Lamppost 41 1 11final Edited
Lamppost 41 1 11final Edited
Lamppost 41 1 11final Edited
The
Berkeley, CA 94705
www.leconteonline.org
(510) 644-6290 Lamppost
April 1, 2011 BELIEVE YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE...
Cheryl Wilson– Principal Thank you to the numerous students and families that raised over
Jill Wang – PTA President $34,000 dollars for our SCHOOL!!!
This amount was raised by 156 students/families who sold raffle
Important dates tickets and about 45 families who responded to our annual letter requesting
donations. Without these funds, we would not be able to pay for the
ON., April 4 – 8 additional adult supervision on the yard, classroom tutors, additional books
SCHOOL CLOSED for
Spring Break and classroom supplies, field trips, assemblies, scholarships for PTA after
school classes, or professional development for teachers. These services are
SAT., April 9 the result of fundraising that benefits every student at our school. While less
Author of The Loud Book will be than half of our families may be able to donate, we must all actively help to
at Mrs. Dalloway’s Bookstore
2:00PM – see flyer attached
raise funds for our children. This means not only attending fundraisers but
also giving your time to help support, plan, organize, and publicize these
WED., April 13 events. Please do whatever you can to make a difference!
School Governance Council
Meeting, 6:30PM, Library LeConte’s next fundraiser is the annual Silent Auction
scheduled for Sunday May 22 at Pizzaiolo Restaurant. In order to make
TUES., April 19 this event a financial success, we rely on you to seek and provide donations
PTA Meeting, 5:45PM – dinner for the auction. Please consider what services or talents you have that you
6:00PM - meeting
could donate, e.g., cooking, gardening, exercise, etc. You can help us seek
THURS., April 21 donations by asking local businesses if they will donate a service, a gift
English Learner Advisory certificate, or item. You can submit the completed donation form online
Committee Meeting, through the LeConte website (www.leconteonline.org) by April 30th. If
6:00PM, Room 106
you do not have internet access, you can pick up a donation form from
WED., April 27 Marie at the front desk. Ticket prices for the auction may be higher this
Science Night for all Families year, but, as in past years, volunteers may attend at a free or reduced rate.
Featuring activities provided
by Chabot Science Center In addition to this fundraiser, please note that some of our first grade
5:30PM – Pizza students have taken action to raise funds for the families in Japan. Some of
6:00PM – 8:00PM activities
Ms. Torres’s students asked for donations near Berkeley Bowl and raised
about $55! As a way of acknowledging the legacy of Cesar Chavez, the
THURS., April 28 internationally known civil rights activist, the first grade teachers are asking
Coalition of Families for their students to bring in coins to send to Japan. All families are encouraged
A-American Students Meeting
6:00PM, Library
to join this fundraising effort in honor of Cesar Chavez who was born on
March 31st. All BUSD schools have designated this day as a “Service
FRI., April 29 Learning Day.” It’s a time to work for the benefit of others.
Celebrate LeConte and
Day of the Child Assemblies As we come close to the end of the school year, there are still several
areas that need to be addressed and clarified and may need your input.
4th/5th Grade Filed Trip Please be sure to read the information included about the California
Julia Morgan Center Standards Test (CST), Communication with BUSD, Disaster Preparedness,
Focus Group Creating One TWI Elementary, Positive Discipline, Teacher’s
Please see the Calendar for the Professional Development Practice, and Truancy Letters.
full list of LeConte events.
Principal Wilson
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NOTICES:
SCHOOL WIDE EVENTS
California Standards Test (CST)
Beginning Monday, May 2, all second through fifth grade students will begin taking the California
Standards Test. Testing will begin each day by 8:30AM, therefore, it is very important that students
arrive to school on time, at 8:10AM so that they have a chance to settle down, center themselves, and
begin the test on time. All students who arrive late will be assigned to a kindergarten or first grade class
and will have to make up the test as soon as possible. We will provide breakfast and snacks during
testing. Please make sure your child goes to bed early and has at least 8 hours of sleep, and please
encourage your child to focus, listen to directions, and read all directions. This is not a timed test so
students should not rush through it. Your child’s classroom teacher will be sending home examples of the
types of questions that will be on the CST. If you would like to see the standards that are being tested and
the types of questions students will be asked, please visit this website, http://www.cde.ca.gov/index.asp,
search for testing and standards to see a copy of the grade level standards (what students are expected to
know) and then search for “release items” to see the types of test questions assessed.
