Dear Walnut Acres Parents,

 

During this month of hearts and flowers, it may seem incongruous to select as a discussion topic something as serious as child abuse safety, but then again, what could be more appropriate than talking about protecting our beloved children? Last month I shared with you that child safety would be the topic of many informal conversations and formal meeting agendas in January. These conversations have reinforced for me that there are two crucial activities we need to promote as we continue to protect our students:

 

I. The consistent use of safety procedures and practices that we have in place at Walnut Acres. 

 

I've reviewed our current procedures and practices with many different groups and individuals this month, and the Safety Committee has developed a list of essential practices to support student safety. Staff procedures include ID badge wearing at all times and use of buddy system around campus when appropriate. I am listing the daily parent practices for you below. I ask you to review them carefully and contact me if you have questions about any of them. They are simple, but they are only as effective as our routine and continuous use of each rule!

 

1. Parents sign in to office and wear volunteer badges at all times on campus.

 

2. Parents (and younger children) use office bathroom.

 

3. Parents drop off students at or after 7:45 AM or take to Day Care anytime after 7 AM.

 

4. Parents pick up students by 3 PM.

 

5. Any student not picked up by 3 PM goes to the office to call parents.

 

6. Parents supervise children on playground after dismissal.

 

7. Parents tell children to go to someone trusted at school if they feel unsafe.

 

8. Parents inform principal if something seems peculiar.

 

We will have an additional support system to use in the protection of our students, when the district completes the installation of security cameras at our site.  All MDUSD sites are being provided with this protection system and I am told Walnut Acres' installation date is spring, 2012.

 

II. The empowerment of our students so that they know what to do if confronted with a difficult situation.

 

Our school counselor, Mrs. Spring, provided a wonderful presentation to interested parents about communicating with children to protect them from abuse. The Safety Committee, in a public meeting, suggested that we augment this presentation with direct training for students.  We are researching the costs and timeframes for providing safety empowerment training to Walnut Acres students and I will share more with you as further decisions are made.  If we proceed with that plan, there will be an opportunity for parents to participate in a workshop to become informed about the details of the student program.

 

Of course, having our children safely ensconced at school is crucial, but just the beginning of our efforts to help our children achieve their potential.  There are 2 different groups currently seeking your perspective as they work to guide and support student learning. Please lend your valuable input to their efforts!

 

1. The PFC has a survey out now and they are asking you to share your thoughts on funding choices, volunteerism, and communication.  Please go to the website or click here to offer your perspective as PFC leadership plans for the 2012-13 school year.

 

2. The MDUSD Board of Education has revamped the Strategic Plan and is seeking your input on the current draft of the plan.  You can access the MDUSD Strategic Plan on the district website (click here).  You may notice that references to school autonomy are gone, but 21st Century Learning is still in place.  You are invited to share your opinion of the plan at a special 2/22 Board meeting at the District Board Room beginning at 6 PM.

 

There are also 2 groups who would like to share with you their activities related to serving our students.

 

1. You are invited to chat with Superintendent Lawrence regarding the current state budget situation and its impact on education for the 2012-13 school year. Dr. Lawrence will be at the Northgate PFC meeting on 3/22 (tentative date) at 6 PM in the Lecture Hall to talk to parents in the Northgate feeder pattern about the MDUSD district budget.  I'll let you know when I have date confirmation.

 

2. The draft for the Master Plan for Services to English Learners is also on the district website and you are welcome to view it (click here).  Committee meetings to revise the draft plan are 3/23 and 4/15 from 4-7:30 PM at WCC.  You are invited to watch the committee in process.  Call Carmen at 682-8000 X 4003 and she'll have dinner ready for you!

 

Finally, Student services would like you to note that the intradistrict transfer lottery will take place on Wednesday, 2/15 from 11-2:30 PM at the Dent Center.

 

I wish you all a lovely Valentine's Day with a reminder that true love is shown in the daily tasks that we all perform for each other, not just the gifts that are exchanged on this special day.  Here's to loving our children every day, with every dinner made, discipline carried out, chauffeuring completed, skill taught, and hug provided!

 

Respectfully,

 

Colleen Dowd, Principal   

 

Dear Walnut Acres Parents,

We welcome students back to school with enthusiasm and renewed energy after our holiday! The upcoming cold months are crucial focused learning times and we will make the most of them.  We will use formative data to inform instruction and embrace our growth in 21st Century Learning. To that end, our writer's workshop training and classroom work, as well as our technology exploration, continues. We have purchased 15 new laptops to replace nonfunctioning laptops in the lab and work toward our goal of providing 5 laptops in each 4th and 5th grade classroom.  We will shift the 4th grade desktop computers to replace nonfunctioning desktops in the resource room/learning center and lower grade classrooms . Most exciting to me, is our purchase of 10 Ipads to explore the value of this new technology to support  student learning.  Our exploration efforts will be enhanced by training opportunities that include an all-day training on use of Ipads in special education and time with an Apple representative to help our staff to play with the tools during a professional development afternoon.  Our generous PFC is the benefactor for the majority of our purchases through the allocation of Strategic Planning monies.  These same funds are also being used to contract with our counselor, Alma Spring, to continue with us 2 afternoons a week through the end of the school year. On behalf of our staff, I thank parents for their investment in the growth of our teaching/learning community.

