Good Afternoon Bobcat Families,

 

I hope you have been able to enjoy this hot weather.  Just a friendly reminder… please make sure that the adults and older kids around your home are using appropriate language when your Tular student is on zoom.  (I think we all know what I mean…said with a smile) Thank you!

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• Bucks for Bobcats – only 25% of our needs
• No (extra) Screens Week
• Picture Day
• Message from the PTO

Repeat in this Email

• Dear 1^st Grade Families

Upcoming events

 

Important Dates:

• Friday, Oct 2: Picture Day –1:00 pm - 6:30 pm – in Bobcat Hall
• Wed, Oct 7 @ 6:00-6:30: New Parent Meet and Greet with the PTO Exec Team
• Wed, Oct 7 @ 6:30 – PTO Meeting. The zoom link will be emailed out next week.
• Oct 12-16: No School for October Break

 

Bucks for Bobcats – only 25% of our needs

Thank you to everyone who has already donated!  As a PTO, even with this COVID year, we need to raise over $40,000 to support our students and teachers (much of which already went to support purchasing materials for your at home learning).  Our goal is to raise $24,000 from Bucks for Bobcats.  Right now, we have only raised $6000, so we have a ways to go.  Therefore, we are extending our Bucks for Bobcats Campaign this year.  If you haven’t done so yet, please donate. We are looking for 100% participation, so if it’s $1.00 or $100 we would love to reach our goal.

Here’s a letter detailing everything:  

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FfnnUJ3gWeJKtEEAcXaXe6RjCMzrYUJU/view?usp=sharing

You can donate online here: www.bucksforbobcats.org or drop off a check in Bobcat Hall during school packet pick-ups. 

 

No (extra) Screens Week:

I hope that everyone who participated in our No extra Screens Week had fun.  Enjoy your time celebrating with whatever you chose to do as a family.  I would love to have pictures sent to me of your celebrations so we can use them in the yearbook.

 

Picture Day

If you were unable, or did not feel comfortable, coming to get your pictures taken today, there will be picture retakes in November for another opportunity.  If, at that date, you still do not feel comfortable coming to get your picture taken, we will send out directions on what you can do to send us a picture to place in the yearbook.  To order your pictures, you will be emailed proofs in a couple of weeks.

 

Message From our PTO

Our next meeting will be October 7 at 6:30.   In this distance environment we have found it hard to meet new families, so we are going to hold a new family meet and greet from 6:00-6:30 where any new families can jump on the zoom meeting early and meet our PTO Executive Team.  The zoom link will be emailed out next week.

Here is a link to our draft minutes from our PTO board meeting on 9.9.20

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eqQufNQ0rgh4Rao7FshJI4eSXy1FLSrD/view?usp=sharing

One thing we are in need of is a room parent for each classroom still.  If you are willing to step into that role for this year and help us brainstorm what that can look like, please contact our Room Parent Coordinator, Lisa Bianchi at lisa_bianchi@sbcglobal.net.  There is a lot of potential for this role in being creative in building community, adding fun, and helping collect photos of everyone’s experience to document this for us.  If you have suggestions or questions about the PTO or would like to help out, please feel free to reach out to Gina, our president: gina.nucci@gmail.com  or 831.214.3032.

 

Repeat In This Email

Dear 1st Grade Families:

We are pleased to share the kick off of our Big Buddy/Little Buddy Reading Program with Carmel High School.  Last year Leigh Cambra, a teacher at CHS, piloted a Reading Buddy club for high school students to read with elementary students in the lower grades.  We would like to expand this option to more students this year and are starting with our 1^st graders.  For interested 1^st grade families, a volunteer high school reading buddy is assigned to each Tular student to read with them weekly.  Each reading buddy pair will meet for about 20 minutes each week via zoom.  Here is the link to the sign up form along with a description of the Big Buddy Reading program if you are interested in having your child participate.   This information is also posted in the Counselor's google classroom.  Feel free to reach out to Ms. Amy for additional details or questions abullas@carmelunified.org 831-620-8195 ext. 3342.

 

Upcoming events

Sept 21 – Oct 2: Bucks for Bobcats

Wed, Oct 7 @ 6:00-6:30: PTO Meeting and Greet for New Parents

Wed, Oct 7 @ 6:30: PTO Meeting

Oct 12-16: No School for October Break

 

Stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Good Afternoon Bobcat Families,

 

I hope you have been enjoying those clear skies this week!

 

I am not sure if you were able to do something a little crazy and fun as a family this past week or do a random act of kindness for someone else.  If you did and it had a good impact on your family, I would love to hear about it. Please email me at rpeterson@carmelunified.org with any good stories.  If you did not have a chance to read last week’s email and do not know what I am referring to, you can find it in the “Repeat in this email” section below.

 

I hope that you have a great weekend and get to spend lots of time outside.  I also wanted to reinforce the message that if your child is having a hard time emotionally right now, please reach out to Ms. Amy, our counselor.  She has worked some magic with other families in helping them and we want to make sure students (and families) are getting the emotional support they need through this. 

Here is a link to an article about reducing Zoom fatigue and screen time

https://docs.google.com/document/d/18FYpzgX5Y9RFz5E2Xsw-dTUju_-rEUGkL8m9Dats6Lg/edit?usp=sharing

Here are also times of optional zoom check-ins with Ms. Amy if you need to chat.

Zoom Link: https://carmelunified.zoom.us/j/96644754735

Passcode: Bobcat

Tuesday 12:40  (3rd & 4th) Ogata, Parker, Hoover, Morgan 

Tuesday 1:20 (3rd & 4th) Southerland, Golden, Guzowski  

Thursday 12:40 (1st & 2nd) Reimer, O'Bryan, Becker, Stallcup

Thursday 1:20 (1st & 2nd) Stasio, Slavet, Barsotti

Friday 12:00 (5th) Wojtalewicz, Kershing, Dinsmore

Friday 1:20 (4th & 5th) Reding, Boynge

 

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• No (extra) Screens Week Next Week
• Dear 1^st Grade Families
• Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire – Thank You
• Bucks for Bobcats
• BBQ Dinner to support PTO and CVCYC
• Message from the PTO

Repeat in this Email

• Bringing Happiness to Your Family (last week’s email)
• Picture Day
• Chromebook Bedtime
• Bobcat Beach Cleanup
• Parent Support Group

Upcoming events

 

Important Dates:

• Sat, Sept 26 @ 5:00-7:00: PTO & CVCYC BBQ Dinner Fundraiser
• Sept 28-Oct 2: No (extra) Screens Week COVID Challenge
• Friday, Oct 2: Picture Day –1:00 pm - 6:30 pm – in Bobcat Hall
• Oct 12-16: No School for October Break

 

No (extra) Screens Week Next Week:

Normally, at this time of year we have our No Screens week.  While we cannot shut off the screens because that is how school is being done, we still wanted to take the week to encourage families to limit the screen time outside of the school hours.  So this is how No Screens week will work this year:

From Monday, 9/28, to Friday, 10/2 families at home are encouraged to turn off any screens when not doing school work - Turn off the TV, computer (except for school work), ipads, tablets (except for reading), computer games, smart phones (except for phone calls), or anything else with a screen.  In place of the screens families should read, play games, play outside, etc. together.  We normally provide students with ice cream for participating.  However, since we cannot pass ice cream out to students during distance learning, we are encouraging families to have an ice cream party of their own, or do something special Friday, 10/2, evening to reward yourselves for making it through the week without any extra screen time.  We hope that you find this extra time away from screens has a positive impact on your family.  Attached is an agreement you can discuss and sign as a family to encourage your children to participate.

