Dear Covington Parents and Community Members:
 
Safety Practice Today
This morning your children had an opportunity to practice a comprehensive earthquake evacuation drill, complete with our own Search and Rescue and various other emergency support stations.  Students were able to experience how our staff would respond in the case of a real emergency.  We learned a great deal from the practice today and as always, we will continue to refine our practices and offer opportunities to review safety procedures with our staff and students.
 
Lunchtime Opportunities—Thank you to PTA and LAEF!
We have a great deal of offerings for students each day at lunchtime; students have the option to play on their own or participate in structured, facilitated activity.
Courtesy of PTA:

• Mr. Heeb Sports:  Tuesday & Thursday. Join our PE Teacher, Mr. Heeb in a game of Infinity Kickball, classroom intramurals or team sports.
• FIT Games: Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Come play structured games with the two FIT coaches. Tug-a-War, Infinity Ball, Street Hockey and grass games are popular with our students.
• Bingo in the Lair: Monday. Join in on Bingo Fun in Room 32.  One of our fantastic dad's helps to coordinate and facilitate Bingo each week.
• Run Club : Friday. Come and join in our Run Club Fun with our fabulous volunteer parents. Students are encouraged to both run/ walk to the Friday music tunes and track their lap progress.

Courtesy of LAEF:

•  Stem Club :Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Students are invited to join our STEM Teacher, Mrs. Farley for a lunchtime full of tinkering, design challenge problems and fun.
• Library: Open every day at recess & lunch. Visit Mrs. Drobot in our library to check out books, browse and spend time in our beautiful library. 

Thank you for your support of both LAEF & PTA.  Thanks to you, we can offer so many inspiring and enriching activities for our students.
 
Mark your calendars:

• The next Principal Coffee/PTA Meeting will take place Friday, October 11th. Our topic for the coffee next week is Starting Arts. Starting Arts will share how they are engaging your children in the arts from Kinder-Third Grades.
• The Walk-A-Thon is just 10 days away! We cannot wait for this fantastic community event.  

Have a wonderful week.  Thank you for your ongoing support!
 
Sincerely,
Erin S. Green

Important Dates – Please Note:

10/1 – Dine Out for Covington @ The Counter, MV - TONIGHT
10/2 – Vision Screening for K, 3, 6 & SDC classes
10/4 – Otter Pop Friday, Turn in Walkathon Sponsor Cards 2:20p-3:15pm
10/11 – Principal Coffee/PTA Meeting
10/12 – Walkathon!
10/17 – Picture Make-Up Day
 

Vision Screening: The District Nurses will be doing vision screening at Covington School for all Kindergarten, 3r & 6th grades tomorrow, October 2.  If your child has glasses or contacts, please make sure that they wear them to school on the day of the screening.  The nurse will mail a referral form to the parents of students who do not pass the vision screening.
 
Geography Club: If your child is interested in geography and would like to spend some extra time with peers to prepare for this year’s Geography Bee (January 2014), then the Geography Club is for them!  We will meet every Monday, on Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28, Nov. 4, 18, Dec. 2, and the 9th in room 12 from 2:45-3:45. During our meetings, we will study world geography and review Geography Bee practice questions.  A sign-up sheet will be hung up on a clipboard outside of room 12. Please sign up by Wednesday, Oct. 2nd.  Once sign ups are complete, we will email you more information! Thank you!  -Mrs. Cuzzi and Mrs. Scatena
 
WALKATHON NEWS
Sponsor cards due on Friday, October 4!  Turn in sponsor cards on Friday afternoon at the Otter Pop station in front of the Multi or return them to the Walkathon box in the main office.  Everyone who hands in a card by Friday afternoon gets an Otter Pop.
 
Volunteer at the Walkathon! This is THE most fun event of the school year; volunteer to be a part of the good times.  Help with field set-up, registration, Surfer’s Snack Shack Café, water and first aid, field monitors, or beach balls. One hour shifts are available.  Please sign up on the Google spreadsheet locatedPlease sign up on the Google spreadsheet located at http://tinyurl.com/WAT2013Covington.
 
Covington Priceless Parties: Each year, our wonderful Covington teachers hold parties for students in each grade level.  These parties are both fundraisers AND community-building events.  Kids get a chance to spend time with their teachers in a social setting, and the PTA benefits from your donations. Sign-ups for these parties will be at the Walkathon.  Each grade level will have one or two events, but space is limited!  Sign-ups open at 10:30 AM and will close when each party is full.  Plan to arrive on time with your checkbook/cash to take advantage of these fun events. Parties include great events for each grade level including Mad Science party, Hot Fudge Sundae party, Laserquest party and more! Details are available at http://www.covingtonschool.org/covingtones/4808-walkathon-intro.html.
      
