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Buzz Newsletter 9/11/15
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The Springer Buzz September 11, 2015 |
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In This Issue:
Quick Dates for your Calendar: |
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Principal’s Message |
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State Test Results This week the state testing results were released to the public. The results are from the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) testing that all 3rd through 6th graders took last Spring. Students took online assessments in the subject areas of math and English/Language Arts that were aligned to the new Common Core Standards. The District results indicate that our students did well; LASD is one of the top scoring districts in Santa Clara County. Springer’s results were also positive. When reviewing our data, you will see below how many students are meeting and exceeding the standards combined.
Springer School 3rd 4th 5th 6th English Language Arts 83% 95% 88% 90% Math 82% 92% 84% 87% This is the first year of results from this new statewide assessment, which help establish a baseline for our district and the schools. When looking at this data, it is not possible to compare it to the STAR results from the 2013-14 school year because the SBAC is a completely different test on different standards. As a staff, we will use this information to help identify students who are struggling in the two content areas. The Smarter Balance is just one of many things we will review and use to gauge where our students need to go based on their individual needs. Individual student assessment information will be mailed out to your home later this month from the state. Coffee with the Principal- Next Friday I want to invite you to the year’s first Coffee with the Principal on Friday, September 18th at 8:45am in the staff lounge. If you missed my presentation on Back-to-School night on standards based reporting, I will be presenting this information again at the Coffee with the Principal. Stay cool this weekend! Wade Spenader- Principal |
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Walk-A-Thon Sponsor Cards Are Here! |
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Our Walk on the Wild Side Walk-a-thon is Saturday October 10, from 10-3... but the time to collect sponsors is NOW! Look for your child's green sponsor card, along with the blue registration book, in today's Friday folder. Ask friends, family and neighbors to support our school by making a pledge -- either per lap walked or a flat rate. Walk-a-thon proceeds support instructional materials; supplies and printing costs; enrichment programs like science, music and arts; and noontime clubs. Sponsor cards -- including the all-important parent signature on the back -- are due back to school on Thursday, October 1!
And don't forget to sign up to volunteer on Walk-a-thon day! Easy, fun shifts are still available before, during and after the event. Just click here! |
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Back-To-School Order Form |
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The BTS Order Form is a quick, easy, online tool that allows you to make donations, sign up for PTA memberships, specify your child's T-shirt size, and purchase Auction tickets, Spirit Wear and Yearbooks. This is a convenient way to make a single payment for your donations and orders! We recommend reviewing the 2015-2016 Spirit Wear selection with your child before opening the form. For this school year, the Springer PTA has again purchased a complete set of school supplies for every student in every classroom (including Transitional and regular Kindergarten). PTA is providing this service as a time (and money) saver for parents and to ensure that all our students have all the necessary supplies right from the beginning of the school year. PTA will only be able to continue this program in the future if we receive sufficient reimbursement for our expenses (over $30,000 in total). We are asking each family to please donate $55 per student to reimburse the PTA for your child’s/children's school supplies. Please consider making your BTS payment via e-check. We prefer electronic payments because they allow us to more quickly and easily process the BTS orders. (Last year, a parent volunteer made weekly trips to the bank to deposit over 1400 handwritten checks for the Springer PTA!) Furthermore, payment by e-check is less expensive for us. (Intuit charges the PTA a flat fee of $0.50 for every e-check. PayPal charges the PTA 3-5% of each payment.) The Los Altos Educational Foundation (LAEF) accepts (and prefers) payments by e-check as well. If you receive an error while attempting to pay by e-check as a guest user, it could be because you have previously registered your bank account with Intuit. If you have already registered your bank account, then you must login. The link to the form is: Springer 2015 BTS Order Form The password is: "stingers" (all lower case) The online form closes on Monday, Sept 14. Payments by check are due by Friday, Sept 18. Thank you for your support of the Springer PTA! |
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LASD Ed Talk |
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Haiku Learning and Standards Based Grading Join us to hear from Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, Sandra McGonagle as she highlights LASD’s new Learning Management System, Haiku Learning. In addition to the features of Haiku, Sandra will discuss the district shift to standards-based grading and reporting. Two dates are available: Thursday, September 17th 4-5:30pm Covington School Multi To RSVP click here |
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LAEF: For EVERY child in EVERY grade in ALL LASD Schools! |
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Did you know that your donation to LAEF supports enrichment program staff and smaller class sizes NOW through June 2016? Here’s what your elementary kids will get THIS school year thanks to LAEF: - Smaller class sizes in K-3 - Literacy Aides in 1st and 2nd grade - Our STEM teacher and librarians - Plus music, PE and art!
