Friday, January 27, 2017

Newsletter, January 27, 2017

Principal’s Message


Dear Friends and Families of Los Ranchos,


As you know, we are implementing our first year of a new reading curriculum. Most recently students have been developing new strategies to read informational texts. In first grade one strategy that readers are learning is how to study books like writers. This is a beautiful link to the informational writing they are doing. In second grade, students are learning to read across texts, noticing similarities and differences on the same topic. And in third grade, students are taking time to pause and revise their thinking about the main idea. Books in third grade frequently have more than one main idea. The work becomes more difficult as their books grow in complexity.  
We hope you are having some opportunities to see these powerful strategies in practice at home!
Have a lovely weekend.
Sincerely,
Marlie Schmidt  


Upcoming Dates
  • Coffee Talk, Social Media for Parents, Library, Friday, February 3rd at 8:30 a.m.
  • Dental Screening for Kindergarten and 3rd and 5th Gr Students, Tuesday, February 7th
  • Family Night -Children’s Author Alexis O’Neill - Wednesday, February 8th
(Buy pizza from the PTA at 5:30, Author at 5:45pm)
  • No School, Lincoln’s Birthday, Monday, February 13th
  • No School, President’s Day, Monday, February 20th
  • Minimum Days - Thursday and Friday, February 23-24


Coffee Talk
Please join us for an informal “Coffee Talk” with Eileen Calandro of Calandro Consulting.  In this comfortable setting, Eileen will answer your questions, listen to your concerns, and offer solutions for issues you may be having with your students about Social Media. We hope you can join us! Friday, February 3, 2017 8:30-9:30am in the Los Ranchos Library.


YMCA NEWS!!
We are excited to announce that the YMCA will be offering morning care from 7:30-8:30 Tuesday through Friday. The enrollment is officially open and we will have our first morning on Wednesday, February 1st. You can register online by following this link: Los Ranchos YMCA.


If you have any questions about the morning program or the YMCA please feel free to call at 544-7225.


PTA Thank you!
We would like to thank Jeannette Saenz for organizing our first monthly restaurant fundraiser at The Habit. We had 60 tickets and it brought in $253! Thank you to all the families who attended. It was fun to see the restaurant filled with Los Ranchos faces. Please stay tuned for next month's restaurant.


Author’s Visit
We will be having an author visit and literacy night with author Alexis O’Neill on Wednesday, February 8th, sponsored by our PTA. During the day she will be presenting lively, highly interactive assemblies to all grades to engage students in reading and writing with their whole bodies. She will also be presenting writing workshops for some of the upper grade classes. The evening family night will focus on literacy, literature, and the importance of reading together as a family..  She will be available to personally sign any of her books you bring with you to the family night event. We hope you can join us on Wednesday, February 8th from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m..  




Sweetheart
Dance
Saturday, February 11th, 5:00-6:30 PM
San Luis Obispo High School would like to invite all elementary school girls and their father-figure to our Annual Sweetheart Dance! This would be a fantastic time for daughters to connect and share a memorable experience with their father-figures. Music and goodies will be provided, as well as a photo booth for FREE priceless mementos.
Tickets:
$10 Per Couple +$2 additional Daughter
*Tickets will be sold at the door of the SLOHS New Gym

         

Friday, January 20, 2017

Newsletter, January 20, 2017

Principal’s Message


Dear Friends and Families of Los Ranchos,
We had another exciting week of weather! We were fortunate to have clear-ish skies during lunch recess. Students found new ways to play on the blacktop. The creative thinking was impressive!


In my last newsletter I mentioned how fortunate we are to have the folks from our local Amazon office lead an after school Coding Club. We are looking forward to this partnership.  Today we celebrated another partnership between Los Ranchos Elementary and Sunrun Inc. Sunrun sponsored an essay contest for our sixth graders in early December. The challenge was to write an essay about the importance of renewable energy and ways to make our planet run by the sun. The prize was a full scholarship to Outdoor Camp. Many students embraced the challenge.  I understand it took 10 people to choose the winners. I want to thank all our sixth graders who gave it their best thinking. Congratulations to the winning essay writers: Ashley Sirois, Jude Shin and AJ Garcia. Many thanks to Sunrun for providing this opportunity to our students.


