From the Director

Dear Madrone Family,



I must say, this is one of the finest beginnings to a school year in my career! Our new students are fitting in famously, and our returning students have arrived with a renewed vigor… and all are about four inches taller! One of the joys of being at a school with all of your students is the pure joy they bring each day! Every morning they shed the cares of yesterday and scamper through the gates to begin the day anew! It’s a joyous rhythm to behold! 

Life today for most families is characterized more by randomness and improvisation than rhythm. With both parents usually working outside the home, weekly markers such as laundry day, taco Tuesday, and homework time may sound more quaint than realistic. Family time often consists of what is left over, in terms of our time and energy, when the “work” of the day is over. When parents are asked what a typical day or week looks like, the response is usually; “There is no typical”. There is no rhythm.

Growing up, my friends and I had constant discourse regarding who should be considered the greatest drummer of all time. There was the John Bonham (Led Zeppelin) crowd, the Keith Moon (The Who) advocates, the jazz fans claiming Art Blakey could not be overlooked, and then there was my crowd, who were convinced that no drummer could ever match Neil Peart (Rush.) However, all of us could agree that listening to our favorite drummers was almost therapeutic. And scientifically speaking, it actually is. Self-regulation refers to cognitive processes in the areas of attention, behavior and emotions. Beat synchronization, or the coordination of rhythmic movement with an external rhythm such as clapping or drumming along to a beat was found to be especially beneficial to support self-regulatory skills. There are many shared networks in the brain for processing auditory input, motor control and self-regulation, therefore activities that improve beat synchronization skills may use “musician advantage” for the purposes of supporting self-regulation development in young children.

Waldorf education, from preschool through high school, recognizes the natural rhythm of breathing in and breathing out, of focused thinking and daydreaming, of intellectual rigor balanced with play. Examples of activities that encourage the breathing in and breathing out in Waldorf education include Nature Walk, Circle Time, Story Time, and Snack Time. The nature walk allows the child to notice the weather of the day, of the season and where they are, thus becoming in touch with the environment around them and centering them and connecting them with the universe around them. Circle Time is a time for teaching both songs and rhymes of a Waldorf nature. Usually rhymes that are seasonal and dealing with nature are used. At the end of circle time children then change from sitting in a circle and instead sit facing the “storyteller” demonstrating visually and mentally that now is the time to sit and listen and not to play. And this rhythm, this predictable balance, continues throughout the elementary, middle, and high school years. While the expressions of inward and out breaths change with the students’ maturity, the importance of establishing a rhythm continues.

Breathe in, breathe out. Look inwards, look outwards. Nourish the inner life, nourish the outer life. This is the rhythm of a Waldorf education.

Have a long wonderful weekend,

~Kendall Roberts

Director

kendall.roberts@madronetrail.org

From the Office

Please let the office know no later than 2:30 pm if plans change for the pick up of your children after school. Leave a detailed message who will be picking your child up (or what bus they need to ride) with your name as well as your child's full name and grade.

The office sent home registration packets for all returning students the first week of school. If you don't get one by the start of September, let Ms. Sherrie know. (sherrie.gasper@madronetrail.org / 541-842-3657) Please DO NOT register your student using Medford School District's new online registration system. They are still working out some glitches and at this time cannot accommodate Charter School student registration. It has already caused issues with our class rosters. Thank you.

Parking Lot Drop Off and Pick Up Procedures

Drop Off: Parents/Guardians have two options this year for drop off.

• They can pull up to the drop off zone and drop off their students as we did last year. Please use only this entrance and not the gate by the crosswalk. After dropping off students, turn left and exit through the parking lot. DO NOT drive on the track in the morning.
• Parents/guardians can also park and walk their students to class. Please use the crosswalk and walkways to navigate the parking lot. 
• Students can be dropped off starting at 7:45 am. Students dropped off between 7:45 am and 8:30 am will go to the playground where they will be supervised by a staff member.

Pick Up: As with drop off, parents/guardians will have two options this year. 

