MAY 12 2017

Student ...featuring student work from JUDKINS MIDDLE SCHOOL

Cynthia Ramirez, 7th grade

Keira Prazanowski7th grade

Kenyon Fair8th grade

TEAM Lucia Mar

Happy Friday TEAM Lucia Mar!

This week we had an opportunity to celebrate our amazing teachers and highlight the California Day of the Teacher. In a couple weeks we will be acknowledging Classified School Employee Week. Those are each a “moment in time” opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the incredible work that happens in our district EVERY SINGLE DAY! Every day, students are greeted warmly by their bus driver or crossing guard. Each day teachers encourage, engage and assist our kids in their learning. Cafeteria workers smile and provide encouragement along with nutrition. Secretaries and Custodians talk with students and show that they care. Speech & Language Therapists and Instructional Assistants help kids learn. At the Board meeting next Tuesday, we will have the opportunity to recognize our teachers who are retiring at the end of the year and the teachers of the year selected by individual school sites. Our honorees will include the District Teacher of the Year - Gwyn Kelly, and Classified Employee of the year - Deanna Teixeira. Please join us at the O’Connor Board Room at 6 PM on May 16th and be a part of the celebration!

One of our District Goals is to have positive School Climate. This means Lucia Mar Schools will support the growth of the whole child and their families by providing social-emotional support and parent education. I have been thinking about what that “social-emotional support” looks like. We have committed to increased counseling services and conversations about bullying. I suspect though, that the social emotional support is beyond the “problems” our kids encounter….it is about creating an environment where kids develop the skills and confidence to become self-directed learners, makers, creators, problem-solvers and project managers. All of that starts with having a safe place to learn. In some work done with Google culture training recently, the concept of psychological safety came up. In a study of effective teams at Google, a key factor was creating “psychologically safe environments.” Teams that encourage safe discussions and different viewpoints succeed more. For us, “succeeding more” means we do better by our students, and they succeed more. Pretty important stuff. As we look forward we will work to continue to improve the psychological safety in our district; for students and staff alike. For Google this was evident in these ways: on the good teams, members spoke in roughly the same proportion–what researchers referred to as ”equality in distribution of conversational turn-taking.” On some teams, everyone spoke during each task; on others, leadership shifted among teammates from assignment to assignment. The good teams had high social sensitivity, they had team members that could sense how others felt based on their tone of voice, their expressions and other nonverbal cues.

In Lucia Mar that might mean having the freedom to share new ideas, to take risks and do things differently, and to have the ability to share our experiences with our peers and leaders alike (without fear of retribution). TEAM Lucia Mar will continue to build on this concept as we finish this year and in the year ahead. Have a great weekend, and enjoy the last four weeks of school!

LMUSD INNOVATION L A N G E

The Lange Elementary coding class started in January to support the need for the students to build skills that would prepare them for the future. Since computing jobs are the currently the #1 source of new wages in the US, providing students the opportunity to learn to code would help them build the skills and interest they would need to possibly pursue a career in computer science. As a result, three Lange teachers (Andres Cavazos, Katie McDonald and Christine Hauptfliesch) along with Alexander Merrick- a student volunteer from Central Coast New Tech High, and Brandon Rubenstein- a parent volunteer with a computer science background worked with over 70 students practice coding. More specifically they coded race games and catch games, made virtual pets, story games, and mastered fundamental skills like repeat loops and conditionals. The program has been a success and Lange looks forward to continuing it next year.

Exhibition Night at Grover Beach Elementary is the capstone project for the IB students. In groups, the students developed a line of inquiry under the central idea- Human activity affects the planet. The students researched their issue, created a slide show, tri-fold, and oral report to present their findings, and planned an action to help make a positive change.

As we face large scale roll-out of new classrooms on our campuses in the coming years, we are nearly complete with our design of a ‘Standard Lucia Mar Classroom’. While there will be changes made over time, the following are some key features identified by groups of teachers and maintenance staff over the past three months:

• Room dimensions more square than rectangular (30’ x 32’ instead of 24’ x 40)• Flexible furniture that will allow classroom configurations to be changed quickly• Operable windows to allow natural light and fresh air• Multiple, high quality white boards• Sinks in TK-6th grade classrooms• Science rooms with added square footage and multiple sinks• Both full-length and medium height storage• Multiple power outlets on each wall and above counter space• Heat (gas operated) and air conditioning (electric)• Smart thermostats to limit unnecessary use of heat/AC• Plenty of natural lighting• Vertical, sliding whiteboards that can be used to cover front windows when desired To this point, most of the new classrooms in Series A funding will be at the K-8 level. When large• scale portable classroom elimination begins at the high school level, teachers will be consulted regarding the desired features.

Upgrades | Repairs | Enhancements

FACILITIES

Oceano Elementary hosted their first annual Battle of the Books competition for district elementary schools on Saturday, May 6th. Teams of 5-6 students read 30 books as team over the last four months and then competed against other schools to test their knowledge. Students from Branch, Harloe, Ocean View, Oceano, Shell Beach, Grover Beach, Grover Heights, Lange, and Nipomo participated.

First place was award to the Branch Elementary team (Daniel Dixon, Ryan Barr, Petyon Ernest, Colby Schmidt, Carlos Leyva, and Harry Peterson) and Grover Heights (Adelina Andrade, Lillian Fredlund, Skye Fernsler, Rory Beaudoun, Maia Knotts, Alana Woodard) placed 2nd.

