Jog-a-thon September 28th

Here are the students doing the jog-a-thon to raise money for extra school activities.

Chicken Little

By Rebecca Emberly

No the sky is not falling, but there are many challenges for AE due to California school budget cuts. One at Alvarado is class size. Class size in all grades can be up to 34 students. This includes kindergarten. In the last few years kindergarten and 1st grades had been limited to 20 students. This is a huge change for teachers and students. Last year 2nd and 3rd grade were limited to 25 students. This is no more. Because of the size of classes are so large, it means fewer regular teachers are needed. Therefore some familiar faces around AE will be missing. Some teachers received pink slips and were released from New Haven. Some were assigned to other schools in the district. The smile of Rachna Lindstrom will be missed by students and staff. She will be teaching 4th grade in San Leandro School District. Matt Speakman and Junelle Mallari will no longer be at Alvarado at this writing. However, there are no empty classrooms as 6 new classrooms are now occupied by special education students. Some of these students come from the Cabello facility which was closed at the end of the last school year 2012.

 

Clinton Puckett

Clinton Puckett will be the new Assistant Principal. Clinton has been teaching a variety of grades for the last few years. He also taught the after school dance class and the Color Guard. Vince Lindain, a long time 1st grade teacher, will teach 3rd grade this year. Cathy Hampton, a long time 3rd grade teacher, will be teaching a 3/4 class this year.

After much discussion by district personnel about how to handle library cuts, media/library classes will be non existent for grades k, 1, 2, and 3.  Fourth and fifth grades will have somewhat regular media classes. Alisha Valine, the media specialist/librarian will only be at AE on Monday afternoon, Tuesday all day, and Friday afternoon. On Monday mornings she will be a Kitayama and also all day on Thursday. On Wednesday she will be all day at Pioneer and then again in the morning on Friday. She will do her best to maintain services for the teachers and the classes she teaches, but at this time only 4th and 5th grade students will be able to checkout books. This may still be somewhat tenative because often prep schedules need to be adjusted. Keep an eye on Mrs. Valine's website at Miss Media, to see any changes.

Monday - KIT in the AM, AES in the PM

Tuesday - AES all day

 Wednesday - PIO all day

 Thursday - KIT all day

 Friday - PIO in the AM, AES in the PM

It's going to be a challenge for teachers and students to adjust, but Alvarado teachers know they have a job to do and they will do it to the best of their ability.

Welcome Back to School 2012-2013

There are always going to be changes in schools. Some good and some more challenging, but let's see what's happened to those coming back to school this fall. The staff will be happy to see Sonia Wong back from her year long tour. She took a sabbatical to learn more about Asian world. Sonia visited Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, South Korea and more.

Taiwan

     
Cathy Hampton is back from her summer "Great Americana"  train trip to see some of the US National Parks. Visiting every national park is on her bucket list.  She went to Tucson, Saguaro National Park; San Antonio, the Alamo; New Orleans; and Monticello, Shenandoah National Park. Shenandoah was her 31st national park to visit.  She also visited Boston, Philadelphia, New York, and in Maine, Acadia National Park. Going on she went to Niagara Falls, Lake Michigan, and in Montana, Glacier National Park.

Liberty Bell

Brooklyn Bridge

These staff members took a short but fabulous vacation.  Here is Maureen Tecson, Vince Lindain, and Letty Munoz-Gonzales snorkeling on their holiday in Bermuda.

Maureen, Vince, Letty

Greg Snelling has returned from his first family backpacking trip in the Eastern Sierras, Inyo National Forest, John Muir Wilderness, enduring mosquito bites and rain, but enjoying the beautiful lakes and valleys.

Greg Snelling and family

Betty Silva is ready to go back to work after returning from her Yosemite trip with her grandson, Michael.  They had a great time enjoying the beauty of the park.

Sukhy Gill spent a wonderful family vacation in India and visited some of India's famous landmarks.

Suhky Gill and family

Dave Trier and Rachel Saucedo Jones both had babies. Dave's wife actually had the baby. Dave's son, Luke, was born on June 27th and Rachel's son, Xavier, was born on Aug. 12th. Congratulations to both of you!

