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WINTER
BREAK
12/19 - 1/3
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CLASSES RESUME ON
JANUARY 4
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ALUMNI HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE
THIS SUNDAY, DEC 20
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PHOEBE MADSEN NAMED PLAYER OF THE YEAR & MR.
DONNELLY NAMED COACH OF THE YEAR
The drive, determination and passion of senior Phoebe Madsen
gave Laguna Blanca that extra boost to win a CIF girls volleyball
championship.
READ
MORE...
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2016 SPRING BENEFIT: FEBRUARY 27
Important Dates and Sponsorship Information
 In the midst of all the fun, we remain dedicated to
the main reason for our spring benefit-to raise funds to support
Laguna's students, teachers, and staff who continue our 80+ year
legacy of academic excellence. We hope that sponsorship funds will
both cover and exceed event expenses so that every dollar raised will
benefit our students and our shared future.
The sponsorship committee has truly outdone themselves
this year. The sponsorship packages are sure to knock you off your
feet and guarantee a night to remember! For more information, visit
our sponsorship
page on the website. Questions? Please reach out to our
Sponsorship Chair Carol King or Director of Development Marcy Jacobs.
Many thanks to those families who have already
committed to leadership sponsorships to help underwrite this
magnificent evening in Monte Carlo: Lisa and Stephen
Couvillion, Julie and Michael Davenport, Melody and Jon DuPrau, Julie
and Mason Farrell, Stacey and Ryan Fell, Karen and Simon Fry, Carol
and Stephen King, Janet and Lester Knispel, Amy and Jeff Pryor,
Valerie and Arthur Rice, Marina Stephens and Len Homeniuk, Betsey Von
Summer and John Moller, Michele and Stewart White.
IMPORTANT DATES FOR SPONSORS
Recognition
Deadline for sponsors (Invitation & Event Program)
Each sponsor whose confirmation is received by Monday,
January 4, 2016 will be recognized on the event invitation and in the
event program.
Recognition Deadline for sponsors (Event Program Only)
Each sponsor whose confirmation is received by Monday, February 8,
2016 will be recognized in the event program.
9 - 10 AM at Hope Ranch Campus, Multipurpose Room
9 - 10 AM at Montecito Campus
9 - 10 AM at Hope Ranch Campus, Multipurpose Room
9 - 10 AM at Hope Ranch Campus, Multipurpose Room
BACARA ROOM RESERVATION DEADLINE
Sponsorships of $2,500+ include hotel accommodations for the night of
the event. Additional rooms are available for booking at a special
rate of $225 until January 27, 2016. Contact the Bacara at
888.553.5131 and use the group code: LAGU0216.
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BRING THE WORLD HOME BY HOSTING AN INTERNATIONAL
STUDENT
My
American Year, a homestay placement company for international
students, is looking for a host family for a current Chinese boy
attending Laguna Blanca. In exchange for a private room, board, and
transportation, there is a generous monthly stipend provided.
Are you interested in opening your heart and home to this young man
at the beginning of January? If so, please contact Cindy Warner:
619-504-5162 or cindy.myamericanyear@gmail.com619.
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THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR WARMTH WITH SANTA BARBARA!
 Thank you to all the generous donors of warm clothing
for Santa Barbara's most vulnerable. A special thank you to Dr. Tidey
and her Sock Club students who spearheaded this gift effort and
delivered over 100 warm coats and blankets to Alameda Park this week.
"Laguna's contribution of beautiful warm coats and
sweaters were wonderfully timed, as the shelters were not open
on the night of our delivery," says Dr. Tidey.
The Sock Club's service learning experience is only
just beginning. Stay tuned for more exciting ways they will
experience street medicine in January.
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PROGRAMING THE FUTURE AT LAGUNA
During the second quarter of Laguna's MS Project Based
Coding class, a group of seventh grade students have developed
software skills by creating programs/sketches that upload to an
ARDUINO hardware platform. A what? "It's essentially a small
portable computer they use to complete their class projects,"
explains Mr. Ary. Those projects involve building circuits on a
breadboard, using a wide variety of electronic parts, and then
running software which takes inputs to control various outputs, thus
performing a desired task. This is called "physical
computing."
The ARDUINO kits the students assembled, with help
from Engineering & Robotics Instructor Mr. Tran, are erector sets
for electronics. The students are required to not only understand
basic circuitry and how to wire a breadboard, but they're also
required to learn the basics of software (loops, functions, flow
control, variable typing, algebra, etc.) along with a wide variety of
good programming techniques. All this is done while working in an
Interactive Development Environment provided free of charge by the
ARDUINO company. Mr. Ary is thrilled about the opportunity to teach
this class, which is part of the STEM program Mr. Moore is heading up
at Laguna. "This stuff is just fun," he says.
Here's a little glimpse into one of their most
recent--and festive--projects.
