GECKO GAZETTE
GRANT SCHOOL - SANTA MONICA
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 8 - 14, 2021
~NEW 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!
~ IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER ~
Please review these important dates:
- February 1st - 28th: Black History Month and Black Lives Matter at School- Activities and celebrations take place in individual classrooms and schoolwide all month long. See below for family activities.
- Monday, February 8th: Materials and Supplies pick up day >>> see your teacher's schedule for details
- Thursday, February 11th: Coffee with the Principal: Distance Learning Plus: 5:00 PM - Meeting link to be sent through Blackboard
- Thursday, February 11th: Brock Edwards Bully-Free Magic Show: 1:00 PM >>> Please see your teachers' schedules for details. Zoom link to be sent on Wednesday.
- Saturday, February 13th: PTA Parent Event and Magic Show for Grant students. See below for detailed information
- Monday, February 15th: NO SCHOOL - PRESIDENTS' DAY
- Monday, February 22nd: School Site Council Meeting
- Monday, March 1st: Student Workday: All students attend Morning Meeting at 8:30 AM and then engage in asynchronous work for the remainder of the day so teachers can plan.
- Wednesday, March 3rd: ELAC Meeting: 8:45 AM
- Tuesday, March 16: JOGATHON! - Details TBD
- Thursday, March 18th: Student Picture Day. The format of picture day is still to be determined due to the pandemic. More info as we get it.
- March 24 - 26: Grant EL Students assessed with the ELPAC. Info to be sent to individual families.
- Thursday, April 22nd: Student Picture Day Makeups. The format of makeup picture day is still to be determined due to the pandemic. More info as we get it.
- Thursday, April 22nd: Earth Day. Stay tuned for activities all week long!
~GRANT BULLY-FREE MAGIC SHOW ASSEMBLY THIS THURSDAY & SATURDAY NIGHT MAGIC SHOW~
~GRANT ANNUAL CAREER DAY~
~ BLACK HISTORY MONTH & BLACK LIVES MATTER IN SCHOOL THROUGHOUT FEBRUARY ~
~MR. SANTA MONICA, NATHANIEL TRIVES, VISITS GRANT FOR BHM~
Special Gecko Thanks to parent Connie Gregory for arranging our visit with Mr. Trives! Also, thank you to PTA VP of Diversity and Celebrations, Rachel Ketai, for assisting with this organization!
~SMMUSD BLACK HISTORY MONTH AND BLACK LIVES MATTER IN SCHOOL PROCLAMATION~
~BLACK HISTORY MONTH ACTIVITIES for FAMILIES~
Santa Monica Events, programming, and registration info at santamonica.gov/blog/blackhistorymonth2021
Feb 9: Bingo with comedienne Angel Gaines combines humor with history from 12-1 p.m. as one of several online Black History Month events organized by the City of Santa Monica. Tickets for all events are free, but reservations are required.
Feb 11: Author Catherine Adel West reading and discussing her debut novel “Saving Ruby King”
Feb 16: A discussion about the history and upcoming art project commemorating Historic Belmar Park, once the center of Santa Monica’s African American community
Feb 18: An Afro-Joy Dance Party with dancer Tatiana Zamir
- Feb 25: The second Celebrating Black Excellence Community Awards
The Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) will hold virtual events throughout the month of February. All of ASALH’s Black History Month virtual festival events are free and open to the public, with the exception of its marquee event on February 20.
Nicholls State University in Louisiana also plans to hold theme-related events during the month including panels, seminars, and performances.
Los Angeles Public Library - Amanda Gorman performing the poem that made her Inaugural L.A. Youth Poet Laureate in 2014 is just one of the many moving videos, photos, historical articles, and online talks sponsored by the Los Angeles Public Library during African American History Month. The moving video of Gorman reciting her poem “Neighborhood Anthem” is almost a dance, punctuated by her graceful, expressive gestures.
The UCLA Library Film & Television Archive presents L.A. Rebellion, a collection of films made by African and African American students who entered UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television in the late 1960s and went on to create a new kind of cinema now known as the L.A. Rebellion. You can view early works of these students online from UCLA’s Project One film collection. A three-disc DVD of 25 of their short films is also available for free to archives, libraries and researchers.
~DISTANCE LEARNING PLUS UPDATE~
SMMUSD is in the preliminary stages of developing baseline criteria from which Grant will be developing the PLUS in Distance Learning Plus. Once I have the staff and student parameters from negotiations, our staff will meet again to continue discussions regarding the purpose and priorities for seeing students during in-person Plus time. Additionally, I am sending out a survey to Grant families for valuable input, and to get a sense of the overall interest in attending the PLUS. Please be on the lookout for a survey that will go out at some point in the next several weeks. Additionally, I have scheduled a "Coffee with the Principal" on February 11th at 5:00 PM to discuss updates to this plan.
Our PLUS will be implemented once we reach the Red Tier as determined by the L.A. County Department of Health. As of now, we are still in the Purple Tier. I am hopeful that we will have students coming on campus to spend time with their teachers this year! We miss you all and can’t wait to be together again!
