Principal’s Message:
Hello Dolphins,
As mentioned in last week’s Whistle, we need your help for the School Site Council. I want to give a big shout out to our four candidates for School Site Council for volunteering to be our parent/community representatives, but we still need you all to participate to finalize the process. There needs to be an election in order to vote for our volunteers. Therfore, we need all of you to make that happen. Please see the links below to provide your vote for members of the School Site Council for Mariano Castro Elementary School. Please submit this school ballot online, to the school office or by email [email protected] by 4 PM on Wednesday, September 10, 2025. We also have copies printed in the front office, if you would like to vote in person.
School Site Council (SSC) Ballot (English PDF) (Spanish PDF) or (Vote online)
In Partnership,
Principal Taylor
Events Calendar
September
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3rd
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Food Pantry, 2pm - 4pm
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10th
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Dental/Vision Screening (TK, K, 2nd & 5th), 8:15am
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11th
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ELAC/SSC Meeting, 3pm
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17th
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Food Pantry, 2pm - 4pm
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22nd
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Lifetouch Picture Day
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22nd
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DELAC Meeting, 5:30pm - Zoom
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29th
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YSI Animal Adaption - In School Field Trip, 8:15am
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October
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9th
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Teacher-In-Service Day - No School
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10th
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Recess Day - No School
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13th
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Make-up Picture Day
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13th - 17
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Parent Teacher Conference Week - Minimum Day
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20th
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Asian Art Museum - Field Trip
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In this Newsletter
School News:
SEL Survey and Mental Health Screening Parent Notification and Opt Out
Curriculum information
i-Ready Diagnostic 1 Assessment Scores (grades K-8)
Updating Contact Information
Short-term Independent Study
New TK/K afterschool sports program - Flyer
Kids in California schools still eat for free, but applying for federal Free or Reduced School Lunches can help your family and school! - Flyer
Picture Day & Volunteers Needed
Reporting an Absence
Flyers:
2025 -2026 School Year Calendar - Here
September Menu Here
District News:
MVWSD Fingerprinting Session for Regular Volunteers - Flyer
The Board of Trustees will meet on Thursday, Sept 4
MVEF Welcomes All Families to the 2025–26 School Year!
MVWSD, MVEF, PTAs: It takes a village
Community Partners:
Free, Fun JRMF Math Festival - Flyer
Make a Difference in Your Community: Volunteer with Mentor Tutor Connection! - Flyer
Upcoming Programs at Mountain View Public Library - Flyers (Improv and Model UN) - Flyer
Upcoming Events at the View Teen Center - Flyer
Learning Challenges events for Fall 2025
School News
SEL Survey and Mental Health Screening Parent Notification and Opt Out
This week, parents received an email that provides information about our SEL Survey process. Please take time to review it.
In grades 3-8, three times this school year—in September, November, and March— students will take a Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Survey (Gr 3-5 ENG/ ESP & Gr 6-8 ENG/ ESP) through Panorama, which replaces the twice-yearly Sown to Grow SEL survey. This new tool helps us efficiently & effectively identify students who may need extra support, such as school counseling or participation in a small group intervention.
In grades 6-8, if a student’s SEL Survey results fall in the “moderate” or “high” needs range, they will meet up to two times in a small group with a school counselor. These sessions use our District’s SEL curriculum, CharacterStrong, and include completing the Youth Needs Screener.
Paper copies of the SEL Survey and Youth Needs Screener are available for review at our school. For questions, please email [email protected] or call 650-526-3500 x1130. We appreciate your partnership in ensuring every student has the support they need to succeed this school year.
Curriculum information
The Mountain View Whisman School District engages in a thoughtful process to select curricular materials that align with state and local content standards and support academic achievement. Parents and guardians have the ability to review curriculum from their children's classroom by request. MVWSD will consider parent requests to excuse students from parts of instruction in accordance with applicable law. If you have any concerns about any curricular materials, including concerns related to personal religious beliefs, please contact Mr. Taylor, your child’s principal.
i-Ready Diagnostic 1 Assessment Scores (grades K-8)
Families can access their student’s i-Ready Reading and Mathematics score through their Powerschool Parent Portal on September 8, 2025, after 4:00 p.m. Reports are available on the PowerSchool Parent Portal at https://ps.mvwsd.org/public/ under “Parent Reports” for each of your students. Steps for accessing reports on PowerSchool Parent Portal are here: Accessing PowerSchool Parent Portal i-Ready Reports. If you have difficulty logging into the PowerSchool Parent Portal, please contact your school’s office.
