First and foremost, a heartfelt thank you to our incredible Hummingbird community for your tremendous support throughout this past week! From dropping off generous candy and treat donations to decorating creative trunks, walking in our Halloween Costume Parade, and celebrating together at our combined Trunk or Treat, our community truly showed up—students, staff, and families alike. Your energy, partnership, and joy made it an unforgettable week for our scholars! As we step into November, we have three focused weeks of school before our Thanksgiving Break. There is a lot of rich teaching and learning happening in our classrooms, along with mid-year reading assessments scheduled for next week. These assessments give our teachers essential insight into every scholar’s progress and help us tailor our instruction to ensure every child gets the exact support they need to thrive. Here are the important announcements and updates for this week: - 🏆 October Attendance Champions: A huge congratulations to Ms. Berquist’s class for winning our October Attendance Challenge with an outstanding 71% of students earning perfect attendance! They have earned a special celebration with the principal to recognize their hard work. With only 15 school days in November, the race starts fresh tomorrow—which classroom will take the crown this month? Let’s show up every day, on time, Hummingbirds!
- 🍂 Gratitude Grams on Sale (Starting Monday, 11/2): Celebrate kindness and appreciation! Beginning tomorrow, scholars can purchase Gratitude Grams during lunch recess for $2 each. We will announce additional opportunities soon for families to purchase them as well.
- 📅 November School Calendar: Please be sure to review our attached November calendar below for upcoming minimum days, spirit themes, and key campus dates leading up to the holiday break.
- 📋 Safe Communities, Safe Schools Climate Survey: We want to hear from you! This week, our 3rd–5th grade students will complete the climate survey at school, and our staff is currently participating as well. Now, we warmly invite our Hummingbird families to complete the family survey. Sharing your perspective provides the vital data we need to continuously improve our campus and ensure Santa Rita remains a safe, welcoming, and empowering place for every child. (Link and paper options provided below!)
Thank you for your dedication, warmth, and constant partnership in making Santa Rita Elementary such a special place to grow and learn.
Warmly, Ms. K & Mrs. Zavala |
Show a classmate, teacher, or staff member how much you appreciate them with a Gratitude Gram! On sale from November 2 through November 13, students, staff, and families can purchase a Gram for $2. Each recipient will receive a cute mini rubber duck paired with a sweet, handwritten message of gratitude. All grams will be delivered to classrooms on Friday, November 20, just in time for Thanksgiving Break. Let’s fill our campus with gratitude and appreciation this month! |
At Santa Rita Elementary, our priority is ensuring our campus remains a safe, welcoming, and empowering environment where every Hummingbird can thrive. To help us identify our strengths and target areas where we can improve, we invite all parents and guardians to complete the Safe Communities, Safe Schools Family Survey. - Your responses directly provide the critical data our leadership team uses to shape school safety action steps, expand student support programs, and strengthen our positive campus climate.
- The survey takes only 10–15 minutes, and all submissions are completely anonymous.
- Our 3rd–5th grade scholars and staff are participating this week as well—adding your voice as a parent ensures we have a complete picture of our whole school community.
Please take a few moments to click the link below and share your thoughts. Thank you for your continued partnership in making Santa Rita the best place for our scholars to learn and grow!
Enter our school and class code below to start: - School Code: 580077
- Class Code: 36214
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As we kick off our November Gratitude Grams and prepare for Thanksgiving, practicing gratitude helps scholars build empathy, positive mindsets, and stronger relationships:
Family Talk Prompt: "Gratitude means noticing and appreciating the good things and helpful people in our lives. Who is someone at school or in our family you are grateful for this week, and what specific action did they take that you appreciate?"
Encourage your scholar to express their response in complete sentences with specific details
Complete Sentence options: - I am grateful for ______ because they helped me ______.
- Someone who made me smile this week was ______ when they ______.
- One person who made a positive difference for me this week was ______ because ______.
- I really appreciate how ______ took the time to ______.
Examples "I am grateful for my teacher because she took extra time to explain a math problem" or "I appreciate my brother because he shared his colored pencils".
Encouraging specific examples over general answers helps children expand their descriptive vocabulary and builds a genuine habit of appreciation. |
If your family would like to register to receive toys through the Toys for Tots program—or if you would like to refer a Santa Rita student—we are here to help. To sign up, please reach out directly to our Family Liaison, Blanca Valverde, or submit a referral using this link: |
If you would like to volunteer in classrooms or serve as a chaperone on upcoming field trips, please make sure to register and get cleared through the Raptor system. Because the clearance process takes a few days to complete, we strongly encourage you to sign up early so you are cleared and ready to go for upcoming events! |
We noticed a high number of scholars going home sick this past week. To help keep our classrooms safe, healthy, and ready for learning, please review the attached guidelines on "When is Too Sick for School?" as well as key facts about the flu season. If your child is experiencing a fever, persistent cough, or stomach issues, please keep them home to rest and recover. Thank you for helping us protect the health and well-being of all our Hummingbirds! |
Knowledge is the best defense against seasonal illness! Check out the CDC’s official resources to learn more about flu symptoms, fever guidelines, and care tips:
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A special thank you to CBDIO for their beautiful work building our annual Día de los Muertos altar and sharing their cultural traditions with our school community this past week. From the stunning breezeway display to the Mixteco altar and community gathering in the cafeteria, we are honored to partner with you to celebrate culture, memory, and community pride at Santa Rita! |
At Santa Rita, we love celebrating our culture and traditions as a community, but our primary mission is always in the classroom. Capturing our scholars focused, inquisitive, and locked into their lessons is the best reminder that behind every smile and celebration is a dedicated student growing their mind every single day! |
2014 Santa Rita St. Salinas CA 93906 (831) 443- 7221
Office Hours 7:30am-3:30pm
Click on the Hummingbird to visit our website |
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