One of the goals of a 21st Century Learning community is to create opportunities for students to practice student-owned, creative learning opportunities. Our student newsletter team, with the guidance of Mrs. Villers, is modeling this activity through the development of our school newsmagazine.  You can review their efforts on our website.  Further novel creative learning is occurring in our 5th grade design lab (our Walnut Acres Design Lab - WADL Room).  Our 5th graders are using homeroom time to develop and implement projects that solve a problem or create something new under the direction of their teachers.  Students are working individually or in teams to complete self-appointed tasks, including the design of the perfect golf course, development of a TV show, and the creation a new video game. One of our 5th graders, Jessica Biddle, is designing an electronics and small appliance recycling program for schools.  She is giving our community the opportunity to recycle end-of-life electronics. Check out her letter explaining her plan on our website and please support her if you have an appliance to recycle.  

Enthusiasm for the new year is tarnished by the distressing news of the arrest of our substitute custodian, John Astor.  Allegations of inappropriate contact with a minor are extremely disturbing.  According to the Walnut Creek police there has been no indication that any of Mr. Astor's alleged illegal behavior took place at our school or any school in this district; however, if you have any information that will aid the police in their case, you are asked to contact the police at 943-5844. Mt. Diablo Unified School District officials are taking all appropriate personnel actions under the direction of Greg Rolen, district legal counsel.  If you have questions relative to our district's work with the police in supporting the investigation, Mr. Rolen requests that you contact him at 682-8000 extension 4001.

I am convening our safety committee to review our current procedures in order to insure that we are doing everything we can at school to keep students safe.  All of our employees and volunteers are fingerprinted, but the committee will consider ongoing routines that will support continued student safety.  If you have ideas for the committee to consider or if you would like to join us on Thursday, January 12, at 3:00 p.m. in A-1, you are welcome.   Please RSVP to the office so that we know how many guests to expect at our meeting.

Meanwhile, in order to keep your children safe, maintain an open door of communication with them, listen well, and talk to them about difficult topics at a relaxed time and in a comfortable place.  Let your children know that you want them to come to you if someone is making them uncomfortable.  Speak to them directly and simply.  If you are concerned about your child's safety,  ask if anyone is talking to them or touching them in a way that makes them uncomfortable.  Let them know that they are not in trouble with whatever they tell you. Tell your children that it's OK to say "no" to touches that make them uncomfortable and let them know that some body parts are private. They should also know that they need to tell an adult immediately if someone wants to touch or show private body parts. Your children are safest when they know they can tell you anything.

I realize these conversations can be difficult, so if you would like support with this process, please join Alma Spring, our counselor,  on Tuesday, January 10th at 10:00 a.m. in A-1.  This is an opportunity to process through your feelings about this incident and gather ideas from Mrs. Spring about how to discuss child abuse prevention with your children.  

As a community we will continue to work collaboratively to do all we can to keep our children safe. Remember that if you would like to get input on talking to your children about safety, join Alma on 1/10 at 10:00 a.m. and if you have suggestions as we pursue the safest possible environment, please pass them to me or join us on 1/12/12 at 3:00 p.m. to discuss safety challenges. Here's to a safe and rich learning environment in 2012!

Respectfully,

Colleen Dowd                                                                                                         

Principal 

Happy December, Walnut Acres Parents!

I hope you enjoyed the Thanksgiving break and plan to join us at the PFC Holiday Party on December 6 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ledesma/Sendaydiego home. All parents welcome.

We have completed our first trimester of school and that means it is conferences time. I hope that all parents are taking advantage of this opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher and learn about your child’s progress during these first 13 weeks of school. Please note that we have early dismissal for the next two weeks so that teachers have adequate time to conference. The early dismissal schedule is in place from December 5-16 at the following times:

Kindergarten (late slip) 12:38 p.m.  Every day (Early Slip starts at 8:15 a.m.)

1^st – 3^rd grade 12:59 p.m.              Except Wednesdays  (Pick-up is 12:29 p.m.)

4^th – 5^th grade   1:06 p.m.              Except Wednesdays  (Pick-up is 12:33 p.m.)

Arrange for your child to be picked up after school in a timely fashion, please.

