School's Out — Get Ready for Hillwood's June & July Session

You may also take a look at the first 15 pages of the Hillwood yearbook online. Yearbooks should arrive in time for graduation. You can also order one online.

Hillwood Academic Day School by Hillwood Uppergrades 2009-2010 | Make Your Own Book

What Students Need to Know About Facebook

Facebook isn't necessarily a safe hangout for students. But when the privacy settings are set the right way, it can be perfectly harmless — yet, you still have to be careful.

Whatever you post on Facebook is bound to be seen by some kind of authority, whether it be a prospective hiring company or a university choosing you for a future student. Thus, you'll always want to be careful with what you share on the web. Raunchy photos, inappropriate word content, or ugly gossip will lead to non-promising auditions — or worse. Click to watch this video, which explains what can happen if you are not cautious and forward-thinking in your actions.

Example Situation: You just applied for a job at a top-notch company in New York. You went in for the interview, dressed appropriately, and used scholarly vocabulary. The employer assures you that you will be hired shortly. Likely, the company will go on Facebook and accesses your profile. Those late-night photos won't act as a good reputation for you. The wall posts with swear words will lead the employers to think you're a bad example. You're favorite job employer has just rejected your job application in less than five minutes.

But the work world is not the only place or groups of people who will watch and see what you do online — your friends, family, and teachers will also look. What will they think? Prospective high school admission counselors may also look, will they still respect you?

Related stories:

• How to manage your Facebook settings (read our other story).
• Why you need to consider what you post (read last week's story by Julien G. and Julian F.)
• Watch this video on why you need to be careful and forwarding thinking when posting online.

Nancy Pelosi: Update and Biography

Though the possibility of The Hillwood Herald interviewing democratic neighbor and speaker of the House is dimming, we have a renewed hope, now that our lovely Irene has sent another request for an appointment. But we understand that Nancy Pelosi is an active woman.

Born in 1940 in Baltimore, Maryland, Mrs. Pelosi, now a San Francisco resident, is the most high-ranking women in the history of the country as the person third in command . An Italian-American, she is the youngest of Anunciata M. and politician Thomas D'Alesandro, Jr. Because of her father's political background, Ms. Pelosi grew up seeing and hearing politics, and therefore, she might have been given an advantage. After graduating from the Institute of Notre Dame, she received a B.A. in political science from Trinity Washington University in Washington D.C., where she met her husband, Paul Frank Pelosi. Together, they had five children and now live around the corner from Hillwood.

Some of the $1.7 million from President Obama's recent fundraising trip here in San Francisco may go to Nancy Pelosi, as well as to other democratic candidates, but mainly for Barbara Boxer.

Next week, we will be interviewing Tony Long, a Hillwood graduate from the 1960s. The topic will be interviewing techniques, which we will hopefully use with Nancy Pelosi.

By Brigette W.

Sources: The New York Times, Wikipedia, KTVU

BP's Oil Disaster, an Update

On April 20th, BP's oil rig exploded and killed 11 of the workers and broke a pipe 5,000 feet under the water, which is letting out at most 19,000 barrels of oil per day. This disaster is far over double of the barrels dumped than the Exxon Valdez disaster in 1989, which was off of the coast of Alaska and spilled about 250,000 barrels of oil.

People are saying that this is the worst disaster in U.S. history. The oil, is now moved up to coasts and marshes of Louisiana and is having a huge effect on the wildlife down there and the animals in the ocean. And they think that they have 5 ideas to stop the oil.

And now Obama feels responsible for the oil spill because it was a government failure and now he said that he is sorry for the disaster. But the people still do not blame him for the spill. But people are still angry at the government for it.

Click on this page for NPR and Google's 24/7 webcam of the leaking drill.

Doodle for Google

The Doodle 4 Google contest took place in March, and the dateline was March 31st. The winner's photo was on the Google homepage yesterday (May 27th, 2010). Mackenzie Melton, in 3rd grade at El Dorado Springs, in El Dorado Springs, Missouri. She won for the kindergarten through 3rd grade group, at the age of 9. She said, "I chose this doodle because the rainforest is in danger and it is not fair to the plants and animals. I love everything except spiders and snakes, but I would still save them." Her design won from over 33,000 contestants.

