Dear Stork Families,

     The school year is flying by, and it’s hard to believe that spring is just around the corner. We look forward to sharing your child’s progress during conferences this week from March 5-8 (grades 1-6 will have 1:00 pm modified dismissal time during conferences). Our partnership is important as we work together to send a positive message regarding the value of education. When parents and teachers work together, students are more likely to succeed. It is amazing to think that we are moving into our final grading period of the year, and we look forward to seeing our students’ tremendous progress continue.

     As we begin the third trimester, it is an especially important time for us to ensure that your child has mastered grade level standards. In moving forward, our teachers are preparing our students to take the CAASPP (California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress) Test in grades 3-6 and the Science CAST in grade 5. To learn about the types of questions on the CAASPP computer-based test, you and your child can view the practice tests online at http://www.caaspp.org/practice-and-training/index.html. Go to this website and click on Student Interface Practice and Training Tests. Sign in as a guest user and select the grade level for which you would like to take a practice test. Choose whichever test you would like to practice.

     Our staff looks forward to using the assessment results to improve and refine our instructional practices. We would appreciate it if you can make sure your child gets plenty of rest prior to testing and ensure that your child eats a healthy breakfast each morning. Testing will commence after spring break and last through the second week of May. Attendance is critical during this period of time.

     Thank you for attending our Science Night; it was a huge success. This event would not have been possible without the hard work of our dedicated volunteers (Mrs. Ghibaudo and Mrs. Rennison) as well as our PFSA Board. We appreciate your time and talent.

     Our PFSA has worked tirelessly this year to coordinate events and fundraisers to benefit our students. We appreciate your support with our fundraising efforts throughout the year to support important programs/materials such as: technology, science experiments, assemblies, Accelerated Reader, Meet the Masters, just to name a few. The community support shown during our latest fundraising campaign, Step It Up, was phenomenal. We are truly appreciative of the generosity of our community to help make Stork Elementary a fun place to learn. We look forward to celebrating this tremendous accomplishment at our Day of Awesomeness on March 15th. Thank you for your all that you do to support our Superstars!

     We have many calendar events in the month of March including the District Festival of the Arts on March 2, from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. at Vineyard Junior High School. We also look forward to our students showing off their classrooms at our school-wide Open House for all grades on March 21, from 6:00 - 7:00 pm. Our next dine-out night will take place at Chipotle on March 11, from 5:00 - 9:00 pm. Spring pictures are optional and will take place on March 19 along with our 6th grade panoramic picture.

     Please be reminded that Friday, March 22 is a modified day for grades 1-6. Dismissal is at 1:00 pm. All Kindergarteners are early birds. Spring break runs from March 25 - March 29. We hope that you have a wonderful and relaxing spring break with your family and we are truly grateful for your partnership and continued support.

 Sincerely,

Michele Rachielles

Principal