GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 20 - 26, 2023
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- Monday, February 20th: NO SCHOOL IN OBSERVANCE OF PRESIDENTS' DAY
- Tuesday, February 21st: Jogathon Kick-off Assembly (Students only)
- Wednesday, February 22nd: Grant School Tour for Prospective Families @ 9:00 AM. Please share with your friends that do not currently attend Grant!
- Friday, February 24th: Talent Show Group B Rehearsal: 3:00 - 6:00 PM in the Auditorium
- Wednesday, March 1st: (Pre) Read Across America Day: Link to sign up for Principal Fuhrer Read-aloud
- Wednesday, March 1st: PTA Executive Board Meeting @ 6:30 PM on Zoom
- Thursday, March 2nd: Read Across America Day: Link to sign up for Principal Fuhrer Read-aloud;
- Thursday, March 2nd: Grant Spirit Day: Pajama Day for Read Across America Day!
- Friday, March 3rd: Talent Show Tech Rehearsal: 3:00 - 6:00 PM in the Auditorium
- Tuesday, March 7th: JOGATHON! More info is coming soon!
- Wednesday, March 8th: Seaside Preschool Tour for Prospective Parents: 10:00 AM in the Auditorium
- Thursday, March 9th: Talent Show Dress Rehearsal: 3:00 - 6:00 PM in the Auditorium
- Friday, March 10th: GRANT TALENT SHOW NIGHT #1: 4:00 - 6:00 PM in the Auditorium
- Saturday, March 11th: GRANT TALENT SHOW NIGHT #2: 4:00 - 6:00 PM in the Auditorium
- Wednesday, March 15th: Grant Career Day
- Thursday, March 16th: Fire Drill #7 @ 9:00 AM
- Thursday, March 16th: 5th-Grade Parent Info Night at JAMS @ 6:00 - 7:30 PM
- Saturday, March 18th: Stairway of the Stars Concert @ Samohi: 4:00 PM
- Monday, March 20th: TK-5 SPRING STAR ELA & MATH ASSESSMENT WINDOW OPENS
- Monday, March 20th: Grant School Site Council Meeting @ 3:15 PM
- Tuesday, March 21st: FIELD TRIP: 2nd Grade to Morgan Wixon Theater
- Thursday, March 23rd: FIELD TRIP: 5th Grade to tour JAMS
- Thursday, March 23rd: FIELD TRIP: 4th Grade to La Brea Tar Pits
- Saturday, March 25th: GRANT STEAM EXPO! More info is coming soon!
- Monday, March 27th: NO SCHOOL - CESAR CHAVEZ HOLIDAY
- Thursday, March 30: MINIMUM DAY: PRE-K/TK/KINDER @ 12:15 PM; Grades 1-5 @ 1:15 PM (DISTRICT DAY)
- Friday, March 31st: MINIMUM DAY: PRE-K/TK/KINDER @ 12:15 PM; Grades 1-5 @ 1:15 PM (DISTRICT DISCRETIONARY DAY)
- SPRING BREAK FROM MONDAY, APRIL 3RD - SUNDAY, APRIL 16TH
- Monday, April 17th: Classes Resume
- Wednesday, April 19th: FIELD TRIP: 2nd Grade: Topanga Canyon State Park: Murcia/Neumann
~A MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL FUHRER~
Dear Grant Families,
I hope you are all enjoying this beautiful weekend! Last Thursday evening, Grant students, parents, and staff joined together to present to the Board of Education the various educational and fun activities in which the Grant community engages during Black History Month! I could not be more proud of these students in how they represented our great school and the manner in which they articulated what it means to them to honor the contributions of African Americans, both historical and contemporary. My appreciation extends to parent representatives Erika Bell and David Young, teachers Ms. Meshel, Ms. Ware, and Ms. Croft, as well as District leadership who invited us to share all that Grant does to create an inclusive environment for all of its students and families.
