October 14, 2020

October 14, 2020


From the Principal's Desk

Hello, Theuerkauf Families!

I hope everyone enjoyed a restful three-day weekend and that you are having a beautiful week thus far. Personally, I am loving this cooler fall weather! Last week, we held our second Cheetah Spirit day of the year, centered around heroes. If you missed this week’s morning message, you can view some of the great pics and messages here. So far this week, we have held a dynamic school site council meeting as well as in-depth staff and professional development meetings where we gathered feedback about the goals and focus points in MVWSD’s emerging strategic plan. Parents, we would love to hear your thoughts about the goals in this plan as well! Please send me an email with your responses to any of the questions that you would be willing to answer from slide 5. Alternatively, you can submit your thoughts through this district-wide survey. Your voice is important and much appreciated! I hope you can find a few minutes to weigh in on this very important topic.

As always, I want to thank you for all that you do in supporting our students and teachers in the online space. Please remember that if you ever want to collaborate with me on ways to improve the learning experience for your child, I am a Zoom session or phone call away. Please join me here at 8am and/or 4:30pm on Thursdays, or contact the school to set an appointment with me. 

 

Together, we make a difference!

 

Yours in service,

Michelle Williams, Principal


Important Dates

October 16, 2020, 3-5pm - Materials Distribution for Kindergarten and TK students

October 23, 2020, 3-5pm - Materials distribution for 1st grade students

October 27, 2020, 5-6pm - Principal’s Coffee

October 30, 2020 - Cheetah Spirit Day - Theme: Fall Fun!

November 6, 2020 - End of Trimester -  Minimum Day

Thursdays, 8-8:30am and 4:30-5pm - Principal's open office hours (join here)


School News

Digital Citizenship at Theuerkauf

Our children are using internet-enabled devices every day for entertainment and for school work. But are they using them safely and appropriately?

To help them learn about tech safety and responsibility, students will participate in lessons throughout the year on Digital Citizenship, beginning this month. MVWSD is using Common Sense Media's curriculum on Nearpod to enable teachers to deliver the Digital Citizenship lessons. Many parents are familiar with Common Sense Media, a non-profit that provides independent age-based and educational ratings and reviews for movies, games, apps, TV shows, websites, books, and music.

The lessons are divided into age-appropriate levels - primary, intermediate and middle school - with interactive content. Some of the topics students will cover are identity theft, safe searches, privacy, cyberbullying, and appropriate communication. 

Parents can view examples of lessons at Common Sense Media, under the “educators” tab: https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship 

 

Fall Literacy Assessments

Between now and November 5th, we will be gathering more data on where our students are with their learning and development.  

  • Our kindergarteners will be completing their literacy assessments in the areas of letter sounds, high frequency words, and phonemic awareness (syllable awareness, rhyming, initial and final sounds).  

  • 1st-5th grade students will work 1-1 with their teacher who will assess their reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension with Literably.  

  • All K-5th students will also be administered our writing benchmark assessment which will require students to respond to a writing prompt. Over the course of this school year, students will be administered the writing benchmark three times to cover all three text types, informational, narrative, and opinion.

 

Strategic plan: We need your feedback on the framework

As you know, MVWSD is working on a new Strategic Plan. The new six-year Strategic Plan 2027 will be completed and aligned with two cycles of the District’s 3-year Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) and will build on and expand the former plan’s successes and areas of need for students. 

In September, parents and staff members completed a districtwide survey. This input, in addition to a strategy session with 60 representative stakeholders, resulted in a strategic plan framework that shows five major goal areas and the general outcomes and themes in each.

Next, there are two more opportunities for you to give input in the planning process. We need to hear from you.

1. Please give us input on the “big ideas” in this strategic plan framework.  Please take a few minutes before Friday, October 16 to click on the link below, review the framework, and reply to the survey with your ideas or items that you feel are missing.

https://www.research.net/r/MVWSDStratPlanFramework

 

The survey is managed by a third-party consultant.  All responses will go directly to them and will be anonymous.  

2. Please attend a meeting in which I will present the framework and collect your thoughts: ELAC, SSC meeting, Parent Coffee.

For more information on the process and timeline, please see https://www.mvwsd.org/strategicplan.

 

Reporting Absences

If you are reporting a student’s absence, please email the Secretary Mary Colon at [email protected] or call the attendance line at (650) 903-6925 press #2

Reminder. Please include your student’s name, your student’s room or teacher, the reason for absence, and the date of absence.

 

Picking up Materials

We will hold a Kindergarten and TK materials distribution this Friday, 10/16, from 3-5pm. If you need to pick up materials at a different time or for a different grade level, please call the office to schedule an appointment. Pick up times are by appointment only, Monday- Friday from 10:00am-12:00 pm. You can call (650) 903-6925 to schedule a pick up during these hours.

 

Safety Reminders

As a reminder, our campus remains closed due to COVID-19. When necessary, appointments may be scheduled for materials pick-ups. When coming to campus, please wear a mask and maintain at least 6 feet of social distance at all times. Additionally, please perform the following self-check prior to coming on campus:

1. Do you have any of these symptoms that are not caused by another condition?

       • Fever or chills • Recent loss of taste or smell • Cough • Sore throat

       • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing • Congestion • Fatigue

       • Nausea or vomiting  • Muscle or body aches • Diarrhea • Headache

2. Within the past 14 days, have you had contact with anyone that you know had COVID-19 or COVID-like symptoms? Contact is being 6 feet (2 meters) or closer for more than 15 minutes with a person, or having direct contact with fluids from a person with COVID-19 (for example, being coughed or sneezed on).

