Don’t forget to Vote Tuesday, November 2!
Bike It! Walk It! Day, held October 13, 2010, got 3,300 school age children walking, biking, scooting and skateboarding to school in record numbers across the country.
According to a Press Release distributed by Alison Kendall of Sustainable Streets, a local non profit (sustainablestreetsla.org
Students who bike or scooter to school got a bright green "Bike It! Day sticker, while those who walk, take the bus, or carpool and then walk the last few blocks get a "Walk It! sticker. Many great photos of SMASH and Muir smiling students sporting their Walk It! stickers and admiring each others bikes can be found at http:picasaweb.google.com/110434740520294319296/ BikeItDaySMASHMuirOct132010?pli=1&gsessionid=vKLL0f- TW- vH78HBfly31A#5528460210654621938
Be sure to read last week’s October 22 Core 4 Friday Letter entry posted on our web site at www.smash.smmusd.org under “Friday Letter” to learn more about how our SMASH middle schoolers further supported our planet by testifying at a Marine Protection Agency hearing to successfully influence decision makers about their conservationist desires.
Jessica
DATES TO REMEMBER
Wed, Nov 3 - 5:00-6:00pm - Site Council Mtg
Fri, Nov 5 - 6:30-9:00pm - Movie Fun Night
Sun, Nov 7 - Daylight Savings Time ends - Set your clocks back 1 hour
Mon, Nov 8 - 9:00-10:00am - SMASH School Tour
Wed, Nov 10 - 8:30am - PTSA Mtg
Wed, Nov 10 - All Day - SMASH at Santa Monica California Pizza Kitchen (see Flyer next week)
Thurs, Nov 11 - Veterans’ Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
Fri, Nov 12 - District Furlough Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
Tues, Nov 16 - School Picture Retakes
Wed, Nov 17 - Teacher Contract Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
Mon-Wed, Nov 22-24 - 8th grade trip to Camp Hess-Kramer
Wed. Nov 24 - Early Dismissal - 1:30pm
Thurs & Fri, Nov 25 & 26 - Thanksgiving Holiday - SCHOOL CLOSED
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SITE COUNCIL MEETING
It has been SMASH's tradition for many years for the staff to meet regularly to look closely at children and their learning. These conversations often drive the innovation and expertise that you find in our classrooms. This year the staff is looking specifically at children's thinking around math and science. As powerful as our conversations have been, there has always been a critical element missing - THE FAMILIES. The SMASHing Staff would like to include PARENTS in our conversations and inquiry about children and their learning. Come join these insightful and thought-provoking conversations at SITE COUNCIL. November 3rd's meeting will include video of SMASH children thinking about and practicing math - with a structured conversation
facilitated by Candis of Core 1.
Come NOVEMBER 3rd at 5:30 to Laura's Room to join in our process. If you come with questions, they might be answered. But chances are, you'll go home with new ways of thinking, observing, and helping your child.
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WEDNESDAY BAKE SALE DATES
CORE 1: Dec 1
CORE 2: Dec 8
CORE 3: Nov 3
CORE 4: Nov 10
TEACHER APPRECIATION LUNCH
CORE 2: Nov 5
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SAVE THE DATE!
SMASH DAY at CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN
Wednesday, November 10 - All Day
FLYERS NEXT WEEK
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THE SALVATION ARMY CHRISTMAS ASSISTANCE
FOOD & TOYS (gifts for children ages 17 and under) TO HOUSEHOLDS THAT QUALIFY
You must bring the following documents:Picture ID, Gas, Electric or Telephone Bill, Birth Certificates for All Children,
Proof of income (paystub) Dates you may apply: November 1, 2 or 4 from 9:00am to 11:30am
Please call with any questions: 310-451-1358 x 117
The Salvation Army Santa Monica Corps; 1533 4th Street; Santa Monica, CA 90401
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BEETHOVEN 5th - FREE ADMISSION
Santa Monica Civic Auditorium Saturday, October 30
Santa Monica Symphony, Allen Robert Gross, Music Director & Conductor
Music students are invited to the Civic Auditorium dress rehearsal, School-age children especially welcome.
http://www.symphony.org/
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Ocean Park's Annual Membership Meeting, and Budget Discussion with City Manager Rod Gould
Monday, November 8 6:00-9:00 p.m. SMASH/John Muir Auditorium
This is the opportunity to let our City Manager know what issues are important to you, and how you believe our local tax dollars should be spent. You'll have a chance to see our annual city budget and learn what's being spent now and what's being projected for the next fiscal year. A light supper will be served.
