Wangenheim Wildcat Newsletter
Year 1, Vol. III
Local Control Funding Formula
It's time to fill out the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). Through the LCFF form, school districts receive funding from different sources: state funds under the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) as well other state funds, local funds, and federal funds. LCFF funds include a base level of funding with extra funding with supplemental grants (based on criteria such as high needs, students- foster youth, Low-Income, English Learners).
It only takes a few minutes. Please go to Parent Portal or pick up a hard copy from the Wangenheim office M-F from 7:00-12:45.
Federal Impact Aid Survey
For additional assistance, please contact Sarah Kidder, Financial Accounting Manager, (619) 725-7588, or Pat McCoy in the Impact Aid office at (619) 725-7593. Each year the district earns a significant amount of income that can be used for any general fund purpose such as instructional materials, salaries, transportation, technology, or capital needs. We thank you for your continued effort and support.
Choice Priority Open Now
Please note: You do not need to apply to attend your neighborhood school.
To submit your School Options Online Application, go to Choice Enrollment Guide. As you complete the required information, new sections of the form may be revealed. Please direct questions to Neighborhood Schools and Enrollment Options or call (619) 260-2410.
ZOOM CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUEST
Our staff is currently working remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and we continue supporting our families and school sites via our phone center from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday thru Friday at (619) 260-2410. We also respond to email inquiries at eoptions@sandi.net within 24 hours.
Step by Step instructions on accessing PowerSchool on your mobile device
Parent Portal Accounts are very important for seeing your student's grades, attendance, and connecting with your student's teachers. If you click on your student's grade, you can view the assignments that are missing. Under email notifications, you can have it notify you of your student's assignment scores. Check it out. You will be surprised by what you see! You can now access the Parent Portal through your mobile device.
How to Access the PowerSchool Mobile App
IMPORTANT: You must first already have created an account using the website version of PowerSchool Parent Portal at https://powerschool.sandi.net/. If you need help setting up a Parent Portal, please contact Annette Stevens or the school.
*Some features, such as the ability to update your contact information, are only available on the website version of the PowerSchool Parent Portal at this time.
Wangenheim Yearbook
The yearbook staff will be working on their own next quarter. They really need pictures as the first deadline for pages to be turned in is January. Some individual zoom photos are fine, but we really need students getting someone to take their pic and sending it in. We can't have a yearbook full of only zoom screens.
We need photos of:
- Students in their learning spaces
- Students in their masks/mask fashions
- Halloween
- Pets during distance learning
- Siblings during distance learning
- Culture- show us your culture
- Quarantine hobbies and new skills
- Election and BLM (yard signs, tshirts, debate pics, etc)
- Social distanced gatherings (birthdays, graduations, weddings, etc)
To submit photos: https://images.jostens.com/415468180 OR LOG ON TO: images.jostens.com Enter Login ID:415468180
Join the ASB/ Yearbook school wide Google Classroom for announcements. The join code is kadjzk5
Contact Julie Chambless, advisor, if you have any questions.
Halloween Costumes Contest
Even though we will not be able to celebrate as we usually do this Halloween, please share your costume. Send captioned pictures of you, your family, and pets in costume to 2wangenheim@gmail.com to be featured in the next newsletter and the yearbook. Also, share how you plan to celebrate Halloween. Prizes will be awarded.
PTSA
We had a great time making treat bags for September's Students of the Month. Thank you to the PTSA for their support. In our next newsletter, we will announce the names for October.
Please join the PTSA online today.
We're all in this together, we are better together and we need you! Join our Facebook page to stay up to date.
LOOKING AHEAD
Coffee with the Principal
Saturday Pick Up
Mark your calendar, November 7th from 10 am -1 pm, for our next pick up day. November 2nd marks the start of the 2nd Quarter. Textbooks as well as library book requests can be picked up. We will also have Spanish speakers available for translation. If your student is still having trouble getting into Canvas, Zoom, Google classes, help is also available.
Please remember to wear a mask.
World Mental Health Day
Meet Michelle Rennick, English Language Arts
About Life Outside of School
What is one of your hidden talents?
