“Without ambition one starts nothing. Without work one finishes nothing. The prize will not be sent to you. You have to win it.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Dear Charter Families
This update includes pertinent information before and after our Spring Break that starts next week, April 4-8, including free at-home antigen tests for all students.
When we get back on April 11, The Nature Academy will have a tri-campus extended schedule and other Charter programs will have their regular weekly schedule.
When we return we will begin our CAASPP testing schedule. Our various programs will be testing on different days throughout April and the beginning of May in order to make sure that we can manage any potential technology glitches that may arise. You can read more about the CAASPP testing below.
Our programs have been enjoying many field excursions recently. None of these trips could happen without the help of our wonderful parent volunteers. Thank you.
- CRHS students went to DeYoung Museum and Japanese Tea Garden
- Nature Academy 7th-8th grade had their Cannery Row/Monterey Bay Aquarium/Great Tide Pool Excursion and are planning an ice-cream hike this Friday
- CRMS is arranging to do their trout release in Loch Lomond this week
- QHIA is planning an Art Scavenger Hunt in Downtown Santa Cruz (Congratulations on completing your mural; it is wonderful!)
- Fall Creek had a field trip to the Watsonville Recycling Center
- The QHHS program putting on their play, Magic at the Museum, in the SLVUSD PAC this week While not a field trip, we all look certainly looking forward to seeing it!
AND Congratulations to our Santa Cruz County Science & Engineering Fair Winners!
You all showed great effort and dedicated time and work in order to share what you have learned in the area of science. We are so proud of you!
- Trianna Luke - Alex Smith - Damian Spracklen -Ellawyn Strudley
Thanks for sharing your children with us,
~Rhonda
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Free At-Home Antigen Test We want to inform all of our families that the State will be providing a free At-Home Antigen Test for every student prior to leaving on Spring Break.
The goal is to allow each student to be screened with a COVID test on Sunday, April 10, 2022 prior to the return to school following Spring Break. Although this is not required, we highly recommend that each family use the antigen test to test each school-age child prior to their return to school on Monday, April 11, 2022.
Screening each student with a COVID test prior to the return to school will help to mitigate further exposures. As we know many will be traveling over the break, we appreciate this extra precaution SLV families can take to ensure our schools continue to stay open for our students and families. We hope everyone has a wonderful Spring Break.
You can pick up your student's at-home test any day this week at our Charter Office.
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Planning for Next Year: Reminders
- This week is the last week for accepting applications for Nature Academy
- We are still accepting applications for our QHIA 6th and 7th grade as there are a few additional openings available.
- Siblings not currently enrolled in Charter must also complete a pre-enrollment application and intake form.
Thank you for your support in returning these to your teachers or our office.
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An interesting no-cost webinar offered to interested parents
The Role of Parents and Teachers in Helping Kids Cope with COVID and Developing Healthy Tech Use Habits
Wednesday, April 20, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. P.S.T
Audience: Parents and Staff
The pandemic has increased the amount of technology usage and screen time for our children and young adults. This session will focus on stress management for students, positive digital citizenship and how to influence positive online behavior. To help build trust and develop positive online behaviors, we will be discussing how to recognize the signs of the negative impact of technology and how to respond when there is too much digital media use.
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Parent Advisory Committee: Our next meeting will be: Tuesday, April 19th at 10:30. We will meet in the Charter Library as well as Zoom. We will be talking about ideas for coordinating special events and more parent opportunities for our school and various programs next year.
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Next year’s school calendar is out! 2022-23 SLVUSD District School Calendar
As you see, next school year will be starting and ending a bit earlier than this year. Take note for those who are planning summer trips.
Band Update: Hi Band Families, Our band has begun playing an arrangement of the Star Wars theme. The students are working: Counting, and listening to each other while they play with the goal of synchronization. The ensemble is also working on volume (dynamic) balance; bringing the melody out, keeping the accompaniment underneath the melody, written dynamics in the sheet music, and on harmonies.
I'd like for our students to practice counting their parts to Star Wars and Eye of the Tiger.
Warm Regards, Mr. Gonzalez
P.S. a concert is being planned for the end of April.
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Author’s Book Fair: Grades 1-5 We have the opportunity to publish and share our writing at the Young Author's Fair!
During the next online Jump Into Writing classes we are going to focus on the publishing process!
Student’s books can be on display at the Young Author's Fair on Saturday, May 7th from 10 am-3 pm at Del Mar Elementary School.
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CAASPP Testing You may be hearing from your teachers about the required State testing. The tests will be shorter in length than in previous years. We are firming up our schedule for each grade and test but in general, programs will begin testing in April after the Spring Break through mid-May.
We are required to have 95% of our students take the test each year. This will be an important year to gather data from as it marks a new baseline for our Charter school after the Pandemic and Distance Learning years.