• They can use our pick up lane (the track) and have their students (3rd-8th) delivered to their car as we did last year.
• They can park and walk in. THIS IS REQUIRED FOR K-2
• NOTE: If your K-2nd grader has a responsible older sibling in 4th grade or above, you can make an arrangement with those students' teachers to have the older child pick up the younger one to be picked up in the pick up line. 
• To make the pick up line go quicker, we will have 3rd-5th grade out in the courtyard and 6th-8th grade in the field. If you are walking in, please wait for those classes in the courtyard and pick them up from there. Do not go to the classroom. Pick up time will be between 3:15-3:30 pm (1:15-1:30 pm on Weds.) Please arrive in the pick up line or the courtyard no earlier than 3:00 pm (1:00 pm on Weds.)

Please be patient with us the first few weeks as we get into the rhythm of our pick up routine. There may be adjustments as we work out the kinks.

Also, please note drop off and pick up time is not the time to engage in conversation with your child's class teacher, as they will be busy getting ready for the start of the day, and ensuring all students get to where they need to go in the afternoon. If you would like to discuss something with a teacher, please email them to arrange a time to meet or talk on the phone.

Drop Off in the morning

Drop Off Lane: Upon entering the parking lot, stay to the right and let your student out at the drop off zone. Proceed through the parking lot to exit. Do not drive on the track.

Park and Walk: Upon entering the parking lot, stay to the left and go around and park. You may park on the left side of the double row of cars, or in the field. Everyone who parks needs to use the Crosswalk to enter campus (not the far gate.)

Kindergarten parents: look out for an email from your class teacher about drop off and pick up procedures that are specific to each class.

Pick Up in the afternoon

Pick Up Lane: Upon entering the parking lot, stay to the right and go around the track, forming a line. At 3:15 pm (1:15 pm on Weds.) we will begin calling for students and loading them in cars in the 3 marked spots near the exit of the parking lot. 6th-8th grade students will be able to walk directly to their car in line.

Park and Walk: Upon entering the parking lot, stay to the left and go around and park. You may park on the left side of the double row of cars, or in the field. Everyone who parks needs to use the Crosswalk to enter campus (not the far gate.) 1st and 2nd grade will be in their classrooms, 3rd-5th grade classes will be in the courtyard, and 6th-8th grade classes will be in the field.

Lunch Program Reminders

Hello Wonderful Parents!

Our kitchen staff was excited to welcome your students back to school! It was a busy week, and we are still working out some kinks, but overall it was a success.

Click here to apply for free breakfast and lunch 

Free lunch applications are being accepted and are essential to complete if you qualify, even if you were approved last year. 

New parents: Click here for instructions to register your EZ app meals account 

PRE-ORDERING IS NOT CURRENTLY REQUIRED FOR ANY MENU ITEMS!

Board Update

Greetings Madrone Trail community!

This week, the board held a special meeting to review the status of the playground project. We still have a long way to go to meet our fundraising goals, so we have opted to postpone any playground installation until Spring of next year, at the earliest. While that may be disappointing news, we will be using this opportunity to create better organization and communication, consider more options, get more feedback from the community, and get more people involved. We will also be working on a structured fundraising plan to meet our goals.

Also, in response to our Climate Survey last year, and other feedback we received, we understand that there is community interest in learning the financial situation of the school. Since we have Parent Night coming up, that is always a good opportunity to meet people and provide in-person updates, so we will take that opportunity to provide such information. We hope to see you there!

board@madronetrail.org

Library Update

The Madrone Trail Library is opening this September! We plan to have students checking out their first books the week of September 18. All parents need to sign a Library Policy Contract before children are permitted to check out books. This will be available on September 6 online on our Website, linked in upcoming Friday Updates, and at Parent Night on September 7. Please come tour the Library on Parent Night!

From the Athletic Director

Hi Madrone Trail families,

I am so excited to see the enthusiasm of many of our middle school students this year when it comes to sports. Many of them have come up to me to tell me that they have filled out their registration forms or just to ask me more questions about being on one of our teams. The being said, I want to remind everyone that is interested that school sports are a big commitment. Cross Country practices 3 times a week until meets start and then will practice 2 times per week with 1 meet each week; ending October 12th. Volleyball practices 5 days a week until matches start and then it is 3 practices each week and 2 matches each week; ending October 18th. I wholeheartedly believe that sports can add great value to our student’s lives. One quote I read recently said that team sports bolster the five C’s: competence, confidence, connections, character, and caring. I know this was true in my own life growing up and it’s a big reason I am working so hard to bring these programs to Madrone Trail.