I think that this picture got chosen, because it took time to make, and it was a good theme. If I were a judge, I would have chosen this. Also, the image is pretty and colorful, unlike some other pictures. This was a wonderful picture to have been drawn by a nine year old. I think it's interesting how that the "e" at the end of Google, was a snake, even though Mackenzie doesn't like snakes. Her picture was creative and outside of the box. Now you think about what you would want to draw, and for what reason, if you had entered the contest.

She won her picture to be the Google homepage from yesterday, a $15,000 collage scholarship, a netbook computer, and a $25,000 for her schools computer system.

For more information about the school, visit this site.

For more information about Doodle 4 Google, visit this site.

Below is a montage of the Google video:

The Return of the Carnivorous Plants

At the Conservatory of Flower they have the world's largest Venus flytrap and Asian Pitcher. The Conservatory of Flower has a exhibit called Chomps.

You can see hundreds of carnivorous plants at the Big Bog. The Big Bog is a swampy paradise for the meat-eating plants like a Venus flytrap. Most of the plants lack nutrients because the soil is so poor. At the Conservatory of Flower, they have the Bladderworts, the largest group of plants at the Conservatory of Flower with over 200 species.

The Conservatory of Flower location is at Golden Gate park, and it costs $7.00 for adults, $5.00 for youth ages 12-17, Seniors age 65 & over, and College Students with ID,$2.00 for Children ages 5-11. It is free for Children ages 4 and under,and the Conservatory of Flower was built at 1878.



By Brandon

Facebook - And Its Safety Controls

Any of you Herald readers use Facebook? Well, sign on right now and edit your security settings.

Facebook Settings
Facebook is the most popular website right now. But, its control settings are very complicated. There are settings for contact information (email, phone number, IM addresses, residing city), personal information (photo albums, birthdates, your wall posts), and searchings by whom.

Facebook History and Current Settings
Facebook was found in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg who is now the CEO of Facebook. He has been pushing its users to share more information on Facebook. Several times, past and present, users have complained that some new privacy features and settings that goes against their privacies. Many complaints have been sent in to Facebook and just Wednesday, Mr. Zuckerberg revealed a set of controls that is supposed to help people understand better about what they're shring online and who they're sharing with. He didn't apologize to Facebook users but he simplified the control settings. The simplified version of the settings are supposed to be easier to access and view.

Also, be sure to ask yourself if you really need to be using Facebook? As a student, do you really want to create a trail of your life now? Is it necessary?

By Lance and Irene

Marine Mammal and the Giants Team Up

The Giants are raising money for the Marine Mammal Center. The Giants are doing this for the Marine Mammal Center for free because the Marine Mammal Center saves seal for free. Their program is a nonprofit organization. The Giants are showing support by also having their mascot Lou Seal.

Buy tickets and come to AT@T Park and support the seals and the Giants!

Read Anya's previous story about the Marine Mammal Center.

Bay Area beaches grade well for safe swimming

Beaches are being graded for how safe the beach is for swimming and how clean it is. If a beach has a lot of riptides happening, and the beach is full of little kids, riptides can pull little kids in the water, and the kids will drown. At least 90percent of Bay Area beaches received top grades in the annual report by Heal the Bay. Heal the Bay is a program that cleans the beaches and make sure that they are safe for the society. "people should go out and enjoy the beaches this summer" Says James Alamillo who is the manager of Heal the bay. "water quality was great in the Bay Area, at least in the summer". Among the worst offenders was baker beach which is in San Fransisco. A raw sewage leaking from from old pipes that are overflowing storm drains and flow into Lobos Creek. Then it forms a pool at the south end of the beach.

Areas dirtiest beaches

San Fransisco

--Baker Beach near Lobos Creek

Contra Costa

--Keller Beach

Areas cleanest beaches

San Mateo County

--Rochaway Beach

--Montara State Beach

--San Gregorio State Beach

--Coyote Point

East Bay

--Alamenda Point

--most of Crown beach

San Fransisco

--Aquatic Park

--China Beach

--Ocean Beach near Sloat

Marin

--All beaches are clean

Sonoma

--all beaches are clean

Written By: Rubina H.

