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Home of the Gators
As we are planning for our APEX event on Thursday, I wanted to take a minute to explain where the fundraising money goes.
Since Gant is a non title 1 school, we are limited on funds we receive from the state. This year we received $17,000 and most of that will go toward release days for our amazing teachers to unpack the new science materials, analyze data, and plan together.
We rely heavily on fundraising to cover the many activities that make our school so wonderful. Here are just a few items that are covered.
- Recreation aides
- Assemblies
- Classroom instructional enrichment
- Green team
- Programs such as Red Ribbon Week, Reflections, Spelling Bee, Run Club
In addition to all of the items PTA funds through fundraisers, a big-ticket item is also added each year. This year the electronic marquee is what Gant needs. We already have a portion of it paid for, so the rest will be funded through the fundraiser.
Again, thank you all for supporting Gant! As we finish out this week, and then head into Thanksgiving break, I am constantly reminded of how grateful I am for all of you :)
Cassie Fanton, Principal
Thursday, 11/18, is our Family Night Out for November. This month is sponsored by Great Mex at 5530 E. Atherton. They are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (7:00am - 9:00pm). Present the flyer (digital or hard copy) so that Gant gets credit! Eat in or take out are both applicable. Ordering via food delivery services will not give us credit. Enjoy!
Thank you all for your patience with our spirit wear this year. Most of the orders were passed out on Friday. We were missing some shirts in the order and I am working with the vendor to get those as soon as possible. If you did not receive your order as of yet that is why. I am hoping to have the rest of the orders out this week. Please feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns. We do have inventory now and we are working on finding a time to sell the spirit wear. If you would like to buy some in the meantime please email spiritwear@gant-pta.com and we can work out a way to get your Gant Gator some spirit wear.
We are hosting a food drive for Bethune Homeless Education Program, the office of LBUSD that serves the over 6,000 homeless students in our district. Right now Bethune is in need of non-perishable foods for couch-surfing youth and young kids. Items in need are mac and cheese, stove-top or microwaveable Top Ramen, applesauce, granola bars, etc. A flyer will be sent home this week with more ideas. A bin will be placed outside of the Gant office for collection.
Beyond food items, here is an Amazon link of goods that Bethune is always in need of. Items ordered off this list will be sent directly to Bethune. If you have any questions, please contact Jessica Reed at President@gant-pta.com
The PTA is looking for an Auditor. The Auditor audits the PTA financial data generated by the Treasurer and Financial Secretary every three months (moderate time commitment). If you are interested or have any questions please email President@gant-pta.com
Our Halloween festivities were a huge success!
Students and staff had so much fun dressing up. We started the morning with our Student of the Month assembly, and Trunk or Treat was a blast! Thank you to everyone who contributed to the success of the event!
Hello Families,
In effort to celebrate our differences and spotlight our Filipino students and families, we invite you to record a quick video and upload it to Memento. The video clips will be posted on social media, the Gant website and shared in classrooms.
The following are some guiding questions. You can answer as many as you would like, or share your own ideas. Please make sure to state your name and grade level before answering the question(s). 1) What area of the Philippines does your family come from? 2) What does being Filipino mean to you? 3) What is a tradition you love to celebrate with your family? 4) What is your favorite Filipino food to eat?
Please have your short video clip uploaded to Memento by November 30. Email any questions or concerns to dei@gant-pta.com Thank you and looking forward to celebrating all things Filipino with you!
Looking for diverse books to purchase for your kids? Check out the Minnie Gant page on bookshop.org.
AND
If you have any suggestions of titles, please email dei@gant-pta.com with the Title and author and we will add it to this growing resource.
My name is Megumi Usui-Abiad. Megumi means “grace” or “blessings” in Japanese. I was born in Japan, but I grew up here in Torrance, California.
I decided to become a teacher when I started volunteering in a homeless shelter back when I was a student at UC Riverside. Many children struggled in reading there, so I started working with them. I even taught a 70-year-old man how to read!
It has been 25 years since I started teaching. I started with Japanese Immersion classes, moved on to GATE classes and then to general education. I love to challenge myself every year - to see if I could teach better the next year from the year before. It’s fun.
I like to read. I read everything from John Douglas books (he’s a former FBI criminal profiler) to Pride and Prejudice (isn’t Mr. Darcy wonderful?). I’m really into anime. I watch a lot of anime with my 10-year-old son. The one I’m into right now is My Hero Academia. I love Demon Slayer, too.
