Murdock-Portal Elementary School
Encyclopedia
Murdock-Portal Elementary School (formerly known as Louis Portal Elementary School, commonly known as Portal Elementary School) is a public elementary school
and magnet school
in San Jose, California
serving students from Kindergarten
through Fifth grade
(formerly Kindergarten
through Sixth grade
). It is a member of the Cupertino Union School District
, and is consistently one of the top five elementary schools in California
, often second-best. Graduates usually go to Miller
, Hyde, Kennedy, Lawson
, or Cupertino Middle Schools, and the FUHSD high schools.
and '70s
(in the front of the school—there is a plaque
commemorating the original founding—but the school in its current form began in the school year of 1994–1995. For that year, the school was K–5, as the school administration thought it foolish to keep students for just one year (it still keeps that policy). The next year, the school expanded to K–6, and stayed that way for seven years afterward, until it decided to contract back to K–5, due to declining Sixth grade
enrollment figures.
Originally, the magnet school was to focus on both science and technology. However, when it became clear that the science curriculum was not different enough from other district schools to warrant the special distinction, Portal became known exclusively as the district's "technology" alternative school.
was closed in 1980 due to low enrollment. Since its closure, the site housed different educational programs such as a Chinese language school and Gymboree Play & Music. The school site was located beside one of San Jose’s neighborhood parks, Murdock Park.
A multimillion dollar renovation of the school site was accomplished before the move in December 2003.
, which is probably due to its relationship with Apple
, which is based in the same city as the Cupertino Union School District. Portal is also unique in its village system. In it, each class is multi-age, so that older students can help the younger students. In most subjects, such as Social Studies
and Science
, the curriculum simply alternates: i.e. 5th grade one year, 4th grade the next year, then 5th Grade again, etc. However, in Math, where grade levels are not interchangeable, students split up into grades and are taught separately.
There are seven villages in 2005–2006 (which have three classes unless otherwise noted).
Note: Macaroni had two classes in 2003–2004.
In the school's first year, there were just two, apparently unnamed, villages: one K–2 and one 3–5. Each of them had 3 classrooms and 93 students, for a total of 31 students per class, the district maximum.
students signing up for the job. The yearbook is mainly a photo scrapbook
of the school year, showing pictures of things such as school plays.
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
and magnet school
Magnet school
In education in the United States, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities as school zones that feed into certain schools.There are magnet schools at the...
in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
serving students from Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
through Fifth grade
Fifth grade
Fifth grade is a year of education in the United States and many other nations. The fifth grade is the fifth school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 10 – 11 years old, and are preteens...
(formerly Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
through Sixth grade
Sixth grade
Sixth grade is a year of education in the United States and some other nations. The sixth grade is the sixth school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 11 – 12 years old...
). It is a member of the Cupertino Union School District
Cupertino Union School District
The Cupertino Union School District covers the city of Cupertino, California, and parts of San Jose, Sunnyvale, Saratoga, Santa Clara, and Los Altos, California. The CUSD operates twenty elementary schools and five middle schools...
, and is consistently one of the top five elementary schools in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, often second-best. Graduates usually go to Miller
Miller Middle School
Joaquin Miller Middle School, commonly referred to as Miller Middle School, is a co-educational, public middle school which teaches grades 6-8 in the West San Jose area of San Jose, California, USA near Cupertino. Miller Middle School is part of the Cupertino Union School District. Its official...
, Hyde, Kennedy, Lawson
Lawson Middle School
Lawson middle school is a public three year middle school located in Cupertino, California, USA. Lawson opened in August 2001 for the 2001-2002 school year. The school was named after Sam H. Lawson, founder of many events and groups in the city of Cupertino, including the Tournament of Bands, the...
, or Cupertino Middle Schools, and the FUHSD high schools.
