TLC Charter Chatter
A Message from Virginia Jan. 31, 2020
Schools of Choice
We are fortunate to have been authorized to become charter schools. There are
approximately 350 charter schools in California. Discovery is one of the oldest
and the first of our three Charter schools, it was established in 2001. Millennium
and Primary were established three years later when we promoted our first group
of eighth-graders. When we began we enrolled 125 students in grades 5 and 6.
Today we have an enrollment in the three schools of over 1200 students. We
added a preschool serving little ones ages 2 to 4. Our Primary school added a
transitional Kindergarten when the age for entering Kindergarten changed. We
have a significant waiting list for grades K-8. We are also very proud of our
accomplishments over the years.
We are a school of choice. We are a public school and are expected to follow the
regulations for teacher certification and other important aspects of schools,
however we have flexibility in how we teach and the materials we use. Our
primary purpose is to provide effective instruction to allow all of our students to
be successful learners.
When we ask students why they have chosen our schools, the answers vary but
can be summarized:
My parents sent me here, but now I like it
I like the small size
I like the personal feel of the campus and the teachers
The teachers care about me
The students are nice to each other
Learning is fun
There is a lot of technology
There are many reasons for selecting our schools. We are pleased that you made
that decision. We take the responsibility of teaching your children very seriously.
Thank you for choosing us.
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Next School Holiday
Monday, Feb 17, 2020
Personal Days for this School Year 2019/2020
VERY IMPORTANT Information for our current 2019/2020 school year beginning August 5, 2019, we have reduced personal/family days for students from 10 days down to 7 days. Allowing 7 days is still much higher than what the district schools allow and we feel 7 days is more beneficial for the school and for each students’ education.
| Donation Letters |
Donation letters have been sent out for the 2019 tax season. Please be sure when making donations you specify the person making the donation as well as the student the donation is being made for. If you have not received your letter, please email Barbra Ramirez at bramirez@tracylc.net. Many letters are ready but there is no address to send them to. Thank you so much for your time and patience.
Lunch Menu Week of Feb. 3 – 7
Mon – Pizza
Tues – Hard Shell Beef Taco
Wed – Pasta Alfredo (meatless)
Thurs – Chicken Corn Dog
Fri – Chicken Nuggets
Don’t forget to click the STAR after scanning and enter your student’s classroom number for credit.
NOW HIRING: Spring 2020 Head Athletic Coaches-
Boys Volleyball: https://www.edjoin.org/Home/DistrictJobPosting/1228598
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TLC Preschool: Art Show and Silent Auction!
TLC preschool will have its annual art show on February 21, 2020 6:30-8:00. More details to come home soon!
Our students are learning all about primary and secondary colors. Our teachers have been busy teaching students how to paint with primary colors and how to mix them to make secondary colors. Students will use this new knowledge to recreate art just as Eric Carle did in some of our favorite books!
Initial Phase
Today kicks off our Read-A-Thon! It will run through January 31st! This is a great fundraiser for our school and it is so easy to track minutes! Please see the information sheet in green folders for additional information on how to log your students reading minutes!
Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching, Valentine cards are already out in stores! Students will be able to bring in 66 valentines with the “to” section left blank. A treat can be included with the valentine card. If you have any questions about this please email p2@tracylc.net.
This week in TK, we learned all about Martin Luther King Jr.
First, we learned all about how Martin Luther King grew up. Did you know he skipped two years of high school and started college early??
Then, we learned how he told everyone that we should all be treated equally. The students were able to make hats sharing what their dreams are for the future. Such great ideas!
Lastly, we looked at a brown and white egg and asked what the differences were. Once we cracked the eggs, we could see that we may look different on the outside but are the same on the inside. They enjoyed seeing those eggs crack!
Phase One:
WOW! Phase 1 students did an amazing job with the Read-A-Thon! We are very proud of them. We can’t wait to see the final amount! Thank you to all those that helped donate to our fundraiser.
This week in Social Studies, phase 1 students enjoyed learning about the Chinese New Year. Ask them some things they learned about the Year of the Rat!
Next week in Social Studies, your student will be continuing their unit on “Then and Now.” In their Red Folders you will find a Grandparent Interview Form. Please help them fill this out and return by February 10th.
Hope everyone has fun at the Crab Feed! Have a great weekend!
