The Second Harvest Food Drive was a huge success!  Thank you to all the families who generously supported this endeavor.  A total of 1,397 lbs of non-perishable food was collected over 6 days!  In addition, several generous monetary donations were made.  The staff at Second Harvest was truly impressed and incredibly appreciative.  Again, thank you for helping make this possible.

Dear Families,

Welcome back from what was hopefully a relaxing and fun Thanksgiving vacation.  We are looking forward to the next two weeks of school and all of the excitement that comes with the holiday season.  The record setting cold has made for some exciting mornings of attempted ice-skating on the icy grass and miniature "snow" ball making attempts.  I am amazed that my son still thinks that this is shorts weather and see that we have a number of students who believe the same thing!  Brrrrrrr!   Luckily, the classrooms are filled with warmth and active engaging lessons that keep our students moving and growing towards their learning goals. 

It is the time of year that our least favorite bugs, head lice, begin to show up in schools.  This year has been no different.  According to the California Department of Public Health, "head lice, while a significant social problem, do not transmit disease to humans."  Our goal is to keep the students and our school lice free, while supporting families who may have to deal with head lice. We do not allow sharing of hats or headwear and work with kids to minimize contact that could spread lice.  If you are concerned about head lice or receive a notice that your child's class been exposed to head lice, it is recommended that you check your child's head daily, for a period of ten days.  We have a number of resources available for families concerned with lice and or office staff and Nurse Abbe are happy to help.

Upcoming Events

Project Base Learning Presentation with Justin Wells

We hope that you can join us for a Project Base Learning presentation with Justin Wells.  The presentation is in the CMS annex on Monday, December 9th from 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm.

Winter Concert

Our students and staff are preparing an amazing concert that you are sure to enjoy.  The concert is set for Wednesday, December 18th from 8:30 am - 10:00 am.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please contact me at kkeegan@pvsd.net or 650-851-1777.   Have a wonderful vacation. 

Sincerely,

Kevin F. Keegan  

1st Grade -  This month we are wrapping up our Solids, Liquids and Gases Unit with some memorable labs: We just completed an Ice Cream Phase Change where we lowered the temperature of ice by adding salt to it, and used this phenomenon to turn a liquid mixture into a solid- ice cream! We then collected evidence on our lab by eating the final experiment- it was delicious! During the third week of  December all the 1st grade classes will participate in a Bubble Festival in Science that will bring together all the states of matter to make fantastic bubbles of all shapes and sizes. Please contact your child's classroom teacher if you might be able to volunteer to help in Science the week of December 9-13th . It should be memorable!

Picture to the right: First graders creating a phase change- by making ice cream!

2nd Grade -  The second graders are just completing our Pebbles, Sand and Silt unit by taking a geologic side trip into the "Stories that Rocks Tell." We are doing this by learning about how fossils are made in the natural word- and by then making our own plaster of paris "fossils" during the week of December 9-13th. 

The following week we will have a scavenger hunt to find the hidden fossils and each student had the chance to be a Paleontologist, and unearth the surprize hiding in the fossil they had found. Please contact your child's teacher if you can volunteer during either of these exciting, and very hands-on, weeks of Science!

Next up is a Physical Science unit called Balance and Motion where we will start out by learning some of the basic means of measuring, and exploring the benefits of having a standard means of measurement.

Above: Second graders sorting sizes of sand and gravel in science.

3rd Grade -  After completing our Structures of Life unit, and finishing up with our crawfish and snail observations, the third grade Matter and Energy unit is now rolling right along. This past week we have been exploring all different types of energy, and have tested out different energy sources (like the sun, motion, chemical, sound and heat) and contrasted these to stored energy (like in batteries, food and wood). In the upcoming weeks we are going to be exploring the properties of light: that what we see is reflected light, that light travels in a straight line, goes REALLY fast (!), and travels in waves of different lengths (which gives us colors, among other things!). This unit will continue until the winter break.

Picture to the right: Third graders observing crawfish in science class.

December 2-20th

The kindergarten classrooms are collecting NEW pajamas for the Scholastic Pajama Program.  Pajama Program is a nonprofit organization that provides new books and new pajamas to children in need, many of whom are waiting and hoping to be adopted. Since 2001, Pajama Program has donated over one million pajamas and books to children nationwide.  There will be boxes at Ormondale to drop off pajamas in the office, library, and Room 5.  Kindergarten children will be coming to school in their pajamas on the last day of collection Friday, December 20th.  Make a child's holiday season bright!

Contact Sherry Andrighetto sandrighetto@pvsd.net

Here's What We Need:

*Brand-new pajamas in all sizes, from newborn to adult(Please do not donate used pajamas)

*Pajamas must be complete sets-a top and bottom or an appropriate nightgown

*Pajamas for all seasons, but especially for the winter months.

This is the LAST WEEK to order your 2013-2014 CMS Yearbook! Orders must be received by this Friday, December 13th. The cost is only $50 for a lifetime of memories.

I'm excited to announce that a new lunch tray for your schools has been unveiled!

We have been working nearly three years on this tray. After much testing, we are VERY excited to share it with your students!

The STEM Fair once again is upon us, and I'm sure we're all excited about seeing the great projects the students produce. Our CMS Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Fair will be held from Jan 8th - 9th , in the MUR. A science reception will be on Thursday evening, Jan 9th, from 6-7:00 p.m. All projects need to be taken home on Thursday evening. Projects advancing to the County Science Fair will be announced that evening.

Project drop-off will be on Tuesday, Jan 7th from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the MUR. Please check the science fair brochure/website for the project drop-off form. This will ensure that all students are credited with the correct project.

All students are encouraged to participate in this exciting event. Science Fair is a wonderful way for students to use the Scientific Method to answer a question, or exercise their problem solving and critical thinking skills by making a great invention. Please review the STEM Fair brochure (available online) with your child to review safety precautions and other information.

"But how can I help and support my child in this endeavor?" you may ask. I'm glad you did! We need parent volunteers to help the science department judge our wonderful projects for submission to the County STEM Fair. If you'd like to help judge, please contact any member of the CMS science team: Ms. Brown (bbrown@pvsd.net), Ms. Diehl (tdiehl@pvsd.net) or Ms. Burrows (sburrows@pvsd.net).

Thanks in advance for your always-appreciated support.

CMS Science Department