Please Save us a Phone Call!  Cheerful Covington parent volunteers will soon be making phone calls during the annual LAEF phonathon.  Please help our team save a call by completing your tax-deductible donation before October 11th.  It’s in that “to do” pile on your desk… LAEF committed to raise $3.2 million for the District, so now we need your donations! 100% of Covington students benefit from LAEF's grant, so our goal is for 100% of Covington families to donate at any level they can afford. Please do your part and give generously to keep our school district strong. Make a one-time donation or spread your payment out using our flexible monthly installment options. LAEF Representatives at Covington are:
Matt Abrahams, matt.abrahams@gmail.com
Anjana Nagarajan-Butaney, anjananagarajan@yahoo.com
Jessica Speiser, jessica@speiser.net
 Make Your Donation or Pledge Today!  www.laefonline.org
 
Dine Out for Covington @ The Counter, TONIGHT OCT 1. Show your support for Covington and enjoy dinner out at the same time.  Tuesday October 1st, the Counter in Mountain View will donate 15% of net sales to Covington School.  Dine in or take out, lunch or dinner 11am-10pm.  Just be sure to present the flyer available on the Covington website: http://www.covingtonschool.org
 
Run Club News: The Pack starts running on Friday, October 4th at lunch.
The Coyote Pack Run Club is a “run for fun” club open to every level of runner or walker, grades one through six. There is no need for students to sign up ahead of time. Bring tennis shoes, a water bottle and meet out on the Covington field at lunch recess. Parents: Your help makes this program a success. Please come out and have fun with us! No running required. Sign up to help for 1 hour on Friday at lunch.  Please see link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AnRkfFbJcu7-dG1HVXMzRl9rWW1KWXpua0NaT0JkSFE#gid=0
 
Run Club is cancelled if it is raining or the fields are wet.  We will try to e-mail you to let you know of any cancellations.  Questions: Please contact Jen Springer (jen_springer@me.com) or Jen Roy McG (JRoy@apr.com)
 
Calling all witches (or those who just like Halloween)!  Come in your most wicked finery for an evening of dinner, drinks and trouble making.  Don’t forget your broom! Ladies, come on over for an evening of good fun with your fellow witches:  Saori, Christine, Gabriella and Sandi.  Dress up as a witch, enjoy a great meal with good friends, drink some fun concoctions that will delight you, and enjoy the company of other mom’s just out for a relaxing evening (that is sure to be unlike any other). Proceeds go to Covington PTA.

Date: Saturday, October 19th, 2013
Time: 6pm until the witching hour
Cost:  $50 per witch
Location: The spooky house, 169 Giffin Road, Los Altos CA 94022
RSVP to Sandi_elefant@yahoo.com

AMAZON SHOPPERS: Make Your Shopping Count for Covington!
Earn referral fees for Covington on purchases of books, CDs, electronics, toys, and more. It’s EASY and DOESN’T COST YOU ANYTHING! Go to www.covingtonschool.org, click the Amazon logo to go to the Amazon website, then select and purchase your items as you normally would. Covington will automatically receive a referral fee of at least 6.5%!  No sign-up required. Questions? Contact Dale Tritschler at daletritschler@gmail.com.
 
Two Great Opportunities for Parent Education:
Talk for Parents by Challenge Success "Keep it in Perspective: Strategies for Raising Healthy & Motivated Kids" THIS Friday, 10/4/13, at 7pm at Stanford University (Memorial Auditorium)
Attention ALL parents!  This is an exciting opportunity to discuss the meaning of success in today's education and the "real world" and how we can raise well-balanced, motivated, and successful children.  If you are familiar with Carol Dweck's concept of a "growth mindset" (vs. fixed mindset) or you're just interested in learning how to instill in your children a strong drive to learn and thrive, this talk will be right up your alley.  The speakers are 3 well-known authors and educators (Dan Pink, Drive and To Sell is Human; Denise Pope, Doing School; and Madeline Levine, The Price of Privilege and Teach Your Children Well).
More information and registration:  http://www.challengesuccess.org/for-educators/school-conferences/2013-fall-conference-stanford/public-parent-education-event.aspx.  I highly recommend this event to all parents – I hope to see you there! Erin Prothro, School Psychologist

Parent Education: Awaken the Possibilities in your Family
Admission is Free. Tuesday, October 8th, Los Altos High School, 7-9pm
Madeline Levine, Ph.D,  will address our current narrow definition of success, discuss the development of skills needed to be successful in the 21st century: creativity, collaboration, and innovation. Event FREE, Reservations recommended: https://levinelosaltoshigh.eventbrite.com/ .  Audience:  Parents/guardians of K-12th grade students. Sponsors: Mountain View Los Altos High School Foundation, Los Altos Educational Foundation, and Los Altos Mountain View PTA Council
 
Annual E-Waste Recycling Event on 10/5: Clear your clutter, help the environment, and raise money for the Egan Science Department by ensuring that toxic electronic waste is responsibly recycled. On Saturday, October 5, from 9 AM – 3 PM, Green Mouse recyclers will be at Egan to collect your e-waste items.  If you're interested in supporting outreach for the event, or volunteering on the day-of, contact Margie Suozzo at egangogreen@gmail.com.
 
District & Community News: http://www.lasdk8.org/PDF_Files/Current_School_News.pdf
 
Post an Announcement in the Howler? If you have an announcement to include in Howler, please send it to sevard@lasdschools.org.  Announcements must be received by 12:00pm on Friday in order to be considered for the Howler scheduled for the following Tuesday.