The Monthly Howl

Greetings, Jack London families,

It's hard to believe that Trimester 1 and Fall Parent-Teacher Conferences are already behind us! December is always a busy, event-filled month. Please read all the way to the end of this newsletter for all important updates.

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Winter Concert - 12/12
• 1st Grade Gingerbread Man Performance 12/18 at 1:30pm
• PTO Movie Night - 12/19 - 5:30-7:30pm
• Spirit Week 12/16-12/20 - Flyers coming soon!
• Last Day Before Winter Break 12/20 - Minimum Day for Preschool-6th (11:35 & TK at 11:30)

• Winter Break is from 12/21-1/7. School will resume 1/8/24.
• No School 1/20 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• Progress Reports for Trimester 2 go home on 1/16
  
  

Penny Wars Fundraiser: PTO and Student Council are hosting a Penny Wars fundraiser this month! Each class has a jug to collect coins and will have opportunities to "sabotage" other classes with paper dollar bills. The winning class will be announced on 12/19 and will earn a Holiday Party on 12/20!

Holiday Perfect Attendance Raffle (Sponsored by PTO): For the month of December, all scholars with weekly perfect attendance will have their names entered into the Holiday Perfect Attendance Raffle for each week they attend school every day, on time. Winning names will be drawn and announced on Friday, December 20th. Scholars need to be present on December 20th to win. Third place is a $50 gift card, second place is a $75 gift card, and first place is a $100 gift card.

Attendance matters. Scholars are more likely to succeed in academics when they attend school consistently. Thank you for doing your best to make sure our scholars attend school every day, on time in the month of December.

Kawanis Club's Annual Holiday Fun Run and Walk for Health: This is a wonderful opportunity to get some exercise at beautiful Contra Loma Reservoir. Also, schools with the most participants win a trophy and money for their school.

Race Details:

December 14th (arrive no later than 8:30 for check in and stretch)

1 mile race starts at 9:00

3 mile starts at 9:30

Entry Fee includes race, t-shirt, bib number, and a chance to win a medal for top 5 of your age category. If you sign up, make sure to sign up for the Jack London team.

Here is a link with more information and to register for the race.

48th Annual Holiday Run and Walk for Health

Winter Break is around the corner, and, on behalf of the Jack London Staff, we'd like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season. We hope you can take time to create traditions, pass on stories, and spend quality time together as a family.

Sincerely,

Dr. Roat and Ms. Torres

Antioch Unified School District partnered with Care Solace to support the well-being of our community. If you or a family member are looking for help with mental health or substance use, Care Solace can help you quickly find treatment options matched to your needs, regardless of the circumstance. This is a complimentary and confidential care coordination service provided by Antioch Unified School District. If you would like to use Care Solace to help you find a mental health care provider:

• Call 888-515-0595. Multilingual support is available 24/7/365.
• Visit www.caresolace.com/antiochschools and either search on your own or click “Book Appointment” for assistance by video chat, email, or phone.

Thank you to school staff and our PASS Committee here at Jack London for putting on a successful Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day Event! Students and staff wore purple that day, learned about Ruby Bridges, and honored her with a walk around our black top.

The annual walk and day of learning honors Ruby Bridges, who became a civil rights icon on her first day of school, November 14, 1960.

As a first grader, she was one of the first Black children to integrate an all-white school in Louisiana. Images of her brave and historic walk to school, guarded by federal marshals, and a famous illustration by Norman Rockwell are widely recognized and have become symbolic of the civil rights movement.

More than 60 years later, Ruby’s vision has inspired the next generation to end racism and all forms of bullying, one step at a time.

We are using the Second Step program in your child’s classroom. The Second Step program teaches children important skills for getting along with others and doing well in school. It also helps our school be a safe, respectful place where everyone can learn.

To further help our school be a safe and respectful place, we are also going to use the Second Step Bullying Prevention Unit. In this unit, your child will learn specific skills to help stop bullying. Students will learn how to:

• Recognize when bullying is happening, report bullying to a caring adult, and refuse to let bullying happen

• Be a bystander who helps stop bullying

• Support someone being bullied by standing up for that person and being kind and inclusive

• Recognize, report, and refuse cyber bullying when they see or know about it happening.

