Updates:

• Attendance Matters - Please allow plenty of time to arrive to school ON TIME
• 8:00 AM (AM Class) & 11:24 AM (PM Class) - Transitional Kindergarten & Kindergarten
• 8:15 AM - Grades 1-5
• 2:45 PM Dismissal - M, T, W, F
• 1:15 PM Dismissal on Thursdays
• Please do not use the front loop for dropping off/picking up. This is a designated Bus and After School Care Loop only.
• Every Friday is School Spirit Day - Wear BSE gear OR red

PTO Announcements

• DaVinci Day: Friday, April 14th 8:30-11:00am- We are thrilled to bring back DaVinci Day (a day focused on art and science) after a 3-year hiatus. Prior to Covid, DaVinci Day had taken place at Blanche for 10 consecutive years, and it was always a highlight for students and staff! To see what workshops are available this year, check out our website: fcusd.org/bsepto. Workshop placements have already been assigned.

• Garden Workday- All this rain is great, but we need our garden area to dry out before we can really get to work. Stay tuned for a new date in mid-April!

• Celebrate our BSE Staff & Teachers- Staff and Teacher Appreciation week is coming up on May 1-5th. We can't wait show our staff and teachers just how much they mean to us! We still need volunteers for this week-long event. If you can help, please email Christie Shea at ac@blanchesprentzpto.org.

• Chalk the Walk: Sunday, April 30 3:00-5:00pm- All students and families are invited to join us to decorate the walkways of our campus with chalk messages and colorful drawings to recognize our beloved teachers and staff as we kick off Staff & Teacher Appreciation Week! Mark your calendars!

• Get Cleared to Volunteer - We have some exciting volunteer opportunities remaining. If you haven’t filled out the form to become a district cleared volunteer, do it ASAP so you can join us! https://www.fcusd.org/Page/30094
  

  
  

• Spirit Wear - Our Spirit Wear store has new inventory available and ready to be delivered to your child's classroom. We are so appreciative of local artist Brian Wallace who designed an updated logo for our Spirit Wear. Wanna check it out? Go HERE!

• Mark your calendars for our next PTO meeting on Wednesday, April 19 (the 3rd Wednesday of the month) from 7:00-8:00pm in the Library and on Zoom. Zoom meeting ID and password can be found on our website
• Las reuniones de PTO seran cada tercer Miercoles del mes. Interpretacion en Español disponsible, solo por peticion. Contacta a Veronica Pesavento (916)913-9300.

• Join the PTO here: https://www.fcusd.org/Page/45808
• Follow along with us online:
  1. Website: fcusd.org/BlancheSprentzPTO
  2. Facebook: facebook.com/BlancheSprentzPTO
  3. Instagram: instagram.com/BlancheSprentzPTO

Thank you for your support and partnership!

Jenna Schuette, Principal

A note from the Sacramento LGBT Community Center:

Celebrating Trans Week of Visibility

Last week, a momentous occasion took place as California legislators, Capitol staff, and community advocates came together to declare the week leading up to Trans Day of Visibility (March 31) as Transgender Week of Visibility. This inspiring event was an opportunity to recognize and honor the resilience and strength of the trans+ community. The presentation of the declaration was met with tremendous support and we were grateful to witness it!

This week, let's all show our support for the trans+ community. Whether it's through volunteering, donating, or simply educating ourselves and others, every action matters. Here are a few local organizations where you can show your support in various ways:

1. Gender Health Center: https://www.genderhealthcenter.org/
2. Trans & Queer Youth Collective: https://tqyc.org/
3. PFLAG (Support group which includes transgender parents/guardians, transgender children, spouses, and families) https://sites.google.com/a/pflagsacramento.org/www/trans-families-sacramento
4. The Sacramento LGBT Community Center! We offer transgender support services, groups, as well as community events such as our upcoming Trans Day of Visibility Celebration on Friday, March 31st! https://saccenter.org/transgender-services/

