March 31, 2024
IN THIS ISSUE
- Principal’s Message: Building Social Skills
- PTA: Playpod Volunteers
- SCEF: Online Auction, Giants Game
- District News: InfoSnap Forms
- Community News: Parent Ed
IMPORTANT DATES
Tue 4/2: SCEF Online Silent Auction ends
Wed 4/3: Walk to School Wednesday
Fri 4/5: InfoSnap forms due
Mon-Fri 4/8-4/12: Spring Break, no school
Thu 4/18: PTA meeting & social, 6-8 p.m.
Fri 4/26: Spring Dance
Sat 5/4: Revel@Devil's Community Dance Party
Wed 5/8: Founders' Day
Principal’s Message
Dear White Oaks Families,
Building Social Skills
Your children are learning social and emotional skills through regular classroom lessons and reinforcement throughout the school day. Currently, all of our students at White Oaks are learning how to make and keep friends.
Disagreements, misunderstandings and conflicts arise in any friendship. Your child’s job is to learn to resolve conflicts and your job is to guide and support them. When you observe your child having a challenge with a friend, allow them to try to solve the problem independently. If they seek your help, don’t take over and fix the problem for them, instead, talk with them about what is going on, including their role in the situation. Encourage them to come up with a plan of action - what to do next to resolve the problem and move forward. Support your child as they develop their plan and put it into action.
A key theme that has arisen this year is the confidence-building needed for our students. We want our children to feel confident enough to make choices in spite of perceived “peer pressure”. This is a hard skill to learn and an even harder one to put into practice. The articles below may be able to support you and your child’s friendships and social development.
Warmly,
Leah Scholer
Principal
This Week's Menus
PTA News
Recruit, Refresh, Reconnect: Join Our PTA Social!
Please join us on Thursday, Apr. 18 from 6-8 p.m. at 1917 St. Francis Way for a PTA social to mingle with parents and have a chance to learn more about the PTA and how you can get involved. Our PTA plays a crucial role in supporting our school and enriching the experience for our students. To continue our mission effectively, we need passionate individuals like you to join our team. Whether you have ideas to share, skills to offer, or simply a desire to make a difference, there's a place for you in our PTA. Feel free to bring along friends who might be interested in learning about the PTA.
Walk to School Wednesday
Please join us for Walk to School Wednesday on Apr. 3. Charms will be given to students who walk, roll, ride, or scoot to school! Walk to School Wednesday takes place the first Wednesday of every month.
Playpod Volunteer Signups Available Through End of School Year
We're looking for volunteers to help run the Playpod for two shifts on Tuesdays and Thursdays (12:10-12:40 and 12:40-1:10 p.m.). Our playpod is a large container of "loose parts" that learners convert into all kinds of amazing designs - forts, restaurants, houses, endless ramps and more (learn more here). Parent volunteers will help for 30-minute shifts to set up signs and materials, invite kids to join and play respectfully, responsibly and safely, and then clean up a few minutes before the post-lunch recess period ends. Please sign up!
Don’t miss out on the annual SCEF Online Auction
The Auction ends this TUESDAY, Apr. 2! Support your school and bid on entertainment, travel, dining, wine and spirits, museum, concerts, attraction tickets and more. Great way to shop and and support your schools at the same time. See the amazing offerings.
San Carlos Day at the Giants tickets available NOW!
Join other San Carlos families at San Carlos Day at the Giants on Saturday, Apr. 20. Tickets are available here. San Carlos is one of very few school groups who have held onto the opportunity to sing the national anthem before a game–and this year it is a weekend day game. This is an amazing opportunity and great memory maker! Get your tickets NOW! Spots for your child to sing the national anthem are in our online auction which closes on Apr. 2. Bid by child’s t-shirt size. Every person signing the anthem and/or attending the game needs a game ticket.
Fund-the-Future of STEM Education in our Schools–we only need to raise $21k more to meet the $200k goal– please donate TODAY. The San Carlos Education Foundation works with the Superintendent every year to identify a need in San Carlos schools that would benefit from a targeted fundraising effort. These are funds we raise above and beyond our ongoing support for educator positions, counseling, libraries, music, technology, PTA budgets, and more. Donations are restricted to a fund that will be used to provide supplies, materials, equipment for students and professional development for teachers to aid STEM and project based learning in the classroom. Watch our video and learn more.
District News
It's Time to Complete Your Annual Back-To-School InfoSnap Forms! Deadline is Friday, Apr. 5
Each spring, we ask all families to complete their annual Back-To-School student information forms through PowerSchool online. This allows families to update or add emergency contact information, give permissions, update health records (allergy or medical considerations), and is required to secure your spot for the next school year.
Last week, you should have received an email titled (2024-25) Back-To-School Form Instructions from noreplyregistration@
Please complete these forms as soon as possible but no later than Friday, April 5. Should your plans change at any point, and you no longer intend to return for the next academic year, please notify your school office ASAP. We genuinely appreciate your cooperation in this essential process.
Community News
Special Weekday Event at the Museum of San Carlos History
On Wednesday, Apr. 3 from 1-4 p.m., please come and tour the museum for a special event. Optional items to bring with you:
- A color copy of your group class photo. We will add it to our school photograph binder archives. (on the back, include the names of your classmates)
- The names of your grandparents who might have grown up in San Carlos. Let’s search their names in our newspaper archives
533 Laurel Street (yes, the little building next to the fire station)-- FREE admission!
Parent Education Opportunities
NEW! Worried about opioids and fentanyl? Sunil Bhopale, MD, and Rex Huang, MD, Kaiser Permanente Redwood City, join us for Fentanyl/Opioid Safety and Education: Insights from Practicing Physicians (Apr. 2).
NEW! What should families know about personal finance? Tim Ranzetta, co-founder of nonprofit Next Gen Personal Finance, join us for Next Gen Personal Finance: Building Financial Literacy for Your Family (Apr. 3).
NEW! How can you and your family create social change? Lesley-Ann Noel, PhD, Stanford d.school, will discuss her new book, Design Social Change: Take Action, Work toward Equity, and Challenge the Status Quo (Apr. 5).
Visit the Parent Venture Series of Upcoming Events page for more information.
PTA CORNER
Join the White Oaks PTA. Your membership matters and helps support programs and events for our students and teachers.
A percentage of your purchases will automatically be donated to the White Oaks PTA — at no cost to you!
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