September 9, 2020

Dear Stingray Parents,

I hope that you all enjoyed the three day weekend! 

Our Stevenson staff and maintenance department continue to work hard to ensure that our campus is a safe and healthy environment for our staff and that we are prepared when the time comes to reopen our campus for our students. If you come to campus, you will notice changes and updates. 

• Signage at the entrance of the school and within all rooms reminding everyone to maintain physical distance, regularly wash hands, and wear face-coverings
• All individuals provided with access to a reusable face mask and face shields
• An increased cleaning and sanitizing schedule, focusing on high traffic areas
• Employees required to complete regular COVID testing and a daily self-screener before coming to campus. 
• Touch-free hand sanitizing stations located at the entrance of the school
• Touch-free soap dispensers in bathrooms and classrooms
• Replacement of air filters with MERV-13 filters
• Staff training on COVID safety, Protocols, and our Response Process

 

Please visit our Reopening Readiness school webpage to see other actions we are taking to ensure a safe and healthy school environment. 

Sincerely,

Ryan Santiago

Principal, Stevenson Elementary

School Announcements

Author & Illustrator Zoom Presentation for K-2nd

School Site Council Parent Election

Materials Distribution- 3rd Round

Distance Learning- Thought Exchange

i-Ready ELA and Math Assessments

Student Attendance and Engagement

Author & Illustrator Greg Pizzoli Zoom Presentation for K-2nd Grade

Stevenson Elementary will be hosting a live Zoom presentation by author and illustrator Greg Pizzoli. We are excited to share that we are welcoming other Kinder-2nd grade students from other schools in our district. The Live presentation will be next Wednesday, September 16th at 1pm.  The Zoom link will be shared with students in their Google Classrooms by the morning of Wednesday 9/16. A special thank you to our amazing librarian Sarah Donahue for organizing this author visit for our stingrays and other students in our district.

Stevenson School Site Council Parent Election

Each year our school site council elects parent members for our school site council. Of our five parent members on the School Site Council, we have two open positions for election.  Parents Laura Gutnamm, Bryan Juliano, and Carolyn Xu have self-nominated to be candidates for the two open positions. Parents of Stevenson Elementary will have the opportunity to elect two of the candidates. The election process will take place beginning tomorrow, Thursday, September 10th and conclude on Tuesday, September 15th. An email will be sent tomorrow, Thursday September 10th for parents to vote. Please see the attached document for more information on each of the parent candidates and information on School Site Council.

Materials Distribution (3rd Round)

Stevenson will have its third round of materials distribution on the following dates:

- Thursday, September 10th from 2:00pm to 5:00pm
- Friday, September 11th from 2:00pm to 5:00pm

Materials provided will vary by grade level based on instructional needs.  We are still waiting for the shipment of headsets. Please refer to this document for pick-up protocols that follow our county’s health and safety guidelines. These are the same procedures that we have used in past distributions.

Join the MVWSD conversation: Distance Learning: What's working?

We’re now up to 1200 thoughts so far in our online conversation about Distance Learning.  Now that we've been distance learning for several weeks due to COVID-19, in your opinion, what’s working well and what are our areas of improvement?

Before Thursday, Sept 17: Please take some time to participate or rejoin the conversation to star thoughts entered since you were there last. You may participate in this exchange by clicking on this link: http://mvw.sd/TE. Translation is available in multiple languages.  Your input will help us further improve and refine our plans as we move into the future.

Student Attendance and Engagement (Repeat Information)

Due to new state guidance, beginning Sept 8, there will be some changes to how our school is required to count and monitor student attendance.

It’s important to know that school attendance during distance learning is mandatory. If your student will be absent, please report it by calling or emailing us as soon as possible. If your child is having difficulty with distance learning, please let us know. We want to help.

Changes to attendance monitoring beginning Sept 8:

-Elementary teachers will check in with students at the beginning of the day. Attendance will be taken at the end of the day every day, including Wednesdays. For middle school students, attendance is taken every period of the day, including Wednesdays.

