Bobcat Strong Tracker

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March 3 - Read-a-Thon- Last Day!

March 3 - End of Trimester 2

March 13 - Auditions for School Musical: Shrek Jr., 3-6pm in Multi

March 17 -

• Social Media Safety presentation/discussion facilitated by Claire Griffin, our District Psychologist and Captain Krauss, LAPD, 9am in Multi

March 22-24- International Week

March 24 - International Festival, 4:30-7:30, blacktop

April 10-14 Spring Break

April 22- Junior Olympics 4-6th Grade- More details to come!

March has come and I can not believe how fast this year is going! People say March is the longest month of the year but with so many events, I feel it will be fast and fun!

Remember TOMORROW Read-a-thon ends so get all your minutes and pledges in now! I can't wait to see which class gets to silly string me for bringing in the most pledges!

Check out all of the great things happening here this month…

• Read-a-thon ends, March 3rd

• Auditions for the School Musical Shrek Jr., March 13 - 3-6pm in Multi

• Social Media Safety presentation/discussion facilitated by Claire Griffin, one of our District Psychologists and Captain Krauss, LAPD, March 17th 9am in Multi
  

• International Presentations in class, March 22-23

• International Gala, March 24 4:30-7:00 on the Blacktop - Food, Dances and Fun!

• Preparation is under way for Junior Olympics which takes place on Saturday, April 22nd.

• The new LASD Co-Ed Basketball League for 3rd-6th graders begins later this month.

I am so grateful for the work our dedicated PTA has done to build and strengthen our school community. I hope I am fortunate enough to see many of you at some of the aforementioned events.

Please see below for some more important information.

Wishing you a wonderful evening!

Kelly Rafferty

Principal, Santa Rita Elementary

We are excited to announce the return of school musical to Santa Rita! This year's musical will be Shrek The Musical, Jr. and will be open to 3rd - 6th graders up to the first 45 students who register. Auditions will take place on March 13, 3-6pm in Multi. Registration information and further details will be provided in a separate announcement!

The Read-a-thon ends Friday, March 3! There is still time left to log extra reading minutes and reach out to family and friends for support!

REGISTER HERE: https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/r/fyMMUZ/1

Our prizes this year are:

Reading Prizes:

• 1000 Minutes: Sweet Shop gift card for $5 and entry into the Grand Prize drawing for a choice of a Kindle Paperwhite or $100 Amazon gift card!

Fundraising Prizes:

• $100-$250: Linden Tree gift card for $10
• $251-$399: Target gift card for $20
• $400+: Amazon gift card for $40 PLUS entry into grand prize drawing!

Participation prizes: Santa Rita Magnetic Bookmark

School-wide fundraising prizes:

$10k: Extra pajama day for the school

$15k: Principal Rafferty will dress in whacky blow up costume for school day

$25k: Class who raises the most gets to silly string Principal Rafferty

$30k: Bucket of ice water dumped on Principal Rafferty by the class teacher that raised the most

Grand Prize Drawing:

Choice between Kindle Paperwhite or $100 Amazon Gift Card

Your involvement in the Read-a-thon will help your child develop a lasting love of reading. We hope each one of you will activate your child’s personal page the day your child brings home their paperwork from their teacher.

For any questions, please send an email to amber@santaritapta.org

Get ready for an exciting week of celebration and cultural diversity at our school! International Week is just around the corner, and we have planned an array of engaging activities to showcase the richness of our diverse community.

Our Kinder - 6th-grade students will hold their Santa Rita "passports" to visit a few countries and learn about the different cultures from around the world presented by our upper graders and parents.

Families are invited to join our International Festival on Friday, March 24 from 4:30 - 7:00 pm on the Blacktop. We will host a delightful potluck featuring cuisine from different regions. Don't forget to dress up in your traditional or heritage attire for our parade, where you and your child can showcase your culture's vibrant and colorful clothing. And what better way to celebrate cultural diversity than through dance? We'll be hosting an international dance session, where you can watch our grade level and small group dances from different corners of the globe.

Mark your calendars for the International Festival, and come together with our school community to celebrate the rich tapestry of our diverse world. See you there!

More information regarding potluck and volunteer signup will come next week!