In order to make the most of your conference time, I highly recommend that you familiarize yourself with the Report of Student Progress that teachers will be using to document your child’s status toward standard mastery. An overview of that new progress report, as well as an annotated report template, and common Q& A related to the new report, are all available on the district website. Link here if you would like to study those documents now. If you are familiar with the report template and the rubrics used for noting standard status, then you and your child’s teacher will be able to spend less time discussing the components of the new card and more time in dialogue about your child’s progress.   

If you have input about the new progress report, you are welcome to share it with me or a teacher and we will be happy to pass it along to the district. The large committee of teachers who developed the report template will be reviewing their work this spring once they have seen it implemented over a period of time.

Last year, I wrote about ways to prepare for and participate in your child’s conference and I’ll reiterate those strategies briefly:

• Begin by talking to your child about their challenges and successes at school.
• Get their perspective on their daily life at Walnut Acres.
• Write down questions and concerns…and appreciations…so that you remember to share your thoughts and questions in the midst of your busy teacher/parent conversation.
• Take notes during your meeting if you are getting a lot of novel information  
• Ask what you can do to support your child’s learning at home
• Remember that teachers have a limited amount of time for each conference. Ask for an opportunity to continue your conversation on another date if necessary.

I hope your conferences are valuable to support you in supporting your child!

As the new year begins, the district’s budget needs will be reassessed given the status of our state’s finances. If you are interested in updated data on this topic or the effect of the CVHS charter petition, you may link here to the video of the 11/12/11 meeting and accompanying PowerPoint. The charter petition has now been appealed to the Contra Costa County Office of Education. The County Board has scheduled a public hearing regarding the charter petition on December 7 at 5:30 pm at Pleasant Hill Elementary School.

Although 2012 may seem far away, it is right around the corner and I want to pass along information about three parent workshop series that are being offered through Adult Education. “Loving Solutions: Parent Project Junior” and “How to Talk So Kids Will Listen”, as well as “Anger Management”, begin with the start of the new year. Check out these workshops on the district website (link here) to see if any of these offerings might meet your current family needs.

Before we all move busily on to 2012, allow me take a moment to wish you lots of wonderful family time during this upcoming special holiday. Enjoy your beautiful child and remember that while in tough economic times you may not be able to offer your child the latest gizmo, it’s your precious time, your shared laughter, and your loving energy that your child needs. Pick up any psychologist’s article and you will be bombarded about the pivotal role you play in developing your child’s self-confidence, ability to take risks, and attitude about facing the big world independently. So take advantage of this wonderful time together - cuddle up on a cold, blustery day, listen to your child share secrets and dreams, as well as fears or anxieties. Relish your moments together, and whisper Shel Silverstein’s words in that oh so attentive ear, “Listen to the mustn’ts, child. Listen to the don’ts. Listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me…Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.”

Here’s to happy memory-making and dream-building,

Colleen Dowd

 

Dear Parents,

It is fitting during this season of thanks giving, that our PFC Strategic Planning Committee has recently completed an updated wish list to serve our students. Hours of discussion by Strategic Planning committee members, teachers, and staff led to the creation and prioritization of the wish list. My thanks to all parties for their thoughtful deliberation - with special thanks to Erin Jordahl and Katherine Stahl for their consistent leadership. The major facets of the wish list request are maintenance and development of technology, extension of counseling services through the end of the school year, and 21^st Century coaching support, including writer’s workshop substitutes. You may check out the current wish list requests on the PFC website. Priority request recommendations for funding are being presented for approval at the Tuesday, 11/15/11 (tomorrow), 7:00 p.m. PFC meeting, along with my presentation of “PFC Dollars in the Classroom”.  Click here for the meeting Agenda.

Specifically, teacher poll results strongly distinguished maintenance of current technology as the highest priority for fund expenditure. Printers break, LCDs need expensive $400 lightbulb replacements, and older computers have difficulty handling new online material. It’s not very exciting, but replacement of appropriate hardware is pivotal to support student learning. Adding to our technology support is the second highest priority for financial assistance from strategic planning monies. We want to expand our student computer access, and explore new technologies, such as iPad, online programs, and applications to discover if these tools could be valuable to support 21^st Century learning.

Our third request for strategic planning funds is to maintain our counselor in place through the entire school year in order to provide lunch bunch services, crisis support, referrals, and guidance to teachers, parents and students who seek assistance. Our fourth priority is funding for 21^st Century presentation/coaching support, including substitutes to support our ongoing writer’s workshop coaching. Our goal is to deepen our understanding and our ability to provide deep, rich, meaningful learning to students in order to prepare them for their future.  

