Volume 5 Issue 4
Principal's/Counselor's Coffee was one of the major highlights of the week. Thank you to all of the parents that were in person or online along with Mrs. Wijnhamer. If you weren't able to attend, you can view the slide deck. Nothing beats in person/live of course. More good news, our elementary students were able to start library visits this week. So awesome! If you haven't done so already, take a moment to join the Maverick 180 club and support our PTA.
This week's background features progress toward our Maverick 180 goal, a picture from our Principal/Counselor coffee, our 8th graders in a table top ping pong tournament along with our first visit to the library.
As always, if you have any questions, concerns, or compliments, please reach out to Mr. Fineberg, our principal, at efineberg@tustin.k12.ca.us.
Principal's Message...
Is it me or do short weeks feel like long weeks. 😀 Long/short, it's always a great time to be a Maverick!!! We are halfway through the quarter for high school and definitely in the groove for our K-8 students.
If you have not done so already, please take a moment to vote for our School Site Council Parent Members. There are 3 seats open this year with 5 candidates applying. Voting will take no more than a minute and especially important due to the number of candidates.
We are also excited to welcome the newest member to the TC Family, Mrs. Fancy. Mrs. Fancy is our Intervention Lead Teacher and will be focusing her efforts on math support at the high school and K-8 levels. Next week, she's beginning her math lab classes at the high school, and will be joining the K-8 in the later afternoons after Wednesdays' classes. Mrs. Fancy comes with a wealth of knowledge and experience. She has already proven to be a valuable member of the Maverick Family and we look forward to incorporating her extensive skill set into the Maverick Family in order to support student learning.
Lastly, please support our PTA the Maverick 180 campaign by visiting their website at www.tustinconnectpta.com. The partnership with our PTA is such a critical one and your support allows them to offer more enrichment opportunities for our students!
As always, if you have any questions, compliments, ideas, and/or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out at (714) 430-2052 ext. 52103 or efineberg@tustin.k12.ca.us. Have a great weekend.
Mr. Fineberg
✍️ Elementary Information ✍️
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Digital Books - Raz Kids (Learning A-Z) & Epic NOW AVAILABLE! Also, Sora with a selection of e-Books and audiobooks too!
Your child now has access to digital books in Raz Kids (Learning A-Z) Sora, and Epic books! These are great resources for books and in the case of Raz Kids and Epic they are leveled. Sora has MANY of the more popular titles available. To log in, use your username (without the @mytusd.org) and TUSD password.
Donations: Many of families have asked about classroom donations. The students love a little snack bar with chips and packaged snacks in case they are hungry. The Hello Panda chocolate biscuits are a huge hit! We also have a wish list if you are feeling super generous. We are super lucky to have support and money for most classroom supplies, so these items are just for fun: Amazon Wish List
Logitech iPad Pencil: If your child would like to check out a digital Logitech pen, please let your teacher know! CLICK HERE for directions on how to use it.
😃Middle School Information😃
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Classroom Snack Bar: One of the things our students love at the middle school is the snack cart we have in their room. Our teachers and PTA will help replenish the snacks as they disappear quickly. We are alway grateful for any snacks you are able to donate to the classroom. This is of course in addition to the hot lunches students are able to receive free of charge each day they are on campus.
Schedule for 2023/24: Linked is the schedule for this year.
- Mondays: 6th in person, 7th online 8:30-10:30 / 8th optional online office hours 11:00-12:00
- Tuesdays: 8th online 8:30-10:30 / 7th optional online office hours 11:00-12:00
- Wednesdays: 6th/7th in-person 8:30-12:30 / 8th optional online office hours 1:30-2:00
- Thursdays: 8th in-person 8:30-12:30/7th optional online office hours 1:30-2:00
- Fridays: ALL Assignments due by 5PM
Check-ins: Please be sure to check-in with Mrs. Dove or Mrs. McCourtney. As we progress through the school year, we encourage all students to continue to attend these meetings provide a strong foundation for students as they navigate through the platforms and curriculum while strengthening their executive functioning skills and getting academic support along the way.
👍 High School Information 👍
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School Site Council Vote: Students, we need your vote. Please take 10 seconds or less to vote for the student representative to school site council. Only students can vote for their rep. https://forms.gle/K53RjVxbRErCEcLG8
Math Support: Beginning this Wednesday and each Wednesday throughout the school year, students have access to math lab in Room P29 with Mrs. Fancy. Students will have a chance to work on skills that they may be struggling with in addition to getting extra help in math. This is an additional resource we added this year to meet the needs of our high school students.
Tustin Connect Baking Club:Join the Tustin Connect Baking Club! This club was started by Julia Kelley and Mitchell Hilde to give back to our community. They plan to hold events twice a month and donate baked goods to local businesses, charities, or frontline workers. So far they have baked for the Tustin Police Department, Saddleback Animal Hospital, Tustin Santa Ana Vet Hospital, and our teachers! All high school students are welcome to join! To get more information about the club click here! If you are interested in signing up or joining the email list, click here!