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YWCA Santa Monica/Westside Parent Support Group For Parents of Children ages 6-9
Wednesdays 3:30-4:30
Come join us for this weekly support group as we explore ways to parent while staying connected with your 6-9 year old child as she/he travels through these transitional years.
Facilitated by Barbara Olinger, M.S.W., director of Family Development at the YWCA Santa Monica/Westside.
She has worked with children and families in educational and therapeutic environments for over 27 years.
COST: $25 per class, payable in two month blocks. YWCA Membership required. Call 310-452-3881 YWCA Santa Monica/Westside; 2019 14th Street. Call to register 310-452-3881 - Space is limited. Childcare provided
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WANTED: BASKETBALLS, SOCCERBALLS, HANDBALLS & KICKBALLS
FOR OUR KIDS DURING RECESS. THANKS!
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SMASH Movie FUN Night - Friday, November 5 6:30-9:00pm (Movie to be announced)
Come as a Family - or for Parents who would like a night out,
Core 4 will provide childcare to school age kids for $10/child or $20/family.
Sign up in the SMASH office for childcare (310) 396-2640
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THINGS TO DO
Sat, Oct 30 - 3:00-6:00pm - Montana Avenue 3rd Annual HALLOWEEN HOP. From 7th to 17th Streets. Enjoy trick-or- treating plus scary in-store activities. For info: http://www.montanaave.com/
Sun, Oct 31 - 5:00-9:00pm - BARKER HANGER, 3021 Airport Ave. Halloween Party for the whole family. FREE
Entrance. For more information please call 310-458-8988 PAL ( Police Activities League)
Sun, Oct 31 - 3:00-6:00pm - PET HALLOWEEN COSTUME CONTEST - 1123 Montana Ave. Pet Categories: Cutest, Funniest, Spookiest, Best Pet Couple, Best Overall. Register now until 3:00pm Oct 31.
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ptsa news
president’s message
Dear SMASHing Parents,
We are down to the last few days before this very important election. In order to be received by the county on time, your Vote By Mail ballot should be mailed no later than this Friday, October 29. For those who vote in person at the polls, Election Day is Tuesday, November 2, and polling places are open from 7:00am to 8:00pm. If you need to find your polling place, go to www.lavote.net/locator.
If you have not already voted by absentee ballot, this is the time to make your decision about candidates both statewide and locally, in preparation for Election Day. There are numerous propositions on the ballot, which we must vote for. Your informed decision about candidates and propositions on the ballot will help decide our State’s future and the future of our schools.
Of course, this is a very important election in Santa Monica. Not only will the voters decide whether Props. Y + YY are approved, but we must decide who to vote for City Council and School Board. If you don’t yet know the candidates for City Council and School Board, get informed now. This is the time to decide whether to vote for an incumbent or whether we need new people to lead our City and School Board. I hope the SMASH community already knows that a SMASH parent (Core 2) and Santa Monica planning commissioner, Ted Winterer, is on the
ballot for City Council.
There is still time for everyone to participate in this election. If you have not been able to volunteer some of your valuable time on behalf of Props. Y + YY, there is still opportunity to get involved. Phone banking will continue at the Props. Y + YY headquarters (3000 Ocean Park Blvd., Suite 3005) or you can phone bank from home (Call Steve, 310-562-6003, at Y + YY Campaign headquarters to get set-up with a list of voters to call from home).
In addition, the final Community Walk for Props. Y + YY is this Saturday, October 30th, at Grant Elementary School & Franklin Elementary School from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Bring your kids and participate in our political process. Also, a special thank you to those SMASH parents who volunteered for last Sunday’s Community Walk that was hosted by SMASH/Muir.
Thank you to those SMASH parents who worked the rummage sale and car wash. Your involvement helped make these fundraising events a success.
After the election on Nov. 2nd, we will all look back and reflect: Did each one of us do everything we could do to help assure a bright future for our children?
Please remember: "At SMASH we strive to help our children to become active citizens in a democracy that is still being shaped." (The first words on the SMASH website) Social responsibility, community involvement and the education of our children is our mission at SMASH.
Don’t forget the Y + YY pumpkin stencil in last Friday’s letter.
Have a safe and Happy Halloween!
Thanks,
Dan McGee
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Props Y + YY
community walks
The last Community Walk throughout the voter precincts of Santa Monica is this Saturday, October 30th at Grant & Franklin Elementary Schools. Team up with another family and demonstrate to your kids the importance of getting involved.
phone bank
Even if you can only spare 15 minutes at a time, please participate.
