GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF MAY 23 - 29, 2022
~WE HOPE YOU WILL JOIN US FOR OPEN HOUSE THIS THURSDAY, MAY 26TH!~
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- The last day for PCR COVID testing will be Thursday, June 2nd.
- MAY 20 - 27: SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR! VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! SEE BELOW! SIGN UP TO VOLUNTEER AT THIS LINK: https://www.scholastic.com/bf/grantelementaryschool33
- Tuesday, May 24th: 5th-Grade takes the California Healthy Kids Survey.
- Wednesday, May, May 25th: School Tour for Prospective Grant Families - 9:00 AM in person
- Thursday, May 26th: Open House ~6:00 - 7:30 PM~
- Thursday, May 26th: Minimum Day for Open House - All Grades: Dismissal Times:
- PreK, TK, Kinder @ 12:15 PM
- Grades 1, 2, 3 @ 1:00 PM
- Grades 4 & 5 @ 1:15 PM
- Monday, May 30th: MEMORIAL DAY - NO SCHOOL
- Tuesday, May 31st: Kindergarten Field Trip to Underwood Family Farm: All Day
- Tuesday, June 7th: 5th Grade Culmination Ceremony @ 9:00 AM on the Grant Big Field; Reception immediately following the ceremony in the historic garden.
- Wednesday, June 8th: Kindergarten play for K-Parents. 9:00 AM in the Historic Garden. See your teacher's weekly update for details.
- Thursday, June 9th: LAST DAY OF THE SCHOOL YEAR ~ MINIMUM DAY: Dismissal Times:
- PreK, TK, Kinder @ 12:15 PM
- Grades 1, 2, 3 @ 1:00 PM
- Grades 4 & 5 @ 1:15 PM
The end of the school year is fast approaching! If you have outgrown any Grant gear or no longer want it, please consider donating to our Grant Recycles Collection so they don’t end up in landfills or second-hand shops. Your donations will help others in our Grant community. If you're a 5th grader, this is a great time to go through your closet and decide if you want to part with any of your gear and pass it on to another Grant Gecko. We accept all sizes & styles from our different school events (ie: Gecko Wear, Jogathon, Science Fair, etc…) We ask that items being donated are washed and gently worn only. Please drop off items in the school office. If you have any questions, contact Florencia Rams, our Bilingual Community Liaison at 310-450-7651 ext 63110 or send an email to frams@smmusd.org or geckowearshop@grantpta.org. Thank you for your support!
~ JOGATHON 2022: GECKOS TAKE FLIGHT! ~
PLEDGESTAR IS STILL OPEN UNTIL THIS THURSDAY!
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO COORDINATED JOGATHON THIS YEAR!
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO SAMANTHA SUGAR FOR PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER!
Thank you also to the following parents for all of their hard work and spirit in making sure this year's Jogathon was fun!:
Jill Jurenka, Sarah Smith, Erika Bell, Rachel Zucker, Olivia Donaldson, Connie Cohn, Jill Cipresso...and all of the families who have donated so far!
GOOD NEWS...WE HAVE RAISED ENOUGH MONEY TO SLIME PRINCIPAL FUHRER!! MORE DETAILS COMING ON THE DAY OF THE SLIMING! :)
Goal: Our goal is to raise $85,000 for our school. Together, as a team, we can achieve this goal!
Top Prizes: iFly indoor skydiving, Universal Studios, Knott's Berry Farm plus many more!!
Top Fundraising Grade wins a field trip to Clover Park including lunch.
~BIKE IT! WALK IT! WEEK!~
~5TH GRADE END OF THE YEAR ACTIVITIES~
- Thursday, May 26th: Your 5th-grade child's last Open House! We hope to see you there! 6:00 - 7:30 PM.
- Friday, June 3rd: Culmination Ceremony rehearsal. Please be sure your child is in school this day.
- Monday, June 6th: Culmination Ceremony rehearsal and 5th-Grade Field Day!
- Tuesday, June 7th: 5th-Grade Culmination Ceremony. 9:00 - 10:00 AM on the Big Field. There will be a reception in the historic garden immediately following the ceremony.