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Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments for English language arts/literacy (ELA) and mathematics in grades 3 through 8 and grade 11 Student Participation: All students at the designated grade levels are required to participate with the following exceptions: -Students who participate in the alternate assessments. -ELA only—English learners who are in their first 12 months of attending a school in the United States. Content and Format: The Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments, which are delivered by computer, consist of two sections: a computer adaptive test and a performance task (PT) based on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for ELA and mathematics. The computer-adaptive section includes a range of item types, such as selected response, constructed response, table, fill-in, graphing, and so forth. The PTs are extended activities that measure a student’s ability to integrate knowledge and skills across multiple standards—a key component of college and career readiness.
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California Science Test (CAST) in grades 5, 8, and once in high school. Student Participation: The CAST is required for all students in grades five and eight and once in high school (i.e., grade ten, eleven, or twelve) unless their IEP indicates assessment with an alternate test. The CAST includes stand-alone or discrete items and PTs. The discrete item types consist of selected response, constructed response, table, fill-in, graphing, and so forth. The PTs measure a student’s ability to integrate knowledge and skills across multiple standards through extended activities.
- The Physical Fitness Test (PFT) for students in California schools is the FITNESSGRAM®. The main goal of the test is to help students in starting life-long habits of regular physical activity. Students in grades five, seven, and nine take the fitness test. The test has six parts that show a level of fitness that offer a degree of defense against diseases that come from inactivity. The test results can be used by students, teachers, and parents. The PFT - CalEdFacts page provides a more detailed overview of the test.
COVID Update: SLVUSD has partnered with Inspire Diagnostics to offer an outdoor walk-up PCR testing site that is open to the entire school community at the SLV District Office, Quail Hollow school site, Ben Lomond and is offered on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays (excluding holidays) from 1-5pm.
Families are welcome to utilize this free service. The site is available for symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. Those needing a test simply need to fill out the registration once at http://sccoe.link/inspiresc, no appointment is required. Our weekly and exposure testing will continue at the school sites for students and staff.
In addition, COVID-19 vaccinations are still available through our county drive-through locations. If you would like your child to get vaccinated, you can register and make an appointment at https://santacruzcoe.org/vaccines/ or contact your student’s doctor or healthcare provider.
On-site COVID testing will continue: Our weekly exposure testing will continue at the school sites for students and staff. The District provides testing in partnership with Inspire Diagnostics. By registering your student(s) with Inspire Diagnostics, your student(s) can test for weekly screening or for exposures as necessary. When your student(s) participates in this weekly screening and/or exposure testing, he/she is eligible to remain in school during a "modified" quarantine. The Inspire Diagnostics Testing Dates and Times at Quail Hollow are Monday & Thursday 10:45am - 11:45am
To register your student(s), please click on INSPIRE DIAGNOSTICS REGISTRATION.
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From our Charter VAPA Booster parents: All Charter Talent Show: Friday, May 20, at 7pm Coordinator: To Be Determined
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Charter Parent Volunteers: The registration process for volunteers is as follows:
New Volunteer: You will be required to pick up and fill out the volunteer paperwork from your school site and obtain a signature from the school site administrator. Once complete, please bring your signed paperwork to the Human Resources Office. You will also be required to provide verification of a full COVID-19 vaccination* and a current TB result.
Returning Volunteer: You will be required to provide verification of a full COVID-19 vaccination. This documentation can be provided to your child's school site. The school site will forward proof of vaccination to the Human Resources Office. You may also bring the proof of COVID-19 vaccination* documentation directly to the Human Resources Office.
*Proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required regardless of where the volunteers are on campus, inside or outside.
Registration packets are available in our Charter Administration Office.
The Human Resources Office hours will accept volunteer registrations on Tuesdays from 7:00-11:00 am and Thursdays from 12:30-3:30 pm. The Human Resources Office is located at 325 Marion Avenue, Ben Lomond, CA 95005.
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Employment Opportunities at SLVUSD: Are you looking for part-time or full-time work? Interested in joining the SLVUSD Team? We have several job opportunities. You can review SLVUSD job opportunities at www.edjoin.org/slvusd.
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Community Opportunities: The district has transitioned the Community Opportunities site to the new platform that Google will continue to support. Here is the LINK to the website.
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Dates to Remember:
- April 4-8: Spring Break
- April 11: First Day back after Spring Break
- Monday, May 30: District Holiday, Memorial Day
- Tuesday, June 7: Last day of school for students
Key Contacts
Administrator: Rhonda Schlosser: [email protected]
Administrative Assistant: Danelle Matteson: [email protected]
Registrar: Janet Hendricks [email protected]
Mental Health Counselor: Robin Bates [email protected]
Resource Specialist: Melanie Entner[email protected]
HS Academic Counselor: Mary Zilge [email protected]