Da Vinci Science

We had a great, busy, and fun week last week. Juniors buckled down to take part in state testing on Tuesday and Wednesday, then refreshed with team and character-building activities with Fulcrum on Thursday, and then many students went on field trips to consider post-high school plans. We visited El Camino College, Cal Poly (SLO), and NACAC to learn about possibilities and to have career pathway experiences. 

Week 33 is a short week with Friday, 5/5 being a PD Day (students no school), and in the evening, Prom at the Proud Bird! 

• Monday, May 1st is Decision Day! We will be celebrating seniors and their post-high school plans. Students are encouraged to wear college or career gear that represents their post-high school plans or goals. We will be celebrating the seniors in the Black Box during 1st period.
• National Teacher Appreciation Week is May 8-12th. If you are interested in coordinating or helping out with providing breakfast or lunch for staff this week, please let Liz know at ediaz@davincischools.org. If you are able, we are also grateful for any gift cards to be used as prizes and purchasing of supplies for staff appreciation week (no obligation, completely voluntary). You can give e-card gifts to dvsappreciation@gmail.com or drop off gift cards at the front office. Thank you in advance for your support! We are going to celebrate our teachers with a Movie Theme — and our teachers are the stars of the show! Here are some ideas to give our teachers and staff the “royal treatment” this week:  
  • Monday, May 8th: Fan Mail– Shower your teachers with fan mail! Write a note or card with written words of why you are a fan of them.
  • Tuesday, May 9th:  Selfie and Autographs Day- ask your teachers for their autographs and get a selfie with them. Email the pic to that person. 
  • Wednesday, May 10th: Sweet Movie Treats- Offer a sweet treat for a teacher (boxed candies like at the movies, red vines, etc).
  • Thursday, May 11th: Salty Movie Snacks – Bring a salty snack for a teacher (their favorite popcorn, chips, etc.)
  • Friday, May 12th: Oscar Awards– Award your teacher with something that you enjoy and share with them why you enjoy it! 

• “Ghosted” Kaiser Play and Workshop: 9th grade students will be participating in a two-part mental health and resilience program provided through Kaiser Permanente’s Thriving School Resilience in Schools Environment (RISE) initiative. They will be audience members for a play called “Ghosted” on Wednesday, May 3rd and will participate in a virtual workshop on Thursday, May 4th. Find out more about “Ghosted” and RISE here.
• Parent Office Hours: We will have parent office hours on Thursday, 5/4 at 4:30 pm at this zoom link. Please join us for any questions or updates, or just to chat! 
• Prom is this Friday, May 5th at 6:00 at the Proud Bird. Contact Kat Ramos at kramos@davincischools.org. We look forward to having a fun and safe evening event.

Week 33 Schedule

Da Vinci Science students were greeted by Cal Pol President Armstrong

El Camino College Visit 

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Wednesday, 5/3: “Ghosted” Kaiser Play for 9th grade
• Thursday, 5/4: Kaiser Virtual Workshop for 9th grade
• Thursday, 5/4: Parent Office Hours on Zoom at this link at 4:30pm
• Friday, 5/5: PD Day, Prom at 6:00pm
• Thursday, 5/11: Senior Awards Night
• Thursday, 5/18: School Site Council Meeting #4
• Thursday, 6/8: DVS Graduation at 5:00pm
• Summer School (for credit recovery): Session 1: June 13-June 30, Session 2: July 11-July 27
• School Calendar Link
• First Day of School for 23-24 school year will be August, 14th. 

 

 

We had another great week here at DVS! Time is flying by as we are already heading into week 32! We are very proud of our students for still learning well. They are engaged in heart dissections, moot court debates, fashion shows in Spanish, and more! We also wish our Robotics team well in Houston. They are having a great time at the FRC World Championships in Houston. Team 4201 is doing very well and is currently ranked 9th. “Takeoff” (the name of the Robot) looks smooth and zippy out there! Here’s the link to the competition if you would like to keep up with the action this weekend: https://www.thebluealliance.com/team/4201.

