Originally delivered on 9/29/2021 9:00 am

SUBJECT: Weekly E-News




September 29, 2021

ISSUE 07

THE PRINCIPAL'S CORNER

Dear Flora Vista Community Members,

It’s been SO rewarding visiting classrooms to talk about Start with Hello and how each of us can help make our school a kinder and more inclusive community. Our teachers are amazing in threading these ideas throughout the year, our students continue to show how kind and caring they are, and we have an all-star support staff team to support them all. At home, you can help support your child by asking him/her/them to talk through what they would do if (for example) they see someone alone, their friend teases someone, and/or they see a hurtful comment towards a classmate online. The defining challenge for our student community is to what extent they take these wonderful class community conversations and put the actions into real-world practice, even when no one is looking. Maya Angelous’s quote that ends with “…people will never forget how you made them feel” threaded through the class discussions, and together, we can help all students be create a community where all feel included. Thank you for your support in that effort! 

 

Next Tuesday, October 5 at 2:30 P.M., I will host the annual public input session via Zoom for our Comprehensive School Safety Plan. Even in COVID times, we don’t lose sight of the other types of risk that schools have always planned for and continue to train for. California requires an annual meeting and opportunity for feedback, but we make use of feedback all year long, whether it’s staff feedback after emergency drills, parents’ input at pick-up and drop-off, or even student ideas throughout the year. (Note that for security reasons, schools do not publicly publish specifics of protocols or maps.) The Safety Plan meeting will be the main agenda item for our October 5 School Site Council Meeting, and if you’d like to attend via Zoom, please RSVP and submit any questions HERE. (Related note: FV will participate in the Great CA Shake Out early this year, on Oct 7.)

 

In Gratitude,

Chris Juarez

Principal

Falcon Fund Update - Monthly Payment Plan

Dear FV Families,

Thanks for your patience as we needed some time to work out the logistics of offering a monthly payment plan for Falcon Fund donations. 

If you have already donated via Membership Toolkit - THANK YOU!  If you would like to sign up for a recurring monthly donation instead of a lump sum one time donation please click HERE.  We will plan to stop all recurring donations after 8 payments so you can decide what is best for your family.  Please let us know if you have any questions and thank you for your ongoing support of our school!


Sincerely,

Jeff Ladman - PTA President

Jane Tasker - PTA Co-President

Ally Hanlon - EEF President

Reflections

Does your child enjoying making videos? Dancing? Writing? Photography? Composing music? Drawing? Creating? 


The Reflections program gives your student an opportunity to show their talents in any of these areas! 

1. Students pick a category and create an art piece based on the theme "I will change the world by..."   They will be given time during Art Wheel to work on or plan their entries the week of October 4-8.   Please see this link for information regarding the rules for each category. 

2. You and your child complete a digital entry form (coming soon) with their information and a brief statement of how their art relates to the theme.  Everything is submitted virtually and is due by October 25th. 

3. Entries are entered into a school-wide contest with local judges.  Winners will go on to the next round. 

4. All submitted entries will be shown at an art gallery linked to our Fall Festival in November.


If you have any questions please email Christine Lustig (christinelustig@gmail.com ) or Tianne Watson (tls8221@hotmail.com)- we would love to help! 

Staff Feature of the Week...Kristie Morsher

Hello, Flora Vista Families! 

My name is Kristie Morsher, and I am proud to be the new Art Teacher at Flora Vista this year! The students know me as Ms. Morsher, but I also answer to “Art Lady” and “Art Teacher.” I am so excited to be teaching Art at FV, and the students have been beyond excited to have Art added to their weekly wheel schedule. Thank you for helping to provide this opportunity for them! 

As a K-8 Art teacher with Chicago Public Schools for the past 18 years, I’ve traversed a thoroughly engaging and fulfilling journey – one in which I’ll be forever grateful. Over the past couple years I had come to a point in my life where I was looking for a change. A big one. Motivated by my unconditional enthusiasm of teaching Art to elementary school students and a determined aspiration of relocating to SoCal, I made the move to San Diego over the summer. I feel very lucky to be able to call SoCal my new home! I’ll forever be a Cubbie fan, but definitely enjoy catching a baseball game at Petco and rooting for the Padres. Among other things SoCal, I have already lost track of what month/season it is. And, I just learned from one of my Artists that it’s not too late for me to learn how to surf – because her Mom just learned how.  It’s on the list. 

Throughout my teaching career, I’ve refined my proficiency as a teacher and understand the importance of providing an inviting, stimulating and safe learning environment that allows my students to be inspired and flourish. I embrace the opportunities to introduce my students to projects that incorporate the Elements of Art and Principles of Design while exposing them to a wide variety of artistic media, processes and Art history to open their minds to all that the Art world has to offer. Along with following the state standards for Art, I feel it’s also important to incorporate current events, literature and topics that interest my students into projects.

After being an Art Teacher for 20 years, I can honestly say that I am thrilled and gratified by how much the students of Flora Vista have already impressed me. They have been so welcoming, kind, and a complete joy to teach. I love how excited they are about learning and creating! I have never had so many students say “thank you” as I have these first few weeks at FV, and it warms my heart. I also can’t believe how independent, trustworthy and smart my Artists are. I can’t wait to see what they can create this year! 

Restaurant Night is TONIGHT!

Falcons! Please go to Flippin' Pizza TONIGHT and help us raise some dough!  25% of all sales got to our school - all you need to do is mention Flora Vista.

Dine In/Take Out/Delivery all day.


215 S El Camino Suite H
Encinitas, CA 92024

(760) 632-1497

Meet the Author, Rick Riordan

Our Librarian Mrs. Wilson has some great news to share with your family:


Are you a fan of Percy Jackson?  Meet the author Rick Riordan who started it all.  The Flora Vista library will be hosting a live webinar with the creator next Wednesday, Oct. 6th at recess, 10am.

FREE Year Books from 2019-2020!
We have an overstock of 2019-2020 FV yearbooks available in the office, no charge, first come-first served! If you would like one (one per family) please ask Marisela or Kristy in the front office.
Spirit Wear

Flora Vista’s Spirit Wear Store is online and easy to access. Just use the link below to order your favorite items. These are our *new* charcoal grey and white Flora Vista 2021 hats. Remember, 100% of the proceeds of ALL spirit wear items stay at our school.  


FLORA VISTA STORE

Notes from the Lunch Tables

Hello Falcons!

This past week was a little crazy due to overcast weather and unexpected rain on Friday and Monday. As usual, the students and staff adapted. There was a young lady who had lost her water bottle, a very special water bottle, and she was full of tears. We retraced every step of that water bottle from its arrival at school through lunch, which was the last time she remembered using it. Having no luck, I finally asked if she had looked in her lunchbox which she was dutifully carrying through the search. Low and behold there it was! Tears turned to smiles and the clouds parted, literally for our first glimpse of sun in days.

- Jeff Ladman


Jokes of the Day - Highlights

"Why do watermelons marry?

Because they cantaloupe


"What's the difference between a poorly dressed man on a tricycle and a well dressed man on a bike"

Attire

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