Australia Allows Exports of Uranium to Russia

Australia is the world's third largest uranium producer. Not a long time ago, Australia allowed uranium to be exported to Russia. The problem is that it was only Russia. Australia has refused to sell uranium to India. Australia refused to sell it to India for energy use because the South Asian country has not signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Russia is lucky to be the country that Australia sells Uranium to. Russia hopes that "agreements on the peaceful use of nuclear energy" will be complete. Also, Australia and Russia both signed up to President Barack Obama's plan to secure all vulnerable nuclear material in four years outlined at two-day summit in Washington earlier this month. This had to involve forty-seven countries.

Navy Sea Mammals to Show Skill in Bay

Dolphins and sea lions are the marine mammals that are used by the Navy to track mines or waterborne saboteurs. To some people this might sound like a part from a James Bond movie, right? Wrong this has been going on for 40 years.

The Navy showcased this on Monday as a part of a statewide exercise simulating a port terrorist attack. Federal officials have looked back and have seen that these trained marine mammals have been used exclusively for military operations. Many trainers also developed relationships with these special animals.

Dolphins were in Vietnam and no mine ever exploded because of them. Fred Jolly manages a team of animal handlers from the Navy Marine Mammal Program that has come to San Francisco.

Refrigerator Magnets, On the Internet?

At isnoop.net you can pretend that you're playing with refrigerator magnets on the Internet. You may think it has "bugs," or programming errors, when you place a word and a bunch of other words move. The reality, however, is that other people are playing with your so-called refrigerator. These people can play with your sentences and enhance it or remove it.

I think it's interesting to see what people like. Camryn and I liked the website and found it fun. On a scale of one to ten, I would give it a seven or six. We both wrote silly sentences, including "little duck found sheep people." To the right is a Wordle that shows all the words you can move around. Above is a screen grab from the site.

Great Moments in Lego History

Legos are used everywhere in the world by people of all ages. Also people use Legos to make videos and put them on the Internet. This first video is very interesting because a person used Legos to recreate a video game.

Most people who make these videos are very artistic. Usually the videos are two minutes which is pretty long for a normal video. It is also pretty hard to make the characters, back round, and vehicles.

These are some other Lego videos:

Visit Isnoop.net

Looking through sites today, Anya and I, found a site called, isnoop. The site can be really fun, when you don't expect it. For example, Anya and I were playing around, on two different computers, and found out that if I move a word on my Apple, the word would move on Anya's computer. Also, you can make what ever sentence, phrase, or whatever! One phrase I wrote was strange, because it said: Why do people abuse gingerbread sheep?

I personally think that this is fun because you can talk about the strangest things! Anya and I gave it a 6 out of 10, because it was fun, but wasn't terrific. The reason we don't think it's terrific, is because sometimes, it can get a little frustrating. For example, if the word moves to the space that you don't want it at, you can't do anything about it, because, it most likely means that someone is on at another spot, and the signal is interacting. Although isnoop has issues, it is fun.

About The Internet

The internet is great, but it can also be bad. You should always be careful of what you post on the internet. Some people post something one day and like it, but then next day you might regret it.

Also computers copy every page you or a person goes on. Google and other sites capture and can show a history of all the websites you go on.

If you post something like on Facebook, your boss or a high school that you are trying to get into might not accept you or hire you because what you posted might could be viewed asinappropriate.

To learn more visit this website.

Summer's Almost Here, Everyone!

June at Hillwood is very eventful: International Day, the Graduation/June Party, and the start of Hillwood's Summer Session.

International Day:
International/Heritage Day at Hillwood is always the first Friday of June every year. Students are allowed to come to school in their own cultural clothing, Hawaiian clothing, or uniforms and are encouraged to bring in any kind of dish that relates to their country. The food brought in is served for lunch which is around 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM. Parents were invited too for lunch and were welcome to stay for the June Talent Show which started at 1:30 PM to 2:45 PM.

During the talent show, everyone performed at least twice. Ms. Schmitt, as mentioned before, is the main person in charge of all talent shows. She always has each class sing at least two songs for the talent show. She also holds auditions for students who want to do additional performances. The Spanish teacher, Senorita Lydia, also has students perform brief plays in Spanish to show off our language skills.

