Today we brought in $106.96. Keep bringing in those recyclables on Friday morning, and remember, wine bottles don’t count! They go into the regular recycling at your curbside.
FYI
Student Council will be selling ValGrams next week at recess/lunch - 25 cents each or 5 for $1. The monies will go to Haiti relief.
FEBRUARY’S LIFESKILL: HONESTY
Truthfulness, sincerity, honor, fairness
Trustworthiness, being genuine
We all know being honest means not telling lies, but this LifeSkill encompasses much more. Honesty means speaking up with the truth even when keeping quiet seems easier. It can also be defined as sincerity—really meaning what you say to others and not being fake. Valuing honesty makes you a stronger person because no matter what other people say or do, you can always count on—and be proud of—yourself and your integrity. Here are 8 good reasons to tell the truth that you can share with your children:
Telling the truth lets everyone know what really happened. There is less chance of misunderstanding, confusion or conflict.
Telling the truth protects innocent people from being blamed or punished.
Telling the truth allows everyone to learn from what happened.
You usually get into less trouble for telling the truth than for lying (and getting caught).
Other people trust you more when you tell the truth.
You don’t have to tell (and remember) more lies to keep your story straight.
You gain a reputation for being truthful, a trait most people value.
Telling the truth helps you to feel secure and peaceful inside yourself.
I tell students that there is one person who is hurt by a “little white lie.” That person is you. Each time you lie, it gets easier to lie the next time. Each time you tell the truth—even when it is really hard to do—your truth muscles get stronger. That makes it easier to tell the truth the next time.
FIT FOR LIFE
With the Super Bowl this weekend, this article by Bill Walsh, former 49er coach, seems very appropriate: Fit for Life: A Coach's Pep Talk
"Sports isn't just about shaping healthier bodies. It's about shaping minds and lifelong attitudes. Polls and statistics make it woefully clear that America is facing a fitness crisis, and that the problems begin in the early years, when kids spend much of their time in school.
As budget cuts affect physical education as well as music and arts education, zealous advocates of organized sports, especially in middle school and high school, are emphasizing the fitness benefits of athletics. Obviously, if we don't confront the problem of couch-potato, computer-tethered kids, a daunting array of health problems will result as they grow up. But I've been involved in team sports for most of my life, and I'm worried about another kind of fitness.
From my earliest coaching seasons, I saw dramatic examples of how athletics can affect the way participants learn about dealing with the good, the bad, and the blurry aspects of life after school. In all sports, you have to hone certain skills in order to win, or even to lose gracefully. The justifiable pride that comes with mastering these skills -- or, more specifically, with the effort and discipline that mastery takes -- can carry over into all kinds of personal and professional endeavors.
Most importantly, kids who take part in any sport get to feel the euphoria of victory, but they also learn how to deal with loss. You have to discover how to live with success as well as with disappointment, and sports can provide an intensive course in both lessons. In team sports, players have to learn to accept a role -- often a supporting one. Whether it's as a third stringer who has to work hard in practice but warms the bench in games, a crew rower who is no more and no less than one-eighth of her team, or an offensive lineman whose blocking job is vital but unglamorous, a team player learns to do what has to be done.
Having to play a role determined by coaches, whether it is exactly what a player hopes for or not, teaches the acceptance of authority -- but not an automatic, robotic acceptance. One of the most important lessons young athletes learn is that those in authority -- coaches like me -- make mistakes, and that you have to live with those mistakes and play your best despite them. Few people go through life without working for someone totally unsuited to his or her job, and a coach's bad calls can be pretty good preparation for those situations, because quitting isn't always an option.
Athletes have to also understand that anxiety is not a flaw, and that overcoming it is possible -- and sometimes a lot easier than they thought. Finally, a boy or girl who plays a team sport learns how to operate in an atmosphere in which there's no guarantee of equity: A coach may play favorites, or someone may not get the credit he or she deserves. This is not to say that participating in sports teaches a kind of fatalistic passivity, but the awareness that life is not always fair is a lesson that has its uses.
