Feb. 4, 2022

February 4, 2022


From the Principal's Desk

Hello, Theuerkauf Families! 

Earlier this week, classrooms throughout our school celebrated the Lunar New Year. Happy New Year to all!! February is also Black History Month. Though as a school we celebrate the contributions, achievements, and history of African Americans on an ongoing basis, there will be an additional focus on Black History throughout the month of February. I would like to invite you to please visit MVWSD’s Better Together website for resources and information to have conversations at home as well.

 

We want to hear from you! LCAP survey link is in your inbox

The District is beginning its annual process of updating the LCAP (Local Control Accountability Plan). This input collected will guide the update of our District plan for the 2022-23 school year. Look for a meeting at your school to learn more about the LCAP process, as well as a survey about the plans' goals. An email with a link to the survey was sent to your inbox on Jan. 31. More information is here: https://www.mvwsd.org/lcap


As always, thank you so much for your partnership!

Together, we make a difference. 


Yours in service,

Michelle Williams, Principal



Important Dates

Friday, February 4- Cool Cats Assemblies - Celebrating PERSEVERANCE!

Wednesday February 9- MVWSD Cafecito, 5:30pm (Zoom)

Thursday, February 10 - MVWSD Board of Trustees Meeting, 6-10:00pm (Zoom)

Wednesday February 16- SSC Meeting, 5-6pm (Zoom)

Thursday February 17- Principal’s Coffee, 5-6pm (Zoom)

Thursday February 17- ELAC Meeting, 9-10am (Zoom)

Friday February 18- End of Trimester- Minimum Day~ Dismissal is at 12:10pm

February 21-25- Winter Break- No School


***Wednesdays: Open Office Hours with the Principal 4:00-5:00pm (use this link)***

School News

The Great Kindness Challenge Was a Success!

We would like to report that this year's Great Kindness Challenge was a complete success! Almost all students participated in some way, and 80 students completed 4 or more acts of kindness over a 5-day period. This means that over 1,600 acts of kindness were shared by our Cheetahs, both at school and at home. Thanks to our student leadership group, Expect Respect, and their sponsors for leading the school in this amazing endeavor. Our school is a stronger community and a kinder one because of all that has gone on over the past week.

IMPORTANT: Pick-up and Drop-off Traffic Reminders

Parents, our students are our pride and joy, and I know that we all do everything we can as a community to ensure their safety. Lately, during the morning drop off times and in the afternoon pick up times, we have noticed an increase in some behavior that puts our students at risk. We will subsequently be adding additional signs, traffic guides, and school resource officers to help us all stay safe. Please pay close attention to the following reminders:

  • We are all in a hurry (especially in the mornings), but please do not speed through the parking lot for any reason whatsoever. There are students crossing to the sidewalks, and we must keep them safe. Our speeds should be well under 5mph at all times in and around the school.

  • From 7:30am-6:30pm, please do not put your car in park and stop when you are dropping off your child. Your child should be ready to exit the car when you drive up. Staff members are outside and ready to walk your child to and from their entrance gate. When you leave your car or stop even for a minute, it creates a back-up for all other cars and further traffic problems. If you feel that you need to walk your child to their gate, that is fine, but you will need to park in a lined or otherwise legal parking spot.

  • Do not stop or double park in the lane to the left of the drop off lane at the front gate or in the street at the middle/back gates. Again, if you need to walk your child in, you will need to park in a lined or otherwise legal parking spot. 

  • For parents crossing near the back and middle gates, please use the crosswalk. There is a crossing guard in place to ensure that all families cross safely. Darting across the street at any area other than the corner crossing puts you in danger and it sends a message to your child that this is acceptable behavior that could later put them in danger.

Thank you for your close attention to these rules and protocols. As an initiative to encourage less traffic, we would like to announce that Thursdays are bike/walk to school day! We will be starting a fun campaign and contest for this very soon, complete with family prizes and ways to celebrate being active. 

 

Reminder: Please upload your child’s completed vaccine card

When your child's vaccine card has their second shot listed, please upload a copy to Powerschool. Vaccine cards will be referred to in the case of a positive COVID exposure for your student, and MVWSD needs accurate data for decisions about COVID protocols. Click here for a video that shows you how to upload documents: https://vimeo.com/606954357.Thank you in advance for uploading your documents now!


Reminder: Principal’s Virtual Office Hours

This is just a friendly reminder that you are invited to join me each Wednesday for our informal Principal Office Hours (virtual through Zoom) from 4pm - 5:00pm. Feel free to drop in if you have any questions or if you just want to chat. For office hours, there is no formal agenda, it is a time for you to stop in to say hello, and for us to get to know each other better! I look forward to seeing you!




