FREE summer movies at the Central Point library

Enjoy movies shown on Wednesday afternoons during the summer from June 6 through August 1 (excluding July 4), from 1:30 – 4:30 p.m., at the Central Point Branch Library, 116 South Third Street.

Fun for all ages! Movies will be preceded by a classic cartoon or short film. Free popcorn, soda, and admission are provided by the Central Point Friends of the Library. For more information, please contact the Central Point Branch Library at 541-664-3228.

JCLS Family Literacy Fair 6/9

The Family Literacy Fair involves over twenty partners presenting literacy programs and support in many ways—reading, finances, health, physical, musical, computer, social, and more! Adults may enter a drawing for a free Kindle Touch eReader by visiting partners’ information tables. Early birds can enjoy free coffee, snacks, and special activities including an additional gift certificate drawing from 10 a.m. – 12 noon.

Enjoy a full day of fun and sign up for Summer Reading, too, on Saturday, June 9, with extended open hours from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., in the Children's Department of the Medford Library, 205 South Central Avenue.

Children's activities throughout the day will include:

• Tears of Joy Puppet Workshop: 10:00 – 10:45 a.m.
• Behind the Scenes Tours: 10:00 a.m., 1:00, and 2:00 p.m.
• Children’s Crafts: 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
• Bilingual Storytime: 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon
• Stories under the Tree: 1:30 – 2:00 p.m.
• Let’s Go Lego: 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• Bryan Jeffs Music Program: 2:30 – 3:30 p.m.
• Ms. Annie “Manners Matter”: 3:30 – 4:00 p.m.

These activities and others are in conjunction with the Family Literacy Fair happening all day in the library. Over twenty partners will present literacy programs throughout the day. Early birds can enjoy free coffee and tea, snacks, and special activities including an additional gift certificate drawing from 10 a.m. – 12 noon.

Teen activities throughout the day will include:

• Behind the Scenes Tours: 10:00 a.m., 1:00, and 2:00 p.m.
• Wii Games in Teen Library: 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
• Zumba Dance Party: 12:00 noon – 12:30 p.m.
• Henna Body Art in Teen Library: 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
• Duct Tape Crafts in Teen Library: 3:00 – 4:30 p.m.

             

Summer Line-Up for Bugs R Us

Bugs R Us

visit their website for more details!

Here's a schedule of UPCOMING PUBLIC shows
(subject to change).....

Saturday, June 2nd BATS at the CITY OF MEDFORD PARKS AND REC DEPT. 701 N. Columbus Ave. 1-2 pm Call 541-774-2400 for more info.

Saturday, June 2nd BIRDS and BIRDNESTS at the CITY OF CENTRAL POINT PARKS AND REC DEPT. 140 S. 3rd St. 3-4 pm Call 541-664-3321 for more info.

Wednesday, June 13th BATS at the Prospect Branch Library 150 Mill Creek Dr. 10:30am Call 541-560-3668 for all the details. FREE!

Wednesday, June 20th OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the Gold Hill Branch Library 202 Dardanelles St. 3pm Call 541-855-1994 for more info. FREE!

Saturday, June 23rd OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the CITY OF MEDFORD PARKS AND REC DEPT.701 N. Columbus Ave. 1-2 pm
Call 541-774-2400 for more info.

Saturday, June 23rd OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the CITY OF ASHLAND PARKS AND REC DEPT. 620 N. Mountain Ave. 3-4 pm
Call 541-488-6606 for more info.

Tuesday, June 26th OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the Phoenix Branch Library 510 W. 1st St. 1:30 pm Call 541-535-7090 for more info. FREE!

Friday, June 29th OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the Eagle Point Branch Library 239 W. Main St. 11am. Call 541-826-3313 for more info. FREE!

Saturday, June 30th BUGS! at the Rusk Ranch Nature Center 27750 Redwood Hwy Cave Junction. 1-2 pm Call 541-287-2164 for more info.