Standards Test in Spanish (STS)
If your child is in grades two through eleven and meets either of the following criteria, he or she is
required to take the STS (Education Code Section 60640):
All Spanish-speaking English learners who receive instruction in Spanish (regardless of how long
they have been in school in the United States); or
All Spanish-speaking English learners who have been enrolled in a school in the United States for
less than 12 months (cumulative).
This test will be given the second or third week of May.
Disaster Preparedness
By now you should have received a memo and request to have your child bring an earthquake survival
packet and parent/guardian form to school. Though each classroom has a survival kit and our school has a
container filled with disaster required equipment, we want to make sure we have current contact
information for each student. We also want our students to have some sense of security by having her/his
own supply kit that contains nonperishable food that the student enjoys eating. The same forms that were
sent home last week are attached just to make sure you received the information. Please note that we have
earthquake and fire drills at least every other month. What we need to do now is have a complete disaster
drill that requires all staff and volunteers to practice their roles. We would like to have this drill before the
end of April, you will be notified of the exact date and asked to volunteer if you are available.
Focus Group on Creating One TWI Elementary School – See DISTRICT NEWS
Fourth grade field trip, Sierra Outdoor School, Sonora, May 18 – May 20
Four the past four years, our fourth grade students have gone to the Sierra Outdoor School to experience
aspects of California History and science in a natural setting. The cost for each student is $162 for the two
nights. Letters and permission slips will be sent to parents/guardians this week. We ask that all fourth
grade parents/guardians pay whatever they can afford toward the cost of the trip. If you are unable to pay
the total cost, please indicate on the form provided the amount you would like the school to pay. Please
make your checks payable to LeConte PTA.
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LeConte Calendar
Physical Education Classes
Since we have had so much rain, students have been having their PE classes inside the auditorium. This
works out fine for shelter but if students are not wearing rubber soles or tennis shoes the surface of the
floor can be slippery. Students do a lot of running during PE so it’s really important that they wear shoes
that allow for physical activity. Sandals, flip flops, shoes with open toes and heels are not appropriate for
PE and can be hazardous when students are playing during recess as well. We encourage you to have your
child wear closed toe, rubber soled shoes daily, or to have them available for the PE class. The schedule
of classes is attached.
Given the recent incidents of weapons on campus at Berkeley High, it is very important that our students
begin to learn and practice the skills to keep themselves safe now. When students attempt to solve
problems and conflicts with violence, it only leads to further violence and the potential for tragic
outcomes. We are teaching the Kidpower strategies now to help our young students learn how to respond
to aggressive behavior and offensive words because these are the two types of acts that often lead to
fighting.
We ask the students to do the same things they should do when they feel threatened by an older person or
adult. We want them to shout for help, run or walk away, tell someone they are in danger, go to a safe
place to get help or, if possible, ignore the aggressor. When a student takes actions into her/his own hands
and chooses to fight, then s/he may be suspended. Students are considered to be defending themselves
when they have been physically restrained or backed into a corner by one or more students. Once the
student has gotten away, the student must seek help. “I hit her or him because s/he hit me first” is not
considered defending one’s self, especially if the injury was minimal or there were adults available
to intervene. Please help your child to learn and practice the Kidpower skills. If you need additional
information these programs, please contact your child’s teacher.
As a result, teachers have begun to use their peers as resources for monitoring students’ progress in
reading. All teachers identified at least four students to focus on. They set and evaluated learning goals
for those students over a period of four months. At least once a month, they met to discuss their students’
progress and later spent an entire day observing their peers teach lessons. The peer observations were
used to help teachers understand how their focal students were responding to instruction. After each
observation, teachers meet to discuss findings and exchange strategies to improve the engagement of
focal students and implementation of the reading program. A team of teachers known as the Leadership
Team and our literacy coach, Susan Katz, have both been instrumental in leading this on-going process.
This collaborative work has provided more accessible avenues for team teaching and for all teachers
taking responsibility for all students which is the goal of a Professional Learning Community.
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Truancy Letters
If you received a letter in the mail about your child being truant, it means that your child was absent for
three or more days or your child was over 30 minutes late three or more times. These letters are
automatically printed every month. All schools are required to send these letters to families to inform the
parent or guardian of the concern about students missing instruction and to remind families to submit a
note or call the secretary or teacher whenever the child is ill. If your child missed school because s/he was
ill, please submit a note again and please give it directly to our school secretary, Marie. If your child was
absent because s/he was on independent study, then please ignore the letter until the issue about the
Independent Study Program has been resolved. To date, the use of independent study to document an
absence is still unclear.
