GECKO GAZETTE

August 25, 2024

Dear Grant Families,

I hope you and your family had as great an opening to the school year as our staff! It was such a pleasure to greet all of our returning families and meet the many new families just joining us at Grant! The positive energy at Grant the first two days was off the charts and our goal is to sustain that excitement and sense of community throughout the school year.

We will be holding our traditional, in-person Back-to-School Night presentations on Tuesday, August 27th for Transitional Kindergarten, Kindergarten, First grade, and Second grade, and on Tuesday, September 3rd for grades 3-5. Both nights’ programs will begin with a short presentation in the Auditorium where you will meet our teachers, support staff, Assistant Principal, and me. While in the classroom, your child’s teacher will present an overview of the year’s instructional program, schedules, digital resources, and expectations for the coming year. Please refer to the school’s website for additional information on upcoming events: GRANT SCHOOL CALENDAR, As a reminder, both 8/27 and 9/3 are Minimum Days for all Grades. PreK through Kinder students will be dismissed at 12:15 PM and students in grades 1-5 will be dismissed at 1:15 PM.

Beginning tomorrow, Monday, August 26th, we will begin our annual beginning-of-the-year benchmark assessments for students in grades K-5. The purpose of these assessments is to determine our student's levels in reading and mathematics. This data is then analyzed and used to plan and target instruction. While this is merely one data point that we utilize to guide instruction and intervention, it is an important one because it gives us a starting point. Throughout the year, we will also use a multitude of other measures to gain insight into our student's understanding of the curriculum and standards. We will be focusing heavily on ensuring our students are receiving an educational experience that helps to build a strong social and emotional foundation, anti-bullying education, in addition to developing global competencies known as the 6 Cs (Creativity, Collaboration, Citizenship, Character, Communication, and Critical Thinking).

As I have mentioned in my opening communications, volunteerism is at the core of a healthy school community and we are excited to invite you to play an active role in your child's education by participating in events on campus such as attending PTA, School Site Council, Parents of Neurodiverse Students Resource and Support Group, and ELAC meetings, as well as helping to coordinate events and chaperone field trips. The Santa Monica-Malibu School District has a policy that all volunteers must be trained by an administrator prior to engaging in any of the aforementioned activities. Assistant Principal Belsky and I are pleased to offer you several training sessions at the beginning of the school year that will assist you in completing this requirement. Our first two trainings will be in person at both Back-to-School Nights. Subsequent trainings will be held virtually.

Finally, please be sure to read the Gecko Gazette each Sunday night as it contains important information from the school, PTA, Santa Monica Education Foundation, City of Santa Monica, and other community partners. Links to each week’s Gazette are posted on our website.

It's going to be an amazing year!

GO GECKOS!

All my best,

Christian Fuhrer

Principal

Grant School

Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District

cfuhrer@smmusd.org

Please review these important dates:

AUGUST

• Monday, August 26th: Star Baseline Assessments begin through Sept. 13th (Grades K-5)
• Tuesday, August 27th: Minimum Day for all grades for Back to School Night TK-2: Dismissal times: PreK/TK/Kinder @ 12:15 PM; 1st - 5th @ 1:15 PM
• Tuesday, August 27th: Volunteer Training @ 4:45 PM in the Library

• Tuesday, August 27th: Back to School Night Grades TK – 2 from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM; begin in the Auditorium @ 6:00 PM
• Wednesday, August 28th: Fire Drill #1 @ 9:00 AM

• Monday, September 2nd: No School in observance of Labor Day
• Tuesday, September 3rd: Grant Student Portrait Day (See flyer below)
• Tuesday, September 3rd: Minimum Day for all grades for Back to School Night 3-5: Dismissal times: PreK/TK/Kinder @ 12:15 PM; 1st - 5th @ 1:15 PM

• Tuesday, September 3rd: Volunteer Training @ 4:45 PM in the Library
  
• Tuesday, September 3rd: 5th-Grade Activities Information and Recruiting Meeting @ 4:45 in the Auditorium

• Tuesday, September 3rd: Back to School Night Grades 3 – 5 from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM; begin in the Auditorium @ 6:00 PM
• Wednesday, September 4th: ELAC Meeting #1 @ 8:45 AM in the Sky Room
• Friday, September 6th: PTA Executive Board Meeting @ 8:30 AM in the Sky Room

• Wednesday, September 11th: 3rd-Grade Music Begins

• Monday, September 16th: School Site Council Meeting #1 @ 3:15 PM in the Sky Room or on Zoom

