The Dolphin Whistle

Dear Parents,

We are looking for 4 volunteers from our school to serve on the Re-opening Focus Group. This group will provide input about re-opening scenarios. More information about the focus group will be shared at the Principal’s Coffee on Tuesday, May 12. Interested volunteers should email tlambert@mvwsd.org by Thursday, May 14 at 2:00 p.m..

Please join me at the Principal's Coffee on Tuesday, May 12th at 3:00 p.m. via Zoom. Please look for the phone link in your email in the coming days Also, the ELAC meeting, for all parents of children who are learning English, is Friday, May 15th at 1:00 p.m. via Zoom video conferencing. School Site Council will be held Thurs. May 21st at 1:00 p.m. also via Zoom video conferencing.

I am looking forward to all of these opportunities to talk with you about ideas for next year and to answer any questions you have. As always, if you need assistance with distance learning please email me, or call or text me at (831) 206-9522.

Warm Regards,

Theresa Lambert

Principal Mariano Castro Elementary

Tuesday, May 12th, 2020 - Virtual Principals Coffee 3:00pm

Friday, May 15th, 2020 - Virtual ELAC Mtg 1:00 p.m.

Thursday, May 21st, 2020 - Virtual School Site Council Mtg 1:00 p.m.

If you need assistance getting your child into the Zoom lessons:

Call Ms. Calderon or Mr. Alcazar.
Kristen Calderon (408) 404-8166 Roberto Alcazar (408) 780-8615

If you are having issues with Chromebooks issued by the school district, please contact Technology at 650-526-3252 or support@mvwsd.org.

If your personal device breaks and you are unable to get another, please contact Ms. Lambert, Mrs. Calderon, Mr. Alcazar, or your teacher and we will do our best to get a device to you.

Please join us for an online check-in with Dr. Ayindé Rudolph on Friday, May 8 at 3:30 p.m. He will be covering some of the topics on parents’ minds, as well as taking questions. These check-ins will be held on a regular basis on Fridays. For login information, on May 8 please click on www.mvwsd.org.

Here are a few tips that might help you and your student with Distance Learning. Do you have any tried and true methods of helping your students’ school days be more efficient and your family’s life a little easier? Share them here. http://mvw.sd/37PbG

Giving choice and voice: When looking at the assignments given for the day, have your child choose which ones he or she would like to do first, second, etc. Giving choice and voice to your child will give him/her independence as well as confidence to do the work.

Divide and conquer: When working on the assignments, chunk the work into small, manageable pieces. Have your child work for 15-20 minutes and then have them do a preferred activity (coloring, legos, etc.) for 5 minutes and then back to the assignment for another 15-20 minutes. Setting a timer or cell phone reminder is a helpful auditory “cue” for you and your student to take a break and check on each other.

Use your tools: Before starting the day, talk about which tools your child will use for the day. He or she can use the courage “tool” to persevere through the assignments or the “breathing” tool when something is difficult or tough to manage.

Kids are stuck on a question? Your child’s teachers’ have office hours Monday through Thursday to answer questions from families or students. This is a great time for your child to connect with his/her teacher, and practice speaking to adults and asking for help. (Teachers are not available 11:30 am to 1:30 pm to allow you, students, and staff to take care of other matters and our own families)

The Santa Clara County Office of Education has developed a Parent Support Webinar series just for parents who have questions on how they can support their kids with learning.

Free Parent Support Webinar series:
May 7 Episode 1: Maintaining a Healthy, Balanced Family Life
May 14 Episode 2: Reading Comprehension Support
May 21 Episode 3: Writing Development Support
May 28 Episode 4: Academic Content Support

Audience: Parents & Educators
Dates: Thursdays in May 2020
Time: 1-1:30 PM, PST
Join Live: bit.ly/sccoeparents
Cost: Free

With extended time sheltering-in-place, InPlay, MVWSD's partner for out-of-school learning, has created a list of home-based, instructor-led programs offered by your favorite local providers to keep your students active and engaged! Please check it out. https://www.inplay.org/r/mountain-view/discover

17AMICT is forging ahead and will be held this year despite COVID-19! The tournament will be online this year and will be held Sunday, May 31, 2020, from 11:30 to 5:00. Full instructions and registration are at tinyurl.com/mvwsdchess. The registration deadline is May 29. Come take part in one of the few events this school year going on as scheduled. Contact Mark Ruzon, Tournament Director, at mvwsdchess@gmail.com with any questions.

The Mountain View Library is the host - through Zoom - of English as a Second Language classes
When? Thursdays from 4-5:00 p.m.
Those interested can register by visiting the event calendar https://mountainview.libcal.com/event/6685991.

Once enrolled they will send you the link to join the Zoom session. The day before the event you will receive information on how to join the group through Zoom.

These plans will cover 14 dimensions: Governance, Health and Wellness, Equity, Curriculum, Human Capital, Nutrition, Facilities, Operations, Instruction, Resurgence, Enrollment, Communication, Technology, Finance. We'll define operations under each stage of reopening: Schools closed, Targeted opening, Open with Restrictions, Full opening using guidance from Santa Clara County Public Health and the Santa Clara County Office of Education.

To view the presentation to the Board of Trustees, please click here.

Next steps include: Activate the Reopening Task Force (composed of teachers, classified staff and administrators); continue to adapt our Distance Learning Plan; and get feedback from our stakeholders.

The goal is to adapt our learning environment for any scenario and make it nimble enough to adjust in the event that COVID-19 resurges later in the year. We will work with all stakeholders to vet the viability of any options. This is a community public health crisis, and we need community feedback

Seeking members: School Reopening focus groups

MVWSD is seeking representative groups of parents, students, teachers, and staff members for school reopening focus groups. Four volunteers are needed per school site. The focus groups will explore desires and concerns for school reopening.

Focus groups will meet twice (once in May and again in June) and each group will focus on a stage: Schools closed, Targeted opening, Open with Restrictions, Full opening. To apply to be a focus group member, please complete an application found here by May 16 or contact your school principal.

Use your PowerSchool Parent Portal Access to select Electives for 2020-21

Beginning April 29, 2020, parents will be able to log on to the PowerSchool Parent Portal to select their fifth- to seventh-graders’ elective choices for 2020-21. You will receive an email when the course catalogs are posted on April 24.

Please make sure you have access to the PowerSchool Parent Portal now by logging on to https://ps.mvwsd.org/public/. You will use the PowerSchool Parent Portal for elective selection, grades, assignments and attendance monitoring, and for downloading state test results.

If you have difficulty signing in, please contact your school office.

If you’re among the 70+ million households who have already responded to the 2020 Census, thank you! If you haven’t completed it yet, paper questionnaires are in the mail headed your way. Households receiving the paper questionnaire can still respond online or by phone, or they can return it by mail in the enclosed envelope. When you respond online, use the Census ID from the letter or provide your address. To respond now, go to https://go.usa.gov/xdKjk.

Please encourage your family, friends, and neighbors to complete it too. It’s something everyone can do while practicing social distancing at home to make a difference today, tomorrow and the next 10 years.