Dear Parents:

I am pleased to report to you, that as I have observed our school these past weeks, I see happy children. This is exciting and tells me that our program is developing in the right direction. As the weeks pass, I marvel at how much learning has occurred, and we have only completed the first six weeks of school. What a great start for our school this year.

All of our students are hard at work on their project-based units of study, their reader’s/writer’s workshop sessions, their experiential math classes, science through our gardening program, and 40 minutes a week of music, dance, and drama. In addition, all of our students receive physical education for 100 minutes per week. They definitely are experiencing an enriched school experience.

Though there have been some situations that could take our focus off the students’ educational program, parents, teachers, and staff have continued to provide an outstanding program for our students. The news about our move from St. Ambrose is definitely distracting, but I sense everyone feels as I do, that the situation presents our community with an opportunity to find our home. I am confident that we will be able to manage the relocation of our school in a positive manner.

Thank you for your continued work on our school site. Regardless of the amount of time we stay at St. Ambrose, it is important to provide the most enriched environment possible for our children. With all of your help we have accomplished a beautiful, aesthetically pleasing learning environment that is the “third teacher.”

See you at the Fall Festival.

Karin

Hello everyone! We are tremendously excited about everything we have planned for the 07-08 school year: fabulous fundraisers, festivals, and as always, lots of great opportunities to contribute to our goal of providing a superior education for our amazing children. Here’s a preview of some of the fun events we have lined up for this year:

Our Harvest Arts and Crafts Festival is on November 10th, so take out a big red pen and mark your calendar—you will most definitely want to be there! And our annual Pledge Drive letter will be mailed out around the end of October, so be on the lookout. Fast-forwarding to 2008, there’s the big Spring Fundraiser, otherwise known as Los Feliz Charterpalooza and the annual Run-Walk for Charter Schools. Throughout the year we’ll be organizing everything from Ebay auctions to bake sales to collecting box tops. We’re also participating in Target’s “Take Charge of Education” program, in which a portion of every REDcardsm purchase you make goes directly to our school.

But remember, it’s not just your checkbook we need, it’s your support, too. We can’t do anything without your involvement. Volunteering is a great way to meet new friends, get in those all-important hours, and help our school at the same time.

We’re all in this together, and we are looking forward to getting to know each and every one of you. With your help, we can make this school that we are already so very proud of even more rockin’.

The Fundraising Committee, fundraising@losfelizarts.org

Dear Parents:

As I reflect upon our opening days this year, and remember last year, I am struck by how much progress we all have made. Although there were some challenges this year as we created new systems and procedures, through it all there were smiling, happy faces – of children, parents, teachers, and support staff.

With the help of so many parent volunteers and the many, many hours they contributed of their time, our school was up and running by September 5th and looked cheerful and inviting. Classrooms were redesigned, including our new Kindergarten room which was previously the dance and music room. The auditorium was given a facelift, and a new library was created in the back of the auditorium out of what was a dark, overcrowded supply closet. Miraculous work. Thank you especially to the imagination and vision of Rachel, Karin and George.

Thank you also to all of the parents for their patience in adjusting to our new drop-off procedures. Thank you, Andreas, for your gentle reminders to parents. We appreciate how difficult it is to stay in the car and let our loved ones go to the playground without us.

How could we have gotten under way without Michelle in the main office? Michelle’s patience and calm demeanor in the face of any request or obstacle are remarkable. We are truly fortunate to have someone as capable and personable as Michelle.

Thank you, George Abrams, for producing this “film” – Our School. Could producing a movie be any more demanding? You have given freely of your time, energy, experience, and vision.

Thank you to the teachers who all spent a week in professional development before school began. (Our new teachers spent 2 weeks.) They worked countless hours getting their rooms ready and in planning curriculum, sometimes staying at the school into the evening hours after a full day of training. They provided an atmosphere of warmth and caring on opening day, and do so every day, as they do the work of creating a nurturing and excellent learning community for our children.

Finally, I believe I speak for the entire school community in thanking our principal, Karin Newlin, without whom none of the above would ever have been possible. Words cannot express all that Karin – and Bruce - have given to our school.

With such a crew, the sky is the limit.

Nancy Martorelli