PTA News

Our Theuerkauf yearbook for 2021-22 is in progress!


Volunteer to lay out a class page: Sign-up here or email [email protected] We will give you a quick online training on the software and you can work from home.


Order now for $13.16 + tax.

* Click here to order or visit TreeRing.com/validate and enter our school’s passcode 1016316858373987.

Request a donated yearbook: If getting a yearbook is a financial hardship, 

please request one through our School and Community Engagement 

Facilitator, Ms. Lisset ([email protected]).


Donate a yearbook for another family: You can donate towards a yearbook for 

a family experiencing financial hardship. You can turn in a check payable to 

"Theuerkauf Elementary PTA" at the office or use Paypal recipient [email protected] 

Include the message/memo “yearbooks donation”.


* OPT-OUT: If you prefer that your child NOT be pictured in the yearbook at all, please contact us at [email protected].

** Any questions? Contact our yearbook chairs at [email protected]

District News

We want to hear from you! LCAP survey link is in your inbox

The District is beginning its annual process of updating the LCAP (Local Control Accountability Plan). This input collected will guide the update of our District plan for the 2022-23 school year. Look for a meeting at your school to learn more about the LCAP process, as well as a survey about the plans' goals. An email with a link to the survey was sent to your inbox on Jan. 31. More information is here: https://www.mvwsd.org/lcap


In case you missed it: Incoming 6th grade information night

Our middle schools recently held meetings for next year's 6th graders and their parents to hear from our principals, information about courses, tips on how to be successful at middle school and more. The presentation slides and videos are posted here: 


Crittenden: https://crittenden.mvwsd.org/news/what_s_new/orientation_information

Graham: https://graham.mvwsd.org/prepare_for_next_year/incoming_6th_graders


Cafecito con el Superintendente

Wednesday, Feb. 9, 5:30 – 6:30pm

This is an informal meeting for Spanish-speaking parents. Translation will be provided. Please register in advance for this meeting by clicking here: http://mvw.sd/C29

 

 

Help Your English Learner Child Become a Confident Communicator, with Dr. Kate Kinsella: February 3

 

Date: February 3, 2022      

Time: 6:00 - 7:00pm

Zoom Link: http://mvw.sd/kinsella22

 

 

Dr. Kinsella is back! At this special parent event, co-sponsored by Imai, Landels, and Vargas Elementary schools but open to all MVWSD families, parents will learn how to support their children in reading, writing, listening, and speaking both in school and in their daily lives.

 

Dr. Kinsella is the author of many professional publications and research-validated programs to support multilingual learners and striving readers, including READ 180 Universal, English 3D, Language Launch, and Academic Vocabulary Toolkit. She has served as the lead scholar and pedagogy guide on three recent U.S. Department of Education funded research initiatives to improve educational outcomes for K-12 English language learners.

 

 

Parent University: Bullying Prevention

Date: 2/16/22, 5:30 p.m.   Registration Link: http://mvw.sd/pu021622

“Bullying” is a serious, yet often misunderstood concept. What does it really mean and how can we stop it? Better yet, how can we prevent it? This presentation will:

  • Identify basic concepts of bullying: definition, types of bullying, basic data

  • Provide tips for bullying reduction

  • Explore relationship-building to prevent bullying as we work to create new standards of acceptable behavior

To submit questions prior to the event, please click here. We will do our best to address your question during the session.


MVEF receives grant from Google.org

MVEF is honored to receive a $100,000 grant from Google.org, Google’s philanthropic arm, to support California Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for students in MVWSD. Google.org’s  generous support will help fund the ‘Living Classroom’ program to provide an interdisciplinary and practical science-based curriculum that meets NGSS, and ‘Discovery Education’ to support STEM-RTI programs which help implement NGSS for all elementary school students in the district. Read the full press release on our website.



Resources for afterschool and school break care 

Looking for afterschool, February break or spring break activities for your children? InPlay offers a free searchable program guide for parents, with filters for age, location, price (including free or reduced cost), and more. To find programs local to Mountain View, head to: https://www.inplay.org/r/mountain-view. Available programs include those that serve students with special needs or English learners.

Additionally, the City of Mountain View provides eligible, low-income Mountain View families with financial assistance to register children for recreation classes. Applicants must be a Mountain View resident and qualify through the Community Services Agency screening process. Contact the Community Services Agency at (650) 968-0836 to schedule an appointment to see if you are eligible. Please see the attached flyer for more information.

Attachments

FAB Handout 

February Equity Calendar 




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