•  FYI this Welcome Incoming Families email was sent out to new families – welcome to DVS Class of 2027!
• Administrative Professionals Day is Wednesday, April 26th. We are grateful for our front office staff, Liz Diaz, Brittany Alvarez, and Summer Munoz.

• National Teacher Appreciation Week is May 8-12th. If you are interested in coordinating or helping out with providing breakfast or lunch for staff this week, please let Liz know at ediaz@davincischools.org. If you are able, we are also grateful for any gift card donations to be used as prizes and purchasing of supplies for staff appreciation week (no obligation, completely voluntary). You can make ecard donations to dvsappreciation@gmail.com or drop off gift card donations to the front office. Thank you in advance for your support! 
• A message from the Wiseburn Education Foundation: Wiseburn Education Foundation’s Rock Around the Block, coming up on April 29th at Dana Middle School. Did you know that WEF runs a Rock Around the Block silent auction, which is live right now? You can log on to WEF’s auction website at bit.ly/RABAuction2023 to view and bid on items such as restaurant gift cards, summer camps, museum tickets, and more! You also will not want to miss the “School Packages” category, which has items such as front-row seats for graduations and end-of-the-year concerts, principal for a day, and special experiences with your student’s favorite teachers. Bidding on items in this auction is an easy way to support WEF, because 100% of winning bids will go right back to our schools, teachers, and students. The auction ends on Saturday, April 29th at 9pm, so don’t miss out!
• 11th grade- next week is a busy week, especially for our juniors! 11th-grade students have state testing followed by a team-building Fulcrum Day and then a field trip to Cal Poly SLO College Visit or National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). We hope these experiences will be positive and helpful to their learning journey

Week 32 Schedule

Important Upcoming Dates:

• FRC Robotics World Championships in Houston: 4/19-4/23
• Tuesday and Wednesday, 4/25 and 4/26: 11th Grade State (SBAC) Testing
• Thursday, 4/27: 11th Grade Fulcrum Day
• Friday, 4/28: 11th Grade NACAC Field Trip, Cal Poly SLO Pathways Fieldtrip
• Friday, 5/5: PD Day, Prom at 6:00pm
• Thursday, 5/11: Senior Awards Night 
• DVS Graduation: Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• Summer School (for credit recovery): Session 1: June 13-June 30, Session 2: July 11-July 27
• School Calendar Link

Have a wonderful weekend!

It was great to welcome everyone back from Spring Break this week!

10th-grade students started off their week with fun, team-building activities led by Fulcrum staff. The day culminated with a boat build and race in the pool. Many memorable moments were captured (PC: Stacee Liana)!

• Wiseburn Education Foundation’s Rock Around the Block is April 29th (9:30am-2:30pm)! Get a jump ahead by purchasing your food and tickets for the day. While you are planning your day, please consider volunteering for a shift. There is something for everyone! We all know that volunteers help an event run smoothly and we all want to ensure the best possible day for everyone. The links to presale tickets and volunteer sign-up can be found at www.bit.ly/WEF2023RAB.
• Since April is Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, we will be reviewing and reiterating the importance of consent and how to be an active bystander in next Friday’s Advisory class (4/21). Students will also be provided with resources to access support for themselves or for another student. Please feel free to reach out to Saya Wai, DVS Dean of Students, at swai@davincischools.org with questions or concerns.
• Parent Office Hours: We will have parent office hours on Thursday, 4/20 at 4:30 pm at this zoom link.
• The Reaction Research Society has invited Da Vinci Students to their 80th Anniversary Rocket and Space Symposium that is held Saturday, April 15th from 8:00-5:00. See flyer for details. Here is the link for free tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rrs-80th-anniversary-rocket-and-space-symposium-2023-tickets-573646280467 
  • 

• State Testing is fast approaching for 11th-grade students. Please see this SBAC notification to parents. 
• Senior Activities Fundraising– we are continuing our efforts to support our seniors in their senior activities. If you are able to support this, please do so through MySchoolBucks. 

