Dear QAE, 
Our school was established in 2010 by a passionate, dedicated and involved group of teachers, staff and parents. With the organizational foundation they put in place 12 years ago our school volunteer leadership has been able to glean stability, grounding and direction during these past three years of uncertainty. Your current PTSA is asking you to help make sure this stabilizing yet flexible effort continues for our future students, teachers and community. Becoming a board member of the PTSA is a great way to build community for our kids (and as a parent!), and to create enrichment opportunities for the whole school. We’d love to have you join us for the 2022-2023 school year!
Please note: All roles can be shared with a friend, and current board members are happy to talk to you further about what the roles entail. If you are at all curious, want to learn more, have questions or have ideas about our school. Please take the next step and connect. We need you to help build our Board! You can reach out in the following ways:

• Talk to any volunteer in our community like your class coordinator! 
• Directly email our PTSA Vice President, Sarah Kaiser at vp1@qaeptsa.org 
• Come to Caffeine with Janine this Monday morning at 7:55 a.m. in our school courtyard.
• Come to the General Membership Meeting this Wednesday, June 8th TEAMS at 5:45 p.m. Link in the school calendar.  

Yay!!! All parents and guardians are invited to volunteer and join in on the outdoor fun!
When: Monday, June 13th all day!
Where: Our QAE school playground.
What: There will be playful games, face painting, ping-pong, picture booth, water game stations, sack races, hula hooping and more.
SIGN UP TO VOLUNTEER HERE for morning, afternoon or all day slots! 
To help make an extra special day for the kids, our Field Day Committee is looking for the following:

• Bubble Machines
• Large outdoor speaker
• Bulk Candy-individually wrapped pieces (No nuts please)

Contact Shalini at snilak@gmail.com for questions and/or if you have one of the items above.

Every student will receive a 2021-22 yearbook courtesy of QAE PTSA. We're committed to purchasing one book per student and one per staff. To help cover the costs and ensure special mementos like this as well as student & community enriching events and general PTSA initiatives, can continue in the future, we're asking community to help cover the cost if you are able. Any and all donations help all students, families and staff. Pay what you can here.  ​
​Choose 'send', then enter an amount. Click 'add a note' and write 'yearbook'. Then continue to enter your payment information.  Thank you for your support!

Upcoming Events & Reminders

• Caffeine with Janine - June 6th at 7:55 a.m. in the courtyard at school. 
• PTSA General Membership Meeting - June 8th - see details in news above.
• PBL Showcase - June 9th, 5:00 - 6:30 p.m. - In-person at school! 
• Field Day - June 13th - in the courtyard at school - sign-up in news above. 
• QAE Sounders Day - June 18th - Additional tickets released soon! We've sold out of the first 75.  Email secretary@qaeptsa.org for scholarships!

Thank you for your readership! This is a QAE PTSA newsletter. Please direct questions, comments, concerns and ideas to communications@qaeptsa.org ​

Please join us on the evening of Wednesday, June 8. Official business will run from 6-7:30 pm. At this time important budget discussions and voting will take place.  15 minutes before and after is reserved for open questions. Your QAE PTSA would love to hear from you and see you on TEAMS this evening! Find the link to join here in the PTSA calendar. This is a great opportunity for learning about open board positions for next year. Your Parent Teacher Student Association welcomes everyone! Bring a friend! 

Dedicated hearts of many volunteers makes our community stronger. The PTSA is recruiting board members and board directors for the 2022-23 school year. Let's explore how to align your passions with ways to support QAE! Lots of positions are open and can all be shared with a buddy! Here is our active recruitment list:   

• President
• Vice president
• Secretary
• Fundraising Director (oversees strategy for the Jog-a-thon, Fund Drive & Auction)
• Auction/Spring fundraising event Lead
• Communications Director
• Social & Emotional Learning Director
• Co-Treasurer

Additional supportive positions may be available. All positions are open to anyone interested in this important support work. If you are willing to learn more, be curious, contribute your voice, time and talent to connect our entire community of Explorers Contact Sarah Kaiser, PTSA Vice President at vp1@qaeptsa.org ​

Our principals and teachers could use some helping hands to get QAE classrooms in ship-shape ready for next September. Volunteers are needed to help with organizing, sorting and boxing up supplies. This work will take place in empty rooms during the school day, and needs to be completed by June 17th. If you can offer a few hours of your time over the next few weeks, please email our volunteer coordinator, Jeanine MacQuarrie, at volunteer2@qaeptsa.org. Indicating your general availability will be helpful. Preschoolers are welcome! 

