The Weekly Wave

Happy Weekend Short Avenue Families and Friends!

Good morning and Happy Sunday!

This week is one of our most important weeks of partnership with our families. Parent Teacher Conferences are a formal occasion to come together to meet and talk about your children and our students. As a parent, you are your child’s first and most important teacher. You have the same desire that we have at the school site: We want our children to learn and do well. When we talk to each other we can share important information about your child’s talents and needs. We each can also learn new ways from each other to help your child.

It is my expectation that our conferences are two-way conversations with an emphasis on learning with a chance to share opportunities and challenges. You should expect to hear about grade-level standards, grades, data, and effort. Teachers should expect to hear about what your child is like at home and get insights on how to help your child continue to do better to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. The focus is on progress made and progress still to come. Please come prepared with any questions you may have and please come with an open mind to share ideas or suggestions with your teacher. We are in this together. We are on the same team. We have the same goal. We ALL want our children to grow and achieve to be the best they can be. This is truly a time to celebrate our partnership.

Finally, please be reminded about our schedule in the coming weeks. This week there are Minimum Days with 1:00pm dismissal on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Next week there is No School for Thanksgiving Break. Additionally, there will be a Minimum Day with 1:00pm dismissal on December 13. There is NO SCHOOL December 16 - January 3 for Winter Break. Trust me that the next few weeks are going to go very fast. Please mark your calendars. Please plan ahead. 2025 will be here before we know it.

Please enjoy the rest of your weekend.

See you Monday!

Mr. Lamb

November 18th-22nd- Parent/Teacher Conference Week, 1:00 dismissal (1:35 on Tuesday)

November 21st- FOSA Community Meeting @ 6:00pm -This is a virtual meeting

November 25th-29th- No School, Thanksgiving Vacation

Monday 11/18- 1:00pm Dismissal

Tuesday 11/19- 1:35 Dismissal

Wednesday 11/20- 1:00pm Dismissal

Thursday 11/21- 1:00pm Dismissal

Friday 11/22- 1:00pm Dismissal

Congratulations to Cristina Bartosch and Brandi Joy Smith, who are our newly elected parent representatives to serve on our Local School Leadership Council. Our council will consist of the two parent representatives, Mr. Lamb, 4 teachers, and 1 classified staff member. Now that our council is complete, we will get to work on December 5th, at 3:30pm. Thank you to all of our nominees. We are grateful for your willingness to serve.

L.A. Unified Pathway to Biliteracy awards honor students who, by the end of 5th grade, have demonstrated a commitment to the path of becoming biliterate and who have reached a certain degree of proficiency in both English, based on the English Language Arts California Common Core Standards, and a language other than English (LOTE) based on the 2019 World Languages Standards for California Public Schools. There are opportunities to receive special awards in the following grade levels:

TK, K, 1st, 3rd, and 5th. Please click here if you would like to learn more about the Pathway to Biliteracy program. We hope to recognize all of our students who speak another language, in addition to English, and celebrate their commitment to the goal of biliteracy.

Join Us for Short Ave's Fall Book Fair!

We're thrilled to partner with our beloved neighborhood bookstore, Village Well, to bring an amazing selection of new books to our students! Make it a perfect addition to your Parent/Teacher conference day.

• When: November 18-21 Time: 1:00 PM - 5:30 PM (not open during recess and closed Friday, 11/22)

• Where: School Library

Every purchase helps stock our library with new books for all our young readers to enjoy! Support our school while supporting a local business - it's a win-win!

Would you like to volunteer at our book fair? Please sign up HERE

SEEDS UPDATE! We have more progress!!!! This week another portion of the project was completed, and we moved even closer to a finished project. The week was spent with framing and preparation and Friday brought us a concrete pour for a stage area. We are still on track for January completion.

Please note that if your child's class has been cancelled, you should pick them up at the end of the school day from their grade's gate unless your child goes to another aftercare program. Any classes that were scheduled to meet in the library had to be cancelled. This was anticipated and included in the pricing for the program (i.e., no payment was charged for these dates).

For Musical Theater on Wednesday, 11/20, the teachers need to have an early dismissal time so that they can use the rest of the afternoon for parent teacher conferences. Please pick up your child at 2pm in front of the auditorium.