 

10th Grade Fulcrum Day:

 

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Monday, 4/17: Senior Beach Day
• FRC Robotics World Championships in Houston
• Tuesday and Wednesday, 4/25 and 4/26: 11th Grade State (SBAC) Testing
• Thursday, 4/27: 11th Grade Fulcrum Day
• Friday, 4/28: 11th Grade NACAC Field Trip, Cal Poly SLO Pathways Fieldtrip
• Friday, 5/5: PD Day, Prom at 6:00pm
• Thursday, 5/11: Senior Awards Night 
• DVS Graduation: Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• Summer School (for credit recovery): Session 1: June 13-June 30, Session 2: July 11-July 27
• School Calendar Link

We hope everyone has been enjoying their Spring Break! We are excited to welcome students back on Monday, 4/10, and dive into the last 9 weeks of this school year. There is a lot of learning that takes place in the last two months. We look forward to seeing students engaged and learning well to finish the year strong!

Thank you to those of you who planned, presented, and/or attended the DVS Spring 2023 Exhibition Night on Thursday, 3/30 before we left for Spring Break. It was a great success! Students in the 9th and 11th grades were able to showcase their learning through mini-theaters, life-sized human sculptures, robot competitions, pirate treasure hunts, personal storytelling, and more. We are immensely proud of our students and their amazing work.

Spring 2023 Da Vinci Schools Experience Surveys: Your feedback is valuable to us. If you haven’t done so already, please take a moment to complete this semester’s experience surveys, thank you for your support.

• Link for Parents/Guardians: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QLM5T2G
• Link for Students: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/K9CRCP3

Week 30 Schedule

Please note that we have an adjusted schedule for Monday, 4/10 in order to allow time for clean-up after Exhibition. 9th and 11th grade students will start the day in their Exhibition classes, whereas 10th and 12th grade students will go to their Homerooms (10th grade students will participate in activities led by Fulcrum from there). Looking forward to seeing students on Monday!

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Monday, 4/10: 10th Grade (on-campus) Fulcrum Day
• Monday, 4/17: Senior Beach Day
• Tuesday and Wednesday, 4/25 and 4/26: 11th Grade State (SBAC) Testing  
• Friday, 5/5: PD Day, Prom at 6:00pm
• Thursday, 5/11: Senior Awards Night 
• DVS Graduation: Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• Summer School (for credit recovery): Session 1: June 13-June 30, Session 2: July 11-July 27
• School Calendar Link

Exhibition Night:

We are just two days away from our Spring Exhibition Night! Please join us for an evening of celebrating student work and project-based learning! We hope for all students and families to participate and join us for Exhibition Night this Thursday, March 30th, from 5:30-7:30 pm.  9th and 11th-grade students will be showcasing their work and are looking forward to sharing it with the community. Guests can see and hear stories from Verona, see life-sized human sculptures, meet the Men in Black, and use trigonometry to find buried treasure, among many other fun and engaging learning experiences! See you there!

 

This has been a very busy week at DVS! We are still celebrating and recuperating from hosting last week’s FIRST Robotics L.A. Regionals at Da Vinci Schools. Congratulations to our Vitruvian Bots! Team 4201 is going to World Championships in Houston! Team 4201 qualified by winning the Regional Engineering Inspiration Award. We also competed well and made it to the semi-finals. Most importantly, the team worked hard, were gracious hosts, had fun, and demonstrated kindness and inspiration to the community- truly “more than robots!” Thank you to all those who came out this weekend to support us. 

The biomedical pathway also held our annual “Grand Rounds” where students presented their diagnosis and treatment plan to real industry doctors. We thank Dr. Ian Kramer, Dr. Jennifer Imparato, Dr. Mike Liu, Dr. Michael Healy, Dr. Jeanette Fong, Dr. Jay Lee, Jeremy Wong, and Saya Wai for hosting this amazing event. The doctors shared that this was the best presentation they have heard! 