Graduation/June Party:
The Graduation/June Party is also known as the last day of school. The party is held for graduating 8th graders and Kindergarteners. Every year, Hillwood's 8th graders get into excellent high schools around the Bay Area.

This fall: Julian will attend Tamalpais High School in Marin, Julien will attend SHCP or Galileo High in San Francisco, Irene will attend Oceana High School in Pacifica, and Brigette will attend School Of The Arts in San Francisco.

The Kindergarten students are also graduating to go to 1st grade - at Hillwood again! The Graduation Party includes the whole school singing 'The Star Spangled Banner', 'Amazing Grace', and the Hillwood Song, the valedictorian (Brigette) giving her speech, and all the graduates receive their diplomas. After the elaborate ritual, all the graduates go to the family room to celebrate with teachers, families, and friends.

Hillwood's Summer Program:
The last two weeks of June is the start of Hillwood's Summer Program. During June and July, going to Hillwood like a summer day camp. Students and other children are allowed to enroll for the summer program and everyday is full of fun activities.

Mrs. Grantz and Ms. Tom lead the children daily: they go to Altal Plaza Park, the library, Moscone Park, Marina Greens, and had picnics. We also went on weekly field trips to the Exploratorium and other museums.

The Maker's Faire

Have you ever had some totally bizarre idea or creation? Or maybe you wanted to make a Hamburger Car? Well, you probably didn't know that their is a huge convention were people can show off these creations. At the Makers Faire, go watch a giant, mega, troll size version of the Mouse Trap Game.

This weekend at the Sam Mateo County Event Center, May 22 to May 23, Come join all the fun and wackiness that you could handle. There is going to be food and games for all ages. Click here to find out more about it.

The Space Potty

Astronauts take a simulator to go to the bathroom in space. When a astronauts go to the bathroom in space they use air instead of water.

In the bathroom in the shuttle they use straps to keep the astronauts in place. The tube in the toilet is the main part of the toilet. The tube is used for urine and for number 2. There is a equipment that you put next to the toilet to put in toilet paper.

In the simulator toilet or the practice toilet has a little camera in the toilet and you can see your stuff in a television. When you go number 2 in space they have to separated human waste an solid waste.

Artist Highlight

Lorenzo Hurtado Segovia is a artist that takes things apart and puts them back together in different shapes.

Lorenzo Hurtado Segovia is most famous for shredding them into art that is literally more than the sum of its parts. Lorenzo Hurtado Segovia works on numerous amounts of pieces of art at the same time. Lorenzo started creating art at the age of eleven.

At eleven, he was taking things apart and then bringing them back together in a different order. Deborah Hurtado Segovia was Lorenzo's wife. Deborah's name is painted onto most of the works. Most of his art is about his wife. I like his art like art to be hung in a gallery, I wouldn't want his art in my house.

Below is a Wordle about his work.

Lorenzohurtado.blogpost.com

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

On April 28, an explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon, an offshore oil drilling rig rented by the oil company BP, and as a result, a fire took the lives of 11 crew members, and the semi-submersible sank two days later. After it sank approximately 50 miles off of the Louisiana coast, three leaks in a pipe and the well spilled over 5,000 barrels, or 200,000 gallons, daily almost a mile below sea level, making it the largest spill since 1989. Fortunately, due to timely winds and tides, as well as booms to hold the oil and chemical dispersants, the oil did not contaminate beaches or wetlands until three weeks later, but eventually, oil began to show on the surface.

As a result, the spill was called an issue of "national significance" by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and any new offshore drilling would not be allowed until a thorough investigation is conducted. Also, this spill has sparked controversy over energy bills.

Source: The New York Times

By Brigette

Stolen Dog Found, But Debate Continues

A red-nosed pit bull, Max, was found stolen in a Reno hotel, with his co-owner, Melissa. She got caught by a cop, and got arrested. In court, she brought her boyfriend's name up (unmentioned), and now he, as well, is in jail. The woman called and talked to friends of hers, and planned a break in at the animal shelter, Max went to.

She is being charged and cited, and is still debating who should own the dog, and the fact that she shouldn't have to go to jail. Max bit about 2-3 vets, and is considered dangerous. Things are still being tossed around, in the midst of it. A lot is still being debated.

For more information, SF Examiner.