The social elements of team sports have far-reaching effects. Team members develop the ability to communicate under stress. They learn to respect others whether they like them or not, and if a team is ethically coached, its members also are taught to respect their opponents no matter how fierce the rivalry.
Let all the lessons of sports be taught. Students will be better for it."
CYBERBULLYING
Whether adults like it or not, Internet technologies are evolving each day. Young people growing up today will never know a world without instant access, wi-fi and online social networking. Despite the list of growing threats in cyberspace, the World Wide Web is here to stay.
A book parents may find helpful is Nancy Willard’s Cyber Safe Kids, Cyber Savvy Teens: Helping Young People Learn to Use the Internet Safely and Responsibly. The book provides helpful strategies to keep children safe online, and emphasizes the role of the parent in helping youth navigate the pros and cons of cyberworld. Throughout her book, Willard’s thesis is clear: It is your responsibility as a parent to impart “the knowledge, skills and values to make safe and responsible choices in this environment. This is a reality that you can’t ignore.” She states that denying computer access altogether is doing your child a huge disservice because it creates a strong desire for the “forbidden fruits” of cyberspace.
Tips:
• Beware of “quick fixes”….filtering software can garner a false sense of security in some parents.
• Create a parent/child Internet use agreement that reflects the rules and values decided upon by you and your child.
• Be aware of anxiety about “unplugging” from social networking sites or other communication technologies; it can be a sign of Internet addiction.
• Doing homework while IM-ing, listening to music, surfing the Web and texting? Put an end to multi-tasking, which is actually task-shifting, a skill that young brains have not yet mastered.
• Lay a strong foundation of “real life” personal values and standards, and emphasize that “online life” values and standards are the same.
• Collaborate with the parents of your child’s friends. Reach out to them and work together to create an accepted standard of Internet use for your children.
• Do emphasize that cyberbullying is everyone’s problem. There is no gray area when it comes to cyberbullying or any kind of aggression. You are either for it or against it. The child has the power of choice -- to keep silent about a degrading Web site or to speak up and tell a trusted adult; to repost a bulletin and continue spreading a rumor or to stop the rumor in its tracks.
• Talk about privacy. Make it clear to your children that personal information should never be posted online. Establish an agreement that their online profiles are not private to you. And keep the computer in a common area of your house.
• Do show your children that you know what you’re talking about. And if you don’t know, find out. Ask them to walk you through their MySpace profile or their buddy list. Ask questions. Comment on what you think is appropriate or not appropriate. Ask your child’s opinion. Start the conversation in your home.
Warning Signs:
A child or teenager may be a victim if he/she:
• Unexpectedly stops using the computer;
• Appears nervous or jumpy when an instant message or email appears;
• Appears to be angry, depressed or frustrated after using the computer;
• Avoids discussions about what they are doing on the computer; or
• Becomes abnormally withdrawn from usual friends and family members
A child or teenager may be an aggressor if he or she: he/she:
• Quickly switches screens or closes programs when you walk by;
• Gets unusually upset if computer privileges are reduced;
• Avoids discussions about what they are doing on the computer; or
• Appears to be using multiple online accounts (or an account that is not their own).
In general, if a child acts in ways that are inconsistent with his or her behavior when using the computer, it’s time to investigate.
KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION OPEN
We are now registering for next year's kindergarteners. Come to the office if you need to get a packet for a kindergarten student for the 2010- 2011 school year. If we receive your paperwork prior to April 1st, the district guarantees you a place in your neighborhood school. Kindergarten students are assessed by myself and/or the teachers in June or the third week of August. Appointments are scheduled and sent to you in the mail at the beginning of August if your child hasn’t already been assessed. If you will be on vacation, come and see us so that we can schedule a June assessment date. Informational packets are sent the week before school starts and will contain class placement. We will hold a new student visitation on March 9th in Café Val starting at 8:30. We will send out additional information about this as the date moves closer.
