The Sequoia Spotlight
September 4, 2018
Principal's Message
Welcome to the 2018 - 2019 school year! Thank you to our students, staff and parents for making the transition back to school so smooth!
Our theme this year is "Be Mission Possible"! We have been discussing this theme on morning announcements and in our opening welcome assembly. This year, my challenge for students is to be mission possible in the words they use, the choices they make, in their actions and in the effort they put forth at school.
On Friday, August 24 we held our first assembly of the year, the Welcome and Rules Review Assembly. After discussing our expectations and the rules for Sequoia, students viewed a broadcast by SMS News, complete with a rap, dance segment and commercial break featuring the administrators and counselors at Sequoia. A huge shout out to Mrs. Stevenson for not only filming but editing the footage to put together this Sequoia feature! Please review with your student the rules that are found in Sequoia's assignment notebook and in the Annual Notice of Parents' Rights and Responsibilities and Discipline Policy and Procedures.
There are a few new faces around our campus! I'd like to welcome Mrs. DiDomizio, our new assistant principal; Dr. Sand, special education teacher; Mrs. Porto, school psychologist; and Mrs. Yamamura, Speech and Language Pathologist! Welcome to Sequoia and we are thrilled that you are joining us!
There are also a couple new changes that you have may have noticed around campus... Sequoia's roof was upgraded during the summer thanks to Measure I funds. In addition, a new gate was installed near Lupe and the side parking lot. This allows students to access the Boys and Girls Club while still remaining inside a fenced in area on campus. We also added a few new interactive whiteboards and new sets of Chromebooks over the summer. We are close to our goal of having a class set of Chromebooks in each classroom. Also new this year are several new elective classes, including: year long advanced art, year long horticulture, year long digital production and year long advanced computers. We have plans for updates to our air conditioning in the next few months too!
Our opening staff meeting provided our staff with the following missions: reflecting on data from last year's test scores, using teamwork to build the tallest towers (an activity we will be doing with our CREW classes later on this year), and discussing important Sequoia information. Five teams of teachers will also be participating in Impact Team training this year to learn more about collective efficacy and the use of formative assessments that involve students in the learning process. These five teams will be participating in trainings throughout the year, starting at the end of this week!
I will be writing monthly newsletters to keep you up to date on what is happening at Sequoia. Please feel free to reach out to me at any time with feedback and questions. I wish you all a great September and I look forward to seeing you at Back to School Night on Thursday, September 13!
Your principal,
Mrs. Chambers
Back to School Night
Please save the date for Back to School Night on Thursday, September 13. The PTA meeting/school presentation will take place in the auditorium at 6:30 pm with the doors opening up at 6:00 pm. “0” period classroom visits begin at 6:15 pm and all other classroom visits begin at 7:10 pm. Your student will be bringing home a hard copy of their schedule for the evening next week. You can also print their schedule off of the Parent Connect Portal in “Q”. Back to School Night is an opportunity for you to get a brief snapshot of your child’s classes. This event is intended for parents only. Please make arrangements to leave your children at home during Back to School Night. If you have any questions about this event, please refer to the school website or call the main office.
CREW
We implemented a new program called CREW this year. As a Sequoia CREW we focus on Compassion, Responsibility, Empowerment and our Well-being. On Mondays and Fridays during CREW, all students will participate in activities related to school belonging (connections and school spirit), learning mindfulness strategies and promoting positive character traits (those found in the CREW acronym). We started last week with getting to know you activities and establishing group norms in our CREW classes. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, students will be provided with additional support in math/reading or will have time for Independent Study (homework, test make-ups, silent reading). We also plan on implementing an enrichment program called Battle of the Books to promote reading.
Student Connections
Connections are an integral part of education! In August we started off with WEB (Where Everyone Belongs) camp for our incoming 6th grade students. Our WEB leaders, under the direction of Mrs. Baranski, did an excellent job connecting with our 6th grade students! New this year, each sixth grader is being assigned to a WEB leader who will check in on them throughout the year. We also had orientation in August which was successfully run by Mrs. Jordan, Mr. Nichols, several amazing parent volunteers and our ASB and WEB leaders! ASB hosted our first CREW Class of the Year (COTY) Dress Day on Friday, August 31 with a Sequoia Blue/Gold Dress Day! Every Friday, that is not a special COTY day, will be a spirit day so wear your Sequoia apparel! Speaking of ASB... ASB elections are coming up soon and our first dance, the Blacklight Dance, is on September 21. Continuing this year, I will be hosting monthly principal luncheons to get to know more students on campus and to gather input on different areas. In addition, we are hosting a club fair at the end of the month with several clubs that will be starting up: Robotics, STEM for Girls, Builders Club and more!
Student Learning
"Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere." - Chinese Proverb. There were a lot of activities occurring around campus that focused on creating connections with students and in establishing expectations and routines in the classroom. From autobiographical assignments to team building tower challenges, Sequoia's teachers recognize the importance of forming relationships. In addition, the expectations were clear from creating classroom constitutions in history to establishing safety procedures in science class. Several classes dove right in and had peers reviewing world history vocabulary together, students participating in Socratic Seminars, and hands on lessons planting seeds, learning how to work cameras, and discussing conductivity involving batteries.
Upcoming Events
- PTA Restaurant Night: Wednesday, September 5 @ The Habit (5 - 9 PM)
- PTA Meeting: Thursday, September 6 @ Teacher's Lounge (6 - 7 PM)
- Spirit Dress Day (Sequoia Apparel): Friday, September 7
- ASB Election Voting: Friday, September 7
- No School: Monday, September 10
- Minimum Day/Early Dismissal: Tuesday, September 11 (1:30 PM)
- ASB Fundraiser Assembly: Wednesday, September 12
- Back to School Night: Thursday, September 13
- Spirit Dress Day (Sequoia Apparel): Friday, September 14
- Reflections Guest Speaker: Friday, September 14 (Lunch)
- Reflections Guest Speaker: Monday, September 17 (Lunch)
- GATE Parent Info Night & Odyssey of the Mind: Mon., Sept. 17 @ Auditorium (6:00 PM)
- No School: Wednesday, September 19
- Reflections Guest Speaker: Friday, September 21 (Lunch)
- COTY White & Neon Dress Day: Friday, September 21
- Blacklight Dance: Friday, September 21
- Minimum Day/Early Dismissal: Tuesday, September 25 (1:30 PM)
- School Site Council: Wednesday, September 26 @ Library (7:30 AM)
- Spirit Dress Day (Sequoia Apparel): Friday, September 28
- 6th Grade WEB Ice Cream Social: Friday, September 28 (12:30 - 1:00 PM)