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Wednesday - November 16, 2011


From the School

Message from Lee

A number of parents have asked if there is a way to help support Chandra Christmas-Rouse ’12 after the recent death of her father. Information about a college fund in Chandra’s name that has been established by friends of her family is available on the Parent Portal.
There will be no classes this Friday, November 18, due to 9th Grade Parent/Teacher conferences, and no school on Wednesday, November 23, through Friday, November 25 for Thanksgiving Break.
Any medical forms that need to be filled out by teachers should be given to Jasmin Whitfield, School Nurse. Forms that need to be filled out by teachers for psychoeducational testing should be given to Michelle Schneck, Learning Support Coordinator. Materials required for students who may be transferring to another school should be given to Mamadou Gueye, Academic Dean. This will allow us to best coordinate support for your child.
Collection today will be "Making Sense of a Fast-Changing China: A Roundtable on Historians as Bloggers and Analysts of Current Events.” This will be a roundtable discussion with three China specialists from the University of California, Irvine, all of whom have been involved with the "China Beat" blog. The participants are Kenneth Pomeranz, a Professor of Chinese and World History and Visiting Fellow at Princeton's Institute of Advanced Study; Jeffrey Wasserstrom, Chair of the UCI History Department and Editor of the Journal of Asian Studies; and Maura Cunningham, a doctoral candidate, the Editor of the "China Beat," and an Associate Fellow of the Asia Society.
11th Grade Parents – Please join Gaby Grebski, Upper School Counselor, and me on Thursday morning, 7:30 AM to 8:30 AM in the Dining Room for an informal conversation about the junior year.
Please come see the Upper School Fall play, Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night; or, What You Will!
Location: Mary Ellen Caplin Theater
Dates: Friday, November 18, 2011 8:00 pm; Saturday, November 19, 2011 8:00 pm; Sunday, November 20, 2011 2:30 pm
Tickets are $8.00 for adults, $4.00 for students (SFS students get in free)
Tickets can be reserved online at boxoffice@Sidwell.edu; tickets are also readily available at the door beginning 45 minutes before curtain.

Enjoy this beautiful fall! The leaves are particularly glorious this year and remind me of a quote from Albert Camus: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower”.

Peace,
Lee
News From The Nurse

Annual Immunization Survey:
All students entering and attending school in the District of Columbia are required to show documented proof of complete, correctly sequenced immunizations or proof of medical or religious exemption. D.C.’s Department of Health (DOH) recently completed a review of the immunization records of children enrolled in District public and private schools. DOH subsequently provided schools with the names of children who have incomplete or missing immunizations. A number of SFS students have been reported to our Health Services office.
If your child has incomplete or missing immunizations, you will soon receive a notification letter from the SFS Health Services office. This letter, provided by the D.C. Immunization Program, will list the immunizations that are overdue, or not in compliance with the Recommended Immunization Schedule established by the Centers for Disease Control, and so required under DC law. If you receive this letter, please promptly provide the School with documented proof of your child receiving the vaccination indicated or proof of exemption from the vaccination. Documentation should be sent to:
Jasmin Whitfield
Health Services
Sidwell Friends School
3825 Wisconsin Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20016

It’s the Season for Viruses:
Stomach cramping, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, fever/chills, and muscle aches are among the common symptoms.
Please remember to alert the Health Office with information about the nature of a student’s illness, so trends of contagion can be tracked and contained. Parents/Guardians are urged to keep a child with a communicable illness at home. Children cannot return to school until fever free (<100F) and without fever reducing medications. Please refer to the Handbook for Parents and Students.
Please Participate in the Fair Share Fund

