represent a country or to participate as a general event volunteer. Contact enrichment@islandparkpta.org with questions. |
Starry Starry Night Talent Show - Applications available! Thursday, March 12 | 6:30-8:30 pm | IP MPR Applications due Friday, January 24 
We encourage all budding singers, dancers, comedians, musicians, jugglers, gymnasts, and performers with any other amazing talents to audition for this year’s talent show! We are also looking for some Masters of Ceremonies – please come to the audition with a Talent Show welcoming script. Click below to access the application! For questions, contact Co-Leads Susan Hamp or Karen Swift. |
AmazonSmile  Did you know? Every time you shop at Amazon.com, you can also donate to Island Park PTA at the same time! Select "Island Park PTA" as your charity every time when you shop at smile.Amazon.com, and a percentage of your purchase comes back to the Island Park PTA!
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| Library Volunteers
 Interested in getting involved in your child's reading? The library relies on an amazing pool of library volunteers to help out in the library all year long. Many enjoy interacting with their child's class as they come to the library to check out books; others volunteer for special projects or the book fairs. Come enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and help promote reading. No experience necessary. Sign-ups for January available below.
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Eagle Hop Volunteers
 During the second school week of January, all students will be dancing in the MPR to prepare for our upcoming Eagle Hop dance on Friday, January 17, and we'd love your help! To facilitate instruction, we could use 3-4 parent helpers during each kindergarten, first, and second grade dance session. Below are the times we need assistance. Please let your child's classroom teacher or Mrs. Hamp know if you would be able to assist. And if you can assist for more than one day, that would be wonderful! 
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Music Room Volunteers
 Between January 21 through April 3, Mrs. Hamp is seeking volunteers to help 2nd, 3rd, and 5th grade students learn how to play the piano and help 4th grade students learn how to play the recorder. While having music experience is helpful, it is not necessary - ALL volunteers are welcome, highly valued, and encouraged to sign up for multiple spots! Please contact Mrs. Hamp with any questions or for more details. |
Reading Every Day Is Important! 
Kids Who Read 20 Minutes a Day… - Read 1,800,000 more words per year
- Score in the 90th percentile on standardized tests
- Become lifelong READERS
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Dear Island Park families,
Most of you know that I am leaving Island Park in January to take a leadership position with Mercer Island Youth and Family Services at our Luther Burbank outpatient office. Change is often hard, especially when it is in the middle of the year. MIYFS staff are planning on interviewing potential candidates for the Island Park counseling position during the first week in January, and I will work closely with that person to ensure a smooth transition. My current plan is to be at Island Park half time until the new counselor is up and running. This is my 6th year at Island Park, and this community has been my home and where my heart is, so this has definitely not been an easy decision to make. I am incredibly grateful to all of you for the love, respect, and trust that you have all shared with me during our time together, and I am also grateful to still be able to be a peripheral and ongoing part of our school community into the future.
I wish you all a wonderful holiday season and a restful break. In the spirit of taking care of ourselves and our families, I am sharing with you all an article on taking a digital detox with our children.
Be well, be safe.
Warmly, and with much gratitude, Ms. Liana MIYFS counselor at Island Park |
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A special thank you to the parents who helped make a successful Holiday Book Fair! | Dawn Dunn | Sandra Llorin | Cris Patrick | | Ji Young Germack | Annie Mann | Lin Qian | | Melanie Goldstein | Sharmeen Mecklai | Stacey Rhoers | | Meghan Hamill | Kristina Mehas | Tiffany Topol | | Carol Kuo | Naga Bhavana Mude | Kendra Uhler |
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In our recent Student Council food drive, 674 items were donated! Amazing!! Also a shoutout to Catherine Morton and Tessa Baumgarten (and their moms) for helping to load and deliver our donations. |
Mercer Island School District News |
Long-Range Facility Planning Meetings Monday, January 13 | 7-9 pm | Lakeridge E.S. Library Wednesday, January 15 | 6-8 pm | Northwood E.S. Commons
Mercer Island School District is currently undertaking a long-range facility plan to understand comprehensive facility-related needs and explore alternatives to address identified needs over time. The District has assembled a Facility Planning Committee comprised of community members to review these needs and discuss potential planning alternatives.
The District would like to invite input from the broader Island community and will be holding two public outreach meetings where a summary of facility-related needs will be presented.
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iPads Resources 
The Mercer Island School District has a wonderful page of resources to help parents manage iPads at home. While iPads are a powerful learning tool, it is essential for families to set boundaries around the proper use of the iPad at home. As a parent or guardian, you have the final say as to how much your child uses the iPad. In Apple iOS12, the new Screen Time feature lets you know how much time your kids spend on apps, websites, and more. This way, you can make more informed decisions about how they use their devices and set limits if you would like. Click here to access this information and other pages, including digital citizenship, Schoology for parents, and answers to many frequently asked questions. |
| Mercer Island Business Breakfast -NEW!
Thursday, January 23 | 7-8 am | MI Boys & Girls Club Keynote speaker Scott Servais (Manager of the Seattle Mariners). Hear from an inspiring speaker while supporting Mercer Island kids and teens! No charge to attend. Register here. |
The Upstanders: Film + Panel on Bullying - NEW!
Wednesday, January 29 | 7 pm | JCC | $15 The Upstanders explores cyber-bullying, bullying among friends, families, and co-workers, and the brain science behind it all. The film highlights new laws and programs already reducing bullying in schools and shows us how we can learn to make a difference together to create systemic change. The film is appropriate for ages 13 and up. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets. |
| After-School Enrichment at Island Park
MI Girls Lacrosse spring registration - NEW! Click here for more details for 1st-4th grades. Click here for more details for 5th-8th grades.
Northwest Boychoir auditions
For January 2020 enrollment. Click here for more information.
SJCC Winter After-School Classes Thursday, January 9 - Friday, March 20, 2020 Click here for more information and to register.
Animal Tales - NEW! Saturday & Sunday, January 25 & 26, February 1, 7, 8 | 7:30 pm | Theatre 33 Click here for more information and to purchase tickets. Click here for more information. Kids Corps tutoringClick here for the application for new tutees or e-mail for more information. Kidstown at the SJCCClick here for more information.
Mathnasium of Mercer Island Click here for more information.
Mercer Island Martial Arts Click here for more information.
MI Library Study Zone Contact Carrie or call the Library at (206) 236-3537 for more information. Island Park Elementary (IPE) PTA and the Mercer Island School District have neither reviewed nor approved the programs, personnel, activities, or organizations announced in these flyers or websites. The participants agree to protect, indemnify, and hold harmless the District and IPE PTA, including elected and appointed officials, employees, agents, staff, and volunteers, from any and all claims, liabilities, damages, expenses, or rights of action, directly or indirectly attributed to the activities. Permission to distribute this information and/or flyers should not be considered a recommendation of the programs by the school district or by the IPE PTA. These are neither school district nor IPE PTA-sponsored activities. |
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HUGE changes this year!!! Box Tops has gone digital! No more clipping. No more sending baggies of Box Tops to school!! It adds up! To learn more, visit the Box Top$ for Education page.
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