I also want to provide you with an important update on the progress of improving security at Grant both before and after school hours. As you are aware, we have secured access to the campus during school hours through a construction project that saw the installation of a higher fence in the front courtyard which also included a new camera and buzzer system. This new design did not address the issue of access to morning and aftercare programs. After meetings with the District's Facilities Improvement division, the school safety committee, and parent representatives, we finalized a plan to secure the school before and after school. Following are details of this new protocol:
- Parents whose children are enrolled in before or after-school programs will receive a key card that will grant them access through the front gate only between the hours of 7:00 - 8:00 AM and 3:00 - 6:10 PM Monday - Friday. The key card will not work at any other time.
- Parents will receive up to two cards initially. The cards will be distributed by the various programs. This is to ensure that access can be granted to multiple adults in the same household. Lost cards will incur a fee.
- Parents/Guardians will continue to access the campus during school hours by using the buzzer system.
We are currently creating the key cards and will be distributing them shortly. I want to thank you all for your patience while we worked diligently to create a feasible solution. The safety of our students and staff is and always will be paramount. Please contact me should you have any questions about this new security protocol.
Finally, I hope you will take a moment to complete the SMMUSD Climate and Culture Survey. Your input and perspective are important to our continuous improvement of the instructional program, facilities, and climate of Grant School! You can access this survey by reading the message in this week's Gazette or the District's email from this week!
Have a great week, Geckos!
Best regards,
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
Grant School
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District
~SCHOOL TOUR ON WEDNESDAY FOR PROSPECTIVE FAMILIES~
BLACK HISTORY MONTH IS FEBRUARY 1-28
The Grant School staff and the Grant PTA Diversity and Cultural Celebrations Committee 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.
Dear families,
Some of you may remember the incredible gallery of posters shared by families and classes last year to celebrate African American History Month. Let's make it an annual tradition! This is a memorable and meaningful learning activity for the whole family to do together. Details are below if you'd like to participate.
Sign up here to make a poster highlighting AAHM person/quote/book/event/place (past or present)
All sizes/shapes/types of posters are accepted. Be creative, collaborate with the kids, and have fun!
Turn in outside the front office anytime before Feb. 20th.
Please make sure the student’s name, grade, and teacher are clearly visible on the back of the poster.
Posters will be displayed in the Grant Auditorium the week of February 22nd-25th
Students will be able to visit with their class during designated school hours and families can visit after school.
Email Danielle Borgia (professorborgia@gmail.com) with any questions, and thank you to Grant PTA's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee for their hard work coordinating African American History events this year! If you want to get involved in Grant PTA's DEI work, email Erika Bell (diversity@grantpta.org).
Dear Parents and Guardians,
Santa Monica-Malibu School District (SMMUSD) has partnered with Hanover Research to conduct a short survey to gather input from students, staff, and parents about our school district’s climate and culture. We encourage you to share your opinions about your experiences in SMMUSD in order to inform the decisions made by school and district administrators.
Hanover Research is an independent research firm based in Washington, D.C., and is in no way affiliated with any other entity or organization. All information you provide will be maintained on a confidential basis by Hanover Research and will only be reported to SMMUSD in grouped or aggregated form only (i.e., de-identified data), so please be candid in your responses. The survey should take approximately 10 minutes to complete.
Please use the following link to take the survey: LINK
ENLACE ENCUESTA EN ESPAÑOL: ENLACE
Survey deadline is: Tuesday, February 28, 2023
We appreciate your participation.
Thank you,
~GRANT PRESENTS BLACK HISTORY MONTH TO THE BOARD OF EDUCATION~
We are so proud of our students for the amazing job they did representing Grant for Black History Month at the Board of Education meeting last Thursday! They all did so well presenting in front of an audience and the Board members. They so ably articulated and shared their perspectives on what Black History Month means to them, shared personal essays on famous Black Americans and their contributions to society, and there was an incredible performance of Amanda Gorman's "Change Sings" as the finale!
This group of students and staff truly made our community shine even brighter than it already does!
Thank you to the following students, staff, and parents who participated:
Honor B. - Meshel
Preston W. - Meshel
Sienna R. - Meshel
Rebecca Z. - Meshel
Kalia B. - Ware
Simona C. - Ware
Olivia E. - Ware
Walker L. - Ware
Mary G. - Ware
Lucas S. - Ware
Greyson S. - Ware
Yafet Y. - Ware
Ms. Ware
Ms. Meshel
Ms. Croft
Erika Bell - PTA VP of Diversity and Cultural Celebrations
David Young - Grant Black History Month Chair
Principal Fuhrer
~AUTHOR VISIT THIS LAST WEEK~
A huge Gecko "Thank You" to Cynthia Leonard and the Grant Library Committee for arranging to have author Benson Shum visit our students last week! The students absolutely loved learning about the writing and illustration process from Benson!