Saturday, July 7th BUGS at the CITY OF MEDFORD PARKS AND REC DEPT. 701 N. Columbus Ave. 3-4 pm Call 541-774-2400 for more info.

Saturday, July 7th BATS! at the Talent Branch Library 101 Home St. 1pm. Call 541-535-4163 for more info. FREE!

Tuesday, July 10th BATS! at the Ashland Branch Library 410 Siskiyou Blvd. 1:30pm Call 541-774-6986 for more info. FREE!

Thursday, July 12th OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the Jacksonville Branch Library 340 W. C St. 2:30pm Call 541-899-1665 for more info. FREE!

Saturday, July 14th BUGS! at the CITY OF ASHLAND PARKS AND REC DEPT. 620 N. Mountain Ave. 1-2 pm Call 541-488-6606 for more info.

Saturday, July 14th REPTILES and AMPHIBIANS at the CITY OF CENTRAL POINT PARKS AND REC DEPT. 140 S. 3rd St. 3-4 pm Call 541-664-3321 for more info.

Thursday, July 26th OWLS and OWL PELLETS at the Ruch Branch Library 7919 Hwy. 238 3:30pm. Call 541-899-7438 for more info. FREE!

Saturday, July 28th BATS! at the Rusk Ranch Nature Center 27750 Redwood Hwy Cave Junction. 1-2 pm Call 541-287-2164 for more info.

(Please Note.....All library shows include Preserved bugs and Bug CRAFTS INSTEAD of the LIVE insects. No LIVE critters at the Libraries.)

Used Curriculum Sale 6/16

USED CURRICULUM SALE
Saturday, June 16th - 9:00am to 2:00pm
12:00pm to 2:00pm Half Price Sale
at First Baptist Church . 649 Crater Lake Avenue, Medford
It is time to begin setting aside books that you no longer want or need for the Annual JCHE Used Curriculum
Sale! The date and location will be Saturday, June 16th, at First Baptist Church, Medford. This sale is a great
place to sell and buy books, curriculum, and educational materials. Total sales last year were almost $8,000.
We will run it as we have done in the past, in which you bring your labeled books the day before and volunteers
organize them according to categories. You won't need to stay at a table all day so that means time
to shop! You will be asked to volunteer for a shift either on Friday, the set-up day, or on Saturday, the day
of the sale.


The information packets are ready and available on the JCHE website (www.jchenews.com) in the "Newsletter
Download" section. You may also request a packet from Robin Reed. Once you have your packet, contact
Robin at allthereeds@yahoo.com  or call her at 541-779-0665 for your vendor number and to sign up for your
volunteer time. For more information you may also call Therese at 826-3560.


The Used Curriculum Sale is a great place to find bargains on books, graded curriculum, DVDs, and games
and manipulatives. All are welcome to attend the sale on Saturday, June 16th. It will start at 9:00am til noon.
Then we will close for about 15 minutes to reorganize for the half price sale, which will go until 2:00pm. All
general sale shopping must be completed by noon. No books may be set aside anywhere in the gym for the
half price sale. Any books that are found to be set aside will be placed back on the sale tables for the half price
sale. For more information about the sale call Therese at 541-826-3560 or email her at therese@jchenews.org.

Win a Family Pass to the OCEANetwork conference!

If you didn't know already, I'm happy to share with you:

OCEANetwork has a new blog, "Encouraged Together with You."(They've got some giveaways going between now and the conference June 22nd.)


Win a Family Pass to the OCEANetwork conference. Read the latest latest blog entry: A Veteran's Opinion: Why Conferences Still matter, and submit your entries through Rafflecopter.

Are YOU going to the OCEANetwork conference in June?

The May HS Gathering~ Honoring Motherhood 5/28

HS Mamas~ Please join me for a special evening of fun, food & fellowship, in honor of that most precious calling to motherhood.