Thank you for your readership! This is a QAE PTSA newsletter. Please direct questions, comments, concerns and ideas to communications@qaeptsa.org ​

An end of year day full of fun for our students. We need you to join in the fun too! Please consider being part of the planning team! Tentative Dates are set for Monday, June 13 or June 16th (last week of school). As Co-Chair you will help support the overall flow and details of the day, purchasing items as needed and communicate with volunteers. Huge thank you to our community events leader, Shalini Nilakantan and Ms. Josie, our super special P.E. teacher. Send an e-mail to snilak@gmail.com to lend a hand!​

The PTSA will have open positions on next year's board and are currently forming a Nomination Committee that will help to fill these positions. 

The goal of the committee is to lead the process in matching people with open positions. One could say they are the match makers in this love story. 
You do not need to be on the board to participate in this committee. The committee needs to be in place as soon as possible in order to fill as many of the essential volunteer rolls as possible. A few positions that have already been identified are Board President, Secretary, Fundraising Lead, Co-Treasurer. 
 We'd really like your help in identifying people who might be interested in serving on the PTSA, and we'd also like to invite any of you who are interested in serving on the nominating committee to please let us know by May 20th.
If you are interested, have any leads for us or just have general questions please email  Sarah Kaiser at vp1@qaeptsa.org 

Thank you for your readership! This is a QAE PTSA newsletter. Please direct, question, comments, concerns and ideas to communications@qaeptsa.org ​

Ms. Roy is leading a Welcome to Queen Anne event for new families on May 3rd 5:30 – 7 pm. This is a drop-in style with a PTSA table set up to offer information, answer questions and get to know people. It's so nice to meet people in person again! QAE's very own 4th and 5th grade Explorers will be tour guides. Meet outside in the school courtyard. 

Starting on Monday, May 9th from 7:55 a.m. - 8:25 a.m. Ms. Roy will be available to informally gather outside with parents to connect over coffee. This is a great time to ask questions and share ideas.  All are welcome and we are so happy to have this tradition come back to life! Keep tuning in here for the June Caffeine with Janine date. 

Thank you for your readership! This is a QAE PTSA newsletter. Please direct, question, comments, concerns and ideas to communicaitons@qaeptsa.org ​

Take advantage of the spring sunshine on Saturday, May 21st from 1 to 4 p.m. You can drop your kids off at the Queen Anne Elementary playground to play while you get some time to yourself! Thank you to QAE parents Katie Luhman and Jackson Bennett who will entertain your child for three hours. Snacks and school playground equipment, such as balls and jump ropes, will be provided. Sign up your student and their friends for an afternoon of fun! The cost is $75 and all proceeds go towards our QAE PTSA in continued effort to reach this year's fundraising goals. Sign up here! 

Thank you to Ms. Parker for making our library such a wonderful place! With community support we can continue keeping our library current and interesting for our students. Mark your calendars for the QAE Book Fair, May 9th-12th.  

SAVE THE DATE! One of QAE’s favorite community events is back! Join your classmates, staff, and parent community on June 18th at Lumen Field as the Sounders take on division rival LAFC! Kick-off is at noon. Come celebrate all that we have accomplished together this school year and cheer the Sounders to victory. Scholarship tickets will be available to ensure everyone that wants to attend can. More information on ticket ordering coming to the Rocket Reader and Classroom News soon!
​Children MUST be accompanied by an adult guardian. This is not a chaperoned field trip. QAE teachers and staff will attend, but this is not a district-sponsored school event.
Thank you to parent volunteer, Jonathan Hildebrandt for organizing. 

It's that time!  Parents, teachers, guardians and friends, please look back through your camera rolls, phone pic history, and emails. Then, send us some of your best candid shots from the various moments this past school year!
There are two ways to send us pictures:
1. Email your pictures to yearbook1@qaeptsa.org 
2. Download them to this secure drop-box. 
Please include your child's name, grade, teacher and VOPP/In-Person in your email and make the subject line, "2021-22 Yearbook." With your participation we'll have extra sweet 2021-22 memories for our kids to look back on. Thank you parent volunteer, Tiffany Robinson, for leading the yearbook project this year. 

