Bobcat Tales
February 14, 2024
A Message from Principal Ponza
SLVE students have had a busy couple of weeks. We are nearing the end of Trimester 2. Report cards will be coming home with your student on Friday, March 7th. Students are working hard on math, reading and writing benchmarks. They are finishing up projects and 5th graders are getting ready to present their Inquiry Projects.
1st grades have visited the Seymour Marine Center while 2nd grades have been visiting the SLV Museum. Valentine's Day is always a big event and students have been excited to share friendship and Valentines with their classmates.
Please be sure to complete the Intent to Return Form. It is really helpful and important for us to know who will be returning as we plan for the coming 25/26 school year.
I know everyone is looking forward to February Break which takes place Monday, February 17th-Friday, February 21st. We will look forward to seeing all students back at school on Monday, February 24th.
Lion Dancers Visit SLVE
TK through 5th grade SLVE students were treated to an amazing Lion Dancing assembly presented by Leung's White Crane Lion Dance Association from San Francisco. SLVE students learned about the long history of Lunar New Year and Lion Dancing.The Lion dancers moved to drumming beats and rhythms while showing their creativity, dance skills and talent balancing on stools and parading throughout the SLVHS gym. It was such a fun event enjoyed by students and staff. Thank you to April Skalland, our SLV SRO officer, for coordinating this incredible event for our students and staff.
Important Drop Off/Pick Up Procedures at SLVE
Student Drop Off and Pick Up at SLVE
As the rainy days are upon us, it is important to focus on safety during our drop off and pick up time each day. As a reminder, the far right lane is the ONLY lane that you may stop in to pick up your student. The middle lane is a drive thru lane only. If cars stop in the middle lane, buses CANNOT get up the hill to pass without going into the far left lane which is the exiting lane.
Cars dropping off and picking up students must drive all the way up to the cafeteria to drop off and/or pick up their students. Please do not open car doors into the driving lanes. When stopping to drop off your student, students should leave their car through the car door on the cafeteria/playground side of the car. Please do not get out of your car to drop off/pick up your students. School staff can assist students out of their cars if needed.
Please remember to park ONLY in marked parking spots. Please do not park in fire lanes or bus lanes. A reminder that the parking lot in front of the school office is reserved for teachers/staff only. Please do not stop there to drop off or pick up your student. We appreciate your role in helping to ensure the safety of our SLVE students and families.
SLVE STEAM Expo February 25 and 27, 2025. Register Here!
Do you love science experiments? Inventing things? Engineering to solve a problem?
If so, this is for you! Any student can participate, TK-5th grade. In addition to traditional projects that follow the scientific method or engineering design process, the STEAM Expo invites projects that are demonstrations or inventions/creations that do not necessarily include testing or evaluating for effectiveness. The STEAM Expo enables students to explore their interests and talents by offering different project types and categories from which students can choose, many of which are directly tied to categories represented in California Science and Engineering Fair (CSEF), the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) and the Invention Convention. Find more information on the SLVE webpage.
The SLVE STEAM Expo is around the corner and we could use some parent volunteers. We need help with the following:
- Monday, Feb. 24, 3:00-4:00 PM ~ Setup tables
- Tuesday, Feb. 25, 8:30-11:30 AM (you may just sign up for one hour, not all 3) ~ Interview students about their projects. You do not need a science background to do this, just bring your curiosity and be prepared to learn something new!
- Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2:15-4:00 PM ~ Monitor the public viewing time
- Thursday, Feb. 27, 3:00-4:00 PM ~ Take down projects and tables
Here is a link to sign up for any of the above slots. Thanks for considering it!
BCE and SLVE Vigilant Parent Workshop April 1st @ BCE
The Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force will help parents understand privacy and parental controls on apps, games, and social media. We will distribute iPads and walk parents through the process and teach you how to have a conversation with your child about Internet Safety.
Our goal is to keep children safe from online predators. The workshop will take place at the Boulder Creek Elementary School MU on Tuesday April 1st from 5:00-7:00 pm. This class is for parents only. Childcare will be available and pizza will be served. Please fill out this Vigiliant Parent Workshop Form so that we can plan for childcare and available IPADS. Please use the QR code to sign up for this class.
Attendance Matters
We continue to emphasize the importance of daily attendance for your student. Absences do add up!
We know people get sick, people get injured, and there can be family or life responsibilities and other issues that are reasonable and excused. But if your student can attend, they need to be in school.
If your student is out for three or more consecutive days, we may request a doctor’s note to continue excusing the absences. Students who miss 3-5 days will receive a Chronic Absence letter. We will then meet with those families to attempt to support the student attending school. On the second Chronic Absence Letter, families may be required to meet at the District Office to put a plan in place for the student’s attendance. On the third Chronic Absence Letter, families may be required to meet with the County Office Student Attendance Review Board for truancy. Our goal is that no family ever gets that far along with truancy. We are here to help and support, but it does start at home with the expectation that your student will attend school regularly.