The campaign office space (which was donated) and parking are located at 3000 Ocean Park Blvd., Suite 3005, Santa Monica (behind the Wells Fargo Bank). Parking is validated.
ptsa annual family investment drive
· The SMASH Annual Family Investment Drive is moving forward. For those families who have made investments or commitments, thank you, thank you, thank you. If you haven’t made a commitment for your Annual Investment, we ask that you please make a commitment today, for whatever amount your family can afford. Donations can be made by check, Paypal or credit card. Annual Family Investment (AFI) envelopes are available in the office. Your investment helps pay for classroom teaching assistants, reading and math specialists, the SMASH fine arts program, science equipment, technology upgrades, professional development and so much more. If you have any questions, contact Marni Ayers Brady (marniayers@gmail.com) or Helga Schier (helgaschier@verizon.net)
SMASH bash
If you missed the sign-up to attend a SMASH Bash event, please note that many events still have openings. Please contact Marni Ayers Brady (marniayers@gmail.com) at your earliest convenience and let her know what event you would like to attend. If you didn’t have a chance to experience a SMASH Bash last year, don’t miss out this year!
SMASHing meetings
· Our next PTSA meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 10, 2010, at 8:30 am., in the music room to the left of the cafeteria. If you have never attended a PTSA meeting, please stop by. For those who are regularly involved we look forward to seeing you a the meeting.
DATES TO REMEMBER:
Saturday, October 30th, Community Walk for Props Y + YY. Meet at Grant Elementary or Franklin Elementary, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday, November 10th, 8:30 am. PTSA meeting in the music room (Room to the left of cafeteria).
GREEN TIP FOR THE WEEK
Recycle Natural Corks at Whole Foods Markets. Look for the Cork ReHarvest dropbox or ask a Customer Rep for assistance. Cork ReHarvest is the leading national recycling organization focused on recycling natural cork and educating the public about the vital importance that the Mediterranean cork forests have to the world's ecological balance. Visit corkreharvest.org for more information. For more info, email Mimi at mimilichterman@yahoo.com
Trivia: October 2010 has 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays & 5 Sundays, all in one month. It happens once in 823 years.
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JOIN THE SMASH PTSA
Parent Teacher Student Association
It’s Here!!!! SMASH Phone and Business Directory
Pick up your copy at the office. One copy per PTSA membership. Also pick up a PTA membership card. The card provides a username and password to the national PTA website, allowing you access to valuable member benefits and resources.
I encourage you to take a look at the Business Directory. You may be surprised by some of the resources within our own community.Let’s support each other, because that’s what SMASH is all about. If you haven’t already joined the PTSA, you still can. Pick up a PTSA envelope at the office and submit your check ($8 per membership), payable to SMASH PTSA. You get one Phone & Business Directory for each membership purchased.
Questions? Email Catherine Lerer (mother of Molly McGee/Core 2 and Sadie McGee (Core 1) at clerer@mcgeelerer.com.
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CORE 1 NEWS
Let’s talk about school: When we ask children how their day was, some will share details about an art lesson while others might respond with a quick, “Fine.” These are a few questions that might encourage children to share details about different times of their school day.
Morning Meeting/Magic Circle: Who was the Emperor, Chipmunk, or Shooting Star today? How did you greet your friends? What song did you sing in morning meeting? What did your morning message say? Did the message surprise you? Did the message have a question today? What did you respond? Did you play a game? What was the funniest moment in Morning Meeting or Magic Circle? Who sat next to you? What’s a shout-out?
Projects: Did you work on a project in the Magic Garden, in the Sparkling Sea, or in the Golden Galaxy? Who led your project? What did you study or notice today? Did you record something in you Project Notebook? Were you surprised by something you heard/saw/noticed?
Literacy: Who read to you at school today? Did you read to someone today? Did you read a book on your own or with the class? Did you illustrate a story today? What did you draw? Did you write with a pencil or with a pen? What tool did you use to illustrate? Did you sing the Zoo Phonics song today? How many books do you keep in your book box? Did you read a funny story today? Did you hit a bump in your reading today? How did you get past the bump? How many characters does your book have? What are their names? Did you learn something from a book today?
Math: What did you count today? How did you count today? Did you play a math? Who played with you? How did you start the game? Did you hear a math story? What numbers did you talk about today? Tell me about the math story? What numbers did you work with? Did you put numbers together? Did you take numbers apart? Did you record in your math notebook or on a piece of paper?
Wish List: Please think of us next time you are out shopping. We need latex-free bandages. Thank you.
Halloween reminders: Please remind the children to keep their Halloween treats at home. The children learned this poem. Feel free share it at home.
Monster Spray
Every night when I’m asleep
Into my room the monsters creep.
