Covington School Howler - September 23, 2014

Los Altos Educational Foundation Update:

Your donation to be matched until Oct 8th!
LAEF's goal this year is to raise $3.3M to fund enrichment programs and smaller class sizes for all nine schools, benefitting every child K-8. Did you know that all NEW and INCREASED donations made by October 8th will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $100,000, by DeLeon Realty and a group of private donors? Take advantage of this great opportunity to double your donation. If you are a new family or new donor, 100% of your donation will be matched. If you have donated in the past, any increase over your last gift will be matched. Make your tax-deductible LAEF donation today at www.laefonline.org (or bring a check to the school office). Every gift and every amount is appreciated. Thank you for your support.

Safe Routes to School

The City of Los Altos, in coordination with the Los Altos School District, is seeking to improve school travel choice, safety and education by further developing its Safe Routes to Schools (SR2S) Program as part of the comprehensive Pedestrian Master Plan process currently underway. The plan will include updating the existing Suggested Routes to School maps and safety education materials.

On Friday, October 3rd, the City of Los Altos staff will hold "office hours" from 2:45pm - 4:30pm at Covington School. During this time, City staff will seek to obtain input and comments from the school parent community on an updated Suggested Routes to School map. Input and comments can include confirming existing routes are still in use, suggesting alternative routes, identifying physical or operational improvements to the transportation network and identifying any barriers in getting to school. The feedback received will be considered and will help staff refine the Suggested Route to School Map. This opportunity will be held in conjunction with a PTA after school event. Look for more information regarding this from PTA.

This Friday, our assembly will be a regular outdoor gathering. I look forward to seeing everyone out on the blacktop Friday morning at 8:30am!

Best Regards,
Erin S. Green

Important Dates:

Oct 11 - Covington Walk-A-Thon
Oct 14 - Minimum Day, Early Dismissal
Nov. 11 - Veteran's Day Holiday - No School
Nov. 24-25 - Parent/Teacher Conferences, No School for Students
Nov. 26-28 - Thanksgiving Holiday

Double your LAEF Donation with Matching Funds!

LAEF is pleased to announce that all NEW and INCREASED donations made by October 8th will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $100,000, by DeLeon Realty and a group of private donors.

How it works:
· If you are a new family or new donor, 100% of your donation will be matched.
· If you have donated in the past, any increase over your last gift will be matched.

Save us a call by making your tax-deductible donation today: www.laefonline.org (or bring a check to the school office).

We Need Phonathon Volunteers
We need parent helpers for our upcoming Phonathon September 29-October 2. Sign up at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0f4da8a92f4-losaltos. Thanks in advance for becoming an active participant in your child's education!

Questions? Contact the LAEF Office at 650.559.0445 or email toadmin@laefonline.org.

Back to School Combined Payment Form: Families can still order BTS purchases (PTA membership, Class fund, Class Field Trips, Birthday Book Club, directories, Covington Wear). One FREE copy of the School Directory is included for each adult PTA membership. BTS items can be ordered through link on Covington website (http://www.covingtonschool.org —> Covington Purchases —> Back to School Purchases) OR using the paper order form (attached and also available on website). Payments can be made through electronic checks, paper check or cash (to be put in PTA box in office). Questions: Please email Trish Carballar (ntrishwish@yahoo.com).

From the School Nurse

Sometimes it is difficult, especially early in the morning, to know whether or not to send your child to school. In the last few weeks we have seen many cases of the stomach flu, colds and fevers. The following guidelines are indications that you should keep your child home. Thank you for your help, to control the spread of colds, flu, and other contagious illnesses.

LOS ALTOS SCHOOL DISTRICT NURSING DEPARTMENT / WHEN TO KEEP YOUR CHILD HOME FROM SCHOOL: Keep your child at home when he/she has any of the following symptoms: Fever, chills, vomiting, diarrhea, sore throat or trouble swallowing, nausea, coughing, sneezing, runny nose, rash or unusual sores, headache, generalized muscle aches and pains, wheezing or trouble breathing, unusually red crusted or burning eyes. Please call the Covington Attendance Line when your child will be absent or tardy: 650-947-1101

You need to keep your child home until she/he has been symptom free without medication for 24 hours.