We need your help too! Get involved in making our school a safe and respectful place by letting us know if you hear about bullying at our school. Make sure your child knows to tell you or someone at school if he or she is being bullied, or if he or she knows about someone else being bullied. Give your child the clear message that it is never okay to bully others.

If you have any questions about the Bullying Prevention Unit or the Second Step program, please contact Jennifer Covarrubias, School Counselor. Thank you for helping us make our school a safe, respectful place where everyone can learn.

SCHOOL VISITORS

All visitors are required to report to the school office upon arriving at campus. Classroom visits must be arranged in advance and have prior approval from the classroom teacher. Parent/guardian volunteers sign in and receive their volunteer badges in the office. Please avoid lengthy conferences with the teacher during such visits so the teacher can conduct class as usual. Students from other schools, or siblings of Jack London students, will not be permitted to visit during the regular school day.

SCHOOL VOLUNTEERS

Many enriching and worthwhile experiences are afforded to our children through volunteer help from parents/guardians. With this support, teachers are able to provide more direct instruction. Parents/guardians interested in volunteering time and services are requested to contact their child’s teacher. We encourage our parents/guardians to visit and volunteer in classrooms; however, please leave young children/siblings at home as they are a distraction to students in the classroom. Parents/guardians are not expected to discipline students as that is the job of the staff member. All volunteers sign a Volunteer Code of Ethics before working in a class or with students.

Please note that volunteers/visitors may have their visiting privileges limited or revoked if the classroom teacher, principal, or principal’s designee determines that the individual’s presence in the classroom, or on campus, obstructs, interferes, or disrupts the classroom or school environment.

LATE ITEMS/SNACKS
We understand that sometimes parents/guardians need to drop off items at school for their children, such as lunches or snack. Please leave any late items with the front office staff, and we will communicate with the teacher about getting the items to the student. Our policy is to avoid calling classrooms regarding snacks, lunches, or other items, in order to reduce classroom disruptions. Thank you for helping us reduce calls to the classroom during important learning time.

LATE PICK-UPS

Students must be picked up within 15 minutes of school dismissal. Any student being picked up late must have the parent/guardian come into the office to sign the late pick-up log. The office will also need to verify identity before releasing students. Students will not be released to anyone not listed on the emergency card.

Please help us to keep your child feeling safe and cared for, as well as avoid the inconvenience of coming into the office to sign the late pick-up log, by arriving within 15 minutes of dismissal every day. If a pattern of late pick up develops, you may be asked to meet with an administrator to develop a plan for on-time pick up. If ongoing issues arise, a referral will be made to the Student Attendance Review Board (SARB).

LEAVING SCHOOL EARLY

Students are not permitted to leave the school grounds at any time during the school day without permission from the school office. Please send a note to your child’s teacher when you need to pick up your child early. The time and reason for leaving should be included. A child will only be released to their parents/guardians and those persons listed on their emergency card unless the school has been notified by the parent/guardian that they have granted permission for someone else to pick up their child. Students must be signed out and picked up in the office by an adult. Students will be called to the office when the adult arrives to sign them out. We do not have students wait in the office for pick up. Photo ID is required of the adult signing out the student. Excessive early pick-ups interfere with learning. When possible, medical and dental appointments should be made outside of school hours.

Intra District applications (request to go to another Antioch school other than your resident school) for the 24/25 school year will be accepted from January 1st through March 1st 2025.

Intra-District (within district) | Antioch Unified School District

Last year, AUSD schools underwent and Equity Audit from the National Center for Urban School Transformation (NCUST). Students, staff, and parents were invited to participate in Focus Group Interviews, and the NCUST Team observed in classrooms. The school and district were provided with the results of the audit, which were examined by site leadership.

Our site team has developed a plan to focus on Positive Transformational Culture as a school staff. To begin, we have been holding Professional Developments focused on Transformational School Culture, with an emphasis on teacher collaboration; care and knowledge of our students; high expectations for our very capable Jack London scholars, and creating spaces that emphasize and encourage academic success.

This work is just beginning, and it goes hand-in-hand with the newly revised AUSD Mission Statement: TO ENSURE ALL SCHOLARS LEARN AT GRADE LEVEL OR ABOVE.

Jack London Elementary School

Website: https://www.antiochschools.net/Domain/12
Location: 4550 Country Hills Drive, Antioch, CA, USA
Phone: 925-779-7455
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057493988248