The Fair Share Fund (the Annual Fund for parents) is well underway for the 2011-2012 school year. To the many parents who have already contributed to this vital effort - thank you! Your gift helps support the students, the teachers, and the programs that make Sidwell Friends the strong school it is.
As an added incentive, a few anonymous parents have issued a collective challenge to the current parent community. If 75 percent of parents increase their gift above their support to Fair Share last year, our anonymous donors will give a combined contribution of $75,000 to the Fund! Please help us meet this challenge by making your gift before Thanksgiving. Visit www.sidwell.edu/support today, to give online. Thank you!
For questions, please contact Elizabeth Souder, Assistant Director of Annual Funds, at 202-537-8443.
Events for Student Scholarships

Advertising
Advertise your business and help raise money for financial aid! Help defer the design and printing costs of our Events for Student Scholarships publications like the Variety Show program and Live Auction catalog by placing an ad for your business today! It’s very simple. We can design the ad for you, or you can send your ad copy to events@sidwell.edu by December 31st, 2011 to appear in both the Variety Show program and Live Auction catalog. Your ad will be seen by over 8,000 alumni, parents, faculty, staff and friends of the school. Additionally, your name will be listed in the Annual Report.
Ad Descriptions & Rates:
¼ page, black and white ad = $325
½ page, black and white ad = $500
full page, black and white ad = $1,000

For additional information, please contact events@sidwell.edu or call (202) 537-8110.

Innisbrook is a program offering gourmet chocolates and treats, unique gift items and quality gift wrap. Forty cents of every dollar from your purchases benefit the SFS student financial aid program.
Visit www.innisbrook.com to place your orders between now and June 1, 2012. When entering the site, please click the blue box to the right side of the screen that reads “Family & Friends Support a Fundraiser: Shop the Innisbrook Online Store.” Next, enter the SFS school code: 106348. Please be sure to enter this code correctly so that 40% of the proceeds are properly recorded to our school. For questions, please contact events@sidwell.edu or call (202) 537-8110.
Sleep for Success Speaker

On Tuesday, December 6 at 7:00 pm in the US Arts Center - Please take advantage of this opportunity to hear Dr. James Maas, one of the worlds most popular and dynamic speakers on the topic of sleep and peak performance. Medical research has proven that sleep deprivation literally “makes you stupid, clumsy, stressed out, unhealthy and will shorten your life.” How can adults and students improve the quantity and quality of their sleep? Dr. Maas will tackle this pervasive problem in a not to be missed presentation. Questions can be directed to Gaby Grebski, US Counselor at grebskig@sidwell.edu.
Upper School Community Service Newsletter

The November edition of the Upper School Community Service Newsletter is now available on the SFS website. Use this link to access the Community service webpage. You will find the newsletter halfway down in the middle of the page. This newsletter highlights upcoming and recent community service events taking place at the Upper School. Please read this month’s publication if you would like to learn more, and/or get involved in the community service program at the Upper School.
2012 Japanese Language and Culture Summer Study Program
2012 Japanese Language and Culture Summer Study Program.pdf
For the 28th year Sidwell Friends School will send four of its students, three students from area schools, and one Sidwell Friends faculty member to Japan for approximately three weeks during July 2012. The mission of the program is to help students learn about the culture and history of Japan and to foster cross-cultural friendships.
Read MoreInformation on Financial Aid

Financial Aid for 2012-13 – Please check your email inbox on December 1 for details regarding financial aid for the 2012-13 school year. Information will no longer be mailed home to families. If you are not receiving financial aid currently, but want to apply for the 2012-2013 school year, please call 202-537-2402.


PA Announcements

Fruit Flies Extended!

We NEED your support!!! Fruit Flies has been EXTENDED to November 17th
Please support our Junior & Senior classes by helping to defray the cost of Prom tickets, allowing those who might not normally be able to attend to do so.
It’s simple - Order fresh-off-the-tree citrus, (delivered the same day its picked). Ordering is EASY and ONLINE!
As is our tradition, purchases may be donated to Martha’s Table or S.O.M.E. Write in your request in the NOTES section of the payment page, and our FRUIT FLY volunteers will deliver your gift directly to these agencies.
Fruit will be ready for pick up on Saturday, December 10th at Sidwell Friends Upper School campus from 9-12:00 and December 11th from 10-12:00.

