Yick Wo Alternative Elementary School

At Yick Wo we are dedicated to fostering enthusiasm for lifelong learning through supporting the social, emotional, intellectual, artistic and physical development of our students. We nurture good citizenship by teaching empathy and guiding students to practice the school values to be safe, kind, and responsible. Our teachers, staff, students, and parents are deeply valued and together create an engaging learning environment. Yick Wo serves the North Beach, Russian Hill and Chinatown neighborhoods in San Francisco.

This video provides an overview of our wonderful school.

Yick Wo students are fortunate to have the incredible city of San Francisco at their doorstep. Field trip locations include the DeYoung Museum, the Symphony, the Asian Art Museum,  Kule Loklo, Elkus Ranch,  Angel Island, and many more exciting locations throughout the Bay Area. In addition to field trips, school-day activities for students include Outdoor Education, Art, Reading Recovery, Math Support, Music, Dance, and Chess Club.

Students in all grades take computer classes. Our Reading Specialist works with students who need extra help, and provides math support to 4/5 students. Providing extra support for students that need it is just one way the PTO helps foster excellence that benefits all Yick Wo students, and helps keep Yick Wo ranked 9 out of 10 on great schools. Yick Wo is a 2020 National Blue Ribbon School.

Our school library is a portal to the magical world of books, a place where students can read and know about anything that interests them, and where they can discover new ideas and possibilities. Our wonderful school librarian, Mrs. Pederson, helps keep reading enjoyable and expansive for all our students. 

Yick Wo's gardens are living classrooms where standards-based curriculum are taught, and air students in their discovery of the living world. Children are simultaneously stimulated, focused, and calmed by their time in the garden. The program supports intellectual, emotional, and social-emotional engagement with things that must be measured, counted, arranged, planned, and cared for, Children enjoy hands-on, experimental learning in a variety of disciplines, including the natural and social sciences, language arts (e.g. through garden journaling), visual arts, and nutrition. 

Yick Wo students and teachers utilize the rich resources of the surrounding bay area community to infuse the campus with music and poetry.  Students in all grades attend weekly dance classes which are filled with music, movement, and joy. Fourth and fifth graders have the option to select between a variety of instruments including the violin, flute, and trumpet.

Students at Yick Wo enjoy outdoor activities several times each week with physical activity classes with Coach Robinson, and PE specialist Coach Cho. The Physical Education curriculum is helps cultivate develop physically-educated students who have the knowledge, skills, and confidence to enjoy a lifetime of healthful activity. Our physical activity classes provide healthful, fun activities for all Yick Wo students. 

We partner with SFArts to provide students with weekly art instruction in a variety of mediums including painting, drawing, collage, and mixed media. Art projects support classroom instruction, and provide students with hands-on, joyful adventures in art.

Our wonderful PTO is a non-profit independent group of volunteers who are committed to helping organize school activities, fundraise for educational materials, activities, enrichment programs, and additional support for students that are not funded by SFUSD. Additionally,  the PTO facilitates communication between parents, teachers, and students.  Membership is open to all YW families, teachers, and staff.  By being active in the PTO, you demonstrate to your child the importance you place on education. PTO meetings are held at 6:30 pm on the 2nd Wednesday of every month. Contact: pto.yickwo@gmail.com

California Public Schools from Kindergarten through grade 12 with 21 or more English Learners must form a functional English Learner Advisory Committee (ELAC). Yick Wo’s ELAC is a committee for parents or other community members who want to advocate for English Learners. The purpose of the ELAC is to advise the principal and school staff on programs and services for English Learners and the SSC on the development of the Single School Plan for Student Achievement. The ELAC also assists the school on its annual language census. Yick Wo’s ELAC meets monthly.

School Site Council (SSC): Like all SFUSD schools, Yick Wo has an elected School Site Council (SSC) that represent parents, students, community members and school staff in the school governance process. The SSC has a number of important responsibilities, including: Reviewing and analyzing student achievement data; Gathering community input; Helping develop the Single School Plan for Student Achievement and the school site budget; Monitoring the implementation of the plan and budget. Yick Wo’s SSC meets every 3rd Thursday of the month from 4:00 - 5:30. All Yick Wo parents and caregivers are welcome. Zoom link is available on Konstella.

On-site after school enrichment classes change each semester and include hip-hop dance, tennis, and gymnastics.

MORNING CARE: Is offered onsite (beginning at 8:00am) by the Excel YMCA Chinatown Team who have long run the after-school program at Yick Wo. AFTER CARE: The Chinatown YMCA runs an on-site program at Yick Wo (3:35pm-6:30pm). Many Yick Wo families utilize the After School Academy at the Tel-Hi Neighborhood Center (3:30pm-6pm). Tel-Hi staff come to Yick Wo at dismissal and walk the kids to the Tel-Hi Community center located at 660 Lombard Street. Salesians Boys and Girls Club retrieves students (from 3rd grade and up) from Yick Wo at the end of the school day and transports them via school bus to Club, located at 680 Filbert Street. On-site after school enrichment classes change each semester and include dance and tennis.

PARENTVUE: If you have not already done so, please activate your SFUSD Family Portal (ParentVUE) account. ParentVUE accounts are easy to set up, are the best way for you to stay connected to what’s going on in the district and in your student’s learning.

KONSTELLA: Parents can keep up with our school community and news during this time of remote learning via Konstella.