Las Palmas is a model for shared decision-making. Our School Site Council is the primary decision-making body and encompasses parents, community members, teachers, classified staff, and administrators. and decisions reflect the consensus of our entire school community.

 In addition, Las Palmas has implemented a parent compact designed to increase parental involvement. Parents can do a variety of things to volunteer. They can help in the classrooms, prepare materials for the teachers at home, or help organize PTA fundraisers. The efforts of the parent volunteers are coordinated by our community liaison. She also serves as a resource to parents by connecting them with available community services.

Our school focuses on efficiently organizing the instructional day to best meet the needs of our students. Kindergarten students receive 201 minutes of instruction per day while first through third grades receive 285 minutes of instruction.

Upper grade students in grades four through six are instructed 308 minutes per day.

 The most powerful way that the entire school community supports quality instruction is by knowing and implementing the Capistrano Objectives for Reaching Excellence. To provide students with maximum opportunities for success, all teachers have been trained in Accelerating Literacy. Accelerating Literacy is a balanced language arts program.

Teachers have also been trained in Soar to Success, Open Court, and GLAD. Teachers use literature to instruct students in cueing strategies such as phonetic word attack skills, context clues, and language patterns. Primary teachers have also been trained in a multi-sensory approach to learning phonemic awareness and beginning reading.

The adoption of textbooks and other supplemental instructional materials in Capistrano Unified School District follows the state curriculum cycle established by the California Department of Education. Each year a major subject matter discipline such as mathematics, language arts or science is reviewed and updated. An instructional discipline rotates through this cycle every seven years. The focus for the 2002-03 school year was the implementation of newly adopted mathematics and writing materials.

The grades K-5 adopted textbooks in mathematics are Houghton Mifflin, and in writing are Great Source. Language arts materials were adopted in Spring 2003. CUSD teachers are involved in aspects of the adoption process. They identify materials to be piloted, pilot materials, evaluate the materials to ensure they are aligned to state standards and make a recommendation to the Board of Trustees. Funding for the purchase of new textbooks is provided through state textbook funds and Schiff-Bustamante monies. With few exceptions where class sets are maintained, all students have a copy of each adopted textbook.

Technology is an integral feature of the CUSD instructional program. Internet connectivity is established to schools and classrooms. The Internet is used as an aide to assist students in conducting large-scale research.

All instructional minute requirements in Capistrano Unified School District exceed state requirements.

All CUSD elementary schools had nine minimum school days for non-kindergarten classes.