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Happy Sunday everyone 👋

📅 Key Dates 📅
Oct 7: Walk, Bike & Roll to School Day
Oct 12: Indigenous People's Day (NO SCHOOL)
Oct 14: PTA Meeting
Oct 19-23: Digital Citizenship Spirit Week
Oct 24: Autumn Carnival 

📝 Action Items 📝
• Donate your gently used stuffies on Monday and Tuesday of this week 
• Participate in Walk, Bike and Roll to School Day!
• Get ready for Digital Citizenship Spirit Week, October 19th to 23rd
• Upload photos from the Multicultural Night Market to this shared drive!

🙋‍♂️ Volunteer Opportunities 🙋🏻‍♀️
Look out for an email coming this week about volunteering for the Autumn Carnival!

🗣️ Principal's Update 🗣️

See you on the yard!
Courtney
Courtney Browne, VP Communications, 2026-2027
PTA Quick Links: PTA Calendar of Events 2026-2027 • PTA Contact List • Join the PTA • Donate Now!

🧸 Now Accepting Stuffie / Plushie Donations 🧸
Kate Woolf, the chair of this year's Autumn Festival, will be in the yard at drop off and pick up to collect your clean, gently-used stuffies for the autumn carnival. She will be out with donation bins on Monday and Tuesday of this week.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Kate directly: kfwoolf@gmail.com


🫶 Thanks again to our Custodial Team! 🫶

Thank you so much to all of the students who helped make National Custodian Day special at Lafayette. Above is Frankie (left) and Mr. Lei (daytime substitute for Christie) posing with some of the posters students made. Michelle works the night shift and is thus not pictured, but we're grateful to her too!

This event is a great way for young people to learn about road safety and join the Lafayette community on their morning commute! 

Join Lafayette staff on Wednesday at 7:30am at any of the following cross streets:

• Meet Ms. Carpenter at 30th and Balboa
• Meet Ms. Brook at 36th and Fulton
• Meet Mr. E at 40th and Anza

Ms. Jessica will be at the yard entry gates with giveaways for students who participate!
🌐 Digital Citizenship Spirit Week is coming! 🌐

Digital Citizenship Spirit Week is a vital part of helping our students learn how to stay safe, kind and responsible when navigating technology and online spaces. Each day has a specific theme for each lesson and kids are invited to dress up according to that theme.

Many thanks to Ms. Young for her leadership with this initiative! 

Hello Dolphin Community! 

A big thank you to everyone who supported this weekend’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass parking fundraiser! Whether you volunteered, parked, helped with logistics, or simply helped spread the word, we truly appreciate your support. These community fundraisers make a meaningful difference for our school!

This week we’re kicking off tour season! Our first prospective-family tour of the year is coming up on Tuesday, October 6, and we’re excited to welcome new families to campus and share what makes Lafayette such a special place. Don’t forget, we need volunteer tour guides to help make these visits possible, so please check out the information below if you’re able to lend a hand.

Thank you as well to all the families who joined us for our joint ELAC & SSC meeting on Wednesday evening. We’re grateful for your time, ideas, questions, and partnership. We hope you’ll continue to join us for upcoming meetings! Your participation, input, and shared leadership help us build the systems and structures that make Lafayette a more inclusive, supportive, and welcoming community for everyone.

We are also kicking off our Star Reading & Math Assessments this month! These assessments help us understand how our students are progressing and identify where they may benefit from additional support or enrichment. Kindergarten students completed the Kindergarten Reading Inventory (KRI) last month and will continue with the Early Star Literacy assessment. Students in grades 1–2 will complete the Reading Difficulties Screener (RDS), and all students in grades 1–5 will take the Star Reading and Math assessments. Students in grades 4–5 will also complete a Social-Emotional Learning/Culture and Climate survey through Panorama, giving them an opportunity to share their experiences and perspectives about our school community. Together, these assessments and surveys help us identify trends, set schoolwide goals, and provide targeted support to students. We look forward to sharing some of this data and updating you on our goals at upcoming SSC, ELAC, and PTA meetings. 