~Grant School PTA Executive Board - Openings 2021/22!~
UPDATE: Can You Help? We’re down to the wire in our search to fill the TWO financial roles on our PTA exec board. You do not need prior experience with PTA but some bookkeeping experience useful. We need you so please step forward if you can, we cannot operate PTA without these roles! We are also looking to fill the role of secretary and parliamentarian.
Please contact Erika Bell president@grantpta.orgIt's that time of year when we need to start looking at the formation of our new PTA Executive Board. Our Election takes place in mid-March and we need to have the new slate confirmed by our PTA meeting on February 17, 2021. So yes, now is the time and we are ALWAYS looking for new parents to get involved!
In particular this year we are looking for:
- Treasurer - records and writes all our outgoing checks
- Financial Secretary - records and deposits all our incoming checks
- Auditor - checks our PTA financial books are all in order
- Safety Chair - works with our administration on all things safety around the school.
- Corresponding Secretary - takes notes at all our meetings…. great intro to the world of PTA
- Parliamentarian - helps manage meetings and advise on procedure...another great intro position
Some need a little more experience than others but first and foremost we are just looking for team players who want to help our school community and come to our meetings a couple of times a month. It's going to be even harder than normal to connect with people this year so please if you have any interest just drop me an email and let's chat!
Thank you! Erika (president@grantpta.org)
~AN EVENT FROM THE GRANT PTA~
~PARENT EVENT: WINE TASTING and KIDS' MAGIC SHOW~
WINE TASTING TICKETS MUST BE PURCHASED BY FEBRUARY 7
TO ALLOW TIME FOR WINE DELIVERY!
Date: Saturday, February 13th, 2021
Time: 7 PM
Location: ZOOM
Magic Show Tickets can be purchased in addition to Wine Tasting or alone.
WINE TASTING:
Price: $125 for 3 bottles of wine and interactive wine tasting!
Entertainment: Tour of LA wine history and tasting.
Notes: Wine will be delivered to the address provided in your purchase. Zoom link also to follow. You will have to put in your address a few times, we apologize for the hassle!
MAGIC SHOW:
While you enjoy your wine tasting, or just for a kids’ activity, join our talented magician via zoom for an hour-long magic show that will delight and entertain!!
Price: $25 per secure zoom link (can be shared via family) if you purchase before February 7. After that, price is $35.
IF YOU CANNOT JOIN, PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION!
Teacher Ticket: We thank you for your support! Please purchase a ticket for a teacher in the purchase link. We will be subsidizing our teachers’ tickets, so every dollar helps! (You may add this in when you purchase your tickets!)
Grant PTA: Please make a donation of any size to benefit the Grant PTA!
Santa Monica Ed Foundation: Please make a donation of any size to support the Santa Monica Ed Foundation!
Questions and Sponsorship: Contact Stephanie Covington at hospitality@grantpta.org
More About the Event: We may be at home, but we can still come together to celebrate and enjoy! Whether sharing wine with your loved one for Valentine’s Day, or enjoying with friends, this is the perfect event to relax and have fun in a COVID-safe way.
Plus, we will use funds from this event for a variety of Grant-specific projects — all that benefit your children and community!
Sponsorship: Sponsor the Wine Tasting! For sponsorship opportunities, please email execvp@grantpta.org
~SUSTAINABLE SANTA MONICA STUDENT POSTER CONTEST~
~GRANT LIBRARY CURBSIDE PICKUP~
Library Book Curbside pick up will continue in 2021. Instructions for placing holds, accessing the library catalog, and the library website are all in the PDF attached. 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~
~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.
~ CITY OF SANTA MONICA - CREST ~
~NEW CREST PROGRAM!~
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE APPLICATION IS HAPPENING NOW!
This fall, the City of Santa Monica's after-school programs will continue to reopen with limited capacity to ensure community safety. City staff are working to make the necessary changes to the schedule due to modified hours of operation, staff reductions, social distancing, and infection control guidance. The City of Santa Monica offers financial assistance to qualifying moderate to low-income Santa Monica Residents and non-residents attending an SMMUSD school. Financial assistance is available and can be applied to City youth program fees such as: CREST Club, CREST Enrichment, Santa Monica Swim Center classes, community classes, and seasonal day camps. A completed application for financial assistance is required annually. We are currently accepting applications for fiscal year 2020-2021. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
You may email completed applications (which must include the necessary income, address and identification information) to our office at crest@smgov.net or by drop-off through the mail slot at the CREST Youth Office at Reed Park 1133 7th St.
Did you know that CREST Club is running in-person camp from 12:00PM to 5:15PM at Reed Park for youth ages 8-14?
The health and safety of all participants, staff and parents is of the utmost importance. We would like to share that CREST Club will run and look differently. CREST will still be devoted to having fun-filled and engaging activities that you expect from our CREST Program.
We are taking guidance from the CDC and LA County Public Health Guidelines for programs providing Day Care for School-Age children, additional Safety Protocols and Procedures are being implemented to keep everyone safe while in programming.
Visit smgov.net/crest for more information