This week, we have a full five-day ahead of us and seminars begin! Students were able to select seminar during Week 19 and will start meeting in their seminars this week.
We look forward to another great week!
Note: Students who need additional time to complete MAP testing may be called out during seminar periods or class periods to do so. Students will be notified this week prior. Students with questions may reach out to Asst. Principal Acuna: sacuna@davincischools.org .
Please have at least three options in mind for M/W seminars AND for T/Th seminars before coming to sign up, just in case your top choice gets filled up early. There are lots of great seminars to choose from!
We hope your families are all healthy and well-rested from our break! We are excited to welcome students back to campus for school on Monday morning. Students will begin the day in their Period 1 classes where they will receive important information related to updated COVID safety protocols and practices. Our schedule for the first week of second semester is shown here. Please note that students will not start Seminar classes until week three of the new semester.
For students who are unable to come to school, class information and assignments will continue to be available via Google Classroom. Students can also contact their teachers about their availability for virtual office hours via Zoom.
Per usual, if you know that your child will be absent for any reason, please call the front office or send an email to Irma Rodriguez, irodriguez@davincischools.org to notify us of the absence.
COVID-19 Health & Safety Information
As we prepare for the return to school next week, we are cognizant of the spread of COVID-19, and in particular, the Omicron variant. We strongly encourage students to take a COVID test prior to returning to campus beginning Monday, January 10, 2022.When you complete the test, please report at-home test results here.A negative test is not required for students and staff to return to school on January 10, but in the event your child exhibits any flu-like or cold symptoms, your child should get tested and remain at home.
The following safety measures are now in place at all Da Vinci schools:
On-site rapid testing for students with exposure or symptoms will resume for Da Vinci students January 10, 2022 during regular testing hours 8:15am-3:45pm daily. Students are not allowed to leave class to test and must use time before school, during lunch, and after school. Students should pre-register here if this is their first time testing at school.
Masking is now required for all outdoor activities where physical distancing is not feasible, except while eating or drinking, due to the new health order from the LACDPH. Students are strongly recommended to wear masks that are well-fitting, non-cloth masks of multiple layers of non-woven material with a nose wire.
COVID-19 testing is required for all students and staff who are close contacts of a person who has tested positive for COVID due to a school-based exposure, regardless of vaccination or booster status. Affected employees and students may participate in testing at their school site (more info below)
Staff are required to wear upgraded masks (three-ply surgical masks or higher-level PPE)We continue to monitor the new protocols for TK-12 schools in a health order and a new exposure management plan from the Los Angeles County Public Health officials to ensure appropriate mitigation strategies are in place during this surge in COVID-19 cases due to the Omicron variant.
MAP Testing Starts Week 18
MAP Growth tests helps teachers understand what students know today, so goals can be set to improve growth throughout the year. Students cannot pass or fail this test, and this test will not affect grades. This is an adaptive test that changes as students complete it. And, it is good practice for computer-based state assessments in the Fall. Given the challenges of learning from home last year, MAP Growth test results are especially helpful for us this year. These results will help us know what students are ready to learn.
Here are some other details to know about MAP testing during the school day:
Students will follow a normal schedule and will take the MAP test in their English classes.
Students will complete the test on a school issued Chromebook; personal devices may or may not be compatible with the test.
It is important that students complete the test; teachers and students will only receive data if a test is completed.
This is a challenging and uncertain time, and we appreciate your support as we work to keep school open safely for our kids to learn!
If you are interested in playing boys volleyball, there is a meeting this Thursday, December 16 at 3:30 p.m. It will be held in the Skybox in the Gym located at 201 N. Douglas from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
Boys Volleyball Tryouts will take place January 11, 12 and 13 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. inside the gym at Del Aire Park. If you have any questions, please contact Coach John Wessels jwessels@davincischools.org
WOW – we are almost to the end of the Fall semester! This week, we kicked off POLs and we are so proud of all of our students as they complete these high stakes, end of semester presentations. Good luck on your coming presentations, Designers!
We will continue through next week with our POL schedule, and Friday 12/17 is a no school day for students.
The first day of classes for Semester 2 begins on January 10th, 2022. See the school calendar in the “Resources” section of the blog for more details.
T-Shirt Design Contest Winners announced!
Also – we want to give a BIG congratulations to the four students whose designs were chosen as our finalists for the 2021 T-Shirt Design Contest! Our finalist designers are:
POL’s at Da Vinci Design will begin this Thursday, December 9th and run until Thursday, December 16th. Please note that students will begin class at the regular time 8:55am but will be released at 1:55pm all these days. This includes the coming Friday, 12/10, which will start at 8:55am instead of the usual 9:25am.