Our counselors also gave wonderful college webinars this week. College webinars will be posted soon.

• Da Vinci Schools CARnival is tomorrow!Da Vinci Schools will be hosting our 2nd annual CARnival TOMORROW, Saturday, March 25th, 10am-5pm! This fun day of games, food, entertainment, and cars is an important fundraiser that supports student activities and is open to the community! Please join us and invite your friends and family! For more information, check this CARnival website and please contact Kat Ramos, DVS Leadership Advisor, at kramos@davincischools.org. 
• Exhibition Night is this week! Please join us on Thursday, March 30th from 5:30pm-7:30pm for Da Vinci Science High School’s Spring 2023 Exhibition Night! 9th & 11th grade students will be showcasing their learning, and we hope all students will attend. Please invite family, friends, and prospective students! See you there!

• Spring 2023 Da Vinci Schools Experience Surveys: Your feedback is valuable to us. Please take a moment to complete this semester’s experience surveys.
  • Link for Parents/Guardians: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QLM5T2G
  • Link for Students: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/K9CRCP3
• Calling Diabetes Guest Speakers: This year, seniors in the DVS Biomedical Pathway are finishing out their semester with a Design Project on Diabetes (type 1 and 2). Their mission is to use the design process to identify a diabetes-related problem and come up with a subsequent solution. As part of the design process, students will be interviewing individuals who have experiences with diabetes in order to develop empathy and a fuller understanding of diabetes. These individuals can be patients, family/friends, researchers, or medical professionals. These interviews will take place after Spring Break. If you or someone you know may be interested in being a part of this process, please let Saya know at swai@davincischools.org. 
• We still have Metro passes at the front office. If you would like a free LA Metro pass, please pick one up at the front office. 

Week 29 Schedule– please note there is no school on Friday, 3/31, in honor of Cesar Chavez Day. We appreciate the legacy of Cesar Chavez and all he accomplished as a civil rights leader, educator, and environmentalist.

We will then be on Spring Break from 4/3-4/7, students will return from Spring Break on Monday, April 10th.

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Friday, 3/31: Cesar Chavez Holiday – No School
• Monday-Friday, 4/3-4/7: Spring Break
• Monday, 4/17 Senior Beach Day
• Tuesday and Wednesday 4/25 and 4/26 – 11th Grade State Testing  
• Thursday, 5/11 Senior Awards Night 
• DVS Graduation: Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• Summer School (for credit recovery): Session 1: June 13-June 30, Session 2: July 11-July 27
• School Calendar Link

 

Medical Ground Rounds

 

Congratulations to Team 4201 Vitruvian Bots who did a great job at the LA Regional Competition in Port Hueneme! Team 4201 made it to the semi-finals and received the “Gracious Professionalism Award” as recognition for being one of the most community-oriented, helpful, and giving teams in the region. The students have been working very hard and we are very proud of them. They will be competing at another LA Regional Competition next week (Friday, 3/17 – Sunday, 3/19) in the Da Vinci Schools gym. 

• Yearbook: The yearbook is available for purchase at http://www.yearbookordercenter.com. Use the school code 19656. The current price is $50 (+$5 processing fee) but will be increased to $60 (+$5 processing fee on March 15th. Orders will be accepted through May 16th or when the last book is sold, whichever comes first. For more information, please contact Travis Wimer, DVS Yearbook Advisor, at twimer@davincischools.org.
• Student Led Conferences: SLCs are next week (March 13th-16th)! Please refer to communications from Grade-Level teachers for details on your student’s SLC time, location/link, and preparation requirements. Also please note earlier dismissal times for next week (see schedule below).
• Da Vinci Schools CARnival: Da Vinci Schools will be hosting our 2nd annual CARnival on Saturday, March 25th 10am-5pm! This fun day of games, food, entertainment, and cars is an important fundraiser that supports student activities and is open to the community! Please join us and invite your friends and family! For more information, please contact Kat Ramos, DVS Leadership Advisor, at kramos@davincischools.org. 
• Senior Activities: Here is the updated Senior Activities list. Please note Prom and Grad Night tickets can now be purchased through MySchoolBucks. Inflation has definitely impacted many families. If you are able able to sponsor other seniors to participate in senior activities, you may do so on MySchoolBucks, and thank you in advance. If you are in need of sponsorship for senior activities, please let Grace Long or Saya Wai know.
• Boeing Internship: Boeing is offering information sessions that provide a high-level overview of their Summer Engineering Program. This opportunity is open to students who are US Citizens entering their senior year in the fall of 2023 that are enrolled in an engineering or computer science pathway. The session will include information on mentor/mentee expectations, as well as a Q&A session. If you would like to attend, please fill out this form to receive the calendar invitation and zoom link. For more information, please contact Crissel Rodriguez, Director of Real World Learning, at crodriguez@davincischools.org.