That's right, QAE! Our Board has risen to the fundraising challenge of the decade  with our mighty hearts, and we'd like to thank you for ALL of your support! We couldn't do it without you.  We're halfway to our $100,000 goal and have not yet reached our goal of 100% community participation. We're asking YOU, dear community, to take us home! We know you want to keep our school special today and in the future.  In great effort to reach our fundraising goals, here is what we're doing: 

• Extending the silent auction until 12 a.m. Monday! Get your Dino-donut Classroom, Seattle Ultimate Season Tickets, Rooftop Brewery Tour, Spirit Wear and more now! 
• Buy-in Parties are staying open indefinitely! There are limited spaces so get your spot for Parents Day Out, Burgers and Beers and the mostly flat - QAE Night Bike Ride. It's not too late!
• Text-to-Give is now an option! Because we know you want to give in the easiest way possible, text EXPLORERS to 833-679-3232. We gotcha! All levels and donation amounts are appreciated and welcomed! 

Funds raised this year directly impact QAE, enabling several important staff positions that make a large positive impact on our kids every day. Let's keep going QAE! It's for our kids today and tomorrow. 

Last day to order dinner from Queen Anne Beer Hall is tomorrow, the 24th at 2 pm.

To join our virtual Spring Community Celebration just click the Live Auction Button  at the top of our auction home page this Friday at 7 pm. 

Would your kiddo like to be Art teacher, PE teacher or Librarian for the day? How about Principal for the day? All of the descriptions of the live auction experiences are available for you to view now! 
More items are being added to our silent auction every day. Bidding closes on April 2nd. 
The auction team is excited to connect, celebrate, share heartfelt words from community members and students, raise necessary funds and keep the beat going with YOU QAE Community! ​

Here we go! The QAE 2022 virtual silent auction is opening Monday morning! Every dollar raised helps support the much needed resources for our kids.  Need some entertainment? We have tickets to The Moisture Festival. Thinking about kids camps? How about ultimate frisbee or art? Feeling like you want something simple and unique? What about a your teacher's favorite children's book with a special note inside? Get some self care, find a family project and indulge yourself as well! Check out all of the offerings starting Monday!  

Don't forget to share it with your friends and family who'd like to support our school while getting some great items, services or experiences. Or submit a video of what you and your kiddo appreciate about QAE. 

Enjoy dinner at home on live auction night! All dinner options are listed in the virtual silent auction items. Thanks to our procurement team we now have TWO of our fantastic local Queen Anne restaurants to choose from; Eden Hill, for pick up only at Big Max Burger AND Queen Anne Beer Hall, for pick up only that evening. How does "..honey glazed..", "smoky blue cheese..." or "...white chocolate popcorn.." sound? Maybe you're in the mood for "Smashburgers," ....it's a pretzel and wings kind of night. What ever your taste buds are craving, we think we got you covered....meals and bevies for all ages. 

BUYING FOR EDEN HILL ENDS ON MARCH 22ND @ 2 P.M. 
BUYING FOR QUEEN ANNE BEER HALL ENDS ON MARCH 24TH @ 2 P.M. 

​Whatever your style we hope you'll be virtually joining us for an hour of fun heart-felt community building, a little entertainment, and of course, fundraising for our one and only QAE. Up to 50% of dinner costs go back to our school! 

Congrats to the RAD READERS who are on their way to the Global Reading Challenge Finals! They're the first QAE team in history to make it this far. According to our brilliant 4th grade teacher, Ms. Goldman, QAE's team got all 21 questions correct, which took them into the "nail-biting" tie-breaker round against Catherine Blaine's very talented WEIRD READERS. After six extremely challenging questions, our team came out on top! Go Explorers!! 

Community at QAE is at the heart of the PTSA's work. One of our five pillars is "We are concerned, confident and compassionate citizens of the world." We're a school that embraces advocacy and acting from our hearts, supporting choices, finding empathy, thinking critically and practicing compassion in our community. 
The PTSA is supportive of community members that have heightened risks within their personal situation. Part of the PTSA's role is to take into consideration voices from across QAE, which include teachers, staff, parents and students. While it's completely understandable that families are going to make individual decisions based on what is right for them, we ask that part of that decision making process include a consideration for the broader community that is potentially impacted. 
We want to acknowledge that the lifted mask requirement in classrooms, that was announced from Seattle Public School District on Monday, was news that presented another significant change, similarly to how we felt coming back to school in the Fall. We encourage an open dialogue with your children to foster empathy and understanding when they encounter children and adults who have made different decisions. Here is an article that you may find helpful and a SPS resource; Helping Kids Adjust to Changing Covid-19 Guidelines. 