Someone reminded me that AE's 4th grade teacher, Laurie Koehler, got married in Hawaii at the beginning of the summer. How could I forget?  What a lovely bride! Best wishes to you and your new husband.

Now its back to work. School begins on Wednesday August 29th.  The Alvarado Family Potluck is on Monday, the 27th of August. 

Joy of School Library Lessons

There are few moments more joyful for the students and the librarian than when the class has finished a Readers Theater where EVERY student has successfully read his or her part. Each student's part is carefully selected by the librarian to push the student just a little above his or her reading level. Sometimes the student is assigned a choral reading with 2, 3, 4, or 5 classmates. For some this is a necessary confidence builder. Sometimes the student has a part alone. The first few readings are a little nerve racking for some, but once students see that no one will make fun of their skills or their voice they enjoy the process. Students learn the strategies for effective readers theater, namely reading with expression, reading loud enough for all to hear, standing up straight, listening while others read, and following all the parts, not just their own. After experiencing a few Readers Theaters with their class, students often burst out clapping at the end. By the end of the year when they have a choice day, they may choose to do a readers theater. They gather a group of students, pick a script, sit in a circle, assign parts, and read with expression, all without assistance of the librarian. As a community of learners, students go back to class with a smile on their face. Can you think of other strategies to help students appreciate the joy of reading?

Speech and visual and performing arts are part of the new California Common Core Standards.  I soon realized it was best to write or adapt an online readers theater so that there were parts where a group of students could read together. Sometimes the group was as small as two students and sometimes as many as five. This ensured that every student had a part. This is really critical for readers theater. There should be no students just listening. Having everyone read ensures students are following the script and listening to the class.  Plus students learning from other students is the best way for the class to realize how to use their voice effectively when reading.

Partially Open Media Centers

As of this date, it looks like the libraries/media centers will be open part time in the elementary schools. Some of the media specialists have been assigned to 3 schools so the schools will have 10 hours of media a week, basically to check in and out books in 20 minute periods, or have teacher signups for checkout. Alisha Valine has been assigned to Alvarado, Pioneer, and Kitayama.

 Alisha Valine

Carol Engberg from Eastin has been assigned to Hillview Crest, Searles, and Emmanuel.  Beth Morris Wong from Hillview Crest will teach 20 periods of science and 10 periods of media at Eastin. Carolyn Vranjes of Kitayama has been assigned to teach science at an elementary school. Paula Figdor from Pioneer is going to be a classroom teacher. Media specialists will checkout textbooks to the students. Textbooks are now barcoded.

It will not be usual media classes that students have had in the past. Perhaps principals can figure out how to make time for lessons, which in the past have included the Dewey Decimal System, alphabetizing, readers theater, technology, such as Photoshop, Goggle Earth, or Internet searching and safety; author studies, non fiction research and the development of new knowledge, and building a student network of connections with the teacher's core curriculum. This is still up for discussion. Students in K-2 will probably not be able to check out books.

Budget Cuts Affect Academics

School begins this year with a minimum day on August 29th. The school year will be again 175 days the same as last year but less than the usual 180 days. Teachers have given up nine workdays to try to make up for the State of California's fiscal education cuts. Teachers will have no time to prepare for the beginning of school as two of their preparation days have been eliminated. All employees are taking an 1% paycut in addition to paycuts from last year. Classified employees also have a reducted work year.

As of this date students will still have Physical Education, Music, and Science. However a credentialed librarian, media specialist, will no longer be available for the students at any of New Haven's elementary schools. The librarians will be assigned to a classroom. This ends a thirty year tradition of librarians in all the elementary schools. High school assignment of a librarian will be 35% and middle school will be 25%. The rest of the time the librarian will be a classroom teacher. This comes at a time when the emphasis for students is critical literacy for which a qualified librarian is essential. This is a black time for New Haven students.

Zoe, Forever In Our Hearts

Zoe Inciong was a beautful 16 year old Logan High School student who fought against cancer with all her might. Her aunt,Tracie Noriega, at Zoe's recent 16th birthday called her the "Ultimate Warrior". Her friends and family at Alvarado joined her in that fight. Hearts are broken.

