Newsletter – February 11, 2010

Read-A-Thon News

While our Read-A-Thon has come to a triumphant end, our book drive is still going strong!  We will continue collecting used books through the end of next week, so please bring in any gently used books that you no longer need.  Our Read-A-Thon assembly will be next Tuesday, February 16, at 1:00pm in the main courtyard.  Students will receive certificates of participation, and there will be medals for this years top readers.  Thank you everyone for making yet another Read-A-Thon such a phenomenal success!  At last count we read over 9,200 books, but the final numbers are not in yet.  I’m sure we will make our goal of 10,000.

Annual Science Fair

The annual science fair is now open for anyone interested.  You should have received a sign up form in your childs backpack last week, but if you want to come in and pick up a science fair packet in the main office, feel free to do so.  The science fair will be held Wednesday, March 24 at 6:30 pm in the school auditorium. On Wednesday, February 24, the Art Fair will be held.  This will be an invitational event as it was also a voluntary event for your child.  Art work that was submitted by your child will be in frames for viewing and available for purchase if you choose to do so.

Three Times Tardy = Truancy!

Once again, I want to remind everyone just how important excellent attendance is.  One reason for this is that the school receives more money when more students are present, and now more than ever, we need all the funding we can get.  More importantly, of course, students need to be at school to learn from all of our teachers excellent lessons!  As we all know, Marquez is a high-achieving school, meaning that classes cover a lot of material every day.  When a student misses school even once, he or she does not benefit from this material.  Please make every effort to send your children to school every day.  By the way, did you know that according to Education Code, a student that is absent three full days without a valid excuse, or on three occasions is tardy or absent for more than 30 minutes, or any combination thereof, is a truant?  This was a surprise to me that the law was so stringent.  My real point is that when your child misses school, they do miss valuable lessons and when tardiness is a regular occurrence, your child misses lessons.

Carpool Lane Etiquette

I apologize for sounding like a broken record, but we still need to work on our driving etiquette in the mornings we had several near-accidents this week!!  Parents are still cutting into the carpool lane to drop off their children a few seconds faster, with little regard for how their driving habits affect everyone in line behind them.  Three things to remember:

1. Everyone must wait in the carpool lane and not cut in. Everyone is in a hurry to drop off their children, so being in a rush is no excuse.
2. Please do not allow your children to exit the car until you have pulled as far forward as possible. If you can move farther forward, then please do so.  Do not let children out of the car above the teachers parking lot under any circumstances, even if you think your child can do it quickly, this causes others to disobey the rules and pull in front of you!!
3. Please move as far forward as possible in the carpool lane before merging back into the street traffic. Many parents try to merge as soon as they have dropped off their children, and when they cannot, they end up blocking two lanes at once.  If Mr. Josh or I motion you to pull forward in the carpool lane, please do so even if you are trying to merge.

Of course, all of this can be avoided if you arrive just 10 or 15 minutes earlier.  I know mornings are chaotic, but if you can find a way to alter your morning routine and get to school earlier, traffic will not be an issue and we will have far fewer tardy students.

Big Thanks

I want to send a big thank you to parent Moira Mayer for organizing our day at the Kings game, where a number of Marquez families got to see our Los Angeles Kings defeat the Detroit Red Wings 4-3.  Many of our students even got to go out onto the ice before the game to hit slap shots!  Thank you, Moira, for a fantastic and successful school event.  If you didnt get a chance to go the Kings game, do not dismay, for there is a second chance for some excellent seats and to support our school.  On Saturday, March 14 , the Kings take on the Predators for a battle for the upcoming playoffs.  Marquez has secured a block of seats that are now available for purchase.  Ticket holders in the Marquez block will receive the Kopitar bobblehead, a photo on the ice surface itself, as well as appear on a group photo on the jumbotron.  The first 20 tickets sold will receive the shot on goal experience where they get to actually take a shot on the net on the ice!!
Contact Moira.Mayer@gmail.com or (310)467-2366.

Haiti Fund Raiser

The Marquez student council has yet another fund raiser planned to help the citizens of Haiti in their time of need.  You might remember that Marquez participated in the Soles for Souls program and contributed a truck load of shoes that are now on their way to Haiti.  This time, the student council wants to target Drs without borders.  Here is a message from Natalie Turgemon, the student council secretary:
“Hello this is your secretary Natalie just wanting to tell you that starting Tuesday, February 16, student council will be accepting donations for the earthquake in Haiti.  Anything ill help.  The donations will go to Drs without borders.  Did you know that $3 will buy a bed and $5 will purchase 10 meals.  The student council will host a party for the classroom that brings in the most donations.  Simply bring in your donation in a small envelope and give it to your teacher.  Every day, your student council representative will collect the moncy.”

Heal The Bay Beach Cleanup Day

Marquez is joining forces with Heal the Bay for a beach cleanup this Sunday, February 14, from 9:00 to 10:30am.  We will meet at the beach behind Gladstones at Sunset and PCH.  All family members are welcome, and bags and gloves will be provided.  This event will be a fabulous way for older brothers and sisters to earn community service hours for school.  Parking is just $1.00, but make sure you tell the parking attendant you are with Heal the Bay/Marquez for a beach cleanup.  Please join us as we give our beautiful beach a giant Valentine Gift!

The First-Ever Schoolwide Marquez Yearbook!

I am excited to announce that this will be the first year ever that Marquez has a yearbook for all grades, from kindergarten to 5th grade!  You can order your copy (or copies!) in front of the auditorium every Friday morning for $20.00 each.  Or, you can order online at http://www.myyear.com. There will be more information coming home soon, but it never hurts to order early!

As always you can reach me at phollis@lausd.net