Friday, December 17th is a PD day and school is not in session.
If you have any questions or concerns in regards to your students POL time(s) please reach out to their teachers via e-mail directly.
Last but not least, another friendly reminder to please make sure to e-mail Mrs. Irma Rodriguez at irodriguez@davincischools.org if your student will be absent on any given day.
Presentations of Learning (POLs) begin this Thursday 12/9.
One of the expectations for a Presentation of Learning is that students come in professional dress. Professional dress is defined to including the following:
Button-down dress shirt (shirt must be tucked in) or non-revealing blouse (must cover shoulders); Suit jacket (optional)
Khaki pants or dress pants (no jeans); Dress or skirt that touches tops of knees when standing up straight
Closed-toe dress shoes (no sneakers or excessively high heels)
Hair should not cover the face
Other clothing professional to students’ identity and/or culture
We understand that many families may not be able to put together attire that meets these standards in a short timeline. In order to help our families, the DVD staff is going through their closets in search of items that can be donated to students in need of professional attire. If you have clothing or shoes that meet these requirements and that you no longer need, please consider donating them to DVD. We will accept donations of professional clothing to the downstairs front office, and we welcome students to see if there is something donated that fits their need. We are hopeful that this professional clothing exchange helps us work together as a community to ensure that each student feels comfortable and confident in their presentation!
Students can contact their counselor for any questions.
We are officially in the final stretch of the Fall semester! See important information below regarding students grades and Presentations of Learning (aka: POLs) including grade level expectations and schedules.
Student Grades: This is an important time to sit down with your student and check their grades in their classes in PowerSchool. Click here for the PowerSchool website; login information was included on the grade reports that were sent home earlier this semester and you can email Maria Beltran at mbeltran@davincischools.org if you need your child’s username and password.
Presentations of Learning: “POL” preparation begins next week for students in grades 9-12! The Presentation of Learning (“POL”) is a tradition at the Da Vinci Schools in which students prepare and deliver a formal presentations to their teachers and their peers. POLs give students the opportunity to develop their speaking and presentation skills, are an opportunity for students to reflect publicly on their learning, and in some cases are a final opportunity for students to demonstrate their understanding and mastery of a topic. Because these are formal presentations, students are expected to wear formal attire.
All POLs will be scheduled between Thursday 12/9 and Thursday 12/16.
NOTE: Each student will earn a letter grade for their POL based on the total score and the grade scale shown. This letter grade will be reflected on the student’s transcript but is not calculated into their GPA. The POL is worth one credit, which is the same amount of credit earned for most seminar courses.
Dear Design Parents and Families: It is time for us to do our bi-annual parent survey – and we need your feedback! We ask families and students to complete a survey twice each year about how things are going at DVD. Please use the link above or click here to share your experience and thoughts with us. We continually look for ways to improve, and value your assessment of how things are going so far this year. The data collected from parent surveys like this one determines our school goals for this year, and for years to come.
On behalf of the staff at Da Vinci Design, we want to return and express our deep gratitude for our community of students and families. Thank you to everyone who made our staff feel so appreciated with contributions of treats, gifts, and messages of gratitude. DVD was full of smiles today!
In addition to the gratitude bags shared with the staff today, our students also contributed to a tree mural full of messages of gratitude for their friends and staff at Da Vinci Design. We truly have so much to be thankful for here!
See the Week 15, 16 and 17 bell schedules below. When we return from our Holiday Break (on Monday 11/29), we will be just eight school days away from POLs! Stay tuned for more details about POLs after the break. Have a safe, lovely and restful break everyone!
If you are interested in playing baseball, tryouts will be held next week at Raytheon park. Dates and time are below. Please wear the proper attire and bring proper equipment to play baseball. If you have any questions please contact coach Barba, ebarba@davincischools.org
Monday Nov. 15th, 4pm-6pm
Tuesday Nov. 16th, 4pm-6pm
Wednesday Nov. 17th, 4pm-6pm
Friday Nov. 19th, 4pm-6pm
Please note these rules for Raytheon park:
Please direct your guest to enter the site through our Continental gate located at the corner of El Segundo and Continental Boulevards. All guess over 18 years of age will need to show a valid government issued I.D. to enter the facility. Please follow all road directional signage when entering.
Park guest(s) – Must adhere to all state and local public health guidance and regulations
Park guest must clean up after themselves
Park guest must bring their own equipment and remove the equipment when they leave
No animals or pets permitted (except for service animals)
No alcoholic beverages allowed without prior written approval
No vehicles are allowed on the park grounds
Raytheon assumes no liability for lost or stolen items – use the park at your own risk