While we work at Walnut Acres to provide a deep learning experience for our students through the development of 21^st Century strategies and practices, the district is also moving forward to provide targeted service to students. During your parent conference next month your child’s teacher will give you the new MDUSD Report of Student Progress. This report is designed to provide consistent communication about student progress that is based on multiple sources collected over time with emphasis on most recent evidence of student progress toward standard mastery. You will receive a letter from your child’s teacher introducing the new Report of Student Progress as well as an annotated progress report template, a Question and Answer information sheet, and a blank template of the report card for your child’s grade level. You may also click to the links above for the introduction, annotated report and Q & A. By reviewing these forms you will familiarize yourself with the new Report of Student Progress so that your conference time may be focused on your child’s progress this trimester rather than an explanation of the new report format and structure. You are welcome to contact me if you have further questions about the structure of the new Progress Report and join us at the PFC meeting when I will briefly review the new Report of Student Progress.  

I wish you and your family a lovely Thanksgiving season. Enjoy one another and the many blessings in your life, especially the beautiful children that you share with us every day. As I give thanks this season I will honor the parents who work so hard in so many ways to support our children, the teachers who are willing to take a plunge in new directions to support student success, and our wonderful kids, including the exuberant second grader who came bouncing over to me on the playground before school recently, threw his arms open wide, and broadly smiled as he announced, “I love school!”  Amen!

Happy Thanksgiving, Walnut Acres families!

Warmly,

Colleen Dowd

Principal

 

Dear Walnut Acres Parents,

Let me first thank you for your recent Gift Wrap purchases.  Payment and vouchers should be turned in THIS Tues. and Wed. before and after school at the picnic tables.

With school opening activities now behind us, including our Back to School Nights and our wonderful ice cream social, we have created fledgling class learning families, collected baseline data that should inform our instruction, and established routines and procedures.

As collaborators with us in educating our children, I’d like to remind you of a few of these policies and procedures:

• Our Homework Policy, on our school website, explicitly defines the amount of time that students should spend on homework each weekday evening and supports the infusion of 21^st Century Learning skill practice. If your child is spending more time than indicated on homework routinely, please contact your child’s teacher so that accommodations may be made. 
• Attendance procedures are on our website. Please use them to report an absence. Independent Study procedures will soon be on the website, as well.
• The MDUSD Board of Education has a very recently updated Strategic Plan Policy draft on the district website for review. Note the focus on 21^st Century Learning. Share your thoughts with board members about this policy as you choose.

Because you are collaborators with us regarding your child’s education, I want to recommend an article to you entitled, “The Role of Mistakes in the Classroom” by Alina Tigund. She states that, “…we’re raising a generation of children—primarily in affluent, high-achieving districts- who are terrified of blundering. Of failing. Of even sitting with the discomfort of not knowing something for a few minutes.” This is an issue that I have observed frequently among gifted students. They become perfectionistic and choose not to try anything at which they may not excel. I’ve even counseled parents to encourage and celebrate children’s errors to get past this restrictive thinking. We need to help all our children to understand that failure is a part of the learning process. In fact, we sometimes learn the most from our failures! As we promote the 21st Century Learning component of creativity, I hope we will all help our children to view failure as exactly what it is…a step toward success as long as they don’t give up. As Thomas Edison responded when asked by a reporter about his many failed attempts to create a light bulb, “I haven’t failed; I’ve just found 10,000 ways it won’t work. Negative results are just what I want. They’re just as valuable to me as positive results.”

Here’s to learning, growing and failing together along the way as we continue to help our children become all they can be. Special thanks to those who helped to get our school year off to a great start, including our dedicated PFC executive committee and our tenacious fundraising chairs! Thanks as well to the chairs who prepare our just-for-fun community events, such as the Social and our upcoming Carnival. Accolades to those who recently volunteered independently, including the entire Rigau family who pruned foliage, and Tammy Roake, who coordinated the first annual Walnut Creek Community Service day at our site. She was assisted by wonderful community volunteers, including Walnut Acres parents, and our own scout troop!

Our WAEF participation rate may not yet reflect the dynamic community that thrives here at Walnut Acres, but I have high hopes that it will. I encourage you to contribute at a level that is comfortable for you if you have not already done so. I thank you for the unending and awesome work you do as parents to model community spirit and the value of education, and I wish you a happy autumn as we continue to help our children grow.

I’ll close with another insight from Edison, “If we all did the things we are capable of, we would astound ourselves.” Here’s to our collaborative efforts to help our children astound themselves!

Sincerely,

Colleen Dowd, Principal

 

Welcome to the new school year, Walnut Acres Parents!

It was an absolute pleasure to welcome your children to 2011-12! I have had a chance to visit every classroom and I am delighted to renew my practice of connecting with students in the MUR at lunch each day. I am energized by their earnest and eager spirits. You have my word that we will all do our very best to provide our children with the quality of education that they deserve. During my brief introduction at Back to School Nights I will share with you our commitment to learning through our continued focus on becoming a 21^st Century learning community.

I want to remind you of a few ways that you can support your child’s learning at Walnut Acres:  

1. Have your child at school every day on time.

·         Most of our students are on time every day because you know that coming late to school puts your learner at a real disadvantage. Late students are often afraid to ask questions because they assume what they don’t understand has already been covered in class. If your child has unnecessary tardies or absences, please reassess your schedule and let me know if I can support your efforts.  

