Crocker Viking News

September

Sept 15: Paper Directory order deadline *see details below

Sept 16-20: Building Belonging Week Sponsored by IDEA *see schedule below

Sept 18: 7th Grade Parent Networking in Crocker Library @ 8:45am

Sept 18: 7th Grade Field Trip Info Night @ 5:30pm *Zoom link below

Sept 22: Crocker Community Carnival in MPR @ 10:00am

Sept 23-27: 6th Grade Yosemite Trip

Sept 26: HSF Giving Day

Sept 27: 7th and 8th Grade Back-to-School Dance in MPR @ 6:00pm

Sept 28: Neighborfest 2024 North School Breezeway @ 9:00am

Sept 30: Last Day to Pay School Dues (before price increase) *see details below

October

October 2: Earthquake/Evacuation Drill

October 7 - 11: Conference Week/Early Dismissal All Week

October 10: CPG New Parent Reception 6 - 8pm

October 14: No School - Staff Professional Development

• Bell Schedule
  
• Crocker Calendar - Month at a Glance
• 2024-2025 Academic Year at a Glance
• Crocker Parent Group Website
• Crocker HCSD Main Website
• PowerSchool
• Crocker Remote HTV

Dear Viking Families,

It was great to see you all at What to Expect Night! It was an amazing community event and I thank each of you for being there.

Many of you know that my wife is also an educator. She has diligently and thoroughly worked to provide the best learning opportunities for 3rd graders and preschoolers, and often reflects on the day's learning. In our many conversations about our schools, our classes, our districts, and our personal research, we often find ourselves sharing resources or offering advice to one another from our two differing lenses. The conversations are often centered around what is best for kids, both yours and our own.

We were discussing the unique stages of development for children from pre-elementary school through middle school. As we discussed these stages, we began discussing the book "Yardsticks" by Chip Wood. In short, Yardsticks measures the milestones of development at each grade level and helps both parents and educators understand the complexities surrounding our youth. Below are some tidbits:

A twelve year old’s social-emotional growth pattern may include:

• Peers are more important than adults

• Enjoy both group and individual work

• Can be self-aware, insightful, empathetic

• Capable of self-awareness, insight, and empathy

A thirteen year old’s social-emotional growth pattern may include:

• Concerns about personal appearance, but unconcerned about the neatness of their personal environment

• Moody and sensitive; anger can flare up suddenly

• Increasingly punctuate their humor with sarcasm

A fourteen year old’s social-emotional growth pattern may include:

• Crave adult connection even while fighting for their own identity; need adults to listen and negotiate rules and requirements

• Are often embarrassed to be seen with their parents; fiercely critical of parents’ dress, habits, friends, and ideas

• Are typically loud and rambunctious

• Are in a “know it all” stage in which they especially dislike and respond poorly to adult lectures, feeling they know what will be said once they hear the first few words

Do any of these sound familiar? The good news is that it’s all part of the growing process and we are always happy to partner with you and your child to build the skills necessary to support this growth. Additionally, if you want to learn more about adolescent development check out Dr. Daniel J. Siegel’s book "Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain." This is a great resource to support your own learning in collaboration with your developing adolescent.

This is a key time in your child’s development and supporting the whole child is our goal here at Crocker. It certainly takes a village and we are here to partner with you through the process.

A few other texts to peruse include:

Limitless Mind: Learn, Lead, and Live Without Barriers by Jo Boaler

Mindset, by Carol Dweck

In partnership,

Keith J. Rocha, Principal and Proud Crocker Viking

We are so excited to continue to grow our students with social and emotional learning through Crocker Connect. This week, 6th grade students learned about how to create community agreements and 7th and 8th graders learned to be advocates, not bystanders! Next week, students will continue to learn more about their uniqueness and similarities AND be challenged to support one another through a Character Dare. We are Vikings and we are Crocker Strong! For the week at a glance, see below.

Hello Families,

I hope you all had a great first weeks at Crocker. Crocker students are doing such a fantastic job and we are working on building a strong community with student led and student driven activities. I wanted to send out a few important reminders about upcoming events for students at Crocker. Guardians, I hope this information is helpful and that you are able to support your child in signing up for these events using their school email.

Creating a Club a Crocker Interest Form

Crocker Belonging Carnival Sign Up

Community Service and Service Learning at Crocker

Veterans Day Chat at Crocker-Looking for Veterans to participate

Please let me know if you have any questions. Take care.

Bonnie Slater

Crocker Middle School Counselor

bslater@hcsdk8.org.

Welcome Back Everybody!

Dues will increase on October 1st! In addition to paying for the school yearbook, parent dues help fund grade level social events, teacher appreciation efforts and more!! CPG Committee members are already busy in the works planning for a great school year. Thanks to those families who have already paid their dues for the 2024-2025 year.

Pay here: http://crocker.corecommerce.com/

* Note if you would like a paper directory deadline for ordering is September 15th. http://crocker.corecommerce.com/

Any questions please email Courtney at crockertreasurer@gmail.com

JOIN KONSTELLA NOW! We are really hoping to foster connection and improve communication. One significant way to achieve this is with the adoption of Konstella. If you haven't already joined, please click to Request to Join Crocker’s Konstella channel. Through this platform, you can elect to receive news and reminders for all things Crocker and sign-up to participate in the Crocker experience.