History
Louis Portal Elementary School existed for some time during the 1960s1960s
The 1960s was the decade that started on January 1, 1960, and ended on December 31, 1969. It was the seventh decade of the 20th century.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe...
and '70s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
(in the front of the school—there is a plaque
Commemorative plaque
A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other vertical surface, and bearing text in memory of an important figure or event...
commemorating the original founding—but the school in its current form began in the school year of 1994–1995. For that year, the school was K–5, as the school administration thought it foolish to keep students for just one year (it still keeps that policy). The next year, the school expanded to K–6, and stayed that way for seven years afterward, until it decided to contract back to K–5, due to declining Sixth grade
Sixth grade
Sixth grade is a year of education in the United States and some other nations. The sixth grade is the sixth school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 11 – 12 years old...
enrollment figures.
Originally, the magnet school was to focus on both science and technology. However, when it became clear that the science curriculum was not different enough from other district schools to warrant the special distinction, Portal became known exclusively as the district's "technology" alternative school.
The Move
In 2003, with the planned conversion of Collins Elementary School into a needed new middle school because it was located on one of the district’s largest sites, the Board of Education chose to move Collins – a neighborhood school – to the nearby Portal site. Portal, an alternative school that served children from throughout the 26 square miles (67.3 km²) district, was moved not only to another site, but to another city – San Jose (CUSD has schools in six neighboring cities). The site chosen was that of a closed neighborhood school, Murdock Elementary, which had been named for a respected CUSD teacher and administrator, Carol Murdock. Murdock Elementary SchoolMurdock Elementary School
Murdock Elementary School was an elementary school located in San Jose, California that closed up in 1980 due to low enrollment. Its location is now occupied by Murdock-Portal Elementary School, commonly referred to as "Portal". Portal has not shut down, but now has a reputation for technology...
was closed in 1980 due to low enrollment. Since its closure, the site housed different educational programs such as a Chinese language school and Gymboree Play & Music. The school site was located beside one of San Jose’s neighborhood parks, Murdock Park.
A multimillion dollar renovation of the school site was accomplished before the move in December 2003.
Technology
Portal is famous for integrating technology into its curriculumCurriculum
See also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
, which is probably due to its relationship with Apple
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
, which is based in the same city as the Cupertino Union School District. Portal is also unique in its village system. In it, each class is multi-age, so that older students can help the younger students. In most subjects, such as Social Studies
Social studies
Social studies is the "integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence," as defined by the American National Council for the Social Studies...
and Science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, the curriculum simply alternates: i.e. 5th grade one year, 4th grade the next year, then 5th Grade again, etc. However, in Math, where grade levels are not interchangeable, students split up into grades and are taught separately.
There are seven villages in 2005–2006 (which have three classes unless otherwise noted).
| Village Name | Grade Level | Classes |
|---|---|---|
| Adelie Adelie Penguin The Adélie Penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae, is a species of penguin common along the entire Antarctic coast. They are among the most southerly distributed of all seabirds, as are the Emperor Penguin, the South Polar Skua, the Wilson's Storm Petrel, the Snow Petrel, and the Antarctic Petrel... |
2–3 | 3 |
| Galapagos Galapagos Penguin The Galapagos Penguin is a penguin endemic to the Galapagos Islands. It is the only penguin that lives north of the equator in the wild; it can survive due to the cool temperatures resulting from the Humboldt Current and cool waters from great depths brought up by the Cromwell Current... |
K–1 | 3 |
| Gentoo Gentoo penguin The Gentoo Penguin , Pygoscelis papua, is easily recognized by the wide white stripe extending like a bonnet across the top of its head and its bright orange-red bill. The gentoo penguin has pale whitish-pink webbed feet and a fairly long tail - the most prominent tail of all penguins. Chicks have... |
K–1 | 3 |
| Humboldt Humboldt Penguin The Humboldt Penguin is a South American penguin, that breeds in coastal Peru and Chile. Its nearest relatives are the African Penguin, the Magellanic Penguin and the Galápagos Penguin... (new) |
2–3 | 3 |
| Little Blue Little Penguin The Little Penguin is the smallest species of penguin. The penguin, which usually grows to an average of in height and in length , is found on the coastlines of southern Australia and New Zealand, with possible records from Chile.Apart from Little Penguins, they have several common names... |
K–1 | 3 |
| Macaroni Macaroni Penguin The Macaroni Penguin is a species of penguin found from the Subantarctic to the Antarctic Peninsula. One of six species of crested penguin, it is very closely related to the Royal Penguin, and some authorities consider the two to be a single species... |
2–3 | 3 |
| Rockhopper Rockhopper penguin The rockhopper penguins are three closely related taxa of crested penguins that have been traditionally treated as a single species and are sometimes split into two or three species. Not all experts agree on the classification of these penguins... |
4–5 | 6 |
Note: Macaroni had two classes in 2003–2004.
