1510 W. 14th Street, Eugene, Or. 97402

School Office Hours 8:00 am-3:30 pm

541-790-5300

gee_a@4j.lane.edu

http://chavez.4j.lane.edu

facebook.com/CesarChavezCheetahs

Dear Parents and Families,

Report Cards are here! Instead of mailing them home, we are inviting families to come to school for pick-up during our Thursday, Feb. 4th Supply Distribution. The Oregon Department of Education has directed schools to grade students as normal on report cards, so we wanted families to be aware that grades will be based on the work students submit through Seesaw and/or their level of participation in Zoom.

The transition to learning online has been challenging this year. Some of our students are thriving during distance learning, while others are struggling to connect and engage. We want to take a moment to thank you for inviting us into your homes as we teach and learn in new ways this year. Our first priority is the health and safety of our students, families, and staff members. Our second priority is to provide your student with a safe, focused, and structured online classroom that allows them to work with their teacher and peers on the most important concepts of their grade level. We know this hasn’t been easy, and we’ve learned a lot along the way.

While this report card reflects the information we were able to gather about your student’s current academic progress, there are so many things it cannot capture that truly paint a complete picture of your student. It is simply an academic snapshot of this moment in time. We understand that the report card cannot possibly reflect all of the struggles and achievements your student and family have experienced this year. As we look forward to the second half of the school year, please know that we are here to support you and your student however we can.

A few general reminders to help your child be successful:

• No TV, cell phone, or video game distractions during Zoom class.
• Camera on and be visible for the majority of class time.
• On time for class and returning from breaks.
• Complete all Seesaw assignments.
• If possible, have your child show you their Seesaw journal and notifications.

Sincerely,

Ms. Deirdre Pearson, Principal

Hello everyone, my name is Sarah Singleton and I like to go by Mrs. Singleton. I have been in education for 12 years and this is my 5th year at Chávez. I have served at Chávez as a 1st grade teacher for 3 years, and now I am privileged to be in my 2nd year as one of the special education teachers. My favorite subjects to teach are reading, science, technology, and I love messy art projects! I am a wife, a mother, and a sister. My husband Jeff and I have been married for 14 years and we have 3 children together. Caleb is in 8th grade and is 13, Chloe is a kindergartener and she is 6, and our youngest is Christian he is in preschool and is 3 years old. We just welcomed a new fur baby into our family. She is an Aussiedoodle named Hazel and she currently loves to bite and chase balls. When I am not working, I love to be with my family. We like to camp, hike, play at the beach, and do projects around my house.

Hi, I am Whitney Oliver, 1 of 2 CLC teachers at Chavez and I work mostly with 3rd through 5th graders. This is my second year at Chavez in the CLC. We moved to Eugene in 2019 from Salem, where I worked as a special education teacher for four years. I am originally from Utah, born and raised in Salt Lake City, and spent my childhood backpacking, skiing, and finding crazy off-the-grid campsites with my adventure-loving dad and four siblings. I moved to Portland in 2006 with my husband and shortly after, in 2007, we welcomed our daughter who now, unbelievably, is 13, has pink hair, attends ATA and will be going to highschool next year - wow! Four years later we welcomed our son who is a happy 3rd grader here at Chavez and loves anything video game or superhero/ninja related! When I am not teaching (and we are not stuck at home during a pandemic), my family and I love to hike, go to the beach or nearby lakes to kayak, taking long drives, exploring antique shops, used bookstores or local restaurants, and playing with our new (88 pound) puppy!!

Our school is proud to partner with the American Heart Association through the Kids Heart Challenge! We are excited to build healthier lives and to help those with special hearts. We will kickoff with an all school live Zoom assembly this Friday, February 12th at 10:00 am. Students will get the information/link from their classroom teachers and more information will be sent home during our supply pickup this Thursday, February 4th.

We encourage everyone to wear red on Friday, February 12th for our kickoff assembly.

We have some great news to share with our Chávez families! We have added the position of Family Resource Coordinator, and you will see a familiar face in this new position. Ms. Angie Gee will be switching from the School Secretary to fill this role of Resource Coordinator. This will enable her to fulfill her dream of helping families being her main focus. If your family has a need or you’re not sure where to go for resources, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Stay tuned for more information as we get our Family Resource Center up and running.

LTD will continue letting students ride for free (without a current pass) until schools return to in-person instruction.

Below is an excerpt from AHA Parenting Blog. These tips appear in the first post of the series "The Secret of the Full Cup."

So how can you nurture yourself, when all the hours in the day are already accounted for and there's a pandemic? There are two keys.

1. Change what you do.

There are many small ways to de-stress and support yourself, so don't assume you need a huge change. Start by putting yourself back on your own list. Nurture yourself in small ways throughout your day, including while you nurture your child. (And if you do need a big change, you'll see what to do more clearly from that nurtured place, instead of just being resentful or angry.) Get in the habit of asking yourself every hour "What do I need right now?" Then do it.

