Dear Parents,
Happy New Year! As we start the new year and new semester, we have a number opportunities for you to engage around themes of wellbeing for your children. You will see that the items listed below about the upcoming parent coffee, Freedom from Chemical Dependency session and book study all take into consideration a variety of factors that support wellbeing. We hope to see you on campus for many of these events!
January 21 Parent Coffee Our January parent coffee will take place from 8:45-9:45am in the Hall of Light. The focus will be on student wellbeing. We will examine data from last’ years wellbeing profiler, a school-wide survey that collected data on student wellbeing. We will develop ideas for supporting wellbeing at home. We will also take time to preview the Challenge Success Survey that will be administered to middle school students in February.
Semester Reports Report cards for the first semester will be distributed on January 23, 2020. Your child will bring home a copy of the his/her report card and a copy of his/her Learning Habits reflection from the first semester.
Yearbook Photos
Students who were not photographed during the first semester or who have enrolled since yearbook photos were taken in August 2019 will have the opportunity to have their photo taken the week of January 27. The middle school office will contact individual students who have not had their photo taken.
FCD Prevention Specialist on Campus, January 27th-31st
As part of our health education program and ongoing commitment to prevention and wellbeing, each year we invite a trained prevention specialist from FCD Prevention Works to join our community. FCD Prevention Works is a non-profit organization that provides substance abuse prevention education for schools. Their mission is to:
· Encourage and support the non-use of alcohol and other illegal or illicit drugs during the growing years
· Empower young people to make healthy, responsible choices regarding alcohol and other drug use
· Teach students and adults how to recognize the early warning signs of substance abuse and to intervene appropriately
· Educate students, parents, teachers, and administrators on the physiological and psychological effects of alcohol and other drugs
The prevention specialist will be meeting with middle and high school students during the week of January 27th - 31st. Their aim is to provide students with the knowledge, understanding, and skills they need to make intelligent, healthy choices about alcohol and other drug use.
· Effective ways to communicate with your child about alcohol/drug use
· Up-to-date facts about current alcohol/drug use and trends
· What to say about your own experiences with alcohol and/or drug experimentation
· How to spot early warning signs of trouble and effective ways to respond
· The importance of communication among community members
This program presents a perfect opportunity for discussing alcohol and other drug-related issues with your children. Parent involvement is crucial to efforts to reduce the risks that teenagers face and in the commitment to keeping children safe. We hope to see you on January 27th. Elementary School parents are also welcome to attend, if interested. If you would like further information, go to www.fcd.org.
Parenting Book Group starting in February
from Nigel Holdsworth, School Psychologist, and Jen Gold, MS Counselor
Join us in discussing The Strength Switch: How The New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish by Lea Waters. The ideas in this book apply to parenting children of all ages, Elementary, Middle and High School, so this is open to all parents.
Here is a brief description from Dr Waters' website: This game-changing book shows us the extraordinary results of focusing on our children’s strengths rather than always trying to correct their weaknesses. By showing us how to flick the “strengths switch,” Lea Waters demonstrates how we can not only help our children build resilience, optimism, and achievement but we can also help inoculate them against today’s pandemic of depression and anxiety.
Dr Waters' book is available in English on amazon.in and has been translated into 8 additional languages (Korean, Japanese, French, and others)! Check here to purchase a book in your home language over the winter break. All English language levels are welcome and encouraged to attend. We look forward to seeing you on Mondays on the following dates and times:
· February 10th at 2:00 (Chapters 1 and 2) in the BBT
· February 17th at 2:00 (Chapters 3 and 4) in the BBT
· February 24th at 2:00 (Chapters, 5, 6,7) in the BBT
· March 2nd at 1:00 (Chapters 8, 9, 10) in the Hall of Light (will end in time to attend the PCA meeting)
We have a limited number of spaces open for this book club as we want to ensure that we are able to make it a truly useful learning experience. Please sign up on this website if you are interested in attending.
Season 3 ASAs
Jessica Pechhold Andrew Ranson
Middle School Principal Middle School Associate Principal