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THIRD GRADERS HONE THEIR WRITING SKILLS AT
DISNEYLAND'S CA ADVENTURE
To kick off their work as creative writers, the third
graders traveled to Disneyland's California Adventure Theme Park this
month to participate in Disney's Youth Education Series,
"Designing a Disney Story." Throughout this three hour
workshop, students were introduced to the animation process, learned
how to storyboard, created a kineograph, and created a thaumatrope.
They also visited various attractions as part of a field study,
including: Turtle Talk, Animation Academy, and Monsters, Inc.
"At Disneyland, I learned how to make two types
of animation called the thaumatrope and kineograph. A highlight of
the trip was going on CA Screaming because it was really fast, went
upside down, and I was screaming the entire way!" ~ Dylan
"I learned that every Disney story has six
characters: the villain, the hero, the companion, the fool, the
parent, and the mentor. My favorite part was going on the Monsters,
Inc. ride." ~ Cyrus
"I learned that you need different parts to make
a movie: background, script, voices, special effects, foreground,
background animation, and clean-up. The highlight of the trip was
drawing the Steamboat Willie version of Minnie Mouse because they
really showed you how to draw her." ~ Juliette
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Using the themes of the 2016 Summer Olympics and
health & wellness, sixth grade students are collaborating with
second grade students to brainstorm their very first Lower School
Health Fair -- coming this May! The project aims to increase health
awareness among students and assist them in learning the importance
of healthy eating and physical activity, while inspiring them to take
an interest in the Olympic Games.
GO OWLS!
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 Seventh grade Latin students
celebrated Saturnalia on Friday with a feast of homemade traditional
Roman dishes. The ancient Roman festival in honor of the agricultural
god, Saturn, is held from December 17-23. The Saturnalia was
described by poet Catullus as "the best of days." It was a
time for celebrating winter solstice, visiting friends, and
gift-giving. Citizens decked their halls with boughs of greenery, and
even hung small tin ornaments on bushes and trees. The best part of
the Saturnalia (for slaves) was the temporary reversal of roles.
Masters served meals to their slaves who were permitted the luxuries
of leisure and gambling. Clothing was relaxed and included the peaked
woollen cap that symbolized the freed slave, which looks very similar
to Santa Claus's peaked red hat. Many of the festival's customs have
influenced the seasonal celebrations surrounding Christmas. Io Saturnalia!
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FEELING THE PRESSURE IN SCIENCE
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GRADES K & 1 SPREAD KINDNESS & HOLIDAY CHEER
The kindergarten and first grade classes accomplished their second
service-learning project of the month this week by visiting the
retirement community of Valle Verde.
READ
MORE...
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SERVICE HONORS FOR GREYSON DUNN
 Congratulations to freshman Greyson Dunn
who received the Duke Honorary Trophy from the Santa Barbara County
Surf Club last Saturday for outstanding community service. Greyson
headed up the surf club's participation in the toy drive for Toys for
Tots; he volunteers for Best Day Foundation, sharing the joy of the
ocean with children with special needs; and he participates in
regular beach clean ups. On land, Greyson is active in Laguna's Sock
Club and works at the Care Center for the homeless.
Presenting him with his trophy is Jimmy Gamboa.
WELL DONE,
GREYSON!
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This year,
Laguna fifth grader Caden
Weaver did not want to miss an opportunity
to learn more about coding. Since the coding class is
offered only to students in grades 6-8, Mr. Tran--Laguna's
new engineering and robotics instructor--agreed to hold a
correspondence type of club so Caden could still learn some
coding. Mr. Tran and Caden meet periodically with most
of the activities being delivered by email. Mr. Tran has already
built a circuit board with LEDs and switches to kick off
the experience. "It is similar to Mr. Ary's
coding class but without the circuit building, so
that we can focus on computer science," Mr. Tran
explains.
Open to
having students who are strongly interested in pursuing an
independent project which doesn't require significant amounts of
contact time, Mr .Tran will work with students to create a plan and
activities to get them started and on their way to accomplishing the
project and its goals. "It does require motivated individuals and
will provide opportunities to learn organization
and time management, in addition to learning concepts like
computer abstractions in programming and electronics in building
circuits," he adds.
Experienced
students who take Mr. Tran's classes will be allowed to do
something more challenging and independently. It is a great
opportunity for students who want to get ahead or have a strong
interest in exploring STEM outside of school.
For more information, please contact Mr. Tran.
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LAGUNA NEEDS YOUR VOTES FOR THEATER AWARDS
Laguna is up for many Broadway World Awards for last
spring's musical Young
Frankenstein, including costume design, lighting, set
design, acting, and high school theater program!
Kate Bergstrom's--Laguna's former theater director--On the Verge Theater
Festival and Ms. Ortner's own show La La La Strada
are also up for awards!
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