Enrichment

Through the Evergreen Elementary School District, and art prep teacher provides weekly hands on art lessons to our 4th through 6th graders. 1-3 graders participate in art lessons provided by their teachers.

Evergreen District School Band
Band is an optional part of the curriculum offered to all 5th and 6th grade students. Class meets for approximately 45 minutes once a week during the school day and is a “Performing Arts” class. Instruction will be offered on flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, trumpet, and trombone.

There is no cost for this program. However, all students may need to rent or buy their instrument and are expected to purchase a cleaning/care kit for their instrument of choice. Students choosing to learn Clarinet or Alto Saxophone also need Reeds.

Performances are important and all students are expected to perform in the three concerts in December, May and a combined program concert at Quimby Oak Middle School at the end of the school year.

Registration and classes begin in September. For more information and to register, visit Mr. Ortega's Band Program website . Or email Mr. Ortega.

Every student may not be bound for a university, but there is no reason that any child, particularly in elementary school, shouldn't at least consider it. This is the philosophy behind "College Day," an activity that takes many forms, but always focuses on making college more familiar and accessible to students. The fringe benefit of this forward focus? Thinking about education beyond high school may just make what happens today in the classroom a little more relevant for kids. Look for more information on the front page of the school's website as we get closer to this event.

What is the Project Cornerstone ABC Program?
The ABC Program is a literature-based program addressing important issues like respect, tolerance, honesty, peaceful conflict resolution, taking a stand against bullying behaviors, and refusing to participate in gossip. Volunteers read specially selected books then lead discussions and activities that help teach valuable lessons related to these issues.

The program's goal is to help school communities achieve the following:

• Create a common language and vocabulary about student respect and behavior expectations among all members of the school community — students, parents and caregivers, teachers and staff.
• Help students develop skills to handle physical, verbal, relational and digital bullying and to STAND UP if they see someone else being bullied.
• Increase the number of caring adults on campus so that all students feel that there is at least one adult they can turn to if they have a problem.
• Contribute to a positive school climate where every student feels valued and supported to achieve and thrive.

ABC Program Books
During the school year, 8 books are read, once monthly (skipping December and June.) The ABC program is a cumulative program spanning 3 years, so books are repeated every three years.

Get Involved – Become a Volunteer Reader!
Become a volunteer and empower a life. For more information, contact the school front office. More information can be found on the Project Cornerstone website.

Each year all the 5th grade students attend Walden West Science Camp, located on 32 acres in the foothills of the Santa Cruz mountains near Saratoga, California. During the one week long program, students and teachers live and learn outdoors with guidance from experienced field instructors. Walden West promotes hands-on science learning that emphasizes life sciences and sustainable living practices. Lessons in the natural sciences come to life, helping students better understand and appreciate their world.

During their stay, students will have full access to the wooded trails in Sanborn County Park, which provides an additional 6,000 acres of study area. They will enjoy learning about the forest, meadow, and stream communities through the use of games and other activities. Qualified naturalists will use their expertise to help children see the interrelationships between plants and animals as well as the effect we have on the environment.

The Walden West site provides everything needed to assure your child's comfort. The facility includes a dining hall, shower room, infirmary, as well as cabins that are carpeted, heated, and furnished with wooden bunks and mattresses. The students will be eating nutritional and tasty food. Students serve themselves during family style meals and are encouraged to eat as much as they would like. The cooks are experienced in preparing and serving balanced meals and help make sure your child's needs are met.

This experience is social as well as academic. Students also develop their social and leadership skills at Walden West living 24 hours a day with other students requires your child to cooperate and work together with others toward common goals. Friendships that are made during this week will last a lifetime.

For more information, please visit the Walden West website.

We participate in Walk n' Roll Week, a program administered by the City of San Jose. Millbrook families are encouraged to walk or bike (4th-6th graders only) to school each day to promote daily physical activity, reduce traffic congestion around Millbrook, and learn critical skills that enhance biking and pedestrian safety. Special t-shirts for Walk ‘n Roll are available for purchase in the front office for $5.00. Students wearing these shirts on Wednesdays receive tickets for eligibility in a weekly raffle.

Millbrook students have the opportunity to perform their singing, dancing, acrobatics, acting, drumming, martial arts, playing an instrument or other activiities that showcase their talents and skills. All students are accepted and allowed to perform after auditions.

Millbrook Elementary School in partnership with the City of San Jose hosts a FREE Bike Rodeo after school in the fall. At this event, students:

• Learn Rules of the Road
• Ride the road safety course
• Practice safe cycling skills
• Bike Safety Inspections
• Helmet Fitting & Inspections

Please watch for stories on the front page of the school's website to learn more about this event.

Students in kindergarten through sixth grades have the chance to showcase their talents in this classic spelling bee. Daily spelling activities begin in January. Finalists of the written spelling bee advance to the Oral Spelling Bee taking at the end of January. All words are chosen from myspellit.com. Visit the website for practice word lists and more information about the Scripps Spelling Bee.

Since 1925, Día del niño, or the Day of the Child, has grown as an annual celebration throughout Mexico. This day recognizes children, pays homage to their importance in society, and endorses their well being. Pat Mora, a Texas native and nationally recognized author of children’s books, first heard of this Mexican tradition during a 1996 interview for a public radio program. As so often happens, the wheels in her head began to turn as one good idea (Día del niño) bred another one (Día de los libro).

El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day), commonly known as Día, is a celebration every day of children, families, and reading that culminates yearly on April 30. The celebration emphasizes the importance of literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Día is a nationally recognized initiative that emphasizes the importance of literacy for all children from all backgrounds. It is a daily commitment to linking children and their families to diverse books, languages and cultures. The common goals of all Día programming are to:

• Celebrate children and connect them to the world of learning through books, stories and libraries.
• Nurture cognitive and literacy development in ways that honor and embrace a child’s home language and culture.
• Introduce families to community resources that provide opportunities for learning through multiple literacies.
• Recognize and respect culture, heritage and language as powerful tools for strengthening families and communities.

At Millbrook School, we acknowledge the event in April, in the following ways:

• Reading of the book entitled Book Fiesta!, by Pat Mora in all classrooms.
• Special “Character Counts” assembly that morning.
• Students may come to school in apparel representing their cultural heritage.
• Students may come to school representing their favorite character from children’s literature.

The Math Olympiad Program is supported by PTA and run by parent volunteers. MOEMS (Math Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools) is a contest completed over a period of 5 months. Once every month, from November to March, students will be given one paper with 5 questions to be completed within 30 minutes. The tests are administered on campus. Awards are given at the end of the 5 months, based on the score out of 25 questions total. Students will take the Division E Tests (problems up to 6th grade level).

The goals of the Math Olympiad are:

• To stimulate enthusiasm and a love for Mathematics
• To introduce important Mathematical concepts and teach major strategies for problem solving
• To strengthen Mathematical intuition and foster creativity and ingenuity
• To provide for the satisfaction, joy, and thrill of meeting challenges

Visit the Math Olympiad website to learn more.

About Math Olympiad at our school:

• The Math Olympiad Program will run from October until the end of the school year.
• It is open to 4th – 6th graders, but also to selected advanced, enthusiastic 3rd graders.
• Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration closes October 27.
• We will meet once a week every Thursday, 1 – 2:20 p.m. in Room 19 to learn different problem solving techniques and practice solving difficult Math problems. First class: Thursday, October 13.
• Students will need to do homework every week, which is crucial to learning.
• The students selected to be part of the team will participate in 5 contests from November to March.
• Cost of the program: FREE !!!