To place your order click here:
Freshman Pie Bake

This is the final week to get those donations into school! If you have the time, please donate apples! The rest of the ingredients are in!

This Sunday, November 20th, from 12- 2
This is the Final Week to Get your Donations into School, Thus our Final Push! We only need apples now. Thank you for all your donations! Please bring apples to David Connell's office, Room 222, in the upper school. Start labeling those tools for making pies that you might already possess, like dry measuring cups, measuring spoons, apple peelers, rolling pins, cutting boards, paring knives, spatulas, large spoons, and/or maybe hand mixers. Questions? Contact Debra Bolog at 301-461-8245 or Leslie Rose at 202-251-3180.

Volunteers are Still Needed: We're still hoping to hear that you and your family are going to join us and help bake pies. We have something for everyone to do....even your youngest children can help decorate pie boxes and serve as pie "tasters."

Remember to come see the school fall play after you and your family bake pies!
All School Diversity Committee Meeting

“Cultural Competence: A Critical Skill for the 21st Century"
On Tuesday, November 29th, please join the parent community from 6:30-8:00 pm in the Robert L. Smith meeting room for an interactive keynote by Dr. Steven Jones, one of "America's Top Experts on Diversity." This session will equip us, as members of the Sidwell community, with a common language and framework to understand the importance of diversity and inclusion at our school. Dr. Jones will share specific tools, tips and techniques for teaching respect for differences and practicing cultural competence at home and beyond. Please join us as we advance our ongoing efforts to build and nurture an inclusive school community that welcomes a diversity of people, ideas, cultures and principles of equity and justice.

Read MoreDesign a Poster for ArtRageous

All students grab your brushes, pencils, charcoals, cameras, scissors, papers (all visual arts media welcome) and design a poster for advertising ArtRageous. The theme this year is "Arts in Bloom". Please send us a JPEG file with your creation. The PA Arts Committee will choose up to 10 different creations and the artist will receive a printed poster. Deadline is Monday December 5. Please contact Cristina matheusjoao2@yahoo.com and Elena elena.dvorkina@gmail.com
ArtRageous Needs You

First Call for Large-Group Performers for ArtRageous 2012 on January 29th,1:00-4:00 pm.
As the leaves fall, let's send the arts up at SFS. Do you sing in an a cappella group? participate in a SFS dance class? play guitar in a rock band or drums in a jazz band? Are you a member of Vertical Voices or other dramatic enterprise, or a chamber group? Get your group together, choose the piece, and take advantage of the great performance opportunities at ArtRageous. Sign up NOW by sending an email to Maude Fish at maude.fish@comcast.net. Let her know the name of your group, the number(s) you wish to perform, composer/choreographer information, and she will get you on the schedule. Get your acts together, and let your adoring public see you in action!


Holiday Gift Giving

...to benefit the Rosemount Center and Martha's Table, Nov. 29 through Dec. 9

Please mark your calendar for our annual SFS All School Holiday Gift Giving Event. US families are invited to donate new and/or unused gifts that will be delivered to Martha's Table and the Rosemount Center for those organizations to distribute to their respective communities in time for the holidays. We have long-term partnerships with both organizations and we ask that you help us make this time honored SFS tradition a success by donating a gift to benefit a child, age infant through 18 years. If you have any questions, please contact June Das Gupta, junedasgupta@msn.com For gift suggestions and details, please read more...
Read MoreLS Book Fair
SidwellBookFairFlyer-3.pdf
The Lower School Book Fair will be held at Barnes & Noble - December 2nd and 3rd! The Annual Book Fair to support the Lower School Parents Association will be held at the Bethesda Barnes & Noble. It’s a perfect time to do holiday shopping! Sidwell Friends LS PA will receive credit for purchases made in-store and online using our special code # 10455475 from December 2nd - December 8th.
Read More


Other News

Parents Council of Washington (PCW)