• Friday, September 20th: PTA General Meeting in the Auditorium @ 8:30 AM
• Tuesday, September 24th: Volunteer Training @ 3:00 PM on Zoom

• Friday, September 27th: Grant World Cultures Festival - 3:30 PM on the Big Yard

• Wednesday, October 2nd: ELAC Meeting #2 @ 8:45 AM in the Sky Room
• Thursday, October 3rd: Local Holiday - Rosh Hashanah - NO SCHOOL

Please do not forget to send with your child every day:

• School materials including books, homework, projects, etc.
• Water bottle
• Snack and/or lunch (lunch available to all students free of charge for the 2024-25 school year.)
• Sunscreen (put on prior to arriving at school)
• Hat
• Layers of clothing (sweatshirt, windbreaker, etc.) Keep an eye on the weather.
• A growth mindset for a successful day!

CLICK THE FOLLOWING LINK TO WATCH A SHORT VIDEO ON HOW TO CONFIRM YOUR CHILD'S INFORMATION: DATA CONFIRMATION STEP-BY-STEP

• NEW PROCESS: Grant School and SMMUSD have worked to digitize the compliance and document portions of the “First Day Packet.” The Data Confirmation process is easy for you and your student through Aeries Parent Portal in place of our previous process. This includes items like Emergency Cards, Parent Handbooks and Policies and Authorizations. We have many important documents and plenty of information for your family within the online registration site, accessed via your Aeries Parent Portal. Note: You must complete data confirmation for each student. Please be sure to read, review, and discuss all the materials with your student. We also need to gather information from you for emergency contacts and health documents. You may decide to print some of the documents for future reference. For a tutorial on how to complete this process, please click here [English]

• NUEVO PROCESO: [Escuela] y SMMUSD han trabajado para digitalizar el cumplimiento y las porciones de documentos del "Paquete del Primer Día". El proceso de Confirmación de Datos es fácil para usted y su estudiante a través de Aeries Parent Portal en lugar de nuestro proceso anterior. Esto incluye artículos como Tarjetas de Emergencia, Manuales de Padres y Pólizas y Autorizaciones. Tenemos muchos documentos importantes y mucha información para su familia dentro del sitio de inscripción en línea, al que se accede a través de su Aeries Parent Portal. Nota: Usted debe completar la confirmación de datos para cada estudiante. Por favor, asegúrese de leer, revisar y discutir todos los materiales con su estudiante. También necesitamos que nos proporcione información sobre los contactos de emergencia y los documentos de salud. Si lo desea, puede imprimir algunos de los documentos para consultarlos en el futuro. Para un tutorial sobre cómo completar este proceso, por favor haga clic aquí[Spanish].

Aeries Parent Portal (Elementary)

The Grant School Site Council is currently seeking parent volunteers to serve a two-year term. These are elected positions.

The purpose of the GRANT SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL is to develop the Single Plan for Student Achievement (SPSA) to ensure that all of the resources available to the school, the basic program, and the supplemental resources, are coordinated and focused on providing a high-quality educational program and learning environment in which students of all ranges and ability and background can succeed. This committee will meet once per month during the course of the 2024 - 2025 school year. The meetings are on the third Monday of each month unless there is a holiday.

If you are interested in becoming a member of the GRANT SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL please email Principal Christian Fuhrer by Friday, August 30th at 3:00 PM. Click the following link to email: >>EMAIL PRINCIPAL FUHRER<<

El Consejo Escolar de Grant actualmente está buscando dos padres voluntarios para servir por un período de dos años. Si más de dos padres están interesados ​​en las vacantes disponibles, entonces se llevarán a cabo ELECCIONES.

El propósito del Consejo Escolar de Gobierno es desarrollar el Plan Único para el Logro Estudiantil ( sigla en inglés SPSA) para asegurar que todos los recursos disponibles para la escuela, el programa básico y los recursos suplementarios estén coordinados y enfocados en proporcionar un programa educativo de calidad y un entorno de aprendizaje en el que los estudiantes de todos los rangos, habilidades y niveles puedan tener éxito. Este comité se reunirá mensualmente durante el año escolar 2024-2025. Las reuniones son el tercer lunes de cada mes a menos que haya un día festivo.

Si está interesado en ser miembro del CONSEJO ESCOLAR DE GOBIERNO de la ESCUELA GRANT, envíe un correo electrónico al director, Christian Fuhrer, antes del viernes 1 de agosto a las 3:00 pm. Haga clic en el siguiente enlace para enviarle un correo electrónico: >>EMAIL PRINCIPAL

This event is not to be missed! Please email Diversity@GrantPTA.org if you would like to participate by having a booth and sharing your family's culture!

