From the Principal
Dear White Oaks Families,
MAY DAY
This coming Friday is (finally) May 1st! May Day is one of our most beloved White Oaks traditions. In lieu of our traditional May Day flower deliveries, we are planning a very special May Day Celebration with a White Oaks staff car parade from 2-3pm on Friday, May 1. We will be driving down specific streets so check out the route so you and your family can plan to find a location to wave as we drive by. Tell your neighbors and please remember to practice all social distancing protocols.
We are also asking families to participate by doing the following:
- Pick your own garden flowers or draw your very own flower art piece. Here are a few Art for Kids Hubs links or feel free to draw your own:
- Take a picture of your child holding their flower art or garden flower bouquet
- Hang your flower art in the window and/or have with you while the parade drives by
- Upload the picture to this shared Google album
- Find a location along the route to kick off Teacher Appreciation Week (5/4-5/10)!
OWL BUCKS
As students earn OWL Bucks from their teachers during the week, I am collecting names and emailing out the OWL Bucks every Friday. Those names are then entered into our raffle drawing. Our original idea for the OWL Buck drawings was to announce the names of the winners here in the WOW. Since most students are not reading the WOW, we decided to create a Welcome Wednesday video every Wednesday and announce OWL Buck winners then so students can hear their names be called and/or cheer on their friends. We had so many students earn OWL Bucks this past week. I am so proud of all our students for being so respectful, responsible and safe! Keep an eye out for the next Welcome Wednesday where we will do our first drawing! Students whose names are called will receive a shout-out and an email from me with a menu of options for prizes. Keep up the great work, everyone!
Welcome Wednesdays
Since we will now begin weekly Welcome Wednesdays, the videos will be archived on our White Oaks home page on the portal. Now you can look back on your favorites!
We are looking forward to creating more memories and finding those silver linings with you throughout the next several weeks.
Sincerely,
Leah Scholer, Principal
[email protected]
School News and Events
Teacher Appreciation Week is Coming Up
Teacher appreciation week starts May 4 and we are so excited to shower our teachers with love. This time has been filled with challenges, but the White Oaks staff has gone above and beyond to show us they can handle anything!
We have come up with fun ways to surprise them and show our gratitude- while still practicing all the safety precautions. Be sure to check the email you received from your room parents for all the details. Don’t forget to have your student submit their parts by May 1!
You can email the teacher appreciation committee with any questions or concerns.
Volunteer with the PTA
We are already recruiting the PTA board for the 2020-21 school year. There is one executive board position still open and we are looking for new members to join and continue the awesome work of the WO PTA. There is a vacant spot for Parliamentarian, the board member who supports the presidents and leads the volunteer recruitment. Contact Catherine Dunne to learn more. There are also a few additional PTA roles available so if you have some time to donate, please get in touch. Some of these positions can be home-based and suit a range of schedules.
Help Mrs. Griffin Get All the White Oaks Library Books Back!
There will be a White Oaks Library Book Collection Box set up on the covered porch at 1550 Cedar Street beginning Sunday, April 12. Place your library book in the box and we will be sure to get them all back to Mrs. Griffin. Please only return White Oaks library books and not classroom books. You can tell it is a library book by looking for the white barcode sticker on the back of the book. It will also have a number on the spine of the book. Thank you so much for helping all of our library books find their way home!
SCEF News
Help Us Meet Our Goal!
SCEF knows that while fundraising earlier this school year has been strong, we still need to raise $700,000 to meet our $2.8M goal. We are committed to working with the community to meet our 2019-20 goal and raise as much as we can to support public education in San Carlos.
We believe that raising funds to help protect jobs is the most important thing the parent community can do right now. The vast majority of SCEF's annual grant to SCSD funds people--teachers and other educators. The more money SCEF can raise this spring, the more impact we will have to help the district meet its budget obligations --including reducing possible layoffs.
If your employer has a workplace giving program, and you are able to give, please consider making a contribution now. Many large companies have recently increased the matching within their program. Or perhaps commit to a monthly amount that helps you achieve your desired annual gift, over time - https://www.scefkids.org/donate/.
District News and Events
Registration Open for the 2020-2021 SMARTE After-school Clubhouse!
Registration for new students to attend the SMARTE After-school Clubhouse for the 2020-2021 school year has opened! Access the registration page here.
The SMARTE program is dedicated to enriching children's lives after school. We provide a fun, safe and welcoming place to spend time each day. Programs are available to students at our four elementary schools - Arundel, Brittan Acres, Heather and White Oaks. Registration is on a first come, first served basis.
See our SMARTE Clubhouse website for more information.
Preschool and SMARTE After School Virtual Program
Looking for fun and engaging activities for your kids NOW, while you're working from home? Come join the SMARTE Virtual Clubhouse!
SMARTE Virtual Clubhouse - Students will have real-time interaction with our staff via Zoom. We took our most popular activities and created a fun, engaging schedule that includes STEAM activities, music, play, movement, yoga/meditation, readalouds, and social interactions with friends. Your child can choose to join us from 10am-12pm (BA Clubhouse) or 2pm-5pm, students can join us for either block of time. The reduced cost is $300/month. Please visit our SMARTE website for more information - or email the SMARTE office at [email protected].
Virtual Preschool - Our preschool program has moved into a virtual Zoom preschool classroom as well. Children are having real-time interaction with their teachers, calendar and weather time, completing fun projects together, singing songs, reading books, dancing and playing. The preschool offers four hours of learning, play and teacher interaction each day. We have multiple teachers per classroom, so the team of teachers will be engaging with students and parents virtually from 9-10:30am; 11:30am-12:30pm; and 2-3:30pm. The reduced cost is $600/month. If you are interested in joining a virtual preschool classroom, contact Sue Dawley at [email protected] and visit our Preschool website for more information.
Community News and Events
San Carlos Hometown Days Rescheduled for August
After much thought and discussion, the San Carlos Hometown Days Committee has decided to reschedule Hometown Days 2020 from May 15-17 to August 28-30. We are sad that we have to postpone Hometown Days, but felt that this was a fitting decision due to the times and due to the fact that originally HTD was actually held in the fall.
We are committed to putting on a great celebration for our 40th Anniversary! We are looking forward to seeing you in the end of August!! Cheers to 40 Years!!!
Emergency Childcare Survey - Essential Workforce
Many parents in our community are essential workers, and we want to connect you with organizations that are providing emergency childcare if that is a need you have. The Childcare Coordinating Council (4Cs) is centralizing the planning and sharing out of these resources. Please complete this short, 8-question online survey to be connected to 4Cs’ child care resource and referral staff who will help you find emergency child care. You may receive this survey more than once. Please complete one per family.
For definitions of the essential workforce for each sector, please refer to the State Public Health Officer's designated list of “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers.”
For questions about this survey or emergency child care for essential workers, please email [email protected].
Census 2020
Completing the 2020 Census has never been easier! If you misplaced your 12-digit Census ID or don’t know how to start the process, you still have time. Visit the County of San Mateo - Government's Census page for more information.