Weekly Roar
Weekly Roar, May 2, 2024
Letter from the Principal
Dear Loyola families…
As you know, the 2024 LASD Junior Olympics was held the past Saturday at Los Altos HS. The weather was ideal and our Lions were on their game! They all gave it their very best and displayed exemplary sportsmanship as well.
As always, it was a fabulous event for all LASD students and for their families. It is community events like this that make our school district a very special place. I want to publicly thank Liz Hwang, Winnie Cheng and their team of volunteers for all of their hard work, preparation and dedication to make this year’s event a huge success!
During our JO Pep Rally last Friday, I asked the kids to make sure that Loyola was the loudest and most spirited school at the Opening Ceremonies. I told them, “Let’s be sure that everyone in that stadium never forgets the day they met the Lions!” They did not disappoint!
Switching gears, LASD would like to engage you in providing feedback about our draft strategic plan/LCAP to continue to provide a world-class education for our students. Your feedback is very much appreciated and will be used to inform the goals, actions, and services provided in the Los Altos School District.
Please click here to complete the survey. The survey will close on Monday, May 6th, 2024. Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. Your voice is critical, valued and appreciated.
Please see below for some more important information about our school.
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend and sending my very best.
In service to you,
Mr. Julian
Principal
Golden Lion Paw Award Winners
Each Friday at our weekly assembly, we award students who are displaying behavior that aligns with our Character Trait of the Month. They receive a Golden Lion Paw Award. Each week moving forward, I will provide you with each class’s winner and the description for why each winner was selected. Here are last week’s winners! Congratulations to each of them.
Quick Dates
May 18: Los Altos Pet Parade @ 10am
May 21: Spring Music Concert
May 23: Open House
May 24: Minimum Day (Dismissal at 12:15)
May 27: Memorial Day (NO SCHOOL)
May 31: Minimum Day (Dismissal at 12:15)
June 5th: Last Day of School
PTA Corner
Hello Loyola Families!
Congratulations to all the Loyola athletes who participated in last weekend’s Junior Olympics! We are so proud of each and every one of them! And THANK YOU to all the parent volunteers who volunteered their time to make the event the success it was! It truly took a village!! Thank you to our relay coaches, our many day-of volunteers, and a huge thank you to our Loyola JO Committee:Winnie Cheng, Elizabeth Hwang, Brad Brack, AiMinh Nguyen, James Kim, Dori Dorombozi, Allison Bacchus and Christy Johnson.
Did you capture a moment and want to share it with everyone? We’ve created a shared photo album for Junior Olympics 2024 and would love to see all the amazing photos everyone took (group photos preferred)!
Staff Appreciation Week is NEXT week. Our teachers and staff are truly amazing at what they do; let's shower them with gratitude. Our PTA has several activities planned for next week, and we need your family's help and participation!
Monday, 5/6 Flowers for Classroom Teachers: Each student will bring one flower for their teacher. Classroom parents will arrange them into a bouquet for the teacher. Please watch for instructions from your classroom parent later this week.
Tuesday, 5/7 PTA-sponsored Coffee Cart for Teachers and Staff
Wednesday, 5/8 Kind Gestures for Staff Members and Previous Teachers from Students and Families: With your child, choose one or more of their previous teachers or staff people who you appreciate and extend a kind gesture to them. Click here for a list of Loyola's teachers and staff and ideas that will delight them.
Thursday, 5/9 PTA-delivered Boba Drinks for Staff and Teachers After School
Friday, 5/10 Teacher and Staff Appreciation Lunch and Classroom Gifts for Teachers:
Sign up here to contribute to or volunteer at the Teacher and Staff Appreciation Lunch. Room parents will also deliver small gifts to each teacher from their classrooms.
Lastly, don’t forget to RSVP for a special retirement party for our amazing principal, Mr. Julian. On Friday, May 17, 5-7PM, we will gather together at Loyola for our annual ICE CREAM SOCIAL, but with a twist. We will have music, food trucks and have some special things to honor and thank Mr. Julian for his service to our community over the last six years! Bring money for the food trucks, but the ice cream will be on us (your PTA!). Please sign up HERE! Former Loyola families, educators and others in the community are welcomed to join us - so, pass along the word!
Christine Corbett & Marvin Peña
Your Loyola PTA Presidents
A big THANK YOU to our PE and Music teachers! Their hard work made it possible for our students to participate in the LASD Junior Olympics on Saturday! Donations to LAEF fund TK-6th grade PE, 4th-6th grade music, and other key programs. Help raise the final $175K to fully fund this school year. If you have yet to give this year, donate to LAEF today!
Take advantage of our Challenge Match!
Thanks to the generosity of four families, every dollar you donate to LAEF today will get DOUBLED, up to $32,000 through May 31, 2024. Donations of any amount and type will get doubled, including cash, checks, credit cards, ACH (eCheck),donor-advised funds, stock, and those made through employer-giving portals. Thank you to those who have already given this year!
Can you help represent Loyola on the LAEF Board for the 2024-25 school year? Join a fantastic group of parents who work together to keep our nine LASD schools strong. If you are interested in learning more about this important opportunity, please reach out to your Loyola LAEF Board representatives at LoyolaReps@LAEFonline.org.
April Mindfulness and Yoga Wrap-up!
“Courage doesn’t mean you don’t get afraid. Courage means you don’t let fear stop you.” -Muhammad Ali
Spring is in full bloom and everyone is getting excited for summer break! This month we focused on the Character Strong Trait of Courage: choosing what is helpful, right and kind - even when it's hard or scary!
In class we moved from low energy, medium energy to high energy activities, using tools from our classroom toolbox to maintain focus and to help us regulate. To successfully implement the Character Strong definition of courage, it is first necessary to be able to focus our minds so we can make conscious choices, which are, “helpful, right and kind”. Hopefully through repetition we will be able to hone this skill! Tools from our toolbox can help us focus and make these difficult choices. This month we added the “Shake It Out Countdown!”, as a technique for giving us more energy when needed! Ask your kids to demonstrate.
Our April Challenge is to share with your child how your energy is feeling throughout the day, and teach them what you use to successfully shift your energy levels and find focus. Maybe this is going for a walk outside, exercising, journaling, having an impromptu dance party? Bonus challenge is to also share when you had to draw on your courage to make a difficult choice.
With Gratitude and Joy,
The Bridge Mindfulness & Yoga Team
Nadiya & Becky
77th Annual Los Altos Pet Parade!
Join the Loyola Elementary Group and march in the parade on Saturday, May 18 in downtown Los Altos. Please join the Loyola community as we march with our pets at the 2024 Kiwanis Pet Parade (meeting location will be disclosed once we know it)! The Parade starts promptly at 10am. This is a beloved community tradition since 1948, the Los Altos Kiwanis Pet Parade is a celebration that attracts thousands of people every year, along with their pets, wagons, bicycles, parents and neighbors. Hundreds of kids and their dogs, cats, birds, chickens – participate, (no horses, unfortunately), as well as youth groups, marching bands and dignitaries in vintage cars. For details go to: https://downtownlosaltos.org/event/los-altos-kiwanis-pet-parade/
770 Berry Avenue ・ Los Altos, CA 94040 ・ 650-254-2400