Principal's Message
Dear Arroyo Families,
Thanks so much for joining us for Back to School Night last night on Zoom. This is the start of a yearlong partnership as we work together to support your child’s social-emotional and academic growth, follow the guidelines in our SCSD COVID-19 Safety Plan, and help our fourth and fifth graders grow in independence and ownership of learning. I hope you also took a few minutes to watch the videos recorded by our PE and elective teachers who are a part of that partnership as well. As you heard in last night’s presentation, our CMS/Arroyo PTA and the San Carlos Education Foundation (SCEF) are also key partners in our success at Arroyo. Your support for these community partners is vital and much appreciated.
With Back to School Night and the first few weeks of school behind us, the three day weekend comes at a great time to rest and recharge as a family. Please consider scheduling a COVID test if your family is traveling and/or is indoors unmasked around people not from your household. We can only keep school open and keep our students safe if everyone in our community works together to follow the same rules. If you have any question at all about whether or not your child should come to school or get tested for COVID, please refer to our SCSD COVID-19 Resources page and/or contact Tracey Olazar in our school office ([email protected] or 650-632-8300). Tracey can walk you through our protocols whether they involve symptoms, travel or exposure. The resource page contains our SCSD Health & Safety Guide which outlines those protocols, along with information about local testing sites, including one right on our Central Middle School campus. Please see the School District News section below for additional information on travel guidelines and what to do if your child exhibits any symptoms. Thank you for doing your part to keep our community safe and in school!
When our students return on Tuesday, we do have a small shift in our COVID protocols. As you heard from Dr. Frentress on Friday night, masks will no longer be optional outdoors. Students and staff will be asked to wear masks at all times, aside from when eating, drinking, or taking a brief mask break. When anyone is not wearing a mask, we’ll require distancing from other people. Luckily, this has already been the norm at Arroyo, so this won’t be a big change for our Eagles!
Enjoy the weekend and we look forward to seeing our students on Tuesday!
Warmly,
Mindy Shelton
Principal
[email protected]
PTA News
Calling All SCSD Library Books!
We are so delighted that our school libraries are open once again, but we need your help to get them in order! There are still hundreds of outstanding library books that need to be returned to our school libraries from the past 2 years. We are asking any families with library books from any SCSD library to return them to our CMS/Arroyo library. Students can bring the books to the library or parents can drop books off at the Arroyo office. Thanks for your help!
PTA Open Positions
The PTA is looking to fill a few more volunteer roles for this year. There are a number of positions we are hoping to fill immediately as well as many more opportunities throughout the year. We can't do it without you! Sign up here to volunteer.
Here are some open positions needed ASAP:
Each Green Corner Volunteer - Site Lead or Coordinator:
- ECG Site Leader - As an EGC Living Campus Site Leader, you will be in charge of attending, leading, and supervising monthly Living Campus workdays at one of our school garden sites. You will also be responsible for planning workday tasks in collaboration with EGC’s Volunteer Manager and other lead volunteers. This position requires an estimated monthly time commitment of 8-10 hours.
- ECG Coordinator - As an EGC Coordinator you will be supporting the Site Leader. For more information please email [email protected].
Classroom Volunteers for Art in Action & Room Parents:
Please see our individual classroom volunteer sign-ups to volunteer in your child’s classroom as a Room Parent or to help with Art in Action in various capacities and time commitments. Sign-up here!
Stampede & Soar Volunteers: Our Stampede & Soar team needs your help! We are looking for volunteers to help plan our Fall Stampede & Soar community event. This is our only business sponsor opportunity of the year and a fun-filled community event! It's a great chance to get involved. Volunteer here!
Arroyo & Central Living Campus Monthly Work Day
Come help care for Each Green Corner’s Living Campus Garden at Arroyo and Central. Lots of impressive volunteer work has gone into the garden so far and Saturday, September 11 is the next workday!
The work will start at 9am and end around 1pm. It’s going to be a fun and rewarding day! See the event page for more details and COVID instructions. To register for the event click here. If you have any questions or concerns please email Emily Brunette at [email protected].
PTA Partners - Every Donation Makes a Difference
Thank you to those who've supported the Central Arroyo PTA! Without our Parent Partners, many of the wonderful programs would not be possible for our children. All funds directly benefit Arroyo and CMS programs including supporting teacher grants and supplies, Art in Action, Library Books, Healthy Cities Tutoring and SO MUCH MORE!
Your one-time family donation of $250 will help us reach our goal. Thank you in advance for any support you can give. Every single dollar makes a difference for our students and teachers. DONATE TODAY!
PTA Partnership also includes your annual Family PTA membership. When you join the Central Arroyo PTA, you are also joining the California State PTA, which spearheads educational advocacy in Sacramento.
SCEF News
Ah, September!
