Covington School Howler - Oct 28,  2014

Dear Covington Families,

Halloween Parade on Friday 10/31 at 2pm
Halloween is upon us and is being celebrated this Friday at Covington School! In order to make the celebration fun, safe and appropriate for all students, please remember that the following are prohibited:  costumes with violent themes and weapons, excessive blood and gore, and rubber masks that cover the entire head and/ or face.  Since the parties and Costume Parade all take place in the afternoon, we request that you send your child in grades K-6 to school with their costume in a bag.  After lunch, everyone will change into his or her costumes. Your child's teacher will explain this procedure to students and if you have any questions related to costumes and changing, please contact the teacher or the office.
 
Schedule:
12:50pm K-6th Grade students dress in their costumes
1:00-1:50pm Classroom Parties
2:00-2:30pm Halloween Parade on blacktop
 
Since the parade will end at 2:30, please make sure upper grade (4th-6th) students are checked out with their child's teacher before leaving campus.  Kinder-3rd Grade students will also be excused at the conclusion of the parade.

In the event of rain on Friday, we will send an email in the morning with an alternate parade plan.
 
Enjoy the week!
 
Raquel Matteroli
Interim Principal, Covington School

Important Dates:

Oct. 31 - Halloween Parties 12:45pm, Parade at 2:00pm.
Nov 7 - Walkathon Pledges Due
Nov. 11 - Veteran’s Day Holiday - No School
Nov. 18 - Dine Out for Covington @ Aldos
Nov. 24-25 - Parent/Teacher Conferences, No School for Students
Nov. 26-28 - Thanksgiving Holiday
Dec. 1-5 - Book Fair
Dec. 4- New Family & Fall 2015 Kinder Information Night
Dec. 9 - 4th-6th Grade Winter Concert 1pm
Dec 12 & 13 - PTA Play, Alice In Wonderland
Dec. 15-19 - 6th Graders to Walden West
Dec. 22-Jan.2 - December Recess, school resumes on Jan 5th.

PTA News:

Measure N Information Night: Covington Parents are invited to join the  Almond PTA at a Measure N information night to help address your questions on Measure N, tonight,  Tuesday (October 28th) at 7 pm-8 pm in the Almond Multi.  Jeff Baier (LASD Superintendent of Schools) and Doug Smith (LASD School Board Member) will discuss the measure and address YOUR questions. Please invite your friends and neighbors to attend as well.
 
As many of you may know, Measure N will be on the November 4 ballot. Measure N is a
$150 million bond measure intended to address the LASDs enrollment growth and other facility needs as defined by a facilities master plan. The District is committed to developing a community-driven plan to accommodate growing student enrollment at all 10 local schools.The diverse, inclusive Enrollment Growth Task Force has recommended additional classroom and school space to address overcrowding. With further parent, teacher and community input, the 2014 Facilities Master Plan will identify educational and facilities needs. More information on the measure can be found at lasdschools.org.

Sock Drive! Thank you all so much for supporting our "Socktober" sock drive.  Together, we collected 467 pairs of socks!  All donations will be delivered to the Redwood Family House.  Thanks again!

Order Hot Lunch Now for New Session Starting Nov 3: Order your hot lunches now! The next session from Pasta Market is available for ordering now!  The new menu begins Monday, November 3rd. Orders can be made as late as Sunday, November 2nd. Follow this link to start now: http://pastamarket.orderlunches.com/
Order now to ensure your child will have a lunch starting next Monday!

Attention 4th and 5th Grade Parents! On Nov. 4, all fourth and fifth grade students will have the opportunity to attend an assembly in the library featuring Kirby Larson, Newbery award winning author of Hattie Big Sky, promoting her newest historical fiction books, Duke and Dash, taking place during WW II. This author visit is made possible through Scholastic at no charge and all book sales go toward Covington’s upcoming Scholastic Book Fair.

The deadline to submit order forms to purchase books signed by Kirby Larson and dedicated as specified on the form is this Wednesday, Oct. 29.  Order forms have been attached to emails sent to you, but if you wish to pick up a hard copy, they are available in the school office, your child’s classroom, and the Covington Library.  Order forms and checks payable to Covington PTA may be returned to the Author Visit box in the office or to your child’s classroom teachers. Maureen Drobot, Covington Library

Reminder Walkathon Pledge Due: Please turn in your Walkathon pledges to the Walkathon Box in the front office as soon as possible.  The deadline is November 7th.  The Walkathon assembly including awards and the slideshow will be held on November 13th.  Thank you very much!

Get ready to run, because The Coyote Pack is back! The Coyote Pack Run Club is a popular “run for fun” lunchtime activity open to all students, grades 1st through 6th.  Runners will be provided mileage cards to track their distance to earn ribbons for graduated milestones completed. 

Who: Any level of runner interested in having fun and getting great exercise; grades 1st-6th.
When: Fridays at lunch recess - beginning November 7th
Where: Covington field
What: Please remind your child to wear tennis shoes on Friday in order to participate.

Coyote Pack is a parent run activity and we need help to ensure continued success! No running required. Please sign up at https://docs.google.com/a/lasdk8.org/spreadsheets/d/1OA-6YskBAHBDE-danHUzm62zcTD71dKQARSsTU-U-ps/edit#gid=799801726
Contact Jen or Jen with questions: jen_springer@me.com or jenmcguigan@me.com

Lost & Found: We will be donating items during the Thanksgiving Break.  The Lost & Found rack is located on the side of the Multi, next to the water fountains. Look for the blue bin, with a double hanging rack.  Please check for your any items you might be missing. The racks are overflowing!

Haunted House Fundraiser!! Dare to enter the Hawthorne Haunt and be thrilled by the spooky, scary surprises inside! It will be lots of frightful fun and chock full of chilling moments! Visit our Covington haunted house and enjoy Halloween fun for the whole family. Spooky fun for our smaller ghosts and ghouls from 5:30 - 6:30 PM.  
Experienced goblins and ghoulish gremlins ready to be chilled to your very bones? Join us from 7 - 8:30 PM." Thursday, October 30th, 530 Hawthorne avenue
$20 per family. Please email Valerie Cairns vjcairns@yahoo.com to sign up!

Alice in Wonderland: Come see our own Covington 4-6th graders as they perform in the Covington PTA sponsored after-school play, Alice in Wonderland!
Performances: Friday December 12, 2014  7pm  @ Covington Multi
Saturday December 13th, 2014  3pm @ Covington Multi
Tickets: $10 Adult  $5 Children
email Arezou arezoua@yahoo.com for tickets and info

LAEF: We love smaller class sizes!  Close to $1M of THIS YEAR’S $3.3M LAEF grant funds lower student-to-teacher ratios. Smaller class sizes enable quality time with teachers, enhancing your child’s ability to learn.
For example:
- K-3: LAEF reduces class size from the baseline of 30 students/class to an average of 25
- 1st, 2nd: LAEF funds trained instructor during Literacy/Reading so teachers can spend focused time with small groups of students in reading, writing, and literacy skills
- 7-8th: Core curriculum teachers at Blach and Egan allow for reduced class sizes in Math, English, Science and Social Studies from the baseline of 30 students to an average of 25.
 
But we can’t do it without your support! Make your tax-deductible LAEF donation today at www.laefonline.org (or bring a check to the school office)
LAEF Questions? Web: www.laefonline.org … Phone: 650.559.0445 ... Email: admin@laefonline.org Thanks in advance for your support of LAEF.
The LAEF parent-volunteer team.

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.