The Kids Corner column for parents, appearing monthly in the District Newsletter, apprises parents of special community events and programs for children.

April 2008:

ANDY HARADER SUMMER TENNIS CAMP (a lot of fun)
@ PALO ALTO HIGH SCHOOL * JUNE 16 - AUGUST 22
Monday-Friday, 9-NOON, AGES 7-16, all levels
e-mail: andre10@mindspring.com
Tel: 650 364-6233
WEBSITE: www.andystenniscamp.com
Andy was awarded:  2007 NorCal USPTA High School Coach of the Year

November 2007:

Friday, November 2, 2007, 7:00 PM
Menlo Park Library
800 Alma St.
 
Get Real: an empowering workshop for teen girls and parents
presented by best-selling teen authors, Audrey Brashich and Courtney Macavinta
http://www.menloparklibrary.org/children.html

Attention all AMERICAN GIRL Fans! 
Join The Palo Alto Auxiliary for the AMERICAN GIRL Fashion Show, featuring historical and contemporary girls’ clothing, refreshments, prizes and more!  Enjoy an afternoon of fun on Friday, November 9th at 1:00, 4:00 & 7:00 PM and again on Saturday, November 10th at 1:00 & 4:00 PM at the Los Altos Episcopal Church.  For tickets and information, visit www.paloaltoauxiliary.com Proceeds will benefit the Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford.  See you then!

October 2007

Parents Nursery School Carnival -- a day of entertainment, games, prizes and fun for the whole family!

Sunday, October 21, 2007, 11:00 AM to 3:30 PM

2328 Louis Road, Palo Alto (between Oregon Expressway and Embarcadero Road)

Featuring: Magic, music, games, craft sale, raffle, bake sale, silent auction, food and fun! “Mr. Horsefeathers”: Magician, Juggler, Clown! Music by Mr. David!

Costumes are welcome!

TRICK-OR-TREAT STREET
This event provides an opportunity for young children to "trick-or-treat" in the fun, safe environment of Menlo-Atherton classrooms for these children to celebrate Halloween in their own neighborhood. The children are welcomed into our classrooms where they can trick-or-treat from door to door, as well as participate in activities and games put together and supervised by our dedicated Leadership students. This event is a true gift to young children and their families, providing them with a fun evening and a chance to experience the talents of the M-A Leadership program. We hope to see you and your children on Thursday, October 25th from 5:30 to 7:30pm at Menlo Atherton High School, located at 555 Middlefield Road, Atherton.

Kepler's Youth Events:
Nick Hornby
Slam
Tuesday October 23, 2007 7:30p.m.

If you had a chance to take a look at your life in the future, would you change your present course to make your future different?

After writing several humorous novels about men who just don’t seem to want to grow up, Nick Hornby tackles the story of a teenage boy who is trying to learn to be a man.

Sam, a seventeen-year-old skating enthusiast (skateboarding enthusiast, that is) should be happy. He’s dating the girl of his dreams, and she makes him forget how unhappy he is at home. Soon, he starts to comprehend that their relationship isn’t everything that he wanted. Shortly after one meaningful night, he breaks up with her. As life would have it, he discovers that leaving her isn’t as easy he thought. Even his hero, Tony Hawk, can’t provide him with a clear course of action so -- Sam must look inside himself for the answer that seems as hard to pull off as a perfect kick flip.

Hornby shines again with his first young adult novel that explores complex modern family units, responsibility, regret, and, of course, love.

Deborah Davis
Youth Writer’s Workshop
Creating Memorable Characters
Thursday October 25, 2007 7:00p.m.

In our second installment of our Youth Writer’s Workshop, author Deborah Davis teaches a character workshop. How do you create characters that linger in readers' minds long after they turn the last page? After a brief look at several unforgettable characters from teen literature, participants will work on creating their own. Bring ideas for characters or dream up new ones in this hands-on workshop for teens (13 & up).

Instructor Deborah Davis is the award-winning author of The Secret of the Seal and My Brother Has AIDS. A starred review of Davis' newest novel, Not Like You (Clarion, 2007) in School Library Journal says, "thoughtful, touching, and honest, this story hits all the right notes...a book to learn from and remember."

To register for this workshop, please send an e-mail to angelak@keplers.com.

Marcus Zusak
The Book Thief
Tuesday October 30, 2007 7:30p.m.

It is our extraordinary privilege to offer you an evening with Markus Zusak, acclaimed author of The Book Thief.

As told by Death, the reader follows the story of Liesel, a seemingly ordinary girl, as she moves through a world of increasing incomprehensibility. In her German town, World War II and the cruelty of the Nazi regime seeps into the lives of everyone around her from her best friend, to her foster parents, to the Jewish man the family is hiding in their basement. When her foster father teaches her to read, he gives her an everlasting gift: the understanding that the ability to escape the surrounding ugliness lies within her.

A compelling literary rumination on the power of words—how they can cut deeply, even destroy and yet offer comfort and healing, The Book Thief affects everyone who reads it. Zusak’s complex and sophisticated narrative has taken the young adult novel to another level, forever raising the bar for his successors.