 

Dear 1st Grade Families:

We are pleased to share the kick off of our Big Buddy/Little Buddy Reading Program with Carmel High School.  Last year Leigh Cambra, a teacher at CHS, piloted a Reading Buddy club for high school students to read with elementary students in the lower grades.  We would like to expand this option to more students this year and are starting with our 1^st graders.  For interested 1^st grade families, a volunteer high school reading buddy is assigned to each Tular student to read with them weekly.  Each reading buddy pair will meet for about 20 minutes each week via zoom.  Here is the link to the sign up form along with a description of the Big Buddy Reading program if you are interested in having your child participate.   This information is also posted in the Counselor's google classroom.  Feel free to reach out to Ms. Amy for additional details or questions abullas@carmelunified.org 831-620-8195 ext. 3342.

 

Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire – Thank You

Thank you so much to everyone who donated items to our families impacted by the fire.  Your generosity was so appreciated and we were able to really help the families.  As needs arise in the future, we will let you know how else you might be able to help.

 

Bucks for Bobcats

One week into Bucks for Bobcats and a huge shout out to those who’ve already donated. We are looking for 100% participation, so if it’s $1.00 or $100 we would love to reach our goal. We’ll have an update Monday. THANK YOU!

Here’s a letter detailing everything:  

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FfnnUJ3gWeJKtEEAcXaXe6RjCMzrYUJU/view?usp=sharing

You can donate online here: www.bucksforbobcats.org or drop off a check in Bobcat Hall during school packet pick ups. 

 

A BBQ Dinner to support our PTO and CVCYC

For those looking for some family fun this weekend, please join us at the Carmel Valley Community Youth Center for our FAMILY DRIVE THRU BBQ. $25 for a meal for a family. You can pre-purchase the meal here: https://www.cvcyc.org/events-1/carmel-valley-village-family-dinner. Everything from the dinners were donated by our wonderful community: The Meatery, Braga Family Farms, Jerome’s Market, and the CVCYC Board

Dinner is FREE for any families affected by the fires. Please email carla@cvcyc.org.

If you’d like to volunteer anytime between 4pm & 7:30pm to help at the bbq, please email: gina.nucci@gmail.com. 

Dinner includes 4 hot dogs, 4 hamburgers, 1 bag salad kit, 4 bags of chips and cookies! Plus fixings for the burgers and dogs. You can’t beat it. Grab dinner, a blanket and enjoy a socially distance picnic in the park. It’s going to be an amazing weekend!!

 

Message From our PTO

Our next meeting will be October 7 at 6:30.  Here is a link to our draft minutes from our PTO board meeting on 9.9.20

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eqQufNQ0rgh4Rao7FshJI4eSXy1FLSrD/view?usp=sharing

One thing we are in need of is a room parent for each classroom still.  If you are willing to step into that role for this year and help us brainstorm what that can look like, please contact our Room Parent Coordinator, Lisa Bianchi at lisa_bianchi@sbcglobal.net.  There is a lot of potential for this role in being creative in building community, adding fun, and helping collect photos of everyone’s experience to document this for us.  If you have suggestions or questions about the PTO or would like to help out, please feel free to reach out to Gina, our president: gina.nucci@gmail.com  or 831.214.3032.

 

Repeat In This Email

Bringing Happiness to Your Family (last week’s email)

Through all of this, I am also realizing that something we are all probably missing in our lives is enough fun.  I know part of the difficulty in this for our students (and adults) is that a lot of their fun comes from seeing friends.  That just is not the same on a screen.  Therefore, if we can do something at home to add that fun, I think it will help.  Here are two things you can do to bring some more fun into your families’ life.

1. I want to encourage families to do something extra fun sometime this weekend or the coming week. This became apparent when my own kids asked my wife the other week if we could have a Christmas night.  So we baked Christmas cookies, dressed in our Christmas pajamas, and watched Christmas movies.  It was a blast.  Just the smiles we shared helped with everyone’s mood.  Here is a list of some fun things you can do at home if you are looking for ideas (found on Ms Amy’s website) https://www.carmelunified.org/Page/5387 . 
2. Another great thing to bring fun and joy to our lives is to do something for someone else. I would recommend brainstorming a random act of kindness you can do for someone else and doing that either as a family or each person on their own. Here are two great Ted Radio Hour episodes on joy for when you have time to listen. Pure Joy and Where Joy Hides

 

Picture Day

We were able to change our Picture Day times.  It will now be Friday, October 2, from 1:00pm - 6:30pm to help accommodate working families. Picture day would work much like materials pick-up.  Parents and students come at any time, wait in a socially distanced line with masks on, get the picture taken, and then leave campus.  Because of COVID, this year there are no pre-orders, proofs will be emailed to parents two weeks after, and the pictures will be mailed directly to houses.  Please make sure you are also taking some pictures at home of your child while we are in this distance learning situation for your own memories and also for our yearbook, as we will be asking for those pictures as well so we can document this experience.

 

Chomebook Bedtime

Beginning Monday, the district will be implementing new "bedtime Chromebook lockout" times to make sure elementary and middle school students are not using their Chromebooks at inappropriate times. For elementary and CMS (grades TK-8) students, school-issued Chromebooks will be set to block all internet use from 11:00 pm to 6:00 am.  Please work with your child to manage their time and assignments accordingly so they can make sure to get the essential sleep they need each night. 

 

Bobcat Beach Clean-Up

September is International Coastal Clean-Up Month, and if it weren’t for social distancing, Mrs. O'Bryan and Ms. Stasio would be luring you and your family to a community beach to participate in a clean-up. Given we cannot do that, our Bobcat challenge is: next time you and your family go to the beach, bring gloves and a bag to collect trash in and still participate as a family.  Of course, this is a great thing to do every time you go to the beach. Let's not let COVID get in the way of our community service projects.

Go Bobcats!

 

Parent Support Group

We are holding a parent support group Fridays at 10:00 am to help parents thrive in this distance learning environment.  Here is the zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/7818154434 no password is needed.

 

Upcoming events

Sept 21 – Oct 2: Bucks for Bobcats

Sat, Sept 26, 5:00-7:00: PTO/CVCYC Drive-Through Dinner

Mon, Sept 28: No Screens Week

Fri, Oct 2: 1:00-6:30, Picture Day in Bobcat Hall

Wed, Oct 7 @ 6:30: PTO Meeting

Oct 12-16: No School for October Break

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Good Afternoon Bobcat Families,

 

It has been good to hear that things are running more smoothly with all of the tech and managing the logistics of online learning.  I know that teachers are beginning to feel like they can get to some real teaching and learning in.  I also know that we still have a range of emotions going on in homes (and for teachers).  Some families are doing really well with this distance learning, others are making it work, and some are still really struggling.  I also know that, unfortunately, most families have at some time since we have started school, hit a breaking point with all of this.  If you have hit that feeling of a breaking point, know you are not alone.  Also know that, from what I hear and have experienced, things do start to get better after you hit that point.  While it is not easy, and we all wish we did not have to hit that point, it seems to be acting like a little release valve for the tension and stress.  We often use balloons as a picture of what happens with stress in our lives.  If we keep blowing the stress in, the balloon only gets bigger.  And unless you have healthy ways of letting some stress out, the balloon will eventually pop or fly around crazy when you let go. 