The May HS Gathering~ Honoring Motherhood

Monday, May 28, 2012

6:00pm until 9:00pm

Medford, OR

♥Please RSVP to Tika Weeks at hsgathering@gmail.com **rescheduled from May 13th!**

Solar protective eyewear

If you purchased solar protective eyewear to view last night's solar eclipse, be sure to hold on to them! On June 5th, you can use your solar protective eyewear to view the Transit of Venus.

What is a transit of Venus?

When Venus passes directly between earth and the sun, we see the distant planet as a small dot gliding slowly across the face of the sun. Historically, this rare alignment is how we measured the size of our solar system.

When is it?

The next transit of Venus occurs June 5 or 6, 2012, depending on your location.**  Observers in North America see it the evening of June 5. This will be the last transit of Venus to occur in your lifetime.

***For Southern Oregon, this will begin around 3pm on June 5th and complete around 10pm.**

OCEANetwork has a new blog!

OCEANetwork has a new blog, "Encouraged Together with You." Check it out at http://blog.oceanetwork.org. (They've got some giveaways going between now and the conference June 22nd.)

Be sure to check it out:)

HSG FAMILIES~ IMPORTANT INFO!

Dear HSG families,
As you know, I have been trying to plan an educational field trip for our group to the Oregon Caves this spring. Many of you joined us for the wonderful field trip to Crater Lake National Park in October and were excited to explore the caves this spring. It is with great regret that I must now cancel this field trip.

As homeschooling families, I believe you will be interested in finding out why. Please allow me to explain:

• My initial contact, at the end of December, was to the park ranger in charge of organizing the Oregon Caves educational program. I was inquiring about the cost of the educational field trips and to schedule a field trip for our homeschool group.
• The park ranger did not reply until mid-February and sent me information to apply for the fee waiver, as well as this statement, referring to the two options we could choose from (Geology for 3-5 grade and Watersheds for 6-8 grade)~ "The fee waiver program is for groups whose students fall outside of our curriculum-based education program age range or who are not studying these topics.  Both options require an application process and to have the fee waived, you must qualify." We were also required to offer evidence of "a direct relationship between the visit purpose and the use of the Park. The visit must be to study some aspect/resource    specific to Oregon Caves. A general statement to the effect that the visit is for “educational purposes” is insufficient by itself. An explanation of what the educational purpose entails and how is related to the Park resources is required. (Course outlines, lesson plans, or a copy of the curriculum meet this requirement)." Initially, I had planned to offer a one or two day workshop on Bear Creek Watershed in the Rogue Valley (using materials from the North Mountain Park in Ashland).
• I replied "We are not an accredited educational institution. Each homeschooling family has a letter from our county ESD office, registering and confirming our intent to home educate our children under state law, but I doubt this is what you are looking for. Last fall, we were able to visit Crater Lake National Park and receive the same education program that is offered to schools, free of charge. We also received an Entrance Fee Waiver." The ranger then assured me that the letter from ESD would suffice...if one was received from each attending family. She also told me that if we didn't qualify for the fee waiver, we could have the group rates they offer and they would make sure extra rangers were available for our group tour.
• Not comfortable with asking you all for your ESD letter, I replied (at the end of March now) that we were changing course, not offering the class (and therefore not qualifying for the fee waiver), but that we would like to go ahead with the group rate for a 10 am tour on May 31st. I sent that email on April 1st.
• Having received no further communication, I sent another email May 1st, asking to confirm our date and time. I received this reply on May 12th:
  "Hello,
  Sorry.  I meant to respond sooner!
  There is already a group scheduled to arrive that day in the morning and we will be training new staff.  We will not have additional rangers available until later in afternoon at about 2pm.  If 10:00 is the only time that fits in with your schedule, you of course can come up, but expect a wait of up to an hour or more."
• The feedback I have received from the families signed up to go, overwhelming leaned towards rescheduling the field trip and "fighting it out" to get the educational program as well. I agree.