- One of my hidden talents is that I am pretty quick on my feet. I can improvise almost anything--recipes, crafts, adjusting my lessons, and getting out of arguments with my sisters, you name it, I have a solution for it! One of my specialties is taking a look at my pantry and creating a delicious, but nutritious meal for my family with very few ingredients. I do most of this without a recipe- as long as I have a protein, some type of grains, and some type of veggie, I can make almost anything for dinner.
- This is a skill I learned from my mom, and we grew up on food-stamps, there were also a lot of us relying on this resource. (I have three siblings and we were also taking care of some of my young cousins, at any one time there were 8 of us in the household). My mom taught me how to stretch a little bit of food across as many meals as possible, and this problem-solving skill transferred well to other areas of my life.
What makes a ‘good day’ at school?
- A good day at school...hmmmmm.. everyday I get to share my time with students is always a good day! The best days are when we ended up having a really excellent conversations about the things we are learning, and we end up having fun with the work. I think the best days are when students are having fun, laughing, and working on their work, willingly-- without realizing that they are actually learning something really hard.
- One of my favorite days last year at my old school was the day of the "Students versus Staff" kickball game. We had costumes and healthy banter all day in every class. With the anticipation of the game, excitement was building. Each class period the students came into the classroom, buzzing with energy, and almost everyone finished their lessons. Even though the students won the kickball game, it was so much fun! My students also cheered for me when I was at-bat and danced with me when I got on base.
- Note: The students who played, did very well as a team-- they practiced regularly and took it seriously. This was also the very first Student versus Staff game that students had won in about 5 years (they couldn't beat us at basketball or volleyball earlier in the year, either). I think we teachers lost because we expected to win, and actually didn't practice that time-- this was our downfall, we all just showed up to the game, not really knowing who was going to play which position, nor did we have a true batting order.
About the Students
How do you remember all of your students’ names?
- I am very quick on my feet, remember? And this comes with a good memory. Normally, in person, I memorize students by where I sit them on the seating chart, and then quickly memorize their favorite colors and animals. When I can associate a name with a color and an animal, I move on to faces and voices. This actually takes me about a week to do. But since, we are distance learning, it does help that Zoom has all the names displayed with the videos... I'm starting to recognize voices though!
About Nothing—Just for Kicks (or Mods)
What video games are you playing right now?
- I am in love with Animal Crossing, New Horizons. It is a very relaxing game, and I find that it helps me manage stress and anxiety if I can play a little bit each day, especially after a long day of Zoom meetings. I also am playing Ori: Blind Forest on my Switch. It is such a beautiful game and I love the story behind it, and I treat myself with this on weekends, after I complete all my tasks for the week. I look forward to playing this game every week.
Looking for a good book to read?
Note: 6th Graders will not be allowed to check out YA novels.
Wangenheim's BOOKS AND BEYOND Book Club
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: The Rising Political Star
The New York congresswoman is the youngest person in Congress. She beat out Democratic incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley in the 2018 primary, and later that year she overwhelmingly won the congressional seat.
Ocasio-Cortez, also known as “AOC,” is a groundbreaking figure in modern politics — a viral sensation whose unapologetic debate tactics have made her popular with millennials and fellow progressives.
The young Puerto Rican American is outspoken about her background and her stance on social justice issues.
“My mom cleaned homes and drove school buses to make sure we could make ends meet and I spent time during the financial crisis waiting tables,” she told NBC News last November. “So I understand what it means to be a real, working-class person in America and that is so important to have that perspective in our leadership.”
Ocasio-Cortez has already pushed back against death threats, President Donald Trump and the GOP during her time in Congress, even as she fights for universal health care, environmental policy reform and the abolishment of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
Gabriel García Márquez: The Magical Realist
“All human beings have three lives: public, private, and secret."
Gabriel García Márquez is one of the most iconic writers in history, whose work makes us question what is real, what we know and what we think. The Colombian author, journalist and screenwriter received the 1982 Nobel Prize for Literature for his literary masterpieces, such as “One Hundred Years of Solitude.”
