Sunday, March 2nd is Dr. Seuss' birthday and we're kicking off five days of fun to celebrate the love of reading.  Read all about the crazy events and come to school ready to participate.

Fliers:
Read Across America Events (English)
Read Across America Events (Spanish)
Library Donation for the Dozen Donuts and Duck Dog

Monday, March 3rd:
Read Across America Kick Off  School recites Reader’s Oath Daisy Head Maisy Day  and;  Wear a Daisy 

Tuesday, March 4th:
A Dozen Donuts and a Duck Dog Too!  7:45-8:45 Parents come to Library for donuts and to purchase books for our Library. 

Thing One Thing Two Free Dress Day  You and one or more of your friends dress alike

Wednesday, March 5th:
“Stop, Drop and Read Day”  Listen for announcements in the afternoon to “Stop, Drop and Read”

Thursday, March 6th:
Pajama Day   Wear Pajamas to school. [No robes or slippers Regular shoes and socks must be worn Pajamas must be warm and provide adequate coverage for regular school activities] 
  Parents read in the classrooms at 8:15—8:45   (See flier for tear-off).

Friday, March 7th:
Fox in Socks Day:   Wear your crazy sock to school and   Super Seussical Reader’s Party in Library 

Parent, Lindsey Sanders, wrote and shared a useful app she found for the Android. "Just thought you'd like to know there is an app for AR quizzes! As soon as I found it I thought other parents would like to know about it. It's called "points scan free" on Android smart phones. It is free because there are adds, but they're unobtrusive. The app lets you scan a barcode to see if there is an AR test for it. It will display the reading level, points available, and quiz number for the scanned title. If a book doesn't have a barcode you can also search by author or title. It is so convenient to pick up a book from my daughter's room and scan it to check if there's a test. I don't have to go to the computer to do it.  Below is a description from the app website.

Description 
Want to know how many Accelerated Reader™ points a book is worth? Points Scan lets you scan a book’s barcode with your smart phone and instantly link to AR™ information.

Straight Path Apps brings you the easiest, most convenient way to learn a book ‘s AR™ point value and level when you’re on the go. Simply scan the book’s ISBN (barcode) using your device's camera as a scanner and one screen later; you’ll see the book’s AR™ level, point value and quiz number. If your book doesn't have a barcode, no problem! Points Scan includes both a title and author search, as well.Points Scan now utilizes a backup search to the WorldCat OCLC™ database for any ISBNs that aren't initially found in the AR database. This greatly enhances the apps efficiency.

Renaissance Learning™ developed Accelerated Reader ™ and is no way associated with Straight Path Apps.

If you want to try out Points Scan without any ads and a few extra features for only $0.99, check out the premium version of Points Scan.

February is Black History Month.  Students in grades 3, 4, and 5 were treated to a free assembly presented by the Los Angeles Jazz Assembly.  The assembly informed students about the accomplishments of important African American Jazz musicians. Five musicians: drummer, pianist, base player, woodwind player, and trumpet player performed a 45 minute concert.  Students got to participate and play along.  Everyone enjoyed learning about Jazz and African American musicians contributions to the world of jazz.  We hope to have them back next year

Come join your Vintage Magnet friends and family at the Corner Bakery Cafe between 3PM to 9PM in Northridge (9500 W. Plummer Street near the Northridge Mall).  15% of your purchase will go to our school!  You will need your brochure.  Click here to print one. What a great way to help our school and give the cook the night off!!!

Every year we need to evaluate our Magnet Program by reviewing student achievement data and survey results from parents, students, and staff. Please complete the short Magnet Parent Survey now by clicking on the picture below.  Please submit only one survey per family.  The survey will be available until February 28, 2014.  

Cada año tenemos que evaluar nuestro programa Magnet por medio de repasar los datos de rendimiento estudiantil y los resultados de las encuestas de los padres, los estudiantes, y el personal escolar. Por favor, complete la pequeña Encuesta para Padres sobre el Programa Magnet ahora haciendo clic en la imagen. Por favor, envíe sólo una encuesta por familia. La encuesta estará disponible hasta el 28 de febrero de 2014.

This year's fifth graders are embracing technology more and more.  A group, largely made up of members of the Student Team Of Reporters and Meteorologists (STORM Group), got together to create a promotion of a school fundraiser to sell World's Finest Chocolates.  Klara, assisted by Sydney, wrote a script complete with color-coded, highlighted dialogue. A first attempt at creating the video was done on the iPad.  That effort was scrapped when Klara made the decision to use the computer lab green screen instead (green screen wasn't supported in iMovie on the iPad).  If you haven't seen it already, be sure to watch the January 10th, 2014 STORM Video below and enjoy the special feature.

Each week before school starts, students video the current week's weather forecast and upcoming school events assisted by Mrs. Stone in the computer lab.  These video are made quickly before school with little time for rehearsal.  It is encouraging to see them take on more responsibility in producing the video by writing more and more of the script.  Thanks goes to Mia, who worked on the February 10th, events script.

The students love to get feedback from viewers.  So next time you run into one of the STORM students, tell them "Job well done!"  A weekly STORM video can be found on the home page of VintageMagnet.net website.  

Join us for an orientation/ registration meeting on Wednesday, February 12th at 6:00PM in the Vintage Auditorium.  The league consists of teams of 2 or 3 students in grades 3-5 (Students in grades 1 and 2 may join, however know that younger students need ample parent support.) Teams will learn to design, build and program Lego robots.  

Click here to go to the Document Download page to find a copy of the Flyer and Registration Form.

• We are looking for parents who are willing to coach a team of 2-3 students. Teams of friends and siblings can be formed or individuals can be organized into teams on registration day. 
• We will provide each team with a Lego robotics kit to borrow for the season.
  
• We will provide basic training on how to program the robots.
  
• We will also provide a place for your team to practice on Thursday nights.
  
• We will organize the competitions during the season and help teams along the way.

Coaches will be responsible for organizing practice times with their teams and running practices. Teams may meet at on their own as determined by team members. An optional league practice will be held each Thursday from 6pm the Vintage auditorium.

NOTE: It is the coach's responsibility to supervise students on the team. Parents of team members should be present for practices unless an agreement has been made between the coach and other team parents. 
More Details

•   A donation of $40 per student is requested to help support the program.*
  
•   Each team will be given a robotics kit to use for the seasons. Kits must be returned to the school in June. (Teams may use their own robots if they have them.)
  
•   Laptop not provided. Teams will need to have access to a laptop to program their robot.
  
•   The league will be divided into two divisions: Beginner Teams and Advanced Team

  *Scholarships are available upon request.

Please Keep in Mind
Lego Robotics is meant to be a fun and educational experience for our kids. If everyone works together and is patient, we can create an great time for all. Students will get hands-on experiences with math, science and engineering, but the whole point is to have fun!