Fundraising Chair, Gabrielle Samuels | fundraising@losfelizarts.org
Photos by Joel Sigerson

Our first annual LFCSA Harvest Arts and Crafts Festival, held on November 10th, 2007, is one for the record books. The co-chairs, Naomi Slodki and Nicole Whitaker had a vision: to hold an event that truly embodied who we are as a school and a community. They envisioned a festival that would celebrate our children, their creativity, and the values of our school. Mission wildly accomplished!

The Festival had something for everyone: of course there were the inescapable bounce houses for the energetic types, but you could also buy garden pots decorated by students in the weeks prior, and you could even help offset the effects of global worming by setting a worm free into a compost bin with our very own Howard “Al Gore, co-Nobel Peace Prize Winner” Gindoff. The spectacular craft booths were abound with creativity and included activities such as wand-making, puppet craft, headdress styling, tattoo and body artistry (a.k.a. face painting), and you could even dabble in the wind chime arts. There was an incredible spread of homemade chili, hot dogs, and baked goods put on by Alexa Iles and Gina Leighat (and don’t forget Maria’s tamales)! In the auditorium, Adam Kopold ran the Photo Fundraiser where families could have four different sittings with four different professional photographers (also LFCSA parents), and each family left with an amazing array of fantastic photos.

A big bold THANKS to all of the parents who showed up early, stayed late, and worked their patooties off to make this day a blazing success. It never ceases to amaze what we can accomplish when we think out-of-the-box.

LFCSA Parents, YOU ROCK!

text and photos by Lillie Pardo

The kindergarten school year began with learning about “caring,” which led to learning about “shelter” in early October. The guiding question for the whole unit was “How do family members show they care for each other?” To make a bridge from caring to shelter, each student made a sock puppet pal and gave it a name and a personality. Next, students thought about what their puppet pal would need to be cared for properly. When asked, “Where could it rest or eat?” some of the children answered, “It needs a home.”

After reading the book, “A House is a House for Me,” by Mary Ann Hoberman, students were asked to think about what they already knew about shelter, and this was documented on a chart. Next, they were asked what they wanted to know about shelter, and this was also written down. The questions they posed about shelter served as a pathway to guide inquiry for research and learning.

To further the exploration of shelter, the students worked in small groups of four to five to build tent shelters in the classroom using blankets and sheets. As they enthusiastically worked together to construct their shelter, they learned to work collaboratively and about estimation by guessing how many people could fit inside the shelter; then they tested out their guesses to see if they were correct. The students thought about their feelings while inside their shelter and what else they would need to be comfortable inside the shelter for a longer time. Students said they felt, “crowded,” “comfortable,” “great,” “soft,” “hot,” “safe”, “cozy,” and “good” while inside.

In a subsequent lesson, students thought about their own shelters and what makes a house a home. After discussion, they agreed that families, people, and love are what make a house a home. Students drew maps of their rooms and pictures of other rooms in their homes, which were made into individual shelter books. The students talked with each other about the activities that took place in different rooms of their homes and pantomimed these activities with a partner. A class graph was made showing each student’s favorite rooms in their shelters. Students discussed with each other why a certain room was their favorite and what they liked to do there.

To explore shelter construction, students became “researchers.” Armed with clipboards, paper, and pencils, they started with an exploration of their classroom and then school building—inside and out—to observe and formulate questions about different building features. Some of their questions included, “What are vents for?” “Why are there different types of floors?” “What is concrete made of?” “How was the play structure made?” “How was the school built?” An architect guest speaker, first-grade parent Kevin Mulcahy, came to talk to the students about building and helped answer their questions. He brought in building plans, scale models of houses, and samples of different building materials (concrete, ceramic tile, marble, granite, wood, metal, cork, linoleum) to share with the class.

In other lessons, students learned about animal shelters, arctic shelters, and shelters in different parts of the world. Kindergartener Ashley stated, “Shelters help keep animals safe so they can stay alive and protect their babies.” Kindergarteners learned that although many different types of shelters exist, shelters show care by protecting us and meeting our needs physically and emotionally. As a culmination to the unit on how families show caring through shelter, students used what they learned to design, build, and decorate a special shelter for their sock puppet pal.