2. Change your attitude.

Life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful. Yes, this is a tough time, but when you hold a grudge against life you close yourself off to what's good in the world. Cultivate gratitude for the good in every single day. You can do this even while you allow yourself to feel whatever sadness, fear, or anger comes up for you. Accepting those feelings is the first step toward moving beyond them. You'll feel more supported -- and you'll find more support.

And YOU don't have to be perfect to be more than enough. Instead of judging yourself, nurture yourself through all the big feelings and stress. Talk to yourself like someone you adore. Be your own cheerleader. If you're not emotionally generous to yourself, you can't be emotionally generous to your child.

The Cheetah PACK has gone into hibernation for the winter. Monthly PACK meetings have been suspended for the time being. Cheetah PACK Leaders will continue to monitor the PACK email, ChavezCheetahPack@gmail.com, so feel free to reach out and you will get a response. Thank you.

Greetings Families,

I hope everyone is hanging in there while continuing to navigate learning from home and all things pandemic. These times bring many obstacles, disruptions, and other challenges that have made parenting and family life more trying for most of us. We have some parenting resources within our school district and the community that may be helpful and supportive. I hope you'll check out this Parent Groups & Events flyer for a descriptions and ways to sign up for different opportunities. In particular I wanted to highlight that we have a new parent group run by the UO Child and Family Center starting this Thursday evening. Almost all of the events are free, with a few even having opportunities to earn gift cards through participation, and a couple are sliding scale.

As always, please feel free to reach out to me if I can be of assistance to you or your student.

Warm regards,

Shannon

1. Make School Attendance a Priority

2. Establish routines for bedtime, waking up and logging into class.

3. Identify a quiet place for your child to do school work. If you have multiple children, make a schedule. If finding a quiet place is challenging during Zooms, remember to use the headphones provided for each Chávez student. This will cut down on background noise.

4. Develop back-up plans for getting your child to school or logging in to the computer if you can’t be there to help. Find a family member, neighbor or older child who can help over the phone or who can help while wearing a mask and maintaining physical distance. Community-based organizations might also be able to help.

5. When school is in session, avoid extended family trips and non-urgent medical appointments.

6. Ask your child’s teacher about attendance and tell the teacher any concerns you have.

February is Black History Month!

Feb 1 Semester 2 Begins

Feb 4 Report Cards go out during Supply Distribution Pick Up

Feb 4 Silly Hat Day

Feb 22- March 5 Scholastic Book Fair

Feb 12 Kids Heart Challenge School-wide Zoom Assembly, 10:00-10:25 WEAR RED!

Feb 22 Site Council

March 22 - 26 Spring Break

Click here for the full-year 4J Elementary Calendar.

We are kicking off 2021 with a focus on organization. As we all know, organization in the physical classroom looks different than in distance learning. In December, we rolled out an "organizational menu" to be shared on Seesaw and in Zoom. Using the options provided in this lesson, students can identify how to best organize their materials and learning space. Our next step will be to help students set a goal around their organizational needs and put a plan in place to achieve that goal.

Three big takeaways from the January 26th Site Council Meeting:

• We reviewed Fall ECBM data. Distance Learning has been hard on our first grade students who are still learning to read. Second grade and up show fairly typical results. Incoming kinder results were also as expected.
• We reviewed enrollment and class sizes. Although our enrollment is down due to the pandemic, 2021-22 staffing & budget allocations will be be based on last year's [normal] numbers.
• We talked about schoolwide communication and how best to communicate with parents and families, both whole-school announcements AND teacher-to-parent. More on this at our next meeting.

Please visit our website https://chavez.4j.lane.edu/ for the full Site Council Minutes. Our next meeting is February 22, 2021.

Great news! Students are now able to borrow library books from our Chávez library. Books can be checked out online in advance, then the book will be pulled from the shelf and brought to the office for pickup. The first pickup day is December 3rd.

To check out a book, visit the 4J Virtual Library and click on Follett Destiny. Select "Chávez Elementary" and log in with the username and password on your Clever Badge. Click "HOLD" to check out a book. The book will be here waiting for you at the next library book pickup day. See your teacher for more information.

BOOK PICKUPS WILL BE THE 1ST AND 3RD THURSDAY OF EACH MONTH.

DURING BUILDING OFFICE HOURS: 8 A.M.- 4 P.M.

• Parents and students, go to https://technologysupport.4j.lane.edu/ to view online materials and instructions for iPads, App Troubleshooting/Tutorials, and Internet/Hotspots.
• To get help with a technology issue, click HERE to submit a Help Request ticket to our 4J Tech Team. Someone will read your message and contact you.
• To leave a voicemail at our support line, call 541-790-7770 or 541-790-7531 for Spanish.

Click below to read about the 4J Tech Use Guidelines (updated 10/20/2020). This document summarizes the expectations for technology use and guidelines for distance learning. Also included is a device protection plan, including cost to you if your technology is lost, broken or damaged. Please take the time to read this important information.