Our Mission

At Springer Elementary School, we will provide a safe and supportive environment that engages, inspires, and nurtures all students’ emotional and academic needs in order to become empathetic, productive global citizens and lifelong learners.

In This Issue: September 22, 2017:

• News and Announcements

• Parent Education Opportunities

Quick Dates for your Calendar:

• Saturday, October 14: Walk-a-thon

• Thursday, October 19: Minimum Day, Dismissal 12:15

• Thursday, October 26: Photo Make-Up Day

Go Camping! The Walk-a-thon is Coming!

The Walk-a-thon is 3 weeks away!

It's time to collect your sponsors (on the green form or on line at pledgestar.com/springer ) for this year's Walk-a-thon (Saturday, October 14 from 10-3)! Pledges can be made in flat amounts or per lap. Please ask your friends, family and neighbors to support Springer... and thank them very much!

If you'd like to order extra Walk-a-thon t-shirts for other non-student members of your family, please email walkathon@springerpta.net by September 28. Extra shirts are $15.

Finally, it's not too late to volunteer on Walk-a-thon Day. Join your fellow Springer community members for a fun, easy, social one-hour shift. Sign up online today!

Legos at Lunchtime Starts September 26

Lunchtime Legos is back, and they start next Tuesday, September 26.

Come and join us at lunch break and help with Lego time activities! Sign up to help set up Lego bins and clean up after kids' Lego creation time. Also, the last day of the Lego time, we will have a Lego exhibition! Hope to see you there!

Here are the details:

• Meet every Tuesday between 12:00pm-12:45pm in the  Multi room.

• (1grades and 2 grades until 12:35pm, 3grades - 6 grades until 12:45pm)

If you would like to volunteer please click here to sign up!

What’s New With Fun!Visor Noontime Activities!

What are Fun!Visor activities?

The Springer Fun!visors are part of the Project Cornerstone program and are parent-hosted lunchtime activities.  It is a way to show the kids that there are multiple "caring adults" in their school community, to help build their self-esteem by helping them find their "sparks," and to give kids without strong friend connections something fun to do during lunch.

In addition to Legos on Tuesdays, we have other popular Noontime activities.  Click here to check out our Fun!Visor page on the Springer Website.  

Cornerstone Corner

This month’s ABC book: “Friends to the End for Kids: The True Value of Friendship” by Bradley Trevor Greive uses engaging photos of animals to illustrate how to make friends, keep friends, and the importance of friends.   If you would like to preview the book, here is a Youtube video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGmLlA3Wu5g

Goals of lesson:

• To help all students learn how to respect each other and to develop stronger interpersonal skills.

• To have students explore ways to be UPstanders both online and in our face-to-face world. To reinforce this lesson at home:

• Share some stories about your own friendships.

Here are some questions you can discuss with your child: ·

• What do you like most about your friends?

• Do they bring out the best in you?

• Do you bring out the best in them?

• How do you show your friends that you care about them?

• How do your friends handle conflict when it arises?

When you “catch” kids modeling positive behaviors... Notice, Name it, and Celebrate it!

LASD Jr. Olympics 2018

Mark your calendars now for April 28, 2018.  The Los Altos School District Junior Olympics is an annual, fun-filled, all inclusive, inter-school track meet.  Fourth, fifth, and sixth graders from all seven district elementary schools compete in both traditional and nontraditional track and field events.  Each elementary school needs many many volunteers to help make this event a fun and successful day for hundreds of students.

Springer is looking for volunteers to help organize and run the monthly district meetings.  This is a perfect way to get more involved, understand all the details that go into planning and running the event, and have a direct impact on hundreds of students.  If interested, please contact Sharon Tan sharontantan@yahoo.com or Jen Miley jenmiley@me.com .

Parking Lot and Drop Off/ Pick up Safety  

Now that school is in full swing, it is a good time to review some safety information concerning our parking lot.  

• Practice patient driving while in our parking lot or on our neighboring roads.  Slow down and stay alert.  Being late to work is no excuse to drive dangerously.

• Please be sure to park in the designated parking spaces only.

• Walkers should use the designated crosswalks, both on the streets and in our parking lot.  The parking lot crosswalks are marked with cones.  Please have your child use them.  Never allow your child to walk through the parking lot without utilizing the designated crosswalks.

• We love our volunteer crosswalk duty parents!  They wear their bright orange vests with pride and are quick to help kids across the parking lot.  Please treat them with the respect they deserve; they are trying to keep our students safe.

• Expect more car traffic on Mondays and Fridays.  These are music days for our upper grade students.   They, and their musical instruments,  are more likely to be transported to school via a car on those days.  Please plan accordingly and realize the parking lot will be a bit more crowded.

•  Do not drop off students in the inner two lanes of the parking lot.  The yellow curb is for dropping off students.   The red curb means NO STOPPING AT ALL.  

By staying alert, keeping our speed down, and looking out for each other, we can go a long way in keeping our parking lot and neighboring streets safe.

Springer Singers

Does your child love to sing? Then Springer Singers is where you want them to be.

Springer Singers is a fantastic way to get your kids singing and dancing with their Springer friends.

The Springer Singers are open to all Springer students.

New to Springer Singers in Grades 1 & 2: Mondays 2:45-3:30

Returning Singers in Grades 2 - 6: Tuesdays 3:00-3:45

Springer Multi

Applications available in the office, or by clicking here.  Please complete form and return with payment (scholarships available) to participate.