Perfect Mother's Day

On Sunday the Athletics pitcher Dallas Braden Became only the 19th pitcher in history to throw a perfect game. He struck out all 27 Tampa Bay Rays which are the best team in baseball right now.

For Braden, Mother's Day has been difficult because his mother Jodie died of cancer when he was in high school. But who was in the crowd was Braden's grandmother Lindsey. "Dall and I are very close," she said. Brian Wilson the Giants' closer is one of Braden's friends and he said, "There wasn't a stronger figure in his life."

Braden became only the second pitcher in Athletics history to throw a perfect game. Last year Mark Buhrle pitched a perfect game against the same exact team.

Photo credit: Oakland Press

The Walkathon

At Hillwood, for our first walkathon, we walked down to Crissy Field to raise money for the playground in the back of the school.

After the first 2010 walkathon to Crissie Field, we came back to the school and had a BBQ. We all surprised ourselves by raising about three thousand dollars for the school playground. We are all excited to know that we will have new play equipment in the near future.

This article will be part of Hillwood's yearbook.

U.S. puts hold on drilling permits

The United States has stopped giving permits for drilling the oil out of the Gulf of Mexico.

The workers put out an one hundred ton box, trying to collect most all of the oil, yet only about eighty-five percent of the oil.

Ken Salazar went to the Houston center of BP, which is responsible for getting the oil out of the gulf.

Oil is spilling out into the ocean at five thousand barrels, or two hundred ten thousand gallons daily. The people in charge might be working on Sunday, but they are still debating their schedule.

People say that this job might be the biggest and hardest job involving the Earth. This job hasn't been done or practiced before. Some of the test didn't go well. For example, on April 20th, there was an explosion. Eleven men are missing, and were declared dead on April 27th.

The explosion is expected to last until May 28th. The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill is causing harm to many animals and plants. Endangered sea turtles are fighting for their life. This could be a problem for all the seas if the oil doesn't get out soon.

Art at Hillwood, with My Mom

Art is a subject at Hillwood School. Our art teacher is Anna Sargysan. She is also my mom. She does art every Friday. The upper graders have art after the park, the 2nd through 4rth go before the park, and the little kids do art right before lunch. Anna does still life, abstract, and origami with us. At home, she paints all sorts of paintings.

If you go to www.annaseven.com, you can look at a lot of art work that she has. She has a lot of ink on paper, oil on canvas, acrylics on canvas, and pencil on canvas. The image shown here is from her website.

This article will be part of Hillwood's yearbook.

Hillwood Raises Money for the Leukemia Society

Every year Hillwood School raises money for the Leukemia Society in an event called " Pennies for Patients." This year we raised $1317.90, and earned a pizza party, (which we unfortunately never had.) We raised the money by bringing in unused pennies and other coins and bills. Next year we hope to raise more money.

The Leukemia Society goes to 240 schools from May to June to raise money and find cures for brain and other cancers. It'd good to know that our money we raised is going to a good cause.

This article will be part of Hillwood's yearbook.

Holiday Talent Show

The Holiday Talent Show is always before the three-week holiday brake. Ms. Schimtt is a big part of the talent show. She gives each grade a song to sing. She is a very good singer and helps and is a big part of the talent show. The Spanish teacher Ms. Lydia also helps with the talent show. Sometime we sing or even set up a little play. There is also a lot of food and entertainment. This year the person with the most talent I think was Kasama Tillman and André with break dancing. But, this year Brigette Wang did not perform with her violin. Usually she does it every year but this year she could not because her violin broke.

Many people showed up to the show parents, students, and teachers. The talent show started 1 p.m. The show was a hit, Mr. and Mrs. Grantz's house was full of people. The talent show ends at 3 p.m. After that there was a parent social gathering. Its a pot luck. Mr. Grantz always BBQs the best vegetables, sausage, and some meat from Marina Meat Market owned my Mrs. Grantz's brother. Anyways the talent show was a GREAT HIT and you should go!

This article will be part of Hillwood's yearbook.

2nd to 4th Grade

What is it like to be in 2nd to 4th grade here at Hillwood? Well I'll tell you. 2nd to 4th grade are in a combined classroom so when the younger grades need help the older children can help. Ms Tom became the 2nd to 4th grade teacher in 2008. Ms. Tom was my teacher for almost all of the time I've been here. Ms. Tom has been working here for 8 years starting in 2010. She was born in San Francisco.