Week 27 Schedule:

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Monday-Thursday, 3/13-3/16: Student-Led Conference (SLC) Week
• Friday, 3/17: PD Day, No school for students
• Friday-Sunday, 3/17-3/19: FRC LA Regionals at Da Vinci  
• Monday, 3/20: Freshmen College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Tuesday, 3/21: Sophomore College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Wednesday, 3/22: Medical Interventions Grand Rounds 6:00pm
• Thursday, 3/23: Junior College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Saturday, 3/25: Da Vinci Schools CARnival 10:00-5:00
• Thursday, 3/30: Exhibition Night for Grades 9 and 11
• DVS Graduation date is scheduled for Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• Summer School Dates (for credit recovery): Session 1: June 13-June 30 Session 2: July 11-July 27
• School Calendar Link

 

We hope everyone enjoyed the cold, hail, and snow this week! The snow-capped mountains have been an enjoyable site to see for our community. 

(Apologies if you are just receiving the email for this blog post today, there were some technical issues with email notifications being sent out for new blog posts)

Our Robotics team, the Vitruvian Bots, left for Port Hueneme for their Regional Competition this morning. If you would like to watch Team 4201, here is a link to the event. We are proud of our students for their hard work, learning, and dedication to the FIRST Robotics Competition!

• Student Led Conferences: SLCs are coming up! They will be during Week 27 (March 13th-16th). Please refer to communications from Grade-Level teachers for details on your student’s SLC time, location/link, and preparation requirements. Also please note earlier dismissal times for Week 27.
• Senior Activities Update: Due to increased vendor costs and inflation, the prom ticket price has been adjusted. Please see this DVS Senior Activities 2023 doc for more information. We thank you for your patience and understanding.
• Parent Office Hours: We will have parent office hours on Thursday, 3/9 at 4:30 pm at this zoom link.
• Boeing Internship: Boeing is offering information sessions that provide a high-level overview of their Summer Engineering Program. This opportunity is open to students who are US Citizens entering their senior year in the fall of 2023 that are enrolled in an engineering or computer science pathway. The session will include information on mentor/mentee expectations, as well as a Q&A session.  If you would like to attend, please fill out this form to receive the calendar invitation and zoom link.
  • For more information, please contact Crissel Rodriguez, Director of Real World Learning, at crodriguez@davincischools.org.

Week 26 Schedule:

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Friday-Sunday, 3/3-3/5: FRC Regionals at Port Hueneme 
• Monday, 3/6: Senior Fulcrum Day
• Monday-Thursday, 3/13-3/16: Student-Led Conference (SLC) Week
• Friday, 3/17: PD Day, No school for students
• Friday-Sunday, 3/17-3/19: FRC LA Regionals at Da Vinci  
• Monday, 3/20: Freshmen College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Tuesday, 3/21: Sophomore College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Wednesday, 3/22: Medical Interventions Grand Rounds 6:00pm
• Thursday, 3/23: Junior College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Thursday, 3/30: Exhibition Night for Grades 9 and 11
• DVS Graduation date is scheduled for Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• School Calendar Link

Happy rainy Friday! We hope all students and families are staying warm and safe out there. We had a great Black History Month Community Dialogue today. We thank the BSU (Black Student Union) and NSBE (National Society of Black Engineers) for putting together and leading the Black History Month celebrations that culminated in our celebration of Black Excellence today. We celebrated, danced, and listened to music by Black artists such as Michael Jackson, Kendrick Lamar, Beyonce, Lauryn Hill, Rihana, and more! 

