Have you designed a new product recently? Our students have! In March all students spent the day with Junior Achievement, the world’s largest organization dedicated to educating students about work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through hands-on programs. Each grade level participated in creative exercises in which they designed a product and developed a sales, financial and marketing plan. It was very exciting to see the creativity of our future business leaders.

Sandpiper students celebrated National Reading Month during the Reading Power Read-A-Thon, a fundraiser for the School-Force education foundation. For two weeks, children tracked their hours spent reading in a heated competition to see which grade would reign supreme. Congratulations to all the children, and their sponsors, for their dedication to reading!

All Pro Dads held its second breakfast of the year, welcoming dads (and moms) to an hour of quality time with their children before school. Sandpiper is home to the only All Pro Dads program in Northern California, encouraging parents to be positive and engaged role models to all children.

The Disaster Preparedness Committee continues working towards its goal of building a 7-day emergency supply inventory for the school. Although this effort may take a year or more to achieve, several short-term milestones have been identified including “Grab & Go” backpacks for every classroom, and school-wide training and drill exercises. We encourage all families to develop their own emergency plan at home. Many resources can be found at www.redcross.org, and local training is available through the CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) website at www.redwoodcity.org/fire/disaster/signupforCERT.html.

The community is invited to visit Sandpiper at the Open House to be held Wednesday, April 28 at 7:00pm. In addition to classroom exhibits, there will be an Art in Action showcase in the multi-use room. Please bike or walk as parking will be limited.

— Suzanne Pritchard, PTA President