In the event of a major earthquake we can assume that electricity and wifi may go down. Therefore, we will use our SMS system to communicate with the community. Essentially a text messaging system that goes directly to your cell phone, SMS requires parents to opt into it to receive texts from the school. We also use the SMS system to send occasional reminders (like on minimum-day dismissals).

You can participate in this free service (standard message and data rates may apply) just by sending a text message of “Y” or “Yes” to our school’s short code number, 67587. You can also opt out of these messages at any time by simply replying to one of our messages with “Stop”.

Let’s finish the job! We still need $300K to fully fund this school year. If you have yet to give, donate to LAEF today! Gifts of any amount are appreciated

Join LAEF as a Board Member
In as little as 5 hours a month, you can impact the education of all students in our school district. The LAEF Board is made up of dedicated parents from every LASD school, who lead the strategic, fundraising, and organizational goals of LAEF. We are currently looking for new LAEF Board representatives for the 2023-24 school year to represent Almond, Gardner Bullis, and Oak. We are also recruiting for a CFO from any LASD school. Learn more about these volunteer positions and contact admin@laefonline.org today!

Save the Date
Mark your calendar for Sunday, May 7th at 4 pm and plan to join us at the LASD Community Festival. There’ll be food and fun for your family and friends. Stay tuned for the full scoop!

As we wrap up National Children's Dental Month, the Local Oral Health Program (LOHP) invites you to join and share the Happy Teeth Fair event details with your communities. In collaboration with partners, the LOHP is hosting the upcoming dental health event, “Happy Teeth Fair” which will include:

• Health education booths
• Children’s activities
• Free dental screenings for young children
• Award certificates to children who complete their Kindergarten Oral Health Assessment (KOHA) requirement for entering school
• And much, much more!

Stop by to visit with County Supervisor Cindy Chavez, one of our County’s leading advocates for children’s oral health. We hope to see you at the Happy Teeth Fair at Valley Health Center, Tully Clinic (500 Tully Road, San Jose) on March 16th from 12:30-4:00 P.M.

Visit the newly launched LOHP website for more dental health information: https://publichealth.sccgov.org/health-information/oral-health

Living Classroom is seeking volunteers to teach our fun nature-based lessons and help care for our school gardens. No experience necessary as we teach you everything you need to know. Please join us from 9-Noon on Mondays 3/6, 3/13, and 3/27 at the LASD iLearn Studio to training on our spring lessons that take place April through June. Can’t make Mondays? Ask us about our apprentice-style training. Questions? Contact Living Classroom Program Coordinator Caroline Chan at livingclassroom@lasdschools.org or call (650) 947-1103. Check us out at LivingClassroomLASD.org!

Living Classroom Spring Docent Training

9-Noon Mondays 3/6, 3/13 & 3/27

Los Altos School District iLearn Studio

201 Covington Road, Los Altos CA 94024

We have been asked to duplicate our successful Fall CO-ED Flag Football format with a Co-Ed Spring Basketball program for years, and we finally did it! Our basketball program starts on March 13. Each school will have two Co-Ed teams, one for 3rd/4th grade and one for 5th/6th grades, just like our Flag Football program.

The Basketball league will focus on the game's Fun & Fundamentals while allowing student-athletes to play with their friends and compete for their school against other LASD school teams.

Games and practices will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays, after school until 5:00. Practices begin March 13th, and our season will end with a Championship tournament on Saturday, May 20th.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER NOW!

Also, we are seeking volunteer parent coaches for each team!

Our new Universal Meals program will be available for a Grab and Go breakfast between 8:10-8:25, from our new Servery Window (By the lunch tables near the Multi) and eat at the tables. If they do not finish, they can save it until recess time.

• Monthly Menus will be published on the Santa Rita school website

If you have a special diet please email santaritasecretary@lasdschools.org and ask for a form to fill out. Please review the menu with your student. NUTRITION SERVICES FAQ - If you have questions, please add them to this document.

Email: krafferty@lasdschools.org
Website: https://www.santaritaschool.org
Location: 700 Los Altos Avenue, Los Altos, CA, USA
Phone: (650)559-1600
Facebook: santaritaPTA
Twitter: @BobcatsSR