Questions? Contact Heidi Rockett at rockettland@comcast.net

Walk To School

On Wednesday, September 27th we will be holding a Walk to School Day. We will have coffee on hand for parents and snacks for the students. SafeMoves will also be on campus with their trusty Stop Sign mascot. They will also be sponsoring a raffle for a bike and helmet for a lucky Springer student. MVPD will be present to provide some tips on being safe on the commute to and from school.  

In the past, we had a meeting point at Varsity Park. We are not doing that this year because we realize that it wouldn’t be a natural meeting point for most of you on your daily commute to school. Instead, we want you to think about commutes that you can sustain especially over the construction period at Springer.

If you want to connect with neighbors on coordinating commutes, please sign up on thisgoogle sheet . We are also including the link to Suggested Safe Routes to School put together by VERBS in cooperation with the City of Mountain View. Check out Springer's map here.

If you have any questions on the school commute, you can reach out to Lisa Hearn,lisaandmattyboy@yahoo.com.

Looking for Noon Duty Volunteers

Springer is in need of Noon Duty Volunteers to help out on Tuesdays and Thursdays between the hours of 11:45 - 12:45.  If you are interested, please contact the Springer office at 650-943-4200.

Springer Auction

Hi Springer!

Don't forget about the awesome Fall community parties still available for you to join.

For new families, this is a great way to meet people. All ticket proceeds go to support

Springer.

Check out the Open Party List, and contact the host to sign-up.

OPEN PARTIES COMING UP:

·           Springer Adult Scavenger Challenge, September 23

·         Yoga and Wine, October 7

Questions? springerauction@gmail.com

Hot Lunch

We are still seeking volunteers for Wednesdays.   The Hot Lunch program would not be possible without the 20+ volunteers per week that come in to serve lunch!  The lunch volunteer shift is weekly, or alternating weeks, from 11:25-12:15.  Hot lunch volunteers receive a Choice Lunch credit for a free lunch for every volunteer shift worked.  Contact Donna Murphy (at HotLunchScheduling@springerpta.net) to join the lunch crew or if you’d like more information.

Art Docent Training

Los Altos Art Docents are looking for new volunteers to join us!

Our training sessions run from September through mid-April. You may still join our group of trainees this year, and are welcome to come to our September 13 training session to see what it's all about!

Location: iLearn Studio, located at 201 Covington Road, Los Altos.

Time: Wednesday mornings, 8:45am-11:30am

If you would like more information, please contact the Art Docent

office at (650) 947-1195 or kdickerson@lasdschools.org, or see our website athttp://www.losaltosartdocents.org

LAEF

Did you know that your donation to LAEF supports STEM, arts, literacy, wellness and personalized learning NOW through June 2018?  Here are some ways elementary students benefit from LAEF this school year.

• Literacy aides in 1st and 2nd grade

• STEM and computer science teachers

• Librarians and certified PE instructors

• Plus music and art!

Every TK-8th grade student in LASD will benefit from LAEF-funded programs, and that’s why our goal is 100% parent participation. The suggested donation per student is $1,200 (or $120 per month for 10 months). Every gift in any amount is appreciated.

Learn more & make a donation today at www.laefonline.org.

Selpa Events

Selpa, an all-volunteer group of parents of children with special needs, are sponsoring several upcoming events:

Parent Chat: The Second Tuesday of every month.  Click here for flyer.

Click here for Spanish Parent Chat flyer.

Four Leaf

Fourleaf, the online directory, is in the process of being updated.  We expect it to be up and running in the next two to three weeks.  Thank you for your patience!

Living Classroom

Become a LIVING CLASSROOM docent... share your love of nature with kids!

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 on Monday mornings from 9am-Noon from Sep. 11th – Oct. 16th  (please see our Fall training flyer for locations).

Click here for flyer and more info.

Want to learn more about our program?  Please consider attending one of our upcoming Informational Meetings from 10-11am on Monday 8/21 or Monday 8/28 at the Los Altos School District iLearn Studio, 201 Covington Road, Los Altos and/or visit our website at www.living-classroom.org.

Questions? Email us at livingclassroom@lasdschools.org or call (650) 947-1103.  

Caroline Chan

Program Coordinator, Los Altos School District

Living Classroom

(650) 947-1103 (office)

(650) 303-9764 (cell)

livingclassroom@lasdschools.org

www.living-classroom.org

OhmConnect Fundraising Platform

The Springer community started using a novel fundraising platform last year, called OhmConnect. We raised $930 last year, and $1500 this year by having a handful of parents of the school turn down their electricity usage just one hour per week.

We're aiming to raise $5,000 this year and all you need to do is signup using this link and connect your utility account.

ohm.co/springer

OhmConnect donates between $50 - $150 per team member per year, depending on how much you reduce. They'll be donating an instant $75 per new team member. If you haven't signed up yet, now's the time to do it!

Parent Education Opportunities

Through an enriching presentations from local and national experts on topics of interests to parents, faculty and staff, the MVLA Parent Education Speaker Series seeks to contribute to the academic, physical, and emotional health of our students.  All events are free of charge and are for parents, faculty and staff in Los Altos and Mountain View public schools.  For a schedule of upcoming presentations, please click here.  

How Submit an Article to the Springer Buzz

If you have an article to submit to the Springer Buzz, please send it to the editor atspringer.buzz@gmail.com by noon on Monday for inclusion in the next edition.  Late arrivals will be included if possible but can’t be guaranteed!  All flyers must be in either WORD or PDF format, accompanied by a brief summary of the activity in the email.