 

Right now there is a lot of stress going into our balloons (adults and students).  To make sure we do not pop, we all need that way of healthily letting it out – exercise, time in nature, art, journaling, meditation, religious practices, acts of kindness, practicing gratitude, talking with a friend, etc.  I would encourage parents to make sure you are doing what you can to manage your stress in this so you can better help your children manage theirs.  If you are looking for support in this, the parent support group that Ms Amy is co-leading on Fridays is a great place to go.  (See below for the link.)

 

Through all of this, I am also realizing that something we are all probably missing in our lives is enough fun.  I know part of the difficulty in this for our students (and adults) is that a lot of their fun comes from seeing friends.  That just is not the same on a screen.  Therefore, if we can do something at home to add that fun, I think it will help.  Here are two things you can do to bring some more fun into your families’ life.

1. I want to encourage families to do something extra fun sometime this weekend or the coming week. This became apparent when my own kids asked my wife the other week if we could have a Christmas night.  So we baked Christmas cookies, dressed in our Christmas pajamas, and watched Christmas movies.  It was a blast.  Just the smiles we shared helped with everyone’s mood.  Here is a list of some fun things you can do at home if you are looking for ideas (found on Ms Amy’s website) https://www.carmelunified.org/Page/5387 . 
2. Another great thing to bring fun and joy to our lives is to do something for someone else. I would recommend brainstorming a random act of kindness you can do for someone else and doing that either as a family or each person on their own. Here are two great Ted Radio Hour episodes on joy for when you have time to listen. Pure Joy and Where Joy Hides

 

If your student is really struggling emotionally during this time, please reach out to your child’s teacher and Ms Amy, our counselor, by emailing them both.  We want to help.  Together, we will get through this.  One thing we are also learning is that when a student experiences tech problems (frozen on screen, bumped off the zoom session, etc.) the students are feeling like they did something wrong which is causing unnecessary stress.  When that happens for your child, please reinforce that they did not do anything wrong, that it is just the internet, and that their teacher knows.  When students get this reinforcing message, it has helped.

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire
• Picture Day – Change in Time
• Bucks for Bobcats
• BBQ Dinner to support PTO and CVCYC
• Chromebook Bedtime
• Bobcat Beach Cleanup
• Parent Support Group
• Message from the PTO

Repeat in this Email

• Library is Open for Book Checkouts
• New Online Spirit Wear Store
• Family Fitness

Upcoming events

 

Important Dates:

• Friday, Oct 2: Picture Day – Time change: 1:00 pm - 6:30 pm – in Bobcat Hall

 

Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire

We have reached out to our families that were impacted by the fires and found out how we can help them.  Here is a Signup Genius developed by some community members with our PTO of their needs.  Please take a look as there are still needs we can meet.  There are directions of what to do on the Signup Genius.  Please email Mr. Peterson with any questions. 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0444aeaf2fa64-help

 

Picture Day – Change in Time

We were able to change our Picture Day times.  It will now be Friday, October 2, from 1:00pm - 6:30pm to help accommodate working families. Picture day would work much like materials pick-up.  Parents and students come at any time, wait in a socially distanced line with masks on, get the picture taken, and then leave campus.  Because of COVID, this year there are no pre-orders, proofs will be emailed to parents two weeks after, and the pictures will be mailed directly to houses.  Please make sure you are also taking some pictures at home of your child while we are in this distance learning situation for your own memories and also for our yearbook, as we will be asking for those pictures as well so we can document this experience.

 

Bucks for Bobcats

We made it to mid September!! Well done. Next week we kick off our annual Bucks for Bobcats fundraiser. This is our one and only school-wide fundraiser this Fall. We won’t ask anyone to sell wrapping paper, cookie dough or candy. This is it. All the money raised goes directly to our PTO, which in turn goes to enhancing our students’ educational experience and building our community.  One thing the PTO has already supported extra this year is giving every teacher additional money to purchase materials to send home with students during this distance learning time.  Bucks for Bobcats will take place from Sept 21-Oct 2.  Any and all donations are greatly appreciated. 

 

Here’s a letter detailing everything:  

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FfnnUJ3gWeJKtEEAcXaXe6RjCMzrYUJU/view?usp=sharing

 

Please make a donation of any size here: www.bucksforbobcats.org or feel free to send a check to Tularcitos PTO, 35 Ford Road, Carmel Valley, CA 93924. We also have a drop box available in Bobcat Hall. And don’t forget to share with family and friends who would like to support our school. THANK YOU! 

 

A BBQ Dinner to support our PTO and CVCYC

Additionally, next Saturday, September 26th, we are hosting a Back to School Drive Thru BBQ with Carmel Valley Community Youth Center from 5-7pm. $25 for whole family meal! Any families affected by the fires get a meal for free.  Here is link to the flyer:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cf7RezKCx4ebs8s1HNvcGtng0y9TMXwn/view?usp=sharing

You can pre-purchase tickets here: https://www.cvcyc.org/events-1/carmel-valley-village-family-dinner

We hope you can join us in celebrating our wonderful community!

 

Chomebook Bedtime

Beginning Monday, the district will be implementing new "bedtime Chromebook lockout" times to make sure elementary and middle school students are not using their Chromebooks at inappropriate times. For elementary and CMS (grades TK-8) students, school-issued Chromebooks will be set to block all internet use from 11:00 pm to 6:00 am.  Please work with your child to manage their time and assignments accordingly so they can make sure to get the essential sleep they need each night. 

 

Bobcat Beach Clean-Up

September is International Coastal Clean-Up Month, and if it weren’t for social distancing, Mrs. O'Bryan and Ms. Stasio would be luring you and your family to a community beach to participate in a clean-up. Given we cannot do that, our Bobcat challenge is: next time you and your family go to the beach, bring gloves and a bag to collect trash in and still participate as a family.  Of course, this is a great thing to do every time you go to the beach. Let's not let COVID get in the way of our community service projects.

Go Bobcats!

 

Parent Support Group

We are holding a parent support group Fridays at 10:00 am to help parents thrive in this distance learning environment.  Here is the zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/7818154434 no password is needed

 

Message From our PTO

Our next meeting will be on October 7 at 6:30.  Here is a link to our draft minutes from our PTO board meeting on 9.9.20

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eqQufNQ0rgh4Rao7FshJI4eSXy1FLSrD/view?usp=sharing

One thing we are in need of is a room parent for each classroom still.  If you are willing to step into that role for this year and help us brainstorm what that can look like, please contact our Room Parent Coordinator, Lisa Bianchi at lisa_bianchi@sbcglobal.net.  There is a lot of potential for this role in being creative in building community, adding fun, and helping collect photos of everyone’s experience to document this for us.  If you have suggestions or questions about the PTO or would like to help out, please feel free to reach out to Gina, our president: gina.nucci@gmail.com  or 831.214.3032.

 

Repeat In This Email

Library is Open for Book Checkouts

Good News!  While we cannot walk through our library, we have set it up to virtually check out library books.  There is more information on the Library Google Classrooms.  You can do so by filling out the Check-Out Form.  Please make sure to check our Card Catalog before requesting any specific books to ensure we have it.  Enjoy the reading!  Please also turn in any library books you might have from last year to the cart in front of the library.