The air feels a little different, and we are firmly into the school year. We want to warmly welcome you back: https://youtu.be/AHZxRcUVsaU
Learn more about how your donations benefit all students at every school at https://scefkids.org.
Be a GEM: Give Every Month
Did you know that you can make your donation by setting up an ongoing, automated, recurring gift? When you Give Every Month, your support of SCEF is spread across the entire year. If you sign up NOW your donation will be given over 10 months (Sept-June)--now that makes giving easy! Learn more and join this campaign (at any dollar amount) at: https://scefkids.org/gem/.
Give the Gift of Time - Join Us! Volunteer With SCEF
People volunteer for all kinds of reasons, so we have all kinds of ways to get involved! Join the SCEF team and make use of your personal skill set – on our governing board, at your school, or on a committee planning events and seeking sponsorships. We are always welcoming new volunteers - and are currently looking for individuals with experience in social media, videography, events and finance.
Interested in sharing your expertise while supporting our public schools? Please fill out this Google Form.
Like our Facebook page and @scefkids on Instagram, too, for more upcoming details and all SCEF news.
District News
COVID Reminders - Stay Home When Sick and Get Tested
Staying home when sick and getting tested for COVID-19 are two of the most effective ways to keep our community safe. Click here for more information.
If you have any of the symptoms listed above, call your school office to report an illness, stay home, and take a COVID test. If you need to report a COVID case, please call our District Nurse - Page Pollack at 650-632-8300 (Arroyo Office) or Human Resources at 650-590-5922 if the nurse is unavailable.
For additional information, visit our COVID-19 Resources page and review the SCSD Health & Safety Plan.
CDC Recommended Travel Guidelines
Per the CDC recommendations concerning travel, SCSD will be using these guidelines for staff or students that travel domestically and internationally. See this CDPH flyer for additional recommendations on traveling.
For more information, visit our COVID-19 Resources page and review the SCSD Health & Safety Plan.
New Hours for Curative Van
Please take advantage of the no-cost COVID-19 testing provided by the San Mateo County Health Department. Click on this link to sign up at one of the following locations to begin your regular weekly testing:
- Central Middle School (parking lot, under solar structure)
- Tuesdays/Wednesdays 9am-3pm
- Thursdays 1-7pm
- Fridays 11am-5pm (effective August 17, 2021)
- Find other community-based testing sites in San Mateo County here
Community Partner News
Planning Commission Virtual Study Session Protected Tree Ordinance - Tuesday, September 7, 2021 7pm
On September 7, 2021 at 7pm, the San Carlos Planning Commission will hold a study session which will allow Staff to gather input from the Planning Commission and the San Carlos community for consideration as part of the new tree removal, trimming, and protection regulations. For more information and how to attend the meeting, as well as future updates, please visit www.cityofsancarlos.org/treeordinance.
City Council Virtual Study Session - September 8, 2021 5:30pm
The City of San Carlos has been working with the community and stakeholders to develop urban design strategies for the City’s east side industrial area from Holly Street to Brittan Avenue, known as the East Side Innovation District. At this City Council Study Session, "10 Big Moves”, or strategies will be presented. These strategies translate the community’s aspirations for the East Side into a holistic design framework that will inform future development and infrastructure improvements for the next 10 to 20 years. Please join us! To learn more and review materials from previous community workshops, please visit www.SanCarlosInnovation.org.
Parent Education Series
Ready for some back-to-school self-care? On September 9, Mission Be offers a new "Mindful Parent" series featuring Madeleine Pizey in Mindful Parenting: Reducing Covid Stress and Anxiety (September 9, Online).
As Olympic athletes pushed mental health to the forefront, we welcome Steve Smith, PhD, clinical and sports psychologist, for a timely discussion on “The Twisties”: Youth Sports, Competition, and Mental Health (September 15, Online).
SPECIAL EVENT! Frank Bruni, author of Where You Go is Not Who You'll Be, joins Alice Kleeman, award-winning former college advisor, in Beyond Being Admitted: Making the Most of the College Experience (September 22, Online).
September is Suicide Prevention Month! San Mateo County Health, Sequoia Healthcare District, StarVista, and The Parent Venture offer resources for youth mental health and suicide prevention. Mark your calendars! (September 28)
How will Covid impact learning and mental health? Anya Kamenetz, NPR education correspondent, will discuss her upcoming book, The Stolen Year: How America's Covid Response Failed Children, and How We Can Fix It (September 29, Online).
Keys: for Parenting is here! Keys is a new communication tool that puts parenting advice at your fingertips—literally, it's a keyboard!—developed by Charlene Margot and Bev Hartman, co-founders of The Parent Venture. Give Keys a try!
Want more great parenting advice? Follow the Parent Education Series on social media (Instagram and Facebook), or subscribe to our free Video Library (YouTube), a popular and trusted resource with over 21,000 views!