Dolphin Digest
September 23, 2024
Thursday, September 26
- Fire Drill, 9:15 am
- Clifford Multi-Cultural Night, 5:30 - 7:30 pm
Friday, September 27
- Picture Day
- Principal's Coffee - Library, 8:15 am
Monday, September 30
- No School
- Student-Led Goal Setting Conferences - 12:15 - 3:00 pm
Tuesday, October 1 - Friday, October 4
- Student-Led Goal Setting Conferences - 11:45 Super Minimum Day Dismissal
Friday, October 4 - Saturday, October 5
- Clifford Camp Out
Wednesday, October 9
- International Walk To School Day
Thursday, October 17
- The Great Shakeout Earthquake Drill
Friday, October 18
- Move-A-Thon
This Friday, September 27th is picture day!
Parents can find picture day information, order online, and contact customer support for additional assistance at mydorian.com. On picture day, please be sure to send your child with their picture order form unless you've ordered online.
Welcome to the new school year!
The RCSD nursing team would like to work with you to make this a healthy, successful school year for your child.
To protect your child and his/her classmates, it is important that all children stay at home when they are ill and be kept home until they are well. Specific guidelines for returning to school are listed below. Please notify the school if your child becomes ill with any contagious diseases. When needed, we will send exposure notices to other families in the classroom/school in order to observe for signs of illness and seek appropriate medical care.
If you suspect your child is ill, please keep him/her at home and consult with your medical provider before sending him/her back to school. If your child has started taking antibiotics, your medical provider can tell you when it is safe for your child to return to school. If your child has one of the following, he/she should be kept at home:
Diarrhea and/or vomiting in the past 24 hours
A fever of 100 or greater in the past 24 hours
headache, fever or chills, cough
shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
sore throat, congestion
runny nose, nausea or vomiting, fatigue (tiredness)
diarrhea, and muscle or body aches
Careful attention to hand washing at home and at school is the single most important measure to decrease the spread of any infection or illness. Hand sanitizers may also be helpful when soap and water are not available.
Be sure to call the school office when illness (or any other reason) necessitates your child being kept home.
Thank you for your cooperation and support in our effort to keep all of our students healthy. Should you have any questions, feel free to contact your school nurse.
Sincerely,
Your School Nurse
We are actively recruiting adult volunteers to engage with middle schoolers each month about social emotional learning (SEL) concepts via YMCA's Project Cornerstone program. This is an approximately 3 hour commitment per month, where the same volunteer goes into the same classroom each time. You will get to know the children and they will get to know you! This way, they look to you as a trusted, caring adult in our community, as you navigate SEL concepts together. It takes a village!
We are looking for 1 to 2 (if you enjoy partnering) volunteers per middle school class. So we need 6-12 volunteers.
Project Cornerstone’s Middle School adult volunteers are caring adults who run lessons through modules, lead discussions and facilitate activities with students in class. (Each module contains prepared slides, a video, and class activities.)
Topics that will be discussed this academic year are:
Taking Care of Me
Focus on personal wellness. Learn how to thrive by noticing and naming emotions, coping with stress, and navigating social interactions through self-care.
Meet Your Brain
Understand adolescent brain development and the effects of sleep, substance abuse, and technology on middle schoolers and their brains.
Decision Making and Taking Risks
Practice risk assessment, learn how to grow through failure, identify comfort zones and stretch zones, and practice the 5-step decision making process.
Peer Pressure and Boundaries
Manage peer pressure, and practice setting, expressing and honoring boundaries.
Leadership and Sharing Power
Define leadership and the qualities of an effective leader. Describe types of decisions and how to share power.
Time Management and Goal Setting
Learn how to prioritize tasks, manage time by building a sustainable schedule, and make SMART goals.
For more information or to sign up, please contact
Shabnam Moon at shabnam.moon@gmail.com
Join us the evening of Friday, October 4th for a fun night camping on Clifford School's upper field. We'll have a pizza dinner on Friday night, a movie under the stars, and breakfast the next morning. Don't have camping gear? Don't worry! We are setting up a gear lending program between Clifford families to allow anyone who is interested to join us.
For more information on the event and to register, visit https://www.cliffordschoolpto.org/events/campout.
Questions? Contact Stephanie Kulkarni at stephanie.ann.claussen@gmail.com.
We are currently seeking additional parent volunteers to help teach Art in Action! If you're interested in volunteering, please sign up here.
If you have any questions or need more information about becoming an Art in Action volunteer, feel free to contact our parent coordinator, Bonnie Finato, at bonniefinato@gmail.com.
