GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF AUGUST 15 - 21, 2021
~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!
~ WELCOME BACK TO SCHOOL, GECKOS! ~
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- Monday, August 15th: Class Assignment Notifications for grades 1-5 (Evening emails); Email us if you do not receive a notification.
- Monday, August 15th: New Family Orientation and Tour: 4:00 PM in the Auditorium
- Wednesday, August 17th: TK and Kindergarten Meet & Greet on the Kindergarten Yard @ 5:00 PM
- Thursday, August 18th: First Day of the 2022-2023 School Year!
- Thursday, August 18th: PTA First Day of School Parent Reception @ 8:45 AM in the Auditorium
- Thursday, August 18th: Minimum Day for all grades: Dismissal times: PreK/TK/Kinder @ 12:15; 1st - 5th @ 1:15
- Friday, August 19th: Minimum Day for TK/Kinder @ 12:15
Tuesday, August 23rd: Minimum Day for all grades: Dismissal times: PreK/TK/Kinder @ 12:15; 1st - 5th @ 1:15
Tuesday, August 23rd: Back to School Night Grades TK – 2 from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Tuesday, August 30th: Minimum Day for all grades: Dismissal times: PreK/TK/Kinder @ 12:15; 1st - 5th @ 1:15
Tuesday, August 30th: Back to School Night Grades 3 – 5 from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Monday, September 5th: No School in observance of Labor Day
~ WELCOME BACK LETTER FROM PRINCIPAL FUHRER ~
August 14, 2022
Dear Grant Families,
It is my honor and a pleasure to welcome you to the 2022 – 2023 school year! I hope you all have had a relaxing and fun summer break. I am extremely proud to serve as the Principal of this amazing learning community for the 5th year and to continue to support the students of Sunset Park! The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District’s theme this year is “Emerging Stronger”. As we all can attest, the last few years have been challenging, but the Grant Learning Community has emerged on the other side more resilient, more unified, and better equipped to handle an ever-changing landscape. This new school year brings the promise of a renewed dedication, focus, and energy to the mission of teaching and learning. With that said, the Grant staff and PTA are ready to kick this year off in true Gecko fashion!
I would like to welcome all of our new families, whether you are joining us from another school in the district or have relocated from another city, state, or country. We are excited to share all that Grant has to offer with you and believe you will soon feel as we do, that Grant School is a special place for all children. Our teachers, support staff, and families are ready to welcome you into the Gecko Nation.
The dedicated staff at Grant has been working tirelessly to finalize classes and schedules, fine-tune our instructional models, engage in professional learning opportunities, and update class routines and expectations, all with the goal of fostering academic success. In addition, many of the campus construction projects have been or are close to being completed. Our teachers are eager to meet their new students and begin this year’s journey with them. Our primary goal is to ensure student proficiency in core academic subjects so we will continue to refine Tier I instruction, analyze data, conduct observations, and review classwork to guide instruction and intervention. We will also engage our students in Project Based Learning through the Deep Learning philosophy and strategies we immersed ourselves in three years ago. Additionally, we will continue placing a focus on the integration of the Social Justice Standards, Responsive Classroom community-building techniques, Restorative Justice practices, and social and emotional support strategies into our students’ daily school experience. We will work together to create a solid foundation for our students so that they have the opportunity to become self-directed learners, collaborative teammates, critical thinkers, and responsible citizens. We will continue to offer intervention services for neurodiverse learners through specialized programs, counseling when appropriate, and the implementation of Tier II and Tier III programs and learning strategies.
Please be sure to read the Gecko Gazette each Sunday night as it contains important information from the school, PTA, Santa Monica Education Foundation, the City of Santa Monica, and other community partners. Links to each week’s Gazette are posted on our website.
We will be holding our traditional, in-person Back-to-School Night presentations on Tuesday, August 23rd for Transitional Kindergarten, Kindergarten, First grade, and Second grade, and Tuesday, August 30th for grades 3-5. Both nights’ programs will begin with a short presentation in the Auditorium where you will meet our teachers, Assistant Principals, and me. While in your child’s classroom, your child’s teacher will present an overview of the year’s instructional program, schedules, digital resources, and expectations for the coming year.