Phase Two:
Thank you to everyone who participated in our Read-a-Thon! We will announce the final totals next week. We are so excited about the money raised and (more importantly) the amount of minutes our students read this week! Great job everyone!
Please remember that the Phase 2 Spanish Family Tree project is due next week! Senora Wharton has sent home all of the necessary information. Please email if you need further clarification. The following week will be the Spanish spelling bee! Phase 2 students also have 2 more weeks to meet their AR goals.
Primary Parents: This will be the last chance to order spirit wear this school year! Please go to selectspiritwear.com to place your order by January 31. Orders will arrive by the end of February.
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Discovery Middle School 5-6
Upcoming ⅚ Dates:
February 5: 2021 Washington DC Trip Information Night at 5:30 in D10
February 17: NO SCHOOL – Presidents’ Day
Attention 6th grade parents! Ms. Zaca will be hosting a parent information night for any families interested in partaking in the 2021 Washington D.C. trip. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 5th, 5:30 PM in room D10. Students should have received an informational packet from their homeroom teachers on Friday.
See you all soon!
This past week was National School Choice Week! Please watch the following video to see how we celebrated and why our students love and continue to choose Discovery Charter School!
Top 5 Nest Point Earners:
Saker:
Amur:
Kestrel:
Peregrine:
Mrs. Zuniga’s Math:
Varsity: The students have begun to look at prime and composite numbers. We are focusing on the vocabulary since these concepts are very abstract. The students have also been practicing for the SBAC that will take place at the end of the year. This test determines students’ placing the following year in math, so it is very important for them to take the practice seriously and try their best.
Scholastic: Our class has now begun Unit 5, looking at prime and composite numbers along with factoring numbers using prime factorization and T-charts. The students are using these concepts to find the greatest common factor of two numbers or GCF and this will be useful when we begin looking at fractions.
Honors: Our class just completed the Unit 3 Test. They began Unit 4 of ratios and rates. Next week, we will be practicing and diving more into the beginning of this unit.
Mrs. Nijjar’s Math:
Varsity: This week students spent time learning about Least Common Multiple (LCM) and explored different strategies to do the same. In the coming weeks, students will be taking the quiz and will be learning about bases and exponents.
Scholastic: In this week, students completed the unit by learning about multiplying and dividing integers. In the coming weeks, students will review the concepts and take the unit test.
Honors: In this week, students learned about converting linear equations in standard-form to slope-intercept form and graph the same. In the coming weeks, students will be learning to write linear equations for a given point and slope.
All my students started working on part-2 of the SWO Lifelong Learner project. The students are encouraged to do research at home and complete the graphic organizer by January 31st.
Ms. Rodieck’s Language Arts and Humanities:
In Scholastic and Honors, our week has been focused on completing our newspapers from Fever 1793. I originally envisioned an on-line assignment, but students wanted to make it look like a newspaper. So they were given the option. Below are some completed projects and works in progress. I am very impressed with their creativity.
Language Arts with Mr. Harding:
We are all about Ancient Greece in Harding’s ELA. We have browsed through the major gods and a couple of most popular stories. On deck, Jason tries on a gold fleece jacket, Theseus plays with a ball of yarn, Phaeton tries to drive his father’s car, and so much more. With Social Studies, Math, and Science all teaching aspects of Ancient Greek culture, we will be able to draw some conclusions about who they were, and perhaps get some insights into who we are as a culture as well.
The students are finishing their posters for Fever, 1793, the movie. Please check Google classroom for more details about the assignment. Next week, we will begin a create your own Ancient Greek god project, and we will study instructional/procedural text. I hope the learners like origami!
Social Studies with Mr. Bird and Mr. McCarthy:
This week in Social Studies we have been finishing up learning about Sparta, Athens, and the Greco-Persian Wars. Our quiz was on Thursday and we have been enjoying some new and exciting review games. One of the review games is called “Beach Ball” where students throw the ball to students to ask and answer questions. Starting next week we are introducing a project on learning about Catapults. Students will get into groups and try and create a catapult to launch an object the furthest. This activity is a great segue into learning more about the Golden Age of Athens.