·         If your child is ill, please call 925 682-8000 ext. 7242 or report the absence online at www.mdusd.k12.ca.us/walnutacres/absence.htm Please do NOT report absences or give attendance notes to busy teachers.

·         Independent Study contracts are available if your student will be out of school for 5 days or more. Please allow teachers one week to create the work required.  See Nora in the office for further information.

2. Attend school functions.

·         Back to School Nights are crucial to learn about your child’s classroom from your child’s teacher. We hold separate Back to School times for each grade level to enhance your ability to focus on each of your children. I will offer a 15-minute presentation in the MUR prior to each Back-to School grade level meeting with the exception of the 9/6 5^th grade event.

·         Please remember that 4^th and 5^th grade Back to School nights were switched:

5^th grade Back to School Night                 5:45-7:00 p.m.

                                Outdoor Education Orientation     7:00-8:00 p.m.

                   4^th grade Back to School Night                 5:45-7:00 p.m.

This shift allows parents of Foothill students to participate in the outdoor education program without missing Foothill’s Back to School event.

·         There are many opportunities to interact and have a voice at Walnut Acres. You are welcome to ALL meetings whether or not you are a member of a particular committee. Our School Site Council (SSC) meets every first Thursday of the month in A-1 and everyone is welcome. Agendas and minutes are posted at the front of the school and on the school website.

3. Connect with your child’s teacher and staff.

·         Back to School Night is one formal opportunity to meet teachers. Regularly scheduled parent conferences are another. Remember that you and your child’s teacher may also set a parent conference anytime that it would be helpful.

·         Let your teacher inform you of the most effective way to connect with him or her, understanding that there are times when teachers need to focus on their students and cannot have a parent conversation. Our teachers want to work with you because they understand the strength of parent-teacher teamwork.

·         Despite cuts to their hours, Denise and Nora are in the school office with a smile and a ‘can-do’ approach to serve you and your children. They are approachable, extremely competent, and they want to be helpful answering your questions.

·         My door is always open and input is confidential if you choose.

4. Stay informed.  Go to http://www.walnutacrespfc.org/news for links to many of the following:

·         The district website has valuable information for you including Board agendas and documents. Here are some recent highlights:

o letter from Mark Peterson, Contra Costa County district attorney, regarding attendance

o letter from Dr. Lawrence regarding a district-approved medical and dental insurance program

o Bi-monthly MDUSD Updates regarding district activities, which includes API results and solar information.

·         The school website offers school updates, SSC meeting agendas and minutes, principal’s newsletters and this year, my monthly newsletters to students.

·         The PFC website is a tremendous source of information. Track this parent-run website created to serve you!

·         Walnut Acres e-news that you receive twice monthly is filled with the latest PFC and school news and also includes larger community announcements. 

·         A principal e-newsletter such as this one will be sent to you monthly with a perspective and school news.

·         Teacher newsletters will be sent home at least once a month. Classroom news will be the topic of each newsletter.

5. Contribute time, talent, resources – no contribution is too small.

·         When you volunteer you send a message to your child that education is a priority in your life. Your child will note the message loud and clear!

·         WAEF (Walnut Acres Education Fund) is now spending $455 per child to support current programs, personnel and materials at our site. Your donations (including employer matching funds) go directly to classroom assistants, science aides, vocal music, and enhanced technology resources, including our technology assistant. Please support WAEF at whatever level is appropriate for your family. The PFC hopes to gather 100% participation in WAEF, with the understanding that no contribution is too small.

·         Families generally cannot support WAEF at the level needed to maintain current programs and personnel, so fundraising is key to maintaining current educational opportunities. Participation in fundraisers is community-building, lots of fun, and raises crucial funds to support student learning. Select an activity or two that works for your family and thank you!

Thank you for sharing your precious children with us. Together we will provide them with an opportunity to develop their confidence, enhance their skills, and realize their own unique potential!  Meanwhile, of course, we will no doubt learn from them everyday. I’ll close with an anonymous quote that is true, but often forgotten… “While we try to teach our children about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

Here’s to 2011-12 and here’s to our beautiful children!   

Yours in a great learning year,

Colleen Dowd, Walnut Acres Principal

Dear Walnut Acres Parents,

As the rain pelts the office roof I write to you my final newsletter of the 2010-11 school year, with thanks for your consistent, proactive support and your amazing dedication to all our children. Perhaps the flexibility that this unusual weather requires of us is a good analogy for the flexibility that we must practice with the nebulous state budget and all of the unknowns that flow from it. For information about the latest proposed state budget and its impact on MDUSD, please visit the MDUSD website. 