Finally, a few important dates to keep on your radar: Indigenous Peoples’ Day is Monday, October 12, and our much-anticipated Fall Carnival is Saturday, October 24! We hope to see lots of our Lafayette community out celebrating together.

Please see the other updates and reminders below, and as always, thank you for being such an important part of our school community.

🚗 Student Safety Comes First: Morning Drop-Off

Student safety is our top priority during morning arrival. With hundreds of students and families arriving within a short window, we need everyone to follow our drop-off procedures consistently. Even a quick shortcut can create an unsafe situation for students, families, staff, and our neighbors.

All families dropping students off by car should use Stop, Drop, & Go on Anza Street. This is the safest and most efficient way to keep traffic moving while helping students enter campus safely.

Please help us by following these important expectations:

• Do not drop students off on the opposite side of the street. Students should never have to cross through moving traffic to reach school.

• Do not make U-turns near the family entrance on 36th Avenue. U-turns create unpredictable and unsafe traffic patterns in an area where many children and families are walking and biking.

• Do not double park. Double parking creates unsafe congestion, blocks visibility, and impacts our neighbors and other drivers.

• Keep the white bus zone clear. This space must remain available for school buses for safe curbside drop-off.

• Use Stop, Drop, & Go—even when you’re in a hurry! A few extra moments can make a significant difference in keeping everyone safe.

We know mornings can be busy, but convenience should never come at the expense of student safety. Please plan ahead, follow traffic expectations, and help us create a predictable and safe arrival for every Lafayette student.

🙋 We also need volunteers to keep Stop, Drop, & Go running! Sign up for Stop, Drop, & Go

🐬 Volunteer Tour Guides Needed! 

We’re looking for volunteers to help welcome prospective families and share what makes Lafayette special!

School tours will begin with a welcome and Q&A led by our Admin Team, PTA Executive Reps, and New Family Committee. Guests will then break into small groups for guided campus tours.

Volunteer Tour Guides will:

• Lead families along a predetermined tour route.

• Visit designated classrooms and campus landmarks.

• Share your Lafayette experience and answer basic questions.

We’ll provide the route and key information—you bring your Lafayette spirit!

We’re also looking for volunteers to represent Lafayette at the upcoming SFUSD Enrollment Fair, where you can connect with prospective families, share your experience, and help answer questions about our school.

Help us give future Dolphins a warm Lafayette welcome!  🐬

Morning Tours - Volunteer Here

Afternoon Tours - Volunteer Here

Enrollment Fair - Volunteer Here

📣 SFUSD Enrollment Survey – Share Your Voice!

SFUSD is gathering community input on how students should be assigned to elementary schools beginning in August 2028. No plan has been selected yet, and family feedback will help inform the district’s decision-making.

The survey is open to all San Francisco families, including those with children in SFUSD, private or charter schools, as well as families with children who are not yet school-aged.

Please take a few minutes to share your perspective and help shape the future of elementary school enrollment in SFUSD!

Take the survey: English | Spanish | Chinese | Filipino | Vietnamese | Arabic | Samoan

Bright Spots

💦 Splash Awards!

We can’t forget to celebrate this week’s Splash Award winners! These TK–2nd graders were recognized for the many ways they help make our community special, from showing kindness and integrity to being great friends, helpful community members, and positive role models.

We’re so proud of all the ways these students show their Lafayette spirit and help make our school an amazing place to learn and grow! 

SF Opera Guild

Last week, students from Mr. Rayala’s 4th/5th combo class join members of the SF Opera Guild to present a fun performance of the comedy, The Pirates of Penzance. Students participated in several weeks of rehearsal before sharing their performance with staff and families in our Auditorium, and later at the SF Opera. 

ELA Instruction

While teaching our English Language Arts curriculum, HMH Into Reading, Ms. York had 3rd graders analyzing and the types of language authors use in a through a variety of different texts, including narratives, letters to families, and even text message interactions. This is a great lesson as students learn to navigate language use and code-switching both academically and in their everyday lives. 