As I have always said, Grant’s outstanding teachers create the foundation for your child’s academic success. In addition, a large part of the Grant Learning Community’s success can be attributed to its active and engaged parents who are involved in the PTA. Please consider contributing to the Grant PTA so that we can continue to fund engaging enrichment programs, assemblies, and much-needed supplemental equipment and supplies that will support teaching and learning this year. Your donations directly affect your child’s education. Last year your contributions enabled us to provide digital learning resources in literacy, math, and science, musical instruments, field trips, new lunch tables, and a variety of outdoor equipment. Please visit the Grant PTA website at https://www.grantpta.org/ to become a PTA member and to learn of the many opportunities available to volunteer at Grant. In addition, we hope you consider donating to the Santa Monica Education Foundation. Donations to SMEF enable us to provide our students with a well-rounded and world-class education through music, visual arts, and instructional assistant support. Please visit https://www.smedfoundation.org/ to donate today! Last year’s, donations allowed us to purchase supplemental science programming and other important instructional tools!
I look forward to the start of the new school year and to continuing our collaboration of providing your children with an effective and engaging educational experience. As always, we will look to our families to be positive partners in this year’s journey. The Grant staff has always made a priority of working together as a caring and compassionate learning community with professionalism, teamwork, action, and expertise. We will always put the best interests of our students at the center of our purpose. Join us in ensuring the success of all of Grant’s students. Stay healthy, stay positive, and stay connected.
As always, my door is open and our team welcomes your input. Please feel free to contact me via email at the address below or call to make an appointment to speak with me to discuss any ideas you feel will make this the best year yet!
GO GECKOS!
Best regards,
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
Grant School
*Students enrolled in Grant School are not required to pay any fee, deposit, or other charge for participation in an educational activity offered by the school or the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, except as authorized by law and consistent with the California constitution and Hartzell v. Connell (1984) 35 Cal.3d 899. Donations are sought and accepted for various activities and supplies, and are at times critical to the continued success of classes and activities, but donations are always voluntary, and no child will be denied the right to fully and meaningfully participate in any activity because he/she has not donated money or supplies. For more information, go to http://www.smmusd.org.
~ WEEKLY REMINDERS ~
~ANTIGEN TEST KIT PICK UP INFORMATION~
For Covid-19 testing this school year, we will be providing free at-home weekly testing kits to all students and staff. The kits will be provided by SMMUSD through your school site or office. This decision was made following: a review of the recent parent and staff survey results with nearly 3,500 responses, management and staff’s analysis of the logistics and complexities required in implementing the different options proposed, along with discussion at our public Board of Education meeting Thursday night.
With this decision comes the expectation that parents and staff will be cooperative in weekly antigen testing at home. It is in our collective best interests to maintain in-person instruction without disruptions of class or school closures due to outbreaks. We want everyone to recognize that we are part of a school community that relies on each other to do the right thing, which is to support the health and safety of all students, staff, and visitors to our campuses and offices, by taking these weekly tests. Any positive result needs to be reported to Nurse Furano and a minimum of five-day isolation instructions followed. (More on that in a follow-up email from Dr. Drati.) As always, if you or your child are sick, please stay home from school and notify us at Grant.
YOU MAY PICK UP YOUR CHILD'S ANTIGEN TEST KIT THIS TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY FROM 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM IN THE MAIN OFFICE. THERE ARE TWO TESTS PER BOX SO PLEASE USE THE SECOND ONE ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 28TH.
Please do not forget to send with your child every day:
- Water bottle
- Snack and/or lunch (lunch available to all students free of charge for the 2022-23 school year.)
- Sunscreen (put on prior to arriving at school)
- Hat
- Layers of clothing (sweatshirt, windbreaker, etc.) Keep an eye on the weather.
Please click the image to see a full-size schedule
~ WELCOME TO THE GRANT FAMILY! ~
Daniela Wiener - Assistant Principal (50%)
Ms. Wiener served as Instructional Coach at Franklin Elementary, Roosevelt Elementary, McKinley Elementary, and Edison Language Academy for the past 7 years, where she supported teachers with planning and demo lessons, led data meetings, provided professional development, and coordinated family literacy nights. She worked closely with Principals on all aspects of instruction and has co-led several district-wide initiatives such as the Summer Language Academy for multilingual students and the Reading Workshop Network for teachers.
Prior to joining SMMUSD, Ms. Wiener worked for the New York City Department of Education as a dual immersion teacher, lead teacher, and instructional coach. She began her career in education in Honduras where she served as a Peace Corps volunteer in rural schools and spent several years working in international education policy supporting USAID initiatives in Latin America and Africa. This summer Daniela served as principal for the District's middle school intensive intervention and special education summer school program, along with Summer Adventure. All of her students call her "Ms. DW".