It sounds like we are going to have a curl-up with a book kind of weekend. Happy reading!
Sincerely,
Marlie Schmidt  


Upcoming Dates
  • Coffee Talk, Social Media for Parents, Library, Friday, February 3rd at 8:30 a.m.
  • Dental Screening for Kindergarten and 3rd and 5th Gr Students, Tuesday, February 7th
  • Family Night -Children’s Author Alexis O’Neill - Wednesday, February 8th
(Buy pizza from the PTA at 5:30, Author at 5:45pm)
  • No School, Lincoln’s Birthday, Monday, February 13th
  • No School, President’s Day, Monday, February 20th

Author’s Visit
We will be having an author visit and literacy night with author Alexis O’Neill on Wednesday, February 8th, sponsored by our PTA. During the day she will be presenting lively, highly interactive assemblies to all grades to engage students in reading and writing with their whole bodies. She will also be presenting writing workshops for some of the upper grade classes. The evening family night will focus on literacy, literature, and the importance of reading together as a family..  She will be available to personally sign any of her books you bring with you to the family night event. We hope you can join us on Wednesday, February 8th from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m..  


Alexis O’Neill is the author of five picture books:  Loud Emily,  The Recess Queen, The Worst Best Friend, Estela’s Swap, and The Kite That Bridged Two Nations: Homan Walsh and the First Niagara Suspension Bridge. Her picture books range from seafaring adventures, stories about bullies, friendship, and generosity, to a true story about Homan Walsh, who earned an extraordinary place in history by flying his kite against tremendous odds. This latest book,  The Kite That Bridged Two Nations: Homan Walsh and the First Niagara Suspension Bridge, is currently nominated for the California Young Reader Medal.  




Sweetheart
Dance
Saturday, February 11th, 5:00-6:30 PM
San Luis Obispo High School would like to invite all elementary school girls and their father-figure to our Annual Sweetheart Dance! This would be a fantastic time for daughters to connect and share a memorable experience with their father-figures. Music and goodies will be provided, as well as a photo booth for FREE priceless mementos.
Tickets:
$10 Per Couple +$2 additional Daughter
*Tickets will be sold at the door of the SLOHS New Gym
         
El Baile
De Sweetheart
sábado, 11 de febrero 5:00-6:30PM
¡Queremos invitar a todas las estudiantes de la primaria y a sus padres o figura paterna al baile anual por el día de San Valentín! Esta será una oportunidad encantadora para que las hijas puedan crear lazos y compartir experiencias memorables con padres o sus figuras paternas. Tendremos música y golosinas así como una cabina de fotografías gratis como recuerdos sin precio.
Boletos:
$10 por pareja + $2 por una hija adicional
*Los boletos se van a vender en la puerta del gimnasio de la escuela.
Affordable Care Act Enrollment Information
The California Department of Education, in partnership with Covered California and All In-Health Care for all families have provided a template for information on health insurance coverage.  http://www.slcusd.org/announcements.php

Friday, January 13, 2017

Newsletter, January 13, 2017

Principal’s Message


Dear Friends and Families of Los Ranchos,
I hope you and your family had a wonderful holiday break.  I was so impressed with how quickly students stepped right back into their learning as I popped into classrooms last Monday. Students were focused and engaged, even with all the rain. We know that does not happen magically. We appreciate that our parents support healthy student habits by getting back into school routines with regular bedtimes and healthy meals. It makes such a difference!


We have some parent opportunities coming up. Eileen Calandro will be presenting “Social Media For Parents” at our first Parent Coffee on Friday, February 2 from 8:30 - 9:30. Our PTA sponsored a similar presentation by Eileen last year. Parents found it very helpful. In the spring I will host another Parent Coffee with our very own school counselor, Mary Kay Stratton. Mrs. Stratton is a goldmine for insights and suggestions to support our children. Mark you calendar for Friday, March 24, 2017. We will share more about her specific topic as we get closer to the date.



