PBL Weekly Blast

"Color of my Skin" and "Eat the Rainbow"

For 8 weeks, Niko Campos and Brian An worked with Bailey and her Freshman seminar class to integrate art history, drawing and painting skills into the curriculum. For the past two weeks, students work culminated with an acrylic and then a watercolor paining of a fruit and vegetable. Students shared they enjoyed learning how to blend paint colors to accurately match their skin tone, fruits, and vegetables: Blending acrylics is fun, drawing self portraits is hard. The Thursday art sessions truly brought the class together in their exploration of art.

In American Studies and Chemistry, our 11th grade students worked for the past 6 weeks researching 5 issues facing California residents. They looked at the conditions that cause these climate issues, the size and scope of the problem, and then drafted new legislation proposing solutions to ease the effects of the unfavorable climate condition. Ben Allen and a member of his staff, Nick Faeries, listened to 7 proposals of Bills. He provided meaningful feedback and asked hard questions. He was very impressed by the depth of knowledge and creative problem-solving. He said many of the ideas aligned with policies he is currently drafting and our PBL student work will be very helpful.

• Monday, 12/8 - PBL ALL WORK DEADLINE/ ALL PBL periods

Check with your teacher to determine the work that is still be accepted for this all program deadline for the semester.

• Tuesday, 12/9 - Last LTI day of the semester
• Wednesday, 12/10 - POL/Exhibition Preparation (all grades)
• Thursday, 12/11 - PBL SCIENCE FINALS
• Friday, 12/12 - PBL MATH FINALS

Upcoming:

• Monday, 12/15 - 10th grade POLs
• Tuesday, 12/16 - 9th grade Service Learning Exhibitions
• Wednesday, 12/17 - 11th and 12th grade POLs
• Friday, 12/19 - Community Day: Gingerbread Challenge + 🥧
• 12/20 - 1/5/2026 - Winterbreak/ No school

Hi everyone,

I hope you’re all doing well as we head into the holiday season. As a group, we’d like to put together a holiday gift for our wonderful teachers to show our appreciation for all they do.

In addition to the teacher gift, we’d also like to collect funds to provide lunch for both the students and staff on the last day before winter break. This has been a fun tradition in past years, and we’d love to continue it.

If you’d like to contribute to either or both, any amount is welcome. Please send your contribution by December 16th using Venmo to Claire Bidwell- Smith (@clairebidwellsmith) or PayPal to me, @MichonHerman. If you'd like to contribute in another way, please reach out! Once everything is collected, we’ll put together a gift from the whole class.

Thank you so much for helping us make the teachers feel appreciated. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out.

Warmly,

Michon Herman

Parent of Class of 2025 and 2027

For Parents and Caregivers in English and Spanish from the Social & Emotional Wellness Initiative (SEWI). See below:

• English TOOLKIT
• Spanish TOOLKIT

The application period for Camp Cinder 2026 is open from 12/01/2025 to 01/31/2026. Camp Cinder 2026, CAL FIRE’s free firefighting camp for young women, will take place from June 22nd to June 25th in Redding and June 29th to July 2nd in San Luis Obispo, California.

The mission of Camp Cinder is to provide young women a safe, dynamic, interactive and challenging environment to gain strength, knowledge, and confidence in their ability to excel in the profession of firefighting and beyond. Upon completing the camp, young women will leave with a sense of empowerment and the confidence that they can succeed in any career they choose.

For more info, click HERE.

The American Water Works Association is offering scholarships to help future water leaders launch their careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). This is your chance to make a lasting impact in critical fields such as civil engineering and environmental science.

Hazel Health provides free, school-based physical and mental health support for students. Through Hazel, students can quickly connect with licensed medical and mental-health providers by video during the school day, helping them access care, manage symptoms, or receive guidance without leaving campus. Families can sign up once, and students can use the service anytime they need support.

This year, Hazel will be available for at-home visits throughout winter break, Monday - Friday, ensuring that all students get the care they deserve.

You can schedule your first visit by going to get started.hazel.co.

