GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 7 - 13, 2022
~TRANSLATION OPTION INTO 100 LANGUAGES!~
~ ¡NUEVA OPCIÓN DE TRADUCCIÓN A 100 IDIOMAS! ~
Para leer la Gaceta Gecko en otro idioma, mire a la derecha del boletín y haga clic en "TRADUCIR EL BOLETÍN". ¡Ahora puede elegir entre 100 idiomas!
~ በ 100 ቋንቋዎች ውስጥ አዲስ የትርጓሜ ምርጫ! ~
የጌኮ ጋዜጣ በሌላ ቋንቋ ለማንበብ እባክዎን በራሪ ወረቀቱ በስተቀኝ በኩል ይመልከቱ እና “የትርጉም ጽሑፍ” ን ጠቅ ያድርጉ ፡፡ አሁን ከ 100 ቋንቋዎች መምረጥ ይችላሉ!
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- Monday, February 7th: PS Arts Program Begins for All Grades
- Thursday, February 10th: Black History Month Assembly: Letters to Harriet Tubman: All Grades
- Thursday, February 10th: Hawaiian Dance Performance - Ms. Ware's Class only - 2:00 PM - Big Yard - Please read the message that was sent out to 4th-grade parents last week.
- Wednesday, February 16th: PTA General Meeting - 6:30 PM on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5329339940 Meeting ID: 532 933 9940 - Come and learn about what's happening at Grant!
- Monday, February 21st: President's Day - NO SCHOOL
- Wednesday, February 23rd: Shelter in Place Drill
- Friday, February 25th: Report Cards sent out to parents
- Thursday, March 10th: Grant School Future Facilities Community Meeting: 4:00 PM
- Friday, March 11th: Talent Show Group A Rehearsal - 3:00 - 6:00 PM
- Friday, March 11th: Grant Movie Night - On the Big Field - 6:00 PM - More info coming soon!
- Wednesday, March 16th: PTA General Meeting - 6:30 PM - https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5329339940 Meeting ID: 532 933 9940
- Thursday, March 17th: Earthquake Drill #2 @ 8:40 AM
- Friday, March 18th: Talent Show Group B Rehearsal - 3:00 - 6:00 PM
- Saturday, March 19th: SMMUSD Stairway Concert. There will be one concert this year.
- Monday, March 21st: School Site Council Meeting @ 3:15 PM
- Friday, March 25th: Talent Show Group A Rehearsal - 3:00 - 6:00 PM
- Saturday, March 26th: Grant Parent Gala - More info coming soon!
- Friday, April 1st: Talent Show Group B Rehearsal - 3:00 - 6:00 PM
- Friday, April 1st: Minimum Day - All Grades
- APRIL 4TH - 15TH: SPRING BREAK - NO SCHOOL
BLACK HISTORY MONTH IS FEBRUARY 1-28
The Grant PTA Diversity Committee and the Grant School staff are pleased to kick off African American History Month programming at Grant! The story of African American history is filled with examples of courage, bravery, forgiveness, empathy, and community. These themes reiterate that our shared history and hope for the future will always outweigh the differences between us.
Bulletin Board Created by Jill Cipresso and Morgan Ruvolo!
Bulletin Board Created by Samantha Sugar!
Artwork by Jill Jurenka!
Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar.
Here are some links to lessons and activities you can do with your child in celebration of the Lunar New Year:
~100TH DAY OF SCHOOL!~
~SPECIAL NOTES~
kmiller@smmusd.org and palbrecht@smmusd.org
SAFETY REMINDER: PLEASE DO NOT WALK STUDENTS THROUGH STAFF PARKING LOTS. IT CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS AND WE WANT TO KEEP EVERYONE SAFE.
~SMMUSD Registration for Preschool, Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarten Now Available~
If you missed the TK/Kindergarten Roundup last week the link will be posted on the Grant School website under "About Us" and then "Presentations". The link to the video will be posted on Monday, January 31st.
~CHANGE IN SCHOOL ENTRY PROTOCOLS~
Thank you for all of your cooperation in using the health screening tool. As always, please contact us if you have any questions.
~UPDATE TO COVID QUARANTINE PROTOCOLS & ANTIGEN TEST KITS~
January 28, 2022
Dear Grant Parents and Guardians,
I hope this message finds you all well and staying healthy! Beginning Monday, January 31st, all schools in SMMUSD will be adopting the new Los Angeles County Department of Public Health quarantine protocols. By now, you should have read Superintendent Drati’s letter regarding this change in the quarantine requirements. You may read this letter by clicking the following link: Superintendent’s Message: Protocol Update for TK-12 –
The new Notification of COVID Exposure on Campus will look different than you may be used to. This new notification will list all of the classes where a positive case was identified and the dates of exposure. You most likely will be seeing more notifications throughout the weeks due to the nature of this new notification protocol. When or if you receive this notification, please read it very carefully as it outlines the new “no quarantine” protocol for all students and staff regardless of vaccination status. The new guidelines are very clear that any student or staff member who has symptoms of illness or has tested positive for COVID, as identified by a verified laboratory, must stay home.
I would like you to know that we will continue our safety mitigation strategies until further notice. These strategies include stabling grouping, encouraging frequent hand washing, eating and drinking at a safe distance, and indoor and outdoor masking. Additionally, as I mentioned in my last letter to you, all staff are required to wear upgraded masks such as N-95s. We strongly encourage you to have your children wear upgraded masks, as well. N-95, KN-95, and KF-94s are examples of upgraded masks.