We will continue to move forward with the pivotal support of the PFC whose leaders and members (all of you) provide such a wonderful umbrella for us to continue our growth as unscathed as possible by budget storms. Thank you so much for all you have accomplished this year to keep Walnut Acres students thriving! I want to especially thank the PFC Executive Committee that represents you all with passion, dedication and great creativity. Their leadership is inspiring and their effectiveness is an incredible gift to our community.

We do have a few solid updates for the 2011-12 school year that I can share with you in regard to personnel, programs and our facility:

Personnel

Mrs. Scudero will start the year with us in 2^nd grade, go out on leave in October (or whenever her first born makes an appearance) and work closely with her substitute after that point. Meanwhile, you all know that Mrs. Roy is retiring. (All are welcome to join us at her party today after school at 2:45 p.m. in K-2.)  Ms. Ireland will become the new third member of our loving K team and she will be replaced in 3^rd grade by Ms. Hubauer, who will become Mrs. Bellendir this summer. Due to declining enrollment (unrelated to any budget issues) we will have 3 4^th grade classes rather than 4, so Ms. Hubauer’s position as 4^th grade teacher will not be filled.

Program

While our 4^th grade team is diminished in size, they intend to maximize their strength by taking on focus teaching areas for math, writing and reading in order to enhance differentiation. Flexible math groupings will continue with Mrs. Otsuka as teacher, while flexible groups for writing (taught by Mrs. Bangs) and reading (taught by Mrs. Aguilar) will be created. If you have an incoming 4^th grader, please join the team at their Back to School Night so you can hear all about their plans to support your child’s success in learning.

Our 21^st Century Learning journey will continue with gusto in 2011-12. I hope many of you had an opportunity to review the why, the what and the how of 21^st Century Learning with a stroll through A-1 at our delightful Open House. (Thank you, coordinators, for creating a great evening of celebration for our community!) A-1 will remain open if anyone would like to tour the room with me this week.

Facility

With B-5 available due to our reduction in 4^th grade classrooms, we are considering the development of a Walnut Acres design lab in which students would practice 21^st Century skills of collaborative problem solving. We are playing with this concept over the summer and I will have more to share with you in the fall.  

Our solar panels will be placed on our site between 9/11 and 1/12. I am hoping that the loudest work will start during summer vacation and be completed before students arrive. All work areas will be cordoned off and all workers will wear appropriate identity badges. For detailed information about the solar program, click here.

I will look forward to seeing you and your children back at Walnut Acres on August 22^nd for Kick Off Day and then on August 30^th for the first day of school. Meanwhile, enjoy lovely family time this summer, remember to READ at home for FUN with your children EVERY DAY and review learning in entertaining ways, through board games, journal writing, family field trips etc. Click here for reading tips and remember that your children can use their user name and password to access Mathletics and Ed1stop on home computers.

I wish you happy memory-making, parents. Here’s a little poem by R. Peifer that I tweaked to start your summer adventures,

My dishes went unwashed today, I didn’t make the bed.

I took their hands and followed where their eager footsteps led.

Oh, yes we went adventuring my beautiful children and I, exploring all the great outdoors beneath the summer sky.

We waded in a crystal stream, we wandered through the wood, work from the office wasn’t completed today, but life was very good.

We watched a robin feed her young, We climbed a sunlit hill, saw cloud-shaped sheep scamper through the sky, and plucked a daffodil.

That my housework was neglected, that my ‘work completed’ box was bare, in twenty years, no one on earth will know, or even care.

But that I’ve helped my children to successful adulthood grow, in twenty years, the whole wide world may look and see and know.

Best wishes for a lovely summer,

Colleen Dowd

Principal

 

Dear Parents,

As you shuffle deadlines, meetings, chauffeur duties, and summer preparation plans, I must heighten your stress just a little by reminding you that our district is seeking your valuable input on two fronts:

First, what do you think of the idea of more autonomy for high-performing schools? How about a focus on 21^st Century learning by the district? Those are just 2 ideas in the newly crafted draft for an MDUSD Strategic Plan. Consider attending one meeting to hear the plan explained and provide your accolades, concerns, and suggestions as the board prepares to refine the plan. Click here for meetings times and locations and a draft of the Strategic Plan.

Second, budget meetings presented by Dr. Lawrence, are continuing, but the 3^rd meeting in the series is postponed until the state 5/13 or 5/16 May revise. The session will provide a review of the Governor’s May revise information and a summary of community input (from the 2^nd meeting) for both cutting the budget and enhancing revenue.  Click here for meeting times and location.

Now that I’ve added to your calendar, let me take a moment to share two other messages that may help you ease your stress, and dare I say it…relax?

First, we have an opportunity to celebrate student learning on May 26^th with our Open House Festival from 5:30-8:00 p.m. The family-focused event will feature a 21^st Century Learning center (so that parents can learn about our 21^st Century exploration), an Art Gallery, our specialty rooms and our classrooms. Please join us for this delightful annual event designed to show off student learning and provide a good time for all!

