Monday Morning Memo --- March 9, 2015
Upcoming Events:

 **REMEMBER TO SPRING FORWARD FOR DAYLIGHT SAVINGS**

MON. (3/9)      PTSA MEETING IN ROOM 500 @ 9AM

                        We Encourage All Parents & Families To Attend

 

                        TEENAGE SURVIVAL SKILLS CLASS IN PAC @ 6PM

                        This Presentation Is Specifically Designed For Students With 

                        Questions About The Realities Of Turning 18 Years Old.  (Attendance 

                        At This Event Clears 2 Saturday Schools For Students.)

 

TUES. (3/10)   LEADERSHIP COUNCIL MEETING IN ROOM 500 @ 7AM

                        Lots To Discuss As We Gear Up For State Assessments This Spring

 

                        THROW A PIE IN YOUR TEACHER'S FACE @ LUNCH!!!

                        Interact Club Sponsors Its 3rd Annual "Throw A Pie At Your Teacher"                           Fundraiser To Raise Money For A Good Cause

 

WED. (3/11)    LATE START WEDNESDAY  (Check Full Schedule Here)

                        Department Meetings / Students Start School At 8:37am

 

                        BEHIND THE TECH INFORMATION SESSION ON GOOGLE DRAW

                        Come To Room 752 @ 7:30am To Learn About Google Draw 

                        (Regardless Of Your Participation In Instructional Rounds This Week)

 

THUR. (3/12)
  INSTRUCTIONAL NETWORKING WITH MS. RIEGERT
                        Check In With Ms. Currie For Logistics On Your Visit

                        INTERACT TALENT SHOW @ 7PM IN THE PAC
                        Always A Smash-Hit, This Event Features The Very Best Of Los Al!

                       From 7pm On, We'll Be Partying Up In The Name Of Los Al!  Buy 
                       Your Tickets Now Before They're Completely Sold Out.  

                       For A List Of Amazing Auction Items, Click HERE
                       (You can't get some of these anywhere else, by the way... A Row Of 
                       Reserved Lockers Anywhere On Campus, A Suite For Graduation, 
                       And Much, Much More!)

                       OPEN MIC NIGHT IN ROOM 153/154 @ 5PM
                       Jam Out With Los Al Talent And Have A Blast!

SAT. (3/14)    SAT PREP CLASS FOR JUNIORS BEGINS @ MCAULIFFE MPR
                       More Than 200 Juniors Signed Up For This Year's Class Which Starts 
                       This Saturday From 9am - Noon At McAuliffe Middle School.  Ms. Hart 
                       Is Looking Forward To Seeing Everyone Bright & Early And Helping 
                       You Get A Great Score On Your SAT!

ATHLETICS:   Spring Sports Are Finally Here!!! So Come Out & Support Los Al!
With so many Spring Sports to choose from, it can sometimes be difficult choosing which team you want to support on any given day.  We've got Boys Volleyball, Track & Field, Boys & Girls Swim, Dive, Boys Tennis, Softball, Baseball, Boys Golf, and of course Boys & Girls Lacrosse to choose from.  So here's an idea.  Choose them all!  Come out all season long and prove to everyone that:
      #LOSALROCKSATALLSPORTS


& On The Horizon...

3/14 --------------- National SAT Testing Day
3/26 --------------- Open House @ 6pm (School Gets Out At Noon)

.............. Unlimited Possibilities!
Longevity At Los Al:
More Than 25 Staff Members Honored This Week For Their Extended Service To Los Al!!!!!

Becky Carter, Jonathan Moses, Dave Huber, Jodi Hutchinson, and Bob Ostmann (featured above) are just some of the living Los Al Legends that were celebrated this week for their extended time in Los Al!

So, it's pretty much abnormal to be celebrating Longevity in a school district and to award 1/4 of the staff with pins of service that recognize anywhere from 5-30 years of service.  But this is what we do in Los Al.  We celebrate the people who makes us what we are, because without YOU we couldn't exist.

Of course, a loud cheer arose when Becky Carter, the longest-serving teacher honored on Wednesday, came up to get her 30th year pin.  She and Superintendent Kropp shared a special hug as they were both hired in Los Al the same year, and taught together in the Math Department in the 80's.

Wow!
Modeling Monday #3 In Math:
Check Out The Math Problem All Los Al Students In Grades 6-12 Tried On Monday

Counting Trees

 

The CIRCLES show old trees and the TRIANGLES show young trees

 

Tom wants to know how many trees there are of each type, but says it would take too long counting them all, one by one.

  1. Develop a method Tom could use to estimate the number of trees of each type. Explain your method fully.
  2. Use your method to estimate the number of a) old trees and b) young trees.

