Quetzal News
Gabriela Mistral's News September 16, 2020
Ms. O's Message
Good afternoon Quetzal Families!
This week, our students worked on the very important value of Teamwork. Like Phil Jackson said, “The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team”. As I read this quote, it reminds me of the amazing team that I work with at Gabriela Mistral. As a school educator and principal, I strongly believe that the success of our students is a result of the teamwork between students, parents, and school. Once again, I want to thank you for your trust and support during our distance learning journey.
We are having our Musical Recorders distribution for our 4th graders on Monday, 9/21, from 3 pm to 4 pm. Fourth grade team, please stop by our front office to pick up your recorders. As you visit our campus, remember that at Mistral, we follow social distancing protocols: we wear masks, we respect 6ft social distance, and we wash our hands thoroughly for our health and safety.
Take a glance at our Quetzal week:
Our staff is working to organize classrooms as we prepare for Stage 3. Our noon duties and office staff worked to ensure that all of our classrooms have student desks 6ft apart, and that the extra furniture is stored at a different location. We continue to work on the Reopening Checklist. Please visit our website for weekly updates every Friday.
In addition to these physical changes in the classrooms, we want to make sure that all students and staff are safe. We are working on adding and beautifying our fences around Mistral. Soon, our school will have self closing hinges to the two gates near the kinder wing/fire lane, and replacement six-foot ornamental metal fencing at the entrance to the right of the office building. We will also have an extension of the height of the field fence on Latham Street (runs from the preschool to Castro school) from 4 feet to 6 feet. This improvement to the existing fence is for the purpose of securing our campus. It is separate from any future fence project that dedicates play area to the preschool.
It is also very exciting to share that the adding of surveillance cameras, solar panels, lighting on the hallways, a bottle filler, and replacement of old windows is scheduled.
iReady assessments were completed this week, and this is extremely important, as it allows our teachers to identify where our students are in reading and math. With this information, teachers will get additional data on providing student support and designing instructional pathways for students.
We had a fantastic Quetzal Q & A yesterday, and I was very happy to chat with over 32 of our families who joined us. I am looking forward to our upcoming Cafecitos with Ms. O. the week of September 28th. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions before then.
Our ELAC members, our SCEF Eb Lopez, and I joined the DELAC meeting on Monday, and it was very nice to see all the other site members during this event.
Have a fantastic week, and remember that the Mistral Team is the DREAM team!
With respect,
Ms. Olaciregui
Principal
Upcoming Events
September 21, 2020
- 3:00pm - 4:00pm: 4th gr musical recorders distribution
September 23, 2020
- 6:00pm - 7:00pm: General PTA meeting
District News
The free meal program has been extended! (flyers attached) During Distance Learning, free meals are again available to all children in the Mountain View Whisman School District age 18 and younger. No IDs required. Locations: All schools, except Stevenson (pickup for Stevenson is at Theuerkauf). Times: 11:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m. at the elementary schools. 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. at the middle schools. Walk, drive or roll up to grab a free meal and go! Parents should continue to go here https://secure.ezmealapp.com/ to apply for free or reduced price meal benefits through the National Lunch Program, if needed.
Join the MVWSD conversation: Distance Learning: What's working?
We’re now up to 1200 thoughts so far in our online conversation about Distance Learning. Now that we've been distance learning for several weeks due to COVID-19, in your opinion, what’s working well and what are our areas of improvement?
Before Thursday, Sept 17: Please take some time to participate or rejoin the conversation to star thoughts entered since you were there last. You may participate in this exchange by clicking on this link: http://mvw.sd/TE. Translation is available in multiple languages. Your input will help us further improve and refine our plans as we move into the future.
Distance Learning tip: How can I set sound alerts so that my student doesn’t miss a class meeting?
To have sound, Chromebook users will need to make sure their Google Calendar settings are set correctly. The instructions below will show how to change the notification setting.
- Go to the following page: calendar.google.com/calendar/r/settings
- On the left side of the page under "General" choose "Event Settings"
- Make sure the "Notifications" are set to "Desktop Notifications" and that the play notification sounds button is checked.
This should have the calendar play sound when events trigger.
The MVLA Parent Education Speaker Series presents: Jeff Selingo on "Who Gets In and Why: A Year Inside the College Admissions Process" on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2020 - 7:00 - 9:00pm | Live Online | Zoom
Join us for an insightful evening with journalist and higher education expert Jeff Selingo, as he dispels entrenched notions about the college admissions process.
While many have long believed that college admissions decisions are driven largely by merit, Jeff presents a more complicated truth. Embedded in three distinctly different admissions offices — a selective private university, a leading liberal arts college, and a flagship public campus — Jeff closely observed college admission officers as they made their often agonizing and sometimes life-changing decisions.
Based on a year of reading applications and sitting through committee meetings where up and down votes were taken, Jeff reveals what really matters to the gatekeepers and how their ultimate decisions are often based on a college’s priorities. Following interviews with students, testing agencies, marketers, and ranking organizations, Jeff also shares practical advice and helpful strategies for navigating the confusing, chaotic, and often-times stressful college application process.
Audience: High school parents and students; teachers and counselors
Register: To register for this free event, go to https://mvla2020-21-jeffselingo.eventbrite.com
Book: Jeff's new book, Who Gets In and Why, will be released Sept. 15th and is available with free shipping from Books, Inc. Jeff is generously offering our community a 30% discount + free shipping for pre-orders made directly through him. If interested, use code MVLA30.
Event Login: We will send the Zoom link via Eventbrite email, Thursday afternoon, October 1st.
If you have not used Zoom before, please make sure to allow a few extra minutes before the event to download the free Zoom app.
Sponsored by Los Altos Educational Foundation (LAEF), MVLA High School Foundation, Mountain View Educational Foundation (MVEF), and Los Altos-Mountain View PTA Council.
Public hearing on Sept. 17: Sufficient instructional materials
A public hearing will be held in order to comply with Ed Code section 60119 on September 17, 2020 to detail the extent to which textbooks and instructional materials were provided to all students, including English Learners.
The definition of “sufficient textbooks or instructional materials” means that each pupil has textbooks or instructional materials, or both to use in class and to take home in each of the following subjects:
• Mathematics
• Science
• History/Social Science
• Language Arts
The public hearing on September 17, 2020 at 7:00pm will be held during the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees. To view details about accessing the meeting either online or by phone, please click on the September 17 agenda link on this webpage: https://www.mvwsd.org/about/board_of_trustees/board_meetings
Track your student's online activities at home with Securly
MVWSD provides a tool that allows parents to be aware of their students' online activities and to help keep them safe on their school-issued devices. Securly allows you to see what choices your student is making online while at home so that you will be alerted to potential issues and can guide your student. Please note: Securly is for school-issued devices only. Check your email for these weekly reports, and you may also download the Securly app. For more information, please see https://www.mvwsd.org/technology.
Please Support Our Students and Teachers!
MVEF raises money to provide all MVWSD students with an educational experience beyond what is possible with public funding. We hope you saw the MVEF brochure with your school supplies or watched the video during Back to School. Please see the website at https://www.mvef.org/ for more information and to donate online. Please consider joining our team of volunteers or emailing us with any questions at contact@mvef.org. Thank you for your support!