 

Online Spirit Wear Store

Our PTO, thanks to Carla, has moved our Spirit Wear store online.  Here is the Bobcat Online Store.  Enjoy purchasing your spirit wear.  We are encouraging all students to wear your Bobcat wear each Friday!  Attached is a letter with more information on it.

 

Family Fitness

In order to get our students up and moving before coming to school in the morning (brains work better after a little activity), Mr. A is posting “Family Fitness” videos that you can access on the Tular Tech Portal (right side of the page under the banner). These are about 10 minute videos you can do as a family before coming to school in the morning.  There is a new video for each day.  They are a lot of fun.  We hope you enjoy doing them.

 

 

Upcoming events

Mon, Sept 21: Bucks for Bobcats Starts

Mon, Sept 21 @ 4:30-5:30: CUSD Town Hall Meeting

Fri, Sept 25 @ 10:00: Connections Parent Support Group

Sat, Sept 26, 5:00-7:00: PTO/CVCYC Drive-Through Dinner

Mon, Sept 28: No Screens Week – yes, it’s coming… somehow

Fri, Oct 2: 1:00-6:30, Picture Day in Bobcat Hall

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Good Afternoon Bobcat Families,

 

I hope that this week went even better than last week for people and that each day is getting easier.  This week I keep getting reports from teachers on how well our students are doing with persevering and being patient with tech issues.  Well done Bobcats! 

 

We know that the tech issues are the most frustrating because everyone wants to be in class and when tech issues are preventing it we all experience a little anxiety.  On top of that, when you cannot connect to class and your teacher is already teaching, they are not able to effectively help people trouble-shoot the tech issues, so it can feel very lonely if you are the one not connecting to your class.  Thank you for your patience in getting you tech support.  CUSD IT is working extremely hard to get to everyone as fast as they can.  They are also restructuring and trying to find better ways of getting support to people when you have the problem.  Therefore, it is important that, as soon as you have tech trouble, please make sure to submit a request by clicking on the “Tech Support Request” button on the Tularcitos Distance Learning Portal.  (one thing you can always do as soon as you have trouble is to restart your computer. It won’t always work, but sometimes does which is great)

 

Thank you again, for all of your patience with the tech.  It has been so great to finally be moving beyond those issues and get to some real teaching and learning.

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire
• Picture Day
• Library is Open for Book Checkouts
• Virtual Coffee with Mr. Peterson
• New Online Spirit Wear Store
• Message from the PTO

Repeat in this Email

• Family Fitness

Upcoming events

 

Important Dates:

• Wed, Sept 16: Virtual Coffee with Mr. Peterson
• Thurs, Sept 17: Virtual Coffee with Mr. Peterson
• Friday, Oct 2: Picture Day

 

Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire

We have reached out to our families that were impacted by the fires and found out how we can help them.  Here is a Signup Genius developed by some community members with our PTO of their needs.  Please take a look and see if there is a need you can meet.  There are directions of what to do on the Signup Genius.  Please email Mr. Peterson with any questions. 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0444aeaf2fa64-help

 

Picture Day

Picture Day will be Friday, October 2, from 8:00-3:30 (sorry we couldn’t go earlier or later).  Picture day would work much like materials pick-up.  Parents and students come at any time, wait in a socially distanced line with masks on, get the picture taken, and then leave campus.  Please make sure you have also taken some pictures at home of your child while we are in this distance learning situation for your own memories and also for our yearbook, as we will be asking for those pictures as well so we can document this experience.

 

Library is Open for Book Checkouts

Good News!  While we cannot walk through our library, we have set it up to virtually check out library books.  There is more information on the Library Google Classrooms.  You can do so by filling out the Check-Out Form.  Please make sure to check our Card Catalog before requesting any specific books to ensure we have it.  Enjoy the reading!  Please also turn in any library books you might have from last year to the cart in front of the library.

 

Virtual Coffee with Mr. Peterson

In this distance learning, I am looking for ways of connecting with people.  I especially would love to connect with our new families.  So, I am setting up two “Coffees with Mr. Peterson” this coming week.  There is no agenda to these meetings but to say hi, meet new parents, and hear how things are going. Please feel free to jump on anytime.  The meetings will be Wednesday, 9/16, and Thursday, 9/17, from 10:00-11:00 each day.  Here is the zoom info:

Join Zoom Meeting for Coffee with Mr. Peterson

https://carmelunified.zoom.us/j/94931733238

Meeting ID: 949 3173 3238

Passcode: coffee

 

New Online Spirit Wear Store

Our PTO, thanks to Carla, has moved our Spirit Wear store online.  Here is the Bobcat Online Store.  Enjoy purchasing your spirit wear.  We are encouraging all students to wear your Bobcat wear each Friday!  Attached is a letter with more information on it.

 

Message From our PTO

Thank you to everyone who attended our first virtual PTO meeting.  Our next one will be October 7 at 6:30.  One thing we are in need of is a room parent for each classroom still.  If you are willing to step into that role for this year and help us brainstorm what that can look like, please contact our Room Parent Coordinator, Lisa Bianchi at lisa_bianchi@sbcglobal.net.  There is a lot of potential for this role in being creative in building community, adding fun, and helping collect photos of everyone’s experience to document this for us.  If you have suggestions or questions about the PTO or would like to help out, please feel free to reach out to Gina, our president: gina.nucci@gmail.com  or 831.214.3032.

 

Repeat In This Email

Family Fitness

In order to get our students up and moving before coming to school in the morning (brains work better after a little activity), Mr. A is posting “Family Fitness” videos that you can access on the Tular Tech Portal (right side of the page under the banner). These are about 10 minute videos you can do as a family before coming to school in the morning.  There is a new video for each day.  They are a lot of fun.  We hope you enjoy doing them.

 

 

Upcoming events

Wed, Sept 16 @ 10:00-11:00: Virtual Coffee with Mr. Peterson

Thurs, Sept 17 @ 10:00-11:00: Virtual Coffee with Mr. Peterson

Fri, Sept 18 @ 10:00: Connections Parent Support Group

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Good Afternoon Bobcat Families,

 

It is so nice to write a Friday email that is not revolving around an emergency.

 

I know that this week has had its ups and downs for everyone as we continue to get used to distance learning and learn about how to do this well.  Some of us have had more highs than lows and others of us have had more lows than highs.  Unfortunately, I know that this will be the way things will go for a while.  I have mentioned in the past the need for all of us to be patient with one another and have grace as we go through this.  I want to reiterate that now.  The beginning of this school year has been the hardest and most stressful time that most of us have ever experienced.  Teachers will all tell you that this has been the most difficult thing we have done professionally.  Our teachers love students.  Having them on a screen and unable to directly help at times is extremely difficult on all of us. 

 

I want to continue to ask for your understanding and patience in this time.  We know we will experience challenges.  Please do not take your frustration out on your child’s teacher.  When our students are struggling teachers feel that to their core as it is.  Please know and remember that we are all doing everything we possibly can, as fast as well can, to make this the best we can. 