Register Now for free access to interesting, informative programs
Archived Webinars: To view, please follow the Registration Instructions (below). Once you have registered you have access to any of the archived webinars. Currently 2 are available:
1) For Adult Learners with Teen Students: Teens and Alcohol Use: Implications on Mind and Body Recorded Monday, October 3rd
2) Sugar and Spice versus Puppy Dog Tails: How Boys and Girls Learn Differently Recorded Tuesday, November 8th.
Next Webinar: Students in the Digital Age: How Technology Influences the Developing Brain
Airing Live: Wednesday, December 7, 2011 from 9:00 pm to 10:00 pm EST

Read MoreQuaker Life Guided Meditation: Wednesday November 30

What are people in Meeting for Worship supposed to be doing during all that silence? How do we quiet our brains enough to get the most from our time there? On Wednesday, November 30, at 7:00 pm in the Lower School Meeting House, you will have a special opportunity to answer the question by participating in a session of Experiment With Light led by Bethesda Meeting member Jane Meleney Coe. Experiment With Light is a meditative and centering practice based upon Rex Ambler's book Light to Live By, which describes early Quaker meditative habits and translates them into a highly accessible process of clearness and understanding. First-time participants find the process quite easy to follow and, often, richly rewarding. All parents are welcome to attend.
Quaker Quotes

“In the stillness you will find your true being. In the silence you will hear the breathing of your soul.”
As Reprinted by Annapolis Friends Meeting, November 2011, Neale Donald Walsch

“Quaker Quotes” is a weekly submission by Melissa Belman (melissa@ecologicflooring.com <mailto:melissa@ecologicflooring.com> ), Holly Moore (htmoore@gmail.com <mailto:htmoore@gmail.com> ) and Cindy Terrell (ctcabin@gmail.com <mailto:ctcabin@gmail.com> . We welcome ideas.
SFS Crew

Sidwell Friends Crew to Host Inaugural National Capital Erg Invitational on February 12.
Are you a rower or do you know rowers from other schools? Mark your calendar for February 12, 2012 when the Sidwell Friends Rowing Club will be hosting Washington, DC's only erg competition to raise funds for our crew team. Area high school, college and club rowers will be vying for awards in dozens of indoor rowing races and you can participate or enjoy watching these incredible athletes compete.


Read MoreUS Wednesday Newsletter Information

How to Submit an Article to the Wednesday Letter. Send submissions to PA.USNewsletter@sidwell.edu by 2 pm Tuesday. Please reference "Newsletter Submission" and the publish date(s) in the subject line. Items should be submitted as text in the body of the e-mail. Please do not include any formatting such as indents, bullets, boldface or all-caps and keep submissions succinct. If you have a form or flyer to include with your submission, please send it as a PDF attachment to your email. Receipt of your submissions will be confirmed as soon as possible. Please be aware that submissions may not run for more than 3 weeks.

Modifying an existing Submission: if it becomes necessary to modify a submission, please send a redline or otherwise clearly indicate the change to be made.

Note Concerning the School Calendar: The calendar entries that appear in the right column of each Newsletter are automatically generated by the official school calendar and are not subject to editing by the Newsletter Editors. All changes or additions to the school calendar must be made through the school scheduling office, reachable at: scheduling@sidwell.edu.
Subscribe/Unsubscribe

How to Subscribe: to receive the Wednesday Letter via email, send an email to Wednesday@listserv.sidwell.edu with only the word "SUBSCRIBE" in the subject line.

How to Unsubscribe: if you wish to have your name removed from the subscription list, send an email to Wednesday@listserv.sidwell.edu with only the word "UNSUBSCRIBE" in the subject line.


The Parents Association newsletters are a forum for communication among parents and provide announcements concerning School or PA events or information related to a School or PA event.
US newsletter submissions should be sent to PA.USnewsletter@sidwell.edu.