Ms. Wiener will be Grant's Assistant Principal 50% of the time and McKinley's AP the other 50%.
~CERTIFICATED~
Joseph Ramirez - 2nd Grade
Daniel Wheeler - 4th Grade
Mr. Wheeler grew up in Culver City. He attended UC Davis earning his Bachelor’s in International Relations, UCLA (Master’s in Education), & CSUN (Masters in Educational Leadership & Policy Studies and School Administration)
Mr. Wheeler and his wife Jessica have three children (Aleksander, 20, Nikolas, 17, & Elena, 9) who all are part of the SMMUSD family. Jessica is also an educator.
He has been an elementary school educator since 1996 having first completed his student teaching in Lennox and then became a teacher in the SMMUSD (Muir) & UCLA (Lab School).
Mr. Wheeler enjoys the outdoors and when he's not teaching, you can find him running, hiking, swimming, or biking.
Emma Taylor - Specialized Academic Instruction (SAI)
Emma Taylor is joining the district after 4 years of teaching elementary at The Help Group’s Village Glen School for students with Autism and other special needs. Prior to working at The Help Group, She spent time working with low-income, high-poverty students through the City Year program. Ms. Taylor received her Master’s in Special Education through Marymount University where she studied the effects of mindfulness and how it affects Autistic students’ emotions for her capstone project.
As a child with her own learning differences, Ms. Taylor struggled with school but thanks to many amazing and dedicated teachers she was able to understand how she learns best, how to advocate for her needs, and when to ask for help. Because of this, Emma graduated from the University of Redlands with honors, a feat she never thought she’d be able to accomplish.
Ms. Taylor has wanted to be a teacher since the 3rd grade, and thanks to her amazing teachers throughout her educational journey, her desire to help students like her grew and grew. She loves being a special education teacher and couldn’t imagine doing anything else as a profession. Her students bring her joy, and laughter, and have even taught her lessons on resilience, hardship, dedication, and the importance of a strong student/teacher relationship. Ms. Taylor is so excited to be joining such an amazing school district and can’t wait to start the 22/23 school year with such amazing educators by her side.
Leslie Toapanta - Literacy & Language Interventionist
Leslie Toapanta graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a Masters in Elementary Education and began her teaching career as a Kindergarten teacher in an inner-city school in Los Angeles. After a few years of teaching Kindergarten, she got her dream job as a Literacy and Language Interventionist in the Santa Monica-Malibu School District. She began as an Interventionist at Franklin Elementary and is now excited to be working at Grant Elementary! She is passionate about getting students to be self-reflective about their learning so they can evaluate their strengths and things they need to work on so they can invest and be motivated to move forward as learners.
~CLASSIFIED~
Julie Kluft - Instructional Assistant
Julie was born and raised in beautiful Southern California. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Lehigh University and a Masters of Education in School Counseling from USC’s Rossier School of Education. Prior to joining us at Grant Elementary, Julie worked as a high school Guidance Counselor with at-risk youth and an Adjunct Psychology Professor.
She has an adorable 5-year-old son Chase, who challenges her to be the best version of herself each day. Outside of work Julie enjoys hiking, the beach, spending time with her family, tie-dying and crafts, learning new things and exploring new places! She is so excited to be joining the Grant Family this fall!
Alyssa Ruiz - Instructional Assistant
Becky Turk - Instructional Assistant
SMPD Student Resource Officer (SRO)~ Officer Anthony Angel
~DROP OFF AND PICK UP PROCEDURES~
This year, we will be reverting back to our pre-COVID student drop-off procedures. You may recall that during the 2018-2019 school year, our school community engaged in an extensive, healthy, and productive dialogue around bolstering Grant’s safety and security. All stakeholders, including members of the School Leadership Team, School Site Council, PTA, ELAC, Santa Monica Police Department, and SMMUSD district administration, had an opportunity to share their ideas and feelings about how we as a community can best provide a safe and nurturing environment for our children. The consensus among all of these groups was that Grant students and staff deserve a more secure campus and a greater emphasis on protecting instructional time. Unfortunately, due to distancing guidelines and the difficulties we faced during the pandemic we were forced to relax certain aspects of our updated procedures.