Dear Parents,

It is hard to believe that one third of our school year is nearly over and winter is approaching. This past month flew by with many outstanding activities and much learning having occurred. Though I missed the Halloween Program, I was able to view the video and saw why I heard so many great comments about the various classrooms’ performances. The students really enjoy presenting in front of their families, so thank you for taking time to attend.

I want to offer another large thank you to everyone involved in making our Fall Festival such a success. All in attendance seemed to enjoy the camaraderie and fine weather, not to mention the outstanding food. Even our outstanding Garden benefited from the day by the addition of 85 “freed” worms that will enhance the soil.

Speaking of our garden, kudos to the parent committee that secured the grant monies used to develop the garden. They spent many hours of hard labor creating a learning space for our children that is very impressive. The teachers are putting it to good use and the students love to be able to have lessons in the garden area.

Thanks to the efforts of Audrey Fann, we have begun a series of evening Parent Education sessions designed to provide you with more information about important aspects of our school and how you may be able to follow-up at home. For our first session held in October, Tiffany Miller presented information on our Cool Tools program (see page 4). Our most recent session featured information about Thinking Maps and their use by the children. Alana Cortez, our staff’s Thinking Maps trainer, presented and again, Audrey Fann hosted the evening. I encourage you to attend future Parent Education sessions, so watch for information regarding them.

I want to share with you what the staff will be doing during the student-free Staff Development days scheduled for January 14, February 4, March 3, and April 7. The staff and I will attend the Critical Thinking Institute that is offered each spring by Seeds Elementary School, the lab school at UCLA. In continuing our commitment to align our program with Seeds Elementary, we will work with their staff on the Saturday prior to the student-free Monday and then observe the students at work on the following Monday, at Seeds. Later on each Monday afternoon, our staff will have an opportunity to debrief their observation and new learning with the Seeds staff. We are excited about what the Institute offers for our program’s continued growth.

Finally, I want to extend my wish for you to have a wonderful holiday with your children during our winter break. It is a time for families to join together and create memories that will last a life time. If you travel during the two weeks, be safe and come back on January 7th excited and refreshed.

Karin

It’s not too late to get a copy of the lovely 2006-2007 LFCSA yearbook. Order now and make sure your child and your family always has a wonderful way to remember our first year at LFCSA.

The yearbook is available for order online at: www.lulu.com/content/881018. You can preview the entire book at the link, or if you prefer, a hard copy will be available to look at in the main office. All of our beautiful kids from 06-07 are in there, so it really is worth having! The yearbook is printed to order, and the price is $30 with all profits going to the school.

Have YOU asked Grandparents and Uncles if they want to buy a LFCSA DVD yet? For a $25 donation, they get an incredible 83 minute professionally created keepsake of LFCSA’s inaugural year. Every single student is featured at least twice as their class is spotlighted. This priceless DVD is a unique and entertaining opportunity to raise money for your school. Have your cash or check (payable to “Andreas Wenger”) ready and buy copies during drop-off or email safety@losfelizarts.org to arrange for your copies to be mailed.

Share your enthusiasm for LFCSA by involving your family in this touching fundraiser.

Recycling containers are in every classroom and throughout campus. Eligible recyclables are listed on the bins. Throw it in, it all gets sorted by West Hollywood’s recycling service. The Green Team Committee is also developing a compost area in preparation for a “no waste” lunch policy.

by Alyssa Gonzales

What exactly is a neighborhood? If you had asked a first grade student this question in early September, it would have sparked a variety of personal responses. So how do we as educators take all of these wonderful ideas and honor our students’ individual input while validating their unique experiences? We ask more questions, of course!

The topic of neighborhoods lends itself perfectly to many opportunities in which students can gather data, explore their surroundings, and learn about their community. “Neighborhoods” is the overarching theme for the first grade project-based curriculum, Different Ways of Knowing.

Over the course of several weeks, students collected information to construct meaning to the question: What do we already know about neighborhoods? Children “zoomed” in on the sights and sounds of the neighborhoods around them through pantomime, paintings, and play.

Students took a walk through their neighborhood using their imagination. They pretended to hold a small video camera and recorded what they saw, smelled, heard, and felt. Using their senses as tools, the children were asked to share their images by pressing pause on their “recorders.” With the images fresh in their minds, students were asked questions like: What sounds do you hear? Are there birds or animals nearby? If so, what are they doing?