García Márquez is known for “magical realism,” a technique used in many Latin books and stories. The style, first introduced by Cuban author Alejo Carpentier, uses surreal, mystical elements to make a political or social critique on reality.
Ellen Ochoa: A Space Pioneer
Ellen Ochoa is the first Hispanic female astronaut to ever visit space — not once, but four times, with nearly 1,000 hours of flight under her belt. Now, she serves as the director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center, or “Mission Control.” She is the second woman and the first Latina to hold the position.
Ochoa’s perseverance is what earned her the prominent NASA position. The agency denied her from its training program three times before she was ultimately accepted to train as an astronaut.
Her parents, who are of Mexican descent, emphasized the importance of education with their children since they didn’t have college degrees, according to NASA.com. Ochoa said her achievements show that women are just as capable as men in STEM fields, and she continues to thrive through her work with the organization.
“Now with this milestone we can focus on the fact that what is important to succeed in life, it does not matter whether you are a man or a woman,” she said after becoming the first Latina astronaut in 1993.
Scholastic Book Club offers books to help students discover the joy and power of reading. During the COVID-19 crisis, Scholastic Book Club has made it possible to have your online book order shipped right to your door. With every $25 ordered online, you can also choose a FREE $5 BOOK. Orders of $25 or more ship for free. You will be able to order from all flyers from preschool through middle school. All orders earn FREE Books for our library—thank you for your support!
Connect to Our Class Page: https://orders.scholastic.com/RB7Q9
Shop the flyers for your child's grade together: https://editions.mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?i=670610
Mrs. MINEZAKI
Class Code - RB7Q9
Class Order Due Date - 10/21/20
Horchata de Arroz (Rice Drink)
Refreshing rice drink with a hint of cinnamon. This version does not need to be boiled. Make a slush,if desired, by adding crushed ice. Enjoy!
Prep:15 mins
Additional:12 hrs
Total:12 hrs 15 mins
Servings:4
Yield:1 quart
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
- 3 ½ cups cold water
- 1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
- Place the rice in a bowl with enough water to cover it and let it soak overnight.
- Strain the rice and discard the water. Stir the cold water and evaporated milk together. Place the drained rice into a blender along with half of the diluted milk. Blend until the rice is finely ground, about 30 seconds. Add the sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla; blend well. Pour in the remaining diluted milk; blend.
- Line a strainer with two layers of cheesecloth. Place the strainer over another bowl to catch the liquid. Strain the rice milk through the cheesecloth, discard the solids. Repeat the process if necessary. Serve over ice.
Galletas Elena (Mexican Cookies)
Fast and easy butter cookie.
READY IN: 25mins
SERVES: 30
YIELD: 2 1/2 dozen
INGREDIENTS
1⁄2 cup butter, softened
- 2⁄3 cup sugar
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1⁄2 cups sifted flour
- 1⁄2 tsp baking powder
- 1⁄2 tsp salt
- 1⁄4 cup nonpareils
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Beat the butter, sugar, egg yolks and vanilla extract together.
- Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, and sift them into the butter mixture. Stir to make a smooth dough.
- Shape the dough into small balls. Poke your thumb in the center of each ball to make a hole, and shape into rings.
- Dip each ring in nonpareils.
- Bake on lightly greased cookie sheets for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned.
- Cool before storing.
Elote (Grilled Mexican Street Corn)
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
- 6 ears of corn
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 3 TBSP sour cream
- 2 limes zested
- 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese or cotija cheese
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 1 1⁄2 tsp chili powder, blackening spice, or Cajun spice
- Lime wedges for serving
DIRECTIONS
- In a mixing bowl combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, and the zest from 2 limes and mix well.
- Place the corn directly on a hot grill for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes place it on indirect heat either off to the side or on the top section of the grill. Cook for 15-20 minutes with the lid of the BBQ closed.
- Pull back husk from the corn. Using a butter knife spread mayonnaise on all sides of the corn. Sprinkle all sides with cheese, cilantro, and chilli powder.
- Serve with lime wedges on the side to squeeze on if desired.