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Dear Ocean Shore Families, Happy Friday! I hope you have a great weekend. This week, our 6th graders enjoyed an overnight field trip to Calistoga! I shared some highlights below. We were excited to welcome them home. Next week, I hope to see you on Wednesday evening for a family night of celebrating reading. The details are posted HERE. Join for a fun night of reading activities and workshops for parents for our annual READATHON. This event is hosted and facilitated by our fantastic Ocean Shore faculty. This is a great way to share the excitement of reading with our kids and learn about how you can encourage your child to read or gain deeper levels of understanding. I hope to see you there! Reflections From My Office: As you know, this week we participated in a safety drill as part of the Great California Shakeout. I can’t tell you how impressed I was with our students and staff who responded so promptly and took great care to follow the “Drop, Cover and Hold On” protocol. It was apparent to all of the staff how our students took the occasion to handle the drill with great intention. The school was evacuated quickly and we assembled in an orderly fashion. I was very proud of our school! We were fortunate to have some visitors with us for the drill, which included our Superintendent Dr. Olsen and Pacifica Police Department Officer MacDonald. These drills always bring to mind the matter of student safety. I don’t know about you, but it seems like there seems to be a lot of scary things happening in our world today. From natural disasters like earthquakes and wildfires to school shootings, our school community faces important questions about how to best prepare for the unthinkable events. As a staff, we have talked about how we can direct their conversations in appropriate ways to make children feel comfortable in the midst of uncertainty. We will continue to practice different drills throughout the year, and look for ways to share this training with parents. I was reminded of a time from my childhood when I witnessed my first natural disaster. Last fall, I had the opportunity to visit my parents back in Wisconsin to do one of our favorite things together – watch a football game together! We went to see the University of Wisconsin Badgers play against Northwestern. My dad has been a season ticket holder since he graduated from UW-Madison in the 1960s. He has been attending every game since, and I have been going with him from the time I could first walk. Driving to game, we passed the small town of Baraboo, Wisconsin. In 1984, the town suffered terrible damage from an F5 tornado. My family had recently moved to Madison and we had planned a camping trip in the area the day after the tornado struck. My parents were faced with the decision to avoid the area and topic, or drive through the town and embrace the natural disaster. They chose the latter. I still remember the flattened buildings and the absence of trees. Though I am sure it was hard for my parents to explain, they gave my brother and I a chance to explore our emotions related to this scary event. Letting us feel stressed allowed us to work through feelings with them in a safe environment was exactly the learning opportunity we needed. We did not stop talking about the event after we drove away. For days after, we talked about the heroic events that occurred and how the community came together to help one another. It was an incredibly valuable experience. Last year driving by the Baraboo exit, I reflected on how my parents handled the scary situation. I thanked them for giving us that opportunity to experience the trauma with their guidance, as it helped me years down the road. In light of our recent drill, I asked all of our students to go home to discuss your family’s disaster plan. I would like to share with you a few resources that you might find useful to help adults guide children to better understand trauma. http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/aftermath.aspx http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/talking-to-children.aspx https://store.samhsa.gov/shin/content/KEN01-0093R/KEN01-0093R.pdf Here are some pictures from our emergency drill:   Staff Makin’ Waves: We are fortunate to have such a strong team of educators and support staff on our special education and mental health team. One staff member, Lucy, has been invaluable to our students. She works with many different students on individual assignments and projects, applying different levels of support for each child. She is able to be supportive, flexible with changing schedules and keeps a positive attitude. Juli Chang, our 2nd grade Ocean Shore teacher, just returned from the weekend conference to CUE (Computer Using Educators). Juli is our district innovation and technology lead for our school, and we are grateful for her insight. At CUE, she created a Sketch Note and posted in on Twitter. The lead presenter was math mindset researcher and author, Dr. Jo Boaler from Stanford. She retweeted Juli’s image on her Twitter post, and I thought I would share this with you. Pretty cool to see our teachers get the recognition they deserve from some of the education field’s leading experts! Here is a picture from Jo Boaler's feed (I recommend following her on Twitter!):  Parents Makin’ Waves (Shared From a Parent to All Parents!): We are grateful for the dedication from one of our grandparent volunteers. Renee started running the library since her grandson was in kindergarten (he's 8th grade now). She volunteers full-time and has done a patient and great job in training our current librarian aide since January 2016. She is a pleasure to work with, is dependable and hardworking. We don't know what we would do without her. Student Safety Updates: New Curbs Painted! We are excited to see some of our curbs around our campus get the attention it needs! With the encouragement of a dedicated Ocean Shore parent Jordan Steele Be-Dell, an engineer from the city of Pacifica visited the streets around our school and made some recommendations for new signage and painting. The curbs have been painted to improve driving patterns, making our routes to school safer! Help Your Child Arrive Safely To School! Unfortunately, one of the safety hazards around schools are the drop-off line. All to often, some parents exhibit poor driving behaviors that breaks traffic laws and compromises student safety. These behaviors usually occur in the final few minutes before the bell rings to start school. Many times, schools have more of “get to school with a few extra minutes” need rather than an improved traffic flow need. I wish to illustrate a few Do’s and Dont’s as it relates to dropping off your child for school. In the Circle Drop-Off Area! DO:
From the Front Office: Arrive to school on Time! School starts at 8:22. If your child arrives late, please remember to have them sign in at the office even if they think their teacher has not taken attendance yet. Be mindful of how a student arriving late disrupts the classroom routine. It is important that they have a tardy pass, as this helps us accurately record attendance and prevent the automatic call going home. Reflections from the 6th Grade Field Trip: I received a great recap of the 6th grade trip from one of our teachers, Katy. I wish to share some highlights with you! Here was an excerpt from Katy’s update: Our first stop was the Solar Living Center in Hopland. This place is undergoing major changes in its goals and purpose. We were very lucky to be given our tour by the owner of the property. (This was the first time I have met him since I started bringing kids here over 15 years ago.) He has been the owner since the land was a state facilities dump 40 years ago. Now it is an award-winning model of sustainable living and alternative energy. We saw a small house being built of mushrooms, another made of hemp cement, an astronomical calendar, and a 35000 strong beehive. The kids climbed through a metal tube, saw trees growing from cars, created electricity from stationary bikes, and fed the fish. Then we were off to the Petrified Forest where our very knowledgeable guides talked to us about volcanoes, fossilization, trees and other plants, mineralization, lava, birds, and the history of this privately owned facility, which includes Robert Louis Stevenson. We also discovered that Calistoga is undergoing extended blackouts (no power) because of the high fire danger. Unfortunately this means we cannot make a campfire. The kids did a great job setting up the tents and campsite. The cooks made a very tasty spaghetti dinner. Then we listened to five of the kids group reports on alternative energies. I am with a really great bunch of kids and wonderful parents. After a noisy and excited settling into the tents and all is now calm. From the PTO Corner: Check Out the Different Fundraisers! Click here to see the ways you can support our school with fundraising opportunities! READATHON! Welcome to Ocean Shore School's 10th Annual Readathon! Theme: Wild About Reading! Let your imagination run WILD! When: October 1st thru October 31st Why: To raise money for field trips while building literacy skills How:
From PEF Corner: SUPPORT PEF! The Pacifica Education Foundation (PEF) is taking education to new heights. They completely fund educational programs which exceed California’s core school standards; which our district budget cannot accommodate. Simply, PEF funds, advances, and protects a higher quality education for OUR students. Learn more, here. PEF SPONSORED PROGRAMS: - Elementary School Music Program - Middle School Band Program (Music Matters in Pacifica - MMIP) - Middle School Computer Science Program - Elementary School Slam Poetry Program (SPARC - Stage Performance + Rhythmic Culture - Poetry) - Professional Science Curriculum Development & Training For Teachers (Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)) Learn more, here. GIVE BACK! PEF gives our children an enriched educational experience. Give back to PEF and don’t forget your employer-sponsored donation matching too! Give back or donate here. UPCOMING PEF EVENTS: - PEFATHON: Mark Your Calendars - Oct. 28th - Run & Walk to support our school! Races for all ages, Fitness Fair, Awards, Prizes and much more! See the attachment on this newsletter; or click here. -http://www.pacificaef.org/givingNEW MEMBERSHIP PLANS: Membership provides you tickets and/or discounted access to fun annual family events, supporter decals, and much more. Learn more, here. - LISTEN & LEARN: PEF Ambassadors will be onsite at PTO events. You can volunteer to help us here. HOW CAN I HELP? - Volunteers needed, here. - Like & Follow PEF on Facebook, here. - Reach Out to our PEF Ambassadors, below:
NEXT WEEK HAPPENINGS! October 24th from 5:30-7:30 pm: Wild Night of Reading for All Ocean Shore Families! In the spirit of Readathon, Ocean Shore families are invited to come for an evening of celebrating literacy! See the Flyer HERE: Wild Night of Reading Details! October 28th: PEFathon! See the flyer below to register today! Yearbooks are on Sale! Our middle school staff will be working hard to preserve your memories. Don't let these memories pass you by, order yours today online visit: www.treering.com/validate (private OSS passcode: 1014115995473789. If you have any questions contact tanyaguido@comcast.net UPCOMING EVENTS: HALLOWEEN FALL PARADE and POD DAY: 8:30 K-1st Parade: Starting in the Kinder hall, the students will snake through the hall, pick up the first graders, will go through the rest of the halls, so that the other classes can come out and see them. Then they will go outside and do one lap and take photos, etc. 10:30 – 11:30 Fall POD Activities: If you wish to volunteer, we can always use the help! Contact your child’s teacher for details. 11:35-12:30 LUNCH and Costume Change. Lunch will be eaten in the classrooms with time to change into costumes. 11:35 K-2 11:45 3-5 11:55 6-8 12:30 2-8th Grade Parade Outside. B wing will lead, followed by C, then D, then E. Circle yard twice, then pictures, etc. Minimum Day dismissal!!! THE FALL BOOK FAIR IS COMING! SUPPORT YOUR SCHOOL LIBRARY AND GET YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING DONE EARLY! Dates open: Thursday, November 8th – Thursday, November 15th PURCHASE BOOKS and support our Library. Our Library gets a percentage of the book fair sales. Every dollar spent is important as it goes directly to the purchase of library materials! Teachers will also have book wish lists if you would like to gift a book to a classroom. HELP RUN THE BOOK FAIR - Volunteers Needed! We need help with: Set up - Wed. November 7th from 8:00 a.m.- to completion 2-hour shifts: 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. all days (Thurs. 11/8 through until break down) Break down - Thursday, November 15th from 3:00-5:00 p.m. If you are able to help, please sign up on the sign-up sheet in the Parent Hallway. Thank you very much for your support in building great readers!! Weekly Flyers: Comments are closed.
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Jeanne BellingerPrincipal of Ocean Shore. Check back here for weekly updates and messages from the principal. Archives
June 2022
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