For all other classes, please note the time for pick up in the chart above.

Finally, if you have any feedback on your and/or your child's experience in an enrichment class this fall, please feel free to send that feedback to juliepaluch@friendsofshortavenue.org. We are working on putting together the DDC enrichment schedule for the spring, so any feedback you have would be appreciated.

Support Short Ave with Coffee Commissary!

Join us for a special fundraiser at Coffee Commissary from Saturday, November 16 through Friday, November 22! When you mention "Short Ave" at the time of your purchase, Coffee Commissary will generously donate 15% of your total to Short Avenue elementary school.

Please note: This offer is valid for in-store purchases only—no delivery options are available. Grab your favorite brew and make a difference! Thank you for your support!

🍩☕️ Help Us Spread Some Friday Cheer!

We’re looking for volunteers to sign up and bring coffee & pastries to the Teacher’s Lounge every Friday! 🧁

✅ What’s Needed: Snacks (pastries, fruit, coffee, etc.)
✅ For: 40+ teachers, aides, and staff
✅ Drop Off: Front office, Friday morning between 8:30-9:30am
✅ Sign Up: In Class Dojo in events section

Let’s show our amazing teachers and staff some love! 💖

📢 Attention Short Avenue Community!

Join us for the next FoSA community meeting on Thursday, November 21, from 6 to 7 PM via Google Meet! We’ll be discussing the funds raised to date, our expenses, and upcoming events and fundraisers.

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to stay informed and get involved!

👉 Join the meeting here: https://meet.google.com/SYM-DXQK-QSR

We look forward to seeing you there! 🌟

Marina Middle School is hosting a school tour and informational meeting on Monday, December 2nd at 6pm in the school Library! You will met the principal, connect with the booster club and interact with a few of their dedicated teachers. This is a great chance to ask questions, gather information, and see what Marina Middle School is all about. RSVP Link

Hello families with younger siblings who you would like to come to Short Ave for TK and other grades (BOTH neighborhood and permit families ), please let us know who you are by filling out this google doc:

https://forms.gle/2Gjc8ireNMEPfbjA7

Current Short Avenue families on permit are not guaranteed a spot for a younger sibling, but will be given priority, when accepting students off of the waitlist. We have to see what our neighborhood enrollment looks like before we can offer spots.

Thanksgiving Week Camps:

Got Game is hosting Thanksgiving Camp at Short Ave!

reDiscover Thanksgiving Camp

Euro Soccer Thanksgiving Camp

Let's Play LA has Thanksgiving Camp

Prime Time has Thanksgiving Camp

FAMILY ACADEMY:

Please take a look at the flyer below with our November Classes for the LAUSD Family Academy.

Workshops include: Mastering i- Ready: Unlocking the Power of Data for Your Child's Success on Thursday, 11/14 and Innovative Learning: Non-Traditional Options in LA Unified on Monday, 11/18.

SOCIAL MEDIA: Last week I posted on our Instagram and Facebook:

A Veterans Day Post, a Parent/Teacher Conference Week Reminder, pics of the 5th graders leaving for Astro Camp, and pics of their activities at Astro Camp, a photo of our new Student Council, the 2nd grade Cultural Feast, and the TK Fashion Show!

Please set you Instagram notifications to be notified when I post, so you don't miss anything, and of course like and comment on our posts, it is the best way to see what is happening on campus and get important reminders!

The Winter Academy is taking place from December 16 -18, 2024 and will provide students with opportunities to explore enriching concepts and receive additional individualized academic instruction through the support of a teacher.

The location closest to Short Ave is Bradock Drive El. Enrollment is open now! See the flyer below.

Families,

We want to remind you of our birthday party policy. In an effort to be equitable and keep our students healthy, we do NOT allow caregivers to send in cupcakes and treats for birthdays. While classes may organize celebrations for various occasions throughout the year, birthday parties should be held outside of school. Parents are welcome to arrange with the teacher to read a story in their child's class, or lead a fun birthday activity. Additionally, parents are welcome to donate something special to the class in honor of their child. We understand that birthdays are special , and every student and staff member will be recognized with a birthday song at our monthly assemblies.