| Village Name (1995–2003) | Grade Level | Classes |
|---|---|---|
| Adelie Adelie Penguin The Adélie Penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae, is a species of penguin common along the entire Antarctic coast. They are among the most southerly distributed of all seabirds, as are the Emperor Penguin, the South Polar Skua, the Wilson's Storm Petrel, the Snow Petrel, and the Antarctic Petrel... |
3–4 | 3 |
| Galapagos Galapagos Penguin The Galapagos Penguin is a penguin endemic to the Galapagos Islands. It is the only penguin that lives north of the equator in the wild; it can survive due to the cool temperatures resulting from the Humboldt Current and cool waters from great depths brought up by the Cromwell Current... |
K–2 | 4 |
| Gentoo Gentoo penguin The Gentoo Penguin , Pygoscelis papua, is easily recognized by the wide white stripe extending like a bonnet across the top of its head and its bright orange-red bill. The gentoo penguin has pale whitish-pink webbed feet and a fairly long tail - the most prominent tail of all penguins. Chicks have... |
1–2 | 2 |
| Little Blue Little Penguin The Little Penguin is the smallest species of penguin. The penguin, which usually grows to an average of in height and in length , is found on the coastlines of southern Australia and New Zealand, with possible records from Chile.Apart from Little Penguins, they have several common names... |
K–2 | 4 |
| Macaroni Macaroni Penguin The Macaroni Penguin is a species of penguin found from the Subantarctic to the Antarctic Peninsula. One of six species of crested penguin, it is very closely related to the Royal Penguin, and some authorities consider the two to be a single species... |
3–4 | 3 |
| Rockhopper Rockhopper penguin The rockhopper penguins are three closely related taxa of crested penguins that have been traditionally treated as a single species and are sometimes split into two or three species. Not all experts agree on the classification of these penguins... |
5–6 | 4 |
In the school's first year, there were just two, apparently unnamed, villages: one K–2 and one 3–5. Each of them had 3 classrooms and 93 students, for a total of 31 students per class, the district maximum.
Lunch Clubs
Like many schools, Portal runs 'lunch clubs' for students. These clubs are entirely organized and staffed by volunteers, and include activities such as chess, running, cooking, and playing computer games.PEN
Portal Educational Network. A group of fifth graders that split up into 3-4 groups, each group producing 2 "films" over the year, including a variety of things including interviews with assembly performers and authors, safety issues, and covering a wide variety of clubs and performances, giving a brief intro to plays and such. With the help of some technologically gifted teachers, they put together the film and add special effects using I-Movies. They then broadcast their film to the school, giving an update on campus life to the entire demographics.Yearbook
The Yearbook Club produces the school yearbook each year, also at lunch. The selection process is much the same as that of PEN, with Fifth gradeFifth grade
Fifth grade is a year of education in the United States and many other nations. The fifth grade is the fifth school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 10 – 11 years old, and are preteens...
students signing up for the job. The yearbook is mainly a photo scrapbook
Scrapbook
Scrapbook can refer to:* Scrapbooking, the process of making a scrapbook* Scrapbook , a Mac OS application* Scrapbook , a Switchblade Symphony album* Scrapbook * ScrapBook, a Firefox extension...
of the school year, showing pictures of things such as school plays.