As it seems, a continuous flow of changes, on a handful of levels, are being presented to our community, on what feels like almost a daily basis. It's hard to know where to put our energy sometimes. Again, as your PTSA, advocating for community is a priority. Feeling safe and supported is important for everyone. It's frustrating to hear about the unjust treatment of our teachers across the district and at our school  who are not receiving district support. Teachers who have immunocompromised family at home or young children who cannot get vaccinated yet are faced with the choice of taking unpaid leave or compromising their families health. This is concerning in may ways, and because it goes against the memorandum of understanding between The Seattle Education Association and the school district, a trust has been broken. In support of our amazingly hard working, student dedicated and true heroes/heroines...our teachers, their health and the health of their families, we're encouraging all community members to write to our school board district representative, Vivian Song. 
Feel free to contact our Legislative Director, Jackson Bennett, with questions. In partnership and community, Your 2022 PTSA Board. ​

Reminder: join us on Thursday evening, 6:30-8pm, for a free parent education event hosted on Zoom! Katie Gruver from Positive Parenting Seattle will be presenting on "Using Family Meetings to Reconnect, Solve Problems and Have Fun (yes, it's possible!) During COVID-19."

How to join:
Please send an email to Principal Roy at jbroy@seattleschools.org and she'll share the Zoom link to you.

If you feel like you’re constantly renegotiating expectations with your child(ren) about homework, chores, bedtimes, screen usage, siblings etc; if you feel like you’ve fallen back on punishments or threats and are looking for a few new ideas; if you feel like you're spending every moment together, but that very little of it is FUN; if you've been overwhelmed or disconnected or frustrated by juggling it all right now, please join us for an informative and uplifting conversation on family meetings. More details on the schedule and about Katie here...
​

We can't be together right now, but Dr. V would love to get new books into the hands of students and families! We know these are tough times for many families, but Dr. V has put together a great list of books (and some crafting kits).

Dr. V's list includes some great books for every grade level. Secret Garden Books will donate 10% of the the purchase price of books on the list to the QAE Library.

How the Book Fair works:

1. Go to the QAE Library Wish List on Secret Garden’s site. Browse the long list of picture books, Sasquatch and Washington Children's Choice Award Books, graphic novels, and craft kits. Order from that list and the Queen Anne Library gets 10% on those purchases. Be sure to add "Queen Anne Book Fair" in the comment section of your order.
   
2. At this time, you may pick up pre-paid orders curbside. See their website for pickup hours, they will contact you when your order is ready.
   
3. We also encourage you to order other titles from their vast catalog, they will most likely be shipped separately. (Though these purchases won't directly help our library, they will help support Secret Garden Books, our lovely partner for literary greatness!)
   
4. You may also purchase a Gift Certificate that will go directly to the QAE Library to help Dr. V build our collection of awesome titles.

Questions? Please contact Dr. V at ​elvaldez@seattleschools.org or Secret Garden Books at 206-789-5006.

In this time of staying-at-home, we've adjusting how we can support our families. The QAE PTSA will be hosting  an online parent education event. Katie Gruver, of Positive Parenting Seattle, will be presenting on "Using Family Meetings to Reconnect, Solve Problems and Have Fun (yes, it's possible!) During COVID-19" ​on Thursday, May 14th.

If you feel like you’re constantly renegotiating expectations with your child(ren) about homework, chores, bedtimes, screen usage, siblings etc; if you feel like you’ve fallen back on punishments or threats and are looking for a few new ideas; if you feel like you're spending every moment together, but that very little of it is FUN; if you've been overwhelmed or disconnected or frustrated by juggling it all right now, please join us for an informative and uplifting conversation on family meetings. 

When: Thursday, May 14th, 6:30-8pm
Where: Your house! We'll be hosting the meeting on Zoom. See below.
Cost: This is a free event, but we are collecting donations to reimburse the presenter for her time. Any excess funds will be donated to the Ballard Food Bank. 
To Register: Please write to Ms. Roy at jbroy@seattleschools.org and she'll send you the Zoom link as well as the link to donate (if you can't afford to donate, no worries, we want all families to attend!)

Agenda: 

• 6:30-7:3pm
  • Family Meetings 101 (what is it and why)
  • How to invite your child(ren) to teach you how to get started (Principal Janine Roy & Teacher Lorin Belcher will share what your children already know)
  • Avoiding common challenges (like unhelpful ideas or parental "fixing")
  • Helping children solve their own problems
  • Keeping agreements and setting clear expectations
  • Find the Fun & Leave Them Laughing (focusing on connection vs “doing it right”)
• 7:30pm Q & A --- What’s holding you back from getting started? What would help?

