Principal's Message
Hello CMS Families,
During the month of October, Ms. Shelton and I are going to focusing our conversations with the staff around resilience and motivation. As educators these are important topics that are near and dear to our hearts. I want to share with you, our parent community, part of what we will be working in order for you to have a deeper understanding of the work we are doing. In addition, I feel like some of the strategies we empoy at school might be useful at home. Throughout this month, I will share with you the resource we are working with at school and some of the strategies we will be working to implement in our classrooms.
A big part of our job as educators is to motivate students to do their best. This is not an easy task and there is no magic formula we can employ to get students going. Everybody, no matter what age, is motivated by the things they enjoy but this becomes a problem for educators working with children who are still figuring out who they are. Not to mention all the distractions the modern age provides for us to compete against. Parents and educators of teenagers face a Sisyphean task in trying to keep our kids on the right path.
The good news is that our brains are hardwired to be naturally curious, in other words, we all want to learn. In fact, I have always held the belief that learning is fun, but learning can also be a lot of hard work. Often times we need to provide a little encouragement to our kids to get them started on a non preferred tasks, like doing chores or homework. Adults often resort to providing rewards, threats or even fear to motivate kids. Children are master deal makes, i.e. “I’ll do this for that.” They learn quid-pro-quo at very early ages. This is called extrinsic motivation. But research suggests that these types of techniques do not work in the long run. Extrinsic motivation can even have a negative effect on teaching our students to be self-motivated because they are not learning independently how to make good choices.
There has been a great deal of research lately on motivation and self-determination. Psychologists Edward Deci and Richard Ryan state that three things help motivation, “Autonomy (a sense of control over learning), competence (an ability to handle challenging tasks) and relatedness (feeling a sense of belonging).” When these three thing are present we see students develop strong internal motivation.
This is why you see us stressing community building, risk taking, failing forward and resilience here at CMS. We know that these are the building blocks of learning.
I have five suggestions we are working on at school that can help create intrinsic motivation for our students and will help us create a learning community that helps us develop autonomy, competence and relatedness for our students. This week I will write about the first thing we are working on here at school. You can also try this at home.
- PROVIDE CHOICE - everybody likes to decide how they spend their time, however, children do not often choose wisely (video games, social media and TV come to mind). By simply helping kids see that they have options can empower them to make better decisions. First, you must stress that they have to spend some time everyday participating in learning, and engaging in extracurricular activities. For some students, too much freedom is not a good thing, so you may have to provide a list of options and/or time constraints. Giving students the opportunity to pick and choose the way they spend their time helps develop a greater sense of autonomy. Our jobs as the adults in the room is to monitor their behavior and redirect when necessary. A nudge in the right direction can go a long way. Some of our kiddos might even need to struggle and fail in their time management efforts in order to learn and make progress. But remember, failure is not a bad thing as long as we are failing forward.
During the remainder of the month, I will present the other five strategies that help foster intrinsic motivation in our children as well as other resources for building resilience. Stay tuned….
Tom Domer
Principal
__________________________________________
Has your child ever wanted to be published? Here’s their chance! Central Middle School is launching a literary journal, Mustang Musings, which will be accepting submissions of poems, short stories, original artwork and photography. If your child would like to submit a piece, they can email it directly to their English teacher by Friday, October 12th. If they have any questions, they can ask their English teacher or email Christine Chang at [email protected]. Thank you!
Mustang Roundup
Arroyo CMS PTA
Sign Up for Your PTA Membership
Central Arroyo PTA membership is available for just $20 per family or $10 per individual.
Becoming a member offers the opportunity to contribute to important discussions that impact your children’s experience at school; meet other parents and build community; and partner with the CMS/Arroyo school community to ensure a safe, welcoming, and fun learning environment.
Joining the PTA is an easy way to show your support for the school and does not require a large time commitment – there is no obligation to attend meetings or volunteer for events. If you are interested in becoming more involved, you can always attend the monthly meetings or choose from the many volunteer opportunities available throughout the year.
Sign up for your PTA membership here.
Fall Fundraiser!
Thank you to all of the families who have given their PTA Partnership donation so far! We are more than half way to our fundraising goal!