To compare and contrast differences and similarities among neighborhoods, students examined four art prints: Marc Chagall’s The Street, Philip Evergood’s Sunny Side of the Street, Winslow Homer’s Snap the Whip, and Anne Belle Lee Washington’s Sunday. Teachers then asked the essential questions: What shapes do you see in the painting? What time of day do you think it is? In what ways does this painting remind you of our school neighborhood? All of this inquiry gently guided the children closer to their goal of defining neighborhood.

As another part of the “neighborhood” study, all four first grade classes took a walking field trip in the school neighborhood in late October. It was a perfect opportunity to explore our community and learn more about what a neighborhood is.

First grade teacher Leeza Hamberger was asked to articulate what students gained through this inquiry-based approach. She explained, “Essentially, students gained a deeper concept of neighborhoods and relationships within their neighborhood community. Asking wonderful questions helps along a path of research. Organizing information helps students use this information to show what they’ve come to know…” All of these learning events help to develop critical thinking skills that are important not only in higher education, but also in life.

By narrowing their focus, students came up with a class definition of a neighborhood to create a common language for further inquiry. As a culminating activity, each of the four first grade classes showed what they came to know through artistic expression. Students collaborated and worked together (another essential skill for project-based learners) to create a large three-by-six-foot paper classroom neighborhood collage.

While students worked together to cut and paste the construction paper cutouts, each class had its own buzz in the air, its own uniqueness and energy—much like four mini-neighborhoods. When first grade student Ilsa was asked why she enjoyed learning about neighborhoods, her response was, “I like to learn about nature, living, and about people.”

Hello LFCSA Parents,
Below are the people nominated for PTA office who have
expressed a willingness and a desire to fill the
positions. As we are a new organization, nominees were
few and interested parties fewer, and these people are
running unopposed. However, the folks below are all
fantastic, committed LFCSA parents and I think they will
do a great job of getting our PTA off the ground. They
have each provided a short paragraph explaining their
fitness and their qualification for the job.

Many thanks to those of you who have become members of
the lfcsPTA. We hope that all parents and staff will
eventually become members and we will be calling our
first general meeting soon, in the upcoming weeks.
Sincerely,
Adam Kopald
Acting PTA V.P.

President: Ryan Bell
From Ryan Bell:
If elected I would be happy and honored to serve as
the President of our new PTA. My wife, Elysabeth Bell,
and I have two daughters – Zoe (7, 2nd grade) and Sophie
(4). Zoe started as a 1st grader last year at LFCSA and
we’ve both been very active in the school from the
beginning. Last year I served on the Site Council. My
term on the Site Council was up just last month and so I
would like to shift my focus to PTA. I have over 13 years
of experience managing non-profit organizations. I am
well acquainted with how non-profit boards operate and I
think my experience in leading groups of people to form a
vision and pursue it together would serve the PTA as we
launch this new endeavor.

Exec VP: Amy Mayne
From Amy Mayne:
I love this school and the fact we have the
opportunity to work with the teachers, the children
and our community we are building with each family at
Los Feliz! I see the work that the entire “Team” has
to put in to make this possible. Bringing the P.T.A to
our school will be another “Tool” that will help us
fulfill the hands on approach to our children’s
education! I am all for that! I know it makes a
difference that our children see us, “grown-ups” get
so involved with their school. Thanks for the
consideration of your vote…..
Amy is Miranda’s Mom in 1st grade.

Ways and Means (fundraising) Co-Chairs: Nicole Whittaker
and Gabrielle Samuels
Gabrielle is this year’s Grassroots Fundraising Chair and
Nicole and Gabrielle both helped to produce the very
successful Harvest Arts and Crafts Fair. Nicole has been
very active in LFCSA fundraising since before the school
opened.

Treasurer: Soo Kim Choi
Soo Kim has many years experience in commercial
banking and will bring her money management expertise
to the PTA.

Membership Chair: Elysabeth Bell
From Elysabeth Bell:
Both my husband and I are committed to the success of
LFCSA. Our daughter Zoe, now in second grade, is doing
great. We look forward to
next year when our daughter Sophie will start
Kindergarten. I think the PTA is a great way for families
to support our school and as
Membership Chair it would be my job to get all the
families enrolled. Because I ran the after school program
last year I know a large
portion of you already, and I am excited to get to
know the families I didn’t get the chance to work with.

