MPCSD District Newsletter
April 15, 2020
Providing a world-class, community-funded education.
A Note from Superintendent Burmeister
How are you? If you're like me, the thing you are missing most right now is community with other people. Yes, technology is great and video chatting with friends is keeping us all going. But being in proximity with friends, reaching over and touching someone, sitting nearby and not looking through the lens of a computer camera - these are things that just can't be replicated. As we all adjust to what could still be many weeks of isolation, the toll on our personal relationships is growing. That's what is on my mind this month as I write my second blog during this time of shelter in place. We need eachother more than ever, and yet we must remain apart. If that's not Cruel Irony , then I don't know what is.

Please stay safe and well, hug the ones you're sheltering with, and remember to care for your relationships above all else. They are what we will depend on when we emerge and put our world back together.
Attendance During Shelter-In-Place: Now Easier

We hope to take one worry off your plate - there is no need to report your child's attendance. Now that we are in distance learning through the end of the year, we will assume all students are present. If your child is ill or will be away from distance learning for a few days, please report their absence as you did during regular school. Thank you!
In This Newsletter

  • School Board Meetings
  • Tips from our Specialist Teachers
  • MPCSD Helps
  • Libraries and More
  • New OK Assistant Principal
  • ...and more!
School Board News & Views
School Board meetings are held at the TERC Boardroom, 181 Encinal Avenue, Atherton. Please see the meeting schedule here . You may email your Board Members any time at board@mpcsd.org .

The School Board is meeting more frequently for now so the Board can stay updated on distance learning. These meetings, like all Board meetings, are open to the public and are held via Zoom. Please check the district homepage under "Announcements" regularly for meeting dates and how to be involved. On April 16, the Board holds its regular April meeting via Zoom. Click here for details on how to listen/participate if you wish. You may submit questions/comment ahead of the meeting by emailing info@mpcsd.org . Please include your full name and address when submitting a question. Input received via email will be read at the appropriate time for public comment during the Board meeting.
Re-enrollment for 2020-21
To help our schools and district better plan and prepare for the upcoming 2020-21 school year, our annual re-enrollment process will begin April 17 and close on May 8.
 
On Friday, April 17 all parents/guardians of current K-7 grade students will receive their student’s re-enrollment notification email from PowerSchool Enrollment. Parents/guardians will be asked to complete their student’s re-enrollment no later than Friday, May 8. Even though your plans for next year may not be finalized, please complete the re-enrollment process in any case. You always have the option of contacting our registrar at registrar@mpcsd.org to update your enrollment status.
 
After May 8, parents/guardians who have not completed their student’s re-enrollment will be contacted directly by MPCSD staff.
 
If you have any questions about this process, please contact the registrar at registrar@mpcsd.org .
Got Grocery Bags? We Need Them!
An easy way to help your schools during COVID-19
MPCSD needs your help. We anticipate needing about 6,000 brown paper grocery bags. Why? In two short weeks, MPCSD’s hard working teachers will begin returning ( safely ) to their classrooms to pack up for summer cleaning. We must begin summer cleaning early because our incredible custodians can only work alone, thus making the process much more time consuming. Left in the desks, cubbies, and gym lockers prior to spring break were your students’ personal materials and we need to collect those and get them back to you. In order to do this, we anticipate needing thousands of brown paper bags to gather each student's belongings, label them with each student's name, and organize them for safe pick up. 

Additionally, we need brown paper grocery bags to deliver food weekly to our families being served by the MPCSD Helps food pantry program. 

Outside the MPCSD District Office at 181 Encinal Avenue, Atherton, is a box labeled for the collection of brown paper bags. Please gather brown paper bags from your home and drop them off at the District Office. Doing so would help us immensely. If you’re feeling particularly helpful, consider sending out a note to neighbors on your street and collecting their paper bags for us, as well. Folks like to help and this is an easy and safe way to do so. Out of respect for the environment, we prefer reusing paper bags; please no plastic bags. We’ll let you know when we’ve reached the number of bags needed, but until then, keep the bag donations coming! THANK YOU
MPCSD Comes Together to Help
As the Shelter in Place and economic shutdown continue, more and more families are being affected by loss of wages, hours, and jobs. Providing food security and other essential resources to these families is one of our top priorities as we navigate these times together.

We have created MPCSD Helps as a resource to offer assistance and receive donations toward this effort. If you need help or would like to donate money, gift cards, or groceries, please visit our MPCSD Helps webpage . Hot Lunch Coordinator Debi Rice and Family Engagement Liaison Flor Espinal are running our amazing MPCSD Helps Food Pantry which is stocked solely by your generous donations, allowing us to bring bags of groceries to many district families every week. Thank you so much for caring.
Tips & Resources from Our Specialist Teachers
MPCSD's amazing Art, PE, and World Language teachers and our nursing staff have shared some of their favorite stories, activities, and sites for you and your children to explore. Please check them out and have some fun!
PE
YouTube Videos to keep your kids (and you!) moving, curated by Laurel PE Teacher Teagan Stapp:

Some fun lessons with Oak Knoll PE Teacher Hope Scheid:

World Language recommends https://rockalingua.com/ for music based Spanish learning. There is free access to some content. If you would like full access please reach out to your World Language teacher for a Username and Password.
Health & Wellness
Our district nurses have prepared seed packets for kindergarten and first grade students. To pick up a packet, please go to your school site - there is a box of seeds outside the front door of Encinal, Laurel Lower Campus, and Oak Knoll. They are available first come first served while supplies last. Please watch this video prepared by Nurse Lianne and Nurse Theresa about the project.
Art
  • For fun enrichment activities, explore this padlet from Laurel Art Teacher Christie Giacomozzi.
  • Take a virtual museum tour
  • Check out a visual arts mini Ted Talk for kids
  • Hillview students have been engaged in a few projects. Read below about mask making and paper bag sculptures.
Paper Bag Sculptures
Ms. Kogan's Experience Art class tried sculpting at home last week with a familiar, yet novel material: paper. Most students used paper bags and tape to create sculptures of shoes and other items. The sculptures needed to include some detail and look representative. It was an interesting challenge for many: dealing with manipulating a somewhat unfamiliar material, thinking about balance and form, and problem solving along the way. 
Sewing Face Masks
Ms. Kogan's Makerspace class focused on their sewing and craftsmanship skills by making face masks using old T-shirts or cloth they could find in their homes. Some used sewing machines at their homes and some hand sewed or glued their masks. The main design Ms. Kogan shared with her class is the tutorial by the New York Times . Students enjoyed making a useful item for themselves and their families!
Keep Reading
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More Local Resources
Libraries
An online visit to your local public library can give you access to a world of online resources which include live tutoring as well as ebooks. MPCSD students in Atherton and East Palo Alto have access to the San Mateo County Library system while the students in Menlo Park have access to the City of Menlo Park Library. The resources are very similar and both offer online tutoring.  This flier  shows what is available from San Mateo County Libraries as well as from the City of Menlo Park Library accessible with a library card. Library cards can be obtained through your local library's website:
 
For Atherton and East Palo Alto residents, use the San Mateo County Libraries link below to sign up for a library card: https://smcl.org/card-services/get-a-card/
 
For Menlo Park residents, use the City of Menlo Park link below to sign up for a library card: https://www.menlopark.org/577/Apply-for-a-library-card

Beyond the Book
Local high school students have created a free 1:1 tutoring, homework help, and mentorship program for K-8 students in a variety of subjects. Visit the https://www.beyond-thebook.com/ website to get started.

Camp Galileo Anywhere
Galileo Camps is now offering Camp Galileo Anywhere —a week's worth of FREE activities delivered to inboxes each weekend for families to add to their routine. For an hour each day, kids can engage in engineering and art projects, energizing movement games and live experiences facilitated by expert educators. Plus, all weekly emails are bundled with support for parents and educators by including printable resources, follow-up questions and ideas for self-care. Learn more and subscribe here.
Need Emergency Childcare?
MPCSD together with its afterschool care provider Newton Center Inc. is now offering emergency childcare to essential workers. The service is available at Laurel School's Lower Campus every weekday from 7 a.m. - 6 p.m. for potty-trained children aged 3-13. Registrations are available weekly or daily and tuition is flexible.

If you or someone you know is an essential worker during this time and needs childcare, please let them know. Activities are age appropriate and include help with distance learning for school-aged children. More information at our Essential Worker Childcare webpage .
A New Otter
Oak Knoll School is losing beloved Assistant Principal Leah Kessler after this year as she moves to southern California to be closer to family. While the community will miss Leah, we are thrilled to welcome a longtime MPCSD family member into the role of Assistant Principal - Alicia Payton!
Ms. Payton attended both Oak Knoll and Hillview herself before graduating from Vassar College, doing her student teaching in New York, and then working in the research departments at both Stanford University and SRI International studying disease transmission. She started teaching science at Hillview in the fall of 2001 and moved to the district office to be Science and Math TOSA in 2016 where she worked at all four schools supporting math and science instruction and helped launch Laurel Family Math Night, Encinal Engineering Event, and STEAM on the Knoll. 

This year Ms. Payton covered for Leah Kessler's maternity leave during the fall and winter and also served as Oak Knoll's TOSA: Instructional Coach. Returning to Oak Knoll as an Assistant Principal is a dream come true for her. "I love the students, staff, and the entire community at Oak Knoll. When you walk onto Oak Knoll's campus, you can feel that is a special place where learning is happening, and children are growing," she said, noting that her daughter will be joining her there as an incoming kindergartener. Congratulations Alicia and Oak Knoll on the beginning of a wonderful relationship.
Be Counted - Complete Census 2020
What matters to you? Schools? Transportation? Hospitals? Data from the U.S. Census Bureau help inform funding for all these important community resources. When you shape education, you shape our future. Respond to the 2020 Census and inform funding for educational programs that benefit our children, like after-school activities, school meal programs, and Head Start. It’s more than just a count, it’s an opportunity to shape the next generation. Learn more at www.smcoe.org/census and participate at my2020census.gov .
Erik Burmeister, Superintendent | mpcsd.org
Governing Board
Stacey Jones, President
Sherwin Chen, Vice President
David Ackerman
Mark Box
Scott Saywell