Did you know that 40% (isn't it more like 30%?) of the PTA budget is allocated to teachers to purchase supplies and materials for their classroom? Carlie Peck, 6th grade science teacher, used a portion of her funds towards science lab materials. PTA funds covered supplies for her Spaghetti Tower and M&Ms Color Labs. For the Spaghetti Tower Lab, Ms. Peck's students attempted to engineer the tallest tower possible using only 20 spaghetti noodles and 1 meter of masking tape to support 1 large marshmallow. Duringthe M&Ms Color Lab, students practiced collecting and graphing data with a random sample of regular or crispy M&Ms.
If you have not had a chance to donate, please do so here.
Thank you for your support!
-Central Arroyo PTA.
The Enchanced Forest Book Fair is this Week (October 1st-5th!)
Every year the Book Fair raises thousands of dollars in books for the school library and funds for the PTA--and it encourages hundreds of Central/Arroyo students to read!
Central students will be visiting the Book Fair throughout the week with their classrooms. The Book Fair will also be open before and after school. Please tell your student to swing by.
Enchanted Family Book Night will be held in the evening on Wednesday, October 3rd from 6:00-8:00 pm. Bring the whole family to the enchanted forest of books and discover your story. In addition, there will be delicious cuisine available.
Parents are also invited to join us for last some minute shopping at Bagels and Books on Friday, October 5th from 8:00-9:00 am.
We are still looking for additional volunteers. Please consider signing up for a slot (or more!) at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0545ada72ca5ff2-book
Thank you in advance for your support! Funds raised from the Book Fair support the Central Arroyo PTA. If you have any questions please contact Kristy Ettinger ([email protected]), Julie Ledford ([email protected]) or Stephanie Brill ([email protected]).
Walk and Roll to School Day, Wednesday 10/10
Wednesday, October 10th is National Walk and Roll to School Day. On this day students and staff will be showing their support for active transportation by choosing to walk, pedal, or scoot their way to class. Prizes will be available for those who commute to school in any means other than a single occupancy vehicle.
For more information on safety and preferred routes see link: https://tinyurl.com/ycrvjlwl
Calling all Volunteers for the White Oaks Walk-a-Thon
It’s time for the White Oaks Walk-a-Thon, where our preschool through 3rd grade kids come out for an afternoon of fundraising and fun! We’re looking for middle school volunteers to help with the Family Fun Day on Sunday, October 14th. Student volunteers lead yard games, supervise the bouncy slide, hand out snacks and more. It’s a great way to get volunteer hours while helping out our local school. Visit White Oaks Walk-a-Thon 2018 to sign up. Make sure to find the opportunities specially marked for students. Thanks in advance!
All Aboard to the 11th Annual Transportation Museum at Brittan Acres
Bring your family and friends to this year's Transportation Museum, an exciting event featuring fun, interactive exhibits related to all kinds of transportation.Guests can solve a mystery in our train-themed escape room, program mini robots to learn about self-driving cars, play airplane and train simulators, view a model railroad display, and more! For the adults, there are exhibits ranging from solutions to Bay Area traffic to the history of Peninsula transportation, plus representatives from the California High-Speed Rail Authority and other local transit agencies. The museum is created and run by Sequoia High School student Andrew Mancini, who attended Brittan Acres and Central. You don't want to miss this year's Transportation Museum...it's guaranteed fun for all ages!
This year's museum will take place in the Multi-Use Room at Brittan Acres Elementary School on Sunday, October 14 from 10-3. Admission is free! Please enter on Tamarack Avenue through the teacher's parking lot. Feel free to share this event with others who you think might be interested. For details, directions, and more information, please visit TheTransportationMuseum.com.
SCSD Athletics
Please use the DISTRICT LINK https://www.scsdsports.org for information on SCSD Athletics. Call 415-334-3333 or email [email protected] with any questions.
SCEF
Save the Date! Faculty and Friends Concert, November 9th
Want to expose your family—young and old—to music of all types? Join our SCSD music teachers, local musicians and community members for an evening of live music. This popular event, held at St. Charles Church in San Carlos, is great for the whole family. Refreshments will be available for sale at intermission. Support SCEF, music in our schools and enjoy our local musicians. Tickets go on sale later this month.
