Dear Families,
We invite you to join us TONIGHT for the Middle School Wine Social with Percy and the Middle School teachers, from 5:15-6:15, upstairs in the Lower School building. As a special treat, Gateway parent Naomi Gardner will be displaying some of her photographs and talking about her work. That event will be followed by Percy’s Town Hall Meeting at 6:30 in the West Cliff room, where Percy will speak to us about the state of our school, and what lies ahead for next year. We encourage you to check our faculty web pages every month for class-by-class curricular updates, and enjoy the beautiful weather!
Advisory
Today’s advisory activities varied by group, but included continued reading of the novel Flipped, games, a review of the students’ “highs and lows” for the week, and some off-campus excursions (including a walk to the Lighthouse in Johaan’s eighth-grade advisory group). Activities and Announcements Eighth Graders at the Steinbeck Center on April 13th
Student Government
• Poetry Contest
The annual Student Government Poetry Contest has begun! It will run until April 23. All poems need to be in by this date (there’s an envelope in the main office for submissions). Please note the following:
1. Bring your poem to the MAIN OFFICE. One poem per student.
2. Make a copy of your poem (one for the contest and another for yourself).
3. Poems will be judged on creative use of poetic devices, i.e.- metaphors, word selection, alliteration
and interesting topics (by a group of students and teachers).
4. There are 3 grade divisions: k-2, 3-5, and 6-8.
5. There will be a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd winner in each group. All participants will receive an
acknowledgment.
6. Poems will be judged in early May, and winners will be recognized at one of First Friday gatherings!
• Student Council Meeting this Friday, April 20 at lunch.
• Today’s Sprit Day theme was “Smurf/Blue & White Day.”
Wilderness Survival Skills Backpacking Trip: Friday, April 20th
The backpacking trip for Kirsten’s Survival Skills trip is coming up on Friday, April 20th. Please see Kirsten’s e-mail to parents for details about the trip, including what to pack, and departure and return times. Have a great time!
Shakespeare to Go Performance at Gateway on Wednesday, May 2nd
On Wednesday, May 2nd during our Advisory period, UCSC’s Shakespeare to Go will be performing a 50-minute version of Twelfth Nigh for our Middle School. This is one of the plays that will be performed this summer at Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and we will also have the opportunity to attend that play as an entire Middle School this August (stay tuned for more details). This is part of our initiative to incorporate Shakespeare across the entire Middle School Humanities curriculum: the sixth graders read the Sonnets; the seventh graders read a comedy (A Midsummer Night’s Dream); and the eighth graders read a tragedy (Romeo and Juliet).
Catalina and D.C. Info. Meeting, Wednesday, May 2nd
Johaan, Sherri, and Meg will be holding a combined info. meeting for seventh-grade families on Wednesday, May 2nd, at 7:00 p.m. in the West Cliff room. We’ll be discussing planning for the upcoming trip to Catalina, and planning for next year’s trip to Washington D.C. The meeting will conclude between 8:00 or 8:30.
After-School Sports Update
Boys Volleyball has their first match at Good Shepherd this coming Monday at 4:30PM, be sure to wish them luck. Also, put their Blue/Gold match on your calendars now! The boys will match-up against Spring Hill in Gateway’s first ever match on the sand at Main Beach on Thursday, May 24th at 4PM. All Girls Volleyball players need to return their jerseys to their coach or to Johaan in the 7th Humanities classroom. Those that don’t do so will be billed.
Upcoming practices:
5th-8th Boys Volleyball:
Wednesday, 4/18 Practice,
3:30-5PM
Monday, 4/23 @ Good
Shepherd, 4:30PM
Wednesday, 4/25 Practice,
3:30-5PM
GO SHARKS!