Auditor: Rob Knaack
From Rob Knaack:
My son Dexter is in Kindergarten in Ms. Miller’s
class. I’m a founding parent who is delighted with
the progress the school has made so far and very
impressed with the teachers and staff. I would like
to continue to play an active role in making Los Feliz
Charter the best school it can be. In my non-Los
Feliz Arts life, I work in the animation industry as a
CTO who also writes math-laden computer programs. I
like working with numbers, and my wife thinks I’m
already too fond of spreadsheets, so she suspects I’m
perfect for this gig. An attentive auditor will be
especially key in the years ahead as we build finances
for our new location and continue to grow in size and
scope. My son Dexter says, “Please vote for my Dad, Rob
Knaack. He’s good with computers and at fixing
things. And he’s fun.”

Secretary: Sallie Higgins
From Sallie Higgins:
Sallie Higgins for Secretary/Historian: The main
reason I can do this job exceptionally well is because
I take detailed notes in every meeting I attend and
have a good track record for attending meetings.
Already a parent elected adviser, my term on the Site
Council is from Sept. 2006 until June of 2008. I am
also a State licensed Early Education Director, have a
BA in Fine Art, and have been studying, teaching, and
advocating Constructivisim even before LFCSA was
conceived. That’s why I am so excited about our
school!! In addition I have a handle on how to keep
our goals on course with my hands-on experience
working last year in both after school programs. This
experience has given me a good understanding of how
improvement needs to take shape from this point
forward using our talented, creative, and caring
parent body to reach those goals. Our school needs to
incorporate our parents back into our curriculum and
philosophy! By attending Site Council meetings, PTA
meetings, and also Board meetings too, I want to keep
current on all aspects of what is going on in the
school and rest assure, as I do, I will write down
what I hear and and share information for the
betterment of our parent-initiated, incredibly
wonderful center of learning. The PTA is going to
make a difference!

Fall is in the air (at long last!), and we hope you are as excited as we are about our upcoming Fall Harvest Arts and Crafts Festival. You should all have the date ingrained in your brains by now: Saturday, November 10th, from 11-3pm. When you think about it, this festival truly reflects what our charter school stands for—children creating. There will be a variety of arts and craft booths for your children to let loose their imaginations (and what a perfect opportunity to come home with holiday gifts for grandparents and other relatives), a photo booth, fun activities like basketball and soccer games, as well as bouncy houses for both kids AND adults (how cool is that!) and mountains of mouth-watering food—everything from healthy choices to baked goods to BBQ and more. Remember, admittance to the fair is free, and tickets to the various crafts and food booths can be purchased at the door. If you haven’t volunteered yet, please contact Naomi Slodki at naomislodki@aol.com. It’s so important that each family donates some time to make this event a great success. Thank you so much for your support and see you there!

Dear Parents:
I thought this letter might be helpful in your fundraising efforts. Please feel free to use it as a tool when asking family members for donations to the Capital Campaign.

You can download it from www.losfelizarts.org/pdf/grandparent_donation.pdf

Dear LFCSA Grandparent:

Your grandchild’s school is quickly gaining a reputation as one of Los Angeles’ leaders in the charter school movement. Now in our second year, the school is aspiring to move to a permanent new home. This is a very exciting time for our young school, and we are reaching out to everyone for support, including our community’s grandparents. We are calling it our Capital Campaign, and we want you to be a part of it.

For the school’s Capital Campaign, we are asking each and every family to conduct their own mini-fundraisers to raise $2600, or more, to help reach our goal. As a grandparent of a child who is attending a school successfully implementing a program based on best educational practices, we are asking you to support your grandchild’s school with a monetary donation. All contributions to our 501(c)(3) non-profit are 100% tax deductible.

Attached to this page you will find our Grandparent Donation Form. You may return the form with your donation by mail or in an envelope with your grandchild’s “Thursday Packet.” Don’t forget to fill in the family or student name under which you are making your donation. From myself, our staff, our parents and especially all of our students at LFCSA, thank you for your kind support.

Very Truly Yours,

Ms. Karin Newlin, Principal