We also thank Torrance Memorial Medical Center who shared their careers as Clinical Lab Scientists with our Biomedical Association. It was great to hear from real-world professionals and helpful to know that the field is actively recruiting! 

This week:

• 9th Grade Physical Fitness Test: All 9th graders will be taking the PFT on Monday, Feb. 27th. Please have students come in comfortable clothing and athletic shoes. Please see this PFT letter for more information.  

• SLC Information will be sent out by Grade-Level teachers, please check your email and Canvas accounts for announcements. 

Week 25 Schedule:

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Friday-Sunday, 3/3-3/5: FRC Regionals at Port Hueneme 
• Monday-Thursday, 3/13-3/16: Student-Led Conference (SLC) Week
• Friday, 3/17: PD Day, No school for students
• Friday-Sunday, 3/17-3/19: FRC LA Regionals at Da Vinci  
• Monday, 3/20: Freshmen College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Tuesday, 3/21: Sophomore College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Wednesday, 3/22: Junior College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Wednesday, 3/22: Medical Interventions Grand Rounds 6:00pm
• Thursday, 3/30: Exhibition Night for Grades 9 and 11
• DVS Graduation date is scheduled for Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• School Calendar Link

This has been a great week of fun, love, and spirit! 

The Youth & Government Da Vinci Delegation had an amazing Model Legislature & Court Conference in Sacramento. They did an excellent job, bills and proposals were passed, and court questions were won! 

We also had a fun spirit week! Thank you, leadership students, for putting spirit week together for us. We always love an excuse to come to school in pajamas.  

Additionally, we are grateful to Teleflora for donating flowers, allowing us to continue our yearly tradition of showing students some love by passing out flowers on Valentine’s Day. 

• Progress Reports: were mailed out this week. Please continue to check Canvas for assignments and grades and use this document: Parent and Student Access to Canvas as a resource for how to get access. 
• President’s Day Monday, 2/20: In observance of President’s Day, there is no school on Monday, 2/20. Have a great three-day weekend! 
• Black History Month: In honor of Black History Month, students participated in a jeopardy game during advisory today. We thank the BSU (Black Student Union) and NSBE (National Society of Black Engineers) clubs for putting together and leading the Black History Month celebrations. This month’s theme has been celebrating Black Excellence. There will be a Community Dialogue (CD) with all DVS students next Friday 2/24. They also put together a great video interviewing students and staff with this question, “What does Black History Month mean to you?” Check out the video here.
• Parent Office Hours- Since this is an even week, we have parent office hours, Thursday, 2/23 at 4:30 pm at this zoom link: Parent Office Hours Zoom Link. This is a casual time of connecting, chatting, and Q&A.

Week 24 Schedule

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Monday, 2/20: President’s Day Holiday (no school)
• Wednesday, 2/22: Da Vinci Schools Board Meeting 6:00 (at this Zoom link)
• Friday, 2/24: Black History Month Community Dialogue during Advisory
• Friday-Sunday, 3/3-3/5: FRC Regionals at Port Hueneme 
• Monday-Thursday, 3/13-3/16: Student-Led Conference (SLC) Week
• Friday, 3/17: PD Day, No school for students
• Friday-Sunday, 3/17-3/19: FRC LA Regionals at Da Vinci  
• Monday, 3/20: Freshmen College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Tuesday, 3/21: Sophomore College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Wednesday, 3/22: Junior College Webinar 5:00-6:00
• Wednesday, 3/22: Medical Interventions Grand Rounds 6:00pm
• DVS Graduation date is scheduled for Thursday, June 8th at 5:00pm
• School Calendar Link