We are hearing that there has been an increase in students with head lice. Please let the nurse and your teacher know if you have found nits or live lice in your child's head. We encourage you to do regular head checks and keep long hair pulled back to avoid spread. Click here to read important information from LAUSD regarding head lice.

Student attendance is a focus for us this school year. It is important that your child is present and on time for school EVERY DAY. An accumulation of absences can negatively impact students both socially and academically. The school is working closely with the District to monitor student attendance and reach out to parents when students are consistently absent from school. While it is understandable that students might become sick throughout the school year, the goal is for seven or less absences between now and June. Family vacations should take place during school holidays and scheduled during school vacations. Additionally, doctors' appointments should be scheduled after school or during vacations, whenever possible. If your child is out because of an appointment, we ask that you bring a note from your doctor to the main office, or your child's teacher. Please let us know if your family needs any support in getting your child to school.

Parents,

Please make sure that you have registered for an account on the Parent Portal. The Parent Portal is is an online system that connects parents and guardians to their child's information. The website to register is: http://parentportal.lausd.net. Once you are registered, you will be able to add your student(s) to your account with their student ID and your parent pin code. Letters were sent home last week with your parent pin codes. It is important that you link your student(s) to your account so you can view their information.. Please call the office if you need any help in obtaining your child's student ID # or any other assistance registering on the portal.

Click here for instructions to register for the Parent Portal.

Click here for instructions on how to add your student to your Parent Portal account.

VOLUNTEERING!

Are you interested in volunteering in your child's classroom, the library, or the garden, or going on a field trip? We LOVE volunteers and hope that you will be one!!

You must be an approved volunteer with a negative TB test to Volunteer for field trips, classroom projects, the garden etc.

1. All Volunteers must have a negative TB test. Please get your Negative TB test first, BEFORE filling out the Volunteer Application. New volunteers must have a recent negative test within 60 days of application. You must email your negative result to avril.lipsky@lausd.net so that they can be inputted into your application. TB tests for returning volunteers are good for 4 years.

2. Please fill out the Volunteer Application through this LAUSD VOLUNTEER LINK! This is for BOTH new and returning Volunteers. Do NOT check Tier 3 assignments unless you are willing to get a Fingerprint. Email avril.lipsky@lausd.net for more info on fingerprints. Here is a link the the most recent Volunteer Guide if you want a step by step visual of how to fill out the volunteer application.

3. Volunteers need to sign a Liability Waiver and the Commitment Form electronically in the application..You do NOT need to email them to me.

4. Please see the LAUSD Volunteer Page for answers to questions.

https://www.lausd.org/volunteer

5. ALL Volunteers (both new and returning) must watch the The Mandatory Volunteer Orientation Zoom Recording, if you did NOT attend the live Zoom on September 11th.

6. Here is the Materials Folder Link that we spoke about in the Zoom Orientation, that includes the Orientation, Zoom, the Guide to Volunteering, The Volunteer Commitment Form, and the Quick Guide.

If you are a RETURNING VOLUNTEER from last year, you still need to fill out the LAUSD Volunteer Application online at LAUSD VOLUNTEER LINK! You Negative TB test should Auto Populate, if it is less than 4 years since you did the test. It takes 4 to 5 weeks to get you approved AFTER I get the TB test, so please do not wait

Please be aware that ClassDojo will translate into over 130 languages!

Here’s a brief overview of how parents can set language preferences in ClassDojo:

1. Content Language: This allows users to select the language for story and message translations.
2. Communication Language: This option lets users choose their preferred language for emails and push notifications.

You can reach out to Rachel Burris @ rjs6223@lausd.net or Avril Lipsky @ avril.lipsky@lausd.net if you need any assistance with translation. We are here to support you!

Looking for a hidden gem for your child’s middle school years? Marina del Rey is a fantastic option for Short Ave Elementary families, offering unique opportunities like a Performing Arts Magnet which includes theater, dance and music, an honors track for high achievers, and exciting programs like Marine Science and a beautiful garden! Let’s support our local school and explore all it has to offer. Interested in learning more or joining our parent group? Email dave@jdpropertiesla.com to join our list of Short Ave families discovering MdRMS!

Email: wlamb@lausd.net
Website: https://shortavees.lausd.org/
Location: 12814 Maxella Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Phone: 310 397-4234