Updating Contact Information
It is important we have your most current contact information (phone number, email address, emergency contacts). If you have a change or want to add an authorized person to pick up your child, please send an email to our front office staff at [email protected] with any changes or updates you may have.
Short-term Independent Study
Short-term Independent Study is a contract that allows students to work independently when there are circumstances that make attending school difficult. Short-term Independent study can range from a minimum of 3 days and a maximum of 14 days per school year. Contracts are approved on a case-by-case basis, require a 2-week notice, and require students to be in good academic and attendance standing.
While we know that some absences cannot be helped, it is important to do your best to have your child in school as much as possible. Whenever you can, try to avoid taking trips during the school year -- or make efforts to take trips during District holidays (2025-2026 School Year Calendar). Our office staff can assist you with contract details: Ms. Antunez [email protected] or Ms. Judy [email protected] .
*Please note, if the contract is not approved, the days will be counted as unexcused and the student may be considered truant.
*Also note that extending vacation is not considered an excused absence. Students will be considered truant if they accumulate absences for vacation purposes.
New TK/K afterschool sports program - Flyer
Our school, in partnership with Kassirer Sports, is offering a new afterschool sports program for TK and Kinder students. Please see the attached flyer or www.kassirersports.com for more information and registration.
Kids in California schools still eat for free, but applying for federal Free or Reduced School Lunches can help your family and school! - Flyer
Families who meet the federal income levels to qualify for Free or Reduced School Lunches should apply now to receive priority services such as free after school childcare/Expanded Learning. Applying also helps our district receive our full entitlement from the federal government to fund programs that help all students.
If you think you might qualify, please visit EZmealapp.com. We will have drop-in help available for filling out these applications:
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September 4, 3:00-6:00 p.m. at Castro Elementary School and Crittenden Middle School
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September 9, 3:00-6:00 p.m. at Vargas Elementary School
You may also make an appointment by contacting your school office. Thank you in advance.
Picture Day & Volunteers Needed
We need 2 volunteers that can help out during picture day. Please send an email to Ms. Antunez at [email protected] with your availability or interest.
Mariano Castro Elementary School
Weblink: mylifetouch.com
Picture Day Date(s): Monday, September 22, 2025
Picture Day ID: EVT6R9HMK
Reporting an Absence
Please call the office at (650) 526-3590 or email [email protected] to report an absence or late arrival. Provide the following information: date of absence, student’s name, grade and room number, reason for absence, name and relationship of the person reporting the absence.
District News
MVWSD Fingerprinting Session for Regular Volunteers - Flyer
Thank you to the 800+ parents who completed the process to become MVWSD volunteers last year! Applications for the 2025-2026 school year are now open. Details about how and who needs to apply are here: mvwsd.org/volunteers.
We’ve been working hard to make registering to be a volunteer more convenient while keeping schools safe. As part of this effort, MVWSD is offering fingerprinting sessions for $72. Financial assistance is available for income-eligible families.
Wed, 3 Sep 2025
11am – 2:30pm
Crittenden Middle School
Pay by Zelle, Venmo, or by personal check on the day of service. Click here for payment links.
The Board of Trustees will meet on Thursday, Sept 4 at 6 p.m. Open session begins at 7 p.m.
Some of the topics include:
For meeting details and agenda, please click here: https://www.mvwsd.org/trustees.
MVEF Welcomes All Families to the 2025–26 School Year!
We hope you enjoyed BTS Nights at our elementary and middle schools. You likely heard from both your school’s PTA/PACT and MVEF leaders about the importance of family support.
Why give to both MVEF and PTA/PACT?
MVWSD is a community-funded district - most of our funding comes from local property taxes rather than the state. While this provides stability, it doesn’t cover all that our students need. That’s where family contributions make the difference.
PTA/PACT strengthens each individual school community with events, classroom support, and family engagement.
MVEF fills districtwide gaps by funding programs that benefit every student, at every school:
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CSMA Art & Music classes and performances TK-5
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Environmental Science: Living Classroom classes TK-7; 4th–5th grade field trips
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Two middle school ELA teachers (reducing class sizes by 25%+)
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Athletics, clubs, and instruments for grades 6–8
Together, MVEF and PTA/PACT ensure that every learner has access to a complete educational experience — in every classroom, every day.
Both organizations are 501(c)(3) nonprofits and rely on family donations (tax-deductible) and employer matches. Please consider supporting both:
MVWSD, MVEF, PTAs: It takes a village
Ever wonder how all of our students get the well-rounded educational experience they deserve — complete with art, music, field trips, activities and more? It happens through your generous support! Community partnerships through MVEF and PTAs are essential to sustaining the programs that make our schools whole. Learn more here and here.