As I have stated in previous communications to you, we at Grant School appreciate the positive partnership that has been forged between our parents and the school staff through the last very trying two years. We will continue to keep all members of our learning community safe so that teaching and learning can continue uninterrupted.
As always, please contact us should you have any questions.
GO GECKOS!
All my best,
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
Grant School
~ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING COVID AND SAFETY~
Safety Protocols
Update on Covid-19
Superintendent’s Message: Protocol Update for TK-12 –
Exposure Management Plan Guidance TK-12 Schools Appendix T2 as of 1/18/2022
We have our SMMUSD Covid Dashboard that reflects all positive cases by site, updated weekly: www.smmusd.org/Dashboard and the County of LA also have information you can find by school: http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/education/index.htm.
COVID-19 Testing
John Adams Middle School (for Santa Monica staff and students): Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Please do not enter the school office. Testing is outside. Registration is on-site.
Malibu Elementary School (for Malibu staff and students): Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.- 1:30p.m.. Please do not enter the school office. Testing is in the parking lot. Registration is on-site.
I am happy to share that we will be reverting back to our "safe school" protocols in the near future. These protocols include parents picking up their children who are in 2nd and 3rd grade in the front of the school and not walking inside the campus when classes are still in session. As a reminder, until we revert back to our previous pick-up protocols, please honor our teachers by making an appointment if you wish to meet with them. Often times they cannot take an impromptu meeting after school as they may have other commitments to attend to and any questions you may have about student progress or regression would require them to prepare materials for your meeting.
If you have been at Grant for a while you may recall the lengthy year-long process we all engaged in to ensure our students had the safest learning experience we could provide while maintaining that "neighborhood school" feeling. When we surveyed our community a few years ago about creating a safer school environment, and this includes all staff, well over 90% of respondents supported this plan.
I am extremely proud of our learning community for coming together the last few years and moving in a positive direction for the benefit of every student. These have been trying times for all but as an eternal optimist, I see brighter days just in front of us.
I will be sending you updates on our return to our safe school protocols in the near future. in the meantime, please know how much the entire Grant Staff appreciates you and your partnership!
GO GECKOS!
All my best,
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
Grant School
~FEBRUARY "GRANT GIVES" ACTIVITY~
A Message from Grant's Service Learning Coordinators
We hope your month of February is starting off right!
The Grant Service Learning Team would like to invite you to participate in this month's "Grant Gives" project for Valentine's Day.
We will be centering our efforts towards giving young children at the Children's Hospital Los Angeles positive and loving messages via an electronic Valentine's Day card from now until Monday, February 14th. Students will be doing this activity at school but can also show their kindness from home.
If each child makes one card for another small child at CHLA then $1 will be donated to the children's fund to help provide for the children who have to stay at CHLA due to severe health issues. You can send digital Valentine's cards by visiting this site:
https://secure1.chla.org/site/SPageNavigator/2021_Valentines.html
If you need more details please find all information on our Grant Gives website. https://sites.google.com/smmk12.org/grantgives/february
Thanks for your continued support and efforts to show love and support for kids in our nearby communities who can't go to school during Valentine's Day.
Go GECKOS!
~Ms. Martinez and Ms. Subin
~ASSISTING OUR COMMUNITY~
~A MESSAGE FOR 5TH GRADE PARENTS/GUARDIANS~
~GRANT RANKED #2 SCHOOL IN SANTA MONICA BY US NEWS & WORLD REPORT~
GRANT ALSO RANKED #343 OUT OF 5,887 ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN CALIFORNIA.
CALIFORNIA — More than 7,850 elementary and middle schools in the Golden State have been ranked among the best in California, according to a brand-new ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.
Nationally, California has 5,534 ranked elementary schools — the most of any state — followed by Texas at 4,446; New York at 2,211; Florida at 2,128; and Illinois at 2,038 schools. California also has the most ranked middle schools with 2,319, followed by Texas at 1,942; Illinois at 1,243; New York at 1,219; and Florida at 997.
For the inaugural list, U.S. News published rankings and data on more than 80,000 public elementary and middle schools across the United States.
See the full list here.
To determine the rankings, U.S. News used data from the U.S. Department of Education to analyze two areas at each school:
- Math and reading proficiency — or how well students perform on state assessments.
- Math and reading performance — or how well they perform compared with expectations.
~GECKO WEAR SCHOOL SPIRIT FRIDAYS~
~ DONATE TO THE GRANT PTA AND SANTA MONICA EDUCATION FOUNDATION TODAY! ~
Your donation does so much for Grant!
Please consider donating to the two organizations that enhance education for all Grant students: the Santa Monica Education Foundation and Grant PTA. Your donations are so important. Check out the crucial staff, programs, technology, and materials funded by your donations in this chart!
Our goal is for 100% of Grant families to give to PTA and the Ed Foundation. ANY amount makes a difference to our kids. If you have already donated, thank you!
~COMMUNITY RESOURCES for FAMILIES~
~GOOD LIFE ORGANICS PROGRAM~
Sign up today for our farm-to-school program so your family can receive a weekly box of Organic fresh fruits & veggies to your door. Every box comes with recipes and how-to’s, and every week you are voting with your food dollars for a healthier future!
Our school gets $$ back, and you can pause or cancel at any time. Be sure to include our school name in the "how did you hear about us" box.
Sign up at GLObox.org and use the coupon NY2022 for 22% off your first order.
*Some events and resources not sponsored by or affiliated with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.