Dear Bahia Vista Families,

This week in our Second Step social-emotional learning program, students in TK–5th grade are continuing Unit 2: Emotion Management, focusing on Lesson 6. This lesson helps students recognize strong feelings and learn healthy strategies to calm down before responding.

Across grade levels, students are building skills to:

Here’s a snapshot of what students are learning by grade:

💡 Try this at home:

Ask your child, “What can you do to calm down when you feel upset or frustrated?” Encourage them to show you their favorite calm-down technique—maybe they’ll teach you a new one! Together, we’re helping our students build lifelong emotional awareness and self-control—skills that support kindness, problem-solving, and success in school and beyond.

Please take 10 minutes to answer this survey to tell us your thoughts about how your student gets to and from school and how they engage with the Safe Routes to Schools program. Your feedback is ESSENTIAL for Safe Routes to Schools’ program development serving our school and 26,000 students in our county. Thank you!

The Transportation Authority of Marin funds the Safe Routes’ crossing guards, pedestrian and bike education, encouragement events (e.g. International Walk to School Day), Task Force meetings, suggested route maps, and much more. Your help is vital for program funding to address the needs of your family and others. Questions? Contact: DHoffman@parametrix.com.

Parent survey here for elementary schools 

In service,

Julio Villalobos, Ed.D.

At Bahia Vista Elementary School,

We believe that every day counts. Regular attendance is one of the most important factors in ensuring student success. When students are present, they engage in learning, build strong habits, and strengthen our school community.

I am excited to share that from October 14-16, our students showed great commitment to being present and ready to learn. A special congratulations goes out to Ms. Cherian's, Ms. DiSanto's and Ms. Dominguez’ Class (98.48%) with a 98.48% attendance rate for primary grade (TK-2nd) and Ms. Cherbero's Class with a 98.55% attendance rate for upper grades (3rd-5th grade).

All classes were given a dragon stuff animal that they keep for the week and return it at our next PBIS rally. Your dedication to showing up every day sets a shining example for our entire school.

Let’s continue to make attendance a priority. Together, we can help our students build a bright future—one school day at a time!

This week, our school will proudly join all other schools in our district in participating in “Start With Hello” Week! Throughout the week, we will engage students in meaningful activities during lunch and recess that encourage everyone to build a welcoming and inclusive school culture.

“Start With Hello” is a violence prevention program designed to help children and youth minimize social isolation, empathize with others, and create a more inclusive and connected community.

The program focuses on three key steps:

We’ve created a presentation for teachers that outlines suggested classroom discussions and activities aligned with each day’s theme. In addition, a flyer is included below highlighting the lunch and recess activities that we’ll be leading throughout the week.

Together, we can help our students learn the power of a simple “hello” and how small acts of kindness can make a big difference.