See the flyer below to learn how you can order a copy of the Author's book and have it signed and personalized!
~OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATION CONSENT~
YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THESE FORMS BELOW OR GET A COPY IN THE MAIN OFFICE.
~LEARNING GARDEN VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!~
~COMMUNITY EVENTS~
~SMMUSD ADULT SCHOOL CLASSES BEING OFFERED~
~2023 DISTRICT SUMMER SCHOOL LOCATIONS~
4-week programs (June 20-July 14)
Grant ES: IISS, ESY
SLA (two weeks only)
Malibu ES: IISS and ESY
SLA (two weeks only)
MMS: IISS, SAMS and ESY
JAMS: IISS,SAMS, and ESY
5-week programs (June 20-July 24)
Samohi and Olympic @Samohi: Credit Recovery, Math Acceleration, ACES Transition, ESY, OCLC and ISP
MHS: Credit Recovery, Math Acceleration, and ESY
2023 Summer Adventure Locations:
5-week programs (June 20-July 21)
Franklin ES
JAMS
~ALL NEW GECKO WEAR AVAILABLE NOW!~
Show your Grant school spirit every Friday with ALL NEW Gecko Wear. Check out the new designs and items including hats, shirts, sweatshirts, and canvas tote bags!
These products are available for purchase by pre-ordering online: https://my.cheddarup.com/c/grant-gecko-wear
To review the Grant School policies and the SMMUSD Annual Notice Handbook please click the following links:
Please click the image to see a full-size schedule
Click to enlarge image below.
~EASY WAYS TO HELP GRANT SCHOOL~
~DROP OFF AND PICK UP PROCEDURES~
Safe Campus drop-off and pick-up procedures are outlined below.
As a reminder, all students in Grades Kindergarten through 5th grade will be dropped off at the main gate at the front of the school in the morning or at the pedestrian gate in the rear of the school and will be picked up at either the main gate or the Kindergarten yard. Your teacher will let you know where their specific pickup location is. If you are unsure, please ask.
*Please do not drive into the staff parking lot at either the front or the rear of the school to either drop off or pick up your child.
DROP-OFF and PICK-UP PROCEDURES
Preschool and TK Drop-off: Due to State law, all Preschool and Transitional Kindergarten students must be dropped off to their teacher. Preschool parents will continue to enter the campus at the main gates after checking in with the Campus Monitor, proceed to Room 59, and sign their child in with Ms. Reed. TK parents will walk their children to the Transitional Kindergarten yard where Ms. Herman and Ms. Cedillo will greet them each day.
Preschool and TK Pick-up: All Preschool parents will meet Ms. Reed at the main gates for dismissal. Students whose parents have not picked up their child at dismissal will check into the main office and then proceed to Room 59 to check their child out from Ms. Reed. All TK parents will enter the Kindergarten playground from the Pearl Street entrance at dismissal time and students will be checked out by Ms. Herman and Ms. Cedillo.
Kindergarten Drop-off: Kindergarten students will be dropped off by their parent or guardian at the gate next to Room 2 beginning at 8:00 AM M-F. Students will walk to the Kindergarten playground where they will be met by a teacher or Campus Monitor. Students enrolled in SAP will be walked to their classrooms by SAP personnel.
Kindergarten Pick-up: Kindergarten students will be picked up by going through the Pearl Street Kinder gate at dismissal at 1:45 PM. Teachers will be at their classroom doors to greet parents and guardians. No Kinder student will be released to anyone other than a parent/guardian or emergency contact. Students enrolled in SAP will be picked up by SAP personnel in their classrooms.
Grades 1 – 5 Drop-off: All students in grades 1 – 5 will be dropped off by their parent or guardian at the main gate in front of the school or at the 24th Street gate each morning. Students will enter the school and walk to the playground where they will be supervised by a Grant School Teacher, Campus Monitor, or Administrator. Drop-off will begin at 8:00 AM every day.