A Fine Fine Teacher Retires

Penny Johnson leaves New Haven Unified School District after teaching for 41 years. Friends and family join to wish her well. Penny taught in Cabello and Alvarado Elementary. She taught kindergarten and grades 1, 2, 3, and 4. She came from a family of nurses. Her mom was a nurse. Her sister is a nurse, and her daughter is a nurse, but Penny broke the mold and decided to become a teacher.

A measure of Penny's skill was the attendance of three Principals, Louise Waters, Tracie Noriega, and Cheri Benafield, and one Assistant Principal, Donna Mana. Tracie, her principal at Alvarado Elementary, told the group how helpful Penny has always been with everything she has been asked to do.

Tracie Noriega

Alex Schwerin
thanks Penny
for her support.

Sukhy Gill reads from
a book for Penny
made by the third
grade teachers and
their students.

Keith Guernsey
shows a video of
students wishing
Penny the best.

Letty Munoz-Gonzalez
and Roxanne Ramirez
enjoy the festivities.

                Carol Engberg

                                 The party is ON!

                       ManYee Desandies
                       Cheri Benafield

                  Sukhy Gill and Cathy Hampton

                Chris Moriuchi, Sharon Chambers,
                                ManYee Desandies

Libraries in New Haven

 Only time will tell how New Haven will handle the media centers in New Haven School district. Since Measure H did not pass, California budget cuts will affect all schools in New Haven. One program that may be drastically effected is libraries, commonly known in New Haven as media. The media specialist at the high school will be retained, but the middle schools and elementary schools will have some cuts. The severity of these cuts remain to be decided.

We Will: Bust This Test

Teachers, Keith Guernsey and Jeff Pickering, made this amazing video. Great fun with an excellent message for student success in California Star Testing.

2012 Teacher and Staff of the Year

Roxanne Ramirez

Long time teacher at Alvarado, Roxanne Ramirez, has been chosen as the Teacher of the Year for 2012. For many years she taught 4th grade and is now a 5th grade teacher.  She is well loved for her spirit of cooperation between teachers and her excellent work with students. She has been the after school leader of the Spirit Squad and has long been an advocate of bay area sports teams. As a fluent Spanish speaker, her class is often full of English learners.

 Yurani Mancotte DePerez

Yurani Mancotte DePerez, Office Assistant, has been chosen as the classified staff person of the year 2012. She is known as a hard worker, always gets her work done, and is helpful to everyone. Yurani is good with the students and everyone loves her. According to Nancy Mumm, School Secretary, Yurani coming to Alvarado has been a blessing.

Measure H Parcel Tax

Parents, students, teachers and community members gathered Saturday morning to show their support for Measure H. It was a very wet, rainy Saturday when teachers, administrators, and families gave up the morning to encourage voters to pass the parcel tax. Marchers assembled in front of James Logan High School with umbrellas and signs. Supporters of Measure H walked from James Logan High School on Alavarado-Niles Road to Union Landing where a rally was held.

"Yes on H!" was the clarion call. The $180 per parcel tax measure would raise $12 million over a period of 4 years to preserve classrooms from the California state budget cuts.



Measure H did not pass. Hopefully Proposition 30 supported by Governor Jerry Brown will pass.

Grading on the Internet

In the past years Alvarado used CRX/carbon forms to produce report cards for students. Now Alvarado is finally up to date with the times with report card input being done on the internet by the teachers. However, it is a time consuming as teachers still have over literally 2000 little boxes to double check once you do the whole class. The classroom teacher also has to input the prep grades, such as media, physical education, music, and science. The prep teachers still just put the grades on a roster and give it to each teacher. Plus teachers still have to check over the grades after they are done to make sure the data is correct as there are still some hitches, as with all new things, with the computer. Once this process is clarified, the teachers will be happy not to get carpel tunnel syndrome as they once did with the old carbon process.

Family Nights

Alvarado will host a series of family night potlucks for each of the major ethnic groups at the school. Data pertaining to that particular group in comparison to the school will be shared. Everyone is invited to any and all of these evenings.

