GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF MARCH 22 - 28, 2021
~ THIS WILL BE THE FINAL GECKO GAZETTE UNTIL SUNDAY, APRIL 11TH. ENJOY SPRING BREAK AND STAY HEALTHY! ~
~WELCOME BACK TO SCHOOL WEEK PART 2!~
~WEAR YOUR GRANT SPIRIT SHIRT ALL WEEK! DON'T HAVE ONE? WEAR GREEN!~
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- Monday, March 22nd: School Site Council Meeting: 3:00 PM: Zoom link here: https://smmk12.zoom.us/j/87811735059?pwd=MHpSVW9tUHQ3cEp5OTVNdG1sK0JGdz09 Meeting ID: 878 1173 5059 Passcode: Geckos
- Monday, March 29th - Sunday, April 11th: SPRING BREAK: NO SCHOOL
- Monday, April 12th: TK-5 Hybrid program begins. Details to be sent soon.
- Thursday, April 22nd: Student Picture Day. More info coming soon.
- Thursday, April 22nd: Earth Day. Stay tuned for activities all week long!
- Tuesday, May 11th: Make-up Picture Day
~DISTANCE LEARNING PLUS/HYBRID UPDATE~
March 21, 2021
Dear Grant Parents and Caregivers,
This has been an amazing week! We have really enjoyed having our students back on campus this las week and look forward to next week! As a reminder:
The grade-level schedules (AM/PM cohorts) for the week of March 22nd is as follows:
- Mondays 3/22: Grades 2 and 3
- Tuesdays 3/23: Grades TK and Kindergarten
- Wednesdays 3/24: Distance Learning for All
- Thursdays 3/25: Grades 1 and 5
- Fridays 3/26: Grade 4
Following are details for students assigned to the AM Cohort:
- Arrival: 8:00 – 8:30 AM
- Instruction: 8:30 – 11:00 AM
- Dismissal: 11:00 AM (TK/Kinder at 10:45 AM)
- Lunch and Transition to Home: 11:00 AM – 11:15 AM
- AM Cohort asynchronous work: 12:30 PM – 3:00 PM
Following are details for students assigned to the PM Cohort:
- PM Cohort asynchronous work: 8:30 AM – 11:00 AM
- Lunch and Transition to School: 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
- Arrival: 12:00 – 12:30 PM
- Instruction: 12:30 – 3:00 PM
- Dismissal: 3:00 PM (TK/Kinder at 2:45 PM)
Students in the Distance Learning cohort will remain with their current teacher until Spring Break and will follow the class schedule that has been created by the teacher. Students in the Distance Learning cohort will engage in asynchronous activities provided by their teachers during the 2 ½ hours each week their classmates are on campus the week of March 22nd. Information about our Distance Learning Cohort teachers will be sent to parents of students in the DL cohort Monday.
Following are information items for your reference.:
- Finalized AM/PM schedules: DL+ and Four-Day Hybrid
- Grade Level Gate Arrival/Dismissal Assignments (March 15-26)
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) sheet
- Safe in the South Bay Wellness Screening App Directions
- Return to School Assemblies Presentation
ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL PROCESS
ARRIVAL: Each afternoon before your child is admitted onto the Grant campus you will be required to answer a series of health screening questions from SMMUSD’s official app. This app can be accessed from your phone. Please click the following link to view a tutorial on the appropriate use of this app: SAFE IN THE SOUTH BAY WELLNESS SCREENING APP. Parents will show our screening staff at the front and rear entrances of the school the green screen on their phone indicating their child has passed the wellness screening. Students will then have their temperature taken and be admitted to the campus where they will walk to their classroom and wait to be admitted by their teacher. Any student who has not passed the health screening will be picked up by the parent and remain at home until they feel better. Students will not utilize the play structures or gather in groups to play games. If a student does not have access to the wellness screening app then they will be asked the screening questions before entry. WE SUGGEST DOING THE SCREENING APP BEFORE YOU LEAVE HOME AND THEN TAKING A SCREENSHOT OF THE GREEN SCREEN.
