Principal's Message
Dear De Anza Families,
Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year! I am thrilled to be welcoming your children back to school! We have eagerly anticipated the full reopening of our campus. Our continued commitment to fostering resilience, perseverance, grit, empathy, and the ability to communicate effectively in diverse learning partnerships will undoubtedly help our students thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.
De Anza Elementary is committed to preparing all our students for College and Career! Although college seems far away while the children are in elementary school, time will pass by, and we want every student to be prepared to make whatever choice they want to achieve their future goals. During the 2022-2023 school year, we will focus on literacy, critical thinking, building a deep understanding of mathematical concepts and focusing on Social and Emotional Learning. We will also continue working diligently to meet the diverse needs of our students through small group instruction reading instruction across all grade levels, school-wide. Each classroom also uses organizational tools to help students be prepared for their future educational opportunities. The students also have access to a Makerspace in our library where they can be creative with technology, Lego’s, art, and more! Our classrooms each have sets of Chromebooks for students to be able to access digital learning opportunities throughout the day. Each student will also have a Chromebook to keep at home during the school year and use to access learning apps through the Clever portal.
Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year! I am thrilled to be welcoming your children back to school! We have eagerly anticipated the full reopening of our campus. Our continued commitment to fostering resilience, perseverance, grit, empathy, and the ability to communicate effectively in diverse learning partnerships will undoubtedly help our students thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.
De Anza Elementary is committed to preparing all our students for College and Career! Although college seems far away while the children are in elementary school, time will pass by, and we want every student to be prepared to make whatever choice they want to achieve their future goals. During the 2022-2023 school year, we will focus on literacy, critical thinking, building a deep understanding of mathematical concepts and focusing on Social and Emotional Learning. We will also continue working diligently to meet the diverse needs of our students through small group instruction reading instruction across all grade levels, school-wide. Each classroom also uses organizational tools to help students be prepared for their future educational opportunities. The students also have access to a Makerspace in our library where they can be creative with technology, Lego’s, art, and more! Our classrooms each have sets of Chromebooks for students to be able to access digital learning opportunities throughout the day. Each student will also have a Chromebook to keep at home during the school year and use to access learning apps through the Clever portal.
As recipients of the Platinum Award for Schoolwide Positive Behavior Intervention Support, our deliberate work to instill tools for self-regulation and emotional wellness will carry on through lessons by our teachers and counselor. For our school culture to thrive, we also believe in holding students accountable for high expectations academically and behaviorally. We focus on teaching and modeling the rules and expectations of the school. De Anza has implemented PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support) which focuses on instructing behavior skills, focusing on the positive behaviors, and providing interventions to increase student success behaviorally and academically. All the expectations fit within three categories: Be Safe, Be Responsible, and Be Respectful. Please review these with your children throughout the year. We ask the students to assess their own behaviors by asking themselves if their decisions are safe, responsible, and respectful for themselves and others. We are combining our current PBIS system with a strong responsive behavior system that is very focused on certain behaviors: intentionally off-task, disrespect towards anyone on campus, not keeping hands/feet/objects to themselves, and inappropriate language/gesture/picture. Our goal is to teach students how important the behaviors are to follow while also giving them the opportunity to learn from mistakes and make rights for their wrongs.
One of the greatest characteristics of De Anza is our positive culture. We developed a house system designed to promote unity, provide students opportunities to connect across grades, promote core character traits, and create a sense of pride. De Anza will have Four Houses, yet we are One Family. Our Houses are:
Kuamua--Swahili for Determined
Honestidad--Spanish for Honest
Qwicha"aantum--Luiseno for Compassionate
Quantum--Latin for Respect
All students and staff will be divided into the four houses, and students will remain in their house their entire time at De Anza. Students will have the opportunity to participate in House Fridays which is where they promote the pride of their house, learn unique skills, and celebrate the house point leaders for each week.
Finally, we believe a strong partnership between school and the home is crucial to student success. We hope you will become involved in the school by volunteering, joining PTA or other parents’ groups, and attending family events. We also have a quarterly Coffee with the Principal, School Site Council, and English Learner Advisory Council which we invite you to come to hear updates and share ideas with us. We ask that you maintain communication with your child’s teacher throughout the year and ask your child daily what he/she learned about in school. Working together as a team, I know your child will have the best year yet at De Anza Elementary!
I look forward to an amazing year!
Here to Serve,
Mrs. Irene Templeman