- Students will no longer get a separate participation grade in Google Classroom. Attendance and participation scores are now combined and can be viewed by parents in Powerschool under “attendance history.”

- If you don’t report your student’s absence, your school will be calling you to determine the reason for the absence.

For more information about attendance, please see https://www.mvwsd.org/attendance

PACT Foundation Updates

Parent Ed - Session 3 - September 12th at 9:30am

Brad Greer, Karen Braverman, Elizabeth Eaton, Ms. Park, and Ms. Savitha will be leading our third session of Parent Ed this Saturday, September 12th at 9:30am. Here is the link to RSVP, if you haven't done so before. There's no need to RSVP again if you've already submitted your answer.

PACT Pals Fall Session

We are happy to announce a virtual fall session. All classes will be online. Please see pactpals.org. This is a 12-week session.

Registration period: Sept 14 - Sept 20

Class period: Sept 28 - Dec 18

For any questions or comments, please email [email protected] 

COMMUNICATION: PACT Email Lists

Read your “Week Ahead” emails. They summarize upcoming events and share important reminders. If you have an announcement, please submit it to Heather Abadie ([email protected]) by Friday for inclusion in the Sunday “Week Ahead” email.  We reserve the right to edit messages for length and/or content - we will try to contact you first if possible.

UpToUs Email Groups: Having several groups lets people filter emails and/or only subscribe to the groups they're interested in. Note: On UpToUs - click "My Communities" and then click on the name of the group you're looking for on the left hand side of the page.  If you unsubscribe, you can resubscribe later.

"PACT Community” UpToUs group: A group for messages that both MUST be read by every PACT member, AND that cannot wait to be sent in a Week Ahead Email. If you send a message to this list it will need moderator approval - most messages should be sent to one of the other groups below or be submitted for the "Week Ahead" Email.  Please talk to a committee chair or board member before trying to post to this group.

"PACT Discussions” UpToUs group: This is a group for any *school related* discussions (e.g. help needed for a school project, discussion of PactPals classes).  Everyone at PACT will be added by default (just after this email is sent) - you may unsubscribe if you wish - we recommend you stay in the group and filter if needed.

"PACT Classifieds" UpToUs group: All items for sale/donation and all recommendations for services not directly related to Stevenson (e.g. babysitters, shows, fundraisers) should be posted on PACT Classifieds, which is a separate, opt-in UpToUs group. To join, click on "PACT Classifieds" under PACT Community.

"PACT Camping Club" UpToUs group: Interested in camping?  Would it surprise you that 202 other members of our community are too?  Join the PACT Camping group learn more about camping and several excursions organized by PACT parents.   To join, click on "PACT Camping" under PACT Community.

Calendar

September 8th- September 11th - i-Ready Assessments continue for K-5th grades

Wednesday, September 9th at 6pm - MV Parent U: Increasing Student Engagement with Literacy

Thursday, September 10th from 2pm-5pm - Materials Distribution

Friday, September 11th from 2pm-5pm - Materials Distribution

Saturday, September 12th at 9:30am- Parent Ed Session #3

Wednesday, September 16th at 1pm - Author Visit for K-2nd grades

Thursday, September 17th at 5pm - Stevenson ELAC Meeting

Thursday, September 17th at 6pm - MVWSD Board of Trustees Meeting

Wednesday, September 23rd at 3:30pm - Stevenson SSC Meeting

MVWSD News

Distance Learning tip: How can I set sound alerts so that my student doesn’t miss a class meeting?

To have sound, Chromebook users will need to make sure their Google Calendar settings are set correctly. The instructions below will show how to change the notification setting.

- Go to the following page: calendar.google.com/calendar/r/settings

- On the left side of the page under "General" choose "Event Settings"

- Make sure the "Notifications" are set to "Desktop Notifications" and that the play notification sounds button is checked.

This should have the calendar play sound when events trigger.