GRANT SCHOOL IS SEEKING TWO (2) PARENT VOLUNTEERS TO SERVE ON THE SMMUSD LOCAL CONTROL ACCOUNTABILITY PLAN (LCAP) PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE (PAC). IT IS IMPORTANT THAT GRANT IS REPRESENTED ON THIS CRITICAL COMMITTEE. PLEASE READ BELOW.

The passage of the legislation implementing the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) establishes a role for parent advisory committees in the development of the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP). Education code 52063 requires that districts establish two distinct parent advisory committees to review and comment on the LCAP prior to submission to the local board: the Parent Advisory Committee and the English Learner Parent Advisory Committee.

The Parent Advisory Committee must be composed of a majority of parents or guardians of pupils and include parents of pupils to whom the definitions of education code 42238.01 apply. These include parents or guardians of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, English learners, and foster youth. Sites can also include other subgroups, such as Latinx, Black/African-American, Students with Disabilities.

MEETINGS ARE FROM 4:00 – 6:00 PM (Virtual Meetings)

2024-2025 Meeting Dates will be forthcoming.

PLEASE CONTACT PRINCIPAL FUHRER IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN REPRESENTING GRANT SCHOOL. cfuhrer@smmusd.org

It is important that all students attend school every day. Exceptions may include if your child is ill. Please plan all family vacations during school vacation days. It is important to set your child up for success by assuring they are in school. For a detailed look at the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District's attendance policies, please click this link > http://www.grant.smmusd.org/registration/.

We realize some absences are for health or other reasons. But, when students are absent they can fall far behind in what they learn. Whether the absence is excused or unexcused It means your child is missing important classroom learning time.

Some Attendance Tips:

• Please notify the office within 72 hours to report your child's absence and the reason they were not in school.
• Illness, bereavement, and court hearings are the only reason for an "Excused" absence.
  
• Make sure your students keep a regular bedtime and establish a morning routine.
  
• Turn off all electronics including TVs, phones, and tablets at bedtime.
  
• Make sure clothes and pack backpacks are ready the night before.
  
• Check with our school nurse or office staff if you are not sure about when to keep your child at home due to illness.
  
• Avoid scheduling vacations or doctor’s appointments when school is in session.
  
• Talk to teachers and counselors for advice if your student feels anxious about going to school.
  
• Develop backup plans for getting to school if something comes up. Call on a family member, neighbor, or another parent to take your student to school.
  

Please let us know how we can best support you and your student so that they can show up for school on time every day.

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 so important in funding crucial staff, programs, technology, and and supplemental materials and supplies, among many other things.

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!

Grant School is known for being a “neighborhood school” and for its close-knit community. Our goal is to maintain the special characteristics of our wonderful school. It is important to understand that with these new procedures, we are not trying to remove our parents' and guardians’ access; we are merely trying to control who is accessing our campus and when they are visiting.

In an effort for parents to see where their child’s class is located on campus and to say hello to the teacher, parents in all grades may walk their child to the classroom for the first two days of school, Thursday, August 22nd, and Friday, August 23rd. It is important to remember that this time is not to meet with the teacher, rather, parents will have an opportunity to learn about their child’s class and ask the teacher questions at one of our Back to School Nights over the next two weeks.

DROP-OFF and PICK-UP PROCEDURES

Preschool and TK Drop-off: Due to State law, all Preschool and Transitional Kindergarten students must be dropped off to their teacher. Preschool parents will continue to enter the campus at the main gates after checking in with the Campus Monitor, proceed to Room 59, and sign their child in with Ms. Reed. TK parents will walk their children to the Transitional Kindergarten yard where Ms. Martinez and Ms. Cedillo will greet them each day.

Preschool and TK Pick-up: All Preschool parents will meet Ms. Reed at the main gates for dismissal. Students whose parents have not picked up their child at dismissal will check into the main office and then proceed to Room 59 to check their child out from Ms. Reed. All TK parents will enter the Kindergarten playground from the Pearl Street entrance at dismissal time and students will be checked out by Ms. Martinez and Ms. Cedillo.

Kindergarten Drop-off: Kindergarten students will be dropped off by their parent or guardian at the gate next to Room 2 beginning at 8:00 AM Monday - Friday. Students will walk to the Kindergarten playground where they will be met by a teacher or Campus Monitor. Students enrolled in SAP will be walked to their classrooms by SAP personnel.

