Santa Margarita School Newsletter
August 23th, 2024
Principal's Message
Dear Santa Margarita Families,
What a fantastic first week back at school! It was wonderful to see all the familiar faces and to welcome new ones as we kicked off the new school year. The energy and enthusiasm in the halls were truly inspiring, and I’m confident that this is just the beginning of a year filled with growth, learning, and success. We’re excited to continue building on this strong start and look forward to a year of great achievements together. Thank you for your continued support in making our school a special place for our students to thrive.
Sincerely,
Dan Jarvis
Principal
TK/Kindergarten - Minimum Days until Aug. 30
TK/K Parents,
It was nice meeting everyone during the TK/K Round Up. I am attaching the slides from the meeting for you to have as a reference.
Just a reminder that TK/K students will remain on a minimum day schedule until August 30th. Please prepare for 12:25 dismissal during the next two weeks. This will allow our youngest students time to transition into the school. During this time, the TK/K team will be scheduling meetings with families and conducting academic assessments with students.
Back to School Night
- Elementary Back to School Night, Wednesday, September 11
- Middle School Back to School Night, Wednesday, September 18
- 4:30 Meet the Principal/Parent Information Meeting in the MPR
- 5:00-6:00 Classroom Sessions
Reporting Absences
As you know, good attendance is essential to academic success. We expect and encourage parents to make sure their child arrives on time and attends regularly.
If your child is absent from school, please call School Office 760-901-7900 and provide the following information:
(information can be left on the message machine after office hours)
Your Child's Name - First Last (legal last name please)
Teacher's Name
Specific Reason for Absence (illness, doctors/dentist appointments and or personal)
Anticipated Length of Absence
Absences must be cleared with the office within 5 days of the absence. Those absences not cleared within 5 days will remain Unexcused.
***Every student is allowed 3 personal excused absences in a school year.
If your child is sick for three or more days due to illness, please bring a doctors note to the office.***
Absences and Tardies
Your child’s attendance is important to their success in school. When students have 3 or more absences that are unexcused, parents will receive a letter indicating the attendance concern. This is the first step of the School Attendance Review Team process. A second letter will be sent out if absences or tardies continue to be a concern, and the school will be following up with the family to find ways the school can help or provide resources to the family to support school attendance.
If a student exceeds 10 absences (unexcused or excused) in a school year, the Administration will be
notified and a school attendance contract may need to be signed by parent, student, and administration. If attendance continues to be a concern, the Administration will submit the student to School Attendance Review Team. The School Attendance Review Team is designed to intervene when a school district identifies students who have problems with school attendance or school behavior. When a student develops a pattern of irregular attendance, including truancies, excessive tardies, early releases, and/or excessive excused absences, a school administrator may refer a student and the student's family to SART.
A student attending Santa Margarita on “School of Choice” or an Inter-district transfer who has attendance concerns including habitual absences, tardies, and/or late pick-ups may result in this approval being revoked.
Check-in Procedures
In order to ensure safety and accountability of our visitors on campus, all visitors must sign-in/out at the office, provide a government I.D., and wear a visitor's badge while on campus. This allows us to keep track of who is on campus, should an emergency occur. All visitors on campus must be pre-approved.
No Early Pick Up during the last 15 minutes of school
In the school handbook, we do ask that parents/families do not check-out their children within 15 minutes of dismissal. The last few minutes of the school day are often used for important activities such as wrapping up lessons, making announcements, or distributing homework. Allowing students to leave early can disrupt these activities and affect the learning environment for other students. We appreciate your understanding.
24-25 Santa Margarita Parent/Student Handbook
Please review the 24-25 Santa Margarita School Handbook.
24-25 OUSD Handbook for Student, Parents, Guardians, and Caregivers
Please review the 24-25 OUSD Student/Parent Handbook
Art Enrichment/ Music
This year we are fortunate to be able to provide Art Enrichment for students in grades 1-5 and General Music/Music Education for our 4th and 5th Graders. We will also have Instrumental Music for students wanting to play an instrument.
Having additional Art and Music classes will also allow our General Education teacher to pull small intervention groups to target specific skills to improve academic proficiency in Reading. To ensure that all students get Art/Music enrichment, small groups will rotate every 6-8 weeks through intervention in short time blocks (approx. 15 minutes) and then back to enrichment
Device Protection Available
We're excited to announce that the enrollment window for the Device Protection Plan for student Chromebooks is now open.
We highly recommend taking advantage of this affordable plan to safeguard your child's Chromebook against accidental damage or theft. The cost of repairs for Chromebooks can range from $40 to $400, but for only $20 per school year, the Device Protection Plan provides coverage for up to two incidents of accidental damage or theft.
Purchasing the plan is simple and convenient. You can do so online with a credit card or electronic check through our secure payment portal at www.myschoolbucks.com.
The enrollment window for the Device Protection Plan is limited, so we encourage you to sign up as soon as possible. Invest in your child's learning experience and ensure their Chromebook is protected throughout the school year. More information can be found on the ITS webpage under Student Chromebook Program.
Traffic and Parking Safety
Under the district safety guidance along with PMO, the following procedures are in place for the
safety of all students, families, visitors, and employees:
Parking lots are not safe for unaccompanied children. Please do not have your child walk across the parking lot/drop off/pick up area unaccompanied.
To drop off or pick up your children, please do not get out of your car. If your child is not able to exit the vehicle without your assistance, please park your vehicle and walk your student up to the gate. It is dangerous to get out of your car in the drop-off/pick up lane. It also causes a traffic delay for all other families dropping off/picking up students. To drop off/pick up your student, please pull up to the yellow curb. This area is marked as a drop-off/pick-up lane.
Please follow the yellow curb as far forward as possible so that we can optimize the available space and allow room for as many vehicles as possible. It is CRITICAL that drivers DO NOT PARK IN THE DROP-OFF/PICK-UP LANE, as it disrupts the flow of traffic.
Please DO NOT stop any part of your vehicle next to the RED curbs.
Unaccompanied children may NOT be left in an unattended vehicle.
Also, the parking lot near the Kindergarten area is staff parking. This is not a pick up/drop off area.
Updated OUSD Cell Phone Policy
Please see the updated OUSD’s updated student cell phone use policy. During the Day, Off and Away
Receiving Messages from OUSD
Emails, text messages and phone calls from OUSD including those from your principal, teacher and the district office will be directly sent to you using the email address and phone number you provided in Aeries during data confirmation. It’s important that all the emergency contacts listed in Aeries have updated contact information so everyone can receive important messages from OUSD.
ParentGuidance.org
Parentguidance.org is a free resource that helps parents find answers to help their child(ren). Their content is led by therapists who provide trusted and specialized courses, professional support and a safe community of parents helping each other. It includes a free “ask a therapist” feature.
Santa Margarita School
Email: dan.jarvis@oside.us
Website: smargarita.oside.us
Location: 1 Carnes Road, Oceanside, CA, USA
Phone: (760) 901-7900
Twitter: @SM_Mustangs