I call to my mom, “Please come and stay,
And don’t forget the monster spray!”
She comes right in and sprays right here
Then all the monsters disappear!
Have a safe and fun weekend!
Candis, Chrysta, Graciela, Jackie, and Karin
Candis: cberens@smmusd.org
Chrysta: cwyse@smmusd.org
Graciela: gbarba-castro@smmusd.org
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CORE 2 NEWS
Advisory News: This week our Leadership focus was on the “A” in CARES, Assertion. One main focus was to use “I” statements when working through disagreements and conflicts with peers. We practice this language during Magic Circle, and it is good language to use at home, too: “I appreciate/understand/like that
you _______. I don’t appreciate/like when _______ happens. I need you to ________ next time.” Another focus was to help the students support their ideas and opinions with reasons and facts. Ask your child how and when they use their Magic Circle words to let people know what they need.
***Family HW: Practice using descriptive language (adjectives) to be more specific about why you like or don’t like things.
Literacy:
RW: The students have been studying the characters in their Just Right books. Interesting characters are usually the most compelling aspect of a good book. We also started our first read aloud chapter book: Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume. The kids are loving it so far—and it is full of engaging characters!
***RW HW: Core 2 students, continue reading for at least 30 minutes at home each day (independent reading, reading aloud to a family member, and listening to a read aloud all count).
WW: This week we edited, illustrated and published our first WW Pieces, “Personal Narratives”. The students celebrated their success today and reflected on the process, which was the main objective of this unit.
Ask your child to explain the steps of the writing process to you and what assignments they did for each step to publish their stories.***WW HW: Core 2 students, make a “Me List” about the character in your Just Right Book (or in a book you are reading at home with your family). What does your character like, not like.? What do you think their favorite food, color, sport, movie would be? What else do you know or imagine your character would say about themselves?
Math:
Laura’s 3rd graders worked on solving related addition and subtraction problems and the activity, Make a Dollar. 3G Math HW is to prepare and play Close to 100.
Tamara’s 4th graders continued working with factors of 100 to figure out the factors of multiples of 100.
They also worked on using strategies to play Multiple Turn Over. Next week, they will take the final assessments of this unit to see how much they have learned about multiplication in this unit.4G Math HW this week is a review of addition and subtraction situations to help them get ready for the next unit. Remind your child to use their own strategies to solve each problem.
Word Work/Theme: This week Jayme joined us while we worked on spelling, reading strategies, and writing mechanics in small groups. In Theme, we worked with Jayme to work on our “All About Books” about plants. They read books about plants and learned how to put the information into their own words, they explored the gardens on campus to make observations and use their observations to come up with questions, and they looked at examples of nonfiction “All-About” books.
Dates to Remember:
Thursday, November 11 – Veteran’s Day, no school
Friday, November 12 – Furlough Day, no school
Tuesday, November 16 – Make up picture day
Wednesday, November 17 – Pupil Free Day, professional development for staff
Thursday and Friday, November 25 and 26 – Thanksgiving Holiday
Stay cool and hydrated!
Tamara, Laura, Jayme, Nadja, and Karin
Laura: lsherman@smmusd.org
Tamara: tmugalian@smmusd.org
Jayme: jwold@smmusd.org
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CORE 3 NEWS
Happy Halloween everyone! Have a safe night and don't forget that we have a field trip on Monday to the California Science Center! Please remember to pack a snack and a sack lunch (no glass). We will be spending most of our time in the World of Life section as a prelude to our Human Body Systems unit coming up. Hopefully there will be time to explore other parts of the center as well.
Art w/ Kristy: A guest speaker came a talked to us about their work as a set designer! Ask your child about what they learned from this expert.
6th gr Math w/ Carrie: We got into Prime Factorization, Least Common Multiples, and Greatest Common Factors this week. Our looked at the rotations of Ferris Wheels and the life cycles of Cicadas to see how Least Common Factors come in to play in real life situations. Ask your child how they figured out when the poor 13 year and 17 year cicadas will be able to see each other.
6th gr Math w/ Erin: This week we began our data collection at the A La Carte snack bar. Students decided to gather data about what sort of food students are buying, how much each item costs and what Core each buyer is in. Next week
we will begin graphing this data to share with the school. Also this week students learned the difference between numerical and categorical data. Ask you child to explain!
5th gr Math w/ Genie: We focused this week on understanding how the smaller multiplication problems we know are related to the larger problems we have to solve. We thought about our starter problem to help us solve a large multiplication problem and making sure we completed the problem to get the correct answer. We also focused on clear and concise notation. It's important to be able to see our thinking and explain our thinking for others.