 

When your child experiences frustration or tells you, as my own child did, that “that was a bad day” after she cried for 30 minutes because she was bumped off her zoom, sympathize with them so they know you heard them, and then help them reframe things.  When my child said it was a “bad day” we acknowledged that it would be hard and make us sad as well.  We then helped her see that it was a “challenging day” but that did not mean it had to be a “bad day.”  Dealing with hard times and persevering is a muscle that we all need to strengthen as we go through life.  High perseverance and a growth mindset is one of the best indicators of success later on.  The hard part is that the only way to strengthen that muscle is to experience hard times.  The good news is that we can get through this if we do this together and support one another.  Like I stated at the start of the year, what if this were the year we were waiting for… to help build our own and our students’ perseverance so we can better handle what life puts in our path later?

 

Again, please remember that your teachers are doing the best they can.  We know there will be frustrations.  If you experience them, please politely let us know so we can help you.  If you are experiencing issues at home with distance learning, here is what to do.

1. If the issue has to do with the classwork or your child’s learning, then please email your teacher.
2. If the issue is tech related (computer not working, not being able to log in, or an application like zoom not working) then please submit a Tech Support Request. You can submit a request by clicking on the “Tech Support Request” button on the Tularcitos Distance Learning Portal.  We also now have posted tutorial videos for Google Classroom, Zoom, Classlink, and other online programs.  I would highly recommend that parents and students watch these videos so you better know how to navigate these applications.

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• Family Fitness
• Parent Involvement in Online Learning
• New Online Spirit Wear Store
• Message from the PTO

Repeat in this Email

• Campus is Closed School Days 7:30am – 4:00pm
• Parent Support Group

Upcoming events

 

Important Dates:

• Monday, Sept 7: No school for Labor Day
• Thursday, Sept 10 @ 6:00: Tular Virtual Back to School Night (see below for details)

 

Family Fitness

In order to get our students up and moving before coming to school in the morning (brains work better after a little activity), Mr. A is posting “Family Fitness” videos that you can access on the Tular Tech Portal (right side of the page under the banner). These are about 10 minute videos you can do as a family before coming to school in the morning.  There is a new video for each day.  They are a lot of fun.  We hope you enjoy doing them.

 

Supporting Families Impacted by the Fire

Now that the immediate emergency of the fire is over, we are in the middle of finding out specifics of what our families impacted by the fire

 

Parent Involvement in Online Learning

One of the highs from the week is when we see parents just as engaged in the online learning as the students.  However, this can be a big distraction to the class and to the student whose parent is participating.  As interesting as the lessons may be, please refrain from directly participating in the class, asking questions for your child, or speaking to other children in the classroom.  Please help your child from the sidelines if they are stuck or are having trouble, but please let your student be the ones to ask questions and let the teachers do the classroom management of the students.  If you have a question or need to talk with the teacher, please send the teacher an email so they can set up a time later to talk with you.  The teachers need to teach during the class and not be holding parent conferences.  Thank you for helping out this way.

 

Back To School Night

We will be hosting a Virtual Back to School Night this year.  It will be asynchronous.  The videos will be posted at 6:00 pm Thursday, Sept 10.  You will access them by logging into your child’s Google Classroom where they will be posted under the Stream. 

 

New Online Spirit Wear Store

Our PTO, thanks to Carla, has moved our Spirit Wear store online.  Here is the Bobcat Online Store.  Enjoy purchasing your spirit wear.  We are encouraging all students to wear your Bobcat wear each Friday!  Attached is a letter with more information on it.

 

Message From our PTO

Our first PTO meeting will be this coming Wednesday, Sept 9, at 6:30 via Zoom.  A link with more information will be going out Tuesday.  Please feel free to reach out to Gina, our president, with any questions: gina.nucci@gmail.com  or 831.214.3032.

 

Repeat In This Email

Campus Closed School Days 7:30am-4:00pm

With the start of school and because we are in a distance learning situation, the Tularcitos Campus, including the office and other CUSD campuses, will be closed to the public weekdays between the hours of 7:30 am – 4:00 pm.  Thank you for staying off campus during this time. (the one exception is to return and get new materials from Bobcat Hall)

 

Parent Support Group

We are sponsoring a parent support group that started today to help parents thrive in this distance learning environment.  It will be Friday’s at 10:00 am.  Attached is a flier with more information.

 

 

Upcoming events

Mon, Sept 7: No School for Labor Day Holiday

Wed, Sept 9 @ 6:30: Virtual PTO Meeting

Thurs, Sept 10 at 6:00 pm: Virtual Back to School Night

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Good Afternoon Bobcat Families,

 

First, I want acknowledge and thank the Tular staff for all of the hard work, extra-long hours, and steep learning curve they went through to get school going this year.  It was a tremendous feet.  This has been by far the hardest start to the year we have ever experienced.  Not only because of having to learn different programs for the first time, redo everything we normally do, and navigate a bunch of the tech issues, but because we were not able to see all of your smiling faces in person.  There is a joy to the first days of school that, as hard as we try, we just can’t replicate online.  I know that when we finally get to that day where we can all step back onto campus, it is going to be even more joyous than normal.  We cannot wait for that day. 

 

I next want to thank all of the parents and students for your patience this week.  I know that we have had our share of successes and flops (thankfully, more successes than flops).  Some have been in our control (wrong links or unclear directions), and others out of our control (zoom updates or email system issues).  I want to extend a big thank you to everyone for your patience and understanding.  Our big goals for this week were to 1) make a first connection with all of our families, and 2) to identify any connection issues that might arise before we get to next week and we really start going.  I am viewing this week and the first couple of days next week like one of our emergency drills.  In our emergency drills, we hope that issues come up so we know what we need to work through so that when the real thing happens we are ready and prepared.  Hopefully, after this week and the first couple of days next week, we will have worked out the bugs and everything starts running more smoothly.  I know this week some families and classes had more bugs than others.  If your student and family was hit harder, I am sorry.  Again, thank you to everyone for understanding.  We are so blessed to be in this community.  Thank you for your ongoing support.

 

As a reminder, if you are experiencing issues at home with distance learning, here is what to do.

1. If the issue has to do with the classwork or your child’s learning, then please email your teacher.
2. If the issue is tech related (computer not working, not being able to log in, or an application like zoom not working) then please submit a Tech Support Request. You can submit a request by clicking on the “Tech Support Request” button on the Tularcitos Distance Learning Portal you see when you first login to your chromebook or on the Tular webpage

 

We also now have posted tutorial videos for Google Classroom, Zoom, and Classlink.  I would highly recommend that parents and students watch these videos so you better know how to navigate these applications.  The link can be found on the Tularcitos Distance Learning Portal (which you should bookmark as that is the portal to all distance learning information) on the left sidebar under “Tech Tutorial Videos and Guides”

 

As we go into this next week, let’s continue to keep a positive outlook.  In difficult times, our children look to the adults around them to see how they should respond.  Let’s make sure we are setting an example of a growth mindset, a can do attitude, and continue to ask ourselves “What if this is the year we’ve been waiting for?”  This year will be what we make of it.  So let’s choose to make it a great one.