Not only did I find their policy of only offering the educational programs to "qualified" educational institutions, it sadly was discriminatory towards home educators! Furthermore, I found their general communications to be inconsistent and a terrible disappointment after dealing with the very helpful and accomodating rangers at Crater Lake! Both the Oregon Caves and Crater Lake are National Parks and are subject to the same regulations for educational field trips, as per National Park Service  Regulations (NPS-22).

I have been encouraged by the letters and responses from many of our local homeschool families to pursue this matter further. Yes, we DO qualify, according to Oregon law, to be recognized as an educational entity. As much as I would love to do this, I have several "big" personal matters to attend to and I cannot give this my full attention. I would like to reschedule this field trip for the fall, but I will need help to make this happen. If you are available to help in any way, please email me as soon as possible.

Thank you all for your patience and prayers!
Blessings to you and yours,
Tika Weeks
The HS Gathering of Southern Oregon
hsg

Caves Field Trip

If you were planning on attending the Oregon Caves field trip on May 31st and have not received an email from me, please try again. There have been changes and I want to make sure I'm not missing anyone!

Thank you,
Tika

Re: Eclipse Viewers (TIME SENSITIVE!!!)

From DeeAnn Todd:

Solar Eclipse

LOCAL FRIENDS

On May 20th we will have a solar eclipse and it is imperative that you use eye protection when viewing the eclipse. I have looked locally for eclipse glasses and have not been able to find them. There are ways to make viewing boxes but I do not see myself doing that for all five of us! I found them on line for .85 each but the shipping is a killer. If we were to f...ind 16 or so families the shipping would be about $1 per family.

If this interests you, and you would like to join a group order then you can pick them up at my house, or Rich’s office, after they come in.

Let me know asap if you would like to be included. In order to have them here in time I would need to order today. They can e-mail thetoddfamily@earthlink.net or call (626) 589-0844 is my cell number.

California Theatre Center presents

I have organized group rates in the past for local homeschool families, however this time I am asking for a volunteer willing to set this up. If you are available to make the arrangements with CTC (it's really easy!) and collect payment from attendees, please let me know so I can re-post your contact information here. Thank you!
~Tika

Book-It Reading Incentive Program 2012-13

 

It's Time to Reserve Your 2012-13 BOOK IT! Materials

Please accept this email as your reminder to request FREE BOOK IT! materials for your K-6 homeschool students.

Enroll online at www.bookitprogram.com

Program Dates: October 1, 2012 - March 31, 2013

The May HS Gathering ~ POSTPONED!!!

Please note: The May HS Gathering has been postponed!!! Please watch for a later date to be announced soon ♥
Happy Mother's Day to all of you,
Tika

HS Mamas~ You are cordially invited to an afternoon tea party in honor of...YOU!

"An afternoon Gathering of old and new friends,
 To celebrate motherhood and chat to no end!"
Saturday, May 12th at 2 o'clock in the afternoon


 Please RSVP as soon as possible to Tika Weeks hsgathering@gmail.com to receive your formal invitation!


*Hats are optional, but please dress up in all your lady-like finery! ♥

For you skywatchers: “Supermoon” 5/5

From Space.com



Skywatcher Tim McCord of Entiat, Washington caught this amazing view of the March 19, 2011 full moon - called a supermoon because the moon was at perigee, the closest point to Earth in its orbit - using a camera-equipped telescope.
CREDIT: Tim McCord

“Skywatchers take note: The biggest full moon of the year is due to arrive this weekend.

The moon will officially become full Saturday (May 5) at 11:35 p.m. EDT. And because this month's full moon coincides with the moon's perigee — its closest approach to Earth — it will also be the year's biggest.

The moon will swing in 221,802 miles (356,955 kilometers) from our planet, offering skywatchers a spectacular view of an extra-big, extra-bright moon, nicknamed a supermoon.

And not only does the moon's perigee coincide with full moon this month, but this perigee will be the nearest to Earth of any this year, as the distance of the moon's close approach varies by about 3 percent, according to meteorologist Joe Rao, SPACE.com's skywatching columnist. This happens because the moon's orbit is not perfectly circular.”