Coffee Talk: Join us for our digital coffee talk this Friday, May 15th at 9:00 AM. Click HERE to for the livestream. Text or call 530-794-8294 with questions or thoughts. Please leave a message if we do not answer while on the livestream. 

Student Work Pick Up/Book Return May 21 and 22: Click HERE to make an appointment to pick up your student’s work. One appointment time slot per family. Families will have the opportunity to pick up their student’s work on Thursday, May 21st and Friday, May 22nd, as well as return any library books or other school resources. Student work will be available in flex rooms, with the exception of kindergarten, which will be available in the cafeteria. Only one family at a time will be able to enter each flex room. Please wait on the designated spot until it is your turn to enter the room. Any work not picked up will be saved until the fall. 

Spirit Shirt Contest – due May 15: It’s time for Westlake to pick the student drawing for next year’s Friday spirit shirt! This contest is open to all Westlake Charter School students. On an 8.5×11 sheet of paper, students should draw a black and white picture of what Westlake means to them. Make sure your drawing includes the school name. Email submissions to [email protected] or mail them to 2680 Mabry Drive, Sacramento, CA 95835. All entries must be received by Friday, May 15th. Please allow 3-5 business days for mail to be delivered.

Report Cards: We will be mailing home report cards at the end of the school year. Click HERE by Friday, May 15th, to update your address if you have moved. 

Planning for the Fall of 2020: As we look forward to the future, our team is working hard to consider every possible scenario. While we do not yet have plans to share, we do want you to know that this work has begun. The areas listed below are just a sampling of the thinking our staff is engaged in at this time. We promise, as we begin to solidify plans, we will be engaging our community and seeking your feedback.

Health and Safety

First and foremost, our team is focused on the health and safety of our students, staff and community. In order to properly address health concerns, we are considering logistics and protocols for reopening school, including BASE, under multiple different scenarios including factors such as:

• How to address regular hand washing
• How to health screen students and staff
• How will personal protective equipment be used on campus if needed
• How can we organize social distancing entering and exiting campus
• How can we organize social distancing while on campus
• How our cleaning team can best support our school

Social Distancing Guidelines

Depending on the recommendations of local and state authorities, the guidelines for social distancing will need to be considered in the fall.These recommendations could affect all social gatherings, large or small. For example:

• Lunch, recess, and morning line-up may be affected if gatherings are limited to less than 50
• Classrooms routines, as well as class sizes and schedules, may be affected if social gatherings are limited to less than 25 or have specific spatial social distancing requirements 

Normalizing Learning

Westlake is committed to the academic and social-emotional readiness of all our students. We spend incredible energy organizing our learning to meet the diverse needs of our amazing students. In the fall we must consider:

• How can we address lost learning due to the current school closure 
• How will social distancing impact classroom routines and culture
• How will Westlake continue to provide high quality learning if students are home ill or in a home quarantine
• What independent studies options could be available for families who want to stay a part of the Westlake community but are not able to return in the fall
• How can we be best prepared should we need to close again

While each of the above considerations are condensed into short bullet points, the truth is that hours of thought are being poured into each item. Preliminary plans are being drafted to respond to each of these items and we intend to craft a communication in the coming weeks that will help our community consider how to best prepare for potential  impacts this fall. 

Field Day: We are so excited about our first Distance Learning Field Day. Field day will launch on Wednesday, May 27th at 9:00 am with a video that will be sent out from homeroom/advisory classroom teachers. This will be an asynchronous event where families will get to participate in a variety of activities throughout the day in the categories of obstacle course, water activities, minute to win it, and relays! To encourage school spirit, each grade level will have their own field day color (See the chart below). Lastly, at your Student Work pick up day you can also pick up a field day surprise bag.  This bag will have some supplies your family might need for field day.  Click HERE to sign up for a Student Work Pick Up appointment.

Grade Level Field Day Colors:

In Case You Missed It

K-8 Principal Announcement: Families, as we look to the fall, our Principal, Mrs. Battin, will be moving to her new role as our Westlake Charter High School Principal, and we have worked hard to find her replacement. With all the uncertainties that this fall may bring, we imagine that a familiar face may be welcome to fill the principal position. Therefore, we are excited to announce that Mrs. Jenifer Callau has accepted the K-8 Principal position. Mrs. Callau has been with WCS since 2011, serving as a teacher, the principal of our middle school, and for the last three years as the K-8 Director of Curriculum and Instruction. Click HERE to watch a video interview between Mr. Eick and Mrs. Callau. 

End of Year Events Calendar: Click HERE to see our Family End of Year Events calendar for dates like Spirit Days, Coffee Talk, Open House, Promotion and more. 

Online Scholastic Book Fair: Mark your calendars Explorers, the first-ever Online Book Fair is here! It will run from Monday 4/27 through Monday 5/11. Free Shipping on book-only orders over $25. Click HERE to shop online

Counseling Resources & Support webpage: Families, we want our community to know that our Distance Learning Website now has a Counseling Resources & Support webpage. Please click HERE to visit this page to access all of the social emotional support and mental health resources that our team has curated to assist our community.

Tech Support: Families please email [email protected] with any tech support you need. Have a chromebook issue? A problem with a video being blocked? Need tips on how to navigate our website? Please send questions and concerns directly to our tech team at [email protected]. Our team is standing by to help!

May is Bike Month: The Jibe Student Challenge continues all month. Simply click HERE create an account and start logging your student’s bike trips today. Every 10 minutes of riding equals 1 trip. The purpose of this challenge is to have fun and create healthy habits but there are leaderboards divided by school and grade if you are looking for some extra competition. Log on today to join the fun!

Fireworks Booth Update: After careful consideration the WAVE Board has opted not to host a fireworks booth this year. We may bring it back next year and will need a team to lead. Please send an email to [email protected] if you are interested in learning more about this opportunity or any other events. 

WAVE Feedback: The WAVE Board is looking for ideas for next year and beyond. Do you have an idea to improve an event? Do you have an idea for a new event? Are you interested in joining a committee? Please click click HERE to share your ideas today! 

Kudos: Our Explorer Students have shown incredible flexibility, perseverance and determination over the past 8 weeks. This time hasn’t been easy but our students have amazed us with their ability to adapt and respond to our changing environment. We are all exceptionally proud of them for continuing to learn and engage from home. Way to go Explorers!