I was in 2nd to 4th grade from 2007-2009. I first met Rubina in 2nd grade, my best friend, Reid, moved to Idaho in 2nd grade, and Mr. Grantz was my teacher.

In 2010 the 2nd to 4th graders favorite book was The Witches. They saw the play Nate the Great, they said it wasn't so good. Their favorite subjects are math and reading.

This article will be part of Hillwood's yearbook.

The Upper Grader Class

In the at City Hall picture the students names at the top row Julian Farr, Zack Owen - Walkup, Brigette Wang in the middle row their names are Irene Tong, Lance Yasinsky and in the last row their names are Anya Jensen, me (Brandon Wong), and Rubina Hovhannisyan. Every one in the City Hall picture looks happy and had a good time at the field trip. Our last field the Asian Art Museum was amazing because the Spirit of the Samurai exhibit had a lot of interesting artifacts. 1 they had a lot cool and amazing artifacts like the Buddha meditating on top of a lotus. 2 they let us hold a real life samurai sword, let us wear a samurai mask plate, and let us wear a samurai helmet.

By Brandon

Music at Hillwood

Gayle Schmitt was the music teacher at Hillwood for a long time. She sings a lot of songs with the whole school. Gayle sings at the Randall Museum.Gayle mostly sings songs that entertain little children. Sometimes she invites children from Hillwood to come and sing with her at the Randall museum. We sing all sorts of songs with Gayle at music class. Gayle also composes her very own music! At the Randall museum, she mostly sings her own songs. Gayle has her own CD of songs with her singing with her band.

The talent show at our school is a very important event. Gayle is the main person in it. She chooses two songs for each classroom, then she practices, and then she preforms it with each class. We have music books in each class, then we chose a song to sing, and sing it.

Part of this article will appear in the yearbook.

Happy Mother's Day from The Hillwood Herald

Happy Mother's Day!

Click for our Mother's Day video by Camryn!

Ms.Caine

Ms.Caine is the after school supervisor.  Her son Darien came to this school last year.    Then he went to Sacred heart.  She also lets teachers take breaks and watches the class.  She also helps students with their work.  She also gives snack to the students if they are still at school at 5:00. She watches students from 3:00-5:00p.m.

Ms.Tom

Ms.Tom is the teacher for 2nd -4th grade.  Her strongest subject that I think is math.   She tries to personally help each student in the subject that he/she is struggling in.  She is very nice, se tries to be nice everyone but at the same time discipline.

Zach the Dog

Zach the black lab is almost 13 now and I love him so much. I have known him more than six years. Six years ago he was only six, so cute and still cute. Zach has hernia in his right leg. Zach's birthday is May 29. Zach likes looking at the road from the schoolyard, taking walks in the park, dog treats, and basking in the sun. Zach is curious and likes sitting on the front porch.
Zach's first name was Chaser because he liked Chasing people. Mrs. Grantz named him Zach. His full name is Zach Northstar Grantz.
Mr. Grantz got him in Vacaville, 1997, when Zach was 2 months old.

The Asian Art Museum

At May 6, 2010 we went to the Asian Art Museum with the only the upper class. We took a car pool to drive to the Asian Art Museum. When we arrived at the Asian Art Museum we get to go on a elevator to go to the 2nd floor. A docent gave us tour around the Spirit of the Samurai. Then we did a little report about some artifacts. My partner Camryn did a report about a statue called the Gurdian of the East who was stepping on a Dwarf of ignorances protecting the Buddha. Later Camryn and I did another report on a chest for a high ranking people when they travel.

Next we had a fake Japanese Tea Ceremony. To end the afternoon we get to touche a samurai'f face mask,helmet,and sword.