DISMISSAL: At the end of your child’s on-campus learning time, students in grades TK-3 will be walked to the designated exits by their teachers where they will be reunited with their parents/caregivers. 4th and 5th-grade teachers will supervise their students’ dismissal. As is our normal practice, 4th and 5th-grade students will be allowed to walk home on their own, but it is preferred they walk in groups of two or more socially distant. Please refer to the attached schedules for arrival and dismissal times during the Distance Learning Plus (2 weeks before Spring Break) and Hybrid model implementation (April 12th – year’s end).
BREAKFAST AND LUNCH PROGRAM
Any Grant student who would like a "grab and go" breakfast/lunch may pick one up from our cafeteria manager, Yolanda and her team, at their designated dismissal time. Meals will be delivered to TK/K/1st-grade classrooms. Students in the 2nd - 5th-grades can drop by Yolanda's cart in front of the cafeteria on their way out of school.
Students in the AM cohort will be picking up their meals for that day to be eaten at home. Students in the PM cohort will be picking up their breakfast/lunch for the following day. Students will not be eating meals on campus. Your child's teacher can assist with meal pick-up.
FINALLY, PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO SEND YOUR CHILD TO SCHOOL WITH A MASK, WATER BOTTLE, AND APPROPRIATE CLOTHING FOR INDOOR AND OUTDOOR LEARNING.
It has been awesome seeing everyone in person again!
GO GECKOS!
Best regards,
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
Grant School
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District
Grant Cafe Team
Grab and Go Lunch & Breakfast
Grab and Go Lunch & Breakfast
~ OPENING WEEK THANK YOUs! ~
- Samantha Sugar & Lisa Allen- "Back to Campus" supplies
- Samantha Sugar - Welcome Back Geckos signs and banners
- Erika Bell - Her tireless leadership of the PTA & bulletin boards
- Jill Cipresso - Welcome Back Bulletin Board captain
- Zuzana Landres, Tamra Raven, & Lindsay Traill - Welcome Back Bulletin Boards
- Karen Miller - Enrollment & Attendance and Cohort notification
- Nurse Jane Jeffries and Health Office Specialist Pia Albrecht-Gray - Staff PPE training and supplies
- Carey Upton & Jerry Gibson & their teams - Facilities preparation
- Custodians Malcolm West, Joey Ybarra, Maria Rodriguez, Anthony, & Sabi - Campus readiness and cleanliness
- Groundskeeper Micheal Jackson - Facilities preparation
- Florencia Rams - Community Outreach and Family Communication
- Wendy Wax - Interim Assistant Principal - Too much to list! Thank you for your partnership!
- Yolanda Cisneros and her team - Food Service readiness
- All of our teachers and support staff for being prepared to welcome back students
Please join me in thanking these Superstar Geckos for all they have done!
Christian Fuhrer
Principal
~QUESTIONS ABOUT SPRING BREAK TRAVEL~
Can We Travel?
As Spring Break approaches, many of us are thinking about traveling. Please travel safely and with the following in mind. We are just welcoming back many students into school and do not want anything to happen that may jeopardize the progress that has been made. As a community, we continue to work together to ensure the safety of all of our students. Individual decisions may impact the entire community, so weigh your options when considering travel, enjoy traveling within the state, but plan ahead if you go out of state.Reference for answers: LA County Department of Public Health Travel Advisory
What if I go out of California for spring break and come back but don’t quarantine my kid? What would happen? How would anyone know?
If you go out of state without your children/child they don't need to quarantine. If you travel out of California, we have faith in our community to act in the best interest of each other, to be honest, and to protect each other from COVID-19. If there is a situation where one school has 3 or more cases of COVID-19 that are epidemiologically linked we must close the school. Every other person will then miss out if people are not forthcoming and subsequently cause an outbreak. We know that our community is deeply invested in keeping our schools open. If the district has proof that the person who is entering campus (employee, essential visitor, or student) has been out of California in the last 10 days and is coming to school and misrepresenting the truth on their health screening they will be asked to return home for the 10-day quarantine. This will remain until the LA County Department of Public Health travel advisory changes.
