May 16-20: 6th Grade's Comprehensive Health Instruction

May 23-27: Mental Health Awareness Week

May 30: Memorial Day, No School

May 31: Parent Input Letters are due (see below)

May 31-June 3: Outdoor Science School for 6th grade

Across CUSD, May 23-27 will be Mental Health Awareness Week. Mental health and social and emotional well-being are foundational to overall health and to student learning. We support mental health through caring relationships, home and school partnerships, focused instruction for social emotional learning, school-based interventions and links to mental health services.

Throughout Mental Health Awareness Week, students will participate in school-wide and classroom-based wellness activities designed to teach positive coping strategies, practice ways of expressing a range of emotions in healthy ways, and reduce the stigma associated with mental health. In next week's Leaf, I'll share a resource for parents, as well.

Pictured below: Students have gathered to make posters for Mental Health Awareness Week.

It’s hard to believe its the middle of May! Our year is coming to an end, and we are planning for next year already. Very soon, staff will be organizing students into next year's classroom groups. Decisions about class placement are based upon countless and often confidential variables. We know quite a bit about our students, and this knowledge guides us in setting up our classroom communities.

Families are welcome to add their insights to this process in what we call an Input Letter, a written statement with the family's observations about their child’s school-based relationships and response to various learning environments. We ask that your comments speak to your child. Do not request a classroom or teacher, as our placements are too complex to be able to honor narrow requests in that way. This year's letters must be received no later than May 31 in order to ensure your comments are available for consideration.

This letter is not required. I assure you that our staff is fully committed to creating classroom communities that will be supportive for all. Please complete the Input Letter then bring it to the office or email it to astanger@cusd.claremont.edu by May 31.

Wow, families! We have had such a great "first year" back with you all! We have loved incorporating new and old traditions and learning along the way. As we start to plan for next year, we would appreciate input from all families. Your responses are anonymous, and the survey should take about 5 minutes to complete. Click here!

Please consider volunteering in our new garden. We're looking for a few families who'll visit from time to time and tidy things up. Make it extra fun by signing up with a fellow Sycamore family. Click here to sign up and for more information

We're offering several different restaurant fundraisers and we have just a few to go. These are a nice way to meet up with fellow Sycamore friends while earning a bit of money for our school. When you visit, let them know you are from Sycamore and thank them for their contribution to our school.

• Pepo Melo/Nosy Neighbors - June 6th
• Honeybird - June 16th

Sixth Graders' Outdoor Science School is quickly approaching. With a per person cost of about $160, we need to raise at total of $10,000. We will meet most of that cost through individual donations. Cash or checks will be collected in the school office or donations can be made through Zelle at SycamoreDonations@gmail.com. Please add "Sixth Grade OSS" to the memo for any donation. We thank you for giving in any amount.

We are getting close to that time of year when we ask our students to help create next year's "gear" design. Now is a good time to start sketching and playing around with ideas. We will ask for submissions at the end of May. We can't wait to see what our students create!