In December we shared that we are starting a Coding Club. The dates have been bumped back to February. We will have two sessions. The first session will be for 2nd and 3rd graders and the second session will be geared for 4th - 6th graders. The first session will have three classes after school on February 7, 14 and 21. The second session will have four classes on Feb. 28, March 7, 14 and 21. The Coding Club will meet from 3:00 - 3:50 in the computer lab.  Information about registration will be going out to families with 2nd and third graders soon. Families with 4th - 6th graders can look forward to getting information in the middle of February. I want to thank the Amazon organization in SLO for their support in making this available to our students. We welcome any parent who would like to volunteer.


I hope you enjoy your four day weekend.
Sincerely,
Marlie Schmidt  


Upcoming Dates
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, Monday, January 16th
  • The Habit fundraiser, Wednesday, January 18th, 4:00p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
  • Roadrunner Awards Assembly, Friday, January 20th at 8:45 a.m.
  • Coffee Talk, Social Media for Parents, Library, Friday, February 3rd at 8:30 a.m.
  • Dental Screening for Kindergarten and 3rd Gr Students, Tuesday, February 7th
  • No School, Lincoln’s Birthday, Monday, February 13th
  • No School, President’s Day, Monday, February 20th

Support Los Ranchos PTA with dinner at the Habit




Coffee Talk - Answers to your questions about Social Media
Parents, please join us on Friday, February 3rd from 8:30 a.m.-9:30 a.m. for "Coffee Talk" with Eileen Calandro. She will be answering questions about Social Media. (Please see our attached flyer for more information)







Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Newsletter, December 22, 2016

Principal’s Message

Dear Friends and Families of Los Ranchos,
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We have much to celebrate from the 2016 part of our school year! First, our students have made amazing growth and progress in all subjects. Even our kindergarteners are activating their super reading powers and reading for 30 minutes at a stretch! Second, our PTA sponsored a super successful Walk-a-thon and fundraiser where we blew the lid off the fundraising, laps run and the fun! And third, our students continue to grow as thoughtful, respectful individuals.  
We have much to look forward to with the rest of the year. First, we have some fun after school opportunities coming up. There will be Science Club, sponsored by Cal Poly’s Science Club. In addition, we will also be starting a Coding Club. More information will be coming out the first week back. And that is not all, our Tinker Room will be restarting in January during lunch on Fridays.  One of my favorite new additions, however, is that our sixth graders are welcoming students in the morning at the drop off zone. It helps everyone get off to a good start when greeted with a warm hello from a schoolmate.

I wish you and your family a relaxing and memorable winter break. I look forward to seeing you  next year!

Sincerely,
Marlie Schmidt  

Upcoming Dates

  • Winter Break, No School Starting, Friday December 23rd. Students return January 9th, 2017
  • PTA Meeting, Tuesday, January 10th at  12:15 p.m.
  • Staff Development Day - No School For Students, Friday, January 13th
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, Monday, January 16th

Library Corner - December 9, 2016

Our school library subscribes to TumbleBook Library, a curated database of children’s e-books.  First and second grade students read eBooks in the library this week.

TumbleBook Library has over 1100 titles for grades K-6, and includes unique animated, talking picture books, read-along chapter books, national geographic videos, nonfiction books, playlists, as well as books in Spanish and French. Plus, the collection features Graphic Novels – a student favorite!

There are no check-out times or wait lists: the books are always available, to everyone! It’s a great resource for kids, and teaches them the joy of reading in a format they’ll love.

To access the TumbleBook Library, log onto the school website:

  • Click on the library link on the right side of the page
  • Select Los Ranchos Library
  • Click on ETC Portal link in far right column
  • Students can login with their email address and password, or parents can login as follows:
    • Username:  etcportal
    • Password:  parent
  • Select the English icon under subject area
  • Select TumblebookLibrary and get started.