Second, I am including a copy of the verbal presentation to parents that I offered at the volunteer party in April. The text below was written by DJ Cronin and adapted, with much respect and appreciation, by me - to you. It is particularly appropriate as we celebrate the mothers in our community who dedicate their time to our children…

You Make a Difference in the Dash

Life is short. Our planet has been here for millions of years - our universe billions, but we are here individually for only a little while.

On our headstones will be etched the date we were born and the date we died. And in between those two dates there will be a simple dash.

Yet what matters are not those beginning and end dates. It is the dash in between the dates that’s crucial. That little dash. That's our life. That represents the short time we have, here, to make a difference, or not.

Now, making a difference means many different things to different people.  To some it means making a large pot of money, to others it is about gaining power, to still others it might mean earning fame or notoriety.

But for you, the volunteer, what you do during that dash is most significant.

As a volunteer you give time. Time. The most precious resource in our lives.

Look at the dash. How many hours are in there? It's not billions. It's not infinite. The hours we are given cannot be printed, like money, they cannot be created or duplicated or cloned.

Once you give an hour of your time it is gone forever. You can’t get it back. That hour you just gave volunteering you will never have again.

We can put a value on things that you give, but we can never put a value on the time that you give. How can you put a value on something that is priceless?

As a volunteer you bring energy, and support, and hope to our school community. You bring your skills, creativity, experience, vision, leadership, and inspiration every day and I am so grateful. But you leave with your skills and your talents intact, maybe even honed by your Walnut Acres experiences.

Your time, on the other hand, you simply give away to us everyday. You choose to donate this most precious, finite commodity in the known universe. Your gift of time is simply and utterly magnificent.

So today, I take a little time out to thank you for the amazing "time in" that you so generously give for our children. In the name of all our kids, thanks for your time!

Dear Walnut Acres Parents,

What a treat for me to listen to our students sing and share their video at the Sing-out last Friday! Our dynamic music teacher, Mrs. Ryken, does an awesome job of preparing our students for their shared performance and watching our students’ citizenship video was heartwarming.  I am so proud of their modeling, acting, directing and script writing prowess! Some of our older students independently created their own video vignettes that highlighted internet and global citizenship, while the younger students, with the help of our talented director/cameraman (and site tech), Patty Galindo, modeled citizenship in the classroom, in the MUR and on the playground.

It should be noted that our students don’t just talk about citizenship, they own it! Did you see the Walnut Acres newsletter that interested 4^th and 5^th grade students developed?  They hope to create two more before the end of the school year with the help of their supportive coach (and instructional assistant), Sandy Villers. Meanwhile, our student council (again enabled by Sandy) is holding a fundraiser for the people of Japan this week in conjunction with some of our scout troops. We also have a group of students piloting design thinking with innovative facilitator (and parent), Chris Walsh. The design thinking group selected a real-world problem and they are working collaboratively to create and implement a solution for it. Right now they are taking on the student-selected challenge of enhancing school lunches. I will pass along their results...better yet, they’ll do it!

Good citizenship is alive and well at Walnut Acres!

I wish I could tell you that the some sort of ownership, problem solving and collaboration that makes for a good citizen is being modeled in Sacramento, but as you know the educational budget situation continues to worsen. The district must now develop the annual May budget revision with the realization that there will not be a June vote on tax extensions. MDUSD will prepare to add another potential reduction of $400 per child to the $350 cut per child that we just completed.  That means that we need to plan for the possible loss of another $21 million in the next budget revision. Library and music teachers will remain for the 2011-12 school year because the deadline has passed for laying off certificated personnel. A variety of previously considered budget reductions will need to be reconsidered and new ideas may be added. Please see the district website for a list of potential budget cuts previously discussed by the board and the District Newsroom for updated information about district activities. (As of this writing the latest monthly update is not yet posted, but that will happen soon.)  I also recommend the monthly PAC meetings (Parent Advisory Committee) for an opportunity to meet with district leaders, ask questions and make suggestions.

As Walnut Acres braces for the next wave of cuts, I am once again reminded that we are a very lucky community to have our active parent group dedicated to shoring up our educational program despite drastic district financial losses. The work that you do raising funds, donating to WAEF, and volunteering at our school, directly enhances our ability to provide daily support for student learning. Most recently, the auction committee once again provided our community with a model of a fun and very financially successful party! The larger community, too, through PEAK, has recently provided a donation to support our 21^st Century work.

While nominations are now being solicited for crucial positions that will continue the valuable work of the PFC, I encourage you to consider taking a leadership role. You will be supporting labors of love that lead to funding for our site technology expert, our music teacher, our reading intervention teacher, our science lab assistants, instructional assistants, as well as materials and supplies!