In today's political climate, it is crucial that we stand up for the rights of our transgender community. Let's join together and create a world where everyone is seen, heard, and celebrated. #TransWeekOfVisibility #TransDayOfVisibility #SupportTransRights #StandWithTrans

Monday – Friday, April 24th – 28th, 8AM – 3PM

OPEN HOUSE, Thursday April 27th, 5 – 8PM

https://www.scholastic.com/bf/bsprentzelemsch2

Blanche Sprentz has three site goals for the 2022-2023 school year:

1. Increase Student Math Proficiency by 5% on the Renaissance Diagnostic
2. Increase Cultural Awareness Proficiency Among Students, Staff, and Families
3. Increase Student Proficiency in Grit by Setting Long-term Goals in Academics & Activities

Families Support School Goals By:

• Practice addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division math facts at home
• Play games with cards, dice, counting
• Practice measurement with kitchen tools, rulers, measuring tape
• Share your family heritage and traditions with others
• Support your student's family heritage projects at school
• Follow our monthly Heritage Awareness activities and resources
• Set and Track Reading and Step Count Goals with Students

Use the link or QR code below. The link is also on the main page of our school website.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfe38XADQFoJwMwGibuU-eoHgMOoX6ZCeZrc8w5WZaYfRs0-w/viewform

11/15/2022 Blanche Sprentz Site Council virtual visit

Folsom Public Library

Address: 411 Stafford Street

Website: www.folsom.ca.us/library

Hours: Tue-Wed 10 am – 7pm, Thu, Fri, Sat 10am - 5pm

A Folsom Public Library card is free and provides you with access to books, eBooks, eAudio books, online databases, DVD’s music CD’s, Games, 3d printers, Chrome Books, Hotspots, and State Park passes. The library has 22 computers available for public use and printing is available for a small fee. The library also has a free magazine exchange and a free puzzle exchange.

How to get a library card

It is easy to get a Folsom Public Library card! California residents can get a library card by completing an online application and providing a photo ID and proof of address.

The library has a My First Library Card program. Every school year, librarians visit all FCUSD kindergarten classes and distribute library cards to students. The cards can be activated by a parent or guardian when visiting the library. Kids also get a free book to keep with activation of their card.

Programs for children

• 1000 Books Before Kindergarten: an early literacy program encouraging families to read 1,000 books with their children to prepare them with the skills they need for kindergarten. Each 100 books read receives a progress badge. At 1,000 books, kids receive a backpack, a free book and certificate of completion. While 1,000 may seem like a large number, if you read just 3 stories each day you will reach your goal in one year!

• Storytimes: daily stories and songs program for children ages 0-6

• Legos: The library has a large collection of Legos - kids come together to build and put their creations on display. Weekly on Saturdays from 2-4 pm. Ages 5-12

• Book clubs: Kids Graphic Novel Book Club meets monthly on the 3rd Saturday at 1 p.m. Copies of the monthly selection can be checked out from the library. Grades 2-5

• Craft programs: weekly DIY craft boxes offered on Friday afternoons from 2-4:30 p.m. Crafts include making bookmarks, paper airplanes, origami, yarn crafts and more.

Tutoring

Free, live, online K-12 tutoring with your library card. Get homework help in math, reading, writing, science, social studies and so much more. Through HelpNow, live real-time homework assistance is available 24 hours a day by laptop, tablet, or phone from qualified tutors using state curriculum and standards.

24/7 assistance is available in English and Spanish for Language Arts and Mathematics.

Every day between 10:00 am and 10:00 pm, assistance is available in core K-12 subjects in the following languages:

• English

• Spanish

• Mandarin

• Cantonese

• Vietnamese

• Tagalog

Tutors can provide a virtual whiteboard, conduct live audio interactions with students, and work with learners on a wide range of concepts. Students are expected to work through the content and learn from the feedback. Tutors do not provide answers — they provide guidance and help. Tutoring sessions may be monitored for completeness and effectiveness. All tutors have passed background checks and possess, at a minimum, a bachelor’s degree.