Science with Ms. Diaz:
Greetings scientists! This week, we were not only quizzed on the constellations we learned the last two weeks, but we also learned our last constellations Taurus, Ursa Major, and Ursa Minor. The constellations and myths we created were submitted and will be used to decorate the science room ceiling, creating a celestial ambiance. We continued to track the changes in the moon and created the cover page for our moon report. Last but not least, after sharing our own theories on the solar system and how it was created, we learned what Galileo, Copernicus and Aristotle thought about the universe. It was so interesting to see the evolution of theories eventually becoming accepted fact. Next week, we will continue to work on our moon reports, will be quizzed on the remaining constellations, and will begin studying for our BIG solar systems test. Over and out!
Last but not least, come one and come all to check out the DCS science blog site at: www.tlcdiscoverychannel.weebly.com. Read all about the The Top 3 Most Dangerous Sea Animals (Jayden Aguilar) and Inside a Baseball (Benny Aguilar). Prepare to be SCIENCED!
Awesomely interesting announcements
Upcoming Deadlines:
- Constellations Quiz Pt. 2—> Feb 4th
- Solar Systems Test—> Feb 12th
- Moon Project Reports due—> Feb 14th
- Please don’t forget to check Google classroom and/or the science class website regularly with your student
Google Classroom Hon/Scholastic code→ jp9wlua
Google Classroom Varsity code→ 8d4s9b
Science class website: https://diazdoesscience.weebly.com
Mission to Mars:
- The next payment is due Feb. 4th. Your balance needs to be paid in FULL. Please check your account to stay up to date.
- Please check your email and let me know if you would like to take a bus with us from TLC to SFO. If we have enough of an interest, I can arrange bus transportation.
Rube Goldberg:
- Drop-in practices M-Th 4-5pm
Science Olympiad
- Drop-in practices M, W, Th 4-5pm
- Competition March 14, 2020. McNair High school ~7am-4pm
Stay curious & keep exploring!!!
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Discovery Middle School 7th-8th
- National School Choice Week!
This week is National School Choice Week! Please watch the following video to celebrate with us!
Nest Certificate Winners for Week 21:
Winner of Amazon Giftcard in Nest Certificate Drawing (Dec):
A Note from Mrs. Cerezo:
Notice to Parents of students in the Varsity 2 class:
A letter has been sent home this week to inform you that starting Week 22, students in this class will begin to be reintroduced to having homework (this may look like: reviewing notes, making flashcards for terminology, annotating their notes, finishing up an assignment not completed in class, etc). Students will be expected to record their homework in their agenda, complete it at home, and it may be checked for a grade in each class. Please be on the lookout for this letter as it explains in detail the methodology behind reintroducing homework to this class in hopes that it will help to increase their sense of accountability and performance in class. Please feel free to contact me at acerezo@tracylc.net with any comments or concerns. Thank you.
School Improvement Committee Invitation!
The School Improvement Committee is a new aspect of our DCS team this year. This Committee is comprised of students, staff members, the DCS Team Leads, parents, Mrs. Woods, Mrs. Stewart, and a TLC Boardmember (Mr. Murray). We meet roughly once a month to discuss the DCS Action Plan and the overall progress of our school. We would love to welcome new members! If you are at all interested in joining or attending a meeting to find out more about DCS then please contact myself, acerezo@tracylc.net for more information.
Leadership:
7/8
Attention 7th and 8th grade parents! Ms. Zaca will be hosting a parent information night for any families interested in partaking in the 2021 Washington D.C. trip. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 5th, 5:30 PM in room D10. Students should have received an informational packet from their homeroom teachers on Friday.
See you all soon!
Attention all DCS Parents: 2019-2020 Parent Survey
Attached you will find a Google Form Survey that we are hoping our DCS parents/guardians will fill out. As a team we are always looking for ways to improve our practices and assist our students. We have developed a survey to check in with you all to determine how we are doing and what areas can be improved. If you have a moment, please complete the short survey. If you have any additional questions or comments feel free to email Ashley Cerezo (78) acerezo@tracylc.net or Kathy Prescott (56) kprescott@tracylc.net
Language Arts with Mrs. Cerezo
Since returning from winter break we have hit the ground running! The second trimester for LA is comprised of a lot of writing! Each class is working on their SWO. The second trimester SWO is dedicated to researching a topic and crafting a well-written and well-researched essay to teach the class about their topic. This project will culminate in a formal speech, given to the class at the end of February.