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• Please Turn In Emergency Forms
• Campus is Closed School Days 7:00am – 4:00pm
• Navigating Distance Learning with your Children
• Parent Support Group
• Message from the PTO

Repeat in this Email

• Internet Access
• Possible Assistance for Families

Upcoming events

 

Important Dates:

• Aug 17-20 (Mon-Thurs): Slightly modified school day schedule for 1^st-5^th grade (Kindergarten will be 9:00-12:00 like normal during this week). Students will go 9:00-2:00 like normal, but grade level teachers will be done teaching at 12:00 these days (in a normal week, classroom teachers will also be teaching for part of the time after lunch).  This will provide grade level teachers extra planning time and allow them time to make needed adjustments that may arise from tech or other issues that come up as we start the year. Students, however, will continue with their specials after lunch. The schedule for 1^st-5^th grade will be as follows.
  • 9:00-12:00 students will be with the classroom teacher
  • 12:00-12:40 will be lunch
  • 12:40-2:00 students will be introduced to their specials and have some independent work time
• Thursday, Aug 20 @ 6:00 Virtual Back to School Night
• Friday, Aug 21: Minimum Day – all students are done at 12:00
• Aug 24: Normal 9:00-2:00 schedule starts for teachers and students in Grades 1^st-5^th. Kinder stays 9:00-12:00 with possible additional support after lunch

 

Please turn in your Emergency Forms

After you complete your data confirmation it asks you to print out the emergency form and turn it into the school.  Please bring your signed emergency form to the office ASAP.

 

Campus Closed School Days 7:00am-4:00pm

With the start of school and because we are in a distance learning situation, the Tularcitos Campus (as well as other CUSD campuses) will be closed to the public weekdays between the hours of 7:00 am – 4:00 pm.  Thank you for staying off campus during this time. (the one exception is to turn in your emergency form)

 

Navigating Distance Learning with Your Children

Our district emailed out through Peach Jar a great resource called “Navigating Distance Learning with your Children.”  It is worth the time to look it over.

 

Parent Support Group

We will be sponsoring a parent support group starting Sept 4 to help parents thrive in this distance learning environment.  It will be Friday’s at 10:00 am.  Attached is a flier with more information.

 

Message From our PTO

From Gina Nucci, PTO President: On behalf of the Tularcitos PTO, I would like to welcome you and your children to the new school year and the Tularcitos Elementary community.  I am fortunate to be serving on the PTO board this year, as President.  I also am very lucky to be serving with a very dedicated group of volunteers that make up our PTO board slate*: Heaven Tempalski - Vice President, Lauren Collins - Treasurer and Lisa Bianchi - Room Parent Coordinator (our secretary position remains open).  And most importantly, we’re working with our amazing Bobcat families and staff.  I know parent involvement has a brand new meaning this year, and that is why our PTO’s job is even more critical. We won’t be raising funds for field trips, or hosting our back to school swim party. Things look, and are very different. Activities will be different. Celebrations will be different. Life is very different. This year we’ll host a lot of drive-thrus, partner with local businesses, and look to parents like you, for new and creative ideas.  Our goal is to connect and build a greater Tularcitos Elementary School community. On the attached letter you’ll find different ways you can support and important information.  I look forward to connecting with all of you. I hope you will join us. Please feel free to reach out: gina.nucci@gmail.com  or 831.214.3032.

 

Repeat In This Email

Internet Access

Our district wants to do our best to help families who do not have suitable internet connectivity to get access. Please use this form to request internet access from CUSD.

https://forms.gle/2zHEZFTKmzD6n7TS6

If you have already submitted a form, there is no need to resubmit.

 

Possible Available Assistance for Families

We wanted to let you know that the Carmel Valley Community Youth Center is partnering with the YMCA to provide childcare.  Please see their website for more information.

 

Upcoming events

Thurs, Aug 20 at 6:00 pm: Virtual Back to School Night

Fri, Aug 21: Minimum Day. Students done at 12:00

Mon, Sept 7: No School for Labor Day Holiday

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

 

8/11/2020

 

Good Morning Bobcat Families,

 

Welcome back to school!  Remember to come pick up your materials today between 8:00 am – 6:00 pm in Bobcat Hall.

 

Since I will not have the chance to see all of your smiling faces like I normally would the first day of school, I thought I would do a short welcome back video.  After watching them, I realize that I still need to work on my “on screen” face.  You will have to forgive the squinting from being outside.

 

I hope that you enjoy connecting with your teachers this week.

 

All School Welcome Video!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/14a6S37vDXHKJTawyZsho8Lzk5b1-Z4Iu/view?usp=sharing

 

Kindergarten Family Welcome Video!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/14a9kvrn2KCYfoPCF6toE7U4s2EWPo5iB/view?usp=sharing

 

 

Also, here are video directions to assist you the first time you log in to your child’s school chromebook. (If you are using your own computer, you can go to the Tularcitos website, scroll down to the “ClassLink” icon under our “Site Shortcuts” section, and then follow the directions from this video).

https://sites.google.com/carmelunified.org/cusd-student-and-parent/elementary?authuser=0

 

Here are other directions for logging into Google Classroom and ClassLink that will be helpful.  These have also been included in your packets from your teachers.

1. How to Access and Bookmark the Tular Landing Page
2. How to Join your Google Classroom (English)
3. How to Join your Google Classroom (Spanish)
4. How to log on to Classlink (English)
5. How to log on to Classlink (Spanish) 

 

Stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

 

Hello Bobcat Families,

 

Can you believe that we are only days away from starting school?  We are very excited to meet our students and you.  As educators, we go into this profession because of the love we have for students, and we are looking forward to spending the first couple weeks getting to know them, their strengths, and areas of need, and building our classroom communities.   All this week we have had to continue to persevere through problems and ask ourselves “What if…” to see how we can make things even better.  At times, this has been hard as we troubleshoot through issues that have come up (everything from major tech programs not working to not getting the pencil boxes in on time due to supply issues).  I want you to know that while we will be as prepared as we can be for next week, we want to thank you for your grace and understanding in advance for the hiccups and issues we know we will run into as we get things going.

 

The information in the top of this email is all new.  The items under the “Repeat in this Email” is from this last Wednesday’s email.  If you did not read the email on Wednesday, you will need to make sure you read this email in entirety, as there the information is vital to the start of school. 

 

Also, if you did not get a chance to watch the virtual town hall last week where I went over what school will be like this year, you need to either view the slideshow or watch the recorded version of the town hall.  That will provide you with other vital information about what school will look like in this distance learning model.  You can find both the presentation and town hall in English and Spanish on the Tularcitos website. 

 

In this email

• Immunizations for Kindergarteners and New Tular Families
• Important Dates

Repeat in this Email

• Contacting the Office
• Chromebook Pickup
• Data Confirmation due Today, Aug 5
• Emergency Forms
• Internet Access
• Closed Campus
• Teacher Preparation for the Year
• Possible Assistance for Families
• Items You Might be Wondering About

Upcoming events

 

Immunizations for Kindergarteners and New Tular Families

While we will be emailing out teacher assignments later today, please know that before a kindergartener or new student to Tular can start school next week, it is still a requirement in full remote learning for new students to be fully immunized before they start school. Even though this year is a little different with the pandemic, clinics still remain open for immunizations. Please know that we are not able to provide kindergarten or new families with materials on August 11^th, or have students participate in school, if immunizations are not complete and submitted. Please contact our Nurse, Ludmilla (Milla) Nelson, with any questions or concerns: lnelson@carmelunified.org.