I got vaccinated and traveled but my child stayed home. Do they need to quarantine?
No, currently the LA County Department of Public Health says that only the person who traveled outside of California needs to quarantine for 10 days.
If we travel somewhere and quarantine, why can’t my child just log into a zoom class? Why do they have to miss school?
Our teachers do not teach sitting at a stationary place, they move throughout the classroom and outdoor learning spaces to interact with students. It is not feasible for Elementary teachers to teach on Zoom at the same time as in person. We cannot move students into new virtual classes for 10 days due to scheduling and continuity of the educational program. The student will have to miss in-person learning because the LA County Department of Public Health is clear that if you leave California you must quarantine for 10 days on your return. Your child will have an excused absence for the school days missed during the quarantine period. They will receive asynchronous work.
Does quarantine mean my child is marked absent? How does it work?
Your child will have an excused absence for the school days missed during the quarantine period. They will receive asynchronous work.
If 90% of my class has to quarantine after spring break, can the teacher just teach the whole class over zoom?
No, in this hypothetical example 10% of the class who chose to follow the travel advisory and not leave California would have to be asked to miss out on in-person instruction which would not be fair to those families. We must operate the school based on the guidance, order, and advice of LACDPH.
If someone comes back from break and doesn’t quarantine when they were supposed to, does our whole class have to stay home because of that one person?
We ask that they follow the health guidelines and not come to school. If they test positive for COVID-19 and came to school and came within 6 feet of another person for more than 15 cumulative minutes that person is considered to be a close contact and will follow the graphic below. If there is a situation where one school has 3 or more cases of COVID-19 that are epidemiologically linked we must close the school. Every other person will then miss out if people are not truthful and subsequently cause an outbreak. We know that our community is deeply invested in keeping our schools open. If the district has proof that the person who is entering campus (employee, essential visitor, or student) has been out of California in the last 10 days and is coming to school and is not forthcoming on their health screening they will be asked to return home for the 10-day quarantine. This will remain until the LA County Department of Public Health travel advisory changes.
Please contact our nurse, Jane Jeffries (jjeffries@smmusd.org) and Principal Fuhrer (cfuhrer@smmusd.org) to discuss this in further detail.
What happens if someone in class is positive for covid? How will you let us know? Does the class then go on zoom?
Depending on the situation we have a lot of options within the LACDPH outbreak guidance. If they test positive for COVID-19, came to school, and came within 6 feet of another person for more than 15 cumulative minutes that person is considered to be a close contact and will follow the graphic below. If there is a situation where one school has 3 or more cases of COVID-19 that are epidemiologically linked we must close the school. Our exposure protocol is in our COVID Safety Plan located on the school district's website: https://www.smmusd.org/coronavirus
~ GRANT SCHOOL HAS A NEW FLAG ~
Three years ago, the Grant Student Council sponsored a Grant flag design contest. We are so proud to announce that our flag has been created and last Monday we had a flag-raising ceremony and invited our students who won the contest to participate. See pictures below.
The students who won the flag design contest 3 years ago are ELEANOR SMITH and RHIAN BRUCE (now 8th graders at JAMS) and NEVE NUGENT (now in 5th grade at Grant).
Monday was a proud moment for all! The next time you are at Grant look up and you will see our beautiful new flag!
GO GECKOS!
~ JOGATHON T-SHIRT DESIGN CONTEST! ~
~GRANT SCHOOL STEAM EXPO IS COMING~
~Superintendent’s Message: Preparing to return as fully as possible when LACDPH allows~
Dear Parents, Guardians, Staff and Community Members,
Many of you have heard that the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has made a decision to reduce the currently recommended physical distancing within classrooms from six feet to three feet. While this change informs our plans for returning to school, it is important to be aware of some key facts.