African-American Family Night- Feb. 22nd
Latino Family Night- Feb. 29th
European-American Family Night- March 28th
Asian American and Pacific Islander Family Night- April 11th

2012 Budget Crises

Financially this has been a tough year for education in California. New Haven Unified School district is no exception. The district weathered the storm of financial problems for the 2011-12 year by laying off teachers, furloughs, employees sacrificing a sixth day without pay on a non-student day, and increasing class size. With the year 2012-13 looming more cuts will be necessary. Teachers will be getting layoff notices as required by law on March 15th. The district already has notified teachers of the following cuts for the rest of the 2012 year. There will be no overtime for classified staff and any new positions will be frozen. There will be no new hires, no hires for vacancies, no Office Depot online print orders, nine furlough days in 2012-13, no more funds for travel and conference expenses unless they have already been approved, and no more funds for consultants. As of now, all non-salary accounts are frozen which means there will be no buying paper and cartridges for printers. These are just some of the cuts now put in place.

With 2012-13 upcoming, the New Haven Board of Education voted to place a parcel tax measure on the June primary ballot. The parcel tax will be $180 per parcel and if it passes, will generate $3 million for 4 years. This measure requires a two-thirds majority vote and includes exemptions for disable residents and senior citizens.

The passing of the tax measure will not alleviate all of the district's budget problems. The district is also hoping voters will also approve Gov. Jerry Brown's tax initiative in November. If the tax measures do not pass, New Haven could lose up to $10.7 million in the 2012-13 school year.

The possible impact of non passage of these measures could be: nine budget reduction days for 2012-13, increasing K-2 class size to 30, eliminating the Community Day School, eliminating media specialists and library technicians, eliminating stipends for co-curricular and athletics programs, reducing elementary specialist, and reducing middle school elective positions.

If you know a teacher, give them a hug and vote yes on the parcel tax. It's hard on morale to work in such an environment. In the last few years teachers have had to deal with layoff notices or being bumped to a new position. This is particularly hard on teachers with less than nine years experience as they are the most vulnerable to layoffs. Teachers buy supplies, spend time getting grants for supplies and equipment, and sacrificed a day of pay. Teachers have gone the extra mile to provide the best education possible for their students even as they watch their class size rise. Beside losing their job, the rise in class size probably hurts the most as every teacher knows how small class size provides the best school experience while increasing student learning and ultimately test scores.

Gung Hay Fat Choy

AES - Chinese New Year Parade from Mr. Guernsey on Vimeo.

First graders and their teachers have a dragon parade for the whole school to celebrate Chinese New Years. Gung Hay Fat Choy means best wishes and congratulations for a prosperous New Year.

Alvarado vs Eastin: Staff Softball

Alvarado staff enjoyed a game of softball with the Eastin staff. Both teams are shown here. Alvarado won 5 to 3 but Eastin is going to ask for a rematch as soon as possible.

The AE Team 2012

Belkys Blackwell, Dave Trier, Maureen Tecson, Letty Munoz-Gonzales, Mistee Hightower-Guzman (Assistant Principal), Greg Snelling, Pam Ruley, Jeff Pickering, Clinton Puckett, Tracie Noriega (Principal, kneeling), Jessica Nunes (kneeling)

Photo by Keith Guernsey
who was also on the AE Team.

Friendly Letters

Students in Maureen Tecsons second grade class used techniques learned in their Writers Workshop lessons to write friendly letters to friends and relatives. They then took a short field trip across the street to mail them.

Winter Concert

Upcoming Furlough Days

This is a post on Facebook by the Alvarado Elementary PTC to notify parents and staff of upcoming changes in the school calendar. Yes, Social Media has come to AE.

Due to the budget cuts from the state of California for the year 2011-2012, schools were forced to reduced the school year from 181 days to 175 days.

In consideration of New Haven families and to align with the legal observance of the New Year's Day holiday, the District's employee groups tentatively have agreed to extend winter break by one day, through Monday, Jan 2. Schools, which will be closed starting Monday, Dec 19, will reopen Tuesday, Jan 3, pending final approval by the New Haven Teachers Association next Tuesday and ratification by the Board of Education on Tuesday night.

To maintain a 175-day school year, schools would be open Wednesday, March 21, which previously was designated as one of the six furlough days being forced upon the District because of state budget cuts.

The schedule is unchanged for the other furlough days: Feb. 10, March 5, April 20, May 21 and June 14. Employees also are sacrificing a sixth day without pay on a non-student day. The furlough days were scheduled for the second half of the school year to allow for the possibility some or all of the days could be reinstated if the budget situation improved.