Beyond that we have begun to learn about theme and how to construct a thematic statement that is original and complex. Each student created a “hashtag” to represent a theme within Frankenstein. (Pictured below)
As of Week 23 all of the classes have finished our reading of Frankenstein and have presented their Frankenstein final projects, wherein they needed to “create” their own monster using parts of humans in the world (with explanations detailing why they used those parts). The students were incredibly creative and very detailed in their monster renditions. Here is an example!
Over the next few weeks we will continue to work on our SWO, peer edit our first drafts, and prepare for our speeches. We will also begin our next novel Flowers for Algernon and continue our discussion (continued from Frankenstein) of ethics in science. (Picture below- student post-it response to “Should there be a limit to what we can accomplish through science?”)
Language Arts with Ms. Greene:
We have finally completed Frankenstein! Moving forward we will be reading Flowers for Algernon which is personally one of my favorites from this semester. For all classes they have been working diligently on their SWO’s for Trimester 2. This SWO will be due February 24th.
In all classes we have been working on Humanities and preparing them for the art and music sections from the Academic Pentathlon. Coming up, students will be touching on different types of poetry and poets that write about our theme this year, health and wellness. Reminder: we have tests every week unless the students are notified otherwise.
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Millennium High School
YEARBOOK ORDERS and SENIOR DEDICATION AD ORDERS NOW OPEN!
Yearbooks are on sale now! Yearbooks are $75. Now is the perfect time to order a 2019-20 yearbook for your student. We look forward to yearbook delivery day, May 15th. Orders are open through April 11th. Click HERE to go to our convenient online order center! Or you may go to yearbookordercenter.com and enter code 21362. You may also pay by cash, check, or card in the front office or by contacting Miss Lamanna, blamanna@tracylc.net
Senior Dedication ads in the yearbook are available and can include photos alongside a personal message to your son, daughter, or teammate. There are a limited number of pages available, so act quickly. The deadline to place an ad is 3/15/20. Credit cards accepted! If you have any questions, please direct them to blamanna@tracylc.net.
This Week in Social Studies….
World Geography:
In World Geography we just wrapped up our Europe unit. We took a look at the various aspects of Europe’s physical and cultural Geography and how its diverse geography played a role in important historical events. This week we started a new unit on the world’s oceans, where we will explore not only the Oceans biosphere and various zones of the ocean but also how the interaction of humans with the ocean can have an immense impact on the health of our planet as a whole. -Mr. Hall
World History:
Students will identify key components of the Industrial Revolution and relate the need for raw materials to the increasing imperialism of the 19th century. Class discussions will identify motivations for imperialism, and trace its impact to today. Students have created political cartoons that display Britain’s superiority in the Industrial Revolution.
– Mr. Hunt
United States History:
We have had a great start to the second semester. The students are now comfortable with the load of the class and are really in rhythm. We have just started the WWII two unit and the students have done a great job in making connections from their pervious World History class. So far this semester the focus has been document based questionings and source analysis. This is a skill that will help students with up the coming smarter balance assessment because it emphasis writing analysis, and focuses on deeper levels of questionings. – Mr. Singh
Government:
The start to the second semester in government has been great. This is a different class from economics. We have begun with an introductory unit on examining the fundaments of the U.S constitution and examine the motivations of the framers of the US Constitution. Discussions in the classroom revolve around how the constitution’s influences can be seen in the framework of our government today. This is the longest unit of the semester as we dive into each Article of our constitution. The students are also becoming teachers in the classroom. The project they are currently working on requires them to become experts on specific sections of the constitution and then find ways to teach the rest of the class. I am looking forward to the results.