October Outing

The October Outing is when Kindergarten-4th grade and 8th grade go to the pumpkin  patch.   For the little kids the pumpkin patch is very fun it has a maze, a haunted house, and a hay ride.  It is usually pretty hot like 80-85 degrees there so do not were heavy clothes just bring a jacket just in case.  The maze is pretty long if you do not know how to get.  The name of the pumpkin patch is Arata in Half Moon Bay,

Mrs. Marta

Mrs. Marta is our school cook. My favorite food here is creamy chicken with vegetables. I also like pasta with vegetables.Our school likes peas, because when we had peas I wanted more but they were gone upstairs and downstairs.
Mrs. Marta was born in Nicaragua, Central America. She was born August 11.
Mrs. Marta has a husband, who works, and three children, two boys and one girl. Her favorite food is soy milk. She has been working here for 7 years.

Life at Hillwood

With its small number of students, Hillwood Academic Day School's atmosphere produces a family like feel. Because of the size of the school and its pupils, teachers are able to direct more attention toward each student, children feel more encouraged to learn and don't feel held back. Everything about this school, the teachers, the classrooms, even the backyard, feels comfortable with its intimate essence.

When I was four and a half, newly enrolled in Hillwood, I was so excited to be learning how to read. Though "See Spot Run" doesn't seem like much, it was a big deal for me, a kid who was tired of knowing only the alphabet song and how to count to 100 in pre-school. Here, I felt the supportive and familiar character of the school from the beginning. Now in the eighth grade, working on algebra and excerpts from The Odyssey, I still feel inspired by the great teachers here.

It's also very nice to be in a place where you know everyone's name and where everyone knows yours. Being in such a small group makes me feel not so inclined to just follow the crowd. I think that such a relaxed environment can bring out a person's individuality because you don't feel the peer pressure as much as you would in a class of 30.

Classes that are offered include: math, English, science, history, art, Spanish, and chorus. In addition, we also have a period on Friday morning where the uppergraders work on the school's blog, The Hillwood Herald, directed by parent volunteer Ms. Moorhead. The academics, are taught by the teacher of the class, art, by parent volunteer , Ms. Anna H., Spanish, by Senorita Lidia, and chorus, by Ms. Schmitt. Our K-1st grade teacher is Ms. Dawson, our 2nd-4th grade teacher is Ms. Tom, and our 5th-8th grade teacher is Mrs. Woods. In the kindergarten and first grade classroom, beginner's books like Fun with Dick and Jane and those by Dr. Seuss line bookshelves. Starting from the second grade, students work on their multiplication and division. In the uppergrades, we work on pre-algebra and algebra as well as Shakespearean writing and Lord of the Flies by William Golding.

(Is this long enough? Should I add more?)
by Brigette W.

Life at Hillwood

Hillwood Academic is a non-religious, Kindergarten through 8th grade school located in the Pacific Heights area of San Francisco, California. Because school hours are held in a Victorian house, there aren't too many students enrolled with a maximum number of about forty students. (Currently, there are thirty-seven students) Also, because there are so less students, there are only three classes: Kindergarten to 1st, 2nd to 4th, and 5th to 8th. Here are the class schedules.

For the Kindergarten to 1st grades:

It starts off with the attendance of the students along with the flag salute and the date. Afterwards, it continues with math and language arts followed by recess. Then, the students move on to the reading and learning centers where they read a book in class. For lunch, it is always something homemade by our cook, Ms. Martha. After lunch, it is either science or social studies with phonics or the learning centers. Followed by that, the students get a half hour recess where they play games in the school's play yard. The teachers also pass out snacks and the students practice writing in their journals. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, their daily schedule is accompanied by music, Spanish, and art.

For the 2nd to 4th grades:

The first subject they study during the day is math and spelling. Next, the first reading group gathers together and after, it is time for a half hour recess. When the students get back in, it is time for the second reading group to get together. When they are done, it's time for lunch which is followed by recess and read aloud with free time. Then, it s time for phonics and/or science and with snacks. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, there is music, Spanish, and art classes.

For the 5th to 8th grades:

First thing in the morning is to turn in all of the previous day's homework. Then, the students work on math. Currently, the 7th and 8th graders are learning algebra while the 5th and 6th graders are working on decimals. The math lasts all morning until 10:30 with a ten-minute break in between. Following math, it is time for literature! Right now, the whole class is reading excerpts from The Odyssey. Starting next week, the 5th to 6th grades will start reading Holes by Louis Sacher and the 7th to 8th grades will start on To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Again, it is a long period, ending until time for lunch. Every month, we have two students assigned to be our lunch monitors. They are in charge of bringing up the lunch pots and getting all the utensils ready for all the students. Part of the lunch break, our teacher brings us to the park each day for an hour, weather permitting. After we get back, we have a study hall where students are to work on assignments that are due or get a head start on early assignments. After study hall, our teacher comes back for either history or science depending on the weekday. And then last but not least, we end the day with grammar, writing down homework, and packing up.

