Quetzal News
March 29, 2023
From Ms. O's Desk
Dear Quetzal Families,
It was so great to see all of our families here during our Open House last week. This event was the true reflection of the hard work and dedication our staff and students have done this year. As always, our partnership with our communities is one of the best qualities Mistral has! Special shout out to our ELAC, PTA, and MVEF teams for presenting to our new enrolled families.
Even though our weather is telling us differently, we are officially in spring. Spring is a time of rebirth and new beginnings. This is also a good time to set up new habits at home that will help our students. Here are some ideas to develop good habits:
- Set up new routines, such as meal times and sleep times. Having routines in place can avoid confrontations and meltdowns. Children between the ages of 4 and 11 should sleep a minimum 9 hours.
- Keep routines simple
- Stick to your rules: consistency is key
- Build fun into the routines/habits
I want to remind you that Spring Break is coming up soon. There will be no classes the week of 4/10-4/14. We look forward to seeing on time on Monday, April 17.
I want to extend the invitation on behalf of our School Police Officers, MVPD, to the MV PAL Fun Run that will take place at Crittenden Middle School on May 6th. It starts at 8:30am, and it will have a wide variety of fun, free activities for children. I hope you can make it!
Have a great rest of your week!
In partnership,
Claudia Olaciregui, Principal
Science Fair
For students who registered and want us to help them form a team:
We will have two after-school meetings to help you form teams and complete your project with a volunteer leader. Join us after school on Thursday, March 30, 12:00-2:00 pm or on Friday, March 31, 3:00-5:00 pm to work together on your science fair projects. We will meet at the picnic tables. It will be fun!
For students who registered with their own team or will do an individual project:
Free poster boards are available for pick up in the school office now. Each team (or individual if the student is working alone) gets 1 poster board. Each team will come up with their own project idea. Teams usually meet 2 or 3 times to plan and complete their project. If you need help with project ideas, please check out the PTA website. If you decide to meet at the school after dismissal, all parent volunteers should check in at the Mistral office. You are also welcome to meet with your team at home or at a park. Please remember, do not bring any animals or anything dangerous (e.g. open flames) onto campus. Your poster board can include pictures, photos, drawings, and text to describe your project. Poster boards can be written in Spanish, English, or both languages. More poster board ideas can be found at: https://mistral-pta.org/science/
For students who missed the registration deadline, but still want to participate:
You can still sign up! While the deadline has passed for us to help you form a team, you can plan your own individual project or form your own team. Please still complete the online registration and pick up your free poster board from the office.
For everyone:
We invite the whole Mistral community to come visit the Science Fair at the Mistral MUR on Thursday, April 6, from 5-7 pm. You can see the wonderful projects and also participate in a fun Engineering Challenge!
CALENDAR
April 6
- Science Fair @ 5pm-7pm in our MUR
- Spring Break No School
- Parent Workshop for Kinder/1st Grades @ 7pm
April 20
- Cafecito with Ms. O @ 8:30am in person (MUR)
April 24-May 5
- 3rd to 5th Grade State Testing (CAASPP)
- School Site Council @ 7pm
- Día del Niño Celebration @ MUR 3pm
April 30
- Día del Niño Celebration @ 11am to 1pm in the blacktop
DISTRICT NEWS
Electives Selection For Grades 5-7 is Open Now
All 5th-7th graders should select their course electives online by April 7, 2023 through the PowerSchool portal. Fifth- through seventh-grade parents, please look for an email in your inbox dated March 24 with links to course catalogs and directions. Please log in to your PowerSchool portal account (either student’s or parent’s) to help your student select his/her electives. If you have difficulty with PowerSchool, please contact your school secretary. If you have not confirmed your child's enrollment for the 2023-24 school year, elective course selection will not be available.
Get important Text Messages About Your School!
We send text messages infrequently for the purpose of notifying you of emergencies or with important, time-sensitive information, such as we did last week during the power outages. Make sure you are signed up to receive them. You can subscribe to receive text messages from the District at any time by texting "Y" or “YES" to 67587 using the cell phone number that the District has on record.
Fuel for the Future: National Nutrition Month
Make Tasty Foods At Home.
Cooking together as a family can be a fun and tasty way to help our children learn about nutrition and develop healthy eating habits. Learning to cook is an important life skill that fosters independence and confidence. It’s also a great way to spend time together!
Recipes for Healthy Kids: Cookbook for Homes (USDA)
Snacktivities (Alliance for a Healthier Generation)
Parent University: Preparing for Middle School
Date and Time: April 4, 2023 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. Registration Link: http://mvw.sd/pu040423
Nervous about middle school? We get it! Change can be daunting, but it can also lead to amazing new experiences. Join us to learn how to support your children as they prepare for the next stage in their academic and social lives. We will feature a panel of staff and students from Crittenden and Graham who will offer lots of wisdom and details about grades six, seven, and eight. See you there!
To submit your questions prior to the event, go to mvw.sd/questions.
MVEF News
On April 21, 2021 MVEF and the Crittenden Middle School PTA will be co-hosting a welcome potluck for incoming 6th graders and new students who enrolled during the current school year. To register, please click here: https://bit.ly/3Zy4QH1
Tickets to the MVEF Gala are still available! Ticket sales end 4/23 or when they are sold out. To purchase Gala tickets, click here: https://bit.ly/mvefGala2023
MVEF Gala Raffle Tickets are now on sale! Need not be present to win. Click the link below to view raffle items. Email aisha@mvef.org to purchase raffle tickets. https://bit.ly/2023-Gala-Raffle
MVEF still needs to raise an additional $240k to achieve the goal of $1.2MM by June 30, 2023. If you haven't made a donation yet during the current school year, please donate ASAP to help your school site achieve the goal to get an average of 10 new donors per school by April 15! Donations of any amount are meaningful in helping to reach the goal! Click here to see ways to donate.
Living Classroom: Docent Training Date Change
Do you enjoy spending time with kids and being outdoors? Volunteer with us to teach fun, engaging STEM-based lessons in your local school! Living Classroom teaches science by using our school gardens as our classroom. No prior teaching experience is necessary. Bring a friend and join the fun!
Come to our training sessions from 9am-12pm in Heritage Park, 771 Rengstorff Ave. in Mountain View:
April 17, 2023 rescheduled from March 6, 2023 (Kinder & 1st Grade Lessons)
For more information, visit www.living-classroom.org or contact susanh@living-classroom.org.
Health and Wellness Parenting Tip: Anxiety Curve
Stress is a subjective sensation and is commonly misunderstood as a negative feeling. However, it’s not always bad. Of course, stress differs among all individuals, and stress management is no one-size fits all solution either. A study found that low-to-moderate stress has been found to benefit individuals in terms of resiliency, decreasing their chance of distress. This was tested with the anxiety-performance curve in mind.
Here is a visual of the anxiety-performance curve:
Anxiety-performance curve shows that performance and arousal — that is, stress and motivation — rise in tandem to an optimal level called eustress (think of it as the “sweet spot” for stress). Additional stress beyond that peak tips into distress and impaired performance.
Here are some ways to utilize the anxiety curve when you are going into distress:
Set realistic goals and deadlines. Consider what you realistically can get done.
Seek out a challenge that interests you. This can be related to your career, an exercise goal, or a hobby. Make sure it gives you the motivation to engage.
Setting time-sensitive goals. Setting time-sensitive goals ensures you are accountable to others, which is an excellent way to engage that stress “sweet spot.”
To learn more, click here.
These tips came directly from the free online website of Big Think, reviewed by Kevin Dickinson.