Bobcat Strong News Tracker
September 23, 2021
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SANTA RITA AT-A-GLANCE
9/24 - Staff Development- NO SCHOOL
9/30 - English Learners and New Families Meeting 6:00 - 7:30pm at Santa Rita. Dinner served. RSVP below.
BOBCAT STRONG REGISTRATION: Please make sure to fill out your Bobcat Strong Registration Information (https://bit.ly/bobcatreg) so we have your most up-to-date information! Every class with 100% participation by next Friday will get a popsicle party!
Letter from your Principal
Hello Bobcat Families!
Tomorrow Santa Rita teachers will join their LASD counterparts for a day of learning at Blach Intermediate School. Professional learning days are always a great opportunity for our district staff to share best practices, collaborate around next steps and help us keep the focus centered on student learning and growth. I hope you enjoy an extra day with our favorite small humans, our Santa Rita Bobcats.
The students have voted in class and now it is your turn! Please check out the logos below and swing on by the school to vote. The logos and the voting box will be in front of the school each school day until next Wednesday. This box is for adult voting only.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Better Together, Go Bobcats!
Kelly Rafferty
CALENDAR
9/24 Staff Development - NO SCHOOL
9/30 English Learners and New Families Meeting 6:00 - 7:30pm Santa Rita blacktop.
10/14 Minimum Day- 12:15 dismissal
10/23 Witches’ Delight is BACK - stay tuned for more!!
Witches Delight Rides and Fun!
CAMPUS COVID UPDATES
If you missed the Town Hall, you can view a video here.
We urge all families to sign up for the LASD pooled testing program at their school site. Students who volunteer to be part of the testing program will:
Receive free weekly asymptomatic COVID-19 testing
Receive free individual rapid testing on our campuses if there is a positive result from the pool
**Please note: according to CDPH requirements, if there is a positive pooled result, all students in the class will be required to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test to return to school, whether or not they were tested through the Concentric program. If your child is participating in the Concentric program, that test (and the results) will happen on campus before they enter their classroom. If your child is not signed up for the Concentric pooled testing program, your child will still be required to show proof of a negative test and will have to obtain a test elsewhere before returning to school. Therefore, signing up for the Concentric pooled program not only helps keep our campuses safe, but also provides convenience and easy testing access for all its participants.
To sign your student up for the testing program, you must provide consent by following these simple steps:
To do so, please fill out this online consent form today.
Please enter the access code for your student’s school:
LASD-SANTARITA
Enter your student’s information, and you’re done!
If you need to provide consent for more than one student, please complete the process once for each student.
Please be aware that you may also opt in to the program at any time during the school year. However, we cannot guarantee your student will have immediate access to testing due to the processing time required for the consent forms by Concentric.
BOBCAT STRONG
Good News! We've raised $1M! That's 36% of the way towards our goal. Thank you to all the families who’ve already contributed to LAEF this school year. We appreciate your support early in the year!
If you haven't yet made a donation to LAEF, please Donate or Pledge to LAEF this week and Save Us a Call! Our annual LAEF Phonathon is coming up on September 28th and 29th.
- Can you join our Phonathon team and make some calls? Find out more and sign-up to help! Your efforts will help fund teachers at Santa Rita!
Check out our new 2020-21 Annual Report to find out how students benefited from contributions to LAEF last school year. Let’s do it again this year!
Get to Know Your Santa Rita LAEF Board Representatives
Jensen Barna has a 4th and 6th grader at Santa Rita this year. Justin Martin has a 4th grader and twin 2nd graders. Aleks Stanojevic has a 6th and 3rd grader. They would welcome the opportunity to meet you and answer any questions you might have about LAEF and school funding.
Looking for STEM volunteers at lunch
In the past, we had the opportunity to have some interest-based clubs happen during lunch. I am looking for parent volunteers who might be interested in helping to open the STEM Lab once or twice a week during lunchtime 12:00-12:45. This would be considered an essential volunteer opportunity, so volunteers would need to be vaccinated. If you are interested in helping kids build or design during lunchtime, please contact me directly. krafferty@lasdschools.org
Events
English Learners and New Families Meeting, Thursday, September 30 from 6:00 - 7:30 pm on Blacktop
Our first English Learners and New Families meeting will be held on Thursday, September 30 from 6:00 - 7:30 pm on Santa Rita's blacktop. Come and meet our team of English Learner teachers, Family Engagement Coordinator. Learn more about our English Learner programs and curriculum, community resources for families, free enrichment classes, and more. We will set up a few tents on the blacktop so you can check out the materials and ask questions.
Pizza dinner will be served. All are welcome. Please RSVP at https://tinyurl.com/ELACFallEvite so we can prepare enough food for everyone.
More information
Questions? Email Alice Lee at joy268@hotmail.com
Reunión de estudiantes de inglés y nuevas familias 30 de septiembre,
6:00 - 7:30 pm en Blacktop
Nuestra primera reunión de Estudiantes de inglés y nuevas familias se llevará a cabo el jueves 30 de septiembre de 6:00 a 7:30 pm en el asfalto de Santa Rita. Venga y conozca a nuestro equipo de maestros aprendices de inglés, Coordinador de participación familiar. Obtenga más información sobre nuestros programas y currículo para estudiantes de inglés, recursos comunitarios para familias, clases gratuitas de enriquecimiento y más. Instalaremos algunas carpas en el asfalto para que pueda consultar los materiales y hacer preguntas.
Se servirá cena de pizza. Todos son bienvenidos. Confirme su asistencia en https://tinyurl.com/ELACFallEvite para que podamos preparar suficiente comida para todos.