Through Hazel Health, your student can receive support for:

• Academic Stress: Balancing schoolwork and break activities

• Anxiety: Coping with uncertainty and changes

• Managing Emotions: Understanding and expressing feelings

• Relationship Challenges: Navigating friendships and family dynamics

Flyer - English | Spanish

Need help with your classes? Come to the library at lunch or after school! Monday through Friday Samohi Peer Tutoring offers tutoring to anyone from tutors who are current Samohi students. Tutoring is offered in all subjects and in all levels of courses. Follow the instagram @samohipeertutoring for more specific information(tutors, the subjects they tutor, what days they tutor).

Teachers are available to support students after school in the library!

Mondays- Spanish

Tuesdays- Research

Wednesday- English

Thursday- Chemistry

They are in the library Monday through Thursday 3:30-5 pm.

The Samohi Orchestras Winter Concert is Tuesday, December 9 at 6:30pm. Student tickets are $5 at samohiorchestras.org. Taco plates, smash burgers, and baked goods will be for sale in front of Barnum by 5:30pm. If you're on campus before the concert, come by to get some food!

Our final Clubs/ICC meeting in December will take place on Thursday, December 11th during lunch in the Exploration Pitch Space. This mandatory meeting will cover all club related information – if you are interested in continuing or creating a new club in the spring semester in addition to other leadership opportunities, join us next Thursday!

Margaret’s Place is back in E117 this school year! See below for the latest info on how students can get involved in individual or group counseling, Peer Leadership Club, or other activities at Margaret’s Place—plus, resources for parents and caregivers:

• Fall newsletter for Parents from Margaret’s place

• Fall newsletter for Students from Margaret’s place

• FOR FRESHMEN PARENTS: Video on Supporting Youth’s to High School

Email LDeSanto@smmusd.org with any questions!

LINK

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) is pleased to announce that the District has enrolled in year four of Los Angeles Metro’s GoPass program, which provides free public transit rides and Transit Assistance Program (TAP) cards to all kindergarten through 12th-grade students. The initiative promotes accessibility and encourages the use of public transportation.

Students can go to the PBL House office (B111) to get a new TAP card and eligibility code.

To reactivate your existing TAP card, please submit the following form to receive a new eligibility code: REACTIVATE YOUR TAP CARD HERE.

1. Pick up a Work Permit Application in the College/Career Center (B120) or PBL Office (B111) before school, lunch, or after school ONLY

2. Complete sections one and two of your Work Permit Application and return to Ms. Griffis in the PBL Office (B111) before school, lunch or after school ONLY

Keep in mind processing may take up to one week; please plan accordingly. Remember, if you are under 18 years old, a work permit is required in order for you to work. If you have questions, stop by the College/Career Center (B120)

To report a student’s absence, please send an email to:

AttendancePBL@smmusd.org

or call Crystal Griffis at 310.395.3204 ext. 71-177

Please include your student’s first and last names, student ID numbers, and the reason they are absent (illness, family matter, medical or dental appointment, etc.).

• Students who become ill at school need to go to the nurse’s office to be released from school

• If a students leaves at lunch, we MUST have an email from you IN THE MORNING, asking for an early dismissal pass…if we receive an email AFTER they have already left, the absence will not be excused

• Students can pick up their early leave pass from the PBL house office after the 1st period of the day

• These passes CANNOT be delivered to their class

• When students leave early for a doctor’s appointment, they must bring a note back from the doctor so we can clear their absence…if we don’t receive a note, it is marked as a cut.

• All absences must be cleared in 3 days…please email the PBL house office if your child is out sick…after 3 days, it is an unexcused absence

• After a student has had 5 full day absences in the school year for illness, any further absence for illness must be verified by a physician

• Attendance for athletic participation is cleared through the athletics office

• This can take a few days to be corrected. Thank you for your patience.

• Questions about attendance procedures, please go to our website: https://www.smmusd.org/domain/3026

Super Saturday is an opportunity for students to sign up and attend school Saturday mornings to help clear their absences. Students are expected to bring homework and Chromebook to complete their necessary assignments and/or study for classes. SIGN UP LINK