College Application Workshops: The next meeting is September 15th and every other week through the month of September, Mr. David and Mrs. Wijnhamer will be hosting a College Application Workshop from 8-12 in Room P31. This will be dedicated time with Mr. David and Mrs. W to help with your applications! See the flyer for more information.
PTA Round-up
Hello Maverick Families,
We would love your help in meeting our fundraising goal for the year and be able to support our teachers and students as we look to fully fund the programs we are hoping to implement throughout the school year. Programs like Trunk or Treat, classroom grants, student, staff and teacher recognition, field trips, transportation costs, Maverick Hangouts, Principal/Counselor Coffees and so much more. Your support of our Maverick 180 campaign allows us to stick to the single fundraiser while providing resources to our school. It's not too late to join!
Please help us reach our goal of $10,000 by September 15th by visiting us at
https://www.tustinconnectpta.com/donate
If you are interested in getting involved, we'd love the help! Please contact the office and we can connect you to our PTA. You can also reach out to our PTA President, Ziggy McBride via email at ziggy.mcbride@gmail.com.
Counselor Corner: Resources and link to workshops and more!!!
In case you missed our first Principal/Counselor Coffee this past Wednesday, September 6th, we had a great turnout with families representing all 3 levels of students. The focus was Growth Mindset and Grit. Please check out the link to the slide deck to learn more and we hope you'll be able to attend next month, October 4th at 9:00 am. If you haven't done so already, we ask that you take a moment to complete the Parent Needs Assessment. This quick survey will drive our topics throughout the school year.
Suicide Awareness Month: September is Suicide Awareness Month. Please explore the following resources. Awareness Flyer Parent Workshop: Flyer
Check out Mrs. Wijnhamer's Monthly Counselor Newsletter.
IVC Virtual Informational Session- For those interested in attending Irvine Valley College, there will be a Virtual informational session on October 4th 12:00PM-1:00PM. See linked flyer for more information.
Attention Freshmen Students and Families: Our counselor and Mental Health Professional will be hosting a 5 week “Strengthening Executive Functioning” Small Group from 8:30AM-9:00AM on Tuesday at Tustin Connect High School Campus. The first meeting date will be September 12th and the last meeting date will be October 10th.
- The goal of this group is to create a space for students to build connections with peers while learning/practicing executive functioning skills that will support them in day-to-day responsibilities both in school and outside of school. The following topics will be taught in group with accompanying skills.
- Organization
- Time Management
- Prioritizing Tasks
- Communication
- Building a Community of Support
If you would like to have your student participate in this group, please sign and return the linked consent form. If you have any questions regarding this group, please feel free to give Mrs. Wijnhamer or Ms. Reighter a call. We are looking forward to supporting your students!
Our Counselor and Mental Health team have a great website with lots of resources to check out.
Free Online Tutoring Available for K-12 Students
Brainfuse HelpNow is an on demand, anytime, anywhere eLearning platform available for all ages and levels. Last week, it was announced that every Californian can now access free online tutoring available 24/7 through a new initiative offering homework help in every K-12 subject and skill-building resources for K-12 and adult learners.
Real-time homework assistance can now be accessed 24/7 here and on the websites of any of the 1,130 local public libraries around the state – click on the “HelpNow” link to reach a one-on-one tutor. The pilot program led by the State Library offers assistance in Math, Language Arts, and other core K-12 subjects in English, Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, and Tagalog. There’s no age limit to who can use the service. Adult learners can also access writing assistance, citizenship resources and other tools.
SORA Virtual Texts Collections
TUSD Resource Sora Summer Read
Sora Sweet Reads in an annual summer reading program designed for schools to encourage students to keep reading all year long. "Check out" the free collection of simultaneous use juvenile and young adult ebooks (and select audiobooks).
Login to Sora to access these and many any other great ebooks and audiobooks all summer long through Clever, TUSD Student Portal or soraapp.com using your TUSD Google login and password.
Student Request - SORA books – Here is a link to a Google Doc to send suggestions and recommendations for new books for our collections!!
Technology Questions/Needs - There's Help Available!
Important Upcoming Dates - Please check our school Website Calendar for all the latest!
Sept 4: No School-Labor Day
Sept 15: School Site Council Meeting 1 8:30 am
Sept 15: Title I Initial Meeting at the TC K-8 campus 10:30 am
Sept 15: College App Workshop 8-12 in Room P31
Sept 20: Family Night Out-Chipotle
Sept 27: Maverick Hangout 12:30-1 pm
Oct 4: Counselor/Principal Coffee 9:00 am
October 14: PSAT for Juniors (sign ups due by September 1st via google survey)
October 17: School Picture Day High School
October 18: School Picture Day K-8
October 26: Trunk or Treat
Our Mission
Email: efineberg@tustin.k12.ca.us
Website: www.tustinconnect.org
Location: (K-8) 14741 North B Street; (9-12) 1151 San Juan Street
Phone: (714) 430-2052
Twitter: @tustinconnect