Notes From Oak

Principal Message

We are well into our first week and already there is so much happening. This year we are working on a few key areas - one is pulling all the pieces together around our students’ Social and Emotional Learning. Here are some ways we are addressing the needs at Oak School.

Our staff has been trained in Responsive Classroom.

The Responsive Classroom approach to teaching consists of a set of well-designed practices intended to create safe, joyful, and engaging classroom and school communities. The emphasis is on helping students develop their academic, social, and emotional skills in a learning environment that is developmentally responsive to their strengths and needs. In this approach, we use the following guiding principles: Cooperation, Assertiveness, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self-Control.

Last year, with the help of our School Site Council, we developed “The Cougar Way” Matrix to address these principles throughout the school. We took input from students, staff, and parents in the process. The result is “The Cougar Way.” This is how we do things at Oak School. Staff is explicitly teaching these principles to students and providing examples as to how they look in different settings across the school. Over the course of the next two months, we will be working on Responsibility and directly instructing how that looks in the classrooms, hallways, bathrooms, and on the playground. We will share examples of how this is happening at Oak School through our Notes From Oak and on our website.

In addition this year, we are providing training for our sixth-grade students in Expect Respect. Developed by Project CornerStone, with the goal of empowering students to combat bullying and peer abuse, Expect Respect helps students from different social groups work together to find common ground and create a “new normal” for their school where all students are accepted and supported by their peers. This diverse group is open to all and explores the roots of bullying and strategies to combat it. Expect Respect participants provide school-wide leadership in the promotion of respectful treatment of peers and the reduction of bullying.

This week, our sixth-grade students went through the training and can now volunteer on the playground to use conflict resolution skills to help resolve conflicts, support positive play and build relationships with students Kindergarten through 5th grade.

I will continue to update our community about Expect Respect as this program develops over the course of the year. I am excited to provide an opportunity for our sixth graders to demonstrate leadership and become more actively involved in the school.

Dear Oak Community--

We hope you are settling into the school routine. As you get back into the swing of making and ordering lunches, helping with homework, sports practices, and everything else that goes with the start of the school year, don’t forget to take a moment to fill out the Back To School forms. This is the best opportunity to join the PTA, sign up for the Birthday Book program, leave a special birthday wish for your child on the Marquee, and order a yearbook. This is also a chance to make a difference in providing the supplies, books, computers, and so much more that benefit our kids every day!

Save the date!

Our first PTA meeting will be Wednesday, September 11, at 7:00 pm in the Oak Multi. In addition to our regular PTA business, a member of the LASD board will be there to update us on the Community engagement process for facilities. She will provide a short presentation from LASD regarding facilities history and scenarios that have been considered by the LASD Board, as well as hold a short Q&A. You will also learn about upcoming charrettes and workshops, which are opportunities to provide your ideas and input into potential facilities options.

For more information visit the LASD website’s Community Engagement webpage.

Light refreshments will be provided.

PTA Highlights

One of the questions we hear most frequently is “Where does my PTA donation go?” While the answer to that question is too long for a weekly newsletter, we will provide monthly highlights of your PTA gifts at work.

While most of us were enjoying our summer break, your generous gifts to the Oak PTA:

• Provided new furniture and flexible seating to several classrooms

• Provided professional development for 10 teachers, including Responsive Classroom training, early literacy, and Dynamic Mindfulness

• Re-established our contract with Recess101

• Purchased software and app subscriptions for enhanced learning

Thank you for your generous support!

Our Lifesavers this week are…

Lee Yazdani and Elaine Bernard who work tirelessly in the front office keeping Oak running. Thank you for all you do!

Kristin Morris for getting our schedule of hot lunch volunteers set up and ready to go in record time to ensure our kids get their lunches every day.

Sara Payne

Oak PTA President

oakptapresidents@lasdschools.org

Are you looking for convenient after-school activities for your child? Look no further! There are many amazing enrichment programs available after school right here at Oak, with something for all grades, K-6.

You’ll find many RETURNING ENRICHMENT FAVORITES like Art, Chorus, Cooking, Chess, Debate, Fashion Design, Hindi, Mathletes, Science Made Fun, Spanish, and Wizbots, as well as a wide variety of athletic classes, such as Tennis and Hoops. New classes this year include Code With Us and Run for Fun!

Don't miss out on these fun classes! More information and links to register online can be found on the Oak enrichment webpage: http://www.oakschool.org/oakavenue/7034-Oak-Enrichment-Programs.html.