Please do not drop off fast food for your students (or their friends). While we understand it can be difficult to balance all the things required to even get out of the house in the morning, having a nutritious lunch helps students stay focused for the rest of the day. A high sugar, carb, or otherwise food, often creates an energy crash for middle schoolers which makes it hard for students to remain focused on their learning after lunch. To help, we do offer healthy and free lunch for all students.

For all student medications, epi-pens, or the like please be sure to check in with the front office to ensure any necessary paperwork is complete. You can reach out directly to Marianne Saucedo at: msaucedo@hcsdk8.org

There are opportunities to help with many events/school activities, including Grade Level Socials, Turkey Trot, Lunar New Year, Library, Hot Lunch, HTV, Staff Appreciation, 6th Grade Cotillion and 8th Grade Events (Grad Dance, Parent Cocktail Party, Grad Rehearsal Lunch, Grad Ceremony). Please sign up through Konstella, or reach out directly to Co-VP of Volunteers:

Bessie Seybold (besscollins@yahoo.com)

Mary Ann Hasenstab (maryann.hasenstab@gmail.com)

Thank you for getting involved, we welcome your participation!

This is a rare opportunity to peek into your child's world and see your child in action on campus! Please join Crocker's team of dedicated parent volunteers who serve lunch to our hungry, growing students! Join the Hot Lunch Committee on Konstella, or click on the links below. You can sign up for just one lunch shift or many. No experience required & simple training provided.

Here are the sign up links for

Regular lunch days

Early lunch days

If you have any questions, please reach out to the lunch chairs:

Sue Choi (sue@suechoiphotography.com)

Eric Sarbib (esarbib@yahoo.com)

Information and Packing List for Yosemite

IMPORTANT: 6th Grade Yosemite Trip Details and Links

Presentation Slideshow

Room group assignments have been emailed to students. Please connect with your student for details.

Student meeting next week to prepare for the trip.

AND away we go...

Please join us on Wednesday, September 18th at 8:45am in the library

Principal Keith Rocha, Vice Principal Lisa Ayer and Counselor Bonnie Slater will present valuable information on ways to support your 7th grader's social emotional learning and academic achievement. They will also discuss the 7th Grade class field trip to Southern California.

DATE: Wednesday, September 18

TIME: 5:30-6:30pm

ZOOM LINK: https://hcsdk8-org.zoom.us/j/85929633640

Come and learn about the Service Learning and Leadership field trip for our 7th grade students! In March 2025 our 7th graders will travel on our annual trip to Southern California. This is an opportunity for our students to live our Essential Outcomes! Come to our webinar on Wednesday, September 18th at 5:30 to learn more about the trip.

Dear families,

Thanks to all of you who were able to make it to the meeting about our upcoming 8th-grade Washington, D.C. trip! See this link to the presentation.
As a reminder, all travelers who sign up by this Friday, September 13th by midnight will be entered into a raffle to win an additional $250 off the cost of the tour. Enroll by September 25th to receive a $100 off the cost of the tour.
Enroll now with this link: www.efexploreamerica.com/2810983MU
Still have questions? Traveler Support Team can help through their online chat at
https://www.efexploreamerica.com/contact-us or by phone at 888-333-9756.
Thanks, everyone!

HSF is a non-profit foundation founded by parents in 1980 to bridge the gap between public funding and the actual costs of providing a top-tier education within the Hillsborough City School District (HCSD).

Local property taxes only cover 67% of the amount spent per student each year by HCSD. The funds raised by HSF enable us to provide smaller class sizes, dedicated on-site counselors and librarians, reading specialists, 1:1 technology devices for every student, robust math and English Language Arts curriculum, STEM programs, music programs, and more.

Over 80% of funds allocated to HCSD go directly towards teachers and

staffing, allowing us to maintain a student-teacher ratio that is 30% lower than

the California state average. The impact of these investments on our children’s educational journey cannot be overstated.

Watch this video to learn how HSF directly supports our students’ education.

HSF relies on the generosity of every HCSD family. Each year, we start from scratch with zero dollars. This year, we need to raise $4 million to bridge the funding gap. HSF funds are used exclusively for the HCSD annual operating budget and are spent during the current school year.

Please make your contribution on 9/26 or donate today! Last year we reached record-

breaking participation at all our schools – 95% at North and West, over 90% at South, and over 80% at Crocker. We know we can achieve 100% with your help!

Stay connected with HSF through our Website, Instagram, Facebook, and Email!

Join Common Sense Media to learn practical tips and tools for reestablishing healthy tech habits this school year, fostering digital well-being, and setting your family up for success.

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

5:00-5:30 p.m. PT

REGISTER HERE

Email: crockervikingnews@gmail.com
Website: http://crocker.hcsd.info/
Location: 2600 Ralston Avenue
Phone: 650-342-6331