SCEF Honors Our Dedicated Volunteers
Earlier this month, the SCEF Board honored long-time volunteers and members of the Leadership Circle at a reception hosted by Scenic Scapes. Congratulations to Nandini Gondhalekar, Annie Mayoss, Susan Raymond and Kari and Jim Schnapp of JSD Construction.
Our community is grateful for your dedication to our students and schools!
Leadership Circle honors donors who show extraordinary, continued commitment to supporting our mission. To learn more about the Leadership Circle, please go to www.scefkids.org/take-action/families/
Celebrate Fall With These Upcoming Parties
Garden of Epicurean Delights - Oct. 13
- Spend a night high atop La Mesa, with delectable delicacies delighting the palate, vistas of San Francisco twinkling in the distance.
- Entry includes a gourmand's artisanal extravanganza of homemade charcuterie, cheeses and breads, as well as personalized drinks appropriate for the evening.
Rockin' Halloween Bash at Club Fox - Oct. 26
- Once again, we pull out all the stops for THE Costume Ball of the YEAR!!! Get your groove on with hopping music that will have you dancing the night away.
Buy your tickets and check out our other parties benefiting SCEF here: https://scefkids.ejoinme.org/ParentParties2018
Healthy Cities
Healthy Cities Orientation and Training is Coming!
BE A TUTOR! Please join us and learn the basics to become a volunteer tutor with Healthy Cities Tutoring.
WHEN: Wednesday, October 17
TIME: 8:30-10:30 am OR 6:30-8:30 pm. (Attend whichever session is most convenient for you.)
LOCATION: White Oaks School MUR, 1901 White Oak Way
Volunteers are asked to tutor 45 minutes once a week at any of our SCSD schools. No prior tutoring experience is needed and the tutoring time is flexible - either before, during or after school. Tutoring sessions generally take place at the school site.
There are always more students in need than there are tutors, so your help is greatly appreciated. We welcome high school students, parents, grandparents or any of our caring community members to join our team of volunteers supporting over 300 children in our schools.
We hope to see you on Oct. 17! Please contact Cris Adair with any questions, call (650) 508-7327, or visit our website for more information and to complete an application. Thank you!
High School Happenings
Sequoia High School
Find out what’s happening at Sequoia!
We have numerous websites, groups, social media options and publications at our school for you to explore and enjoy. Here are just a few good sources to get you started*:
Sequoia High School:
SHSEF:
https://www.facebook.com/ shsef/
Sequoia PTSA:
Subscribe to the Sentinel Newsletter: http://www.sequoiaptsa.org/?page_id=116
Communications Resource List for parents: http://bit.ly/2pCGWdf
Sequoia Visual and Performing Arts Boosters:
https://www.facebook.com/sequoiavpaboosters/
https://sequoiavpaboosters.wordpress.com
Sequoia Sports
Sequoia Spirit & Sports Boosters:
https://sites.google.com/site/sequoiaboosterclub/
Sequoia Media Center:
https://www.facebook.com/seqhsmc/
The Raven Report:
Seq Life:
Get the app on iTunes: http://apple.co/2oP18IN
SAFE Afterschool Program:
Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat:
Sequoia_Instagram_Twitter_Snapchat.txt
Carlmont High School
Hello and Welcome Incoming Carlmont Scot Families!
Please find our September Carlmont Corner attached . Mark your calendars for Monday, October 8 as the first day to sign up for Individual and Group Shadowing and Tuesday, October 16 for Parent Information Night, Campus Tours will begin at 6:00 p.m. in the Quad – the Presentation will being at 7:00 p.m. in the Stogner Gym. Parent Information Night is for 8th Grade parents only, it provides a broad overview of the academic program at Carlmont. After campus tours, a brief introduction from Carlmont Principal Ralph Crame, follow by the presentation from elective and athletic programs, parents will then be dismissed to nearby classrooms to hear from Carlmont teachers on the four core curriculum areas: Math, Science, English and Social Studies.
INFORMATION
• Carlmont High School website: http://carlmonths.org/
• Sequoia Union High School District website: http://www.seq.org/
MIDDLE SCHOOL LIAISONS
• Central, Charter, & Tierra Linda: Chris Cook [email protected]
• Nesbit, Ralston & Non-Feeder: Carol Castro [email protected]
• For non-feeder school ONLY: email [email protected] to join mailing list
Summit/Everest High School
For more information go to summitps.org
Design Tech High School