MVWSD- Free Meal Program Extended

The free meal program has been extended! During Distance Learning, free meals are again available to all children in the Mountain View Whisman School District age 18 and younger. No IDs required. Locations: All schools, except Stevenson (pickup for Stevenson is at Theuerkauf). Times: 11:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m. at the elementary schools. 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. at the middle schools. Walk, drive or roll up to grab a free meal and go! Parents should continue to go here https://secure.ezmealapp.com/ to apply for free or reduced price meal benefits through the National Lunch Program, if needed. 

MV Parent U on Sept. 9: Increasing Student Engagement with Literacy

Join us on Wednesday, September 9 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. for our next Parent University event: Increasing Student Engagement with Literacy from Home.

MVWSD Instructional Coaches Karen Gordon and Natalie Gallagher will share several resourceful strategies for supporting reading, writing, listening, and speaking at home during distance learning:

• Easy activities to boost your child's reading engagement 

• Creative ways to encourage and support writing using four text types (expository/informative, narrative, opinion, argumentative)

• Fostering listening skills to be able to extract key information 
• Cultivating speaking skills using academic vocabulary 
• Tips to prepare your child for ELPAC testing  

Register here

Public hearing on Sept. 17: Sufficient instructional materials

A public hearing will be held in order to comply with Ed Code section 60119 on September 17, 2020 to detail the extent to which text books and instructional materials were provided to all students, including English Learners.

The definition of “sufficient textbooks or instructional materials” means that each pupil has textbooks or instructional materials, or both to use in class and to take home in each of the following subjects:

• Mathematics

• Science

• History/Social Science

• Language Arts

The public hearing on September 17, 2020 at 7:00pm will be held during the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees. To view details about accessing the meeting either online or by phone, please click on the September 17 agenda link on this webpage: https://www.mvwsd.org/about/board_of_trustees/board_meetings

Track your student's online activities at home with Securly

MVWSD provides a tool that allows parents to be aware of their students' online activities and to help keep them safe on their school-issued devices. Securly allows you to see what choices your student is making online while at home so that you will be alerted to potential issues and can guide your student. Please note: Securly is for school-issued devices only. Check your email for these weekly reports, and you may also download the Securly app. For more information, please see https://www.mvwsd.org/technology.

Parent Ed Speaker Series - Jeff Selingo on Oct 1st

The MVLA Parent Education Speaker Series presents: Jeff Selingo on "Who Gets In and Why:  A Year Inside the College Admissions Process" on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2020 - 7:00 - 9:00pm | Live Online | Zoom

Join us for an insightful evening with journalist and higher education expert Jeff Selingo, as he dispels entrenched notions about the college admissions process. 

While many have long believed that college admissions decisions are driven largely by merit, Jeff presents a more complicated truth.   Embedded in three distinctly different admissions offices — a selective private university, a leading liberal arts college, and a flagship public campus — Jeff closely observed college admission officers as they made their often agonizing and sometimes life-changing decisions.

Based on a year of reading applications and sitting through committee meetings where up and down votes were taken, Jeff reveals what really matters to the gatekeepers and how their ultimate decisions are often based on a college’s priorities.  Following interviews with students, testing agencies, marketers, and ranking organizations, Jeff also shares practical advice and helpful strategies for navigating the confusing, chaotic, and often-times stressful college application process.  

Audience:  High school parents and students; teachers and counselors

Register: To register for this free event, go to https://mvla2020-21-jeffselingo.eventbrite.com

Book:  Jeff's new book, Who Gets In and Why, will be released Sept. 15th and is available with free shipping from Books, Inc.  Jeff is generously offering our community a 30% discount + free shipping for pre-orders made directly through him. If interested, use code MVLA30.

Event Login:  We will send the Zoom link via Eventbrite email, Thursday afternoon, October 1st. 

If you have not used Zoom before, please make sure to allow a few extra minutes before the event to download the free Zoom app.    

Sponsored by Los Altos Educational Foundation (LAEF), MVLA High School Foundation, Mountain View Educational Foundation (MVEF), and Los Altos-Mountain View PTA Council.