Every K-8 student benefits from LAEF's grant, and that’s why our goal is 100% parent participation. The suggested donation per student is $1,000 (or $100 per month for 10 months). Every gift in any amount is appreciated. Learn More & Make Your Tax-Deductible Donation Today! www.laefonline.org |
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Safe Routes To School |
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Let’s Walk/Bike to School! Walking or biking to school is a great way to get kids active and get kids outdoors. It also has the added bonus of reducing traffic congestion and helping out the environment. Not to mention, a fabulous way to get in shape to zoom through laps for the Springer Walk-a-thon. If you are already walking/biking to school, that’s awesome! For those of you that don’t today because either the route seems too far or it doesn’t seem safe, we are here to help! Keeping it simple! No more zapping this year, no more counting. Let’s focus on the essentials: walking and biking to school together and teaching our kids good road safety practices. Suggested Routes Safe Routes have been identified in association with the safe Moves association: https://goo.gl/maps/V4kaX Building Neighborhood Walk to School Groups Coordinate and bike/walk to school together with your neighbors. We’ve provided route maps and timetables that can help you. Each flag on the route is a suggested meeting intersection where nearby families can join your route to Springer and the timetable will guide you in coordinating meeting times. Bike Repair Station and Try Run for Walk/ Bike to School You are invited to join us for a bike and walk to school practice Saturday September 12. Coordinate with your neighbors to meet at the routes start (green stars on the map) at 9:00 am. Meet at Springer to practice safe biking at our bike rodeo and have your bike checked at our Bike Repair Station and enjoy some light refreshments. Looking for bike experts for our Bike Repair Station Do you know how to fix a bike? Would you like to show the kids how to check brakes, tires… please sign in to help at our bike repair station on Saturday September 12. http://tinyurl.com/ox686ne Ongoing Communication Check out the Springer Walk/Bike webpage for further information and stay tuned for opportunities to test your child’s road safety knowledge through weekly questions to be posted to the Springer FaceBook page. Join us in our effort to build a safer and more dynamic Springer community. The Springer Walk/Bike Board |
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Girl Scout Information Night at Springer |
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Girl Scouts is a great way to build confidence, leadership, advocacy, self-expression and friendship. Service Unit 608 of Los Altos is hosting a Girl Scout Parent Information night for girls K-12. They will provide information regarding Girl Scouts, help you find your girl a troop to join and assist with starting new troops at Springer. Join us on Thursday, September 17th from 7:00 to 8:00, Springer Art Room, 1120 Rose Ave, Mountain View, CA 94040 For more information, please contact Sandra Hillman SU8 Recruitment Coordinator, Sandra.G.Hillman[at]gmail.com or Anne Marie Knopf -Springer Troops Manger at aclenz[at]hotmail.com. |
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Become a LIVING CLASSROOM docent... share your love of nature with kids! |
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It's time to harvest seeds from heirloom tomatoes, plant our winter wheat and veggies, search the schoolyard for animal homes, and learning about Native California Indian uses of plants! If you like all those things and more, please consider becoming a Living Classroom docent! Living Classroom is looking for docents to help deliver hands-on garden-based lessons to the students of the Los Altos School District. No experience necessary as we provide all the training needed! Our Fall Docent Training will take place Monday mornings from 9 - Noon on Aug. 31st – Oct. 12th (no training on Labor Day 9/7). Apprentice-style training also available for those who can’t make it to trainings on Monday mornings. Want to learn more about our program? Please consider attending one of our upcoming Informational Meetings from 10-11am on Monday 8/24 or Thursday 8/27 at Los Altos School District Conference Room #2, 201 Covington Road, Los Altos. Please click HERE to view our Fall training flyer. Questions? Email us at livingclassroom@lasdschools.org or call (650) 947-1103. For more information about Living Classroom, please visit our website at www.living-classroom.org. Thanks! Caroline Chan Program Coordinator Living Classroom Program Los Altos School District (650) 947-1103 |
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Girls On The Run--In Need Of Coaches |
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Looking for Coaches for the Girls On The Run 2016 season Girls On the Run has been one of Springer popular after school program for more than ten years and we'd love to have it running this year. Coach and site applications are due by September 21. To be able to commit to the 2016 season (February 29 through May 14) we only need 3 coaches, including a head-coach in order to have a group of 15 girls.The more coaches, the more girls can be part of the program. Coaches have to be 18 years and older. GOTR only meets 2 times per week, from 3pm to 4:15pm from February 29 through May 14. If you are interested and want to learn more about the program please contact me (veronique.gobry[at]gmail.com). |
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Lunch Time Funvisor |
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One of our favorite lunch time activities--Run 4 Your Life--is starting on Frid
5/8/25 5:45 PM |