Yearly Events and School Traditions

"Traditions are important for children, whether they be family related, church centered or school based. At Santa Rita many of the most memorable and impressive traditions involve the whole school or entire grade level activities..."
- Steve Peck, Retired Santa Rita Principal, 2006

Traditional Events

New students learn of these traditions during their first year at Santa Rita and then eagerly wait to participate in them for themselves.  We present a summary here to provide a feeling of the life of students and parents experience here at Santa Rita.

• 1^st Grade Teddy Bear Parade - First graders practice for a few weeks, costumes are made, stuffed animals are gathered... Then, on the special day, almost all students kindergarten through sixth bring their own favorite stuffed animal or teddy bear. The entire school gathers in the sixth grade park in a semi-circle with their bears; and the proud first graders march in a circle playing their instruments to the music "The Teddy Bear Picnic".
  
     
  
  
• 1^st Grade Chinese New Year Celebration - Gung hey fat choy! - First graders, along with much parental help, spend weeks learning several Chinese dance routines. On the day of the event the school gathers on the blacktop and the dancing first graders show how much they have learned.
  
  
• 2^nd Grade Camp Out - Tents, sleeping bags, and blankets appear bright and early; the aroma of camp stew begins to fill the park; and students always enjoy the visit from Smokey the Bear...as they spend the entire day camping and learning in what is normally the sixth grade park, but which on this day belongs to them alone.
  
     
  
  
• 4^th Grade Overnight at Coloma - In fourth grade everybody looks forward to the exciting overnight trip to Coloma where everything that the students learned about comes to life. There's gold panning, square dancing, tent pitching and a life like general store. Not to mention a whole night away from homework! It's a fun and educational trip that shows what forty-niner life was all about!
  
  
• 6^th Grade Week at Walden West - Some think it the greatest experience of their time at Santa Rita.  A week of no homework, more fun than school, hiking, fresh air, beautiful wilderness, and a great view of the hills.  Spending most of your time on "campus" but there will be a lot of hikes through the woods and hills nearby.  Be good because the best cabin gets first and warmest shower.  For those of you more shy don't worry, you shower in your bathing suit.  There are many special events like the day hike, the night hike, cabin cheers, and... a very special event the last night. Visit Walden West's website links at the bottom of the page for parents, teachers and student information.
  
  
• Witches' Delight - Santa Rita School was constructed and opened in 1957. Eleven years later, the first Witches' Delight Carnival was held, making this the celebration of our Halloween carnival!  It includes the 6th Grade haunted house, the costume contest, a cake walk and some of the funniest carnival games. It is a family fun carnival that gets everybody ready for Halloween!  More information.
  
  
• Book Fair - Each year, Santa Rita School turns our multi-purpose room into a wonderful book store. The profits of the book fair help to fund book purchases for our school. We bring in hundreds of book titles. There are books for all reading levels and interests: award winners, best sellers, picture books, popular series, holiday books, reference books, cook books and more. More information
  
  
• Spellathon - The Spellathon is an annual academic and fund-raising challenge at Santa Rita School. The Spellathon is the largest fund-raiser for the school and provides important monetary support for music and art programs. Students study their grade-specific spelling words and solicit sponsors to pledge a flat amount or an amount of money for each word spelled correctly. After students take the test, they collect donations from their sponsors. Every student earns a prize for participating in helping Santa Rita. More information
  
  
• Walk to School Day - This is the International "Walk to School day". When everybody who can gets up bright and early and walks to school. This day supports physical exercise and environmentally friendly transportation alternatives. This event also shows many students that walking to school can be fun!
  
  
• Back to School Bobcat Chase & Picnic -  The Bobcat Chase is Santa Rita's annual fun run to celebrate the start of a new school year, to promote fitness throughout the school, and to bring everyone together for a fun community event & picnic. More Information.
  
  
• Science Fair - The science fair is a time for young scientist to emerge. There's volcanoes, electric projects and any science project you can think of. This is a optional science fair that is for all grade levels and is loads of fun for all ages. Every year the prize medals are giving to each contestant for being a good scientist. So have fun and when it's over start thinking about next years project!
  
  
• Junior Olympics (4-6) - Junior Olympics is a wonderful, spirited tradition in the Los Altos School District with almost 1400 participants, hundreds of cheering fans, and tremendous community support. Fourth, fifth and sixth graders from all six Los Altos schools gather for a day of fun, food and good spirited competition. We encourage everyone to strive for their personal best and to cheer on their classmates as they compete! More information.
  
  
• International Picnic - The international picnic is a time where each student and their parents can gather together and share their cultural foods and traditions with everyone. Everybody brings food for the potluck dinner and gathers on the black top to dance, eat, and learn about new cultures.  Many students form groups, and with parental training and choreography, perform cultural dances from their ancestral countries (or even, sometimes, from Ballywood).

Yearlong Traditions

• Monthly Character Trait - Every month Santa Rita students learn details about and demonstrate the practice of important character traits necessary for a successful life. Each month is dedicated to one character trait from the program Character Counts.
  
  
• 5^th Grader's Kindergarten Buddies - At the beginning of the year, after classes have settled in, each 5th grader is matched up with a "Kindergarten Buddy". Their entire fifth grade class will meet with their buddies class and do group activities several times throughout the year. Many fifth graders even visit their buddies on an informal basis. This teaches the older students responsibility, and allows the younger students to learn Santa Rita traditions and have a mentor.
  
  
• 6^th Grader's First Grade Buddies - This is similar to the Kindergarten buddies but each one grade higher. Almost always new student pairings are made so both students have more diverse experience.

Musical Traditions

• Spring Instrumental Concert (5-6) - This is a concert when emerging musicians came show off their new talent in the orchestra or band. This teaches students self esteem, responsibility, and a love for music.
  
  
• Winter Holiday Concert (Grades 4-6) -This is the concert that students sing in when they graduate to the upper grades. It is a concert with more mature songs but the same concept of the spring concert. They sing winter and holiday songs to get you in the spirit of the holidays.

The derivation of the word "tradition" includes the Latin meanings "handing over", "delivering" and "entrusting". Through these and other Santa Rita traditions we endeavor to pass on common experiences, understandings and values from generation to generation. It is especially rewarding to watch our fifth and sixth graders with their younger "buddies", and to observe the care our upper graders demonstrate to our Kindergarten and first grade students. Even though these traditions take extra time and effort from teachers and parents alike, let's keep them alive.