- Wednesday, June 8th: Pier Day! Students will take the Big Blue Bus (with staff!) to the SM Pier for a day of fun! Lunch will be included. Permission slips will come home soon. *This is an early dismissal Wednesday and the students will return to the campus after their dismissal time so please make arrangements for a late pick-up that day.
- Thursday, May 9th: Last day as a Grant student!! We will miss our Geckos! Minimum Day for all Grades: Dismissal at 1:15 PM
We are so looking forward to providing our culminating 5th-grade students with a fun end to their educational journey at Grant!
Please let us know if you have any questions about any of these activities.
5th Grade Field Trip to Temescal Canyon with Fulcrum Adventures
~ GRANT END OF THE YEAR SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR ~
We are having an in-person book fair in the Library!!!!
Book Fair dates are May 20 - May 27. Hours are as follows:
Mon. Tue. Fri. 8 AM - 6 PM, Wed. 8 AM - 4 PM and Thur. 8 AM - 3 PM OPEN HOUSE HOURS: 5 PM - 8 PM
https://shop.scholastic.com/parent-ecommerce/parent-store-2.html?fairId=5093626
Also!!! Check out our "eWallet" which is a safe cashless way to help other students to shop at the fair and for families to support teachers by contributing to their wishlist. If your child's teacher created an eWallet for the classroom they will provide you with the link.
Click this eWallet link to contribute funds to help other students shop at the fair. Funds will be distributed through our Community Liaison Florencia Rams.
https://shop.scholastic.com/ewallet/fund?lang=en_US&walletId=5547250Click this link to volunteer for a shift at the book fair:
https://volunteer.scholastic.com/#/signup/TQJn9jY7K
If you have questions please email Ms. Wolfe. pwolfe@smmusd.org
~THANK YOU TO OUR "GRADUATING" PTA PARENTS~
~GRANT PTA HONORARY SERVICE AWARDS~
Becky MacFarlane
Viviana Machare
Laura Wray-Lake
Margy Yuspa
Myrene Davila
Amy Jo Deguzis
Tamara Roiter
Brenda Meyer
Fred Kipperman
Sarah Gallagher
Erin Harris
Susan Park
Soledad Ramos
Michelle Martinez
Michael Segal
Jennifer Wolf
Hien Kipperman
Scott Deguzis
Susan McLoughlin
Stacey Tannenbaum-Mciver
*We did not have photos of all of our award recipients as they did not all attend the ceremony.
~THANK YOU, ERIKA BELL~
Erika has led our parent organization through the toughest of times with grace, compassion, humility, and determination. When others might have left the challenge, Erika doubled her efforts to ensure all students and staff were supported. We will miss Erika's daily passion for the Gecko Nation but are excited she will serve in the role of President for the SMMUSD PTA Council (and represent the Geckos!). We know she will bring as much spirit to the entire District as she has at Grant. She will not be leaving Grant entirely. Erika will serve as the Grant PTA VP of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion next year.
We also want to thank Samantha Sugar for serving two incredible years as the Executive Vice President! She and Erika teamed up during this unique time in our history to make Grant the best school around! Samantha led many activities during the pandemic including securing school supplies for every one of our students to use at home during Distance Learning. When we returned to campus in the Spring of 2021, Samantha made it a mission to have some of the traditional events that make Grant special including last year's Jogathon where we raised more than $75,000! This year was no different. Samantha coordinated the Jogathon and the Grant Gala! We are thrilled that Samantha will be serving as Grant PTA President next year!
Both Erika and Samantha brought everything they had for the benefit of all of our children at Grant!
Please join us in thanking these two remarkably dedicated people!
~THANK YOU, SAMANTHA SUGAR!~
~CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR MULTILINGUAL STUDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN RECLASSIFIED!~
We are proud of every SMMUSD student who achieved this status!
~GRANT SCHOOL RANKED #2 IN SANTA MONICA AND #56 IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA!~
~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.
~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~
~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!
GRANT SCHOOL ~ A CALIFORNIA DISTINGUISHED SCHOOL
~GRANT SCHOOL NAMED A 2020 TOP LA COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL FOR CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP FOR LOW-INCOME AFRICAN-AMERICAN STUDENTS~
~GRANT RANKED AS A TOP TWO SANTA MONICA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL~
https://www.niche.com/k12/grant-elementary-school-santa-monica-ca/