From Our Community Partners
Free, Fun JRMF Math Festival - Flyer
Every student can be a mathematician! Join JRMF for a day of play and problem-solving. At the JRMF Math Festival at Sports Basement Sunnyvale, children and families drop in to enjoy a variety of fun, hands-on math puzzles and games.
The JRMF Math Festival at Sports Basement Sunnyvale is free, open to all, and an event where you can drop in and drop out whenever you’d like. Free snacks will be provided.
When: September 13th, 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Where: 1177 Kern Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94085 in the Summit Room
Register here.
Make a Difference in Your Community: Volunteer with Mentor Tutor Connection! - Flyer
Are you passionate about helping students succeed? Mentor Tutor Connection is seeking dedicated volunteers to mentor high school students or tutor K-8 students in math, writing, or reading at local public schools in Los Altos and Mountain View.
Why Volunteer with MTC?
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Make a Lasting Impact: Help underserved students reach their full potential, both academically and personally.
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Support Future Leaders: Mentoring high school students or tutoring younger students can help students navigate challenges and build confidence.
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Join a Community of Like-minded Volunteers: Connect with other compassionate individuals and gain a deeper sense of purpose by helping others.
Get Involved: Join us for a Volunteer Information Session on September 18th at 12 pm online. During this session, you’ll learn about our mentoring and tutoring programs, and have the chance to ask any questions you might have.
To register for our Volunteer Information Session or to learn more about MTC, please email [email protected] or visit mentortutorconnection.org.
Upcoming Programs at Mountain View Public Library - (Flyer Improv and Flyer Model UN)
AMPLIFY: Improv-aganza Workshop
Enter the world of improv comedy with this workshop from the LAHS improv club! The program starts with a high-energy performance, followed by a workshop where you’ll rotate through stations and try out the games for yourself! Finally, you’ll get to show off what you learned with your own short performance for your friends. No prior experience is necessary for this fun and interactive program.
Saturday, September 13
4:30 p.m.-5:45 p.m.
Grades 4-8
First Floor Program Room
Register here or with the QR code on the attached flyer.
AMPLIFY: Model UN Workshop
This fun and engaging workshop introduces Model UN to students in grades 5-9. We will cover all the Model UN basics and build critical life skills, including public speaking, esearch, paper writing, and creative problem-solving. This is an interactive chance for students to learn more about global affairs, collaborate to create solutions on key issues, and practice public speaking in
learning environment.
Saturday, Sept. 20
2:00-4:00 p.m.
Grades 5-9
First Floor Program Room
Register here or with the QR code on the attached flyer.
Upcoming Events at the View Teen Center - Flyer
FREE for all 6th-12th grade students in Mountain View and Los Altos, the View Teen Center offers a variety of teen programming, including recreational and educational classes, special events, resources, and drop-in activities for teens to participate in. Activities surround the arts, health and fitness, culinary arts, education, career, and college activities and resources.
Check out the list of upcoming fun programs, events, workshops, volunteer opportunities and more on the attached flyer.
Learning Challenges events for Fall 2025
For local coverage of issues related to learning challenges and special education, please check out the Learning Challenges Committee.
Calm Down Kit Making Sessions
Volunteers will make Calm Down kits for classrooms throughout Mountain View and Los Altos and learn how to make their own for their home! Wednesday August 27 11-1, Thursday September 26 (5-7 pm), Tuesday September 30 5-7 pm. For location, contact [email protected].
Morning Let’s Talk Parent Support group
September 10, 10 am on Zoom.
IEP/504 support group. Have questions about the process to get help for your child? Have an IEP but are not sure how to make changes? Need to vent? This is your confidential group. Register here.
Learning Challenges Committee General Meeting
October 7, 7 pm in person (TBA) and Zoom hybrid
We will be finishing up the Wellness Wish List and will likely need a work session to finish up packing orders for delivery to classrooms! For more info, email [email protected].
Evening Let’s Talk Parent Support group
October 15, 7 pm on Zoom.
IEP/504 support group. Have questions about the process to get help for your child? Have an IEP but are not sure how to make changes? Need to vent? This is your confidential group. Register here.
Missed past Parent Education events?
We have a YouTube channel with many of our past events including the recent talk on Assistive Technology, info on summer camps and recreational activities, Anxiety and Depression in Children with Learning Challenges, SMART Goals and IEP Troubleshooting, and more. Channel is here.