White Oaks Weekly - January 10, 2021

From the Principal

Dear White Oaks Families,

Our White Oaks PTA is excited to announce that we are going to send our hopes and dreams to the moon this year!

The Readiness Institute at Penn State, in collaboration with Global Moonshots in Education, is collecting messages of hope from students, educators, and members of the global community and then sending those messages to the moon to create a lasting reminder that the hopes of today can become the reality of tomorrow.

Once your hope has been sent to the moon, every time you look into the night sky, you’ll be reminded of what it is that you’re hoping for and how your actions can contribute to the greater good of community and future readiness.

We will collect our hopes until January 19th and submit them to the Hope Moonshot project as a school. These hopes will then be saved on an SD card, which will be placed in a durable storage capsule that has been created for space travel. In 2021, this capsule will be delivered to the moon’s surface on the Peregrine Lunar Lander, built by Astrobotic Technology, Inc., a space robotics company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Please submit your hope here

We are so excited that the beautiful hopes of our White Oaks students will soon be on the moon.

Sincerely,

Leah Scholer, Principal
[email protected]


School News and Events

Order Your White Oaks Yearbook Today!
2020-2021 yearbooks are for sale! They can be purchased directly from Jostens here. Yearbooks are $25 each, and the sales deadline is Sunday, 1/31. Yearbooks are distributed the last week of school by your student's teacher.

We don't have a lot of extras to sell at the end of the school year, so buy your yearbook now to reserve a copy.

Please contact Teresa Williams with any questions via email or 650-508-7317.

Order your White Oaks yearbook HERE

Yearbook - Call for Photos – Deadline Friday, 1/29
We need your photo contribution to fill the following pages and capture this historic school year for your children and school. Please collect and submit your photos before Friday, 1/29.

  • Welcome Wednesdays – if your child has presented or performed at Welcome Wednesday, please submit your photos of that special moment.
  • Mask Fashion – Let your student show off their favorite mask. 
  • Pets – We all know kids like to show off their pets on zoom. Here’s their chance to share Fluffy in print.
  • DYI Fieldtrips – corn maze, zoo, beach day, etc. 
  • Music – Students at home playing instruments or dancing their heart out.
  • Sports – martial arts, Legarza, soccer, tennis, equestrian, etc.
  • Outside Play – water games, sidewalk chalk, backyard fun
  • Celebrations – birthdays, cultural events, holidays
  • Makerspace/STEM – home experiments, favorite STEM toys, LEGO creations
  • Clubs – If your student is participating in Running Club or Green Team, please share some photos of them participating
  • Art – Making art and showing it off
  • 3rd Graders – A photo that shows your 3rd Grader at their best or silliest for their special montage page.
  • Upcoming Events: 100th Day of School & Lunar New Year (these will have a later deadline)

Instructions for uploading:

  • LOG ON TO: images.jostens.com 
  • Enter our school ID: 415473954
  • Browse to select the photo(s) you wish to upload, click on “Select My Images.” 
  • Click “Upload Chosen Images.”
  • Please be sure to complete the Description portion of the form when submitting (it’s super helpful).

SCEF News and Events

The SCEF Read-A-Thon is Coming
The San Carlos Education Foundation’s first ever Read-A-Thon will encourage students to read as much as they can January 25 - February 5, 2021. We hope that our community will experience unity through the shared activity of reading and, in the process, raise educational funding for every student in our district. Our goals are to foster the love of reading, 100% participation/registration and to raise $200,000 for our schools. Donations of all sizes are appreciated, but not required to participate.

  • All the information you need to know can be found on our SCEF Read-A-Thon website at www.scefkids.org/read2021
  • Register by January 18 at www.scefkids.org/read2021 to have your name entered into a drawing to win a “seat” at the January 25 Dub Hub Virtual Warriors Experience
  • Submit your book recommendations! Record a short 30 second to 1 minute video HERE and upload. (Note that by posting a video you are giving permission for these videos to be used in SCEF marketing, newsletters, eblasts and social media).

