Hopkins Principal’s Newsletter – 10/1/2024

Dear Hopkins Students and Families,

A big shout-out goes to Mr. Parekh and Ms. Matar. Mr. Parekh is advising Science Bowl this year with a tryout that will take place on Friday, 10/4. Ms. Matar is advising a series of other science competitions. Please see below for details: 

Science Bowl: Science Bowl is a buzzer-style competition on science covering various topics in math and science. It’s a great fit for any student interested in one of or multiple of these topics. Learn more about science bowl here. Interested students must sign up here: https://tinyurl.com/mssbtryouts24 (please make sure you sign in to your school email first; this is for students to complete). After filling out this form you will be emailed a registration ID which will include information about where you have been assigned to take tryouts. Please go to your assigned test-taking room at 2:45 pm; the test will be from 3:15 – 4:00.

Other Science Competitions @ Hopkins: Ms. Matar is advising a limited number of students to participate in the Science Olympiad, Alameda County Science & Engineering Fair, The National Geographic Society’s Slingshot Challenge, the Garrett Morgan Sustainable Transportation Competition, and the Tech Challenge. Space is limited to the first groups of students who sign up for each competition. Please see the details and sign up information here. 

Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences: Our teachers are starting to send out invitations to families to schedule conferences on Wednesdays, 10/30 (in person) or 11/6 (virtual/on Zoom), 1:15-7:15 PM. The purpose of these meetings is to provide additional support for families of students who show signs of academic struggles. We encourage families to bring students to attend these conferences together so that students continue to take an active part of their learning and communication with the teacher. 

• The focus of these conferences are for teachers to meet with students who currently have a C, D, or F in the class, and their parents/guardians, to discuss support steps. 
• If your child currently has A’s or B’s in their classes, they are doing well meeting or exceeding grade-level standards and conferences are not necessary. We encourage parents/guardians of students with As and Bs in a class to email the teacher if you have questions or concerns about that specific course.

Hawk-o-ween Social: Students who are attending our first social should complete this survey to help with our planning. This helps our PFA plan for enough food to provide all attending students. 

Smart Watch/Cell Phones: In our continued efforts to promote face-to-face interactions, minimize distractions to learning, and prevent students’ addition to digital devices, we enforce our school policy that requires students to turn off and put away their smart watches and cell phones during school hours. Please review our handbook again for details (see page 18). 

Halloween Costume Guidelines: We want students to have a safe and fun Halloween if they choose to celebrate. Please follow these guidelines:

1. No masks that cover the whole face or make students unregcognizable. Staff members must be able to identify students.

2. Weapons, real or fake, are not allowed.

3. Costumes that could be offensive or perpetuate a stereotype of someone’s culture, gender, sexuality, heritage, or religion are not permitted.

4. Costumes should not hinder your ability to participate in your classes; costumes may not present safety issues in the hallway.

5. District dress code still applies.

Save the Dates: 

• Thursday, 10/3, 2:40-3:40 PM: School Site Council @ C-nest
• Thursday, 10/3, 3-5 PM: Volleyball vs. Horner @ MUR
• Tuesday, 10/8, 3-5 PM: Volleyball @ Walters
• Wednesday, 10/9: International Walk & Roll to School Day – receive a prize for being green!
• Thursday, 10/10, 3-5 PM: Volleyball @ Thornton
• Friday, 10/11: No School; Staff Development Day
• Wednesday, 10/16, 7-8 PM: PFA Meeting on Zoom
• Thursday, 10/17, 6:30-7:30 PM: ELAC (English Learner Advisory Committee) Meeting on Zoom
• Friday, 10/25, 4-6 PM: Social — Hawk-o-ween!
• Wednesday, 10/30: Minimum Day; School Ends @ 12:35 PM
• Wednesday, 10/30, 1:15-7:15 PM: Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences
• Wednesday, 10/30, 5-7:30 PM: PFA-sponsored Diwali Celebrations @ MUR
• Wednesday, 11/6: Minimum Day; School Ends @ 12:35 PM
• Wednesday, 11/6, 1:15-7:15 PM: Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences

HAWK ON~
Nancy Kuei
Principal