Also, please note that our school loses up to $35 per day each time students are absent. Attendance is
especially crucial since we rely on the State to support our district’s budget.
It should be noted that the Kidpower and Welcoming Schools are two new programs introduced this year.
A description of all three programs is attached. The next SGC meeting will be devoted to discussing and
setting goals for the 2011- 2012 School Site Plan.
PTA General Meeting, next meeting: April 19, 5:45 dinner, meeting 6:00
There was no general meeting held in March.
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LeConte Calendar
PTA fundraising opportunities to help our school include:
Great America fundraiser: 50% of purchase goes to support LeConte
Chinook Books - $20 book of coupons to use around the East Bay at green businesses with $10
per book sold going to LeConte. Chinook Books may be purchased at the LeConte office (check
or cash).
Berkeley Bowl (BB) Scrip (Gift Certificates). LeConte PTA earns 4% of every sale! They are
available in $20 denominations. LeConte PTA earns over $2000 a year from these sales. You can
buy BB scrip from Gloria Park (wearing jester hat) on Friday mornings or leave a check (made
payable to LeConte PTA) or cash for her with our school secretary Marie, anytime. You can also
reach Gloria at 510-517-7133 or gloriapark@post.harvard.edu. If you shop at BB, please take this
extra step to support our school!
Escrip.com. You can sign up with Escrip.com and earn money for LeConte whenever you use
your registered credit or debit cards at participating vendors. You can also register your Macy’s
and Safeway cards on Escrip to earn money every time you use these cards. Get your friends and
family anywhere to register on Escrip.com! LeConte ID # 137116693. If you need help, call or
email Gloria Park at 510-517-7133 or gloriapark@post.harvard.edu.
Whole Foods Gift Card program. For each $100 gift card purchased through the PTA, the PTA
earns $4.00. If you regularly shop at Whole Foods, this seemly small contribution can add up to a
significant amount for LeConte. Please purchase your cards (in $100 denominations) from Peter
Shelton at morning line-up. Peter will wear his black and white checkered hat. Cash or checks
made out to LeConte PTA, please. Any questions, please contact Peter at
Peter@PeterSheltonLaw.com or at 510-529-5483.
English Learner Advisory Committee (ELAC) next meeting: Thursday, April 21st
6:00PM
The ELAC meeting will now be held at 6:00PM so that members can participate in the exhilarating
Zumba class in our auditorium. If you want to lose weight or just learn a few dance moves, you should
certainly attend a Zumba class; ask any ELAC member and they will tell you more about what you’re
missing.
The members are now in the process of discussing and finalizing plans for recognition of the Day of the
Child. Our ELAC members have sponsored an event for the past four years to honor children. If you
would like to assist with this event, please contact Gazel Valdez, the ELAC chairperson,
Members also discussed concerns about low enrollment in the TWI program. It appears that the only way
we can get more Spanish speaking students is by reaching and educating families during the summer
time. Early outreach will help with getting families enrolled by February 2012. Families need to know
and understand that being bilingual offers significant advantages for students’ career opportunities in
addition to their ability to preserve and maintain strong connections to Latino culture. Ultimately, we
need a committee who is willing to organize for recruitment over the summer if we want to increase
enrollment in the TWI program.
Coalition of Families for African American Students next meeting: Thursday, April 28 6:00PM
March 24th meeting was postponed to March 31st. Minutes were not available in time for this
Lamppost.
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DISTRICT NEWS
Berkeley School Safety
Last week, students brought weapons to Berkeley High that were discovered by staff members.
Thankfully, no one was injured; however, the situation was very frightening and unsettling. In response to
this incident, BUSD is putting in place several action steps to improve safety. One of those steps you need
to be aware of is the telephone hotline. An anonymous tip telephone hotline to report weapons on campus
has been created. Students and families can call 1-866-SPEAK UP (1-866-773-2587). For more detailed
information about the incident and action steps go to http://berkeley.net/safety/
GENERAL INFORMATION
Attendance—REMINDER!!!
As you may know, schools receive funding based on the number of students who attend each day. The
amount per child is between $32 and $35 dollars. Though the amount may appear small, it adds up when
several students are absent throughout the school. Within the guidelines of the State, students must arrive
at school on time to be counted as present. Therefore, it is not only important that your child come to
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LeConte Calendar
school but also that your child be on time. When you make doctor or dentist appointments for your child,
please try to make the appointment after 9:30AM, so that your child can be counted as attending school.