Please remember that students who are absent 3 days or more should complete an independent study contract. Lisa Ghelardi, at lblairghelardi@slvusd.org our SLVE Registrar, will work with families to get the paperwork and the missed classwork assignments needed to complete the contract.
Bobcat Club News
Thank you to all the families that came and played games at Family Game Night!
Read-a-Thon Update
SLVE readers are rounding the corner to the finish line. We are so proud of them! Would you please share Read-A-Thon with all your friends and family to support our hardworking readers one last time? Our readers want to finish strong! https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/tool/XyUGge/2
Family Art Night on March 21 is morphing into Movie Night due to a lack of volunteers. Stay tuned for more information coming soon.
Bobcat Bash Spring Auction - A Night in Paradise
Save the Date for Friday, April 25, from 5:30-10 pm at Roaring Camp. This year features an Open Bar, Dinner, Raffle, Live Auction, Live DJ, and Dancing! It's a parents' night out you don't want to miss! Your attendance is critical to reaching our fundraising goal of $30,000 to keep art, ceramics, life lab, and other programs at our school. Early Bird tickets will go on sale on Feb 28! Look for information on how to purchase tickets in Principal Ponza's next newsletter!
Save the Dates:
March 11: Bobcat Club Meeting - Superindent Schiermeyer is the Guest Speaker
March 21: Family Movie Night
March 27: Fun Run
April 24: Open House
April 25: Bobcat Bash (Spring Auction)
May 5-9: Staff Appreciation Week
May 13: Bobcat Club Meeting
Accessing IReady/Lexia at Home
Learning Websites~IReady and Lexia
Your student can access Lexia Core5 (phonics/reading support) or i-Ready (math & reading) from home using their Google login information or their Classlink QuickCard (QR Code). Teachers will be sending home IReady/Lexia log in information (also linked below) and QR codes with students by Friday, October 4th.
You can access these applications from a personal computer (Mac or Windows), a personal Chromebook, a school-issued Chromebook, or an iPad. See the instructions for how to access them below:
How to Access Lexia/i-Ready from Home (Slideshow with all options)-SLVE
How to access Lexia/i-Ready from Home (School-Issued Chromebook)--SLVE
How to access Lexia/i-Ready from Home (iPads)--SLVE
How to access Lexia/i-Readyy from Home (Computers/Personal Chromebook)--SLVE
Updated Student Illness Protocols
For suggestions to help with knowing when to keep your child home when they are not feeling well please click on this Illness Protocol Link. Contact a health care provider if your child needs medical care. A doctor’s note is generally not required to return to school or child care. For more information, please visit the CDPH guidance page.
Cradle to Career
Cradle to Career Santa Cruz County (C2C) is a family advocacy organization and community connector that strives to uplift all families. C2C has expanded into SLVUSD and has developed free programming, including recreation activities, parent workshops, and advocacy opportunities for families. Register with C2C for more information about upcoming yoga classes, and more! Contact Claudia Oblea, SLVUSD's Community Organizer, for more information about C2C, questions, or resource support.
To Register with C2C visit: https://share.hsforms.com/1PECJBXBRREmsdHAUyGb4Ggdl8zs
Claudia's Contact information:
Email - Coblea@c2cscc.org
Phone: 916-270-5237
Triple P Parenting Classes
Triple P Positive Parenting topical workshop flyers for February are attached. Información sobre programas en español disponibles en el sitio web.
Each flyer has its own unique link to register for each class, or go to https://www.first5scc.org/triple-p-classes and register on the website. All of these classes are on Zoom!
Workshops are all free, and grant funded by First Five of Santa Cruz.
Individual sessions are also available for free or sliding scale. If you are interested in a 1:1 session, please contact First Five of Santa Cruz at First 5 Santa Cruz County at (831) 465-2217 or
Community Opportunities Website
The "Community Opportunities" website link is provided as a courtesy to parents and students, by the San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District, to enable you to receive information of current local events and opportunities for adults and/or children.
Bus and School Lunch Information
We will continue to provide free lunch to all students this year. We do ask that you complete the application on the district webpage. It is very important that ALL families complete this form, as it helps us with funding in several different areas.
If your child will be riding the bus this year and will need a bus pass, please make sure you purchase your bus pass online here. Once you log in to LinqConnect you will see "School Store" on the bottom right hand corn. Click that to buy your pass. Any questions contact the Transportation department at 831-336-2223
Please complete the Transportation Registration Form for all students riding the bus. Should there be a school bus breakdown, closed route or a route delay, School Messenger will not contact you unless your student(s) are registered.If you do not have your student registered by Thursday, 08/29/24 your student will be left at the school and sent to the office. For more information please call the Transportation office at 831-336-2223 or email Heidie at hoconnor@slvusd.org.
Thank you for your understanding.
-Transportation Department