All parent volunteers who work on site and/or behind the scenes raising funds for our children’s programs are invited to attend the PFC meeting on April 19^th at 7:00 p.m. in the library. We will have a relaxing Volunteer Appreciation Party to share some tasty treats and I will have the opportunity to thank you all formally for the commitment of time, energy and love that you bring to our learning community. 

There is no silver cloud on the horizon for education yet; it will come someday, but at Walnut Acres we are continuing to evolve as a dynamic learning community. That is only feasible because of our hard-working staff and because you give your heart everyday to this school. I know you do it because our wonderful children deserve no less! 

Come by on 4/19 so I can thank you for your invincible spirit of giving. You quietly and tenaciously keep us moving forward…or as one of my favorite authors so eloquently stated…“Unless someone like you cares a whole, awful lot. Things aren't going to get better, they're NOT!”                             -Dr. Suess, The Lorax

Respectfully,

Colleen Dowd

Principal

 

Hello Walnut Acres parents!

 

Our lifeskill this month is citizenship and students are beginning to have discussions about what it means to be a good citizen. (Come join us for our Citizenship Sing-out on April 1^st. Click here for lyrics.) I am very grateful that your children can look to you as models of citizenship. In fact, let me give you one example of how your children are watching and learning from you. Last Thursday, during Dining with Dr. Dowd, I asked students one of my favorite questions, “What do you think we should do to make our school a better place to learn?” While I often get responses related to the return of chocolate milk and the need for more recesses, it was ironic that the students at my table began energetically talking about fundraisers and project ideas to raise funds for school supplies. The conversation among the students sounded for all the world like a PFC meeting! I chuckled to myself as I verbally reinforced the students for being excellent school citizens and quietly gave thanks to all of you wonderful parents who are creating  future entrepenuers and humanitarians.

 

Thank you to all who work on our school fundraisers, including our upcoming annual auction, those who volunteer time on projects or in the classroom, and those who serve on our PFC board. Your energy and effort are crucial to our school community success! I salute you all for the innumerable benefits you provide to all our students and the values you are teaching to your children.      

 

Next month I will share what I know about budgeting for 2011-12. Right now I will direct you to the clear and direct communication from Superintendent Lawrence presented in his newsletter. He presented an informative power point presentation to PAC (Parent Advisory Committee) which holds open meetings (ALL parents welcome) monthly, and that will also soon be posted.

 

This month I want to tell you about our hot-off-the-press Walnut Acres Homework Plan that was developed by a homework committee comprised of parents, teachers and myself. The plan is based on the district homework model (user name: public; password: mdusd) created last year. A draft of our plan was presented at two PFC meetings, to grade level teams and to the whole staff for input. The Walnut Acres Homework Plan was approved by the School Site Council on 3/3/11 and is now on the Walnut Acres website for you to review.

 

It was decided that the grade-based time limits for nightly homework in the district plan would be applied to the site plan and that the district plan’s brief statements regarding academic standards (cf.6011) (user name: public; password: mdusd) would be emphasized with a focus on homework components of purpose, choice, and student ownership to support 21^st Century Learning. Our goal is implement a homework plan that manifests in purposeful homework within reasonable time limits that serves to reinforce content, encourage critical and creative thinking, and/or enhance student empowerment within the learning process.  

 

It is important that our plan is implemented across and within grade levels consistently. We are currently discussing how to clarify time spent on homework in each class so that teachers can modify their homework assignments if necessary to match the plan timeframes. We also want to ensure an effective and ongoing parent-teacher communication plan so that there is a well-understood and effective practice for meeting the homework needs of individual students.

 

The final component of our plan is balance. The time limits for nightly homework four nights per week should allow for family time, other activities, and open-ended playtime.  Well-Balanced Wednesdays are also part of our plan to remind us all of the importance of a well-balanced family life.

 

I know that some parents are concerned about the balance of school and homework as discussed in the movie “Race to Nowhere”. For those of you interested in participating in a discussion of the Race to Nowhere movie, please note that there will be a free Parent Education Night open to the community in the Northgate Teacher’s Lounge on March 9^th from 7-9:00 p.m. The discussion will be facilitated by Northgate counselors, Michelle Dooner and Jill Sabotka. It will focus on the pressures children face as well as what parents and community can do to help students succeed at being balanced and healthy – emotionally, socially, and academically. The conversation is open to all whether or not you have seen “Race to Nowhere”.

 

As we continue our partnership to create balanced learning opportunities for our children, let’s remember that our modeling each day is internalized by our children. The way we handle stress, the strategies we employ as we learn, (including our mistakes!) the way we interact with one another, and the choices we make become the hallmark of behavior for our children. To paraphrase author, David Bly, “Our children will become what we are, so let’s be what we want them to be.”

 

Here’s to all of us learning and growing right along with our children,

Colleen Dowd

Walnut Acres Principal