Also, please write a note or contact your child’s teacher to explain all absences. Our school secretary is
required to maintain and turn in notices of all excused absences. Finally, please note that you will
automatically receive a “truancy” letter if your child is chronically 30 minutes late to school meaning s/he
arrived at 8:41AM or later. If the pattern continues, three letters will be sent home and then the parent or
guardian will be required to attend a Student Attendance Review Meeting at the site and then district
level.
Communication
Our school bulletin, the Lamppost, will be sent home on or near the first Monday of every month along
with other school and classroom announcements. You can obtain weekly updates on email by going
online, www.leconteonline.org, and signing up. We have two moderated email groups – one for
announcements only, and one for “announcements plus discussion.” To join either group, please visit our
website, www.leconteonline.org, and follow the links on the right side of the home page. We also have an
“all-call” system to notify you by telephone of any emergencies, special requests, and reminders. You can
reach your child’s teacher by telephone or email. Teachers should be sending home written information at
least once a month or contacting you by telephone.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
African American Heritage Event and Quilt Raffle
Several families and students worked hard to make this event successful by supporting the
potluck and the performances and selling raffle tickets. As a result, students and families raised
$11,085. Students and families in third grade alone sold 2,162 tickets!
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News from Room 207
Lucy Montgomery and Matilda Hallowell have decided to write a student newsletter! It includes
important dates, announcements, suggestions to improve our school, book reviews, “Do it
Yourself” mathematics problems, etc. The girls even interviewed one of our staff members, Jan
Chef, and included Jan’s remarks in their newsletter. We are recognizing them for taking
initiative. You never know what actions or what input leads to further development of a specific
talent or skill. Please help us encourage all of our students to feel free to bring their creative
ideas to school for exposure and support. Stay tuned, one day Lucy and Matilda may be on your
local television network reporting the news or editing books and writing the world’s history!
Flyers Attached
Deborah Underwood flyer
April School Menu
PE Schedule
Photo
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LeConte Calendar
LeCONTE CALENDAR
APRIL 1 – APRIL 30
Updated LeConte News & Calendar: www.leconteonline.org
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
28 29 30 31 April 1 2
Lamppost sent
home
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
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LeConte felicita a sus...
ESTUDIANTES DEL MES
(determinado por los maestros del salón)
Vea sus fotos y certificados en el tablón de Estudiantes del mes
LeConte congratulates its...
STUDENTS OF THE MONTH
(Determined by the classroom teacher)
See their pictures and certificates on the Student of the Month bulletin board
Teachers/ Students/Estudiantes
Maestros
Ms. Aguas Christian Benavides and Aaliyah Harris
Ms. Anderson Abraham Gebreyesus, Claudia Johnson, and Joaquin Solis
Mr. Argueta Ja’von Brooks, Diego Ibarra, Travon Hendrix, and
Rigoberto “Naruto” Orozco
Ms. Barer Valentina Cheng, Maggie Fern, Riley Low, Alenna Silva,
Jasmin Weller, and Brooke Weller
Ms. Blanchard Emily Diaz, Teaira Hendrix, Sepideh Kiumarsi, and
Lizbeth Milian
Ms. Citrin To be determined
Ms. Cross Reem Hassounat, Carlos Estrada Luna, Daisy Bermudez
Pardones, Primo Luna Munoz, Christian Itzep Pastor, Jesus
Guerrero, Iyassu Allen, and Selim Bourdoud
Ms. Gearring Jean Harvey, Isabel Labra, Mikayla Shenkel, and Saad
Waqia
Mr. Henderson Amyah Molina and Steven Wilson
Ms. Horwitz Sophia Gaal, Matilda Hallowell, and
Alejandro Flores-Ortega
Ms. Lewis & Musaab Aldabashi, Kaylee Aguirre, Ayesha Khan, Marku
Ms. Easton Atzin Lechuga, Daisy Garcia Orozco, and Aidan Waters
Ms. Logan Lilah Fraser, Kian Lenihan, and Sebastian Martinez
Ms. Louie Maya Beyer, Ophelia Johnson, and Mahnoor Nadeem
Ms. Perez Areli Jimenez, Jarrett Lopez-
Ms. Torres To be determined
Ms. Trinh Frank Forsman, Nasiya McCoy, and Einar Storvestr-
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