From the Principal
Dear White Oaks families,
October is Digital Citizenship Month. At times, I think, why put the word “Digital” in front of “Citizenship”? Students at White Oaks learn that engaging in appropriate and responsible behavior, good etiquette, and safety are all part of the White Oaks Way ... on and offline.
During the pandemic, technology grew to help people stay connected and became an everyday occurrence for students of all ages. However, now we are back in person, and technology will have different classroom uses.
At White Oaks, students will use technology in various ways, including the support of critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration. Some digital activities students will create include: authoring ebooks, producing movies to communicate a point of view, drafting essays using Google Docs and slide presentations, researching science and social studies topics, and collaborating during project-based learning units — just to highlight a few. Along the way, they are learning how to search safely, protect privacy, give proper credit to authors, share workload responsibilities, and model kindness and caring in all communications.
Our kids genuinely live in the digital age, from research and reading online to playing games and exploring social media. With our support, children learn that “online life” guidelines closely mirror those of life “offline.” During the elementary school years, children are learning how to self-regulate. As they reach new physical, social, and emotional milestones, children begin to balance active time with rest time, time with friends with quiet time alone, and healthy eating with the occasional sweet treat. With our guidance, they also are learning how to manage their “digital diets” to balance both quality and quantity of media consumption.
Here are a few guidelines you may want to draw from as you consider how technology functions in your family:
- Get involved: Engage with your child and find out what he or she enjoys online.
- Use Common Sense Media, a great source for movies, books, and technology reviews and tips.
- Set an example: Model positive behavior about when, where, and how it is acceptable to be “on” a device. Check out this 45-second video about taming device time.
- Make dinnertime device-free.
- Set clear limits: Together, create a schedule that shows when media will be used and how screen time fits into the larger picture of the day or week. Institute a “device bedtime” so that devices are put away in advance of your child’s bedtime. Ensure that devices are used and charged in public areas, not in children’s bedrooms. Create a Family Media Plan.
Already, our children are learning to use technology to fuel learning in exciting ways. Together, we’ll help them take the next steps to become powerful digital (and non-digital) citizens!
Together we grow strong!
Kim Norgaard, Interim Principal
[email protected]
Playpod Fun!
Above: Grade 3 students are using their creativity and collaboration skills to create and play during our Legarza Small Groups time.
The White Oaks PlayPod needs some revamping! We need to restock our PlayPod and are accepting donations!
- Large cardboard boxes
- Large wooden, corrugated spools
- Large parts and pieces of things, PVC fittings, clean plastic pipes,
- Crawl through tubes, like this
- Old remote controls
- Use YOUR imagination after watching the ScrapStore PlayPod in action
- All items need to be clean, please
Please do not just bring us stuff, as we can’t guarantee it can be used and we don’t have the resources to deal with extra storage or refuse. Please send Interim Principal Kim Norgaard an email with a photo first so the item can be vetted.
Get Your Game Face On!
Show your spirit by wearing your favorite team T-shirt, hat, or any White Oaks school attire on Wednesday, Oct. 13. Let’s do it! In the photo below, second-grade students announce Team Spirit Day at our Welcome Wednesday assembly.
Upcoming Events
Monday, Oct. 11: Local holiday, no school
Wednesday, Oct. 13: White Oaks Team Spirit Day
Wednesday, Oct. 13: PTA meeting, 7:30 p.m. via Zoom
Thursday, Oct. 14: School Board meeting, 6:45 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 22: White Oaks PTA Pumpkin Patch Movie Night
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School News and Events
Volunteers Being Cleared to Help on Campus
Thank you to our White Oaks families who have followed the process of requesting to volunteer and being cleared by HR to help on campus. We are so excited to have you!
If you are interested in volunteering, please remember that you need to complete a two-step process. First, request to volunteer. Once you have submitted the Request to Volunteer form, HR in the district office will send you a Self-Certification of Vaccination Status form for you to submit. Just like employees, all volunteers need to either verify coronavirus vaccination or show a negative COVID test on a weekly basis. Your name will go on our school site list of cleared volunteers, managed by Teresa Williams in our office.
PTA Meeting This Wednesday Night
Please join us at our next PTA meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 13, at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom. We will be joined by our superintendent, Dr. Jennifer Frentress, and receive a school update from Mrs. Norgaard.
All parents are welcome to attend! Just a friendly reminder that to be eligible to vote, you must be a member of the PTA. We hope to see you there.
Meeting ID: 834 9700 0795 / Passcode: 851899
October PTA Membership Drive
We are happy to announce that our membership continues to grow, and we now have 47% PTA membership! Thank you to those who have joined. Our goal this year is 100% membership. If we reach 85% membership by the end of October, Mrs. Norgaard will greet the kids wearing a green wig! The details:
- How do I join? Sign up online via Totem.
- What is the cost? $20 per family (plus $1 fee).
- Why join?
- CONNECT with new friends and the White Oaks community.
- SUPPORT school-wide events and programs.
- MAKE your voice heard in Sacramento.
- Why is your membership important? Members play a role in decision-making at our monthly White Oaks PTA meetings. Higher membership gives our PTA a powerful voice in advocating for our children in the California Legislature. 100% membership sends a message that our district is made up of voters who are concerned and involved.
PTA Pumpkin Patch Movie Night on Oct. 22
Friday, Oct. 22, 5:30-8 p.m.