Calendar


Tue, Nov 15th

US Fall Play Rehearsal Production Week

AC Theater, Arts Center Foyer
5:00pm - 9:30pm


12th Grade Parent Peer Group Meeting

US Lirbary Board Room
7:30pm - 9:30pm


Wed, Nov 16th

US Fall Play Rehearsal Production Week

AC Theater, Arts Center Foyer
5:00pm - 9:30pm


Thu, Nov 17th

11th Grade Parents Conversations with Lee Palmer and Gaby Grebski

US Dining Room
7:30am - 8:30am


All-School PA Meeting with Anne Renninger

Athletic Center Meeting Room
7:45am - 9:00am


US Fall Play Rehearsal Production Week

AC Theater, Arts Center Foyer
5:00pm - 9:30pm


PA Arts Committee Meeting

US Library Board Room
7:30pm - 9:00pm


Fri, Nov 18th

Upper School No School - 9th Grade Conference Day


US Fall Play

AC Theater
8:00pm


Sat, Nov 19th

US Holiday Gift Drive Begins


US Fall Play

AC Theater
8:00pm


Sun, Nov 20th

9th Grade Family Service Project - Pie Bake

US Dining Room
12:00pm - 2:00pm


US Fall Play

AC Theater
2:30pm


Wed, Nov 23rd

Thanksgiving Break - No School


Thu, Nov 24th

Thanksgiving Break - No School


Fri, Nov 25th

Thanksgiving Break - No School


Mon, Nov 28th

School Reopens


Tue, Nov 29th

Lower School - Half Day


12:15pm


Cultural Competency Workshops for MS/US

Robert L. Smith Meeting Room
2:45pm - 4:00pm


Cultural Competency Workshops for Parents

Robert L. Smith Meeting Room
6:30pm - 8:00pm


Wed, Nov 30th

LS PA Meeting with Jane Coe

LS Quaker Meeting House
7:00pm - 8:30pm


Thu, Dec 1st

9th Grade Parent Conversation with David Connell, US Director of Community Service

US Dining Room
7:30am - 8:30am


PA Athletic Committee Meeting

Athletic Center Meeting Room
7:45am - 9:00am


US ISMAW (Math meet) at Sidwell

US Dining Room
4:00pm - 5:30pm


Fri, Dec 2nd

Middle School No School - Report Writing Day


Sat, Dec 3rd

SAT Test

off campus


More


Athletics


Thu, Nov 17th

Basketball - Girls Varsity at National Cathedral School


4:15pm


Tue, Nov 22nd

Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Wise


5:15pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Wise


6:45pm


Sat, Nov 26th

Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. JP Great


9:00am


Basketball - Girls Varsity vs. Alumni


10:30am


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. JP Great


11:30am


Mon, Nov 28th

Swimming - Boys 7/8 vs. Boys 7/8 Swimming


2:45pm


Swimming - Girls 7/8 vs. Girls 7/8 Swimming


2:45pm


Tue, Nov 29th

Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


7:30pm


Wed, Nov 30th

Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Landon


4:30pm


Wrestling - Varsity vs. Model Secondary School


5:00pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Landon


6:15pm


Thu, Dec 1st

Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity vs. Banneker High School


4:00pm


Fri, Dec 2nd

Basketball - Girls Varsity - SFS Tournament


12/3/2011


Basketball - Boys Varsity - SFS Tournament


12/4/2011


Sat, Dec 3rd

Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. JV Jamboree


Wrestling - Varsity - Tri


11:00am


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. WMPSSDL


3:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. WMPSSDL


3:30pm


Mon, Dec 5th

Basketball - Girls Varsity at Takoma Academy


4:30pm


Tue, Dec 6th

Wrestling - Varsity at Episcopal High School


Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Maret School


4:15pm


Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity vs. Washington Latin


4:15pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Maret School


5:45pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. Georgetown Day


7:30pm


More


3825 Wisconsin Avenue NW Washington, DC 20016 Tel: (202) 537 8100 Fax: (202) 537 8499