Mistral offers many educational opportunities that go above and beyond the grade level content standards mandated by the state of California.
The Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA), in Mountain View, provides music and art instruction at school. From Kindergarten to 4th grade students receive art instruction during the first semester and music instruction during the second semester. 5th grades students can chose to concentrate on either art or music for the full school year.
These excellent programs are provided by the Mountain View Education Foundation (MVEF) and a small grant from CSMA. Without parent donations to MVEF these enriching classes would not be possible.
Art
- Grades K-2 meet for one hour every other week for the first half of the school year (August through January).
- Grades 3-4 meet for one hour every week for the first half of the school year (August through January).
- 5th Grade students who have chosen to concentrate on Art meet weekly for one hour throughout the school year (August through March).
Music
- Grades K-2 meet for 30 minutes of music demonstrations and voice practice every week for the second half of the school year (January through June).
- Grade 3 meets for one hour of music demonstrations and voice practice every week for the second half of the school year (January through May).
- Grade 4 meets for one hour of music demonstrations and recorder practice every week for the second half of the school year (January through June).
- 5th Grade students who have chosen to concentrate on Music meet weekly for one hour throughout the school year (August through March). They will have picked the instrument (band or strings) they will practice through the year at the end of 4th Grade.
Library
Each classroom visits the library weekly. Students spend 30 - 45 minutes in the library, listening to the librarian read stories and choosing the books they will be checking out for the week. Kindergarteners must leave library books in their classroom; students in first grade and up can bring the books home with them.
Our full-time library technician,manages the library and its extensive bilingual collection with the assistance of a number of parent and community volunteers. The library volunteers shelve the 1200 - 1800 books returned every week by our students. New material acquisitions are funded through PTAdonations.
Many of the books in the library are labeled with Accelerated Reader levels. Students are assessed periodically to determine their current reading level to help them make appropriate choices. Several computers are available in the library for students to take AR quizzes.
Library Book Loan Agreement
Library books must be returned on time and in good condition. Books are loaned for one week. Kindergarten, first and second graders may check out one book per week. Third through fifth graders may check out two books per week. Parents are responsible for lost or damaged books, which can cost $5.00 to $35.00.
If your child brings home a book that is damaged, please return it to our library right away - do not attempt to mend it at home. In order to avoid damaging a book at home, please ensure that your child does not write in it. Also, please remind him/her to turn the pages carefully. Library books should be kept in a safe place at home that is out of the reach of pets and little brothers/sisters. On rainy days, students should keep their library book in their backpack or place it in a plastic bag for protection.
Students can check out library books once they have returned the Book Loan Agreement form with a parent and student signature.
Hour of Code
Mistral will participate in Hour of Code, an initiative that seeks to expose school children, to the concepts of computer programming. Every class will spend one hour working through a programming tutorial. Learn more at: https://studio.code.org/courses
Field Trips
Each grade level is scheduled for one field trip per trimester. Most of the time these field trips are off campus, but occasionally organizations come to school instead. Permission slips are required for children to participate in field trips and teachers may ask parents to sign up as field trip chaperones. PTA volunteers plan field trips with input from classroom teachers to ensure the off-site experiences tie into the classroom curriculum.
Sample Field Trips from recent years:
- Mountain View Public Library
- Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts
- Mountain View City Hall
- Deer Hollow Farm
- Hidden Villa Farm
- California Academy of Sciences
- Oakland Museum of California
- Marine Science Institute
- Natural Bridges State Park
- Stanford University
- Age of Sail
- Walden West Science Camp
Funding for Field trips is provided by the Mistral PTA, these funds are supplemented by grants when possible. Various modes of transportation are used for field trips. These include district school buses, chartered buses or city buses, and walking to local destinations.
Physical Education Instruction
Our district contracts with an outside organization for physical education classes for students in all grades. Classes meet weekly for 45 minutes for students in K-3. 4th and 5th grade PE classes meet twice a week for 45 minutes.