4th graders in Ms. Huang’s class dove into research this week as they launched their newest nonfiction writing project, expository animal reports. Students were tasked with selecting an interesting animal, and finding 3 credible sources to use as they gather information. This project will build on skills students have been developing over the past several years, pushing them to strengthen their writing skills as they explore text features and nonfiction text structures.

Nagata Dance

We’re so grateful to welcome Nagata Dance along with instructor Ms. Liza, back to Lafayette this year. Corrine Nagata and her team run an amazing program that provides students with a well-organized, developmentally appropriate, and rigorous dance experience. This year, Nagata will be working with our TK, Kinder, and 4th graders. 

September Birthdays

Recently, TK-5th grade students came together to honor and celebrate our students with September birthdays with our monthly popsicle and dance party. It was a beautiful day, and their energy was incredible. Shout out to all our community members who celebrated another year this past September!

Repeated Reminders

📱 Cell Phones & Smartwatches: OFF & AWAY

A quick reminder that cell phones, smartwatches, and other personal devices should be OFF and AWAY during the school day, including before/after school activities and events. If a device must come to school, please help your student follow these expectations, including keeping smartwatches turned off, put away, or in School Mode. If you need to reach your student during the school day, please contact the office at 415-750-8483. Thank you for helping us keep students focused on learning, friendships, play, and being present in our school community!

📱 A Reminder About Class Group Chats

A quick reminder that class group chats, including WhatsApp groups, are intended to help families connect and coordinate classwide events and activities.

Please help keep these spaces welcoming, inclusive, and focused on community-building. Political or social advocacy and school-related concerns are better addressed through appropriate private channels rather than classwide chats.

For school concerns, please reach out directly to school administration; for PTA matters, please contact the PTA. Thank you for helping keep our class chats positive, useful, and welcoming for everyone!

🚌 Field Trip Chaperones

Please review the updated chaperone requirements and instructions below, including guidance for navigating the ASCIP platform and completing the required Mandated Reporter training. Thanks for your patience in navigating this new requirement. For support, contact ehelp@ascip.org.

📝 Multipurpose Family Income Form (MFIF)

We are working toward 100% completion and need every family’s help (We’re only at 53.5% 😢)! Please complete your MFIF if you haven’t already. More information and instructions are included below.

What is the MFIF, and why is it important?

The Multipurpose Family Income Form (MFIF) is a quick annual form that helps Lafayette and community partners access important funding and benefits for students.

Completing the MFIF helps:

• Determine school funding for academic programs and services.

• Prioritize eligible students for afterschool programs.

• Connect eligible families with benefits like $120 SunBucks (Summer EBT), internet access, and more. See the Family Benefits Guide for details.

Every form counts! Please help us reach 100% completion!

Before & After School

• In the morning, use Stop, Drop, and Go on Anza Street for a safe and efficient morning drop-off. Please do not park or drop-off in the white bus zone, double park, or allow students to exit on the opposite side of the street. This is for the safety of your students!

• Sign Up for Stop, Drop, & Go!

• Bikes and scooters should be walked on the school yard. This is for the safety of our students. 

• Enrichment Pick-Up Reminder:

• Please meet your student on time at the northeast gate on 36th Avenue, near the bike racks.

• The play structure is reserved for YMCA and RNC programs after school. For the safety and security of students in aftercare, families not enrolled in these programs should use alternate play areas after dismissal. Cabrillo Playground, just down the street, is a great option. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

Attendance Reminder

• Reporting Full-Day Absences: Whenever possible, please report absences through your ParentVUE account. Instructions: English | Español | 中文

• Partial-Day Absences or Changes: Please contact our clerk, Yuki, directly at 415-750-8483 or sch664@sfusd.edu.

Thank you for continuing to make Lafayette such a welcoming, connected, and joyful community. Looking forward to seeing everyone this week! 💙🐬