-Mr. Saldate
Economics:
We just wrapped up the first unit and overall the class performed extremely well. The students have a very strong foundation on the introductory economy terms and fundamental economic concepts. The students are learning to relate and apply these concepts to the “real world” and each week they are writing a synopsis of a current news article that pertains to these issues we are learning in class. The students also have been making great connections to the real world and we as a class have had fantastic discussions. This week we have started the supply and demand unit. This is by far the most challenging unit of the class because it involves math but I believe this class will excel at it. – Mr. Singh
Athletics
Interested in donating to the Athletics program to help complete furnishing of the weightroom and equipment purchases: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=JV4bGcCRYeBxsAoeIm9378Hq0cPdQ5v5cVuYxrIDCxod5qM0FM8eQcBKQ-YhqrA_hGj2tG&fromUL=true&country.x=US&locale.x=en_US
Weekly Schedule (Girls & Boys Soccer, Girls & Boys Basketball):
Saturday 2/1: Varsity Boys Basketball @ Elliot Christian, 8pm, Played at Lodi High
Monday 2-3: Basketball @ Stone Ridge Christian 4:30/6/7:30pm
Tuesday 2/4: Girls Soccer vs Delta Charter, 6:30pm, Played at Kimball High
Wednesday 2-5: Basketball vs Big Valley Christian, 5pm/6:30/8pm, Played at Kimball High small gym
Thursday 2/6: Girls Soccer vs Able Charter, 6pm, Played at Tracy High, SENIOR NIGHT
Saturday 2/8: MOTHER-SON DANCE: 6-9pm on campus 🙂
Sports Scores:
Girls Basketball: Falcons 27, Venture Academy 48
Falcons 37, Turlock Christian 24
Girls Soccer: Falcons 0, Holt Academy 3
Falcons 6, Hughes Academy 0
Falcons 2, Stone Ridge Christian 1
Varsity Boys Soccer: Falcons 8, Big Valley Christian 0
Falcons 3, Venture Academy 4
Falcons 2, Stone Ridge Christian 0
JV Boys Soccer: Falcons 2, Laguna Creek 4
Varsity Boys Basketball: Falcons 32, Venture Academy 60
Falcons 44, Turlock Christian 33
Falcons 41, Brookside Christian 90
JV Boys Basketball: Falcons 57, Venture Academy 48 (OT)
Falcons 42, Turlock Christian 66
Falcons 54, Brookside Christian 61
NOW HIRING: Spring 2020 Head Athletic Coaches-
Boys Volleyball: https://www.edjoin.org/Home/DistrictJobPosting/1228598
Interested in a coaching position not currently posted? Submit your coaching resume/application here for consideration in future openings: https://www.edjoin.org/Home/DistrictJobPosting/1143376
Follow Millennium Athletics on Social Media:
-Instagram- @Millennium_Athletics
-Twitter- @MHS_Falcons
-Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/BalsamoPE
We appreciate your continued support! FALCON PRIDE!!
Upcoming Fundraisers for Athletics:
-Mother Son Dance: February 8th, 2020
COUNSELING, COLLEGE, AND COMMUNITY NEWS!!!
Millennium High School – 9th Grade Parent Information Night
A huge THANK YOU to the parents and students who attended our Parent information night for up and coming Millennium High School 9th graders. We had a great turnout and look forward to your future falcons for the 2020-2021 school year.
Handouts of the presentation are available here: http://www.tracylearningcenter.com/counseling/upcoming-events/
Fall Honor Roll Celebration
Congratulations to all of our Millennium students who earned a 3.5 GPA or higher in their high school classes for Fall Semester! We celebrated these students with a morning treat and a certificate. We are so proud of the excellent grades our students earned last semester, and encourage continued hard work during Spring Semester!
Sutter Tracy Community Hospital Field Trip
On Wednesday, 45 Millennium students took a walking field trip to Sutter Tracy Community Hospital to view and learn about a robotic surgery assist machine called the Da Vinci XI. It is a robot that allows surgeons to perform highly magnified, minimally invasive surgeries with a machine that is more mobile than the human hand. We heard from surgeons and other hospital staff about the machine’s development, and many students got to have a hands-on experience of moving small rubber bands onto small cones using the machine – it felt like virtual reality! It was fascinating and a lot of fun! Pictured above are Celina Anwar, Ms. Drake, Mrs. Griffin and Austin Karabensh using the machine.
9th Annual TLC’s Got Talent Show – February 13, 2020 – TICKETS ON SALE NOW! $9.00 General Admission. Purchase your tickets from www.atthegrand.org from the MHS Counseling Office, or the TLC Main Office.
Millennium High School – Community Service Opportunity-Thursday February 6, 2020
Central School Parent Group is hosting a Valentines Craft Night and is in need of volunteers to help manage craft tables and assist as needed. The event time is 4:30pm-6:30pm. If interested in volunteering please visit the Millennium High School Counseling Office to sign-up.