Oceano staff and students were excited to host this fun-filled day and look forward to another battle next year!

BATTLE OF THE BOOKS

Ocean View Elementary is home to some very special Ambassadors. A dozen fourth graders went through training to become certified as junior oak nature guides, also known as “Oak Ambassadors,” through The Land Conservancy Learning Among the Oaks (LATO) program.Under supervision, the Oak Ambassadors are now trained to lead hikes at the Pismo Preserve and teach other children and families about native plants and animals, and the importance of conservation and stewardship of the oak ecosystem.

OCEAN VIEW’S MIGHTY OAKS

Autumn Newcomb8th grade

Pant

hers

GWYN KELLY from Nipomo High School has been named our Lucia Mar Unified Teacher Association’s Teacher of the Year! Gwyn teaches math and AVID at Nipomo High. Gwyn says the honor means so much to her because she was chosen for this award by her peers. She loves being a part of a district where everyone is so supportive. “I don’t feel like this is just my award, it belongs with all of the teachers at Nipomo High and throughout the district, they are incredibly supportive.”

DEANNA TEIXEIRA from Nipomo High School is our California School Employee Association Chapter’s Classified Employee of the Year! Deanna started with Lucia Mar back in 2002 as an Instructional Assistant and is now the Activities Account Tech at NHS. She loves working with the students, the faculty, and she even enjoys the challenges her job brings. Deanna has a big heart and is always ready to help out where she can.

SUE STUDER has been honored with a Statewide Award, she has been named a California School Employee Association Member of the Year! Sue works in the Business Department and is dedicated to service at work and in her free time. Out of more than 230,000 CSEA members, Sue Student was chosen as one of only five CSEA Members to receive this honor. It’s a BIG DEAL!! She will be honored at a statewide ceremony in August.

Congratulations to these amazing employees!!

HONORING-OUR-BESTEACH YEAR WE TAKE TIME TO HONOR OUR BEST. THIS YEAR WE WERE

CODING SUCCESS

Congratulations Jennifer Ramirez!

Congratulations to JENNIFER RAMIREZ from Nipomo Elementary for being honored with the Employee Spotlight. Jennifer is a Speech-Language Pathologist and was nominated by Diana Schmid, a Speech-Language Pathologist at Ocean View Elementary. Jennifer has worked to support several students who need help communicating at school. After some brainstorming meetings, Jennifer developed and implemented new picture communication systems for her students. She showed the classroom staff how to use the new systems with the students. Now, the students have improved their ability to communicate, thanks to Jennifer!

We are so proud to have this hard worker as a part of TEAM Lucia Mar!

OceanoElementary

Grover Heights Elementary

BranchElementary

Lucia Mar was well represented from several of our schools and programs at the Special Olympics Spring Regional Games at Cuesta College on May 5, 2017. This is one of the best days of the year to watch the support the athletes have for each other, as well as all of the students that come out to support our amazing athletes. Our students took part in basketball and the field competitions. Our athletes earns lots of medals but always remember the creed: “Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.” Our students were all brave.

NipomoHigh School

Grover Heights Elementary

CAREER DAYS

The community is such an important part of the success of our students. Mesa Middle School got a visit from Melfred Borzall and the students got a chance to weld some planters. At Judkins Middle School and Dana Elementary, students got a chance to explore careers. Students had the opportunity to visit and interview a variety of speakers from various careers and colleges. The events served as a fun and engaging way for students to explore potential college and career avenues for their futures. Students were able to explore a fire truck and police car, solve math equations like engineers, interact with real service dogs, see x-rays from doctors and veterinarians, and much more. Our students are excited about their futures and are looking forward to Career Day next year!

The VEX 2016 -2017 Starstruck Season witnessed a very successful year for Titan Robotics. The team not only hosted 1 VEX IQ League and 1 tournament for the elementary/middle school levels and 2 VEX VRC middle/high school tournaments.

Team 563 won the Excellence Award at the VEX California State Championships in Bakersfield. Team 563 was the solo participant National Championships and finished 26 th place in the Black Division.

This year’s VEX Worlds again showed marked growth into the upper world dominating teams. The team took 2 robots, 563 and 563X, to Louisville. Team 563 was in the Engineering division and team 563X was in the technology division. After 10 rounds of qualifying matches team 563 finished ranked 35th. Team 563X competed at worlds for their first time and through their slow and steady match play they ended up 9-1 and ranked 3rd in the Technology division.

ROBOTI S

PAYROLL...Please welcome HEATHER REUTZEL to the Business Department. Heather is working in the Payroll Office and if your last name starts with the letters A-G, Heather is the one making sure you get paid. Welcome Heather.

Each year the students of Oceano Elementary team up with Grover Beach Elementary for a very special Bike to School Day. The Oceano students ride their bikes all the way to Grover Beach City Hall and meet up with Grover Beach Elementary riders and some special guests. This year the mayor of Grover Beach was out of town for the ride, so they got the chance to ride with mayor Pro Tem Mariam Shah and Fire Chief Steve Lieberman. Special thanks to Grover Beach Police for their help as well!

Grover Beach Elementary

RIDE WITH THE MAYOR