WALKATHON NEWS
Fill up your sponsor cards! Students received their Walkathon sponsor cards on Sept 11/12. Encourage your child to ask family and neighbors for pledges. The top-earning classroom at each grade level will earn an ice cream party. Cards are due on Friday, October 3rd. Students turn in their sponsor cards and receive an Otter Pop.

Request Alternate t-shirt size no later than this Friday, Sept 26th. Every child gets a FREE Walkathon t-shirt that will be distributed a few days before the event. Sizes are automatically determined by the child's grade. Grades K-1 will receive a Youth Small; Grades 2-3 will receive a Youth Medium; Grades 4-5 will receive a Youth Large (YL); Grade 6 will receive an Adult Small. If you need an alternate t-shirt size please visit now: http://www.covingtonschool.org/covingtones/4914-Request-Alternate-T-Shirt-Size.html.

Volunteer at the Walkathon! You can be part of the year's biggest community-building event. We need adult volunteers on Saturday, October 11 for jobs that include field set-up, clean up, registration/check-in, incentives tables, Safari Snack Shack, water and first aid and field monitors. One hour shifts are available. Please sign up on the Google spreadsheet located here

PTA News

Bike Safety Rodeo for Covington Elementary
Our first annual Bike Safety Rodeo will take place on Friday, October 3rd from 3 - 5pm.

What is a Bike Rodeo?
The bike safety rodeo course is an interactive exercise that allows students to learn about safety by walking and bicycling through a miniature city called "Safe Moves City". The course will be put together by Safe Moves, http://safemoves.org.

"Safe Moves City" consists of streets, sidewalks, intersections, crosswalks, traffic signals, traffic signs, residential areas, business districts, cars, trucks, buses and a railroad track with signals, crossing gate and train. "Safe Moves City" is designed to simulate the diverse traffic environments in Los Altos and to create "problem solving" experiences for each grade level.

The activities for the 2 hours will include:

• Safe Moves Mini City
• Obstacle Course
• Blender Bike
• Helmet Inspection/Adjustment Booth
• Bicycle Inspection Booth
• Traffic Safety Games

We are in need of parent volunteers for this event. If you can help out for the afternoon, please contact me, Christine Wedner, cwedner@mac.com

After-School Play and Stay Sports and Games with Mr. Heeb: started Tuesday September 16th. Please go to the following website for more information: www.stayandplaylasd.com. Please note that kids in lower grades must have parental supervision until 2:45pm. You can sign up for as little as a one day session or for the full year.

The following after-school classes are still accepting enrollment: Yoga (Tues), Mad Science - Chemistry (Tues), CSMA Art (Wed), Skyhawks Multi-sport (Wed), Public Speaking/Debate (Thurs), and Spanish (Fri). http://covingtonschool.org/covingtones/4757-After-School-Programs.html

Skyhawks will be offering after-school programs for Covington Elementary starting September 24th. Space is limited! Don't let your child miss out on the amazing experience Skyhawks' Family Choice Award Winning programs offer. Sign up for programs today.
http://www.skyhawks.com/

Soccer! Please join us for a soccer game with San Jose Earthquakes. Each ticket you buy gives $5 back to our PTA. The game is on Saturday, October 18, at 7:30PM, at the Buck Shaw stadium @ Santa Clara University: 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara 95050. To buy tickets please follow the link: https://covingtonquakes2014.eventbrite.com
Hope to see you there!

Covington Voices: Want to keep abreast of what is going on at Covington and the greater LASD community? Want to join a venue that allows you to ask other Covington parents for recommendations from everything from babysitters and tutors to electricians and vacation spots? Please ask to join the Covington Voices Facebook group here: www.facebook.com/groups/CovingtonVoices/

Covington Stem Teacher Links:
tinyurl.com/covingtonstem
https://sites.google.com/a/lasdk8.org/covington-stem/class-newsletters

School & 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.