Happy New Year and welcome back to school! We hope you had a joyful and restful winter break with your loved ones. As we step into 2025, we’re excited to continue this journey of learning, growth, and community together. As always, our team is here to support you and your student every step of the way.

Here’s to a fantastic start to 2025! Thank you for your partnership in making our school a wonderful place to learn and grow.

We have missed your students and are excited to welcome them back on Tuesday, January 7th! 

With appreciation,

Dr. Melissa

Please mark your calendars for the following exciting events:

• Tuesday, Jan. 7th: Students Return to School at 8:15am

• Monday, Jan. 13th: Peaceful Parenting Workshop at 8:30am-9:30am in Gathering Area

• Friday Jan. 17th: Family Night Big Emotions Practical Solutions by SD Kids First 4:15pm-5:30pm at HTePL 

Dear Amazing Adults,

Happy New Year, and welcome back to school! I hope this message finds you rested, recharged, and ready to dive into the new year. I am so excited to see our students’ smiling faces in the hallways and classrooms!

Coming back from a break can be both exciting and challenging. Like many of you, I’ve found that my routines can feel a bit out of sync after a time away. I imagine that many of our students may be experiencing a similar adjustment as they shift back into the rhythm of school life.

Routines are incredibly important for children—they help create a sense of security, predictability, and stability. Children who know what to expect are better equipped to manage transitions and engage in their day with focus and confidence. For this reason, re-establishing routines after a break is one of the most effective ways to support our kids during this transition period.

Here are a few tips to help ease the adjustment:

1. Start Small and Be Consistent
   Begin by re-establishing key routines, such as consistent bedtimes and wake-up times. Keeping these predictable helps children feel more in control of their day.

2. Set Clear Expectations
   Talk with your student about what their school days will look like and what is expected of them. Visual schedules or checklists can be a big help, especially for younger students.

3. Create Positive Rituals
   Add a little joy to routines! A morning high-five, a lunchbox note, or a cozy bedtime story can make these moments something to look forward to.

4. Practice Patience
   It’s normal for routines to take a little while to settle back in. Celebrate the small wins and offer encouragement as your child readjusts.

5. Model Resilience
   Share how you’re working on getting back into your routines. This will show your student that it’s okay to feel off-track and that getting back on course is possible.

We are here to partner with you during this transition. If you notice your child struggling to settle back in or need anything from us to support this process, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Here’s to a wonderful return to school and a successful new year ahead. Let’s work together to make this season full of discovery, learning, and joy for your student.

Brian Burr

Mental Health Supports for Explorer Students

If your child is experiencing social, emotional, and/or behavioral difficulties that are impacting them at school, wellness check-ins are available to all students as a support. Wellness check-ins can take place as needed throughout the year.

This year we will also work to offer monthly lunch bunches for students struggling to connect with their peers during unstructured times. This support will also be available to all students throughout the year.

Additionally, our next Explorer Family Night of the school year will take place on Friday, January 17th from 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM. Staff from SD Kids First will join our team to present about emotional and behavioral regulation techniques and supports for families. Please be on the lookout for the links to RSVP. Thank you to all of our families who were able to join us last Friday!

If you have any questions about any of these supports please email Ericah Edwards at eedwards@hightechhigh.org.

Let’s continue to work together this school year to create a community that connects all students to the supports that they need and deserve!

Mental Health Supports In-Home + Community

• Parent Guide to Mental Health and Wellness/ Guia Para Padres de Salud y Bienstar Mental

• Call the National Parent Helpline: 1-855-4A PARENT (1-855-427-2736) to get emotional support from a trained Advocate and become empowered and a stronger parent. They are available Monday through Friday from 10 am to 7 pm

• Mental Health Supports for the Holidays

• Supporting Grieving Children During the Season of Family

Dear HTeX Community, 

Happy New Year! I hope that you all had a wonderful winter break with family and friends. I am  so excited to jump into the new year with you all! We have some awesome events to look  forward to. I am happy to announce the return of our Book Fair, which will take place February 3rd-7th. Please click here to sign up for the book fair committee if you are interested in helping with the planning process. Our next General PA meeting will take place on January 23rd at 6:30pm via Zoom, the meeting link is tinyurl.com/HTeXPAZoom. Hope to see you there! 

Best Wishes, 

Marissa on behalf of the PA

Friendly Reminders: Absences

While we love to see your children’s smiling faces in school, and regular daily attendance is important to all we do, we do want to remind you to keep students home if they are ill, particularly if they have a fever.

COVID-19 Reminder For Students

• If they are symptomatic, they should be encouraged to test and/or share with parents they should test.

• If they test positive, they should also stay home if they are symptomatic.

• They can return to school when they are also fever-free for 24-hours without the use of fever-reducing medications and other non-fever symptoms are improving.

• If they test positive but are asymptomatic (no fever, and no other symptoms) they can remain at school unless symptoms develop.

• They should be encouraged to wear a mask through Day 10 (masks should be available at the front desk).

Tests

• Everyone can, once again, order four free boxes of COVID-19 tests via USPS. This can be done through this link.

Please continue to communicate with the school if your child will be absent due to illness by contacting Maggie at mfragoso@hightechhigh.org.

We are looking forward to an exciting school year of learning and want to help keep our community healthy!

HTeX Community Meetings - Call for Presenters

The HTeX Community Meeting is a cherished time for our entire school community to unite, creating a space for collective learning, sharing valuable information, and celebrating the diversity and achievements within our community. It serves as a focal point where students, parents, and educators come together to strengthen the bonds that make our community special.

Our Community Meetings are co-led by our Student Ambassadors and mentor staff, Ms. Nikki, Ms. Clara, and Ms. Destiny! We hold our Community Meetings once a month on the black top.

If you are interested in presenting to our students for our school wide Community Meeting, please complete this form.This is an OUTDOOR event. Presentations will be up to 20 minutes.

We will reach out to you to follow up.

-Ms. Nikki, Ms, Clara, & Ms. Destiny

Human Sundae!

We hit our Jogathon fundraising goal of $30,000! This means Dr Melissa and Mr Brian will become human sundaes at our next Community Meeting on January 15! We need your help. If you have expired sundae items to donate, please bring them to school at the front desk by January 15.

Expired Sundae items needed:

• Sprinkles

• Chocolate syrup

• Marshmallows

• Whipped cream

Upcoming Events

Hello Parents,

We hope everyone had an enjoyable winter break and a wonderful start to the new year! We've been having a great time with the students at camp, enjoying activities like ice skating, watching a magic show, decorating cookies, and sharpening our reading and math skills. We've also been fortunate to have some much-needed downtime between camp days. We're looking forward to diving back into our routine next week with renewed energy and enthusiasm!

FASS INFO: Also, if you haven’t filled out the FASS form for the 2024-2025 school year, please note that High Tech High has replaced the Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL) applications with the new Family and School Support (FASS) form. This change aligns with the school's adoption of the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which allows all students to receive free breakfast and lunch without needing to provide detailed household income information.

While the FASS form is simpler, it’s important for all families to complete it to help secure additional state funding that enhances educational resources and services. Your participation is vital in supporting our school community.

FASS Link: Please take 2 minutes to fill out the form linked HERE.

Happy New Year!

The HTeX Afterschool Team

Copyright © High Tech Elementary Explorer. All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
2230 Truxton Rd San Diego CA 92106

Questions?
Email us at htexpacommunications@gmail.com