The start-of-school warning bell will sound at 8:25 AM. The final bell will sound at 8:30 AM. Students in grade 1 will walk to their lineup on the big map on the playground where their teacher will meet them and walk them to the classroom. Students in Grade 2 will walk to their lineup behind their classroom where their teacher will meet them. Students in grades 3 – 5 will line up in front of their classroom where their teacher will meet them.
Grades 1 – 3 Pick-up: Students in Grades 1 – 3 will be dismissed each day according to the bell schedule above. Teachers will walk students to the main gate at the front of the school where parents will meet their children at this time. Students in Grades 1 – 3 who are enrolled in an afterschool program, such as CREST or PTA enrichment classes, or Playground Club, will walk or be walked to the lunch tables where their program teacher will meet them.
Grades 4 – 5 Pick-up: Students in Grades 4 and 5 will be dismissed each day at 2:55 PM. Students will exit the campus either from the main gates or the 24th Street gate at the rear of the school. Students who are enrolled in an afterschool program, such as CREST or PTA enrichment classes, or Playground Club, will walk to the lunch tables where their program teacher will meet them.
Early Dismissal Procedures: Wednesday drop-off and pick-up procedures are the same as those during regular school days but will follow the Wednesday bell schedule. Please see the new bell schedule ABOVE.
SAP Drop-off: All students enrolled in SAP before-school care will be dropped off in Room 4. Drop-off begins at 7:00 AM.
Breakfast Club: Students who participate in the Grant Breakfast Club will still arrive at school under the same procedures as all students. Parents will drop their children off at the main gates by 8:00 AM so that there is ample time to eat and walk to their classrooms by 8:30 AM. Preschool, TK, and Kinder students will continue to be accompanied by a parent or guardian to Breakfast Club if the parent so chooses.
New Security System
Grant is very fortunate to have had new security systems installed over the last couple of years. In addition to new security cameras around the entire perimeter and interior of the school, we now have a new secure fence in the front courtyard equipped with a camera and buzzer. All visitors during and after school hours must be buzzed into the school by pushing the button on the panel. Once permitted entrance, all visitors must go immediately to the main office to receive a visitors' badge.
Raptor Security System
The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District will use the Raptor visitor management system to strengthen our campus safety programs for students and staff. All schools currently have this system installed.
An important aspect of keeping students and staff safe is for site staff to know who is on our campuses at all times. The Raptor system achieves this interest as it allows office staff to screen visitors, contractors, and volunteers, in our schools and provides us with a safer environment for students, staff, and approved volunteers.
Upon entering campus, visitors will be asked to present identification such as a driver’s license, which can either be scanned or manually entered into the system. If a parent or guardian does not have a US government-issued identification, for any reason, the visitor may submit an alternative form of identification for school staff to enter into the Raptor system.
The Raptor system checks the visitor's name and date of birth for comparison with a national database of registered sex offenders. The registered sex offender database is the only official database checked by the Raptor system. No other data from the identification is gathered or recorded and the information is not shared with any outside agency. The Raptor system will check to ensure that registered sexual offenders are not allowed on our campuses. Once entry is approved, Raptor will issue a badge that identifies the visitor, the date, and the purpose of his/her visit. A visitor’s badge will not be necessary for those who visit our schools simply to drop off an item at the front gate.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND COOPERATION IN KEEPING OUR STUDENTS AND STAFF SAFE!
~COMMUNITY RESOURCES for FAMILIES~
~WEEKEND FOOD BAGS~
Grant families wishing to enroll their students should contact our school’s Bilingual Community Liaison, Florencia Rams at frams@smmusd.org, 310 450-7651, and fill out a Program opt-in form.
Las familias que desean inscribir a sus estudiantes deben contactar a la comunitaria de la escuela, Florencia Rams frams@smmusd.org, 310 4507651 x63110 y llenar un formulario para apuntarse en el programa.
*Some events and resources not sponsored by or affiliated with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.
+Algunos eventos no están patrocinados o afiliados al Distrito Escolar Unificado de Santa Monica-Malibu
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 SCHOOL~
~ GRANT SCHOOL IS A CERTIFIED COMMON SENSE MEDIA SCHOOL ~
~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!