May 5, 2021

May 5, 2021

Dear SFUSD Staff:

This week is National Teacher Appreciation week, and I invite you to join me in celebrating the awesome teachers we have in San Francisco public schools — not only this week — but all year long. My teachers at Grattan, Hoover and McAteer molded me into who I am today. To all San Francisco teachers I want to say: thank you for your commitment to our students every day and especially in the hardest of times!

Please keep reading today’s digest for important updates.

Return Safely Updates

SFUSD has welcomed over 19,000 students back to in-person learning since April 12, 2021, and is exploring the possibility of offering limited in-person opportunities for additional high school seniors who are not in focal populations before the end of SY 2020-2021. Connection, learning and health remain as our top priorities during the Return Safely Together effort. Continue reading for more updates.

  • SFUSD has sent an interest survey to families of high school seniors regarding their interest in returning to limited in-person activities for a few weeks this Spring 2021. Review the Question of the Week section for more information.
  • SFUSD remains committed to a full, 5-day return to in-person learning for Fall 2021, and is also planning to offer virtual learning options for students. State and local reopening plans and public health guidance have a significant impact on SFUSD’s Fall 2021 reopening plan.
  • On May 4, 2021, SFUSD presented a Budget Update Regarding Learning Recovery Funds at the Board of Education Committee of the Whole meeting. This is a preliminary set of information to situate learning recovery within various SFUSD workstreams in response to data and stakeholder feedback and to review a summary of Learning Recovery funds and intended uses.

Distance Learning Updates

SF Loves Learning

SF Loves Learning invites you to explore many segments celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Many segments this month are also responding to Science questions we’ve received from students, such as, “Why is the sky blue?” You can find videos about student questions and our most recent full episodes on our website. Segment highlights from this week are below. 

Help us help you! Can you fill out this four minute staff feedback form regarding any ways you have used the show or we can support your instruction going forward?

This week’s theme is Students’ Questions. Check out these segments that are airing this week:

  • Why is the sky blue? (Lesson):  Maestra Meza reviews some terms: particles, light, rainbow and color. We learn that the sun emits white light and when the light hits the particles in the air, we see it as blue. Maestra Meza does an experiment to show how this happens. (May 3) Seesaw Activity
  • Eight Planets (Music): Jordan Li, Ruth Asawa student, sings about the 8 planets in our solar system. (May 4) Seesaw Activity
  • Stella Brings the Family (Read Aloud): Stella finds a unique solution to her party problem in this sweet story about love, acceptance, and the true meaning of family. (May 4)
  • Learning about Ramadan with Mr. Bongo and Ms. Joti (Movement): Mr. Bongo teaches us about the Muslim month of Ramadan, which follows a lunar calendar. Ms. Joti explores the crescent moon that begins the month of Ramadan, and follows all the moon phases through movement. (May 6) Seesaw Activity
  • Neighborhood Nature: How Jerry became a Naturalist (Community): Episode 21 of Neighborhood Nature featuring Naturalist Jerry Lam. (May 4)

If you’re planning for next week, the science theme is also Student Questions. You can find all of next week’s segments and our full library to support your instruction in three ways:

  • Segments Library: Find any segment (read aloud, daily lesson, music, movement, community)!
  • Seesaw page: Teachers can adapt any Seesaw activity on our page.
  • YouTube channel: Subscribe to this channel, explore the playlists, and receive notifications when new content is published.

SF Loves Learning airs every weekday, 8:30-9am on KTVU Plus and any time at sfusd.edu/sfloveslearning.

School Meal Updates

Grab & Go Meals Reopened at Gordon Lau

  • The Grab & Go meal pickup at Gordon Lau Elementary has reopened! Free meals are available for children. Adults can pick up.
    • For students attending in-person learning, review this Grab & Go Meals Guide to know which day(s) you can pick up meals.
    • Tuesdays 2-3:30pm: Open to SFUSD Students & Siblings. Pick up 5 days’ worth of meals, including breakfast, lunch, supper, fresh fruits and vegetables, and milk is available.
    • Thursdays 2-3:30pm: Open to All Children 18 & Younger. Pick up 2 days’ worth of meals, plus snacks, fresh fruits and vegetables, and milk is available.
    • Full menus are listed at sfusd.edu/menus
  • What to Bring (this information is also listed at sfusd.edu/schoolfood)
    • To pick up meals for SFUSD students:
  • Barcode for student meal account. Printed or on your smartphone. Click here for a How To Video.
  • If you do not have the barcode, please bring one of the following: student ID card, meal account pin number, direct certification letter, eligibility letter, or 20-21 school placement letter.
  • To pick up meals for siblings not enrolled in SFUSD:
  • School-age children: school enrollment letter or student ID card
  • Younger children: provide the child's birthdate to receive an orange grab-and-go card
  • To pick up meals for a child 18 and younger (who is not enrolled in SFUSD, and is not a sibling of an SFUSD student):
  • Provide the child’s first name, last name, and birthdate to receive a yellow grab-and-go card

School Lunch Hero Day

  • School Lunch Hero Day is this Friday, May 7. It’s time to remind our food heroes and sheroes how special they are. Join us in saying “Thank You!” to all our dining staff and food delivery drivers! 
  • SFUSD Dining Staff are using their superpowers to serve meals in completely new ways to help meet the need of feeding San Francisco’s children:
    • 10 Grab & Go meal pick up sites are open across the city serving bags of food for the week
    • A healthy lunch and snacks is offered daily to students attending in-person school
    • Door to door delivery is cooked and delivered to over 300 distance learners
    • All together we have provided over 6.5 million meals to San Francisco’s children since the pandemic!
  • Get creative and celebrate School Lunch Hero Day in any of these ways:
  • Make a Thank You card in any language! Drop off at a Grab & Go meal site tomorrow May 6. Locations at sfusd.edu/schoolfood OR give to the Dining Staff at your school on Friday May 7.
  • Post a photo or video on social media for #SchoolLunchHeroDay on Friday May 7. Tag us @sfusdschoolfood.

Resource Highlight

All SFUSD Paraeducators: Register for the 2021 August Virtual Paraeducator Institute

The 5th Annual SFUSD Paraeducator Institute will be held virtually on August 10th-13th. This year’s theme is “Paraeducators: On the Front Line for Transformational Change!” The Paraeducator Institute is designed to support paraeducators to feel valued and supported and to allow paraeducators to engage in meaningful and relevant professional development. Workshops will enhance your wisdom and talents in service of improving student learning and student experiences. 

Question of the Week

I heard about the High School Seniors In-Person Interest Survey. Who was it for?

This survey is for high school seniors (i.e., students in Grade 12) who were not already surveyed in prior phases.

Do High School seniors have to respond to the survey to be included in the in-person graduation ceremonies held for seniors on June 1-3?

No. This survey is not related to in-person graduations. This survey applies to activities that may be offered for a few weeks before graduation. 

To learn more about the surveys, including how responses will be used for planning purposes, review these FAQs.

Bright Spot

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! I love seeing all the ways that school communities are celebrating their teachers. Share your school’s celebrations and tag @SFUnified and #SFLovesTeachers. 

Warm regards,

Superintendent Dr. Vincent Matthews

This page was last updated on May 5, 2021