Special thanks to the Partners at Dwell Realtors --Laura Bertolacci, Bob Bredel, Tatum Clarke, Alana Corso, and Joyce Romeo-- our inaugural Read-A-Thon sponsor.


District News and Events

Kindergarten Information Night - Jan 19
Each year, the SCSD welcomes our newest families into the district with a Kindergarten Information Night, introducing them to our community partners and reviewing the process for registering for Kindergarten.

This year, we will hold a virtual Kindergarten Welcome Night/Meet the San Carlos School District at 6:30pm on Tuesday, January 19, 2021. The presentation will include a welcome from SCEF, PTA, Healthy Cities Tutoring, Extended Day Programs, Preschool Programs, and district Wellness Programs as well as an overview of the registration process.

You can watch the presentation live on YouTube.

On Wednesday, January 20, 2021 the Powerschool Registration Form will open for new students to begin their registration. All registration paperwork will be completed online and parents will be asked to upload their documents into the system. More details will be available on our SCSD website in January. The deadline for priority registration is February 26, 2021.

See our Key Dates for Registration page for more information.

ROPES Judges Needed
We are in need for parents, staff and community members that would like to serve as a judge for the ROPES (Rite of Passage Experiences) presentations in February. ROPES are challenging projects that 4th, 6th and 8th grade students have completed which allow them to learn about their world and themselves in a deeper but fun way. You can learn more about ROPES on our website. This year all judging will be via Zoom.

There are 3 opportunities to judge:

  • Tuesday, Feb 2, 4–6:30pm
  • Wednesday, Feb 3, 2-5pm
  • Thursday, Feb 4, 6-8:30pm


In addition we will be holding a training session for all judges on Thursday, Jan 28 from 6-7pm. This will be via Zoom and we will be recording this session if you can’t make this time.

We would not be able to maintain this valuable program without the support of our community. We are asking for you to join district staff and other community members by volunteering to serve as a judge on one of our judging panels. Typically, we have two to three judges per room and they judge four to six student presentations in an evening/session.

We hope that you will be able to join us in this worthwhile event. Please sign up here to be a ROPES Judge.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us via [email protected].

Free TCRWP Parent & Caregiver Workshop - 1/28, 10am-12pm
Join expert Teachers College Reading and Writing Project staff at our upcoming workshop day for parents and caregivers of students in grades K-8. Learn more about ways to support your child’s literacy education at home, what or how they are learning in school, how to best engage in home literacy projects, and more.

These days are typically 2-3 hours long, composed of a series of 15-minute small-group presentations. Parents and caregivers can choose the workshops that match their needs and are free to come for one workshop or many. The schedule of workshops will be made available prior to the event. These sessions are offered live and are not recorded for later viewing.

Register here.

Check Out Parent Education Offerings
Remember to check out our Pandemic Care & Support website for parent education events and resources, mental health support, and more! You can also add the SCSD Parent Education Calendar to your phone.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Remember to Order Lunch Meal Kits
We have weekly meal boxes available for pick up each Monday (including delivery to Menlo Park and East Palo Alto). Each box includes five meals - an assortment of hot and cold entrees and a variety of fruits, veggies, and milk. Simply order online and safely pick-up your box for the week. To order your student’s Weekly Lunch Box, please log onto LunchIsServed and place your order. You must place your order by 9am on Sunday before the following week.​​​​​​​


Community News and Events

Youth Arts Competition
Creations and Connections (Ages 10-18): San Carlos Youth Advisory Council (YAC) is holding an Arts Competition for San Carlos youth ages 10-18 years. The theme for this year is "Peace, Love and Community." Youth can submit artwork under any of the following categories: Poetry/Short Story, Dance Choreography, Film Production, Music, Photography, and Fine Art. Submissions will be displayed at the Youth Center or at a virtual awards ceremony on February 19. To be considered, students must complete the art submission application by January 15. For more information and to apply, visit: cityofsancarlos.org/yac.