On your poster, put your answers to these two questions as well as any accompanying illustrations on the Tree Farm map that aid in the calculation of your estimate.

 

Expectations for the 21st Century Math student demand that they talk and even argue persuasively for a rationale to a problem more than simply arriving at a correct answer.  The MODELING MONDAY question above aims to achieve just that, as students must work in teams to decide on the best way to solve an otherwise very long and tedious problem.

 

Go ahead and try for yourself!  Then have a conversation with your student about how they solved the problem and debate whose answer is more efficient & practical.

  

21st Century Teaching & Learning At Its Finest!!!

Congratulations To Ms. Riegert! 
She's A Finalist In The National Academic Integrity Awards For All Her Classes

 

Ms. Riegert has impressed with how she builds a culture of originality and creativity in her classes for every assignment she tasks her students with.  As a result, the work being crafted by her students for presentations, in-class notes, and reader response assignments are completely original in nature. Academic integrity and originality are hallmarks of every great classroom.  So kudos to Ms. Riegert for this distinction, and for representing the core of what Los Al academics are all about!

Coming To Los Al On Monday, March 9th Is Our Survival Skills Seminar

In partnership with the Orange County Bar Association, Teenage Legal Survival Skills is an amazing program where two local lawyers will come and talk about what happens to teenagers'/students' rights and responsibilities once they turn 18 years of age and become "an adult."  The presentation is meant for students who have recently or will soon turn 18 years old. And it will be a great opportunity to ask real questions about life after high school. 

If you know anyone who could benefit from this program please have them come out!






In April, LAHS will be participating in the Every 15 Minutes program to raise awareness about the impact of driving drunk or impaired. Our student and staff production team is asking you to help as a community by sharing real-life stories. If you have lost a friend or loved one, or know someone injured or otherwise seriously affected by an impaired-driving vehicle accident, the team would appreciate hearing your story so that it can made part of the film at the heart of the program. This is a serious issue, and Los Al is committed to making a difference in the fight against drunk/impaired/distracted driving. 

If you are comfortable sharing your story, please send us an email at the following address: [email protected].
Week 26, 2014-2015... IN THIS ISSUE:
 

 
GRAND CHAMPIONS!!!
Los Al's Show Choirs Sweep All Awards At All Levels In  The FAME NYC National Show Choir Competition!!!

 Congratulations To Sophia Wackermann 
For Winning 
Best Female Soloist!!!

#LOSALROCKSATEVERYTHING

Adjusted Late Start Calendar For State Assessments This Spring... CLICK BELOW!

In order to maximize student achievement on state assessments like CAHSEE (California High School Exit Exam) and SBAC (Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium), we'll be making a few adjustments to our Late Start Calendar for the purpose of administering these exams to Sophomores & Juniors.

CAHSEE:  The California High School Exit Exam must be passed in order to get a diploma in our state, and it is first administered to students in the Spring of their Sophomore year.  Students can continue to take the exam every year of their high school career if they still need to pass.  THIS TEST WILL BE GIVEN ON 3/17 & 3/18, AND A SPECIAL BELL SCHEDULE FOR THE DAY CAN BE FOUND HERE.

SBAC:  The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium is the state's new computer adaptive exam. Students take this exam in the Spring of their Junior Year in Math and English, and successful scores of "3" or "4" can exempt students from mandatory Freshman courses in the Cal State University system. (This is great news! And for more information read CSU's letter to all 11th grade students HERE.)  THESE TESTS WILL BE GIVEN ON 5/20-5/21 & 5/27-5/28, AND A SPECIAL BELL SCHEDULE FOR THAT DAY CAN BE FOUND HERE.

** Data from both of these exams are used to rank a school's academic performance. Traditionally, Los Al students have fared well on these assessments --- in the top 1% of all high schools in America.
College Information Night For Sophomores & Juniors This Week Was Standing Room Only... In Part, Because Of NAVIANCE
Los Al's College Information Nights are always well-attended and meaningful for families, but this year it was absolutely standing room only --- and the reason is NAVIANCE.  

This College & Career online tool for students and parents has helped to connect and maximize the efforts of our Counseling Team in communicating and following up on critical aspects of the college application process and career interest exploration. Parents are checking NAVIANCE regularly for updates on everything from Financial Aid, to Letters Of Recommendation, and more.

If you're not using NAVIANCE regularly with your student already, we encourage you to contact your counselor and take advantage of the resources this tool provides for you and your child soon.  You'll be thankful you did!


 
Seen Los Al's WALL OF NICE Recently?

Check Out This Short Video On What We're Doing To 
Keep Our Campus Safe, Positive, And Bully-Free!!!


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Los Alamitos High School
3591 Cerritos Ave.
Los Alamitos, CA 90720   
(562) 799-4780