Kindergarten Pick-up: Kindergarten students will be picked up at the Pearl Street Kinder gate at dismissal at 1:45 PM. Teachers will be there to greet parents and guardians. No Kinder student will be released to anyone other than a parent/guardian or emergency contact. Students enrolled in SAP will be picked up from SAP personnel in their classrooms.

Grades 1 – 5 Drop-off: All students in grades 1 – 5 will be dropped off by their parent or guardian at the main gate in front of the school or at the 24th Street gate each morning. Students will enter the school and walk to the playground where they will be supervised by a Grant School Teacher, Campus Monitor, or Administrator. Drop-off will begin at 8:00 AM every day.

The start-of-school warning bell will sound at 8:25 AM. The final bell will sound at 8:30 AM. Students in grade 1 will walk to their lineup on the big map on the playground where their teacher will meet them and walk them to the classroom. Students in Grade 2 will walk to their lineup behind their classroom where their teacher will meet them. Students in grades 3 – 5 will line up in front of their classroom where their teacher will meet them.

Grades 1 – 3 Pick-up: Students in Grades 1 – 3 will be dismissed at the following times: Grade 1 at 2:40; Grade 2 at 2:45; and Grade 3 at 2:50. Teachers will walk students to the main gate at the front of the school where parents will meet their children at this time. Students in Grades 1 – 3 who are enrolled in an afterschool program, such as CREST or PTA enrichment classes, or Playground Club, will walk or be walked to the lunch tables where their program teacher will meet them. Parents are not to enter the campus until after 3:00 PM.

Grades 4 – 5 Pick-up: Students in Grades 4 and 5 will be dismissed each day at 3:00 PM. Students will exit the campus either from the main gates or the 24th Street gate at the rear of the school. Students who are enrolled in an afterschool program, such as CREST or PTA enrichment classes, or Playground Club, will walk to the lunch tables where their program teacher will meet them. Parents are not to enter the campus until after 3:00 PM.

After-Care Program Pickup Procedures: Parents of students in after-school care programs will receive or have already received a key card that will give them access to the front gate only. Please see the office if you have questions about this.

Early Dismissal Procedures: Wednesday drop-off and pick-up procedures are the same as those during regular school days but will follow the Wednesday bell schedule. Please see the bell schedule ABOVE.

SAP Drop-off: All students enrolled in SAP before-school care will be dropped off in Room 4. Drop-off begins at 7:00 AM.

Breakfast Club: Students who participate in the Grant Breakfast Club will still arrive at school under the same procedures as all students. Parents will drop their children off at the main gates by 8:00 AM so that there is ample time to eat and walk to their classrooms by 8:30 AM. Preschool, TK, and Kinder students will continue to be accompanied by a parent or guardian to Breakfast Club if the parent so chooses.

Raptor Security System

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District will use the Raptor visitor management system to strengthen our campus safety programs for students and staff. All schools currently have this system installed.

An important aspect of keeping students and staff safe is for site staff to know who is on our campuses at all times. The Raptor system achieves this interest as it allows office staff to screen visitors, contractors, and volunteers, in our schools and provides us with a safer environment for students, staff, and approved volunteers.

Upon entering campus, visitors will be asked to present identification such as a driver’s license, which can either be scanned or manually entered into the system. If a parent or guardian does not have a US government-issued identification, for any reason, the visitor may submit an alternative form of identification for school staff to enter into the Raptor system.

The Raptor system checks the visitor's name and date of birth for comparison with a national database of registered sex offenders. The registered sex offender database is the only official database checked by the Raptor system. No other data from the identification is gathered or recorded and the information is not shared with any outside agency. The Raptor system will check to ensure that registered sexual offenders are not allowed on our campuses. Once entry is approved, Raptor will issue a badge that identifies the visitor, the date, and the purpose of his/her visit. A visitor’s badge will not be necessary for those who visit our schools simply to drop off an item at the front gate.

When you sign up for a box, not only are you supporting our school and local family farms, you’re also creating a healthy routine for your family!

Having fresh organic produce arrive at your doorstep each week is an easy way to build positive eating habits.

Boxes start at $20 and every box comes with delicious seasonal foods and easy recipes that the whole family will love AND 5% from every order comes back to school!

Use coupon code FarmtoFam for 25% off your first order.

Learn more and sign up at Good-Box.org

~ ¡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!