Thank you – we truly appreciate our amazing volunteers!
As part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the educational environment for our students and staff, we are excited to inform you about initiating the Facility Master Planning process for the Redwood City School District, funded by Measure S. This comprehensive plan addresses current and future facility needs, ensuring our schools continue supporting high-quality education and community engagement.
I am pleased to inform you that the process has already commenced, and our Facilities and Construction Team is conducting initial site assessments. These assessments are crucial in understanding the current conditions and identifying areas that require attention.
To ensure the success of this project, it is crucial to gather diverse perspectives from across our school community, therefore each school site will put together a Site Committee. This committee should reflect a broad range of voices, including classified and certificated staff, members of the community, and parents of our students. The committee should have a maximum of nine participants, plus the site principal, to ensure effective collaboration and discussion. The inclusion of these diverse stakeholders will provide valuable insights and help us create a master plan that meets the needs and expectations of all community members.
The Facility Master Planning process will involve at least two Site Committee meetings. These meetings will serve as key opportunities for committee members to provide input, discuss priorities, and review preliminary plans. We anticipate this collaborative process to culminate by the end of 2024, resulting in a strategic and actionable plan for the future of our school facilities.
We are confident that we can develop a master plan that will significantly benefit our students, staff, and the broader community. Your guidance and insights will be invaluable in this process.
If you are interested in being a parent member of our committee, please contact Kristy Jackson at kjackson@rcsdk8.net.
Neurodiversity and Disability Support in College Admissions and Beyond
Elizabeth C. Hamblet and Eric Endlich, PhD, Neurodiversity College Professionals
Tuesday, September 24, 2024, 5:30pm – 6:30pm PT, Virtual Event (Live)
Register: https://hambletendlich2024ndes.eventbrite.com
Join the Neurodiversity Education Series for a webinar with Dr. Eric Endlich and Elizabeth C. Hamblet, two experienced college professionals. Bring your questions about the college search and admission process and about the college disability accommodation system.
Parents/caregivers, educators, health professionals, and community members welcome! Simultaneous Spanish interpretation will be available. Free admission.
The Neurodiversity Education Series is presented by The Parent Venture, Children’s Health Council, Compass High School, REEL2e, and The RILEY Project, with major funding from the Educating All Learners Alliance (EALA).
For more information, please visit www.neurodiversityspeakerseries.org, or contact Charlene Margot, CEO, The Parent Venture, at cmargot@parentventure.org.
Sexism & Sensibility: Raising Empowered, Resilient Girls in the Modern World
Jo-Ann Finkelstein, PhD, Therapist, Author, Speaker Wednesday, September 25, 2024, 5:30pm – 6:30pm PT, Virtual Event (Live) Register: https://joannfinkelstein2024suhsd.eventbrite.com In her new book, Sexism & Sensibility, Harvard-educated psychologist Jo-Ann Finkelstein, PhD, offers an invaluable guide to understanding and dismantling sexism for parents trying to raise confident and powerful girls in a culture that often demeans them. Parents/caregivers, students, educators, health professionals, and community members welcome! Simultaneous Spanish interpretation will be available. Free admission. This presentation is sponsored by Sequoia Union High School District, Sequoia Healthcare District, Peninsula Health Care District, and The Parent Venture. Questions? Contact Charlene Margot, MEd, Co-Founder and CEO, The Parent Venture (The Parent Education Series), at cmargot@parentventure.org.
Fentanyl/Opioid Safety and Education: Insights from Practicing Physicians (in Spanish)
Marissa Aillaud, MD, and Susan Thorne, MD, Kaiser Permanente Redwood City
Thursday, September 26, 2024, 5:30pm – 6:30pm PT, Virtual Event (Live)
Register: https://kaiserredwoodcity2024rcsd.eventbrite.com
What should parents/caregivers, students, and educators know about fentanyl/opioids? To address fentanyl/opioid safety and education in youth, we welcome Marissa Aillaud, MD, Pediatrics, and Susan Thorne, MD, Family Medicine, Kaiser Permanente Redwood City.
Parents/caregivers, students, educators, health professionals, and community members welcome! Simultaneous Free admission. This event will be offered in Spanish.
This presentation is sponsored by Redwood City School District, Redwood City Together, and Sequoia Healthcare District, in partnership with The Parent Venture.
Questions? Contact Charlene Margot, MEd, Co-Founder and CEO, The Parent Venture (The Parent Education Series), at cmargot@parentventure.org.