Access online tutoring at www.library.folsom.ca.us/youth-library

What a visit to the library might look like for your family:

• Enjoying stories and songs at the library while attending a storytime together.

• Experiencing your child getting excited about selecting their own books to read.

• Parents finding new books to read aloud to their children.

• Children playing games on the early literacy computers that support school readiness.

• Use of the public computers for a school assignment.

• Enjoying the toys at the library and cooperative play with other children.

• Shared family time in an environment that seeks to instill the love of reading for all ages!

Contact info: Debbie Centi, Youth Services Librarian (916) 461-6132

We need volunteers to help with the Mileage Club in the mornings from 8AM to 8:12AM. Email Kandice White at kanwhite@fcusd.org to get started.

Blanche Sprentz has partnered with Folsom's Hope who sends mentors to come have lunch with select students once a week.

The only requirement is for mentors to have a heart for kids! Once cleared through the District, adult mentors are paired with a student referred to the program, and they have lunch once a week. This is on Wednesdays during their lunch hour, and build relationships over the course of the school year. The time commitment is less than an hour a week, but mentors do need to be committed to being there each week, as consistency is essential.

Volunteers do need to be cleared through FCUSD as category 2 volunteers, and then there are some additional requirements for mentors because of the intimate nature of mentoring: Folsom's Hope application, online training, and mandated reporter training. Salwa Kasabian, Executive Director from Folsom's Hope will walk volunteers through all of this. If anyone is interested, they need simply to contact Salwa so she can assist them in the clearance process. She's also happy to chat with anyone with questions or wanting to know more.

Salwa Kasabian

Executive Director, Folsom's Hope

(916) 259-7261

salwa.kasabian@folsomshope.org

Our children may be little, but their feelings are big! Sometimes they need help putting situations into perspective. One of the tools we use at school to help with this is "The Size of the Problem" poster from "The Zones of Regulation." Want to reinforce this social-emotional skill-building at home? When your child has a HUGE response to a tiny problem, try these strategies:

1: They can't reason until their body and brain are calm again. Use distractions, deep breathing (in through the nose first), or checking in with their senses to help them re-regulate their system.

2: Reflect ~ say in your own words ~ what they seemed to be upset about.

3: When they're back to calm, talk with them about the size of the problem and the size of their reaction. See image below.

Generally, tiny or small problems are situations they can solve themselves. Medium and big problems may need adult support. And a HUGE problem is a significant loss or emergency ~ either someone is hurt, sick, or in need of immediate help. Think "emergency!"

Sometimes it is easier said than done, but the size of our response should match the size of the problem. And one step to getting there is asking ourselves, "What is the size of this problem?" This activates our thinking brain and slows down our emotional responses, which sets us up for solving problems as they arise.

Scarlett Stoppa, Mental Health Specialist

https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/how_much_sleep.html

https://www.verywellfamily.com/american-academy-pediatrics-screen-time-guidelines-1094883#:~:text=For%20years%2C%20the%20American%20Academy%20of%20Pediatrics%20has,to%20reflect%20the%20realities%20of%20today%E2%80%99s%20digital%20world.

To view the recorded presentation from May 2022 in its entirety, please click HERE

You can enable closed captioning in both English and Spanish

Links below were also provided at the May presentation, providing information and resources parents can use for keeping their children safe online.

Child readiness for cellphone chart

Guide to Snapchat 2021

How to Really Prevent Screen Addiction

Keeping Children Safe on the Internet - Services and Devices

Parents Guide to Snapchat QR codes for Internet Safety Links

Due to several students will severe allergies, as well as for equity, all food items, including birthday cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and ice cream are not allowed to be shared with classes at school. IF you would like to celebrate your student's birthday at school, consider sending non-edible items such as pencils, erasers, etc., for teachers to send home with the class. PLEASE communicate with your student's teacher about plans to bring in non-edible items to recognize a birthday. Thank you for your cooperation and partnership.

Website: https://www.fcusd.org/bse
Location: 249 Flower Drive, Folsom, CA, USA
Phone: (916) 294-9110