 

Important Dates:

• Friday, Aug 7: Teachers will email out their class lists. There will be an email from your teacher with a welcome from your teacher, class lists, and other important information about Aug 12 and 13. Please make sure to check your email today.  Class lists will not be posted at school
• Tuesday, Aug 11, from 8:00 am - 6:00 pm: Parents pick up Chromebooks and School Materials in Bobcat Hall. Please follow social distancing guidelines and signage.  This will be an important planning time for teachers, so please do not disrupt them if you see them in their classrooms.  They are very excited to see you and are looking forward to doing so virtually on Aug 12 and 13. 
• Tues, Aug 11 @ 6:00 Kindergarten Virtual Back to School Night
• Aug 12 & 13: Virtual Meet and Greet – this is a change
  • 9:00 Virtual class meeting on Wednesday (not on Thursday)
  • 9:30-3:00 Scheduled individual family meetings with your teacher- check your email for information
• Aug 14: No School
• Aug 17-20 (Mon-Thurs): Slightly modified school day schedule for 1^st-5^th grade (Kindergarten will be 9:00-12:00 like normal during this week). Students will go 9:00-2:00 like normal, but grade level teachers will be done teaching at 12:00 these days (in a normal week, classroom teachers will also be teaching for part of the time after lunch).  This will provide grade level teachers extra planning time and allow them time to make needed adjustments that may arise from tech or other issues that come up as we start the year. Students, however, will continue with their specials after lunch. The schedule for 1^st-5^th grade will be as follows.
  • 9:00-12:00 students will be with the classroom teacher
  • 12:00-12:40 will be lunch
  • 12:40-2:00 students will be introduced to their specials and have some independent work time
• Thursday, Aug 20 @ 6:00 Virtual Back to School Night
• Friday, Aug 21: Minimum Day – all students are done at 12:00
• Aug 24: Normal 9:00-2:00 schedule starts for teachers and students in Grades 1^st-5^th. Kinder stays 9:00-12:00 with possible additional support after lunch

 

 

Repeat In This Email

Contacting the Office

While it is always a great day at Tularcitos, the Tularcitos Office is physically closed to the public while we are in distance learning.  During this time staff will be working both out of the office and remotely.  If you need to talk to anyone in the office, please do not come by the office, but call us at 620-8195.  We look forward to talking with you.

 

Chromebook Pickup

We will be providing all of our students, kinder through 5^th grade with a Chromebook this year.  However, we are crossing our fingers at this point that we will have all of our Chromebooks here on time for Aug 11.  We already have all of our Chromebooks for our 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th graders in, but do not yet know if we will have all of the touch-screen Chromebooks in for our kinder, 1^st, and 2^nd graders (these are different devices than our 3^rd-5^th graders).  Therefore, it is important that you indicated in your data confirmation if you need a device.  We will make sure we have enough Chromebooks for those who need them, but we may have to give older devices to our kinder, 1^st, and 2^nd graders to start the year until their new touch-screen Chromebooks come in.  Thank you for your understanding in this.  Due to the high demand by schools, there is a shortage of Chromebooks out there right now.

 

What to do with the Emergency Forms

After you complete your data confirmation it asks you to print out the emergency form and turn it into the school.  Please bring your signed emergency form with you on August 11 when you come pick up your materials.  There will be a box where you can turn in the form.

 

Internet Access

Our district wants to do our best to help families who do not have suitable internet connectivity to get access. Please use this form to request internet access from CUSD.

https://forms.gle/2zHEZFTKmzD6n7TS6

If you have already submitted a form, there is no need to resubmit.

 

Closed Campus

With the start of school and because we are in a distance learning situation, the Tularcitos Campus (as well as other CUSD campuses) will be closed to the public weekdays between the hours of 7:00 am – 4:00 pm.  Thank you for staying off campus during this time.

 

Teacher Preparation for the Year

As you noticed in the plans to start the year, we are trying to work into the schedule as much planning time as possible for teachers.  This week teachers continue to get training on distance learning and teaching in addition to some collaborative planning time.  However, as this way of teaching and learning is new to all of us, this extra planning time is going to be essential to giving us all the best start possible.  In addition to the normal startup of school, we are also trying to plan in time to make any needed adjustments to a number of possible issues that can arise in distance learning.  While we are doing all we can to prepare so that things will go smoothly, we are also trying to be realistic and know from experience that whenever tech is involved (and especially when you are talking about every staff and elementary student), there are going to be some issues.  

 

Possible Available Assistance for Families

We wanted to let you know that the Carmel Valley Community Youth Center is partnering with the YMCA to provide childcare.  Please see the attached flier for more details.  This is something completely independent of CUSD. 

 

Items you may be Wondering About

We wanted to let you know that we are still figuring out how to do Picture Day and more information will be coming as we have details.  Please also stay tuned for information about future virtual Pastries with Peterson where you can join me for a time to ask questions and provide feedback as to how things are going.  I will also be including information about our PTO in my communication this Friday.

 

Upcoming events

Tues, Aug 11, 8:00 am – 6:00 pm: Chromebook and Materials Pickup in Bobcat Hall

Tues, Aug 11 @ 6:00: Kinder Virtual Back to School Night

Fri, Aug 14: No School

Thurs, Aug 20 at 6:00 pm: Virtual Back to School Night

Fri, Aug 21: Minimum Day. Students done at 12:00

Mon, Sept 7: No School for Labor Day Holiday

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud, and keep asking yourself, “What if…”

 

See you soon!

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Hello Bobcat Families

 

First, I hope you are enjoying the last days of summer and making the most of this time. As those of you returning Bobcat know, I normally send out communications on Fridays.  While this will be my routine after school starts, I want to make sure to communicate some important details right now since this year is definitely not the normal start.  Also, if you did not get a chance to watch the virtual town hall where I went over what school will be like this year, I would highly recommend that you either view the slideshow or watch the entire town hall.  Those will provide you with much needed information about what school will look like in this distance learning model.  You can find both on the Tularcitos website. 

 

In this email

• Important Dates
• Contacting the Office
• Chromebook Pickup
• Data Confirmation due Today, Aug 5
• Emergency Forms
• Internet Access
• Closed Campus
• Teacher Preparation for the Year
• Possible Assistance for Families
• Items You Might be Wondering About

 

Important Dates:

• Friday, Aug 7: Class lists, a welcome from your teacher, and other important information about Aug 12 and 13 will be emailed out to parents. Please make sure to check your email that day. Class lists will not be posted at school
• Tuesday, Aug 11, from 8:00 am - 6:00 pm: Parents pick up Chromebooks and School Materials in Bobcat Hall. Please follow social distancing guidelines and signage.  This will be an important planning time for teachers, so please do not disrupt them if you see them in their classrooms.  They are very excited to see you and are looking forward to doing so virtually on Aug 12 and 13. 
• Tues, Aug 11 @ 6:00 Kindergarten Virtual Back to School Night
• Aug 12 & 13: Virtual Meet and Greet
  • 9:00 Virtual class meetings
  • 10:00-2:00 Scheduled individual family meetings with your teacher
• Aug 14: No School
• Thursday, Aug 20 @ 6:00 Virtual Back to School Night
• Friday, Aug 21: Minimum Day – all students are done at 12:00

Aug 17-20 (Mon-Thurs): Slightly modified school day schedule for 1^st-5^th grade (Kindergarten will be 9:00-12:00 like normal during this week).  Students will go 9:00-2:00 like normal, but grade level teachers will be done teaching at 12:00 these days (in a normal week, classroom teachers will also be teaching for part of the time after lunch).  This will provide grade level teachers extra planning time and allow them time to make needed adjustments that may arise from tech or other issues that come up as we start the year. Students, however, will continue with their specials after lunch. The schedule for 1^st-5^th grade will be as follows.