Science w/ Carrie: This week we looked at common household items to see if they are acids, bases or neutral. We used red cabbage juice as our indicator. Ask your child which items were acids, bases, or neutral (we tested: cleanser with bleach, green works cleanser, Windex, vinegar, baking soda, baking powder, Tums, cornstarch, and salt). You can do this experiment at home - just pour boiling water over cut up red cabbage and let it sit for at least 10 minutes. Strain
out the cabbage leaves and use the liquid as your indicator.
Theme: Our houses are starting to look great. Most children have their walls at least part way up. This is not an easy task. It requires precise measuring and a lot of patience to get the walls to bend around the corners of the house. Their next step is to make a colored floor plan that will go inside the house and to build the interior walls.
Social Studies & Geography w/ Erin: This week in social studies students thought more about what it means to be part of a community, specifically our communities of Santa Monica and Los Angeles. What makes a community? Do you have to like everyone? Does there have to be a common goal? Do some people have to be left out? We talked personally
about whether students feel like they "fit in" to their school communities. Why or why not? In Geography we continued to work on creating our 10 x 10 ft. wall map of North America. Students also worked on a geo-quiz about world islands.
Reading & Writing Workshop w/ Genie: As writers, we drafted our personal essays! We focused on making sure our reasons of support connect with each other from paragraph to paragraph using connecting ideas and transitions. This is challenging as we blend narrative with essay writing. As readers, we finished our read aloud, Where Peace Lives which shared the message to have empathy and work hard to get along even when it is hard. It is a fantasy book with a lot of allusions to historical peace makers. Please make time for your child to read every day even on the weekends!
It's a busy weekend but they need the practice plus it's a calming activity in all the holiday (and sugar) buzz.
Homework:
6g Math: Complete LCM and GCF sheet (both sides). Due Tuesday, November 2.
Theme: All walls should be constructed by Tuesday, November 2
5g Math - Packet #8 is DUE FRI, 11/5 (all others are overdue and need to be turned in)
Reading - Read every day for 30min—Log in pages/write at least 1 question every day
Writing – finish personal essay draft and revise.
BOO!
Genie: ghwang@smmusd.org
Carrie: cferguson@smmusd.org
Erin: dodgers44@hotmail.com
SCHOOL MENU – NOVEMBER
Mon, Nov 1: Baked chicken roundups w/baked seasoned potato wedges, fruit
Tues, Nov 2: Salad bar w/ beef rib-b-que sandwich, sun chips
Wed, Nov 3: Salad bar w/spaghetti & meatballs w/cheesy garlic breadsticks
Thurs, Nov 4: Salad bar w/taco bar, cinnamon churro
Fri, Nov 5: Thin crust cheese pizza, green salad, ice juice
Mon, Nov 8: Baked chicken giggles w/backed potato smiles, aloha roll, fresh fruit
Tues, Nov 9: Salad bar w/corn dog, animal crackers
Wed, Nov 10: Salad bar w/Sicilian style cheese pizza
Thursday, Nov 11 & Friday, Nov. 12 – SCHOOL CLOSED (Veteran’s Day & furlough day)
Mon, Nov 15: Grilled burger on whole wheat bun w/crinkle cut fries, fruit strip
Tues, Nov 16: Salad bar w/baked chicken, whole wheat roll, frozen vanilla yogurt
Wed, Nov 17 – Teacher contract day – SCHOOL CLOSED
Thurs, Nov 18: Salad bar w/cheesy nachos supreme
Fri, Nov 19: Cheese pizza, mixed salad, fruit
Mon, Nov 22: Baked chicken nuggets w/baked potato wedges, whole wheat roll, fruit
Tues, Nov 23: Salad bar w/orange chicken, steamed rice, fortune cookie
Wed, Nov 24: Salad Bar w/cheese pizza, cookie
Thursday, Nov 25 & Friday, Nov 26 – SCHOOL CLOSED – Thanksgiving Holiday
Mon, Nov 29: Hot dog on wheat bun w/ baked potato smiles, fresh fruit, sun chips
Tues, Nov 30: Salad bar w/roll your own burrito, cinnamon churro
Second Choice Vegetarian Menu:
Nov 1 - Nov 5: Toasted Cheese Sandwich
Nov 8 - Nov 12: Bean Burrito
Nov 15 - Nov 19: Cheese Quesadilla
Nov 22 - Nov 26: Yogurt & pretzels
Nov 29 - Dec 3: Cheese sticks with marinara sauce
Coming soon! Online prepayment system. More information will be sent home.