Some Background

• Now, more than any other time in modern history, families are under stress to find new ways to work together, compromise, build solutions, set clear expectations and keep agreements with one another. We also know that all of this is new and so, so hard.
• Family Meetings are the in-home version of what your students have already been doing all year in their own class meetings. Family Meetings are a place for: Connection, Problem solving vs Punishments, Accountability, Leadership, Helpful Skill-building & Fun!
• We believe they may just be your #1 parenting tool, all the time... but especially right now.

See you online on Tuesday!
​

QAE community – the PTSA has been a little quiet over the past few weeks. Like each of you, we have been navigating our new normal. Balancing work, or no work, distance learning for our kids, Zoom meetings/happy hours/classrooms AND all the dishes! Parents that are Essential Workers – THANK YOU for being essential and being there for others!

The PTSA team has been chipping away at a handful of items and wanted to give you a quick update:

Auction – Thank you for participating in our first Virtual Auction. The consensus was we came together as a community and did an AMAZING job at raising money for our school, teachers and kids. Thank you to Mary Rea and Jenn Lovin for all of their hard work. Our community raised almost $95,000! Thank you for pivoting and being flexible when we weren’t sure how we were going to pull it off.

Reimbursement Forms – If you have any receipts that need reimbursement. Please submit your forms and receipts using this link and email to treasurers@qaeptsa.org.

Open PTSA Roles for next year – These are unprecedented times and the Board needs your help to fill next year’s leadership roles. We have a number of open roles – if you are interested, we would like to speak with you.

Officers - Officers sign checks, manage the budget and expenditures, ensure legal requirements are met, and provide leadership on PTSA interests throughout the school year

• President
• Co-Treasurer
• Secretary
• Assistant Treasurer

Directors - take the responsibility of specific areas of interest, along with advising and voting on issues at regular PTSA board meetings. Together with the Executive group, they form the voting members of the Board

• Communications Director
• Fundraising
• Legislative Director
• Families of Color Director
• Technology Advisor Director

Coordinators - They do not have a vote and are not required to attend board meetings (but are welcome and encouraged to!). They fill vital additional roles for QAE.

• Co- Community Outreach & Events Coordinator
• Garden Coordinator
• Fund Drive
• Auction

Budget Season — usually this time of year we take a lot of time going through line by line of our PTSA budget to determine how much we should allocate for next year. We continue to do this work but understand there are a lot of unknowns and want to give ourselves the most flexibility for the 2020-2021 school year.

Yearbook — Can you believe we are still thinking about Yearbooks?!? Send in your pictures and ESPECIALLY any fun at home pictures because we are going to have an “at home” section because this will be a most memorable part of the 2019-2020 school year. 

We are also working on details of a Virtual Book Fair and Virtual Parent Education event, more to come as we get those details! If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to Sandra Nanney at president@qaeptsa.org.

Thank you,

Sandra Nanney
QAE PTSA President

UPDATE: Movie Night has been postponed. New date TBA soon!

Join us for QAE Movie Night with a family favorite, The Emoji Movie. Come in your pajamas and bring a favorite stuffy and blanket to get cozy on the gym floor. Food will be available for suggested donations in the cafeteria. We’ll have hot dogs & popcorn if you want to have dinner while watching the movie. Plus desserts & baked goods will be available for purchase and sponsored by 4th grade to raise money for Islandwood!

When: Thursday, March 5th, 2020, 6-7:30pm
Where: The QAE Cafeteria! We’ll be viewing the movie picnic style so bring a comfy blanket!
Cost: $10/family which includes 2 free bags of popcorn and helps offset the costs of the movie licensing fee.
Please RSVP here for the Movie Night....

Help us plan by RSVPing ahead of time for the Family Movie Night!

We welcome volunteer support
Please volunteer! Volunteers and their families get free admission! Sign up to volunteer here...

All proceeds go to QAE PTSA Community Events.

Join us Tuesday night at the school for a free parent workshop on Positive Discipline! Whether you're looking to better deal with challenging behavior, feel less overwhelmed at home or just want to learn about the Positive Discipline framework used at QAE, you'll learn a lot!  Positive Discipline Parent Educator Katie Gruver will facilitate a hands-on workshop for parents and caregivers of QAE students.

When: February 25th, 6-7:30pm
Where: Queen Anne Elementary. We'll be in the Chillzone
Games Club will be available during the workshop. Reserve spot(s) here for your kiddos.
More information here...