3. Have you had a positive COVID-19 test for an active virus in the past 10 days? 4. Within the past 14 days, has a public health or medical professional told you to self-monitor, self-isolate, or self-quarantine because of concerns about COVID-19 infection?

If you answer yes to any of the questions, please contact the school, and we will arrange for an alternate delivery method for your family.


PTA News

Thank you to the families who came by to say hi to the PTA Executive Board.  We handed out stress stars, ELAC coloring pages, and a treasure hunt with Halloween goodies.  If you missed picking up your treat bag and treasure hunt, we have a few more available for you at school.  We post our PTA events on our facebook page, so please follow us on facebook.

We have extended our mask design contest until October 15.  Please post to facebook or email a photo of your child's design to [email protected].


District News

Together We Are a Better MVWSD: Special edition: ELECTION! 

Mountain View Whisman School District embraces its role in establishing its commitment to equity in our district. As part of our "Together We Are a Better MVWSD" series, here is a special edition on the Nov. 3 election.

Participating in elections is one of the key freedoms of American life. Many people in countries around the world do not have the same freedom, nor did many Americans in centuries past. No matter what you believe or whom you support, it is important to exercise your rights. We celebrate the upcoming election cycle by publishing materials for teachers and parents that promote civic engagement amongst students and give resources to parents about how to secure their participation in this year's election. Both the links and QR codes will take you directly to the recommended resources.

For a closer look at this graphic, please see attached flyers or https://www.mvwsd.org/BetterTogetherMVWSD

 

How you can protect yourself from COVID: Face masks

Wearing a face mask greatly reduces the chance that you and the people around you will come into contact with respiratory droplets that contain the COVID-19 virus. How you wear and clean masks are huge factors in their effectiveness. Our own MVWSD school nurse Melanie gives important tips in this video. Please review and practice with your family.

 

 facemask video thumbnailFace masks and social distancing video

Police Interactions, Race and “The Talk:” A Panel Discussion

Date: Thursday, Oct. 29, 6:30 p.m. on Zoom: http://mvw.sd/talk

For Black children, the “talk” about how to interact with police is a rite of passage. Join MVWSD for a panel discussion with parents, the Mountain View Police Department and other leaders about what this means for policing for all of our children and families in our community and schools. 

For more information about how MVWSD is working to support equity in our community, please see https://www.mvwsd.org/BetterTogetherMVWSD

 

MVEF is proud to help bring Living Classroom to all of our school campuses.

Living Classroom brings environmental education for students in elementary and middle school.  Living Classroom started teaching students on 9/8 and taught 62 online lessons in September. 

Living Classroom continues to maintain the school gardens for when garden-based outdoor learning can return to MVWSD, making education come alive and deepening students' connection with nature. Living Classroom lessons empower the next generation by growing environmental champions, inquisitive learners, and healthy eaters.  There are over 200 lessons planned for the fall in our schools.

Your donations to MVEF bring Living Classroom to every school in MVWSD! Donate today!  https://www.mvef.org/donate

 

“Enriching the Learning Experience” Symposium

The Santa Clara County Office of Education Parent Engagement team is pleased to announce our FREE virtual event "Enriching the Learning Experience: Vision for 2020 and Beyond" which will be held from 10:00am to Noon on Saturday, Oct 17 and 24, 2020. Together with 6th District PTA, we are putting together a Parent Engagement symposium for parents, students, pre-service teachers, classroom teachers, administrators, and liaisons to focus on student success. We have lined up a number of dynamic speakers and 10 workshops each day of the symposium. Here's a sneak peak of our workshops:   

Dr. Joyce Epstein, professor of education and director of the Center on School, Family, and Community Partnerships at Johns Hopkins University. She has over one hundred fifty publications, including School, Family, and Community Partnerships: Your Handbook for Action, 4th edition (2019). Her Keynote will address school administrators in the area of parent engagement and her Workshop will address teachers and how they can involve parents in homework. 

Ruby Ibarra, local bay area COVID-19 researcher and hip-hop recording artist. Her Keynote will address parents and share her inspiring story of how to channel obstacles into opportunities. She will present a Spoken Word Writing Workshop for students! 

Gene Luen Yang, graphic novelist of American Born Chinese, Secret Coders, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Superman. In 2016, he was the Library of Congress's 5th National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature; he was also the recipient of the MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant in that same year. His workshop for teachers will address adopting a rich, diverse reading curriculum for the classroom. 

A Financial Literacy Workshop series “Understanding Debt and How to Improve Your Credit Score,” “Rebuilding After a Financial Crisis,” and “Learning the Value of a Dollar” by Excite Credit Union will give good money management tips for students and adults alike.  

Registration is open! Visit “Enriching the Learning Experience” event Website to see all 10 workshop descriptions, speaker bios, and registration form. 


Attachments

Equity Calendar- Election 

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