Being in a small school is really helpful everyone knows everyone. For example, I know all the little kids downstairs while they know me and all the 2nd to 4th grade boys look up to the 7th to 8th grade boys. Also, people don't make fun of you. Sure, there's the usual joking kind of teasing when someone hits themselves by accident or otherwise. But, it isn't serious where people form groups against each other or physically hurt each other.

Ms. Okamoto Day

Ms. Okamoto Day is about a teacher who worked a Hillwood for 52 years. And she was a very nice and well respected teacher here at Hillwood. She past away a few years ago, and today at Hillwood, we celebrate her on opening day of baseball, because she was a huge Giants fan. And if opening season is not on a school day, we would do it the very next chance that we can get. To celebrate her, we dress up in Giants colors and have a BBQ. For the BBQ, we would eat chicken wings, hot dogs, chips, and juice, and for dessert we usually have apple pie from Costco. I personally was not here at Hillwood while she was teaching here, but I have been told that she was a very good person from our principle, Mr. Grantz, and Ms. Okamoto's daughter.

What is going on around Hillwood

In the year of 1949, Mr.Grantz grandmother, Mrs. Mary Libra founded the school. When Mrs.Libra passed away in the year of 1995, Mr. Grantz took over the school, with the help of Mrs.Grantz.  Hillwood doesn't focus on any religion type.  Camp Hillwood, is a cabin owned by Mr and Mrs Grantz, and is close to Muir Woods, in Marin, across the Golden Gate Bridge. The grades kindergarten through eighth grade.  The school is not a typical school, because it is held in a Victorian house, in Pacific heights, a neighborhood in San Francisco.  There is a total of 37 children, at Hilldood.  Four of them, Julien Govec, Irene Tong, Brigette Wang, and Julian Farr, are the graduates of class 2009 through 2010.  In 2009, the first african american president, Obama was elected.  In 2010, Mrs.Okamoto day took place, and we had a picture day.  

Hillwood Academic Day School Yearbook

Cover: Brigette

Title page

2–3: Life at Hillwood [Brigette] (500 words)

3–4: Life at Hillwood [Irene] (250 words)

5–6: History of Hillwood [Camryn] (250 words)

7–8: Zack, the dog [Anya]

9–10: Muir Woods — the Cabin [Zach]
Hillwood Annual May Overnight [Anya]

11–12: Music at Hillwood [Rubina]
Miss Schmitt bio [Rubina]
First person: How music and art have affected my life [Brigette]

13–14: Art at Hillwood [Rubina]
Your mom's bio [Rubina]

15–16: Field Trips: City Hall (Zach), movie outing (Julian G.), Exploratorium [Brendon], De Young [Brendon]
June Talent Show [Brigette]

17–18: October outing [Lance]

19–20: Holiday Talent Show [Brendan]

21–22: Mrs. TKTK Day [Julian F.]

23–24: Giants Day [Julien G.]
First person: What sports has done for me [Julian G.]
Walk-a-thon [Zach]

25–26: Field Trips: theater show [Camryn], Academy of Science [Brendon],

27–28: Kindergarten/first-grade students [Irene, Camryn]
Miss Dawson bio [Camryn]
Mr. Grantz bio [Zach]
Mrs. Grantz bio [Zach]

29–30: Student Photos

31–32: Lower-grade students [Lance, Anya]
Miss Tom bio [Lance]
Miss Caine bio [Lance]
Miss Marta bio [Anya]

33–34: Student photos

35–36: Upper-grade students [Julian F., Julien G.]
Ms. Woods bio [Julian F.]
Spanish Miss Lidia bio [Brandon]

37–38: Student photos

1. Anya
2. Brendon
3. Brigette
4. Camryn
5. Irene
6. Julian F.
7. Julien G.
8. Lance
9. Rubina
10. Zach

39–40: Index [Zach]

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