Message from the Director
- There is no school this week on Thursday, March 7, and Friday, March 8.
- An Important parent notification about social media went out last week via Parent Square and parent letter. Please continue to monitor your learners’ use of all social media platforms.
- Thank you to our iSUPPORT parents, Kenneth Scott and Dorothy Blackman, for their support of our AV Snack Bar at the basketball home games.
- Our iSUPPORT Parent Collaborative Breakfast this month is Thursday, March 14, at 9 a.m. Your support makes a difference.
- The book drive is going well and has been extended into March. Please continue to donate new or slightly used books. Thank you to everyone who has donated books. A special thanks to Mr. Russell, who donated a Barnes & Noble gift card!
AV Athletics
- Congratulations to our AV Girls’ basketball team and Coach Scott and Coach James for another great home game last week. Thank you to all the parents and learners who supported the team.
- This week’s AV Boys’ basketball game is Tuesday, March 5, at iLEAD AV versus St. Mary’s, at 3:30 p.m. Please join us!
Parent Resources
Last week’s the 7 Habits focus was Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw. It is the final habit. “Sharpen the Saw” means preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have — you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual. As you renew yourself in each of the four areas, you create growth and change in your life. Sharpen the Saw keeps you fresh so you can continue to practice the other six habits.
Please click here and review the online resource; it encourages us to have “Private Victories” of Sharpening the Saw daily. How will you Sharpen the Saw this week? How will we support the learners with practicing Habit 7 as well?
Click here and learn how Leader in Me (7 Habits) can help parents and guardians establish a powerful framework to nurture and develop life-ready leadership skills at home.
Catching Character and the 7 Habits in Action
Last week, the 7 Habits focus was Sharpen the Saw. Every team member committed to Sharpen the Saw this week and support learners in developing the practice.
Curriculum Corner
Georgia Math
- To support the learners, we have adopted a new math curriculum! Click here to watch a short video about the Georgia Math strategies that are all aligned to the Common Core State Standards.
- There are many ideas and strategies to support our learners at home. GeorgiaStandards.Org allows parents easy access to information about the state’s standards, which are aligned to our California Common Core State Standards.
- This website also offers a variety of free resources to help you motivate and support your child’s curriculum at home while reinforcing the standards your child is working on in the classroom. Click here for more info.
Daily 5
- We are also fine-tuning our implementation of Daily 5 and the CAFE strategies. Read to Self and Read to Someone are strategies that learners can also do at home with you. Please encourage them to do so at least 20 minutes a day.
- We purchased a total of 1,300 narrative and informational texts so that each classroom received 100 new books for their libraries. This will support our implementation of Daily 5. Please continue to encourage your learners to Read to Self, Read to Someone, or Listen to Reading at home.
The Importance of Reading
Please take a moment to click here and review a great article on “How Reading 20 Minutes a Day Impacts your Child,” and join us as we continue our schoolwide reading initiative.
Educators have long said reading makes people smarter, and there’s research backing them up. A recent study conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics found reading to children of any age wakens a number of regions in the left part of the brain. The areas in the brain that become active involve understanding the meaning of words and concepts tied to memory.
Upcoming Events
March 2019
Thursday, 3/7 & Friday, 3/8: No school
Friday, 3/15: Learner-Led Conferences (LLC)
3/21-3/22: Learner-Led Conferences
April 2019
4/15-4/22: Spring break
Keeping the Valet Process Moving
Dear iLEAD AV families, thank you for your patience as we perfect our new valet procedure on 22nd Street West. The morning and afternoon process is going smoothly. With your support, each day became more efficient and every learner was directed to class or walked in by their parents or an iLEAD AV team member.
Thank you for your feedback on the new valet procedure. As a result, we were able to make a few changes to improve the process:
- In the mornings, the Valet gate now opens at 8 a.m.;
- Based on parent requests, in the afternoon the valet gate opens at 3:00 p.m.;
- Many of you requested the opportunity to walk on site to pick up your learners in the afternoon. To honor your request, we added to our process. Please park on 22nd Street West, walk on to the valet lot using the exit gate, and present your valet card. You will be able to walk to the classroom to pick up your learner/learners;
- Please remember the valet traffic flow pattern. There are no left turns to enter or exit the lot.
- To help us continue to be good neighbors, please do not block the driveways for Miller Elementary School or KinderCare on 22nd St. West. To assist us with that, our leadership and maintenance team has designed a new flow pattern to get more of our parents inside the valet area.
Pick-up is from 3:30-4 p.m. Learners who have not been retrieved by 4 p.m. will go to extended care and accounts will be billed at $3 per hour, per learner.
Additional Procedures
As promised at the end of last school year, we have created a solution for our parking dilemma. The owner of the shopping center asked all parents and staff to stop parking there and posted signs warning us that cars would be towed, so that is no longer an option.
I am happy to report we will begin using our lot on 22nd Street West for Valet before and after school. The lot is very large. As a result, we will no longer have Valet in front of the school.
To access the lot, please turn right on K-4 from 20th Street West. You will pass Miller Elementary School, drive right around the bend, and make a right into our lot. At the start of the day, your learner will be greeted and escorted onto campus. At the end of the day, your learner will be summoned and escorted to your car. Please be sure to post your Valet card on the dashboard daily. Once your learner is safely in your car, you will exit the lot and make a right, which will take you to Avenue K. We will have cones, signs, and iLEAD team members to support you and the learners.
In the mornings, the Valet lot will open at 8:00 a.m., and it will open at 3:00 p.m. for dismissal. If you are walking your learner to class in the morning, we will have a parking area in the lot just for you.
Our Goals
Our planning and preparation is consistent with our three Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) goals. I am looking forward to sharing how we are meeting each goal throughout the school year, and I have listed the goals below:
Goal 1: Provide optimal conditions of learning through providing basic services, implementation of California State Standards, and access to an academic and educational program.
Goal 2: Provide all learners with a rigorous, creative, and broad curriculum to maximize academic achievement and college and career readiness.
Goal 3: Generate active engagement between parents/families and the school, and connections with the community, to promote learner achievement and communication among all stakeholders.
A Few Reminders…
Parent Square: Click the Apple or Android links to download the app to your smartphone for free and get instant alerts.
Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/parentsquare/id908126679?mt=8
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.parentsquare.psapp&hl=en
iSupport: Get involved and help make change! Join iLEAD’s version of PTA. We need you! Learn More
Lunch Program and March Menu
Please submit your Free/Reduced lunch application to the front office as soon as possible. Lunch balances must remain under $20 this school year. Please make payments in the front office. NO LUNCH on Fridays.
Meal Prices:
Breakfast: $ 1.60
Lunch: $2.95
Reduced prices:
Breakfast: 30 cents
Lunch: 40 cents
What About Those Heelys?
We’ve seen an influx of Heelys on campus. Learners are zipping along the halls and on the playspaces. While we LOVE fun and seeing our learners enjoying themselves, we have to ask that they don’t use the wheels while at school. Please understand this is a safety concern for learners and staff. We want to prevent accidents and keep everyone safe. Heelys brand shoes can be worn; just please remove the wheels for school.
General safety guidelines also include no skateboards or bicycles being ridden on campus; they must be carried and walked. Thank you for your understanding and support!