Volleyball

We have a coach! Jen Hunt, our head chef here at Madrone has a big volleyball background and has agreed to be our volleyball coach. We are so blessed to have her on board. Practice starts Tuesday, September 5th. Last day to Register and join is Wednesday, September 6th.

Cross Country

We are pleased to announce our new head coach for Cross Country this year will be Alexis Dial. She has helped with our track team in the past. Last year’s coach, Al Zeller, will still be a part of the cross country program in a consulting role. Cross Country will begin practicing September 5th. Last day to Register and join is Wednesday, September 6th.

Fees

As many of you already know we raised our sports fees from the $75 per sport that it was last year to $100 and our club fees from $50 per club to $75 per club. Please understand that this decision was not taken lightly. Our coaches last year were woefully underpaid (and some did it on a volunteer basis.) Even with the increased stipend we are offering, our coaches are still significantly underpaid compared to other schools in the district that are not charter schools. Part of the issue is that the Medford School District has a large general fund to pull from to subsidize their sports programs. They are subsidizing them heavily; their fees do not come close to covering the costs associated with their coaches’ stipends, ref fees, uniforms, and transportation. As a charter school, Madrone Trail does not have the luxury of accessing those funds used to subsidize these costs. In fact, it is quite the opposite. 20% of our ADM funds goes to the governing district. This year, we will need to fundraise as well as raise our sport participation fees in order to create a self-sustaining athletics program here at Madrone Trail. Our admin team, as well as myself are very dedicated to this goal.

If anyone is interested in helping out with athletics fundraising, please email me directly.

Go Dragons,

Jeff Roberson

jeff.roberson@madronetrail.org

From the Parent Council

Our next Parent Council meeting is Monday September 11th @ 6pm at Bella Union. 

Each Parent Council meeting is made up of parents as well as a faculty, administrative, and board representative. These representatives attend to provide parents with pertinent and relevant information of the welling being of our school. This gives parents an opportunity to gain information about all the different parts of our school and voice any opinions, questions, or concerns you might have about it. 

We are looking for volunteers to help out at Parent Night 9/7 @ 5pm. Not only is parent night a great opportunity for you to get first hand experience in your children’s classroom. It is also one of the biggest events for parents to sign up for volunteering and committees. Please sign up at the link below to help out, we need at least 4 more people!

For those attending

5:00-5:45pm 1st-4th Meets in the classroom

5:45-6:15pm All school introductions

6:15-6:30pm ***Sign ups*** Please go to sign-up tables during this time!

6:30-7:00pm 5th-8th Meets in the classroom

If you want to get more involved or have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to reach out to me!

Sincerely,

Megan Shaw

meganzshaw@gmail.com

New Teacher Bios

We introduced our teachers in the Friday Update last week. If you missed them you can find them and all the other class and specialty teachers' bios on our school website here. You can read the bios of our support staff here. Our current board members also have bios on our website here.

Volunteering at School

To be a volunteer in the classroom or to attend field trips, you are required to pass a background check through MSD. These expire after a few years, so if you have not filled it out in awhile, you will need to again. Fill it out today, so you are ready to go for the beginning of the school year.

An Easy Way to Support Madrone Trail

If you shop at Fred Meyer there is an easy way to earn money for our school! You only need to set it up once, then you are good to go.

The Fred Meyer Community Rewards program donates to local schools, community organizations, and non-profits. Go to their website. You will need to create a log-in if you don't have one already, or sign-in if you do. Search for Madrone Trail Public Charter School, and select us as your charity of choice. Every time you use your Fred Meyer Reward Card it will donate a small portion to our school. Last quarter our school earned $54.99 from 31 families, the more families we can get to do this the better!

Wednesday Aftercare Offering

Elements Nature School is offering a Wednesday Aftercare program for Madrone Trail students! They are offering transportation to their location, with parent pickup at 4 pm in South Medford. See their website for more information: https://elementsnatureschool.com/wilderness-wednesdays. There's a few more spots open. Contact them soon!

Community Offering

Quote of the Day

Handlettered by Ms. Cori

MADRONE TRAIL PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL

www.madronetrail.org

Madrone Trail Public Charter School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or age in its programs and activities.