I also have a lot of hobbies. Hiking, rock/gem collecting, foraging, stamping, jewelry making, drawing, playing Pokemon Go, and writing are some of my favorites. The craziest things I’ve done are skydiving and bungee jumping, but it hikes up my life insurance so I had to quit.
I met my husband in a Bible study during my second year in college. He’s a brilliant scientist and makes all kinds of medicines. He is also one of the kindest people I know and very wise. He also keeps me out of trouble when we go hiking ... well, that is, if I listen to him. The last time I ignored his warning, I ended up with a big stingray barb in my foot.
I am hoping to finish my career at Gant. I’m hoping that I will get to a point where my students come and visit me when they grow up once again. For a teacher, there is no greater satisfaction than knowing I had a hand in the education of a child who is doing well in life.
Past Spotlights can be viewed here.
The garden, originally started by Mrs. Ball's 2008 class, was refurbished under the leadership of Jamie K., a Gant alumni and current Ambassador Girl Scout working on her Gold Award Project.
"I ... decided for my project to give back to my elementary school and refurbish it into an outdoor learning environment that honored retired teachers," reports Jamie. "The garden's design contains grade-level plants that meet their science standards along with curriculum and books for the teachers to use with their lessons. A garden club, with students, was created that would help with the project. Now it is sustainable, so that future Gant students can learn while enjoying, managing and caring for the garden."
The LBUSD Office of Child Development Centers is now enrolling for our full-day, fee-based preschool program. Please visit our web site here for specific details regarding locations and contact information. For enrollment assistance, call 562-429-8636.
It's a hard time to be a kid right now. It's a hard time to be a parent and guardian right now. Minnie Gant students and families deserve all the support we can give them. Here are some resources we hope can help.
Gant Staff and Resources
This pandemic has brought unprecedented change and uncertainty into all of our lives. If you are in a difficult position, we encourage you to PLEASE ask for help! You can reach out to our counselor, Laurie Wheels (lwheels@lbschools.net), or our principal Cassie Fanton (cfanton@lbschools.net) with any needs you may have. Your privacy is paramount and any discussions will be completely confidential.
LBUSD Family Resource Centers
LBUSD Family Resource Centers are available to support students' and families in so many ways – from student mental/behavioral/emotional health to parent workshops to food/clothing resources, referrals, health care, and more. Please reach out!
Website – https://linktr.ee/LBUSDFRC
Instagram – @lbusdfrc
LBUSD Special Education Community Advisory Committee
The LBUSD Special Education CAC is open to everyone who wants to help students with exceptional needs obtain an appropriate, high-quality education, including parents, teachers, persons with disabilities, service providers and other concerned community members. A calendar of meetings and topics, including distance learning and sibling support, can be found here.
California State PTA Resources
Click the Peachjar icon above for current after-school and community flyers of interest to Gant families:
- The Coder School
- Free Covid Vaccines
- iReady: LBUSD Parent Night 11/18
- LBT GoPass
- Share Your Input on Board District Maps
- Code Ninjas Los Alamitos Day Camps
- LBUSD Marching Band Spectacular
- Long Beach Parks After-School Programs
- Free Child Care & Enrichment Programs
- Free LB Community Improvement League Fall Festival/Resource Fair
- LBUSD Redistricting 2021
- FRC Parent Wellness Webinar Series Playlist
- Ride wit LB Transit
Shop at Amazon Smile
Download the BoxTops app; scan receipts when you buy BoxTops products.
View school events in your Google calendar by subscribing to the Minnie Gant Elementary calendar.
Please share any photos you have of students in school activities with our PTA Historian to be used for promoting school activities. Any student in a photo must have turned in a permission slip.
Hello 5th grade parents! Our children's last year at Gant has begun, and we are hoping to make it a memorable one. The 5th-graders look forward to participating in fun activities and traditions during their final year. For a roundup of the latest announcements and planning opportunities, check out our 5th grade page.
Bullying defined:
"A person is bullied when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other persons, and he or she has difficulty defending themselves."
(D. Olweus)
Click to Report a Bully
The SchoolMessenger app delivers communications from the school district and Gant all in one place.
Chromebook and Hotspot Tech Support
562-315-8083