¿Preguntas? Envíe un correo electrónico a Alice Lee a joy268@hotmail.com
MVLA PARENT EDUCATION LECTURE SERIES
MVLA Parent Ed Speaker Series is pleased to announce our September lectures with New York Times columnist Ron Lieber, who will be speaking about money matters as they relate to college financing and kids of all ages. Join us for our first two online events of the season!
The Price You Pay for College: An Entirely New Roadmap
Tuesday, September 28, 2021 - 7:00 - 9:00pm | Live Online
Audience: High School parents, students, teachers, and counselors
Register: Register for this free event
Books: Purchase online from Books, Inc.
More Information: Click HERE
The Opposite of Spoiled: Raising Kids Who Are Grounded, Generous and Smart About Money
Thursday, September 30, 2021 - 7:00 - 9:00pm | Live Online
Audience: K-12 school parents, students, teachers, and counselors
Register: Register for this free event
Books: Purchase online from Books, Inc.
More Information: Click HERE
Living Classroom
Living Classroom is in need of volunteers to teach our fun, hands-on lessons and help care for our school gardens. No experience or green thumb necessary as we teach you everything you need to know! Join a community of people who enjoy connecting kids with nature and teaching them where their food comes from. The suggested time commitment is only 6 hours a month and you get to participate in fun volunteer enrichment activities such as nature hikes, garden tours, educational workshops, talks, and more! Living Classroom is a great way to act locally to help care for our planet and nurture our future environmental stewards! Get involved today!
Join us in-person for our upcoming Fall Docent Training!
Living Classroom Fall Docent Training
Mondays 9-Noon
9/13-10/11
LASD iLearn Studio (masks required)
201 Covington Road, Los Altos
-or-
email for information on joining us virtually
Please RSVP to livingclassroom@lasdschools.org
Questions? Contact us at (650) 947-1103 or email livingclassroom@lasdschools.org
email for information on joining us virtually
Please RSVP to livingclassroom@lasdschools.org if you plan to attend.
Questions? Contact us at (650) 947-1103 or email livingclassroom@lasdschools.org
AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS
Santa Rita is super excited for the return of in-person after school programs! Here are some of the offerings:
Mondays - Science Made Fun, After School Hoops;
Tuesdays - Easy Spanish;
Wednesdays - Run for Fun;
Thursdays - Lunchtime Chess Club;
Fridays - Coach Ken Soccer, After School Tennis;
Plus, LASD Flag Football. Mathletes and Speak Debate will be offered on-line, for Fall.
Check the school website under Enrichment activities for schedule, more info, and registration links. After School Activities • Page - Santa Rita Elementary School (santaritaschool.org)
FLAG FOOTBALL
Calling all 3rd-6th graders! LASD Flag Football is back on!
Please sign up for our only school sport. Each school in LASD has a 3rd/4th grade team and a 5/6th grade COED team.
We compete against the other schools in the district after school and the season culminates in a district-wide tournament at Foothill College. It is a lot of fun, and even the teachers stay to watch the games!
No experience necessary and it’s a no-cut sport.
Please sign up here: http://www.asa-lasd-flagleague.com/
FREE ONLINE CODING CLASSES (4TH - 6TH GRADE)
Trained local high school students from the Computer Engineers of the Next Generation are hosting free coding classes on Zoom in Scratch, JavaScript and Python
Dates: Wednesdays, September 1 - October 6, 2021
Time: 4:15 - 5:45 pm PST (NEW TIME)
No. of Weeks: 6
Format: Zoom online classes
Cost: Free
Registration Links:
4th grade - Scratch (Beginning/Intermediate/Advanced)
5th grade - JavaScript (Beginning/Intermediate/Advanced)
6th grade - Python (Beginning/Intermediate/Advanced)
Students will be put into different breakout rooms according to their levels.
Registration deadline: 12:00 noon on Saturday, August 28, 2021 or when class is full.
Computer Engineers of the Next Generation (CENG) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization with the mission to inspire underrepresented minorities to pursue Computer Science. For more information, please check out our website at cengclass.org. Questions? Please contact cengclass@gmail.com
Free Virtual Reading Tutoring Program (K-3rd Grade):
Teen Tutors is an organization run by Los Altos High School students to connect young readers with high school tutors! Our Read to Me program features tutors who read to students one-on-one to strengthen their reading comprehension & listening skills. As the students grow more comfortable, they can choose to read themselves with tutor assistance as needed. Virtual Read to Me sessions will be available on Saturdays from 10:30 am-11:15 am and 11:15 am-12 pm. Please register your child here: https://tinyurl.com/K3rdReading
For more information about our program, please visit www.teentutorslahs.wixsite.com/lahs or email teentutorslahs@gmail.com with any questions.
Programa gratuito de tutoría virtual de lectura (K-3rd Grado):
Teen Tutors es una organización dirigida por los estudiantes de Los Altos para conectar a los lectores jóvenes con tutores de la escuela secundaria. Nuestro programa Read to Me ofrece tutores que leen a los estudiantes de uno en uno para fortalecer su comprensión de lectura y sus habilidades de escucha. A medida que los estudiantes se sientan más cómodos, pueden optar por leerse a sí mismos con ayuda de un tutor según sea necesario. Las sesiones virtuales de Read to Me estarán disponibles los sábados de 10:30am a 11:15am y de 11:15am a 12pm. Registre a su hijo aquí: https://tinyurl.com/K3rdReading
Thank you!
Santa Rita School
Email: krafferty@lasdschools.org
Website: https://www.santaritaschool.org
Location: 700 Los Altos Avenue, Los Altos, CA, USA
Phone: (650)559-1600
Facebook: santaritaPTA
Twitter: @BobcatsSR