The White Oaks PTA hopes you can join us for this outdoor family event! Bring blankets, chairs, and warm clothes for a night of fun with our school community! Come just for the Pumpkin Patch and play time, or stay for the movie. We’ll have an area set up for fall family photos at the pumpkin patch. Kids are welcome to come in costumes!
We’re asking for your help to fill our pumpkin patch by dropping off a pumpkin during the week of Oct. 18 to the MU. Interesting shapes, sizes, and colors encouraged! Students can pick a pumpkin at Movie Night to bring home.
The movie will be Pixar’s “Toy Story of Terror!” on the lawn and will start at sundown, 6:30 p.m. For health and safety, masks are required for everyone on campus, and there will be no food allowed, so please plan to have dinner beforehand or afterward. Please, no wheels on campus. Park your bikes, scooter, or skateboards in the bike racks.
We’re also looking for a few volunteers to help with setup for this event. If you are able to spare an hour, please contact Amy Kim at [email protected].
Please note, the PTA recognizes that every family makes their own decisions about which movies are appropriate for their children’s age, temperament and maturity. If you are looking for information to help you decide whether to attend the movie portion, consider reading the review provided by Common Sense Media.
We are excited for this community-building event and look forward to seeing you!
2021-22 White Oaks Yearbooks for Sale!
You can buy this school year’s yearbook directly from Jostens here. Yearbooks are $26 each, and the sales deadline is Friday, Dec. 24. They will be distributed the last week of school by your student’s teacher. Most teachers give the students time to sign yearbooks, so don’t let your child be left out!
We won’t have a lot of extras to sell at the end of the school year, so buy your yearbook now to reserve your copy. Please contact Teresa Williams with questions.
District News and Events
COVID Reminders: Stay Home When Sick and Get Tested
Staying home when sick and getting tested for COVID-19 are two of the most effective ways to keep our community safe. Find details from the SCSD Health & Safety Plan in this document.
If you have any of the symptoms listed above, call your school office to report an illness, stay home, and take a COVID test.
If you need to report a COVID case, please call District Nurse Page Pollack at 650-632-8300 (Arroyo office) or Human Resources at 650-590-5922 if the nurse is unavailable.
For more information, visit our COVID-19 Resources page and review the SCSD Health & Safety Plan.
Schedule Your Appointment at the Curative COVID-19 Testing Van
Please take advantage of the no-cost COVID-19 testing provided by the San Mateo County Health Department. Sign up online to begin your regular weekly testing at the Central Middle School parking lot, under the solar structure (757 Cedar St., San Carlos).
- Tuesdays and Wednesdays 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
- Thursdays 1-7 p.m.
- Fridays 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Find other community testing sites in San Mateo County here.
Community News and Events
Healthy Cities Tutoring Fall Tutor Orientation and Training
Wednesday, Oct. 13, 10 a.m. or 7 p.m.
Don’t miss our upcoming New Tutor Orientation and Training (attend only one session). Join other new tutors and learn more about HCT and our program, meet our staff and have all your questions answered! Following the orientation is our Fall Training led by HCT staff and teachers from our schools. Learn valuable techniques for engaging and supporting your students. We hope to see you there!
10 a.m.: Join us in person at the San Carlos Library, 610 Elm St.
7 p.m.: Join us remotely via Zoom. Meeting link will be emailed to participants who RSVP.
Details:
- 10-10:35 a.m. or 7-7:35 p.m. New Tutor Orientation: If you have not tutored with us, this session covers everything you need to know to get started with a student!
- 10:45-11:30 a.m. or 7:45-8:30 p.m. Tutor Tips Training: Interactive and fun training on how to make the most out of your tutoring sessions in person or over Zoom. Chance to ask questions following the meeting.
Junior Chef Stars is Back! CREATE - COOK - LEARN
Looking for a hands-on, tasty activity for your Junior Chef? We provide junior chefs with the tools necessary to create, cook, and learn. Join us as we celebrate the bounty of fall. Your junior chef will expand their cooking knowledge with our curriculum, which covers nutrition, seasonal cooking, knife skills, the purpose of core ingredients, and the many cultural aspects of food — all while having a blast and making new friends.
Dates: Oct. 14 to Dec. 9
When: Thursdays 2:30-3:45 p.m.
Where: Multipurpose Room
Register today at juniorchefstars.com/
San Carlos Goblin Walk Is Back!
Friday, Oct. 29, 4-5:30 p.m.
San Carlos Parks & Recreation is excited for the return of Goblin Walk! Children 7 and under, accompanied by an adult, are invited to trick-or-treat down Laurel Street in their costumes and visit the businesses displaying the Goblin Walk sign. The first 1,000 trick-or-treaters can pick up a Goblin Walk trick-or-treat bag at Harrington Park or from any Goblin Walk volunteer. For more info, please call 650-802-4382.
Planning on going? Let us know on our Facebook Event Page!
Parent Education Series from The Parent Venture
Worried about substance use at school? Join Eduardo Torres, senior prevention specialist at Prevention Solutions (Hazeldon Betty Ford), for Supporting Your Child’s Healthy Decisions in the Transition Back to School (Oct. 12, online).
On Oct. 13, the San Mateo County Office of Education and SUHSD offer Part 2 of the Community Resiliency Model (CRM)®, a free, two-part mental health training open to parents, guardians, and community members (online).
Are your kids safe online? Join Pamela Estes, San Mateo human trafficking program coordinator, for a conversation about digital safety: Are My Kids Safe? What Parents Should Know About the Online Environment (Oct. 14, online).