• 9:00-12:00 students will be with the classroom teacher
• 12:00-12:40 will be lunch
• 12:40-2:00 students will be introduced to their specials and have some independent work time

 

Contacting the Office

While it is always a great day at Tularcitos, the Tularcitos Office is physically closed to the public while we are in distance learning.  During this time staff will be working both out of the office and remotely.  If you need to talk to anyone in the office, please do not come by the office, but call us at 620-8195.  We look forward to talking with you.

 

Chromebook Pickup

We will be providing all of our students, kinder through 5^th grade with a Chromebook this year.  However, we are crossing our fingers at this point that we will have all of our Chromebooks here on time for Aug 11.  We already have all of our Chromebooks for our 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th graders in, but do not yet know if we will have all of the touch-screen Chromebooks in for our kinder, 1^st, and 2^nd graders (these are different devices than our 3^rd-5^th graders).  Therefore, it is important that you indicated in your data confirmation if you need a device.  We will make sure we have enough Chromebooks for those who need them, but we may have to give older devices to our kinder, 1^st, and 2^nd graders to start the year until their new touch-screen Chromebooks come in.  Thank you for your understanding in this.  Due to the high demand by schools, there is a shortage of Chromebooks out there right now.

 

Data Confirmation due today, Wednesday, August 5.

The Parent Data Confirmation window is now open. Data Confirmation is required of all new and returning families to ensure we have up-to-date information.

We have set it up so one parent/guardian per family can update the student's information. Most often, it should be the person who initially registered your child for school.

• If you don't have an Aeries Portal account, your account is being auto-created. You should have received an email invitation today from aeriesservices@carmelunifed.org. Please use the username, password, and link provided in that message. (Do not use the "Create Account" link on the Aeries portal.)
• If you already have an Aeries Portal account, please login to https://aeries.carmelunified.org/parent/ and you should automatically be taken to the Data Confirmation screen. If not, look for it under the Student Info menu. (If you don't remember your password, use the "Forgot Password?" link on the Aeries Portal login screen.)

If you have multiple students in CUSD schools: Each of your children's data will be accessible under your portal account. Once you have logged in, look for the pull-down menu near the top corner of the screen that says "Change Student" Under this menu, you will see your children listed.

This video may be helpful: https://support.aeries.com/support/solutions/articles/14000071127-parent-data-confirmation-parent-view-video 

 

What to do with the Emergency Forms

After you complete your data confirmation it asks you to print out the emergency form and turn it into the school.  Please bring your signed emergency form with you on August 11 when you come pick up your materials.  There will be a box where you can turn in the form.

 

Internet Access

Our district wants to do our best to help families who do not have suitable internet connectivity to get access. Please use this form to request internet access from CUSD.

https://forms.gle/2zHEZFTKmzD6n7TS6

If you have already submitted a form, there is no need to resubmit.

 

Closed Campus

With the start of school and because we are in a distance learning situation, the Tularcitos Campus (as well as other CUSD campuses) will be closed to the public weekdays between the hours of 7:00 am – 4:00 pm.  Thank you for staying off campus during this time.

 

Teacher Preparation for the Year

As you noticed in the plans to start the year, we are trying to work into the schedule as much planning time as possible for teachers.  This week teachers continue to get training on distance learning and teaching in addition to some collaborative planning time.  However, as this way of teaching and learning is new to all of us, this extra planning time is going to be essential to giving us all the best start possible.  In addition to the normal startup of school, we are also trying to plan in time to make any needed adjustments to a number of possible issues that can arise in making sure all of our staff and students are connected and the technology programs are working correctly.  While we are doing all we can to prepare so that things will go smoothly, we are also trying to be realistic and know from experience that whenever tech is involved (and especially when you are talking about every staff and elementary student), there are going to be some issues.

 

Possible Available Assistance for Families

We wanted to let you know that the Carmel Valley Community Youth Center is partnering with the YMCA to provide childcare.  Please see the attached flier for more details.

 

Items you may be Wondering About

We wanted to let you know that we are still figuring out how to do Picture Day and more information will be coming as we have details.  Please also stay tuned for information about future virtual Pastries with Peterson where you can join me for a time to ask questions and provide feedback as to how things are going.  I will also be including information about our PTO in my communication this Friday.

 

Upcoming events

Tues, Aug 11, 8:00 am – 6:00 pm: Chromebook and Materials Pickup in Bobcat Hall

Tues, Aug 11 @ 6:00: Kinder Virtual Back to School Night

Fri, Aug 14: No School for Car Week

Thurs, Aug 20 at 6:00 pm: Virtual Back to School Night

Fri, Aug 21: Minimum Day. Students done at 12:00

Mon, Sept 7: No School for Labor Day Holiday

 

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud, and keep asking yourself, “What if…”

 

Enjoy the last days of summer!

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.

Hi Tularcitos Bobcats and Families,

 

We realized after sending out my first communication on Monday that some of our families were not in our new system.  We think that is fixed now.  If you did not receive my communication on Monday, it is at the bottom of this email.  We are sorry for that.  If you know someone who does not receive this information, please refer them to our website and have them email Lindsey (lterry@carmelunified.org) in the office.

 

Many people are wondering when they will get the email to do your parent data confirmation for this year.  Our district will send that email out at the start of next week.  Please make sure you complete it within a couple days of receipt so we can make sure your information is up to date in our system.

 

Here is the link to the presentation I will be going over at the Virtual Tularcitos Distance Learning Orientation (Town Hall) tomorrow, Thursday, July 30, from 6:00-7:00 pm.  (We will be doing a different presentation for our Spanish speaking families Friday, July 31, from 5:00-6:00 pm.  Those families will receive another communication regarding that presentation)

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1itoApIU502Hb4JANpKuQ_SCwkCoTL7oYjjL0N8cBYQ4/edit?usp=sharing

 

Here is the link to the form where you can ask questions ahead of time after you have had the chance to view the presentation. (We will stop looking at this form at 12:00 pm on Thursday). 

https://forms.gle/adxZq81weWHcMkm26

Please try to put questions in ahead of time so I can see the most common ones and imbed the answers into my presentation.  During the Virtual Orientation, the chat will be open for people to submit further questions. At the end of the Orientation, I will be answering those questions.

 

Here is the information for accessing our Virtual Orientation

• You are invited to a Zoom webinar.
  When: Jul 30, 2020 06:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
  Topic: Tularcitos Elementary Virtual Site Orientation
• Please click the link below to join the webinar:
  https://carmelunified.zoom.us/j/91642240799
  Passcode: 972468
• Or Telephone:
      Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
          US: +1 669 900 6833  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 253 215 8782  or +1 312 626 6799  or +1 929 205 6099  or +1 301 715 8592
  Webinar ID: 916 4224 0799
  Passcode: 972468
      International numbers available: https://carmelunified.zoom.us/u/a0Tw8IhpD

 

Thank you for all of your support and understanding as we prepare for the year.

Let’s all stay Bobcat Strong and Tular Proud.  “See you” soon.

 

Go Bobcats!

Ryan Peterson

Proud Principal, Tularcitos Elementary School

Nurturing Hearts, Expanding Minds, Inspiring Actions, Broadening Horizons.