While safety is the paramount reason for implementing this change, an important benefit was the addition of important instructional time in the mornings. Grant students and teachers gained between 45 – 50 minutes per week of instructional time!
Grant School is known for being a “neighborhood school” and for its close-knit community. Our goal now, as it was then, is to maintain these special characteristics of our wonderful school. It is important to understand that with these new procedures, we are not trying to remove our parent’s and guardian’s access; we are merely trying to control who is accessing our campus and when they are visiting.
With this in mind, we will begin the drop-off and pick-up procedures outlined below beginning Monday, August 22nd. Because this is a return to how drop-off and pick-up were organized pre-pandemic, we ask for your patience while we all get reacquainted with the procedures.
In an effort for parents to see where their child’s class is located on campus and to say hello to the teacher, parents in all grades may walk their child to the classroom for the first two days of school, Thursday, August 18th, and Friday, August 19th. It is important to remember that this time is not to meet with the teacher, rather, parents will have an opportunity to learn about their child’s class and ask the teacher questions at one of our Back to School Nights over the next two weeks.
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 at the Pearl Street Kinder gate at dismissal at 1:45 PM. Teachers will be there 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 from 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 at 2:50 PM. 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. Parents are not to enter the campus until 3:00 PM.
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. Parents are not to enter the campus until 3:00 PM.
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.
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.
~THIS WEDNESDAY!~
~ THANK YOUs ~
- PTA Presidents Samantha Sugar and Steve Atamian for everything!
- Sarah Smith for coordinating the TK and Kindergarten play dates this summer! The turnouts were epic!
- Jillian Cipresso and Morgan Ruvalo for coordinating the power washing of the walkways and decorating the bulletin boards and hallways!
- Thank you to all of our families that came out on short notice to make the school look nice and clean prior to the students showing up this week!
- We will share a more comprehensive list in the next edition of the Gecko Gazette!
~GRANT SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL COMMITTEE MEMBERS NEEDED~
The purpose of the GRANT SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL is to develop the Single Plan for Student Achievement (SPSA) to ensure that all of the resources available to the school, the basic program, and the supplemental resources, are coordinated and focused on providing a high-quality educational program and learning environment in which students of all ranges and ability and background can succeed. This committee will meet once per month during the course of the 2022 - 2023 school year. The meetings are on the third Monday of each month unless there is a holiday.
If you are interested in becoming a member of the GRANT SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL please email Principal Christian Fuhrer by Monday, August 29th at 3:00 PM. Click the following link to email: >>EMAIL PRINCIPAL FUHRER<<
El Consejo Escolar de Grant actualmente está buscando dos padres voluntarios para servir por un período de dos años. Si más de dos padres están interesados en las vacantes disponibles, entonces se llevarán a cabo ELECCIONES.
El propósito del Consejo Escolar de Gobierno es desarrollar el Plan Único para el Logro Estudiantil ( sigla en inglés SPSA) para asegurar que todos los recursos disponibles para la escuela, el programa básico y los recursos suplementarios estén coordinados y enfocados en proporcionar un programa educativo de calidad y un entorno de aprendizaje en el que los estudiantes de todos los rangos, habilidades y niveles puedan tener éxito. Este comité se reunirá mensualmente durante el año escolar 2022-2023. Las reuniones son el tercer lunes de cada mes a menos que haya un día festivo.
Si está interesado en ser miembro del CONSEJO ESCOLAR DE GOBIERNO de la ESCUELA GRANT, envíe un correo electrónico al director, Christian Fuhrer, antes del lunes 29 de agosto a las 3:00 pm. Haga clic en el siguiente enlace para enviarle un correo electrónico: >>EMAIL PRINCIPAL
~ 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!
¡Su donación hace mucho por Grant!
Considere hacer una donación a las dos organizaciones que mejoran la educación de todos los estudiantes de Grant: la Fundación Educativa de Santa Mónica y la PTA de Grant. Sus donaciones siguen siendo muy importantes. ¡Consulte el personal, los programas, la tecnología y los materiales fundamentales financiados con sus donaciones en esta gráfica!
Nuestra meta es que el 100% de las familias de Grant den a la PTA y a la Fundación Ed. CUALQUIER cantidad hace la diferencia para nuestros hijos. Si ya ha donado, ¡gracias!
~COMMUNITY RESOURCES for FAMILIES~ RECURSOS COMUNITARIOS PARA FAMILIAS ~
~ CITY OF SANTA MONICA CREST PROGRAM ~
*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