GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF MARCH 14 - 20, 2022
Why do we celebrate women's history month?
Throughout Women's History Month, we celebrate the contributions of women. While it's important to celebrate women's history during the other 11 months, too, during March we can remember the sacrifices made by women, for women to help make the world, and our country, a more inclusive place.
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- Wednesday, March 16th: Grant Career Day! Parents from the Grant Learning Community will be visiting our classes virtually and sharing fun information about their professions with all of our students!
- Wednesday, March 16th: PTA General Meeting - 6:30 PM - https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5329339940 Meeting ID: 532 933 9940
- Thursday, March 17th: Safety Lockdown Drill #1 @ 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. 5:00 PM at the Greek Theater at Samohi.
- Monday, March 21st: School Site Council Meeting @ 3:15 PM
- Friday, March 25th: Talent Show Group A Rehearsal - 3:00 - 6:00 PM
- Thursday, March 31st: 5th Grade Students Tour JAMS - 8:30 - 12:00 - More info below. Field Trip permission slips coming home soon.
- Friday, April 1st: Talent Show Group B Rehearsal - 3:00 - 6:00 PM
- Friday, April 1st: Minimum Day - All Grades - OFFICE CLOSED AT 3:00 PM
- APRIL 4TH - 15TH: SPRING BREAK - NO SCHOOL
- Tuesday, April 19th: School Tour for Prospective Grant Families - 4:00 PM in person
- Monday, April 25th: Earthquake Drill #2 @ 10:45 AM
- Friday, April 29th: Jogathon Kickoff Assembly
- Tuesday, May 17th: JOGATHON! - DETAILS COMING SOON!
- Tuesday, May, May 24th: School Tour for Prospective Grant Families - 4:00 PM in person
- Thursday, May 26th: Open House ~ Details coming soon~
~SMMUSD Masking Policy Change Begins Monday, March 14th~
Dear Grant Families,
Today, Superintendent Drati sent a message to our community relaying changes to the school district’s indoor masking policy. As you may recall, this policy was originally put in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in our schools. Through a great deal of hard work and perseverance by our community, we are now in a place where many of the COVID safety strategies can be discontinued. Over the last month or so we have discontinued the health and temperature screenings prior to entering campus, stable groups during recess and lunch periods, outdoor masking, and beginning this Monday, March 14th, required indoor masking.
It is important for our families to understand that while the requirement for indoor masking has been eliminated it is “strongly recommended” that students and staff continue to wear a mask indoors. Dr. Drati’s letter clearly lays out the reasons for this so please take a few minutes to review that letter by clicking this link: Superintendent’s Message re: Indoor Masking
I also want to emphasize that wearing a mask at school will be the choice of each student and their parents or guardians. Wearing or not wearing a mask could be perceived as being “different” from others at school. At Grant School, we celebrate differences and have worked diligently over the years to teach our students about diversity and acceptance, being an upstander and not a bystander, and about creating bonds and not divisions. Our staff has discussed reinforcing these lessons as we shift to more relaxed protocols. We will be attuned to our students’ needs during this transition and will address any behaviors we see as being insensitive or discourteous by another student. We do not tolerate bullying of any kind. Please have a conversation with your children about this subject and what decisions you have made with regards to mask wearing.
The children at Grant School are resilient and caring and I anticipate this change in masking policy will be met with respect and adherence to appropriate rules of civility and school expectations. Should you wish to review resources regarding appropriate student behavior you can visit the Grant School website under “About Us” and “School Policies”.
As always, please contact me or your teacher should you have any questions regarding this matter.
GO GECKOS!
All my best,
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
Grant School
~Additional Important Information re: COVID Protocols~
Masks may still be required for the below situations:
LAC DPH is expected to update isolation and quarantine protocols by this weekend. A student may still be required to wear a mask when returning early from Isolation on Day 6 (pending LAC DPH update). Our illness protocols will remain the same. Students with symptoms of illness at school may be asked to wear a mask while awaiting pick up from parent/guardian to protect others from contagious illness.
Illness Protocols-Notify Attendance & the Health Office
PCR Test* required to return to campus for the following symptoms: cold symptoms, congestion, runny nose, shortness of breath, new cough, fever >100 or chills, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea or sore throat.
* A testing facility verified antigen is acceptable for those who were COVID+ in the past 90 days.
Instructions for COVID in the Household-Notify the Health Office
-Fully vaccinated students living with a COVID+ household member are STRONGLY recommended to STAY HOME for the duration of the positive case’s isolation. This is due to the high likelihood of spread within a home despite vaccination status.
-Students who are not yet fully vaccinated and living with a COVID+ household member is required quarantine at home. Day 0 is the last day of the positive case’s isolation. These students must stay home while the positive case is on isolation and quarantine for an additional 5-10 days after that.
Free at-home COVID tests: www.COVIDtests.gov
SMMUSD Health Services Webpage Resources: https://www.smmusd.org/Page/3733
MARCH SCHOOL READ-ALOUD: FOCUS >>> WOMAN'S HER-STORY MONTH, NEURODIVERSITY, ACCEPTANCE, PERSEVERANCE
If you’ve ever felt different, if you’ve ever been low, if you don’t quite fit in, there’s a name you should know… Meet Dr. Temple Grandin―one of the world’s quirkiest science heroes!
When young Temple was diagnosed with autism, no one expected her to talk, let alone become one of the most powerful voices in modern science. Yet, the determined visual thinker did just that. Her unique mind allowed her to connect with animals in a special way, helping her invent groundbreaking improvements for farms around the globe!
The Grant School Social and Emotional Learning Committee has planned all-grade read-alouds once per month that focus on empathy, bullying, diversity, inclusion, equity, and other important topics. The purpose is to have all students read (or be read to) a specific SEL-focused book on the same day and have discussions in classrooms that same day. Ideally, we believe this strategy will foster greater empathy and understanding among students and also encourage conversations in their homes.
~FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT~
~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.
~SPECIAL NOTES~
~Student Well-Being - “Talking About War”~
Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers Helping Children Cope with Terrorism: Tips for Families and Educators
SAFETY REMINDER: PLEASE DO NOT WALK STUDENTS THROUGH STAFF PARKING LOTS. IT CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS AND WE WANT TO KEEP EVERYONE SAFE.
ADDITIONALLY, PLEASE DO NOT BLOCK OUR NEIGHBORS' DRIVEWAYS WITH YOUR CARS. THE SCHOOL CANNOT CONTROL WHETHER THE POLICE WILL TICKET OR TOW A CAR OFF-CAMPUS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
~ASSISTING OUR COMMUNITY~
~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~
~CREST SPRING SESSION~
~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!