As mentioned previously, we are obligated to follow the guidelines set by the California Department of Public Health and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH). Based on current law, we would be acting illegally if we were to violate the state and local directives. As of yesterday, LACDPH informed us that they needed to examine this new guidance from the CDC and would most likely need a few weeks to do so. That’s their language, not ours.
However, with our scheduled return from spring break on April 12, our government agencies have ample time to engage in this process without affecting our return to in-person instruction.
Regardless of their decision, we are preparing now so that our schools are ready for any reduction of physical distancing requirements. We will be ready to adjust quickly to any change in the guidance we are required to follow.
We find ourselves at a real inflection point for our return to “normal school” and this is both exciting for some and scary for others. One person's joy at this news is equally concerning to a different person coming from different circumstances. As we have said before, we are committed to expanding as safely and as inclusively and as broadly as possible based on science and the direction of the governing bodies. We also remain committed to providing the best instruction and best educational continuity for all of our students.
As more news becomes available we will share it with you. And please, as we find ourselves so close to this moment, we urge you to make safe and sound decisions over our two-week spring break. Please be mindful of the travel advisory we shared with you earlier this week.
Video report on reopening
In case you were unable to join us for our school board meeting on March 17, I am sharing my report on school reopening with you. Here is the report, excerpted from the full meeting recording. Watch reopening video report, 031721.
We invite all parents, students, staff and community members to join us for a very special symposium “Our Schools and COVID-19” planned for Thursday, March 25 at 7 p.m. The event will be moderated by State Senator Ben Allen and panelists include, Dr. Jamie Lloyd-Smith, UCLA Professor, Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Studying COVID-19 Aerosol and Surface Stability; Dr. Rita Kachru, UCLA Health, Associate Professor and Section Chief, Clinical Immunology and Allergy and SMMUSD Health & Safety District Advisory Committee Member; Will Nicholas, Ph.D., Director, Center for Health Impact Evaluation, LA County Department of Public Health and myself. Please see this flyer for more information. We hope you can join us to hear from our expert panel, your most frequently asked questions and concerns.
Please stay safe and continue to take care of yourselves and each other.
Sincerely,
Dr. Ben Drati, Superintendent
~ COVID-19 SURVEILLANCE TESTING FOR STAFF AND STUDENTS ~
~ RESOURCES FOR FAMILES ~
~SUSTAINABLE SANTA MONICA STUDENT POSTER CONTEST~
~SPECIAL EDUCATION WORKSHOPS FOR PARENTS~
~GRANT LIBRARY CURBSIDE PICKUP~
Library Book Curbside pick-up will continue during Distance Learning Plus. Instructions for placing holds, accessing the library catalog, and the library website are all in the PDF which is linked below. Students will be notified when holds are ready for pickup. Contact Ms. Wolfe if you have any questions. pwolfe@smmusd.org
Pick up days will be:
Monday - 9:00 - 11:00
Wednesday - 9:00 - 11:00 and 2:00 - 4:00
Friday - 9:00 - 11:00
CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE BELOW INTERACTIVE DOCUMENT:
~HELP WITH DISTRICT ISSUED LAPTOPS~
- Your child's laptop is not working
- You are moving out of the school district
- Troubleshooting issues
If your child is currently using a district-issued laptop to engage in distance learning and you require technical assistance, please email our technology specialist at:
If you require translation services for this assistance, please contact Bilingual Community Liaison Florencia Rams at frams@smmusd.org.
~ A MESSAGE FROM THE GRANT SCHOOL PTA ~
~ 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 still so important, even during distance learning. 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, incluso durante el aprendizaje a distancia. ¡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!
~Grant's SMEF Donation Participation~
~COMMUNITY RESOURCES for FAMILIES~
~IT'S SANTA MONICA PONY BASEBALL LEAGUE TIME!~
~CREST - CITY OF SANTA MONICA~
~Santa Monica Public Library~
*Some events and resources not sponsored by or affiliated with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.
~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!